Daily GK Update- 19th Sept, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Cabinet approves Rs 26,058 crore PLI Scheme for Auto and Drone Industry: The Union Cabinet has approved a production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for auto, auto-components and drone industries to enhance India’s manufacturing capabilities. The PLI scheme will incentivise the emergence of advanced automotive technologies’ global supply chain in India. Incentives worth Rs. 26,058 crore will be provided to industry over five years, the minister told reporters after the Cabinet meeting. About the scheme:

(1) The PLI scheme for automobile and drone industries is part of the overall announcement of PLI schemes for 13 sectors made earlier during the Union Budget 2021-22, with an outlay of Rs. 1.97 lakh crore.

(2) The scheme for the auto sector envisages overcoming the cost disabilities to the industry for the manufacture of advanced automotive technology products in India.

(3) From the total budget of Rs 26,058 crores, an amount of Rs 25,938 crores has been sanctioned for the automobile industry and Rs 120 crores for the drone industry.

 

2. Nitin Gadkari launches AI-powered road safety project ‘iRASTE’: Union Minister for Road Transport, Nitin Gadkari launched ‘iRASTE’, an Artificial Intelligence-powered project. The project aims to help reduce road accidents, understand the factors responsible for these events and come up with solutions to mitigate them. iRASTE stands for Intelligent Solutions for Road Safety through Technology and Engineering. About the project:

(1) The project has been launched on a pilot basis in Nagpur, Maharashtra with the aim of reducing accidents by 50 per cent in the city.

(2) The project is launched jointly by the Centre, Intel, INAI, IIIT-Hyderabad, CSIR-CRRI (Central Road Research Institute), Mahindra & Mahindra and Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC).

(3) The main focus of the project will focus on vehicle safety, mobility analysis and road infrastructure safety to move towards a ‘Vision Zero’ accident scenario.

 

3. Nitin Gadkari Reviews Progress of India Longest Delhi-Mumbai Expressway: Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari reviewed the progress of 1,380 kilometers long Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, being developed at a cost of Rs 98,000 crores. The eight-lane Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will be covering the states of Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi. Once completed, the expressway will be the longest expressway in India and reduce the travel time between Delhi and Mumbai to about 12.5 hours. The project is planned to be completed by March 2023. The Delhi-Mumbai expressway is also the first in Asia and only the second in the world to feature animal overpasses, to facilitate unrestricted movement of wildlife.

 

4. Kushinagar Airport declared as Customs Notified Airport: The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has declared Kushinagar Airport as a Customs notified airport. This would also facilitate international passenger movements including that of Buddhist pilgrims.

About the airport: The Kushinagar airport is an international airport spread across an area of 600 acres. It had been granted the licence to operate international flights by DGCA last February. In August, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) extended the validity of the airport’s licence to operate international flights till February 21, 2023. The licence was due to expire on August 21, 2021.

Note: CBIC Chairperson: M. Ajit Kumar; CBIC Founded: 1 January 1964.

 

5.NITI Aayog Partners Byju’s to educate children in 112 aspirational districts: Government think tank NITI Aayog has entered into partnered with edtech major Byju’s, to provide free access to Byju’s high-quality and tech-driven learning programmes to children from 112 Aspirational districts of the country.  Under this collaboration, a dedicated working group will be established that will create a knowledge, innovation, and strategy support system, as well as actively monitor and evaluate programme implementation to enable efficacy and ensure better scope of delivery. The main objective of this partnership is to empower the children from underserved communities and locations with tech-enabled learning and access to quality education, and bring in positive systemic changes in the education ecosystem.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. US, UK and Australia announce new partnership “AUKUS”: United States, United Kingdom and Australia have announced the new partnership “AUKUS” a new trilateral security partnership for the Indo-Pacific region. The trilateral grouping was formally announced by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison and US President Joe Biden with a vision for a safer and more secure Indo-Pacific.

About the AUKUS:

(1) The first project of AUKUS will be to help Australia acquire a nuclear-powered conventionally-armed submarine fleet.

(2) The three heads of state reaffirmed their intention to continue to work with their allies and groupings in tandem with AUKUS, with the Quad being mentioned by Morrison and Biden.

(3) AUKUS will also involve a new architecture of meetings and engagements between the three countries, as well as cooperation across emerging technologies (applied AI, quantum technologies and undersea capabilities).

 

2. Ford becomes the latest US car manufacturer to exit India: Ford Motor Co. will stop making cars in India and record roughly $2 billion in restructuring charges, scaling back significantly in a country that past management saw becoming one of its three biggest markets. Ford will wind down an assembly plant in Gujarat by the fourth quarter, as well as vehicle and engine manufacturing plants in Chennai by the second quarter of next year.

Ford Motor Company has announced that it would stop producing cars in India as the global auto industry continues to grapple with a shortfall in semiconductors and other components due to supply chain disruptions. Other US companies that stopped operation in India are Ford’s American rival General Motors (GM) and the American motorcycle company Harley-Davidson.

Note: Ford Motor Co CEO: Jim Farley; Ford Motor Co Founder: Henry Ford; Ford Motor Co Founded: 16 June 1903; Ford Motor Co Headquarters: Michigan, United States.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. SBI’s Amit Saxena joins RBI Innovation Hub as CTO: Global Deputy CTO of State Bank of India, Amit Saxena has joined RBI Innovation Hub as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO). The Reserve Bank announced that it would set up Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) to promote innovation across the financial sector by leveraging on technology and creating an environment that would facilitate and foster innovation. About the RBIH:

(1) The RBIH shall create an ecosystem that would focus on promoting access to financial services and products. This will also promote financial inclusion.

(2) The Hub will collaborate with financial sector institutions, the technology industry, and academic institutions and coordinate efforts for the exchange of ideas and development of prototypes related to financial innovations.

(3) It would develop internal infrastructure to promote fintech research and facilitate engagement with innovators and start-ups.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. UNCTAD projects Indian economy to expand 7.2% in 2021: The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has pegged India’s economic growth rate to hit a four-year high of 7.2 per cent for 2021 against a contraction of 7 per cent in 2020. At this rate, India would be the fastest-growing economy after China, which is projected to grow by 8.3 per cent. Calculations are based on GDP at constant dollars in 2015.

 

2. Power Finance Corporation issues India’s first-ever Euro Green Bond: The leading power sector NBFC, Power Finance Corporation Ltd (PFC), successfully issued its maiden Euro Green Bond. The 7-year Euro 300 million Bond has been priced at 1.841 per cent. This Euro Green Bond is the first-ever Euro denominated Green bond issuance from India. It is also the first-ever Euro issuance by an Indian NBFC. With the issuance, PFC has also forayed into the European market for its international fundraising. PFC is witnessing a marked shift in its lending portfolio owing to stress in thermal power generation, with no new private investment in the sector. It is expected that renewable energy and transmission & distribution (T&D) would attract the bulk of the lending by PFC going forward, along with newer sectors such as lift irrigation, electric mobility and energy efficiency.

Note: Power Finance Corporation Ltd Headquarters: New Delhi; Power Finance Corporation Ltd Founded: 16 July 1986; Power Finance Corporation Ltd chairman and managing director: R S Dhillon.

 

3. Infosys launches digital commerce platform Equinox: Infosys, a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting, launched Infosys Equinox to help enterprises securely deliver hyper-segmented, personalized omnichannel commerce experiences for B2B and B2C buyers. The platform’s future-ready architecture offers unprecedented flexibility for enterprises to pick and choose out-of-the-box microservices and pre-built experiences to build curated digital journeys that enhance their digital commerce or launch it grounds-up in a matter of weeks.

About the Infosys Equinox: Infosys Equinox helps businesses transform their digital commerce across marketing, merchandizing, e-commerce, store operations, supply chain and customer service through its four offerings: Infosys Equinox Microservices, Infosys Equinox Commerce, Infosys Equinox Experiences, and Infosys Equinox Marketing. Infosys Equinox also brings together best-of-breed service, product, platform and industry capabilities from Infosys, and its partners, in an integrated ecosystem.

Note: Infosys Founded: 7 July 1981; Infosys CEO: Salil Parekh; Infosys Headquarters: Bengaluru.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Eminent Kashmiri Writer Aziz Hajini passes away: Noted writer and former secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages Aziz Hajini passed away. Hajini, born as Abdul Aziz Parray in north Kashmir’s Bandipora, was appointed Secretary J&K Academy of Art Culture and Languages in 2015. He has over twenty books in Kashmiri to his credit including poetry and criticism. Hajini won the Sahitya Akademi Award (criticism) in 2016 for his book ‘Aane Khane’ written in Kashmiri. He has also won the Sahitya Akademi Translation Award in 2013 for Za Gaz Zameen, Kashmiri translation of Abdul Samad’s Urdu novel Do Gaz Zameen.