Daily GK Update- 1st Oct, 2023

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. CRPF organized a cross-country bike expedition with "Yashaswini": The Central Reserve Police Force, in collaboration with the Ministry of Women and Child Development, will organize a bike expedition with Yashaswini, to celebrate women's power in the country.  A total of 150 women CRPF officers of three teams will embark on the cross-country rally.The teams will start their journeys from the Srinagar, Shillong, and Kanyakumari. They will converge at the Statue of Unity in Kevadia, Gujarat for the grand finale.

 

2. NESTS to organize 4th National EMRS Cultural, Literary and Kala Utsav – 202: The National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS), under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, is organizing the 4th National EMRS Cultural, Literary and Kala Utsav - 2023, from 3rd October to 6^th October in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Aim: To showcase the artistic talent of school students through the Kala Utsav. This year 2023 Eklavya Vidyalaya Sangathan Samiti (EVSS), Uttarakhand (State EMRS Society) will host the event at Maharana Pratap Sports College, Dehradun.

 

3. National Zoological Park begins celebration of 69th Wildlife Week: National Zoological Park begins celebration of 69th   Wildlife Week with  theme "Partnerships for wildlife conservation" The Nature Park is a serene and breathtaking space within the bustling Gujarat Science City.  It is a must visit for nature enthusiasts and botanists alike. The park not only promotes biodiversity but also serves as an educational platform for people.” It imparts valuable lessons on environmental conservation and sustainability.

 

4. PM gift National Turmeric Board & Sammakka Sarakka Tribal University: The Prime Minister has announced the National Turmeric Board and Sammakka Sarakka Tribal University for Telangana and also 900 crore rupees to the Tribal University.  Aim: To boost the farmers of the area as it will provide necessary infrastructure support, value addition, research facility and help in exports in a professional manner Awareness of the therapeutic value of turmeric had increased during the Covid pandemic leading to increased demand as well as exports.

 

5. Odisha assembly passes land acquisition bill: The Odisha assembly passed four bills, including the land acquisition and resettlement one that will enable the government to exempt strategic and development projects from social impact assessments. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Odisha Amendment) Bill, 2023, was first introduced in the assembly in March but withdrawn a month later following severe criticism. The land acquisition bill enables the government to exempt ‘strategic and development projects’ from social impact assessments and special provisions for safeguarding food security. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RFCTLAR&R) Act, 2013 is a central legislation. It came into force with effect from January 1, 2014.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. International Day of Older Persons is observed on 1st October: International Day of Older Persons is observed on 1st October and is a special day for senior citizens all over the world. 2023 Theme: Fulfilling the Promises of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for Older Persons Aim: To raise awareness of the value of senior persons in our society and to show our appreciation for their contributions.  The purpose of the day is to draw attention to how the world might better the lives of older people.

 

2. International Coffee Day is observed on 1st October: To recognize the work of millions of coffee farmers from all over the world, every year on October 1, the world celebrates International Coffee Day. Theme 2023: promoting the right to a safe and healthy working environment in the coffee supply chain. Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world with an estimated 2 billion cups consumed each day. Coffee trade expanded across the Middle East and made its way to Europe by the 17th century.

 

3. India’s Solar Mission Aditya L1 successfully escaped sphere of Earth: India’s Solar Mission Aditya L1 successfully escaped the sphere of Earth’s influence by traveling beyond a distance of 9.2 lakh kilometers from Earth  It is now navigating its path toward the Lagrange point L1 that is 1.5 million km from Earth. ISRO has informed the spacecraft is now on a trajectory that will take the spacecraft to the Sun-Earth L1 point After 110 days, the spacecraft will be injected into an orbit around L1 through a maneuver from the Ground station

 

4. The 2024 Best World Universities, Oxford At The Top, Ranked By THE: The 20th edition of the World’s Best Universities by the Times Higher Education (THE) rankings has been released.

The  top 3 institutions in the ranking:

·       University of Oxford, U.K.

·       Stanford University, U.S.

·       Massachusetts Institute of Technolog, U.S.

This time, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore has featured in the 201-250 bracket.

Anna University, Jamia Millia Islamia, Mahatma Gandhi University – are in the 501-600 bracket.

 

5. Global Innovation Index 2023: India at 40th; topped by Switzerland: India has retained its 40th rank out of 132 economies in the Global Innovation Index 2023 rankings published by the World Intellectual Property Organization. The 16th edition of the index, which ranks world economies according to their innovation capabilities, was released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an agency of the United Nations. For the 13th year in a row, Switzerland is the most innovative economy in 2023 followed by Sweden, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Singapore. Denmark (9th) and the Republic of Korea (10th) remain in the top 10. France (11th) gets closer, improving one rank this year, while Japan remains strong as the 13th most innovative economy. Israel re-enters the top 15, reaching 14th place. China ranks 12th this year, dropping one rank relative to 2022. Apart from China, there are only four other middle-income economies among the top 40 economies, namely, Malaysia (36th), Bulgaria (38th), Türkiye (39th) and India (40th). India has been on a rising trajectory, over the past several years in the Global Innovation Index (GII), from a rank of 81 in 2015 to 40 in 2023.

 

6. 30 September – International Translation Day: International Translation Day is observed every year on September 30. The day is observed by the International Federation of Translators (FIT) to highlight the significant role of translators all across the world. Theme 2023 – Translation Unveils the Many Faces of Humanity International Translation Day is recognized on a global level to promote the role of language translators, and to create awareness about the commendable contributions of translators and interpreters in bridging the linguistic and cultural divisions. International Translation Day was established by United Nations in 2017. The day is observed to honour boisterous efforts of language translators and interpreters in promoting understanding, peace, and dialogue among people belonging from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. This day is observed alongside the feast of St. Jerome (a patron saint of translators who translated the Holy Bible).

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. Avinash Sable for bagged Gold in Men’s 3000 meter Steeplechase: India’s Avinash Sable won the First-Ever gold medal in men’s 3000m steeplechase at the Asian Games 2023. His medal is India’s 12th gold at this edition of the Asian Games and the first track and field gold in China.

He is 2022 Commonwealth Games silver medallist and holds the national record of 8min 11.20 sec.

Other Winners

·       India won bronze in the men's canoe double 1000m event

·       Harmilan Bains in women's 1500m won silver 

·       Murali Sreeshankar won silver in men's long jump

 

2. India won gold in 10m Air Pistol Team event in Asian game 2023: India won a gold medal in the Men’s 10m Air Pistol team event at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou. India players team – Sarabjot Singh, Arjun Singh Cheema, and Shiva Narwal This was India’s 13th medal in shooting and the second of the day after Roshibina Devi Naorem won a silver medal in wushu.

In a contest that turned out to be incredibly close, Sarabjot Singh, Arjun Singh Cheema and Shiva Narwal combined for a score of 1734 points, ahead of China’s 1733 points and Vietnam’s 1730 points. Sarabjot Singh and Arjun Singh Cheema progressed to the individual final in the 10m Air Pistol with scores of 580 and 579 points respectively for a fifth and eighth-place finish. With only the top-eight shooters qualifying, this too ran close Sarabjot and Arjun finished fourth and eighth respectively. Vietnam’s Pham Quang Huy won gold with a score of 240.5, while South Korea’s Lee Wonho (239.4) and Uzbekistan’s Vladimir Svechnikov (219.9) took the silver and bronze, respectively. Sarabjot, 21, finished fourth, scoring 199, while Arjun ended up eighth and last, exiting on the second elimination shot.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. RBI imposes monetary penalty on 3 co-operative banks: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed monetary penalties on three co-operative banks for violating rules.

The banks include:

·       Saraswat Co-operative Bank, 

·       Rajkot Nagarik Sahakari Co-operative Bank

·       Bassein Catholic Co-operative Bank.

The RBI imposed a penalty of Rs 25 lakh, Rs 13 lakh and Rs 23 lakh on Bassein Catholic Co-operative Bank, Rajkot Nagarik Sahakari Bank Ltd and Saraswat Co-operative Bank, respectively.

 

2. REC signs MoU with PNB to co-finance infrastructure projects: State-run REC Limited and Punjab National Bank have signed an MoU to explore funding possibilities in the Power Infrastructure and logistics sectors. The consortium arrangement will co-finance loans worth Rs 55,000 crores over the next three years. REC, which essentially lends to the power sector, has been authorized by the Power Ministry to also lend to the infrastructure sector. Its loan book has exceeded ₹4,54,393 crore. In FY23, the non-power infrastructure and logistics sector accounted for 32 percent of the total loan sanctioned by the company. The Maharatna company has now diversified into the non-power infrastructure sector, which includes roads and expressways, metro rail, airports, IT communication, social and commercial infrastructure (educational institutions, hospitals), ports, and electro-mechanical (E&M) works in respect of sectors such as steel, refinery, etc.

 

3. Yes Bank appoints Manish Jain as country head of Wholesale Banking: Yes Bank has appointed Manish Jain as the new country head of Wholesale Banking. He succeeds Ravi Thota, who resigned on 2 August 2023, citing personal and professional reasons. Jain will be responsible for spearheading the wholesale banking business at Yes Bank. Jain has three decades of work experience which includes 23 years in Standard Chartered Bank. While, Pankaj Sharma has been appointed as Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer at Yes Bank.