Current Affairs Quiz 8th September 2023 Quiz

Exp. Kerala to Host Inaugural Zayed Charity Marathon in 2024

The Higher Organising Committee of the Zayed Charity Marathon has announced that the inaugural edition of the marathon in India will be held in Kerala in 2024.

The marathon will be held in collaboration with the authorities in Kerala State and the Indian community in the UAE.

The proceeds from the marathon in Kerala will be used to support healthcare initiatives in the state.

Zayed Charity Marathon is a prestigious event that honors the legacy of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Former President of the United Arab Emirates.

The Zayed Charity Marathon was launched in 2001 in Abu Dhabi to spread humanitarian and charitable messages that embody the legacy of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

About Kerala

• Capital – Thiruvananthapuram
• Chief Minister – Pinarayi Vijayan
• Governor – Arif Mohammad Khan

Exp. Maharashtra State to set up a mango board in Konkan

The Maharashtra state government has decided to establish a mango board in the Konkan region to support large-scale Hapus cultivation.

The board will provide support in areas such as insurance, production enhancement, pest control, and research.

Mango farmers have been demanding the establishment of a board for almost a decade.

Almost a decade after demands were first made by mango growers in Konkan, the state government has decided to establish a mango board in the region to support large-scale Hapus cultivation, especially in Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts

The current season witnessed a drop in mango production, with a mere 15% compared to the previous year, as reported by Dr Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Agricultural University (BSKAU), Dapoli. Additionally, mango crops have suffered immense losses due to thrips disease over the past 15 years.

The CM also proposed a task force to work out a comprehensive approach to boost mango production and combat pest damage. It will be led by the agriculture minister and comprise experts from BSKAU and the agricultural sector.

It was also discussed at the meeting that the cashew board had so far received ₹200 crore and an additional ₹1,300 crore was earmarked for the next five years.

About Maharashtra

• Capital – Mumbai
• Chief Minister – Eknath Sindhe
• Deputy Chief Minsiter – Devendra Fadnavis & Ajit Pawar
• Governor – Ramesh Bais

Exp. WB assembly passes resolution to observe April 15 as Bengal Day

The West Bengal assembly has passed a resolution to observe Bengali New Year’s Day, also known as Polia Baisakh, as the state’s foundation day on April 15.

This comes after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee asserted that the day will be observed regardless of the approval of the state’s governor.

The resolution – under Rule 169 proposing to observe Poila Baisakh as ‘Bangla Diwas’ and Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s ‘Banglar Mat, Banglar Jol’ (Bengal’s soil, Bengal’s Water) as the state song – was passed with 167 members voting in favour of it in a House of 294 members.

On the other hand, 62 BJP MLAs – who want to observe the state’s foundation day on June 20 – voted against the resolution. Notably, on June 20, 1947, MLAs from West Bengal voted for partition, which was celebrated as Bengal Day.

People of Bengal don’t support June 20, which is synonymous with violence and bloodshed which marked partition as the state foundation day.

About West Bengal

• Capital – Kolkata
• Chief Minister – Mamata Banerjee
• Governor – C V Ananda Bose

Exp. India will open embassy in Timor Leste

At the ASEAN-India summit, the prime minister announced the decision to establish an Indian Embassy in Dili, Timor-Leste.

PM Modi announced the decision while co-chairing the annual ASEAN-India summit in this Indonesian capital.

The decision is a reflection of the importance India attaches to ASEAN and its relations with Timor Leste.

Timor Leste joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2022 as an Observer, before becoming its full member.

ASEAN is considered one of the most influential groupings in the region, and India and several other countries including the US, China, Japan, and Australia are its dialogue partners.

About Timor Leste (East Timor)

• East Timor is an island country in the eastern Lesser Sunda Islands, at the southern extreme of the Malay Archipelago.
• Capital – Dili
• Currency – US Dollar

Exp. Indian Bank partners with OneCard to launch mobile-first, premium credit card

A public sector bank in India, Indian Bank has partnered with OneCard to launch a mobile-first premium credit card.

This partnership will empower users with full digital control over their credit card interactions — ranging from real-time transaction tracking, spends management, EMI conversion, reward redemption, repayments, monthly budget planning to credit limit adjustments and seamless payments, all in-app.

This international metal credit card is curated to offer a host of tailored benefits, including lifetime validity with zero joining and annual fees. The card allows cardholders to oversee/track every facet of their credit card interactions in the feature-packed app.

About Indian Bank

• Founded – 1907
• Headquarters – Chennai, Tamil Nadu
• MD & CEO – Shanti Lal Jain
• Tagline – Your Own Bank

Recent MoU in Banking Sector

• REC signs USD 100 million Loan Agreement with EXIM Bank
• IREDA signs MoU with IIFCL to finance renewable energy projects
• Razorpay partners with Truecaller for instant checkout
• LIC Partners with Saraswat Cooperative Bank to Increase the life Insurance
• Airtel Payments Bank partnered with Frontier Markets to support 1 lakh wome

Exp. Mastercard launches ALT ID solution for enhanced online payments

Mastercard, a global technology company in the payments industry, has launched an ALT ID solution for guest checkout transactions.

ALT ID is a custom-made capability developed by Mastercard to create an alternate identifier for the real card numbers provided by cardholders during guest checkout transactions on e-commerce platforms.

This solution will enhance online payment security for both merchants and consumers.

The Mastercard ALT ID solution is meant for cardholders who carry out transactions without saving their cards, also called guest checkout. It creates and stores an alternate identifier for each card, enhancing the security of such online payments.

Previously, the company rolled out a card-on-file tokenization solution for cardholders to safely complete transactions without revealing sensitive card details.

For merchants and payment service providers, it will allow them to secure card numbers with minimal development efforts and improve their customer payment experience.

Exp. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance launches ICICI Pru GIFT Pro

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance has launched an innovative income plan, ICICI Pru GIFT Pro, which provides customers the option to receive either a year-on-year increasing income or a constant regular income.

In addition, the life cover component of this non-participating savings product ensures the family has financial security.

ICICI Pru GIFT Pro has been designed to empower customers to receive income as per their financial needs. This feature-packed product provides customers with a comprehensive long-term financial savings solution.

Recent Facilities Launched in Banking & Insurance Sector

• SBI introduces UPI interoperability in Digital Rupee
• Paytm launches new ‘Soundbox’ that enables card payments
• PhonePe launches Share(dot)Market app for buying and selling stocks
• Bajaj Allianz Life launches ULIP fund with dynamic asset allocation
• Axis Bank launches ‘Infinity’ Savings Account

Exp. Anushka Sharma appointed as Brand Endorser by “W”

Women’s fashion brand W has on-boarded actor and entrepreneur Anushka Sharma as its brand ambassador.

The brand has launched its festive campaign featuring Sharma that talks about every festival having a story.

With this partnership, the brand prepares to launch its high-decibel festive campaign that beautifully merges the warmth of festivities with the spirit of modernity.

Recent Brand Ambassador

• Mahendra Singh Dhoni – Swaraj Tractors
• Chef Sanjeev Kapoor – Indian Oil ‘s XTRATEJ LPG brand
• Iga Swiatek – Infosys’s Global Brand Ambassador
• Rafael Nadal – Infosys brand and Infosys Digital Innovation
• Rahul Dravid – Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL)
• Shraddha Kapoor – Asics India Private Limited (a sports gear company)
• Rashmika Mandanna – Printer company Epson India
• Smriti Mandhana – Wrangler brand

Exp. Shyam Sunder Gupta takes over as Chief Operations Manager of Central Railway

Shyam Sunder Gupta has taken over as the Principal Chief Operations Manager of Central Railway at Pune.

He has succeeded Mr. Mukul Jain, who superannuated on the 31st of August 2023.

Prior to assuming his current role as Principal Chief Operations M anager for Central Railway, Mr Gupta served as Chief Administrative Officer (Systems) for Northern Railway.

Mr. Gupta, having an in-depth understanding of Logistics and Transportation systems in India has been awarded the prestigious Railway Minister Award in the year 2001, General Manager’s Award in 2010 and was a gold medallist & Best Participant in the 32nd Advance Management programme given by the National Academy of Indian Railways, Vadodara.

Recent Appointment

• Additional DG of Military Nursing Service (MNS) – Delos Flora
• IESF Membership Committee for 3-year term from India – Lokesh Suji
• Secretary of Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) – Vumlunmang Vualnam (replace Rajiv Bansal)
• Chairperson of NASSCOM – Rajesh Nambiar
• First woman CEO and chairperson of the Railway Board – Jaya Varma Sinha (replace Anil Kumar Lahoti)

Exp. Japan’s ‘Moon Sniper’ lander SLIM launched successfully

Japan has successfully launched its lunar exploration spacecraft, known as the “Moon Sniper”, using the domestically developed H-IIA rocket.

The achievement puts Japan in contention to become the world’s fifth country to land on the moon, with the landing planned for early next year.

The rocket took off from Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan as planned and successfully released the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM).

Japan’s ambitious goal is to land SLIM on the lunar surface within 100 meters of its intended target site. The $100 million mission is expected to reach the moon by February.

Japan aims to land SLIM within 100 meters of its target site on the lunar surface.

Exp. ICC & IndusInd to ink multi-year sponsorship deal

IndusInd Bank has agreed to a multi-year sponsorship deal with the International Cricket Council (ICC), beginning with the men’s Cricket World Cup in India.

The deal is set to be valued at $20-24 million (approximately Rs 160-200 crore). The multi-year deal would kick off with the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, being held in India.

Recently, Mastercard too became the top-tier sponsor for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.

Mastercard, MRF Tyres, Aramco, Emirates, and Booking.com have also signed top-tier sponsorship deals with ICC.

Mastercard and Induslnd Bank are set to replace fintech platform, BharatPe and edtech platform, BYJU’s as the companies decided to end their association with ICC ahead of the deal’s full tenure.

Unacademy, MPL, and PayTM had also decided to end their association with ICC due to the dearth of private equity funding and the companies deciding to shift focus to profitability.

Exp. Amul to sponsor Indian Contingent at Hangzhou Asian Games 2023

Amul is named as the official sponsor of the Indian Contingent for the 19th Asian Games 2022 to be held in Hangzhou, China from September 23 to October 8, 2023.

Amul has partnered with Indian sportspersons through the Indian Olympic Association since the London 2012 Olympics for all Indian contingents to Olympics, Commonwealth Game.

The XIX Asian Games 2022 will feature 482 events across 40 sports. The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every fourth year among athletes from all over Asia.

The upcoming event is officially called the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou 2022. It was originally slated to be held last year but was postponed due to Covid-19.

The India contingent will field 634 athletes at the Asian Games across 38 different sports with the largest contingent of 65 in athletics.

At the last edition, Jakarta 2018, India sent a contingent of 570 to compete in 36 sports and won 70 medals.

Exp. Adeeb Ahamed wins Leading Fintech Personality of the Year Award

Global Fintech Awards (GFA) 2023 is held annually as part of the Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2023 in Mumbai, India.

This year, the coveted global award for ‘Leading Fintech Personality of the Year’ from the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC) region was awarded to Adeeb Ahamed, Managing Director of the Abu Dhabi-based Lulu Financial Holdings.

A visionary entrepreneur in the financial services world, Adeeb has been instrumental in revolutionizing cross-border payments between the GCC and India.

His company operates a network of 300+ customer engagement centres and digital payment solutions in 10 countries across the Middle East, Asia Pacific and GCC regions.

Recent Awards

• M S Swaminathan Award – P V Satyanaryana
• National Diabetologist of the Year Award – Dr Navneet Agrawal
• Top central banker globally by US-based Global Finance magazine – Shaktikanta Das (rarted A+)
• Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year 2023 – Manoj Bubna
• PMI South Asia Award 2023 – Northeast Frontier Railway
• Ramon Magsaysay Award 2023 – Oncologist Dr. R Ravi Kannan

Exp. 7 September – International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies

International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies” is observed annually on 7 September.

The day is dedicated to recognizing the vital importance of clean air for people’s well-being and daily life.

Theme 2023 – Together for Clean Air

Resolution 74/212 of January 22, 2020, established September 7 as the “International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies”.

Exp. 8 September – International Literacy Day

International Literacy Day is celebrated every year on 8 September.

The day aims to highlight the importance of literacy for human rights, dignity, and the development of sustainable societies.

Theme 2023 – Promoting literacy for a world in transition: Building the foundation for sustainable and peaceful societies

UNESCO introduced International Literacy Day in 1966 at its 14th General Conference.

The first International Literacy Day was celebrated in 1967.

The official date of International Literacy Day is 26 October, which was established during the 1966 UNESCO conference.