National News

Mission Mausam

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Mission Mausam in New Delhi during the 150th Foundation Day of India Meteorological Department (IMD), to make the country weather-ready and climate-smart.

IMD

Haj Agreement 2025

• India signed the Haj Agreement 2025 with Saudi Arabia in Jeddah. The agreement secures a quota of 175,025 pilgrims from India for the upcoming Haj season.

Hajj

Cow Induction, Gift Milk and Market support

• President of India Droupadi Murmu virtually inaugurated Cow Induction, Giftmilk and Market support for Odisha State Cooperative Milk Producers' Federation (OMFED) initiatives of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) from Rashtrapati Bhavan.

NDDB

Economy

National Turmeric Board

• Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal virtually inaugurated the National Turmeric Board.

Toluene

• The Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, launched Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL)'s product, Toluene.

MRPL

Government Schemes

PMJAY

• Odisha signed MoU with National Health Authority for the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) and became the 34th state/UTs to implement the scheme.

AB PM-JAY

PMKSY-WDC 2.0

• The Rural Development Ministry has approved 56 new Watershed Development Projects at a cost of Rs 700 crores under the scheme of Watershed Development Component-Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana 2.0 (PMKSY-WDC 2.0) in the ten best-performing states.

Environment and Biodiversity

4th Biennial Update Report

• According to its 4th Biennial Update Report (BUR-4) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), India reported a 7.93% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2020 compared to 2019.

UNFCCC

Science and Tech

C-DOT signed MoU with IIT Mandi

• The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) has signed an agreement with the Indian Institute of Technology Mandi (IIT Mandi) in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology Jammu (IIT Jammu), for the development of "Wideband Spectrum-Sensor ASIC-Chip for Enhancing the Spectrum Utilization".

C-DoT

Defence

Nag Mk 2

• Field Evaluation Trials of indigenously-developed Nag Mk 2 were successfully conducted at Pokhran Field Range.

HimKavach

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed 'HimKavach', a modular clothing system for soldiers operating in extreme cold, ranging from 20°C to -60°C.

DRDO

INS Tushil

• INS Tushil arrived at Lagos, Nigeria, for an operational turnaround, as part of ongoing deployment to the Gulf of Guinea.

Indian Navy

Art and Culture

Makar Sankranti

• Makar Sankranti, Festival of harvest, celebrated on 14th January, in different parts of the country.

Names of Makar Sankranti in different parts of the country

Mahakumbh 2025

• The Mahanirvani Panchayati Akhara was the first Akhara to take the holy dip at the Triveni Sangam at the Mahakumbh in Prayagraj.
• Shri Panchayati Akhara Nirmal will be the last Akhara to take the Amrit Snan.

Mahakumbh Mela

Awards and Honours

Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award

• Aparna Sen was honoured with the 'Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award' at the annual award ceremony of West Bengal Film Journalists Association for her contributions to Indian cinema.

Major Appointments

Justice K Vinod Chandran

• Justice K Vinod Chandran, the Chief Justice of the Patna High Court, appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court.

Supreme Court

Person in News

Ilza Amado Vaz

• Prime Minister of Sao Tome and Principe Ilza Amado Vaz submitted her resignation to President Carlos Vila Nova.