National:
2nd National Youth Parliament Festival & 24th National Youth Festival:
- Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi addressed the valedictory function of the second National Youth Parliament Festival on 12 January 2021. It was launched on 23rd December 2020 through virtual mode.
The objective of the National Youth Parliament Festival (NYPF) is to hear the voice of youth between 18 and 25 years of age, who are allowed to vote and will join various careers in coming years, including public services.
National Youth Festival is celebrated every year from 12th to 16th January. The birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda on 12th January is observed as National Youth Day.
Due to COVID-19 24th National Youth Festival was held in virtual mode. ‘YUVAAH – Utsah Naye Bharat Ka’ was the theme of this year’s festival, which suggests, the youth bring alive the celebration of New India.
2nd Edition of Janaagraha City Governance Awards 2020:
- The 2nd edition of Janaagraha City Governance Awards 2020 was presented by Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri at a virtual event held on 12 January 2021.
Winners of Janaagraha City Governance Awards 2020:
Best State:
Winner: JAGA Mission, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Government of Odisha
Best Municipality:
Winner: PPP Based Integrated Solid Waste Management, Indore Municipal Corporation
Best Civic Agency:
Winner: Piped Water Supply Scheme for all Urban Households, Public Health Engineering Organisation, Odisha
Best State Election Commission:
Winner: E-Voting, Gujarat State Election Commission
Best State Finance Commission:
Winner: Kerala 4th State Finance Commission
1st Runner-Up – Bihar 5th State Finance Commission
Death:
- Former Tamil Nadu minister and senior AIADMK leader P V Damodaran died on 12 January 2021. He was 70 years old.
He represented Pongalur assembly constituency in the district. He was also the animal husbandry minister in the Jayalalithaa cabinet during 2001-06. - Indian mathematician & Astrophysicist Professor Shashikumar Madhusudan Chitre passed away on 11 January 2021. He was 84 years old.
He was conferred with Padma Bhushan in 2012, the third highest civilian award.
He performed extensive research on the Sun’s magnetic activity cycle, the solar dynamo theory, and the role of neutrinos in the solar atmosphere.