Daily Current Affairs 11 November 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.
NATIONAL NEWS
India, Israel sign pact to speed up innovation, dual-use technology
India and Israel signed a pact aimed at spurring innovation and speeding up the development of dual use technologies by small and medium sized firms in both countries.
- India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Israel’s Directorate of Defence Research and Development (DDR&D), have entered into the agreement to promote innovation and accelerated research and development in start-ups and MSMEs of both countries for the advancement of dual use technologies.
- Under the agreement, start-ups and industry of both countries will work together to bring out next generation technologies and products in the areas such as drones, robotics, artificial intelligence, quantum technology, photonics, biosensing, brain-machine interface, energy storage, wearable devices, natural language processing and others.
Meghalaya Cabinet approves creation of Eastern West Khasi Hills district
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma inaugurated the newly created Eastern West Khasi Hills district which will be the 12th district of the state.
- The Eastern West Khasi Hills district was created by bifurcating it from the West Khasi Hills district.
- It will comprise Mairang and Mawthadraishan Community and Rural Development blocks and will be headquartered at Mairang.
Cabinet adopts 15 November as Janjatiya Gaurav Divas honouring Birsa Munda
The Union Cabinet approved the declaration of 15 November, the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Divas’.
- Union Minister Anurag Thakur making the announcement, said, “Week-long celebrations have been planned from 15 November to 22 November to commemorate the glorious history of tribal people, culture and achievements.”
- The decision to mark 15 November as Janjatiya Gaurav Divas is also an attempt to honour brave tribal freedom fighters and make the youth aware of their sacrifices.
European Union and Bengaluru to work together on Solid Waste Management project
The European Union and the German Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) funded Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMA) Support Project titled ‘Waste Solutions for a Circular Economy in India’ will support Bengaluru in transition to low-carbon Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Management technologies in line with circular economy principles which are based on design out waste and pollution, keep products and materials in use and regenerate natural systems.
- The project aims to provide technical and financial support to BBMP for setting up new plants and revamping existing Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), compost facilities and biomethanation plants.
- The project will also support in creating a role-model source segregation system through citizen engagement and demonstrating models for integrating the informal sector in Bengaluru.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
USA joins International Solar Alliance as 101st member country
The United States of America has become the 101st member country to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA) to catalyse global energy transition through a solar-led approach.
- At the signing, India’s environment minister Bhupender Yadav said, “This move will strengthen ISA and propel future action on providing a clean source of energy to the world.”
India retains top 10 slot in climate performance index
India has retained its top 10 spot in the best performing countries for the third year in a row in the global Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) released by Germanwatch on the side-lines of the COP26.
- No country performed well enough in all index categories to achieve an overall very high rating in CCPI, the report noted. As a result, the top three places in the overall ranking remain empty once again.
- Denmark placed 4th and is the highest ranked country in CCPI 2022. However, it does not perform well enough to achieve an overall very high rating. Thus India at the 10th slot is the seventh best performing country. India maintained its 10th position despite pandemic-hit operational difficulties which saw some regulatory flexibility to put the country’s economy back on track.
- China is the current biggest polluter and figured at 37th position, falling down three spots since last year, while the second highest current emitter — US — was at the 55th spot in the CCPI 2022.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Meta launches ‘Grow your Business Hub’ to bolster small businesses in India
Meta has announced the launch of online resource centre ‘Grow Your Business Hub’, for small businesses to help find relevant information, tools, and solutions curated to cater to their business goals.
- The announcement was made at the inaugural edition of the ‘Grow Your Business Summit’ – an event focused on the growth agenda of India’s small and medium businesses (SMB).
- Every month, millions of small businesses – 15 million just on WhatsApp in India – use the Meta apps to start their online journeys and grow their business.
SPORTS
India bags 5 medals at inaugural ISSF President’s Cup
India finished the inaugural ISSF President’s Cup with five medals, including two Gold, two Silver and one Bronze.The invitation-only tournament was held at the Wroclaw in Poland, featuring the top-12 shooters in each of the shotgun, pistol and rifle categories.
India’s winner list:
Gold:
1.Manu Bhaker – 25m Rapid Fire pistol Mixed Team competition
2.Manu Bhaker – 10m air pistol mixed team competition
Silver:
1.Rahi Sarnobat – women’s 25m pistol silver individual competition
2.Saurabh Chaudhary – Men’s 10m Air Pistol individual competition
Bronze:
1.Abhishek Verma – Men’s 10m Air Pistol individual competition.
IOC, UNODC extend collaboration to fight corruption and crime in sport
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to further strengthen the cooperation between the two organisations in fighting corruption and crime in sport.
- The agreement has a particular focus on preventing youth crime, violence and drug use through sport and was signed at Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland, by IOC President Thomas Bach and UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly.
APPOINTMENTS
IPS officer Sheel Vardhan Singh to head CISF, Atul Karwal appointed new NDRF chief
Senior IPS officers Sheel Vardhan Singh and Atul Karwal were appointed as chiefs of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), respectively.
- While Singh is an IPS officer of the Bihar cadre, Karwal is from Gujarat Cadre.
- Sources said the orders indicate that SN Pradhan may now be appointed as regular DG of the Narcotics Control Bureau. He is currently holding additional charge as NDRF DG.
Vice Admiral R Hari Kumar Appointed Next Chief of Navy Staff
The Union government has appointed Western Naval Command chief Vice Admiral R Hari Kumar as the next Chief of Naval Staff, the Ministry of Defence announced.
- Kumar will take over the post from the current chief Admiral Karambir Singh on November 30.
- Kumar was commissioned into the executive branch of the Navy on January 1, 1983. During his career, he has commanded several warships, including INS Nishank, INS Kora, guided missile destroyer INS Ranvir and aircraft carrier INS Viraat.
AWARDS
Haryana’s Bhattu Kalan police station among India’s top three
The Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) has recognised Bhattu Kalan police station of Fatehabad district in Haryana among the top three police stations in India in 2021.
- Also the Gangapur police station in Odisha’s Ganjam district has been selected as one of the top three police stations in the country for the current year by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.
- Union Home Minister Amit Shah will hand over the award to the police station inspector in a function to be held at the Uttar Pradesh Police headquarters in Lucknow on November 19.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
INS Vela, India’s fourth Scorpene-class submarine, delivered to Indian Navy
The Indian Navy got its fourth submarine INS Vela under Project75 after completing all trails at the sea, the Indian Navy said.
- Project75 includes the construction of six submarines of Scorpene design. These submarines are being constructed at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) Mumbai, under collaboration with M/s Naval Group, France.
- Three submarines Under Project-75 that are functional are INS Karanj, INS Kalvari, and INS Khanderi. INS Vagir was launched last year and the sixth one, INS Vagsheer, is under construction.
India’s 1st centre for research on drone tech in IIT-Guwahati
Union Minister of State Civil Aviation General V.K. Singh (retd.) launched India’s first Centre for Excellence in Research on Drone/UAV Technology and Artificial Intelligence at Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati.
- The minister also inaugurated Skill development Centre for Drone/UAV operation and maintenance, Nodal Centre for overall administrative Drone Data management for northeastern region and “AXOM Droneports”, which will be used to support cargo drones delivering urgent medical and emergency supplies to remote areas of the region.
OBITUARIES
Ex-GITAM chancellor, academician Ramakrishna Rao passes away at 89
Former chancellor of GITAM deemed-to-be University and former vice-chancellor of Andhra University (AU), Padma Shri Koneru Ramakrishna Rao, died in Visakhapatnam, after a brief illness.He was 89.
- Professor Rao was an internationally recognised psychologist, Gandhian scholar and educator who has written over 20 books and 300 research publications.
- Prof. Rao was bestowed with many honours, including honorary doctoral degrees from Nagarjuna, Kakatiya and Andhra universities and Padma Shri from the Government of India.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
“Sunrise over Ayodhya – Nationhood in our Times” book by Salman Khurshid
The book titled “Sunrise over Ayodhya – Nationhood in our Times” written by former union minister and Congress leader Salman Khurshid has been released recently.
- Khurshid said, “People used to think that it will take 100 years for the verdict to come. After the verdict, people started giving opinions perhaps without reading it or understanding that what, why or how did Supreme Court give the judgement.”
‘Finding A Straight Line Between Twists and Turns’ book by Aseem Chawla
The book titled ‘Finding A Straight Line Between Twists and Turns’ authored by Aseem Chawla has been released recently.
- The book was published by Matrix Publishers. The book provides an in-depth analysis of both national and international of the Indian tax landscape over a decade.