Current Affairs Quiz - February 2022

Notes:
Death Penalty in India Report was released by the criminal law reforms advocacy group at the National Law University, Delhi- named Project 39A.
As per the report, the number of prisoners on death row at the end of 2021 stood at 488, the highest in 17 years. This is an increase of nearly 21% from 2020. This is also the highest the death row population has been since 2004 (563).

Notes:
The government has set up a National Land Monetisation Corporation (NLMC) to fast-track monetisation of land and non-core assets of public sector entities, as per the Economic Survey.
NLMC is being incorporated as a 100 per cent Government of India owned entity with an initial authorised share capital of Rs 5,000 crore. CPSEs have referred 3,400 acres of land and other non-core assets for monetisation, so far.

Notes:
A 6,000- crore Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) programme for MSMEs has been announced in the Union Budget, which will be rolled out in the coming five years.
The programme would improve the competitiveness and productivity of MSMEs. The World Bank in June 2021 had approved USD 500 million for the programme to support the government to support the MSMEs impacted by the Covid crisis.

Notes:
The Union Budget has announced a new scheme called ‘Vibrant Villages programme’, which aims to boost the infrastructure of the villages along India’s border, especially with China.
Under the programme, additional funding will be provided, existing schemes will be converged. Activities include housing, tourist centres, road connectivity, provisioning of decentralised renewable energy, DTH access for Doordarshan and educational channels, and livelihood support.

Notes:
A tripartite MoU has been signed between State Bank of India, Indira Gandhi Centre for the Arts and National Culture Fund for developing ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design’ at Red Fort, Delhi.
The ABCD project is being implemented by IGNCA, an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture. The project aims for Economic Value Addition to GI products. It will also provide a platform for artisans and designers, to provide a wide market.

Notes:
Punaura Dham located in Bihar has been included in the Ramayana circuit of Swadesh Darshan Scheme. It has been recently included under PRASHAD Scheme of the Ministry of Tourism.
Bihar has several tourist places in the scheme including Thirthankar Circuit in Vaishali- Arrah- Masad- Patna- Rajgir- Pawapuri- Champapuri, Spiritual Circuit at Sultanganj – Dharmshala – Deoghar and Buddhist circuit at Bodh Gaya.

Notes:
The Government has appointed former civil servant Ravi Mittal as the chairperson of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI).
M S Sahoo, the first Chairperson completed his five-year term on September 30, 2021. In October 2021, IBBI Whole Time Member Navrang Saini was given the additional charge as the Chairperson.

Notes:
“Rashtriya Yuva Sashaktikaran Karyakram” has been extended over the 15th Finance Commission Cycle (2021-22 to 2025-26) at an outlay of Rs 2,710.65 Crore.
The RYSK Scheme is the flagship Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports. The Scheme beneficiaries are the youth in the age-group of 15-29 years. Its objective is to motivate youth to strive for excellence in their respective fields and use their energy for national building.

Notes:
Shares of Facebook owner Meta fell 26%, the biggest single-day slide in market value for a U.S. company.
This huge drop erased over USD 200 billion from Meta’s market capitalization and around USD 29 billion from Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg’s net worth. This further dragged the Nasdaq Composite Index lower.

Notes:
Article 275 of the Constitution deals with the ‘Grants from the Union to certain States’. Recently, the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, released monthly Post Devolution Revenue Deficit (PDRD) Grant of Rs. 9,871 crore to 17 States.
This was the 10th instalment of the PDRD grant released to the States. The Grant is provided to the states under the Article 275 of the Constitution. The Commission has recommended PDRD grants to 17 States.