1. Aparna
Kumar becomes India’s first civil servant to scale Mount Vinson Massif.

1. Aparna
   Kumar, IPS officer from Uttar Pradesh Cadre, has become India’s first
   civil servant to scale Mount Vinson Massif, Antarctica’s highest peak.
2. Posted
   as DIG telecom in Lucknow, Aparna began the expedition on January 5 this
   year, accompanied by a 10-member team of mountaineers from across the
   globe.
3. She
   holds a record of having scaled five of the seven highest summits
   considered to be most challenging for mountaineers in the world.
4. On
   January 17, she marched through ice and snow in -35 degree temperatures
   and hoisted the Indian Tricolour on Mount Vinson Massif.

2.
SBI chief Arundhati Bhattacharya appointed as the chairperson of Board of
Governors at IIM Sambalpur.

1. State
   Bank of India chief Arundhati Bhattacharya was appointed as chairperson of
   the Board of Governors (BoG) of the Indian Institute of
   Management-Sambalpur, Odisha.
2. She
   will hold the office for five years. IIM-Sambalpur is among the six new
   IIMs that got budgetary allocation in 2014-15.
3. According
   to the Forbes Magazine’s rating in 2014, Bhattacharya was ranked the 36th most powerful woman in the world.

3.
Toyota Motor Corp declared the world’s top-selling automaker for the fourth
consecutive year.

1. Toyota
   Motor Corp has announced that it sold 10.151 million vehicles in 2015,
   thereby holding its status as the world’s top-selling automaker for the
   fourth consecutive year.
2. The
   company overtook its forecast for sales of 10.098 million vehicles.
   Toyota’s forecast sales for 2016 is 10.114 million vehicles.
3. Volkswagen
   AG sold 9.93 million vehicles, while General Motors sold 9.8 million
   vehicles. Volkswagen AG, which overtook Toyota in sales in the first half
   of 2015, suffered in the second half due to the emissions scandal.

4.
David Warner named winner of the Allan Border Medal and Test player of the year.

1. Australian
   vice-captain David Warner won the most-revered prize of cricket – the
   Allan Border Medal 2016 and the test player of the year award.
2. Warner
   topped the polls, tallying 240 votes ahead of Australian captain Steve
   Smith (219 votes) and fellow-player Mitchell Starc (183) respectively.
3. Glenn
   Maxwell was declared the one-day international player of the year. Ellyse
   Perry won her first Belinda Clark Award, which is the highest individual
   Australian women’s cricket honour ahead of Southern Stars captain Meg
   Lanning.
4. The
   Domestic Player of the Year was given to Adam Voges and Bradman Young
   Cricketer of the Year was bagged by Alex Ross.

5.
Rajasthan launches massive water conservation
campaign.

1. Rajasthan
   Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje launched the Mukhya Mantri Jal Swavalamban
   Abhiyan (MJSA) in 3,500 villages of the state.
2. The
   initiative requires a budget of Rs.3,600 crore for the first phase ending
   on June 30, 2016. However, the government is falling short of Rs.1,200
   crore.
3. CM
   Raje has decided to pledge her own salary for six months and cabinet
   ministers have committed three months’ salary. While the state’s MLAs have
   promised a month’s salary, bureaucrats and the police force have also come
   forth to contribute one day’s salary. Another 7.1 crore has been collected
   from local citizens/groups and business leaders.

6.
Justice Sanjay Mishra appointed as the Uttar Pradesh Lokayukta.

1. Supreme
   Court recalled the name of former Allahabad High Court judge, Justice
   Virendra Singh and named another (Retd.) Justice Sanjay Mishra as the
   Uttar Pradesh Lokayukta.
2. The
   decision was taken due to doubts as regards the suitability of Justice
   Singh as the Lokayukta.
3. In
   December 2015, the Supreme Court exercised its constitutional authority
   and appointed Justice Singh for the post and expressed dismay over state
   functionaries (Chief Minister of UP, Leader of Opposition and Chief
   Justice of Allahabad High Court) for not arriving at a consensus regarding
   the appointment.

7.
Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index names Denmark as
the least corrupt country.

1. As
   per the Transparency International’s recently released Corruption
   Perceptions Index, Denmark has retained the position of being perceived as
   the least corrupt country for the second consecutive time.
2. Denmark
   scored 91 points out of 100, while North Korea and Somalia maintained
   their highly-corrupt status with unchanged scores of 8.
3. The
   index is created based on expert opinions of public sector corruption,
   taking into consideration several factors like whether government leaders
   are held answerable or go unpunished for corruption, the perceived
   prevalence of bribery, and whether state institutions respond to citizens’
   needs.
4. Denmark
   is followed by Finland, Sweden, New Zealand, Netherlands, Norway,
   Switzerland, Singapore and Canada.
5. On
   the whole, two-third of the 168 countries considered scored below 50 and
   the global average was 43. However, 64 countries improved their score,
   while only 53 declined. The rest remained unchanged.

8.
National Girl Child Day observed on 24th January.

1. The
   National Girl Child Day is annually celebrated on January 24 in order to
   provide more opportunities to girls in India. This year, Prime Minister
   Narendra Modi called for creation of a “discrimination-free and
   opportunity-filled environment” for the girl child.
2. In
   his statement, PM Modi added, “Let’s further the spirit of ‘Beti Bachao,
   Beti Padhao’ (save girl child, educate girl child) and create a
   discrimination-free and opportunity-filled environment for the girl
   child.”

9.
The biggest oil refinery by state-run oil firms is set to be established in
Maharashtra.

1. Public
   sector oil firms Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL),
   Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) and Engineers India Ltd (EIL) declared
   their plan to invest Rs.1.5 lakh crore to set up India’s biggest refinery
   in Maharashtra.
2. India’s
   biggest public oil refiner IOC will build this 60 million-tonne-a-year oil
   refinery along with the other three firms.
3. Oil
   Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, “The refinery will produce petrol,
   diesel, LPG, ATF and feedstock for petrochemical plants in plastic,
   chemical and textile industries in Maharashtra.” This refinery will be
   bigger than Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar refinery in Gujarat, which is
   considered to be India’s biggest refinery with a capacity of 33 million
   tonnes.

10.
India signs an agreement with Russia for joint implementation of
competitive research projects in the areas of basic and exploratory science.

1. The
   Union Cabinet was apprised of an agreement signed between India and Russia
   for joint implementation of competitive research projects in the areas of
   basic and exploratory sciences.
2. The
   agreement was signed between Indian Department of Science and Technology
   (DST) and Russian Science Federation (RSF) in May 2015. It is valid for a
   period of six months and can be further extended through mutual agreement.
3. As
   per the agreement, Indians and Russians will be provided with competitive
   research grants for joint implementation of projects in the areas of
   mathematics, computer and system science, physics and space science,
   chemistry and material science, biology and life science, among others.

11.
Thailand becomes the world’s largest exporter of rice.

1. As
   per data recently released by the Thai Rice Exporters Association, India
   has overtaken Thailand as the world’s largest exporter of rice in 2015 by
   shipping 10.23 million tonnes of the grain.
2. Charoen
   Laothamatas, Chairman of the association informed that Thailand exported
   9.8 million tonnes of rice in 2015, down 10.8%. He attributed the fall to
   the international economy’s contraction, especially among countries with
   high demand for rice, stressing that plummeting oil prices also impacted
   the buying power of such countries.
3. Vietnam
   is the third-largest exporter of rice globally. China continues to be the
   largest importer of rice.

12.
Denmark passes law permitting state authorities to seize valuables from asylum
seekers in order to bear their expenses.

1. Denmark
   voted in favour of a law that gives government authorities the right to
   seize cash and valuables from asylum seekers in order to cover their
   expenses. The law was passed with a majority of 81 votes to 27, with one
   abstention.
2. It
   permits confiscation of valuables worth more than 10,000 Danish kroner
   (about $1,453). However, the Danish Ministry of Immigration, Integration
   and Housing has exempted items of “special sentimental value”
   such as “wedding rings, engagement rings, family portraits,
   decorations and medals.”
3. The
   enactment of the bill has attracted a lot of criticism from all corners.
   Amnesty International has said that it reflected a “dismal race to
   the bottom” by European countries in response to the ongoing migrant
   crisis.

13.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul retires from international cricket.

1. West
   Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul announced his retirement from
   international cricket. In a career spanning over 20 years, Chanderpaul
   captained the team during 14 tests and 16 ODIs.
2. He
   holds the record of scoring 11,867 runs that is the second-highest score,
   just behind Brian Lara’s 11,953. Moreover, he is the first Indo-Caribbean
   who played 100 Tests for the West Indies and is known for his unique style
   of batting, which is often labelled as crab-like.

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