Daily GK Updates - 20th April, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Piyush Goyal launches the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme: Union Minister Piyush Goyal launched the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS). The Fund aims to provide financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market-entry, and commercialization. The government has approved Rs. 945 Crore corpus for the fund, which will be divided over the next 4 years beginning April 01, 2021, for providing seed funding to eligible startups through eligible incubators across India. The scheme is expected to support an estimated 3,600 startups through 300 incubators.

 

2. Punjab All Set to become ‘HarGhar Jal’ State by 2022: Punjab State reiterated the commitment of the State to achieve the ‘HarGhar Jal’ target by 2022 as planned. Punjab has 34.73 lakh rural household, out of which 25.88 lakh (74.5%) have tap water supply. In 2021-22, the State plans to provide 8.87 lakh tap connections, thereby providing tap connection to every rural household. So far, 4-districts, 29 blocks, 5,715 panchayats and 6,003 villages in Punjab have been declared ‘HarGhar Jal’, which means every rural household has access to water through the tap. To ensure transparency and accountability, Punjab has set up a well-equipped digital 24×7 call centre with Interactive Voice Responsive System. This analog grievance redressal system was upgraded in December 2020. Last year, the redressal rate was 97.76%. The pending complaints daily monitoring is done by sending reminders to the Executive Engineer via SMS, What’s App messages, e-mail and over the phone.

Note: Punjab CM: Captain Amarinder Singh; Punjab Governor: V.P.SinghBadnore.

 

3. ITBP Water Sports & Adventure Institute inaugurated in Tehri: Water Sports and Adventure Institute (WSAI) has been established by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at Tehri Dam in Uttarakhand. The institute was inaugurated on Friday by Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat and Sports Minister KirenRijiju. ITBP’s Mountaineering and Skiing Institute at Auli will independently run this institution, which will impart training in aero, water and land-related sports and adventure activities. Training in kayaking, rowing, canoeing, water skiing, para-gliding, para-sailing, scuba diving, paddle boating, speed boating, kite surfing, jet skiing, etc, will also be provided at this institute. Apart from this, water rescue and life-saving courses will be conducted here. It has been targeted to train at least 200 youth in water sports at this institution every year.

Note: ITBP Founded: 24 October 1962; ITBP Headquarters: New Delhi, India; ITBP DG: S SDeswal.

 

4. Priyanka Mohite becomes first Indian woman to scale Mt Annapurna: Priyanka Mohite from Satara in western Maharashtra has scaled Mt Annapurna, the 10th highest mountain peak in the world, becoming the first Indian woman climber to achieve the feat. Mount Annapurna is a massif in the Himalayas located in Nepal that includes one peak over 8,000 metres and is considered to be one of the toughest mountains to climb.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. New Zealand Makes World’s 1st Climate Change Law For Financial Firms: New Zealand is about to become the world’s first country to bring a law into force that demands environmental accountability from financial firms by asking them to report on how their businesses affect climate change. The aim is to bring the financial sector on board with the efforts being made towards achieving the country’s target of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. The New Zealand government first revealed its plans to compel the financial sector to make disclosures in September last year, informing that those unable to disclose would have to give explanations.

Note: Prime minister of New Zealand: JacindaArdern; Capital of New Zealand: Wellington; The currency of New Zealand: New Zealand dollar.

 

2. Henley Passport Index 2021 released: Amid the rising COVID-19 cases and subsequent restrictions on travel overseas, when many countries are banning individuals from worst-hit nations, the Henley Passport Index on April 17 released its list of the most powerful passports. India stands at number 84 on the list, as the Indian citizens can visit Visa-Free or Visa-on-Arrival in over 58 places. The Henley Passport Index releases list which measures the world’s most travel-friendly passports. The index ranks the countries based on how strong their passport is.

Index:

Rank 1: Japan

Rank 2: Singapore

Rank 3:  Germany, South Korea

Rank 4: Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, and Spain

Rank 5:  Austria, Denmark

Rank 107: Pakistan

Rank 110: Afghanistan (Bottom)

Note: International Air Transport Association Headquarters: Montreal, Canada; International Air Transport Association Founded: 19 April 1945; International Air Transport Association Leader: William M. Walsh.

Henley & Partners Headquarters location: London, United Kingdom; Henley & Partners Founded: 1997; Henley & Partners Chairman: Christian Kalin; Henley & Partners CEO: Juerg Steffen.

 

3. UN Chinese Language Day: 20th April: UN Chinese Language Day is observed globally on April 20 every year. The day has been chosen to pay tribute to Cangjie, who is a mythical figure who is presumed to have invented Chinese characters about 5,000 years ago. The 1st Chinese Language Day was celebrated in 2010 on the 12th of November, but since 2011 the date has been on the 20th of April. The day celebrates multilingualism and cultural diversity as well as promote equal use of all six of its official working languages throughout the organization.

 

4. ‘The Christmas Pig’: JK Rowling to release new children’s book in October: JK Rowling has a new book coming this autumn, a festive children’s story with all new characters. The story is about a boy named Jack and his toy Dur Pig, who goes missing on Christmas Eve. The book is set to be released worldwide on Oct. 12. “The Christmas Pig” is Rowling’s first children’s novel since Harry Potter.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. India Clinches 14 medal at 2021 Senior Asian Wrestling Championship: The 2021 Senior Asian Wrestling Championships was held from April 13 to 18, 2021 in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The event was the 34th edition of the Asian Wrestling Championships. India won 14 medals to stand in the third spot on the medal table. The medals include 5 Gold, 3 Silver & 6 Bronze Medals. Iran and Kazakhstan topped the medal tally with 17 medals each. Following are the medal winners from India:

GOLD MEDAL: Ravi Kumar Dahiya – 57 kg Men’s freestyle

VineshPhogat – 53 kg Women’s freestyle

Anshu Malik – 57 kg Women’s freestyle

SaritaMor – 59 kg Women’s freestyle

DivyaKakran – 72 kg Women’s freestyle

 

SILVER MEDAL: BajrangPunia – 65 kg Men’s freestyle

Deepak Punia – 86 kg Men’s freestyle

Sakshi Malik – 65 kg Women’s freestyle

 

BRONZE MEDAL: Karan Mor – 70 kg Men’s freestyle

Narsingh Yadav – 79 kg Men’s freestyle

Sanjeet – 92 kg Men’s freestyle

SatyawartKadian – 97 kg Men’s freestyle

Seema Bisla – 50 kg Women’s freestyle

Pooja Sihag – 76 kg Women’s freestyle

 

2. StefanosTsitsipas Wins Monte Carlo 2021 Title: StefanosTsitsipas has won his first ATP Masters 1000 series after a flawless performance against Andrey Rublev in Monte Carlo. The Greek star had lost his previous two finals at this level, with Rafael Nadal denying him in Toronto and Novak Djokovic beating him in Madrid. Rublev beat 11-time Monte Carlo champion Nadal in the quarter-finals. Rublev knocked out Roberto Bautista Agut, Rafael Nadal and Dan Evans en route to the final but could not find a way past Tsitsipas.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. RBI sets up committee to review working of ARCs: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has constituted a six-member panel to carry out a comprehensive review of the working of Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs) in the financial sector ecosystem. The panel will be headed by former Executive Director of RBI, Sudarshan Sen.

Other members of the panel include:

VishakhaMulye – Executive Director, ICICI Bank;

P N Prasad – former Dy. Managing Director, SBI;

Rohit Prasad – Professor of Economics, MDI, Gurgaon;

AbizerDiwanji – Partner, Ernst & Young;

R Anand – Chartered Accountant

Terms of reference for the panel:

(1) Review existing legal and regulatory framework applicable to ARCs

(2) Recommend measures to improve the efficacy of ARCs.

(3) Review business models of ARCs.

(4) Study role of ARCs in the resolution of stressed assets including under Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016.

(5) Suggest ways for improving liquidity in and trading of security receipts.

(6) Recommend suitable measures for enabling ARCs to meet the growing requirements of the financial sector.

 

2. IRDAI notifies extending validity of sandbox regulations by another 2 years: The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) notified the extension of its sandbox regulations by another two years to enable the completion of the experiment of the existing sandbox proposals and also to allow new sandbox proposals for the experiment. This amendment will help drive innovation in the insurance sector as insurance companies will now be able to experiment considerably without taking approvals to launch a new product.

 

DEFENCE

 

1. DRDO develops supplemental oxygen delivery system for soldiers:Defence Research and Development Organisation has developed a SpO2-based supplemental oxygen delivery system for soldiers serving in extremely high altitude areas & COVID-19 patients. This automatic system delivers supplemental oxygen based on the SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation) levels & prevents the person from sinking into a state of hypoxia, which is fatal in most cases. Hypoxia is a condition in which the amount of oxygen reaching the tissues is inadequate to fulfil all the energy requirements of the body. This is exactly the situation that gets replicated in a COVID-19 patient due to the virus infection and has been leading to the current crisis, If a COVID-19 patient’s SpO2 level goes below 94 per cent, he or she is generally advised to contact the doctor immediately as hospitalisation may be necessary.

Note: Chairman DRDO: Dr G Satheesh Reddy; DRDO Headquarters: New Delhi; DRDO Established: 1958.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Former Footballer Ahmed Hussain Passes Away: Former India International Football defender, Ahmed Hussain Lala has passed away due to COVID-19. He represented India in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, where India finished fourth. Besides, he was also part of the Indian team that won the gold medal in the 1951 Asian Games. Ahmed also took part in the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo, Japan, in which India finished fourth. In Club Football, Ahmed played for Hyderabad City Police, Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan Sporting Club. In his career, he had won two Santosh Trophy, three Durand Cups and six Rovers Cups

 

2. Veteran Kannada writer GanjamVenkatasubbiah passes away: Veteran Kannada writer GanjamVenkatasubbiah, who also was a grammarian, editor, lexicographer and literary critic, has passed away. He was 107. He was commonly known as a walking encyclopedia of Kannada language and culture, in his literary circles. Professor G Venkatasubbaiah had compiled 12 dictionaries and had authored around 60 books. He received the Padma Shri in 2017 for his proficiency in Kannada literature, poetry, essays and translations. Apart from this, we were also a recipient of the Kannada SahityaAkademi Award and the Pampa Award among others.