Daily Current Affairs- 19 December

Author : Palak Khanna

Updated On : December 19, 2022

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Today's Current Affairs19th December 2022

INTERNATIONAL

Indian-origin Leo Varadkar set to become Ireland's prime minister for second time

  • Indian-origin Leo Varadkar has returned for a second term as Ireland’s Prime Minister as part of a job-sharing deal made by the country’s centrist coalition government. His appointment was confirmed when he received the seal of office from President Michael D. Higgins, Ireland’s head of state.
  • This is the second time that Varadkar has been elected as Irish prime minister. He first became the Irish prime minister in June 2017. In June 2020, the Fine Gael party led by Varadkar formed a coalition government with Fianna Fail and Green Party, in which he served as deputy prime minister and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
  • According to an agreement reached by the three parties in setting up a coalition government, Fianna Fail party leader Micheal Martin will first serve as Irish prime minister until December 2022 and Fine Gael party leader Varadkar will replace Martin to be the new prime minister until the five-year term of the current government comes to an end.

 NATIONAL

Assam government launches Orunodoi 2.0 scheme

  • Turning Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of direct benefit transfer into reality, the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led Assam government has launched a special scheme, Orunodoi 2.0, under which 10.54 lakh beneficiaries will be given Rs 1,250 every month, officials said.
  • With the fresh inclusion, the total number of beneficiaries under the poverty alleviation scheme, which was first launched on December 1, 2020, will be around 27 lakh. The Orunodoi benefit is usually transferred to the bank account of each beneficiary by the 10th day of every month, an official said. It is one of the 18 flagship schemes of the Assam government currently in operation.
  • "Our government has been extending economic and nutritional security to lakhs of financially vulnerable families across the state and the foremost among the schemes has been Orunodoi," Sarma said. The chief minister said the greater version of Orunodoi is being launched to ensure that the benefits reach the financially vulnerable and underprivileged families of the state. The total financial outlay for Orunodoi is Rs 4,142 crore per annum, making it one of the largest DBT schemes in the country.

63rd session of Indian Historical Records Committee begins in Lucknow

  • Two-day 63rd session of the Indian Historical Records Committee (IHRC) organised by the National Archives of India (NAI), New Delhi, got under way at Uttar Pradesh State Archives’ Mahanagar Extension office here on Sunday.
  • “The IHRC has aided in preserving Indian history and culture and it is one method we can teach to the next generation about the rich past we have,” said minister of state for transport (independent charge) Daya Shankar Singh while inaugurating the event.
  • “It would not have been possible to know our beginnings if the epics—the Ramayana and the Mahabharata—were not maintained and archived,” he added while requesting all the delegates coming from different states to visit Uttar Pradesh and see how it has changed.
  • The event will comprise inaugural and business sessions on the first day and academic session on the second and the concluding day. A total of 24 academic papers based on original sources of post 16th century of the Indian history will also be presented by scholars on various aspects of history during the event.

Karnataka Govt set up development board for nomadic communities

  • The Karnataka government has issued an order to set up a Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Nomadic Communities Development Board for the upliftment of these communities which are among the most downtrodden.
  • This is aimed at helping 51 communities among Scheduled Castes and 23 communities among Scheduled tribes, as per the order. As per the 2011 census, there are 9,91,184 people belonging to nomadic and semi-nomadic communities. At the Central level, there is Development and Welfare Board for De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities.

 SPORTS

Indian Women’s Hockey Team Wins FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup Spain 2022

  • The Indian women Hockey team led by Captain Savita Punia beat Spain 1-0 in the final to win the inaugural FIH Nations Cup played at Valencia, Spain. The winning goal was scored by Gurjit Kaur of India. The inaugural FIH Nations cup was held in Valencia, Spain from 11-17 December 2022. India and Spain had played in the FIH women’s Hockey Pro League 2021-22 season as replacement teams after pull-outs by Australia and New Zealand due to COVID-19 related issues.
  • The result also means that Janneke Schopman-coached side has been promoted to the FIH Pro League 2023-24. Hockey India has announced cash prize of Rs 2 lakh for every member of the squad and Rs 1 lakh each for all the support staff. India ended the tournament with a perfect record of five wins in five matches. Indian team beat Chile (3-1), Japan (2-1), and South Africa (2-0) in the group stage before a thrilling 2-1 win over Ireland in the penalty shootout in the semifinal.

SCIENCE & TEHNOLOGY

NASA Successfully Launches Game-Changing SWOT Mission To Survey Earth's Water

  • The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the French space agency Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) have jointly launched the newest Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) spacecraft to track nearly all the water on the surface of the Earth. It was launched atop a SpaceX rocket from Space Launch Complex 4E at California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base. It will remain operational for 3 years.
  • The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission is a satellite altimeter jointly developed and operated by NASA and CNES (French space agency) in partnership with the space agencies of the UK and Canada.
  • The mission’s objective is to make the world’s first-ever global survey of the Earth’s surface water, capable of observing the finer details of the ocean surface topography and measuring the changes in the terrestrial surface water bodies.
  • As it uses wide-swath of altimetry technology, the mission will be capable of almost completely observing the world’s oceans and freshwater bodies with repeated high-resolution elevation measurements.
  • The satellite can measure the height of water in freshwater bodies and the ocean on more than 90 percent of the Earth’s surface.
  • The information obtained from this mission can be used to understand the ocean’s influence in climate change, impact of global warming on the waterbodies.

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw appointed 1st Chancellor of Gati Shakti University

  • Union Minister of Railways, Ashwini Vaishnaw has been appointed as the Chancellor of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, Vadodara, by President Smt. Draupadi Murmu. It is noteworthy to mention that Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw will be the first Chancellor of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya. President also appointed Dr Manoj Chaudhary as the first Vice Chancellor of Gati Shakti University, Vadodara. As per the Central University Act, 2009, Dr Manoj Chaudhary will hold the position of Vice Chancellor of Gati Shakti University for five years from the date he assumes office.
  • Gati Shakti University was granted the central status by the Union Cabinet in July 2022.
  • In August this year, the Central Government introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to convert the National Rail and Transportation Institute, into Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, an autonomous central university.
  • The Central Universities (Amendment) Bill was introduced by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan which seeks to expand the scope of the university from beyond the railways to cover the entire transport sector to support the ambitious growth and modernisation in the field.

 SUMMIT'S & MOU's

Amit shah chairs the eastern zonal council meeting in Kolkata

  • Union Home Minister Amit Shah will chair the Eastern Zonal Council meeting at the West Bengal secretariat here on Saturday, officials said.
  • West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her counterparts from Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Sikkim are likely to attend the EZC meeting.
  • Sources in the secretariat, however, said that Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik may skip the meeting.
  • Among other issues, Mr. Shah is slated to hold discussions on matters related to boundaries of the five states and the completion of the eastern freight corridor.
  • Along with the CMs, chiefs of all central armed forces are also expected to attend the meeting, which was earlier scheduled for November 5, but got postponed due to Shah's unavailability, owing to other engagements.

 RANKING

India Ranks Third Globally In Scientific Publications, Higher Budgetary Allocations Expected For DST: Minister

  • Union Minister for Science and Technology, Jitendra Singh has revealed that India had jumped from 7th to 3rd in global scientific publications and scholarly output, according to a report by America’s National Science Foundation. India also ranks third globally in the number of PhDs produced annually. In a similar upward trend, the number of patents granted by the India Patents Office to Indian scientists has more than doubled in just the last four years.
  • India’s scholarly output increased from 60,555 papers in 2010 to 1, 49,213 papers in 2020.
  • China leads the world in the publication of the maximum number of scientific papers followed by The United States of America.
  • The National Science Foundation is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 “to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense.

Daily Current Affairs- 19 December

Author : Palak Khanna

December 19, 2022

SHARE

Today's Current Affairs19th December 2022

INTERNATIONAL

Indian-origin Leo Varadkar set to become Ireland's prime minister for second time

  • Indian-origin Leo Varadkar has returned for a second term as Ireland’s Prime Minister as part of a job-sharing deal made by the country’s centrist coalition government. His appointment was confirmed when he received the seal of office from President Michael D. Higgins, Ireland’s head of state.
  • This is the second time that Varadkar has been elected as Irish prime minister. He first became the Irish prime minister in June 2017. In June 2020, the Fine Gael party led by Varadkar formed a coalition government with Fianna Fail and Green Party, in which he served as deputy prime minister and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
  • According to an agreement reached by the three parties in setting up a coalition government, Fianna Fail party leader Micheal Martin will first serve as Irish prime minister until December 2022 and Fine Gael party leader Varadkar will replace Martin to be the new prime minister until the five-year term of the current government comes to an end.

 NATIONAL

Assam government launches Orunodoi 2.0 scheme

  • Turning Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of direct benefit transfer into reality, the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led Assam government has launched a special scheme, Orunodoi 2.0, under which 10.54 lakh beneficiaries will be given Rs 1,250 every month, officials said.
  • With the fresh inclusion, the total number of beneficiaries under the poverty alleviation scheme, which was first launched on December 1, 2020, will be around 27 lakh. The Orunodoi benefit is usually transferred to the bank account of each beneficiary by the 10th day of every month, an official said. It is one of the 18 flagship schemes of the Assam government currently in operation.
  • "Our government has been extending economic and nutritional security to lakhs of financially vulnerable families across the state and the foremost among the schemes has been Orunodoi," Sarma said. The chief minister said the greater version of Orunodoi is being launched to ensure that the benefits reach the financially vulnerable and underprivileged families of the state. The total financial outlay for Orunodoi is Rs 4,142 crore per annum, making it one of the largest DBT schemes in the country.

63rd session of Indian Historical Records Committee begins in Lucknow

  • Two-day 63rd session of the Indian Historical Records Committee (IHRC) organised by the National Archives of India (NAI), New Delhi, got under way at Uttar Pradesh State Archives’ Mahanagar Extension office here on Sunday.
  • “The IHRC has aided in preserving Indian history and culture and it is one method we can teach to the next generation about the rich past we have,” said minister of state for transport (independent charge) Daya Shankar Singh while inaugurating the event.
  • “It would not have been possible to know our beginnings if the epics—the Ramayana and the Mahabharata—were not maintained and archived,” he added while requesting all the delegates coming from different states to visit Uttar Pradesh and see how it has changed.
  • The event will comprise inaugural and business sessions on the first day and academic session on the second and the concluding day. A total of 24 academic papers based on original sources of post 16th century of the Indian history will also be presented by scholars on various aspects of history during the event.

Karnataka Govt set up development board for nomadic communities

  • The Karnataka government has issued an order to set up a Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Nomadic Communities Development Board for the upliftment of these communities which are among the most downtrodden.
  • This is aimed at helping 51 communities among Scheduled Castes and 23 communities among Scheduled tribes, as per the order. As per the 2011 census, there are 9,91,184 people belonging to nomadic and semi-nomadic communities. At the Central level, there is Development and Welfare Board for De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities.

 SPORTS

Indian Women’s Hockey Team Wins FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup Spain 2022

  • The Indian women Hockey team led by Captain Savita Punia beat Spain 1-0 in the final to win the inaugural FIH Nations Cup played at Valencia, Spain. The winning goal was scored by Gurjit Kaur of India. The inaugural FIH Nations cup was held in Valencia, Spain from 11-17 December 2022. India and Spain had played in the FIH women’s Hockey Pro League 2021-22 season as replacement teams after pull-outs by Australia and New Zealand due to COVID-19 related issues.
  • The result also means that Janneke Schopman-coached side has been promoted to the FIH Pro League 2023-24. Hockey India has announced cash prize of Rs 2 lakh for every member of the squad and Rs 1 lakh each for all the support staff. India ended the tournament with a perfect record of five wins in five matches. Indian team beat Chile (3-1), Japan (2-1), and South Africa (2-0) in the group stage before a thrilling 2-1 win over Ireland in the penalty shootout in the semifinal.

SCIENCE & TEHNOLOGY

NASA Successfully Launches Game-Changing SWOT Mission To Survey Earth's Water

  • The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the French space agency Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) have jointly launched the newest Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) spacecraft to track nearly all the water on the surface of the Earth. It was launched atop a SpaceX rocket from Space Launch Complex 4E at California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base. It will remain operational for 3 years.
  • The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission is a satellite altimeter jointly developed and operated by NASA and CNES (French space agency) in partnership with the space agencies of the UK and Canada.
  • The mission’s objective is to make the world’s first-ever global survey of the Earth’s surface water, capable of observing the finer details of the ocean surface topography and measuring the changes in the terrestrial surface water bodies.
  • As it uses wide-swath of altimetry technology, the mission will be capable of almost completely observing the world’s oceans and freshwater bodies with repeated high-resolution elevation measurements.
  • The satellite can measure the height of water in freshwater bodies and the ocean on more than 90 percent of the Earth’s surface.
  • The information obtained from this mission can be used to understand the ocean’s influence in climate change, impact of global warming on the waterbodies.

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw appointed 1st Chancellor of Gati Shakti University

  • Union Minister of Railways, Ashwini Vaishnaw has been appointed as the Chancellor of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, Vadodara, by President Smt. Draupadi Murmu. It is noteworthy to mention that Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw will be the first Chancellor of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya. President also appointed Dr Manoj Chaudhary as the first Vice Chancellor of Gati Shakti University, Vadodara. As per the Central University Act, 2009, Dr Manoj Chaudhary will hold the position of Vice Chancellor of Gati Shakti University for five years from the date he assumes office.
  • Gati Shakti University was granted the central status by the Union Cabinet in July 2022.
  • In August this year, the Central Government introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to convert the National Rail and Transportation Institute, into Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, an autonomous central university.
  • The Central Universities (Amendment) Bill was introduced by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan which seeks to expand the scope of the university from beyond the railways to cover the entire transport sector to support the ambitious growth and modernisation in the field.

 SUMMIT'S & MOU's

Amit shah chairs the eastern zonal council meeting in Kolkata

  • Union Home Minister Amit Shah will chair the Eastern Zonal Council meeting at the West Bengal secretariat here on Saturday, officials said.
  • West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her counterparts from Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Sikkim are likely to attend the EZC meeting.
  • Sources in the secretariat, however, said that Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik may skip the meeting.
  • Among other issues, Mr. Shah is slated to hold discussions on matters related to boundaries of the five states and the completion of the eastern freight corridor.
  • Along with the CMs, chiefs of all central armed forces are also expected to attend the meeting, which was earlier scheduled for November 5, but got postponed due to Shah's unavailability, owing to other engagements.

 RANKING

India Ranks Third Globally In Scientific Publications, Higher Budgetary Allocations Expected For DST: Minister

  • Union Minister for Science and Technology, Jitendra Singh has revealed that India had jumped from 7th to 3rd in global scientific publications and scholarly output, according to a report by America’s National Science Foundation. India also ranks third globally in the number of PhDs produced annually. In a similar upward trend, the number of patents granted by the India Patents Office to Indian scientists has more than doubled in just the last four years.
  • India’s scholarly output increased from 60,555 papers in 2010 to 1, 49,213 papers in 2020.
  • China leads the world in the publication of the maximum number of scientific papers followed by The United States of America.
  • The National Science Foundation is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 “to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense.

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