Current Affairs Quiz - January 2022

Notes:
High Court Justice Ayesha Malik has been appointed as Pakistan’s first-ever woman judge of the Supreme Court.
Pakistan President Arif Alvi gave his approval to the elevation of the Judge, who was serving as Lahore High Court Justice since 2012. She will now work as a Supreme Court Judge until her superannuation in June 2031.

Notes:
NITI Aayog, Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), and RMI India released a report, titled ‘Banking on Electric Vehicles in India’.
It highlighted the importance of priority-sector recognition for retail lending in the electric vehicle sector.  The report also provided recommendations to inform the inclusion of EVs in the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) priority-sector lending (PSL) guidelines.

Notes:
United Kingdom based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) released the report titled “Connecting the Dots: Plastic pollution and the planetary emergency”.
As per the report, a new global plastics treaty focussing on the entire lifecycle of plastics needs to be developed urgently. This was also proposed in the draft resolution by Peru and Rwanda at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA).

Notes:
‘Spices Board’ is a regulatory and export promotion agency of Spices, working under the aegis of Ministry of Commerce and Industry. It is headquartered at Kochi, Kerala.
Spices Board launched the country’s first virtual platform for spice exports “Spice Xchange India”. India exports 225 different spices and spice products to more than 180 countries. It is a 3D virtual platform which aims to connect India’s spice exporters with buyers from around the world, using AI.

Notes:
The International Monetary Fund’s board urged El Salvador to drop Bitcoin from its status as legal currency.
El Salvador last year sought a $1.3 billion IMF loan. IMF has urged the country to strip the legal tender status of Bitcoin due to its large risks. This is also said to be a major obstacle for the country’s efforts to get a loan from IMF.

Notes:
Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra has been bestowed the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in this year’s list of defence awards. It is the highest non-gallantry decoration given to defence personnel.
The PVSM is usually accorded to three-star officers for distinguished service to the nation. Chopra undertook his training at the Army’s sports institutions and was picked to join the service as part of Mission Olympic.

Notes:
Saudi Arabia and Thailand have ended a 30-year dispute over a scandal involving stolen jewels and a series of murders. Saudi Arabian Airlines has announced to restart direct flights to Thailand.
The resumption of full diplomatic ties came during a visit to Riyadh by Thailand Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha. Gems stolen from Saudi had a rare 50 carat blue diamond, which was never recovered. The dispute has cost a huge dip in trade and led to job losses for Thai Migrant workers.

Notes:
A number of tribal people of Pal and Dadhvav villages had gathered on the banks of Her river in 1922., led by Motilal Tejawat, to protest against the land revenue system and laws related to Jagirdar and Rajwada imposed by the British rulers.
Around 1,200 tribals were martyred, after the firing order issued by Major H.G. Sutton.  The Gujarat tableau on Republic Day depicted the 1922 incident, to pay tributes to ‘Pal Dadhvav martyrs’

Notes:
India Pavilion at EXPO2020 Dubai launched the USD 150-million fund India-UAE venture capital fund in the UAE.
It is the first such fund to be set up in the UAE. The fund aims to invest and nurture promising startups through an accelerator to fuel the growth of India-UAE start-ups. It will be funded by investors across UAE, India and GCC countries.

Notes:
Former Finance Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg has authored a book titled , “The $10 Trillion Dream”.
It explores the policy issues that India faces today and suggests reforms for it to become a USD 10 trillion economy by the mid-2030s. S C Garg is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and was appointed as Finance Secretary in 2019.