Daily Current Affairs 5th October, 2023

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

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NATIONAL NEWS

Government of India notifies constitution of National Turmeric Board
The Government notified the constitution of the National Turmeric Board which will focus on the development and growth of turmeric and turmeric products in the country.

• The Board will provide leadership on turmeric-related matters, augment the efforts, and facilitate greater coordination with the Spices Board and other Government agencies in the development and growth of the turmeric sector.
• India is the largest producer, consumer and exporter of turmeric in the world. More than 30 varieties of Turmeric are grown in India and it is grown in over 20 States in the country. The largest producing states of Turmeric are Maharashtra, Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. India has more than 62 percent share of world trade in turmeric.

Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh launches Navy’s updated indigenous programme Swavalamban 2.0
Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh launched the Navy’s updated indigenous programme Swavalamban 2.0. Speaking at the Indian Navy’s Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation (NIIO) seminar ‘Swavlamban’ in New Delhi, Mr. Rajnath Singh said that self-reliance is the utmost priority since the Modi government came to power.

• During the event, also released the fifth Positive Indigenisation list of 98 items at the event. He added that these 98 items in this list are a big step in the self-reliance of the Defence sector.
• During the event, Mr Rajnath Singh also launched 76 challenges for the industry under the 10th Defence India Start-up Challenges (DISC 10) & DISC 10 PRIME of Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) and five problem statements under iDEX for Fauji.
• Mr. Singh also launched the SBI NAVeCash Card which can be used in online mode as well as in offline mode while at sea with no direct connectivity with the bank.

Andhra government launches ‘selfie with toppers’ drive in government schools
The Andhra Pradesh government has come up with another initiative in the school education sector – ‘Selfie with Toppers’ in a gesture that conveys appreciation to the academic achievers and also to further motivate them to set higher goals.

• Under the initiative, the government school teachers have been instructed to take selfies with the top-performing students of the recently concluded Formative Assessment-2 (FA-2) exams and share them on social media.

BANKING & FINANCE

RBI extends payments infrastructure scheme by 2 years till Dec 2025, expands scope
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) scheme by two years until December 31, 2025. The scheme aims to promote digital transactions at the grassroots level and incentivize the deployment of payment acceptance infrastructure.

• Initially launched in January 2021 for three years, the scheme included tier-3 to tier-6 centers, the north-eastern states, and the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
• In August 2021, beneficiaries of the PM SVANidhi Scheme in Tier-1 and 2 centers were also included. As of August 2023, over 2.66 crore new touch-points have been deployed under the scheme.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

UNCTAD raises India’s 2023 economic growth forecast to 6.6pc
The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has raised its economic growth forecast for India in 2023 to 6.6%, up from the previous prediction of 6%. However, it expects growth to slow to 6.2% in 2024.

• The UNCTAD also predicts global economic output growth to decelerate to 2.4% in 2023 before a small uptick to 2.5% in 2024. The report highlights the need for policy changes and institutional reforms to prevent a lost decade, and mentions that some economies, including India, have shown resilience while others face challenges.

Govt. maintains GPF rate at 7.1%
The government has retained the interest rate on General Provident Fund (GPF) savings at 7.1% for the October-December quarter, the 15th successive quarter that it has maintained status quo for rates paid out on government employees’ retirement savings.

• The Finance Ministry notified the 7.1% rate, which is also applicable for other provident funds for government employees, including those serving in the Railways, the Armed Defence Services Officers’ PF, and Indian Ordnance Factories Workmen’s PF.

NIIF unveils $600 mn India-Japan Fund
The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund(NIIF) has entered into a collaboration with Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) to unveil a $600 million India-Japan Fund.

• The fund will have JBIC and Government of India as anchor investors.The announcement marks NIIF’s first bilateral fund, with GoI contributing 49% of the target corpus and the remaining 51% contributed by JBIC.
• It will focus on investing in environmental sustainability and low carbon emission strategies and aims to play the role of being a ‘partner of choice’ to further enhance Japanese investments into India, a finance ministry statement said.

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

Fintech startup Slice to merge with North East Small Finance Bank
Following the trend of fintechs pursuing banking ambitions, credit card and payments unicorn Slice said that it is merging with North East Small Finance Bank (NESFB).

• The Bengaluru-based fintech said the proposal has received a no-objection certificate from the Reserve Bank of India and that they are awaiting shareholder consent and other regulatory approvals for the deal. As part of the transaction, all entities under the Slice group will merge with the bank

AWARDS

Tamil author Ambai wins Tata Literature Lifetime Achievement award
Tamil writer Ambai has been selected for the Tata Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award that recognises and salutes sustained and outstanding contribution to writing and literature in India.

• Past recipients include Anita Desai, Mark Tully, Amitav Gosh, Ruskin Bond and Girish Karnad.
• She also was recognised with the Shakti Bhatt Body of Work prize. The Sahitya Akademi award came in 2021.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 

IAF chief receives 1st LCA trainer from HAL, 7 more to come by Mar ‘24
State-run plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) handed over the first trainer version of the light combat aircraft (LCA) Tejas to Indian Air Force (IAF) chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari at a ceremony in Bengaluru, with the twin seater set to fill a key training role in the air force and double as a fighter if needed. Seven more twin seater aircraft will be delivered to the IAF by March 2024.

• The aircraft is part of an earlier order for 40 Mk-1 jets in the initial operational clearance (IOC) and the more advanced final operational clearance (FOC) configurations, the first variants of the LCA.
• Of the 40 Mk-1s, the IAF has inducted 32 single seater jets and raised two LCA squadrons. The remaining eight aircraft are trainers.

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