Daily Current Affairs 1st and 2nd January 2020

Table of Contents

Dear Aspirants,

General awareness section is the most important part of every competitive exam, it can help you score well in the exam if you are updated with all the current news. Banking Awareness, Static GK and the current news are the parts that make the GA section complete. It is important to know what is happening in and outside of India. GK updates are incorporated with the important news that made the headlines today. It is the complete bag of the important news that held all day long. One should have complete knowledge about the banking terms, current affairs news, etc. So, here is the GK update of 1st and 2nd January to help you prepare the Current affairs part. After reading this section, you can successfully attempt Current Affairs Quiz.

National News

1. Indore tops national cleanliness rankings for first two quarters

The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has announced the results of the 1st and 2nd quarters of the Swachh Survekshan 2020.
Indore has topped the cleanliness charts for two consecutive quarters among cities with over 10 lakh population while Kolkata was the worst performer. Jamshedpur has topped the cleanliness charts for two consecutive quarters among cities with 1 lakh to 10 lakh population.
The rankings were conducted in a league format for the first time and were split into three quarters (April to June, July to September and October to December 2019) and different categories based on the population of the city.
The rankings were based on collection, transportation, processing and disposal of waste.

Some key results of the Swachh Survekshan 2020:

Top three cities with over 10 lakh population in 1st quarter (April to June):

Indore (Madhya Pradesh)
Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh)
Surat (Gujarat)

Top three cities with over 10 lakh population in 2nd quarter (July to September):

Indore (Madhya Pradesh)
Rajkot (Gujarat)
Navi Mumbai (Maharashtra)

Top three cities with 1 lakh to 10 lakh population in 1st quarter (April to June):

Jamshedpur (Jharkhand)
New Delhi

Top three cities with 1 lakh to 10 lakh population in 2nd quarter (July to September):

Jamshedpur (Jharkhand)
Chandrapur (Maharashtra)

Among the Cantonment Boards, the rankings in 1st quarter (April to June) were as follows:

St.Thomas Mount Cantonment (Tamil Nadu)
Jhansi Cantonment (Uttar Pradesh)
Delhi Cantonment (Delhi)

Among the Cantonment Boards, the rankings in 2nd quarter (July to September) were as follows:

Delhi Cantonment Board (Delhi)
Jhansi Cantonment Board (Uttar Pradesh)
Jalandhar Cantonment Board (Punjab)

Secunderabad Cantonment Board in Hyderabad is the worst performer among other cantonment boards.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Ministers of State (Independent Charge) of Housing and Urban Affairs: Hardeep Singh Puri.

2. NITI Aayog releases SDG India Index and Dashboard 2019

NITI Aayog has released the 2nd edition of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index. According to the SDG India Index, India’s composite score has improved from 57 in 2018 to 60 in 2019.
India is the first country in the world with a government-led, sub-national measure of progress on Sustainable Development Goals.
The SDG India Index 2019 tracks progress of all States and UTs on 100 indicators drawn from the MoSPI’s National Indicator Framework (NIF). The SDG India Index has been developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), United Nations in India, and Global Green Growth Institute.
The Index spans 16 out of 17 SDGs with a qualitative assessment on Goal 17. This marks an improvement over the 2018 Index, which covered only 13 goals.
A composite score has been computed in the range of 0–100 for each State/UT based on its aggregate performance across 16 SDGs. It indicates the average performance of every State/UT towards achieving 16 SDGs and their respective targets. If a State/UT achieves a score of 100, it signifies it has achieved the 2030 national targets.

Classification criteria based on SDG India Indexscore is as follows:

Aspirant: having score in the range of 0–49.
Performer: having score in the range of 50–64.
Front Runner: having score in the range of 65–99.
Achiever: having score in the range of 100.

Some key results of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index:

Niti Aayog has given India an overall score of 60 points, driven mostly by progress in clean energy and sanitation (88); peace, justice and strong institutions (72); and affordable and clean energy (70).
Kerala achieved the first rank in the composite SDG Index with a score of 70, followed by Himachal Pradesh at 69.
Bihar is at the bottom of Niti Aayog’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index.
The biggest improvers since 2018 are UP (which has moved from the 29th position to the 23rd), Orissa (23rd to 15th), and Sikkim (15th to 7th).
All three states that were in the ‘Aspirant’ category (with score/s in the range of 0–49): Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam, have graduated to the ‘Performer’ category (50–64).
Five states: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Goa, and Sikkim moved up from the ‘Performer’ category to the ‘Front Runner’ category (65–99).
The maximum gains have been made in Goal 6 i.e. clean water and sanitation, Goal 9 i.e. industry, innovation, and infrastructure; and Goal 7 i.e. affordable and clean energy.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

CEO of NITI Aayog: Amitabh Kant.

3. Bengaluru will host the 107th edition of the Indian Science Congress

Bengaluru will host the 107th edition of the Indian Science Congress. It will be the ninth time the city will host the annual convention. University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Bengaluru will host the event.
The congress has chosen ‘science and technology: rural development’ as its theme for the 107th edition. A Farmer’s Science Congress will take part in it for the first time, hence providing a platform for innovative farmers.
There will also be a ‘Women’s Science Congress’, ‘Children’s Science Congress’, ‘Science Communicator’s Meet’, and ‘Science Exhibition: Pride of India’. The convention will see the participation of over 15,000 delegates, including 8,000 students from across the country and 74 scientists from abroad.

4. Political Parties Registration Tracking Management System launched by EC

The Election Commission of India has launched a Political Parties Registration Tracking Management System (PPRTMS). The system enables the applicants to track the status of the applications for the party registration.
The Commission has also amended the guidelines for registration which came into force from 1st January 2020. Under the new guidelines, the applicants applying for the party registration from 1st of January 2020 will be able to track the progress of applications and will get the status through SMS and e-mail.
An association seeking registration has to submit an application to the Commission within a period of 30 days from the date of its formation. This should be done as per the guidelines prescribed by the Commission in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 324 of the Constitution of India and Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
The status can be tracked through the Commission’s portal “pprtms.eci“.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

The registration of political parties is governed by the provisions of Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

5. ISRO will set up launch port for small satellite launch vehicles

The ISRO Chairman announced that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will establish a 2nd launch port in Thoothukodi district in Tamil Nadu.
This launch port will be used exclusively to launch small satellite launch vehicles. The launch port will be established in 2300 acres. He announced that the process of Astronaut selection is over for India’s 1st manned mission to outer space i.e. “Gaganyaan” to be launched by 2022.
The ISRO Chairman also announced that the Government has approved the Chandrayaan–3 mission to the moon, comprising of a lander and a rover.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Chairman of ISRO: K.Sivan; Headquarters: Bengaluru; Established: 1969.

International News

6. Nepal launches ‘Visit Nepal Year 2020’ campaign

President of Nepal launched the “Visit Nepal Year 2020” during the ceremony held at historic Dasaratha Rangashala in Kathmandu. Mythical creature Yeti has been selected as mascot of the campaign.
The ambitious campaign is aimed to promote tourism in Nepal and to attract 2 million tourists in 2020. The Visit Nepal 2020 campaign was launched in all the seven provinces of Nepal.
Nepal is one of the World’s fascinating tourist destination and the government has a goal of making tourism one of the key pillars of the Nepali economy.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Prime Minister of Nepal: K P Sharma Oli; Capital: Kathmandu.
President of Nepal: Bidhya Devi Bhandari; Currency of Nepal: Nepalese rupee.

7. Palau becomes 1st nation to ban ‘reef toxic’ sun cream

The Pacific nation of Palau has become the first country to ban sun cream which is harmful to corals and sea life. The ban prohibits sun cream containing any of the 10 ingredients which includes oxybenzone and octinoxate, that absorbs ultraviolet light.
A lagoon in Palau’s Rock Islands is a Unesco World Heritage site. Palau is renowned for its marine life and is regarded as one of the world’s best diving destinations.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

President of Palau: Tommy Remengesau; Capital: Ngerulmud; Currency: US Dollar.

8. Umaro Cissoko Embalo wins Guinea-Bissau presidential election

Umaro Cissoko Embalo has won the Guinea-Bissau‘s presidential election. According to the National Electoral Commission of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro won the presidential election with 53.55% of votes. He will replace the incumbent President Jose Mario Vaz.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Capital of Guinea-Bissau: Bissau; Currency: Eco.

Banking & Economy News

9. “MANI” to help visually challenged to identify currency notes

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has launched a mobile app “Mobile Aided Note Identifier (MANI)”. The visually challenged people can identify the denomination of a currency note by using the mobile app “MANI”.
The application also works offline once installed. The application scans the currency notes using the camera of the mobile phone and also gives audio output in Hindi and English. The app does not authenticate a note as either genuine or counterfeit.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

RBI 25th Governor: Shaktikant Das; Headquarters: Mumbai; Founded: 1 April 1935, Kolkata.

Appointments

10. V K Yadav to lead Railway Board for 1 more year

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the re-employment of V K Yadav as the Chairman of Railway Board. The appointment has been done for a period of one year.
He took over as Railway Board Chairman from Ashwani Lohani on January 1, 2019. He has also held the post of General Manager of South Central Railway (SCR).
He is an electrical engineer and belongs to the 1980 batch of the Indian Railway Service of Electrical Engineers.

Obituaries

11. Nagaland Assembly Speaker Vikho-o Yhoshu passes away

The Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) leader and Nagaland Assembly Speaker Vikho-o Yhoshu passed away. Yhoshu was elected to the state Assembly thrice from Southern Angami-1 constituency in Kohima district.
He had won the seat as a candidate of the Naga People’s Front (NPF) in 2008 and 2013 and served as Advisor and Parliamentary Secretary of various departments. He was elected as Speaker of the state Assembly in 2018 assembly election.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Chief Minister of Nagaland: Neiphiu Rio; Governor: R. N. Ravi.

Sports News

12. Lawn bowls & Cycling to be included in 3rd Khelo India Games

Chief Executive Officer of “Khelo India Games” has announced that “Lawn bowls” and “cycling” will be included in the 3rd edition of Khelo India Games. The two games will be included in the event for the first time. The 3rd edition of the tournament will be held in Guwahati, Assam in January 2020. Athletes from all over the country will be coming to Guwahati for the Khelo India Youth Games.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams: