Top Current Affairs 20 April 2022

Top Current Affairs 20 April 2022

This post contains the current affairs for 20 April 2022. These current affairs are important for banking exams, insurance exams and other competitive exams like IBPS PO and Clerk, SBI PO and Clerk, RBI Assistant and Grade B, etc. You can also attempt our Current Affairs Quiz after reading our daily current affairs.

National

“Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package: Insurance Scheme for Health Workers fighting COVID-19” extended for 180 days from April 19, 2022

• The ‘Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP), insurance scheme for Health Care Workers Fighting COVID-19’ has been extended for a further period of 180 days.
• This will be effective from April 19, 2022.
• The extension has been given so as to provide the safety net to the dependents of health workers who are deputed to take care of COVID-19 patients.
• The PMGKP was launched on March, 30, 2020 to provide comprehensive personal accident cover of Rs. 50 Lakh to 22.12 lakh healthcare providers, including community health workers and private health workers dealing with COVID-19 patients and may be at risk of being impacted by the same.

India’s first portable solar rooftop system unveiled in Gandhinagar

• The first portable solar rooftop system in India has been inaugurated at Swaminarayan Akshardham temple complex in Gandhinagar, in Gujarat.
• The 10 PV Port systems has been manufactured by New Delhi-based Servotech Power Systems Ltd and designed by German development agency Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
• The systems have been installed under the initiative of the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to develop renewable energy cities across India.

GDP Rate

IMF cuts India’s GDP growth forecast for FY23 to 8.2%

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has slashed the gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for India in FY23 to 8.2 percent in its latest World Economic Outlook report, released on April 19, 2022.
• Earlier in January report, this was estimated at 9 percent.
• IMF has also cut India’s FY24 GDP growth forecast to 6.9 percent. Earlier this was 7.1 percent.
• In the case of global economy, IMF has cut the growth forecast for calendar year 2022 to 3.6 percent from 4.4 percent.

World Bank cuts global economy growth forecast to 3.2% for 2022

• The World Bank has lowered the global growth forecast for 2022 to 3.2%. Earlier this was estimated at 4.1%.
• The downward revision is due to the impact of Russia’s invasion on Ukraine on the world economy.

Committee

Supreme Court reconstitutes expert committee for Delhi-Dehradun Corridor project

• The Supreme Court has reconstituted the expert committee to monitor the compensatory afforestation and other mitigation measures for the Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor Expressway project.
• The independent 12-member expert committee was formed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to be headed by Chief Secretary, Uttarakhand.
• The Director-General of Forests, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change will be the Chairperson of the reconstituted Committee.
• Chandra Prakash Goyal is currently appointed as the Director General of Forests and Special Secretary to Government of India, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
• Apart from the new Chairperson, the Supreme Court has also included Anil Prakash Joshi (founder of Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organisation) and Vijay Dhamsana (environmentalist) as additional members in the committee.

Defence News

Two-day National Level Pollution Response Exercise ‘NATPOLREX-VIII’ of Indian Coast Guard begins off Mormugao harbour in Goa

• The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) kicked-off 8th edition of two-day National Level Pollution Response Exercise, ‘NATPOLREX-VIII’, on April 19, 2022 off Mormugao harbour, Goa.
• The marine spill preparedness exercise was inaugurated by the Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar.
• The exercise is being attended by more than 85 participants from 50 agencies, including 29 observers from 22 friendly foreign countries & International Organisations and two Coast Guard ships from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
• The objective of NATPOLREX-VIII is to enhance the preparedness and response capability in combating marine spills.

IAF successfully test-fires BrahMos missile from Su30-MkI fighter jet on Eastern seaboard 

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully carried out live test-firing of a BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from a Sukhoi fighter jet, Su30 MkI, on the Eastern seaboard on April 19, 2022.
• The missile hit the target with accuracy and precision.

Books & Author

Rajesh Talwar pens book titled ‘The Boy Who Wrote a Constitution’ 

• Noted lawyer and writer Rajesh Talwar has come out with a new children’s book titled “The Boy Who Wrote a Constitution”.
• This book seeks to inform children about the life story of Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, the person who came to write the Constitution of India.

Days

UN Chinese Language Day 2022: 20 April

• The UN Chinese Language Day is observed on April 20 annually.
• The UN Department of Public Information established the day in 2010 to celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity as well as promote equal use of all six of its official working languages throughout the organization.
• April 20 has also been chosen to pay tribute to Cangjie, a mythical figure who is presumed to have invented Chinese characters about 5,000 years ago.