Daily Current Affairs 20th November, 2019

Daily Current Affairs 20 November 2019 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

Home Ministry Launches Campaign To End Violence Against Women

The Home Ministry in collaboration with the UN Women flagged off an awareness campaign to end violence against women from Sultanpur metro station in Delhi.

• The initiative is part of the #OrangeTheWorld global campaign. As part of the campaign, people would be made aware about India’s single emergency helpline 112, an internationally recognised emergency number used in several countries.

NATGRID will come into operation by 2020-end: MHA in Lok Sabha

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in a reply in Lok Sabha informed that the National Intelligence Grid or NATGRID will come into operation by the end of next year.

• The National Intelligence Grid or NATGRID is the integrated intelligence grid connecting databases of core security agencies of the Government of India to collect comprehensive patterns of intelligence that can be readily accessed by intelligence agencies.

Centre planning to establish world-class National Police University

In order to provide intense training, research and development and policymaking, the central government has planned to establish a world-class National Police University.

• The institution will work in the domains of education and research like policing, law enforcement and related areas of internal security and public safety. The location of the university is yet to be decided by the government.

Indian Railways, EU agree to focus on digitisation, green transport

The Indian Railways and the European Union (EU) have agreed to focus on digitisation and green transport as the part of a more proactive approach to forge a long-term partnership between the two sides.

Rythu Mitra app launched in Telangana

Telangana Government has launched Rythu Mitra app for farmers. Farmers can get 18 services through the app. Agriculture extension officers will meet farmers and collect data from them.

• It was directed that officials must meet 20 farmers and details of Rythu Bandhu and Rythu Bima must be uploaded from there through the app.

Assam: Under Arundhati scheme, bride to get 10-gram gold if she is 18 and matriculate

Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sharma said that the state government has approved the Arundhati Scheme under which 10 grams (one tola) of gold will be provided free of cost to the bride if a marriage is solemnised and registered.

• Also if a marriage is registered, there will be a minimum age which is notified as 18 and 21 years for bride and groom.
• Any marriage which is registered, the bride will get Rs 30,000 from the state government to purchase gold.
• Government will spend Rs 800 crore per year under the scheme.

Assam govt makes sanitary napkins mandatory in factories, industries

Assam government has made mandatory for all factories and industries to keep sanitary napkins in a bid to promote hygiene among women. The aim is towards the welfare of the working women.

Odisha govt collaborates with UNICEF to create awareness about child rights

Government of Odisha collaborated with United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), along with Odisha Alliance Child Rights (OACR) in Bhubaneswar.

• On this 30th anniversary of child rights, Children from across Odisha presented data on several major issues like Education, Child Protection, Nutrition and Sanitation in collaboration with UNICEF..

11,379 farmers committed suicide in 2016; Union govt releases data

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) said that 11,379 farmers committed suicide in India in 2016. The NCRB in its latest Accidental Death and Suicide report for 2016 says that there were 948 farmer suicides every month, or 31 suicides every day. The last report was released in 2015. As per the data in the report, the number of farmer suicides in the country has plunged to 11,379 in 2016 from 12,360 in 2014 and 12,602 in 2015.

• The report adds that although Maharashtra witnessed a 20% dip from the previous year, it continued to be the top state with 2,550 of the 6,270 farmers’ suicides documented nationwide.

Asia’s largest show on smart and safe mobility held in Mumbai

The 8th edition of TrafficInfraTech Expo along with Parking InfraTech and Smart Mobility Expo was held in Mumbai with participation from over 100 exhibitors from different countries including USA, UK, UAE, Germany, Israel, Belgium, Australia, China and Italy showcasing their products and solutions for Traffic Management, Parking Management and Future Mobility.

RBI supersedes DHFL board, to initiate insolvency proceedings

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) superseded the board of beleaguered Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) as it “intends to shortly” initiate the process of insolvency.

• R Subramaniakumar, ex-MD and CEO of Indian Overseas Bank, has been appointed as the Administrator under Section 45-IE (2) of the Act.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

1st Indo-Qatari joint Naval Exercise Za’ir-Al-Bahr (Roar of the Sea) begins in Doha

Indian Navy Guided Missile Stealth Frigate INS Trikand and Patrol Aircraft P8-I arrived at Doha for the inaugural edition of the bilateral maritime exercise between the Indian Navy and Qatari Emiri Naval Forces. Named Za’ir-Al-Bahr (Roar of the sea), the five-day exercise is being carried out to strengthen co-operation and enhance interoperability between the two navies.

BANKING & FINANCE

AIIB to lend $500 million to Mumbai suburban rail

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), a multilateral development bank, has committed to lending $500 million to expand Mumbai’s suburban railway network.

• The project involves quadrupling of Virar-Dahanu Road corridor (64 km) to provide an extension of the suburban railway service to connect peripheral areas with Mumbai. The project will also see the construction of a new suburban railway corridor between Panvel and Karjat (28 km).

AIIB to lend USD75 million to Tata Cleantech Capital (TLLC)

AIIB approved a loan of $75 million to Tata Cleantech Capital Ltd, a non-banking financial company that lends to renewable energy projects in India. The Tata Cleantech Sustainable Infrastructure On-Lending Facility project aims to increase private capital investment in renewable energy, power transmission and water infrastructure.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

NCAER pegs India’s FY20 GDP growth at 4.9% as slowing demand weighs

The National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) has pegged India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth for 2019-20 at 4.9 per cent, the lowest among the recent forecasts by rating agencies, multilateral institutions, research firms, and government institutions.

Reliance Jio adds 69 lakh subscribers in September: TRAI

Reliance Jio continued to lead the peers by adding 69.83 lakh mobile subscribers in September, according to the latest data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).

• On the other hand, Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel lost over 49 lakh users during September. While Vodafone Idea lost 25.7 lakh subscribers, Bharti Airtel lost 23.8 lakh customers.
• Jio’s subscriber base now stands at 35.52 crore, according to TRAI.

SPORTS

Luka Modric wins prestigious ‘Golden Foot’ award

Croatia captain Luka Modric has been awarded the 2019 Golden Foot award. The Golden Foot award is given to players who stand out for their athletic achievements, both as individuals and team players, and for their personality. The award is only given to active players of at least 28 years of age, and can only be won once.

Bajrang Punia, Mahant Gaurav Sharma honoured in Dubai

Star Indian wrestler Bajrang Punia has been conferred the Indian Personality of the Year Award (Sports) at the Indo Arab Leaders Summit & Awards 2019 in Dubai.

World powerlifting champion Mahant Gaurav Sharma was honoured with Visionary Leaders of the Year (Sports) award.

APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNS

Anil Ambani resigns as Reliance Communications director

Anil Ambani has resigned as the director of Reliance Communications. The move comes even as lenders to the telecom company are looking to sell RCom assets. The company is now being managed by a resolution professional.

Sri Lanka President Gotabaya names brother Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister

Sri Lanka’s newly-elected President Gotabaya Rajapaksa named his elder brother and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the new prime minister after Ranil Wickremesinghe announced his resignation.

AWARDS/RECOGNITION

Virat Kohli named PETA India’s 2019 Person of the Year

Indian skipper Virat Kohli has been named as the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India’s Person of the Year 2019.

• Kohli has regularly vouched for improvement of conditions of animals and he also sent a letter on Peta India’s behalf to officials for the release of Malti, an elephant used for rides at Amer Fort.

Raja Kumari becomes first Indian to host 2019 American Music Awards

American-Indian rapper and singer Raja Kumari has been roped in to host the upcoming 2019 American Music Awards.

• Kumari will be the first Indian to host the red carpet at the award ceremony.

Kamal Haasan gets honorary doctorate for contribution to cinema by Odisha CM

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan was conferred an honorary doctorate for his contribution to cinema by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

• The Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) founder was conferred the honorary doctorate by the Centurion University of Technology and Management.

BOOKS

UNICEF release book “From uttapam to sprouted dal parantha”

From uttapam to sprouted dal parantha — a book by UNICEF tells how to tackle problems of underweight, obesity and anaemia among children by consuming nutritious food that costs less than ₹20.

• The book has been based on the findings of the Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey 2016-18 which found that 35% of children under five are stunted, 17% are wasted and 33% are underweight.
• For tackling underweight — the books lists recipes like potato stuffed paratha, paneer kathi roll and sago cutlets while for tackling obesity — there are suggestions of sprouted dal parantha, poha and vegetable upma.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Antibiotic Awareness Week

World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW) takes place every November to promote global education on antibiotics, how they should be used, and the growing risks of antibiotic resistance. But for now, global awareness of all these issues remains relatively low. It takes place from 18 Nov to 24 Nov.

• The theme for year 2019 is “Antibiotics: handle with care.”

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