Current Affairs 22 October, 2019

1. Over 40,000 troops to participate in Indian Army's exercise 'Sindhu Sudarshan' in deserts of Rajasthan

• More than 40,000 troops will take part in the Indian Army's exercise code named 'Sindhu Sudarshan' in the deserts of Rajasthan, from November 29 to December 4.
• The Indian Army will be carrying out this exercise using its integrated battle groups which are the new formations being raised by the force for warfighting in future.
• "The military exercise will be conducted to evaluate the capability of the defence services to strike deep into enemy territory in an integrated air-land battle," an Army release said.

About:

1. Chief of the Army Staff: Bipin Rawat.
2. Motto: "Service Before Self"
3. Founded: 1 April 1895, India
4. Headquarters: New Delhi

2. Bureaucrat Braj Raj Sharma appointed as Chairman of Staff Selection Commission.

• The Centre has cleared appointments of several senior bureaucrats in multiple ministries and departments with Braj Raj Sharma and Pankaj Kumar being appointed chiefs of Staff Selection Commission (SSC) and Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), respectively.
• The appointments were approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC).
• According to the official order, Braj Raj Sharma, a 1984 batch IAS officer working as Secretary in the Home Ministry's Department of Border Management, has been given the charge of SSC chairman.

3. Deepika Padukone, PV Sindhu flag-bearers of PM Modi’s Bharat Ki Laxmi initiative

• Actor Deepika Padukone and shuttler PV Sindhu were named the ambassadors for Bharat Ki Laxmi, an initiative by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that aims at bringing commendable work done by women across the nation to light ahead of the Diwali festival.
• “India’s Nari Shakti epitomises talent and tenacity, determination and dedication. Our ethos has always taught us to strive for women empowerment.
• Deepika and Sindhu registered their support for the campaign on the microblogging site.

4. ITC launches world's most expensive chocolate priced at Rs 4.3 lakh/kg under its Fabelle brand.

• Diversified group ITCNSE 0.80% launched the world's most expensive chocolate priced at Rs 4.3 lakh per kilogram under its Fabelle brand.
• ITC's luxury chocolate brand Fabelle Exquisite Chocolates has introduced its limited edition range chocolate 'Trinity - Truffles Extraordinaire' - which entered into Guinness World Records to become the world's most expensive chocolate.
• Co-curated by France's Michelin Star Chef Philippe Conticini and Fabelle's Master Chocolatier, Fabelle's 'Trinity - Truffles Extraordinaire' box is priced at approximately Rs 4.3 lakh per kg, ITC said in a statement.

Foot Notes:
1. About ITC
2. CEO: Sanjiv Puri
3. Headquarters: Kolkata

5. With 10 per cent of India's total crime, UP tops list

• With registration of over three lakh FIRs, Uttar Pradesh topped the crime list in the country, followed by Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Delhi, according to the latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau for 2017.
• Overall, 30,62,579 cases were registered across the country in 2017, up from 29,75,711 in 2016 and 29,49,400 in 2015, according to the annual data which was released on Monday night after a delay of more than one year.
• UP, also the most populous state, registered 3,10,084 cases during the year and had the highest share of 10.1 per cent in the country, it stated. The data showed an upward trend for straight third year in UP, which had recorded 2,82,171 cases in 2016 and 2,41,920 in 2015.

Foot Notes:
About Uttar Pradesh
1. Governor: Anandiben Patel
2. Capital: Lucknow
3. Chief Minister: Yogi Adityanath

6. Union Health Ministry to launch "Indradhanush 2" for covering low immunisation pockets

• In its bid to cover the areas identified as low immunisation pockets, the Union Health Ministry will carry out massive immunisation program in 271 districts across the nation and 652 blocks located in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar from December 2 under the "Mission Indradhanush 2.
• The extensive immunisation program will cover children up to 2 years of age and all pregnant women.
• The "Mission Indradhanush 2.0" is slated to be launched by Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on October 31 falling on the silver jubilee of the Polio eradication campaign, but will come into implementation from December 2.

7. DRDO starts work on ‘next-gen’ hypersonic weapon

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation(DRDO) is currently working on manufacturing a hypersonic missile. It is expected that the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is most likely to inaugurate the tunnel facility soon.
• DRDO also offered 1,500 of its patents, including critical missile technology, life sciences, and naval technology to boost the defence manufacturing in India. DRDO's patents can be accessed by free of cost by the start-ups and medium and small manufacturing enterprises (MSMEs).
• Hypersonic weapons are marked as the next-generation weapon systems as the missile will be capable of travelling at speed five times faster than that of sound.

Foot Notes:
About DRDO
1. Headquarters location: New Delhi
2. Motto: बलस्य मूलं विज्ञानम्; "Strength's Origin is in Science" (Sanskrit)
3. Founded: 1958
4. Minister responsible: Rajnath Singh, Minister of Defence
5. Chairperson: Dr G. Satheesh Reddy
8. India and Switzerland decide to carry forward working together in the area of Rail Transport

• India and Switzerland have agreed to carry forward working together in the Rail Transport sector. The decision was made by the two countries at the 1st meeting of the Joint Working Group (JWG) held. The MoU for cooperation in the rail sector between the countries was signed in 2017.
• At the high-level meeting, the Indian side was led by the Minister of Railways and Commerce & Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal, and the Swiss delegations were led by Her Excellency Simonetta Sommaruga, Hon'ble Federal Councilor and the Head of the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy & Communications.
• The discussions in the 1st meeting of Joint Working Group focused on Freight and Passenger Cars, Railway Electrification Equipments, Multimodal transport, and tunneling technology.

Foot Notes:
About Switzerland
1. Currency: Swiss franc
2. Capital: Bern

9. Dhyanchand Award recipient wrestler Dadu Chougule passes away

• In 1973, Chougule had won the titles ‘Rustum-e-Hind’ and ‘Mahan Bharat Kesari’ in national-level tournaments.
• In the 1974 Commonwealth Games, he won the silver medal. He won the ‘Maharashtra Kesari’ title twice in 1970 and 1971 and was awarded by the state government with ‘Shivchattrapati Puraskar’.

Foot Notes:
1. About Dhyan Chand Award
2. The Dhyan Chand Award, officially known as Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games, is the lifetime achievement sporting honour of the Republic of India.
3. First winner: Shahuraj Birajdar; Ashok Diwan; Aparna Ghosh
4. Last winner: Bhupender Singh; Syed Shahid Hakim; Sumrai Tete

10. Ayushmann Khurrana to raise voice against child sexual abuse with UNICEF

• Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana has joined hands with UNICEF and Ministry of Women and Child Development to raise awareness and speak up against sexual abuse of children.
• Ayushmann has boarded the ministry's key initiative, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), with an aim to make people aware of the protection and legal support that the Act offers against child sexual abuse.
• "Crimes against children are the most heinous and I applaud the government and UNICEF’s stand on protecting the future generations of our country, Ayushmann said in a statement.

Foot Notes:
About The United Nations Children's Fund
1. Headquarters: New York, United States
2. Head: Henrietta H. Fore
3. Founded: 11 December 1946, New York, United States
4. Founders: United Nations General Assembly, Ludwik Rajchman

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