Daily Current Affairs February 02 2022

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: IMPORTANT DAYS

Indian Coast Guard celebrates its 46th Raising Day:

• Indian Coast Guard is celebrating its 46th Raising Day on February 1^st,2022
• From just seven surface platforms in 1978, the Indian Coast Guard, (ICG) has grown into a formidable force with 158 ships and 70 aircraft in its inventory.
• It is likely to achieve targeted force levels of 200 surface platforms and 80 aircraft by
• As the fourth largest Coast Guard in the world, it has played a significant role in securing the Indian coasts and enforcing regulations in the maritime zones of India.
• The ICG has saved over one thousand two hundred lives at sea in the last one year and more than 11 thousand since its inception.
• One of the primary duties of the Indian Coast Guard is prevention of smuggling through maritime routes in its area of responsibility.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

Govt approves strategic buyer for Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited:

• Government has approved strategic buyer for Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited located in Odisha.
• Secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, Tuhin Kanta Pandey, that the highest bid of 12,100 crore rupees by Tata Steel Long Products Limited is accepted.
• This is the first instance of privatization of a public sector steel manufacturing enterprise in India.
• The success of the transaction is a win-win situation for all.

Govt allows Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh to avail Rs 7,309 cr additional borrowing for power sector:

• Finance Ministry has granted additional borrowing permission of 7,309 crore rupees to Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh for undertaking the reforms in power sector.
• Rajasthan has been allowed to borrow additional five thousand 186 crore rupees while Andhra Pradesh has been allowed to borrow additional two thousand 123 crore rupees.
• The objectives of the additional borrowing permissions are to improve the operational and economic efficiency of the sector and promote a sustained increase in paid electricity consumption.
• Power Ministry is the nodal Ministry for assessment of performance of States and determining their eligibility for granting additional borrowing permission.

PM addresses 30th National Commission for Women Foundation Day programme:

• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi addressed 30th National Commission for Women Foundation Day programme via video conference.
• The theme of the programme ‘She the Change Maker’ is aimed at celebrating the achievements of women in different fields.
• The State Commissions for Women, Department of Women and Child Development in State Governments, University and College teaching faculty and students, voluntary organisations, women entrepreneurs and business associations were present.
• AatmaNirbhar Bharat campaign is linking the ability of women with the development of the country.
• This change is visible as about 70 per cent beneficiaries of Mudra Yojna are women.
• The country has seen a three-fold increase in the number of women self-help groups in the last 6-7 years.
• Similarly, in more than 60 thousand startups that have emerged after 2016, 45 percent have at least one-woman director.

Applications invited from Indian Women Scientists & Entrepreneurs for prestigious National Tech Excellence Award for Women 2022:

• Applications have been invited from Indian Women Scientists and Entrepreneurs to felicitate a select few with the prestigious India National Tech Excellence Award for Women 2022 for pursuing, prevailing, creating an impact, and etching out stories of inspiration for future young girls.
• Technology Development Board, a statutory Body of the Department of Science and Technology, on the special occasion of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, has instituted the award to honour the outstanding contribution of women scientists and entrepreneurs in commercializing innovative indigenous technologies.
• The awards will be presented on International Women’s Day on 8th March, 2022.
• The awards are categorized under two categories National Women Scientist Award for Excellence in Translational Research and National Women Entrepreneur Award.
• Both the awards will be presented in two distinct subcategories of Senior.
• The awardees will receive a cash award of ₹3 Lakh and ₹1 Lakh for senior and young, respectively, and number of awards will be two in each category.

Seven Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel Parks with an investment of about Rupees 4,500 crore approved to facilitate integrated textile value chain:

• The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind addressed the joint sitting of two Houses of the Parliament.
• The PM MITRA Parks and various initiatives taken by the Centre to boost the integrated textile value chain.
• Along with developing new areas, my government is restoring our traditional strength in domains in which we possess centuries of experience.
• In this direction, my government has approved seven Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel Parks with an investment of about Rupees 4,500 crore.
• This will facilitate integrated textile value chain.
• These mega textile parks will attract both Indian and foreign investors, and create lakhs of new employment opportunities.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India, Russia holds consultations on UNSC issues in New Delhi:

• The Bilateral consultations on United Nations related issues were held between India and Russia in New Delhi.
• The Indian delegation was led by Secretary (West) in Ministry of External Affairs Reenat Sandhu, while the Russian delegation was led by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Ambassador Sergey Vasilyevich Vershinin.
• During the meeting, both sides held wide ranging discussions on issues on the UN Security Council agenda and related developments.
• Both sides also agreed to deepen cooperation on issues of mutual interest at multilateral platforms.
• The Russian delegation briefed India on its priorities during 76th session of the UN General Assembly.
• Both sides also agreed to work closely together, given the common challenges faced and in keeping with their long standing Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS

Launch of the Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy at IIT Dharwad:

• A virtual function was held to mark the launch of the Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy (GCoE-ACE) at the Indian Institute of Technology, Dharwad (IITDh), Karnataka on 28th January 2022 in the presence of, K. Vijay Raghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser, Government of India.
• The center is supported by the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) donation from
• The first phase of the CSR project with HHSIF is to establish equipment for the GCoE-ACE mainly as skill development, fabrication, and R&D equipment.
• The subsequent phases are envisaged to encourage innovation and to provide incubation support for the solutions to the grass-root problem statements in the affordable and clean-energy domain.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS

Rs 1,38,394 crore gross GST revenue collected for January 2022:

• The gross GST revenue collected in the month of January, 2022 is one lakh 38 thousand 394 crore rupees.
• Of which CGST is 24 thousand 674 crore rupees, SGST is over 32 thousand crore rupees, IGST is over 72 thousand crore rupees and cess is nine thousand 674 crore rupees.
• The highest monthly GST collection has been one lakh 39 thousand 708 crore rupees in the month of April 2021.
• The revenues for the month of January this year is 15 per cent higher than the GST revenues in the same month last year.
• This is for the fourth time GST collection has crossed one lakh 30 thousand crore rupees mark.
• The improvement in revenue has also been due to various rate rationalization measures undertaken by the Council to correct inverted duty structure.

Retail Inflation Remains Moderate During Current Year; 5.2% In 2021-22 (April-December):

• The retail inflation, as measured by Consumer Price Index-Combined (CPI-C) moderates to 5.2% in 2021-22 (April-December) from 6.6% in the corresponding period of 2020-21.
• The Survey also says effective supply-side management kept prices of most essential commodities under control during the year.

Domestic Inflation:

• Compared to many Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs) and advance economies, the Survey finds that Consumer Price Index – Combined (CPI-C) inflation in India has remained range bound in the recent months, touching 5.2% in December 2021.

Global Inflation:

• The Economic Survey says that in 2021, inflation picked up globally as economic activity revived with opening up of economies.
• Inflation surged from 0.7 % in 2020 to around 3.1 % in 2021 in the advanced economies.
• For instance, inflation in the USA touched 7.0 % in December 2021, the highest since 1982. In the UK, it hit a nearly 30 years high of 5.4% in December 2021.
• Among emerging markets, Brazil witnessed inflation of 10.1% in December 2021 and Turkey also saw double digit inflation touching 36.1%.
• Argentina has been experiencing inflation rates above 50% during the last 6 months.

First Revised Estimates of National Income, Consumption Expenditure, Saving and Capital Formation, 2020-21:

• The National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation is, in this press note, releasing the

1. First Revised Estimates of National Income, Consumption Expenditure, Saving and Capital Formation for the financial year 2020-21 along with
2. Second Revised Estimates for the financial year 2019-20 and

• Third Revised Estimates for the financial year 2018-19 (with Base Year 2011-12) as per the revision policy of national accounts.
• Earlier estimates for 2011-12 to 2019-20 were released vide Press Note dated 29th January, 2021 and Provisional Estimates of financial year 2020-21 were released on 31st May, 2021.
• Nominal GDP or GDP at current prices for the year 2020-21 is estimated at ₹01 lakh crore as against ₹200.75 lakh crore for the year 2019-20, showing a contraction of 1.4 per cent during 2020-21 as compared to growth of 6.2 per cent during 2019-20.
• Real GDP or GDP at constant (2011-12) prices for the years 2020-21 and 2019-20 stands at ₹58 lakh crore and ₹145.16 lakh crore, respectively, showing a contraction of 6.6 per cent during 2020-21 as compared to growth of 3.7 per cent during 2019-20.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Lt Gen Manoj Pande to take charge as the Army Vice Chief

• The Government has appointed Lieutenant General Manoj Pande as the new Vice Chief of the Army Staff on February 1.
• He will succeed Lieutenant General Chandi Prasad Mohanty who superannuated on January 31, 2022.

Note :

• The Vice Chief of Army Staff is the Deputy head and is the second-highest-ranking officer of the Indian Army.

About Lieutenant General Manoj Pande :

• Lieutenant General Manoj Chandrashekhar Pande, is a serving General Officer in the Indian Army.
• Lt Gen Pande, an alumnus of National Defence Academy, was commissioned in the Corps of Engineers (The Bombay Sappers) in December 1982.
• Previously, he served as the General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Command, having taken over on 1 June 2021.
• He also commanded the Andaman and Nicobar Command as the Commander-in-Chief (CINCAN).
• Pande has commanded the 117 Engineer Regiment along the Line of Control (LOC) in Jammu and Kashmir.
• He was in command of the regiment during Operation Parakram.

Awards & Honors :

• He is a recipient of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal , Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, and the Vishisht Seva Medal.
• Also he has been awarded the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Commendation Card and two GOC-in-C commendation cards.

Sergio Mattarella re-elected as Italian president for a second term    

• Italy’s current president Sergio Mattarella has been re-elected for a second mandate, speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Robert Fico.
• His re-election marks just the second time in history that an Italian president has served a second term.
• In 2013, Giorgio Napolitano was the first to serve a second term since Italy became a republic in 1946, but he resigned after two years in 2015.
• The president is a powerful figure in Italy who gets to appoint prime ministers and is often called on to resolve political crises in the euro zone’s third-largest economy.
• Unlike in the United States or France, where heads of state get elected in a popular vote, in Italy, 1,009 parliamentarians and regional representatives choose via a secret ballot that party leaders sometimes struggle to control.

About Sergio Mattarella :

• Sergio Mattarella is an Italian politician, jurist, academic, and lawyer who has served as the president of Italy since 2015.
• Previously he served as Italian Minister for Parliamentary Relations from 1987 to 1989, Italian Minister of Education from 1989 to 1990, Deputy Prime Minister of Italy from 1998 to 1999, and Italian Minister of Defence from 1999 to 2001.

About 2022 Italian presidential election :

• The 2022 Italian presidential election was held in Rome between 24 and 29 January 2022.
• The president of Italy was elected by a joint assembly composed of the Italian Parliament and regional representatives.

About Italy :

• Prime minister: Mario Draghi
• Capital: Rome
• Currency: Euro

Antonio Costa re-elected as Prime Minister of Portugal

• The Prime Minister of Portugal, Antonio Costo, has been re-elected after his center-left Socialist Party secured a landslide victory in the 2022 Portuguese legislative election.
• The Socialists received 41.7 percent of the vote giving it 117 seats in the 230-seat parliament, up from 108 in the outgoing assembly.

About Antonio Costa :

• António Luís Santos da Costa born in 1961 in São Sebastião da Pedreira, Lisbon, Portugal & he is a Portuguese lawyer and politician.
• He is serving as the 119th and current Prime Minister of Portugal since 26 November 2015.
• Previously, he was Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs from 1995 to 1997, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs from 1997 to 1999, Minister of Justice from 1999 to 2002, Minister of Internal Administration from 2005 to 2007, and Mayor of Lisbon from 2007 to 2015.
• He was elected as Secretary General of the Socialist Party in September 2014.

About Portugal :

• President: Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa
• Capital: Lisbon
• Currency: Euro

CURRENT AFFAIRS : ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

Tata Steel arm to buy govt stake in Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL) for Rs 12,100 crore   

• Tata Steel Long Products Ltd (TSLP), a Tata Group firm has won the bid for acquiring 93.71 percent stake in Odisha-based Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL) for Rs 12,100 crore.
• This is the first instance of privatisation of a public sector steel manufacturing enterprise in India.
• The government does not hold any equity in the company. “On the request of the Boards of selling shareholder PSEs and on concurrence by the Govt of Odisha, CCEA ‘in-principle’ approved strategic disinvestment of NINL on 8.1.2020, and authorised Department of Disinvestment & Public Asset Management to undertake the transaction.
• The financial bids were opened for the following qualified bidders, who had submitted the bids:
• Consortium of Jindal Steel & Power Limited and Nalwa Steel and Power Ltd.
• JSW Steel Limited
• Tata Steel Long Products Limited (TSLP)
• The bid was approved by the Centre’s Alternative Mechanism, composed of Union Ministers Nirmala Sitharaman, Piyush Goyal and Nitin Gadkari.

About Tata Steel :

• Founded : 26 August 1907
• Headquarters : Mumbai, Maharashtra
• Founder : Jamsetji Tata
• Chairman : Natarajan Chandrasekaran
• CEO & MD : T. V. Narendran

About NINL :

• Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd. (NINL) is a joint venture of 4 CPSEs, namely MMTC, NMDC, BHEL, MECON and 2 Odisha Govt. PSUs, namely OMC and IPICOL.
• NINL has an integrated steel plant with a capacity of 1.1 MT, at Kalinganagar, Odisha.
• of Odisha with their companies, OMC & IPICOL having stake of 32.47% was also part of the decision-making at every stage.
• The company has been running in huge losses and the plant is closed since 30 March, 2020.
• The company has huge debt and liabilities exceeding ₹6,600 crore as on 31 March last year, including huge overdues of promoters ( ₹4,116 crore), Banks ( ₹1,741 crore), other creditors and employees.
• It has negative net worth of ₹3,487 crore and accumulated losses of ₹4,228 crore as of 31 March, 2021.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : ENVIRONMENT

Two species of fungi associated with basal stem rot found in Kerala

• Researchers from Kerala have identified two new species of fungi from the genus Ganoderma that are associated with coconut stem rot.
• They have also genotyped the two fungi species, named Ganoderma keralense and pseudoapplanatum and identified genetic biomarkers.
• The research was published in the journal Mycologia.

About Basal stem rot :

• The butt rot or basal stem rot of coconut is known by several names in different parts of India: Ganoderma wilt (Andhra Pradesh), Anaberoga (Karnataka) and Thanjavur wilt (Tamil Nadu).

Symptoms :

• The infection begins at the roots, but symptoms include discolouration and rotting of stem and leaves.
• In the later stages, flowering and nut set decreases and finally the coconut palm (Cocos nucifera) dies.
• A reddish brown oozing is seen & this oozing has been reported only in India.
• Another sign of infection is presence of shelf-like “basidiomata,” which are the fruiting or reproductive structures of the fungus, on the tree trunks.
• The basidiomata of Ganoderma bear reproductive propagules (called spores) which are dispersed through wind and sometimes with the help of insects.

About Kerala :

• Governor: Arif Mohammad Khan
• Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
• Chief minister: Pinarayi Vijayan
• National Parks : Eravikulam National Park, Silent Valley National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuaries : Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary, Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, Idukki Wildlife Sanctuary, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Thattekad Wildlife Sanctuary,Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BOOKS & AUTHORS

JK Lt Governor releases book titled “Prakrtik, Vaidik avem Jaivik Kheti”

• Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha released a book titled “Prakrtik, Vaidik avem Jaivik Kheti- Graameen Udyamita Ka Naya Swaroop” at the Raj Bhavan, Jammu.
• The book was published by Chudamani Sanskrit Sansthan, Basohli, Kathua.
• The book was released as a souvenir after the successful conduct of the Annual Festival and foundation day celebrations held under the aegis of Chudamani Sanskrit Sansthan Vishwasthali; SKUAST Jammu; Central Sanskrit University, Shri Ranbir Campus, Jammu, and Shri Kailakh Jyotish & Vedic Sansthan Trust.
• In this research-oriented souvenir, scholars of Sanskrit and agricultural science from across the country and young researchers have written their research papers, which will increase awareness among people about Vedic farming.

About J&K :

• Capitals : Srinagar, Jammu
• Under Article 370 of the Indian constitution in 2019, the Parliament of India passed the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, which contained provisions that dissolved the state and reorganised it into two union territories – Jammu and Kashmir in the west and Ladakh in the east.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SPORTS NEWS

Women’s Hockey Asia Cup 2022: India wins bronze, Japan lifts title                                      

• The Indian women’s hockey team defeated China 2-0 to attain a bronze medal finish at the 2022 Asia Cup in Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat, Oman.
• Sharmila Devi in the 13th minute and Gurjit Kaur in the 19th minute scored goals for India.
• While Japan earned a 4-2 victory over South Korea in the final to earn the gold medal.
• India lost to South Korea in the semi final.

About 2022 Women’s Hockey Asia Cup :

• The 2022 Women’s Hockey Asia Cup was the 10th edition of the Women’s Hockey Asia Cup, the quadrennial international women’s field hockey championship of Asia organized by the Asian Hockey Federation.
• It was held from 21 to 28 January 2022 at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat, Oman.
• Qualified Teams : China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand.

About Asian Hockey Federation :

• Headquarters: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• President: Al-Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah
• The Asian Hockey Federation is the governing body for the sport of field hockey in Asia. It now has 31 member associations. It is affiliated to the International Hockey Federation (FIH).

Netherlands Cricketer Ben Cooper announces international retirement

• Netherlands batsman Ben Cooper announced his retirement from international cricket at the age of 29.

About Ben Cooper :

• Benjamin Nicolas Cooper born on 10 February 1992, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia.
• He played for the Netherlands in the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 tournament.
• He made his international debut for Netherlands in an ODI in August 2013, against Canada.
• In all, he played 71 white-ball internationals for Netherlands, scoring 1426 runs.
• The left-hand batsman has scored 1,239 runs from 58 T20I matches for the Netherlands with an average of 28.16 and a strike rate of 124.77.
• In ODIs, Ben Cooper has featured in 13 matches and scored 187 runs with an average of 18.7 and a strike rate of 90.4.
• He has also decided to quit domestic cricket in the Netherlands.
• Cooper holds the record for being the only player in the history of Netherlands domestic cricket to score a double century.

Daily CA On Feb 02 :

• Indian Coast Guard is celebrating its 46th Raising Day on February 1^st,2022
• Government has approved strategic buyer for Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited located in Odisha.
• Finance Ministry has granted additional borrowing permission of 7,309 crore rupees to Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh for undertaking the reforms in power sector.
• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi addressed 30th National Commission for Women Foundation Day programme via video conference.
• Applications have been invited from Indian Women Scientists and Entrepreneurs to felicitate a select few with the prestigious India National Tech Excellence Award for Women 2022 for pursuing, prevailing, creating an impact, and etching out stories of inspiration for future young girls.
• The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind addressed the joint sitting of two Houses of the Parliament.
• The Bilateral consultations on United Nations related issues were held between India and Russia in New Delhi.
• A virtual function was held to mark the launch of the Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy (GCoE-ACE) at the Indian Institute of Technology, Dharwad (IITDh), Karnataka on 28th January 2022 in the presence of, K. Vijay Raghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser, Government of India.
• The gross GST revenue collected in the month of January, 2022 is one lakh 38 thousand 394 crore rupees.
• The retail inflation, as measured by Consumer Price Index-Combined (CPI-C) moderates to 5.2% in 2021-22 (April-December) from 6.6% in the corresponding period of 2020-21.
• First Revised Estimates of National Income, Consumption Expenditure, Saving and Capital Formation, 2020-21

• The Government has appointed Lieutenant General Manoj Pande as the new Vice Chief of the Army Staff on February 1 & he will succeed Lieutenant General Chandi Prasad Mohanty who superannuated on January 31, 2022.
• Italy’s current president Sergio Mattarella has been re-elected for a second mandate, speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Robert Fico.
• The Prime Minister of Portugal, Antonio Costo, has been re-elected after his center-left Socialist Party secured a landslide victory in the 2022 Portuguese legislative election.
• Tata Steel Long Products Ltd (TSLP), a Tata Group firm has won the bid for acquiring 93.71 percent stake in Odisha-based Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL) for Rs 12,100 crore.
• Researchers from Kerala have identified two new species of fungi from the genus Ganoderma that are associated with coconut stem rot & they have also genotyped the two fungi species, named Ganoderma keralense and G. pseudoapplanatum and identified genetic biomarkers.
• Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha released a book titled “Prakrtik, Vaidik avem Jaivik Kheti- Graameen Udyamita Ka Naya Swaroop” at the Raj Bhavan, Jammu.
• The Indian women’s hockey team defeated China 2-0 to attain a bronze medal finish at the 2022 Asia Cup in Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat, Oman.
• Netherlands batsman Ben Cooper announced his retirement from international cricket at the age of 29.