29th November, 2022

1. Ministry of Rural Development has constituted a committee to review the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme, especially to assess the programme’s efficacy as a poverty alleviation tool.
2. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully launched nine satellites aboard its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C54 (PSLV) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
3. UNESCO INDIA – AFRICA Hackathon – an annual 36 hours event – has been organized at the Gautam Buddha University in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh with Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar as the Chief Guest.
4. Prasar Bharati is hosting the 59th ABU General Assembly 2022 on the theme of “Serving the People: Media’s Role in Times of Crisis” in New Delhi.
5. India has won International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) Vice Presidency and Strategic Management Board (SMB) Chair for the 2023-25 term.
6. Dr Deepa Malik has pledged her support to the Tuberculosis (TB) Mukt Bharat campaign by becoming its national ambassador and as a Ni-Kshay Mitra by adopting 5 TB patients herself.
7. Ministry of Tourism, in partnership with the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSI), has organized the ‘CEO round table on Sustainable Tourism’ in New Delhi.
8. Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in January 2023.
9. Ahead of India assuming the G20 Presidency on December 1, 2022, a special briefing of the Resident Heads of Missions of the G20 member countries, invited guest countries and International Organizations was held at Swaraj Dweep in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
10. Uttarakhand government launched a new scheme – “Mukhya Mantri Pratham Gram Samekit Vikas Yojana (CM first village integrated development scheme)” – to develop villages close to the international border.
11. Maharashtra government has signed an MOU with US-based Women’s World Banking, with funding support from MetLife Foundation, to operationalise and strengthen 5,000 women of self-help groups (SHGs).
12. Rajasthan launched the Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Rajasthan Dalit, Adivasi Udyam Protsahan Yojana to ensure the participation of SC/STs in the industrial development in the state.
13. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will launch the Har Ghar Gangajal project in Rajgir and Gaya to provide Ganga water through taps in dry areas of the state that do not lie along the course of the river.
14. The Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) has approved the Himalayan Yak as a ‘food animal’.
15. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL) has officially handed over the second Project 15B stealth-guided missile destroyer, named Mormugao (Y 12705), to the Indian Navy.
16. Austra Hind 22 – a bilateral training exercise between the armies of India and Australia – is being held at Mahajan Field Firing Ranges in Rajasthan from 28 November to 11 December 2022.
17. United Nations General Assembly has unanimously adopted a resolution to develop an International Tax Cooperation Framework or instrument based on a UN intergovernmental process.
18. NASA’s Orion spacecraft has successfully entered the Moon’s orbit.
19. Delhi-based think-tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has released a report titled The Plastic Life-cycle at India Habitat Centre in New Delhi.
20. According to a report by US-based consulting firm Morning Consult’s Global Leader Approval Ratings, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains the world’s most popular leader with an approval rating of 77%.
21. Walmart-owned digital payments firm PhonePe is set to acquire fintech start-up ZestMoney for $200-300 million.
22. Punjab National Bank (PNB) has received the government’s approval to divest its entire stake in UTI Asset Management Company as part of its non-core asset sale plan to increase its capital base.
23. TAC Security has been appointed as the official cyber security partner of the Bombay Stock Exchange.
24. Honda Cars India has signed an MoU with IDBI Bank to offer a host of finance schemes for its customers.
25. IDBI Bank will continue to operate as an ‘Indian private sector bank’ after its strategic sale and the government’s residual 15% stake in the bank post-privatisation will be considered as ‘public shareholding’.
26. IIT Guwahati Director Professor TG Sitharam has been appointed as the new chairman of the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).
27. November 25 – International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women; Theme – UNiTE! Activism to End Violence against Women & Girls
28. November 26 – National Milk Day (101st birth anniversary of the “Father of the White Revolution in India” i.e., Dr Verghese Kurien also known as the Milkman of India)
29. Steven Spielberg will be honoured at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival with a homage and the Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.
30. Army Chief General Manoj Pande received a Guard of Honour at the Les Invalides in Paris.
31. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty have made their debut on the UK’s ‘Asian Rich List 2022’ topped by the Hinduja family.
32. Sangeet Natak Akademi in New Delhi has selected 102 artists of India for the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for the years 2019, 2020 & 2021.
33. e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (eGramSwaraj and AuditOnline) of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj have won the GOLD AWARD under the category “Excellence in Government Process Re-engineering for Digital Transformation” of the National Awards for e-Governance.
34. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) was conferred with the Award of Excellence at the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation-2022.
35. Sonam Wangchuk was awarded the 7th Dr Paulos Mar Gregorios Award by former Vice President Venkaiah Naidu.
36. France’s Stephanie Frappart became the first female to officiate a men’s FIFA World Cup
37. Madras Boating Club women won the 81st Annual Madras-Colombo Rowing Regatta, which was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
38. Two volcanoes in the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia have erupted recently.
39. Vikram Gokhale, veteran film and TV actor, has passed away. He had won National Film Award for Best Actor for ‘Anumati’ (Marathi).

National News

1. Ministry of Rural Development has constituted a committee to review the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme, especially to assess the programme’s efficacy as a poverty alleviation tool.
   • The committee, headed by former Rural Development secretary Amarjeet Sinha, has been given three months to submit its suggestions.
   • Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act was passed in 2005, and the demand-driven scheme guarantees 100 days of unskilled work per year for every rural household that wants it.
   • There are currently 15.51 crore active workers enrolled under the scheme.
2. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully launched nine satellites aboard its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C54 (PSLV) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
   • This was the 56th PSLV flight of ISRO and the last one for the year.
   • Out of the nine satellites, eight are nanosatellites.
   • The Earth Observation Satellite-6 (EOS-06) also dubbed the Oceansat-3 is the primary satellite aboard this mission.
3. UNESCO INDIA – AFRICA Hackathon – an annual 36 hours event – has been organized at the Gautam Buddha University in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh with Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar as the Chief Guest.
   • Purpose – to tackle the common challenges faced by their countries and serves as a facilitator for cultural amalgamation
4. Prasar Bharati is hosting the 59th ABU General Assembly 2022 on the theme of “Serving the People: Media’s Role in Times of Crisis” in New Delhi.
   • Malaysia-headquartered ABU (Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union) is a non-profit, professional association of broadcasting organizations of the Asia and Pacific region.

5. India has won International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) Vice Presidency and Strategic Management Board (SMB) Chair for the 2023-25 term.
   • Vimal Mahendru will be the IEC Vice President, representing India.

6. Dr Deepa Malik has pledged her support to the Tuberculosis (TB) Mukt Bharat campaign by becoming its national ambassador and as a Ni-Kshay Mitra by adopting 5 TB patients herself.
   • She is Padma Shri, Khel Ratna Arjuna Awardee, India’s First Woman Paralympic Medallist and incumbent President of the Paralympic Committee of India.

7. Ministry of Tourism, in partnership with the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSI), has organized the ‘CEO round table on Sustainable Tourism’ in New Delhi.
   • It was held in alignment with the National Strategy for Sustainable Tourism.
   • The roundtable focussed on three initiatives –
     • Travel for LiFE Pledge
     • Responsible Traveller Campaign
     • Tourism Plastics Initiative

8. Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in January 2023.
   • This is the first time that the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt will be the Chief Guest at India’s Republic Day.
   • Egypt has been invited as a ‘Guest Country’ during India’s Presidency of G-20 in 2022-23.
9. Ahead of India assuming the G20 Presidency on December 1, 2022, a special briefing of the Resident Heads of Missions of the G20 member countries, invited guest countries and International Organizations was held at Swaraj Dweep in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

State News

1. Uttarakhand government launched a new scheme – “Mukhya Mantri Pratham Gram Samekit Vikas Yojana (CM first village integrated development scheme)” – to develop villages close to the international border.
   • Uttarakhand has an international border of 625km – 350km with China and 275km with Nepal.
2. Maharashtra government has signed an MOU with US-based Women’s World Banking, with funding support from MetLife Foundation, to operationalise and strengthen 5,000 women of self-help groups (SHGs).
   • Purpose – to become business correspondents or BC Sakhis who help facilitate banking services in rural areas

3. Rajasthan launched the Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Rajasthan Dalit, Adivasi Udyam Protsahan Yojana to ensure the participation of SC/STs in the industrial development in the state.
4. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will launch the Har Ghar Gangajal project in Rajgir and Gaya to provide Ganga water through taps in dry areas of the state that do not lie along the course of the river.
   • The scheme will harvest the excess water in the Ganga during the monsoon flooding season, to be treated, stored, and piped to Rajgir, Gaya, and Bodhgaya, regions.
   • Har Ghar Gangajal is part of the Bihar government’s “Jal, Jeevan, Hariyali scheme”.

Agriculture and Rural Development

1. The Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) has approved the Himalayan Yak as a ‘food animal’.
   • Food Animals are those that are raised and used for food production or consumption by humans.
   • Yak milk is highly nutritious, rich in fat, contains essential minerals and have medicinal value.
   • Yak farmers produce various traditional meat products. Yak meat is known to be very lean and it is better than beef

Defence News

1. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL) has officially handed over the second Project 15B stealth-guided missile destroyer, named Mormugao (Y 12705), to the Indian Navy.
   • The contract for the construction of four Project 15B or Visakhapatnam-class destroyers was awarded to MDL in 2011 to gradually replace the Indian Navy’s existing ageing of Kolkata-class (Project 15A) destroyers.
2. Austra Hind 22 – a bilateral training exercise between the armies of India and Australia – is being held at Mahajan Field Firing Ranges in Rajasthan from 28 November to 11 December 2022.
   • This is the first exercise in the series of Austra Hind with the participation of all arms and services contingent from both armies.

International News

1. United Nations General Assembly has unanimously adopted a resolution to develop an International Tax Cooperation Framework or instrument based on a UN intergovernmental process.
2. NASA’s Orion spacecraft has successfully entered the Moon’s orbit.
   • Orion is a precursor to the Artemis of NASA, which is due for launch in 2024.

Reports and Indices

1. Delhi-based think-tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has released a report titled The Plastic Life-cycle at India Habitat Centre in New Delhi.
   • As per the report, plastic is not just a waste management problem, as is commonly believed. Instead, it is a material production problem.
   • Unless the entire life cycle of plastic — from source to disposal — is not together considered as the root cause of the pollution it causes, the problem is not going away.
   • Some 99% of India’s plastics are derived from crude oil.
   • A staggering 67% of the entire production capacity of the country is utilised to manufacture polymers, commonly called plastics.
   • Approximately 40% of the entire production of petrochemicals is used for plastic packaging applications.
   • Some 60% of the plastic consumed in India is used for packaging applications, which is essentially single use.
2. According to a report by US-based consulting firm Morning Consult’s Global Leader Approval Ratings, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains the world’s most popular leader with an approval rating of 77%.

Banking and Economy

1. Walmart-owned digital payments firm PhonePe is set to acquire fintech start-up ZestMoney for $200-300 million.
   • The acquisition would help PhonePe to strengthen its lending services and compete with Google Pay, Paytm, and Amazon Pay in Indian fintech, which is expected to be worth $350 billion by 2026.
2. Punjab National Bank (PNB) has received the government’s approval to divest its entire stake in UTI Asset Management Company as part of its non-core asset sale plan to increase its capital base.
3. TAC Security has been appointed as the official cyber security partner of the Bombay Stock Exchange.
   • BSE will get a holistic view of their risk-vulnerability management on a single platform using TAC Security’s ESOF (Enterprise Security in One Framework).
4. Honda Cars India has signed an MoU with IDBI Bank to offer a host of finance schemes for its customers.
   • It will allow customers to avail of hassle-free affordable financing options and schemes for purchasing Honda Car models.
   • The collaboration with IDBI Bank is an initiative to provide all Honda customers with convenient financing solutions along with the best ownership experience and assistance.
5. IDBI Bank will continue to operate as an ‘Indian private sector bank’ after its strategic sale and the government’s residual 15% stake in the bank post-privatisation will be considered as ‘public shareholding’.

Appointments

1. IIT Guwahati Director Professor TG Sitharam has been appointed as the new chairman of the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).
   • He will take the charge from UGC Chairman M Jagadesh Kumar and hold the post for a period of three years.

Important Days

1. November 25 – International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women; Theme – UNiTE! Activism to End Violence against Women & Girls
   • On this day, the Ministry of Rural Development has launched the “Nai Chetna-Pahal Badlav Ki”– A Community-led National Campaign Against Gender-Based Discrimination with the theme of ‘Elimination of Gender-Based Violence’.
   • As part it, 160 Gender Resource Centres (GRCs) called “Naari Chetna Kendras” were inaugurated in 13 states.
     • They will work with One Stop Centres (OSCs) of Ministry of Women and Child

• Nai Chetna-Pahal Badlav Ki will be an annual month-long campaign (to be held from 25 November to 23 December, 2022) focussing on specific gender issues each year.
• It was launched as part of the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).
• Implementation: It will be implemented by all states in collaboration with Civil Society Organisation (CSO) partners.

2. November 26 – National Milk Day (101st birth anniversary of the “Father of the White Revolution in India” i.e., Dr Verghese Kurien also known as the Milkman of India)
   • The celebrations were held by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying in Bengaluru.

Awards

1. Steven Spielberg will be honoured at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival with a homage and the Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.
2. Army Chief General Manoj Pande received a Guard of Honour at the Les Invalides in
3. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty have made their debut on the UK’s ‘Asian Rich List 2022’ topped by the Hinduja family.
4. Sangeet Natak Akademi in New Delhi has selected 102 artists of India for the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for the years 2019, 2020 & 2021.
   • The Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar is given to artists below the age of 40 years. The award was established in 2006.
   • Prize money of Rs. 25,000/- is given to the awardees.
5. e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (eGramSwaraj and AuditOnline) of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj have won the GOLD AWARD under the category “Excellence in Government Process Re-engineering for Digital Transformation” of the National Awards for e-Governance.

6. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) was conferred with the Award of Excellence at the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation-2022.
   • Award of Distinction – Stepwells of Golconda, Hyderabad
   • Award of Merit – Domakonda Fort, Telangana, and Byculla Station, Mumbai
7. Sonam Wangchuk was awarded the 7th Dr Paulos Mar Gregorios Award by former Vice President Venkaiah Naidu.
   • Wangchuk is a Ladakh-based engineer whose life inspired a character in the Bollywood blockbuster “3 Idiots”.
   • Instituted by the Sophia Society of the Malankara (Indian) Orthodox Church, the award is given every alternate year in the memory of the first Metropolitan of Delhi Diocese and noted philosopher Dr Paulos Mar Gregorios.

Sports

1. France’s Stephanie Frappart became the first female to officiate a men’s FIFA World Cup
   • She was named the fourth official for a Group C clash between Mexico and Poland.
   • Frappart, Salima Mukansanga of Rwanda and Yamashita Yoshimi of Japan have been named among the tournament’s referees along with three female assistant referees at the World Cup.
2. Madras Boating Club women won the 81st Annual Madras-Colombo Rowing Regatta, which was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Miscellaneous

1. Two volcanoes in the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia have erupted recently.
2. Vikram Gokhale, veteran film and TV actor, has passed away. He had won National Film Award for Best Actor for ‘Anumati’ (Marathi).

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