NEWS 16-01-2022. NEWS FOR 17th-JAN (MON) SUMMARY OF DEC'21 NATIONAL NEWS 1. Amid tensions on the border, the IAF has received a boost to its fighter jet fleet as two-second hand Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft have arrived from France at its Gwalior airbase. The aircraft would now be upgraded to the latest standards as part of the Mirage upgrade programme going on in the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. 2. PM Modi has inaugurated Saryu Canal National Project which will provide assured water for irrigation to over 14 lakh hectares of land and benefit about 29 lakh farmers in UP. 3. The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill 2021, which seeks to link electoral rolls with the Aadhar ecosystem to remove duplication was passed in the Lok Sabha on 20th of Dec. The bill allows electoral registration officers to seek the Aadhaar number of people who want to register as voters for the purpose of establishing identity. 4. PM Narendra Modi on 21st Dec launched several women-centric initiatives in Uttar Pradesh and transferred Rs 1000 cr to the bank account of various SHGs, which will benefit around 16 lakh women. The PM also transferred money to over 1 lakh beneficiaries of the Mukhya Mantri Kanya Sumangala Scheme, which provides assistance to the girl children. 5. Greenko Group, an Indian company in energy transmission, has been ranked third in the *'Top 100 Green Utilities with an operational portfolio of 7.3 gigawatts (GW),* Greenko has India's largest *Operational Clean Energy Portfolio*. 6. The Govt has announced that India will start giving booster doses to health and frontline workers and those above 60 from January 10. He also said vaccinations will begin for children between 15-18 years of age from January INTERNATIONAL NEWS 1. India has joined 'G20 Troika' and will work closely with Indonesia and Italy to ensure consistency and continuity of G20's agenda. Troika refers to the top grouping within G20 that consists of the current, previous and incoming presidencies. India will assume G20 Presidency in December 2022 from Indonesia. 2. UAE is going to purchase 80 rafale aircrafts from France & in all probability UAE will sell 76 mirage 2000 that they are having to India at a very low cost. 3. The ADB has approved a $ 1.5 bn (around Rs 11,185 crore) loan to India for COVID-19 vaccine procurement. The loan from ADB will fund at least 66.7 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses for an estimated 31.7 crore people. 4. Newly found variant of coronavirus called 'Omicron' is spreading its wings throughout the globe, causing great concern. 5. The Govt of India & the German Development Bank signed agreements for 140 million Euro on reduced interest loan and 2 million Euro grant for Energy Reform Programme in Madhya Pradesh. 6. India has been re-elected to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council for the 2022-23 biennium following elections held at the IMO Assembly in London DEFENCE NEWS 1. Ministry of Defence has cleared a long-pending deal to manufacture 7 lakh Ak-203 assault rifles in a JV facility at UP's Amethi. This ?5000 crore project to build 7 lakh AK-203 rifles at an India-Russia JV facility in UP’s Amethi will see the Indian Army replacing old INSAS rifle from the regular frontline troops. 2. Air version of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was successfully test fired from the supersonic fighter aircraft Sukhoi 30 MK-I on December 08, 2021. 3. The (DRDO) has successfully tested a long-range *Supersonic Missile Assisted Torpedo (SMART)*. The system is a next-generation missile-based standoff torpedo delivery system, which has been designed to enhance anti-submarine warfare capability far beyond the conventional range of the torpedo. 4. In a tragic incident Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 11 other people on board an Indian Air Force helicopter were killed in a crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu. Gp Capt Varun Singh, the lone survivor, succumbed to his injuries on December 15. In August, he was conferred Shaurya Chakra, India’s third-highest peacetime gallantry award, for exceptional gallantry as a Wing Commander in October 2020. 5. India has successfully flight tested the indigenously developed new Vertical Launch Short Range Surface-to-Air Missile. The missile, launched from the test range at Chandipur will be deployed onboard various frontline ships of the Indian Navy. 6. In another achievement for the country’s indigenous missile development programme, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) tested several weapons over the last three days including the extended range Pinaka missile with the Army and a flight test of the indigenously designed and developed Stand-off Anti-Tank Missile (SANT), which was launched from a helicopter at Pokhran ranges. 7. The DRDO has successfully carried out tests of the Pinaka extended range multi-barrel rocket launcher system at Pokhran. The newly tested system could achieve the range of up to 45km, against the existing Pinaka system in Indian Army which has a range of upto 37km. 8. Army chief General M M Naravane, has assumed the charge as the chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, as a stop-gap arrangement after the demise of CDS General Rawat. 9. In a major boost to the country's air defence capabilities, the IAF has deployed the first squadron of the S-400 air defence missile system in the Punjab sector, which would be capable of taking care of aerial threats from the enemy. 10. On December 18, the Agni Prime was successfully test-fired, meeting all the expectation. 11. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) facility Aircraft *Upgrade Research & Design Centre (AURDC)* is going to upgrade Indian Navy's MiG-29K fighters with indigenous mission computers, Astra missiles, anti-airfield weapons, bombs and Uttam AESA 12. India has successfully tested *'Pralay'* quasi-ballistic missile for the 1st time. 13. India’s Defense Minister Rajnath has announced that France will build an aircraft engine in collaboration with India. This strategic partnership involves co-production by the original equipment manufacturer & an Indian company. SPORTS 1. Indian squash player, Saurav Ghosal created history as he became the first Indian squash player to win the Malaysian open title. 2. India defeated New Zealand by 372 runs in the second test match to win the series by 1-0. 3. Former world number 1 Kidambi Srikanth has become the 1st Indian man to win silver medal at badminton world championships. 4. India has defeated Pakistan 4-3 to win bronze at men's Asian hockey championship. < < Back