SBI launched two deposit schemes: ‘Har Ghar Lakhpati’ and ‘SBI Patrons,’ aimed at enhancing financial inclusion.

• ‘Har Ghar Lakhpati’ is a pre-calculated recurring deposit to help customers accumulate ₹1 lakh or multiples, available to minors.
• ‘SBI Patrons’ is a fixed deposit scheme for senior citizens aged 80 and above, offering enhanced interest rates.
• Both schemes cater to diverse customer needs, with ‘Har Ghar Lakhpati’ focusing on savings and ‘SBI Patrons’ rewarding long-term relationships with senior customers.

Prativa Satpathy, a renowned Odia poet, received the Gangadhar National Award for Poetry 2023 on January 5, 2025, during Sambalpur University’s 58th foundation day.

• The award, established in 1989 and named after poet Gangadhar Meher, includes a citation, shawl, and ₹1,00,000 cash prize.
• Previous recipients include Gulzar, Kedar Nath Singh, and Ayyapa Panikar.
• Prativa Satpathy is known for her work ‘Sesha Janha’ and has received the Sahitya Akademi Award.

The Government of India has established an 18-member committee, chaired by NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand, to revise the base year of the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) from 2011-12 to 2022-23.

• The update aims to reflect structural economic changes and improve inflation measurement at the producer level.
• The committee will revise the commodity basket, enhance the price collection system, and plan the transition from WPI to a Producer Price Index (PPI).
• WPI currently measures inflation for goods only, excluding services, which form over 50% of India’s GDP.
• The report is expected within 18 months and will guide the DPIIT’s Office of the Economic Adviser.

IIT Madras has partnered with the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on Project VISTAAR (Virtually Integrated System to Access Agricultural Resources)

• Project VISTAAR is a collaboration between IIT Madras and the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
• It is an AI-augmented “Network of Networks” enabling states to create their own Agri-Advisory networks.
• Integrates over 12,000 agri-focused start-ups to provide farmers access to innovative solutions.
• Connects decentralized databases for better decision-making and resource utilization.

Recently, a faunal survey was conducted in the Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary, focussed on birds, butterflies, odonates (dragonflies and damselflies),and other wildlife.

• Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Kollam district of Kerala, part of the Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve in the Western Ghats.
• Named after the endemic tree species Gluta travancorica (Chenkurunji).
• Major rivers include Shendurney, Kazhuthuruthy, and Kulathupuzha, forming the Kallada River.
• Fauna includes elephants, gaur, sambar deer, Malabar giant squirrel, Nilgiri langur, and lion-tailed macaque.
• Thenmala, India’s first planned eco-tourism destination, is located in the sanctuary.

Observed annually on January 8.

• It commemorates French physicist Léon Foucault’s 1851 experiment demonstrating Earth’s rotation on its axis.
• Foucault used a pendulum, later named the “Foucault Pendulum,” to visually prove this phenomenon.

The 2025 Bhunda Mahayagya was revived after a gap of 40 years, with the last event held in 1985. The revival took place in January 2025 after extensive preparations spanning three years.

• The event took place in Dalgaon village in the Rohru Subdivision of Shimla district, Himachal Pradesh.
• It is a ritual that has deep roots in the local heritage, with beliefs that it was initiated by Lord Parshuram and has been performed for centuries in the Nirmand, Rohru, and Rampur regions of the erstwhile Bushahr princely state.

Main Rituals:

• Sanghera:The event began with the Sanghera ritual, where deities from various valleys converged in Dalgaon, accompanied by traditional processions and dances.
• Shikha Poojan:On the second day, the Shikha Poojan involved the worship of all four corners of the temple roof dedicated to a local deity.

Bera: The main ritual, Bera, featured a 100-meter-long rope made from Munji grass. A chosen individual descended the rope on a wooden slide, covering the distance between two hills.

Prime Minister paid tribute to Rani Velu Nachiyar on her birth anniversary.

• Rani Velu Nachiyar (1730–1796) was a queen from Tamil Nadu, known as ‘Veeramangai’ (Brave Woman) for her resistance against British rule.
• Born in the Ramnad kingdom, she was the only child of Raja Chellamuthu Vijayaragunatha Sethupathy and Rani Sakandimuthal.
• She was the first queen to actively oppose British rule, collaborating with Hyder Ali and Gopala Nayakar in battle.
• She introduced the first human bomb and established the first army of trained women soldiers.

She was proficient in French, English, Urdu, and trained in martial arts, horse riding, and archery.

China is experiencing a significant increase in HMPV cases, particularly among children under 14 years old.

• Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV):A respiratory virus causing mild cold-like symptoms, including cough, fever, nasal congestion, and shortness of breath. Discovered in 2001, it belongs to the Pneumoviridae family, alongside respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).
• Transmission:Spreads through person-to-person contact and via surfaces.
• Treatment:Currently, there is no specific antiviral therapy or vaccine for HMPV.

Chhattisgarh has become the first Indian state to link forest ecosystem services with Green Gross Domestic Product (Green GDP).

• Forests cover 44% of the state’s land and contribute to climate mitigation and the rural economy.
• Green GDP accounts for economic losses due to resource depletion and ecosystem degradation.
• Formula: Green GDP = Net Domestic Product – (Depletion Costs + Degradation Costs).
• Introduced in the late 1980s to address environmental impacts on GDP.
• Initiatives supporting Green GDP: UN’s SEEA (1993) and World Bank’s WAVES project.
• Chhattisgarh values forest services like carbon sequestration, water conservation, and biodiversity.