Daily Current Affairs 18th March, 2021

Daily Current Affairs 18 March 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

Monument Mitras to take up development, operations & maintenance of basic amenities of Dara Shikoh Library Building, Delhi
Union Tourism Ministry has signed an MoU with Monument Mitras to take up development, operations and maintenance of basic amenities of Dara Shikoh Library Building, Delhi. The MoU has been signed under the Adopt a Heritage: Apni Dharohar, Apni Pehchaan project.

• Under this MoU, the Monument Mitras will take up development, operations and maintenance of basic amenities such as cleanliness of building and outdoor area including provision of garbage bins, benches, toilets, interpretative signs and directional signage and drinking water facilities.
• They will also setup galleries, Security and Advanced surveillance system and advanced amenities such as cafeteria.

Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors to be operational in 2022
Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors will become operational in 2022 informed Railways’s Minister Piyush Goyal in Lok Sabha.

• Mr. Goyal said, two lakh 15 thousand crore rupees have been allocated for Railways in 2021-22 Budget.
• He said, Railways is planning to start 44 Vande Bharat trains across the country. The Minister said that Railways is focusing on the safety of the passengers and asserted that no passenger was killed due to rail accidents in the last two years.

Cabinet approves MoU between India, Maldives on Cooperation in Sports & Youth Affairs
The Union Cabinet was apprised of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Union  Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment of  Maldives  for cooperation in Sports and Youth Affairs.

• Bilateral exchange programmes in the field of sports and youth affairs between India and Maldives will help in expanding knowledge and expertise in the area of sports science, sports medicine, coaching techniques, participation in youth festivals and camps.

Sikkim paired with Delhi under ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’ programme
The Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat programme, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015, celebrates the diverse culture, traditions and languages of our country.

• Sikkim has been paired with national capital New Delhi, under which various programmes and activities have been undertaken.

Govt forms experts committee for Startup India Seed Fund Scheme
The government has constituted an experts advisory committee which will be responsible for the overall execution and monitoring of the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme.

• The committee would be chaired by H K Mittal from the Department of Science and Technolo. gy
• Other representatives would include members from DPIIT, department of biotechnology, science and technology, electronics and IT, Niti Aayog, and expert members from the startup ecosystem.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Italy joins International Solar Alliance under the amended ISA Framework Agreement
Italy has signed the International Solar Alliance under the amended ISA Framework Agreement. The amendments to the Framework Agreement of the ISA entered into force, opening its Membership to all Member States of the UN.

• The Framework Agreement was signed by Italy’s Ambassador, Vincenzo De Luca. The signed copies of the Agreement were received by Additional Secretary (ER), as the representative of External Affairs Ministry, which is the depositary of ISA Framework Agreement.

India and Philippines most vulnerable to repeat of taper tantrum of 2013: S&P
India and the Philippines were the most vulnerable to a repeat of the taper tantrum of 2013 as reflation trades were lifting US bond yields, according to global rating agency S&P.

• Rising inflation in recent months and below average real policy rates could imply quicker capital flight, prompting central banks in the two economies to hike rates.
• On the other hand, stronger than normal current account levels acted as a mitigating factor to these risks, S&P said.
• The taper tantrum of 2013 refers to the instance of a spike in US bond yields on account of the Federal Reserves’ (Fed) indication that it would begin unwinding its quantitative easing program.

El Salvador becomes first central American country to be declared malaria-free
El Salvador has become the first country in central America and the third in all Americas to get the malaria-free certificate from the World Health Organization (WHO) in recent years.

• Malaria elimination certificate is awarded to a country when the chain of indigenous transmission of the disease has been disrupted nationwide for at least three consecutive years.

BANKING & FINANCE

HDFC Bank leads peer lenders over mobile transactions despite tech glitches
Despite facing multiple technical glitches in the past two years, HDFC Bank continues to lead over ICICI Bank and Axis Bank on overall daily and absolute mobile transaction values amongst private banks, almost 1.5-2x times it competitors, data released by advisory and research firm Bernstein showed.

• In spite of its scale SBIs Yono continued to lag on user usage with customers facing friction with user interface. The analysis showed that private lender Kotak Mahindra Bank had the highest transaction activity despite its low scale.
• The Bernstein report further notes that Axis Bank drives the highest volumes in mobile transactions after SBI Yono while HDFC Bank has largest share in mobile transaction values in private sector banks.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Samsung Partners Delhi Technological University to set up Samsung Innovation Lab
Samsung India has inaugurated a Samsung Innovation Lab at Delhi Technological University (DTU) under the Samsung Innovation Campus initiative, strengthening its commitment towards the Government’s Skill India initiative as part of its new vision #PoweringDigitalIndia.

• At the lab, students and faculty at DTU will work on advanced technology training as well as joint research collaborations on domains such as Application Framework, Multimedia, Health and Security, making students industry-ready.
• With this addition, Samsung now has eight technical labs spread across the country as part of its Samsung Innovation Campus initiative, which was earlier called Samsung Digital Academy.

Nokia partners with Microsoft, Amazon, Google to develop 5G radio solutions
Finnish telecom equipment maker Nokia announced it has partnered with Microsoft, Amazon web services and Google to develop new cloud-based 5G radio solutions with its radio access network (RNA) technology.

• The goal of the partnerships is to develop new business cases.
• Open collaboration is key to the development of new and innovative high value 5G use cases that will equip our customers with the tools they need for digital transformation.

ReNew Power named in WEF’s Global Lighthouse Network
Renewable energy firm ReNew Power said it has become a part of the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse Network.

• ReNew Power has been named to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Lighthouse Network, which recognises companies using new technologies to achieve environmentally sustainable, community supportive, profitable growth.

SPORTS

UAE players Shaiman Anwar and Mohammad Naveed given eight-year bans for anti-corruption breaches
The ICC slapped eight-year bans on United Arab Emirates (UAE) cricketers Mohammad Naveed and Shaiman Anwar Butt for their alleged role in trying to fix matches in the T20 World Cup qualifier in 2019.

• The bans are backdated to October 16, 2019, when they were provisionally suspended for attempting to corrupt matches and found guilty of breaching global body’s Anti-Corruption Code.
• The 33-year-old former captain and right-arm pacer Naveed has played 39 ODIs and 31 T20 Internationals for his country, while 42-year-old middle-order batsman Butt has played 40 ODIs and 32 games in the shortest format.

Virat Kohli becomes first player to score 3000 runs in men’s T20I
India captain Virat Kohli became the first batsman to make 3000 runs in men’s T20I cricket.

• He achieved the feat in the second T20I between India and England in Ahmedabad. Kohli was already the leading scorer in the format in men’s cricket before the match.
• Only two other cricketers have scored more than 3000 runs in the format – both in women’s cricket. Suzie Bates (3301 runs) of New Zealand and Stafanie Taylor (3062) of the West Indies are the others to achieve this feat.

APPOINTMENTS

Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan appointed as Chairman of international body Stop TB Partnership Board
Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr Harsh Vardhan has been appointed as the Chairman of the international body Stop TB Partnership Board.

• He was appointed in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the movement to eradicate Tuberculosis from India by 2025. 
• Dr Harsh Vardhan will serve a three-year term, commencing from July this year.

Principal Advisor to PM Modi PK Sinha resigns
A year and a half after he was appointed Principal Advisor to the Prime Minister, retired IAS officer P.K. Sinha has resigned from the PMO.

• Earlier, he was Secretary, Ministry of Power in the government of India and served as Cabinet Secretary for four years from 2015.
• Mr. Sinha is a retired 1977 batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre and served in various capacities during the UPA and the NDA regimes.

AWARDS

Gowsalya Shankar presented with International Woman of Courage 2021 Award  
The U.S. Consulate honoured Tamil Nadu-based anti-caste activist and human rights defender Gowsalya Shankar with the International Woman of Courage (IWOC) Award in the city.

• The IWOC Award Certificate of Nomination was handed over to her by U.S. Consul General in Chennai Judith Ravin at an event ‘Courageous Women Inspire a Better World’ held in the city.
• Ms. Gowsalya was U.S. Mission India’s nominee for the 2021 U.S. Secretary of State’s IWOC Award, which honours women who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strength, and leadership in acting to improve the lives of others.

OBITUARIES

Former Union Minister and BJP leader Dilip Gandhi passes away
Former Union Minister and BJP leader Dilip Gandhi has passed away. He was 69.

• Gandhi has represented the Ahmednagar South constituency three times as an MP.
• In 1999, he won the first Lok Sabha election. During this period he was a member of the Rural Development Committee from 2000 to 2004 and the Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Finance from 2000 to 2003.
• He was elected to the Lok Sabha for the second time in 2009 and for the third time in 2014.

Tanzanian President John Magufuli passes away
Tanzania’s President John Magufuli has passed away at a hospital in Dar es Salaam. He was 61.

• As per Tanzania’s constitution, Tanzania’s vice-president Samia Suluhu Hassan will be the new president of Tanzania. She will complete the rest of Magufuli’s five-year term which he commenced last year.

Bangladesh former PM Moudud Ahmed passes away
BNP leader and eminent lawyer Moudud Ahmed passed away while undergoing treatment at a Singapore hospital.He was 81.

• His political wisdom, books on country’s politics and legal explanations will remain as reference in the country’s political and judiciary landscape.
• Barrister Moudud served as the prime minister, deputy prime minister, vice-president, and minister of the country.

BOOKS & AUTHORS 

New children’s book to tell story of Raja Ravi Varma
The children’s book, titled Prince with a Paintbrush: The Story of Raja Ravi Varma, is written by author-poet Shobha Tharoor Srinivasan will hit the stands in April, announced publishing house Westland. 

• Published under Westland’s ‘Red Panda’ imprint, it aims to inspire young readers to learn about the famed artist and how he made his entry and mark in the art world.

Maharashtra Guv releases e-book on Mumbai GPO building
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari released a digital book depicting the history of Mumbai General Post Office building.

• The e-book, titled ”Dawn Under The Dome” has been authored by Post Master General of Mumbai Swati Pandey in collaboration with Orchida Mukherjee. 

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