Daily Current Affairs 10th August, 2020

Daily Current Affairs 10 August 2020 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

Centre Releases Rs 553 Crore to States for Agricultural Mechanization

The Centre has released Rs 553 crore to states under a scheme to promote mechanization in the agriculture sector.

• The Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) was launched in April 2014 with an aim to have inclusive growth of farm mechanization to boost productivity.
• In the year 2020-21, budget of Rs 1,033 crore has been provided for the scheme, out of which Rs 553 crore has been released to state governments

Govt proposes to launch National Clinical Registry for data collection

The Government is set to launch a National Clinical Registry for COVID-19. The main objective of this registry is to collect real time clinical data which will help in evidence based clinical practice, research, formulation of guidelines and policy making.

• The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and All India Institute of Medical Sciences have proposed to establish a COVID-19 clinical registry for data collection from 100 hospitals across the country.
• The duration of the study will be one year and any COVID-19 lab confirmed and hospitalized patient will be enrolled.

Delhi government launches electric vehicle policy, announces incentives of up to ₹1.5 lakh

The Arvind Kejriwal government in Delhi launched the Electric Vehicle Policy for the national capital under which the AAP government will waive registration fee, road tax, and provide an incentive of up to ₹1.5 lakh for new cars.

Arjun Munda flags off “Medicine Van” for Bihar flood victims

Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda flagged off “Medicine Van” for flood victims of Bihar.

• The medicine support of 15 Lakh rupees has been provided by the Thakurdwara Trust, of Jorbhag Delhi. Around two thousands volunteers are working on ground to serve the flood victims.

Deputy Commissioner of Rajouri launches ‘Awaz-e-Rajouri’ mobile app

In order to improve public Grievances redressal mechanism, Deputy Commissioner of Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir, Nazir Sheikh, has launched a mobile app “Awaz-e-Rajouri”. The launch of mobile app would improve public grievances mechanism.

• The use of the app by general public would make the officers and officials more accountable and instill confidence among the people in district administration.
• The app has been developed by a team of NIC, Rajouri.

KVIC set to open first Silk Training cum Production Center in Arunachal

The far-flung tribal village of Chullyu in Arunachal Pradesh will soon be bustling with spinning and weaving activities with Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) set to open the first of its kind Training cum Production Center of Silk in the State.

• Machinery like handlooms, Charkha, Silk reeling machines and warping drums would be installed in the training cum production Center.
• KVIC has transformed the dilapidated school building into the training cum production center for Eri Silk, and has also selected the first batch of 25 local artisans of Chullyu village to begin the training with.

Govt forms panel to fix ceiling rates under duty reimbursement scheme for exporters

The government has constituted a three-member committee for determination of ceiling rates under a scheme for reimbursement of taxes and duties to exporters.

• The reimbursement of taxes under the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products (RoDTEP) such as duty on power charges, VAT on fuel in transportation, farm sector, captive power generation, mandi tax, stamp duty and central excise duty on fuel used in transportation would make Indian products competitive in global markets.
• The committee would be chaired by Secretary (retd) G K Pillai. The other two members are Y G Parande (retd CBIC member) and Gautam Ray (retd chief commissioner of custom and central excise).

Union Minister Smriti Zubin Irani launches Mobile App & Backend Website for Handloom Mark Scheme

On the occasion of the 6th National Handloom Day, Smt Smriti Irani launched the Mobile App & Backend Website for Handloom Mark Scheme (HLM).

• She also inaugurated the ‘My Handloom’ portal for individual weavers and organisations for applying for various benefits under government schemes, handloom marketing assistance and awards.
• A two-week social media campaign was also launched for the handloom weaving community. Further, to promote handloom, a hashtag #Vocal4Handmade has been started.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Asia-Pacific May See $31.4-54.3 Billion Remittance Losses Due to Covid-19: ADB

Asia Pacific, which accounts for a third of the global migrant workforce, is likely to face remittance losses of USD 31.4-54.3 billion due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a report.

• The countries likely to face more severe effects from the pandemic-induced decline in remittance inflows are the ones where remittance shares to gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita remittances are high.
• These include Tonga, Samoa, and other Pacific countries, with remittances relative to the size of their economies and populations very high. Central Asian countries such as Georgia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Tajikistan, sending a large number of seasonal and long-term migrants mainly to the Russian Federation and Europe, will also be hard-hit, along with some of the major migrant origin countries such as Nepal and the Philippines.

BANKING & FINANCE

15 Proposals of Stressed NBFCs, HFCs Worth Rs 6,400 Crore Sanctioned Under Special Liquidity Scheme

The Finance Ministry said 15 proposals worth Rs 6,400 crore of stressed NBFCs and HFCs have been sanctioned under the special liquidity scheme announced as part of the Rs 20.97 lakh crore ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ package.

• 37 more applications seeking financing of up to Rs 11,037 crore are under process.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has provided funds for the scheme by subscribing to government-guaranteed special securities issued by a trust set up by SBI Capital Markets Ltd (SBICAP).

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

RBI permits banks to invest in debt instruments through mutual funds

RBI has permitted banks to invest in debt instruments through mutual funds or exchange traded funds without allocating additional charges.

• As per RBI’s extant Basel III guidelines, if a bank holds a debt instrument directly, it would have to allocate lower capital as compared to holding the same debt instrument through a mutual fund- or exchange traded fund.
• It has been decided to harmonise the differential treatment existing currently. This will result in substantial capital savings for banks and is expected to give a boost to the corporate bond market.

RBI bars banks from opening current accounts for customers having availed cash credit or overdraft facilities

The Reserve Bank of India has barred banks from opening current accounts for customers who have availed cash credit or overdraft facilities, with a view to improve credit discipline.

• In a notification, the Central Bank said, rather than opening a new current account, all transactions should be routed through a Cash Credit or OverDraft account.

CSIR, FSSAI sign MoU for collaborative research on food and nutrition

An agreement was signed between CSIR (Council of Scientific & Industrial Research) and FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) for collaborative research and information dissemination in the area of food and nutrition.

• The two organisations will collaborate towards strengthening the quality assurance of laboratory networks across the country aimed at development and validation of methods for reliable reporting on quality and safety of food products.

IIT Guwahati, in collaboration with Imperial College London, develops nanoparticle ‘meta-grid’

Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, India, and Imperial College London, UK, have developed a tailored ‘meta-grid’ of nanoparticles that could make light-emitting diodes (LEDs) brighter, energy-efficient and durable.

• Meta-grid’ or ‘metamaterial grid’ is a specifically patterned array (grid) of nanoparticles acting as metamaterials, capable of exhibiting extraordinary optical properties.

Flipkart signs MoU with UP government’s one District, One Product scheme

E-commerce marketplace Flipkart has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the One District, One Product (ODOP) scheme of the Uttar Pradesh government to bring artisans, weavers and craftsmen into mainstream business.

• The initiative called ‘Flipkart Samarth’ will enable them to break entry barriers by extending time-bound incubation support which includes benefits in the form of on-boarding, free cataloguing, marketing, account management, business insights and warehousing support.

SPORTS

Equitas SFB appointed as official retail banking partner for Chennai Super Kings

Equitas Small Finance Bank announced that it has been appointed as the official retail banking partner for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) IPL team with effect from August 1, 2020.

• The Chennai-based bank was the principal sponsor of CSK in 2018. Equitas then announced that it will be the banking partner of Team CSK for three years.

AWARDS

IIT Kharagpur bags innovation award for generating electricity from wet clothes

A group of researchers from IIT Kharagpur has conferred the ‘Gandhian Young Technological Innovation Awards 2020’ for developing a mechanism for generating electricity from wet clothes left under sunlight to dry.

• Another team from the institute was separately granted the same award for addressing the problem of energy conservation and thermal management in wearable and flexible electronic devices.
• The ‘Gandhian Young Technological Innovation (GYTI) Awards’ was instituted by the Society for Research and Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies and Institution (SRISTI), a voluntary organization.

OBITUARIES

Former India and Mohun Bagan player Manitombi Singh passes away

Former India footballer Manitombi Singh passed away in Imphal after long illness. He was 39. Manitombi played as a side-back and represented India in two significant tournaments in 2002.

• He was part of the team that won the LG Cup in Vietnam under the captaincy of Bhaichung Bhutia. He also donned the Indian colours at the Busan Asian Games later in the year

Senior Congress leader Nandi Yellaiah passes away

Senior Congress leader and former Vice President of Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) Nandi Yellaiah passed away. He was 85.

• Yellaiah was a six-time member of Lok Sabha and served as the MP of Nagarkurnool constituency till 2019.

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

The International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples is observed on 9 August each year to raise awareness and protect the rights of the world’s indigenous population.

• This year’s theme is ‘COVID-19 and indigenous peoples’ resilience’. It will focus on the how preservation and promotion of indigenous peoples’ traditional knowledge and practices

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