China’s population started shrinking in 2022 for the first time in six decades, the latest milestone in a worsening demographic crisis for the world’s second-largest economy.

• The country had 1.41 billion people at the end of last year, 850,000 fewer than the end of 2021, according to data released by the National Statistics Bureau on Tuesday.
• That marks the first drop since 1961, the final year of the Great Famine under former leader Mao Zedong, and coincided with figures showing China’s economy expanded last year at the second-slowest pace since the 1970s.
• Some 9.56 million babies were born in 2022, down from 10.62 million a year earlier, the lowest level since at least 1950, despite efforts by the government to encourage families to have more children.

The 21st edition of the bilateral naval exercise between India and France, Exercise Varuna, has begun on the Western Seaboard on January 16th, 2023.

• The bilateral exercise, which was initiated in 1993, was named ‘Varuna’ in 2001 and has become a defining feature of the India-France strategic bilateral relationship.
• This edition of the exercise will see the participation of the Indian Navy’s indigenous guided missile stealth destroyer INS Chennai, guided missile frigate INS Teg, maritime patrol aircraft P-8I and Dornier, integral helicopters, and MiG29K fighter aircraft.
• The French Navy will be represented by the aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, frigates FS Forbin and Provence, support vessel FS Marne, and maritime patrol aircraft Atlantique.

State Bank of India (SBI) has inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Warehousing Development Regulatory Authority (WDRA) to help farmers in getting low interest rate loans.

• The MoU was signed with the intent of promoting awareness about the new loan product called 'Produce Marketing Loan' to exclusively fund against e-NWRs (electronic Negotiable Warehouse Receipt) with features such as nil processing fee, no additional collateral and attractive interest rates.
• Combined with the inherent security and negotiability of the e-NWR system, the 'Produce Marketing Loan' will go long way in improving rural liquidity and increasing farmers income.
• SBI is the country’s largest lender and it offers a wide range of services in the Personal Banking, Agriculture/ Rural, NRI services, SME and Corporate Banking etc.

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has released a disaster management plan (DMP) for the power sector, in order to evolve a proactive and integrated approach to strengthen disaster mitigation, preparedness, emergency response, and recovery efforts.

• The power sector is one of the most critical infrastructures of the country, and any disruption due to a disaster can create hardship for human beings as every aspect of human life is directly or indirectly associated with electricity.
• The DMP provides a framework and direction to the utilities in the power sector for all phases of the disaster management cycle.
• It is intended to guide all agencies within the sector with a general concept of potential emergencies and roles and assignments before, during, and following emergency situations.
• To estimate threats to power infrastructure, it is pertinent that fragility and vulnerability analysis is carried out for civil structures like buildings and foundations in transmission and distribution facilities.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently proposed a framework for the adoption of an expected loss-based approach for provisioning against loan loss by banks in India.

• Presently, banks in India are required to make loan loss provisions based on an ‘incurred loss’ approach, which used to be the standard globally till recently.
• To further enhance the resilience of the banking system, the RBI is proposing to amend the prudential regulations governing loan loss provisioning by banks to incorporate the more forward-looking expected credit loss approach as against the extant ‘incurred loss’ approach.

Mexico has recently imposed one of the world’s strictest anti-tobacco laws, setting in force a total ban on smoking in public places, including hotels, beaches, and parks.

• The new law, which is part of the country’s General Law for Tobacco Control reform, came into force on Sunday and will also see the total ban on the promotion, advertising, and sponsorship of tobacco products.
• The sale and use of e-cigarettes and vapes are also due to face new restrictions.
• The new blanket ban extends on an existing federal and state tobacco control law which came into place in 2008, banning smoking in indoor spaces such as bars, restaurants, and workplaces.

Sri Lanka and the United States are to conduct week-long joint military exercises in January 2023 to prepare for disaster relief and maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific, amid China’s increasing military manoeuvres in the strategic region.

• The exercise, named Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT)/Marine Exercise (MAREX) Sri Lanka 2023, will involve participants from the Sri Lanka Navy, Sri Lanka Air Force, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and Maldives National Defence Force.
• The 2023 edition of CARAT/MAREX Sri Lanka is the fifth such bilateral exercise between Sri Lanka and the United States designed to promote regional security cooperation and strengthen maritime partnerships.
• This year’s exercise includes participants from Japan and Maldives.

Abdul Rehman Makki is a Pakistan-based terrorist who was recently listed as a global terrorist by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) under its ISIL (Daesh) and Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee.

• He has been sanctioned based on his links to the 2000 Red Fort attack and the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. Makki is the brother-in-law of Lashkar leader and founder Hafiz Saeed, who was the mastermind of the 26/11 attacks.
• In 2022, India and the United States jointly proposed listing Makki under the United Nations Security Council’s Al-Qaeda and ISIL Sanctions Committee, however, China rejected the proposal by putting a “technical hold” on it.

The Indian cricket team achieved a historic victory over Sri Lanka in the third and final match of the series at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram.

• India defeated Sri Lanka by 317 runs, breaking New Zealand’s 15-year-old record for the largest victory margin in ODI cricket.
• The previous record was held by New Zealand, who achieved a win of 290 runs against Ireland in 2008.
• This victory not only secured a 3-0 series whitewash for India, but also solidified their position as a dominant force in the world of ODI cricket.

The Government e Marketplace (GeM) has launched a new initiative called “Womaniya on GeM” to empower women entrepreneurs and women self-help groups (WSHGs) to sell their products directly to various government ministries, departments, and institutions.

• The initiative aims to develop women entrepreneurship on the margins of society to achieve gender-inclusive economic growth.
• It will spur hyper-local economic opportunities for women entrepreneurs and address the goals and objectives of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5.
• The CEO of GeM, S Radha Chauhan, has released a video to highlight the essence and benefits of the Womaniya initiative. 

Retired director general of the Border Security Force (BSF), Shri Pankaj Kumar Singh, was recently appointed as the Deputy National Security Adviser in National Security Council Secretariat for a period of two years. Singh, a 1988-batch IPS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, has been appointed on a re-employment contract.

• In this article, we will take a look at the illustrious career of Pankaj Kumar Singh and his recent appointment as the Deputy National Security Adviser.
• Pankaj Kumar Singh, a 1988-batch IPS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, holds LLB and MPhil degrees, besides an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad.
• He is the son of retired IPS officer of the 1959-batch, Prakash Singh, who also headed the BSF from June, 1993 to January, 1994.

The Indo-Russian joint venture for the manufacturing of Kalashnikov AK-203 assault rifles is a testament to the strong partnership relations between the two countries.

• The move to manufacture these rifles in India through a joint venture not only lends greater firepower to the Indian armed forces but also serves as a significant step in strengthening military-technical cooperation between the two nations.
• The Kalashnikov AK-203 is now being produced in India through a joint venture between Russia’s Rosoboronexport and India’s government-owned Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) under the brand name “Kalashnikov India” in Korwa, Amethi, Uttar Pradesh.
• The facility has the capacity to produce 750,000 rifles per year.

The World Economic Forum, in partnership with over 45 organizations, has launched the Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA) initiative.

• The goal of GAEA is to fund and grow new and existing public, private, and philanthropic partnerships (PPPPs) to unlock the $3 trillion of financing needed each year to reach net zero, reverse nature loss, and restore biodiversity by 2050.
• Prominent philanthropic foundations — including the Bezos Earth Fund, IKEA Foundation, and The Rockefeller Foundation — joined corporations and public sector groups to launch a new multitrillion-dollar initiative to fight climate change at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week.

Laxman Rawat of PSPB emerged victorious in the ‘Baulkline’ NSCI All India Snooker Open, beating fellow PSPB challenger Aditya Mehta 9-6 in a best-of-17-frame final.

• This was a sweet victory for Rawat, who had finished as the runner-up in the previous edition of the tournament, losing to Sourav Kothari in the final.
• This win marked Rawat’s first major title after 2-3 years and he was understandably happy with his performance.
• The NSCI Snooker Open Crown is a snooker tournament organized by the National Sports Club of India (NSCI). 
• The tournament is open to players from all over India and features a best-of-17-frame final.