Latest Current Affairs For Tuesday 23rd August, 2022

Indian Neurologist Dr Sundara Chary elected to global prestigious FAAN

Indian neurologist, Dr N V Sundara Chary has been elected as a Fellow of American Academy of Neurology (FAAN).

It is regarded as one of the world's most prestigious honour in the field of neurology and medicine.

This honour has been awarded by American Academy of Neurologists (AAN) to very few neurologists across the world for making valuable contributions in the field of neurology.

He is a professor and HOD of neurology in Siddhartha Medical College, Vijayawada.

India's first hydrogen fuel cell bus unveiled in Pune

The Union Minister of State, Jitendra Singh has unveiled country's first hydrogen fuel cell bus.

The eco-friendly bus has been built by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and KPIT Limited.

Hydrogen fuel cell: It works like conventional batteries of electric vehicles, but they don’t need to be recharged with electricity. 

It provides a better alternative to completely eliminate the on-road emissions.

UPI expands to UK, provides hassle-free digital transactions

The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is ready to foray into the UK market starting with QR code-based transactions.

The NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL) has partnered with payments solutions provider, PayXpert to internationalise the acceptance of its payment solutions in the UK.

UAE, Japan, the US, Singapore, Bhutan, Nepal and France are already accepting UPI payment services.

NIPL is the wholly-owned subsidiary of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

South Korea, US ready begin joint military drills Ulchi Freedom Shield

South Korea and the United States have started began their largest joint military drills, 'Ulchi Freedom Shield', and scheduled to end on 1st of September.

South Korea has also launched the four-day Ulchi civil defence drills separately, that is designed to boost government readiness.

Aim: To normalise the combined exercises and boost deterrence against North Korea.

The exercise also aimed at improving the country's preparedness to match the changing patterns of war.

Maharashtra to take Rs 4000 cr loan from ADB to set up medical colleges

Maharashtra govt will take a loan of 4,000 crore rupees from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for setting up medical colleges in 12 districts of the state.

12 districts: Jalgaon, Satara, Alibaug, Sindhudurg, Usmanabad, Parbhani, Amravati, Ratnagiri, Gadhchiroli, Bhandara and Ambernath.

Asian Development Bank has agreed to provide 4,000 crore rupees for setting up medical colleges in these districts.

The target is to complete all of these projects within the 2 years.

Centre collaborate with Arunachal govt for district good governance portal

The Central government has planned to collaborate with the Arunachal Pradesh government to develop a “district good governance portal”.

Aim: To monitor the performance of each district of the state on a monthly basis and help in benchmarking performance.

Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), under the Ministry of Personnel, in collaboration with the Arunachal Pradesh government will develop the portal.

10th National Conference of Women Police to begin in Shimla, HP

The 10th National Conference of Women Police has been started in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, inaugurated by the Union Minister of State for Home affairs Nityanand Rai.

The conference is being organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) in collaboration with Himachal Police.

Objective: To enhance the leadership potential of women police officers and discuss their problems and challenges.

Union Govt awarded GI tag to Bihar's Mithila Makhana

Union government has awarded Geographical Indication (GI) tag to Bihar's Mithila Makhana, this move will help farmers to get the maximum price for their premium produce.

It is a special variety of aquatic fox nut, that cultivated in Mithila region of Bihar and Nepal.

Once a product gets this tag, any person or company cannot sell a similar item under that name.

This tag will be valid for a period of 10 years.

Greece exits 'enhanced surveillance' framework of EU

Greece Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced that it has exited the enhanced surveillance framework of European Union after 12 years.

Economic performance and policies of Greece have been monitored under the framework since 2018 to ensure it implemented reforms promised under three international bailouts.

Greece was badly hit with the pension cuts, spending constraint, tax increases and bank controls after it was forced to seek its first bailout in 2010. 

Paytm shareholders approve re-appointment of Vijay Shekhar Sharma as MD

Shareholders of One97 Communications have approved the re-appointment of Vijay Shekhar Sharma as managing director and chief executive officer of Paytm.

According to the scrutinizer report, 99.67% votes were in favour of Sharma's re-appointment while only 0.33% voted against the resolution.

Remuneration of Vijay Shekhar will be remain fixed for the next three years without any annual increment.

Paytm founded: August 2010, Noida

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.