Weekly Current Affairs 1st March- 8th March 2022

FINANCE AND BANKING

• RBI cancelled licence of Sarjeraodada Naik Shirala Sahakari Bank
  • Reserve Bank of India has cancelled the license of Sarjeraodada Naik Shirala Sahakari Bank, Sangli, Maharashtra, as it did not have adequate capital and earning prospects.
  • On liquidation, every depositor would be entitled to receive deposit insurance claim amount of his/her deposits up to a monetary ceiling of Rs 5 lakh from the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).

• RBI launches UPI 123Pay for instant digital payments using feature phones
  • RBI recently launched UPI for non-smartphone users.
  • RBI’s new service, called UPI 123Pay, would allow feature phone users to make instant digital payments.
  • Along with the launch of UPI for feature phones, which will be available in all Indian languages, the central bank also launched a 24*7 helpline for digital payments – DigiSaathi.

• Interest subsidy scheme for exporters extended till March 2024: RBI
  • RBI extended the interest equalisation scheme for pre and post shipment rupee credit for MSME exporters till March 2024 with the objective of boosting outbound shipments.
  • Exporters get subsidy under the ‘Interest Equalisation Scheme for pre and post-shipment Rupee Export Credit’.

ECONOMY

• Japan and India renew the Bilateral Swap Arrangement of $75 billion
  • Japan and India recently renewed the Bilateral Swap Arrangement (BSA) the size of which is up to USD 75 billion.
  • The agreement is a platform where both authorities can swap their local currencies in exchange for the US Dollar.
  • The agreement was signed in 2018 between the Bank of Japan and the Reserve Bank of India.

• NSO projects GDP growth for India in 2021-22 at 8.9%
  • National Statistical Office (NSO) has released the second advance estimates of national accounts. The GDP growth rate projection as per NSO for 2021-22 (FY22) and 2020-21 (FY21) is given: For 2021-22 (FY22) = 8.9% (earlier it was 9.2% in first advance estimates); For 2020-21 (FY21) = -6.6% (earlier it was -7.3%).

• US, EU, UK decided to eliminate selected Russian banks from SWIFT
  • Canada, U.S.A. and their European allies have decided to remove the key Russian banks from the Interbank messaging system (IMS) of SWIFT.
  • It will cut off the country from much of the worldwide financial system.

NATIONAL

• NITI Aayog developing National Gender Index
  • NITI Aayog is in the process of developing a National Gender Index to measure the progress and identify the persisting gaps in gender equality to make informed policy decisions.
  • The index will serve as a tool to map the progress of states and Union Territories (UTs) on defined gender metrics and build the foundation for positive change.

• Stree Manoraksha Project launched
  • The Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD) launched the ‘Stree Manoraksha Project’ in collaboration with NIMHANS Bengaluru with an aim to improve the mental health of women in India.

• DST tieup with Intel India to boost AI readiness
  • ‘Building AI Readiness among Young Innovators’, a program by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, in partnership with Intel India, was launched by Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology(I/C).
  • The program aims to build digital readiness among the students from classes 6 to 10, enrolled under DST’s INSPIRE-Awards MANAK scheme. The flagship program of DST reaches out to students pan India with an aim to create a culture of creativity and innovative thinking.

INTERNATIONAL

• World's largest plane destroyed in Ukraine
  • The world's largest plane, the Antonov AN-225, has been destroyed during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
  • The enormous aircraft, named "Mriya," or "dream" in Ukrainian, was parked at an airfield near Kyiv when it was attacked by Russian occupants.

• Swiss to become first airline to use solar fuel
  • Swiss and its parent company, the Lufthansa Group, have partnered with synthetic fuel group Synhelion to use its solar fuel. This will make Swiss the first airline in the world to use sun-to-liquid fuel.

• Pakistan continues to remain on FATF's grey list
  • The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has once again retained Pakistan on the increased monitoring list, also known as the "grey list". Meanwhile, the global financial watchdog also added the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to its grey watchlist.

STATES

• Chennai gets India’s first ambulance for street animals
  • An animal welfare charity Blue Cross of India has launched India’s first ambulance for street animals in Chennai.
  • The Blue Cross of India has started the project in collaboration with international animal welfare organisation Four Paw.

• Rajasthan govt announces Rs 10 crore budget to promote cattle rearing
  • Faced with a declining number of camels in Rajasthan, the Rajasthan state government has announced a 'Camel Protection and Development Policy' in its budget 2022-23.
  • Camel is the state animal of Rajasthan and their number is continuously decreasing. The demand for camel protection in the state has been rising for a long time.

• Herath Festival celebrated in Jammu and Kashmir
  • Maha Shivratri, locally known as 'Herath', was celebrated with religious fervour and gaiety across Jammu and Kashmir.
  • The festival holds an important place among the Pandits, who celebrate it to mark the wedding of Lord Shiva with Parvati by cooking traditional Kashmiri food and dishes especially fish.

REPORTS AND INDEXES

• Sustainable Development Report 2021
  • The Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), released its annual Sustainable Development Report 2021.
  • The 6th edition of the Sustainable Development Report (2021), ranked India at 120th out of 165 countries with a country score of 60.1.
  • Finland topped the rankings with a score of 85.90 followed by Sweden with 85.61 and Denmark with 84.86, Germany at 82.48, and Belgium with 82.19.

• India ranks 3rd in billionaire population globally: Report
  • Knight Frank has come up with the latest edition of The Wealth Report 2022.
  • As per the report, India is ranked 3rd in terms of most number of billionaires’ population globally in 2021.
  • The list has been topped by the United States (748) and China (554) has got second rank.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• NASA launches latest generation satellite to track hazardous weather
  • In a big development, NASA has successfully launched the third in a series of next-generation weather satellites for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
  • The newest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, GOES-T, was launched on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

• IIT Kanpur develops biodegradable nanoparticle to protect crops from diseases
  • Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur have developed a biodegradable nanoparticle that can be used as an alternative to chemical-based pesticides and help farmers protect their crops from bacterial and fungal infections.
  • Coined Biodegradable Carbonoid Metabolite (BioDCM), the nanoparticle can remain active at low concentration and can be as effective as pesticides without having any negative impact on soil and health of consumers.

• DRDO successfully tests Quantum Key Distribution tech between 2 cities
  • A joint team of scientists from Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, for the first time in the country successfully demonstrated Quantum Key Distribution link between Prayagraj and Vindhyachal in Uttar Pradesh, a distance of more than 100 km.

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

• Matsya Setu 2.0 app to boost freshwater fisheries
  • The Government will soon launch Matsya Setu 2.0 whereby farmers, wholesale buyers, suppliers of feed and equipment and other members of the value chain will be able to share information on market prices and availability of produce.

DEFENCE

• Indian Air Force postpones Exercise Vayu Shakti at Pokharan
  • The Indian Air Force (IAF) has postponed Exercise Vayu Shakti that was scheduled to take place at the Pokharan range in Jaisalmer.
  • The Indian Air Force (IAF) conducts Exercise Vayu Shakti at the Pokharan range every three years to demonstrate its readiness to conduct full spectrum operations. The last one took place in 2019.

• Ninth edition of India-Sri Lanka Naval Exercise SLINEX begins in Visakhapatnam
  • The ninth edition of India-Sri Lanka Naval Exercise, SLINEX, is scheduled at Visakhapatnam.
  • The exercise is being conducted in two phases, the Harbour Phase at Visakhapatnam followed by the Sea Phase in the Bay of Bengal.

EVENTS

• 28th DST-CII India-Singapore Technology Summit
  • Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in partnership with Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India is hosting the 28th edition of the DST – CII Technology Summit (over a virtual platform).
  • Singapore is the Partner Country for Technology Summit in 2022.

• IIT Madras and NIOT bring OCEANS Conference
  • Indian Institute of Technology Madras and National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai, are organizing the OCEANS 2022 Conference and Exposition, the Bi-annual event for Global Marine Researchers, technologists and engineers, students and policymakers.
  • This conference is being organized in India for the first time and is being coordinated by the Department of Ocean Engineering, IIT Madras.
  • ‘Inspire-Innovate-Sustain’ is the main theme of the conference.

• 5th session of United Nations Environment Assembly
  • Hosted by the UN Environment Programme, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) brings together representatives of the 193 Member States of the UN, businesses, civil society and other stakeholders to agree on policies to address the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.
  • The resumed fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2) took place online and in Nairobi from 28 February – 2 March 2022.
  • The overall theme for UNEA-5 was “Strengthening Actions for Nature to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals”.

AWARDS AND REWARDS

• IISER professor Deepak Dhar becomes first Indian to bag Boltzmann Medal
  • Physicist professor Deepak Dhar has become the first Indian to be awarded the Boltzmann Medal. He shares the medal with John J Hoefield of Princeton University.
  • The Commission on Statistical Physics of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) presents this medal once in three years for contributions in the field of statistical physics.

• National Mission For Clean Ganga Gets Special Jury Award
  • National Mission for Clean Ganga was awarded the Special Jury Award at the 7th India Industry Water Conclave and the 9th edition of the FICCI Water Awards that was held on a virtual platform.

• NMDC receives 1st prize in Ispat Rajbhasha Award for 2018-19 and 2020-21 and Ispat Rajbhasha Prerna Award for 2019-20
  • National Mineral Development Corporation Ltd. (NMDC), Country’s largest Iron Ore producer, a CPSE under Ministry of Steel received 1st prize in the Ispat Rajbhasha Award for 2018-19 and 2020-21 and the Ispat Rajbhasha Prerna Award for 2019-20 in the meeting of the Hindi Salahakar Committee of the Ministry of Steel held in Madurai.

SPORTS

• Pooja Jatyan Wins Silver At Para Archery World Championships
  • Rookie para archer Pooja Jatyan scripted history by becoming the first Indian to win a silver medal in an individual section of the Para World Championships.
  • She lost to Italian Petrilli Vincenza in the finals at the Para Archery World Championships.

• 31st Southeast Asian Games to open in Vietnam
  • The 31st Southeast Asian Games, the region's biggest sporting event, will be held in Vietnam from May 12 to 23 this year.
  • The Games will feature 40 sports with 526 events, attracting around 10,000 participants.
  • The Vietnamese capital Hanoi will be the main venue alongside 11 neighbouring localities including Quang Ninh, Phu Tho and Bac Ninh.

• Pro Kabaddi League 8
  • The 2021-22 Vivo Pro Kabaddi League was the eighth season of Pro Kabaddi League. The season began in December 2021.
  • Sheraton Grand Hotel and Convention Center located in Whitefield, Bangalore was announced as the venue.
  • Dabang Delhi KC defeated Patna Pirates in the final match to win their maiden title.