Current Affairs Quiz 8th and 9th July 2023 Quiz

Exp. DGCA signs MoU with EU Aviation Safety Agency for drone systems

Indian aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation has signed an MoU with the European aviation regulator European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for cooperation in unmanned aircraft systems and innovative air mobility.

This MoU will focus on collaboration on unmanned aircraft and innovative air mobility between the two civil aviation authorities.

This would include cooperation between the two organizations in the areas of development of certification standards, environmental standards, related requirements for the certification, use of unmanned aircraft system, innovative air mobility operations which includes licensing of personnel, training, air traffic management and infrastructure, including Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management (UTM) standards and services.

The agreement will also ensure regular information sharing between the two authorities on the technological developments and research in this area and also their respective strategies for outreach to relevant stakeholders.

Further, this will result in collaboration in conducting conferences, workshops, training programmers by DGCA and EASA in the matter.

Exp. Government launches Rs. 5000 crore scheme to enhance fire services in states

The Ministry of Home Affairs launched the “Scheme for Expansion and Modernization of Fire Services in the States” with a total budget of Rs. 5,000 crore.

The scheme, part of the preparedness and capacity building funding window under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), aims to strengthen fire services across the country.

Out of the allocated amount, Rs. 500 crore has been reserved for incentivizing states based on their legal and infrastructure-related reforms.

The primary objective of the scheme is to expand and modernize fire services at the state level through the preparedness and capacity-building components of the NDRF.

The concerned State Governments shall have to contribute 25% of the total cost of such projects/proposals from their budgetary resources.

Exp. Union govt signs an MoU with Tanzania to set up IIT Madras campus

IIT Madras has signed an MoU with the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) of Zanzibar-Tanzania to establish a campus of IIT Madras in Zanzibar.

The signing took place in the presence of S. Jaishankar, the External Affairs Minister of India and Hussein Ali Mwinyi, the President of Zanzibar.

This milestone marks the first-ever establishment of an IIT campus outside of India. It emphasizes India’s commitment to fostering people-to-people connections across Africa and the Global South.

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 emphasizes internationalization and recommends that high-performing Indian universities should be encouraged to establish campuses in other countries.

The campus is scheduled to launch its programs in October 2023.

The partnership aims to bring the renowned educational expertise of IIT Madras to a prominent destination in Africa, addressing the region’s current needs.

About Tanzania 

• Capital– Dodoma
• Currency– Tanzanian shilling
• President- Samia Suluhu Hassan

Exp. Govt of India and Kenya to co-host ‘International Millet Festival

India and Kenya will co-host a two-day ‘India-Africa International Millet Conference’ on 30 – 31 August 2023.

The event will witness participation from government leaders, researchers, farmers, entrepreneurs and industry associations from around the globe.

Through the international conference, the government of India and Kenya aim to raise public awareness about millet as the world’s emerging smart food.

The government of India spearheaded the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution for declaring the year 2023 as the International Year of Millets.

Additionally, they are also drought-resistant, pest-resilient, climate-friendly crops that can boost income opportunities and livelihoods of smallholder farmers, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.

India produces all the nine commonly known traditional millets viz. Sorghum, Pearl Millet, Finger Millet, Foxtail Millet, Proso Millet, Little Millet, Barnyard Millet, Browntop Millet and Kodo Millet.

Millet is a common term for categorizing small-seeded grasses that are often called Nutri-cereals. Most of the states in India grow one or more millet crop species.

Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana are the major millets producing states.

In March, India held its first mega-global event Global Millets (Shree Anna) Conference in Delhi to celebrate 2023 as the International Year of Millets (IYM).

About Kenya

• Capital- Nairobi
• Currency- Kenyan Shilling
• Continent – Africa
• President- William Ruto
• Official languages- Swahili, English

Exp. India & Singapore sign MoU to co-operate on public administration

India signed a protocol document with Singapore to extend the current MoU on cooperation in personnel management and public administration until 2028.

The MoU aims to strengthen the partnership between India and Singapore through various forms of cooperation between both countries’ public services.

The cooperation in areas such as administrative reforms & public sector transformation, public service delivery, leadership, and talent development, e-governance, capacity building, and training form part of the areas to be covered under the activities of MoU.

Recently India signed MoUs with others countries

• Israel ties up with IIT-M to set up water technology centre
• India signed an MoU with Israel on Industrial R&D Cooperation
• India signed air service agreement with Guyana to facilitate easier travel between the two nations.
• India signed MoC with Sweden to promote research networking
• India & Australia sign audio-visual co-production agreement

Exp. Indore Municipal Corporation 1st urban body in India to get EPR credit

Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) has become the first urban body in the country to get the Extended Producers Responsibility (EPR) credit by recycling the banned single-use plastic items after seizing them.

Notably, Indore was adjudged India’s cleanest city for the sixth time in a row last year in the central government’s annual cleanliness survey.

Single-use plastic is completely banned in the city. About eight tonnes of such plastic in the recent past and stopped from getting circulated.

On average, 1,162 tonnes of solid waste is generated every day in Indore, which includes about 164 tonnes of plastic waste.

This waste is collected under different categories from every doorstep in the city by civic vehicles and disposed of the same day in the plant being run under the PPP model.

Exp. Bihar overtakes Tamil Nadu to become India’s largest MFI market

Bihar has overtaken Tamil Nadu to become the state with the highest microlending borrowings in India as of March 2023.

The report, published by credit information company Crif High Mark, highlighted Bihar’s impressive growth with a 13.5 percent increase in the gross lending portfolio during the March quarter compared to the previous quarter.

As of March 2023, Bihar’s microfinance (MFI) borrowings amounted to Rs 48,900 crore, accounting for 14.5 percent of the overall portfolio.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu’s MFI borrowings stood at Rs 46,300 crore, representing 13.7 percent of the total outstanding.

Among the top ten states, which collectively account for 85 percent of the outstanding portfolio, Bihar’s rise to the top was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Kerala. These states have experienced significant growth in microfinance borrowings, contributing to the overall strength of the sector.

Additionally, the eastern region of India dominated the MFI landscape, representing one-third of the outstanding portfolio.

Exp. Netherlands to ban mobile phones from classrooms

The Netherlands government will ban mobile phones, tablets, and smartwatches from classrooms starting 1 January 2024.

School authorities are asked to develop internal rules with teachers, parents, and pupils by October.

Devices will only be allowed if they are specifically needed, for instance during lessons on digital skills, for medical reasons or for people with disabilities.

Students need to be able to concentrate and need to be given the opportunity to study well. Mobile phones are a disturbance, scientific research shows. We need to protect students against this.

Schools can find their own way to organize the ban, but legal rules will follow if this does not yield enough results by the summer of 2024

The ban is aimed at improving students’ concentration and academic performance.

The ban applies to all students, rega rdless of their age or grade level..

About Netherlands

• Capital- Amsterdam
• Currency- Euro
• Prime Minster – Mark Rutte

Exp. RBI panel recommends measures for internationalization of rupee

RBI’s working group has recommended the inclusion of the rupee in the Special Drawing Rights (SDR) basket and recalibration of the foreign portfolio investor (FPI) regime to accelerate the pace of internationalization of the rupee.

The recommendations by an Inter-Departmental Group (IDG), headed by RBI Executive Director Radha Shyam Ratho.

The group was constituted by RBI Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar to review the position of the rupee as an international currency and to frame a road map for the internationalization of the domestic currency.

Internationalization of the rupee is a process that involves increasing the use of the local currency in cross-border transactions.

The rupee has the potential to become an internationalized currency as India is one of the fastest-growing countries and has shown remarkable resilience even in the face of major headwinds.

Last year in July, the RBI put in place a mechanism to settle international trade in rupees in order to promote growth of global trade with emphasis on exports from India and to support the increasing interest of the global trading community in the rupee.

As part of the long-term measures to achieve internationalization of the rupee, the group suggested inclusion of the rupee in SDR (Special Drawing Rights) basket.

The SDR is an international reserve asset created by the IMF (International Monetary Fund) to supplement the official reserves of its member countries. The value of the SDR is based on a basket of five currencies—the U.S. dollar, the euro, the Chinese renminbi, the Japanese yen, and the British pound sterling.

The RBI should also look at expanding the footprint of the rupee-denominated payment mechanism.

For the medium term, the group recommended review of withholding tax for masala bonds issuances, expansion of RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) system for settling international transactions and inclusion of the rupee in the Continuous Linked Settlement (CLS) system.

Exp. Piramal Finance launches five all-women branches

Piramal Capital & Housing Finance Limited has launched five all-women branches as part of its commitment to diversity and equal opportunities.

These branches, named ‘Maitreyi,’ are part of the company’s efforts to foster gender equality and provide women with equal workforce opportunities.

The five branches are d in Ajmer Road (Rajasthan), Chattarpur (New Delhi), Mohali (Punjab), Mumbai (Maharashtra), and Tripunithura (Kerala).

These full-service branches will have a dedicated team of 7 to 15 women employees.

The ‘Maitreyi’ branches will provide loans to MSMEs and home loans.

Piramal Finance aims to provide simplified, efficient, and impactful lending solutions that cater to consumer financing needs.

Managing Director of Piramal Finance – Jairam Sridharan

Exp. Justice S K Singh appointed acting chairperson of NGT

Justice Sheo Kumar Singh has been appointed as the chairperson of the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

The appointment was made by the Central Government after the superannuation of Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel.

Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel, who was appointed as chairperson in July 2018.

He also served as Judge, of the Industrial Tribunal UP, Chairman of the Oversight Committee, UP constituted by National Green Tribunal.

About National Green Tribunal (NGT)

• Founded – 18 October 2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010.
• Headquarters- Delhi
• Regional Offices – 4 (Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai)
• Tenure- Term of 3 years or till the age of 65 years and not eligible for reappointment.
• Objective- To speed up disposal of environmental issues
• India is the third (first developing) country in the world after Australia and New Zealand to set up a Special Environment Tribunal.

Recent Appointment

• CEO of Quick Heal Technologies Ltd – Vishal Salvi
• DG of Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) – QU Dongyu (China)
• Chairman of Senior Men’s Cricket Selection Committee – Ajit Agarkar
• India’s ambassador to World Trade Organization (WTO) – Brajendra Navnit (reappointment)
• Solicitor General of India – Tushar Mehta (re-appointment)

Exp. RBI appoints P Vasudevan as new executive director

P Vasudevan has been appointed as Executive Director by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Vasudevan will look after the Department of Currency Management, Corporate Strategy and Budget Department (Areas other than that of Budget & Funds), and Enforcement Department.

Prior to being promoted as executive director, Vasudevan was the Chief General Manager-in-charge of the Department of Payment and Settlement Systems.

Over a span of nearly 30 years in the Reserve Bank, served in the supervision of banks and non-banking financial companies, payment and settlement systems and other areas in the Reserve Bank, including a stint as Member of Faculty in Bankers’ Training College.

He has worked in the Central Office as well as Bengaluru, Mumbai and New Delhi Regional Offices of the Reserve Bank.

Recent Appointment in Banking & Insurance Sector

• Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of SBI – Kameshwar Kodavanti (replace Charanjit Surinder Singh Attra)
• MD & CEO of Bank of Baroda – Debadatta Chand
• Part-time Chairman of Federal Bank – AP Hota
• MD of DBS Bank India – Rajat Verma
• Deputy Governor of RBI – Swaminathan Janakiraman (MD of SBI)

Exp. Sirisha Voruganti appointed as MD & CEO of Lloyds Banking Group

Lloyds Banking Group, one of the leading UK-based financial services groups has appointed Sirisha Voruganti the chief executive officer and managing director of its new Lloyds Technology Centre, based in Hyderabad, India.

Sirisha Voruganti has extensive experience in IT architecture, data engineering, and fintech innovation and has held several senior technology positions in multiple global firms.

She was the first woman managing director for JP Morgan Chase in Technology in India and has served as an executive vice president of architecture, data and shared services for Mastercard.

The Lloyds Technology Centre is part of Lloyds Banking Group’s Rs 3 billion strategic investments to transform its digital offering.

Lloyds Banking Group is a British financial institution formed through the acquisition of HBOS by Lloyds TSB in 2009.

Recent Appointment in Banking & Insurance Sector

• MD & CEO of Equitas Small Finance Bank – P N Vasudevan
• Part-time Chairman of Axis Bank – N S Vishwanathan
• Chairman of TransUnion Cibil – V Anantharaman
• MD & CEO of UCO Bank – Ashwani Kumar (replace Soma Sankara Prasad)
• MD & CEO of Karnataka Bank – Srikrishnan Hari Hara Sarma

Exp. FPSB India appoints Krishna Mishra as CEO

The Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB) of India has appointed Krishna Mishra as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) with effect from 1 August 2023.

FPSB India is the Indian subsidiary of FPSB, a global standard-setting organization for the financial planning profession.

Krishna Mishra will lead the strategy and operations of FPSB India as CEO.

His primary focus will be on advancing the financial planning profession in India.

About Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB)

• FPSB is a global non-profit organization that sets and supports standards for the financial planning profession.
• It aims to protect the public interest and promote professionalism, integrity and competence among financial planners globally.
• The FPSB develops and maintains the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) certification program, which is recognized as the global standard for financial planning excellence.

Exp. Japan, India Maritime ExerciseJIMEX23 commences in Visakhapatnam

The bilateral Japan-India Maritime Exercise 2023 (JIMEX 23) has commenced in Visakhapatnam.

The seventh edition of the bilateral Japan-India Maritime Exercise 2023 (JIMEX 23) hosted by the Indian Navy, is being conducted at Visakhapatnam.

This edition marks the 11th anniversary of JIMEX, since its inception in 2012.

JIMEX 23 will witness the participation of INS Delhi, India’s first indigenously built guided missile destroyer, INS Kamorta, an indigenously designed and built Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvette, fleet tanker INS Shakti, a submarine, maritime patrol aircraft P8I and Dornier, ship-borne helicopters and fighter aircraft.

The exercise will be conducted over six days in two phases – a Harbour Phase at Visakhapatnam comprising professional, sports and social interactions, after which, the two navies will jointly hone their warfighting skills at sea and enhance their interoperability through complex multi-discipline operations in the surface, sub-surface and air domains.

Recent Exercise

• Indian Army participates in multinational exercise ‘Khaan Quest 2023’ – Mongolia
• 12th edition of “Ex Ekuverin” between Indian & Maldives – Chaubatia, Uttarakhand.
• AL MOHED AL HINDI 2023 Naval Exercise between India & Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia –
• Exercise Jal Rahat between Indian Army’s Gajraj and Joint Flood Relief – Hagrama Bridge (Manas River), Assam.
• 4th Samudra Shakti-23 exercise between India & Indonesia – Batam, Indonesia