Daily Current Affairs 15 July 2022 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.
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NATIONAL NEWS
PM Modi addresses first ever I2U2 virtual summit
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that under the I2U2 Framework, India-Israel-UAE-USA are working to increase investments in the fields of water, energy, environment, health and space. He said that I2U2 has set a positive agenda from the very first summit and by combining the skills of the nations, they can come together for the good of humanity.
- The UAE has announced to invest two billion dollars to develop a series of Integrated Food Parks across India. These parks will incorporate state-of-the-art climate-smart technologies to reduce food waste and spoilage, conserve fresh water and employ renewable energy sources. India will provide appropriate land for the project and will facilitate farmers’ integration into the food parks.
- US and Israeli private sectors will be invited to lend their expertise and offer innovative solutions that contribute to the overall sustainability of the project. These investments will help maximize crop yields and help tackle food insecurity in South Asia and the Middle East.
- PM Modi expressed confidence that with I2U2, a significant contribution will be made toward Energy Security, Food Security, and Economic Growth globally.
Cabinet approves Taranga Hill-Ambaji-Abu Road new rail line
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the construction of the Taranga Hill-Ambaji- Abu Road new rail line to be constructed by the Ministry of Railways at an estimated cost of ₹2798.16 crore.
- The total length of the new rail line will be 116.65 km and is expected to be completed in 2026-27. The project would generate direct employment during construction for about 40 lakh mandays, a government statement on CCEA decisions said.
- This line is projected to facilitate faster movement of agricultural and local products and also provide improved mobility of the people in the region within the state of Gujarat and Rajasthan and also to other parts of the country.
Centre extends scheme for Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies till March 2024
The Centre has extended the Scheme for Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) till March 2024 to boost exports and job creation in the textile sector. The Ministry of Textiles stated that the rates of exports of apparel and garments will continue the same as earlier notified by the Ministry.
India still among countries with poor access to banking: Report
India is among seven countries home to half the world’s 1.4 billion adults without access to formal banking, a recent World Bank report – Global Findex Database has flagged.
- The report also noted that in Sub-Saharan Africa, young adults (ages 15–24) make up almost 40 per cent of those without access to banking. But in some European and Central Asian countries, older adults are more likely to lack access.
Agnikul Cosmos opens India’s first private rocket engine factory in Chennai
Homegrown space startup, Agnikul Cosmos, the country’s first private factory dedicated to building rocket engines in Chennai, inaugurated by N Chandrasekaran, chairman, Tata Sons, and S Somanath, chairman of ISRO and secretary, department of space. The company said that the facility will use additive manufacturing technology to build 3D printed rocket engines, and will be used to produce engines for its own in-house rockets.
Nasscom, Google set up call centre to help rural women entrepreneurs scale up business
Nasscom Foundation along with Google has set up a call centre in collaboration with a not-for-profit body ISAP to help women farmers scale up their business.
- The project is being run on a pilot basis to initially reach out to 20,000 rural women entrepreneurs across six states — Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana and Rajasthan, Nasscom Foundation CEO Nidhi Bhasin said at the launch of “DigiVaani Call Center”.
- DigiVaani will be one place where rural women entrepreneurs will be able to call and get the information around various schemes available for them, which can help them scale up their business, be it government scheme or any other information that can be of help for them.
- A DigiVaani call centre has been set up at the Delhi and Lucknow offices of ISAP. The project is funded by Google, through its philanthropic arm Google.org.
NRTI in Gujarat renamed as Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, gets central university tag
The Railway University in Gujarat’s Vadodara has been granted central status by the Union Cabinet. The university has been renamed as Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya. The Union Cabinet gave its approval to introduce a Bill in Parliament, namely, the Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2022 to amend the Central Universities Act, 2009 for setting up of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya (GSV).
- The amendment would help in converting the National Rail and Transportation Institute (NRTI), a deemed-to-be university into Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, a Central University.
Indian scientists develop novel mechanism to inactivate SARS-CoV-2
Indian scientists have developed a new class of synthetic peptides that can not only block the entry of the SARS-CoV-2 virus into cells but also clump the virus particles together, reducing their ability to infect the living cell.
- This novel mechanism provides an alternative to make viruses like SARS-CoV-2 inactive, promising a new class of peptides as antivirals. Scientists at the Indian Institute of Science in collaboration with researchers from the CSIR-Institute of Microbial Technology have exploited this approach to design these peptides.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Samsung develops industry’s first, world’s fastest graphics DRAM chip
Samsung has developed a new graphics dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chip with a faster speed and improved power efficiency.
- The 24-gigabit Graphics Double Data Rate 6 (GDDR6) adopts third-generation, 10-nanometer technology and boasts a data processing speed that is over 30 per cent faster than existing products,
BANKING & FINANCE
Startup nurture.farm partners with SBI General Insurance, Future Generali
Agri-tech startup nurture.farm announced its partnership with SBI General Insurance and Future Generali India Insurance Company to expand its insurance solutions for its 1.9 million farmers.
- nurture.farm is an open digital platform for growers, farming communities and food systems.
HDFC bank partners with NIIT, launches PG programme in data engineering
National Institute of Information Technology, Institute of Finance, Banking and Insurance (IFBI), a subsidiary of NIIT Limited, has announced a partnership with HDFC Bank to build digital talent for the banking industry. The partnership aims to nurture talent in tech field of data science and empower them to leverage data meaningfully and deliver useful business insights.
- The first learning program to be launched is the HDFC Bank Data Digits-Post Graduate Program in Data Engineering.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Wholesale inflation declines marginally to 15.18% for June
The annual rate of inflation based on the all-India Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is 15.18 per cent for the month of June, in a marginal drop from May when the figure stood at 15.88 per cent. The latest figure has bucked the three-month rising trend but remained in double-digit for the 15th straight month. Figures have been in double digits since April last year.