Current Affairs - January, 2023 - Free Time Learning

1 .

Who has been appointed as next DGCA director general, to take charge on 28 February 2023.

A)

R.S. Jamwa

B)

Ravi Krishna

C)

Vikram Dev Dutt

D)

Ashutosh Vasistha

Correct Answer : Vikram Dev Dutt

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Saturday (21st January 2023) approved the appointment of Vikram Dev Dutt as the next Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Dutt will take over the charge as the DGCA chief on 28th February 2023 after the superannuation of Arun Kumar, the incumbent DGCA chief.

Notably, Dutt was appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director of Air India Ltd last year(2022).

He was the last government-appointed Chairman and Managing Director of the airlines.

In 2022, Air India was sold to Tata Group. His appointment as the DGCA director general will be in the "rank and pay of additional secretary to the Government of India".

About Vikram Dev Dutt :

* Dutt is a 1993-batch IAS officer of the Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram and Union Territory (AGMUT) cadre.

* Dutt also served as principal secretary for the health and family welfare department of the Delhi government.

* He was the principal secretary for finance in the government of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

* Notably, Kumar is a 1989-batch IAS officer of the Haryana cadre. He has been leading the aviation regulator since July 2019.

* DGCA s a statutory body of the Central government to regulate civil aviation in India. It became a statutory body under the Aircraft (Amendment) Act, 2020.

Source : Times Now News

Published On : January 22, 2023

2 .

Who is attended the All India Conference of Directors General and Inspectors General of Police 2022 in New Delhi on 21st Jan 2023?

A)

Droupadi Murmu

B)

S. Jaishankar

C)

Yogi Adityanath

D)

Narendra Modi

Correct Answer : Narendra Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the All India Conference of Directors General (DG) and Inspectors General (IG) of Police 2022 in New Delhi 21st Jan 2023. He will also attend the conference 22nd Jan 2023.

The three-day conference was inaugurated by Home Minister Amit Shah 20th Jan 2023.

Discussions on futuristic themes in policing and security are taking place during the conference. Besides, a wide range of issues including Cyber Crime, Technology in Policing, Counter Terrorism challenges, Left Wing Extremism, Capacity Building, and Prison Reforms are also parts of discussions during the conference.

The conference is the culmination of extensive deliberations involving police and intelligence officers from the district, state and national levels on identified themes. Best practices from States and Union Territories will be presented at the Conference so that States can learn from each other.

About 100 invitees including DGP of States and UTs and Heads of Central Armed Police Forces and Central Police Organizations are attending the Conference physically, while the remaining invitees are participating virtually from across the country.

Since 2014, the Prime Minister has taken a keen interest in the DGP conference. Unlike the symbolic presence of Prime Ministers earlier, he sits through all major sessions of the conference.

Prime Minister not only listens patiently to all the inputs but also encourages free and informal discussions so that new ideas could come up. This provides a congenial atmosphere for the top police officials of the country to directly brief the Prime Minister on key policing and internal security issues affecting the country, and give their open and frank recommendations...

Source : AIR

Published On : January 22, 2023

3 .

Who has been appointed as the new chair of Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) TravelTech committee?

A)

Dhruv Shringi

B)

Sanjay Mohan

C)

Nishant Pitti

D)

Ashwin Damera

Correct Answer : Sanjay Mohan

The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has announced the appointment of Sanjay Mohan, group chief technological officer(CTO), MakeMyTrip India as the chair of the TravelTech Committee.

Additionally, Rikant Pittie, co-founder, EaseMyTrip and Yang Li, head-public affairs (APAC), Booking.com, have been appointed as the new co-chairs.

Technology has had a seminal impact on the travel and tourism industry and is increasingly helping to make the user experience more complete and immersive, Sanjay Mohan, chair, TravelTech Committee, said.

Source : Financial Express

Published On : January 21, 2023

4 .

Who has been appointed (19th Jan 2023) by as Administrator to manage the use of funds for the next ISSF Shooting World Cup in 2023?

A)

Sanjiv Khanna

B)

Arjan Kumar Sikri

C)

Ajay Rastogi

D)

Sanjay Kishan Kaul

Correct Answer : Arjan Kumar Sikri

The Delhi High Court on Thursday (19th Jan 2023) appointed former Supreme Court judge Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri as an administrator to oversee the utilization of funds for the upcoming International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup being held in India in March, 2023.

The ISSF World Cup (Rifle/Pistol) will take place in March 2023 in Bhopal.

* Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad’s divisional bench noted that if there is any obstacle to arranging the World Cup event, which would require funds from the Central Government, the prestige of the nation will be harmed.

* The administrator may also enlist the services of any athlete of his choosing who has competed at the national or international level in shooting, according to the court.

* After the occurrence, the bench requested that a report be sent in a sealed cover.

* The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) requested the court to vacate or modify the orders made the previous year in response to a petition filed by Senior Advocate Rahul Mehra challenging the Centre’s recognition of several National Sports Federations...

Source : New Indian Express

Published On : January 21, 2023

5 .

Which company co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings resigned from his position on 19th Jan 2023?

A)

Netflix Inc.

B)

Disney+

C)

SonyLIV

D)

Spotify

Correct Answer : Netflix Inc.

Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) co-founder Reed Hastings stepped down On Thursday (19th Jan 2023) as chief executive of the company that upended Hollywood by delivering movies and TV shows online.

Chief Operating Officer, Greg Peters will now serve as co-CEO alongside Ted Sarandos, who has held that role since 2020. Hastings will become Executive Chairman.

Shares of Netflix rose 6.1% to $335.05 in after-hours trading as the streaming video pioneer also said it had picked up more subscribers than expected at the end of last year.

The company has been under pressure after losing customers in the first half of 2022. Its stock, a one-time Wall Street darling, had fallen nearly 38% in the past year.

Sarandos and Peters will share the title of chief executives, with Hastings serving as executive chairman. The change is effective immediately, representing the culmination of a decade of succession planning by the board.

"Hastings made his exit as Netflix said it added 7.66 million subscribers in the fourth quarter, beating Wall Street forecasts of 4.57 million with help from "Harry & Meghan" and "Wednesday" in the battle to attract streaming television viewers.

Earnings per share, however, came in at 12 cents, below the 45 cents expected by analysts polled by Refinitiv.Netflix projected "modest" gains in subscribers through March.

It forecast 4% year-over-year growth in revenue during the period with the help of new revenue streams...

Source : Zeebiz

Published On : January 21, 2023

6 .

International Cricket Council (ICC), reportedly lost nearly ____ millions in online scam 2022.

A)

$4.5 Millions

B)

$3.2 Millions

C)

$2.5 Millions

D)

$1.8 Millions

Correct Answer : $2.5 Millions

The global governing body of cricket, the International Cricket Council (ICC), reportedly lost nearly $2.5 million in online scam 2022. The incident of phishing, which originated in the US, took place last year (2022).

* The ICC was repeatedly cheated by the scamster not once, not twice, but four times. Surprisingly, the authorities at the ICC's Dubai office did not have a clue that they were being cheated until Thursday (19th Jan 2023).

* It is reported that the scamster from the US acted as a vendor of the ICC and emailed the cricket body's CFO for a payment from an email id that was apparently similar to the ICC.

* The loss of $2.5 million is significant, as it is equivalent to four times the grant an Associate member with ODI status earns every year from the ICC. An ICC associate nation earns $500,000 to $1 million per year from ICC grants...

Source : Economic Times

Published On : January 21, 2023

7 .

Who to replace Jacinda Ardern as New Zealand prime minister?

A)

Jan Tinetti

B)

Andrew Little

C)

Ashley Bloomfield

D)

Chris Hipkins

Correct Answer : Chris Hipkins

Chris Hipkins, who played a significant role in New Zealand's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, is set to replace Jacinda Ardern as prime minister after emerging on Saturday (21st Jan 2023) as the only candidate to lead the ruling Labour Party.

Hipkins, 44, is expected to be confirmed as leader at a meeting of Labour's 64 lawmakers, or Caucus, on Sunday (22nd Jan 2023), succeeding Ardern, who made a surprise announcement on Thursday that she had "no more in the tank" to lead the country and would step down...

Source : Reuters

Published On : January 21, 2023

8 .

With reference to the Khadi and Village Industries Commission, consider the following statements:

1. It works under the Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.

2. It is a statutory body.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A)

1 Only

B)

2 Only

C)

Both (1) and (2)

D)

Neither (1) and (2)

Correct Answer : Both (1) and (2)

Shri Manoj Kumar, Chairman, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) distributed live Bee Colonies, Bee-keeping equipment and 200 Bee-Boxes to the trained beneficiaries at Sulia at Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka under the RE-HAB Project, an initiative under the Honey Mission Programme of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

* Under the Project RE-HAB, “Bee-fences” are created by setting up bee boxes in the passage ways of elephants to block their entrance to human habitats.

* The boxes are connected with a string so that when elephants attempt to pass through, a tug or pull causes the bees to swarm the elephant herds and dissuade them from moving further.

* It works under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.

* It is a statutory body established under the Khadi and Village Industries Commission Act, of 1956.

* The KVIC is charged with the planning, promotion, organisation and implementation of programmes for the development of Khadi and other village industries in the rural areas in coordination with other agencies engaged in rural development wherever necessary...

Source : PIB

Published On : January 21, 2023

9 .

With reference to the Mahabali frog, consider the following statements:

1. It is endemic to the Eastern Ghats.

2. It is categorized as a Near Threatened species under the IUCN Red List.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A)

1 Only

B)

2 Only

C)

Both (1) and (2)

D)

Neither (1) nor (2)

Correct Answer : 2 Only

Recently once again a proposal for assigning the official tag for the Mahabali frog to come up before the State Wildlife Advisory Board which was recommended by the Kerala Forest Department.

* The Mahabali frog is also known as the pignose frog.

* It is endemic to the Western Ghat.

* Habitat : These frogs prefer loose, damp and well-aerated soil close to ponds and ditches or streams.

* Specific Traits of this frog

* Unlike other frogs, it has very short hind legs, which do not allow it to leap from one spot to another.

* It buries itself all through the year and surfaces only one day to lay eggs.

* Conservation Status

* IUCN - Near Threatened

Source : The Hindu

Published On : January 21, 2023

10 .

Which one of the following countries does not have a land boundary with Egypt?

A)

Syria

B)

Sudan

C)

Libya

D)

Israel

Correct Answer : Syria

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi is India’s Chief Guest for Republic Day 2023 celebrations.

Key Facts about Egypt :

Location : Egypt is a transcontinental country situated in northeastern Africa and the Sinai Peninsula in Western Asia (Middle East).

Capital : Cairo

Boundaries :

* The country borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea to the east.

* It is bordered by Libya in the west, the Palestinian territory (Gaza Strip) and Israel in the northeast, and Sudan in the south.

* It shares maritime borders with Cyprus, Turkey and Greece in the Mediterranean Sea, and with Jordan and Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea...

Source : NDTV

Published On : January 21, 2023