1.Summits and Conferences
PM Modi address World Economic Forum’s Davos Dialogue
The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, addressed the Davos Dialogue of the World Economic Forum recently.
PM Modi delivered his speech on the 4th Industrial Revolution- using technology for the good of humanity in the virtual session attended by 400+ top industry leaders.
Davos Dialogue 2021 is the 51st annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.
Quick Fact: The theme of Davos Dialogue 2021 was “The Great Reset”.
2.India and the World
India- IEA sign MoU for Global Energy Security
India has signed a Framework for a strategic partnership agreement with the International Energy Agency (IEA) recently.
The MoU seeks to strengthen the cooperation in global energy security, stability, and sustainability.
IEA is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organization established in 1974 in the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis.
3.International Affairs
UK launches Global Platform to track new COVID-19 variants
The United Kingdom has launched a new Global Platform to track the new COVID-19 variants.
The platform launched as part of the UK’s presidency of the G7 will provide world-leading genomics expertise to identify new variants of the virus.
The platform is led by the Public Health England (PHE) & National Institute for Health Protection (NIHP).
Quick Fact: SARS-CoV-2 is the abbreviation for ‘Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoronaVirus 2’.
4.Science and Technology
IT Minister launches ‘Tejas’ virtual intelligence tool at NICSI event
IT and Communications Minister Ravi Shankar launched ‘Tejas’ and ‘Work from Anywhere’ portal on the 25th anniversary of the establishment of NICSI.
‘Tejas’ is a virtual intelligence tool that extracts critical information for policy decisions and improves efficiency in government services.
The ‘Work from Anywhere’ portal is a virtual environment that enables employees to access routine applications and communicate across VC ensuring safety during the pandemic.
Quick Fact: The full form of NICSI is ‘National Informatics Centre Services Inc’.
5.Defense
DRDO conducts successful test launch of Akash-NG Missile
DRDO has successfully conducted the maiden launch of Akash-NG (New Generation) Missile form Integrated Test Range off the coast of Odisha.
Akash-NG is a new generation Surface-to-Air Missile for the Indian Air Force (IAF) intending to intercept high maneuvering aerial threats.
The missile intercepted the target with textbook precision & met all the test objectives by performing high maneuvers during the trajectory.
6.Miscellaneous
TCS ranked third most valued IT services brand globally
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been ranked 3rd most-valued IT services brand globally according to a report released by ‘Brand Finance’.
Accenture Plc and International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) have been ranked as the 1st & 2nd most valued IT services brand globally.
TCS is rapidly closing the gap with IBM following a healthy 11% brand value increase to USD 15 billion.
Quick Fact: Rajesh Gopinath is the CEO of TCS.
7.Summits and Conferences
Harsh Vardhan addresses 4th edition of Future Investment Initiative Forum
The Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan addressed the 4th edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) Forum.
The forum was hosted by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF).
The main aim of the forum was to find solutions on how the government can expand access to healthcare, train healthcare workers & remove regulatory barriers.
8.Miscellaneous
Reliance Jio- Fifth Strongest Brand Globally
The Reliance Jio venture of Mukesh Ambani has become the 5th strongest brand globally, achieving this milestone in just four-odd years.
The ranking has been provided by the ‘Brand Finance Global 500 ranking 2021’ of the strongest brand.
‘WeChat’ has topped the annual report on the most valuable and strongest global brands.
Quick Fact: Reliance Jio was founded in 2016.
