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International Car-Free Day: 22 September
- International Car-Free Day is celebrated every year on September 22 to motivate motorists to give up their cars for a single day.
- Seen as a great opportunity to reduce air pollution, it promotes walking and cycling along with a safer environment as its benefits.
- Carbusters, which is now known as World Carfree Network made the campaign official by launching International Car-Free Day in 2000.
World Rose Day: 22 September
- World Rose Day is annually celebrated on September 22 in dedication to the welfare of cancer patients.
- The day is dedicated to spreading hope and enthusiasm among people fighting cancer.
- This day is celebrated in the memory of a 12-year-old girl, Melinda Rose, who was a victim of deadly blood cancer named Askin’s Tumor.
World Rhino Day: 22 September
- World Rhino Day is observed every year on September 22.
- It aims to create awareness for all five Rhino species namely Sumatran rhino, Greater one-horned rhino, Black rhino, Javan rhino and white rhino.
- World Wildlife Fund-South Africa in 2010, announced to celebrate this special day on September 22.
- The theme for 2021 is ‘Keep The Five Alive’.
76th Session of UN General Assembly gets underway in New York
- The 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly got underway in New York on 21 September 2021.
- Over 100 global leaders are attending the deliberations.
- These include US President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and British premier Boris Johnson.
- Newly sworn-in General Assembly President, Abdulla Shahid of the Maldives opened the new 76th session.
SAARC Foreign Ministers’ meeting cancelled
- The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) foreign ministers’ meeting slated to be held in New York in Sept 201 has been cancelled.
- Nepal was the host of the meet.
- The SAARC is the regional intergovernmental organization of eight countries of South Asia – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party narrowly won Canadian elections
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party has narrowly won parliamentary elections, but it failed to secure a majority.
- This is Trudeau’s third federal election win as Prime Minister.
- The election, which took place during a fourth pandemic wave in Canada, was the most expensive in the country’s history, costing some C$600m ($470m; £344m).
EC organises virtual National Conference on Accessible Elections 2021
- The Election Commission organised a virtual National Conference on Accessible Elections 2021 on 21 Sept’21.
- The objective was to assess the present accessibility policies and discuss strategies for addressing barriers to enhance participation in the electoral process for voters with disabilities.
- It was informed that till date about 77.4 lakh Persons With Disabilities are registered voters.
PM Modi leaves for a 3-day visit to the US on 22 September
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for his three-day visit to the US on 22 September 2021.
- He will participate in the Quad Leaders’ Summit, address the high-level meeting of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly as well as a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden.
- He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
Sri Lanka and WB sign $92m agreement to boost climate resilience
- The Government of Sri Lanka and the World Bank signed a $92 million financing agreement for the Climate Resilience Multi-Phased Program Phase I Project.
- The project is expected to benefit around 11.2 million people across the country by modernizing the weather, flood, and landslide forecasting and early warning systems.
Thums Up partners pacer Mohammed Siraj
- Thums Up on 21 September 2021 announced a partnership with Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj.
- Thums Up is a home-grown soft drink brand owned by global cola major The Coca-Cola Company.
- Through its #PalatDe campaign, Thums Up would showcase the arduous journey of Mohammed Siraj, who despite his humble background and challenges of everyday life, become one of the best bowlers.
India adds to record high rooftop solar capacity of 521 MW in April-June
- India has added 521 MW of rooftop solar installations (RTS) in April-June 2021, which is the highest capacity installed in a quarter, according to Mercom India Rooftop Solar Market Report.
- RTS was up 517 percent year-over-year compared to the 85 MW installed in Q2 2020 (April-June 2020).
- The majority of the RTS was in Gujarat, accounting for about 55 percent of installed capacity.
DoT issues order to enable people to get mobile SIMs at doorsteps
- The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) issued an order that enables customers to apply for a new mobile connection online and get the SIM delivered at their doorsteps by using any eligible document stored in Digilocker.
- Customers would have to pay Re 1 for the process of authentication through Aadhaar-based e-KYC services UIDAI for getting new mobile connections.
Biden pledges $10 billion to fight global hunger
- USA President Joe Biden informed the United Nations General Assembly on 21 September 2021 that the United States would commit $10 billion toward ending hunger in his country and around the world.
- On 23 September 2021, the United Nations would host a “Food Systems Summit” that it says will “trigger the transformation of food systems” through a series of pledges.
NASA’s VIPER rover to land near Nobile Crater at Moon’s South Pole
- NASA’s VIPER would land near the western edge of the Nobile Crater at the Moon’s the South Pole, one of the coldest areas in the solar system,
- VIPER stands for Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover.
- The robotic rover would be delivered to the Moon’s surface in late 2023 under the Artemis program and part of the NASA agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative.
Kuwait’s Ambassador elected as President of 65th IAEA GC
- The IAEA’s General Conference (GC) elected ambassador H.E. Sadiq M. Marafi, as President of the 65th regular session (GC) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Conference.
- Ambassador Marafi is Kuwait’s Ambassador to Austria and Permanent Representative to the international organizations in Vienna, including the IAEA, since September 2013.
JNCASR constructs micrometre-sized Stirling engine by using laser trap
- A team of researchers at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore constructed a micrometre-sized Stirling engine by confining a single colloidal particle with a laser trap.
- It is a kind of heat engine converting thermal energy into kinetic energy by heating and cooling the working gas sealed in the cylinders.
Infosys and ServiceNow partner to drive digitization in manufacturing
- Infosys has joined forces with ServiceNow to support manufacturing industries in their digital transformation journey.
- The collaboration would see the IT major leveraging its industry cloud blueprints, part of Infosys Cobalt, and deploying ServiceNow Operations Technology Management (OTM) to digitize factories, floors, and plant operations.
Govt sets 307.33 mt foodgrain production target for 2021-22 crop year
- The Centre has set a target of 307.33 million tonnes of foodgrains production for the current 2021-22 crop year ending June 2022.
- This target is slightly lower than the estimated output for the 2020-21 crop year at a record 308.65 million tonnes.
- The targets for rice, wheat, and pulses have been set at 121.10 million tonnes, 110 million tonnes, and 25 million tonnes.
Ukraine launches military drills with NATO
- Ukraine launched joint military exercises with the United States and other NATO countries on 20 September 2021.
- The annual Rapid Trident military exercises, taking place in western Ukrainian until October 1, 2021, involve some 6,000 soldiers from 15 countries.
- The drill is an important step towards Ukraine’s European integration.
Ministry of Education forms a National Steering Committee
- The Ministry of Education has formed the National Steering Committee for the development of National Curriculum Frameworks on 21 September 2021.
- The committee will be chaired by K Kasturirangan.
- The committee will develop four National Curriculum Frameworks- including the National Curriculum Framework for School Education, and National Curriculum for Early Childhood Care and Education.
Two more Indian beaches get International Blue Flag Certification
- International eco-label “Blue Flag”, has accorded the Blue Flag Certification for 2 new beaches for 2021.
- The beaches are Kovalam in Tamil Nadu and Eden in Puducherry beaches.
- Foundation for Environment Education in Denmark (FEE) which accords the globally recognized eco-label – Blue Flag certification, has also given re-certification for 8 nominated beaches.
ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings released
- Mithali Raj continues to hold on to the number one spot in the latest ICC women’s ODI rankings for batters released on 21 September 2021.
- New Zealand’s Amy Satterthwaite returned to the top five.
- Opener Smiriti Mandhana was placed seventh.
- Veteran Indian pacer Jhulan Goswami moved up a spot to fourth while senior spinner Poonam Yadav remained static on ninth among bowlers.
Air Marshal VR Chaudhari named as next Chief of Air Staff
- Air Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari has been named as the next Chief of Air Staff.
- He succeeds Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria who will retire from service in the end of September 2021.
- Currently posted as the Vice Chief of Air Staff, the officer was commissioned into the fighter stream and has commanded a MiG 29 squadron and has experience of various types of aircraft including the SU 30MKI.
Visa, Nasscom Foundation to train women micro-entrepreneurs
- Nasscom Foundation and Visa will jointly up-skill women entrepreneurs with digital skills and financial literacy in five states.
- The states are Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana and West Bengal.
- NASSCOM Foundation will work with over 650 women micro-entrepreneurs and train them to go online, rebuild and expand their businesses.
IIT Guwahati starts special centre for R&D in underwater exploration
- IIT Guwahati has started a specialised Centre for Intelligent Cyber-Physical Systems (CICPS) to develop indigenous technologies and aid underwater exploration.
- The centre will target developing a minimum of five technologies a year.
- IIT Guwahati will fund the centre for the first five years, after which the Centre aims to be self-sustaining.
Torrent Power acquires 156 MW wind power plants from CESC
- Torrent Power has entered into a share purchase pact to acquire 156 MW wind power projects for about ₹790 crores from Surya Vidyut, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CESC Limited.
- Surya Vidyut operates 156 MW Wind power plants (the Projects), spread across the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.
- Torrent Power currently has an aggregate installed generation capacity of 3,879 MW.
Ejections from Sun’s corona influence space weather predictions
- A recent study has shown how conditions and events in the solar atmosphere like coronal mass ejections influence the accuracy of space weather prediction.
- This understanding will aid the interpretation of data from the upcoming Aditya-L1, India’s first solar mission.
- The research was done by astronomers led by Dr. Wageesh Mishra of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru.
DICGC to pay up to ₹5 lakh to account holders of 21 insured banks
- Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) will pay the depositors/account holders of the 21 insured banks placed under the all-inclusive directions (AID) an amount equivalent to the deposits outstanding or up to a maximum of ₹5 lakh in 90 days.
- The verification and settlement of the claims on submission by the banks shall be done within the next 45 days.
The University of Florence to offer a masters degree in Coffee
- University of Florence in Italy is offering a master’s degree in coffee.
- The course has already found takers and the first batch of 24 students will begin the course in January 2022.
- This will be a nine-month course wherein students will gain practical and theoretical knowledge about coffee.
- Students will learn history, chemistry, technology and economics of coffee.
Serum Institute of India to invest $68 mn in UK’s Oxford Biomedica
- Serum Institute of India will invest 50 million pounds ($68.24 million) in Oxford Biomedica.
- Oxford is one of the COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers for drug major AstraZeneca.
- The proceeds of the transaction will be used to develop a flexible advanced manufacturing space and the validation of several independent cGMP suites, expected to come online in mid-2023.
Project Fulwari to strengthen NCL’s fight against malnutrition in kids
- Northern Coalfields Ltd (NCL) is preparing to open 75 “Fulwari Centers” in MP’s Singrauli district.
- It has signed an MoU with the area administration to initiate Project Fulwari, based on the findings of the National Family Health Survey about malnutrition in the district.
- The mission of the project is every child should get good nutrition, safe and secure environment and right to play.
UP govt to set up an electronic park in 250 acres near Jewar Airport
- The Uttar Pradesh government will set up an electronic park in the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) area.
- It is expected to attract an investment of ₹50,000 crores.
- The UP government had earlier announced a medical device park in Noida.
- Yeida has earmarked 350 acres of land for the first medical device park in Uttar Pradesh that will be built in two phases.
Indian Navy to conduct sailing Regattas and sail parade
- As part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Indian Navy under the aegis of Indian Naval Sailing Association (INSA) has planned to conduct sailing regattas and a sail parade.
- It will be conducted in all three Command Headquarters locations for popularising sailing sports.
- The first event will be conducted by the Indian Naval Watermanship Training Center, Kochi in Ernakulam channel on 23 Sept’21.
Yogeshwar Sangwan appointed as the next Ambassador to Paraguay
- Yogeshwar Sangwan has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Paraguay.
- He is presently serving as the Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs.
- He is an Indian Foreign Service officer of the 1994 batch.
- He is expected to take up the assignment shortly.
- He has previously served in the Embassies of Tehran and Bucharest as Secretary.
ISL: 1st Indian sports league to launch unique digital collectables
- The Indian Super League (ISL) is going to be the first Indian sports league to have its exclusive non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as digital collectibles.
- The league, co-owned by Reliance Industries (65%) and Star India (35%), has partnered with London-based entertainment-focussed collectible platform Terra Virtua to create unique digital collectibles featuring the league and all its 11 clubs.
Carlyle’s arm sells a 3.4% stake in SBI Cards for ₹3,267 crore
- US private equity fund CA Rover Holdings, part of the Carlyle Group has sold 3.4% stake in SBI Cards and Payment Services Ltd for ₹3,267 crore through open market transactions.
- CA Rover Holdings held 6.5 per cent stake in SBI Cards as a public shareholder at the end of June 2021.
- SBI Cards is the leading credit card issuer in India with an 18 per cent market share.
Adani group to invest $20 billion in renewable energy
- Adani Group will invest $20 billion in clean energy generation, component manufacturing, transmission, and distribution over 10 years.
- Over 75% of Adani’s capital expenditure until 2025 is in green technologies.
- Adani Group also plans to triple its renewable power generation capacity over the next four years to 63% of its total portfolio from 21% now.
ADB retains its FY22 growth forecast for India at 10%
- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has retained its growth forecast for India at 10% for FY22 citing expected surge in domestic demand and exports.
- In its update to Asian Development Outlook, ADB said GDP growth is expected to moderate to 7.5% in FY23.
- ADB projected the economy to rebound in the last three quarters of FY22.
India’s export of agricultural and processed food products increases
- India has achieved a significant increase of 21.8 percent in export of agricultural and processed food products in FY 2021-22, from April to August in comparison to the corresponding period of 2020-21.
- The Quick Estimates has been released by the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics.
- The export of meat, dairy and poultry products also witnessed an increase of 31.1%.
Vanijya Utsav being observed across the country
- A two-day Vanijya Utsav was held across the country as a part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations, on 21-22 September 2021.
- Handholding sessions were organised focusing on ‘From Farm to Foreign Lands’.
- It was organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Commerce, the Director General of Foreign Trade in the partnership of Exports Promotion Councils.