Odisha CM inaugurated Odisha’s longest bridge ‘T-Setu’ in Cuttack
Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik has inaugurated the state’s longest bridge, ‘T-Setu’, built over the Mahanadi River in Cuttack District, Odisha. The bridge in the shape of the English alphabet ‘T’ was constructed at a cost of Rs 111 crore. The 4-km-long bridge connecting Gopinathpur in Badamba, Baideswar in Banki to Singhanath Pitha in Cuttack, will cut the distance between Badamba and Banki Baideshwar by almost 45 km.
Chief Minister had laid the foundation stone T-setu on February 28, 2014. But, due to some technical issues, construction work was delayed and started in 2018. The bridge will facilitate communication for some five-lakh people from nearby localities. It will also improve agriculture, business and tourism activities in the area. It will benefit devotees, who are visiting Baba Singhanath’s Bali Makar Jatra in Badamba block.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Odisha Capital: Bhubaneswar;
- Odisha Governor: Ganeshi Lal;
- Odisha Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik.
IOCL acquired 4.93% stake in Indian Gas Exchange
Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) has announced that it has acquired a 4.93 per cent equity share in Indian Gas Exchange Limited – the country’s first automated national level gas exchange. The Board of Indian Oil at its meeting held on 20 December 2021 has accorded approval for the acquisition of 36,93,750 equity shares of the face value of Rs. 10/- each equivalent to 4.93 per cent of the share capital in Indian Gas Exchange Limited (IGX).
The acquisition of an equity stake in IGX is a strategic opportunity for the country’s top oil refiner to become part of India’s natural gas market. IGX is a subsidiary of the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX). Indian Gas Exchange is the country’s first automated national level gas exchange, that ensures transparent price discovery in natural gas and facilitates the growth of natural gas in India’s energy basket.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited Chairperson: Shrikant Madhav Vaidya;
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited Headquarters: New Delhi;
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited Founded: 30 June 1959.
State Bank of India acquired minority stake in JSW Cement for INR 100 crore
State Bank of India(SBI) acquired a minority stake (less than 50 per cent) in JSW Cement Limited for an investment of INR 100 crore through Compulsory Convertible Preference Shares (CCPS). The SBI is working as a strategic investor at JSW Cement and has invested in the company through CCPS. The conversion of such CCPS into common equity of the company will be linked to the JSW Cement’s business performance and valuation at the time of the proposed initial public offering.
The SBI transaction with JSW Cement comes close on the heels of the Rs 1,500 crore investments made by two global private equity investors, Apollo Global Management Inc. (through its investment entity in Singapore) and Synergy Metals Investments Holding Ltd earlier this year.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- SBI Founded: 1 July 1955;
- SBI Headquarters: Mumbai;
- SBI Chairman: Dinesh Kumar Khara.
Bank of Baroda grabbed top spot in Digital Payments
Bank of Baroda has announced it has won the #1 position in overall digital transactions amongst large banks for FY20-21. The bank showed the exceptional growth of digital payment transactions achievement and was felicitated by the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), Govt. of India at the Digital Payments Utsav.
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Independence of India, MeitY is celebrating “Digital Payments Utsav”. As a part of the celebration, the Bank of Baroda has been conferred with 5 DigiDhan awards for FY 2019-20 & 2020-21 in various categories. BoB has been conferred with five DigiDhan awards for FY 2019-20 & 2020-21 in various categories.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Bank of Baroda Founded: 20 July 1908;
- Bank of Baroda Headquarters: Vadodara, Gujarat;
- Bank of Baroda Managing Director & CEO: Sanjiv Chadha;
- Bank of Baroda Tagline: India’s International Bank;
- Bank of Baroda Amalgamated Banks: Dena Bank & Vijaya Bank in 2019.
Mastercard and Google Pay tie-up for tokenisation for card-based payments
Mastercard and Google announced a tokenization method that enables Google Pay users to safely transact using their Mastercard credit cards and debit cards. With this collaboration, Google Pay Android users can scan and pay across all Bharat QR-enabled merchants, tap-and-pay, and make in-app transactions through their Mastercard debit and credit card. For a convenient registration, users will have to do a one-time setup by entering their card details and their OTP to add their card on the Google Pay app.
Mastercard said this initiative is an extension of Mastercard’s long-standing collaboration with Google and will go a long way towards enabling India’s digital economy.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Mastercard Founded: 16 December 1966;
- Mastercard Headquarters: New York, United States;
- Mastercard CEO: Michael Miebach;
- Mastercard Executive Chairman: Ajay Banga.
Divya Hegde won UN Women’s Award for Leadership Commitment 2021
Divya Hegde, an Indian Climate Action Entrepreneur from Udupi, Karnataka, has won UN Women’s Award for Leadership Commitment at the 2021 Regional Asia-Pacific Women’s Empowerment Principles Awards Ceremony. She has been recognized for her sustained efforts in advancing gender equality through climate action efforts with her organization, Baeru Environmental Services.
Other Winners:
- Youth Leadership: Pallavi Sherring
- Gender-inclusive Workplace: Natwaste Group
- Gender-Responsive Marketplace: Dharma Life
- Community Engagement & Partnerships: The Very Group
- Transparency & Reporting: Biocon Ltd India
- SME Champions: Namita Vikas
BWF World Championships 2021: Loh Kean Yew won Men’s singles
The 2021 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World championship (officially known as the TotalEnergies BWF World Championships 2021), an annual tournament was held between 12th December 2021 and 19th December 2021 in Huelva, Spain. Loh Kean Yew of Singapore won the Men’s Singles title and Akane Yamaguchi of Japan won the Women’s Singles title of BWF World Championship 2021.
Winners of BWF World Championship 2021:
| Category | Winner | Runner |
| Men’s Singles | Loh Kean Yew (Singapore) | Srikanth Kidambi (India) |
| Women’s Singles | Akane Yamaguchi (Japan) | Tai – Tzu Ying (Chinese Taipei) |
| Men’s Doubles | Takuro Hoki & Yugo Kobayashi (Japan) | He Jiting & Tan Qiang (China) |
| Women’s Doubles | Chen Qingchen & Jia Yifan (China) | Lee So-hee & Shin Seung-Chan (South Korea) |
| Mixed Doubles | Dechapol Puavaranukroh & Sapsiree Taerattanachai (Thailand) | Yuta Watanabe & Arisa Higashino (Japan) |
Advance tax collection rises 54% to Rs 4.60 lakh crore
According to the finance ministry, advance tax collection increased by 53.50 per cent to Rs 4.60 lakh crore so far this fiscal year, indicating a recovery in the economy. Direct tax collections for 2021-22, as of December 16, show that net collections are at Rs 9.45 lakh crore compared to Rs 5.88 lakh crore over the year-ago period, representing an increase of 60.8 per cent.
The cumulative advance tax collections for the primary, second and third quarter of 2021-22 stand at Rs 4,59,917.1 crore as on December 16, 2021, towards advance tax collections of Rs 2,99,620.5 crore for the corresponding interval of 2020-21, displaying a development of about 53.5 per cent.
Wipro to acquire Edgile in USD 230-million deal
Wipro has signed an agreement to acquire Edgile, a transformational cyber security consulting provider, for $230 million. Founded in 2001, Edgile is recognised by security and risk leaders for its business-aligned cyber security capability, deep understanding of the changing regulatory environment and enabling cloud transformations that help secure the modern enterprise. It has an onsite workforce of 182 employees.
Together, Wipro and Edgile will develop Wipro CyberTransform, an integrated suite that will help enterprises enhance boardroom governance of cyber security risk, invest in robust cyber strategies, and reap the value of practical security in action.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Chairman of Wipro Limited: Rishad Premji.
- Wipro Headquarters: Bengaluru;
- Wipro MD and CEO: Thierry Delaporte.
Current Affairs Feb 2022 Latest Up Date & Top Ranks in Google
Adda247 team provides the Top-Ranking of Adda247 on the Internet, which cover a diverse array of categories, genres and topics including daily current affairs and explainers for Banking, SSC, UPSC and other exams, which are tailored to help them crack the competition. Current Affairs is a very important part of the overall preparation strategy for various Competitive Entrance and Government Recruitment Exams. With these current affairs, aspirants prepare and stay up-to-date with the Current Affairs in India and around the globe.
The materials mentioned below is going to be helpful for the upcoming exam preparation. This way, you can stay in touch with all the affairs in India and around the world, especially for preparing govt exams.
Check these links to get top-ranked news and pages of Adda247 on the Internet.
| Top Ranked |
Links |
| National Current Affairs | |
| Commonwealthm Championship 2022 | |
| International Current affairs | |
| Economy current affairs 2022 | |
| Banking-current-affairs | |
| Current Affairs Sports | |
| Sports Current Affairs | |
| Daily Current Affairs |
Benefits of Current Affairs:
- You can stay updated with all the latest issues happening across the globe.
- Reading these current affairs regularly will let you get more marks in the exam.
- Your General Knowledge can be improved.
NPCI partners with Udemy Business to encourage skill employees
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has signed a partnership agreement with Udemy Business, to encourage innovative learning and skill development for employees of NPCI. The 3-year partnership with Udemy Business will offer courses on in-demand skills such as tech, domain, behavioural, and leadership skills to all NPCI employees. Through the mission ‘Talent Development for All’ of NPCI, it provides capacity-building programmes in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Blockchain, Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), Robotic Process Automation (RPA), etc.
Under its vision of ‘Talent Development for All’, NPCI is betting big on the capability building of its employees and has increased its budget for Learning & Development (L&D) by seven times. The three-year association with Udemy Business will offer courses on in-demand skills such as tech, domain, behavioural, and leadership skills to all NPCI employees, who will now be able to access challenging assignments to enable experiential learning.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- National Payments Corporation of India Founded: 2008;
- National Payments Corporation of India Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra;
- National Payments Corporation of India MD & CEO: Dilip Asbe.
NITI Aayog tie-up with UN WFP to diversify food basket
NITI Aayog has signed a Statement of Intent with the United Nations World Food Program (WFP). The partnership focuses on mainstreaming millets and supporting India in taking lead globally in knowledge exchange using the opportunity of 2023 as an International Year of Millets. The government of India observed 2018 as a year of millets.
Key Points:
- The partnership between NITI Aayog and UN WEP focuses to mainstream the millets and supporting India in taking a lead internationally in knowledge exchange amid the recognition of 2023 as an International Year of Millets.
- This partnership also aims to build resilient livelihoods for small farmers and adaptation capacities towards climate change as well as transforming food systems.
- The Statement of Intent focuses on strategic and technical collaboration between both parties, in order to strengthen climate-resilient agriculture for enhanced food & nutrition security across India.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- NITI Aayog Formed: 1 January 2015;
- NITI Aayog Headquarters: New Delhi;
- NITI Aayog Chairperson: Narendra Modi;
- NITI Aayog Vice Chairperson: Rajiv Kumar;
- NITI Aayog CEO: Amitabh Kant;
- United Nations World Food Programme Founded: 1961;
- United Nations World Food Programme Headquarters: Rome, Italy;
- United Nations World Food Programme Executive Director: David Beasley.
India successfully tests ‘Pralay’ missile off Odisha coast
India successfully conducted the maiden flight test of the indigenously-developed, surface-to-surface missile ‘Pralay’ off the Odisha coast. The solid-fuel, battlefield missile developed by the Defence Research Development Organisation is based on Prithvi Defence Vehicle from the Indian ballistic missile programme. The missile, launched from the APJ Abdul Kalam Island.
About the Missile:
The new missile followed the desired quasi ballistic trajectory and reached the designated target with high degree accuracy, validating the control, guidance and mission algorithms. With a range of 150 to 500 km, ‘Pralay’ is powered with the solid propellant rocket motor and other new technologies. The missile guidance system includes state-of-the-art navigation and integrated avionics.
Tusshar Kapoor released his debut book ‘Bachelor Dad’
Tusshar Kapoor has written his first book titled ‘Bachelor Dad’. The actor became a single father to son Laksshya Kapoor via surrogacy in 2016. He has shared his journey of being a single father in the new book. The actor has shared his journey of the ‘slightly unconventional road to fatherhood’ in his debut book, Bachelor Dad. On the cover of the book, he can be seen carrying his son.
Announcing the book, Tusshar wrote, “I WROTE A BOOK! Becoming a father has been one of the most cherished moments of my life and my first book, Bachelor Dad, talks about how I took a slightly unconventional road to fatherhood.”
Jharkhand assembly passes Bill to prevent mob violence, lynching
Jharkhand Assembly has passed the Prevention of Mob Violence and Mob Lynching Bill, 2021, which aims at providing “effective protection” of constitutional rights and the prevention of mob violence in the state. After including one amendment, the Bill was passed and sent to the Governor for his assent. Once notified, Jharkhand will become the fourth state to bring in such a law after West Bengal, Rajasthan and Manipur.
About the bill:
- The bill provides a jail term of three years to life imprisonment and fines of up to ₹25 lakh against those involved in mob lynching leading to “injury or death”.
- The Bill defines lynching as “any act or series of acts of violence or death or aiding, abetting or attempting an act of violence or death, whether spontaneous or planned, by a mob on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth, language, dietary practices, sexual orientation, political affiliation, ethnicity or any other ground”.
- In case of a lynching incident leading to the victim suffering hurt, the convicts will be punished with imprisonment up to 3 years and a fine between ₹1 lakh to ₹3 lakh.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Chief Minister of Jharkhand: Hemant Soren; Governor: Ramesh Bais.
WADA report: India among world’s top three dope violators country
India is among the world’s top three dope violators country in the world. Indian athletes were involved 152 times in dope-related activities in the year 2019. The report has revealed the latest report published by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada), which has put India into the top-three of the world’s biggest violators behind Russia (167) and Italy (157). Brazil (78) is at fourth and Iran (70) fifth positions.
In 2019, 152 (17 per cent of the world total) Anti-doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) were reported in India. The maximum dope offenders are from bodybuilding followed by weightlifting (25), athletics (20), wrestling (10), and boxing.
About the report:
- A total of 278,047 samples were collected by Anti-Doping Organisations worldwide in 2019, and subsequently, analysed by WADA-accredited laboratories. Of these samples, 2,701 (1 per cent) were reported as Adverse Analytical Findings.
- Based on a compilation of the information received by WADA till January 31, 2021, 1,535 samples (57 per cent) were confirmed as ADRVs (sanctions), the world anti-doping watchdog.
- Among Olympic sports worldwide, athletics leads the number of dope offenders with 227 (18 per cent), followed by weightlifting with 160. Bodybuilding leads overall with 272.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- World Anti-Doping Agency Headquarters: Montreal, Canada;
- World Anti-Doping Agency President: Craig Reedie;
- World Anti-Doping Agency Founded: 10 November 1999.
