Daily GK Updates - 29th April, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Haryana to provide jobs to abandoned, surrendered children under HARIHAR scheme: The Haryana cabinet approved a policy to provide jobs on compassionate grounds and economically weaker section (EWS) status to children either abandoned or surrendered and turned 18-year-old while living in child-care institutions across state. The children abandoned when below 5 years of age and surrendered before turning one-year-old will be eligible for benefits of HARIHAR initiative of the Haryana government. Under the policy, eligible children will get benefits of education, employment, and financial support. The policy provides for free schooling, higher education, technical education, skill development and industrial training, apart from financial assistance up to the age of 25 years or marriage, whichever is earlier, and one-time interest-free loan for buying a house in Haryana.

 

2. Over 14,400 ha area in Andaman & Nicobar becomes first large territory to get organic certification: About 14,491 hectare (ha) area in Andaman and Nicobar has been certified as organic, the first large contiguous territory to be done under a government scheme, Agriculture Ministry said. After Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) Islands, Lakshadweep and Ladakh are proactively taking steps for the transformation of their traditional organic areas to certified organic. There are traditional areas in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, north-eastern states and tribal belts of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh and desert districts of Rajasthan which can be transformed to certified organic.

 

3. AP inks MoU with Microsoft to skill over 1.6L: In a major initiative, the state government has roped in Microsoft to take up skill development training for college students and unemployed youth in Andhra Pradesh. Microsoft has agreed to provide training to about 1.62 lakh students in the coming one year. This is considered to be the biggest and first-of-its-kind initiative by a state government to cover its entire cohort of young graduates. The move is aimed at accelerating digital skilling of youth to enable their employability in the industry

 

4. IIT Kharagpur and NCDC Sign MoU to promote Sustainable Developments in Cooperatives, Agriculture and Allied Sectors: IIT Kharagpur and the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) have signed an MoU towards greater collaboration in issues and areas related to the development of cooperatives, agriculture and allied sectors and to the holistic approach towards sustainable development. The scope of the MoU will involve the advancement of training, action research, studies, policy analysis, policy advice, consultancy, monitoring, evaluation, system development and technology development.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. Missing Indonesian Navy Submarine ‘KRI Nanggala’ found split into three parts on seabed: The Indonesian navy submarine ‘KRI Nanggala (402)’, that went missing on 21 April 2021, in the waters off the coast of Bali Island, is reported to be found split into three pieces on the sea bed, at a depth of 850 meters. Indonesian military leaders declared that the KRI Nanggala is divided into three parts: the hull of the ship, the stern of the ship, and the main parts, which was found cracked. All the 53 crew aboard the submarine have been confirmed dead. KRI Nanggala (402) was launched 40 years ago in 1980, and commissioned in 1981. From India, the Indian Navy sent their deep-submergence rescue vehicle (DSRV) from Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, to the search area, to assist Indonesian Navy in search operation.

 

2. Russia plans its own space station in 2025: Russia’s space agency said it hoped to launch its own orbital station in 2025 as Moscow considers withdrawing from the International Space Station programme to go it alone and build and manage its own floating laboratory that will be launched into orbit by 2030. The project would mark a new chapter for Russian space exploration and an end to more than two decades of close cooperation with the United States aboard the ageing International Space Station (ISS).

 

3. International Dance Day: 29th April: The International Dance Day is observed globally on 29 April every year. The day celebrates the value and importance of the dance and encourages participation and education in this art form through events and festivals. The day 29 April has been chosen as it marks the birth anniversary of Jean-Georges Noverre (1727–1810), who is known as the creator of modern ballet. The theme of International Dance Day 2021: ‘Purpose of dance’. The day was created in 1982, by the Dance Committee of the International Theatre Institute (ITI), the main partner for the performing arts of UNESCO.

Note: International Theatre Institute Founded: 1948; Headquarters of International Theatre Institute: Paris, France.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. BOB Financial and Mastercard to launch world’s first QR on Card programme to simplify digital payments: Mastercard and BOB Financial Solutions Limited (BFSL) have come together to offer an easy, frictionless payment solution for cardholders with the launch of ConQR – a Mastercard QR on Card solution. This solution uses a Mastercard patented technology which enables cardholders/ SMEs to accept cashless payments using their cards. By doing so, QR on Card makes payments more flexible and empowers cardholders (mainly small merchants) to spend and earn on the same card. The solution does not require cardholders to give out personally identifiable information to receive payments, providing them with an important layer of security.

 

2. Govt Appoints Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth on RBI Board: The Reserve Bank said the government has appointed Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth on the central bank’s board. Seth replaces Tarun Bajaj, who was appointed as Revenue Secretary earlier this month. The nomination of Seth is effective from April 24, 2021, and until further orders, it said. In addition to the Economic Affairs Secretary, the other government nominee director on the central board is Financial Services Secretary Debasish Panda.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. Paytm launches ‘Wealth Community’ for young investors: Home-grown digital financial services platform Paytm has launched a new video-based wealth community called the Paytm Wealth Community. Paytm Wealth Community is an investing community based on video, and will enable users to attend live sessions conducted by subject matter experts across an array of wealth topics like Stocks, F&O, IPO, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Gold, Fixed Income, and Personal Finance. The community is meant to tap young users and has been designed for the needs of the “new Indian investor.”

 

2. India-Singapore tie-up looking to promote tech startups: The Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI) and Start-up Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC) of IIT-Kanpur have come together to provide a gateway of opportunities to tech-based start-ups to usher a circular economy and an entrepreneurial ecosystem. The purpose of the launchpad is to encourage start-ups to take advantage of the Singapore-India trade and technology corridor. The two institutions are collaborating to identify young, indigenous talent to provide them with an array of incubation services.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. Argentina, Brazil, Uganda and Vanuatu crowned ICC Global Development award winners: Argentina, Brazil, Uganda and Vanuatu were announced as the global winners of the ICC development awards for 2020.The awards are given to members for working to grow cricket in emerging markets in partnership with the ICC.

(1) The global award for the ICC Development Initiative of the Year has been awarded to Cricket Argentina for producing 17 coaching, umpiring and scoring courses in Spanish to attract local audiences in South America to cricket.

(2) Cricket Brazil has been awarded the 100% Cricket Female Cricket Initiative of the Year after taking a huge step forward in the development of the women’s game in South America by awarding 14 professional central contracts to the women’s national team.

(3) The ICC Digital Fan Engagement of the Year has been awarded to the Vanuatu Cricket Association for providing cricket to fans during the pandemic when the Women’s T20 Grand Final was the only live sporting event available.

(4) The Uganda Cricket Association has won the Cricket 4 Good Social Impact Initiative of the Year for supporting hundreds of their players, volunteers and their families through a COVID-19 relief programme.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Agneepath, Ram Lakhan Editor WamanBhonslepassee away: National-award winning editor WamanBhonsle passed away at his residence in Mumbai due to age-related issues. He was 87. In his four-decade-long career, he worked with several noted filmmakers including SubhashGhai, ShekarKapur, Mahesh Bhatt, Gulzaar, Raj Sippy, Anil Ganguly, Sunil Dutt, others. He was the man at the editing table for more than 230 films.

 

2. Ex-chief of SSB Arun Chaudhary passes away: Former Sahasthra Seema Bal chief Arun Chaudhary died of Covid. He was 66. A 1977-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the Bihar cadre, Chaudhary served for nearly two decades in the Intelligence Bureau (IB) where he headed the Jammu and Kashmir desk. In his early service days, he served in various positions in his cadre state and also had a stint with the Central Industrial Security Force, where he headed its airport security unit.