CURRENT AFFAIRS FOR UPSC & OTHER COMPETITIVE EXAMS
9th SEPTEMBER 2020
ADB to give $500 million loan to India for Delhi-Meerut RRTS Corridor
1.1 Asian Development Bank & India has signed a $500 million loan to build a modern, high-speed 82-kilometer Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor that will improve regional connectivity and mobility in India’s national capital region (NCR).
1.2 With a design speed of 180 km per hour and high-frequency operations of every 5–10 minutes, the 82-km corridor connecting Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to Modipuram in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh is expected to reduce the journey time to about 1 hour from the present 3–4 hours.
1.3 A $3 million grant from ADB’s Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction will support various activities, including the provision of visual, hearing, and mobility aids, such as wheelchairs for differently-abled persons.
1.4 Training for women and differently-abled on safe mobility and employment opportunities and behavioral change for public transport providers will also be given.
1.5 ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty.
Established - on 19 December 1966
Headquarter- Mandaluyong, Philippines
President - Masatsugu Asakawa
Radio Astronomer, Govind Swarup passes away at 91
2.1 Govind Swarup, the well-known Astronomer passed away at the age of 91.
2.2 He was known not only for his many important research contributions in several areas of astronomy and astrophysics but also for his outstanding achievements in building ingenious, innovative, and powerful observational facilities for front-line research in radio astronomy.
2.3 He was also awarded by the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of India, in 1973 and was honored with many more awards & medals for his outstanding contributions in the radio astronomy.
CIPET to open 2 new CSTS Centres at Bihar & UP
3.1 The Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering & Technology (CIPET), will open two new Centre for Skilling & Technical Support (CSTS) at Bhagalpur, (Bihar) & Varanasi, (U.P).
3.2 CIPET comes under the Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers & is actively contributing towards several Govt. of India initiatives viz., Skill India, Make in India, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Stand up India, StartUp India, and Digital India, etc.
f advertisements in the event of undue delay in responding to Committee’s notices.
114.2 MT of DDT supply to Zambia for Malaria Control Programme
4.1 Hindustan Insecticides Limited, a PSU in India, has supplied 114.2 MT of Dichloro-Diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT) to Zambia for their malaria control program.
4.2 HIL was formed in 1954 to manufacture & supply DDT to India’s Ministry of Health & Family Welfare’s malaria control program.
4.3 In the year 2019-20 DDT was supplied to 20 states in the country and it also exports it to African countries like South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia, etc.
4.4 WHO recommends DDT as one of the efficient Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) chemicals to curb the malaria mosquito menace.
Hunar Haat to be organized in October 2020
5.1 Union Ministry of Minority Affairs will organize the Hunar Haat, from 9 to 18 October 2020 at Prayagraj, U.P.
5.2 Hunar Haat is an enormous platform that provides market and opportunities to artisans who prepare indigenous toys.
5.3 According to the Union Minister of Minority Affairs, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, “Hunar Haat” has provided employment and employment opportunities to more than 5 lakh Indian artisans, craftsmen, culinary experts and other people associated with them in the last 5 years”.
5.4 More than 30 percent of stalls will be for artisans who prepare indigenous toys, they will also be extended help through various institutions for attractive packaging of “Swadeshi Toys”.
5.5 This time, these artisans & their indigenous products will get registered on Government e-marketplace (GeM), so that people can buy products online.
5.6 An appeal has also made by the govt. to get “Vocal for Local Toys”.
5.7 The theme for 2020 is - “Local to Global”.
RPF disrupts the operation of illegal software called ‘Real Mango’
6.1 Railway Protection Force (RPF), in a nationwide investigation, has disrupted the operation of illegal software called ‘Real Mango’.
6.2 It has found that-
Real mango software bypasses V3 and V2 captcha.
It synchronizes bank OTP with the help of a mobile app and feeds it to the requisite form automatically.
The software auto-fills the passenger details and payment details in the forms.
The software logs in to the IRCTC website through multiple IRCTC Ids.
The illegal software is sold through a five-tiered structure: System Admin & his team, Mavens, Super sellers, Sellers, and Agents.
System admin is receiving payment in bitcoins.
6.3 RPF has been able to apprehend around 50 criminals so far involved in the operation of this illegal software and block live tickets worth more than Rs. 5 Lakhs.
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmer’s Welfare launches 22 bamboo clusters in 9 States
7.1 Ministry of Agriculture & Farmer’s Welfare has launched 22 bamboo clusters in 9 states of the country and also released a logo for the National Bamboo Mission by applauding the success of the National Bamboo Mision in the country.
7.2 The nine states where the bamboo clusters are launched are - Gujarat, M.P, Maharashtra, Odisha, Assam, Nagaland, Tripura, Uttarakhand & Karnataka.
7.3 The Indian Forest Act 1927 was amended in the year 2017 to remove bamboo for the category of trees, as a result now anyone can undertake cultivation and business in bamboo and its products.
7.4 The restructured National Bamboo Mission was launched in 2018-19 for the holistic development of the complete value chain of the sector.
7.5 The Mission is being implemented in a hub (industry) and spoke model, with the main goal of connecting farmers to markets so as to enable farmer producers to get a ready market for the bamboo grown and to increase the supply of appropriate raw material to the domestic industry.
7.6 The National Bamboo Mission also endeavors to upgrade the skills of traditional bamboo craftsmen as per the requirement of contemporary markets with a tie-up with enterprises and premier institutes so that our cultural heritage is continued.
Telugu actor, Jaya Prakash Reddy dies at 74
8.1 Telugu actor, Jaya Prakash Reddy died at the age of 74 due to cardiac arrest.
8.2 He was known for his villainous & comedy roles.
Best & worst states/UTs in terms of literacy rate in India
9.1 The Ministry of Education has celebrated the 54th International Literacy Day on 8th September 2020.
9.2 On this day, the National Statistical Office, released a data according to which, Kerala has emerged as the most literate state in India with a literacy rate of 96.2%, followed by Delhi (88.7%), Uttarakhand (87.6%), Himachal Pradesh (86.6%) & Assam (85.9%).
9.3 States with worst literacy rate include Andhra Pradesh (66.4%), Rajasthan (69.7%), & Bihar (70.9%).
9.4 The overall literacy rate in India is 77.7%.
India’s GDP to contract 10.5% this fiscal year: Fitch Ratings
10.1 According to the US-based Fitch Ratings, India’s GDP will contract to 10.5% this financial year.
Maharashtra removes 70:30 admission norm in medical courses
11.1 Maharashtra government has removed the 70:30 region-wise formula for admission in medical courses in the state.
11.2 Under the norm, 70% of seats were reserved for students in their districts & 30% for students from the rest of the state.
11.3 By doing this, the govt. has promoted the policy of ‘One Maharashtra, one merit’.
Vodafone Idea rebrands itself as ‘Vi’
12.1 Vodafone Idea is the culmination of the largest telecom integration in the world.
12.2 It was merged in 2018 and ranks third in India in terms of wireless subscribers.
KV Kamath Committee names 26 sectors for loan restructuring
13.1 RBI has released the report of KV Kamath Committee made for recommending parameters for loan restructuring.
13.2 The committee names 26 sectors that could be factored by lending institutions while finalising loan resolution plans.
13.3 It was a 5 member committee chaired by the former ICICI Bank CEO, KV Kamath.
Covid warriors will inaugurate Mysuru Dasara this year
14.1 According to the Karnataka Government, Covid warriors including doctors, nurses, ASHA workers & police will inaugurate the Mysuru Dasara this year by offering pooja to Chamundeshwari.
UNICEF will lead procurement of Covid-19 vaccines for 92 poor nations
9.1 UNICEF has announced that it will lead procurement of Covid-19 vaccines for 92 low & lower-middle-income countries.
9.2 UNICEF already buys 2 billion doses of various vaccines annually on behalf of nearly 100 countries.
0 Comments