Daily GK Updates - 15th August, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India celebrates 73rd Independence Day: India is celebrating its 73rd Independence Day on 15th August. India attained freedom from the British rule on August 15 in 1947. Since then, August 15 is celebrated as India’s Independence Day. Addressing the nation on the occasion of the 73rd Independence Day from the ramparts of the Red Fort in the national capital Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the government at the Centre has been tirelessly working towards fulfilling the hopes and aspirations of the people and decisions it has taken in the 10 weeks it has been in power are proof of it.

2. PM Modi Announce Government to invest Rs 100 lakh cr in infrastructure building: Addressing to the nation from the Red Fort on the occassion of Independence day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, the government has decided to invest 100 lakh crore rupees in infrastructure building. Because India can become a 5 trillion dollar economy in the next five years. Prime Minister called for improving exports to get more share in world economy. PM Modi said fundamentals of Indian economy are strong which will help the country to grow further.

3. MoHUA launched Swachh Survekshan 2020: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) launched the Swachh Survekshan 2020t. It is the fifth edition of the annual cleanliness survey conducted by the Ministry. The scheme was launched by Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, the Minister of Housing & Urban Affairs. Swachh Survekshan 2020: The project Swachh Survekshan 2020 focus on sustaining and monitoring the ground and service level performance on cleanliness. The redesigned Swachh Survekshan will ensure and focus on sustaining the changed behaviours on key areas. The Ministry also launched Swachh Survekshan 2020 Toolkit, SBM Water plus Protocol and Toolkit, Swachh Nagar Mobile App and AI enabled mSBM App.

Swachh Survekshan 2020 Toolkit contains contains the detailed survey methodology and component indicators with scores. It aims to help the cities to prepare themselves for the final survey which will be released on January 2020.

SBM Water plus Protocol and Toolkit aims to ensure that no untreated wastewater is released into the environment thereby enabling sustainability of the sanitation value chain.
Swachh Nagar Mobile App have features to track waste collection by ULBs through route and vehicle monitoring, notify citizens, online collection of user fee for waste collection and an effective grievance redressal mechanism.

AI enabled mSBM App is a mobile aplication developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC). It will help the beneficiary to get approval from the ULB nodal officer to verify and approve the application. It will reduce the processing time for applicants. 

4. State of Art Gallery at National Crafts Museum inaugurated: A Textiles Gallery at National Crafts Museum was inaugurated in New Delhi by the Union Minister of Textiles and Women and Child Development, Smriti Zubin Irani. The collection aims to help people explore, enjoy, and rediscover the world of Indian textiles through design and technology.
Collections in the gallery: The Gallery consists of more than 230 different types of textiles collections more than 30 traditions. Five zones were displayed in the gallery. Zones has been named as weaving, embroidery, dying (Ikatpatola), pattern (Bandhej, Kalamkari, and Leheria) and TanaBana based on the intricacies of the textiles. The gallery exhibits the fine Indian Craftsmanship to public. The rich collection displayed the importance of conserving India’s rich heritage of handlooms for the next generations. It will serve as a resource centre for the students of fashion technology, apparel sciences and textiles designing. 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. ADB invest to $23 Million to GR Infraprojects Limited to Expand Road Building Capacity in India: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has signed an agreement to invest $23 million in Non-Convertible Debentures being issued by GR Infraprojects Limited (GRIL) to help the company rapidly scale up its construction of roads and highways in India through the purchase of new building equipment. Supporting the growth of the transport sector is a key focus area of ADB’s private sector strategy in India.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. India won Physical Disability World Series 2019: India won the Physical Disability World Series 2019 in England after defeating the hosts in the final at the New Road Stadium in Worcester. India beat England by 36 runs. Ravindra Sante scored a quickfire half-century to star in India’s victory.  The six-nation tournament was organized by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. State Bank of India and BoB to link home loan product to RBIs repo rate: Bank of Baroda (BoB) planned to linked its home loan product to RBI’s (Reserve Bank of India) repo rate after State Bank of India (SBI). With this, home loans at BOB will be available at repo rate linked interest rate starting at 8.35%. This decision is following RBI reducing the key interest rate (repo) by 35 basis points to a nine-year low of 5.40%. Many other state-run banks, including Union Bank of India, Allahabad Bank, Bank of India and Syndicate Bank expressed their intention to launch loan products linked to an external benchmark.

2. Aditya Birla Health Insurance agreement with Axis Bank for bancassurance pact: Aditya Birla Health Insurance (ABHI), a stand-alone health insurer, has entered into a bancassurance partnership with Axis Bank, the country’s third largest private sector bank. Through this partnership, ABHI will offer health insurance solutions to the Axis bank’s customers across its 4,094 branches and digital channels.

Note: Axis Bank Headquarters: Mumbai

3. RBI launches regulatory sandbox for Fintech companies: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued the final framework for regulatory sandbox (RS) for the startups, banks and financial institutions. The Fintech companies can now set up their own RS for live testing of innovative products in areas like retail payments, digital KYC and wealth management. The framework aims to enable innovations in the financial technology space. It will also foster responsible innovation in financial services, promote efficiency and bring benefit to consumers.
It will encourage innovations that are intended for use in the Indian market in areas where there is absence of governing regulations.

Note: Regulatory Sandbox (RS): A regulatory sandbox refers to live testing of new products or services in a controlled/test regulatory environment. The regulators can permit certain regulatory relaxations for the limited purpose of the testing.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. Police Personnel were awarded the Union Home Minister Medal for Excellence: The Union Home Minister Medal for Excellence in Investigation for the year 2018 has been awarded to 101 Police personnel belonging to 25 States/UT/ Central Investigating Agencies. The aim of medal of Excellence in Investigation is to promote high professional standards of investigation of crime. The award also recognizes Excellence in Investigation by Investigating officers and well appreciable working too.

The Police personnel receiving the Awards about: 11 are from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra Police each, 8 are from Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh polic, 7 are from Tamil Nadu police, 9 are from CBI, Rest are from the other States/UT and Central Investigating Agencies. The awardees include twelve women police officers also.

2. Service and Gallantry Medals for 946 police personnel: A total of 946 police personnel have been awarded Service/Gallantry Medals on the occasion of the Independence Day, 2019. The awards were approved by the President of India. Among the awardees 72 are from CRPF, 61 are from J&K police, 23 are from Odisha, 9 are from Chhattisgarh and the remaining from the other States/UTs and CAPFs.

President Police Medals for Gallantry (PPMG) - 3 personnel; Police Medals for Gallantry (PMG) - 177 personnel; President's Police Medals for Distinguished Service - 89 personnel; Police Medal for Meritorious Service -677 personnel; 180 Gallantry awards:

DEFENCE

1. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 August announced the appointment of a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on impendence day announced the appointment of a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) who will be above the three Service Chiefs. This is one the country’s biggest higher level military reform to bring in jointness and tri-service integration. The CDS is meant to be a single-point military advisor to the government, and to coordinate long-term planning, procurements, training and logistics of the three services (Army, Navi and Air force). As future wars become short, swift and network-centric, coordination among the three services is crucial.

2. GRSE launches fifth FPV for Coast Guard: Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) launched a fifth Fast Patrol Vessel (FPV) for the Indian Coast Guard (ICG). The name of the coast guard is Kanaklata Barua. The coast is named after a freedom fighter from Assam. This is the last of the five FPVs built by GRSE. The entire design of the ship was developed in-house by GRSE as per the requirement of the ICG. The vessel is 50 metres long and 7.5 metres wide with a displacement of around 308 tonnes. It is equipped with three main engines, advanced communication and navigation systems. The main aim is to design for a maximum speed of 34 knots, with an endurance of more than 1500 nautical miles at cruising speed of 12-16 knots. The first ship of this class is ICGS Priyadarshini commissioned on March 27.

OBITUARIES

1. Veteran actor Vidya Sinha passes away: Veteran Bollywood actress Vidya Sinha, known for her role in Basu Chatterjee’s film “Rajnigandha” (1974), passed away after a brief lung-cum-heart ailment.