1) World Meteorological Day 2022: “Early Warning and Early Action”
•World Meteorological Day is celebrated globally on March 23rd every year. The day is celebrated as the establishment of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), and it concentrates on the behaviour of Earth’s atmosphere. The day also helps people be aware of their role in protecting Earth’s atmosphere. World Meteorological Day is a significant day as it focuses on the global acknowledgement of different issues of planet earth. The day is conducted by raising awareness about multiple concerns of the Earth around the globe.
World Meteorological Day 2022: Theme
•World Meteorological Day is celebrated with a different motto every year. This year World Meteorological Day is celebrated keeping the theme of Early Warning and Early Action.
2) Shaheed Diwas or Martyrs’ Day Observed On 23rd March
•Every year, the Nation was observed on March 23rd as Martyrs Day (Shaheed Diwas or Sarvodaya Day). The day was observed to pay tribute to the death anniversary of the freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev Thapar, and Shivaram Rajguru, who laid their lives for the freedom of India. Also, 30 January is observed as Martyr’s Day or Shaheed Diwas in the memory of Mahatma Gandhi.
3) March 22 observed as Bihar Day
•Bihar Diwas 2022 marks the 110th anniversary of the state’s founding. The annual Bihar Diwas is no longer limited to festivities hosted by the state government; citizens from the state living throughout the country and overseas have begun to commemorate the occasion.
4) Nagaland became first paperless assembly by implementing e-Vidhan application
•Nagaland has created history by becoming the first State Assembly in the country to implement the National e-Vidhan Application (NeVA) programme to become completely paperless. The Nagaland Assembly Secretariat has attached a tablet or e-book on each table in the 60 members’ assembly amid the ongoing Budget session.
5) EX-DUSTLIK between Indian and Uzbekistan armies begins
•The 3rd edition of the joint training exercise named EX-DUSTLIK between the Indian army and Uzbekistan army begins at Yangiarik, Uzbekistan from 22 to 31 March 2022. The last edition of DUSTLIK was conducted in Ranikhet (Uttarakhand) in March 2021. The Indian contingent will be represented by the Grenadiers Regiment and will join the Uzbekistan Army contingent represented by troops of the North-Western Military District.
6) IQAir’s 2021 World Air Quality Report: Delhi world’s most polluted capital
•New Delhi has been ranked the world’s most polluted capital city for the second consecutive year as per IQAir’s 2021 World Air Quality Report. New Delhi is followed by Dhaka (Bangladesh), N’Djamena (Chad), Dushanbe (Tajikistan) and Muscat (Oman) as the top five most polluted capital cities respectively. Meanwhile, Bhiwadi was the most polluted city in India, followed by Ghaziabad, Delhi and Jaunpur.
7) 75 Women felicitated by NITI Aayog at 5th Women Transforming India Awards
•The Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) of the NITI Aayog organised the 5th edition of the Women Transforming India Awards (WTI). As part of the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, to celebrate 75 years of India’s independence, the WTI Awards have been conferred 75 women achievers for their contribution towards a ‘Sashakt Aur Samarth Bharat’.
8) Pushkar Singh Dhami takes oath as 11th CM of Uttarakhand
•Pushkar Singh Dhami has taken oath as 11th Chief Minister of Uttarakhand. He will take over the reins of the state for the second time in a row. Governor Lieutenant General Gurmit Singh administered him the oath of office and secrecy at the Parade Ground in Dehradun.
•The BJP contested the Assembly elections under Dhami’s leadership and secured a comfortable majority in the 70-member House, winning 47 seats. Dhami, who lost from the Khatima constituency in the Uttarakhand, led the party’s poll effort as Chief Minister during the assembly polls held last month.
9) Fitch Ratings reduce India’s FY23 growth forecast to 8.5%
•Fitch Ratings has slashed India’s GDP growth forecast for the fiscal FY 2022-2023 to 8.5 per cent in its Global economic Outlook-March 2022. Earlier this rate was estimated at 10.3%. The downwards projection is due to sharply higher energy prices because of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. The Rating agency Fitch has revised upwards the GDP growth forecast for the current fiscal FY 2021-2022, by 0.6 percentage points to 8.7 percent.
•With the Omicron wave subsiding quickly, containment measures have been scaled back, setting the stage for a pick-up in GDP growth momentum in the June quarter this year.
10) Kuwait becomes hottest place on earth, records 53.2 degree Celsius
•Kuwait reached a scorching temperature of 53.2 degrees Celsius (127.7 degrees Fahrenheit), making it among the hottest places on earth. It was so hot in Kuwait last summer that birds dropped dead from the sky. Sea horses boiled to death in the bay. Dead clams coated the rocks, their shells popped open like they’d been steamed.
•The country continues to burn oil for electricity and ranks among the top global carbon emitters per capita, according to the World Resources Institute. As asphalt melts on highways, Kuwaitis bundle up for bone-chilling air-conditioning in malls. Renewable energy accounts for less than 1 per cent of demand – far below Kuwait’s target of 15 per cent by 2030.
11) Knight Frank: India Placed 51st in Global House Price Index Q4 2021
•India has improved its rank by five spots to be placed at 51st position in the ‘Global House Price Index Q4 2021’ released by property consultant Knight Frank. India was placed at 56th position in Q4 of 2020. India witnessed a 2.1 per cent annual appreciation in housing price rates during the October-December quarter of 2021 against Q4 of 2020.
