Daily Current Affairs 26th November, 2020

Daily Current Affairs 26 November 2020 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

PM Modi unveils Rs 100 Coin, Postal Stamp to Mark Centennial Foundation Day of University of Lucknow
Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a commemorative Rs 100 coin of the centennial foundation day of the University of Lucknow through a video conference.

•  He also released a special commemorative postal stamp issued by India Post and its special cover during the event.

Cabinet approves Rs 6,000 Crore infusion in NIIF Debt Platform
The Union Cabinet approved equity infusion of Rs 6,000 crore in NIIF Debt Platform sponsored by National Investment and Infrastructure Fund. This was informed by information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar after the Cabinet meeting.

• The proposal to invest Rs 6,000 crore as equity into NIIF is part of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat 3.0 package announced earlier this month.
• This would be towards equity support to infrastructure finance companies such as India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL) and a subsidiary of NIIF.

Mamata Banerjee launches “Government At Doorstep” scheme
From December 1, West Bengal will launch an initiative to take government services to the doorsteps of people. ‘Duare Duare Sarkar’ or government at the doorstep. 

• To run until Gandhi Jayanti on January 30, the initiative will attempt to ship pending companies to folks.
• From 11 am to 3 pm every day from December 1, government camps will be held in every block in the state where people can come and demand any service they have not received yet.

HP govt launches ‘Him Suraksha Abhiyan’ to sensitize people about Covid-19 pandemic
Himachal Pradesh, the state government launched ‘Him Suraksha Abhiyan’ to sensitize the people regarding Covid-19 pandemic and also to collect information regarding symptoms of diseases like TB, Leprosy, sugar and blood pressure by door to door campaign throughout the State. This campaign will continue till coming 27th December, across the State.

• Under this Abhiyan about 8000 teams comprising of Health, Ayurveda, Women and Child Development, Panchayati Raj Departments, District Administration and NGOs would be involved in this campaign.
• It would ensure door to door data collection of health parameters of the people.

Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurates Phagwara Mega Food Park in Punjab
Union Food Processing Industries Minister Narendra Singh Tomar virtually inaugurated the Rs 107.83 crore mega food park at Phagwara in Kapurthala district of Punjab which is likely to generate 5,000 jobs.

• The mega food park, spread over 55 acres of land and that will benefit 25,000 farmers, is equipped with warehouses in 3,944 square meter, silos with 20,000 tonne capacity, cold storage with 3,000 tonne capacity as well as individually quick-frozen and deep freezer units and other facilities.
• So far, 37 mega food parks have been sanctioned across the country, of which 20 have started functioning.

NITI Aayog forms panel to study feasibility of Hyperloop technology in India
Government think-tank NITI Aayog has formed a high-level panel to explore the technological and commercial viability of the Virgin Hyperloop technology for ultrahigh speed travel in India, weeks after its first test was completed with humans on board.

• The committee has NITI Aayog member V.K. Saraswat as its Chairman and Adviser (Infrastructure Connectivity, NITI Aayog) Sudhendu Jyoti Sinha as its convener.
• Its other members are Railway Board Chairman & CEO V.K. Yadav, the secretaries of the ministries of Housing and Urban Affairs, Road Transport and Highways, and the Maharashtra government’s Transport Secretary.
• The Defence Research and Development Organisation’s Chairman, the Delhi Metro’s Managing Director, the IIT-Delhi Director and the Chairman (Technology Information) of the forecasting and assessment council are also its members.

Goa Government to install statue of Football Great Late Diego Maradona
The Goa government will install the life-size statue of late Argentine football legend Diego Maradona in the coastal belt of North district by early next year. 

• The statue would be installed somewhere at Candolim or Calangute to inspire the football playing youth.
• 350-kg statue, an actual-size statue as tall as late Maradona is part of the state government’s initiative to encourage football culture.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India announces over 100 high-impact projects worth Rs 592 crore for Afghanistan
India announced a new phase of over 100 high-impact community projects in Afghanistan worth USD 80 million (Rs 592 crore) as the country’s development portfolio in the war-ravaged nation has reached over USD 3 billion (Rs 22,200 crore) so far.

• It was announced at the 2020 Afghanistan Conference by the External Affairs Minister of India, Dr S. Jaishankar. 
• 2020 Afghanistan Conference was organized in Geneva from 23-24 November 2020 virtually. The Conference was co-hosted by the United Nations, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and the Government of Finland.

BANKING & FINANCE

India Post Payments Bank launches Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana
India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) has joined hands with PNB MetLife India Insurance Company Limited to launch Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana. The unique scheme offers life cover on death of the insured member due to any Advertising
Key features of PMJJBY are:
Availability: It is optional for all persons who have savings account with IPPB
Primary KYC: Aadhaar will be the primary KYC
Entry age: Minimum – 18 yrs (on the date of enrollment), Maximum – 50 yrs(Age near Birthday)
Maximum maturity age: Completion of 55 years (Age near Birthday)
Coverage terms: 1 year (renewable) – June 1 to May 31 each year
Sum assured: Maximum coverage of Rs 2,00,000 per life irrespective of multiple accounts/multiple certificate of insurance held under the PMJJBY scheme. The cover of Rs 2 lakh comes at less than one rupee per day.
Premium: Rs 330
Premium payment mode: Annual. However, the 1st-year premium depends on the quarter in which scheme is opted.

HDFC Bank, ICCI join hands to support SMEs, start-ups
Private lender HDFC Bank has joined hands with ICCI (Inventivepreneur Chamber of Commerce and Industries In its endeavour for supporting SMEs and Start-ups.

• Through this alliance, ICCI will be engaging, enrolling and supporting various Start-ups /SMEs /MSMEs in a bid to facilitate inter-alia financial and other facilities to/from HDFC Bank.
• As a part of this partnership, HDFC Bank may offer bank accounts to Start-ups that are supported by INVENTIVEPRENEUR and recommended by INVENTIVEPRENEUR.

HDFC Life, HDFC Ergo unveil combi Corona Kavach health insurance policy
HDFC Life and HDFC Ergo joined hands to launch a combi insurance product ‘Click 2 Protect Corona Kavach’. 

• With HDFC Life’s Click 2 Protect 3D Plus and HDFC Ergo’s Corona Kavach policies, the new insurance policy offers “a complete financial protection package in the current pandemic environment.
• An individual can choose from the available options provided by HDFC Life’s Click 2 Protect 3D Plus, including premium waiver for accidental total permanent disability or on diagnosis of critical illness and can also avail of a COVID-19 health cover.
• The ambulance charges, home care treatment charges, pre and post hospitalisation charges if diagnosed with COVID-19 will be included in the Corona Kavach policy.
• The COVID-19 health cover can be extended to spouse, dependent children below 25 years of age, dependent parents and parents-in-law under the family floater cover.

Mercedes-Benz India teams up with SBI for car financing offers
Luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz has partnered with the State Bank of India, to offer attractive financial benefits, on owning a Mercedes-Benz.

• The collaboration will give Mercedes-Benz access to the unparalleled market penetration of SBI’s HNI customer base, while the bank’s customers will enjoy exclusive benefits while booking a marque luxury product like Mercedes-Benz.
• The collaboration guarantees a host of financial benefits including an attractive rate of interest, additional benefits worth INR 25,000 exclusively for YONO customers who book a Mercedes-Benz vehicle through its Icon displayed on SBI’s digital platform YONO.

 ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS 

Cabinet approves merger of Lakshmi Vilas Bank with DBS Bank India
The cabinet approved DBS India’s plan to take over capital-starved Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB), paving the way for the first such rescue by a foreign lender.

• The merger takes effect November 27, when the bar on withdrawals by LVB depositors will be lifted.
• LVB will be amalgamated with DBIL from the appointed date, and with this there will be no further restrictions on the depositors regarding withdrawal of their deposits.

APPOINTMENTS

New Zealand’s Greg Barclay Elected ICC Chairman
New Zealand’s Greg Barclay has been elected as the new Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

•  Barclay, who has been a commercial lawyer in New Zealand and the Director of New Zealand Cricket (NZC) since 2012, becomes second independent Chairman of ICC after India’s Shashank Manohar whom he has succeeded.

AWARDS

Pilibhit Tiger Reserve gets global award for doubling tiger population
The Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) and the Uttar Pradeash Forest department have bagged the first-ever international award, TX2, for doubling the number of tigers in four years against a target of 10 years.

• PTR was the first to receive the award among 13 tiger range countries.
• It achieved this goal in just four years from 2014, when it had 25 tigers which went up to 65 in 2018.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Tamil Nadu CM launches ‘Thee’ app
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami launched ‘Thee’, a mobile phone-based application for the benefit of the general public to reach out to the Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services when in need.

• The application has been designed to help the general public in case of fire accidents, floods, mishaps in deep wells, rescue of wildlife, chemical or gas leaks, among other accidents. Arrangements have been made to facilitate people in need getting help within 10 seconds of their using the app.

Prefix ‘0’ for all landline to mobile calls from January 15
Fixed line users will have to add a “0” before dialing any mobile number in the country from January 15 informed by the Ministry of Communications.

• This will free up sufficient numbering resources for future use.
• There will be no change in dialing plan from fixed to fixed, mobile to fixed and mobile to mobile calls.

OBITUARIES

Congress veteran Ahmed Patel passes away
Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel, who was undergoing treatment at a Gurugram hospital after testing positive for the COVID-19, passed away. He was 71.

• Patel was Lok Sabha MP for three terms from 1977 to 1989 and Rajya Sabha MP since 1993 representing Gujarat.
• He also served as the political secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and was one of the party’s top negotiators during the UPA regime.

Football legend Maradona passes away at 60
Football legend Diego Maradona passed away due to a heart attack. He was 60.

• Maradona, regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, helped Argentina win the World Cup in 1986, the pinnacle of an illustrious career.
• He played club football for Boca Juniors, Napoli and Barcelona among others and was adored by millions for his brilliant skills.

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
The United Nations has been observing 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women since 1981.

• The theme for International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women this year is “Orange the World: Fund, Respond, Prevent, Collect!”. The focus is on bridging the funding gaps to ensure essential services for the survivors of violence during the ongoing pandemic.
• The World Health Organization estimates that about one in every three women in the world has suffered physical or sexual violence. These are very often committed by an intimate partner. This year the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown it has forced around the world has further intensified the risks of violence towards women. The instances of domestic violence, especially, have increased significantly. The UN has termed it the “shadow pandemic growing amidst the COVID-19 crisis.”

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