Daily Current Affairs : 27th May 2020 | Daily GK update Quiz

Exp. Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) on 25th May announced the launch of the Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (Modified- 2020) Scheme.

“This plan will be available for sale commencing from May 26 for three financial years – up to March 31, 2023. This scheme can be purchased offline as well as online from LIC of India.

The Union Cabinet had earlier this month extended the PMVVY or Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana, which is a social security scheme for senior citizens.

LIC is solely authorised to operate this scheme, which works as a Non-Linked, Non-Participating, Pension Scheme subsidised by the Centre.

Exp. Ministers responsible: Arjun Munda

A Webinar under Know Your Scheme-Lecture Series on “Van Dhan Yojana : Learning For Post Covid-19” was organized  by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of Rajasthan in association with Trifed, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India.

 Shri Pravir Krishna, Managing Director of TRIFED, Ministry of Tribal Affairs was the Key Note Speaker detailing the learnings for post Covid-19 and the Webinar was moderated by Ms. Mugdha Sinha, Secretary, Science and Technology, Government of Rajasthan.

TRIFED has partnered with UNICEF to initiate “Van Dhan Samajik Doori Jagrookta Abhiyaan“. Under this initiative tribals will be provided with relevant information regarding COVID-19 along with several guidelines, nationwide and state-specific webinars and instructions on safety measures to be followed.

The Minimum Support Prices of Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) items has also been revised by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to provide much needed relief to forest gatherers in these trying times.

Exp. Former Supreme Court Judge Justice A K Sikri has inaugurated the Indian Dispute Resolution Centre (IDRC), which provides a paperless dispute resolution environment.

The e-inauguration of IDRC took place on 23rd May, the official said, adding that the centre offers offline as well as e-alternate dispute resolution (ADR) facility through its state-of-the-art e-arbitration, e-meditation and e-conciliation software portal.

Exp. NASA has renamed its Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), a next-generation space telescope set to launch in 2025, in honor of Nancy Grace Roman, the US space agency’s first chief astronomer, who paved the way for space telescopes focused on the broader universe.

The newly named Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope — or Roman Space Telescope, for short — will investigate long-standing astronomical mysteries, such as the force behind the universe’s expansion, and search for distant planets beyond our solar system.

Considered the “mother” of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, which launched 30 years ago, Roman tirelessly advocated for new tools that would allow scientists to study the broader universe from space. She left behind a tremendous legacy in the scientific community when she died in 2018.

Exp. Rating agency Crisil Ltd on 26th May said the Indian economy may contract by 5% (Means -5%) this fiscal, slashing its growth outlook for the year from 1.8% in April, holding that India’s economic package is unlikely to boost the economy in the short run and the partial lockdown continues to be a hindrance to normal economic activity.

Exp. Fitch Ratings on 26th May forecast a 5 per cent contraction (means -5%) of Indian economy in the current fiscal (FY21), on account of slump in economic activities and very stringent lockdown policy. This is substantially lower than 0.8 per cent growth for 2020-21 fiscal projected in April.

Exp. “Catchup,” built by Facebook’s internal R&D group, differs from other group chat apps, in that the calls are audio-only, not video, and displays users’ status to indicate they’re available to talk.

Exp. Fintech startup, Zaggle, has announced a partnership with Visa to launch innovative payment solutions for SMEs and startups.

Aims: This partnership is aimed at helping SMEs and startups improve productivity, reduce costs and get access to faster credit through a card which would have both inbuilt forex and prepaid.

Exp. An Indian Army Officer Major Suman Gawani and a Brazilian Woman Commander Carla Monteiro de Castro Araujo have been selected for the prestigious United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award (2019).

The woman peacekeeper were described as “powerful role models” by the UN Chief.

Exp. Actor Mohit Baghel, who is popularly known as Chhote Amar Chaudhary from Salman Khan’s Ready, passed away on May 23. He was 27 and battling cancer.

Exp. TV actress Preksha Mehta committed suicide on May 25 at her residence in Indore in Madhya Pradesh. She was 25. Before taking her life, the actress had left a chilling message on Insta story, which spoke about her shattered dreams. Now, the police has shared an equally heartbreaking suicide note of the actress, where she wrote about how she has lost all hopes.

Note: About UN

Secretary general: António Guterres

Headquarters: New York, United States

Founded: 24 October 1945