Daily GK Updates - 3rd Oct, 2020

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Prime Minister Narendra Modi Inaugurates VAIBHAV 2020 Summit: On 2nd October 2020, the Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the Vaishvik Bhartiya Vaigyanik (VAIBHAV) Summit, a global virtual summit of overseas and resident Indian Researchers and Academicians. The summit will conclude on the occasion of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel Jayanti on 31st October 2020. The VAIBHAV Summit 2020 has been organised to celebrate Science and Innovation from India and the World. More than 3000 overseas Indian origin academicians and scientists from 55 countries and about 10,000 from India are taking part in the month-long Summit. It is being organized by 200 Indian academic institutes and S&T departments, led by Principal Scientific Advisor, Government of India. The aim of the summit is to bring out a comprehensive roadmap leveraging the expertise and knowledge of global Indian researchers for addressing emerging challenges for universal development.

 

2. Shri Arjun Munda launches Tribal Entrepreneurship Development Programme: Union Minister of Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda has launched the Tribal Entrepreneurship Development Programme. The three-year initiative has been jointly launched by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), an apex industry body. The initiative will develop the potential of the tribal communities and building their capacities to enhance their contribution in socio-economic growth. To mark the ‘Launch of Tribal Entrepreneurship Development Programme’, ASSOCHAM also conducted a webinar titled, ‘Khadi: Symbol of independent Atmanirbhar Bharat’ to commemorate the birth of Mahatma Gandhi and to celebrate upliftment, inclusion and empowerment of our underprivileged, marginalized and impoverished communities.

 

3. NABARD launches special refinance facility for WASH programme: The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has announced a special refinance facility of Rs 800 crore for Fiscal Year 2021. With this, NABARD will support the Government of India’s Water, Sanitisation and Hygiene (WASH) programme. NABARD will provide concessional refinance to all eligible financial institutions including commercial banks, regional rural banks and cooperative banks with a repayment period of up to 36 months. The support will be channelised to fund WASH activities, a thrust area eligible for 95% refinance. The bank credit will also be extended to NBFCs-MFIs and other MFIs (Societies, Trusts).

Note: Chairman of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development: G R Chintala.

 

4. DRDO successfully test fires laser-guided anti-tank guided missile: The indigenously developed Laser Guided Anti Tank Guided Missile (ATGM) was successfully test fired by DRDO on 1st Oct 2020. It defeated a target located at longer range. The trial was the second such successful test firing of the missile, after a similar successful trial done on 22nd September 2020. The test was conducted from MBT Arjun at KK ranges (ACC&S) Ahmednagar in Maharashtra. This Laser guided ATGM has been developed by Armament R&D Establishment (ARDE), Pune in association with High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), Pune and Instruments Research & Development Establishment (IRDE), Dehradun. It has a tandem HEAT warhead to destroy Explosive Reactive Armour (ERA) protected armoured vehicles in ranges from 1.5 to 5 km. The missile is currently undergoing technical evaluation trials from 120 mm rifled gun of MBT Arjun.

 

5. West Bengal launches “Pathashree Abhijan” scheme for road repair: West Bengal government has launched the “Pathashree Abhijan” scheme. It is a road repair scheme, where more than 7,000 stretches of roads comprising 12,000 kilometers across the state will be repaired in a mission mode and in a time-bound manner. The government of West Bengal has collated a list of the roads that will be repaired under the new scheme as the people of the state reached out to the Chief Minister through the ‘Didi Ke Bolo’ initiative of the government.

Note: Chief Minister of West Bengal: Mamata Banerjee; Governor: Jagdeep Dhankhar.

 

6. Assam CM launches ‘Kritagyata’ for online pension submission and tracking: Chief Minister of Assam has launched a portal “Kritagyata”, an online pension submission and tracking system. It has been launched to lend convenience to the pensioners to dispose off their pension related claims. With the help of the portal, the retired government employees will submit the pension related papers online and will also get opportunity to check the status of his pension. The portal has been launched in line with the “Bhabhisya” portal of Government of India.

Note: Chief Minister of Assam: Sarbananda Sonowal; Governor: Prof. Jagdish Mukhi.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. India signs USD 90 million defence deal with US to buy spares for C-130J Super Hercules aircraft: India and the United States have entered into a defence deal worth $90-million, wherein US would provide equipment, spare parts and logistical support for India’s fleet of C-130J Super Hercules cargo aircraft. The deal will further strengthen India-US strategic relations and advance political stability, peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region. As per the deal, the US will repair the C-130J Super Hercules to India, as well as supply spare part and ground support. India has also ordered an AN/ALR-56M advanced radar warning system, 10 lightweight night vision binoculars, 10 night vision glasses, GPS and electronic warfare to the US.

 

2. US commits USD 1.9 mn to India to support informal sector workers amid COVID-19: The United States has announced a financial aid of USD 1.9 million for India to support vulnerable populations like informal sector workers whose livelihoods have been disrupted due to COVID-19. The fund will be extended by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), to support efforts to rebuild local economies and improve the livelihoods of Indians who have been hit hardest by this pandemic.

 

3. India to build 100-bedded hospital, 22,000-seater stadium in Maldives: India will build a 100-bedded cancer hospital and a 22,000-seater cricket stadium in Hulhumale, Maldives, under the USD 800 million Line of Credit (LoC) that was extended to the country last year. This project will build on the already close bilateral cooperation in the health sector and include a robust component of human resource development. Projects covered under the LoC include several infrastructure development projects.

 

4. Breast Cancer Awareness Month: The month of October is observed as breast cancer awareness month to increase awareness of the disease. There are about 1.38 million new cases and 458 000 deaths from breast cancer each year (IARC Globocan, 2008). Breast cancer is by far the most common cancer in women worldwide, both in the developed and developing countries. WHO promotes comprehensive breast cancer control programmes as part of national cancer control plans. The recommended early detection strategies for low- and middle-income countries are awareness of early signs and symptoms and screening by clinical breast examination in demonstration areas.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. CBDT Extends Deadline for filing ITR for assessment year 2019-20 to November 30: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has once again extended the last date for filing income tax returns (ITR) for assessment year 2019-20, (financial year 2018-19). The new deadline is 30 November 2020. Earlier the last date for filing the ITR of the year concerned was September 30. This is the fourth time that the deadline is being extended for AY 2019-20 due to the difficulties being faced by the Covid-19 pandemic. It was first revised till June 30, then July 31, then September 30 and now till November 30. It must also be noted that the deadline for filing ITR for assessment year 2020-21 (which is financial year 2019-20), is also November 30.

 

2. IDBI Bank becomes first bank to enable document embedding feature on Structured Financial Messaging System (SFMS): IDBI Bank has become the first bank in India to have implemented the new feature of document embedding facility with ‘Letter of Credit’ (LC) or ‘Bank Guarantee’ (BG) messages over the Structured Financial Messaging System (SFMS) platform of IFTAS which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India. The process would be conducted via a middleware application “i@Connect-SFMS (CSFMS) developed by IDBI Intech. This new feature of document embedding provides banks with the functionality of transmitting a PDF document of up to 1 MB along with the LC or BG messages

 

3. RBI Excludes 6 PSBs from Second Schedule of RBI Act: The RBI has excluded six public sector banks, including OBC and Allahabad Bank, from the Second Schedule of the RBI Act following their merger with other banks. The six banks are Syndicate Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), United Bank of India, Andhra Bank, Corporation Bank, and Allahabad Bank. These six banks merged with other public sector banks (PSBs) with effect from April 1.There were as many as 27 PSBs in 2017. The total number of PSBs in the country has now come down to 12.

 

4. SBI appoints Charanjit Attra as CFO: The State Bank of India (SBI) has appointed Charanjit Singh Attra as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) with effect from 01 October 2020. The post was lying vacant after the former Deputy MD & CFO Prashant Kumar, was appointed as the CEO of Yes Bank in March 2020. C Venkat Nageshwar was serving the post on interim capacity. Attra is a former Partner at global consulting firm EY India and had also served as the CFO at the ICICI Securities.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. Colombian journalist-turned-activist Jineth Bedoya Lima wins Golden Pen of Freedom award: Colombian journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima, who was abducted, tortured and sexually assaulted on her way to interview an infamous paramilitary warlord in Bogota in 2000 was awarded the Golden Pen of Freedom award by the World Association of News Publishers (Wan-Ifra). The award, made virtually due to current COVID-19 restrictions, recognises “Ms. Bedoya Lima’s dedication to the profession of journalism, her tireless work in promoting and protecting the rights of women, and her courage in confronting and overcoming her own personal tragedy with a level of dignity and determination that serves as inspiration to peers the world over.”

 

2. Founder of Sari Recycling Project Wins Goldman Sachs And Fortune Global Women Leaders Award: Rayana Edwards, the South African who started a project to empower women to recycle saris into internationally-acclaimed fashion garments, has been named as a joint winner of this year’s Goldman Sachs and Fortune Global Women Leaders award(USD 25,000). The other winner was Emma Dicks, founder of CodeSpace Academy, a coding school. The annual award is made possible through a partnership between the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women program and Fortune’s Most Powerful Women franchise, and is given each year to outstanding women from around the world who are working to empower others in their communities and countries.

 

DEFENCE

 

1. 2nd edition of India-Bangladesh Navy Bilateral Exercise “Bongosagar”: The second edition of Indian Navy (IN) – Bangladesh Navy (BN) Bilateral Exercise Bongosagar commences in Northern Bay of Bengal. Exercise Bongosagar, is aimed at developing inter-operability and joint operational skills through conduct of a wide spectrum of maritime exercises and operations. In the 2nd edition of Bilateral Exercise Bongosagar, ships from both navies will participate in surface warfare drills, seamanship evolutions and helicopter operations. This exercise will be followed by the 3rd edition of IN – BN Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) in Northern Bay of Bengal from 4 to 5 October 2020, wherein IN and BN units will undertake joint patrolling along the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL).

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Veteran Social activist Pushpa Bhave passes away: Veteran social activist Prof Pushpa Bhave, also known as the Iron Lady of Mumbai, has passed away following a prolonged illness. She was 81. Bhave has been associated with the Rashtra Seva Dal and democratic movements since her student days. She was also an academician and an intellectual, who fought for the rights of common citizens. She had taken part in the Samyukta Maharashtra movement and the Goa liberation movement.