National:
India’s biggest hockey stadium:
- Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on December 24, 2020 announced that India’s biggest hockey stadium with 20,000-capacity facility will come up at Rourkela.
India will be the host country for FIH men’s World Cup in 2023. The matches of FIH (International Federation of Hockey) men’s World Cup in 2023 will be played at this stadium.
6th Digital India Awards 2020:
- President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind virtually conferred the 6th Digital India Awards 2020 on 30th December 2020.
Award Winners List
SAHAYAK-NG Air Dropped Container:
- Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) along with Indian Navy conducted the successful maiden test trial of ‘SAHAYAK-NG’. This test was conducted off the coast of Goa on 30 December 2020 from an IL-38SD aircraft of the Indian Navy.
SAHAYAK-NG is India’s first indigenously designed and developed Air Dropped Container that can be landed from the sky to the surface. It reduces the requirement of ships to come close to the coast to collect spares and stores.
International:
GAVI Board Member:
- Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare have been nominated by the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) as a member on the GAVI Board. He will represent India from 1st January 2021 until 31st December 2023.
Dr Harsh Vardhan will represent the South East Area Regional Office (SEARO)/ Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO) constituency on the GAVI Board.
Presently Dr Ngozi Okonjo lweala is the Chairman of GAVI Alliance Board.
Book:
- On December 16, 2020, Henry Holt and Company announced that Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s Book “Persist” would be released in April 20. Her previous books include “A Fighting Chance” and “This Fight is Our Fight”.
Death:
- Eminent Tamil writer, Indian Anthropologist Tho Paramasivan died on 24 December 2020. He was 69. He often has known as Tho Pa. He authored more than 15 books such as Alagar Kovil, Uraikal, Paran, Manjal Magimai etc.
- Noted scholar and ex-MP Jamal Khwaja died on December 24, 2020. He was 92. He was one of the last surviving members of the 2nd Lok Sabha. He was elected from Aligarh LokSabha in 1957.