Daily Current Affairs 31st December, 2023

Daily Current Affairs 31 December 2023 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

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NATIONAL NEWS

Ayodhya: PM Modi inaugurates Maharishi Valmiki International Airport
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Maharshi Valmiki airport and the redeveloped Ayodhya railway station from where he flagged off two Amrit Bharat and six Vande Bharat trains, some virtually.This visit by the prime minister comes weeks ahead of the ‘pran pratishtha’ or consecration ceremony of the Ram temple.

• He also inaugurated, dedicated to the nation and laid the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth more than Rs 15,700 crore.
• These comprise projects worth about Rs 11,100 crore for the development of the city and its surrounding areas, and those worth about Rs 4,600 crore related to other works in Uttar Pradesh.

BJP president releases commemorative stamp on 200 years of Indian origin Tamils in Sri Lanka
Bharatiya Janata Party President J.P. Nadda released a commemorative stamp on 200 years of arrival of Indian-origin Tamils in Sri Lanka.

• Mr. Nadda said it is a matter of great happiness that one is remembering the year 1823 and commemorating it with the stamp of Indian-origin Tamils, who had gone to Sri Lanka 200 years ago. He said the Britishers encouraged the migration of Indian Tamil people to Sri Lanka as it served their purpose of augmenting economic activities by making the migrated people work in fields there.

Maharashtra notifies drone mission, seeks to become global hub for drone tech
The state government has cleared the setting up of the Maharashtra Drone Mission (MDM) for the use of drone technology for functions ranging from security surveillance, rescue and relief work during disasters, delivery of emergency medicines and vaccines to remote areas, monitoring of infrastructure projects and traffic management.

• A five-year implementation plan has been prepared based on a report by a team of experts from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Bombay which would be monitored by a committee headed by the chief secretary. The drone mission will be headquartered at IIT-B, according to a notification issued by the higher and technical education department .
• The drone mission will seek to turn Maharashtra into a global drone hub, the notification said. The IIT-B report, which led the government to approve the mission, was submitted in October this year.

Shri Bhupender Yadav launches National Transit Pass System (NTPS)-‘One Nation-One Pass’ to facilitate the seamless transit of timber, bamboo, and other forest produce across the country
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Labour and Employment Shri Bhupender Yadav launched the National Transit Pass System (NTPS) pan-India  to facilitate the seamless transit of timber, bamboo, and other forest produce across the country.

• Currently, the transit permits are issued for transport of timber and forest produce based on state specific transit rules. The NTPS is envisioned as a “One Nation-One Pass” regime, which will enable seamless transit across the country.
• This initiative will streamline the issuance of timber transit permits by providing a unified, online mode for tree growers and farmers involved in agroforestry across the country, contributing to the ease of doing business.

Ujjain smart city develops ‘Ujjain Parksmart’ app for vehicle parking of devotees at Mahakaleshwar temple
Ujjain City has developed an application ‘Ujjain Parksmart’ for vehicle packing facilities for devotees visiting Mahakaleshwar temple. The application has been launched given the increasing number of devotees here and it is available on the Google Play Store.

• Four parking lots situated around the temple have been linked with the app in which the devotees can book parking spaces for their vehicles.The devotees can easily book slots in advance to park their vehicles before their arrival.

BANKING & FINANCE

RBI extends deadline for implementing guidelines on penal charges in loan accounts 
The Reserve Bank of India has decided to extend the timeline for implementation of guidelines for lenders on penal charges in loan accounts by three months.

• In August, the RBI had issued fresh guidelines for lenders on penal charges in loan accounts to ensure that penal interest/ charges is not used as a revenue enhancement tool by them, over and above the contracted rate of interest.
• The central bank’s instructions was supposed to come into effect from January 1, 2024. However, considering that certain clarifications and additional time has been sought by some regulated entities (REs) to reconfigure their internal systems and operationalise the circular, it has been decided to extend the timeline for implementation of the instructions by three months.

RBI extends PIDF scheme by 2 years till December 2025
The RBI extended the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme by two years till December 2025, and also widened the scope to provide subsidy by including sound box instruments and Aadhaar-enabled biometric devices. The corpus of PIDF stands at Rs 1,026.37 crore as on November 30, 2023.

• The objective of the scheme was to encourage deployment of payment acceptance infrastructure such as physical Point of Sale (PoS) terminals, Quick Response (QR) codes, in tier-3 to tier-6 centres, North Eastern states and Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

BSNL signs pacts with IIT-M and Anna University to offer telecom-focused courses, set up labs
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) signed a wide-ranging agreement with the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) and Anna University to introduce courses in the telecommunication sector and provide network coverage in the institutions.

• The institute will launch a one-year international diploma course in telecom technology and management. IIT-M will collaborate with BSNL in designing the course and its delivery. The course is for students and young professionals of telecommunication in India and abroad.
• The students will gain knowledge and learn skills in cutting-edge telecom technology and management. The aim is to improve employability of youth, BSNL officials said. Short-term courses will be introduced to bridge the gap between industry and academia.

SPORTS

Grand Master Koneru Humpy clinches silver in World Women Rapid Championships 2023
India’s Koneru Humpy, won the women’s individual silver medal at the 2023 World Rapid Chess Championships in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

• The 36-year-old Indian Grandmaster lost to Anastasia Bodnaruk of Russia in a tie-break sudden death on time to concede the title.
• With the silver, Humpy has now completed a set of medals at the women’s world rapid championships. She had previously won the bronze medal in 2012 at Moscow, Russia and was crowned the world champion in 2019 at Batumi, Georgia.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 

NASA To Study Asteriod ‘Apophis’, Approaching Earth On April 13, 2029
NASA, the renowned space agency, has redirected its OSIRIS-REx spacecraft from its recent mission to asteroid Bennu to study another celestial body: Apophis. 

• This asteroid, named after the Egyptian god of Chaos, is anticipated to pass within a remarkably close distance of 32,000 kilometers from Earth’s surface on April 13, 2029.
•  This event presents a unique opportunity for scientists to gather valuable data about this 370-meter-diameter asteroid.

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