The Bhutan National Day
- The Bhutan National Day in modern Bhutan is celebrated glamorously every December 17.
- The Changlimithang Stadium is already getting prepared for December 17, as has been done in previous years.
- The holiday commemorates the coronation of the first king of Bhutan, Ugyen Wangchuck, as the first Druk Gyalpo. This is a reason his statue is carried during processions on every holiday.
Agni-5 missile was successfully tested in India
- India has successfully tested the Agni-5 ballistic missile capable of striking targets at ranges up to 5,000 kilometres and carrying long-range nuclear bombs from Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha.
- The missile can accurately fire at targets as far north as China’s border and as far as parts of Europe.
Modernization of Post Offices
- Minister of State for Communications, Shri Devusinh Chauhan said that the Department of Posts Information Technology Modernization Project 2.0 has been approved by the Government with an outlay of ₹ 5785 Crore for a period of eight years.
- The Information Technology Modernization Project 2.0 combines applications, intelligent platforms, and interconnected ecosystems so as to provide an inclusive, integrated single-window view of postal and financial services to its stakeholders through multiple delivery channels.
Publication of list of best performing states in India
- India Today news agency has listed the activities and achievements of the states in the name of State of States published in the rankings.
- According to the list, Tamil Nadu has been ranked first for the 5th year in a row in the list of states published in 2022.
- India Today ranked the largest and smallest states in the categories of economy, infrastructure, medicine, agriculture, education, law and order, governance, inclusive growth, entrepreneurship, tourism, environment and health.
- Himachal Pradesh at 2nd position with 1,312 points,
- Kerala is also 3rd with 1,263 points.
- Karnataka ranks 8th with 1,161 points.
- Madhya Pradesh ranked 13th,
- Uttar Pradesh is also ranked 18th.
Paradip Port achieves milestones by handling the highest number of goods
- Paradip Port achieved another milestone by handling the highest-ever cargo traffic of 6, 49,730 Metric Tons in a single day on 14th December 2022.
- This is to be noted that after dredging of the northern dock, recently, Paradip Port successfully berthed MV Golden Barnet, a Cape vessel of 16.20 mtr draft carrying 1,46,554 Tonnes of Coking Coal at KICT Berth.
World Champions List -2022 was published
- Iga Swiatek and Rafael Nadal have been announced as the World Champions 2022 by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). Meanwhile, Swiatek was crowned world champion for the first time, and Rafael Nadal won the title for the 5th time.
- In women’s doubles, Barbara-Kathrina and in men’s doubles, Rajeev Ram-Joe Salisbury has been declared world champions.
Mysterious Circles of Radio Emission Detected in Space
- New research offers plausible explanations for mysterious hazy circles of radio emission deep in celestial space called Odd Radio Circles (ORCs) detected recently using some of the most sensitive international radio telescopes.
- Amitesh Omar, a Scientist at Aryabhatta Research Institute of observational sciences (ARIES), Nainital (an autonomous institute of DST, Govt. of India) in his research has proved that some of these ORCs could be remnants of thermonuclear supernovae triggered by the explosion of a white dwarf star in a binary system heavier than 1.4 times the mass of the Sun.
Tamil Nadu Government Examination Board Controller was appointed
- Ajay Yadav has taken charge as the Examination Control Officer of Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC), who was previously the managing director of Elcot.
- Kiran Kurala, who was earlier the Examination Control Officer, has now been posted as the Director of Municipalities.
Bank of England raises its key interest rate to 3.5% from 3%
- The key interest rate of the Bank of England rose to 3.5 % from 3 percent. And this is the ninth rate rise in a row as the Bank tries to speed inflation’s return to target after price growth hit a 41-year high in October.
- The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee voted 6-3 in favour of the move and further increases in Bank Rate may be required to tackle the domestic inflation pressures from prices and wages.
Chaudhamini Bethe became the first deaf lawyer to register with the Delhi Bar Council
- Saudamini Pethe — the first deaf advocate enrolled with the Bar Council of Delhi, and she wants to work for the rights of the hearing impaired and help them gain access to education, healthcare and justice.
- The 45-year-old woman lawyer would be arguing her matters in courts through the medium of an Indian Sign Language (ISL) interpreter and seeks to be an inspiration for the deaf youth to join the legal profession and contribute to the cause of their community.
US Senate passes National Defense Authorization Act
- The U.S. The Senate passed legislation authorizing a record 858 billion US dollars in annual defence spending. It includes 10 billion dollars in security aid for Taiwan and 800 million dollars for Ukraine.
- Senators supported the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) setting policy for the Pentagon, by an overwhelming 83-11 bipartisan majority.
- The NDAA also includes a number of other measures, including repealing the military’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, raising military pay, and imposing restrictions on engagement with Russia.
