Weekly Current Affairs 23rd- 30th April 2022

FINANCE AND BANKING

• RBI has launched the next round of the quarterly Industrial Outlook Survey (IOS)
  • Reserve Bank of India has launched the next round of the quarterly Industrial Outlook Survey (IOS) to assesses business sentiment for the current quarter and expectations for the ensuing three-month period.
  • The survey assesses business sentiment and expectations based on qualitative responses on a set of indicators pertaining to demand conditions, financial conditions, employment and the price situation.

• Bank credit grows by 10.09%; deposits by 10.06%: RBI
  • Bank credit grew by 10.09 per cent to Rs 119.88 lakh crore and deposits by 10.06 per cent to Rs 167.42 lakh crore in the fortnight ended on April 8, 2022.
  • Bank advances stood at Rs 108.88 lakh crore and deposits at Rs 152.11 lakh crore, according to the RBI's Scheduled Banks' Statement of Position in India.
  • In FY 2021-22, bank credit rose by 8.59% and deposit by 8.94%.

• SEBI issues Rs 2 crore recovery notice to former NSE Chief Ravi Narain
  • SEBI sent a notice to NSE's former chief Ravi Narain, asking him to pay Rs 2.06 crore in a case related to governance lapses at the stock exchange, and warned of arrest and attachment of assets and bank accounts if he fails to make the payment within 15 days.
  • The notice came after Ravi Narain failed to pay the fine imposed on him by SEBI.

ECONOMY

• India and European Unoin (EU) agreed to launch an EU-India trade and technology council
  • PM Narendra Modi and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed to launch an EU-India Trade and Technology Council to address the challenges of ensuring trusted technology and security in the wake of rapid geopolitical changes.
  • This strategic coordination mechanism will allow both partners to tackle challenges “at the nexus of trade, trusted technology and security, and thus deepen cooperation in these fields.”

• NTPC signs MoU with Energy Vault for gravity-based energy storage technology
  • National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Swiss energy storage company Energy Vault Holdings for gravity-based energy storage technology.
  • The objective of the MoU is to collaborate and formalise a long-term strategic partnership for deployment of Energy Vault’s EVx gravity-based energy storage technology and software solutions based on the outcome of a joint feasibility study.

• Exports of ceramics and glassware products touch USD 3.5 billion in FY22: Commerce Ministry
  • Exports of ceramics and glassware products touched a “record” USD 3.5 billion in 2021-22.
  • Commerce Ministry said the exports rose because of increase in shipments of ceramic tiles and sanitaryware products.
  • India is the world’s second largest manufacturer of tiles.

NATIONAL

• Agartala-Akhaura rail link set to be completed by December
  • The ₹980 crore railway line project between Agartala in Tripura and Akhaura in Bangladesh will be completed by December.
  • The 15.6-km-long railway link will connect Gangasagar in Bangladesh to Nischintapur in India.
  • The Ministry of Development of the North Eastern Region (DoNER) is bearing the cost for laying the track on the 5.46 km link on the Indian side, and the cost of laying the 10.6-km-long track on the Bangladesh side is being borne by the Ministry of External Affairs.

• NITI Aayog partners with UNICEF India
  • NITI Aayog and UNICEF India have signed a Statement of Intent (SoI) on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aiming to achieve the United Nations sustainable development goals focusing on children in the country.
  • The SoI has been signed by Sanyukta Samaddar, NITI Aayog’s nodal officer, and Hyun Hee Ban, UNICEF India chief of social policy.

• Asia’s biggest international food, hospitality fair AAHAR-2022
  • Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) in association with the India Trade Promotion Organization (ITPO) organised Asia’s biggest international food and hospitality fair AAHAR-2022 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.
  • More than 80 exporters form different segments of agricultural products which include geographical indication products, processed food, organic, frozen food products participated in the fair.

INTERNATIONAL

• Emmanuel Macron re-elected French president
  • French President Emmanuel Macron has been reelected French president defeating Marine Le Pen.
  • The 44-year-old has become the third French president who has managed to secure a second term.

• Achi reappointed PM of Ivory Coast
  • Patrick Achi has been reappointed as prime minister of Ivory Coast just a week after resigning from the post.
  • Tiemoko Meyliet Kone, the governor of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), has been appointed as vice president.

• INS Gharial delivers 760 kg of critical medicines to Sri Lanka
  • With the overarching aim of providing critical medical aid to Sri Lanka during the ongoing crisis, INS Gharial as part of Mission SAGAR IX arrived at Colombo on April 29 and delivered over 760 kgs of 107 types of critical lifesaving medicines.
  • Debt-ridden Sri Lanka is grappling with an unprecedented economic turmoil. The crisis has been caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices.

STATES

• 'Vijayotsav' celebrations at Jagdishpur in Bihar
  • Vijayotsav programme held at Jagdishpur in Bhojpur district ,to honour Babu Veer Kunwar Singh on April 23, as part of the Centre’s Amrit Mahtosav cultural programme being organized to celebrate the country’s 75 years of independence.

• Khongjom Day observed in Manipur
  • Khongjom day is observed in Manipur on April 23 every year to pay tribute to the Manipuris who fell in the Anglo-Manipuri war of 1891.
  • Khongjom Day was observed at Khongjom War Memorial Complex at Khebaching, 35km south of Imphal in Manipur’s Thoubal district.

• Tamil Nadu to observe Minorities Rights Day
  • The Tamil Nadu government will observe December 18, every year, as Minorities Rights Day at the state level and about Rs 2.50 lakh will be earmarked for the purpose.
  • The aim is to promote the upliftment and economic advancement of the minorities through effective implementation of various development schemes and welfare measures.

REPORTS AND INDEXES

• Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programm: SIPRI
  • SIPRI is an independent international institute dedicated to research into conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament.
  • According to new data by defence think tank SIPRI, The US, China, India, UK and Russia were the top five defence spenders.
  • The US, which far outspent any other nation with $801bn, and decreased its spending by 1.4 percent in 2021.

• Labour force shrinks to 8-month low in March, 2022: CMIE
  • According to the Centre for Monitoring of Indian Economy (CMIE), India’s labour force fell by 38 lakhs in the month of March to the lowest level in the last eight months, comprising a decline in the count of both employed and unemployed.
  • Labour force participation rate fell to 39.5%, lower than 39.9% in February and 39.6% in June 2022.
  • In the labour force, the count of employed fell by 14 lakhs while the count of unemployed shrunk by 24 lakhs.

• FY23 outlook for real estate revised to stable: ICRA report
  • Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Limited (ICRA) has revised the outlook for residential real estate outlook to stable from negative for the current financial year 2022-2023, supported by healthy sales traction and declining inventory overhang.
  • The healthy sales momentum is expected to sustain, with the sales in top seven cities expected to grow by 3% in FY23 on a high base of FY22.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• IIT Delhi Ties up with POSOCO
  • Northern Regional Load Despatch Centre of Power System Operation Corp. Ltd. (Posoco) signed a memorandum of understanding with Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT D), to encourage research on issues related to India’s power sector and strengthen interaction between the academia and industry.

• HAL and BEL to co-develop IRST system for Su-30 MKI
  • Defence PSUs Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) signed a contract for co-development and co-production of long range dual band Infra-Red Search and Track System (IRST) for the Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft.
  • The contract was signed under the MAKE-II procedure of Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020, as part of the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

• APEDA signs MoU with NRDC to boost export value chain
  • Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) with a view to giving a boost to the export value chain.
  • The MoU has been signed for the implementation of the Agri Export Policy and to strengthen the export value chain.

• Fertiliser subsidy set to touch record Rs 1.65 trn in FY23 : CRISIL
  • India's fertiliser subsidy is set to touch a record of Rs 1.65 lakh crore and an additional subsidy and revision in the nutrient-based subsidy (NBS) rates are crucial in order to sustain the credit profiles of fertiliser makers.
  • CRISIL assessment assumes 3% year-on-year growth in demand for fertilisers and a moderation of raw material and fertiliser prices in the second half of this fiscal.

• Agriculture absorbed additional 11 m workers over last 3 years: CMIE
  • During the pandemic, agriculture has absorbed an additional 11 million workers in the last three years while the rest of the economy lost 15 million jobs the Indian Economy Monitoring Center saying.
  • CMIE Consumer Pyramids Household Survey, Agriculture saw an estimated 4.5 million increase in employment during fiscal year 2021-22. While total employment fell by 21.7 million in the 2020-21 pandemic year, agriculture provided employment for 3.4 million.

DEFENCE

• First edition of Naval Commanders' Conference
  • The first edition of the Naval Commanders' Conference of 2022 is scheduled from April 25 to 28.
  • The conference serves as a platform for naval commanders to discuss important maritime matters at the military-strategic level as well as interact with senior government functionaries through an institutionalised forum.

• India, Maldives unveil sea navigation chart
  • Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar, who was on a three-day visit to Maldives, unveiled the first navigation chart and handed over hydrography equipment to consolidate organic capabilities of the island nation.
  • It helps ships to understand the maritime topography of Maldives Exclusive Economic zones, water depths and which areas to avoid.

• IAF chief inaugurates logistics seminar LOGISEM VAYU-2022
  • The IAF chief, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari inaugurated the logistics seminar ‘Logisem Vayu-2022’ in New Delhi.
  • The IAF chief said the new paradigm of high intensity operations, coupled with minimal build-up time would require major changes in terms of operational logistics.

EVENTS

• Ministry of Civil Aviation organized “Yog Prabha”
  • The Ministry of Civil Aviation organized “Yog Prabha”, a mega Yoga event at Safdarjung Airport, New Delhi.
  • This event will help create wider awareness among the participants about importance of Yoga in daily life.
  • The United Nations General Assembly took a historic decision in 2014 to declare 21st June as the International Day of Yoga (IDY).

• IAF's national level logistics seminar at Air Force Auditorium in New Delhi
  • A national level logistics seminar was organised by Indian Air Force at Air Force Auditorium in New Delhi.
  • The theme of the seminar was “Orchestrating Logistics Support for Air Combat Operations”.
  • Prominent experts from various fields delved upon aspects related to National Logistics Policy and absorption of modern technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain and internet of things.

• MoS Rajeev Chandrasekhar launches Digital India RISC-V Microprocessor (DIR-V) Program
  • To achieve commercial silicon and design wins for the next generation microprocessors by December 2023, the government of India announced the launch of Digital India RISC-V (DIR-V) program.
  • RISC-V is a free and open ISA enabling a new era of processor innovation through open standard collaboration.

AWARDS AND REWARDS

• Commonwealth Points of Light Award
  • First established by President George H. W. Bush in 1990, over 6,000 US Points of Light have been recognised in the USA.
  • UK Points of Light was developed in partnership with the US programme and launched in the Cabinet Room at 10 Downing Street in April 2014.
  • Points of Light are outstanding individual volunteers – people who are making a change in their community. Every week day the Prime Minister recognises an inspirational volunteer with the Daily Point of Light award.

• UN 'Champion of the Earth' award
  • The British broadcaster Sir David Attenborough has been officially recognized as a "Champion of the Earth" Lifetime Achievement Award by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) on April 21 to honour David Attenborough’s dedication to research, documentation, and advocacy in protecting and restoring nature.
  • The natural history icon is just the fifth person to receive the award for lifetime achievement.
  • Some of his most famous documentaries include Planet Earth, Blue Planet, Life on Earth and Our Planet.

• New Global Peace Ambassador 2022
  • The AAC-Global Peace Ambassador 2022 honor has been constituted by Asia Africa Consortium and is the highest honour bestowed by the Secretary General on a global citizen that fosters Socio Economic Relations and Sustainable Growth between Asia and Africa encompassing in Education, Health and Trade.
  • Babita Singh was conferred this award for her exemplary contribution for her Peace building initiatives via Sports & Culture.

SPORTS

• Women’s T20 Challenge 2022
  • The Women's T20 Challenge series, popularly called the women's IPL, will be played at Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow between May 24 and 28.
  • In 2020, Trailblazer was the winning team, which was captained by Smriti Mandhana.
  • The runners up were Supernovas headed by Harmanpreet Kaur, while Mithali Raj's Velocity stood at number three.

• West Indies All-Rounder Kieron Pollard Announces Retirement From International Cricket
  • West Indies all-rounder Kieron Pollard announced his retirement from international cricket.
  • Pollard was the captain of West Indies' limited-overs teams played a total of 123 ODIs and 101 T20Is.
  • He has been an integral part of the Mumbai Indians team in the Indian Premier League for several years now and was retained by the franchise ahead of the mega auction in February this year.

• Serbia Open 2022
  • Andrey Rublev from Russia has defeated world No. 1 Novak Djokovic from Serbia to win his third title in the Serbia Open.
  • Rublev has now equalled Rafael Nadal (Spain) for the most tour-level titles in 2022.
  • He also clinched crowns in Marseille and Dubai in February 2022.