Today's Current Affairs-12th September 2022

NATIONAL

Nagaland holds its first ever Naga Mircha Festival at Seihama

• In a first of its kind in Nagaland, Naga Mircha (Naga King Chilli) Festival 2022 was organised on Saturday at Seiyhama Village under Kohima district. The festival was sponsored by the Department of Horticulture.
• Speaking as the special guest, NDPP President, 11th Northern Angami-2 Assembly Constituency, Vibeilietuo Kets said, Naga Mircha produced by the Seiyhama is of good quality and that they should start strategising market control by producing the chilli on a large scale that can be available in the market throughout the year at a cheaper rate.
• He also said, while the villagers are actively involved in the cultivation of Naga Mircha, the Horticulture Department should also extend hand-holding to the farmers by imparting scientific-technical support and training.
• District Horticulture Officer Kohima, Senka Jamir informed that the Horticulture Department has chosen Botsa block as a focus area for Naga Mircha cultivation covering almost 100 hectares.
• Convenor Organising Committee of the Festival, Lhoulalie Zumu said, around 200 households are now engaged in the Naga mircha cultivation. He said, the village generated an amount of 27 lakh rupees last year, and it expects to earn triple the amount this year.

About Nagaland:

Founded: 30 November 1963

Capital: Kohima (Executive Branch)

Chief Minister: Neiphiu Rio

Governor: Prof Jagdish Mukhi

Gujarat Govt announces first-ever Cinematic Tourism Policy in Ahmedabad

• Gujarat government announced the first-ever Cinematic Tourism Policy in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
• The policy will be effective for five years from 2022 to 2027. Announcing the policy, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said, this policy will help in strengthening the film infrastructure in the state. It will also bring all the service providers associated with filmmaking on one platform and will boost tourism activities in the State, he added.
• This scheme aims to promote cinematic tourism through the development of film infrastructure and the creation of attractive opportunities for cinema in Gujarat. This scheme offers various financial and non-financial incentives for filmmakers.

About Gujarat:

Capital: Gandhinagar

Governor: Acharya Devvrat

Chief Minister: Bhupendrabhai Patel

Shree Goyal launches initiative to connect Indian startups with US investors

• SETU programme: To connect entrepreneurs in India with US-based investors, the commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal has created a programme called SETU (Supporting Entrepreneurs in Transformation and Upskilling). With SETU, mentors in the US who are eager to support entrepreneurship can connect with Indian firms that are just getting off the ground. The initiative was introduced during a discussion centred on particular concerns with India’s startup ecosystem.
• The meeting’s main topics were how to promote domestic incorporation and successful diaspora residents of the San Francisco Bay Area’s mentorship of early-stage Indian firms.
• The project would provide mentorship and support in a number of areas, including funding, market access, and commercialization, by connecting businesses in India to investors and startup ecosystem leaders in the US.
• Mentors from all around the world are encouraged to apply to MAARG. Over 200 mentors from all over the world have joined MAARG as of this writing.

About United States:

President: Joe Biden

Capital: Washington, D.C.

Currency:  US Dollars

SPORTS

Max Verstappen wins 2022 Italian F1 grand Prix

• Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen again made light work of starting down the grid as he won the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday to leave him within touching distance of a second successive title.
• Verstappen now has a 116-point lead over Charles Leclerc, who finished second after another questionable strategy decision from Ferrari on its home track. With just six races remaining, the Dutch driver could clinch the title in Singapore next month.
• It was the first time Verstappen has set foot on the iconic Monza podium, with his highest previous finish being fifth in 2018.

About Max Verstappen:

Born: 30 September 1997 (age 24 years), Hasselt, Belgium

Nationality: Belgian, Dutch

Current team: Red Bull Racing

Podiums: 72

Dates joined: 2016 (Red Bull Racing), 2015 (Scuderia Toro Rosso)

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

India’s Agnikul Cosmos secures first patent for 3D-printed rocket engine

• Agnikul Cosmos, one of India’s private space startups, has secured its first patent for the design and manufacturing of its 3D-printed rocket engine. The patent, which has been offered to the company under the Centre’s patent database, comes after the company opened doors to its first factory to 3D print rocket engines at scale. The patent has been rewarded to the company for its Agnilet rocket engine, which will power the company’s Agnibaan rocket that is scheduled to launch later this year.
• Till date, Agnikul has raised Rs 105 crore ($15 million) from Mayfield India, pi Ventures, Speciale Invest, and a host of others, including prominent angel investors such as Anand Mahindra and Naval Ravikant since 2019.
• At present, India is estimated to hold a market share of around 2% in terms of commercial space operation, which, too, is due to the operations of India’s central space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Industry stakeholders have previously said that technologies like 3D printing can help space companies scale their products efficiently and reduce the chance of errors in a sensitive sector like space.
• Agnikul was founded in 2017 by Srinath Ravichandran, Moin SPM and SR Chakravarthy (professor of IIT-Madras). In December 2020, Agnikul signed an agreement with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) under the IN-SPACe initiative to have access to the space agency’s expertise and its facilities to build rocket engines.

About Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO):

Headquarters: Bengaluru

Founded: 15 August 1969

Founder: Vikram Sarabhai

President: Shri S. Somanath 

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

N. Shamseer elected Speaker of the Kerala Assembly

• CPI(M) legislator and the candidate of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) A. N. Shamseer was elected Speaker of the Kerala Assembly on September 12.
• Shamseer defeated Congress MLA and United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate Anwar Sadat by 96 to 40 votes in the ballot held at the Kerala Legislative Assembly. The result was expected as the LDF has 99 seats against the UDF's 41 seats in the House.
• Shamseer succeeds his party colleague M. B. Rajesh as the Speaker. The post fell vacant after the latter replaced M. V. Govindan as Minister for Local Self Government following a rejig in the Pinarayi Vijayan Ministry. Mr. Govindan had stepped down as LSG Minister to take over as State secretary of the CPI(M).

About Kerala:

Governor: Arif Mohammad Khan

Capital: Thiruvananthapuram

Chief Minister: Pinarayi Vijayan

Days before retirement, Chief Justice of Madras HC appointed as chairman of PMLA appellate tribunal

• Chief Justice of Madras High Court, the Centre appointed Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari as the Chairman of the Appellate Tribunal under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Justice Bhandari is due to retire on September 12. The order was issued by the Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance. The Tribunal for Forfeiture of Property under the SAFEMA and the PMLA Appellate Tribunal were merged in 2016 through the Finance Act, 2016. The post of the Chairperson of the Tribunal was vacant since September 2019.
• The President of India is pleased to appoint Hon’ble Mr Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari, Chief Justice, Madras High Court as Chairman, Appellate Tribunal under the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators Act (SAFEMA) in the salary of Rs. 2,50,000/ -(Fixed) p.m., for a period of 04 years, or till attaining the age of seventy years, or until further orders, whichever is the earliest in terms of Tribunal (Conditions of Service) Rules, 2021 read with Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021.
• Justice Bhandari was appointed a judge of the Rajasthan High Court in July 2007. He was then transferred to the Allahabad High Court in March 2019 and was appointed the Acting Chief Justice of that high Court in June 2019.

About Tamil Nadu:

Governor: R. N. Ravi

Capital: Chennai

Chief Minister: M. K. Stalin

Language: Tamil

 IMPORTANT DAYS

World First Aid Day 2022: 10^th September

• World First Aid Day is celebrated every year on the second Saturday of September. This year, World First Aid Day 2022 falls on 10 September 2022. The day is recognized worldwide to promote the significance of first aid, which is an important fundamental skill, and to create awareness on a global level about how it can save precious lives. The day was introduced first by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
• According to the IFRC, with this year’s theme, ‘Lifelong First Aid’, we are putting forward the importance of having lifelong first aid learning. No matter the age, having first aid skills and knowledge helps create safer and healthier communities. Children, adults, or older adults should also be able to have a quality first aid education. A lifelong commitment to learning and providing first aid is what makes us more resilient.
• World First Aid Day’s history dates back to the battle of Solferino in 1859 in which a young businessman, Henry Dunant, from Geneva was horrified and shocked by the mass massacre of people. He helped many severely injured people. This incident inspired him so much that he wrote a book titled as ‘A Memory of Solferino’.

United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation 2022: 12^th September

• The United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation is observed annually on September 12 to highlight the importance of cooperation among people and countries in the global South. The day also aims at spreading awareness on the social, economic, and political developments made in the Southern region.
• Foster and strengthen the self-reliance of developing countries by enhancing their creative capacity to find solutions and technological capacities to their development problems and formulate the requisite strategies to address them.
• Promote and strengthen collective self-reliance among developing countries through the exchange of experiences leading to a greater awareness of common problems and wider access to available knowledge.
• The United Nations Conference on Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries adopted the Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (TCDC) on September 12, 1978.
• The creation of the UNOSSC was proposed in 1974 in the United Nations General Assembly as a special unit within the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

About United Nations:

Founded: 24 October 1945, San Francisco, California, United States

Headquarters: New York, United States

Secretary General: António Guterres

About United Nations Development Programme (UNDP):

Headquarters: New York, United States

Founded: 22 November 1965, United States

 SUMMIT'S & MOU's

Two day National Defense MSME Conclave and Exhibition begin in Rajasthan

• The two-day National Defense MSME Conclave and Exhibition began in Kota, Rajasthan today. Defense equipment including T-90 and BMP-2 tanks, artillery guns, various types of sniper and machine guns and military bridges are being displayed in the exhibition.
• Youth innovating in the defense sector, start-ups and MSMEs are also displaying their products.
• More than 50 companies, start-ups and MSMEs working in the defense sector are participating in the event.
• The conclave will be formally inaugurated tomorrow by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Minister of State for Defense Ajay Bhatt. Senior officials of the Ministry of Defense, representatives of leading defense companies and defense experts are also participating in the program.
• The Drone Light Show and Live Concert will also be the highlight of the programme. Defense Conclave and Exhibition is being organized for the first time in Rajasthan.

About Rajasthan:

Governor: Kalraj Mishra

Capital: Jaipur (Executive Branch)

Chief Minister: Ashok Gehlot