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Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Daily GK update- 14th July, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. India’s first maritime arbitration centre to be set up in Gandhinagar: The Gujarat Maritime University has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) in GIFT City to set up the Gujarat International Maritime Arbitration Centre (GIMAC). GIMAC will be the first of its kind centre in India to manage arbitration and mediation proceedings for disputes related to the maritime and shipping sector. It will be part of a maritime cluster that is being set up by the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) at GIFT City in Gandhinagar.There are over 35 arbitration centres in India. However, none of them exclusively deals with the maritime sector. The arbitration involving Indian players is now heard at the Singapore Arbitration Centre. The idea is to create a world-class arbitration centre focused on maritime and shipping disputes that can help resolve commercial and financial conflicts between entities having operations in India.

Note: Gujarat Chief Minister: Vijay Rupani;Gujarat Governor: Acharya Devvrat.

 

2. Kerala govt. to have its own OTT platform: Kerala government has proposed to have its own over-the-top (OTT) platform. The state government has planned to launch it by November 1. The State government’s proposed foray into the online content streaming space with the launch of an over-the-top (OTT) platform is a cultural intervention, rather than something prompted by the market or revenues.

Why Kerala will launch a new OTT platform?

(1) OTT players like Netflix and Amazon have been showing more interest in Malayalam cinema. But they are mostly limited to films from which they can get revenue.

(2) In the last one year, less than 15 Malayalam films, featuring big stars, have been taken up these platforms.

(3) Furthermore, smaller & home-grown OTT platforms such as Neestream and Mainstream TV do not have much of finance to match bigger players.

(4) Thus, the state government proposed this OTT platform which will ensure space and make some sort of revenue share for lower budget & independent films that are struggling to find space among the public.

 

3. GoI sets up 25-member development council for cement industry: The central government has set up a 25-member development council for the cement industry under Dalmia Bharat Group CMD, PuneetDalmia. The council will suggest ways to eliminate waste, obtain maximum production, improve quality, reduce costs and promote standardization of products.Dalmia is the chairman of the council. Its members include Shree Cement Ltd MD HM Bangur, The India Cements Ltd Executive President Rakesh Singh; Birla Corporation Limited CEO PrachetaMajumdar; J.K. Cement Ltd Deputy Managing Director MadhavkrishnaSinghania, and JSW Cement Ltd CEO NileshNarwekar.

According to an order:

(1) The functions of the council include recommending measures for securing the full utilization of the installed capacity and for improving the working of the industry, particularly of the less efficient units; promote the training of persons; and promoting or undertaking scientific and industrial research.

(2) It would also work for standardization of accounting and costing methods and practice; and promoting the adoption of measures for increasing the productivity of labour, including measures for securing safer and better working conditions.

(3) The council’s functions also include promoting or undertaking inquiry as to materials and equipment and as to methods of production, management and labour utilization, including the discovery and development of new materials, equipment and methods.

 

4. Kareena Kapoor introduces a book “The Pregnancy Bible”: Kareena Kapoor Khan has announced her new book titled Kareena Kapoor Khan’s Pregnancy Bible. The actor has also called it her ‘third child. She shared her experience while writing the book. She was seen wearing a red slip dress as she kept her hair loose parting it in the middle. She was seen bare feet standing near the kitchen countertop.

 

5. National Film Archive of India adds Aamir Khan’s ‘PK’ to its collection: National Film Archive of India (NFAI) has announced a significant addition of the original camera negative of RajkumarHirani’s 2014 film ‘PK’ in its collection. The filmmaker handed the negatives over to Director NFAI, Prakash Magdum, in Mumbai. The National Film Archive of India was established as a media unit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in 1964.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. Nirmala Sitharaman attends 3rd G20 finance ministers meeting: Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman participated virtually in the Third G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) Meeting under the Italian Presidency. The two-day meeting saw discussions on a wide range of issues including global economic risks and health challenges, policies for recovery from the CoVID-19 pandemic, international taxation, sustainable finance and financial sector issues.

The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors reaffirmed their resolve to use all available policy tools for as long as required to address the adverse consequences of COVID-19. Smt. Sitharaman appreciated the Italian G20 Presidency for identifying three catalysts of resilient economic recovery from the pandemic as being Digitalization, Climate Action and Sustainable Infrastructure and shared the Indian experience of integrating technology with inclusive service delivery during the pandemic.

 

2. NewsOnAir Radio Live-stream Global Rankings: NewsOnAir Radio Live-stream Global Rankings was released recently ranking countries where All India Radio (AIR) live-streams on the NewsOnAir app are most popular. In the latest Rankings of top countries in the world (excluding India) where All India Radio Live-streams on NewsOnAir App are most popular, Fiji has jumped from 5th position to 2nd, while Saudi Arabia has made a comeback in the top 10. Kuwait and Germany are new entrants, while France and New Zealand are no more in the top 10. The United States continues to be number 1.

NewsOnAir Top Countries (Rest of world)

Rank     Country

1            United States

2            Fiji

3            Australia

4            United Kingdom

5            Canada

6            United Arab Emirates

7            Singapore

8            Kuwait

9            Saudi Arabia

10          Germany

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. BCCI forms 7-member working group for domestic cricket: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has formed a seven-member working group, to look into the compensation package for the domestic players and the other aspects of domestic cricket. The main focus of the group will be the remuneration of domestic players for the previous season wherein tournaments were cancelled, due to COVID-19.The group will have the following membes:

Rohan Jaitley (North Zone)

Yudhvir Singh (Central Zone)

Jaydev Shah (West Zone)

DevajitSaikia (North-East Zone)

AvishekDalmiya (East Zone)

Santosh Menon (South Zone)

Mohammed Azharuddin (South Zone).

 

2. Argentina beats Brazil to Lift Copa America 2021: Lionel Messi-led Argentina beat Neymar’s Brazil 1-0 to win the Copa America final match, held at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. With this win, Lionel Messi has secured his first major international trophy. The 2021 Copa America was the 47th edition of the annual international men’s football championship organised by South America’s football ruling body CONMEBOL.Earlier the tournament was scheduled to be held in July 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the first time since 1991 that no guest nation took part in the tournament.

 

3. Samir Banerjee wins Wimbledon Junior Men’s title: Indian-American Samir Banerjee has won the Wimbledon Junior Men`s title at Number 1 Court. He defeated Victor Lilov of America by 7-5, 6-3 in the Junior Men`s finals to lift the trophy at All England Club. For the first time since 2014, and only the second time since 1977, there was an all-American conclusion to the boys` singles event. Notably, both 17-year-olds were unseeded for The Championships.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. RBI imposes monetary penalty on 14 banks for non-compliance: The RBI has imposed penalties on SBI, Bank of Baroda, IndusInd Bank, Bandhan Bank and 10 other lenders for contravention of various regulatory norms, including on lending to NBFCs. The penalty imposed on the 14 banks totals Rs 14.5 crore, with a maximum Rs 2 crore fine on Bank of Baroda.The central bank imposed Rs 2 crore penalty on the Bank of Baroda, Rs 1 crore each on 12 other banks and Rs 50 lakh on the State Bank of India. RBI imposed Rs 1 crore penalty each on Bandhan Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Central Bank of India, Credit Suisse AG, Indian Bank, IndusInd Bank, Karnataka Bank, KarurVysya Bank, Punjab and Sind Bank, South Indian Bank, The Jammu & Kashmir Bank and Utkarsh Small Finance Bank.

Note: RBI 25th Governor: Shaktikant Das; Headquarters: Mumbai; Founded: 1 April 1935, Kolkata.

 

2. Federal Bank gets RBI nod to re-appoint Shyam Srinivasan as MD & CEO: Federal Bank shareholders have approved the motion to re-appoint Shyam Srinivasan as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the lender for a period of three years. His reappointment will come into effect from September 23, 2021, to September 22, 2024. Srinivasan took over as Federal Bank MD & CEO in 2010 and has been at the helm since then.

Srinivasan is among the few foreign bankers who chose to move to smaller Indian banks after fairly long, successful stints in foreign banks (the others include RBL Bank’s Vishwavir Ahuja and DCB Bank’s MuraliNatrajan). Over the last decade, Srinivasan has been at the helm of Federal, the bank has transformed into a mid-sized private bank with a strong focus on retail business, including gold loans and funding small and medium entrepreneurs.

Note: Federal Bank Headquarters: Aluva, Kerala;Federal Bank Founder: K.P Hormis;Federal Bank Founded: 23 April 1931.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. Facebook launches newsletter platform “Bulletin”: Facebook has announced a set of publishing and subscription tools named Bulletin, aimed to promote independent writers in the US. The bulletin will include support focused on the creation of content, monetisation and audience growth. It also aims to integrate its existing tools to support writing and audio content — from podcasts to Live Audio Rooms in one place.Facebook is pushing to compete in the fast-growing email newsletter trend, as high-profile journalists and writers have left media companies over the past year to strike out on their own.

Note: Facebook Founded: February 2004;Facebook CEO: Mark Zuckerberg;Facebook Headquarters: California, United States.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. Zaila Avant-garde Wins 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee: Zaila Avant-garde, an African-American, from New Orleans in Louisiana, has won the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee. The 14-year-old Avant-garde, who is also an accomplished basketball player, is the first African-American contestant to win the prestigious competition in its 93 years history. The 8th-grader Avant-garde correctly spelt “Murraya”, a genus of tropical Asiatic and Australian trees having pinnate leaves and flowers, to win a USD 50,000 prize.Zaila is also the first Black contestant to win since Jody-Anne Maxwell of Jamaica in 1998. 12-year-old Indian-origin Chaitra Thummala, from San Francisco and 13-year-old Indian-origin BhavanaMadini, from New York, won second and third place respectively.

About the Award:Scripps National Spelling Bee is an annual spelling bee held in the United States, for children of South Asian descent, to help students improve their spelling, increase their vocabularies, learn concepts and develop correct English usage that will help them all their lives.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Ayurveda Medicine Doyen, Dr P K Warrier passes away: Veteran Indian Ayurveda practitioner, Dr P.K. Warrier, who was the most respected name in Ayurveda across the world, has passed away. He was 100. He was the chief Physician and Managing trustee of Arya Vaidya Sala, a healthcare centre located in Kottakkal, Kerala, and known for its heritage and expertise in Ayurveda.The doyen of Ayurveda, DrWarrier, was honoured with the Padma Shree in 1999 and Padma Bhushan in 2010. His autobiography titled Smrithiparvam won the Kerala Sahitya Academy Award in 2009. 

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