Weekly Current Affairs 9th January - 15th January 2021

• RBI cancels licence of Osmanabad’s Vasantdada Nagari Sahakari Bank
  • The RBI has cancelled the licence of Vasantdada Nagari Sahakari Bank, Osmanabad, Maharashtra as the bank would be unable to pay its present depositors in full in its current financial position.
• RBI returns to revised liquidity management framework
  • The RBI announced resumption of operations under the revised liquidity management framework, in a sign that it is set to unwind the Covid-related relief measures announced in March 2020.

• RBI constitutes six person Working Group to study all aspects of digital lending activities
  • The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the constitution of a working group to study the workings of digital lenders, to put forth a regulation in the sector.
  • The working group will have four members from the regulator’s end as internal members, and two external members.

ECONOMY

• FinMin releases Rs 6,000 crore to states, UTs to meet GST compensation shortfall
  • The Finance Ministry released the 11th instalment of Rs 6,000 crore to states and UTs to meet the GST compensation shortfall, taking the total amount provided so far under this window to Rs 66,000 crore.

• Indian economy to rebound with 8.9% growth in FY22
  • Indian economy is likely to rebound with an 8.9 per cent growth in the fiscal year beginning April 2021 after economic activity showed significant improvement in the last quarter, IHS Markit said.

• India to see quickest growth rebound in Asia in FY'22: UBS
  • With number of active COVID-19 cases falling sharply, India's economy is expected to clock the fastest growth among Asian peers with higher than 11.5 per cent growth in FY'22, according to a report by UBS global research.

NATIONAL

• India to chair 3 key UNSC committees
  • India would be chairing three key UN sanctions committees, during 2021-22.
  • The three important subsidiary bodies of the Security Council are– the Taliban sanctions committee, the counter-terrorism committee and the Libya sanctions committee.

• Coast Guard signs pact with Asian countries for cooperation in maritime search, rescue
  • Indian Coast Guard has entered into memoranda of understanding with seven Asian countries for cooperation in maritime search and rescue operations. Maritime exercises and training activities are being jointly conducted with these countries regularly.

• Global Pravasi Rishta portal & mobile App launched
  • Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan launched the Global Pravasi Rishta portal and mobile App, to connect with Indian Diaspora across the world.

INTERNATIONAL

• Central African Republic president Touadera wins reelection
  • Faustin-Archange Touadera was reelected as the president of Central African Republic with more than 53% votes.

• Joe Biden Names Two Indian-Americans in US National Security Council
  • US President-elect Joe Biden named Indian-American Sumona Guha as senior director for South Asia and Tarun Chhabra as senior director for Technology and National Security.

• Joe Biden selects Judge Merrick Garland as his attorney general
  • US President-elect Joe Biden has selected Merrick Garland, a federal appeals court judge, as his attorney general.

STATES

• West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee inaugurates 26th Kolkata International Film Festival
  • West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee allowed full occupancy in cinema halls during the week-long Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF), which was inaugurated during the day in an online event.

• Punjab CM launches DigiNest app
  • Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh virtually launched a mobile application ‘DigiNest’ to give people access to the state government’s directory, which can be synced with a smartphone.

• Centre notifies 0-1 km area around boundary of Kerala’s Mathikettan Shola Park as Eco-sensitive Zone
  • The Centre has notified an area to an extent varying from zero to one km around the boundary of Mathikettan Shola National Park in Kerala’s Idukki district as an Eco-sensitive Zone considering the unique nature of the Shola forest and its importance as an elephant strip.

REPORTS AND INDEXES

• Digital Evolution Scorecard 2020
  • The third edition of the Digital Evolution Scorecard is published by Tufts University's Fletcher School in partnership with Mastercard.
  • The Index shows the level of digitisation in various countries.

• Bloomberg Billionaires Index
  • The Bloomberg Billionaires Index is prepared by Bloomberg.
  • It is a daily ranking of World’s 500 richest people.
  • he electric automaker- Tesla’s shares surged 7.9%, boosting Elon Musk past Amazon.com Inc. founder Jeff Bezos on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

• Indian Cities in the Post-Pandemic World: WEF study
  • The WEF report, titled Indian Cities in the Post-Pandemic World, highlights the country’s most pressing urban challenges that were further exacerbated by the pandemic. The report also provides insights for translating the lessons learned from the pandemic into an urban reform agenda.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• ISRO to adopt 100 Atal Tinkering Labs to promote education in STEM
  • The Indian Space Research Organisation will adopt 100 Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) across the country.

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

• APEDA and Indian Embassy organize Virtual Buyer Seller Meeting with Bhutan
  • APEDA organized a Virtual Buyer Seller Meet (BSM) in association with Indian Embassy in Bhutan, on 07thJanuary 2021.

• COSFOM website launched in Manipur
  • The website for Community-based Sustainable Forest Management for Water Resource Conservation in Manipur (COSFOM) www.cosfom.mn.gov.in has been launched in Manipur.

• The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yajana (PMFBY) successfully completes 5 Years of operations
  • The Central Government’s Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yajana (PMFBY) has completed Five years of operations.

DEFENCE

• MoD signs contract with BEL to supply 10 Lynx U2 Fire Control systems for Indian Navy
  • Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a contract with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) for procurement of 10 Lynx U2 Fire Control systems for frontline warships of Indian Navy at a cost of Rs 1,355 crore under Buy (Indian) category in New Delhi.

• BEML bags order for the supply of high mobility vehicles to Indian Army
  • BEML Limited, one of the Defence equipment manufacturer and a ‘Schedule A’ Company under the Ministry of Defence (MoD) received orders from MoD for supply of High Mobility vehicles, at an approximate value of Rs.758 crore.

• Pakistan test fires indigenously developed weapons rocket system, Fatah-1
  • Pakistan successfully conducted the test-flight of an indigenously developed Guided Multi Launch Rocket System, Fatah-1, capable of delivering conventional warheads, with a maximum range of 140 km.

EVENTS

• International Akhand Conference ‘EDUCON-2020’
  • Central University of Punjab, Bethesda (CUPB) & Global Educational Research Association (GERA) successfully organised the two-day virtual International Akhand Conference EDUCON-2020.

• Ayurveda festival from March 12
  • The fourth Global Ayurveda Festival (GAF 2021), aimed at the global discussion and development of Ayurveda, will be held from March 12 to 19 as a virtual meet.

AWARDS AND REWARDS

• Indian Railways bags awards at the 'National Energy Conservation awards 2020’
  • Indian Railways begged 13 awards in three prestigious categories of National Energy Conservation Awards (NECA) for the year 2020, organized by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), Ministry of Power.

• Patna Meteorological Observatory gets centennial observing station status
  • The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), Geneva has awarded the status of Centennial observing station to the Patna meteorological observatory in recognition to its long-term meteorological observation exceeding over 100 years.

• Surgeon Raghu Ram Pillarisetti Named In Queen Elizabeth II's New Year's Honours List
  • Eminent surgeon and Padma Shri awardee Raghu Ram Pillarisetti has found a place in the prestigious Queen Elizabeth II's 2021 New year’s Honours list.

SPORTS

• Khelo India Ice Hockey Tournament begins in Chiktan, Kargil
  • In Kargil Ladakh, Khelo India Ice Hockey Tournament is being organised at Chiktan by Zonal Physical Education Officer Chiktan.

• Dhaka Marathon 2021
  • Home Minister of Bangladesh Asaduzzaman Khan inaugurated the Dhaka Marathon 2021 at Dhaka Army Stadium.