APPOINTMENTS
❖Ketanji Brown Jackson - 1st Black woman on US Supreme Court
❖New director general of National Investigation Agency – Dinkar Gupta
(Replacing Y C Modi)
❖New Director General of Sashastra Seema Bal – S L Thaosen
❖India’s permanent representative to UN – Ruchira Kamboj (1st women
ambassador to Bhutan), Replacing T.S. Tirumurti
❖16th Attorney General of India - R. Venkataramani
❖Replacing K K Venugopal
❖Article deals with the post of AG – Article 76
❖ISRO’s current chairman – S. Somanath
❖Human space flight centre director – Uma Maheswaran Nair
❖Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Vice President – Urjit Patel
❖ first-ever woman Chairman and Managing Director of Oil and Natural Gas
Corporation Limited – Alka Mittal
❖First ever woman chairman of SEBI – Madhabi Puri Buch
❖Gita Gopinath - first woman on IMF's 'wall of former chief economists’
❖second Indian to get this honour after Raghuram Rajan
❖Kerala Folklore Academy Chairman: O S Unnikrishnan
❖Kerala Lalithakala Academy Chairman: Murali Cheeroth
❖Kerala state chalachithra academy vice-chairman : Premkumar
❖first woman director of the Kerala State Language Institute: P S Sreekala
❖Chairman of the Kerala State Cultural Welfare Fund Board – Madhupal
❖Malayalam Mission director – Murukan Kattakkada
❖വ്യോമവേനയുടെ പശ്ചിമ കമോൻഡ് വമധോ്ിയോയി
നിയമിതനോയ മലയോളി – Airmarshal Sreekumar Prabhakar
❖Committee setup by SC to probe into Adani-Hindenburg row – A M Sapre
Committee.
❖The same person also headed road safety committee set up by SC.
❖First chairperson of Reserve Bank Innovation Hub – Kris Gopalakrishnan
K SATCHIDANANDAN
• Renowned poet and literary critic , the president of Kerala Sahitya
Akademi.
• He will be replacing short story writer Vaishakan in the Akademi.
• He also worked as the secretary of Kendra Sahitya Akademi from
1996 to 2006.
Note: The eigth Mahakavi Kanhaiyalal Sethia Poetry Award will be given
to the pioneering modern Indian poet, critic and translator K
Satchidanandan.
OBITUARY
INNOCENT
• Innocent Vareeth Thekkethala
• Independent MP for the Chalakkudy constituency in the 16th Lok Sabha elections.
• He was also the President of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) for 18
years.
• His last film appearance was in the 2022 movie “Kaduva” with Prithviraj, and his final
movie, “Paachuvum Albhuthavilakkum,”.
• Innocent made his silver screen debut in 1972 with Nrithasala.
• Books: Njan Innocent, Cancer Wardile Chiri, Irinjalakudakku Chuttum (memoirs), Mazha
Kannadi (collection of short stories), Chirrikku Pinnil (autobiography) and Kalante Delhi
Yathra Anthikkad Vazhi
• Irinjalakudakku Chuttum won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Humour in 2020
KPAC LALITA
• The first woman head of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi.
• She made her debut in the Malayalam film industry with the 1969 release ‘Kootu
Kudumbam’, a film by KS Sethu Madhavan, wherein she played a character named
Saraswathi.
• KPAC Lalitha has bagged the National Film Award for the best-supporting actress
for the film ‘Amaram’ in the year 1990 and in the year 2000 for the film Shantham.
• The actress has also won the Kerala State Film Award for the second best actress
for the films ‘Neela Ponman’, ‘Aaravam’, ‘Amaram’, ‘Kadinjool Kalyanam’,
‘Godfather’ and ‘Sandesham’.
I M Vijayan acted in
• Original name: Maheshwari Amma. this movie
NEDUMUDI VENU
❖He made his film debut with G. Aravindan’s Thambu in 1978.
❖The first of his three National Awards came in 1990 for the supporting role as
Udaya Varma Thampuran in His Highness Abdullah.
❖He has also won five Kerala State Film Awards for Best Actor.
❖Original name: Kesavan Venugopal
SARAH THOMAS
❖Renowned short story writer and novelist
❖Debut novel – Jeevitham Enna Nathi
❖Other Works: Muripadukal, Asthamayam, Pavizhamuthu, Archana
❖She won the Kerala Sahitya Academy award for her novel Narmadipudava. Sarah
Thomas was particularly known for her portrayal of the life conditions of Tamil
Brahmins in her novel “Narmadipudava” and the lives of Dalits in “Daivamakkal”.
❖She also wrote about the lives of fishermen in “Valakkar” and Namboothiri
widows in the book “Unnimayayude Kadha”
➢Elaben Bhatt
✓renowned founder of the Self-Employed Women’s Association
(SEWA).
➢Dominique Lapierre
✓Major works – Freedom at Midnight, City of Joy, Five Past Midnight
➢Jamshed Irani – Steel Man of India About Bhopal Gas
Tragedy
➢Narayan - Kerala’s first tribal novelist and short story writer.
✓Debut Novel – Kocharethi – Protagonist Kunjipennu
✓From Malayaraya community
➢B K Syngal – Father of Indian Internet
➢Dr. V Krishnamurthy – Father of Indian PSUs
➢Late Guru Mani Damodara Chakyar is the proponent of which performing
art?
Ans: Koothu, Koodiyattam
➢ഒകവെോബറിൽ ട്പോഫ. എം.പി. ്ര്ഗീേിൻ് ടറ
സ്മരണക്കോയി വകോതമംഗലം മോർ അത്തവനഷ്യസ്
വകോവളജ് അവേോേിവയഷ്ൻ ഏർടെെുത്തിയ ്പഥമ
പുരസ്കോരം ലഭിച്ച മുൻ ്പധോനമ്രി ?
Dr . മൻവമോഹൻ േിംഗ്
SPORTS
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑The theme of Tokyo Olympics 2020 is “Moving Forward: United by Emotion”.
❑However, On 20th July, 2021, the Olympic motto was updated to “Faster, Higher,
Stronger – Together”.
❑The mascot of Tokyo Olympics 2020 is Miraitowa; created by Ryo Taniguchi.
❑India was 21st out of 205 contingents in the Parade of Nations, with the
boxer Mary Kom and men’s hockey captain Manpreet Singh as flag-bearers.
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Top performers:
USA > China > Japan
❑Olympics 2024 – Paris
❑Olympics 2028 – Los Angeles
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Indian Athlete Neeraj Chopra has created history by winning the Gold Medal in Javelin Throw, with a
record of 87.58m.
❑He is the first track and field athlete to win an Olympic gold medal in the men’s Javelin throw.
❑He dedicated the gold medal to Milkha Singh and P T Usha.
❑Athletics Federation of India has decided to name 7th August as the Javelin Throw day in honour of
Neeraj Chopra.
❑Neeraj Chopra has become the second individual Olympic Gold Medalist after Abhinav Bindra.
❑He also aced silver in 2022 World Atletics Championship.
❑In 2022, He was honoured with Padma Shri and Major Dhyan Chandra Khel Ratna Pursakar 2021.
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Indian Men’s Hockey team has created history after 41 years
by winning the Bronze in Tokyo Olympics by beating Germany.
❑Captain – Manpreet Singh
❑Coach – Graham Reid
❑Goal Keeper – P R Sreejesh
❑Top Scorer – Harmanpreet Singh (6 goals)
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Boxer Lovlina Borgohain has won Bronze Medal in Women’s
Welterweight Boxing
❑She became the third boxer to win a medal at the Olympics
after Vijender Singh and MC Mary Kom’s bronze at 2008 and
2012 Olympics respectively.
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Ravi Dahiya and Bajarang Punia got Silver Medal in Men’s 57 kg
Wrestling and Bronze Medal in Men’s Freestyle 65kg Wrestling
respectively.
❑Ravi Dahiya became the fifth wrestler from India to win an Olympics
in Wrestling and second after Sushil Kumar to win silver medal for the
country.
❑Bajrang Punia is the World Number 1 wrestler in the 65kg category.
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Ace badminton player PV Sindhu clinches the bronze medal for India after defeating China’s He
Bing Jiao.
❑She is the first and only Indian to become the badminton world champion.
❑The second individual athlete from India to win two consecutive medals at the Olympic Games
after Sushil Kumar.
❑She represented India at the 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio), where she became the first Indian
badminton player to reach the Olympic final.
❑PV Sindhu is also a recipient of Arjun Award, Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, the Padma Shri
and Padma Bhushan.
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Mirabai Chanu wins silver as India gets the first medal at Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
❑This is India’s first silver in weightlifting at the Olympics.
❑She was the only second Indian after Karnam Malleswari to win a gold medal at
the World Weightlifting Championship.
❑She is awarded with Padma Shri and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna in 2018.
TOKYO OLYMPICS 2020
❑Keralites in Olympics 2020
✓ P R Sreejesh - Hockey
✓ Sajan Prakash – Swimming - the first Indian swimmer to breach the Olympic Quota 'A' mark, participated in
opening ceremony parade.
✓ M Sreeshankar – Athletics (Long Jump)
✓ K T Irfan – Race walking
✓ Muhammad Anas Yahiya – Athletics (Relay)
✓ Alex Antony – Athletics (Mixed Relay)
✓ Amoj Jacob – Athletics (Relay)
Female Athlete-?
✓ Noah Nirmal Tom – Athletics (Quartet)
✓ M P Jabir – Athletics (Hurdles) – First Indian male athlete to qualify for the 400 m hurdles in Olympics
TOKYO PARALYMPICS 2020
❑India won 19 medals - five gold, eight silver, and six bronze.
❑India is placed at 24th position in the overall medal tally out of a total of 162 nations.
❑Javelin thrower Tek Chand was the flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Paralympics.
❑Shooter Avani Lekhara was India’s flag-bearer at the closing ceremony.
❑The Indian theme song of Paralympics 2020 “Kar de kamaal tu”. The composer and singer of the song
is Sanjeev Singh, a Divyang cricket player from Lucknow.
❑Badminton and Taekwondo were inducted for the first time in Tokyo Paralympics.
❑Top Scorers:
❑China > UK > USA
TOKYO PARALYMPICS 2020
❑Gold
✓Athletics: Sumit Antil (Men’s Javelin Throw)
✓Badminton: Pramod Bhagat (Men’s Singles)
✓Badminton: Krishna Nagar (Men’s Singles)
✓Shooting: Manish Narwal (Mixed 50m Pistol)
✓Shooting: Avani Lekhara (Women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing) – first Indian woman to
win a gold in Paralympics and first Indian woman to win two medals at paralympics
TOKYO PARALYMPICS 2020
❑Silver
✓ Athletics: Yogesh Kathuniya (Men’s Discus Throw)
✓ Athletics: Nishad Kumar (Men’s High Jump)
✓ Athletics: Mariyappan Thangavelu (Men’s High Jump)
✓ Athletics: Praveen Kumar (Men’s High Jump)
✓ Athletics: Devendra Jhajharia (Men’s Javelin Throw)
✓ Badminton: Suhas Yathiraj (Men’s Singles)
✓ Shooting: Singhraj Adhana (Mixed 50m Pistol)
✓ Table Tennis: Bhavina Patel (Women’s Singles)
TOKYO PARALYMPICS 2020
❑Bronze
✓ Archery: Harvinder Singh (Men’s Individual Recurve)
✓ Athletics: Sharad Kumar (Men’s High Jump)
✓ Athletics: Sundar Singh Gurjar (Men’s Javelin Throw)
✓ Badminton: Manoj Sarkar (Men’s Singles)
✓ Shooting: Singhraj Adhana (Men’s 10m Air Pistol)
✓ Shooting: Avani Lekhara (Women’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions)
Note: Siddharth Babu – Keralite participating in Para Shooting.
WINTER OLYMPICS 2022 - BEIJING
❑The Indian team at the game was represented by one male alpine skier, Arif Khan.
➢ He is the first Indian athlete to qualify for two different events of the Winter Olympics -
Slalom and Giant Slalom events
❑Norway has topped the medal table for the second successive Winter Olympics, Germany
second and China third.
❑The closing ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games was held on February 20,
2022, at National Stadium (known as the Bird’s Nest) in Beijing.
❑The Presidency of the Games was formally handed over to Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, in
Italy, to host the 2026 Winter Olympics.
