General Knowledge & Current Affairs
November 2022 - 14th to 20th
- Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar addresses 17th East Asia Summit (EAS) at Phnom Penh in Cambodia
- India announces contribution of USD 5 million to the ASEAN-India science and technology fund
- J&K: Indian Army organising month-long Dil Maange More Short Film Festival in Udhampur
- Himachal Pradesh records 75.6% voter turnout in Nov 12 Assembly polls, beats 2017 figure of 75.57%.
- Tamil Nadu: Four Sri Lankans in Rajiv case shifted to Tiruchi camp
- Punjab govt bans songs glorifying weapons, public display of firearms
- IAS officer Gaurav Dwivedi appointed as Prasar Bharati CEO
- UGC asks higher education institutions to adopt ‘Professors of Practice’ guidelines
- SC grants Centre more time to respond to pleas challenging Places of Worship (Special Provision) Act, 1991
- ‘Mr Natwarlal’ & ‘Yaarana’ director Rakesh Kumar passes away
- Ranveer Singh honoured with Etoile d’Or award at Marrakech International Film Festival in Morocco
- 53rd edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa from Nov 20 to 28
- COP 27 at Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt: “In our LiFEtime” campaign launched by India to encourage youth to become message bearers of sustainable lifestyles
- COP 27 at Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt: India submits its long-term low emission development strategy to UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change)
- India ranks eighth on Climate Change Performance Index; no country ranked first, second or third, Denmark ranked fourth
- Janjatiya Gaurav Divas celebrated on Nov 15; President Droupadi Murmu pays tributes to Birsa Munda at his birthplace in Ulihatu (Jharkhand)
- Infosys Science Foundation names winners of Infosys Prize 2022 in six categories: Engineering and Computer Science, Humanities, Life Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences and Social Sciences
- Morbi bridge collapse: Why operation & maintenance contract given without floating tender, asks Gujarat HC
- Mega military exercise ‘Sea Vigil’ covering 7,516 km of India’s coastline being held on Nov 15-16
- Union Minister for Education and Skill Development Dharmendra Pradhan meets his Finnish counterpart Petri Honkonen in New Delhi
- Statehood Day of Jharkhand celebrated; state carved out of Bihar on Nov 15, 2000
- Veteran Telugu actor Krishna Garu dies in Hyderabad at 80
- India and Sweden host LeadIT (Leadership for Industry Transition) Summit, on the sidelines of COP27 at Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt
- National Press Day celebrated on Nov 16; foundation day of Press Council of India (PCI) in 1966
- 15.24 lakh foreigners visited India in 2021; highest from US, followed by Bangladesh
- NCW (National Commission for Women) launches Digital Shakti Campaign 4.0 to empower women in cyberspace
- Rajiv Gandhi assassination case: Centre files review petition against convicts’ release
- C. V. Ananda Bose appointed new Governor of West Bengal
- CEC Rajiv Kumar invited as International Observer for Nov 12 elections in Nepal
- Indian Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande interacts with his French counterpart Gen Pierre Schill in Paris
- National Museum, New Delhi and Kolding Museum, Denmark to open joint exhibition “Silver treasures from Denmark and India” in March next year
- MoS for Finance Bhagwat Karad presents 8th FICCI higher education excellence Awards 2022 in New Delhi
- NTPC wins “GOLD” award at 47th International Convention on Quality Control Circle (ICQCC-2022) in Jakarta
- India launches its first privately developed rocket, the Vikram-suborbital developed by Skyroot Aerospace, from ISRO’s launch site in Sriharikota (AP)
- India wins Excellence in Leadership in Family Planning (EXCELL) Awards-2022 at International Conference on Family Planning in Thailand
- ‘No Money for Terror’ Ministerial Conference on Counter-Terrorism Financing being held in New Delhi on Nov 18-19
- 5th Naturopathy Day celebrated on Nov 18; theme: theme, ‘Naturopathy: An Integrative Medicine’
- Veteran Punjabi actress Daljeet Kaur dies at 69 in Ludhiana
- PM inaugurates month-long ‘Kashi Tamil Sangamam’ in Varanasi, UP; objective is to celebrate age-old links between two ancient seats of learning
- Arunachal Pradesh: PM inaugurates Donyi Polo Airport, Itanagar and 600 MW Kameng Hydro Power Station
- India’s longest train, Dibrugarh-Kanyakumari Vivek Express, to run twice a week; 4,189 kms, 80 hours
- Bulldozing of houses in name of investigation not provided under law: Gauhati High Court
- Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama (87) given Gandhi Mandela Award of Gandhi Mandela Foundation in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh
- Centre unveils Digital Data Protection Bill for public consultation; bill will provide legal framework for right to privacy of citizens
- Former bureaucrat Arun Goel appointed as Election Commissioner
- Tabassum, actor & popular Doordarshan talk show host, dies at 78
- J&K: 3 soldiers killed in avalanche in north Kashmir’s Machil Kupwara sector
- Second edition of ASEAN India Music Festival being held in Delhi on Nov 18-20
- 3rd “No Money For Terror” Conference (Counter-Terrorism Financing) organised in New Delhi
- Mehran Karimi Nasseri, Iranian man who lived in Paris airport for 18 years, dies at 76
- US: Six dead as World War II-era planes collide during airshow in Dallas
- US: Democrats seal control of 100-member Senate with win in Nevada
- Turkey: 6 people killed in explosion in Istanbul
- India tells COP27 not to make coal lone villain as all fossil fuels contribute to Green House Gas emissions
- Slovenia: Natasa Pirc Musar elected first female President
- World Diabetes Day observed on Nov 14; theme: ‘access to diabetes care’
- Annual G20 Summit being held in Bali, Indonesia on Nov 5-16, theme: ‘Recover Together, Recover Stronger’
- UN General Assembly passes resolution calling for Russian reparations to Ukraine; India abstains from voting on the resolution which is non-binding
- Day of Eight Billion observed by UN on Nov 15
- NASA launches crewless Artemis Mission on a test flight to the moon
- Navies of US, Japan, Australia, Canada organising Keen Sword exercise off Japan’s coast
- Poland says Russian-made missile fell on its territory killing two people near Ukraine border
- International Day for Tolerance observed on Nov 16
- 2022 UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence awarded to Franca Ma-ih Sulem Yong from Cameroon, President of the NGOs #Afrogiveness and Positive Youths Africa
- First World Media Congress organised in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on Nov 15-17
- US: Republican Party wins majority of seats in House of Representatives
- World Philosophy Day celebrated by UNESCO on Nov 17
- Russia and Ukraine agree to extend grain deal by another 120 days; deal allows grain exports from Ukrainian ports through safe corridor in the Black Sea
- First World Day for Prevention of and Healing from Child Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Violence observed on Nov 18
- Dutch court convicts three MH17 suspects, acquits one; Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was downed by missile over Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region on July 17, 2014
- “Homer” is word of the year for 2022: Cambridge Dictionary; is an informal American English word for a home run in baseball
- Nord Stream leaks of Sept 27 confirmed as sabotage, Sweden says; Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines link Russia and Germany via the Baltic Sea
- APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Economic Leaders meeting held in Bangkok; theme: “OPEN, CONNECT and BALANCE”
- Elon Musk reinstates celebrity accounts on Twitter, says ‘no decision’ on Trump
- World Toilet Day observed on Nov 19
- Russian fertiliser blocked at European ports to be shipped from Nov 21: UN
- Fantasy sports offered by Dream11 are games of skill, not chance: Supreme Court
- Power System Operation Corporation Limited (POSOCO) renamed as “Grid Controller of India Limited”
- The Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), Ministry of Finance (MoF); Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA); and the World Bank Group DEA, MoHUA and the World Bank Group jointly organise a 5-day Cities Creditworthiness Academy Workshop
- Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles Piyush Goyal inaugurates 41st edition of India International Trade Fair (IITF) at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi
- Wholesale price-based inflation (WPI) eases to 8.39% in October from 10.7% in September
- Consumer Price-based (retail) inflation declines to 6.77% in October from 7.41% in September
- Indian govt. lifts ban on the VLC Media Player website
- 11th edition of India Stonemart 2022, a stone industry exhibition, held in Jaipur
- Govt. garners Rs 3,839 crore by selling 1.5% stake in Axis Bank
- Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority (PFRDA) appoints Suraj Bhan as Chairman of National Pension System Trust (NPS Trust),
- Indian Media & Entertainment industry valued between USD 27-29 billion in 2022: CII & BCG
- PM inaugurates Bengaluru Technological Summit (Nov 16-19)
- IFSCA (International Financial Services Centres Authority) signs MoU with RBI in the field of regulation, supervision of regulated entities
- Audit Diwas celebrated on Nov 16 by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General
- India’s scores in ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) air safety audit conducted in Nov 9-16 to improve substantially: DGCA
- Dun & Bradstreet India launches ESG (environmental, social, and governance) Intelligence, aims to help organisations turn ESG-compliant
- Economist Arvind Virmani appointed as full-time member of NITI Aayog; is founder of Foundation for Economic Growth and Welfare
- Electoral bonds worth Rs 10,246 crore sold by SBI since launch in March 2018
- Microfinance sector grew by 16.5-times from Rs 17,264 crore in March 2012 to Rs 2,85,441 crore as of March 2022: MFIN (Microfinance Institutions Network)
- 4th Edition of Indian Chemicals Council (ICC) Sustainability Conclave being held in New Delhi on Nov 17-18
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chairs 5th Meeting of Governing Council of National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF)
- 11th CII Big Picture Summit on ‘media and entertainment industry’ organised in New Delhi on Nov 16-17
- Maximum tenure of CEO and MD of public sector banks increased to 10 years
- UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) levy on airlines to double from January 1; currently, the levy is ₹5,000 per departure
- Govt extends tenure of ED (Enforcement Directorate) Director Sanjay Mishra for one more year
- USA tops Network Readiness Index 2022 of US-based Portulans Institute, India 61st
- Women’s Entrepreneurship Day celebrated on Nov 19
- Govt cuts export duty on steel, iron ore; hikes import duty on some raw materials
- 21st World Congress of Accountants being held in Mumbai on Nov 18-21
- US
Republicans secured the 218 seats needed for a majority in the 435-member House of Representatives, the lower chamber of Congress (Parliament) on November 17. But Democrats will retain control of the upper chamber, the 100-member Senate. - JAPAN
Armed forces of Japan and the US conducted Exercise Keen Sword from November 10 to 19 in and around Japan’s southwestern islands, in an effort to boost their operational capability in those areas, with China’s intensifying military moves in mind. - TURKEY
Spy chiefs of Russia and the US met in Turkish capital, Ankara, on November 14. The talks between CIA Director William Burns and Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), came as “an initiative of the American side”, Moscow said. - CHINA
Army authorities in China on November 18 requested retired military staff to help boost production at the world’s largest iPhone factory in Zhengzhou. Output at the Foxconn factory has been hit by a local Covid outbreak. - UKRAINE
A court in the Netherlands on November 17 found three men – two Russians and one Ukrainian – guilty over the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which was shot down over Donetsk region of Ukraine on July 17, 2014 killing all 298 people on board. The guilty were tried in absentia and are untraceable. - RUSSIA
The UN General Assembly approved a resolution on November 15 calling for Russia to be held accountable for violating international law by invading Ukraine including by paying reparations. Unlike UNSC resolutions, General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding. - SLOVENIA
Slovenia elected a lawyer and a former journalist as its first female President on November 14. Natasa Pirc Musar ran as an independent with the backing of the country’s centre-left government. - NIGER
France delivered two attack helicopters to Niger to boost the latter’s fight against extremist groups linked to al-Qaeda and the so-called Islamic State group in capital Niamey on November 16. Niger is a former French colony. - TUNISIA
The use of French is on the decline in North Africa, France’s president Emmanuel Macron acknowledged during a summit of French-speaking nations in Djerba, Tunisia on November 19-20. The Francophonie summit is held once every two years. - SIERRA LEONE
Parliament in Sierra Leone on November 15 unanimously approved legislation that will ensure that one in three of its members, are women. Currently only 19 of the 146 members of parliament are women.
- England (138/5 in 19) win their 2nd T-20 world cup title by defeating Pakistan (137/8 in 20) by 5 wickets at Melbourne
- Women’s tennis: Switzerland defeat Australia to win Billie Jean King Cup title in Glasgow, UK
- Men’s Tennis: Brandon Nakashima of US of wins Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan
- Tommy Fleetwood of England wins Nedbank Golf Challenge title in South Africa; India’s Shubhankar Sharma finishes third
- Indian shooters dominate 15th Asian Air Rifle Championships in Daegu, South Korea
- Mercedes driver George Russell wins Formula 1 São Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil
- Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports announces National Sports Awards 2022; table tennis player Achanta Sharath Kamal selected for Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2022, 25 chosen for Arjuna Award
- Asian Airgun Championship 2022 in Daegu, South Korea: India’s Shiva Narwal won gold in the Men’s 10-meter air pistol
- Asian Airgun Championship 2022 in Daegu, South Korea: Arjun Babuta and Mehuli Ghosh win gold in 10m air rifle mixed team
- 2024 Paris Olympic Games: La Phryge Olympique and la Phryge Paralympique unveiled as mascots, both are red hats with eyes and legs
- 2nd edition of North East Olympic Games concludes in Shillong, Meghalaya; Manipur tops medals tally
- Asian Airgun Championships in South Korea: Rhythm Sangwan & Vijayveer Sidhu clinch gold in Air Pistol Mixed Team event
- Gulam Abbas Moontasir, Arjuna awardee and former captain of Indian men’s basketball team, dies at 80
- India’s Manika Batra wins bronze medal in Asian Cup Table Tennis tournament in Bangkok
