Daily Current Affairs- 24 August

Author : Palak Khanna

Updated On : August 24, 2022

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Today's Current Affairs-24th August 2022

INTERNATIONAL

UK economy shrank record 11% in 2020, worst since 1709

  • Britain’s economy shrank by a record-breaking 9.9% in 2020, new figures by the Office of National Statistics show, highlighting the impact of Covid-19 restrictions, employment uncertainty and reduced demand, with limited growth in the final quarter narrowly avoiding a double-dip recession.
  • The Office for National Statistics said that the U.K.’s economic output fell by 9.9% in 2020, the largest annual fall on record. Though the economy grew 1% in the last quarter when looser restrictions boosted the services industry, overall output was down 7.8% from the last quarter of 2019, the ONS said. The slump is twice that of the 2009 financial crisis and is possibly the worst in 300 years, with models from the Bank of England suggesting a decline of 13% during the Great Frost of 1709.
  • Strict public health measures and a resurgent wave of Covid-19 infections driven by a dangerous new variant of the virus have the U.K. economy likely falling again in 2021.

About United Kingdom:

Queen: Queen Elizabeth II  

Capital: London

Prime Minister: Boris Johnson

Currency: Pound sterling

 SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

DRDO, Indian Navy test fire indigenous Vertical Launch Short Range surface-to-air issile

  • Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Navy successfully flight-tested the indigenously designed and developed Vertical Launch Short Range Surface-to-Air Missile (VL-SRSAM) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur off the coast of Odisha. The flight test was carried out from a naval ship against a high-speed unmanned aerial target for demonstration of vertical launch capability.
  • During the test launch, flight path and vehicle performance parameters were monitored using flight data, captured by various range instruments such as radar, electro-optical tracking system (EOTS) and telemetry systems deployed by ITR in Chandipur.
  • Complimenting DRDO, Indian Navy and teams associated with it, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that the missile will prove to be a force multiplier for the Indian Navy.

About Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO):

Headquarters: DRDO Bhavan, New Delhi

Founded: 1958

Jurisdiction: India

Aircraft designed: Avatar, DRDO Lakshya, DRDO Nishant

President: G. Satheesh Reddy

About Odisha:

Governor: Ganeshi Lal

Capital: Bhubaneswar

Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Senior Scientist Debasisa Mohanty Appointed as Director of National Institute of Immunology

  • Odia scientist, Debasisa Mohanty was appointed as Director of the National Institute of Immunology (NII). He is currently working as a staff scientist at NII. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment, with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post and up to the age of his superannuation. The post fell vacant after Rajesh Verma, a 1987 batch IAS officer of Odisha cadre, was appointed as Secretary to President Droupadi Murmu on August 18.
  • The National Institute of Immunology (NII) is an autonomous research institute located in New Delhi, under the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) for research in immunology.
  • NII was established on 24 June 1981, with Prof. M. G. K. Menon as Chairman of its governing body.
  • It has its origins in the ICMR–WHO Research & Training Centre in Immunology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, which was merged with NII in 1982.

About Odisha:

Governor: Ganeshi Lal

Capital: Bhubaneswar

Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik

About National Institute of Immunology:

Founded: 1981

Headquarter: Delhi

 Vikram Doraiswami appointed India’s high commissioner to UK

  • Vikram K. Doraiswami, a seasoned diplomat appointed as India’s new High Commissioner to the United Kingdom which is seen as a significant position given the two nations’ expanding strategic alliance. Vikram K. Doraiswami is Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh currently. He is an Indian Foreign Service officer from the 1992 batch. At May 1994, Vikram K. Doraiswami was appointed Third Secretary in the Indian High Commission in Hong Kong after completing his in-service training in New Delhi between 1992 and 1993.
  • When Vikram K. Doraiswami took office as Bangladesh’s ambassador to India in October 2020, relations between the two countries significantly expanded.
  • Gaitri Issar Kumar, the high commissioner to the United Kingdom, left her position on June 30.
  • Vikram K Doraiswami received his in-service training in New Delhi from 1992 to 1993, and in May 1994 he was appointed Third Secretary in the Indian High Commission in Hong Kong.

About United Kingdom:

Queen: Queen Elizabeth II 

Capital: London

Prime Minister: Boris Johnson

Currency: Pound sterling

Odisha cadre IAS officer Rajesh Verma appointed secretary to President Murmu

  • Odisha cadre 1987-batch IAS officer, Rajesh Verma has been appointed as the Secretary to President Droupadi Murmu. He replaces the incumbent Kapil Dev Tripathi, a 1980-batch IAS officer. He is currently serving as Secretary of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs & has also served as principal secretary to Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik. In the past, Verma has also served as the Principal Secretary to Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Principal Secretary of Energy Department, Government of Odisha.
  • Droupadi Murmu became the 15th President of India after Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana administered the oath of office last month.
  • Murmu received around 64 per cent of the valid votes of MPs and MLAs comprising the Electoral College. Murmu received 6,76,803 votes whereas Sinha secured 3,80,177 votes.

About President of India:

Born: 20 June 1958 (age 64 years), Mayurbhanj

Office: President of India since 2022

Presidential term: 25 July 2022 –

Previous office: Governor of Jharkhand (2015–2021)

 IMPORTANT DAYS

World Gujarati Language Day 2022: 24th August

  • World Gujarati Language Day 2022 is celebrated every year on 24 August. This day is celebrated to commemorate the birth anniversary of the great writer of Gujarat ‘Veer Narmad’. ‘Gujarati Diwas’ is celebrated because the poet Narmad was considered to be the creator of the Gujarati language. He has made Gujarati literature international.
  • Poet Veer Narmad was born on August 24, 1833 in Surat, Gujarat. He was from a Brahmin family. His full name was Narmadashankar Lalshankar Dave. Narmad wrote his first poem in 22 years.
  • After this he began to explain literature. Then he was working as a teacher in Mumbai.
  • The dictionary contains words of all dialects with their diverse usages. Since then, looking at the historic Narmad philosophy, Vishwa Gujarati Diwas is observed annually to dedicate a day to the language and to the Gujarati culture.

About Gujarat:

Capital: Gandhinagar

Governor: Acharya Devvrat

Chief Minister: Bhupendrabhai Patel

 SUMMIT'S & MOU's

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to leave for Tashkent to attend SCO meet

  • Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Tashkent on Tuesday to attend the SCO Defence Ministers Meeting, which is to take place on August 24. Minister Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting with Uzbekistan counterpart Lt Gen Bakhodir Kurbanov. During the Annual Meeting, the SCO Member States will discuss defence cooperation and it is expected that a joint communique will be issued after the deliberations. Rajnath Singh’s address at the meeting is slated to be held on August 24, 2022.
  • Meetings are also scheduled with Defence Ministers’ of some other Member countries of SCO on the sidelines of this meeting, where bilateral issues and issues of mutual interest will be discussed.
  • The Shanghai Cooperation Organization consists of Nine-member. Shangai Cooperation Organisation was established on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai, China by the Heads of following nations, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan. Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
  • These nations, except for Uzbekistan, had been members of the Shanghai Five group which was formed on 26 April 1996 by the Treaty of Deepening Military Trust in Border Regions.
  • India and Pakistan signed the memorandum of obligations (MOB) in June 2016 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, hence intiating the formal process of joining the as full members.

About Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) :

Headquarters: Beijing, China

Founded: 15 June 2001

Founders: China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan

About Uzbekistan:

Capital: Tashkent

Currency: Uzbekistani soʻm

President: Shavkat Mirziyoyev

Official language: Uzbek

 BANKING AND ECONOMY

HPCL to commission its first cow dung to compressed biogas project in 2023

  • HPCL Compressed Biogas Project: HPCL’s uses first of its kind Waste-to-Energy portfolio, uses 100 tonnes of dung per day to make biogas, which may be used as vehicle fuel. In a year, the HPCL Compressed Biogas Project project is expected to be put into operation. The GOBAR-Dhan plan, announced by the Indian government in April 2018 as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission’s (Grameen) Biodegradable Waste Management component, is the framework under which the HPCL Compressed Biogas Project initiative is being developed.
  • The HPCL Compressed Biogas Project project is being developed under the GOBAR-Dhan scheme, which was introduced by the Indian government in April 2018 as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission’s (Grameen) Biodegradable Waste Management component.
  • Biogas is a mixture of gases generated from natural materials like agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste, and food waste.
  • Biogas can be used in all gas applications, such as direct combustion absorption heating and cooling, cooking, space and water heating, drying, and gas turbines.

About HPCL:

Headquarters: Mumbai

Owner: Oil and Natural Gas Corporation

Founded: 1974

Leading economists see economy clipping 13-15.7% in Q1

  • Leading economists have pencilled in a high 13-15.7 per cent uptick in the economy in the first quarter of 2022-23 with an upward bias. Soumya Kanti Ghosh, the group chief economic adviser at State Bank of India, said he expects the GDP to clip past 15.7 per cent in the first quarter with more chances of the final numbers printing in higher, while Aditi Nayar, the chief economist at the rating agency ICRA, said the economy will grow much lower at 13 per cent in the June quarter. The national statistical office will announce the first quarter GDP numbers later next week.
  • While GDP contracted by 23.9 per cent in June 2020 due to the first wave of the pandemic, the same had given a higher boost in June 2021 clipping at 20.1 per cent, despite the period being more devastating in terms of loss of lives from the second wave of COVID-19.

 Adani Group makes hostile bid for NDTV

  • Adani Group founder, Gautam Adani has set the ball rolling to acquire a controlling stake of 55.18% in New Delhi Television (NDTV). With a concept to carry 55.18 per cent stake in NDTV, the Adani group has issued an open provide for a 26 per cent stake within the information channel at Rs 294 for a share with a face worth of Rs 4. The complete outlay for 26 per cent, or 16,762,530 totally paid up fairness shares of NDTV – if the provide is accepted in full – will likely be about Rs 483 crore for the Adani group.
  • Firstly, it is going to be by way of Vishvapradhan Commercial Private Ltd (VCPL).
  • And then VCPL, its wholly-owned guardian AMG Media Networks and Adani Enterprises Ltd (individuals appearing in live performance).

About NDTV:

Founders: Prannoy Roy, Radhika Roy

Founded: 1988

Headquarters: New Delhi

About Adani Group:

Founder: Gautam Adani

Headquarters: Ahmedabad

Founded: 1988

 

Daily Current Affairs- 24 August

Author : Palak Khanna

August 24, 2022

SHARE

Today's Current Affairs-24th August 2022

INTERNATIONAL

UK economy shrank record 11% in 2020, worst since 1709

  • Britain’s economy shrank by a record-breaking 9.9% in 2020, new figures by the Office of National Statistics show, highlighting the impact of Covid-19 restrictions, employment uncertainty and reduced demand, with limited growth in the final quarter narrowly avoiding a double-dip recession.
  • The Office for National Statistics said that the U.K.’s economic output fell by 9.9% in 2020, the largest annual fall on record. Though the economy grew 1% in the last quarter when looser restrictions boosted the services industry, overall output was down 7.8% from the last quarter of 2019, the ONS said. The slump is twice that of the 2009 financial crisis and is possibly the worst in 300 years, with models from the Bank of England suggesting a decline of 13% during the Great Frost of 1709.
  • Strict public health measures and a resurgent wave of Covid-19 infections driven by a dangerous new variant of the virus have the U.K. economy likely falling again in 2021.

About United Kingdom:

Queen: Queen Elizabeth II  

Capital: London

Prime Minister: Boris Johnson

Currency: Pound sterling

 SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

DRDO, Indian Navy test fire indigenous Vertical Launch Short Range surface-to-air issile

  • Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Navy successfully flight-tested the indigenously designed and developed Vertical Launch Short Range Surface-to-Air Missile (VL-SRSAM) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur off the coast of Odisha. The flight test was carried out from a naval ship against a high-speed unmanned aerial target for demonstration of vertical launch capability.
  • During the test launch, flight path and vehicle performance parameters were monitored using flight data, captured by various range instruments such as radar, electro-optical tracking system (EOTS) and telemetry systems deployed by ITR in Chandipur.
  • Complimenting DRDO, Indian Navy and teams associated with it, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that the missile will prove to be a force multiplier for the Indian Navy.

About Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO):

Headquarters: DRDO Bhavan, New Delhi

Founded: 1958

Jurisdiction: India

Aircraft designed: Avatar, DRDO Lakshya, DRDO Nishant

President: G. Satheesh Reddy

About Odisha:

Governor: Ganeshi Lal

Capital: Bhubaneswar

Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Senior Scientist Debasisa Mohanty Appointed as Director of National Institute of Immunology

  • Odia scientist, Debasisa Mohanty was appointed as Director of the National Institute of Immunology (NII). He is currently working as a staff scientist at NII. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment, with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post and up to the age of his superannuation. The post fell vacant after Rajesh Verma, a 1987 batch IAS officer of Odisha cadre, was appointed as Secretary to President Droupadi Murmu on August 18.
  • The National Institute of Immunology (NII) is an autonomous research institute located in New Delhi, under the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) for research in immunology.
  • NII was established on 24 June 1981, with Prof. M. G. K. Menon as Chairman of its governing body.
  • It has its origins in the ICMR–WHO Research & Training Centre in Immunology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, which was merged with NII in 1982.

About Odisha:

Governor: Ganeshi Lal

Capital: Bhubaneswar

Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik

About National Institute of Immunology:

Founded: 1981

Headquarter: Delhi

 Vikram Doraiswami appointed India’s high commissioner to UK

  • Vikram K. Doraiswami, a seasoned diplomat appointed as India’s new High Commissioner to the United Kingdom which is seen as a significant position given the two nations’ expanding strategic alliance. Vikram K. Doraiswami is Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh currently. He is an Indian Foreign Service officer from the 1992 batch. At May 1994, Vikram K. Doraiswami was appointed Third Secretary in the Indian High Commission in Hong Kong after completing his in-service training in New Delhi between 1992 and 1993.
  • When Vikram K. Doraiswami took office as Bangladesh’s ambassador to India in October 2020, relations between the two countries significantly expanded.
  • Gaitri Issar Kumar, the high commissioner to the United Kingdom, left her position on June 30.
  • Vikram K Doraiswami received his in-service training in New Delhi from 1992 to 1993, and in May 1994 he was appointed Third Secretary in the Indian High Commission in Hong Kong.

About United Kingdom:

Queen: Queen Elizabeth II 

Capital: London

Prime Minister: Boris Johnson

Currency: Pound sterling

Odisha cadre IAS officer Rajesh Verma appointed secretary to President Murmu

  • Odisha cadre 1987-batch IAS officer, Rajesh Verma has been appointed as the Secretary to President Droupadi Murmu. He replaces the incumbent Kapil Dev Tripathi, a 1980-batch IAS officer. He is currently serving as Secretary of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs & has also served as principal secretary to Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik. In the past, Verma has also served as the Principal Secretary to Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Principal Secretary of Energy Department, Government of Odisha.
  • Droupadi Murmu became the 15th President of India after Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana administered the oath of office last month.
  • Murmu received around 64 per cent of the valid votes of MPs and MLAs comprising the Electoral College. Murmu received 6,76,803 votes whereas Sinha secured 3,80,177 votes.

About President of India:

Born: 20 June 1958 (age 64 years), Mayurbhanj

Office: President of India since 2022

Presidential term: 25 July 2022 –

Previous office: Governor of Jharkhand (2015–2021)

 IMPORTANT DAYS

World Gujarati Language Day 2022: 24th August

  • World Gujarati Language Day 2022 is celebrated every year on 24 August. This day is celebrated to commemorate the birth anniversary of the great writer of Gujarat ‘Veer Narmad’. ‘Gujarati Diwas’ is celebrated because the poet Narmad was considered to be the creator of the Gujarati language. He has made Gujarati literature international.
  • Poet Veer Narmad was born on August 24, 1833 in Surat, Gujarat. He was from a Brahmin family. His full name was Narmadashankar Lalshankar Dave. Narmad wrote his first poem in 22 years.
  • After this he began to explain literature. Then he was working as a teacher in Mumbai.
  • The dictionary contains words of all dialects with their diverse usages. Since then, looking at the historic Narmad philosophy, Vishwa Gujarati Diwas is observed annually to dedicate a day to the language and to the Gujarati culture.

About Gujarat:

Capital: Gandhinagar

Governor: Acharya Devvrat

Chief Minister: Bhupendrabhai Patel

 SUMMIT'S & MOU's

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to leave for Tashkent to attend SCO meet

  • Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Tashkent on Tuesday to attend the SCO Defence Ministers Meeting, which is to take place on August 24. Minister Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting with Uzbekistan counterpart Lt Gen Bakhodir Kurbanov. During the Annual Meeting, the SCO Member States will discuss defence cooperation and it is expected that a joint communique will be issued after the deliberations. Rajnath Singh’s address at the meeting is slated to be held on August 24, 2022.
  • Meetings are also scheduled with Defence Ministers’ of some other Member countries of SCO on the sidelines of this meeting, where bilateral issues and issues of mutual interest will be discussed.
  • The Shanghai Cooperation Organization consists of Nine-member. Shangai Cooperation Organisation was established on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai, China by the Heads of following nations, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan. Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
  • These nations, except for Uzbekistan, had been members of the Shanghai Five group which was formed on 26 April 1996 by the Treaty of Deepening Military Trust in Border Regions.
  • India and Pakistan signed the memorandum of obligations (MOB) in June 2016 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, hence intiating the formal process of joining the as full members.

About Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) :

Headquarters: Beijing, China

Founded: 15 June 2001

Founders: China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan

About Uzbekistan:

Capital: Tashkent

Currency: Uzbekistani soʻm

President: Shavkat Mirziyoyev

Official language: Uzbek

 BANKING AND ECONOMY

HPCL to commission its first cow dung to compressed biogas project in 2023

  • HPCL Compressed Biogas Project: HPCL’s uses first of its kind Waste-to-Energy portfolio, uses 100 tonnes of dung per day to make biogas, which may be used as vehicle fuel. In a year, the HPCL Compressed Biogas Project project is expected to be put into operation. The GOBAR-Dhan plan, announced by the Indian government in April 2018 as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission’s (Grameen) Biodegradable Waste Management component, is the framework under which the HPCL Compressed Biogas Project initiative is being developed.
  • The HPCL Compressed Biogas Project project is being developed under the GOBAR-Dhan scheme, which was introduced by the Indian government in April 2018 as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission’s (Grameen) Biodegradable Waste Management component.
  • Biogas is a mixture of gases generated from natural materials like agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste, and food waste.
  • Biogas can be used in all gas applications, such as direct combustion absorption heating and cooling, cooking, space and water heating, drying, and gas turbines.

About HPCL:

Headquarters: Mumbai

Owner: Oil and Natural Gas Corporation

Founded: 1974

Leading economists see economy clipping 13-15.7% in Q1

  • Leading economists have pencilled in a high 13-15.7 per cent uptick in the economy in the first quarter of 2022-23 with an upward bias. Soumya Kanti Ghosh, the group chief economic adviser at State Bank of India, said he expects the GDP to clip past 15.7 per cent in the first quarter with more chances of the final numbers printing in higher, while Aditi Nayar, the chief economist at the rating agency ICRA, said the economy will grow much lower at 13 per cent in the June quarter. The national statistical office will announce the first quarter GDP numbers later next week.
  • While GDP contracted by 23.9 per cent in June 2020 due to the first wave of the pandemic, the same had given a higher boost in June 2021 clipping at 20.1 per cent, despite the period being more devastating in terms of loss of lives from the second wave of COVID-19.

 Adani Group makes hostile bid for NDTV

  • Adani Group founder, Gautam Adani has set the ball rolling to acquire a controlling stake of 55.18% in New Delhi Television (NDTV). With a concept to carry 55.18 per cent stake in NDTV, the Adani group has issued an open provide for a 26 per cent stake within the information channel at Rs 294 for a share with a face worth of Rs 4. The complete outlay for 26 per cent, or 16,762,530 totally paid up fairness shares of NDTV – if the provide is accepted in full – will likely be about Rs 483 crore for the Adani group.
  • Firstly, it is going to be by way of Vishvapradhan Commercial Private Ltd (VCPL).
  • And then VCPL, its wholly-owned guardian AMG Media Networks and Adani Enterprises Ltd (individuals appearing in live performance).

About NDTV:

Founders: Prannoy Roy, Radhika Roy

Founded: 1988

Headquarters: New Delhi

About Adani Group:

Founder: Gautam Adani

Headquarters: Ahmedabad

Founded: 1988

 

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