Daily Current Affairs 13 December 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.
NATIONAL NEWS
Karnataka govt signs LoU with UNDP to improve employment opportunities for youth
The Karnataka Department of Youth Empowerment & Sports has signed a Letter of Understanding with UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) as part of the state-level initiative ‘Code-Unnati’ with the aim of improving access to entrepreneurship and employment opportunities among the youth, including women.
- The initiative involving United Nations Volunteers (UNV) and supported by SAP India lab’s CSR strategies will be implemented in 4 districts of Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagara, Dakshina Kannada, and Raichuru to start with.
- The LoU intends to provide a platform for cooperation between UNDP and the Department of Youth Empowerment & Sports to ensure joint implementation of the activities in close coordination with state/district/college level NSS units.
NITI Aayog and Bharti Foundation announce the launch of ‘Convoke 2021-22’
NITI Aayog in partnership with Bharti Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Bharti Enterprises, launched Convoke 2021-22.
- Convoke is a National research Symposium which aims at addressing challenges in imparting education and strengthening its quality with special focus on all teachers, educationists, heads of schools across India.
- Through this platform, School Teachers/ Heads/Principals of Government Schools and teachers from Bharti Foundation network will be encouraged to use research-based solutions through scientific approach, and showcase their efforts taken at the grass-root level in improving learning outcomes.
NITI Aayog to set up 1,000 Atal Tinkering Labs in Jammu and Kashmir
The NITI Aayog will soon set up 1,000 Atal Tinkering Labs, 187 by the end of the current financial year, in Jammu and Kashmir, said the Union Territory (UT) administration.
- The labs will be built as a part of an initiative to provide children with opportunities to experiment and widen their understanding of scientific phenomena.
- Of the 187 labs, 31 will be established across government schools under the UT and 50 others in Kendriya Vidyalayas, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas and private schools. “The process to establish the remaining 106 labs will be initiated shortly.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
UAE becomes first country to transition to 4-and-half day work week
The United Arab Emirates announced to change its existing five-day workweek to a four-and-a-half day starting January 1, becoming the world’s first country to make the employee-friendly transition as part of its efforts to improve productivity and work-life balance.
- According to the new schedule, Monday to Thursday the work timings would be from 7.30 am to 3.30 pm, followed by a half day on Friday from 7.30 am to 12.00 pm, said the UAE Government Media Office.
- Saturdays and Sundays are full-day holidays under the new rule.
India re-elected to International Maritime Organisation Council
India has been re-elected to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council after elections were held at its Assembly in London for the 2022-23 biennium.
- India’s election falls under the Category of 10 states with “the largest interest in international seaborne trade”, alongside Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and UAE
- The newly elected Council will meet formally at the conclusion of the 32nd Assembly for the IMO’s 126th session, when it will elect its Chair and Vice-Chair for the next biennium.
Global Health Security (GHS) Index 2021: India ranks at 66
As per the Global Health Security (GHS) Index 2021, the world’s average overall GHS Index score was reduced to 38.9 (out of 100) in 2021, from a score of 40.2 in the GHS Index, 2019. GHS Index is developed in partnership with the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security at the Bloomberg School of Public Health.
- India ranked 66 out of 195 countries with an overall Index score of 42.8 and along with a change of -0.8 from 2019. The United States of America (USA) ranked 1st on the index with a score of 75.9 followed by Australia and Finland.
- Three neighbouring countries of India like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives have improved their score by 1-1.2 points.In 2021, no country scored in the top tier of rankings and no country scored above 75.9.
- The GHS Index assesses countries’ health security and capabilities across six categories.
World Talent Ranking report 2021: India ranked 56th
The World Competitive Centre of the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) has released its “World Talent Ranking Report 2021.”
According to the report, Europe continues to dominate the rankings for 2021. The top ten countries are included in the ‘World Talent Ranking 2021’ from Europe.
- Switzerland has remained at the top of the rankings followed by Sweden and Luxembourg. India has been ranked at 56th position. In the Middle East & North Africa, UAE maintained its second position, following Israel (first in this region). Israel has been ranked 22nd.
- In the Arab world, UAE maintained its top position. The UAE has improved its global talent ranking by one position to 23rd. Taiwan has been ranked at third place in Asia while at 16th place In Asia, Taiwan has been ranked behind Hong Kong (11) and Singapore (12) but ahead of South Korea (34), China (36), and Japan (39).
BANKING & FINANCE
RBI enforces 20-digit LEI for cross-border deals above Rs 50 crore
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) made Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) mandatory for cross-border transactions for capital or current account transactions of Rs 50 crore and above, from October 1 next year.
- LEI is a 20-digit number used to uniquely identify parties to financial transactions worldwide to improve the quality and accuracy of financial data systems.
- The LEI numbers are maintained in a global LEI database available on the website of the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF).
Kotak General Insurance partners Vasai Vikas Sahakari Bank to offer insurance solutions
Kotak Mahindra General Insurance Company Ltd (Kotak General Insurance) and Vasai Vikas Sahakari Bank Ltd have announced a strategic alliance to provide the bank’s customers access to a range of insurance solutions.
- Under this agreement, Vasai Vikas Sahakari Bank Ltd. will offer Kotak General Insurance’s comprehensive suite of general and health insurance products to its customers across its network of 21 branches thereby enabling them to avail the benefits of insurance.
India Post Payments Bank, NPCI tie up to launch doorstep bill payments service
India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) said it has tied up with National Payments Corporation of India’s (NPCI) bill payments system Bharat BillPay to facilitate cash-based bill payments service at customer’s doorstep.
- Payments for various utility bills can be done on the Bharat BillPay platform and the facility will be made available to non- IPPB customers as well.
- The service will enable payments of mobile postpaid, D2H recharge, school fees, and other utility services by using the bank’s mobile banking service.
SPORTS
Norway’s Magnus Carlsen wins FIDE World Chess Championship
Norway’s Magnus Carlsen claimed his fifth world chess crown in Dubai with a crushing 7.5-3.5 victory against Ian Nepomniachtchi, who faded badly after going toe-to-toe with the Norwegian defending champion in the early games.
- The 31-year-old Carlsen benefited from a blunder by his Russian challenger to win his fourth game of the match, with the black pieces, to take an unassailable lead in the best-of-14 contest.
APPOINTMENTS
U.N. appoints President Joe Biden advisor Catherine Russell to head UNICEF
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed Catherine Russell, an adviser to US President Joe Biden, as Executive Director of Unicef, a UN spokesman said.
- She replaces Henrietta Fore, to whom Guterres expressed his gratitude for her commitment and dedicated service to the UN agency, Xinhua news agency quoted Stephane Dujarric, the Secretary-General’s chief spokesman, as saying.
- Russell currently serves as Director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel. From 2013 to 2017, she served as ambassador-at-large for global women’s issues in the Department of State.
AWARDS
Azim Premji receives Dr. Ida S. Scudder Oration award
Azim Premji, founder chairman of Wipro limited and founder of Azim Premji Foundation is this year’s recipient of 10th annual Dr. Ida S. Scudder Humanitarian Oration, jointly established by Christian Medical College Vellore (CMC) and the U.S.-based Vellore CMC Foundation.
- The award being presented to Mr. Premji in recognition of his contributions to the society through the foundation.
- The previous recipients of the Dr. Ida S. Scudder Humanitarian Oration include former president of India A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
India’s Harnaaz Sandhu becomes Miss Universe 2021
Actor-model India’s Harnaaz Sandhu, 21, crowned Miss Universe 2021 at the 70th edition of the pageant in Eilat, Israel.
- The previous Miss Universe Andrea Meza of Mexico crowned her successor at Red Sea resort in Israel’s Eilat. First and the second runners-up were Paraguay and South Africa respectively.
- Harnaaz will bring home the Miss Universe crown after 21 years. Before her, Lara Dutta was crowned the Miss Universe in 2000.
Professor Neena Gupta wins Ramanujan Prize for Young Mathematicians
Neena Gupta, a mathematician and professor at the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata, has been awarded the 2021 DST-ICTP-IMU Ramanujan Prize for young mathematicians from developing countries.
- She received the prize for her outstanding work in affine algebraic geometry and commutative algebra, in particular for her solution to the Zariski cancellation problem for affine spaces.
- Her solution for solving the Zariski cancellation problem earned her the 2014 Young Scientists Award of the Indian National Science Academy.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
“Watershed: How We Destroyed India’s Water And How We Can Save It” book by Mriduala Ramesh
Recently, Mridula Ramesh has launched a new book titled “Watershed: How We Destroyed India’s Water and How We Can Save It”.
- Mridula is the founder of Ramesh Sundaram Climate Institute, which works on water and waste solutions and is an angel investor in cleantech start-ups.
- She is also a member of the board of trustees of World Wildlife Fund (WWF), India, and chairperson of the board of governors at the National Institute of Technology, Andhra Pradesh (AP).