Daily Current Affairs 25th October, 2020

Daily Current Affairs 25 October 2020 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

PM inaugurates country’s biggest cardiac hospital in Ahmedabad and world’s longest temple ropeway at Junagadh in Girnar
Prime Minister Modi e-dedicated country’s biggest cardiac hospital at U.N. Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Center and launched a Mobile Application for tele-cardiology at Civil Hospital campus in Ahmedabad.

• The new facilities have been set up at the cost of Rupees 470 crore, which has increased the existing 450 beds to 1251 beds, 531 cardiac ICU beds, 15 cardiac modular operation theaters and 6 cardiac cath labs.
• He also launched the world’s longest temple ropeway project at Girnar in Junagadh. The Rupees 130 crore consists a total of 25 cabins and is of 2.3 kilo meters length and 900 meters height. It operates at a capacity of 800 passengers per hour and 8000 per day.

NITI Aayog forms panel for reforms in urban planning education
A panel constituted by the NITI Aayog will look into introducing reforms in the urban planning education system.

• The 14-member advisory committee, headed by NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar, will review the urban planning education system in India and examine the availability, demand and supply of qualified urban planners in the country.

Centre extends ESI Scheme to Arunachal Pradesh from Nov 1
In its continuous endeavor to cover more workers under ESI Scheme, the Centre  has  extended the Employees’ State Insurance, ESI Scheme to Arunachal Pradesh from 1st of next month. 

• A notification to this effect has been issued by the Central Government for notifying the district of Papum Pare, under the ESI Scheme.
• All factories located in the district of Papum Pare employing 10 or more persons will become eligible for coverage under ESI Act 1948.

Dept of Posts releases stamp on 75th anniversary of United Nations
The Department of Posts released a commemorative postage stamp in the presence of External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar on the 75th anniversary of the United Nations.

• The Department of Posts has previously released similar such commemorative postage stamps on the UN’s 9th, 40th and 50th Anniversaries in 1954, 1985 and 1995 respectively.

ECI constitutes committee to examine issues concerning expenditure limits
Election Commission of India constituted a committee to examine the issues concerning the expenditure limit for candidates for Lok Sabha and assembly polls.

• The committee is comprised of Harish Kumar, Ex. IRS and DG (Investigation), Umesh Sinha, Secretary-General and DG (Expenditure).
• The need to set up this committee was felt in view of the increase in the number of electors and the rise in the Cost Inflation Index. It will submit its report within 120 days of its constitution.

BANKING & FINANCE

Finance Ministry releases Rs. 6,000 crore to states to address shortfall in GST revenue
The Central Government borrowed and transferred six thousand crore rupees as first tranche to 16 States and two Union Territories.

• They are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir.
• Ministry of Finance said that the borrowing is at an interest rate of 5.19 percent.

APPOINTMENTS

Parle agro ropes in Priyanka Chopra Jonas as brand ambassador
Parle Agro has made a new addition to its fruits plus fizz portfolio, ‘B-Fizz’ and has roped in Priyanka Chopra Jonas as the national brand ambassador to maximise reach and awareness of the same.

• Jr. NTR has been roped in as the brand ambassador for Southern India. 
• The campaign will be aggressively promoted across IPL on Hotstar and YouTube.  

OBITUARIES

ISKCON President Jasomatinandan Das Ji passes away at 72
Shri Jashomatinandan Das Ji, president of The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple, Ahmedabad and Zonal Secretary of ISKCON Gujarat passed away. He was 72 and undergoing treatment following the Covid-19 infection.

• Shri Jashomatinandan Dasji is known for building ISKCON temples in Ahmedabad, Kathwada and several other places in Gujarat. He had initiated and completed construction of 40 temples and centers of ISCKON.
• One of major contributions of Jashomatinandan Das Maharaj was his translation of ISKCON Bhagavad Geeta and other religious books in Gujarati language.

Singer and actor Zero Babu passes away
Playback singer, music director and actor K J Mohammed Babu, popularly known as ‘Zero’ Babu passed away. He was 80.

• Babu attained fame as Zero Babu after he belted out the song ‘Open Zero’ in a play by the late P J Antony.
• Babu was a recipient of the Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award and had held numerous stage shows in Dubai, Singapore and Malaysia. Babu has also sung in nearly 90 films and various plays

Renowned Economist Dr. Jayanta Madhab Passes Away
Renowned economist from Assam, Dr Jayanta Madhab passed away at a private hospital in Guwahati. He was 91.

• Dr Jayanta Madhab worked as the financial adviser to the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Corporation.
• The economist served as a director at the Asian Development Bank (ADB).He also played a significant role in the field of skill development in Assam.
• Dr Madhab was also the founder chairman of North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd (NEDFi).He served as the economic advisor to the Assam government from 2003-2009 during the tenure of former chief minister Tarun Gogoi.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Polio Day
October 24 is also known as the World Polio Day, which is marked to highlight the global efforts toward a polio-free world.

• The day also honours the contributions of those on the frontlines in the fight to eradicate the polio virus from every corner of the globe.
• 2020 theme for World Polio Day is “A win against polio is a win for global health.”

United Nations Day
The United Nations day is observed on October 24, every year since 1948. UN Day marks the anniversary of the entry into force in 1945 of the UN Charter.

• The UN Charter is the founding document of this great non-partisan institution that has been working towards global peace and equality.
• The year 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the United Nations and its founding Charter.
• The theme for UN Day 2020 is ‘The Future We Want, the UN We Need: Reaffirming our Collective Commitment to Multilateralism’ .

World Development Information Day
World Development Information Day is celebrated annually on October 24th.

• The day focuses on improving the dissemination of information and mobilizing public opinion, especially among young people.
• The theme of World Development Information Day 2020 is “Information and Communications Technologies — New Solutions to Development Challenges”.

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Indian Bank partners with IIT-Madras to fund startups
State-owned Indian Bank in collaboration with IIT-Madras Incubation Cell (IITMIC) launched an initiative for funding start-ups.

• Under the initiative -IND Spring Board, IITMIC will refer start-ups with proven technology and established cash flows to the bank and also extend advisory to the bank on the business model.
• The lender will extend loans of up to Rs 50 crore to these start-ups for their working capital requirements or purchase of machinery and equipment, among others.