Latest Current Affairs For Wednesday 6th April, 2022

The Tata Group is preparing to unveil its super app

On April 7, the Tata Group will launch Neu, its much-anticipated super app. This software will be available for download through the Google Play Store. The Tata Group’s key goal is to expand its digital division so that it can compete with market leaders like Amazon, Flipkart, and Reliance Group’s JioMart.

Tata Neu is an all-in-one platform that brings together all of the company’s services into a single app.

Exclusive offers, incentives, and more will be available through the app. It’s a one-stop-shop for a hassle-free buying and payment process.

Tata Pay allows users to pay for items and bills both online and in-store in real-time.

According to the information provided on the Play Store, the Tata Neu app pays users for shopping, booking flights and hotels, and other activities.

Tata Neu App gives Neu Coins as an incentive for spending, which can be exchanged for other services.

Pulitzer Prize-winning American poet Richard Howard passes away

Pulitzer Prize awardee American poet, Richard Howard passed away at age of 92. Richard Joseph Howard was born on 13 October 1929 in Cleveland, Ohio, United States (US). He was an American poet, literary critic, essayist, teacher, and translator.

Howard won the Pulitzer Prize in 1970 for ‘’Untitled Subjects’’ and was a National Book Award Finalist in 2008 for ‘’Without Saying’’. His translation of Charles Baudelaire’s “Les Fleurs du Mal” won the National Book Award (then called the American Book Award) in 1983.

National Maritime Day 2022 observed on the 5th April

National Maritime Day in India is observed on 5 April every year. This year is the 59th edition of the National Maritime Day.

The National Maritime Day is celebrated every year day to illustrate the awareness in supporting intercontinental commerce and the global economy as the most well-organized, safe and sound, environmentally responsive approach of transporting goods from one corner to another corner of the world.

On this day ‘NMD Award of Excellence’ is usually given during the celebrations and there is a trophy and citation, given to recognize and honour individuals for their lifetime distinguished and exceptional achievements and performances in the Indian Maritime sector at a senior level.

The theme of the National Maritime Day is “Sustainable Shipping beyond Covid-19’’.

Vice chief Lt Gen Manoj Pande all set to become next Army chief

Vice Chief Lieutenant General, Manoj Pande is all set to become Chief of the Army Staff as the incumbent Army Chief General M.M. Naravane, who is being seen as the frontrunner for the Chief of Defence Staff’s post, is due to retire by the end of this month. Being senior-most in the office after General Naravane, Lt Gen Pande will take over the reign.

Lt Gen Pande became the senior-most after a few top officers retired in the last three months. The incumbent Lt Gen Raj Shukla who was Commanding Army’s training command (ARTRAC) retired on March 31.

Meanwhile, present Army Chief, Gen MM Naravane is ahead in the race for the post of Chief of Defence Staff after the post fell vacant in December last year as the then Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat passed away in a helicopter crash near Coimbatore.

A new book titled “Queen of Fire” authored by Devika Rangachari

Award-winning children’s writer and historian, Devika Rangachari has authored a new novel titled “Queen of Fire”, which explores the story of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi. The book focuses on the journey of Rani Lakshmibai as a queen, soldier, and statesman.

The book provides a detailed account on how the queen took over the kingdom as a widow and joined the revolutionaries to rebel against the East India Company. Devika Rangachari is a historian who has conducted post-doctoral research on gender in early medieval Indian history.

Flipkart Foundation launched for growth of rural area and women

Homegrown e-commerce giant, The Flipkart Group has constituted and launched the Flipkart Foundation, a new platform with a focus on development in rural areas and providing equitable access to growth opportunities for women and other disadvantaged communities.

The Flipkart Foundation aims to positively influence 20 million lives directly and indirectly in the coming decade across a wide array of areas by utilising Flipkart’s learnings over the years.

The operations of the Flipkart Foundation will be grant-based. The contributions will come from the Flipkart Group and through the ‘Charity Checkout’ feature available on Flipkart platforms.

The Flipkart Foundation will engage with diverse stakeholders to enable transformational development work for society and the economy, by offering support to underprivileged sections of society and making them a part of the country’s growth story.

Important For All Exam 2022:

Flipkart headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka;

Flipkart CEO: Kalyan Krishnamurthy.

HP acquires Poly with the goal of becoming a full-service hybrid work ecosystem provider

HP has completed its acquisition of Poly for $1.7 billion in an all-cash deal worth $3.3 billion when debt is factored in. Poly is a manufacturer of office communication devices such as headsets, AV conference room equipment such as desk phones, and software.

The decision comes eight months after HP acquired Teradici, a remote desktop software supplier, with the goal of accelerating HP’s entrance into hybrid work. The resulting ecosystem will be able to deliver entire workforce solutions in a hybrid work environment that necessitates seamless transitions between office and home settings.

HP and Poly, according to Lores, establish a “leading portfolio of hybrid work solutions across big and expanding markets, with Poly’s strong technology, complementary go-to-market, and experienced team helping to drive long-term profitable growth as we continue to build a better HP.”

SEBI has announced an ideathon Manthan to foster innovation in the securities business

As she launched an ideathon to promote innovation, Sebi Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch said that India is ideally positioned to harness technology in the securities market to give bespoke solutions at a very low cost to individuals across the country.

Buch stated at the start of the ideathon ‘Manthan’ that the implementation of financial technology (FinTech) in the securities market offered tremendous prospects for all parties involved.

Sebi, in collaboration with BSE, NSE, NSDL, CDSL, KFintech, CAMS, LinkInTime, and MCX, is hosting a six-week ideathon called Manthan. According to a press release released by Sebi, it will promote the formation of a pool of ideas and creative solutions centred on the securities market.

Through a hackathon, workable ideas from Manthan, which were unveiled at an event in Mumbai on Wednesday, may be turned into possibilities and prototypes.

RBI fixed WMA limit for States/UTs at Rs 47,010 crores

The Reserve Bank reduced the Ways and Means Advances (WMA) for states and union territories to Rs 47,010 crore from Rs 51,560 crore on Friday, citing an improvement in the economic scenario. WMAs are short-term loans provided by the RBI to the government to help it deal with any discrepancies between receipts and payments.

Due to the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, the RBI increased the WMA limit for all states to Rs 51,560 crore. The new WMA was in effect until March 31, 2022.

RBI stated it has decided to revert to the WMA limitations and deadlines for Over Draft (OD) for state governments / UTs, as recommended by the Advisory Committee on Ways and Means Advances to State Governments, following a review of the limits and in light of the gradual easing of COVID-19 restrictions.

The Special Drawing Facility (SDF) used by state governments and UTs would continue to be linked to the amount of marketable securities issued by the government of India, such as Auction Treasury Bills, according to the RBI (ATBs).

The interest rate on SDF, WMA, and OD will continue to be linked to the Reserve Bank’s policy rate, the repo rate.

The Government of India’s WMA limit for the first half of fiscal year 2022-23 has been set at Rs 1,50,000 crore.

HDFC Bank adjudged as Best Performing Bank in SHG Linkage by DAY-NRLM

HDFC Bank Limited has been adjudged Best Performing Bank in Self Help Group (SHG) Linkage by Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM).

Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India at the event organised at the Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi. HDFC Bank is the only private bank to be honoured with the award for their contribution in SHGs by NRLM.

Giriraj Singh, Union Minister of Rural Development presented the award to K Venkatesh, Head of Sustainable Livelihood Initiative of HDFC Bank.

National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) was launched by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) in June 2011 is a poverty alleviation project. This rural income generation scheme is also known as Aajeevika Mission.

Important For All Exam 2022:

HDFC Bank Headquarters: Mumbai;

HDFC Bank Founded: August 1994;

HDFC Bank CEO: Sashidhar Jagdishan;

HDFC Bank Chairman: Atanu Chakraborty;

HDFC Bank Tagline: We understand your world.

UN Human Rights Council names Tuvalu negotiator Dr Ian Fry as climate expert

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has appointed Dr Ian Fry as the world’s first independent expert for human rights and climate change. Dr Fry has been appointed for a period of three years. He holds dual citizenship of Tuvalu and Australia. The first to hold the post will be Ian Fry, who holds both Australian and Tuvaluan nationality.

He has negotiated on behalf of least developed countries including at the 2015 Paris climate conference where he helped ensure that human rights were part of the final package.

The position of Special Rapporteur for human rights and climate change was created by UNHRC in October 2021.

The new independent expert will have the mandate to “study and identify how the adverse effects of climate change, including sudden and slow-onset disasters, affect the full and effective enjoyment of human rights and make recommendations on how to address and prevent these adverse effects”.

Important For All Exam 2022:

United Nations Human Rights Council President: Federico Villegas;

United Nations Human Rights Council Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland;

United Nations Human Rights Council Founded: 15 March 2006.

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.