Current Affairs 8 March 2022

1. Mukul Arya, India’s representative at Ramallah, passes away
2. India’s first indigenous flying trainer HANSA-NG completes sea-level trials
3. PM Modi unveils Shivaji statue, launches metro rail project in Pune
4. BCCI announces RuPay as official partner for Tata IPL
5. Insolvency regulator IBBI signs MoU with IBA
6. Mahindra Partners With CSC Grameen eStore To Expand Rural Reach
7. Priyanka Nutakki becomes the 23rd Woman Grandmaster of India
8. India’s largest EV charging station opens in Gurugram
9. Women and Child Development Ministry launches ‘Stree Manoraksha Project’ aiming to improve mental health of women
10. Ungalil Oruvan: A vivid narrative of MK Stalin’s eventful life
11. Naan Mudhalvan: Tamil Nadu CM unveils skill training scheme for students
12. Naan Mudhalvan: Tamil Nadu CM unveils skill training scheme for students
13. India slips 3 spots to rank 120 on 17 SDG goals adopted as 2030 agenda
14. India ranks 3rd in billionaire population globally: Knight Frank
15. SWISS to be the world’s first airline to use Synhelion solar fuel
16. Delhi Police launches new digital initiative – Anubhuti, e-Chitta
17. International Judo Federation suspends Vladimir Putin as honorary president

1. Mukul Arya, India’s representative at Ramallah, passes away

• India’s envoy to Palestine Mukul Arya passed away in
• In his mid-30s, Arya, a career diplomat of 2008 batch Indian Foreign Service, had served at the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi, in addition to serving at the Permanent Delegation of India to UNESCO in Paris, and at the Embassies of India in Kabul and Moscow.

2. India’s first indigenous flying trainer HANSA-NG completes sea-level trials

• India’s first indigenous flying trainer ‘HANSA-NG’ designed and developed by CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories(NAL), has successfully completed the sea-level trials at Puducherry.
• The aircraft was flown to Puducherry covering a distance of 140 nautical miles in 5 hours at a cruising speed of 155 km/hr on February 19.
• NAL Director : Jitendra J Jadhav.

3. PM Modi unveils Shivaji statue, launches metro rail project in Pune

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi has unveiled a 5-feet tall statue of great Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and launched a 12km stretch of 32.2 km-long metro rail project in Maharastra’s Pune.
• He took a metro ride from Garware college to Anandnagar metro station to address a rally at MIT ground.

4. BCCI announces RuPay as official partner for Tata IPL

• The Indian Premier League Governing Council has announced RuPay as an official partner for Tata IPL beginning March 26.
• With RuPay’s venture into IPL as the official partner, we feel it is one of the best ways to define the tech-savvy, youthful, contemporary brand personality of RuPay.
• The IPL 2022 is scheduled to be played in the country from March 26 till May 29.

5. Insolvency regulator IBBI signs MoU with IBA

• Insolvency regulator IBBI and Indian Banks Association (IBA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on capacity building for financial creditors on topics related to insolvency, bankruptcy and related subjects.
• IBBI = Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India.
• Timely resolution of insolvency cases potentially impedes the value erosion of the assets of the corporate debtor.

6. Mahindra Partners With CSC Grameen eStore To Expand Rural Reach

• Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd has partnered with CSC Grameen eStore, a government of India initiative, to deepen connections with over 7 lakh villages in India.
• The partnership will harness CSC Grameen’s digital platform to facilitate Mahindra vehicle enquiries and real-time online lead transfer to M&M from deep rural pockets.
• CEO of Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd : Anish Shah.
• Dinesh Tyagi is the CEO of CSC SPV.

7. Priyanka Nutakki becomes the 23rd Woman Grandmaster of India

• 19-year-old Priyanka Nutakki from Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh secured her final WGM-norm at MPL 47th National Women Chess Championship.
• She scored 7.0/9, performed at 2348 to become India’s latest Woman Grandmaster in March 2022.
• Priyanka Nutakki scored her first WGM-norm in January 2019 and crossed the 2300 rating criteria in the next two months.
• Subbaraman Vijayalakshmi – India’s first Woman Grandmaster.

8. India’s largest EV charging station opens in Gurugram

• India’s largest electric vehicle (EV) charging station with a capacity of 121 charging points for 4 wheelers, has been opened here in Sector 86.
• With this EV station, the city now has two of the largest electric vehicle charging stations in India.
• The first EV station was opened earlier in January with a capacity of 100 charging points in Sector 52 of Gurugram.

9. Women and Child Development Ministry launches ‘Stree Manoraksha Project’ aiming to improve mental health of women

• The ‘Stree Manoraksha Project’ in collaboration with NIMHANS Bengaluru is launched with an aim to improve the mental health of women in India.
• The project would focus on capacity building of OSC (One-Stop Center) functionaries on the tools and techniques as to how to handle the cases of women approaching the One-Stop Centres.

10. Ungalil Oruvan: A vivid narrative of MK Stalin’s eventful life

• The autobiography of DMK president and Chief Minister MK Stalin, which covers the first quarter of his life, is a vivid narrative of his formative years as a politician.
• This volume recounts most of the key incidents that show the politics in his veins and his commitment towards DMK and its growth.
• Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched the first volume of the book.

11. Naan Mudhalvan: Tamil Nadu CM unveils skill training scheme for students

• Chief Minister MK Stalin launched an ambitious skill development scheme for students in the State, with the initiative aimed at honing the educational skills, knowledge, talent and efficiency of 10 lakh youth annually.
• Titled ‘Naan Mudhalvan’(I am first).
• Under the scheme, students of government and aided schools and colleges will be monitored and their special skills identified.

12. Naan Mudhalvan: Tamil Nadu CM unveils skill training scheme for students

• Chief Minister MK Stalin launched an ambitious skill development scheme for students in the State, with the initiative aimed at honing the educational skills, knowledge, talent and efficiency of 10 lakh youth annually.
• Titled ‘Naan Mudhalvan’(I am first).
• Under the scheme, students of government and aided schools and colleges will be monitored and their special skills identified.

13. India slips 3 spots to rank 120 on 17 SDG goals adopted as 2030 agenda

• India has slipped three spots from last year’s 117 to rank 120 on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals adopted as a part of the 2030 agenda by 192 United Nations member states.
• The south Asian countries ahead of India are Bhutan ranked 75, Sri Lanka 87, Nepal 96 and Bangladesh 109.
• India’s overall Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) score was 66 out of 100.
• The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, was adopted by all UN Member States in 2015.

14. India ranks 3rd in billionaire population globally: Knight Frank

• The number of ultra-high-net-worth-individuals (UHNWIs) has globally increased by 3% in 2021.
• Over 51,000 people have seen their net assets increased to US$30m or more.
• In India, the number of UHNWIs (net assets with US$ 30m or more) has grown by 11% YoY in 2021, the highest percentage growth in APAC, according to Knight Frank’s latest edition of The Wealth Report 2022.
• India has ranked 3rd in terms of billionaires’ population in 2021, US and China.

15. SWISS to be the world’s first airline to use Synhelion solar fuel

• SWISS and the Lufthansa Group have concluded a strategic collaboration with the Synhelion company to bring its solar aviation fuel to market.
• This will make SWISS the first airline in the world to use ‘sun-to-liquid’ fuel.
• The process devised by Synhelion uses concentrated sunlight to produce carbon-neutral kerosene.
• SWISS is set to become the first customer for solar kerosene in 2023.

16. Delhi Police launches new digital initiative – Anubhuti, e-Chitta

• Delhi police launched three new digital initiatives – Anubhuti, a QR code-based feedback system, a refurbished Delhi Police website and e-Chittha portal.
• Anubhuti – Feedback Management System, will establish two-way communication between the public and the police, and the analysis of the feedback received will help improve the functioning of the department.

17. International Judo Federation suspends Vladimir Putin as honorary president

• Russian president Vladimir Putin has been suspended as honorary president of the International Judo Federation (IJF) due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
• Putin, an accomplished judoka who was awarded an eighth dan in 2014, one of the highest levels in the sport, has been honorary president since 2008.
• Marius Vizer is the president of IJF.
• The Headquarters of the International Judo Federation : Budapest, Hungary.

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