Daily GK Update- 10th Mar, 2023

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Citi appoints Bhanu Vohra as head for commercial banking in India: Citi group has named Bhanu Vohra as the head of Citi Commercial Bank (CCB) business in India. He has replaced Tushar Vikram, who is now the global head of healthcare for CCB. He will report to Ashu Khullar (Citi India CEO) and Rajat Madhok (head of Citi Commercial Bank Asia Pacific). The Citi Commercial Bank business addresses the banking and financial services requirements of emerging large corporates and mid-market enterprises.

 

2. Axis MF appointed B Gopkumar as CEO of Axis Securities: B Gopkumar (MD & CEO of Axis Securities) has been appointed as the new CEO of Axis Mutual Fund. He would replace Chandresh Nigam who has stepped down as the CEO. Nigam's tenure will be ended April 30, 2023, and Gopkumar will take over on May 1, 2023, for a 3-year term. Gopkumar has been in charge of Axis Securities since October 2019. In addition, the fund house also appointed Ashish Gupta to be its new chief investment officer.

 

3. Army installed tallest Iconic National Flag in hilly Doda district, J&K: In Jammu & Kashmir, the Indian Army installed the tallest ‘Iconic National Flag’ in the hilly Doda district. The tricolour has been installed on a 100 feet-high pole, the highest Tricolour in the Doda district. General Officer Commanding of the Army’s Delta Force Maj Gen Ajay Kumar unfurled it. He also honoured the next of kin of soldiers who had died in the service of the nation. The Flag is a tribute to the countless soldiers of the Chenab Region who have made the ultimate sacrifice while safeguarding the unity and integrity of the nation. Doda district of Jammu Division was once a hotbed of terrorists. But the situation has altogether changed with people working closely with security agencies and Government in maintaining peace and ensuring the development of the Chenab region.

 

4. Colonel Geeta Rana became the first woman officer to command a field workshop: Colonel Geeta Rana of the Indian Army’s Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers (EME) has become the first woman officer of the Indian Army to command a field workshop on the forward front in Eastern Ladakh. Rana is currently a Colonel in the Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers (EME). The Indian Army has also approved women officers to take up the role of commanders. After this Colonel Geeta has become the first woman officer to achieve this achievement. Colonel Geeta will command the independent field workshop deployed along the China border.

 

5. Neiphiu Rio became the CM of Nagaland for the fifth time: Neiphiu Rio was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Nagaland for a record fifth term in Kohima. The state will have two deputy chief ministers, one each from alliance partners NDPP and BJP. The assembly elections were held on a total of 60 seats in Nagaland. In which NDPP-BJP got 37 seats, in which NDPP got 25 seats and BJP got 12 seats. After this, the coalition government of NDPP and BJP has been formed.

 

6. 10 March – CISF Raising Day: The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Raising Day is celebrated every year on March 10 to commemorate the establishment of the CISF in 1969. The CISF is a premier central armed police force under the Ministry of Home Affairs, which is responsible for providing security cover to various public sector undertakings, airports, seaports, power plants, and other important infrastructure projects across the country. The CISF was established on March 10, 1969, under an Act of Parliament with a few battalions.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Ram Chandra Paudel elected as the third President of Nepal: Senior Nepali Congress leader Ram Chandra Paudel (78) has been elected the third President of Nepal. He defeated CPN-UML Vice-chair Subash Chandra Nembang. He won the presidential elections with 33,802 votes, while his opponent received 15,518 votes. The President is elected by an Electoral College consisting of the members of the Federal Parliament and the Provincial Assembly. The tenure of Bidya Devi Bhandari as Nepal's President will be ended on March 12.

 

2. International Day of Women Judges 2023: March 10: The International Day of Women Judges is observed every year on March 10 to honour all-female judges who have taken the lead in the fight against social injustice. This day is being observed with the campaign “Women in Justice, Women for Justice”. It is a symbolic day for the fight for gender equality and the fight against gender-based discrimination. In April 2021, UNGA enacted resolution 75/274 designating March 10 as the International Day of Women Judges

 

3. NASA, Italian Space Agency join hands to monitor air pollution: NASA has partnered with the Italian Space Agency,  Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI) to build and launch MAIA (Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols) missions. Aim: To investigate the health impacts of air pollution in the world’s most populated cities. It is the first mission of the agency whose primary goal is to benefit societal health and will launch before the end of 2024. It will consist of the PLATiNO-2 satellite (provided by ASI), and a science instrument (NASA).

 

4. Colombia opens military service to women for first time in 25 years: Colombia has opened military service to women for the first time in 25 years. A cohort of 1,296 women has been enlisted in Colombia’s Army in February 2023. Colombia has long had compulsory military service for men ages 18 to 24. The army relies heavily on those young recruits to staff bases, protect infrastructure and carry out administrative tasks, while its professional soldiers confront drug trafficking gangs and rebel groups. This year, officials allowed females in the same age range to voluntarily join the military, in what the army says is part of an effort to strengthen the role of women in its ranks.

 

5. ISRO received Indo-US jointly developed NISAR satellite: The US Air Force handed over NISAR, an earth observation satellite jointly developed by NASA and ISRO, to the Indian space agency. A US Air Force C-17 aircraft carrying the NASA-ISRO synthetic aperture radar (NISAR) has landed in Bengaluru. The satellite is an outcome of a collaboration between the American space agency NASA and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The satellite is expected to be launched in 2024 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh, into a near-polar orbit. It will be the first radar of its kind in space to systematically map Earth, using two different radar frequencies (L-band and S-band) to measure changes in the planet’s surface less than a centimetre across.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. Axis Bank, ITC partner to offer rural lending products to farmers: Axis Bank and ITC (FMCG) joined hands to offer lending products and services to farmers who are a part of ITC's agriculture ecosystem. Aim: To enable the bank to reach out to the unserved and under-served farmers across rural regions. The bank will offer credit facilities for rural lending products like Farmer Funding loans & Gold Loans. The bank will also leverage ITC-MAARS (Meta Market for Advanced Agricultural Rural Services) to address farmers' financial needs.

 

2. Bank of Baroda board approves 49% stake divestment in BFSL: In an exchange filing, the Bank of Baroda has informed that the bank's board has approved divesting up to 49% stake in subsidiary BoB Financial Solutions Ltd. Currently, BOB holds 100% of the total equity share capital of BFSL. BFSL, a registered non-banking financial institution, is primarily involved in credit cards and merchant-acquiring businesses. Bank of Baroda MD & CEO: Sanjiv Chadha; Chairman: Hasmukh Adhia BoB HQ: Vadodara

 

3. FinMin tightens definition of beneficial owners under PMLA: The FinMin has tightened the definition of beneficial owners under the anti-money laundering law, mandating reporting entities to collect information from their clients. Beneficial Owners: Any individual or group holding 10% ownership (earlier 25%) in the client of a reporting entity The reporting entities are banks and financial institutions engaged in real estate and jewellery sectors. They also include intermediaries in casinos and crypto or virtual digital assets.

 

4. BSE, NSE shortlists 5paisa, HDFC Sec, others as qualified stock brokers: Stock exchanges BSE and NSE have designated 15 trading platforms as Qualified Stock Brokers (QSBs) with effect from July 1, 2023. These shortlisted stock brokers are required to meet enhanced obligations and discharge additional responsibilities. Some of the notable stock brokers in the QSB list are Zerodha Broking, 5Paisa Capital, HDFC Securities, IIFL Securities, ICICI Securities, Motilal Financial Services, Kotak Securities, and Sharekhan among others.

 

5. Yes Bank and Aadhar Housing Finance ink co-lending partnership: Yes Bank has partnered with Aadhar Housing Finance Ltd to offer home loans at competitive interest rates to customers from lower and middle-income groups. This partnership is in accordance with the co-lending framework of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Under this framework, the RBI enables banks and non-banking companies to jointly bring forth financial solutions that cater to the requirements of unserved and underserved sections of society.

 

6. Ujjivan Small Finance Bank launches “Unpause Initiative”: Ujjivan Small Finance Bank has launched the ‘Unpause Initiative’ to assist women who have taken a career break and are now ready to return to the workforce. The initiative is part of the bank's commitment to promoting workplace diversity and inclusion. The bank’s employees participated in a 3 km walk from its registered headquarters in Koramangala to support an initiative. Ujjivan SFB has also announced a special Hiring Drive and Employee referral program for women.

 

7. Kotak AMC financial literacy campaign for women: To drive the culture of digital literacy among the women fraternity on this year’s International Women’s Day, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company has launched a digital campaign called ‘DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality’. The campaign calls for digital inclusion of all with the hashtag, #IncludeAll. The digital campaign showcases Kotak group’s women employees sharing their stories about supporting and empowering other women in their lives by imparting them knowledge of digital literacy. On this Women’s Day, Kotak Mutual Fund through its campaign wants to spread the message that it is equally important for other women’s categories, especially domestic help and servants, to become digitally literate, which will help them in their day-to-today lives. MD & CEO of Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company -Nilesh Shah

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. India Bags Golden & Silver Star at ITB, Berlin 2023: The Ministry of Tourism of India has bagged a Golden & Silver Star at The International ‘Golden City Gate Tourism Awards 2023’ at ITB, Berlin 2023.Category: TV/Cinema Commercials International and Country International Arvind Singh, Secretary (Tourism) received awards on 8th March 2023 at ITB, Berlin. The Golden City Gate Tourism Multi-media Awards are given annually in various categories related to the Tourism and Hospitality sectors.

 

2. WINS Awards 2023 launched by MoHUA: The Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri has launched the ‘Women Icons Leading Swachhata’ (WINS) Awards 2023. Aim: To recognize celebrate and disseminate inspiring and exemplary initiatives in urban sanitation and waste management by women-led organizations and individual women. The applications are open from 8th March to 5th April 2023.   Applications for the Awards are open to SHG, Micro-enterprises, NGOs, Startups, and Individuals.