Weekly Current Affairs 16th June - 22nd June 2021

FINANCE AND BANKING

• RBI granted approval to CFSL for taking over PMC Bank via SFB route
  • Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently gave in-principle approval to Centrum Financial Services Limited (CFSL) to set up a small finance bank (SFB).
  • Through this SFB, Centrum will take over Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank (PMC) as a separate process.

• Speed, scale of Covid vaccination to shape economic recovery path: RBI report
  • Speed and scale of vaccination against COVID-19 will shape the path of economic recovery which has the resilience and the fundamentals to bounce back from the pandemic and unshackle itself from pre-existing cyclical and structural hindrances, said a report by RBI.

• RBI Issued Norms for FATF Non-Compliant Jurisdictions' Investment in PSOs
  • RBI issued regulations for investments in Payment Systems Operators (PSOs) by new entities from Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Non-compliant countries.
  • RBI stopped new investors from or through non-compliant FATF jurisdictions to acquire significant influence in PSOs.

ECONOMY

• GeM portal facilitates public purchases of Rs 1.1 lakh crore
  • Goods and services worth as much as Rs 1.11 lakh crore have been purchased through the public procurement portal GeM since its inception in August 2016, according to the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

• Haryana announces Rs 5,000 one-time aid for labourers, shopkeepers hit by pandemic
  • The Haryana government recently announced a one-time payment of Rs 5,000 each to small shopkeepers, construction workers, auto-rickshaw drivers and unorganised labourers who have faced financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown.

• CII projects India’s FY22 GDP growth at 9.5%
  • The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has estimated the gross domestic product (GDP) of India to grow at 9.5 per cent in the current financial year, i.e. FY 2021-22.

NATIONAL

• Cabinet approves Deep Ocean Mission
  • The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the proposal of Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) on "Deep Ocean Mission", with a view to explore deep ocean for resources and develop deep sea technologies for sustainable use of ocean resources.

• Centre approves policy to declassify war histories, operations
  • In a significant development that will help set the record straight on India’s military history, defence minister Rajnath Singh approved a new policy to declassify war histories and records of other military operations in a time-bound manner to give the country an accurate account of events, provide authentic material for research and counter unfounded rumours.

• Govt launches 'Project O2 for India' to increase supply of medical oxygen
  • The Centre has launched 'Project O2 for India' to step up production of medical oxygen to meet the potential increase in demand due to further waves of the pandemic. 'Project O2 for India', an initiative of the Office of Principal Scientific Adviser, Government of India (GoI), aims to help stakeholders working to augment the country's ability to meet the rise in demand for medical oxygen.

INTERNATIONAL

• UK’s and Australia's PMs agree on historic free trade agreement
  • British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison have agreed on a historic free trade agreement (FTA) that will make it cheaper for the UK to sell its cars and Scotch whisky Down Under and remove barriers for business.

• Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana, UAE Elected To UN Security Council For 2022-23 Term
  • Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana and the United Arab Emirates were elected unopposed to the UN Security Council as non-permanent members for the 2022-23 term.

• Ebrahim Raisi will be the next president of Iran
  • Ebrahim Raisi will be the next president of Iran following his win in election.
  • Iran’s 13th presidential elections were held on June 18, contested by seven candidates. Overall voter turnout was 48.8% -- the lowest since the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979.

STATES

• Rajasthan to set up Vedic Education and Sanskar Board
  • The Rajasthan government will soon set up a Vedic Education and Sanskar Board to revive the knowledge of Sanskrit scriptures and vedas. The board is likely to be formed in the next four to five months.

• Madhya Pradesh Govt launches ‘Yuva Shakti Corona Mukti Abhiyan’
  • The Madhya Pradesh Government has launched ‘Yuva Shakti Corona Mukti Abhiyan’ involving youth to make the people aware of the COVID-19 pandemic and covid appropriate behaviour.

• Raja Parba: Odisha's 3-day festival celebrating menstruation commences
  • Raja Parba, a 3-day festival celebrating womanhood is being celebrated across Odisha.
  • Raja Parba or Mithuna Sankranti is a three-day-long festival and the second day signifies the beginning of the solar month of Mithuna from, which the season of rains starts.

REPORTS AND INDEXES

• World Giving Index 2021
  • The World Giving Index (WGI) is an annual report published by the Charities Aid Foundation, using data gathered by Gallup, and ranks over countries in the world according to how charitable they are.

• Global Peace Index 2021
  • The 15th edition of the Global Peace Index (GPI), which ranks 163 independent states and territories according to their level of peacefulness was produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP).

• Anaemia Mukt Bharat Index 2020-21
  • Anaemia Mukt Bharat is an initiative of UNICEF and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare which has been launched to reduce the prevalence of anaemia all over the country.
  • Anaemia is caused due to iron deficiency which impacts the capacity of an individual’s blood cells to carry oxygen.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• IIT Ropar Develops Power-Free CPAP Device 'Jivan Vayu'
  • Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar has developed a device ‘Jivan Vayu’ which can be used as a substitute for a CPAP machine.

• The world’s first wooden satellite should be in space by the end of 2021
  • A Finnish company called Arctic Astronautics is working on sending the world’s first wooden satellite to space by the end of this year. The satellite, WISA Woodsat, is a nanosatellite that’s shaped like a cube and is made of birch plywood. It has sensors that have been developed by the European Space Agency (ESA).

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

• Govt to link innovative agriculture technologies to farms to help farmers in North East region
  • The Centre will work towards linking innovative agricultural technologies with the farms to benefit small and marginal farmers, especially women in the North-eastern region under its Biotech-KISAN programme, the S&T ministry recently said.

• Ambuja Cement Foundation, NABARD to skill rural youth in 10 states
  • Ambuja Cement Foundation has joined hands with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) for implementation of its employability through skill initiative project’s second phase.

• KVIC Records Highest Ever Turnover in FY 2020-21 Despite Covid-19 Pandemic
  • In a year completely marred by Covid-19 pandemic, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has recorded its highest-ever turnover.

DEFENCE

• India, Japan conduct bilateral naval exercise in Indian Ocean
  • Ships of the Indian Navy and Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) participated in a joint naval exercise at the Indian Ocean to realize “Free and Open Indo-Pacific.

EVENTS

• IIT Bombay Hosts Conference Of BRICS Network Universities
  • Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay is hosting a three-day virtual conference of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) network universities.

• PM Modi to deliver keynote address at 5th edition of VivaTech
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver the keynote address at the 5th edition of VivaTech via video conferencing. The Prime Minister has been invited as a Guest of Honour to deliver the keynote address at VivaTech 2021.

• NATO Summit 2021: Brussels, Belgium
  • The 2021 Brussels summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was the 31st formal meeting of the heads of state and heads of government of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, held in Brussels, Belgium, in June 2021.

AWARDS AND REWARDS

• Indian environmental organization ‘Familial Forestry’ wins prestigious UN award
  • Rajasthan based environmental organization Familial Forestry has won the prestigious Land for Life Award for the current year conferred by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

• UN Global Compact Recognises Sumant Sinha of ReNew Power as One of Ten SDG Pioneers
  • The United Nations Global Compact recognised Sumant Sinha, Chairman & MD of ReNew Power as one of ten 2021 SDG Pioneers.

• Snowflake Global Innovation Partner of the Year
  • Larsen & Toubro Infotech, a global technology consulting and digital solutions company has been recognized as the Global Innovation Partner of the Year by Snowflake, the Data Cloud Company.

SPORTS

• Wrestler Vinesh Phogat clinches gold at Poland Open
  • Tokyo Olympic-bound star Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat won the 53kg gold at the Poland Open in Warsaw.
  • She defeated Ukraine's Khrystyna Bereza in the final, winning 8-0.

• French Grand Prix 2021
  • The 2021 French Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Emirates Grand Prix de France 2021) was a Formula One motor race which took place at the Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet, Var.
  • Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen won the race.

• Weightlifter Laurel Hubbard qualifies for Olympics, makes history as openly transgender athlete
  • New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard has become the first openly transgender athlete selected for the Olympics. Hubbard, 43, had participated in the men’s category as Gavin before coming out in 2013. She will compete in the women’s 87-kilogram class in Tokyo.