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CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS
International Tea Day 2020: Observed On December 15
- Every year on December 15, world celebrates International Tea Day since 2015 in tea producing countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Vietnam, Kenya, India, Uganda, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Tanzania.
- Theme of 2020 : Harnessing Benefits for all From Field to Cup.
- Moreover United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has designated May 21 as International Tea Day,
- Goal of the day : The goal of the dayis to promote and foster collective actions to implement activities in favour of the sustainable production and consumption of tea and raise awareness of its importance in fighting hunger and poverty.
- India is the Second Largest Producer of tea after China.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS
Handicraft and GI Toys exempted from Quality Control Order
- Centre has exempted Handicraft and Geographical Indications toys from Quality Control Order. Order will come into effect from 1st January next year.
- Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade mentioned this exemption in Toys (Quality Control) Second Amendment Order, 2020.
- Aim : This order aims to bring forward the synergized efforts of the centre, states and the stakeholders to promote ‘Team up for toys’ vision keeping quality standards of the indigenous toys as the priority.
About Quality Control Order :
- Quality control order was issued by the Department for standardization and quality adherence of Toys.
Health minister releases 5th National Family Health Survey for 17 states & 5 UTs
- Health minister Harsh Vardhan released the 5th National Family Health Survey (NFHS) which contains detailed information on population, health and nutrition for India and its states and UTs.
- In Phase I results Show the status of 17 States and 5 UTs.
- Phase II covering the remaining 12 States and 2 UTs and is expected to be completed by May 2021.
Goal of the Survey:
- To provide essential data on healthand family welfare needed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and other agencies for policy and programme purposes.
- To provide information on important emerging health and family welfare issues.
About National Family Health Survey
- The National Family Health Survey(NFHS) is a large-scale, multi-round survey conducted in a representative sample of households throughout India.
- The surveycollected extensive information on population, health, and nutrition, with an emphasis on women and young children.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING & FINANCE
RBI to set up Automated Banknote Processing Centre in Jaipur
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to set up an Automated Banknote Processing Centre(ABPC) in Jaipur for receipt, storage and dispatch of currency notes.
- The functions of the ABPC will also include processing of banknotes received from currency chests (CCs) and bank branches, and destruction of soiled banknotes in an automated manner.
About RBI Banknotes :
- RBI is the sole issuer of banknotes of the country and responsible for management of currency and all its aspects.
- RBI is supplied with banknotes from four printing presses and coins from four mints.
- The new banknotes and coins are received at 19 issue offices of the bank located across the country from where these are further distributed to about 3,300 CCs operated by scheduled banks under an agency agreement with the RBI.
- The CCs act as store houses and the currency stored there is distributed to various bank branches/ATM network for distribution to the public.
- The unfit notes withdrawn from circulation are verified through a Currency Verification and Processing System (CVPS) and destroyed by shredding.
About ABPC :
- Automated receipt and storage of fresh banknotes received from the printing presses,
- Automated retrieval and dispatch of fresh banknotes to the identified issue offices (IOs)/CCs.
- Processing and destruction capacities.
About RBI :
- RBI Governor : Shaktikanta Das ( 25th Governor of RBI)
- Headquarters : Mumbai
- Founded : 1st April 1935, Kolkata
- Current RBI Repo Rate – 4%
- Reverse Repo Rate – 3.35%
- CRR – 3%
- Bank Rate – 4.65%
CRISIL Revises GDP Forecasts to -7.7% for FY21
- Rating agency CRISIL has lowered the contraction rate of India’s GDP, and now expects the growth rate of Indian economy to contract 7.7% in the ongoing fiscal 2020-21, compared to the 9% forecast in September 2020, due to faster-than-expected recovery in the second quarter.
- For the fiscal 2021-22 (FY22), CRISIL expects the growth to bounce back to 10%.
About CRISIL:
- Founded – 1987
- Headquarters – Mumbai
- CEO – Ashu Suyash
IFSCA notifies IFSC Authority (Bullion Exchange) Regulations, 2020
- IFSCA has notified International Financial Services Centres Authority Regulations 2020.
- In the Union Budget 2020, Union Minister of Finance Corporate Affairs Smt.
- Nirmala Sitharaman had made an announcement for setting up an International Bullion Exchange at the International Financial Services Centre in GIFT City, Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
- Government of India had notified the bullion spot delivery contract and bullion depository receipt (with bullion as underlying) as Financial Products and related services as Financial Services under the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) Act, 2019.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS
Ola to invest Rs 2,400 corer for world’s largest e-scooter factory in Tamil Nadu
- The SoftBank-backed firm Ola Electric has announced a Rs 2,400-crore ($320 million) investment plan to set up, what it calls, the ‘world’s largest’ electric scooter (e-scooter) manufacturing plant in Hosur, Tamil Nadu (TN).
- It aims to make India a manufacturing hub for electric vehicles (EVs). Ola has signed a memorandum of understanding with the TN government for this facility.
- It will initially have an annual capacity of 2 million units.
- The company stated that in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision, Ola’s factory was an important step in making India ‘atmanirbhar’. It would catalyse the reduction of India’s import dependence in a key future sector like EVs, boost local manufacturing, create jobs, and improve technical expertise in the country.
About Ola :
- Founded : 3rd December 2010, Mumbai
- CEO : Bhavish Aggarwal
- Headquarters : Bengalore
About Tamil Nadu :
- Capital : Chennai
- Cheif Minister : Edappadi K. Palaniswami
- Governor : Banwarilal Purohit.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
ISRO to launch Communication Satellite CMS-01 on December 17
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch communication satelliteCMS-01 aboard Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C50) on December 17, 2020. This would be India’s 42nd Communication Satellite.
- The mission would be the 52nd mission of PSLV and 22nd flight of PSLV in ‘XL’ configuration (with 6 strap-on motors). The launch vehicle will take off from the second launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
What is CMS-01?
- CMS-01, India’s 42nd Communication Satellite, has been envisaged to provide services in the Extended-C Band of the frequency spectrum.
- This will be the 77th launch vehicle mission from Satish Dhawan Space Centre n Sriharikota.
- The CMS-01 will be a replacement for GSAT-12 that weighed 1,410 kg and was launched on July 11, 2011 with a mission life of eight years.
About ISRO:
- Chairman : K.Sivan
- Founder : Vikram Sharabai
- Headquarters : Bangalore, Karnataka
CURRENT AFFAIRS: SUMMITS & CONFERENCE
9th edition of Sustainable Mountain Development Summit begins in Dehradun
- The ninth edition of the Sustainable Mountain Development Summit (SMDS) in Dehradun has begun from December 11 to 14.
- The theme for this year is Emerging Pathways for Building a Resilient Post COVID-19 Mountain Economy, Adaptation, Innovation and Acceleration.
- The four-day-long summit was organised by Indian Mountain Initiative (IMI) and hosted by Sustainable Development Forum Uttaranchal (SDFU), Dehradun.
- The summit will focus on the overall objective of building pathways toward a resilient and sustainable mountain economy in the context of a post COVID-19 scenario and Climate Change.
- Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma attended the function.
About Sustainable Mountain Development Summit :
- Organised by Indian MountainInitiative (IMI), the four-day-long summit seeks to deliberate on issues such as migration, water security, climate resilience and innovative solutions for the farm sector, and disaster risk reduction in the Indian Himalayas.
Climate Ambition Summit 2020 held virtually
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi address the Climate Ambition Summit 2020, United Nations, United Kingdom and France Virtually Co-hosted.
- The Climate Ambition Summit, held virtually, marked the five years of the adoption of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
- The Summit heard from about 70 world leaders highlighting new announcements and steps they are taking to reach the goal of net-zero emissions.
- Next UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), which will be hosted by the UK next November in
1st TWG Meeting between India, Iran, Uzbekistan on joint use of Chabahar Port held virtually
- The first Trilateral Working Group Meeting between India, Iran and Uzbekistan on the joint use of Chabahar Port was held virtually On Dec 14.
- The Meeting was jointly chaired by Secretary (Shipping), Sanjeev Ranjan, Government of India, Deputy Minister of Transport, Uzbekistan D. Dehkanov and Deputy Transport Minister of Iran, Shahram Adamnejad.
- This Meeting Mainly Focus Joint Use of Chabahar Port trade and transit purposes along with enhancing regional connectivity.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCHEMES
Housing & Urban Affairs secretary launches PM SVANidhi beneficiaries & their families
- Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra launched a programme of Socio-Economic Profiling of PM SVANidhi beneficiaries and their families, as an additional component of PM SVANidhi Scheme.
- Under this, a complete profile of each PM SVANidhi beneficiary and their family members will be prepared. Based on the profiled data, benefits of the various eligible Central Schemes would be extended to them for their holistic socio-economic upliftment.
- In the first phase, 125 cities have been selected for the programme
PM SVANidhi scheme objective:
- Provide affordable working capital loan up to 10 thousand rupees to Street Vendors.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS
Odisha to host 2023 FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup
- The FIH, International Hockey Federation had announced that the 2023 FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup Will be hosted in Odisha for a second Consecutive Time.
- This time it will be held in Two venues, namely Bhubaneswar and
- The 2023 tournament will be 15th editionof the Men’s FIH Hockey World Cup. It will be held at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and at the Biju Patnaik Hockey Stadium in
- The Men’s Hockey World Cup 2018 was also hosted by Odisha.
About Odisha :
- Chief Minister : Naveen Panaik
- Capital : Bhubaneswar
- Governor : Ganeshi Lal.
ICC Announces Womens World Cup Schedule
- The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the schedule for the 2022 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand with 31 matches to be played acoss 31 days from March 4 to April 3, 2022.
- Six cities in New Zealand will play host to the competition – Auckland, Tauranga, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin.
- New Zealand, Australia, England, South Africa andIndia have already qualified for the World Cup
About ICC:
- Chairperson : Greg Barclay
- CEO : Manu Sawhney
- Headquarters : Dubai
- Founded : 15 June 1909
CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARIES
Radhika Ranjan Pramanik, passes away at 88
- Veteran politician and five-time MP Radhika Ranjan Pramanik died. He was 88.
- He was elected to Lok Sabha five times from Mathurapur on a CPI(M) ticket, beginning 1989.
- Pramanik left the CPI(M) to join the TMC during the later phase of his political career.
Ambrose Dlamini: Eswatini’s PM dies after testing positive for Covid-19
- Ambrose Dlamini, the Prime Minister of Eswatini, a country in Southern Africa, has passed away due to coronavirus. He was 52.
- Dlamini was appointed as the tenth prime minister of the country in October 2018.
About Eswatini :
- Capital : Mbabane, Lobamba
- Currency : Swazi lilangeni
Padma Vibhushan Awardee Scientist Roddam Narasimha Passes Away At 87
- Eminent aerospace scientist and Padma Vibhushan awardee Roddam Narasimha passed away on December 14, He was 87.
- Narasimha made a mark in the field of aerospace engineering and as a fluid dynamicist. He taught aerospace engineering at n Institthe Indiaute of Science (IISc) from 1962 to 1999.
- He also served as the director of the National Aerospace Laboratories from 1984 to 1993.
- He was the chairperson of the Engineering Mechanics unit at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) in Bengaluru from 2000 to 2014.
- He was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 2003.
Deputy Governor of Kabul killed in a bomb blast
- In Afghanistan, deputy governor of Kabul Mahbubullah Muhibbi has been killed in a sticky bomb attack in the capital city on December 15.
- While such killings have long plagued Afghanistan, they appear to be on the rise since the Taliban signed an agreement with the United States that will see foreign forces withdraw by spring.
- President Trump most recently ordered that only 2,500 American forces should remain in Afghanistan by January 15 – just five days before his successor Joe Biden is inaugurated.
About Afghanistan:
- Currency: Afghan afghani
- President: Ashraf Ghani
- Capital: Kabul
Daily CA on Dec 13th and 14th
- December 14 is celebrated as National Energy Conservation Day every year, The India Energy Conservation Act was first implemented by the Energy Efficiency Bureau (BEE) in 2001.
- BSE (earlier known as Bombay Stock Exchange) has launched an electronic spot platform for agricultural commodities through its subsidiary BSE Investments Ltd.
- Indian Railways has launched the Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) to provide better health care facilities to its work force with the help of information technology.
- The HMIS has been developed by Indian Railways in coordination with RailTel Corporation Limited.
- NITI Aayog releases a white paper Vision 2035 – Public Health Surveillance in India, The white paper was released by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Dr Rajiv Kumar, Member (Health) Dr Vinod K Paul and CEO Amitabh Kant.
- The 5th India-Myanmar Bilateral Meeting on Drug Control Cooperation was held virtually on December 10, 2020. The Indian delegation was led by Shri Rakesh Asthana, Director General of Narcotics Control Bureau.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President of the Republic of Uzbekistan H.E. Mr. Shavkat Mirziyoyev co-chaired a Virtual Summit between India and Uzbekistan on 11 December, 2020.
- The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has inked a pact with Austria for technical cooperation in road infrastructure space.
- Paolo Rossi, Italy’s goalscoring hero from their victorious 1982 World Cup campaign, has died at the age of 64.
- Renowned Sanskrit scholar Vidyavachaspati Bannanje Govindacharya died at his residence at Ambalpady in Udupi. Govindacharya was the brand ambassador of India in World Conference on Religion.
- Chuck Yeager, the first person to travel at a speed faster than the speed of sound, has passed away at the age of 97
- Max Verstappen won Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2020, held on 13 December 2020 in Abu Dhabai, UAE.
- Top Indian tennis player Ankita Raina won her third doubles title of the pandemic-hit 2020 season, clinching the Al Habtoor challenge with Ekaterine Gorgodze.
- Music composer Narendra Bhide, who composed many award-winning films, television soaps as well as plays, died of a heart attack at the age of 47 in Pune.
- The UNESCO has decided to launch an international prize in the field of ‘creative economy’ in the name of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
- Ashraf Patel won the Social Entrepreneur of the Year award instituted by the Schwab Foundation and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation.
- Special Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure scheme applicable for all states except Tamil Nadu.
Daily CA on Dec 15th
- International Tea Day 2020 Observed On December 15, with the Theme of Harnessing Benefits for all From Field to Cup. India is the Second Largest Producer of tea after China.
- Centre has exempted Handicraft and Geographical Indications toys from Quality Control Order. Order will come into effect from 1st January next year.
- Health minister Harsh Vardhan on released the 5th National Family Health Survey (NFHS) which contains detailed information on population, health and nutrition for India and its states and UTs.
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to set up an Automated Banknote Processing Centre(ABPC) in Jaipur.
- Rating agency CRISIL has lowered the contraction rate of India’s GDP, and now expects the growth rate of Indian economy to contract 7.7% in the ongoing fiscal 2020-21, compared to the 9% forecast in September 2020, due to faster-than-expected recovery in the second quarter.
- IFSCA has notified International Financial Services Centres Authority Regulations 2020
- The SoftBank-backed firm Ola Electric has announced a Rs 2,400-crore ($320 million) investment plan to set up, what it calls, the ‘world’s largest’ electric scooter (e-scooter) manufacturing plant in Hosur, Tamil Nadu.
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch communication satelliteCMS-01 aboard Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C50) on December 17, 2020.
- The ninth edition of the Sustainable Mountain Development Summit (SMDS) in Dehradun has begun from December 11 to 14.
- 9th SMDS Theme is Emerging Pathways for Building a Resilient Post COVID-19 Mountain Economy, Adaptation, Innovation and Acceleration.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi address the Climate Ambition Summit 2020, United Nations, United Kingdom and France Virtually Co-hosted.
- The first Trilateral Working Group Meeting between India, Iran and Uzbekistan on the joint use of Chabahar Port was held virtually On Dec 14.
- Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra launched a programme of Socio-Economic Profiling of PM SVANidhi Scheme.
- The FIH, International Hockey Federation had announced that the 2023 FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup Will be hosted in Odisha for a second Consecutive Time.
- The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the schedule for the 2022 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand with 31 matches to be played acoss 31 days from March 4 to April 3, 2022.
- Veteran politician and five-time MP Radhika Ranjan Pramanik died. He was 88.
- Ambrose Dlamini, the Prime Minister of Eswatini, a country in Southern Africa, has passed away due to coronavirus. He was 52.
- Eminent aerospace scientist and Padma Vibhushan awardee Roddam Narasimha passed away on December 14, He was 87.
- In Afghanistan, deputy governor of Kabul Mahbubullah Muhibbi has been killed in a sticky bomb attack in the capital city on December 15.