Latest Current Affairs For Tuesday 28th December, 2021

Seven-term Rajya Sabha MP Mahendra Prasad passes away

Seven time Rajya Sabha MP from the Janata Dal (United) and industrialist Mahendra Prasad passed away in New Delhi.

Prasad was a seven-term Rajya Sabha MP from Bihar and was also elected to the Lok Sabha once.

Prasad was first elected to the Lok Sabha on a Congress ticket in 1980.

He remained associated with the party for a long time and shifted his loyalties later as its fortunes declined in the state.

Centre sets up panel to look into withdrawal of AFSPA in Nagaland

The center has instituted a high-level committee to examine the possibility of withdrawing the AFSPA in Nagaland.

Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India Vivek Joshi will head the 5-member committee and Additional Secretary in the Home Ministry Piyush Goyal will be its Member-Secretary.

The Chief Secretary and DGP of Nagaland and the DGP of Assam Rifles will be the other members of the committee.

The committee will submit its report within 45 days.

RBI imposes ₹30 lakh penalty on MUFG Bank

The RBI has imposed a monetary penalty of ₹30 Lakh on MUFG Bank Ltd for non-compliance with its directions on ‘Loans and Advances – Statutory and Other Restrictions’.

MUFG Bank has the largest network amongst Japanese banks in India, with a presence in five locations.

MUFG Bank caters to the banking needs of Japanese and global corporates that are establishing or growing their businesses in India.

PNB enters into co-lending arrangement with Lendingkart

PNB has entered into a co-lending arrangement with Lendingkart Finance Ltd. 

This partnership is part of its efforts to improve the flow of credit to the unserved and underserved sector of the economy. 

This arrangement will focus on digital underwriting and cashflow based lending. 

The ultimate beneficiaries would be MSME borrowers who will get the funds at an affordable rate with greater outreach considering the lower cost of funds from banks and greater reach of the NBFC. 

Moyuka Uchijima of Japan wins ITF W25 Pune title

Japanese tennis player Moyuka Uchijima has won her maiden 20th edition of the NECC Deccan $25,000 Women’s ITF Championships.

the 20-year-old outlasted Diana Marcinkevica of Latvia 6-2, 7-5 in the singles final.

With junior Sara Saito winning two back-to-back ITF junior events earlier in December, Uchijima capped the hattrick for Japan with her victory.

Anna Danilina of Kazakhstan and Valeriya Strakhova of Ukraine claimed the doubles title.

Radiant beats Challengers to win Pro Tennis League 2021

Team Radiant won the Pro Tennis League 2021 beating Bangalore Challengers in the final of the Centena Pro Tennis League. Davis Cupper Saketh Myneni led the Team Radiant.

Saketh outclassed reigning National champion Niki Poonacha 5-0 in the third rubber to gain a four-point lead for the team which proved decisive in the eventual analysis.

Four-time National champion Prerna Bhambri was equally responsible in Radiant shining as she won both her mixed doubles matches. 

Himachal Pradesh create history, win Vijay Hazare Trophy

Himachal Pradesh clinch their maiden Vijay Hazare Trophy beating Tamil Nadu in the final in Jaipur.

Himachal Pradesh skipper Rishi Dhawan won the toss and put Dinesh Karthik-led Tamil Nadu to bat.

Youngster Shubham Arora came out all guns blazing with his maiden List A century as Himachal downed five-time champions Tamil Nadu.

Tamil Nadu have been the best domestic side in the country in white-ball cricket since the 2019-20 season.

'He-Man' artist and toy designer T. Mark Taylor passes away

Mark Taylor, artist and toy designer for the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe franchise as well as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles passed away.

He-man was the muscled front man for toy manufacturer Mattel’s Masters of the Universe franchise. 

He-Man was the epitome of hulking superhero warrior but also became an icon within the LGBTQ+ community.

Taylor began his career with El Segundo-based Mattel in 1976 as a packaging designer.

Greece’s former president Karolos Papoulias passes away

Former Greek president Karolos Papoulias, who served two terms between 2005 and 2015 passed away.

Papoulias, who was also foreign minister in 1985-89 and 1993-96, was a high-ranking member of socialist PASOK party and a close associate of its late leader and former prime minister Andreas Papandreou.

He served as President during the crisis that plunged the country into the most grave political and economic turmoil of recent decades.

IndusInd Bank, NPCI partner to offer cross-border payments through UPI

IndusInd Bank has partnered with the National Payments Corporation to offer real-time cross-border remittances to India using UPI IDs, for its Money Transfer Operator (MTO) partners.

It is the first Indian bank to go live on UPI for cross-border payments/NRI remittances.

Under this arrangement, the MTOs will be using the IndusInd Bank channel to connect with NPCI’s UPI payment systems for validation and cross-border payment settlement into beneficiary accounts.

RBI appoints Yogesh Dayal as additional director on RBL board

The RBI has appointed Yogesh Dayal as an additional director on the board of RBL Bank.

The private sector lender’s MD and CEO Vishwavir Ahuja has proceeded on leave with immediate effect.

The central bank invoked Section 36 AB contained in Part 2A (Control over Management) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.

The gross NPA of the bank rose 106 basis points to 5.40 per cent of gross advances as at September-end 2021 against 4.34 per cent as at March-end 2021.

PM Modi to lay foundation stone of 4 hydro power projects in HP

PM Modi will be visiting Mandi, Himachal Pradesh to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of hydropower projects worth over ₹11,000 crore.

He will lay the foundation stone of Renukaji Dam project which is lying pending for around three decades.

Also, he inaugurated the Sawra-Kuddu Hydro Power Project.

The 111 MW Project has been built at a cost of around ₹2,080 crore. 

Other Projects are: Luhri Stage 1 Hydro Power Project and Dhaulasidh Hydro Power Project.

PM Narendra Modi to be awarded prestigious Lokmanya Tilak Award 2023

The Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust (Hind Swaraj Sangh) would confer the prestigious Lokmanya Tilak National Award 2023 to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Pune on August 1, 2023.

Reason: This award recognizes PM Modi's supreme leadership under which India has climbed the ladder of progress

It is presented annually on the occasion of Lokmanya Tilak's death anniversary.

Other awardees: Indira Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Sharad Pawar, Cyrus Poonawalla, and Manmohan Singh. 

J&K Bank wins award for Best Performance in CASA

Jammu & Kashmir Bank has been felicitated for the Best Performance in CASA-India (1st Runner up in Small Bank Category) at ICC Emerging Asia Banking Conclave & Awards 2022.

The event was participated by banks from India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & Myanmar.

The function was organized by the Indian Chamber of Commerce in Goa.

Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) is a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group headquartered in Calcutta.

India poised to become world’s 2nd-largest economy by 2075: Goldman Sachs

According to the Investment Bank Goldman Sachs, India is poised to become the world’s second-largest economy by 2075.

As per the report, India would cross Japan, Germany, and the US With a population of 1.4 billion people.

India’s GDP is estimated to expand remarkably, reaching 52.5 trillion dollars surpassing the US GDP projection.

The labour force participation set to make India the second-largest economy in the world by 2075.

L&T and Spain's Navantia sign agreement for submarine project

L&T has signed a teaming agreement with Spanish-based Navantia for the submission of a techno-commercial bid for the Indian Navy’s prestigious P75 (India) submarine program.

P75 (India) Submarine Project is expected to be valued at €4.8 billion.

Navantia would carry out the design of P75(I) submarines based on its S80 class of submarines.

The first S80 class submarine was launched in 2021 and is undergoing sea trials prior to its delivery to Spanish Navy. 

India overtakes China as most attractive emerging market for investing

According to a study by Invesco Global Sovereign Asset Management, India has overtaken China to become the most attractive emerging market for investing in sovereign wealth funds this year.

Reason: This is due to its solid demographics, political stability, and proactive regulation. 

Positives for the nation also include the rapidly expanding demography, strong regulatory actions, and a welcoming climate for sovereign investors.

World Population Day 2023: 11 July

World Population Day is observed every year on July 11 in order to raise awareness about global population issues, including population control.

2023 theme: Unleashing the power of gender equality: Uplifting the voices of women and girls to unlock our world’s infinite possibilities. 

It was established by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1989, after the day the world approximately reached a population of five billion, which was observed on 11 July 1987.

MoHUA conducts SBM-U 2.0 Planning & Implementation Review-cum-Workshop

The Housing Ministry organized a review-cum-workshop to evaluate and accelerate the planning and implementation of the SBM-Urban 2.0.

PM Modi launched the 2.0 versions of SBM-U and AMRUT on October 1, 2021.

SBM-U 2.0: Achieving 100% waste segregation in all households and premises and 100% door-to-door collection of segregated waste from each. 

AMRUT 2.0: To provide complete coverage of water supply to all households and sewerage and septage in 500 AMRUT cities. 

Gujarat CM launches pilot project of ‘Antyodaya Shramik Suraksha Yojana’

Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel launched the Antyodaya Shram Suraksha Accident Insurance Scheme from Kheda

All those registered under the e-Shram portal from Nadiad will benefit from the scheme.

It is being implemented through the Indian Postal Department, the IPPB, and the Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Under this scheme, insurance with a premium of Rs. 289 and Rs. 499 per year will be a big support to workers in the event of death or partial disability.

OCA elects Sheikh Talal as the new President

Kuwait’s Sheikh Talal Fahad Al Ahmad Al Sabah has been elected as the new President of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA).

He replaced his older brother Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, who led the OCA for 30 years until 2021.

The OCA was founded in 1982 by his father Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who led it until 1990.

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) is a governing body of sports in Asia, currently with 45 member National Olympic Committees.

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance wins Insurer Innovation Award 2023

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance has won the Insurer Innovation Award 2023 for the APAC region at the 8th World Digital Insurance Awards, hosted by TDI - The Digital Insurer.

Recognition: Bajaj Allianz Life's ground-breaking WhatsApp Conversational Platform - empowering customers to digitally services their policies seamlessly. 

The award entries were shortlisted by industry experts and the winner was selected by the community through pre-voting and live event voting.