Daily Current Affairs 12th February, 2021

Daily Current Affairs 12 February 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

PM Modi Inaugurates World Sustainable Development Summit 2021
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the World Sustainable Development Summit 2021 via video conferencing.

• The theme of the Summit is ‘Redefining our common future: Safe and secure environment for all’.
• The 20th edition of The Energy and Resources Institute’s (TERI) flagship event, the World Sustainable Development Summit, held online to bring together a wide number of governments, business leaders, academicians, climate scientists, youth, and the civil society in the fight against climate change.

Centre for Land Warfare Studies organises Indian Army National Seminar-cum-Webinar, named Divya-Drishti 202
Indian Army National Seminar-cum-Webinar, named as Divya-Drishti 202 on Multi-Domain Operations: Future of Conflicts was organised by Centre for Land Warfare Studies, CLAWS.

• Divya-Drishti 2021, meaning divine or cognitive perception required for an informed vision, aimed to bring together national and international experts and practitioners to deliberate on the complex and emerging subject on multi-domain operations.
• The webinar was attended virtually by Army Chief General MM Naravane, Vice Chief of Army Lieutenant General CP Mohanty, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Army Training Command Lieutenant General Raj Shukla, along with other dignitaries from the Ministry of Defence, three Services, former Chiefs of the Army Staff and leading security Think Tanks in the country and members of the media.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurates more than 57,000 water structures in MP under ‘Jalabhishekam’ campaign
Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh virtually inaugurated more than 57,000 water structures constructed in Madhya Pradesh under ‘Jalabhishekam’ campaign from New Delhi.

• These water structures were created during COVID era by linking the work with the MNREGA scheme.
• The ‘Jalabhishekam’ Campaign is fulfilling the intention of ‘water for every farm and work for every hand’. This will prove to be helpful in the betterment of the villages.

Govt launches new Central Sector Scheme titled ‘Formation and Promotion of 10,000 FPOs
The Ministry of Agriculture has said that the government has  launched a new Central Sector Scheme titled ‘Formation and Promotion of 10,000 Farmer Produce Organizations (FPOs)’ and it has committed resources in this regard with a budgetary provision of Rs 6,865 crore.

• The FPOs are to be developed to produce clusters, wherein agricultural and horticultural products are grown for leveraging economies of scale and improving market access for members.
• FPOs will be provided financial assistance upto Rs 18 lakh per FPO for a period of three  years. In addition to this, provision has been made for matching equity grant up to two thousand rupees per farmer member of FPO with a limit of 15 lakh rupees per FPO and a credit guarantee facility upto Rs two crore of project loan per FPO from eligible lending institutions to ensure institutional credit accessibility to FPOs.

Goa becomes 6th State in country to successfully undertake Urban Local Bodies reforms
Goa has become the 6th State in the country to successfully undertake Urban Local Bodies reforms stipulated by the Department of Expenditure.

• Finance Ministry said, the state has now become eligible to mobilise additional financial resources of 223 crore rupees through Open Market Borrowings.
• Goa has joined five other states – Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Rajasthan and Telangana, who have completed Urban Local Bodies reforms.

CCEA approves proposal of Department of Fertilizers for Grant-in-aid of Rs 100 crore to BVFCL
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, CCEA has given its nod to a proposal of the Department of Fertilizers for Grant-in-aid of Rs 100 crore to Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizers Corporation Limited (BVFCL), Namrup in Assam to sustain operations of it’s urea manufacturing units.

• BVFCL is a Public Sector Undertaking which  is situated at North-Eastern part of India, which plays an important role in economic growth in the region.
• The grant in aid of Rs 100 crore to BVFCL will restore the urea production capacity of 3.90 Lakh metric tonnes  per annum and ensure timely availability of Urea to the Tea Industry and Farming Sector in the entire North Eastern region specially Assam.

India’s first ever CNG Tractor launched 
India’s first-ever diesel tractor converted to CNG formally launched by the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari.

• It added that the conversion, carried out jointly by Rawmatt Techno Solutions & Tomasetto Achille India, will help farmers increase their income by lowering costs and help in creating job opportunities in rural India.
• The most important benefit for the farmer will be to save more than Rs 1 lakh annually on fuel costs, which will help them improve their livelihood.

BANKING & FINANCE

RBI conducted OMO for ₹20,000 crore on 10 Feb 
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced that it purchased government securities worth ₹20,000 crore through open market operations (OMOs) on 10 February 2021in a bid to cap yields of treasury bonds and support an expanded government borrowing programme.

• The central bank will purchase long-term security maturing in 2024, 2028, 2030 and 2034.
• The bond market had been waiting for the OMO announcement ever since the government announced in the budget its intent to raise ₹12 trillion for the next financial year and an additional ₹80,000 crore for this year.

BRICS’ New Development Bank commits $100 mn to NIIF Fund of Funds
New Development Bank (NDB), the multilateral development bank established by the BRICS states, has announced a commitment of $100 million into the NIIF Fund of Funds (FoF).

• With NDB’s investment, the FoF has secured $800 million in commitments and joins the Government of India (GoI), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) as an investor in the FoF.
• This investment marks NDB’s first equity investment into India and its first ever investment in an FoF.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

India’s GDP to bounce back to 10.4% growth in FY22, says India Ratings
India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) estimates India’s gross domestic product (GDP) to bounce back to 10.4 per cent growth in FY22 driven by base effect, signalling that a meaningful recovery will not happen before FY23.

• The rating agency expects GDP growth to turn positive at 0.3 per cent in the January-March quarter of FY21 after shrinking in first nine months of the year.
• The YoY recovery in FY22 will be V-shaped, but the size of GDP will barely surpass the level attained in FY20 and will be 10.6 per cent lower than the trend value

Maharashtra govt signs MoU with Flipkart to promote wooden toys, local artifacts, handicrafts
In order to promote wooden toys, local artifacts, handicrafts Maharashtra Small Industries Development Corporation and Maharashtra State Khadi & Village Industries Board have signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with Flipkart.

• This MoU will enable artisans, weavers, craftsmen & MSMEs from Maharashtra to showcase their products to millions of customers in India.
• Flipkart will provide free training for packaging and branding to all these manufacturers. Also, product photography will also be done by the company.

India’s Forex reserves jump by 4.85 billion dollars to record high of 590.18 billion dollars
The country’s foreign exchange reserves rose by 4.85 billion US Dollars to touch a record high of 590.18 billion dollars in the week ended January 29.

• Forex reserves rose on account of an increase in foreign currency assets (FCA), a major component of the overall reserves. FCA increased by 5.03 billion dollars to 547.22 billion dollars.
• The gold reserves declined by 164 million dollars to 36.29 billion dollars in the week ended January 29.
• The special drawing rights with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were down by 4 million dollars to 1.51 billion dollars in the reporting week. The country’s reserve position with the IMF also declined by 6 million dollars to 5.16 billion dollars in the week.

Siemens ties up with IISc, CMTI to set up digital transformation labs
Siemens said it has signed pacts with Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Central Manufacturing Technology Institute (CMTI)establish first-of-its-kind digital transformation lab.

• The labs are aimed at enhancing the expertise of researchers at IISc as well as technical skills of professionals in the machine tool industry.
• This initiative will benefit many research scholars, students and industry professionals across the machine tool industry in Bengaluru for a period of three years.

Indian pharma market expected to hit $130 billion by 2030: Sadananda Gowda
The Indian pharmaceutical industry has proved to be a dependable supplier of quality drugs in a time of global need on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, and is expected to reach a size of $130 billion by 2030, Chemical and Fertiliser Minister D V Sadananda Gowda said at the 6th edition of ‘Indian Pharma & India Medical Device 2021.

• The total market size of the Indian pharma industry is expected to reach $130 billion by 2030. The medical devices industry in India has the potential to grow at 28 percent per annum to reach $50 billion by 2025.
• India has been serving more than 200 countries with its pharma products and will continue to discharge its responsibilities.

HAL, Wipro3D collaborate to manufacture metal 3D printed aircraft engine component
Wipro 3D and Engine Division of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) have collaborated for the development, manufacturing and air worthiness certification of a critical aero-engine component operating in the hot zone, using metal 3D printing.

• The Nozzle Guide Vane (also called the Inner Ring), 3D printed in a high temperature resilient steel A286, has been awarded Airworthiness certification by Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC), the regulatory body of Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO).
• Wipro 3D is the metal Additive Manufacturing (AM) business of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering (WIN). “The Wipro3D manufactured components shall be installed in HAL manufactured helicopter engines.

SPORTS

Drass Red win 13th CEC Cup Ice Hockey Championship
In Kargil Ladakh, Drass Red has won the 13th CEC Cup Ice Hockey Championship beating Hockey Club Chiktan team in the Final match.

• The 1st Women CEC Ice Hockey Cup 2021 was lifted by Shakar Chiktan Team defeating Wakha Mulbekh Team.
• 32 Men teams and 5 Women Teams participated in the tournament which was organized by the District Youth Services & Sports.

AWARDS

Bengaluru airport bags ‘Voice of the Customer’ global recognition 
The Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has secured global recognition from the Airports Council International World’s ‘Voice of the Customer’ award.

• The ‘Voice of the Customer’ initiative by the Airports Council International World recognises airports that continued to prioritise their customers and remained committed to ensuring that their voice was heard during the novel coronavirus pandemic in 2020.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 

UAE makes history as Hope spacecraft successfully enters Mars orbit 
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) made history as its first-ever interplanetary Hope Probe mission successfully entered orbit around Mars.

• The Emirates Mars Mission, known as the Hope Probe, sent back a signal confirming it’s in orbit.
• When the spacecraft arrived, the Hope Probe marked the UAE as only the fifth country in history to reach the red planet and the Arab nation’s first interplanetary mission.

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Epilepsy Day 
International Epilepsy Day, celebrated each year on the 2nd Monday of February, is an opportunity to raise awareness of epilepsy, what it is, how it can be treated, and what is needed to bring treatment to all people who need it.

• World Epilepsy Day 2021 fall on February 8.The Day is a joint initiative by the International Bureau for Epilepsy (IBE) and the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE).

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