Weekly Current Affairs 16th March- 22nd March 2021

FINANCE AND BANKING

• RBI asks banks to implement image-based Cheque Truncation System in all branches by Sep 30
  • The Reserve Bank on Monday asked banks to implement the image-based Cheque Truncation System (CTS) in all branches by September 30, a move aimed at faster settlement of cheques resulting in better customer service.

• RBI: Household savings rate slides to 10.4% in Q2 from 21% in Q1
  • The household financial savings rate slid to 10.4% of gross domestic product (GDP) — closer to pre-pandemic levels — in Q2FY21 from 21% in Q1 in a counter-seasonal manner, the Reserve Bank of India said in an article in its March bulletin

• BHIM UPI customers can raise complaints through the platform: NPCI
  • NPCI has gone live with 'UPI-Help' on BHIM UPI, a part of Digi-Help stacks by NPCI, according to a release.

ECONOMY

• Gautam Adani beats Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk to be world’s biggest wealth gainer in 2021
  • The Bloomberg Billionaires Index showed that so far in 2021, Adani has added $16.2 billion, taking his total net worth to $50 billion. With this surge in his wealth, Adani is now the 26th richest person in the world.

• Moody's Analytics sees India's GDP growth at 12% in 2021
  • After contracting by 7.1 per cent in 2020, India's gross domestic product (GDP) is likely to grow 12 per cent in 2021 as near-term prospects have turned more favourable, Moody's Analytics said.

• 23.24 lakh loans have been sanctioned under PM SVANidhi Scheme
  • The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has informed that, 23.24 lakh loans have been sanctioned and 18.54 lakh loans have been disbursed to the beneficiaries under the Pradhan Mantri Street Vendors, Atma Nirbhar Nidhi Scheme (PM SVANidhi).

NATIONAL

• US India Artificial Intelligence (USIAI) Initiative launched
  • The binational Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) launched its ambitious flagship initiative titled US-India Artificial Intelligence Initiative (USIAI).

• India, Kuwait announce joint commission to boost ties in energy
  • India and Kuwait announced the creation of a joint commission to further institutionalise their relations in areas ranging from energy to defence and to forge a framework for cooperation in the future.

• Ken Betwa Link Project
  • A memorandum of agreement was signed between Union Minister of Jal Shakti and the chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh to implement the Ken-Betwa Link Project.
  • The agreement was signed through a video conference in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

INTERNATIONAL

• World’s largest floating solar farms being built in Singapore
  • Singapore is now home to one of the world's largest floating solar farms and it is capable of potentially offsetting more than 4,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.

• Dutch PM Mark Rutte's conservatives register fourth straight election win
  • Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte's conservative party secured the fourth consecutive victory in a vote held during a nationwide lockdown. Now the process of forming a new Dutch governing coalition began.

• El Salvador becomes first Central American country to be declared malaria-free
  • El Salvador has become the first country in Central America and the third in all Americas to get the malaria-free certificate from the World Health Organization (WHO) in recent years.

STATES

• J&K LG Manoj Sinha inaugurates project "Awaam Ki Baat"
  • J&K Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, initiated “Awaam Ki Baat” - a Radio program by launching its website.

• Mission Gramodaya launched in Madhya Pradesh
  • In Madhya Pradesh, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan have launched the Mission Gramodaya in the state.

• Jharkhand’s SAAMAR campaign to fight malnutrition in the state
  • The Jharkhand government announced the launch of SAAMAR (Strategic Action for Alleviation of Malnutrition and Anemia Reduction) campaign to tackle malnutrition in the state.

REPORTS AND INDEXES

• Global Home Price Index
  • In the latest global home price index, India has slipped 13 spots, to rank 56th globally.
  • International property consultancy, Knight Frank, in its ‘Global House Price Index Q4 2020’, cited that India has seen a decline of 3.6% year-on-year (YoY), which led to the slip.

• World Air Quality Report 2020: IQAir
  • A report is prepared by Swiss organisation, IQAir, titled “World Air Quality Report, 2020”, which has released globally. The report includes data for 106 countries.
  • It is a global cities ranking report based on PM 2.5 data from 106 countries, which is measured by ground-based monitoring stations, most of which is operated by government agencies.

• World Happiness Report 2021
  • The World Happiness Report 2021 has been released by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
  • The World Happiness Report is a landmark survey of the state of global happiness that ranks 149 countries by how happy their citizens perceive themselves to be.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• ISRO to Set-up ‘Space Technology Incubation Center’ at NIT-Rourkela
  • The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is going to establish a ‘Space Technology Incubation Center’ (S-TIC) at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Rourkela to carry out

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

• GoI launched “Gram Ujala Scheme” for Rural Areas
  • “Gram Ujala Scheme” was launched by The government of India to provide the cheapest LED bulbs in rural areas.

• GoI Forms Experts Committee for Startup India Seed Fund Scheme
  • The government has constituted an experts advisory committee for the overall execution and monitoring of the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme.

DEFENCE

• Indian Naval Landing Craft Utility L58 commissioned at Port Blair
  • Indian Naval Landing Craft Utility L58, the eighth and last ship of the Landing Craft Utility (LCU) Mark IV Class, was commissioned into the Indian Navy at Port Blair.

• KRAS rolls out first batch of Medium Range Surface to Air
  • Kalyani Rafael Advanced Systems Pvt Ltd (KRAS), a joint venture between the Kalyani Group and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems of Israel, rolled out its first batch of Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM) for the Indian Army and the Air Force.

• Defence Ministry seals deal with BDL to acquire 4,690 anti-tank guided missiles
  • The Defence Ministry sealed a deal with state-run Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) to acquire 4,960 MILAN-2T anti-tank guided missiles at a cost of ₹1,188 crore for the Indian Army.

EVENTS

• SIXTH INDIA-BRAZIL-SOUTH AFRICA (IBSA) WOMEN’S FORUM MEETING
  • The Sixth India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) Women’s Forum meeting was held virtually.
  • Led by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India, the event witnessed participation of Ministers and officials responsible for Women Affairs of IBSA Countries.

• International Conference on Multifunctional Electronic Materials and Processing (MEMP 2021)
  • Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Sanjay Dhotre inaugurated the International Conference on Multifunctional Electronic Materials and Processing (MEMP 2021) virtually on the occasion of 30th foundation day of Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology.

AWARDS AND REWARDS

• 11th CII National HR Excellence Award 2020-21
  • NTPC Ltd, a Public Sector Undertaking under Ministry of Power has been conferred the prestigious ‘Role Model’ Award at the 11th CII National HR Excellence Award 2020-21.

SPORTS

• Virat Kohli became 1st batsman to score 3000 runs in men’s T20Is
  • Team India Captain Virat Kohli became the first batsman to score 3000 runs in T20 Internationals.

• Hashmatullah Shahidi Becomes First Afghan Player to Score Test Double Century
  • Afghanistan's Hashmatullah Shahidi became the first batsman from the country to register a double hundred in Test cricket.

• International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup
  • Yashaswini Deswal bagged the first gold medal for India in the Women's 10M Air Pistol final of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting range (DKSSR).