Daily GK Updates – 1st Nov, 2020

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. PM Modi inaugurates ‘Arogya Van’ in Gujarat’s Narmada district: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the ‘Arogya Van’ in the Narmada district of Gujarat, during his two-day visit to the state on 30 and 31 October 2020. PM also inaugurated Arogya Kutir, Ekta Mall, and Children Nutrition Park. During the two day visit, Modiji is scheduled to inaugurate about 17 different projects and lay the foundation stone for four projects at the Statue of Unity Complex near Kevadia.

Arogya Van: Arogya Van is set up on 17 acres of land in Kevadia for spreading awareness on Yoga, Ayurveda and Meditation. It features around 380 species of plants and trees with rich medicinal values. The ‘Aarogya Van’ comprises a lotus pond, alba garden, aroma garden, yoga and meditation garden, indoor plant section, digital information centre, souvenir shop and a cafeteria serving ayurveda foods, among other things.

Arogya Kutir: Arogya Kutir has a traditional treatment facility named Santhigiri wellness centre which will provide healthcare based on Ayurveda, Siddha, Yoga and Panchakarma.

Ekta Mall: The Mall displays a diverse range of handicrafts and traditional items from all over India symbolizing unity in diversity and is spread over 35000 sq ft.

Children Nutrition Park & Mirror Maze: Spread over an area of 35000 sq ft, it is the world’s first ever technology driven nutrition park for children. A Nutri Train runs across the park to various exciting theme based stations namely ‘Phalshaka Griham’, ‘Payonagari’, ‘Annapoorna’, ‘Poshan Puran’, and ‘Swastha Bharatam’. The park will raise nutritional awareness through various edutainment activities like Mirror Maze, 5D Virtual reality theatre and Augmented reality games.

 

2. NITI Aayog Releases ‘Electricity Access in India and Benchmarking Distribution Utilities’ report: The ‘Electricity Access in India and Benchmarking Distribution Utilities’ report was launched. The report has jointly been prepared by the NITI Aayog, Ministry of Power, Rockefeller Foundation and Smart Power India. It basically highlights the benefits of government-led schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana and Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana.

Objective of the report: Evaluate the status of electricity access in India across these states and distribution utilities along all dimensions that constitute meaningful access. Benchmark utilities’ capacity to provide electricity access and identify the drivers of sustainable access. Develop recommendations for enhancing sustainable electricity access.  Key findings of the report:

(1) Around 92% of customers said that the overall availability of electricity infrastructure was within 50 metres of their premises.

(2) Overall, 87% of the surveyed customers have access to grid-based electricity, while remaining 13% either use non-grid sources or don’t use any electricity at all.

(3) The hours of supply have improved significantly to nearly 17 hours per day.

(4) Nearly 85% of customers reported to have a metered electricity connection.

(4) Access to electricity is observed in 83% of household customers.

(5) A satisfaction index was created to assess the overall satisfaction level of customers with utility services. The study suggested that a total of 66% of those surveyed were satisfied, of which 74% of customers are in urban areas and 60% in rural areas.

Key recommendations provided in the report for improving the power distribution sector:

(1) Government needs to invest in electricity distribution infrastructure with focus on improving reliability and quality of supply.

(2) Revamping the new electricity connection process with focus on non-household customers.

(3) Transfer of subsidies or other benefits directly into a customer’s account;

(4) Enhanced technology-driven customer service;

(5) Ensuring 100% metering of customers;

 

3. Telangana CM Chandrasekhar Rao launches ‘Dharani’ Portal for land & property registrations: Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao launched the web portal ‘Dharani’ for land and property registrations. The Dharani is a one-stop portal for all land and property related transactions as well as documentation. The state government will now undertake all the property transactions, including registrations and mutations, through web portal. The portal will do away with any loopholes in the registration process as well as store all land and property-related information online. It will simplify the registration, succession and even partition of agriculture lands, to ensure that the entire process is completed within a few minutes and the e-pattadar passbook is provided to the land owners immediately.

 

4. Sarbananda Sonowal lays foundation stone for Assam Agar International Trade Centre: Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal laid the foundation stone of Assam Agar International Trade Centre, which is the first of its kind in the country at Dabidubi in Golaghat district. The state government decided to set up the trade centre to promote the business potential of the farmers as well as the entrepreneurs associated with agarwood plantation and trade in Assam. Reiterating the government’s commitment to double the farmer’s income  by 2022, Mr. Sonowal said establishment of Agar International Trade Centre is one of the initiatives, which the state government promised when it came to power in 2016.

 

5. Plastic Premier League tournament to be played in Indore: A unique Plastic Premier League (PPL) tournament is being played in Indore, Madhya Pradesh to free the city from single-use plastic. Indore is known for its innovative efforts regarding cleanliness. Indore has been awarded as the cleanest city in the country four times so far.

About the tournament: Four teams have been formed for the Plastic Premier League competition. The 19 zones of Indore Municipal Corporation are divided into these four teams. For the competition, the team captain Radio Jockey will encourage citizens to donate more and more plastic from their radio station. These teams have been provided by municipal workers and five vehicles to collect plastic. The team that collects the most single-use plastics in this 45-day competition will be awarded the PPL Trophy.

Note: Madhya Pradesh Capital: Bhopal; Madhya Pradesh Governor: Anandiben Patel(additional charge); Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister: Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. First-of-its-kind Flash Flood Warning System for South Asian Countries Launched: A first-of-its-kind system for South Asian countries that will provide alerts for flash floods 6-24 hours in advance was launched at the India Meteorological Department (IMD). India also shares cyclone warning alerts with neighbouring countries. The system will enable the member countries – India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan-issue impact-based forecasting of floods which are very sudden and of short duration at watershed and also city level. The system has been developed by the WMO Commission for Hydrology, jointly with the WMO Commission for Basic Systems and in collaboration with the US National Weather Service, the US Hydrologic Research Centre (HRC).

 

2. NASA’s SOFIA discovers water on Sunlit Surface of Moon: Two new studies published in Nature Astronomy suggest there could be much more water than previously thought, including ice stored in permanently shadowed “cold traps” at lunar polar regions. Using data from the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Airborne Telescope, researchers scanned the lunar surface at a more precise wavelength than had been used before — six microns instead of three. This allowed them to distinguish the spectral fingerprint of molecular water. Previous research has found indications of water by scanning the surface, but these were unable to distinguish between water (H2O) and hydroxyl, a molecule made up of one hydrogen atom and one oxygen atom. But a new study provides further chemical proof that the Moon holds molecular water, even in sunlit areas.

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

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. Honda achieves 800th FIM World Championship Grand Prix victory: Honda Moto3 rider Jaume Masia (Leopard Racing NSF250RW) claimed victory in the Moto3 class in round 12 of the 2020 FIM World Championship Grand Prix at MotorLand Aragon in Spain. Beginning with its first world grand prix race in 1961, in the 125cc class of the Spanish Grand Prix, Honda has now achieved 800 grand prix.

 

2. Tanmay Srivastava announces retirement: Mumbai Batsman Tanmay Srivastava, who was part of India’s Under-19 World Cup winning team in 2008, announced his retirement from all forms of cricket.  The 30-year-old left-hander, played 90 first-class matches and scored 4,918 runs, with 10 centuries and 27 fifties to his name. He represented Uttar Pradesh and later captained Uttarakhand in domestic cricket. In the IPL, he turned up for Kings XI Punjab and the now-defunct Kochi Tuskers.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. BharatPe launches digital gold on its platform: A leading merchant payment network, BharatPe has announced the launch of digital gold on its platform. The launch of this new category of fintech product is in line with the company’s commitment to offering the entire gamut of financial products to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

Through this latest offering: BharatPe’s merchants will be able to buy and sell 99.5 per cent pure 24-carat gold. Merchants can choose to buy in rupees or grams, any time of the day and from anywhere, by using the BharatPe app. To facilitate this, BharatPe has also partnered with Safegold, a digital platform that allows customers to buy, sell and receive vaulted gold. SafeGold has appointed IDBI Trusteeship Services to protect the interest of merchants with regard to their gold purchases.

Note: Chief Executive Officer of BharatPe: Ashneer Grover; BharatPe Founded: 2018.

 

2. CSB Bank partners with IIFL Finance for gold loan origination: Private-sector lender CSB Bank, formerly Catholic Syrian Bank, said that it has entered into a partnership with non-banking finance company, IIFL Finance (IIFL) for sourcing and managing retail gold loan assets. IIFL Finance, acting as business correspondent of CSB Bank, will source new business from markets where CSB Bank does not have adequate branch network. IIFL Finance, with its branch network, would help CSB Bank penetrate the lower strata of customers and rural areas, where the bank currently does not have adequate reach.

 

3. SVC Bank partners with NPCI to launch a digital rewards platform: SVC Bank (SVC Co-operative Bank Ltd.), one of the leading Co-operative Banks in the country, announced the launch of SVC Rewards Program. The Program is designed to make banking experience more rewarding for its customers in the form of Reward points earned upon use of SVC Bank Cards and digital solutions. To make the experience seamless, the Bank has tied up with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. Acko partners with Finserv MARKETS to offer car and bike insurance: General insurance provider Acko has partnered with Finserv MARKETS, a fintech aggregator to offer two and four-wheeler insurance policies. Customers can now buy Acko insurance for their car or bike on the Finserv MARKETS platform by providing basic details. Acko offers value added services like three-day assured claim servicing and one-year repair warranty – in select cities.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. Anzar Mustaeen Ali wins special prize in Global Art Competition: A six-year-old Bangladeshi boy, Anzar Mustaeen Ali won a special prize of USD 1000 for his artwork in the global art competition organised by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR). The ICCR had launched a global painting competition named ‘United Against CORONA- Express through Art’ which attracted 8000 artwork entries from around the world. After the first round of competition 210 artworks were shortlisted.

The final jury evaluated and decided the winners from each category such as Indian and Foreign, Professional/Amateur/Children in four different sections: Contemporary Art; Folk and Tribal Art; Cartoons and Illustrations; Digital and New Age Art.

Note: ICCR President: Vinay Sahasrabuddhe; ICCR Headquarters: New Delhi; ICCR Director General: Shri Dinesh. K. Patnaik

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Award-winning author and editor Daniel Menaker passes away: Daniel Menaker, an award-winning author of fiction and nonfiction and a longtime editor at The New Yorker and Random House who worked with Alice Munro, Salman Rushdie, Colum McCann and many others, passed away. Daniel Menaker was the author of several books, including the memoir My Mistake and the comic psychological novel The Treatment, adapted into a 2007 movie starring Chris Eigeman and Ian Holm. He was also known for the O Henry Award-winning title story of his collection The Old Left.