Daily GK Update- 19th Oct, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. India re-elected to UN Human Rights Council: India has been re-elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for a sixth term on October 14, 2021, with an overwhelming majority. The new three-year term of India will be effective from January 2022 to December 2024. India received 184 votes of the 193 votes cast in the election. The elections were held for a total of 18 seats and countries needed a minimum of 97 votes to get elected to the 47 UN member council. The headquarters of the UNHRC is in Geneva, Switzerland.

Note: United Nations Human Rights Council President: Nazhat Shameem; United Nations Human Rights Council Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland; United Nations Human Rights Council Founded: 15 March 2006.

 

2. India Needs 5630 GW Installed Solar Capacity to Become Net-zero Nation by 2070: Report

India should increase its solar power capacity to 5630 gigawatt in order to become a net-zero emissions nation by 2070, according to a study. At present, India has 100 GW of installed renewable energy capacity, of which solar comprises 40 GW, the study released by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) said. The government has set an ambitious target to scale up its total renewable energy capacity to 450 GW by 2030. India’s total installed solar power capacity would need to increase to 5630 GW if it were to commit to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emission by 2070,” the study titled ’Implications of a Net-zero Target for India’s Sectoral Energy Transitions and Climate Policy’ said.

 

3. App Launched To Spread Awareness About Maintaining Oral Hygiene Among Children: A bi-lingual mobile application ‘Healthy Smile’ has been launched to spread awareness about maintaining oral hygiene among children, the AIIMS said. The initiative of the Department of Pediatric and Preventive Dentistry, through the AIIMS intramural research grant, aims to spread awareness about maintaining oral hygiene of children right from infancy, and also motivate them to brush thoroughly twice a day. The app has a musical two-minute brushing timer with child-friendly colourful panels, motivational songs, preventive dental care tips for all age groups of children, brushing demonstration videos, FAQ’s and oral care tips during pregnancy.

 

4. Delhi Govt Launches ‘Anganwadi on Wheels’ for Children: The Delhi government launched its ‘Anganwadi on Wheels’ initiative aimed at fulfilling the nutritional and health needs of children. The initiative will reach those children who were not able to reach anganwadis due to any reason and will provide them nutritious food as well as fulfil their educational and health-related needs. Under the initiative, the aim of the Delhi Government is to reach even those children who are unable to reach the anganwadi due to any reason. “Children up to 0-6 years of age will be able to access early childhood care and education by trained anganwadi workers through these buses.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Jonas Gahr Store becomes Norway’s new PM: Jonas Gahr Store, the Leader of the Labour Party in Norway, has assumed the charge of the Prime Minister of Norway with effect from October 14, 2021. In September 2021, Store’s Labour Party won the parliamentary elections, following which incumbent Prime Minister Erna Solberg and her government stepped down. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, the leader of Norway’s centre-left Labor Party, stood outside the royal palace with his 19-member team — 10 women and nine men — that includes the leader of the euroskeptic Center Party, Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, who becomes finance minister.  Emilie Enger Mehl became Norway’s youngest-ever justice minister at age 28, while the foreign minister portfolio went to another woman — Anniken Scharning Huitfeldt.

 

2. India and US to raise $100 billion per year to fight climate change in developing countries: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her American counterpart, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, participated in 8th U.S.-India Economic and Financial Partnership on October 14, 2021. During the meeting, the two countries reaffirmed their commitment to raise $100 billion annually for developing countries from public and private sector sources, to tackle climate change. The India-US Economic and Financial Partnership was launched in 2010 as a framework to strengthen the economic bonds and build greater cooperation and economic growth in the future, between the two countries. The 8th U.S.-India Economic and Financial Partnership was organised on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington.

 

3. Russian team back on Earth after filming first movie in space: A Russian film crew are back on Earth after wrapping up scenes for the first movie shot in space. Klim Shipenko and actor Yulia Peresild left the International Space Station and landed in Kazakhstan – to be met by a crew filming touchdown scenes. The movie has been in its own kind of space race – with Tom Cruise. He is apparently part of a Hollywood filming-in-space project involving Nasa and Elon Musk’s SpaceX. The filmmakers had blasted off from the Russia-leased Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan earlier this month, travelling to the ISS with veteran cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov to film scenes for “The Challenge”.

Note: International Space Station Launch date: 20 November 1998.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. ICC & UNICEF to Partner for Mental Wellbeing of Children & Adolescents: Ahead of the 2021 men’s T20 World Cup in the UAE and Oman, the International Cricket Council (ICC) and UNICEF have that they would partner to help break the stigma around mental health by raising awareness about the issue amongst children and adolescents. The ICC and UNICEF are aiming to raise awareness of mental health and wellbeing amongst children and adolescents and encourage greater conversation and understanding of it throughout the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 beginning.

Note: ICC Headquarters: Dubai, United Arab Emirates; ICC Founded: 15 June 1909; ICC Deputy Chairman: Imran Khwaja; ICC Chairman: Greg Barclay;

UNICEF Headquarters: New York, United States of America; UNICEF Executive Director: Henrietta H. Fore; UNICEF Founded: 11 December 1946.

 

2. Rahul Dravid appointed as Team India head coach: Former Indian batter, Rahul Dravid has been appointed as Team India’s head coach and he will be succeeding Ravi Shastri, whose tenure at the helm ends after the 2021 edition of the T20 World Cup in the UAE. As per reports, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and honorary secretary Jay Shah had a meeting with Dravid in Dubai and pleaded with him to take charge of the national team. As per reports, Dravid, also known as ‘The Wall’ of Indian cricket, has been roped in on a two-year contract and he will draw a salary of INR 10 crores. Team India has also appointed lieutenant Paras Mhambrey as their bowling coach, replacing Bharat Arun. Even as Vikram Rathour has been persisted with as the batting coach, the decision on who should replace fielding coach R Sridhar hasn’t been made just yet.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. Saraswat Bank ties up with Axis Securities to integrate banking with investing: Saraswat Bank has tied up with Axis Securities to offer its customers investing services through a 3-in-1 account. The facility will integrate savings bank account maintained by the co-operative bank with the demat and trading account offered by Axis Securities, which is a subsidiary of Axis Bank, Saraswat Bank said. This 3-in-1 account will make it easier for customers to transfer funds quickly, reduce paperwork and provide a comprehensive platform to invest in various investment instruments like stocks, derivatives, currency, commodities, mutual funds and IPO, the bank said.

 

2. Bharti AXA Life Launches “Bharti AXA Life Unnati”: Bharti AXA Life Insurance, a joint venture between Bharti Enterprises, one of India’s leading business groups, and AXA, one of the world’s largest insurance companies, announced the launch of a new participating savings product – Bharti AXA Life Unnati. This plan is designed to provide long term financial stability to individuals with the dual benefits of savings and protection in one single plan. Bharti AXA Life Unnati is a comprehensive product that offers four plan options, flexible premium payment terms and multiple add-ons in terms of riders. This allows customers to customize the product as per their needs and life goals.Bharti AXA Life Launches “Bharti AXA Life Unnati”

 

3. India Post launches e-PLI bond/ digital version of PLI policy bonds: The Department of Posts launched a digital version of the postal life insurance policy – ePLI bond, which subscribers can access through Digilocker. The Postal Life Insurance (PLI) and Rural Postal Life Insurance (RPLI) policy bonds are available in the ‘electronic form’, and the digital copy will be treated as a valid policy document by the department for all transactions, the Department of Posts (DoP) said. ePLI bond is the department’s first digital integration with Digilocker, which will facilitate citizens in a meaningful way by providing ease of access and quick claim settlements.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. Indian Army wins gold medal in the Exercise Cambrian Patrol 2021: A team from 5th Battalion-4 (5/4) Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force) representing the Indian Army won the gold medal at the prestigious Cambrian Patrol Exercise which was held in the United Kingdom. The Indian Army team took part in the event and competed with a total of 96 teams including 17 international teams representing Special Forces and prestigious Regiments from different parts of the world. The Indian Army team received rich accolades from all the judges. The team was praised for their excellent navigation skills, overall physical endurance and delivery of patrol orders.

About Cambrian Patrol Exercise:

(1) The exercise was held from October 13th to 15th 2021 at Brecon, Wales in United Kingdom.

(2) Exercise Cambrian Patrol was organised by the UK Army.

(3) It is considered as the ultimate test of human endurance and team spirit.

(4) It is sometimes also referred as “Olympics of Military Patrolling” among militaries of the world.

(5) Out of 96 participating teams, only three international patrols were awarded a gold medal this year, till the 6th phase of this Exercise.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Gulabo Sitabo and Sultan Actor Farrukh Jafar passes away: Veteran actor Farrukh Jafar, known for her performance in films “Gulabo Sitabo” and “Sultan”, died at a hospital. She was 89. Jaffer, who was one of the first radio announcers of Vividh Bharti Lucknow in 1963, began her on screen journey with the 1981 classic “Umrao Jaan”, in which she played Rekha’s mother. She later appeared in some TV shows but found further acclaim with the 2004 Shah Rukh Khan-starrer “Swades”.