Daily Current Affairs 5th January, 2021

Daily Current Affairs 5 January 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

Madhya Pradesh rolls out ‘Launch Pad Scheme’ to make youth self-reliant
In Madhya Pradesh, ‘Launch Pad Scheme’ is being started for boys and girls coming out of child care institutions and having completed 18 years of age. 

• The objective of this scheme of the Women and Child Development Department is to provide such a platform to these youth, through which they will be able to become self-reliant by continuing their education and training.
• Under the launch pad scheme, 52 districts of the state have been divided into 5 clusters. Five divisional headquarters are being started in Indore, Sagar, Gwalior, Jabalpur and Bhopal.
• An amount of Rs 6 lakh will be provided by the Women and Child Development Department for the installation of each launch pad. These launch pads will be operated through non-governmental organizations.

Kerala to host Global Ayurveda Festival from March 12
The fourth Global Ayurveda Festival (GAF 2021), aimed at the global discussion and development of Ayurveda, will be held from March 12 to 19 as a virtual meet. It will be  hosted by Kerala state government.

• The festival will feature 12 seminars per day at five venues. The conference will focus on the relevance of Ayurveda in the post-COVID world and the potential of Ayurveda in enhancing immunity.
• There will be special pavilions of Ayurveda colleges and special pavilions introducing the modern face of Ayurvedic science and the medicinal flora of Kerala.

Five-day national folk dance festival held in Jammu from Dec 26
North Zone Cultural Centre, Patiala (Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India) and Jammu & Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture & Languages are jointly organizing five days ‘National Folk Dance Festival’ from December 26.

• The festival is of five days and for three days it will be organised at Abhinav Theatre, Jammu.
• In order to further this tradition, programmes of folk dance, folk music, folk instruments and folk theatre will be organized during the five days festival.

BANKING & FINANCE

IDBI Bank unveils video KYC facility for savings bank accounts
IDBI Bank announced the launch of video KYC account opening (VAO) facility for savings bank accounts.

• Through the facility, a customer can open a savings account with the lender from the convenience of his/her home or office as there are no physical forms to be filled or visits to be made to the branch.

ADB to provide $100 million loan to upgrade power distribution in Bengaluru
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a $100 million loan to modernise and upgrade the power distribution system to enhance the quality and reliability of electricity supply in Bengaluru city in the state of Karnataka.

• Besides the $100 million sovereign loan, ADB will provide a $90 million without sovereign guarantee loan for the project to Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM), one of five state-owned distribution utilities in Karnataka.
• The loan will strengthen the capacity of BESCOM in operation and maintenance of underground cabling, environment and social safeguards, financial management and commercial financing.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

India’s April-November fiscal deficit tops 135% of full-year target
India’s fiscal deficit stood at Rs 10.75 lakh crore at the end of November, 35% higher than the budget estimate for FY21, mainly on account of low realisation of revenue due to disruption in business activities amid the coronavirus pandemic.

• There was some ramping up of government spending, which had remained muted so far, with capital expenditure recording a 12.7% jump in November. 

Govt implementing Rs 320-cr project for 5 ports to enable digital ecosystem
The government is implementing a Rs 320-crore project for five major ports in order to provide a digital port ecosystem, according to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.

• These ports are Mumbai, Chennai, Deendayal, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia).
• The system will adopt international best practices without losing its alignment to existing local needs.
• In addition, a centralised web-based port community system (PCS) has been operationalised across all major ports which enables seamless data flow between various stakeholders through common interface.

APPOINTMENTS

Pankaj Mithal sworn in as CJ of J&K, Ladakh Court
Justice Pankaj Mithal was sworn in as the new Chief Justice of the common court of the Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh. 

• Justice Mithal replaces Gita Mittal, who retired last year.
• Justice Mithal, who enrolled as an advocate in the Bar Council of U.P. in 1985, was elevated as an additional judge in 2006 and took oath as a permanent judge in 2008.

Argentine filmmaker Pablo Cesar to head 51st IFFI”s International Jury
The International Jury for 51st edition of International Film Festival of India has been announced with eminent filmmakers from across the world.

• The Information and Broadcasting Ministry in a statement said that the Jury will comprise Pablo Cesar of Argentina as Chairman, Prasanna Vithanage of Sri Lanka, Abu Bakr Shawky of  Austria, Priyadarshan of India  and  Rubaiyat Hossain of  Bangladesh.

AWARDS

Bajaj, India becomes world’s most valuable two-wheeler company  
Indian multinational two-wheeler and three-wheeler manufacturing company, Bajaj Auto announced that it becomes the first two-wheeler company globally to cross a market capitalization of INR one trillion.

• The share price of Bajaj Auto Ltd, closed at INR 3,479 per share on NSE making its market capitalization Rs 100,6.70 billion at this price.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 

Indian Air Force chief Bhadauria launches e-governance portal
Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria launched an e-governance portal for the Indian Air Force (IAF) in order to promote a paperless office.

• The launch of e-governance in IAF marks a paradigm shift from the current method of correspondence, filing and documentation to a digital one.
• The  implementation undertaken as part of Digital India and e-governance initiative will transform the entire Indian Air Force to a ‘paperless office’ workflow.

ENVIRONMENT

Centre notifies 0-1 km area around boundary of Kerala”s Mathikettan Shola Park as Eco-sensitive Zone
The Centre has notified an area to an extent varying from zero to one km around the boundary of Mathikettan Shola National Park in Kerala”s Idukki district as an Eco-sensitive Zone considering the unique nature of the Shola forest and its importance as an elephant strip.

• The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change said it is necessary to conserve and protect the area from ecological, environmental and biodiversity point of view and to prohibit industries or class of industries and their operations and processes in the Eco-sensitive Zone.
• Throught the notification, the Centre banned new industries and expansion of existing polluting industries in the Zone.

OBITUARIES

Bella Ciao actor Taran Kootenhayoo passes away at 27
Canadian actor Taran Kootenhayoo, who was known for his role in indie drama Bella Ciao, died. He was 27 years old.

•  He was known for his star-turn as Niki, a young homeless man looking for his missing sister, in Bella Ciao!, the 2018 indie feature by director Carolyn Combs about intersecting characters in an east Vancouver multicultural community.
• Kootenhayoo also played the character of Remy in the 2018 Canadian TV series Literally, and voiced the role of Randall in the animated fantasy series Molly of Denali.

Legendary Indian Hockey Player Michael Kindo passes away
Former India hockey player and 1975 World Cup-winning team member Michael Kindo died at the age of 73.

• He was part of the 1972 Munich Olympics team that won a bronze medal, beating Holland 2-1.
• The Arjuna Award winner, Kindo was also part of the Indian team that won the World Cup in 1975 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

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