Important Weekly Current Affairs PDF Download (Dec 09th to 15th Dec 2021)

Dear Readers, Here we have given the list of Important Weekly Current Affairs of Dec 09th to Dec 15th 2021. Candidates those who are preparing for Upcoming SBI Clerk 2021 and other competitive exams can make use of it.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: IMPORTANT DAYS

• The International Anti-Corruption Day is observed globally on 9 December to raise awareness about corruption and the ways to combat this global ill & the theme of 2021 is ‘Your right, your role: Say no to corruption.”
• Human Rights Day is observed by the international community on December 10 every year & the 2021 theme is about ‘Equality’ that refers to Article 1 of the UDHR – “All human  beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
• UNICEF Day is observed on December 11 every year, to spread awareness on saving children’s lives, defending their rights and helping them fulfill their potential from childhood to adolescence & the 2021 Theme is to help children to recover from interruption and learning losses experienced  through the pandemic in the last two years.
• Universal Health Coverage Day is celebrated annually on December 12 and is promoted by the World Health Organization & the theme is is “Leave No One’s Health  Behind: Invest in health systems for all.” 
• National Energy Conservation Day is observed on December 14, every year & the day focuses on making people aware of global warming and climate change and promotes efforts towards saving energy resources.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

• The Lok Sabha has passed the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (Amendment) Bill, 2021
• Airports Authority of India (AAI) has taken up a development programme to spend around INR 25,000 crores in next five years for expansion and modification of existing terminals.
• To initiate infrastructure development to boost the economy after COVID-19 pandemic, Union Budget 2021-22 has provided a capital outlay of Rs. 5.54 lakh crore, an increase of 34.5%  over Budget Estimate of FY 2020-21.
• Union Minister of State for Finance Dr Bhagwat Kisanrao Karad informed Scheduled Commercial Banks recovered Rs 90 crore from financial frauds in last 5 years.
• Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 (SBM-U 2.0), under the aegis of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), has launched the Swachh Technology Challenge to Create an Innovations’ Ecosystem in Waste  Management
• The Chief Justice of India proposed creation of a National Judicial Infrastructure Authority of India (NJIAI).
• In an endeavour to improve the information flow and bridge the demand-supply gap in the skilled workforce market, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship  (MSDE) has launched ‘Aatamanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping (ASEEM)’ portal to help skilled people find sustainable livelihood opportunities.
• Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) scheme is benefitting the majority of farmers in overcoming the technological gaps in the industry. & The Scheme was approved on 29th March, 2005 with an aim at centralising the management of agricultural technology transfer by making organisational arrangements and deploying innovative technologies.
• The National Development Council (NDC) in its 53rd meeting held on 29th May, 2007 adopted a resolution to launch a ‘National Food Security Mission’ (NFSM), was launched in October 2007 & the mission comprising rice, wheat and pulses to increase the annual production of rice by 10 million tonnes, wheat by 8 million tonnes and pulses by 2 million tonnes by the end of the Eleventh Plan (2011-12).
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated three mega projects worth ₹9,600 crore in Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh.
• A Curtain Raiser Event for Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief exercise, PANEX-21, for the member nations of BIMSTEC countries, was held at Kothari Auditorium DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi on 07 Dec 2021. 
• The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has mandated contactless self-declaration at Air Suvidha Portal, to ensure the smooth passage of international travellers arriving in India.
• NITI Aayog Vice Chairperson Dr Rajiv Kumar, CEO Amitabh Kant, Special Secretary Dr K Rajeswara Rao, and Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) Director General Sunita Narain jointly released the report titled “Waste-wise Cities: Best practices in municipal solid waste management,” a comprehensive knowledge repository of how Indian cities are managing their solid waste.
• Parliament has passed the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2021 with the Rajya Sabha approving it. The Bill has already been passed by the Lok Sabha.
• The Lok Sabha has passed the High Court and Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Amendment Bill, 2021 by voice vote.
• The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) virtually launched “Certification Course on Home Energy Audit (HEA)”, during “National Energy Conservation Week: 8th–14th December 2021“, marked as Iconic Week under “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav”.
• The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, presented the President’s Standard to the 22nd Missile Vessel Squadron of the Indian Navy in Mumbai, Maharashtra (December 8, 2021).
• The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the funding and implementation of Ken-Betwa inter-linking of rivers project & The total cost of the project has been assessed at Rs.44,605 crore at 2020-21 price l
• The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the proposal of the Department of Rural Development for continuation of Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – Gramin (PMAY-G) beyond March 2021 wherein financial assistance is to be provided for the construction of the remaining 155.75 lakh houses, as on 31st March, 2021 under the scheme within total target of 2.95 crore houses.
• The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) along with the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (c-Ganga) are organizing the 6th edition of the India Water Impact Summit (IWIS) from 9th December to 14th December 2021.
• Towards the closure of the “Infinity Forum, 2021”, IFSCA launched the FinTech Hackathon “Sprint04: Market-Tech”.
• Power Ministry is celebrating Energy Conservation Week under Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav from 8th to 14th December with the theme of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav: Energy Efficient India” and ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav: Cleaner Planet’.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh and inaugurate the Saryu Nahar National Project.
• Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U) was launched on 2nd October 2014 with the objective of making all Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in the country Open Defecation Free  (ODF), scientific management of all Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) generated therein and  change in behaviour & the Processing of MSW has increased from 18 per  cent in 2014 to 70 per cent in 2021.
• Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman has participated virtually from New Delhi in the G20 International Seminar hosted in Bali by the G20  Presidency of Indonesia & theme for the year, “Recover Together, Recover Stronger”
• In order to give further impetus to the digital onboarding and training of beneficiaries, Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and Ministry of Electronics & Information  Technology (MeitY) jointly launched ‘Main Bhi Digital 3.0’, to complement the efforts of  LIs in adoption of digital transactions by the PM SVANidhi beneficiaries.
• The Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Rameswar in the Lok Sabha has informed that the Government has set a target to raise the share of natural gas in  energy mix to 15% in 2030 from about 6.7% now.
• The Education Ministry has launched a mobile app called Bhasha Sangam in order to help people acquire basic conversation ability in languages other than one’s mother tongue  to at least 75 lakh people.
• The 7th International Science Festival of India will kickstart in Panjim, Goa & the festival will be inaugurated by the union minister for Science and Technology Dr. Jitendra Singh. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Union Minister Shripad Naik
• Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal launched the ‘Meghalayan Age’ store in New Delhi.
• In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the NITI Aayog will be establishing 1000 Atal Tinkering Laboratories (ATLs) of which 187 will be established by the end of this  financial year.
• In order to develop and promote sports in the region and also to encourage and promote the highly talented youths of the area to rise not only in the national but also in the international  level as well, North Eastern Council, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region  (MDoNER) have sanctioned a project for construction of Outdoor Stadium at Chayangtajo  in East Kameng District, Arunachal Pradesh.
• On December 9, 2021, India’s Permanent Ambassador to the UN, T S Tirumurti announced The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has granted Observer Status to the International Solar 
• Rajya Sabha is taking up the Delhi Special Police Establishment (Amendment) Bill, 2021.
• Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has chaired India Global Forum Healthcare Roundtable in  
• Ministry of Tourism organises webinar on ‘Jyotirlingam Temples of Maharashtra’’:
• Haiderpur Wetland of Western Uttar Pradesh has been recognised under the 1971 Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, bringing the total number of such designated areas in the country to 47.
• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi addressed a function on “Depositors First: Guaranteed Time bound Deposit Insurance Payment up to Rs. 5 Lakh” in New Delhi.
• As a part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, a week-long event, “Celebrating Innovation Ecosystem”, to be hosted by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), is proposed to be  held in January 2022.
• The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has initiated a National Helpline Against Atrocities (NHAA) & the Helpline is available round the clock on toll-free number “14566” across the country in Hindi,  English and regional language of the State/UTs.
• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham in Varanasi.
• The major focus of Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) 2.0 [SBM (U) 2.0] and AMRUT 2.0 launched on 1st October, 2021 is to make the city’s garbage free and water secure during the mission period of five years (2021-2026).
• Vice President Venkaiah Naidu will inaugurate an exhibition on Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat in Hyderabad city. 
• North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (NEDFi) has launched the Atma Nirbhar Hastshilpkar scheme which will provide financial assistance to the grass root Artisans of the region.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the function on Depositors First-Guaranteed Time bound Deposit Insurance Payment up to 5 Lakh rupees in Vigyan Bhawan.
• Ministry of Defence (MoD) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indian Institute of Teacher Education (IITE) Gandhinagar to facilitate training to teachers of Sainik Schools & the MoU is for the period of five years commencing with effect from January 2022 under which  800 plus teachers of all Sainik Schools will be trained through courses named ‘Gurudiksha’ &  ‘Pratibaddhta’.
• Doordarshan will be hosting the international finals of Robocon 2022 in August 2022.
• Chairperson, Lokpal of India, Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose inaugurated’ a digital Platform for Management of Complaints called ‘LokpalOnline’ here that can be accessed by all citizens of  the country and complaints can be filed from anywhere, anytime at http://lokpalonline.gov.in
• NITI Aayog in partnership with Bharti Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Bharti Enterprises, launched Convoke 2021-22.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

• Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh has called for recommitting the two countries towards further strengthening the long-standing dynamic partnership between  Bangladesh and India.
• ∙ In Germany, Social Democratic Party of Germany leader Olaf Scholz will be nominated as the country’s next Chancellor by Parliament, bringing the curtain down on  Angela Merkel’s 16-year reign.
• India, Russia set target of trade worth 30 billion dollars, investment worth 50 billion dollars by 2025:
• Indian-origin physician Anil Menon has been selected by NASA along with nine others to be astronauts for future missions, the American space agency has announced.
• India and Japan to evolve to bigger missions between the two countries for addressing the demands of the entire planet and the region, at the India-Japan Science and Technology Seminar
• The 8th Foreign Office Consultations between India and Slovenia were held virtually, Secretary (West) in the External Affairs Ministry, Reenat Sandhu and State Secretary of Slovenian Foreign Affairs Ministry, Dr. Stanislav Rascan reviewed India – Slovenia bilateral relations.
• The Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal had, India and the UAE will wrap up the Comprehensive Economic  Partnership Agreement (CEPA) by next month.
• Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog and the Royal Embassy of Denmark to India announced the second edition of water innovation challenges here to address the global water woes through  innovations as part of the Indo-Danish Bilateral Green Strategic partnership.
• A Steering Leadership meeting of Global Methane Initiative (GMI) has been held virtually in which the Additional Secretary,Ministry of Coal, V.K. Tiwari as the Vice Chairman of this global initiative  informed the participants about the work being carried out by India to mitigate the emission of

CURRENT AFFAIRS : STATE NEWS

• With a focus to expedite the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in Meghalaya, the Government of India released 169.60 Crore to the State.
• ∙ With a focus to expedite the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in Punjab, the Government of India released 402.24 Crore to the State. 
• The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has signed a $125 million loan to improve access to safe and affordable drinking water supply and citywide inclusive sanitation services in Dehradun and Nainital cities in the state of Uttarakhand.
• The Government of India and Asian Development Bank (ADB) has signed a $150 million loan to provide access to inclusive, resilient, and sustainable housing for the urban poor in the state of Tamil Nadu.
• Central Grant of Rs. 2,345 Crore Released To Rajasthan Under Jal Jeevan Mission
• For the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in the State of Manipur, the Government of India released Rs. 120 Crore of Central grant to the State.
• Union Minister for Ports Shipping and Waterways Shri Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the River Cruise Services at the Marmugao Port in Goa.
• With a focus to expedite the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in Jammu & Kashmir, the Government of India released Rs 604 Crore to the Union Territory.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BANKING & ECONOMY 

• Private sector lender Yes Bank has partnered National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to launch credit cards on the RuPay platform.
• ICICI Bank has partnered with Flipkart to offer an instant and digital overdraft (OD) facility of up to ₹25 lakh to individual sellers and businesses registered on the e-commerce platform.
• Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB), a regional rural bank headquartered in Dharwad, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Liberty General Insurance for selling general insurance products through 629 branches of KVGB.
• The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), that Hindustan Unilever Chairman & Managing Director, Sanjiv Mehta, will be appointed as the President & he will be succeeding media industry veteran Uday Shankar, who is the current President.
• State Bank of India (SBI) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kendriya Sainik Board to support and educate the children of war veterans, ex-servicemen, and war widows.
• The Reserve Bank of India has maintained status quo in key policy rates as the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously to keep the policy repo rate at four percent to keep the stance accommodative, Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) rate and bank rate will remain unchanged at 4.25 percent & the Reverse repo rate will also remain unchanged at 3.35 percent.
• Fitch Ratings has announced a cut to India’s economic growth forecast by 30 basis points (100 basis points mean 1 percentage point) to 8.4 per cent. 
• Federal Bank has partnered with Star Health and Allied Insurance Co Ltd as a corporate agent to provide health insurance products to the lender’s 9 million customers spread  over 1,291 banking outlets across the country.
• Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has received approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to increase its stake in IndusInd Bank to up to 9.99 per cent of the total issued and paid-up capital of the private sector lender.
• Karnataka Bank has been conferred with two DigiDhan awards instituted by the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
• According to the Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 companies list, Reliance Industries  is the country’s most valuable company With a value of ₹7-lakh crore, followed by Tata Consultancy Services with ₹13.1-lakh crore and HDFC Bank with ₹9.1- lakh crore
• Bank of Baroda (BoB) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Centrum Housing Finance (CHFL) for sourcing and financing housing loan borrowers under co lending model.
• Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL), an associate entity of Paytm, has received Scheduled Bank status from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and has been included in the  Second Schedule to the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
• The Life Insurance Corporation of India has launched a new non-linked, non-participating, individual savings life insurance plan, Called Dhan Rekha, it offers special premium rates for female
• India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) and NPCI Bharat BillPay have partnered to facilitate cash-based assisted bill payments at the doorstep of customers.
• India’s fintech industry has raised a cumulative funding of $27.6 billion and is expected to be valued at over $150 billion by 2025, Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSSINESS NEWS 

• Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel, India’s pharmaceutical exports to Pakistan have increased from 32 million US dollars in 2016-17 to 152.32 million dollars in 2020- 21.
• Secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management Tuhin Kanta Pandey, the government has received about 19 crore rupees from Cotton Corporation of India Ltd and 59  crore rupees from KIOCL as dividend tranches.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS 

• Ajith Kumar K has taken over as the head of BPCL Kochi Refinery.
• Sunil Arora, former Chief Election Commissioner of India has been invited to join the Board of Advisers for International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA).
• US Polo Association, which is retailed in India by Arvind Fashions, has signed up Arjun Rampal as the India brand ambassador. 
• Former Tata group executive Nilendu Chakraborty has been appointed as an independent director of Brightcom Group.
• On December 10, 2021, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appointed Catherine Russell of the United States to become the next Executive Director of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) & She will succeed Henrietta Fore, who resigned in July.
• Radha Unni, former Chief General Manager, State Bank of India, Kerala Circle, has been appointed as Independent Director of the Kerala based lender, South Indian Bank.
• US President Joe Biden has elevated Indian-American political advisor Gautam Raghavan as the head of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOUR 

• Renowned Konkani writer Damodar Mauzo has been conferred with 57th Gyanpeeth Award for the year 2022.
• Eminent Indian architect Balkrishna Doshi will be awarded the ‘Royal Gold Medal 2022’, one of the world’s highest honors for architecture & the award  was announced by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
• Professor Neena Gupta, a mathematician and faculty member of the t(ISI) was awarded the ‘2021 DST-ICTP-IMU Ramanujan Prize for Young Mathematicians from developing countries’ for her  outstanding work in affine algebraic geometry and commutative algebra.
• On Dec 12, 2021, the 21-year-old model Harnaaz Sandhu was crowned the Miss Universe 2021 at Universe Dome in Eilat, Israel.
• Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been named Time Magazine’s “person of the year 2021”.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOUS AND AGREEMENT

• Tata Power and Indian Institute of Technology Madras have entered into an agreement to collaborate in research and development, consultancy, policy advocacy, advisory, training,  and commercialization of technologies and solutions.
• British Airways signed a multi-year agreement with Phillips 66 Limited becoming the first airline to use sustainable aviation fuel produced on a commercial scale in the UK.
• Karnataka Bank Ltd has signed a memorandum of understanding with Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt Ltd (TKM) to introduce financing options for its customers to purchase Toyota 
• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Development Programme  (UNDP) India to strengthen the waste management sector in India under the overall ambit of  Swachh Bharat Mission- Urban 2.0.
• The Permanent Mission of India to the WTO in Geneva (PMI), the Centre for Trade and Investment Law, New Delhi (CTIL), Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, and the Centre for Trade and Economic Integration of The Graduate Institute, Geneva (CTEI) signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Geneva to begin collaboration towards research and capacity-building in the field of international trade law and policy. 
• Reliance BP Mobility Limited (RBML), operating under the brand name Jio-bp, has entered into an MoU with Mahindra Group for exploring the creation of EV products and services, alongside identifying synergies in low-carbon and conventional fuels.
• WhiteHat Jr has announced that it has collaborated with Microsoft India to provide students and teachers access to personalised and immersive learning experiences with Minecraft.
• Samunnati Foundation, the non-profit subsidiary of Samunnati Financial Intermediation and Services Pvt Ltd has partnered IIT Madras Incubation Cell (IITMIC) to encourage innovative  technologies in agriculture and allied areas, promote agritech startups and sustainable 
• Bharti Airtel (Airtel), has launched ‘Airtel India Startup Innovation Challenge’ in partnership with Invest India, inviting early-stage technology companies to demonstrate differentiated  solutions areas like 5G, Cloud computing and Internet of Things (IoT) and digital  entertainment.
• Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) has signed a power purchase agreement with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to supply 4,667 MW of green power.
• Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), a ‘Maharatna’ and a Fortune Global 500 Company has collaborated with Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) to scale-up Alkaline Electrolyser  technology for Green Hydrogen production.
• Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL) has announced the signing a
• long-term licensing agreement with Authentic Brands Group (ABG) to distribute and sell Reebok products through wholesale, e-commerce and Reebok  branded retail stores in India and other ASEAN countries.
• The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Tamil Nadu’s Health and Family Welfare Department have signed a Record of Discussions (RoD) for Prevention and Control of Non Communicable Diseases in Tamil Nadu project.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SUMMITS & CONFERENCES

• The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) alongwith the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (c-Ganga) are organizing the 6th edition of the India  Water Impact Summit (IWIS) from 9th December to 14th December 2021.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the closed-door session of the first Summit for
• On Dec 13, 2021, Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog and the Royal Embassy of Denmark to India announced the second edition of water innovation challenges to address the global water woes  through innovations as part of the Indo-Danish Bilateral Green Strategic partnership.
• To commemorate the birth anniversary of Varghese Kurien, The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, in partnership with Startup India, launched the second edition of ‘Animal  Husbandry Startup Grand Challenge’ at an event celebrating ‘National Milk Day’ in Anand, Gujarat.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS 

• Reliance Industries has signed a $736 million equivalent green loan agreement with five banks to fund its acquisition of Norwegian solar panel manufacturer REC Solar Holdings & ANZ, Credit Agricole, DBS Bank, HSBC and MUFG were the lenders on the borrowing

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DEFENCE NEWS

• The 11th edition of Exercise EKUVERIN between India and Maldives will be conducted at Kadhdhoo Island, Maldives.
• The Defence Research and Development Organisation’s (DRDO) successfully tested an extended  range Pinaka (Pinaka-ER) Multi Barrel Rocket Launcher System at Rajasthan’s Pokhran Range.
• On Dec 11, 2021, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Air Force (IAF) flight-tested the indigenously designed and developed Helicopter launched Stand-off Anti tank (SANT) Missile from Pokhran firing ranges of Rajasthan.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING & INDEX

• According to the report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), three Indian companies namely, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Indian Ordnance Factories, and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) are among the World’s top 100 firms in the Combined Arms Sales in 2020.
• According to a report by Lowy Institute Asia Power Index 2021, India has secured the fourth post as the most powerful country in Asia & United States of America placed on the top position with a score of 82.2 followed by china & japan.
• On Dec 07, 2021, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman was ranked 37th in the Forbes’ 100 most powerful women in the world.
• According to the 2021 Global Health Security (GHS) Index, The world’s overall performance on the GHS Index score slipped to 38.9 (out of 100) in 2021, from a score of 40.2 in the GHS Index, 2019 & the document was jointly released by non-profits Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and the Johns  Hopkins Center for Health Security.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

• Indian Navy, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd. (GRSE) a Defence PSU and a leading warship building company of India launched its first indigenously built Survey Vessel – ‘Sandhayak’ in the presence of Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt.
• On Dec 07, 2021, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully tested the vertical launch short range surface-to-air missile from integrated test range, Chandipur, off the Odisha coast.
• On Dec 08, 2021, India successfully test-fired the air version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the supersonic fighter aircraft Sukhoi 30 MK-I from the integrated test range of Chandipur, off the coast of Odisha.
• US space agency NASA launched its new X-ray Mission to unlock the secrets of extreme cosmic objects & The mission lifted off aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from historic Launch Complex 39A  (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United States.
• The South Korean Defense Ministry has unveiled a model for a hypersonic weapon prototype named Hycore.
• On Dec 13, 2021, The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully test fired Supersonic Missile Assisted Torpedo (SMART) off the coast of Balasore in Odisha.
• China has successfully launched a group of satellites Shijian-6 05 by a launch vehicle Long March 4B from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (Northwest China’s Gansu Province).

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BOOKS & AUTHORS

• The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, released the book, titled ‘Public Service Ethics’ written by Shri Prabhat Kumar, former Governor of Jharkhand and former Cabinet Secretary to the Government of India, & published by IC Centre for Governance at Upa-Rashtrapati Nivas.
• Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu launched Gautam Chintamani‘s book ‘The Midway Battle: Modi’s Roller-coaster Second Term’ at Upa-Rashtrapati Nivas in New Delhi.
• Mridula Ramesh Authored a new Book Titled Watershed: How We Destroyed India’s Water and How We Can Save It.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS NEWS

• Mercedes Driver Lewis Hamilton won the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Saudi Arabia.
• On Dec 05, 2021, Argentina defeated six-time winners Germany 4-2 in the FIH Men’s junior hockey world cup 2021 final at the Kalinga Stadium in Odisha & ∙ Argentina has become the only third team after Germany (six wins) and India (2001, 2016) to  win multiple Junior Hockey WC titles.
• World number seven Indian shuttler PV Sindhu settled for a silver medal after being defeated by South Korea’s an Se-young in the BWF World Tour Finals.
• The Indian men’s squash team won the silver medal at the 20th Asian Squash Championship in Malaysia. 
• The Russian Tennis Federation has won the Davis Cup after beating Croatia 2-0 in the final in Madrid after 15 years & It was Medvedev’s fifth consecutive straight-set victory at the 2021 Davis Cup.
• India beat New Zealand by 372 runs in the second test at Mumbai to win the two-match series 1-0.
• Sanket Mahadev Sargar won the gold medal in the Men’s 55kg snatch category at the ongoing Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships 2021 in Tashkent,Uzbekistan, Meanwhile, Jhilli Dalabehera bagged a silver medal in women’s 49kg category at the ongoing 2021 Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships.
• Indian para-athletes won 41 medals ( 12 gold, 15 silver, and 14 bronze medals ) at the Asian Youth Para Games held in Riffa city.
• On Dec 10, 2021, Reigning world chess champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway defended his title and won the FIDE World Championship in Dubai, UAE.
• Red Bull’s Max Verstappen defeated Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton to win his maiden F1 world championship title in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United  Arab Emirates.
• 23-year-old Chandeep Singh, an International Para Taekwondo Athlete bagged a silver medal in Men’s plus 80 kg event at 9th Para World Taekwondo Championships held at Istanbul, Turkey  from December 9 to 12 2021.
• Indian rower Arvind Singh won the gold medal beating his opponents with a time of 7:55.942 in the men’s lightweight single sculls at the Asian Rowing Championships 2021 in Thailand.

 CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARIES

• On Dec 05, 2021, India’s first woman psychiatrist and the longest-serving head of the Institute of Mental Health, Sarada Menon passed away at the age of 98.
• On Dec 07, 2021, Noted Educationist and Padma Shri awardee Nanda Kishore Prusty passed away at the age of 104.
• On Dec 08, 2021, the country’s most senior serving soldier, India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, passed away in the IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu.
• Former England cricketer Eileen Ash, the world’s oldest Test cricketer described as a ‘pioneer’ of the sport, Passed away at the age of 110.
• ∙On Dec 08, 2021, Serum Institute of India (SII) Executive Director Dr. Suresh Jadhav passed away at the age of 72.
• American gothic-fiction writer Anne Rice, best known for The Vampire Chronicles novel series, passed away at the age of 80.

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