Daily Current Affairs 10th August, 2021

Daily Current Affairs 10 August 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

The world’s first Bio Bank of Ayurveda to be set up at AIIA, Delhi
Ayush Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has assured all help for establishing the first Bio-Bank of the world in Ayurveda at All India Institute of Ayurveda in New Delhi.

• Mr Sonowal appreciated the work done by the institute and assured their full-fledged support for further development of the Institute to make it world’s best Ayurveda Institute.

PM Modi Transfers About Rs 19,500 Crore to Over 9.75 Crore Farmers Under PM-KISAN Scheme
Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually transferred about Rs 19,500 crore to over 9.75 crore beneficiaries farmers under the government’s PM-KISAN scheme. 

• With this, the government has so far transferred nine installments amounting around Rs 1.57 lakh crore to farmer families under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme.
• An annual financial benefit of Rs 6,000 is provided to eligible beneficiary farmer families, payable in three equal four-monthly installments of Rs 2,000 each, under the PM-KISAN scheme.

UNICEF India, Facebook Launch Initiative To Create Safe Online Environment For Children
UNICEF India and Facebook launched a one-year joint initiative to end violence against children with a special focus on online safety.

• In a statement, UNICEF said the partnership seeks to create a safe environment for children online and offline.
• It aims to improve children’s resilience and capacity to access the digital world safely, increase awareness on violence against children and its impact on children, families and communities, as well as enhance skills of communities and frontline workers to better prevent and respond to violence.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

In a world first, South Africa grants patent to an artificial intelligence system
In a world first, South Africa grants a patent to an artificial intelligence system.

• DABUS(which stands for “device for the autonomous bootstrapping of unified sentience”)  is an AI system created by Stephen Thaler, a pioneer in the field of AI and programming. The system simulates human brainstorming and creates new inventions.
• DABUS is a particular type of AI, often referred to as “creativity machines” because they are capable of independent and complex functioning. This differs from everyday AI like Siri, the “voice” of Apple’s iPhones.

India in 32nd position in finding innovative solutions to fight Covid-19
India fell six spots to the 32nd place in the global coronavirus innovation rankings for countries, as per a report prepared by StartupBlink in association with Health Innovation Exchange, UNAIDS.Top 5 Countries are US, Israel, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland.

• The report features the top-ranked 40 countries and 100 cities in the world based on innovative solutions developed to face the pandemic.
• The US remains on top of the list this year as well, with 405 mapped Covid-related innovations and five of its cities listed in the top 100. Among its most notable innovations are John Hopkins University for Information (databases), Moderna and Johnson and Johnson for Prevention (vaccines).
• India has two cities featured – Bengaluru, 49th rank, New Delhi, 55th rank – among the top 100 and has 15 Covid-related innovations mapped this year – four in ‘prevention’, three in ‘grants and support initiatives’, one in ‘information’, three in ‘treatment’ and four in ‘diagnostics’

BANKING & FINANCE

SIDBI launches Swavalamban Challenge Fund to promote entrepreneurship
Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), the principal financial institution engaged in the promotion, financing and development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), in partnership with Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, UK (FCDO UK) has launched ‘Swavalamban Challenge Fund’ (SCF).

• A challenge fund is a fund support mechanism to allocate funds for specific purposes using competition among organisations.
• Suppose there is an idea which needs to be piloted or scaled up, but funds are an issue, challenge fund provides solution platform to present the idea in prescribed theme, implement and validate it. Later the same can be scaled up by leveraging other donor / financier support.

NSE, IBBI ink pact for research collaboration
Leading stock exchange NSE said it has joined hands with the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) for research collaboration.

• The objective of the collaboration is to create a research ecosystem in the area of insolvency and bankruptcy in the country.
• Under this collaboration, NSE and IBBI will focus on enhancing the existing research efforts in the areas related to insolvency and bankruptcy in India, promoting studies that explore interlinkages between the development of the insolvency process, financial markets and economy.

APPOINTMENTS

Rekha Sharma gets 3-year extension as National Commission for Women Chairperson
Rekha Sharma was given a three-year extension as the Chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW), according to an official order.

• Sharma, 57, assumed the charge of NCW chairperson on August 7, 2018.
• She has been associated with the Commission as a member since August 2015 and held the additional charge as the chairperson from September 29, 2017, before becoming its regular chief.

Tunisian President Kais Saied sacks Prime Minister
Tunisia’s president said he was dismissing the Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi and freezing parliament in a major escalation of political feuding in the democratic country following protests in several cities.

• President Kais Saied said he would assume executive authority with the assistance of a new Prime Minister, prompting the biggest challenge yet to a 2014 constitution that split powers between president, prime minister and parliament.
• Mr. Saied has been enmeshed in political disputes with Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi for over a year, as the country grapples with an economic crisis, a looming fiscal crunch and a flailing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hockey player Vandana Kataria made Uttarakhand’s Women & Child Development ambassador
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has appointed Team India’s hockey player Vandana Katariya as the brand ambassador of the state’s Department of Women Empowerment and Child Development. 

• Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami earlier announced a cash reward of Rs 25 lakh to Vandana Kataria for her stellar performance at the Tokyo Olympics.

AWARDS

Telangana wins AI Gamechanger award for crowd monitoring solution
The Telangana government’s Information Technology, Electronics and Communications (ITE&C) department has won the AI Gamechanger Award at the Xperience-AI Summit organised by NASSCOM.

• The extensive AI research works and projects adopted by the state government helped it to win the award.
• For a thorough view of the landscape, entries across enterprises, startups, government bodies, academic institutes and NGOs were invited for the award.

OBITUARIES

Malayalam Actress Saranya Sasi passes away 
Malayalam actress Saranya Sasi, who worked predominantly in televisions shows, died at the age of 35 in a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

• ‘Chhota Mumbai,’ ‘Thalappavu,’ ‘Bombay March 12’, and ‘Kootukari,’ ‘Avakashikal,’ ‘Harichandanam,’ ‘Malakhamar,’ and ‘Rahasyam’ are among the actress’s films.
• She had launched a YouTube channel to exhibit her culinary skills during the lockdown.

Indo-Pak War Hero Who Bombarded Karachi Port in 1971 No More
Commodore Kasargod Patnashetti Gopal Rao, a 1971 war hero and recipient of the Mahavir Chakra, breathed his last said sources in the defence. He was 94.

• He played a key role in the war with Pakistan to liberate East Pakistan that is now Bangladesh. Rao led a small task group of the Western Fleet and launched an offensive off the coast of Karachi as part of Operation Cactus Lily.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

“The Year That Wasn’t – The Diary of a 14-Year-Old”, book by Brisha Jain
Veteran actor Shabana Azmi has launched the book titled “The Year That Wasn’t – The Diary of a 14-Year-Old”, which is penned by Kolkata girl Brisha Jain. 

• The book was written by a 14-year-old girl, which chronicles the lockdown days seen through her eyes as the Covid-19 pandemic spreading last year.

“A Death in Shonagachhi” Novel by Rijula Das
Rijula Das’ debut novel, ‘A Death In Shonagachhi’ has been released recently.

• In her novel, A Death In Shonagachhi, Rijula Das’s writing immediately evoked this debate in my mind by plunging the reader into Shonagachhi, the well-known red light district of Calcutta. It did, however, become immediately indubitable that Das had done her research.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Lion Day
World Lion Day is celebrated annually throughout the world on August 10 as a day to commemorate the ‘king of the jungle’ and raise awareness about the need for its conservation.

• World Lion Day operates to serve a greater purpose than to merely commemorate the existence of the ‘king of the jungle in our biodiversity.
• The lion is an endangered species on the IUCN Red List. The 5 biggest cats are found mostly in India, including the Royal Bengal Tiger, Indian leopard, Clouded Leopard, and Snow leopard.

World Biofuel Day
 August 10 marks World Biofuel Day, which is observed annually.

• The day serves as an opportunity to propagate understanding and create awareness about the significance of non-fossil fuels as a substitute to conventional fossil fuels.
• The theme for World Biofuel Day 2021 is based on “the promotion of biofuels for a better environment. “The day is to raise awareness to replace the traditional fossil fuels with non-fossil fuels.

August 7 to be named “Javelin Throw Day” to honour Neeraj Chopra’s historic gold
The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) decided to name August 7 as ‘Javelin Throw Day’ in India to honour Neeraj Chopra’s first historic Olympic gold.

•  The javelin thrower bagged the gold medal in men’s javelin throw at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on August 7.

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