Daily Current Affairs 2nd June, 2020

Daily Current Affairs 2 June 2020 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

Centre announces ‘Mudra Shishu loan’ for small businesses and cottage industries
The centre has announced the launch of ‘Mudra Shishu loan’ to benefit small businesses and cottage industries.

  • Under the scheme, one lakh beneficiaries can avail an interest benefit of 2 percent for a year
  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the ‘Mudra Shishu loan’ while announcing the second tranche of the centre’s 20 lakh crore package to revive the Indian economy amid COVID-19 pandemic.
  • All small businesses impacted by coronavirus will get 2 percent interest subvention on loans up to Rs 50,000 secured under the Mudra Shishu Loan.

Centre approves 175 crore rupees for implementation of Jal jeevan mission in Meghalaya
Centre has approved 175 crore rupees for implementation of Jal jeevan mission in Meghalaya during 2020-21. Jal Jeevan Mission was launched by Union Government last year aims to provide Functional Household Tap Connection to every rural household by 2024.

Centre approves 812 crore rupees for implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in Odisha
Centre has approved 812 crore rupees for implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in Odisha during 2020-21.

  • Out of 81 lakh rural households in Odisha, State Government has planned to provide over 16 lakh household connections in 2020-21.
  • The state is planning 100 per cent household tap connections by the year 2024. Priority is being given for 100 per cent coverage of villages under water-scarce areas, quality-affected areas, Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojna villages, villages in Aspirational Districts and SC/ST dominated habitations. Jal Jeevan Mission encourages participation of local community in surveillance of water quality.

Govt unveils PM SVANIDHI scheme to provide affordable loans to street vendors
Union Government launched PM SVANIDHI – Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s Atmanirbhar Nidhi – a special micro-credit facility scheme for providing affordable loan to street vendors.

  • The scheme is aimed at enabling the street vendors to resume their livelihoods that have been adversely affected due to COVID-19 lockdown.
  • The scheme targets to benefit over 50 lakh street vendors, who had been vending on or before 24th March this year, in urban areas. The duration of the scheme is till March 2022.


INTERNATIONAL NEWS

WHO, 37 nations launch ‘COVID-19 Technology Access Pool’ to fight COVID-19
WHO along with 37 nations and numerous partners has launched a ‘COVID-19 Technology Access Pool’ which aims to make vaccines and other key COVID-19 tools accessible to all. C-TAP will provide a “one-stop shop” for scientific knowledge, data and intellectual property to be “shared equitably by global community”.

  • Nations that support C-TAP include Pakistan, Bhutan, Mexico and Brazil, among others.


BANKING & FINANCE

Yes Bank partners with Chalo launch contactless card for bus passengers
Yes Bank has partnered with Chalo to launch of a co-branded contactless travel card in Mangalore and Udupi, which would enable users to load money on the card to make ‘tap to pay’ payments across buses.

  • The passenger will only have to tap the card on the conductor’s ticketing machine to buy their ticket instantly. It can be purchased and recharged from any bus conductor or at designated Chalo Card counters

Public Sector Banks sanction collateral free loans worth 3,200 crore rupees in a single day under Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan
Public Sector Banks have sanctioned collateral free loans worth three thousand 200 crore rupees in a single day under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan. 

  • Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed that largely the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) located in over three thousand TIER-2 towns were covered on the first day of sanctions of the collateral free loans.
  • The amount sanctioned will help the MSMEs to meet the expenses towards payment of salaries, rent and restocking of goods Under this scheme, MSME and borrowers from other stressed sectors with up to 25 crore rupees of total borrowing were allowed to avail an additional 20 per cent of the outstanding loan from banks and other financial institutions.


BUSINESS & ECONOMY

ISED launches business clinic for MSMEs in Kerala
Institute of Small Enterprises and Development (ISED) has rolled out a unique platform for extending advisory services to Covid19-affected MSMEs in Kerala which is ranked 31 in terms of the number of self-employed, and second in relation to the size of casual labour.

  • The initiative is aimed at offering free guidance to entrepreneurs to make self-evaluation for improving their performance.
  • ISED Centre for Financial Education and Research, a division of the ISED, has opened a dedicated window to address issues related to MSMEs, with specific focus on Covid.
  • ISED Finance Clinic for Small Enterprises (ISED-FCSE) will service the interests of MSMEs, entrepreneurial aspirants such as return migrants, start-ups, educated unemployed, and women entrepreneurs.Kerala

Fiscal deficit for 2019-20 at 4.6% in 2019-2020
India’s fiscal deficit widened to 4.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) for the previous fiscal, overshooting the government’s revised target of 3.8%, official data released showed.

  • The fiscal deficit for April reached 35.1% of the FY21 target of Rs 7.96 lakh crore due to lower revenue, which was hit hard as economic activity stalled after the lockdown was imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19.
  • The government’s net tax revenue stood at Rs 21,412 crore in April revealing a massive 70% decline as against Rs 71,637 crore in April last year.
  • The fiscal deficit, or the gap between the government’s revenue and expenditure, came in at Rs 9.35 lakh crore in March, which was 22% higher than the targeted Rs 7.66 lakh crore.

Moody’s downgrades India’s rating to Baa3
Moody’s Investors Service downgraded India’s foreign currency and local currency long-term issuer ratings to Baa3 from Baa2, citing the country’s policymaking institutions will be challenged in enacting and implementing policies which effectively mitigate the risks of a sustained period of relatively low growth.

  • It has also downgraded India’s local currency senior unsecured rating to Baa3 from Baa2, and its short-term local-currency rating to P-3 from P-2.
  • Moody’s also lowered India’s long-term foreign-currency bond and bank deposit ceilings to Baa2 and Baa3, from Baa1 and Baa2, respectively.

Infosys partners up with Avaloq for digital wealth management services
 Infosys announced a strategic partnership with Zurich-based software company Avaloq o provide end-to-end (e2e) wealth management capabilities through digital platforms.

  • The Indian tech major has partnered up with the Switzerland-based wealth management software and digital technology provider to “create a one-stop-shop” for its wealth management clients.
  • The partnership is meant to offer e2e products and services as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), private cloud or public cloud across the globe to its clients.


SPORTS

SAI launched Khelo India e-Pathshala, an online coaching programme for grassroot level
The Sports Authority of India (SAI) launched Khelo India e-Pathshala in association with National Sports Federations (NSF) with an aim to provide first-ever national-level open online coaching and education programme for grassroot-level athletes.

  • The programme will cover 21 sporting disciplines, including, athletics, archery, boxing, cycling, fencing, football, gymnastics, hockey, judo, kayaking & canoeing, kabaddi, para games, rowing, shooting, taekwondo, table tennis, Volleyball, weightlifting, wrestling and wushu.
  • The e-learning programme will feature eminent athletes demonstrating technical skills and interacting with young athletes about techniques to improve their overall game.


APPOINTMENTS

Harsha Bangari takes charges as Exim Bank Deputy Managing Director
Harsha Bangari took charge as Deputy Managing Director at Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank).

  • Prior to this, Bangari was the Chief General Manager and Chief Financial Officer of the bank.
  • Bangari joined Exim Bank in 1995. The bank was floated by the government in 1982 as a specialised export credit agency for India to finance, facilitate and promote India’s international trade.

Mohandas Pai to chair IBBI advisory committee on service providers
The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has reconstituted its advisory committee on service providers and it would now be chaired by Manipal Global Education Services Chairman T V Mohandas Pai. The 12-member panel would advise and provide professional support on regulation and development of the service providers dealt with by the IBBI.

  • Bharti Infratel Chairman Akhil Gupta, Raksha Shakti University Director General Bimal N Patel, CSB Bank MD and CEO Chinna Veerappan Rajendran, former Sebi ED J Ranganayakulu, former Deloitte India Chairman P R Ramesh and Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs DG and CEO Sameer Sharma are among the members.
  • IIM Calcutta Board of Governors Chairman Shrikrishna Kulkarni, ICSI Institute of Insolvency Professionals MD Binoy J Kattadiyil, former IIM Lucknow Dean and Professor Punam Sahgal, Tube Investments of India Managing Director Vellayan Subbiah Murugappa as well as a representative from the corporate affairs ministry are part of the panel.


SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Switzerland launches first app based on Google, Apple’s Exposure Notification API
Switzerland has launched the world’s first app that utilised the Exposure Notification API developed by Apple and Google.

  • The app called “SwissCovid” is currently available to members of the Swiss army, civil servants, and hospital workers. The app will be rolled out to a wider audience once the Swiss MPs debate and approve the app.
  • Apart from Switzerland, Latvia too has developed an app that utilised the API. The report says that their app called the Apturi Covid app could be rolled out to the general public as soon as this week as they do not need a parliamentary vote for the same. Apple has already approved the app on the App Store and the team is now waiting for an approval by the Google Play Store.

PM launches technology-based solution CHAMPIONS to provide one stop solutions to MSMEs
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched technology-based solution named as CHAMPIONS for MSME sector, in New Delhi

  • The platform CHAMPIONS which stands for Creation and Harmonious Application of Modern Processes for Increasing the Output and National Strength is aimed to provide one stop solution to all the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the country. Grievance redressal of the sector pertaining to finances, raw material, permissions among others will be addressed on this platform.
  • CHAMPIONS platform will also help businesses to expand their horizons by opening up bigger avenues to them. It will boost potential enterprises with the help of latest communication tools including telephone, internet and video conferencing.


OBITUARIES

Former Olympic sprint champion Bobby Morrow passes away 
Bobby Morrow, who won three athletics gold medals at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games, has died aged 84.

  • Morrow won the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay in Melbourne, becoming the first man since fellow American Jesse Owens (1936) to do the sprint treble.
  • He broke Owens’ Olympic record in the 200m before anchoring the USA to a new 4x100m record.Carl Lewis (1984) and Usain Bolt (2012 and 2016) are the only other men to win the three sprint titles at the same Games.


IMPORTANT DAYS

World Menstrual Hygiene Day
Every year on May 28, non-governmental organisations, government agencies, the private sector, the media, and individuals come together to celebrate Menstrual Hygiene Day (MH Day) to highlight the importance of good menstrual hygiene management (MHM).

  • World Menstrual Hygiene Day 2020 theme is ‘Periods in Pandemic’. 
  • The idea behind choosing this theme is to highlight how the challenges faced by women during menstruation have worsened due to the ongoing pandemic.

World Milk Day
June 1 is celebrated as World Milk day every year. 2020 marks the 20th anniversary of World Milk day. The day is celebrated to bring attention to how dairy supports the livelihoods of one billion people.

  • The theme for World Milk day 2020 is ‘the 20th Anniversary of World Milk Day’. The day is being celebrated to promote the health benefits of milk and dairy products.

World No Tobacco Day
World No Tobacco Day is observed around the world every year on 31 May. The focus of this year’s World No Tobacco Day is on protecting young people from the marketing of big tobacco companies and helping them avoid using tobacco and nicotine.

  • Each year, the World Health Organization (WHO) sponsors this awareness day to highlight the health risks of using tobacco and to encourage governments to put policies into action that help to reduce smoking and the use of other tobacco products.


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