Weekly CA Quiz: August 2020 3rd week

Niti Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) in collaboration with IT industry body Nasscom launched an artificial intelligence-based module for school students to empower youngest minds and drive innovations in the country to the next level.

The Delhi government, in a bid to enhance road safety in the national capital signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bloomberg Philanthropies, joining30 world cities in the initiative for global road safety.

State Bank of India (SBI) has introduced “KCC (Kisan Credit Card) Review option” on its digital agricultural solution platform, YONO Krishi, to enable farmers to access their KCC limit in four clicks.

India is working to achieve zero road accident fatalities by 2030, said Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari.
World Bank and ADB have committed ₹7,000 crore each for this campaign.

Former Indian Cricket Team Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni announced his retirement from International Cricket. In a social media post, he thanked everyone for their immense support and love throughout his career.
Suresh Raina, another Indian Cricketer has also announced his retirement from International Cricket.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced about the mega plan of “One Sun, One World, One Grid” (OSOWOG) or a trans-national electricity grid supplying solar power across the globe.
The idea was first floated by Modi in 2018 during the first assembly of the International Solar Alliance (ISA).

The National Digital Health Mission (NDHM), unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a pilot mode in six Union territories. Under NDHM every Indian will get a health ID that will ease access to medical services in the country.
The six Union Territories where the mission has been rolled out through a pilot launch are Chandigarh, Ladakh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.

Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has ordered probe into the Air India Express aircraft crash at Kozhikode airport. The Investigation of the aircraft crash will be done by a five member team headed by Captain S S Chahar.

The Punjab Government announced that the state achieved first rank in operationalisation of Health and Welfare Centres (HWCs) as per the latest rankings released by the Centre.

On the occasion of 74th Independence Day, Neiphiu Rio, Chief Minister of Nagaland launched the Yellow Chain, a single window e-commerce platform developed to promote local business and entrepreneurship in the State.

In a major push towards women empowerment, the European Union has launched ‘Nirmanshree,’ a project worth one-million euro to skill women in the housing sector.
The project will be implemented in four districts of Odisha and Maharashtra and will benefit 3000 women.

State-owned Punjab National Bank launched a campaign to encourage customers to use digital banking channels.
Under the campaign ‘DIGITAL APNAYEN’, the bank will contribute Rs 5 towards the PM CARES Fund on behalf of each customer conducting the first financial transaction to activate their RuPay Debit card either on point of sale (PoS) or e-commerce platform.

The new guidelines were based on the recommendations of the Working Group to Review Regulatory and Supervisory Framework for CICs, headed by Tapan Ray, former secretary of the corporate affairs ministry. The report was published by RBI on 6 November 2019.
According to the revised guidelines, the GRMC will have to analyze material risks to which the group, its businesses and subsidiaries are exposed. CICs with assets of over Rs 5,000 crore will have to appoint a chief risk officer (CRO).

Lewis Hamilton clinched an 88th career victory during the F1 Grand Prix of Spain at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya to move within three of Michael Schumacher’s Formula One record.

England off-spinner Laura Marsh has announced her retirement from all forms of cricket. Marsh had decided to retire from international cricket last December.

The book, titled “A Bend in Time: Writings by Children on the Covid-19 pandemic”,written by award-winning children’s author Bijal Vachharajani.

Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda inaugurated the e-portal on tribal health and nutrition named ‘Swasthya’.
The portal provides all health and nutrition related information of the tribal population of India on a single platform.

Indian Railways is constructing the world’s tallest pier bridge in Manipur. The bridge which is being constructed across river Ijai near Noney is an engineering marvel because the tallest pier height will be 141 meter.
The total estimated cost of the bridge is 280 crore rupees, and it will be completed by March 2022.

The Chief Minister of Chattisgarh announced the launch of a special scheme Padhai Tuhar Para Scheme (Education up to your locality), on Independence Day.

IIT Kharagpur has developed an e-classroom software called “DEEKSHAK” for organizations to conduct online classes.
DEEKSHAK is a low bandwidth web-based software that can be accessed using any computer or even on mobile phones.

The UK Government has launched a £3-million Innovation Challenge Fund in India to support research and development (R&D) proposals to tackle the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic to the economy and the environment.

Google in association with the Central Water Commission (CWC) has taken flood forecasting initiative over the past several months, and sent numerous public alerts to people in impacted regions across the country.

The All India Football Federation and Sports Authority of India joined hands to launch E-Pathshala, a web platform to recognise the creativity and “develop interest in football.

The book titled, “Full Spectrum: India’s Wars, 1972-2020″ has been authored by Retired Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam. The book portrays the comprehensive account of war and conflict in contemporary India over the past five decades next month.

Nishikant Kamat, the filmmaker who delivered successful films such as Madaari and Drishyam, died of multiple organ failure. He was 50.

India Post has released a set of five postage stamps and a miniature sheet on UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India on the occasion of 74th Independence Day. This is the third part of the series .
The stamps depicts following five cultural sites of India-Historic City of Ahmedabad ,Churches and Convents of Goa, Group of Monuments at Pattadakal,.Khajuraho Group of Monuments and Qutub Minar

MSME Minister Nitin Gadkari launched an online farm-to-fork service VedKrishi by farmers for selling non toxic farm produce.

The MPEDA has opened a quality control laboratory in Porbandar to facilitate tests for seafood processors and exporters to confirm to product safety as per international regulatory requirements.

Andhra Pradesh Government has announced teaming up with NPCI and Canara Bank to empower over 15,000 village and ward secretariats with digital payments in the rural areas.

IIT Madras was adjudged as top innovative educational institutite of India in the ARIIA ranking for the second consecutive year.

According to Knight Frank Report,Bengaluru and the national capital ranked 26th and 27th respectively globally in annual price appreciation of luxury residential properties.

State Bank of India’s research report Ecowrap expects the country GDP to contract by 16.5% during the first quarter of the current fiscal.

Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa resigned from his post to join the Philippines-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) as vice-president next month.

President Ram Nath Kovind appointed Satya Pal Malik as the governor of Meghalaya. Satya Pal Malik will be replacing Tathagata Roy who completed his five-year tenure by serving as Tripura Governor for three years and the remaining in Meghalaya.

State-run Central Bank of India said it has appointed Ashwini Kumar Shukla as its chief risk officer effective August 3.

Former India goalkeeper Bhaskar Maity passed away at a Navi Mumbai hospital due to brain hemorrhage. He was 67.

India’s GDP is likely to contract by 20 per cent during the first quarter of the current fiscal on account of the COVID-19 pandemic-induced disruptions, Care Ratings said.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a USD 1 billion (about ₹7,485 crore) loan to support the construction of the modern, high-speed Delhi-Meerut regional rapid transit system, a first of its kind in India.

YES Bank has launched a unique digital solution called ‘Loan against Securities’ under the bank’s loan in seconds platform that enables online lien marking of mutual funds and avail quick and hassle-free loan.

Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB), one of Tamil Nadu’s oldest private banks, has launched Lakshmi DigiGo, a digital initiative to enable opening of savings account instantly.

Tech giant Google said that it ha launched its employment android application Kormo Jobs – to India as it is looking forward for helping job seekers to apply for entry-level jobs.

Tech Mahindra has announced that it was launched a new ‘Upskilling-as-a-Service’ (UaaS) platform to accelerate new-age skill development. The aim of this platform is to create a ‘fit for future’ workforce of its 60,000 employees globally.

AYURAKSHA is a joint venture of AIIA & Delhi Police for maintaining the health of Delhi Police personnel who serve as frontline warriors during COVID-19 through Ayurveda immunity boosting measures. Under the programme, a AYURAKSHA kit are distributed to the Delhi Police.

The Uttar Pradesh government inked an agreement with the water resources ministry of Israel for the management of water resources in Bundelkhand region of the state.

IBM announced its collaboration with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to offer ‘Open P-TECH’, a free digital education platform, focused on emerging technologies and professional development skills.

Retired bureaucrat Rajiv Kumar was appointed the election commissioner in place of Ashok Lavasa, who has resigned.

Ashwani Bhatia has been appointed as the Managing Director (MD) of the State Bank of India (SBI). Bhatia will be succeeding P K Gupta who superannuated on March 31.

Veteran cricketer Gopalaswamy Kasturirangan passed away due to heart attack at his residence in Chamarajapet, Karnataka . He was 89.

Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan has launched an interactive first-of-its-kind game on COVID-19, the Corona Fighters. The Minister also launched two new videos urging adherence to key COVID Appropriate Behaviours.
The game, available on http://www.thecoronafighters.in, was designed to “influence the players’ actions in the real world, reminding them to take the right precautions and escape infection.

National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has launched an international arm NPCI International Payments (NIPL)– with the aim of exporting its indigenously developed digital payment offerings.
It has appointed Ritesh Shukla as the Chief Executive of NIPL with the main task of business development and driving profitability in international markets.

Pune-based Defence Institute of Advanced Technology (DIAT) has developed Ayurvedic biodegradable face mask and anti-microbial body suit.

India ranks among the lowest in the world in terms of Internet quality, according to a global research released by online privacy solutions provider SurfShark.
Overall, India ranked 57th on the Digital Quality of Life Index 2020. Scandinavian countries Denmark and Sweden topped the index, with Canada rounding up the top three.

The ‘National Strategy for Financial Education 2020-2025’ (NSFE), released by the RBI, has suggested a multi-stakeholder-led approach for creating a financially aware and empowered India.
The five Cs, outlined by the strategy paper, are: Content, Capacity, Community, Communication and Collaboration. Strengthening financial inclusion in the country has been one of the important developmental agendas of both the Government of India and the four financial sector regulators (RBI, SEBI, IRDAI and PFRDA).

The World Bank said it was likely to project a steeper contraction in India’s economy than the 3.2 per cent it had forecast for the current financial year, given the rising number of Covid-19 cases and the resultant regional lockdowns.

Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan has said that hallmarking of precious metals will be mandatory from 1st June next year. Mr Paswan launches the online system of Registration and Renewal of Jewellers in New Delhi.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), a PSU under the Ministry of Road and Transport, has developed a mobile App, ‘Harit Path’ to facilitate creation of Green Highways across the country.

The Dharwad-headquartered Karnataka Vikas Grameen Bank (KVGB) and SBI General Insurance Co Ltd have signed an MoU to sell general insurance products through the branches of KVGB.

A Short film titled ‘Am I?’ directed by Abhijit Paul won the first prize and a cash award of one lakh rupees in the Online Patriotic Short Film Contest organized by the Ministry Of Information and Broadcasting along with National Film Develoment Corporation, NFDC.

Panjab University, Chandigarh will get Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, MAKA Trophy for overall top performing university in inter-university tournaments.