Daily GK Update- 30th Aug, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. India elected to CA And POC of Universal Postal Union: India has won the elections for membership of two key bodies of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), during the 27th UPU Congress in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. India got elected to the Council of Administration(CA) with 134 votes, out of 156 countries. The country received the highest votes in CA elections from South Asia and the Oceania region. Apart from this, India has also been elected to the Postal Operations Council (POC) with 106 votes. India will now work with all to strengthen cooperation in the Universal Postal Union.

Note: Universal Postal Union Headquarters: Bern, Switzerland; Universal Postal Union Founded: 9 October 1874; Universal Postal Union Director-General; Masahiko Meteko.

 

2. Election Commission organizes SVEEP Consultation Workshop: The Election Commission of India (ECI) organized the Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) Consultation Workshop. As a part of this workshop, the Chief Election Commissioner, Sushil Chandra along with Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar unveiled a new initiative. The main objective of the two-day workshop was to review State SVEEP Plans, conduct extensive deliberations on the important aspects of SVEEP and formulate a comprehensive strategy for future elections. SVEEP program

(1) The SVEEP program is the flagship program of the Election Commission of India for voter education & awareness.

(2) The new voters would send a personalized letter from the Commission when sending out their Voter ID Cards.

(3) The package would include a Voter Guide for new voters, a congratulatory letter and a pledge for ethical voting.

Note: Election Commission Formed: 25 January 1950; Election Commission Headquarters: New Delhi; First executive of Election Commission: Sukumar Sen.

 

3. Niti Aayog releases NER District SDG Index report: NITI Aayog and Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region have launched the North Eastern Region District SDG Index Report and Dashboard 2021–22, with technical support from UNDP. The index is based on NITI Aayog’s SDG India Index. According to the report, the East Sikkim district of Sikkim has topped the North Eastern Region (NER) District SDG Index 2021-22 while the Kiphire district of Nagaland was ranked last amongst 103 districts in the ranking. Gomati, North Tripura is second, West Tripura is third in the ranking.

NER District SDG Index: The Index measures the performance of the districts of the eight states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura on the Sustainable Development Goals and ranks these districts on the basis of the same.

 

4. Mansukh Mandaviya appointed Chairperson of Stop TB Partnership Board: Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Mansukh Mandaviya has taken over charge as the Chairperson of Stop TB Partnership Board. He has replaced Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr Harsh Vardhan as the chairman. India aims to end TB by 2025 while the UN aims to end TB by 2030. The Stop TB Partnership is a United Nations-hosted partnership program that aims to fight against tuberculosis collectively. The Stop TB Partnership also welcomed the incoming Board Vice-Chair Austin Arinze Obiefuna. He will take over as the Board Vice-Chair from 1 January 2022 for a period of three years.

 

5. BPR&D collaborates with AICTE to launch India’s first hackathon “MANTHAN 2021”: The Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) in collaboration with the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) have launched a unique national Hackathon named ‘MANTHAN 2021’. The basic objective of this hackathon is to identify innovative concepts and technology solutions for addressing the security challenges of the 21st century faced by the intelligence agencies of the country and empower these enforcement agencies.

About the Hackathon: The Hackathon is scheduled to be held from November 28 to December 01, 2021, in an online mode. The winning team will receive a number worth Rs. 40 Lakh. The Hackathon will be held under 6 themes for 20 different challenge statements using new technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Deep Learning, Augmented reality, Machine Learning among others.

 

6. National Small Industry Day: 30th August: In India, the National Small Industry Day is celebrated on 30 August every year, to support and promote small Industries for their overall growth potential and opportunities received for their development in the year. The industry day is a medium to provide balanced growth to existing small, medium and large scale enterprises and render assistance for setting up new industries to boost the state’s financial health.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. China, Pakistan, Thailand, Mongolia to hold military exercise “Shared Destiny-2021”: The armed force of the country China, Pakistan, Mongolia and Thailand will take part in a multinational peacekeeping exercise named “Shared Destiny-2021”. The exercise will be held in China in the month of September 2021. The four countries will take part in the first multinational peacekeeping live exercise “Shared Destiny-2021” at the combined-arms tactical training base of the PLA in Henan’s Queshan county.

All the four countries will dispatch more than 1,000 troops to participate in the drills, involving units of infantry, fast response, security, helicopter, engineering, transportation and medical services. The scenario of the exercise is joint operations of multinational peacekeeping forces and the exercise will be held in a close-to-real battlefield environment set in accordance with the international, professional and realistic combat standards.

 

2. G20 Ministerial Conference on Women’s Empowerment held in Italy: The First-ever G20 Ministerial Conference on Women’s Empowerment was held at Santa Margherita Ligure, Italy. It was held in mixed format i.e people participated in physical form and via video conference also. The Union Minister of Women & Child Development, Smt. Smriti Irani addressed the meet on behalf of India. The Union Minister reaffirmed India’s commitment towards addressing gender and women-centric issues through mutual cooperation.

About the G20 Conference: G20 Conference on Women Empowerment acknowledged the common objectives and shared responsibilities to advance the goals of equality and development of women and girls in all spheres including STEM, Financial and Digital Literacy, Environment and Sustainability.

 

3. International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances: 30th August: United Nations observes International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances globally on the 30th of August every year. The day is being observed to express deep concern about the rise in enforced or involuntary disappearances in different regions of the world including the incidents of arrest, detention and abduction. All of the above incidents result in an increasing number of reports pertaining to harassment, ill-treatment and intimidation of witnesses of disappearances or relatives of persons who have disappeared. UN General Assembly declared the 30th of August as International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances and the day was observed for the first time in the year 2011.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. Paralympics 2020: Bhavinaben Patel wins silver in table tennis: In table tennis, Indian paddler Bhavinaben Patel has claimed the historic silver medal at the 2020 Paralympic Games at Tokyo, in the women’s singles summit clash. The 34-year-old Patel lost to Chinese paddler Ying Zhou, 0-3, in her maiden Paralympic Games. This is the first medal for India at the ongoing Tokyo Paralympic Games. Patel is the only second Indian woman to win a medal at the Paralympics, after Deepa Malik, who claimed silver in shotput at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

 

2. Max Verstappen wins Belgian Grand Prix 2021: Max Verstappen (Red Bull – Netherlands) has been declared the winner of the Belgian Grand Prix 2021. The Belgian Grand Prix was stopped due to rain and only two laps were completed. The winner was decided based on progress made in these two laps. George Russell Williams came second and Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes came third.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. LIC launches ANANDA mobile app for Agents: The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has launched the mobile application of its digital paperless solution, “ANANDA” for LIC agents. ANANDA stands for Atma Nirbhar Agents New Business Digital Application. The ANANDA mobile app was launched by LIC Chairperson MR Kumar, through Video Conferencing.

About the ANANDA app:

(1) The ANANDA Digital application was launched in November 2020 for LIC Agents / Intermediaries.

(2) With Mobile App in place, the usage level of ANANDA among the Agents / Intermediaries will go up and help LIC to take the New Business fortunes to bigger heights.

(3) The ANANDA tool enables LIC agents to register new LIC policies from the comfort of their homes.

(4) Prospective customers can avail the facility of taking a New Life Insurance Policy in the comfort of their homes/offices without having to meet the agent in person.

(5) It is built on a paperless KYC process using Aadhaar based e-authentication of the Life Proposed.

Note: LIC Headquarters: Mumbai; LIC Founded: 1 September 1956; LIC Chairman: M R Kumar.

 

DEFENCE

 

1. NSG commandos undertake counter-terrorist drills ‘Gandiv’: The third edition of the week-long annual exercise called ‘Gandiv’ was launched at these locations by the NSG from August 22 and it will continue till August 28. Multiple cities in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and the National Capital Region are hosting synchronised commando drills as part of a national mock exercise being carried out by the counter-terrorism force National Security Guard (NSG) to check its response time and reaction to hostage and hijack-like situations. Gandiv was the name of Arjuna’s bow in Mahabharata.

The drills are aimed to “validate the planning parameters” of the commando force in the event of a terrorist attack, hijack of an aircraft or hostage situation. The NSG was raised as a federal counter-terrorism force in 1984 to undertake surgical commando operations in order to neutralise terrorist and hijack threats. It also has a special squad that provides armed security cover to at least 13 high-risk VVIPs at present.

Note: National Security Guard Headquarters: New Delhi; The motto of the National Security Guard: Sarvatra Sarvottam Suraksha.

 

 

Daily GK Update- 29th Aug, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Govt replaces Unmanned Aircraft Systems Rules 2021: Ministry of Civil Aviation has repealed the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Rules, 2021 and replace the same with the liberalized Drone Rules, 2021. The step has been taken as the earlier UAS Rules 2021 was perceived by academia, Startups, end-users and other stakeholders as being restrictive in nature as they involved considerable paperwork, required permissions for every drone flight and very few “free to fly” green zones were available.

Some important features of liberalized Drone Rules 2021:

(1) Quantum of fee reduced to nominal levels and delinked with the size of the drone.  For instance, the fee for a remote pilot license fee has been reduced from INR 3000 (for large drones) to INR 100 for all categories of drones; and is valid for 10 years.

(2) No permission is required for operating drones in green zones.  Green zone means the airspace up to a vertical distance of 400 feet or 120 metres that has not been designated as a red zone or yellow zone in the airspace map; and the airspace up to a vertical distance of 200 feet or 60 metres above the area located between a lateral distance of 8 and 12 kilometres from the perimeter of an operational airport.

(3) Interactive airspace map with green, yellow and red zones shall be displayed on the digital sky platform within 30 days of publication of these rules.

(4) The yellow zone was reduced from 45 km to 12 km from the airport perimeter.

(5) The maximum penalty for violations is reduced to INR 1 lakh.

(6) Drone promotion council to be set up by Government with participation from academia, startups and other stakeholders to facilitate a growth-oriented regulatory regime.

(7) Nano and model drones (made for research or recreation purposes) are exempt from type certification.

No restriction on foreign ownership in Indian drone companies.

Note: Union Minister of Civil Aviation: Jyotiraditya M. Scindia.

 

2. Ministry of Labour & Employment launches e-Shram Portal: Ministry of Labour & Employment has launched e-Shram Portal to link Unorganised Workers with social security schemes being implemented by the Central and State Governments. Minister for Labour and Employment, Bhupender Yadav has launched the portal where 38 crore Unorganised Workers can register themselves and in turn benefit from various social security schemes.

About the eSHRAM Portal:

(1) Every unorganised worker who registers on the eSHRAM Portal will get Rs 2.0 Lakh Accidental Insurance cover. (Rs 2.0 Lakh on death or permanent disability and Rs 1.0 lakh on partial disability).

(2) Upon registration on the eSHRAM Portal, the worker will get an eSHRAM card with a unique 12 digit Universal Account Number (UAN) and will be able to access the benefits of the various social security schemes through this Card anywhere anytime.

(3) eSHRAM Portal will help in the creation of a National Database of Unorganized Workers (NDUW).

 

3. NITI Aayog and Cisco launches “WEP Nxt” Women Entrepreneurship Platform: NITI Aayog in partnership with Cisco has launched the next phase of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) titled “WEP Nxt” to foster women entrepreneurship in India. WEP, which was launched by NITI Aayog in 2017, is a first-of-its-kind, unified portal that brings together women from diverse backgrounds and offers them access to a multitude of resources, support, and learning.

About the WEPNxt Platform: WEPNxt Platform is the next phase of this WEP and will be driven by evidence-based decision-making based on a focused study of Indian women entrepreneurs and their most urgent needs across six key verticals – community and networking, skilling and mentorship, incubation and acceleration programs, and financial, compliance, and marketing assistance.

 

4. Sonu Sood to be brand ambassador by Delhi govt for ‘Desh ke Mentors’ Programme: Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal has announced that Bollywood actor Sonu Sood will be the brand ambassador of the Delhi government’s ‘Desh Ke Mentors’ programme. The programme will be soon launched by Delhi Government. The programme entails “adopting” one to ten government school students who can be mentored by citizens who are successful in their respective fields. Mentors will take out 10 minutes every week to guide students over the phone. Interested citizens can adopt between one to ten children studying in the city’s government schools as part of the initiative.

 

5. National Sports Day: 29th August: Every year, 29th August has been observed as National Sports Day in India. The first National Sports Day was celebrated on 29th August 2012, on the birth anniversary of Major Dhyan Chand who was the star of hockey team of India. The day is used as a platform to launch various sports schemes as well as organise various sporting events and seminars to spread awareness about the importance of physical activities and sports in life.

History of National Sports Day: National Sports Day is also called with the name Rashtriya Khel Divas in some parts of India. In 1979, the Indian Postal Department paid tribute to Major Dhyan Chand after his death and renamed the National Stadium of Delhi as Major Dhyan Chand Stadium, Delhi. In 2012, it was announced that a day must be celebrated as National Sports Day with the motive of spreading awareness about the spirit of sportsmanship and propagating the message of various sports. And for this again a tribute was given to Major Dhayan Chand on his birth anniversary and announced 29th August as National Sports Day in India.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. India & Maldives inks pact on mega Greater Male Connectivity Project: The Government of India and Maldives inked the contract for the mega Greater Male Connectivity project (GMCP). The Greater Male Connectivity project (GMCP) is the largest-ever civilian infrastructure project in the Maldives. The Government of India is funding the implementation of GMCP through a USD 400 million Line of Credit (LoC) and USD 100 million grant. The USD 400 million LoC will be provided by the Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank).

About the project: The project will be developed by Indian construction and engineering firm, AFCONS, based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The Greater Male Connectivity Project (GMCP) comprise of 6.74 km long bridge and causeway link that will connect the national capital Male with three neighbouring islands namely: Villingili, Gulhifahu and Thilafushi.

Note: President of the Maldives: Ibrahim Mohamed Solih; Capital of Maldives: Male; Currency of the Maldives: Maldivian Rufiyaa.

 

2. International Day against Nuclear Tests: 29th August: The International Day against Nuclear Tests is observed globally on 29th August. The day aims to increase awareness about the effects of nuclear weapon test explosions or any other nuclear explosions and the need for their cessation as one of the means of achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.

History of International Day against Nuclear Tests: On 2 December 2009, the 64th session of the United Nations General Assembly declared 29 August the International Day against Nuclear Tests through the unanimous adoption of its resolution 64/35. 2010 marked the inaugural commemoration of the International Day against Nuclear Tests.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. Indian Grandmaster GM Sethuraman wins Barcelona Open: Indian Grandmaster SP Sethuraman won the Barcelona Open chess tournament title in Barcelona while compatriot Karthikeyan Murali finished third in the tournament. Sethuraman (Elo 2644) collected 7.5 points from nine rounds to emerge the winner on the basis of a better tie-break score after Daniil Yuffa of Russia also finished level with the Indian player.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. Nirmala Sitharaman unveils Public Sector Bank Reforms Agenda (EASE 4.0): Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman has unveiled the fourth edition of the Public Sector Bank (PSB) Reforms Agenda ‘EASE 4.0’ for 2021-22. The major theme for EASE 4.0 is “Technology-enabled, simplified, and collaborative banking.” EASE stands for Enhanced Access & Service Excellence (EASE).

What is the aim of EASE 4.0?

EASE 4.0 aims to further the agenda of customer-centric digital transformation and deeply embed digital and data into PSBs’ ways of working. EASE 4.0 sets the agenda and roadmap to transform all PSBs into digital-attacker banks working hand-in-hand with key constituents of the financial services ecosystem to offer industry-best customer experience.

Important Initiatives under EASE 4.0:

(1) Smart Lending for Aspiring India

(2) New Age 24×7 banking with resilient technology

(3) Collaborative banking for synergistic outcomes

(4) Tech-enabled Ease of Banking

(5) Institutionalizing Prudent Banking

(6) Governance and Outcome Centric HR

 

2. RBI approves appointment of Hitendra Dave as CEO of HSBC India: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the appointment of Hitendra Dave as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of HSBC Bank (India). RBI has accorded the approval for a period of three years with effect from August 24, 2021. In June 2021, HSBC had announced the appointment of Hitendra Dave as the Chief Executive Officer of HSBC India. Dave succeeds Surendra Rosha who, after three years, is moving to Hong Kong as the Co-Chief Executive of HSBC, Asia-Pacific. Hitendra Dave, formerly Head of Global Banking & Markets of HSBC India.

Note: HSBC Bank India Headquarters: Mumbai; HSBC Bank India Founded: 1853.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. Microsoft teams up with Invest India to support 11 tech startups: US-based multinational technology company Microsoft has teamed up with India’s national investment promotion and facilitation agency Invest India to support tech startups in the country.  Under this collaboration, Microsoft for Startups program will work with the Government’s Accelerating Growth for New India’s Innovations (AGNIi Mission), a program of the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India which helps startups become enterprise ready.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. EASE Reforms Index Award 2021 announced: Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman has announced the EASE 3.0 Awards. State Bank of India is the Overall winner of the EASE Reforms Index Award 2021 (EASE 3.0 Awards). Bank of Baroda is second and Union Bank of India is third. Indian Bank won the award for the best improvement from the baseline performance. SBI, BoB, Union Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and Canara Bank won the top awards in different themes of the PSB Reforms Agenda EASE 3.0.

There were awards for various themes and the winners of these themes are given below:

 

S.No	Theme	Winner
1	Smart Lending for Aspiring India	Bank of Baroda
2	Tech-enabled ease of Banking	SBI
3	Institutionalised Prudent Banking	Bank of Baroda
4	Governance and Outcome centric HR	Union Bank of India
5	Deepening FI and Customer Protection	Union Bank of India

 

Daily GK Update- 28th Aug, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Ohmium launches India’s first green hydrogen electrolyzer gigafactory: US-based Ohmium International has started India’s first green hydrogen electrolyzer manufacturing unit at Bengaluru, Karnataka. The factory will manufacture India-made Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) hydrogen electrolyzers. Green hydrogen is made from non-fossil sources as against blue hydrogen that is made from fossil sources. Making green hydrogen in India will give a cost advantage for manufacturers rather than going for imports.

About the gigafactory: The gigafactory will manufacture India-made Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) hydrogen electrolyzers with an initial manufacturing capacity of about 500 MW per year and will scale it up to 2 GW per year. The PEM hydrogen electrolyzer is the main equipment for the production of green hydrogen as it uses power generated from renewable resources to break water into hydrogen and oxygen.

 

2. Ministry of Electronics & IT launches SAMRIDH programme: Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology has launched the “Start-up Accelerators of MeitY for pRoduct Innovation, Development and growth (SAMRIDH)” programme. The programme was launched by Shri Ashwini Vaishnav, Union Minister MeitY. The objective of the SAMRIDH programme is to create a conducive platform to Indian Software Product start-ups to enhance their products and securing investments for scaling their business.

About the programme: The programme is being implemented by MeitY Start-up Hub (MSH). It will focus on accelerating the 300 start-ups by providing customer connect, investor connect, and international immersion in the next three years. Investment of up to Rs. 40 lakh will be provided to the start-up through selected accelerators.

 

3. Ministry of Education launches the booklet on One-year New Education Policy (NEP) – 2020 Achievement and some other initiatives: Union Education and Skill Development Minister, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan and Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Shri Virendra Kumar jointly launched the booklet on completion of One year of New Education Policy (NEP) – 2020 Achievement along with some major initiatives of the New Education Policy- 2020.

Some other initiatives launched at the events are:

“Priya -The Accessibility Warrior”: It is an E-Comic cum Activity Book. The book will sensitize the students on accessibility-related issues for Divyangs.

Virtual School of NIOS: The school is the first-of-its-kind initiative in the country that will provide advanced digital learning platforms through Virtual Live Classrooms and Virtual Labs. The Virtual Open Schooling platform has been designed for NIOS by Ed4All and Microsoft.

NIPUN Bharat Mission: The aim of NIPUN Bharat Mission is to ensure every child achieves the desired learning competencies in reading, writing and numeracy by the end of Grade 3, by 2026-27.

Vidya Pravesh: a three months School Preparation Module for Grade I children.

Blueprint of National Digital Education Architecture (NDEAR)

 

4. A book title ‘Accelerating India: 7 Years of Modi Government’ by K J Alphons: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has received a book titled ‘Accelerating India: 7 Years of Modi Government’ by former Union Minister, K J Alphons. The book is about all the areas of India’s reform journey, written by Mr Alphons. K J Alphons is the former Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (Independent Charge), in office from 3 September 2017 to May 2019.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. India Partners with BRICS Group to Setup Network of Genomic Surveillance and Study the Overlap of SARS-CoV-2 with tuberculosis: The Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India has collaborated with BRICS countries to implement SARS-CoV-2 NGS-BRICS consortium and multi centric programme for  studying the impact of severe COVID-19 conditions on TB patients.

SARS-CoV-2 NGS-BRICS consortium: is an interdisciplinary collaboration to advance COVID-19 health-relevant knowledge and to contribute to improvements in health outcomes.

Multi centric programme: is an interdisciplinary team of researchers from India, Brazil and South Africa, to investigate the impact of severe COVID-19 on transient peripheral immunosuppression and lung hyperinflammation conditions in TB patients for epidemiology and comorbidity.  The collaborative study would provide valuable co-morbidity data pertaining to pulmonary TB patients with or without COVID-19 co-infection, for better disease management.

 

2. Dubai sets up specialised court to combat money laundering: Dubai Courts announced the establishment of a specialised court, focused on combating money laundering, within the Court of First Instance and Court of Appeal. This court ties into a string of initiatives aimed at reducing financial crimes and follows the recent establishment of the Executive Office of the Anti-Money Laundering & Countering the Financing of Terrorism. This move will enable our stakeholders to raise their efficiency in effectively implementing the National AML/CFT Strategy and National Action Plan and achieving its goals through an empowered and sustainable system.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. India’s Arjun Erigaisi wins chess tourney in Portugal, Gukesh second: Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi emerged victorious in the II Terras de Tras-os-Montes Chess Open while his compatriot D Gukesh finished second. The 17-year old Erigaisi (Elo 2597) secured 8.5 points from nine rounds to finish clear winner in the field comprising over 140 players. The Chennai-based Gukesh’s wins came against GM Max Warmerdam (Holland), Georgia’s Nodar Lortkipanidze, Vojtech Zwardon (Cze) and Lennis Martinez Ramirez (Cuba).

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. Government approves increase of Bank Employees Family Pension to 30%: Central Government has approved the Indian Banks’ Association’s (IBA) proposal to increase the family pension to 30% of the last salary drawn. The immediate benefit of this approval will be an increase of 30,000 to 35,000 in the family pension of public sector bank employees from a maximum of 9,284 per month, depending on the last drawn salary of the deceased bank employee. The other big announcement is an increase in the employer banks’ contribution to the pension fund of employees under the NPS (National Pension System) from the existing 10 per cent to 14 per cent. Approximately 60% of public sector bank employees are covered under NPS

Note: Indian Banks’ Association Chairman: Rajkiran Rai G; Indian Banks’ Association CEO: Sunil Mehta; Indian Banks’ Association Headquarters location: Mumbai; Indian Banks’ Association Founded: 26 September 1946.

 

2. Carol Furtado appoints as interim CEO of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank: Ujjivan Small Finance Bank has named Carol Furtado as the interim CEO of the bank after the whole time CEO Nitin Chugh resigned recently. She has also been appointed as the officer on special duty (OSD) of the bank. Furtado is currently serving as the CEO of Ujjivan Financial Services, the holding company of the bank. The appointment is subject to the approval of the Reserve Bank of India.

Note: Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Headquarters: Bengaluru; Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Founder: Samit Ghosh; Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Founded: 28 December 2004.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. RBI includes PM SVANidhi Scheme beneficiaries under PIDF Scheme: The Reserve Bank of India has announced to include street vendors of tier-1 and tier-2 centres, identified as part of the PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi Scheme) as beneficiaries under the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme. Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme was launched by RBI to encourage deployment of Points of Sale (PoS) infrastructure (both physical and digital modes) in tier-3 to tier-6 centres and northeastern states. So now RBI has specifically allowed street vendors of Tier-1 and Tier-2 centres, to be part of PIDF Scheme. The street vendors in tier-3 to tier-6 centres will continue to be covered under the Scheme by default. PIDF presently has a corpus of Rs. 345 crore.

 

2. Bajaj Finserv gets in-principle approval from SEBI for mutual fund business: Bajaj Finserv will be the latest entrant to the Rs 35-trillion mutual fund (MF) industry after the company received in-principle approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). In an exchange notification on the BSE, Bajaj Finserv stated that the company has received approval from Sebi through its letter dated August 23 for sponsoring an MF. Accordingly, the company would be setting up an asset management company (AMC) and the trustee company, directly or indirectly i.e., itself or through its subsidiary in accordance with applicable Sebi regulations and other applicable laws.

 

DEFENCE

 

1. India Pavilion inaugurated at ‘ARMY-2021’: The International Military and Technical Forum ‘ARMY 2021’ has been organised in Moscow, Russia from August 22 to 28, 2021, at Patriot Expo, Kubinka Air Base and Alabino military training grounds. The ARMY 2021 is the 7th edition of the annual International Military-Technical Forum.

About the forum: The forum is being organised by the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation since 2015. The International Military and Technical Forum ‘ARMY’ is the world’s leading exhibition of armament and military equipment and the authoritative platform for discussing innovative ideas and developments for the armed forces by various foreign exhibitors, delegations and visitors.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Former England and Sussex captain Ted Dexter passes away: Former England and Sussex captain Ted Dexter has passed away. Dexter, nicknamed “Lord Ted”, was an aggressive batsman and part-time seam bowler who played 62 tests for England after making his debut in 1958 against New Zealand and was captain between 1961-1964. After retiring, he helped devise a ranking system for Test players and was chairman of selectors for England. Dexter was also a regular on the BBC’s TV coverage of England home Test matches and was a newspaper columnist. The ranking system was adopted by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and formed the basis of today’s system.

Daily GK Update- 27th Aug, 2021

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. NITI Aayog and WRI Jointly Launch ‘Forum for Decarbonizing Transport’: NITI Aayog and World Resources Institute (WRI), India, jointly launched the ‘Forum for Decarbonizing Transport’ in India. NITI Aayog is the implementing partner for India. The aim of the project is to bring down the peak level of GHG emissions (transport sector) in Asia (in line with a well below 2-degree pathway), resulting in problems like congestion and air pollution. The Forum has been launched under the NDC-Transport Initiative for Asia (NDC-TIA) project. The NDC Transport Initiative for Asia (TIA 2020-2023) is a joint programme of seven organizations that will engage China, India, and Vietnam in promoting a comprehensive approach to decarbonizing transport in their respective countries.

Note: NITI Aayog Formed: 1 January 2015; NITI Aayog Headquarters: New Delhi; NITI Aayog Chairperson: Narendra Modi; NITI Aayog CEO: Amitabh Kant;

World Resources Institute Headquarters: Washington, D.C., United States; World Resources Institute Founder: James Gustave Speth; World Resources Institute Founded: 1982.

 

2. Ministry of Jal Shakti launches ‘SUJALAM’ Campaign: Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched a ‘100 days campaign’ named SUJALAM to create more and more Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus villages by undertaking wastewater management at the village level. The Campaign would help in the management of the wastewater and in turn, would help to revive the water bodies through the creation of 1 million Soak-pits and also other Greywater management activities. The campaign started on August 25, 2021, is part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebrations.

The three focus areas of the SUJALAM campaign are: (1) Construction of 1 million soak pits; (2) Retrofitting of toilets and (3) Access to toilets for new households.

Note: Minister of Jal Shakti: Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.

 

3. India’s First Agri Sectoral Index GUAREX launched by NCDEX: India’s first sectoral index in the Agri commodities basket i.e. GUAREX was launched by the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Limited (NCDEX). GUAREX is a price based sectoral index that tracks the movement in the futures contracts of guar gum refined splits and guar seed on a real-time basis. This index product will offer a lot of opportunities to the value chain. The weightage of guarseed and guar gum refined splits in the index will be 63 per cent and 37 per cent, respectively. The index futures will be cash-settled. Initially, Guarex futures contracts expiring in September and October will be made available for trading.

India is the world’s largest guar producer accounting for 80-85 per cent of the output, while Rajasthan is the country’s top producer with 80 per cent market share. Guar seed was sown on 1.81 million hectares so far this year, down from 2.25 million hectares logged in the same period last year.

Note: NCDEX CEO: Vijay Kumar Venkataraman; NCDEX Founded: 15 December 2003; NCDEX Headquarters: Mumbai.

 

4. Abhay Kumar Singh appointed as joint secretary in Ministry of Cooperation: Abhay Kumar Singh has been appointed as joint secretary in the Ministry of Cooperation. This ministry was recently formed with an aim to strengthen the cooperative movement in the country. The appointment of Abhay Kumar Singh has been cleared by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by PM Modi. Singh, a 2004-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Bihar cadre, has been appointed as joint secretary in the ministry for a combined tenure of seven years against the newly created post.

Note: Union Minister of Cooperation: Amit Shah.

 

5. Centre forms panel for doubling production & quadrupling exports of handlooms in 3 yrs: Union government has constituted a committee for doubling the production and quadrupling the exports of handlooms in a span of three years. It will be headed by Chairman of Fashion Design Council of India Sunil Sethi.The committee will submit the final report within 45 days from the day of constitution. It will suggest the strategy and policy framework for doubling the production and for improving the quality of handloom products with the aim of enhancing income of the weavers.

 

INTERNATIONALUPDATES:

 

1. Ajit Doval chairs 11th BRICS NSA Virtual Meeting: The 11th Meeting of the BRICS High Representatives Responsible for National Security was held, via video conferencing. The National Security Advisor of India Ajit Doval hosted the meeting since India is the chair for the 2021 BRICS summit. The 15th BRICS Summit is scheduled to be held in September 2021. The BRICS meeting of the NSA provided a platform for the five countries to strengthen political-security cooperation. Secretary of the Security Council of Russia Gen Patrushev, Chinese Politburo Member Yang Jeichi, South African Deputy Minister of State Security Ncediso Goodenough Kodwa and Gen Augusto Heleno Ribeiro Pereira, Minister of State and Head of the Institutional Security Cabinet of the Presidency of Brazil attended the high-level meeting.

Significance of the meeting:

(1) The BRICS NSA meeting adopted and recommended the BRICS counter-terrorism action plan for consideration by the BRICS Summit.

(2) NSA Ajit Doval and other top security officials of the BRICS discussed the Afghanistan scenario, and developments in Iran, West Asia and the Gulf region.

(3) The Action Plan aims to further strengthen existing mechanisms of cooperation in areas such as financing and combating terrorism, misuse of the internet by terrorists, curbing the travel of terrorists, border controls, protection of soft targets, information sharing, capacity building, and regional and international cooperation.

 

2. India emerges as Second in Global Manufacturing Risk Index: India has emerged as a global manufacturing hub and effectively surpassed the United States to become the world’s second most desired manufacturing destination. This indicates the growing interest in India by manufacturers as a preferred manufacturing hub over other countries including the United States and the manufacturing giant nation, China. India’s ranking was reflected in Cushman & Wakefield’s 2021 Global Manufacturing Risk Index. The index ranks 47 countries across Europe, the Americas, and the Asia Pacific. This year, the US is at third position, followed by Canada, Czech Republic, Indonesia, Lithuania, Thailand, Malaysia and Poland.

 

3. UAE announces the world’s tallest observation wheel ‘Ain Dubai’: The world’s largest and tallest observation wheel is set to be unveiled in Dubai, UAE on October 21, 2021. The observation wheel called as ‘Ain Dubai’, is 250 m (820 ft) in height, located at Bluewaters Island. The record-breaking wheel is 42.5 m (139 ft) taller than the current world’s tallest observation wheel, High Roller, in Las Vegas, measuring 167.6 m (550 ft).

Note: UAE Capital: Abu Dhabi; UAE Currency: United Arab Emirates dirham; UAE President: Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. Manika Batra, G. Sathiyan win mixed doubles final at World Table Tennis Contender: Manika Batra and Sathiyan Gnanasekaran put up a clinical show in the mixed doubles final at the WTT (World Table Tennis) Contender Budapest 2021 as they defeated the Hungarian pair of Nandor Ecseki and Dora Madarasz 3-1.  They registered an 11-9, 9-11, 12-10, 11-6 win in the final to win the title. However, Manika lost in the semi-final of the women’s singles and could not make the final. Manika lost her semi-final 4-0 to Russian Elizabet Abraamian, who takes on Mongolia’s Xiaoxin Yang in the final.

 

2. Sathiyan Gnanasekaran Wins ITTF Czech International Open Men’s Singles Title: India’s top paddler G Sathiyan beat Yevhen Ryshchepa of Ukraine comprehensively and in straight sets 11-9, 11-6, 11-6,14-12 in the final of the Czech International table tennis tournament at Olomouc in Czech Republic. The Indian stormed into the final after his semifinal rival Truls Moregard of Sweden conceded in the third game due to back pain 11-4, 11-8, 8-2. Last week, the Swedish sensation had won the WTT Contender Budapest. This is only his third ITTF Challenger title following triumphs in Belgium Open 2016 and Spanish Open 2017.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. RBI extends card payment tokenisation facility to laptops, wearable devices: In 2019, RBI had permitted authorized card payment networks to offer card tokenisation services to any token requestor (i.e., third-party app provider) through mobile phones and tablets. Now RBI has extended the scope of tokenization to include consumer devices – laptops, desktops, wearables (wristwatches, bands, etc.), Internet of Things (IoT) devices, etc. The permission for tokenization extends to various channels [e.g., Near Field Communication (NFC) / Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) based contactless transactions, in-app payments, QR code-based payments, etc.] or token storage mechanisms (cloud, secure element, trusted execution environment, etc. The ultimate responsibility for the card tokenization services rendered rests with the authorized card networks.

Tokenisation: Tokenisation refers to the replacement of actual card details with a unique alternate code called the “token”, which shall be unique for a combination of card, token requestor, and device (referred hereafter as “identified device”).

 

2. RBI approves re-appointment of Sandeep Bakhshi as ICICI Bank MD & CEO: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the re-appointment of Sandeep Bakhshi as the MD & CEO of ICICI Bank. This will be with effect from October 15, 2021, till October 3, 2023. The shareholders at the Annual General Meeting held on August 9, 2019 had already approved the appointment of Mr Bakhshi for a period effective from October 15, 2018, up to October 3, 2023. Bakshi, who was hand-picked by his mentors- KV Kamath and N Vaghul, took over the charge in October 2018, after his predecessor Chanda Kochhar’s exit following the ICICI Bank-Videocon loan controversy.

Note: ICICI Bank Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra; ICICI Bank Tagline: Hum Hai Na, Khayal Apka.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. BharatPe launches P2P lending app ‘12% Club’: BharatPe has launched a “12% Club” app that will allow consumers to invest and earn up to 12 per cent annual interest or borrow at a similar rate. BharatPe has partnered with LenDenClub (RBI-approved NBFC) for this app and lending arrangement. Consumers can invest their savings anytime by choosing to lend money on the “12% Club” app. Apart from this, consumers can avail of collateral-free loans of up to Rs 10 lakh on the 12 per cent Club app for a tenure of 3 months.

Note: Chief Executive Officer of BharatPe: Ashneer Grover; Headoffice of BharatPe: New Delhi; BharatPe Founded: 2018.

 

DEFENCE

 

1. 5th India-Kazakhstan Joint Training Exercise “KAZIND-21”: The 5th edition of Indo- Kazakhstan Joint Training Exercise, “KAZIND-21” will be held from August 30 to September 11, 2021, at Training Node, Aisha Bibi, Kazakhstan. The joint training exercise will boost the bilateral relations between India and Kazakhstan Armies. The Exercise is also a platform for the Armed Forces of India & Kazakhstan to train for Counter Insurgency/ Counter-Terrorism operations in the mountainous, rural scenarios under UN mandate.

The Indian Army contingent represented by a battalion of the Bihar Regiment consists of a total of 90 personnel led by a Contingent Commander. The Kazakhstan Army will be represented by a company group. The scope of Joint Exercise includes professional exchange, planning & execution of the operation in counterterrorism environment at sub-unit level and sharing expertise on skills at arms, combat shooting and experiences in Counter Insurgency/ Counter-Terrorism operations.

Note: Kazakhstan PM: Askar Mamin, Capital: Nur-Sultan, Currency: Kazakhstani Tenge.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Former India footballer and Olympian O Chandrasekhar passes away: Former India footballer O Chandrasekharan, popularly known as Olympian Chandrasekharan in his home state Kerala, passed away. Chandrasekharan, who played as a defender, was a member of the Indian team in the 1960 Rome Olympics the last time the country participated in football at the Games.