Current Affairs 14th September 2021| Current Affairs News

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CURRENT AFFAIRS : NATIONAL NEWS

SPI and GIZ Tied up with MNRE to Extend role in Decentralised Renewable Energy

• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) tied a partnership with Smart Power India (SPI), an arm of Rockefeller Foundation & Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) to encourage Decentralised Renewable Energy (DRE) and Energy Efficiency (EE) innovations.
• The partnership was the part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav in the lines to become Atmanirbhar Bharat.

About Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE):

• Minister – Raj Kumar Singh (Arrah, Bihar)
• Minister of State– Bhagwanth Khuba (Bidar, Karnataka)

France Naval Group and India’s GRSE Made Collaborations to Offer Surface Ships

• Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd., (GRSE), a Mini Ratna Category 1 Defence PSU leading warship building company of India, and Naval Group, European Naval Defence Industry from France signed MoU in the field of offering high-end surface ships which based on the sea-proven “Gowind” design and to fulfil the requirements of India and international naval forces.
• The agreement emphasizes the potential of strategic relations between France and India in the Indo-Pacific region.

About Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE)

• GRSE is a shipbuilding company in India under the Ministry of Defence, primarily catering to the shipbuilding requirements of the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard.
• Headquarters – Kolkata, India
• Chairman and MD – Rear Admiral V K Saxena, IN (Retd.)

MoS Jal Shakti Prahlad Singh Patel launched Swachh Survekshan Grameen 2021 

• Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State(MoS), Ministry of Jal Shakti presided over the virtual launch of Swachh Survekshan Grameen(SSG) 2021 under Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) (SBM(G)) Phase- II during the event organised by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS).
• The SBM(G) Phase II is aimed to achieve the goal of comprehensive cleanliness or Sampoorna Swachhata by addressing Open Defecation Free (ODF) Sustainability and SLWM issues.

Release of SSG 2021 Protocol, Dashboard and Mobile app:

• Prahlad Singh Patel MoS, Jal Shakti ministry has also released the SSG 2021 Protocol document; SSG 2021 Dashboard and the mobile App for Citizens feedback.

About Ministry of Jal Shakti:

• Union Minister– Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (Constituency- Jodhpur, Rajasthan)
• Minister of State– Prahlad Singh Patel (Constituency- Damoh, Madhya Pradesh); Bishweswar Tudu (Constituency- Mayurbhanj, Odisha)

MoHUA Partnered with MeitY to Launch ‘Main Bhi Digital 3.0’ Campaign

• Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in association with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched the “Main Bhi Digital 3.0” -A special Campaign for Digital Onboarding and Training for street vendors under Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) Scheme on the pitot based in 223 cities in the country.
• It was collectively launched by Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra and Electronics and IT Secretary Ajay Prakash Sawhney
• The drive is in line with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of “SabkaSaathSabkaVikas”
• Participating agency-BharatPe, Mswipe, PhonePe, Paytm, Aceware are participating in this drive to issue UPI IDs, QR codes and provide digital training.

About PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi)

• It was launched by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in 2020.
• It empowers Street Vendors for their holistic development and economic upliftment.
• It facilitates capital loan upto Rs 10,000 with interest subsidy of 7% without paying any collateral.
• It provides the facility for street vendors to avail a loan of ₹20,000 and ₹50,000 in the second and third tranches respectively on timely repayment of the loan.
• To encourage digital transactions a cash back up to ₹1,200 on digital transactions at ₹100 per month is provided to the street vendors under the scheme.

Agrarian festival ‘Nuakhai’ – celebrated in Odisha

• Nuakhai, the harvest festival of Odisha is celebrated on Bhadraba Shuklapakhya Panchami tithi, the next day of Ganesh Chaturthi.
• It has been celebrated to mark the consumption of the first harvested crops.
• It is celebrated by worshiping the Goddess Samaleshwari, the presiding goddess of Western Odisha.
• The name is derived from ‘nua’ which means new and ‘khai’ means food.
• The festival is also called Nuakhai Parab or Nuakhai Bhetghat.
• It is a festival which promote mutual harmony and brotherhood.
• Nuakhai is commonly celebrated in Sambalpur, Bargarh, Jharsuguda, Bolangir, Sundergarh, Sonepur, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Boudh, and the Athmallik Sub-division of Angul.

About Odisha:

• Capital- Bhubaneswar
• Governor- Ganeshi Lal
• Chief Minister– Naveen Patnaik
• Dance forms– Ghumura Dance, Chhau dance, odissi.

IIT Kanpur signs MoU with Indian Air Force for academic collaboration

• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur and Indian Air Force (IAF) Signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Collaboration in the field of Academics and Research in the domain Aerospace Technology and for the establishment of Chair of Excellence and Research Scholar Program (RSP) for Indian Air Force Officers at the IAF Headquarters, New Delhi
• The Chair of Excellence will promote teaching, research and technology development in Aerospace Technologies, Aircraft Structural Integrity, Aircraft Health Monitoring, and other allied subjects in the fields of Aeronautics and Aviation.
• It will provide research grant to Ph.D scholars of Aerospace Engineering of IIT Kanpur working in these areas.
• The qualified serving officers from the IAF will be eligible for direct admission to Ph.D, M.Tech and eMasters Programmes at IIT Kanpur.

About Indian Air Force (IAF):

• Air Chief Marshal – Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria
• Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

India’s first Indigenously Designed High Ash Coal Gasification Based Methanol Production Plant at BHEL R&D Centre, Telangana

• India’s 1st Indigenously Designed High Ash Coal Gasification Based Methanol Production Plant was inaugurated in Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), R&D centre at Hyderabad, Telangana.
• The project was supported by the Department of Science and Technology with a Rs 10 crore grant.
• The plan has been installed to reduce the dependency on importing foreign oil and to meet the needs of India.
• BHEL produces the Methanol or Dimethyl Ether (DME) which can be used as an alternative liquid fuel for transportation and to power ship engines.
• This will also lower GreenHouse Gas emission.

About Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL):

• Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) – Dr. Nalin Shinghal
• Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

India, US agree to collaborate on Emerging Fuels during US-India SCEP 2021

• The Ministerial meeting of the United States (US)-India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP) 2021 held virtually was co-chaired by Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas with the US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm to launch the revamped U.S.-India SCEP.
• During this, both nations have agreed to expand their energy partnership by adding the emerging fuels to the list of areas of cooperation as a 5th pillar.
• The other four pillars of cooperation in this list are power and energy efficiency, oil and gas, renewable energy and sustainable growth.

Haryana first State in Installation of Solar Pumps under PM KUSUM Scheme

• Haryana has become the first state in the country to install off-grid solar pumps under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Uttan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM).
• The implementation of PM KUSUM has provided an opportunity to the farmers to switch from diesel pumps to solar pumps.
• This move will lead towards doubling the farmers income by reducing the input cost of agriculture.
• Under the PM KUSUM scheme, the target was to set up 20 lakh standalone solar pumps, under which, Haryana was given a target of setting up 15,000 pumps with a total cost of Rs 520 crore for the year 2020-21.
• The state has received more than 42,000 applications online therefore the new target has increased by setting up 22,000 pumps with a total cost of Rs 844 crore for financial year 2021-22.

About Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Uttan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM)

• The PM-KUSUM scheme was launched by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to support installation of off-grid solar pumps in rural areas and reduce dependence on grid, in grid-connected areas.
• Objective – to provide financial and water security and doubling farmers income

CURRENT AFFAIRS : INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Om Birla Addressed the5th World Conference of Speakers of Parliament 2021 in Vienna, Austria

• The Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla participated in the conference, organized by the Austrian Parliament, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the United Nations (UN).
• The 5th World Conference of Speakers of Parliament (5WCSP) 2021 was held in Vienna, Austria from September 7-8, 2021.
• Austrian Parliament is the first national parliament in history to co-host the World Conference of Speakers of Parliament.
• The theme of the Conference: Parliamentary leadership for more effective multilateralism that delivers peace and sustainable development for the people and planet.
• The Conference was held 5 years once, the Fourth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament was held in 2015 in New York, United States.

About Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)

• IPU is an international organisation of national parliaments.
• It was established in 1889 in Paris.
• It works with close co-operation with the United Nation (UN), regional parliamentary organisations, international intergovernmental organisations and non-governmental organisations for the arbitration of conflict.
• Headquarters- Geneva, Switzerland
• Secretary General– Martin Chungong

Nepal hosted the 74th session of WHO-SEARO – Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar Addressed

• Bharati Pravin Pawar, Minister of State (MoS), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) addressed the 74th session of the World Health Organization South-East Asia Regional Office (WHO-SEARO) through a virtual conference and he represented India.
• The 74th session WHO SEARO was organized by Nepal from 6th to 10th September 2021.
• The meet also focuses on the inclusion of treating non-communicable diseases including mental health and other programmes at the primary health care level.
• South-East Asia comprises one-fourth of the world’s population.
• The Region has been prioritizing the elimination of measles and rubella by 2023.

Report of Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar:

• MoS Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar emphasized on the measures and strategies planned to build back better to achieve Universal Health Care and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) related to health and to strengthen health system resilience for the future.

About World Health Organisation (WHO) South-East Asia Region:

• Regional Director– Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh
• Headquarters– New Delhi, India
• Members– 11 Member States (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor-Leste).

OneWeb & Hughes Network System Signed MoU to Distribute Satellite Services in India & US

• Bharti group backed OneWeb and United States (US) company Hughes Network System has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in a session at Satellite 2021 in Maryland,US for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite service in India and US.
• It is a strategic agreement for distributing satellite service networks in India to large enterprises, small and medium businesses, government, telecoms and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the rural and remote parts of the country.

About the Agreement:

• EchoStar, the parent company of Hughes, is an investor in OneWeb, building its initial constellation of 648 LEO Satellites. Service will be soon started in this year of 2021 to the Arctic region including Alaska, Canada and the United Kingdom.
• OneWeb and Hughes will collaborate to expand the distribution of Satellite Network at global level, with Hughes offering OneWeb’s low-latency, high-speed connectivity for markets such as enterprise, government, commercial aviation and maritime, cellular backhaul, and community Wi-Fi hotspots.
• By late 2022, OneWeb will be offering its high-speed, low latency connectivity services, globally

‘Orca’- World’s Largest Plant Capturing Carbon Dioxide from Air Starts in Iceland

• The World’s Largest Plant to Capture Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) from air, ‘Orca’ Starts Operating in Iceland.
• It was started by a Swiss startup Climeworks AG in partnership with Icelandic carbon storage firm Carbfix.
• The Plant will suck in CO₂ and store it underground in the form of rock.
• The plant can capture up to 4,000 tons of CO₂ per year.

About the Orca plant:

• The ‘Orca’ refers to the Icelandic word ‘Orka’ meaning ‘energy’.
• The plant consists of eight large containers similar in looks to those used in the shipping industry, which employ high-tech filters and fans to extract CO₂.

About Carbfix:

• Chief Executive Officer– Dr. Edda Sif Pind Aradottir
• Headquarter – Reykjavík, Iceland.

CCI Approved Acquisitions – Inflow by Savex; ONGC Tripura Power Company Limited by GAIL & Indiabulls AMC by Groww

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the acquisition of 100% equity share capital of Inflow Technologies Private Limited (Inflow) by Savex Technologies Private Limited (Savex).

GAIL to acquire 26% stake in ONGC Tripura Power Company from IL&FS group entities:

• CCI approved the acquisition of 26% equity share capital of ONGC Tripura Power Company Limited by GAIL (India) Limited from Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) group entities under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002.
• The stakes are acquired from IL&FS Energy Development Company Limited and IL&FS Financial Services Limited.
• Groww acquires 100% Stake in Indiabulls AMC & Indiabulls Trustee:
• CCI has approved the acquisition of 100% shareholding of (Indiabulls AMC) and Indiabulls Trustee Company Limited (Indiabulls Trustee) by Nextbillion Technology Private Limited, doing business as Groww.

About Competition Commission of India (CCI):

• Chairperson– Ashok Kumar Gupta
• Director-General– Dr Atul Verma
• Headquarters– New Delhi
• Established on 14th October 2003

DRDO handed over MRSAM to IAF; India’s 1st Emergency Landing Facility of IAF Plane on NH inaugurated on NH925, Rajasthan

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) handed over the first deliverable Firing Unit (FU) of Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM)/”Barak-8″ System to Indian Air Force (IAF) at Air Force Station, Jaisalmer in Rajasthan.
• MRSAM (IAF) is an advanced network centric combat Air Defence System developed by DRDO in collaboration with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), and PPP (Public Private Partnership) in Indian industry.
• The Union Ministers Rajnath Singh and Nitin Jairam Gadkari, Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) inaugurated a 3-km emergency landing strip or Emergency Landing Facility (ELF) at Satta-Gandhav stretch on National Highway 925 in Barmer, Rajasthan for IAF planes.
• NH-925 is India’s first national highway to be used as ELF of IAF aircraft.
• The ELF strip has been developed by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in association with IAF

CURRENT AFFAIRS : ECONOMY

Amazon Pay ties up with Kuvera to offer wealth management service for the first time

• Amazon Pay, a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon in partnership with Kuvera, Investment platform will provide wealth management services to its 50 million customers across India.
• It is the first ever wealth management tie-up for amazon across the world.
• Kuvera will offer its services, products and technology knowledge to Amazon Pay users in order to facilitate investments into Mutual funds, Fixed deposits.
• Note: Google with Indian fintech startup Setu has recently announced that it will allow its Indian Customers to open fixed deposits through its digital payments’ app Google Pay.

About Amazon Pay :

• Headquarters – Washington, United States
• Founded: 2007
• Director of India: Vikas Bansal

About Kuvera :

• Founder & CEO: Gaurav Rastogi
• Founded: 2016
• Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka

Govt Enhanced the Scope of TMA Scheme for Agri Exports Including Dairy

• The Government of India has enhanced the scope of the Transport and Marketing Assistance (TMA) for specified agriculture products schemes by including dairy products under its purview and increasing the rates of assistance.
• The rates of assistance have been increased by 50% for exports by sea and 100% through the air.
• The revised TMA for specified agriculture products scheme for exports is effected on or after 1st April 2021 to 31st March 2022. 
• The existing scheme will remain in operation for exports effects up to March 31, 2021.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani resigns

• Gujarat Chief Minister Vijaybhai Ramniklalbhai Rupani, 65, submitted his resignation to the Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat.
• He succeeded Anandiben Patel and was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Gujarat on 7 August 2016.
• He is a member of the Gujarat Legislative Assembly representing Rajkot West.
• Next Gujarat Assembly Elections are scheduled in December 2022 to elect 182 members.

Taliban’s Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund appointed as Acting PM of Afghanistan

• Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, has been appointed as the acting Prime Minister (PM) of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. 
• He will head the 33-member team for an interim government of Afghanistan.
• Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, co-founder of Taliban and Molavi Abdul Salam Hanafi has been appointed as the deputy Prime Ministers of Afghanistan.

About Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund:

• Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund has been the head of the Taliban’s Rehbari Shura, or leadership council, for more than 20 years.
• He has served as the foreign minister and deputy PM during the last Taliban rule in 1996 to 2001.
• He has been described by the UN sanctions list as a “political advisor” of late Mullah Mohammed Omar, the Taliban leader

Rahul Dravid Appointed as Brand Ambassador of Piramal Realty

• Piramal Realty, the real estate arm of the Piramal Group, has appointed Former captain of Indian Cricket team Rahul Dravid as its brand ambassador for its portfolio of 4 residential projects and one commercial project.
• As the brand ambassador of Piramal Realty, Rahul Dravid will speak with the customers of Piramal Realty with signature messages on the importance of homeownership.

About Rahul Dravid:

• The government of India has honoured him with Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan in 2004 and 2013 respectively.
• The Arjuna Award for Cricket was awarded to him in 1998.
• Rahul Dravid, who was called the “The Wall”, was appointed as the coach of the India A Team and Under 19 cricket team.

Aziz Akhannouch Appointed as New Prime Minister of Morocco

• Aziz Akhannouch, the leader of the liberal National Rally of Independents (RNI), is appointed as the new Prime Minister of Morocco. 
• He was appointed by the Moroccan King Mohammed VI.

About Aziz Akhannouch

• Akhannouch is CEO of the Akwa Group, a Moroccan conglomerate operating mainly in the oil and gas sector.
• He has also served as Agriculture Minister since 2007.
• Akhannouch is one of the wealthiest people in Morocco, with an estimated wealth around $2 billion (€1.7 billion).
• Since 2016, he has been the leader of the RNI party, which is seen to have close ties to the royal household.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : DEFENCE NEWS

Indigenously-Developed Tejas Light Combat Aircraft-Mk2 To Be Launched 2022 

• Indigenously-Developed Tejas Light Combat Aircraft-Mk2 to be Launched in August 2022 & the first flight in early 2023.
• LCA-Mk2 is a single-engine multirole fighter designed by Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
• The Tejas Mk2 is a 4.5 generation aircraft with enhanced range and endurance.
• It is 1,350 mm longer featuring canards and can carry a payload of 6,500 kg compared to 3,500 kg the LCA can carry.
• It will also be equipped with a multi-sensor data fusion system including an active electronically scanned array radar, infrared search and track, and a missile approach warning system.
• The configuration for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA)-Mk2 has been frozen and steel cutting is expected to begin soon.
• It is the first time an onboard oxygen generation system is also being integrated into the aircraft.

INS Tabar conducts Maritime Partnership Exercise with Sudanese Navy

• On Sep 10, 2021, Indian Navy and Sudanese Navy carried out a bilateral maritime exercise in the Red Sea off the Sudanese coast.
• INS Tabar and two Sudanese Navy ships- Almazz and Nimer- participated in this maiden exercise with the Indian Navy.
• The exercise involved multiple activities covering a wide range of naval operations.
• It included co-ordinated maneuvering, replenishment at sea drills, helo operations, operations for interdicting suspect vessels at sea and communication procedures.
• The exercise enhanced interoperability between the two navies significantly and widened the scope for combined operations against common maritime threats in the future.
• The exercise culminated with a ‘Steam Past’ between ships of the navies, as per naval customs.

About Indian Navy :

• Headquarters : New Delhi
• Founded: 26 January 1950
• Commander-in-Chief: President Ram Nath Kovind
• Chief of Defence Staff : General Bipin Rawat
• Chief of the Naval Staff : Admiral Karambir Singh
• Vice Chief of the Naval Staff : Vice Admiral Satish Namdeo Ghormade
• Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff : Vice Admiral Ravneet Singh

About Sudanese Armed Forces :

• Founded : 1965
• Headquarters : Khartoum
• Commander-in-Chief : Chairman Abdel Fattah al-Burhan
• Minister of Defence : Yassin Ibrahim Yassin
• Chief of Staff : Muhammad Othman al-Hussein

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SUMMITS & CONFERENCES

India-Australia hold first ever 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi

• On Sep 11, 2021, The first-ever 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue between India and Australia was held at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi.
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar is leading the Indian side in the Dialogue.
• Meanwhile, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defence Minister Peter Dutton are leading the Australian delegation.

Aim :

• To further ramp up overall defence and strategic cooperation including in the Indo-Pacific amid China’s increasing military assertiveness in the region.

Purpose :

• To strengthen Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in the Indo-Pacific
• In the India-Australia 2+2 dialogue Afghanistan crisis will be on the top of the agenda & also other matters relating to economic security, climate, cyber, supply chains, critical technology, and exploring new areas in Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• India has a 2-2 Ministerial level meetings framework with very few countries, including the USA and

About Australia :

• Prime minister: Scott Morrison
• Capital: Canberra
• Currency: Australian dollar

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SPORTS NEWS

Zimbabwe star Brendan Taylor announces retirement from international cricket

• On Sep 13, 2021, Former Zimbabwe captain and wicketkeeper-batsman Brendan Taylor announced retire from international cricket during the 3rd and final ODI against Ireland.
• His last international match will be against Ireland hosted in Belfast.
• He played 34 Tests, 204 ODIs and 45 T20Is.
• Brendan Taylor has scored 6677 runs in ODIs, 2320 runs in Tests and 934 runs in T20is.
• He is just 112 short of former Zimbabwe batsman Andy Flower’s national record of 6786.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : OBITUARIES

Ex-Union minister & Veteran Congress leader Oscar Fernandes passes away

• On Sep 13, 2021, Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Oscar Fernandes passed away.
• He was 80.

About Oscar Fernandes :

• Oscar Fernandes was born on March 27, 1941
• Fernandes was also the chairman of the central election authority of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) and AICC general secretary in 1996.
• He was president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC).
• He also served as Parliament Secretary to Rajiv Gandhi.
• Fernandes was a sitting member of the Rajya Sabha in his third term.
• He was the Cabinet minister for transport, road and highways in the Congress-led UPA government.
• He served as the five-time Lok Sabha MP from Udupi in Karnataka.
• He was also in charge of the ministry of labour and employment from 2006 to 2009.

Noted women’s rights activist Sonal Shukla passes away

• Noted women’s rights activist Sonal Shukla passed away.
• He was 80.

About Sonal Shukla :

• Popularly known as “Sonal Ben”.
• Shukla was the founder and managing trustee of the Vacha Charitable Trust & she had been working with adolescent girls and women from the 1980s.
• She was the co-founder of the group Forum Against Rape, now known as the Forum Against Oppression of Women.
• She had been actively involved in feminist movements for many decades

Popular Kashmiri writer & former secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages Aziz Hajini passes away                     

• On Sep 11, 2021, Noted writer and former secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, Aziz Hajini, passed away.
• He was 64.

About Aziz Hajini :

• Aziz Hajini born in 1957 at Hajin area of Bandipura, Jammu and Kashmir.
• From 2008 to 2012, he served as convenor of Sahitya Akademi for Kashmiri languages.
• Also, he served as a member of the Akademi from 1997 to 2002.
• From 1998 to 2000, he was appointed president of Kashmir Theater Association an NGO and between 1998 and 2008, served as general secretary of the Adbi Markaz Kamraz.
• He was appointed a member of the Indian Institute of Public Administration for New Delhi and a member of the National Book Trust in 2012.
• He wrote more than twenty books in Kashmiri language, including poetry and criticism.

Awards & Honours :

• In 2016, he became the recipient of Akademi Award in Kashmir

Daily CA On Sep 12 & 13 :

• World First Aid Day is an annual campaign to ‘promote the importance of first aid training in preventing injuries and saving lives’ Observed on September 11. 
• United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation  Observed on Sep 12
• The government widened the scope of the Transport and Marketing Assistance (TMA) scheme for specified agriculture products by including dairy products in its purview and increasing the rates of assistance.
• The Minister of State, Jal Shakti Ministry, Shri Prahlad Singh Patel presided over the e-launch of Swachh Survekshan Grameen 2021 under Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase -II at an event organized by Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS).
• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has set up three Boards for Advance Rulings (BAR) to offer greater clarity on tax implications of transactions, which in turn will help avoid income tax disputes.
• The Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, Shri Pashupati Kumar Paras and the Minister of State for Food Processing Industries, Shri Prahlad Singh Patel, inaugurated 7 food processing projects at Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, through video conferencing here as part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’
• A webinar on “POSHAN Abhiyaan– Sahi Poshan Desh Roshan” was organised by Regional Outreach Bureau (ROB) & Press Information Bureau (PIB), Chandigarh, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated via video conferencing the Ahmedabad-based Sardardham Bhavan and, in the same function, also performed the “Bhoomi Pujan” of the Sardardham Phase-II Kanya Chhatralaya (girls’ hostel). 
• The country’s largest open air fernery was inaugurated at Ranikhet in Uttarakhand’s Almora district 
• Civil aviation minister Jyotiradtiya Scindia launched “a first of its kind” Medicine from the Sky project aimed at transporting vaccines and other essential products to remote areas using drones.
• Paytm’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Paytm Money, is planning to launch a wealth and investment advisory marketplace on its platform to offer curated advisory services and products to retail investors.
• In order to ensure security of transaction card data, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) extended the scope of tokenization from device-based tokenization to card-on-file tokenization (CoFT) services.
• Vijay Rupani unexpectedly tendered his resignation as Gujarat chief minister, a year before the next assembly election. 
• Yahoo Inc. announced Jim Lanzone as the new chief executive, he will be responsible for exploring strategic opportunities and growth of the company.
• Sardar Iqbal Singh Lalpura took charge as the Chairman, National Commission for Minorities in the presence of Union Minister for Minority Affairs Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi in New Delhi.
• Former Union Minister Vijay Goel took charge as Vice Chairman of Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti at a function in Gandhi Smriti,New Delhi, the site of the Martyrdom of Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation.
• ICRISAT has been awarded the Africa Food Prize for 2021 for improving food security in sub-Saharan Africa.
• The MSME Tool Room, Hyderabad,Central Institute of Tool Design (CITD) has obtained a patent for the invention entitled “AUTOMATIC MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF CONICAL SHAPED FIREWORKS” for 20 years from the 10th November,2015.
• Union Minister for Power and New and Renewable Energy R. K. Singh met Denmark’s Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities Dan Jørgensen in New Delhi.
• On Sep 10,2021, India’s first nuclear-missile tracking ship INS Dhruv was commissioned from Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
• On Sep 12, 2021, Australian-Italian Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) won the Formula One Italian Grand Prix 2021 title.
• On Sep 12,2021, Daniil Medvedev defeated world number one Novak Djokovic in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, to win the US Open 2021 men’s singles final.
• On Sep 12, 2021, In the 2021 US Open women’s singles final title, 18-year-old Great Britain’s tennis player Emma Raducanu defeated Canada’s Leylah Annie Fernandez to win the title in 6-4, 6-3, held at the Arthur Ashe Stadium, New York .

Daily CA On Sep 14 :

• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) tied a partnership with Smart Power India (SPI), an arm of Rockefeller Foundation & Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) to encourage Decentralised Renewable Energy (DRE) and Energy Efficiency (EE) innovations.
• Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd., (GRSE), a Mini Ratna Category 1 Defence PSU leading warship building company of India, and Naval Group, European Naval Defence Industry from France signed MoU in the field of offering high-end surface ships which based on the sea-proven “Gowind” design and to fulfil the requirements of India and international naval forces.
• Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State(MoS), Ministry of Jal Shakti presided over the virtual launch of Swachh Survekshan Grameen(SSG) 2021 under Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) (SBM(G)) Phase- II during the event organised by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS).
• Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in association with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched the “Main Bhi Digital 3.0” -A special Campaign for Digital Onboarding and Training for street vendors under Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) Scheme on the pitot based in 223 cities in the country.
• Nuakhai, the harvest festival of Odisha is celebrated on Bhadraba Shuklapakhya Panchami tithi, the next day of Ganesh Chaturthi.
• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur and Indian Air Force (IAF) Signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Collaboration in the field of Academics and Research in the domain Aerospace Technology and for the establishment of Chair of Excellence and Research Scholar Program (RSP) for Indian Air Force Officers at the IAF Headquarters, New Delhi
• India’s 1st Indigenously Designed High Ash Coal Gasification Based Methanol Production Plant was inaugurated in Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), R&D centre at Hyderabad, Telangana.
• The Ministerial meeting of the United States (US)-India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP) 2021 held virtually was co-chaired by Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas with the US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm to launch the revamped U.S.-India SCEP.
• Haryana has become the first state in the country to install off-grid solar pumps under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Uttan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM).
• The Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla participated in the 5th World Conference of Speakers of Parliament (5WCSP) 2021 was held in Vienna, Austria from September 7-8, 2021., organized by the Austrian Parliament, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the United Nations (UN).
• Bharati Pravin Pawar, Minister of State (MoS), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) addressed the 74th session of the World Health Organization South-East Asia Regional Office (WHO-SEARO) through a virtual conference and he represented India.
• Bharti group backed OneWeb and United States (US) company Hughes Network System has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in a session at Satellite 2021 in Maryland,US for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite service in India and US.
• The World’s Largest Plant to Capture Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) from air, ‘Orca’ Starts Operating in Iceland.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the acquisition of 100% equity share capital of Inflow Technologies Private Limited (Inflow) by Savex Technologies Private Limited (Savex).
• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) handed over the first deliverable Firing Unit (FU) of Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM)/”Barak-8″ System to Indian Air Force (IAF) at Air Force Station, Jaisalmer in Rajasthan.
• Amazon Pay, a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon in partnership with Kuvera, Investment platform will provide wealth management services to its 50 million customers across India.
• The Government of India has enhanced the scope of the Transport and Marketing Assistance (TMA) for specified agriculture products schemes by including dairy products under its purview and increasing the rates of assistance.
• Gujarat Chief Minister Vijaybhai Ramniklalbhai Rupani, 65, submitted his resignation to the Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat.
• Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, has been appointed as the acting Prime Minister (PM) of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. 
• Piramal Realty, the real estate arm of the Piramal Group, has appointed Former captain of Indian Cricket team Rahul Dravid as its brand ambassador for its portfolio of 4 residential projects and one commercial project.
• Aziz Akhannouch, the leader of the liberal National Rally of Independents (RNI), is appointed as the new Prime Minister of Morocco. 
• Indigenously-Developed Tejas Light Combat Aircraft-Mk2 to be Launched in August 2022 & the first flight in early 2023.
• On Sep 10, 2021, Indian Navy and Sudanese Navy carried out a bilateral maritime exercise in the Red Sea off the Sudanese coast.
• On Sep 11, 2021, The first-ever 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue between India and Australia was held at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi.
• On Sep 13, 2021, Former Zimbabwe captain and wicketkeeper-batsman Brendan Taylor announced retire from international cricket during the 3rd and final ODI against Ireland.
• On Sep 13, 2021, Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Oscar Fernandes passed away.
• Noted women’s rights activist Sonal Shukla passed away.
• On Sep 11, 2021, Noted writer and former secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, Aziz Hajini, passed away.