Current Affairs 21st and 22nd January 2018: Daily GK Update

National News

1. PM Modi Leaves for Davos to Attend World Economic Forum

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for Davos, Switzerland to attend the 48th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. He will lead the largest-ever Indian delegation comprising Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu among others.

ii. The theme of the WEF Annual Meeting this year is 'Creating a shared future in a fractured world'. WEF 2018 will also see the largest ever proportion of women leaders including all co-chairs being women this time.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Syndicate Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• The founder and Chairman of WEF- Klaus Schwab.

2. MEITY Launches Cyber Surakshit Bharat to Strengthen Cybersecurity

i. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), announced the 'Cyber Surakshit Bharat' initiative in association with National e-Governance Division (NeGD) and industry partners.
ii. Cyber Surakshit Bharat will be operated on the three principles of Awareness, Education and Enablement. Cyber Surakshit Bharat is the first public-private partnership of its kind and will leverage the expertise of the IT industry in cybersecurity. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Canara Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• Ravi Shankar Prasad is the present Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology.

3. Sushma Swaraj Inaugurates Puducherry’s 1st POPSK at Karaikal

i. The first Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) of Puducherry was inaugurated by Smt. Sushma Swaraj, Minister for External Affairs at Karaikal.

ii. The POPSK at Karaikal is the 60th POPSK to have become functional since the launch of the scheme in January 2017. It is the first POPSK to become operational in the UT of Puducherry.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Syndicate Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• Puducherry CM- V. Narayanasamy, Governor- Kiran Bedi.

4. Telangana, Tokyo Body Sign MoU for Municipal Waste Incineration

i. The Telangana government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Clean Authority of Tokyo in connection with municipal solid waste incineration in Hyderabad.

ii. The two bodies exchanged knowledge in municipal solid waste incineration facilities and make an effort to realize human resource exchanges in view of technical cooperation in the future.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Syndicate Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• Telangana CM- K Chandrasekhar Rao, Governor- ESL Narasimhan.
• Tokyo is the capital city of Japan.

5. India's 1st Garbage Festival Organised in Chhattisgarh

i. The Raipur Municipal Corporation in Chhattisgarh organised the three-day 'Kachra Mahotsav 2018'. It is India's first Garbage Festival.

ii. The festival aimed to increase awareness, use the waste generated in the city creatively, and to showcase multiple techniques for reusing things that are labelled as garbage.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Syndicate Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• Chhattisgarh CM- Raman Singh, Governor- Balramji Dass Tandon.

International

6. Malta's Valletta Becomes Europe's Capital of Culture

i. Valletta, the capital of Malta, was officially named European Capital of Culture 2018. Valletta will share the title with Leeuwarden, a city in the Netherlands.

ii. Notably, the 'European Capitals of Culture' initiative aims to highlight the diversity of European culture and to increase the citizens' sense of belonging to a common cultural area.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Syndicate Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• Valletta is the smallest capital in the European Union.
• It is located in a fortress and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

7. India Ranks 62nd on WEF’s Inclusive Development Index

i. India was ranked at the 62nd place among emerging economies on an Inclusive Development Index of World Economic Forum (WEF). In the report, China is on 26th position and Pakistan is on 47th. 

ii. Norway remains the world’s most inclusive advanced economy, while Lithuania again tops the list of emerging economies, according to the report. India was ranked 60th among 79 developing economies in last year survey.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Syndicate Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• The founder and Chairman of WEF- Klaus Schwab.

Appointments

8. Om Prakash Rawat Appointed New Chief Election Commissioner

i. Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat was appointed as the next chief election commissioner (CEC) of India. Mr Rawat is the 22nd CEC of India. He succeeded Achal Kumar Joti.

ii. The government also appointed former finance secretary Ashok Lawasa as an Election Commissioner. Mr Rawat will take over the office from 23rd January 2018 onwards. Sunil Arora is the other Election Commissioner.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS Clerk Mains 2017 Exam-

• 1st Chief Election Commissioner of Independent India- Sukumar Sen.
• 21st Chief Election Commissioner of India- Achal Kumar Joti.

9. Anandiben Patel Named New Madhya Pradesh Governor

i. Former Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel has been named as the new governor of Madhya Pradesh.

ii. She will replace Gujarat governor Om Prakash Kohli, who currently holds additional charge of the office of Governor of Madhya Pradesh. Ms Patel became the first woman chief minister of Gujarat.

10. Sudeep Lakhtakia Appointed New DG of National Security Guard

i. Senior IPS officer Sudeep Lakhtakia has been appointed as the new Director General (DG) of the 'black cats' commando force NSG. 

ii. The officer is currently serving as a Special DG in the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) headquarters New Delhi.  He will take over from incumbent S P Singh.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Syndicate Bank PO 2018 Exam-

• The National Security Guard (NSG) was raised as the federal contingency force to counter terrorists and hijack- like incidents in 1984.

Awards

11. 63rd Filmfare Awards 2018: Complete List of Winners

i. Bollywood came together to celebrate the industry's talent at 63rd Jio Filmfare Awards 2018, held in Mumbai. Superstar Shah Rukh Khan and filmmaker Karan Johar hosted the show. 
ii. Vidya Balan won her career's sixth Filmfare award for her performance in 'Tumhari Sulu'.

Here is the complete list of winners of 63rd Filmfare Awards 2018:

Sl No	Category	Winner
1.	Best Film	'Hindi Medium'
2.	Critics' Award for Best Film	'Newton'
3.	Best Actor In A Leading Role (Female)	Vidya Balan for 'Tumhari Sulu'
4.	Best Actor In A Leading Role (Male)	Irrfan Khan for 'Hindi Medium'
5.	Critics' Award for Best Actor (Male)	Rajkummar Rao for 'Trapped'
6.	Critics' Award for Best Actor (Female)	Zaira Wasim for 'Secret Superstar'
7.	Best Director	Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari for 'Bareilly Ki Barfi'
8.	Best Debut Director	Konkona Sensharma for 'A Death in the Gunj'
9.	Best Actor In A Supporting Role (Male)	Rajkummar Rao for 'Bareilly Ki Barfi'
10.	Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female)	Meher Vij for 'Secret Superstar'
11.	Best Dialogue	Hitesh Kewalya for 'Shubh Mangal Saavdhan'
12.	Best Screenplay	Shubhashish Bhutiani for 'Mukti Bhavan'
13.	Best Original Story	Amit Masurkar for 'Newton'
14.	Best Actor (Male) in a Short Film	Jackie Shroff for 'Khujli'
15.	Best Actor (Female) in a Short Film	Shefali Shah for 'Juice'
16.	People's Choice Award for Best Short Film	'Anahut'
17.	Best Short Film (Fiction)	'Juice'
18.	Best Short Film (Non Fiction)	'Invisible Wings'
19.	Best Music Album	Pritam for 'Jagga Jasoos'
20.	Best Playback Singer (Male)	Arijit Singh for 'Roke na ruke naina' - 'Badrinath Ki Dulhania'

Sports

12. India Defeats Pakistan to Win Blind Cricket World Cup 2018

i. India beat Pakistan by two wickets to win the Blind Cricket World Cup 2018 for the second time after a thrilling match at Sharjah Cricket Stadium, the UAE.

ii. India conquered the modest target in the 39th over, with two balls to spare and eight wickets lost. For his brilliant all-round performance, Sunil Ramesh was declared the man of the match.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS Clerk Mains 2017 Exam-

• The inaugural World Cup in 1998 was won by South Africa who defeated Pakistan in New Delhi to become the first blind cricket world champion.