Legendary American talk-show host Larry King passes away
The iconic American radio and television host, and paid spokesman, Larry King, has passed away. He rose to fame in 1978 as a radio host of The Larry King Show and then hosted Larry King Live on CNN for about 25 years from 1985 to 2010.
King has quizzed thousands of world leaders, politicians, entertainers, athletes, and everyday people for CNN and other news outlets in a career spanning more than six decades.
International Day of Education: 24 January
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development. The first-ever International Day of Education was celebrated on 24 January 2019 as per the resolution passed by the United Nations General Assembly on December 3rd 2018 to celebrate the role of education in development.
The third International Day of Education will be marked under the theme ‘Recover and Revitalize Education for the COVID-19 Generation’. Now is the time to power education by stepping up collaboration and international solidarity to place education and lifelong learning at the centre of the recovery.
Veteran Bureaucrat, poet and Hyderabad historian Narendra Luther passes away
Noted historian, author, poet and retired bureaucrat Narendra Luther has passed. A 1955 batch IAS officer, Luther was closely associated with the history and culture of erstwhile Hyderabad state and its rulers. He had served in various positions before retiring as the chief secretary of the undivided Andhra Pradesh in 1991. He has penned a number of books on the history, heritage and architecture of Hyderabad.
National Voters’ Day observed on 25 January
India observes “National Voters’ Day” every year on January 25 to encourage more young voters to take part in the political process. 2021 marks the 11th National Voters’ Day (NVD). The theme of NVD 2021 is, ‘Making Our Voters Empowered, Vigilant, Safe and Informed’. The day has been started from January 25, 2011, to mark the Foundation day of Election Commission of India (ECI), which was established on 25th January 1950.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- 1st Chief Election Commissioner of Independent India- Sukumar Sen.
- Sunil Arora is the current 23rd Chief Election Commissioner.
Mongolian Prime Minister Khurelsukh Ukhnaa & his Government Resigns
The Prime Minister of Mongolia, Khurelsukh Ukhnaa, has resigned along with his entire government, following protests and public outrage over the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 52-year-old served as the Prime Minister of Mongolia from 4 October 2017 to 21 January 2021.
Prime Minister Khurelsukh Ukhnaa has submitted his resignation and a proposal to dissolve his government after hundreds gathered outside the parliament building to demonstrate against the policies. Parliament, which is controlled by Khurelsukh’s Mongolian People’s Party, voted overwhelmingly to accept his resignation.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Mongolia Capital: Ulaanbaatar.
- Mongolia President: Khaltmaagiin Battulga.
- Mongolia Currency: Mongolian Togrog.
National Tourism Day of India: January 25
The Indian government established January 25 as the National Tourism Day to raise awareness about the importance of tourism for the country’s economy. The day is observed to cultivate awareness among the global community on the importance of tourism and its social, political, financial and cultural worth.
India offers several forms of tourism such as cultural, nature, heritage, educational, business, sports, rural, medical, cruise, and eco-tourism. The ministry of tourism is the nodal agency in India to form national policies for the promotion and development of tourism. It also coordinates with central, state agencies and the public sector.
What is tourism?
Tourism and travel are often used interchangeably. However, travel is the movement of an individual or a group of people from one place to another due to work, health, education or meeting with the family. Tourism, on the other hand, identifies with a person or group’s movement for recreational purposes.
China overtakes Germany to run world’s largest current account surplus
China overtook Germany to become the country with the world’s largest current account surplus in the year 2020, as per a survey by the Munich-based Ifo institute. The current account surplus of China more than doubled to $310 billion in 2020, while the current account surplus of Germany shrank for the fifth year in a row in 2020 to $261 billion. The data underlines a tectonic shift in world trade triggered by the coronavirus crisis as higher demand across the globe for medical protection gear and electronic devices boosted Chinese exports.
The United States remained the country with the world’s largest current account deficit which rose roughly by a third to $635 billion in 2020 or 3.1% of economic output. Japan ranked third with a current account surplus of $158 billion. Ifo (Information and Forschung) Institute for Economic Research is a research institution based in Munich, Germany, which analyses economic policy.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- China Capital: Beijing.
- China Currency: Renminbi.
- China President: Xi Jinping.
UP Government launches ‘Udyam Sarathi App’ for Youths
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath has launched the ‘Udyam Sarathi App’ on the occasion of the 71st Foundation Day of the state, on 24 January 2021. The app will enable the youths to get every information related to self-employment and the job industry, across the state.
The Uttar Pradesh Day celebration will run from 24 January to 26 January 2021. The theme of Uttar Pradesh Day 2021 is ‘Respect for self-reliant Uttar Pradesh, women young farmers, development of all’.
About the Udyam Sarathi App:
Udyam Sarathi App will comprise of a varied range of data regarding business opportunities in different departments and sectors, including the state and Central governments, and anywhere and at any time. It has been launched under the One District One Product (ODOP) scheme.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Uttar Pradesh Capital: Lucknow.
- Uttar Pradesh Governor: Anandiben Patel.
- Uttar Pradesh Chief minister: Yogi Adityanath.
BSF launches Operation ‘Sard Hawa’ at Rajasthan border
The Border Security Force (BSF) has launched “Operation Sard Hawa” on the western international border of Rajasthan. The Operations aims to check the instances of infiltration due to the dense fog cover in the region and increase security on the border areas in Jaisalmer. The week-long operation has been launched on 21 January 2021 and will continue till 27 January 2021, keeping in view Republic Day of India.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- BSF Director General: Rakesh Asthana.
- BSF Headquarters: New Delhi.
Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2021
The Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (PMRBP) for the year 2021 has been conferred to 32 children, hailing from 32 districts of 21 States/UTs. The PMRBP award is given by the Government of India to the children with exceptional abilities and outstanding accomplishments, in the fields of innovation, scholastic, sports, arts & culture, social service and bravery.
Distribution of 32 awards based on the respective categories
- Art & Culture – 7
- Innovation – 9
- Scholastic achievements – 5
- Sports – 7
- Bravery – 3
- Social Service 1
Indian Railways’ longest freight train ‘Vasuki’ sets a new record
The South-East Central Railways (SECR) zone in Chhattisgarh breaks its own previous record by successfully operating the longest ever freight train by amalgamating five rakes of goods trains as one unit of around 3.5 km. Named as ‘Vasuki’, it covered the distance of 224 km between the railway stations of Bhilai and Korba and took about seven hours. The ‘Vasuki’, comprising of 300 wagons of long haul rake of five goods trains, ran with the help of one pilot, one assistant loco pilot and a guard.
Previous Records
South East Central Railway (SECR) zone has also operated two freight trains recently. These freight trains got attention due to their length. The two freight trains were ‘Sesh Naag’ and ‘Super Anaconda’. Super Anaconda was a fully loaded three rake combined freight train. ‘Sesh Naag’ was a 2.8km long four empty BOXN rakes train combined together.
Haridwar teen Shrishti Goswami to be one-day CM of Uttarakhand
Shristi Goswami, a nineteen-year-old Haridwar-based student, become the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand for one day on National Girl Child Day. She is a student of BSc Agriculture, lives in Daulatpur village in Roorkee, Haridwar. The move has received the nod of Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat.
The one-day chief minister has administered from Gairsain, the summer capital of the state, and will review various schemes run by the state government that include Atal Ayushman Scheme, Smart City project, Homestay Scheme by the tourism department, and other development projects.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Uttarakhand Chief Minister: Trivendra Singh Rawat.
- Governor of Uttarakhand: Baby Rani Maurya.
Ministry of Home Affairs Padma Awards 2021 announced
The Ministry of Home Affairs has announced a list of 119 personalities who will be conferred the Padma Awards by President Ram Nath Kovind this year. These awards cater to various disciplines including art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports and civil service. While ‘Padma Shri’ is awarded for distinguished service in any field, ‘Padma Bhushan’ is awarded for distinguished service of a high order.
On the other hand, ‘Padma Vibhushan’ is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service. Among the 2021 awardees, 29 are women, one is transgender,10 are foreigners/NRIs/OCI and 16 have passed away. There will be no recipient of the Bharat Ratna in 2021.
Film producers Karan Johar, Ekta Kapoor, actor-filmmaker Kangana Ranaut, veteran actor Sarita Joshi, playback singer Suresh Wadkar and music composer Adnan Sami were among 61 Padma Shri awardees for the year 2020 who received the country’s fourth-highest civilian honour at a ceremony held in the Rashtrapati Bhavan here.
Padma Vibhushan awards List
- Shinzo Abe, Japan
- S P Balasubramaniam (Posthumous), Tamil Nadu
- Belle Monappa Hegde, Karnataka
- Narinder Singh Kapany (Posthumous), USA
- Maulana Wahiduddin Khan, Delhi
- B. B. Lal, Delhi
- Sudarshan Sahoo, Odisha
Padma Bhushan Awards List
- Krishnan Nair Shantakumari Chithra, Kerala
- Tarun Gogoi (Posthumous), Assam
- Chandrashekhar Kambara, Karnataka
- Sumitra Mahajan, Madhya Pradesh
- Nripendra Misra, Uttar Pradesh
- Ram Vilas Paswan (Posthumous), Bihar
- Keshubhai Patel (Posthumous), Gujarat
- Kalbe Sadiq (Posthumous), Uttar Pradesh
- Rajnikant Devidas Shroff, Maharashtra
- Tarlochan Singh, Haryana
