Daily Current Affairs 13th August, 2021

Daily Current Affairs 13 August 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

‘Landmark Day’: India’s Installed Renewable Energy Capacity Crosses 100 GW
India’s total installed renewable energy generation capacity crossed 100 GW mark and the country is fourth in the world in terms of installed renewable energy capacity.

• The country has set an ambitious target to have 175 GW or 1,75,000 MW of renewable energy capacity by 2022.
• Besides, the country aims to have 450 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030.

UP government renames Kakori kand to Kakori train action
Uttar Pradesh government has renamed the ‘Kakori Kand’ to ‘Kakori Train action’ as the word ‘Kand’ denotes a sense of insult to this incident under India’s Independence struggle, said the UP government officials.

• As India is celebrating ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ to commemorate 75 years of its Independence, the Uttar Pradesh government celebrated the anniversary of the ‘Kakori Train action’ under the program ‘Chauri Chaura Mahotsav’ which is going to complete 100 years in 2022.

Air Force builds one of world’s highest mobile ATC towers in Ladakh
In a major breakthrough, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has built one of the world’s highest mobile air traffic control (ATC) towers at the Advanced Landing Ground in Ladakh’s Nyoma area.

•  The ATC controls operations of the fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters operating in the eastern Ladakh region.
• Meanwhile, India has been considering multiple options of developing airfields in eastern Ladakh including Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO), Fukche and Nyoma which are at a distance of few minutes from the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. The Air Force also has deployed the Igla man-portable air defence missiles to tackle any aerial incursion by any adversary aircraft.

PM Modi launches Ujjwala 2.0 from Mahoba Uttar Pradesh
The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has launched Ujjwala 2.0 (Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana – PMUY) by handing over LPG connections, at Mahoba Uttar Pradesh via video conferencing.

• This scheme was launched in 2016 from Ballia in UP, from the land of Mangal Pandey, the pioneer of the freedom struggle.
• During the last 6-7 years more than 11 thousand LPG distribution centres have been opened. In UP the number of these centres increased to 4 thousand from 2 thousand in 2014.
• The Prime Minister said that we are very near the cent per cent gas coverage as during the last 7 years more gas connections have been given that were there in 2014.

Tamil Nadu Govt in consultation with Germany to sign MoU to procure 2,500 buses for public transport
The Tamil Nadu Government is in consultation with Germany to sign a Memorandum of Understanding to procure 2,500 buses for public transport.

• Transport Minister Raja Kannappan said that at least nine lakh women in the state have been benefited in the free travel scheme. The Minister said that an additional allocation of 150 crore rupees was allocated for the Transport Department.

In a first, Chhattisgarh recognises forest resource rights in an urban area
Chhattisgarh became the first state to recognise Community Forest Resource Rights in an urban area, with the state government recognising rights of residents of Dhamtari district over 4,127 hectares of forests.

• Community resource rights over 5,544 hectares of forest within the core area of the tiger reserve area were also recognised.
• Under Forest Rights Act, 2006, Community Forest Resource Right gives gram sabhas the right to protect, regenerate or conserve or manage any forest resources used by the entire community, or village.

CM Kejriwal launches ‘faceless’ transport services in Delhi .
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal launched the transport department’s ‘faceless’ services.

• Under the initiative, people will be able to apply and get various transport-related documents like registration certificates as well as undertake learner’s driving license test online, from the comfort of their homes without visiting a motor licensing office (MLO).
• With this, Delhi will become the first state in the country to bring all transport-related services online, thereby allowing people save time and money spent on visiting MLOs

BANKING & FINANCE

CoinDCX becomes India’s first crypto unicorn with $90 million fundraise
CoinDCX has become the first Indian cryptocurrency exchange to enter the unicorn club with a $90-million (Rs 668-crore) series-C funding round. The fund-raise was led by Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin’s B Capital.

• This funding round raises CoinDCX’s valuation to $1.1 billion (Rs 8,150 crore), making it the first Indian cryptocurrency exchange to reach unicorn status.
• This round of fundraising also includes participation of returning investors such as Coinbase Ventures, Polychain Capital, Block.one, Jump Capital among others, alongside other veteran investors.

Agritech startup Arya partners State Bank of Mauritius-India for Commodity Financing
Agritech start-up Arya said it has tied up with SBM Bank India for commodity financing. SBM Bank India is part of Mauritius-based SBM group.

• The lender is headquartered in Mumbai and has presence across the top-six metropolitan cities of the country.
• Arya provides integrated post-harvest services.Its platform helps users to choose ancillary services like warehouse management, access to finance, quality testing, storage protection services, and connecting produce to buyers.

NABARD signs MoU with SBI, J&K Grameen Bank for JLG financing
In order to give boost to flow of credit in UT of J&K, Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) on Financing of 1000 Joint Liability Groups (JLGs) was signed and exchanged between NABARD, J&K and State Bank of India (SBI) and Jammu & Kashmir Gramin Bank (JKGB).

• The main objective of the signing of MoUs is to enhance the flow of credit to tenant farmers/oral lessees/sharecroppers, SF/MF etc., who at times may not have proper title to their land holding.
• The JLG formation will also meet the credit requirements of people suffering reverse migration in the wake of COVID 19 pandemic. The formation and credit linkage of 1000 JLGs will benefit almost 5000 households in the UT of J&K.

10 top banks create secondary market for corporate loans
Ten major lenders, including State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Canara Bank and Standard Chartered Bank, have for the first time joined hands to set up an online platform for trading of corporate loans in the secondary market.

• Called the Secondary Loan Market Association (SLMA), it has been formed on the recommendation of the Reserve Bank of India’s Task Force on the Development of Secondary Market for Corporate Loans.
• Kotak Mahindra Bank, Deutsche Bank, Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank are also its members.
• Currently, the secondary market for corporate loans is mainly inter-bank transactions, undertaken on an ad hoc basis through transfer of loan accounts from one bank to another, and sale of stressed assets by banks to Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs).

APPOINTMENTS

Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla Gets One-year Extension
Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla was given a one year extension beyond his present tenure that was to end next week, according to an official order from the Personnel Ministry.

• Bhalla, a 1984 batch IAS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre, was appointed as the Home Secretary in August 2019.

Kamlesh Kumar Pant appointed as chairman of NPPA
The Appointments Committee of the Union Cabinet appointed Kamlesh Kumar Pant, a 1993-batch IAS officer of Himachal Pradesh cadre as the new chairman of National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), under a senior-level bureaucratic reshuffle effected.

• The apex pharmaceutical pricing body is currently being headed by senior bureaucrat Shubhra Singh, appointed in 2018. Singh replaced by Pant, has been repatriated to her cadre state Rajasthan, as per the order of Department of Personnel and Training.

Rajkummar Rao roped in as Cashify’s first brand ambassador
Cashify has roped in National Award winner Bollywood actor Raj Kumar Rao as its first brand ambassador to promote its products and services across offline and online mediums.

• The partnership is expected to give a strong face to the brand’s philosophy as the actor personifies the brand ethos which is reliability, responsiveness.

AWARDS

Doha’s Hamad International Airport world’s best
Doha’s Hamad International Airport has been named the world’s best airport on Skytrax’s annual ranking, snatching the top position from Singapore’s Changi Airport.

• Doha’s ascension on the list of the world’s best airports comes days after an aviation safety and product rating agency named Qatar Airways the world’s best carrier. AirlineRatings.com had applauded Qatar Airways for its “dedication and commitment to continue to operate” throughout the pandemic.

List of the world’s top 10 airports of 2021:
1.Hamad International Airport
2.Tokyo Haneda Airport
3.Singapore Changi Airport
4.Incheon International Airport
5.Narita International Airport
6.Munich Airport
7.Zurich Airport
8.London Heathrow Airport
9.Kansai International Airport
10.Hong Kong International Airport

Indian team wins US Innovation Award
SoftWorthy has been conferred the prestigious National Science Foundation Innovation-Corps (NSF I-Corps) Teams Award in the United States.

• SoftWorthy’s award-winning project focuses on developing state-of-the-art computational methods for ‘stochastic modelling, design simulation and sensitivity analysis of electronic devices like printed-circuit-boards (PCBs), which are critical for the growth of novel technological applications like driverless vehicles and energy-efficient smart buildings.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Pakistan Successfully Test-fires Nuclear-capable Surface-to-surface Ballistic Missile
Pakistan successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable surface-to-surface ballistic missile Ghaznavi which can strike targets up to 290 kilometres, the army said.

• The successful training launch of ballistic missile Ghaznavi was aimed at ensuring operational readiness of Army Strategic Forces Command, besides re-validating technical parameters of the weapon system.

OBITUARIES

Former international hockey player Gopal Bhengra passes away
Former international hockey player Gopal Bhengra breathed his last after prolonged illness. He was 75.

• Bhengra had represented India at the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.He had played against Argentina and Pakistan in the World Cup.
• After retirement Bhengra, who had played for Mohun Bagan at one time, had faced many hardships and at one time even taken up crushing stones for a livelihood.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

“Zohra! A Biography In Four Acts” book by Ritu Menon
Ritu Menon’s new book titled “Zohra! A Biography In Four Acts” has been released recently.

• The book is a Biography of Zohra Segal who has worked on stage, in film, and on television, and was successful abroad when few Indian actors were.
• Zohra! A Biography in Four Acts traces her remarkable journey — from travelling to Germany to learn modern dance at the age of eighteen, to playing the unconventional grandmother well past the age of eighty.

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Lefthanders Day
International Left Handers Day is an international day observed annually on August 13 to celebrate the uniqueness and differences of left-handed individuals.

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