AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. Matthew Hayden inducted into Australian Cricket Hall of Fame

Two of Australia’s greatest top-order batsmen, David Boon and Matthew Hayden, and the brilliant women’s all-rounder Betty Wilson will be inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame (ACHoF) at the 2017 Allan Border Medal ceremony in Sydney. ACHoF chairman Peter King has announced that Boon, Hayden and Wilson were the selection committee’s choice for induction this year.

APPOINTMENTS  

2. PepsiCo veteran Kaul becomes COO of Ola, replacing Pranay Jivrajka

One of the longest-serving core members of the founding team of Indian cab aggregator Ola, and currently COO of the company Pranay Jivrajka is stepping down from his post.

• He is being replaced by PepsiCo veteran Vishal Kaul, who handled the Purchase-based FMCG giant’s operations in Thailand, Myanmar and Laos, said people familiar with the development.
• Jivrajka, an IIT Bombay graduate, joined Ola founders Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati in 2011, seven months after the startup was formed, and was responsible for overseeing the Softbank-backed company’s operations.

3. Anurag Thakur elected as head of HPOA

BCCI president following a Supreme Court order, Anurag Thakur was unanimously elected head of the Himachal Pradesh Olympic Association (HPOA) for a four-year term. Thakur, who had to step down as BCCI president owing to the Supreme Court ruling on Lodha Committee reforms, was elected at the HPOA’s Annual General Meeting.

INDIAN AFFAIRS

4. Government shifts disinvestment advising role to Department of Economic Affairs

Union Cabinet approved an alternative mechanism to decide the modalities to do with stake sales in public sector undertakings (PSUs), so as to speed up the process. In keeping with its ongoing efforts to streamline the disinvestment process, the government transferred the role of advising the government on how to utilize the proceeds from disinvestment from the department of investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) to the Department of Economic Affairs.

5. Government to launch prevention, screening and control programme for 5 non-communicable diseases

Diabetes is part of a larger global epidemic of non- communicable diseases. It has become a major public health challenge globally. This disease affects 6.6% (285 million people) of the world’s population in the 20-79 years age group.  According to the International Diabetic Federation (IDF), this number is expected to grow to 380 million by 2025.

• The IDF published findings revealing that in 2007, the country with the largest numbers of people with diabetes is India (40.9 million), followed by China (39.8 million), the United States (19.2 million), Russia (9.6 million) and Germany (7.4 million).

6. World’s 1st electronic mode postal ballots to be implemented in Goa

Goa will become the first state in the country to opt for Electronic transmission of postal ballot to service voters in the upcoming assembly polls, chief election commissioner (CEC) Syed Nasim Zaidi. The returning officers will transfer the postal ballots to service voters by ELECTRONIC means so that the service voters can download it, fill it and send it via e-mail to returning officer.

7. Kolkata’s Eden Gardens to have names of Indian war heroes in stands

The Prince of Kolkata and Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Sourav Ganguly joined the elite list of cricketers to have stands named after them when the C Block in Eden Gardens.

• Former India captain Kapil Dev did the honour. K Block was named after former CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya. Blocks D and H were named after former India opener and Bengal captain Pankaj Roy, and ex-BCCI President BN Dutt, respectively.

8. New world record set by 3.5 lakh sings Indian National Anthem in Gujarat

Over 3.5 lakh people have set a new world record by singing the national anthem at an event at Kagvad in Rajkot district of Gujarat. The occasion was installation of idol of goddess Khodiyar at a newly-built Khodal Dham temple in the town. “Over 3.5 lakh people sang the anthem together at the idol installation ritual in the presence of observers from Guinness World Records.

9. Draft steel policy anticipates Rs. 10 lakh crore investments

The Steel Ministry has proposed setting up Greenfield steel plants along India’s coastline to tap cheap imported raw materials such as coking coal and export the output in a more cost-effective manner, as part of the new draft National Steel Policy of 2017.

• The policy, which envisages to more than double India’s domestic steel production capacity to 300 million tonnes by 2030-31, anticipates a requirement of ₹10 lakh crore of fresh investments to meet that goal and expects at least 11 lakh new jobs being created in the process.

10. Committee constituted to set rules for implementation of Disabilities Act, 2016

A committee has been constituted by the Centre to frame uniform rules for the states to avoid delay in proper implementation of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act across the country.

The Committee, constituted under the chairmanship of Secretary from Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), will comprise of representatives from the Ministry of Health, DoPT, Labour, Legislative Department, and representatives from NGOs as members.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

11. Nepal launches 10-year-plan to cut reliance on vegetable imports from India

Nepal government has launched a 10-year-plan to cut dependence on vegetable imports from India and make the land-locked country self-reliant in food.  Vegetable imports from India have continued to increase even despite the far-western region seeing a rise in commercial vegetable farming. According to the report, the region imports vegetables worth 55 billion rupees every year from India. Exports volume, however, was negligible.

12. US President Donald Trump signs first executive order on Obama care

Donald Trump has begun his presidency with a series of policy interventions, taking aim at Barack Obama’s signature healthcare policy, raising the prospect of a new US missile defense system and ushering in a new period of American protectionism. The 45th president of the United States, who was sworn into office, began his four-year term of office with a series of executive orders that will set the tone for his government.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

13. China commission 31st stealth warship

China has commissioned its 31st stealth warship as it got its battle group under its first aircraft carrier ready amid tensions with the U.S. and other nations over its assertiveness in the disputed South China Sea. The People’s Liberation Army Navy has commissioned its 31st Type—056 class corvette, marking a new addition to the world’s largest fleet of modern corvettes

14. Scientists develop new technique for faster diagnosis of HIV

Scientists have developed a new method for medical testing that may lead to faster diagnosis of HIV, Lyme disease, syphilis and rotavirus infections. Researchers at the University of Central Florida (UCF) in the U.S. combined cutting-edge Nano science with a magnetic phenomenon discovered more than 170 years ago to create the method for speedy medical tests.

15. Massive Antarctic ice shelf ready to break

A gigantic chunk of ice that is breaking away from West Antarctica is attached to its parent ice shelf just by a thread. Covering 5,000 sq km and nearly 100 storeys-deep, the formation is poised to snap off from Larsen C ice shelf, creating “one of the largest icebergs ever recorded. A widening rift running the length of the finger-shaped, 350 metre-thick ice block grew 10 km longer some time during the last three weeks, satellite images revealed.

16. ISRO to launch record 103 satellites on a single rocket

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will set a record when it launches 103 satellites in one go on a single rocket in the first week of February. Explaining how all the satellites will be placed in orbit, Dr. K. Sivan, Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram.

The satellite that gets launched first will move at a relatively faster velocity than the next satellite that is launched. Due to different relative velocities, the distance between the satellites will increases continuously but the orbit will be the same

BANKING AND FINANCE

17. Punjab National Bank Launches Contactless Credit Card

Punjab National Bank (PNB) has launched a Contactless Credit Card. This new credit card, which has been named PNB Wave N Pay Contactless Card, was launched by Usha Ananthasubramanian, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer. This card could be used by just waving it across the terminal and the transaction will be through. There is no need to enter any PIN for transactions up to Rs 2,000. The cardholder has full charge back rights on the misuse,

18. Apple named most innovative company in 2016

Boston Consulting Group has named technology giant Apple as the most innovative company in 2016 in its annual list of the world’s 50 “Most Innovative Companies.” Following Apple is the internet search-giant Google, ranked second, and the electric carmaker Tesla in third place. Meanwhile, ride-hailing service Uber and home rental platform Airbnb made it to the list for the first time.

SPORTS

19. Saina Nehwal wins 2017 Malaysia Masters Grand Prix Gold title

Indian badminton ace Saina Nehwal notched up her first title after a career-threatening injury by claiming the Malaysia Masters Grand Prix Gold with a hard-fought victory in the summit clash. Up against 18-year-old Thai Pornpawee Chochuwong, the top-seeded London Olympics bronze-medallist triumphed 22-20, 22-20 in a 46-minute clash. This was her 23rd title overall and the first after last year’s Australian Open.

OBITUARY

20. Renowned Urdu poet and lyricist Naqsh Lyallpuri passes away

Renowned Urdu poet and lyricist Jaswant Rai Sharma known as the world by his pen name Naqsh Lyallpuri. He was 89. Some of his best songs include: ‘Main to har modh par’, ‘Na Jane kya hua, jo tune chhu liya’, ‘Ulfat me zamane ki har rasm ko thukroa’ and ‘Do deewane shaher mein’.