1) 22nd March celebrates globally as World Water Day
•World Water Day is celebrated globally on 22nd March every year. The day aims to highlight the importance of freshwater. It is used to advocate for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. This 2022, the focus is groundwater, an invisible resource with an impact visible everywhere. Relevant issues include water scarcity, water pollution, inadequate water supply, lack of sanitation, and the impacts of climate change that are looked upon on this day.
World Water Day theme 2022
•The World Water Day theme 2022 is “Groundwater, Making the Invisible Visible”. Groundwater is a crucial resource that provides almost half of all drinkable water across the world.
2) World Down Syndrome Day 2022: “Inclusion Means”
•World Down Syndrome Day (WDSD) is observed every year on 21 March. It is a global campaign that is observed annually to spread awareness about Down Syndrome. The Day is commemorated as a global initiative to increase awareness about hereditary disorders. An individual with Down Syndrome has an extra chromosome.
Theme
•The theme of World Down Syndrome Day this year is “Inclusion Means”. It calls for making efforts to include people with down syndrome in all matters of life and not discriminate against them.
3) World Poetry Day observed globally on 21st March
•On 21st March, World Poetry Day is celebrated every year to recognise the unique ability of poetry to capture the creative spirit of the human mind. World Poetry Day celebrates one of humanity’s most treasured forms of cultural and linguistic expression and identity.
•The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adopted this day during UNESCO’s 30th session in Paris in 1999 with the aim of supporting linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard. Some countries also celebrate World Poetry Day on October 15 to mark the birthday of Virgil, a Roman poet who is famous for his epic Aeneid.
4) Serdar Berdymukhamedov elected as President of Turkmenistan
•Serdar Berdimuhamedow has been sworn in as the President of Turkmenistan. Berdimuhamedow succeeds his father and former president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, who became president in 2006 and served till 2022. It must be noted that the presidential elections in Turkmenistan are held every seven years. Serdar Berdymukhamedov, secured 72.97 per cent of the votes election to lead the gas-rich country.
5) Indian Economist Jayati Ghosh named as member of UN’s Advisory Board
•United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres has announced the appointment of Indian development economist Jayati Ghosh as a member of the UN’s newly established Advisory Board on Effective Multilateralism. The 12-member high-level advisory board on effective multilateralism will be co-chaired by former Liberian president and Nobel laureate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and former Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven.
•The new advisory board will be asked to build on the ideas in Our Common Agenda including the centrality of women and girls, and the need to take into account the interests of young people and future generations to make concrete suggestions for more effective multilateral arrangements across a range of key global issues.
•Jayati Ghosh is a Professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She was previously a professor of economics and chairperson of the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University. She is also a member of the UN’s high-level Advisory Board on Economic and Social Affairs.
6) N Biren Singh takes oath as Chief Minister of Manipur for 2nd term
•Senior BJP leader N Biren Singh took the oath as Chief Minister of Manipur for a second consecutive five-year term on March 21, 2022. The ruling BJP party contested all 60 seats in the Manipur Assembly election in 2022 and won 32 seats. Nongthombam (N) Biren Singh started his career as a footballer, then turned to journalism, before joining politics.
•In the recently held Assembly polls, the BJP won an absolute majority by winning 32 seats in the 60-member House. Moreover, the Janata Dal (United), the NPF, the newly formed Kuki People’s Alliance (KPA) and two Independent MLAs have extended their unconditional support to the saffron party. The JD(U) won six seats, NPF won five and the KPA won two seats.
7) 9th India-Seychelles Joint Military Exercise ‘LAMITIYE-2022’ begins
•The 9th edition of the Joint Military Exercise ‘LAMITIYE-2022’ between the Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) was held from March 22 to 31, 2022 at Seychelles Defence Academy (SDA), Seychelles. The Indian Army contingent will be represented by the 2/3 GORKHA RIFLES group (PIRKANTHI Battalion).
8) Autobiography of former cricketer G.R. Viswanath titled “Wrist Assured: An Autobiography”
•Former Indian cricket captain Gundappa Ranganatha Vishwanath has penned his autobiography titled “Wrist Assured: An Autobiography”, co-authored by senior journalist R Kaushik. The book traces the cricketing journey of Gundappa Vishwanath who played Test Cricket for India between 1969 and 1986, making 91 appearances and scoring more than 6000 runs.
•Former Indian cricketers Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar released the book at the ceremony held on the first day of the 2nd day/night Test between India and Sri Lanka in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
9) West Bengal celebrated ‘Dol Utsav’ or ‘Dol Jatra’
•West Bengal celebrated the ‘Dol Utsav’ or ‘Dol Jatra’, the festival of colours, marking the onset of the spring season. The festival is dedicated to Lord Krishna and Radha and celebrated on full moon day. It also marks the last festival of the year as per the Bengali calendar. In the Eastern region of India, the festival of spring is celebrated as Dol Jatra, Dol Purnima, Dol Utsav, and Basanta Utsav. The majestic festival is celebrated by throwing ‘gulaal’ or ‘aabir’ on others and by singing and dancing in cultural programs.
10) Francis Kéré becomes first African to win Pritzker Prize 2022
•Architect, educator and social activist Francis kéré has been announced as the 2022 laureate of the Pritzker architecture prize 2022, the award often referred to as architecture’s highest honour. He was born in the small village of gando in Burkina Faso, kéré is the first black architect to win the coveted award.
•Established by the Hyatt Foundation in 1979, the Pritzker architecture prize is bestowed on architects whose built work demonstrates a combination of talent, vision, and commitment. in 2021, the award went to French architects Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal while in 2020 saw Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell of Grafton architects were honoured.
