Current Affairs - January, 2023 - Free Time Learning

1 .

India will deploy a platoon of women peacekeepers to UN Mission in which country?

A)

Somalia

B)

Sudan

C)

Kenya

D)

Ethiopia

Correct Answer : Sudan

India deploys a women-only platoon of peacekeepers to the UN Mission in Abyei on the border of Sudan and South Sudan as part of the Indian Battalion in the United Nations Interim Security Force, Abyei (UNISFA).

The Indian contingent, which consists of two officers and 25 other ranks, will work as a platoon in an engagement and specialise in community outreach in addition to carrying out numerous security-related duties.

India is among the largest troop-contributing countries to UN peacekeeping. This time India is deploying the largest single unit of female Blue Helmets in a UN mission since 2007.

The action indicates India’s intention to substantially increase the proportion of women in peacekeeping contingents..

Source : New On Air

Published On : January 6, 2023

2 .

With whom has the International Hockey Federation tied up as a Global World Cup partner?

A)

JSW Group

B)

GMR Group

C)

Essar Group

D)

Aditya Birla Group

Correct Answer : JSW Group

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) has signed a partnership with the JSW Group for the upcoming FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela, which will kick-off later this month.

The group supports and promotes Olympics in India and has created an Olympic Training Institute in the Inspire Institute of Sport as well as has Olympic training centres across the country.

Parth Jindal, founder of the conglomerate, said, “Hockey is a sport that is in the heart of every Indian and to see it happening in the very state that has revived the game in our country, Odisha, makes it all the more special. To have the opportunity to be associated with the Hockey World Cup in India is a matter of great pride for us. I am certain the tournament will set the benchmark for future Hockey world cups and will be truly world class".

FIH’S CEO Thierry Weil said, “We’re thrilled to welcome them as a global partner for the upcoming FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup, which promises to have a resounding success both in India, a country passionate about the sport, and across the world. On behalf of FIH, I’d like to extend our sincerest thanks to JSW. We look forward to a great collaboration!"

The 15th edition of FIH’s flagship event for men will be played from 13 January to 29 January 2023 in Odisha, India.

The year 2021 saw a comeback for sports sponsorships and media deals, as compared to 2020, following a lull after the pandemic.

The year helped India achieve a billion-dollar scale with a 62% growth over 2020, found a report by GroupM ESP, the entertainment, esports and sports division of GroupM India.

The company said in its sports sponsorship report for India 2021, that the country’s performance at the Tokyo Olympics has been a morale booster for budding sports talent in the country and 2022 will bring new opportunities in multi-sport events..

Source : Mint

Published On : January 6, 2023

3 .

Who inaugurated the Palm leaf Manuscript Museum with modern audio-visual technology at the renovated Central Archives, Fort area in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala?

A)

Narendra Modi

B)

M. V. Govindan

C)

Kodiyeri Balakrishnan

D)

Pinarayi Vijayan

Correct Answer : Pinarayi Vijayan

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has inaugurated the Palm leaf Manuscript Museum with modern audio-visual technology at the renovated Central Archives, Fort area in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala on on Thursday (5th Jan 2023).

Set up by the Archives Department, the â‚¹3-crore museum has eight theme-based galleries where select manuscripts from one of the biggest palm-leaf collections in the country will be displayed.

As many as 187 old and rare manuscripts stored at Central Archives and the department’s regional offices in Ernakulam and Kozhikode will be housed in the 6,000-sq ft museum, arranged by the State government’s nodal agency for museums Keralam–Museum of History and Heritage, in the over 300-year-old heritage structure in the heart of the city.

The manuscripts in ancient scripts such as Vattezhuthu, Kolezhuthu, Malayanma, and ancient Tamil and Malayalam take visitors through the social, political, cultural, and economic history of Kerala..

Source : The Hindu

Published On : January 6, 2023

4 .

Who has been elected (5th January 2023) as the 16th Speaker of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly?

A)

Kuldeep Singh Pathania

B)

Pasang Dorjee Sona

C)

Girish Gautam

D)

Ritu Khanduri Bhushan

Correct Answer : Kuldeep Singh Pathania

Senior Congress leader Kuldeep Singh Pathania, a five-time MLA, has been unanimously elected as the 16th Speaker of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly, January 5, 2023.

On the second day of the winter session of the 14th Legislative Assembly of Himachal Pradesh in Dharamshala, three proposals were made to make Kuldeep Singh Pathania the Speaker of the Assembly. During this, Protem Speaker Chandra Kumar conducted the proceedings of the House.

Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu proposed the name of Kuldeep Singh Pathania whose approval was done by Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur on behalf of the BJP Legislature Party.

Kuldeep Pathania was elected as MLA for the first time on the Congress ticket in 1985, then became the youngest legislator of the sixth Assembly. He registered to win as an Independent in 1993 and 2003 and on the Congress ticket in 2007 and 2022..

Source : AIR

Published On : January 6, 2023

5 .

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launch high-speed 5G telecom services in which state on 5th Jan 2023?

A)

Bihar

B)

Andhra Pradesh

C)

Odisha

D)

Madhya Pradesh

Correct Answer : Odisha

Union Communications, IT, and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has launched high-speed fifth-generation (5G) telecom services in Odisha.

After launching the service the Minister said by August 2024, the entire Odisha will be covered with telecom towers, and fibre will reach every village.

Mr. Vaishnaw further said with the support from the government, it would emerge as a strong entity. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has earmarked 5,600 crore rupees to deploy 5,000 towers across 7,000 villages across Odisha.

Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, said that 5G technology will prove to be a game changer in the education sector.

Mr. Pradhan further said that 5G backed by low-latency communication would facilitate multiple use cases such as in healthcare that includes remote surgery and telemedicine applications.

Incumbent telecom carriers - Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have also showcased 5G-driven use cases at Bhubaneswar’s Shiksha O Anusandhan (SOA) University..

Source : AIR

Published On : January 6, 2023

6 .

Which company Signed MoU with IIT (Indian School of Mines) for Technical Support?

A)

MSTC Limited

B)

Hindustan Copper Ltd.

C)

Hindalco Industries

D)

Uranium Corporation of India

Correct Answer : Hindustan Copper Ltd.

Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL) and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad, on Wednesday (4th Jan 2023) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for technical collaboration to increase the state-owned firm’s copper ore production.

This is the first technical collaboration between the two organisations. HCL is the only copper miner in India and owns all operating mining leases for copper ore in the country.

At present, majority of ore production comes through from underground, with an estimated 4 million tonne produced annually.

However, due to complex geological characteristics of the ore body and increased depth of mining, various geo-technical and ground water related issues along with technical/ operational problems are being faced during the process of production along with maintaining safety standards and dealing the emerging sustainability issues.

HCL plans to increase its ore production capacity threefold in the coming years wherein development activities in projects are either on-going in nature or already planned in most of its mines.

At present, the mined out ore is processed at the company’s ore beneficiation plants and metals in concentrate is sold in domestic and international markets.

IIT-ISM, Dhanbad, being an institute of national repute, particularly in the fields of mining of minerals and its beneficiation and Earth Sciences, will play a key role in solving the emerging geological, technical, environmental, sustainable and ore beneficiation issues for achieving the envisaged expansion programme of HCL.

The MoU will allow HCL to receive technical assistance, guidance and consultancy work from IIT-ISM for enhancing copper ore production through modifying mining methods with application of state-of-the-art technologies, improvement of productivity and safety in mines, environmental clearance issues, various hydrological & hydro-geological studies and in areas of unconventional exploration methods like Geophysical exploration, Remote Sensing etc. for depth exploration of copper ore..

Source : Mint

Published On : January 6, 2023

7 .

The Government has approved the investment for the 382 MW Sunni Dam Hydro Electric Project in which state?

A)

Uttarakhand

B)

Himachal Pradesh

C)

Uttar Pradesh

D)

Arunachal Pradesh

Correct Answer : Himachal Pradesh

The Government has approved the investment for the 382 Mega Watt Sunni Dam Hydro Electric Project in Himachal Pradesh (HP), with an estimated cost of over 2,614 crore rupees.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur said, the project will be built on the Sutlej river, which will have a capacity of 382 megawatts.

He said, it will be constructed by Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam limited in over 5 years. The Minister said, the project will generate direct and indirect employment for about 4,000 persons..

Source : AIR

Published On : January 5, 2023

8 .

The CCEA has approved Central Sector __________ Scheme with an outlay of 2,539.61 crore rupees up to 2025-26.

A)

Television Infrastructure and Network Development (TIND)

B)

Chanel Infrastructure and Network Development (CIND)

C)

National Infrastructure and Network Development (NIND)

D)

Broadcasting Infrastructure and Network Development (BIND)

Correct Answer : Broadcasting Infrastructure and Network Development (BIND)

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved Central Sector Broadcasting Infrastructure and Network Development (BIND) Scheme with an outlay of 2,539.61 crore rupees up to 2025-26.

Aim : For the infrastructure development of Prasar Bharati i.e. All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan (DD).

At present, Doordarshan operates 36 TV channels including 28 regional channels and All India Radio (AIR) operates more than 500 broadcasting centres.

Through this scheme, OB vans will be purchased and digital upgradation of DD and AIR Studios will be done, to make them High Definition ready.

8 lakh DD Free Dish, DTH Set Top Boxes will be distributed to people living in remote, tribal, Left Wing Extremism, border areas, and aspirational districts under the scheme.

The Project for modernization and augmentation of broadcast infrastructure will generate indirect employment by way of manufacturing and services related to supply and installation of broadcast equipments..

Source : AIR

Published On : January 5, 2023

9 .

Which Ministry has organised the first All India Annual State Ministers Conference on Water in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh on January 5, 2023?

A)

Jal Shakti Ministry

B)

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

C)

Ministry of Power

D)

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy

Correct Answer : Jal Shakti Ministry

The Jal Shakti Ministry has organised the first All India Annual State Ministers Conference on Water in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh on January 5, 2023.

Theme : Water Vision @ 2047

Aim : To bring together key policymakers to discuss ways to harness water resources for sustainable development and human progress.

The Conference has also deliberated on ‘5P’ mantra (Political will, Public financing, Partnerships, Public Participation and Persuasion for sustainability)..

Source : AIR

Published On : January 5, 2023

10 .

As per the CMIE's latest report, which state recorded the highest unemployment rate in December 2022?

A)

Telangana

B)

Punjab

C)

Bihar

D)

Haryana

Correct Answer : Haryana

The latest data on the unemployment rate by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) showed that India's joblessness rate was recorded at 8.30% in December 2022, the highest in 16 months, as compared to 8.00% in November 2022.

While the urban unemployment rate had increased to 10.09% in December from 8.96% in the previous month, the rural unemployment rate slipped to 7.44% from 7.55%.

Haryana recorded the highest unemployment rate at 37.4%, while Odisha recorded the lowest at 0.9% last month. Apart from Haryana, seven more states reported double-digit unemployment rates including the national capital. followed by Rajasthan at 28.5 percent and Delhi at 20.8 percent..

Source : Hindustan Times

Published On : January 5, 2023