Current Affairs

24^th September 2022

Top 17 Daily GK Updates: National & International News

Here is the Daily GK Update of the 24th of September 2022 covering the following news headlines: Antyodaya Divas 2022, National Cinema Day 2022, M Venkaiah Naidu, Wealth Hurun India Rich List, German PEN award, Asian Palm Oil Alliance.

National News

1. India’s under-5 mortality rate declines by 3 points; largest drops in UP and Karnataka

India’s under-5 mortality rate declines by 3 points: According to the Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report 2020, India’s under-5 mortality rate has dramatically decreased from 35 per 1,000 live births in 2019 to 32 per 1,000 live births in 2020, with the largest fall observed in Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Karnataka.

Towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets by 2030, the country has been experiencing a progressive decline in infant mortality rate (IMR), under 5 mortality rate (U5MR), and neo-mortality rate (NMR), according to a report released by the Registrar General of India, said Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.

2. J&K Observes Holiday On Birth Anniversary Of Maharaja Hari Singh

The Jammu and Kashmir administration has decided to declare Maharaja Hari Singh’s birth anniversary a public holiday. The announcement was made by lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha following his meeting with a delegation comprising prominent political leaders, members of the Yuva Rajput Sabha, civil society members, including head of J&K transport union.

The government has taken a decision to declare Maharaja Hari Singh Ji’s birthday as a public holiday. Maharaja Hari Singh was a great educationist, progressive thinker, social reformer and a towering man of ideas and ideals. The public holiday will be a fitting tribute to Maharaja Hari Singh Ji’s rich legacy,” the LG observed.

International News

3. Palm oil Alliance formed by 5 South Asian Countries

Edible oil trade associations from five palm oil importing countries in South Asia – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, announced the setting up of Asian Palm Oil Alliance (APOA).

The idea is to gain collecting bargaining power and make imports sustainable. India’s annual imports of edible oil is around 13-14 million tonne (MT). Around 8 MT of palm oil is imported from Indonesia and Malaysia, while other oils, such as soya and sunflower, come from Argentina, Brazil, Ukraine and Russia.

Asia accounts for around 40% of the global palm oil consumption while Europe accounts for 12% of palm oil trade. Indonesia and Malaysia are the biggest palm oil exporters in the world. India is the largest importer of palm oil in Asia, accounting for 15% of global imports, followed by China (9%), Pakistan (4%) and Bangladesh (2%).

4. G-4 Countries Reiterates UNSC Reform

The G4 grouping comprising India, Japan, Germany and Brazil expressed their concern over lack of any “meaningful” forward movement on long-pending reform of the UN Security Council (UNSC) and demanded “urgency” on the issue.

The foreign ministers of the G4 countries held a virtual meeting coinciding with the 75th session of the UN General Assembly during which they held extensive discussion on the need for urgent reform of the UNSC.

A joint press statement said the ministers highlighted the urgency of reforming the UN and updating its main decision-making bodies, in order to better reflect contemporary realities.

Agreements News

5.ESSCI partnered with Samsung India to train Indian youth

The Electronics Sector Skill Council of India (ESSCI) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Samsung India to empower the youth with industry-relevant skills.

It will be a part of the government’s ‘Skill India’ initiative that aims to empower the youth with industry-relevant skills in emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, Big Data and Coding & Programming, in a bid to enhance their employability.

The MoU was exchanged by Ken Kang, President and CEO of Samsung Southwest Asia, and Abhilasha Gaur, COO, ESSCI.

The programme, ‘Samsung Innovation Campus’ aims to upskill over 3,000 unemployed youth from 18-25 years of age in future technologies, in partnership with the government’s Skill India initiative.

The programme will be executed by ESSCI, which is a National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) entity through its nationwide network of approved training and education partners.

6. TerraPay partnered with NPCI to enable cross-border transactions via UP

TerraPay, a Dutch payments infrastructure company has joined forces with India’s NPCI International Payments (NIPL) to facilitate cross-border transactions for Indian consumers and merchants.

Indian consumers and merchants who have an active Unified Payments Interface Id (UPI Id) will be able to transfer money abroad. This service will utilize TerraPay’s infrastructure and the UPI network.

The UPI-enabled QR code-based service will allow Indian customers with active UPI IDs to make transactions through 350 million bank accounts across the globe.

The firms seek to expand the use of UPI payments and QR for international transactions by merchants.

The customer-initiative UPI payments and QR transactions require two-factor authentication.

The two-factor authentication is capable of minimizing disputes and issues related to grievance redressal.

Business News

7. REC Ltd becomes 12th company to gets ‘Maharatna’ company status

Power sector-focussed non-banking finance company (NBFC) REC Ltd. has been accorded the status of a ‘Maharatna’ Central Public Sector Enterprise, thus providing it with greater operational and financial autonomy.

The granting of ‘Maharatna’ status will impart enhanced powers to the company’s board while taking financial decisions. REC Ltd. is the 12th company to be given the Maharatna Status.

The board of a ‘Maharatna’ CPSE can make equity investments to undertake financial joint ventures and wholly-owned subsidiaries and undertake mergers and acquisitions in India and abroad, subject to a ceiling of 15 per cent of the net worth of the CPSE concerned, limited to ₹5,000 crores in one project. The board can also structure and implement schemes relating to personnel and human resource management and training.

Bankings News

8. UCO Bank becomes first lender to get RBI’s approval for rupee trade

UCO Bank has received the approval of the Reserve Bank of India to open a special Vostro account with Gazprom Bank of Russia for trade settlement in Indian rupees.

UCO Bank which is a Kolkata-based lender is the first bank to receive the regulator’s approval following the decision of RBI to allow Indian Banks to settle trade in Indian currency in July.

UCO Bank was formerly known as United Commercial Bank which was established in 1943 in Kolkata. It is one of the nationalized banks in India. It is under the ownership of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India.

9. RBI cancelled the licence of Maharashtra-based Laxmi Cooperative Bank

Reserve Bank of India has canceled the license of Solapur-based The Laxmi Co-operative Bank Limited as the lender does not have adequate capital and earning prospects.

The Laxmi Co-operative Bank Limited submitted the data, which shows more than 99 percent of the depositors are entitled to receive the full amount of their deposits from Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).

The DICGC has already paid Rs 193.68 crore of the total insured deposits on 13th September 2022.

The Laxmi Co-operative Bank ceases to carry on banking business, with effect from the close of business.

The Laxmi Co-operative Bank Limited has failed to comply with the requirements of the Banking Regulation Act 1949.

Ranks and Reports News

10. Adani & family top IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List

According to the IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List 2022, Gautam Adani and family have topped with an estimated wealth of Rs. 10,94,400 crore. His daily wealth creation was estimated at Rs. 1,612 crores which showed 116 per cent growth as compared with the 2021 list.

Mukesh Ambani and family have been named as the 2nd richest in India with an estimated wealth of Rs. 7,94,700 crore and a growth of 11 per cent compared with the 2021 list. His daily wealth creation velocity is Rs. 210 crores.

Nykaa Founder & Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Falguni Nayar became India’s richest self-made woman by surpassing Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw in net worth.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

IIFL Wealth MD & CEO: Karan Bhagat;

IIFL Wealth Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Schemes News

11. Nirmala Sitharaman to launch e-learning platform Bharat Vidya

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman will launch the Bharat Vidya, which is an online learning platform for Oriental and South Asian Studies.

The Bharat Vidya is designed and developed by the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI).

Bharat Vidya is a first-of-its-kind online platform, which will offer both free and paid courses covering various aspects of Indology about art, architecture, philosophy, language, and science.

The Bharat Vidya will have six courses at the beginning including Veda Vidya, Bharatiya Darshanshastra, Sanskrit learning, 18 Parvas of Mahabharata, Fundamentals of Archaeology, and Kalidasa and Bhasha.

BORI will collaborate with Indian and Foreign universities for awarding credits for its courses. During the inaugural event, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman announced that the courses offered complied with the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

12. VP Jagdeep Dhankhar inaugurated Lok Manthan programme

Vice President of India, Jagdeep Dhankhar will inaugurate the third edition of the Lok Manthan program at the Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra in Guwahati. The event will be facilitated by the Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sharma.

This year’s theme for the Lok Manthan is Lokparampara (Lok Traditions) which will emphasize that the Lok Traditions have kept our culture and heritage alive and intact, and has strengthened our feelings toward National Selfhood.

The Chief Guest of the Lok Manthan will be the Governor of Kerala Arif Muhammad. The Lok Manthan is an occasion where artists, intellectuals, and academicians from different parts of the country converge and brainstorm on the topics that come out of the society to reshape the narratives of people and lead the nation to play its civilizational roles.

Awards News

13. Indian author & poet Meena Kandasamy won the German PEN award

Indian author and poet Meena Kandasamy has been announced as this year’s recipient of the Hermann Kesten Prize by the PEN Centre in Germany’s Darmstadt.

The Hermann Kesten Prize honours personalities who, in the spirit of the charter of the PEN association, stand up for the rights of persecuted authors and journalists.

The PEN Center, Germany, will present the award to the Indian author at a ceremony in Darmstadt on November 15 this year. The winner will receive an amount of €20,000 ($19,996) as prize money.

This year, the PEN Center is also honouring the website “Weiter Schreiben” (German for “Keep writing”) with a special award for encouragement, for giving authors in exile and writers from conflict zones a platform to express their thoughts.

Sports News

14. ICC announced “Oval and Lord’s” to host World Test Championship finals

The International Cricket Council has announced that the World Test Championship 2023 Final will be hosted by The Oval in June 2023 while the 2025 final will be played at Lord’s.

The two venues in London will succeed Southampton, which hosted the inaugural final between New Zealand and India in 2021. New Zealand emerged as the victors in the first edition.

The top two teams from the World Test Championship standings will make it to the finals with Australia and South Africa currently leading.

Books and Authors News

15. M Venkaiah Naidu released a book on PM Modi’s selected speeches

Former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu released a collection of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s selected speeches at Akashvani Bhawan in New Delhi.

The book titled “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas Sabka Vishwas” Prime Minister Narendra Modi Speaks (May 2019-May 2020)’ was released in the presence of Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan at a function here organized by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

During the release of the book, former Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu said that the book gives the readers a glimpse into PM Narendra Modi’s vision for India’s future and a clear roadmap of journey ahead, through his speeches on diverse topics of national importance.

Important Days

16. National Cinema Day 2022 observed on 23rd September

The National Cinema Day was previously announced to be held on September 16, however, on request from various stakeholders and in order to maximize participation, it was rescheduled to September 23.

The day has been scheduled by the Multiplex Association of India (MAI). Over 4,000 screens at multiplexes from across the country, including PVR, INOX, Cinepolis, Carnival, and Delite, have teamed up to offer a “celebratory admission price” of Rs 75 to mark National Cinema Day.

National Cinema Day is scheduled to be celebrated as a ‘thank you’ to the moviegoers and an invitation to those who haven’t made it back to the cinema after the Covid-19 pandemic.

17. Nation Observes Antyodaya Divas 2022: 25 September

Antyodaya Diwas is celebrated annually on 25th September in India. It marks the birth anniversary of Indian leader Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya and is celebrated in his honour to remember his life and legacy.

He was one of the most prominent personalities in the history of Indian politics. This year, the Antyodaya Diwas marks the 105th birth anniversary of Upadhyaya. He was the co-founder of Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) and a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) thinker.