Latest Current Affairs For Wednesday 16th November, 2022

Bank of Maharashtra tops PSU lenders’ list in Q2 Credit Growth

According to published quarterly numbers of public sector banks (PSBs), Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) has emerged as the top performer among public sector lenders in terms of loan growth in percentage terms during the second quarter of 2022-23.

BoM has recorded a 28.62% increase in gross advances at Rs 1,48,216 crore at the end of September 2022.

It was followed by Union Bank of India, State Bank of India.

Jaipur International Airport receives Aerodrome licence from DGCA

Jaipur International Airport Limited has received the Aerodrome licence from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Earlier, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) was the licence holder.

Now the private player, which is operating the Jaipur airport since October 2021, has become the new licence holder.

The licence is given to an airport operator for ensuring complete management of the airport in accordance with the concession agreement.

Actor Kevin Conroy, voice of Batman's animated series, passes away

Actor Kevin Conroy, who gave his voice to Batman on Warner Bros’ TV show Batman: The Animated Series, has been passed away at 66.

The acclaimed animated series, which launched in 1992 and continued until 1996, is where Conroy first voiced Batman.

He also appeared in several DC Universe Animated Original Movies, including Batman: Gotham Knight (2008), Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009), and Justice League vs. the Fatal Five (2019).

Gaurav Dwivedi appointed as Prasar Bharati CEO

A 1995-batch officer of Chhattisgarh cadre, Senior IAS officer, Gaurav Dwivedi has been appointed the Chief Executive Officer of Prasar Bharati for five years.

Presently, he is posted as Principal Secretary, Commercial Tax, in the Chhattisgarh government.

Prior to this, he was also served as the CEO of MyGovIndia, which was launched by PM Narendra Modi in 2014.

Prasar Bharati founded: 23 November 1997; HQ: New Delhi. 

Veteran Telugu actor Krishna passes away

Veteran Telugu actor, Ghattamnaneni Siva Rama Krishna Murthy, known as Krishna has been passed away at 80 due to cardiac arrest.

He was the father of Telugu superstar Mahesh Babu.

He was active in the Telugu film industry for over six decades and has worked in over 350 films.

He began his career with minor roles in films such as ‘Kula Gothralu’ (1961), ‘Paravu Prathishtha’ (1963) and ‘Padandi Mundhuku’ (1962).

He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2009.

India wins gold in 10m air rifle mixed event at Asian Airgun C'ship

Arjun Babuta and Mehuli Ghosh clinched the gold medal in 10 m air rifle in the mixed team category at Asian Airgun Championship 2022, being held in Daegu, South Korea.

In the 10 m air rifle mixed team junior event, Divyansh Singh Panwar and Ramita won gold medal against Sri Karthik Sabari Raj Ravishankar and Nancy.

Kanishka Dagar clinched bronze in 10 m air pistol youth women’s event.

While, Sandeep Bishnoi received gold in the 10 m air pistol junior men’s event.

Janjatiya Gaurav Divas 2022: 15th November

Janjatiya Gaurav Divas is observed on 15th November across the nation, to commemorate the contributions of tribal communities in the nation's history and culture.

On this day, President Droupadi Murmu has paid tributes to Bhagwan Birsa Munda at Ulihatu village in Jharkhand.

Birsa Munda:

He was born on 15th November 1875 in a Munda tribe.

Location: Chotanagpur Plateau area (Khunti district of present Jharkhand).

He was died at 25 in British custody at the Ranchi jail. 

World population crosses 8-billion mark: UN

According to the ‘World Population Prospects 2022’ report, which was released on World Population Day (11 July), the global population reach the mark of eight billion on 15th November 2022.

It was also projected that India will surpass China as the world’s most populous country in 2023.

The latest projections by UN has also suggested that the global population could grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030 and 9.7 billion in 2050.

G7 launches climate ‘Shield’ fund

The G7 nations has launched a plan named 'Global Shield' at the 27th UN Climate Change Conference on November 14, 2022.

It is a climate fund, and provide funds to disaster-hit countries.

It is backed by 170 million euros in funding from Germany and 40 million euros from other donors including Denmark and Ireland.

It is coordinated by Germany and the V20 group.

The V20 refers to the Vulnerable Twenty Group of Ministers of the Climate Vulnerable Forum.

Sharath Kamal to receive 2022 Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna

Sharath Kamal Achanta (Table Tennis player) has been selected for 2022 Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award and will be awarded on 30th November by President of India.

Arjuna Awards: This year 25 sportspersons have been selected for this award.

Five coaches have been chosen for Dronacharya Award in the regular category and three coaches in lifetime category.

Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement: Ashwini Akkunji C, Dharamvir Singh, B.C Suresh and Nir Bahadur Gurung.

India wins silver at 2022 Para Shooting World C'ship in Mixed 50m Pistol

The Indian pistol team of Singhraj, Manish Narwal and Deepender Singh has bagged a silver medal in the P4- Mixed 50m Pistol SH1 event at the 2022 Para Shooting World C'ship 2022, held at Al Ain, UAE.

Indian finished with a total score of 1579-13x.

The South Korean team of Sea Kyun Park, Aeekyung Moon and Jungnam Kim, won the gold medal with an aggregate score of 1592-21x.

While, the Turkey has secured the bronze medal with a total of 1574-23x.

Mary Kom, PV Sindhu, Mirabai elected as IOA Athletes Commission member

MC Mary Kom, PV Sindhu, Mirabai Chanu and Gagan Narang were among 10 eminent sportspersons elected as members of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) Athletes Commission.

Other six members: Shiva Keshavan, Sharath Kamal, Rani Rampal, Bhavani Devi, Bajrang Lal and Om Prakash Singh Karhana.

All the 10 elected members of the apex body are Olympians.

As per the new constitution of IOA, the athletes commission is to have equal representation of male and female members.

Carlos Saura to receive Lifetime Achievement Award at 53rd IFFI, Goa

Carlos Saura (Spanish Film Director) will be conferred the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award 2022 at the 53rd edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) at Goa.

This announcement was made by L Murugan (MoS, Information and Broadcasting).

Carlos was honoured with the Golden Bear for Best Director at Berlin International Film Festival for Deprisa Deprisa in 1981.

Spotlight country: France

Opening Film: Alma and Oskar

Closing film: Perfect Number

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.