Current Affairs Quiz 20th March 2024 Quiz

Exp. ICRA forecasts Indian IT service industry growth at 3-5% in FY25

Indian IT sector’s revenue growth is expected to come at a tepid 3-5% in FY25, a domestic rating agency ICRA.

This is the second consecutive year when the credit rating agency has forecasted a growth rate in the range of 3-5 per cent for sector.

The sector’s hiring will “remain muted” in the near-term until the growth momentum picks up, ICRA Ratings said.

The operating profit margins for the $250 billion Indian IT sector will come at a healthy 21-22% in FY25.

The agency said in the first nine months of the ongoing 2023-24, the industry has posted a revenue growth of just 2%, as against 3-5% it had estimated for the sector in the past.

The topline growth for the first nine months of FY23 had stood at a healthy 9.2%.

Exp. Indian Navy & IIT Kharagpur signed a MoU to drive innovation through research partnership

Indian Navy has signed an MoU with Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur to promote technology development, innovative solutions and joint R&D.

The strategic collaboration focuses on joint research and development initiatives involving teams from Indian Navy and IIT Kharagpur. The MoU will be coordinated by INS Shivaji, Lonavala.

This alignment signifies a move towards a symbolic relationship between the Academia and the Military, fostering an environment conducive to innovation and knowledge exchange.

IITs in News

• Max India’s subsidiary partners with IIT Delhi for senior citizen care
• MoRD partners with IIT Delhi to work collaboratively in Geospatial Technology and Artificial Intelligence
• NICDC joined hands with IIT Delhi to enhance development of greenfield smart cities
• AFMS signed MoU with IIT Roorkee to foster research in improving combat medical support & patient care of serving personnel
• IREDA and IIT Bhubaneswar sign MoU for Clean Energy Innovation

Exp. Meta partners with ECI to identify unlawful content from its platforms

As the world’s largest democracy prepares for the 18th General Elections, Meta (erstwhile Facebook) will continue efforts to limit misinformation, remove voter interference, and enhance transparency and accountability on its platforms to support free and fair elections.

The company said it is also “closely engaged with the Election Commission of India via the Voluntary Code of Ethics” that it joined in 2019, which gives the Commission a high priority channel to flag unlawful content to Meta.

Tech-giant Google had also last week announced that it has partnered with the ECI to provide authoritative information on voting processes for the upcoming general elections via Google Search and YouTube videos.

Both Google and Shakti (a pan-India network) will work together to aid in the detection of online misinformation, including deepfakes, and to create a common repository that news publishers can use to tackle the challenges of misinformation at scale.

About Election Commissioner of India (ECI)

• It is a constitutional body to conduct and regulate elections in the country.
• It consists of a chief election commissioner (CEC) and two election commissioners (usually retired IAS or IRS officers)
• Founded – 25 January 1950
• 25 January – Voter’s Day
• HQ – New Delhi
• 1st Chief – Sukumar Sen
• 1st Women Chief – V.S. Ramadevi
• 25th Chief – Rajiv Kumar
• Commissioner – Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Gyanesh Kumar
• Tenure – 6/65yrs

Exp. FinMin notifies Rs 90 coin to commemorate 90 years of RBI

The Finance Ministry has notified the issuance of a special commemorative coin of Rs 90 denomination to mark the completion of 90 years of the RBI.

One side of the coin shall bear the RBI’s logo in the centre, with RBI@90 inscribed below.

This will be a silver coin with 99.99% silver purity, weighing about 40 grams

The face of the coin shall bear the Lion Capital of Ashoka Pillar in the centre with “Satyamev Jayate” inscribed in the Devnagari script below it.

About Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

• Founded – 1 April 1935
• RBI Nationalized – 1 January 1949
• Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
• RBI set up – Hilton Young Commission
• 1st Governor – Sir Osborne Smith (Australia)
• 1st Indian Governor – CD Deshmukh
• 25th Governor – Shaktikanta Das

Exp. New Delhi ranked world’s most polluted capital city for 4th consecutive year since 2018

New Delhi is ranked the world’s most polluted capital city for the fourth consecutive year since 2018.

According to Air Quality Report 2023 conducted by Swiss organization IQAir, Delhi’s PM2.5 levels worsened from 89.1 micrograms per cubic metre in 2022 to 92.7 micrograms per cubic metre in 2023.

Bihar’s Begusarai has emerged as the world’s most polluted metropolitan area.

With an average annual PM2.5 concentration of 54.4 micrograms per cubic metre, India had the third worst air quality after Bangladesh and Pakistan.

The report estimated that more than one billion people in India experience PM2.5 concentrations exceeding the World Health Organization’s recommended annual guideline level of 5 micrograms per cubic metre.

Exp. India’s First Ayurvedic Cafe Opens in Delhi

Maharishi Ayurveda Hospital in Shalimar Bagh, Delhi treats its patients with the utmost care by providing them with panchakarma therapy, a meditation room, yoga training, deluxe room facilities and in-house doctors.

The hospital is making the headlines due to its in-house restaurant, Soma-The Ayurvedic Kitchen. Here, the food is given according to the health of the visitor.

From Dumplings to Pav Bhaji, several dishes are served here without onion and garlic.

Exp. YES Bank partners with Indian Olympic Association for Paris Olympics 2024

YES Bank has partnered with the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) as the Official Banking Partner for Team India at the Paris Olympics 2024.

As part of the collaboration, the bank launched the campaign ‘Milkar Jitayengey’ and introduced the ‘YES Glory Debit Card,’ specially designed for India’s Olympic athletes.

The bank also unveiled the ‘YES Glory’ savings account proposition, extending benefits to athletes and their immediate family members.

The YES Glory account offers a range of benefits tailored to the needs of champion athletes. These perks include a complimentary Welcome on-board Taj voucher, free orthopedic consultations, and zero cross-currency mark-up on international spends.

Recent MoUs Signed in Banking Sector

• SANY India signs MoU with J&K Bank to give finance solution
• L&T Finance Holdings Ltd signed a financing pact with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for $125 million to support financing in rural and peri-urban areas in India, particularly women borrowers
• SBI partners with Aurionpro Solutions for its transaction banking platform
• Easy Trip Planners partners with Ministry of Rural Development to empower self-help groups
• Airbus signs contract with IIM Mumbai to boost aviation talent in India

Exp. RBI imposes ₹1.31 cr. penalty on Tamilnad Mercantile Bank

The Reserve Bank of India has imposed penalties on DCB Bank and Tamilnad Mercantile Bank for non-compliance with certain directions related to ‘interest rate on advances’.

A monetary penalty of Rs 63.6 lakh has been imposed on DCB Bank.

A penalty of Rs 1.31 crore has been imposed on Tamilnad Mercantile Bank for non-compliance with certain directions issued by it on ‘Interest Rate on Advances’ and ‘Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC) – Revision in Reporting.

In both cases, the penalties were based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance and not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transactions or agreements entered into by them with their customers.

Recent Penalties imposed by RBI on Banks

• Bank of India (1.4 crore) – for non-compliance with certain regulatory norms.
• Bandhan Bank (29.55 lakh) – for non-compliance with certain directions
• Dhanlaxmi Bank (1.20 crore) – for non-compliance with certain directions on ‘Loans and Advances’
• Punjab and Sind Bank (1 crore) – for non-compliance with certain directions on ‘Loans and Advances’
• ESAF Small Finance Bank (29.55 lakh) – for non-compliance with the directions issued by it on ‘Customer Service in Banks’

Exp. C. P. Radhakrishnan assumes office as Telangana Governor

Jharkhand Governor C. P. Radhakrishnan assumed office as the Governor of Telangana at the Raj Bhavan, Hyderabad.

Chief Justice of the High Court of Telangana, Alok Aradhe, administered the oath of office to the newly appointed Governor in the presence of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy at a ceremony held in the Raj Bhavan.

Radhakrishnan, the current Governor of Jharkhand, was appointed to discharge the additional duties of Telangana Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry until regular arrangements are made.

This appointment follows the resignation of Tamilisai Soundararajan, who previously held these positions.

About Telangana

• Established – 2 June 2014
• Capital – Hyderabad
• Chief Minister – Revanth Reddy (replace K. Chandrashekar Rao)
• Deputy CM – Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka
• Governor – P. Radhakrishnan (replace Tamilisai Soundararajan)
• Speaker of Telangana Assembly – Gaddam Prasad Kumar
• Legislative Assembly Seats – 119

Exp. Sheyphali Sharan appointed government spokesperson

Senior Indian Information Service (IIS) officer Sheyphali B Sharan has been appointed as the new government spokesperson.

A 1990-batch officer, Sharan will “look after” the charge as Principal Director General (Pr.DG) of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) after incumbent Manish Desai’s superannuation on March 31.

Sharan had earlier served as the spokesperson of the Election Commission and the finance ministry.

She is the fifth woman officer to head the PIB after Neelam Kapur, Deepak Sandhu, Shakuntala Mahawal and N J Krishna.

While, Senior IIS officer Maushami Chakraborty has been appointed director general (news) of All India Radio (AIR).

Chakraborty, a 1991-batch IIS officer, will take charge in April, succeeding Vasudha Gupta.

Recent Appointment

• National PwD icon by EC – Para Archer Sheetal Devi
• Chairman of Prasar Bharati – Navneet Kumar Sehgal (replace A Surya Prakash)
• Chairman of Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) – Rahul Singh (replace Nidhi Chiber)
• CMD of Northern Coalfields Limited (NCL) – B Sairam
• Foreign Secretary – Vinay Mohan Kwatra (tenure extended for 6 months

Exp. Renowned poet Prabha Varma selected for Saraswati Samman for the year 2023

Renowned poet Prabha Varma has been selected for the Saraswati Samman for the year 2023 for his work in Malayalam language.

He has been considered for this award for his Malayalam language poetry work, “Roudra Sathwikam” and also for his contribution to the literature during the period 2013 to 2022.

The honour carries, apart from a citation, a plaque and an award money of 15 lakh rupees.

Roudra Sathwikam is a poetic work of Prabha Varma in Malyalam language which was published in 2022.

The novel in poetic verse probes the conflict between power and politics, individual and state, art and power in a unique manner.

About Saraswati Samman

• The Saraswati Samman is an annual prize. It is given to an outstanding literary work published in the last 10 years. It is given to a work written in any Indian language by an Indian citizen.
• The winner is given a cash prize of Rs 15 lakhs, a citation and a plaque.
• Harivansh Rai Bachchan received the first Saraswati Samman in 1991 for his four-volume autobiography, Kya Bhooloon Kya Yaad Karoon, Need Ka Nirman Phir, Basere Se Door, and Dashdwar se Sopan Tak.

Exp. 20 March – World Sparrow Day

World Sparrow Day is celebrated every year on March 20.

Objective – To raise awareness about the threats these birds face and inspiring action for their conservation.

Theme 2024 – I Love Sparrow

The Nature Forever Society of India, along with other organisations around the world, started World Sparrow Day in 2010. They realised that sparrows were disappearing from many places, and they wanted to do something about it.

Sparrows are more than just cute little birds. They play a vital role in our ecosystem. They help control pest insects, and they spread seeds that help plants grow.

Exp. 20 March – French Language Day

The United Nations has celebrated French Language Day every year on 20 March.

This is one of the six official languages celebrated by the UN each year.

Objective – To raise awareness about the history and use of the French language worldwide.

In 2010, the UN’s Department of Public Information made French Language Day official to celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity.

The day is also used to promote the equal use of all six official languages throughout the UN which are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish.

Exp. 20 March – International Day of Happiness

International Day of Happiness is observed every year on 20 March.

This day is dedicated to spreading awareness about the importance of happiness and well-being.

The day also aims to highlight the negative impact of stress and other mental health factors on happiness

On July 12, 2012, The General Assembly of the United Nations passed a resolution to proclaim March 20 as the International Day of Happiness. Since then, the special day has been celebrated every year on the same day.