Daily GK Updates - 25th April, 2020

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Union Cabinet approves Rs. 15,000 Crore for ‘India COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package’: The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has approved an investments of Rs. 15,000 crore for ‘India COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package’ to be utilized in mission mode.

The funds sanctioned will be utilized in 3 Phases. For immediate COVID-19 Emergency Response, an amount of Rs. 7,774 Crore has been provisioned. Rest of the amount will be used for medium-term support (1-4 years) to be provided under mission mode approach.

2. Government reconstitutes National Shipping Board; Head- Malini Shankar: Central Government has approved the reconstitution of the National Shipping Board. It will now be headed by Malini Shankar, former Director-General of Shipping. The National Shipping Board (NSB) is the highest advisory body on matters related to Indian shipping including the development there of and on such other matters arising out of the Merchant Shipping Act. It has a total of 16 members.

3. PM Modi Launches E-Gramswaraj Portal & Swamitva Scheme for faster development of Villages: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the e-Gram Swaraj portal and launched Swamitva Scheme on 24 April 2020, in an effort to increase the pace of development in India’s villages. PM inaugurated the two initiatives while interacting with the Sarpanchs from across the nation via video conference on the occasion of Panchayati Raj Day.

e-Gram Swaraj portal: It will enable complete digitisation of Gram Panchayats. It will be a single platform to keep the records of all the works taken up by the Gram Panchayats. All the details of the development works, the fund allocated for them, all this data will be available on the portal. Through this platform the villagers will be able to access all the data on their mobile phones which will enhance transparency

Swamitva Scheme: It will ensure the demarcation of inhabited land in rural areas. It will use drones in surveying and mapping of properties in villages. This will help in reducing disputes over property.

4. Uttar Pradesh Becomes first state to have in-house facility of virtual courts: Based on an Apex Court directive to develop video conferencing system for hearing cases while maintaining the social distance, Allahabad High Court has launched a new software, through which multiple court proceedings at High Court and district courts across the state can be conducted virtually within the court premises without the need of internet service. With this initiative, Uttar Pradesh has become the first state in the country to have software-based in-house facility of virtual courts. The software has been installed in Allahabad High Court and in all the district courts in the state. It will enable the judges to hear the case sitting in a separate room while the lawyers and the petitioners can put forward their submissions from another room on the court campus.

Note: Capital of Uttar Pradesh: Lucknow; Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh: Yogi Adityanath; Governor of Uttar Pradesh: Anandiben Patel.

5. Sanjay Kothari Sworn in as Central Vigilance Commissioner: Sanjay Kothari has been appointed as the new Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC), the anti-corruption watchdog of India, on 25 April 2020. Mr Kothari, a 1978 batch (retired) IAS officer of Haryana cadre, was the Secretary to the President of India, before being nominated to the new role. The post of the chief of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) was lying vacant since June 2019 after completion of K V Chowdary’s tenure. The CVC is a statutory body and derives its powers from Central Vigilance Commission Act, 2013. Vigilance Commissioner Sharad Kumar was holding the CVC interim charge till now. Ex-Broadcasting Secretary Bimal Julka was also appointed as the next Chief Information Commissioner (CIC).

Note: Central Vigilance Commission formed: February 1964; Central Vigilance Commission Headquarters: New Delhi.

6. MGR Medical University develops ‘vaccine candidate’: MGR Medical University, Tamil Nadu has developed a vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2 through ‘reverse vaccinology’. Previously, Reverse vaccinology has been used for developing vaccinations for meningococcal and staphylococcal infections. This compound which is a synthetic polypeptide prevents the virus from entering the human cell or reproduce within the cells. This is done by multiple genome sequences with the aid of computers without culturing microorganism.

7. IIT Delhi develops low cost Probe-free Covid 19 detection assay: IIT Delhi develops COVID 19 probe-free Real-time PCR Diagnostic Kit. This is the first probe-free assay for COVID-19 approved by the ICMR and it will be useful for specific and affordable high throughput testing. It can easily be scaled up as it does not require fluorescent probes. The kit will not only empower healthcare services but also support the government in the time of crisis.

8. e-POP Ceremony of 51st CRPF DAGOs held in New Delhi: The e-POP (Passing out Parade) Ceremony of 51st batch of the Directly Appointed Gazetted Officers (DAGOs) of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) was held in New Delhi. The event was conducted through video conferencing after completion of basic training of 42 trainee officers. Awards and trophies were also presented to the trainee officers on the occasion.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. The Global Report on Food Crises 2020 edition released: Global Report on Food Crises 2020 has been released by the Global Network Against Food Crises. The report reveals scope of food crises due to COVID-19. Report compares 50 countries showcasing the increase of Food Crisis arose from 112 to 123 million population. Around 183 million people in 47 countries were classified in Stressed conditions and are going into Crisis. Africa had the largest numbers of food-insecure people in need of assistance.

2. US FDA approves first at-home COVID-19 test kit: US Food and Drug Administration has approved the first at-home COVID-19 test kit, which is expected to bring coronavirus testing to every doorsteps. The test kit has a cost of around 119 dollars in the US. It has been developed by LabCorp. The sample will be collected from the patient’s nose using self-collection kit that contains nasal swabs and saline. Once patients’ self-swab, they can mail their sample, in an insulated package, to a LabCorp lab for testing.

3. NASA Develops high-pressure ventilator ‘VITAL’ to fight COVID-19: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has developed an easy-to-build high-pressure ventilator named VITAL, which has been specially designed for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. VITAL stands for Ventilator Intervention Technology Accessible Locally. VITAL will help to treat COVID-19 patients with milder symptoms, so that the limited number of traditional ventilators available in the country can be used for treatment of patients with more severe COVID-19 symptoms. However, unlike the current hospital ventilators that can last years and are designed to address a wider range of issues, VITAL will last for three or four months, with specific tailoring for COVID-19 patients.

Note: The administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA): Jim Bridenstine; Headquarters of NASA: Washington D.C., United States.

4. Facebook launches ‘Messenger Rooms’ for group video chat: Social Media giant, Facebook has launched “Messenger Rooms” service that will allow group video calls of up to 50 people. The step has been taken to target the Zoom app which was in controversy recently due to security in privacy issues in Zoom App. Zoom app is also a group video chat app.

5. World Malaria Day: 25 April: World Malaria Day (WMD) is commemorated every year on 25 April since 2008 to spread awareness among people globally to fight against malaria. The theme of the World Malaria Day 2020: “Zero malaria starts with me”. WHO has joined the RBM Partnership to End Malaria in promoting campaign in WMD 2020. In 2007, 60th session of the World Health Assembly of WHO declared Africa Malaria Day which was observed in 2001 as the World Malaria Day.

Note: Headquarters of WHO: Geneva, Switzerland; Director general of WHO: Tedros Adhanom.

WMD is one of eight official global public health campaigns currently marked by the World Health Organization (WHO), along with World Health Day, World Blood Donor Day, World Immunization Week, World Tuberculosis Day, World No Tobacco Day, World Hepatitis Day and World AIDS Day.

6. International Delegate’s Day: 25 April: The first edition of International Delegate’s Day was observed on 25 April 2020. The day was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on 2 April 2019, to raise awareness of role of the delegates and representatives of the member states of the UN. The day marks 75th anniversary of San Francisco Conference, a gathering which laid the foundation stone of the formation of the United Nations. After the devastation of second world war, delegates from several countries came together on April 25, 1945, with an aim to set up an organisation that will restore peace and impose rules on post-world order, resulting in creation of the United Nations.

Note: Secretary-General of the United Nations: Antonio Guterres.

OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

1. Remittances to India likely to decline by 23% in 2020 due to COVID-19: World Bank Report: According to a World Bank report on the impact of the COVID-19 on migration and remittances, the remittances to India are likely to drop by 23 percent in 2020 to USD 64 billion, due to the Corona virus pandemic, which has resulted in a global recession.. This is in contrast with the growth of 5.5 percent and receipts of USD 83 billion in 2019. Similarly, the global remittances are projected to decline sharply by about 20 percent this year, due to the economic crisis induced by the pandemic and shutdowns. Remittances to low and middle-income countries (LMICs) are projected to fall by 19.7 percent to $445 billion, from $554 billion in 2019.

2. Singapore’s Caladium increases its stake in Bandhan Bank to 4.49%: Caladium Investment PTE Ltd, an affiliate of GIC, Singapore, has increased its stake in Kolkata-based private sector lender Bandhan Bank by 1.1% to 4.49% as on March 31, 2020. Caladium Investments held 7.22 crore shares in Bandhan Bank at the end of the fourth quarter of FY20. It had a stake of 3.39 percent in the bank at the end of the third quarter as on December 31, 2019.

Note: Bandhan Bank Headquarters: Kolkata, West Bengal; Bandhan Bank MD & CEO: Chandra Shekhar Ghosh.

3. RBI permits banks to issue Electronic Cards for Overdraft Accounts: The Reserve Bank of India has allowed banks to issue electronic cards to natural persons having Overdraft Accounts. Such accounts must be of the nature of personal loan without any specific end-use restrictions. Earlier banks were allowed to issue debit cards to customers having Saving Bank/Current Accounts but not to cash credit/loan, account holders. Validity of such electronic card: The card shall be issued for a period not exceeding the validity of the facility and shall also be subject to the usual rights of the banks as lenders. It cannot be used for international transactions and only domestic transactions will be allowed.

4. Vodafone Idea partners with Paytm to launch ‘Recharge Saathi’ programme: Vodafone Idea and Paytm have launched ‘Recharge Saathi’ programme that will help individuals and small businesses to earn an additional income. The programme will enable any Paytm customers after registration to start selling Vodafone and Idea recharges on Paytm app. This will help him earn some amount as commission. Vodafone Idea will also give an assured cashback to merchant partners for multiple recharges. Individuals and small businesses would be able to earn up to ₹5,000 every month under the programme.

Note: MD & CEO of Paytm Payments Bank Ltd: Satish Kumar Gupta; Paytm founder: Vijay Shekhar Sharma; Paytm Headquarters: Noida, Uttar Pradesh; Paytm founded: 2010.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

1. Ujjivan Small Finance Bank ranked 5th in ‘Best Large Workplaces in Asia 2020’: Ujjivan Small Finance Bank has been ranked 5th in the ‘Best Large Workplaces in Asia 2020’ by the Great Place To Work Institute. There are 3 Indian organisations in the top 5. These are- Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited ranked 3rd and Music Broadcast Ltd. ranked 4th. Last year Ujjivan Small Finance Bank was ranked 16th in the Best Large Workplaces in Asia.

DEFENCE

1. CISF launches 'e-karyalay' app for movement of files: Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has launched an e-office application named 'e-karyalay' that will enable the movement of files and documents without physical touch for 1.62 lakh personnel to prevent coronavirus infection. This e-office app has been designed by the in-house technical team of the force which can mimics every function of traditional file movement. It embodies the digital signature features and will be hosted at CISF cloud with all security arrangements to safeguard the data.

Note: Director-General of CISF: Rajesh Ranjan; CISF established: 1969.

OBITUARIES

1. Former Australian all-rounder Graeme Watson passes away: Former Australia all-rounder Graeme Watson (75 years) passes away. He was a middle-order batsman and a medium-pace bowler who played five Tests from 1967 to 1972 and two ODIs in 1972. Watson slammed a half-century in the 1st innings of second Test of the series. In 1971-72 he moved to Western Australia and played a key role in their Sheffield-Shield triumphs in 1971-72, 1972-73 and 1974-75. He also played two ODIs and finished a 107-match first-class career in 1977.