Current Affairs Quiz 11th and 12th June 2022 : Daily GK Update

Exp. PM Modi inaugurated headquarters of IN-SPACe in Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the headquarters of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) at Ahmedabad.

The establishment of IN-SPACe was announced in June 2020. It is an autonomous and single window nodal agency in the Department of Space for the promotion, encouragement and regulation of space activities of both government and private entities.

Pawan Kumar Goenka is the chairperson of the IN-SPACe.

Exp. Nirmala Sitharaman inaugurated National Museum of Customs and GST in Goa

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman dedicated to the nation ‘Dharohar’, the National Museum of Customs and GST in Goa. ‘Dharohar’ is housed in Panaji’s famous Blue Building on the banks of the Mandovi River.

Dharohar is one of its kind museums in the country that showcases not only the artefacts seized by Indian Customs across the country but also depicts basic Customs procedures for the knowledge of the general public.

Exp. Cabinet hiked MSP for Kharif crops for marketing season 2022-23

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved increase in Minimum Support Price (MSP) for all intended Kharif crops for Marketing Season 2022-23.

Government approved rates are at least 1.5 times of the all India weighted average cost of production.

The highest absolute increase in MSP over the previous year has been recommended for Sesamum 523 rupees per quintal, Moong 480 rupees per quintal, Sunflower seed 385 rupees per quintal, Tur, Urad and Groundnut 300 rupees per quintal, Cotton (Medium Staple) 354 rupees and Cotton (Long Staple) 355 rupees.

Following are some of the rabi crops:

Wheat

Barley

Oats

Pulses

Mustard

Linseed

Exp. Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique and Switzerland elected as non-permanent members of UN Security Council

United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) elected Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique, and Switzerland to serve as non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for a two-year term beginning January 01, 2023.

The newly elected countries will replace India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico, and Norway, which will vacate their seats at the end of 2022. The UNSC is a United Nations (UN) organisation tasked with maintaining global peace and security.

India’s two-year stint as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council will finish in December 2022, when it will simultaneously hold the Presidency of the powerful UN body.

Exp. European Parliament votes to ban sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035 to fight climate change

European Parliament Members have voted to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035 to fight against climate change.

The EU assembly voted in Strasbourg, France to require automakers to cut carbon-dioxide emissions by 100% by the middle of the next decade.

The mandate would amount to ban on the sale in the EU nations of new cars powered by gasoline. EU lawmakers also endorsed a 55% reduction in CO2 from automobiles in 2030 compared with 2021.

Exp. Ninth Summit of the Americas held in Los Angeles, US

The Ninth Summit of the Americas 2022 was held from June 6 to June 10, 2022. It is an international conference and was held in Los Angeles, United States.

Summit of the Americas 2022 was held under the theme of “Building a Sustainable, Resilient, and Equitable Future”.

In January 2022, the White House had announced that, Los Angeles would serve as the host city. United States selects the site of this summit as a host and its attendees.

Summit of the Americas 2022 was skipped by the President of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The president of Honduras, Xiomara Castro, also boycotted the summit. Similarly, the President of Bolivia, President of Guatemala, Prime Minister of Saint Vincent did not attend the summit.

Exp. Tencent bought stake in Flipkart worth ₹2,060 crore

Chinese technology conglomerate Tencent has bought stake worth USD 264 million (about ₹2,060 crore) in Flipkart from its co-founder Binny Bansal through its European subsidiary.

Singapore-headquartered e-commerce firm Flipkart has operations in India only.

Bansal holds around 1.84 per cent stake in Flipkart after selling part of his stake to Tencent Cloud Europe BV.

Post the transaction, Tencent arm holds 0.72 per stake in Flipkart which is valued at around USD 264 million, as per last valuation of USD 37.6 billion disclosed by the e-commerce firm in July 2021.

Exp. Fitch projected India’s GDP growth rate at 7.8% for 2022-23

Fitch Ratings has decreased its GDP growth prediction for 2022-23 from 8.5 percent expected in March to 7.8 percent.

While India’s debt-to-GDP ratio has been reduced in the short term due to high nominal GDP growth, Fitch Ratings estimates that greater subsidies and fuel excise tax cuts will cost around 0.8 percent of GDP this year to counteract the rise in consumer prices. This will increase the Centre’s budget deficit to 6.8% of GDP, up from the 6.4 percent objective set in the Budget for 2022-23.

In the medium term, Fitch Ratings expects India to grow at a rate of around 7% between 2023-24 and 2026-27, supported by the government’s infrastructure push, reform agenda, and easing financial sector pressures.

While the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) now anticipates inflation to average 6.7 percent through 2022-23, Fitch predicts it to be higher, at 6.9 percent, compared to the median rate of 4.9 percent for BBB-rated countries, owing to strong increases in global commodity prices and underlying demand pressures.

Exp. RBI increased individual housing loan limit for co-operative banks

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has raised the limits for individual housing loans being extended by Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) and Rural Cooperative Banks (RCBs) by over 100%.

RBI has also permitted the Rural Cooperative Banks (RCB) for financing residential real estate projects, in a bid to support affordable housing and inclusive growth.

The limits for Tier I /Tier II UCBs have been revised from ₹30 lakh/ ₹70 lakh to ₹60 lakh/ ₹140 lakh, respectively.

The limits have been increased from ₹20 lakh to ₹50 lakh for RCBs with assessed net worth less than ₹100 crore, and from ₹30 lakh to ₹75 lakh for other RCBs.

Exp. ICICI Bank partnered with ZestMoney to expand its ‘Cardless EMI’ facility

ICICI Bank has partnered with ZestMoney to expand its ‘Cardless EMI’ facility for purchases at retail and e-commerce platforms.

The partnership enhances the affordability of millions of customers of the bank who can use pre-approved cardless credit to instantly buy products/ services using ZestMoney and take care of the cost into EMIs.

Customers can convert transactions up to Rs 10 lakh into EMIs by simply putting their registered mobile number, PAN and OTP (received on registered mobile number) at the check-out of the e-commerce website/app or at the PoS machine in retail outlets, without using cards.

Exp. Fino Payments Bank collaborated with Go Digit for shop insurance policy

Fino Payments Bank Limited has partnered with Go Digit General Insurance Limited, one of India’s fastest growing general insurers, to provide small and medium business owners with shop insurance coverage.

Fino Payments Bank serves as a corporate representative for Go Digit. Through the partnership, small and medium businesses are allowed to take advantage of Digit’s My Business Policy in the case of a catastrophe.

The insurance is for one-year that will cover loss or damage to inventory or goods caused by burglary, earthquakes, fire, lightning, storms, floods, and riots.

The customers of Fino Bank can join Go Digit’s coverage for Rs 550 per year (for a sum insured of Rs 3 lakh), which will rise to Rs 2,600 per year (for a sum insured of Rs 15 lakh).

Exp. Ather Energy partnered with SBI for vehicle financing

Ather Energy, an electric two-wheeler manufacturer based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, has partnered with the State Bank of India to offer vehicle financing for its customers.

This partnership will enable the customers of Ather Energy, having pre-approved loan offers from SBI, to get instant loans at low-interest rates starting from 9.55% per annum. This will depend on the customer’s credit profile.

According to the loan eligibility of the customer, SBI allows the customers to avail of loans up to 85% of the on-road price of the vehicle.

Exp. Amandeep Singh Gill appointed as UN Chief’s envoy on technology

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed senior Indian diplomat Amandeep Singh Gill as his envoy on technology to coordinate programmes for international digital cooperation.

Amandeep Singh Gill has been India’s permanent representative to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva from 2016-to 2018.

He is now the chief executive officer of the International Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence Research Collaborative (I-DAIR) project at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva.

Exp. R Subramaniakumar appointed as MD & CEO of RBL Bank

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed R Subramaniakumar as the MD & CEO of RBL Bank. Subramaniakumar has been appointed at RBL for three years from the date of taking charge.

Subramaniakumar is a former managing director and chief executive director of state-run Indian Overseas Bank. He was appointed the administrator of Dewan Housing Finance Co Ltd after the mortgage financier’s board was superseded.

Exp. PGI’s Resource Centre for Tobacco Control, Chandigarh won WHO’s Regional Director Special Recognition Award

World Health Organisation (WHO) has awarded Resource Centre for Tobacco Control (e-RCTC) of the Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health at Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh with Regional Director Special Recognition Award.

The centre provides information related to tobacco control in India, including circulars, orders, policies and legislations. RCTC is a joint initiative of PGIMER and UNION-SEA and was set up in 2018.

Exp. NASA’s DAVINCI Mission to Venus will launch in 2029

NASA will launch a mission that will both fly by Venus and descend through its harsh atmosphere in 2029. Called DAVINCI, the Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry and Imaging mission will be the first to study Venus through both flybys and descent.

The spacecraft is expected to explore the layered Venusian atmosphere and reach its surface by June 2031. The DAVINCI mission will be able to capture data about Venus that scientists have been eager to measure since the early 1980s.

DAVINCI spacecraft will serve as a flying chemistry lab. It can measure different aspects of atmosphere and climate of Venus.

Exp. India launched its 1st COVID-19 vaccine ‘Anocovax’ for animals

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar launched Anocovax, India’s first homegrown COVID-19 vaccine for animals.

The vaccine is produced by the ICAR-National Research Centre on Equines (NRCE) in Haryana.

The vaccine uses Alhydrogel as an adjuvant and contains inactivated SARS-CoV-2 (Delta) antigen.

Anocovax is a SARS-CoV-2 Delta (COVID-19) vaccine for animals that is inactivated. It is also safe for dogs, lions, leopards, mice, and bunnies.

Exp. R Praggnanandhaa won Norway Chess Group A open chess tournament

Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa won Norway Chess Group A open chess tournament.

The 16-year-old GM, the top-seed, was in fine form and remained unbeaten through the nine rounds. He finished the tournament with a win over fellow Indian V Praneeth, an International Master.

Praggnanandhaa finished a full point ahead of second-placed IM Marsel Efroimski (Israel) and IM Jung Min Seo (Sweden).

Exp. Avani Lekhara won Gold at Chateauroux 2022 World Cup

Avani Lekhara has won the gold medal at the Chateauroux 2022 World Cup. The Tokyo Paralympian has won in the R8 event- women’s 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 with a score of 458.3.

She beat Veronika Vadovicova of Slovakia to won this title and gold for India. She scripted history last year as she became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Paralympics in Tokyo.

Exp. 25th Founding Day of BIMSTEC celebrated in Dhaka on June 6

The 25th Founding Day of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) was celebrated in Dhaka.

The evolution of BIMSTEC over the last 25 years from the signing of the Bangkok Declaration on June 6 in 1996, and highlighted milestones such as the establishment of the Secretariat in Dhaka in 2014 and the signature of the BIMSTEC Charter during the Fifth Summit in Colombo on March 30, 2022.

BIMSTEC is an international organization of South Asia and Southeast Asian countries. Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand are members of BIMSTEC. It was formed on 6 June 1997 and its headquarters is located in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Exp. 9 June: International Level Crossing Awareness Day 2022

International Level Crossing Awareness Day (ILCAD), a global initiative, was observed on 9th June 2022 to create awareness about level crossing safety and about the dangers of misbehaviours at the level crossing.

Since 2009, The annual ILCAD campaign is spearheaded by the Union Internationale des Chemins de fer (UIC) (International union of railways).

9th June 2022 marks the observance of the 14th International Level Crossing Awareness Day (ILCAD). The 13th ILCAD was observed on 10th June 2021 and the 12th edition was observed on 11th June 2020.

The motto of 2022 ILCAD is “Don’t put your life at risk, stay away from tracks!”.

The 2022 year focus is “Vulnerable People”.

Exp. 12 June: World Day Against Child Labour

The United Nations observes June 12 each year as the ‘World Day Against Child Labour’ to bring attention to the evil practices of child labour across the world.

International Labour Organization (ILO) launched this day in 2002 to tackle this global issue against child labour.

Theme 2022: “Universal Social Protection to End Child Labour.”