India's first tribal President

India created history when Droupadi Murmu became the country's first president from the tribal community. 64-year-old Murmu comes from the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha and belongs to the Santhal tribe, won with an overwhelming majority by bagging 64.03 per cent of the electoral college votes, defeating the Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha who secured 35.97 per cent votes. She was sworn-in oath as India's 15th President in July this year.

Murmu is a 64-year-old teacher turned politician who joined mainstream politics and served as a BJP state lawmaker in Odisha before becoming governor of the eastern state of Jharkhand.

Murmu, who is the second woman to hold the largely ceremonial role as head of the republic took over from Ram Nath Kovind.

 

India assumes year-long presidency of G20

On 1 December 2022, India began its year-long presidency of the Group of 20 (G20) taking over from Indonesia.

G20 was formed in 1999 amidst the financial crisis that swept through Southeast Asian economies at the time, as a forum for finance ministers and central bank governors. It now includes heads of state and governments. The group comprises 19 countries and the European Union, representing around 85% of the world's GDP.

The summit this year will be attended by around 30 heads of state and government, from G20 members and invited countries.

As president, India will have the opportunity to set the global economic governance agenda for the year, shape the international policy discourse and align its national priorities with its global aspirations.

The 18th G20 Heads of State and Government Summit will take place on 9th-10th September 2023 in New Delhi.

2022 State elections 

It was a busy election year in India with some of the major states going to polls  for State legislative assembly, local body elections. In February and March, five Indian states had more than 180 million voters in 690 Assembly constituencies voting amid a massive surge in Covid cases. In Goa, the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 20 seats in the 40-seat Assembly. The Congress won 11 seats with its alliance partner GFP one. In Uttarakhand, the ruling BJP secured retained power comfortably winning 47 seats.

Punjab saw a change when the Aam Admi Party scored a spectacular victory  winning 92 seats. AAP's Punjab Chief Bhagwant Mann was sworn in as the Chief Minister.

Manipur elections had BJP retaining power by becoming the second party after the Congress to get majority in the State’s 60-member Assembly. The party won 32 seats.

In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP registered an emphatic win as Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath become the first incumbent returning to power after serving a full term.

In November, Congress wrested power from the BJP in Himachal Pradesh by winning 40 out of the 68 assembly seats.

The year ended with another landslide victory for BJP when in December, it took 156 of 182 total seats in the Gujarat state assembly.

Rest in peace

India lost many of its icons this year. Celebrated playback singer Lata Mangeshkar died at the age of 92 while Kathak legend Pt Birju Maharaj passed away at 83. Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala was tragically shot dead in Punjab .

Some of the icons India lost were:

  • Lata Mangeshkar
  • Bappi Lahiri
  • Pandit Birju Maharaj
  • KK, or Krishnakumar Kunnath
  • Sidhu Moosewala
  • Pandit Shivkumar Sharma

Prince Charles becomes the new King of England at age 73

King Charles III, the 62nd British monarch to serve over the past 1,200 years, ascended to the throne on September 8, 2022.

Queen Elizabeth II was Britain’s longest-reigning monarch. Following her death on Thursday, Sep. 8 in Scotland, Prince Charles automatically succeeded her as king of the
United Kingdom.

As former colonies and current members of the Commonwealth of Nations observed national mourning in the wake of the queen's death, the impact of the death was felt throughout the world.

King Charles III's coronation will be on Saturday 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey in London.

Shinzo Abe assassinated

Shinzo Abe, the former prime minister of Japan was assassinated on 8 July 2022 while speaking at a political event. He was shot from behind at close range by a man with a homemade firearm. Abe was transported by a medical helicopter to Nara Medical University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Russia Invades Ukraine

On February 24, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The war has since killed thousands and displaced millions. The West reacted by imposing comprehensive financial and trade sanctions on Russia. The war has impacted the world economy and the trade system that was still recovering from the pandemic induced recession.

UK's PM Rishi Sunak

Rishi Sunak a practising Hindu was named UK's Prime Minister on Diwali. He is the first Indian-heritage Prime Minister of UK. He previously held two cabinet positions under Boris Johnson.Sunak was born in Southampton to parents of Indian descent who migrated to Britain from East Africa in the 1960s.

The pandemic carries on

Now, nearly three years into the crisis, Covid cases continue to be registered across various countries. As of 18 December 2022, the pandemic had caused more than 653 million cases and 6.66 million confirmed deaths, making it one of the deadliest in history.

Currently, as the year ends, China is witnessing another deadly wave of Covid cases  with global health experts worried that a nation of 1.4 billion people is inadequately vaccinated and may not have the healthcare tools to treat a wave of illness expected to kill more than one million people through 2023.