16th-17th November, 2022

1. Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has jointly organized the first Virtual Global Skill Summit (VGSS) with the Indian Ambassadors / High Commission representing India Missions from ten nations.
2. India has put forward a proposal to better protect a species of freshwater reptile called the red-crowned roofed turtle (Batagur kachuga) under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
3. Fourth phase of the Digital Shakti Campaign was launched recently by National Commission for Women (NCW).
4. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has approved infrastructure projects worth Rs 44,000 crores in Arunachal Pradesh.
5. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has launched Mission Basundhara 2.0 for granting land rights.
6. Jammu and Kashmir administration has launched the Integrated Sheep Development Scheme for modernization and promotion of the sheep farming sector.
7. India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) and the state government of Kerala have partnered to set up a $575 million green hydrogen hub in Kochi in southern India.
8. 46th edition of the Wangala Festival (100-drum festival) was celebrated by the Garo community in Meghalaya.
9. Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act is set to be implemented by the state government of Madhya Pradesh to prevent the exploitation of the tribal population.
10. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma released the theme song for 400th birth anniversary celebration of the Lachit Barphukan.
11. 25th edition of Asia’s largest technology event, the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2022 (BTS 2022), was conducted on the theme of ‘Tech4NexGen’.
12. A Noida-based drone startup Tech Eagle has become the world’s first firm to successfully deliver vaccines for the animal husbandry department of Arunachal Pradesh.
13. India and the US began the 18th edition of their joint training exercise “Yudh Abhyas 2022” in Uttarakhand’s Auli.
14. Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited has signed an MoU with The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI) to promote Urja Arpan initiative.
15. International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has signed an MOU with RBI for collaboration in the field of regulation and supervision of regulated entities in their respective jurisdictions.
16. Ghana is the President of the United Nations Security Council for the month of November 2022 as per the rule of the rotating monthly Presidency.
17. World Bank has released the ‘Financing India’s Infrastructure Needs: Constraints to Commercial Financing and Prospects for Policy Action’
18. Artemis 1 (uncrewed mission) was successfully launched by NASA.
19. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the end of the decade-long Operation Barkhane in Africa.
20. Four African countries – Angola, Eritrea, Morocco and Nigeria – have joined the Food and Agricultural Organization’s (FAO) Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA). With this, the number of signatories to the PSMA has risen to 100.
21. US, Japan, Australia, and Canada’s navies have organised the biennial Keen Sword exercise off the coast of Japan.
22. The World Media Congress was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
23. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has released the “Mid-Year Trends” report.
24. UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs has released the “World Population Prospects 2022” report (27th edition).
25. Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB), a Dharwad-headquartered regional rural bank and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India have renewed their bancassurance agreement.
26. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released the Report on Municipal Finances.
27. Ministry of Finance has issued a notification stating that all GST anti-profiteering complaints will be dealt with by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) from December 1 as the extended tenure of National Anti-profiteering Authority ends this month.
28. ReNew Power, subsidiary of renewable energy company ReNew Energy Global Plc, has signed an agreement with Government of Egypt to set up a green hydrogen plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone with an investment of $8 billion.
29. Neobanking platform Open is the latest fintech firm to have received in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a payment aggregator.
30. Max Life Insurance has launched its Smart Wealth Advantage Guarantee Plan, a non-linked, non-participating individual life insurance savings plan that offers guaranteed returns, life insurance cover and financial protection all combined in one product.
31. As many as nine special vostro accounts have been opened with two Indian banks – UCO Bank and IndusInd Bank (Mumbai) – after permission from the Reserve Bank of India to facilitate overseas trade with Russia in rupee.
32. ESAF Small Finance Bank has received the ‘Best in Class’ rating for Environment, Social, and Governance practices.
33. Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the first greenfield farm machinery plant of Mahindra & Mahindra at Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh.
34. Dun & Bradstreet India has launched a suite of solutions called D&B ESG Intelligence to help organisations become ESG-compliant by conducting self-assessments.
35. King Misuzulu ka Zwelithini is the new Zulu King of South Africa. He was formally acknowledged as monarch by President Cyril Ramaphosa, who gave him a certificate of recognition.
36. Olympic medallists MC Mary Kom, PV Sindhu, Mirabai Chanu and Gagan Narang are among 10 eminent sportspersons who are elected as members of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) Athletes Commission.
37. Former Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Virmani has been appointed as a full-time member of NITI Aayog.
38. Sumeet Anand, Founder, IndSight Growth Partners, and President of the Indo-French Chamber of Commerce & Industry, has been conferred with the Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour).
39. Indian government has nominated Department of Financial Services Secretary Vivek Joshi as a director on the Reserve Bank of India’s central board.
40. Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority has appointed Suraj Bhan as the chairman of the National Pension System Trust (NPS Trust), responsible for managing funds under the National Pension System (NPS).
41. The central government has appointed senior economist Dr Arvind Virmani as a full-time member of the NITI Aayog.
42. November 14-20 – All India Cooperative Week (69th edition); Theme – India@75: Growth of Cooperative and Future Ahead”
43. Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas (Tribal Pride Day)
44. National Press Day; Theme – The Media’s Role in Nation Building
45. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina conferred the prestigious ‘Friends of Liberation War’ honour on former US Senator Edward M Kennedy posthumously in Dhaka for his contribution to the liberation of Bangladesh.
46. L Ganesh, Chairman of Rane Group, was conferred with the prestigious Deming Award, one of the longest-running and highest recognitions globally instituted by Japan.
47. UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence 2022 has been conferred upon Franca Ma-ih Sulem Yong from Cameroon, President of the NGOs #Afrogiveness and Positive Youths Africa.
48. The mascot of Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics is The Phryges.
49. 15th Asian Airgun Championship was held in Daegu, Korea.

National News

1. Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has jointly organized the first Virtual Global Skill Summit (VGSS) with the Indian Ambassadors / High Commission representing India Missions from ten nations.
   • The summit aimed at institutionalizing a robust mechanism for exchange of information on skill requirements of countries and the skill availability in India.
2. India has put forward a proposal to better protect a species of freshwater reptile called the red-crowned roofed turtle (Batagur kachuga) under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
   • The turtle, native to India and Bangladesh, is at a high risk of extinction.
   • The 19th Conference of the Parties to CITES began November 14 in Panama and will go on till November 25, 2022

3. Fourth phase of the Digital Shakti Campaign was launched recently by National Commission for Women (NCW).
   • The Digital Shakti Campaign is a national-level campaign that was launched in 2018 to digitally empower and skill women and girls to ensure their safety in cyberspace.

State News

1. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has approved infrastructure projects worth Rs 44,000 crores in Arunachal Pradesh.
   • Three highway projects will be developed with this assistance, which are a two-lane Frontier Highway (1465 km) alongside the Sino-India border, a two-lane inter-connectivity corridor (1,048 km), and a two-lane Brahmakund (Parshuram Kund) to Chowkham road (61 km).
   • The state has also signed an MOU with National Highways Logistics Management Ltd for the development of infrastructure in the state.
2. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has launched Mission Basundhara 2.0 for granting land rights.
   • Under Mission Basundhara 2.0, a total of eight services related to the land rights would be provided to the public in digital mode.
3. Jammu and Kashmir administration has launched the Integrated Sheep Development Scheme for modernization and promotion of the sheep farming sector.
4. India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) and the state government of Kerala have partnered to set up a $575 million green hydrogen hub in Kochi in southern India.
   • The hub is expected to house a 60 tonne/day hydrogen plant with a 150-megawatt (MW) electrolyser and other storage and infrastructure facilities.
   • The Kochi hub is expected to create production, storage, transmission, and end-use infrastructure for green hydrogen within a 50km radius cluster in Kochi.
   • In July, IH2A had proposed a roadmap for the creation of 25 national green hydrogen projects and five hydrogen hubs in the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh by 2025.

5. 46th edition of the Wangala Festival (100-drum festival) was celebrated by the Garo community in Meghalaya.
6. Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act is set to be implemented by the state government of Madhya Pradesh to prevent the exploitation of the tribal population.
7. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma released the theme song for 400th birth anniversary celebration of the Lachit Barphukan.
   • Lachit Borphukan, born on November 24, 1622, was a commander and Bophukan (councillor) in the Ahom Kingdom, which reigned present-day Assam for over 600 years while successfully resisting the Mughal Empire.
8. 25th edition of Asia’s largest technology event, the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2022 (BTS 2022), was conducted on the theme of ‘Tech4NexGen’.

Agriculture and Rural Development

1. A Noida-based drone startup Tech Eagle has become the world’s first firm to successfully deliver vaccines for the animal husbandry department of Arunachal Pradesh.
   • The startup used its indigenously developed hybrid drone –Vertiplane X3.

Defence News

1. India and the US began the 18th edition of their joint training exercise “Yudh Abhyas 2022” in Uttarakhand’s Auli.

Memorandum of Understanding

1. Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited has signed an MoU with The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI) to promote Urja Arpan initiative.
   • Under the Urja Arpan Program, customers can reduce their power bill, and choose from multiple options to reduce their energy consumption and contribute towards ensuring power reliability.
   • ‘Urja Arpan’ will educate the consumers about the significance of clean energy solutions.
2. International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has signed an MOU with RBI for collaboration in the field of regulation and supervision of regulated entities in their respective jurisdictions.
   • The IFSCA, being a unified regulator responsible for the development and regulation of financial products, financial services and financial institutions in the International Financial Services Centre(s) (IFSC) established in India, is also entrusted with the responsibility of regulation and supervision of authorized banks and NBFCs operating in such IFSCs.

International News

1. Ghana is the President of the United Nations Security Council for the month of November 2022 as per the rule of the rotating monthly Presidency.
2. World Bank has released the ‘Financing India’s Infrastructure Needs: Constraints to Commercial Financing and Prospects for Policy Action’
   • India will need to invest $840 billion over the next 15 years (or an average of $55 billion per annum) to upgrade its urban infrastructure if it is to effectively meet the needs of its fast-growing population in cities.
   • Only 5% of the infrastructure needs of Indian cities are currently being financed through private sources.
   • Currently, the central and state governments finance more than 75% of city infrastructure, while urban local bodies (ULB) finance 15% through their own surplus revenues.
   • By 2036, as many as 600 million people will be living in cities in India, representing 40% of the population.
3. Artemis 1 (uncrewed mission) was successfully launched by NASA
   • The mission included the Orion spacecraft (of six-person) and the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.
   • Artemis 2 will be a crewed mission, which is scheduled to be launched in 2024.
4. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the end of the decade-long Operation Barkhane in Africa.
   • France began its military operations in Sahel in January 2013. Titled Operation Serval, it was limited to targeting Islamic extremists linked to al-Qaeda who took control of northern Mali.
   • However, in 2014, the mission was scaled up, renamed Operation Barkhane and was aimed at counter-terrorism.
5. Four African countries – Angola, Eritrea, Morocco and Nigeria – have joined the Food and Agricultural Organization’s (FAO) Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA). With this, the number of signatories to the PSMA has risen to 100.
   • The Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA) is the first internationally binding instrument that aims to prevent and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing by denying port access to foreign vessels that are engaged in or supporting such practices.
   • The Agreement came into force in June 2016.
6. US, Japan, Australia, and Canada’s navies have organised the biennial Keen Sword exercise off the coast of Japan.
7. The World Media Congress was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
   • It is the first time; a conference of this kind has been held in the Middle East.

Reports and Indices

1. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has released the “Mid-Year Trends” report.
   • The report analyses changes and trends in forced displacement during the first six months of 2022.
   • The total number of refugees worldwide rose by 24% from 25.7 million at the end of 2021 to 32 million by mid-2022, largely due to refugees from Ukraine fleeing the war in their country.
   • This total includes nearly 24.5 million refugees, 2.2 million people in refugee-like situations, and some 5.3 million other people in need of international protection.
2. UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs has released the “World Population Prospects 2022” report (27th edition).
   • The global population has reached 8 billion.
   • As per this report, the world population is expected to increase to 5 billion in 2030 and 9.7 billion in 2050.
   • The world is expected to reach 10.4 billion by 2080s and remain at that level till 2100.
   • More than half of the projected increase in the global population between 2022 and 2050 is expected to be concentrated in just eight countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and the United Republic of Tanzania.
   • The population of older persons is increasing both in numbers and as a share of the total.
   • The share of the global population aged 65 years or above is projected to rise from 10% in 2022 to 16% in 2050.

Banking and Economy

1. Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB), a Dharwad-headquartered regional rural bank and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India have renewed their bancassurance agreement.
2. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released the Report on Municipal Finances.
   • As per the report, the rapid growth of urbanisation in India has not been accompanied by a corresponding increase in urban infrastructure, which is reflected in the performance of the urban local bodies, especially Municipal Corporations.
   • While the size of the municipal budgets in India is much smaller than in other countries, revenues are dominated by property tax collections and devolution of taxes and grants from upper levels of government, resulting in a lack of financial autonomy.
   • Municipal Corporations’ current expenditure in the form of establishment expenses, administrative costs and interest and finance charges is rising, but capital expenditure is minimal.
   • Municipal Corporations mostly rely on borrowings from banks and financial institutions and loans from Centre/State governments to finance their resource gaps in the absence of a well-developed market for municipal bonds.
   • Municipal Corporations need to adopt sound and transparent accounting practices with proper monitoring and documentation of various receipt and expenditure items, and explore different innovative bond and land-based financing mechanisms to augment their resources.
3. Ministry of Finance has issued a notification stating that all GST anti-profiteering complaints will be dealt with by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) from December 1 as the extended tenure of National Anti-profiteering Authority ends this month.
   • The National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA) was set up in November 2017 under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) law to check unfair profiteering activities by registered suppliers.
   • The Authority’s core function is to ensure that benefits of reduction in GST rates on goods and services and of the input tax credit are passed on to consumers by way of reduction in prices.

4. ReNew Power, subsidiary of renewable energy company ReNew Energy Global Plc, has signed an agreement with Government of Egypt to set up a green hydrogen plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone with an investment of $8 billion.
5. Neobanking platform Open is the latest fintech firm to have received in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a payment aggregator.
6. Max Life Insurance has launched its Smart Wealth Advantage Guarantee Plan, a non-linked, non-participating individual life insurance savings plan that offers guaranteed returns, life insurance cover and financial protection all combined in one product.
7. As many as nine special vostro accounts have been opened with two Indian banks – UCO Bank and IndusInd Bank (Mumbai) – after permission from the Reserve Bank of India to facilitate overseas trade with Russia in rupee.
   • Sberbank and VTB Bank—the largest and second-largest banks of Russia, respectively—are the first foreign lenders to receive the approval after the RBI announced the guidelines on overseas trade in the rupee in July.
   • Another Russian bank Gazprom—which does not have its bank in India—has also opened this account with Kolkata-based UCO Bank.
8. ESAF Small Finance Bank has received the ‘Best in Class’ rating for Environment, Social, and Governance practices.
   • ESAF is the first Indian member of the Global Alliance on Banking on Values.
   • The bank was fighting against the practice of “Greenwashing” – a term for fake claims over the environmental impact of the projects. In “Greenwashing”, companies claim that their products have a greater environmental impact than they actually have.
9. Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the first greenfield farm machinery plant of Mahindra & Mahindra at Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh.
10. Dun & Bradstreet India has launched a suite of solutions called D&B ESG Intelligence to help organisations become ESG-compliant by conducting self-assessments.

Appointments

1. King Misuzulu ka Zwelithini is the new Zulu King of South Africa. He was formally acknowledged as monarch by President Cyril Ramaphosa, who gave him a certificate of recognition.
2. Olympic medallists MC Mary Kom, PV Sindhu, Mirabai Chanu and Gagan Narang are among 10 eminent sportspersons who are elected as members of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) Athletes Commission.
   • Winter Olympian Shiva Keshavan, table tennis player Sharath Kamal, women’s hockey captain Rani Rampal, fencer Bhavani Devi, rower Bajrang Lal and former shot putter Om Prakash Singh Karhana are the other six members of the elected panel.
3. Former Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Virmani has been appointed as a full-time member of NITI Aayog.
   • Arvind Virmani served as the chief economic adviser in the finance ministry (2007-2009). He has also worked in RBI and IMF.
4. Sumeet Anand, Founder, IndSight Growth Partners, and President of the Indo-French Chamber of Commerce & Industry, has been conferred with the Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour).
   • The highest French civilian award comes in recognition of Sumeet Anand’s outstanding contributions in the fields of business and industry, as well as promoting Indo-French business and education ties.
5. Indian government has nominated Department of Financial Services Secretary Vivek Joshi as a director on the Reserve Bank of India’s central board.
6. Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority has appointed Suraj Bhan as the chairman of the National Pension System Trust (NPS Trust), responsible for managing funds under the National Pension System (NPS).
7. The central government has appointed senior economist Dr Arvind Virmani as a full-time member of the NITI Aayog.

Important Days

1. November 14-20 – All India Cooperative Week (69th edition); Theme – India@75: Growth of Cooperative and Future Ahead”
2. November 15 –
   • Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas (Tribal Pride Day)
   • Day of Eight Billion (the day when the population of 8 billion was achieved)
3. November 16 –
   • National Press Day; Theme – The Media’s Role in Nation Building
   • International Day for Tolerance
   • 2nd Audit Diwas (by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India)

Awards

1. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina conferred the prestigious ‘Friends of Liberation War’ honour on former US Senator Edward M Kennedy posthumously in Dhaka for his contribution to the liberation of Bangladesh.
2. L Ganesh, Chairman of Rane Group, was conferred with the prestigious Deming Award, one of the longest-running and highest recognitions globally instituted by Japan.
   • Reason – for his outstanding contribution in dissemination and promotion (Overseas) of Total Quality Management (TQM)
   • Ganesh is the third Indian and fifth globally to be bestowed with this award.
3. UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence 2022 has been conferred upon Franca Ma-ih Sulem Yong from Cameroon, President of the NGOs #Afrogiveness and Positive Youths Africa.
   • The prize is awarded every two years to individuals or institutions for their exceptional contributions to the promotion of tolerance and non-violence through the arts, education, culture, science and communication.

Sports

1. The mascot of Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics is The Phryges.

2. 15th Asian Airgun Championship was held in Daegu, Korea.
   • Gold medallists – Vijayveer Sidhu and Rhythm Sangwan (10m Air Pistol mixed team), Shiva Narwal (10-meter air pistol), Arjun Babuta and Mehuli Ghosh (10m air rifle mixed team)

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