Daily Current Affairs – January 03, 2024
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Daily Current Affairs - Banking - January 03, 2024
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National News
Women government employees can now nominate children over spouse for pension
- The Union government has now amended the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules of 2021, in order to allow women government servants and pensioners to nominate their children for receiving family pension over their spouse, if at the time of their death, any proceedings for divorce, domestic violence, or dowry demands happen to be pending against the said spouse.
- Till now, the rules provided for the family pension to first go to the surviving spouse and the children became eligible to receive it only after the death of the spouse.
Union Health Minister lays foundation stone for NCDC Regional Branch, 6 State Branches and 2 BSL-3 Laboratories
- Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya laid the foundation stone for NCDC Regional Branch in Assam, State branches in 6 States (Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Odisha, West Bengal and Mizoram) and BSL-3 labs in 2 States (Himachal Pradesh and Jharkhand) virtually at the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
- He also inaugurated a temporary NCDC Regional branch in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
- These new NCDC branches and BSL-3 labs will strengthen the country’s capacity for Pandemic preparedness and disease surveillance with One Health approach.
- He also dedicated Auditorium and Library block as a part of Upgraded NCDC, Delhi to the nation and released several technical documents.
- Ministry of Health and Family Welfare – Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya,Union Minister (Rajya Sabha MP,Gujarat) – Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar,Minister of State (Dindori,Maharashtra), Satya Pal Singh Baghel ,Minister of State (Agra,UP)
State News
Prime Minister inaugurates and lays foundation of projects worth Rs 1,156 crore in Lakshadweep
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation for various projects worth ₹1,150 crores in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep
- This includes the Kochi-Lakshadweep Islands Submarine Optical Fibre Connection (KLI – SOFC) project, which he announced in his Independence Day speech in August 2020 at the Red Fort.
- He also inaugurated the Low Temperature Thermal Desalination (LTTD) plant at Kadmat, which will produce 5 lakh litres of clean drinking water every day.
- Additionally, he dedicated to the nation the Functional Household Tap Connections (FHTC) in all households on the Agatti and Minicoy islands.
- Other projects launched by Modi include the solar power plant at Kavaratti, the first-ever battery-backed solar power project in Lakshadweep.
- And laid the foundation stone for the renovation of the primary health care facility in Kalpeni and the construction of five model Anganwadi centres (Nand Ghars) in the five islands of Androth, Chetlat, Kadmat, Agatti and Minicoy.
Prime Minister lays foundation stone of multiple development projects worth more than Rs 20,000 crores in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu
- The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi inaugurated, dedicated to the nation and laid the foundation stone of development projects worth more than ₹20,000 crores in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu.
- The development projects include sectors such as rail, road, oil and gas, and shipping sectors in Tamil Nadu.
- Also inaugurated the New Terminal Building at Tiruchirappalli International Airport.
- Developed at a cost of more than ₹1100 crore, the two-level new international terminal building can serve more than 44 lakh passengers annually and about 3500 passengers during peak hours.
Schemes
Jammu & Kashmir becomes first UT to implement PM Vishwakarma Yojana
- Jammu and Kashmir has become the first Union Territory (UT) to implement the PM Vishwakarma Yojana (PMVY), an initiative that aims to empower and enhance the skills of the craftsman community.
- The inauguration of the training programme for the first batch of 30 trainees (Viswakarmas) in ‘darzi craft’ was virtually conducted by Advisor to Lieutenant Governor, Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, and Secretary of the Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Atul Kumar Tiwari, at ITI Shopian.
- PMVY, an initiated launched by the Central government in September 2023, aims to recognise artisans and craftspeople through PM Vishwakarma certificates and ID cards.
- The scheme includes basic training of five to seven days, advanced training of 15 days or more, a stipend of ₹500 per day, and a free modern toolkit worth ₹15,000 for trained Vishwakarmas.
- Additionally, the yojana offers linkage with credit-based soft loans and marketing support to expand their businesses.
- Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship – Dharmendra Pradhan,Union Minister (Rajya Sabha MP,MP) – Rajeev Chandrasekhar,Minister of State (Rajya Sabha MP,Karnataka)
Ola Electric becomes 1st EV company to get production-linked incentive (PLI) approval
- Ola Electric has become the first Indian e-scooter (e2W) company to get eligible for the government’s production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme
- The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) has given its approval after a four-month-long process.
- To qualify for this scheme, e-scooter startups need to invest at least ₹1,000 crores.
- Ola Electric Mobility (OLΛ ELECTRIC) – 2017 (Founded) – Bengaluru, Karnataka (HQ) – Bhavish Aggarwal (CEO)
Banking and Finance
RBI grants payment aggregator licence to Tata Pay
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted a payment aggregator (PA) licence to Tata Payments, Tata group’s digital payments app.
- This will help the firm facilitate ecommerce transactions through its platform.
- Tata Payments is held through Tata Digital, the group’s subsidiary entity, which houses its digital businesses.
- Tata Pay joins the likes of Razorpay, Cashfree, Google Pay, among others to secure the much-awaited payments licence.
- In 2022, Tata Group launched its digital payments application on the Unified Payments Interface in partnership with ICICI Bank.
- Reserve Bank of India (RBI) – 01/04/1935 (Founded) – Mumbai (HQ) – Shaktikanta Das (Governor)
UPI transaction rules 2024
- The Reserve Bank of India and National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) have announced a number of changes to regulations for online payments via Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
- Many of these new rules for UPI payments have come into effect from January 1 2024.
- The transaction limit for UPI payments made to hospitals and educational institutions has been hiked to ₹5 lakh from ₹1 lakh
- The NPCI has asked banks and mobile payment applications like Google Pay, Paytm, and PhonePe to deactivate the UPI IDs and numbers of the accounts that have been inactive for one year.
- The transaction limit for UPI Lite wallets has also been hiked from ₹200 to ₹500 and maximum amount which can be transferred online is ₹2,000.
- The RBI had also announced that UPI payments to ₹1 lakh for credit card repayments, mutual fund subscriptions and insurance premiums will no longer require an additional factor authentication, earlier the limit of money that could be transferred without AFA authentication was ₹15,000.
- The imposition of a 1 per cent interchange fee on UPI payments made by merchants, this fee is applicable on some merchant payments where the transaction value is less than ₹2,000 and will not be applicable if the money transferred is higher than ₹2,000.
- National Payments Corporation of India – 2008 (Founded) – Mumbai (HQ) – Dilip Asbe (MD & CEO)
India Ratings revises PNB Housing Finance NCD ratings from AA to AA+
- India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has upgraded the rating of PNB Housing Finance non-convertible debentures (NCDs) to ‘IND AA+’ from ‘IND AA’ with stable outlook.
- Further, Ind-Ra said that NCDs limit has been split into bank loans and NCDs and ‘IND AA+’ rating has been assigned to the bank loans.
- The rating rationale, published on January 2, 2024, mentions that the key drivers for the rating upgrade are granularisation of loan book with 96 per cent being retail and almost complete rundown of the corporate book, robust capital buffers post equity infusion of ₹2,500 through rights issue, improved asset quality, diversified resource profile with the ability to raise funds from banks and the capital markets, adequate liquidity and improvement in profitability.
Business and Economy
Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal launches e-commerce start-up OppDoor
- Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal has launched new e-commerce start-up OppDoor, business-to-business (B2B) platform.
- The software services platform says it will help emerging ecommerce brands expand globally.
- According to the website of OppDoor, it is a ‘managed services platform for global expansion’.
- It will help ecommerce brands by offering them end-to-end services on global markets, customer behaviour, taxation and compliance, partnerships and third-party vendors.
- OppDoor claims to partner with leading private-label brands to unlock their business potential.
- From advertising strategies to enhanced catalogues, the startup aims to equip brands with all the ongoing competitive intelligence.
- Flipkart Private Limited – 2007 (Founded) – Bangalore (HQ) – Kalyan Krishnamurthi (CEO)
Goldman Sachs sees current account deficit falling to 1% of GDP this fiscal
- Goldman Sachs projected a much lower current account deficit which is likely to print at 1 per cent for this fiscal, leaving the balance of payment surplus at $39 billion.
- It has revised upwards its current account deficit (CAD) forecast to 1 per cent of GDP for FY24 from 3 per cent earlier, and 1.3 per cent for FY25 from 1.9 per cent earlier, citing a downward revision to their oil price forecast to $81/barrel in 2024 from above $90 earlier; and services exports continuing to surprise higher than prior expectations.
- The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. – 1869 (Founded) – New York, USA (HQ) – Lloyd Blankfein (Senior Chairman)
FCI spent ₹2.19-lakh crore in 2023 to procure nearly 102 mt grains directly from farmers
- The Food Corporation of India (FCI) spent ₹2.19-lakh crore to buy 66 lakh tonnes (lt) of paddy and 262.02 lt of wheat during 2023, which has benefited 125 lakh farmers.
- As much as ₹2,19,140 crores have been directly credited into farmers’ bank accounts during 2023.
- For meeting the requirements of foodgrains in every nook and corner of the country, FCI has transported 83 lt on an average distance of 1,200 km ensuring a swift response to the requirements of consuming regions.
- FCI has distributed 263 lt of wheat and 411 lt of rice under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY) and other welfare schemes.
- Besides, to safeguard the interests of consumers against the rising food prices, it has offloaded 11 lt of wheat and 1.43 lt of rice in open market through weekly e-auctions.
- Food Corporation of India (FCI) – 14/01/1965 (Founded) – New Delhi (HQ) – Ashok Kumar Meena (Chairman & MD)
Agreements and MoUs signed
Vedanta Ltd signs MoU with GACL
- Vedanta Limitedhad entered into a memorandum of understanding with Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Ltd (GACL) to explore potential business in the caustic-chlorine and related sectors.
- The MoU outlines the intention to examine joint ventures or contractual arrangements that align with both companies’ interests and support Vedanta Aluminium’s vertical integration efforts.
- Vedanta Limited, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Limited, has operations across India, South Africa, Namibia, Liberia, UAE, Korea, Taiwan and Japan in sectors including aluminium, oil and gas, zinc, lead, silver, copper, iron ore, steel, nickel, power, and glass substrate, besides venturing into manufacture of semiconductors and display glass.
- Vedanta Limited – 1979 (Founded) – Mumbai (HQ) – Anil Agarwal (Non-Executive Chairman)
Science and Technology
ISRO’s commercial arm to launch GSAT-20 satellite on SpaceX’s Falcon-9 in 2024
- The commercial arm of ISRO, NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) will launch GSAT-20 (renamed as GSAT-N2), on-board SpaceX’s Falcon-9 during the second quarter of 2024.
- The GSAT-20 is a high- throughput Ka-band Satellite which will be fully owned, operated and funded by NSIL.
- GSAT-20 offers Ka-Ka band HTS capacity with 32 beams having Pan-India coverage including Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands.
- The satellite, weighing 4700 kg, offers an HTS capacity of nearly 48Gpbs and has been specifically designed to meet the demanding service needs of remote and unconnected regions.
- NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) – 06/03/2019 (Founded) – Bengaluru, Karnataka (HQ) – Radhakrishnan Durairaj (CMD)
Acquisitions and Mergers
CCI approves Punjab government to buy Goindwal Sahib Thermal Power Plant
- The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved Punjab government to acquire 100 per cent stake in a private thermal plant, Goindwal Sahib Thermal Power Plant for ₹1,080 crores.
- Competition Commission of India (CCI) – 14/10/2003 (Founded) – New Delhi (HQ) – Ravneet kaur (Chairperson)
Appointments
Nadia Calviño takes over as European Investment Bank President
- Nadia Calviño took over as president of the European Investment Bank by replacing Werner Hoyer.
- She is the eighth president and first women and also first person from Spain to lead the bank.
- She was previously first vice-president of the government of Spain and minister of economy, trade and enterprise.
- European Investment Bank (EIB) – 1958 (Founded) – Kirchberg, Luxembourg (HQ) – Nadia Calviño (President)
Former Chad opposition leader appointed as Prime Minister of transitional government
- Chad’s transitional government has appointed former opposition leader Succes Masra, who recently returned to the country following exile, as prime minister.
- Masra will serve through the transition to civilian rule, Mahamat Ahmad Alhabo, Chad’s new secretary-general of the presidency.
- Republic of Chad – N’Djamena (Capital) – Central African CFA franc (Currency) – Mahamat Déby (Transitional President) – Succes Masra (Prime Minister) – Arabic & French (Official Language) – Africa
Kia India appoints Gwanggu Lee as new MD and CEO
- Kia India has appointed Gwanggu Lee as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect by replacing Tae Jin Park.
- He will be the third MD and CEO of Kia India, after Kook Hyun Shim and Tae Jin Park.
- Kia India Private Limited – 19/05/2017 (Founded) – Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh (HQ)
Important Days
International Mind-Body Wellness Day 2024
- International Mind-Body Wellness Day is annually celebrated on January 3.
- The day aimed at improving individuals’ holistic well-being by highlighting the inherent connection between mental and physical health is significant.
- Theme – “Holistic Wellness: Mind, Body, and Soul”
Defence
National Maritime Domain Awareness centre to be ready in three years
- The Indian Navy’s Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC) in Gurugram, the nodal agency for maritime information and monitoring, set up after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, is on track to upgraded into the National Maritime Domain Awareness (NMDA) centre in about three years.
- Once operational, the NDMA Centre will house people from 15 agencies under 7 Ministries enabling exchange of maritime information in real-time across the board.
- Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) is the lead integrator for both software and hardware for the NMDA and as per contractual terms it should be executed in three years from contract conclusion.
- Approved by the Defence Acquisition Council in 2012, the IMAC became operational in 2014 at a cost of ₹450 crores and is located in Gurugram.
- It is the nodal centre of the National Command Control Communication and Intelligence System (NC3I) which was established to link the operational Centres and lower echelons of Navy and Coast Guard spread across the country’s coastline including the island territories.
- The IMAC tracks vessels on the high seas and gets data from the coastal radars, white shipping agreements, Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) transponders fitted on merchant ships, air and traffic management system and global shipping databases.
Daily Current Affairs - January 03, 2024 - Consolidated
- Women government employees can now nominate children over spouse for pension
- Union Health Minister lays foundation stone for NCDC Regional Branch, 6 State Branches and 2 BSL-3 Laboratories
- Prime Minister inaugurates and lays foundation of projects worth Rs 1,156 crore in Lakshadweep
- Prime Minister lays foundation stone of multiple development projects worth more than Rs 20,000 crores in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu
- Jammu & Kashmir becomes first UT to implement PM Vishwakarma Yojana
- Ola Electric becomes 1st EV company to get production-linked incentive (PLI) approval
- RBI grants payment aggregator licence to Tata Pay
- UPI transaction rules 2024
- India Ratings revises PNB Housing Finance NCD ratings from AA to AA+
- Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal launches e-commerce start-up OppDoor
- Goldman Sachs sees current account deficit falling to 1% of GDP this fiscal
- FCI spent ₹2.19-lakh crore in 2023 to procure nearly 102 mt grains directly from farmers
- Vedanta Ltd signs MoU with GACL
- ISRO’s commercial arm to launch GSAT-20 satellite on SpaceX’s Falcon-9 in 2024
- CCI approves Punjab government to buy Goindwal Sahib Thermal Power Plant
- Nadia Calviño takes over as European Investment Bank President
- Former Chad opposition leader appointed as Prime Minister of transitional government
- Kia India appoints Gwanggu Lee as new MD and CEO
- International Mind-Body Wellness Day 2024
- National Maritime Domain Awareness centre to be ready in three years
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