Current Affairs April 18th 2023| Current Affairs News

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CURRENT AFFAIRS : BANKING & FINANCE

Small Industries Development Bank of India Launches Pilot Scheme ‘Mission 50K-EV4ECO’ for Enhanced Financing in Electric Vehicle Space

• Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has launched the pilot financing scheme Called the Mission 50K-EV4ECO for better financing terms in the electric vehicle space (EVS) and strengthening the whole ecosystem.

Aim : 

• To strengthen the EV ecosystem, including uptake for two, three and four-wheelers through direct and indirect lending.
• The pilot scheme, which is the precursor to EVOLVE scheme by SIDBI-World Bank, has two components –direct lending and indirect lending.
• This pilot will be followed by scaling up support to the ecosystem from multilateral support.

Key Highlights : 

• Under direct lending, SIDBI will directly give loans to eligible Micro Small & medium Enterprises (MSMEs) (including aggregators, fleet operators, and EV leasing companies) for the purchase of electric vehicles and develop charging infrastructure, including battery swapping.
• The indirect scheme targeted at NBFCs, including small unrated focused and emerging NBFCs, actively engaged in EV financing, will reach out to the last mile by inducing access to funds as also reducing landed cost.
• Electric two- and three-wheelers offer the greatest potential for EV adoption in India, accounting for 79% of passenger road activity, and are already cost-competitive relative to conventional vehicles.

About SIDBI : 

• Established : April 2, 1990
• Headquarters : Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
• Chairman & Managing Director : Sivasubramanian Ramann
• SIDBI is the apex regulatory body for overall licensing and regulation of micro, small and medium enterprise finance companies in India.
• It is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Finance (MoF), Government of India (GoI).

Chennai Metro in association with State Bank of India launches Singara Chennai Card    

• Chennai Metro Rail Ltd in association with the State Bank of India (SBI) (banking partner) launched the Singara Chennai Card (NCMC – National Common Mobility Card).

About Singara Chennai Card : 

• The technology for the RuPay NCMC cards has been developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
• The card has a unique feature of a Stored Value Area which can be used to store a maximum amount of 2000 rupees that can be used for ticket purchases in Offline mode
• The Singara Chennai cards can be used in Chennai metro stations, and at other metros that accept RuPay NCMC cards, including the MMRDA Mumbai Line 2A & 7; Bangalore Metro; Delhi Metro Airport Line; Kanpur Metro; and for BEST Buses in Mumbai and Kadamba Transport Buses in Goa
• Initially, the NCMC card will be issued by SBI at metro stations in Koyambedu, Central Station, the Airport, High Court, Alandur, Thirumangalam , and Guindy, and can be used at the automatic gates of all the metro stations.
• In the future, consumers would be able to use the card for travel on buses, suburban railways, for toll, parking, smart city and retail shops, in many parts of the country .
• SBI has also a dedicated website (https://transit.sbi/swift/customerportal?pagename=cmrl) for applying for a new card and for further recharging cards.
• Paycraft, a payments company, will manage the end-to-end ticketing system for Chennai Metro.
• This will be the second ticketing system to be launched by Paycraft within a year, following its successful launch on the Pune Metro.

About NPCI : 

• Founded : 2008
• Headquarters : Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
• MD & CEO : Dilip Asbe
• NPCI is an umbrella organization for operating retail payments and settlement systems in India.
• It is an initiative of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) under the provisions of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007, for creating a robust Payment & Settlement Infrastructure in India.

About SBI : 

• Founded : 1 July 1955
• Headquarters : Mumbai, Maharashtra
• Chairman : Dinesh Kumar Khara

SBI Reintroduced 400 Days ‘Amrit Kalash’ Fixed Deposit Scheme With 7.1% Interest

• The State Bank of India (SBI) has reintroduced its special fixed deposit scheme, ‘Amrit Kalash’, for retail customers.
• This 400 days term deposit offers a rate of 7.1% for the general customer and a 50 basis point (bps) higher (7.6%) for senior citizens
• The scheme is available from April 12, 2023 till June 30, 2023.
• Senior citizens will get additional interest of 50 basis points on the scheme.
• India’s largest bank had first floated this scheme on February 15, 2023.
• It was valid up to March-end 2023.
• This scheme comes at a time when the banking system’s deposit growth is lagging credit growth.
• Domestic retail term deposits, including non-resident Indian (NRI) rupee term deposits (less than Rs 2 crore), new and renewals, term deposits, and special term deposits are eligible for this specific tenure deposit scheme.
• As of March 24, 2023, the banking system’s deposit growth was at 9.6% year-on-year (y-o-y) against credit growth of 14.5% y-o-y.

Northern Arc Capital facilitates $20 million ECB loan for CreditAccess Grameen  

• Northern Arc Capital,the technology-enabled diversified financial services platform has structured and arranged $20 million external commercial borrowings (ECB) funding from The Development Bank of Austria, Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank AG (OeEB) for microfinance institution,CreditAccess Grameen Limited (CA Grameen).
• This funding will be utilised by CA Grameen to provide micro-loans to women borrowers from low-income households for income-generating activities, thereby promoting their access to formal financing.
• The fundraise comes close on the heels of CreditAccess Grameen’s first ESG fundraise from Swedfund International AB qualifying under the 2X Challenge in 2021.
• As a part of the deal process, Northern Arc assisted CreditAccess Grameen in end-to-end Indian financial market scoping, credit analysis, due diligence, transaction structuring and execution.
• Northern Arc is a technology-enabled diversified financial services platform that provides credit to MSMEs, households, financial institutions and emerging businesses.
• MD & CEO of CreditAccess Grameen : Udaya Kumar Hebbar

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

Centre tightens fund flow rulebook for CSS schemes

• The Central government has tightened the fund flow rulebook on Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) even further and for the first time has also brought in a ‘penal interest’ clause for delays in fund transfers by states.
• States have been asked to ensure that their share of funds is transferred to the Single Nodal Agency (SNA) for the CSS scheme within 30 days of receiving central funding instead of 40 days, as allowed earlier.
• Any delay beyond 30 days would attract a ‘penal interest’ of 7% per annum.
• This ‘penal interest’ by a state that delays prescribed fund flow will be transferred to the Consolidated Fund of India.
• These are schemes that are funded partially by both the Central and State Governments.
• It is a channel which the central government uses to help the states run their plans financially.
• The amount of state participation varies from state to state.
• Their implementation rests on the Union territories and the States.
• The flagship schemes of the central government are called Core of Core schemes or umbrella schemes.
• The funding pattern is usually 60:40.
• The central government takes up more share in these schemes and the states are expected to pitch in the remaining funds.
• Although, in cases of difficulty where states like North Eastern states, Jammu & Kashmir, and some special category states need extra attention, a 90:10 ratio of funding can be seen usually.

UGC issues new regulations for students’ grievance redressal

• UGC released new regulations for the grievance redressal of students.
• The new regulation proposed the establishment of the Students Grievances Redressal Committee(s) (SGRC) in all Higher Education institutions (HEIs).
• As per the regulations, the Universities are requested to appoint Ombudsperson within 30 days of notifications.
• The Vice-Chancellors/ Principals have been requested to take necessary measures for the publicity of Regulations.
• The regulations have a detailed mechanism for the constitution of SGRCs and their composition and the appointment of the Ombudsperson.
• These regulations will be called the University Grants Commission (Redressal of Grievances of Students) Regulations, 2023.
• The regulations will apply to all higher education institutions established under a Central Act or a State Act.
• The main objective of the regulation is speedy redressal of grievances of the students enrolled in any institution.

About UGC:

• University Grants Commission (UGC) was established in 1956.
• It is responsible for maintaining higher education standards in India.
• It is a statutory body set up under the UGC Act 1956.
• Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar is the current chairman of the UGC.

India to bridge language gap with neighbours

• Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) has envisaged a special project called ‘The Language Friendship Bridge’ to expand India’s cultural footprint in nations with whom it has historical ties.
• India is planning to create a pool of experts in languages spoken in countries like Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan and Indonesia to facilitate better people-to-people exchanges.
• It plans to train five to 10 people in the official languages of each of these countries.
• As of now, the ICCR has zeroed in on 10 languages: Kazakh, Uzbek, Bhutanese, Ghoti (spoken in Tibet), Burmese, Khmer (spoken in Cambodia), Thai, Sinhalese and Bahasa (spoken in both Indonesia and Malaysia).

About ICCR:

• The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) was founded in 1950 by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.
• Founded: 9 April 1950, New Delhi
• Founder: Maulana Azad
• President: Vinay Sahasrabuddhe
• Director General: Kumar Tuhin

CURRENT AFFAIRS : INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Ghana becomes first country to approve Oxford’s malaria vaccine   

• Ghana has become the first country in the world to receive regulatory approval to market the malaria vaccine R21/Matrix-M developed by the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom (UK).
• Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority has granted clearance for the use of R21/Matrix-M vaccine.
• The vaccine was manufactured by the Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd and submitted through the local agent DEK Pharmaceutical Ghana.
• The Serum Institute of India, a leading biotechnology company, has the capacity to produce over 200 million doses of the R21 vaccine on an annual basis.

Key Highlights : 

• The vaccine has exceeded the World Health Organization’s (WHO) efficacy target of 75%, and will be given specifically to children aged 5–36 months who are at highest risk of death from malaria.
• According to the WHO, an estimated 619,000 people died from malaria in 2021, most of them were children in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Ghana, a country where malaria is both endemic and perennial, has reported an estimated 5.3 million cases and 12,500 estimated deaths due to the disease.
• Phase 3 testing of the vaccine is ongoing, but earlier trials have shown efficacy levels of 77%.

About Ghana : 

• President : Nana Akufo-Addo
• Capital : Accra
• Currency : Cedi

Japan, India & France announce common platform for Sri Lanka creditors  

• Japan, India and France have announced a common platform for dialogue between bilateral creditors to coordinate debt restructuring of Sri Lanka.
• This will help in solving the debt crisis of middle-income economies.
• It is historic to start the negotiation process with such a broad-based group of lenders.
• In Mar 2023, Sri Lanka took a 2.9-billion-dollar loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to deal with the huge debt burden.

Key Highlights : 

• Only low-income countries can apply for debt relief under the G-20’s general framework.
• Countries with middle income economies cannot take advantage of this arrangement.
• This has put pressure on major economies to come up with an alternative plan, leading to the creation of new platforms.
• Sri Lanka owes 7.1 billion dollars in debt to bilateral creditors.
• This includes $3 billion from China, $2.4 billion from the Paris Club and $1.6 billion from India.

About Japan :

• Prime Minister : Fumio Kishida
• Capital : Tokyo
• Currency : Japanese yen

About India : 

• President : Droupadi Murmu
• Prime Minister : Narendra Modi
• Capital : New Delhi
• Currency : Indian rupee

About France : 

• President : Emmanuel Macron
• Prime Minister : Élisabeth Borne
• Capital : Paris
• Currency : Euro, CFP franc

About Sri Lanka : 

• President : Ranil Wickremesinghe
• Prime Minister : Dinesh Gunawardena
• Currency : Sri Lankan rupee

Cyclone Ilsa hits Western Australia coast

• Cyclone Ilsa hit a remote stretch of coast in Western Australia near Port Hedland.
• The speed of the wind was 218 kilometres per hour-kph (135 mile per hour-mph)on Bedout Island just off the coast.
• It is the strongest cyclone to hit the region in the last 14 years.
• Australia uses a five-tier system to categorise cyclones.
• Cyclone Ilsa has been kept in category three.
• Cyclones are common on the west coast of Australia.
• Tropical Cyclone Monica was the strongest cyclone to hit Australia.

What is a Cyclone?

• A cyclone is a large air mass that rotates around a strong centre of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : STATE NEWS

Himachal Pradesh celebrated its 75th formation day

• Himachal Pradesh (HP) celebrated its 75th anniversary of formation on April 15, 2023.
• Chief Minister Shri Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu is presiding over the State level function being held for the first time in 75 years in Kaza in the tribal district of Lahaul-Spiti.

Key Highlights : 

• In the event, cultural troupes from the districts of the state presented a colourful program which also included the famous Cham dance of Spiti.
• On this occasion, the CM also honoured people for their excellent services in various fields.

History : 

• Himachal Pradesh came into existence on 15th April, 1948.
• It was declared a Union Territory (UT) on November 1, 1956.
• In 1966, the hilly areas of Punjab were also included in Himachal Pradesh.
• Himachal Pradesh was granted full statehood on January 25, 1971 and was the 18th state in the country.
• Himachal Pradesh celebrates Statehood Day on 25th January.

About HP : 

• Governor : Shiv Pratap Shukla
• Chief Minister : Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu
• National Park : Great Himalayan National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuary : Daranghati Wildlife Sanctuary, Kalatop Wildlife Sanctuary, Kanwar Wildlife Sanctuary

Assam’s Largest Bihu performance creates Guinness World Record for largest traditional dance at single venue  

• The Northeastern state of India, Assam’s Bihu dance (traditional folk dance of Assam) made it to the Guinness World Records with a performance by 11,304 dancers and 2,548 drummers at the Sarusajai Stadium in Guwahati, Assam.
• The Bihu performance set two world records, one for the largest traditional dance, and the second record was for the largest musical instrument group.
• Bihu dance is a traditional folk-dance performed especially during Bohag Bihu or Rongali Bihu, the spring festival of Assam that marks the beginning of the Assamese New Year.
• The festival is known for bridging differences and symbolising harmony between human beings and nature.
• The Assam government announced an appreciation of Rs 25,000 for each artist.
• The previous record for the largest traditional dance was for 7,700 participants in China set in 2015.

About Assam : 

• Governor : Gulab Chand Kataria
• Chief Minister : Himanta Biswa Sarma
• Capital : Dispur
• National Park : Kaziranga National Park, Manas National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuary : Garampani Wildlife Sanctuary, Laokhowa Wildlife Sanctuary, Bornadi Wildlife Sanctuary

Jindal Steel and Power Ltd to set up new rail mill in Odisha         

• Naveen Jindal promoted Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) will commission a 1.2 million tons per annum (MTPA) rail and heavy structure modern mill at Angul in Odisha, at an estimated cost of ₹3,000 crore.
• The new mill will take the steelmaker’s total rail-making capacity to 2.2mn t/yr.
• The steel maker owns and operates 1 MTPA rail mill at its Raigarh unit, in Chhattisgarh, where it manufactures speciality rails like 1175 HT, R350 HT, asymmetric rails, and 1080 HH (head hardened) rails for the Railways, metro projects and high-speed freight corridors.
• The company’s speciality rails are used in projects of civil-military importance (in India) including in areas of remote connectivity such as the Udhampur -Srinagar -Baramulla Rail link project (USBRL) in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) and the Sivok-Rangpo Project in West Bengal (WB).
• Currently, there are 51 steel plants in Odisha with a production capacity of 33.1 MTPA.

About JSPL : 

• Headquarters : New Delhi, Delhi
• Chairman : Naveen Jindal
• Managing Director : Bimlendra Jha
• JSPL is a part of OP Jindal Group.

About Odisha :

• Governor : Ganeshi Lal
• Chief Minister : Naveen Patnaik
• Capital : Bhubaneswar
• National Park : Simlipal National Park, Bhitarkanika National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuary : Ushakothi Wildlife Sanctuary, Tikarpada Wildlife Sanctuary

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS

Ashok Leyland launches ‘Re-AL’ electronic marketplace for used commercial vehicles

• Truck and bus maker Ashok Leyland has launched its e-marketplace ‘Re-AL’ for used trucks.
• The marketplace seeks to facilitate customers in exchanging used commercial vehicles and upgrading them to new Ashok Leyland trucks and buses.
• The e-marketplace seeks to offer customers a range of features to easily find vehicles of their choice, such as verified vehicle images, validated documents as well as evaluation reports.
• Additionally, easier options have been given for sellers to list their vehicles for liquidation

About Ashok Leyland

• Founder: Raghunandan Saran
• Parent organization: Hinduja Group
• Headquarters: Chennai
• Shenu Agarwal, MD & CEO, Ashok Leyland.

Credit guarantee fund scheme for micro and small enterprises

• The Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) has upped the coverage ceiling under its Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme from ₹2 crore to ₹5 crore per borrower for credit facilities extended by lending institutions to Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs).
• CGTMSE, set up by the Government of India and SIDB I provide guarantee to enable MSEs access credit, reduction in guarantee fee for loans up to ₹1 crore to bring down the cost of credit and doubled the threshold limit for waiver of legal action by lenders while invoking guarantee to ₹10 lakh per claim.
• The changes are effective April 1, comes when the loan growth to the MSE segment slowed to 13.2 per cent year-on-year as on February 24, 2023 against 24 per cent y-o-y as on February 25, 2022.
• This move is expected to encourage the public and private sector banks, Member Financial Institutions and foreign banks to step up loans to MSEs.
• As on February 24, 2023, the scheduled commercial banks’ credit to MSEs stood at ₹5,87,494 crore compared with ₹5,18,873 crore as on February 25, 2022.
• The annual guarantee fee (AGF), which is generally passed on to the borrowers for loans upto ₹10 lakh has been reduced to 0.37 per cent (from 0.75 per cent) and for loans above ₹10 lakh up to ₹50 lakh to 0.55 per cent (from 1.10 per cent).
• The AGF for loans above ₹50 lakh up to ₹1 crore is 0.60 per cent; above ₹1 crore up to ₹2 crore (1.20 per cent); and for loans above ₹2 crore up to ₹5 crore (1.35 per cent).
• Earlier, there was a single slab of ₹50 lakh up to ₹2 crore for which the AGF was 1.20 per cent.
• The credit guarantee scheme (CGS) assures a lender that if an MSE unit that has availed itself of collateral-free credit facilities (fund-based and/or non-fund based) fails to discharge its liabilities, then the trust would make good the loss to the tune of 75-85 per cent of the credit facility.

Northern Arc Capital facilitates $20 million ECB loan for CreditAccess Grameen

• Chennai-based NBFC, Northern Arc Capital today announced that it has structured and arranged $20 million in external commercial borrowings (ECB) for microfinance institution, CreditAccess Grameen Ltd.
• It was funded by Development Bank of Austria, Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank AG (OeEB).
• The fundraise comes close on the heels of CreditAccess Grameen’s first ESG fundraise from Swedfund International AB qualifying under the 2X Challenge in 2021.
• As a part of the deal process, Northern Arc assisted CreditAccess Grameen in end-to-end Indian financial market scoping, credit analysis, due diligence, transaction structuring and execution.
• CreditAccess Grameen said it will use this long-term funding to provide micro loans to women borrowers from low-income households for income-generating activities.
• Udaya Kumar Hebbar, MD & CEO, CreditAccess Grameen.

IRB Infra private InvIT lists at NSE

• IRB Infrastructure Trust has become the first Private InvIT listed on the National Stock Exchange, after SEBI’s listing framework for non-listed InvITs came into force from June.
• The valuation of the trust units was determined based on third-party evaluation and further endorsed by the Trust’s investors as well.
• The value ascertained comes to around 16 times FY24 revenue, which will further keep appreciating with more projects coming in.
• MMK Toll Road Pvt. Ltd, an Investment Manager to the Trust, on March 22, approved the listing of Units of the Trust on NSE.
• Virendra D. Mhaiskar, Chairman of the IRB Infrastructure Trust,
• IRB Infrastructure Developers Ltd, sponsors of IRB Infrastructure Trust, holds 51 per cent in the InvIT and the rest is held by GIC affiliates.

India’s exports up 6% to $447 billion in FY23, imports climb 16.5% to $714 billion

• India’s imports in Financial Year 2023 (FY23) rose 16.5 per cent to $714 billion as against $613 billion in FY22 while exports saw a rise of 6% to $447 billion in FY23, up from $442 billion in FY22.
• This was revealed by the data released by t he Ministry of Commerce and Industry recently.
• India’s CAD stood at $18.2 billion or 2.2 per cent of GDP in the quarter ended December 2022.
• Total goods exports in 2022-23 rose 6.03% to $447.46 billion.
• In comparison to goods exports, services exports are estimated to have grown by 26.79 per cent.
• Overall export of goods and services together scaled “new heights” and has increased by 14 per cent to $770 billion in 2022-23.
• India’s exports is largely led by petroleum ($94 billion), followed by electronic goods ($23 billion).
• The other three India’s top five export items registered insignificant growth – Rice (up 1.5%), chemicals (1%), and drugs and pharmaceuticals (0.8%).
• The USA remained India’s top export destination, followed by UAE.
• Overall imports are expected to have surged to $892.18 billion over the previous year.
• While petroleum imports jumped about 30% to nearly $210 billion in 2022-23, coal imports grew at a faster 57% to touch almost $50 billion.
• Gold imports, on the other hand, fell around 24% to $35 billion as global prices for the metal surged and the Rupee turned weaker.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING AND INDEX

Russia becomes fourth largest import source for India in FY23

• Russia has moved up 16 ranks to become the fourth largest import source for India in FY 2022-23, with a 369.4 per cent increase (year-on-year) to $46.33 billion, comprising primarily crude and petroleum products, while its share in India’s imports expanded to 6.5 per cent from 1.6 per cent in the previous fiscal.
• China’s share in India’s exports in FY2022-23 shrunk to 13.79 per cent from 15.43 per cent in the previous fiscal, but it retained its position as the top import source for the country.
• India’s imports from China rose 4.16 per cent to $98.51 billion.
• The top destinations for Indian exports in FY2022-23 included the US with exports valued at $78.31 billion, the UAE at $31.33 billion, the Netherlands at $20.90 billion, China at $15.32 billion, Singapore at $11.95 billion, Bangladesh at $11.67 billion and the UK at $11.46 billion.
• The UAE was the second largest import source for India during FY2022-23 at $53.24 billion (growth of 18.75 per cent). India’s FTA with the UAE signed last fiscal is likely to have contributed to the rise, the source added.
• It was followed by the US, which shipped goods worth $50.24 billion to India in FY2022-23, posting an increase of 15.98 per cent over the previous fiscal.
• The top five items showing import growth in FY2022-23 included petroleum, crude & products (valued at $209.57 billion), coal, coke & briquettes, machinery, transport equipment and iron & steel.
• The total import of goods in FY2022-23 increased 16.51 per cent to $714.24 billion.
• The top five export items exhibiting an increase in FY 2022-23 included petroleum products (valued at $94.52 billion), electronic goods (at $23.57 billion), rice, chemicals and drugs. In FY 2022-23, goods exports registered modest 6.03 per cent growth to $447.46 billion.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : ACQUISITIONS & MERGER

CCI approves acquisition of stake in Mukand Sumi Special Steel Limited by Jamnalal Sons Private Limited from Mukand Limited  

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves acquisition of 5.51% of the equity share capital in Mukand Sumi Special Steel Limited (MSSSL) by Jamnalal Sons Private Limited (JSPL) (Acquirer) from Mukand Limited (Mukand).

About JSPL : 

• JSPL is an unregistered core investment company holding shares in various Bajaj Group Companies.
• It is primarily an investment and lending company.

About MSSSL : 

• MSSSL is engaged in the business of manufacturing, marketing, selling, distribution etc of special and alloy steel hot rolled bars and hot rolled wire rods.

About CCI :

• Established : 14 October 2003
• Headquarters : New Delhi, Delhi, India
• Chairman : Sangeeta Verma
• Secretary : P K Singh
• The CCI is the chief national competition regulator in India.
• It is a statutory body within the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Russia conducts test launch of ‘advanced’ intercontinental ballistic missile          

• The Russian defence ministry has conducted the successful test launch of an “advanced” intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
• The missile was launched from the Kapustin Yar test site in Russia’s southern Astrakhan region.

Purpose : 

• To test advanced combat equipment of intercontinental ballistic missiles.
• This launch made it possible to confirm the correctness of the circuit design and technical solutions used in the development of new strategic missile systems.
• The missile hit the target at the Sary-Shagan training ground in Kazakhstan.

About Russia : 

• President : Vladimir Putin
• Prime Minister : Mikhail Mishustin
• Capital : Moscow
• Currency : Ruble

CURRENT AFFAIRS : OBITUARIES

Virginia Norwood, satellite imaging systems ‘mother’, Passed away

• Virginia Norwood, an American aerospace pioneer who invented the scanner that has been used to map and study the earth from space for over 50 years, has passed away at the age of 86 in Topanga, Calif.

About Virginia Norwood : 

• Virginia Tower was born on January 8, 1927, at Fort Totten in New York City, United States (US).
• She was best known for her contribution to the Landsat program,having designed the Multispectral Scanner which was first used on Landsat 1.
• The scanner has been used for more than 50 years for scanning safe landing sites and mapping our planet from space.
• For this invention,  NASA has called her “the mother of Landsat.”
• In the 1950s and ’60s, she was working at Hughes Aircraft Company, developing instruments.
• The Landsat satellites, speeding 438 miles above the surface, orbit the earth every 99 minutes and have captured a complete image of the planet every 16 days since 1972. 

Ireland’s top rally driver Craig Breen passed away 

• Ireland’s top rally driver Craig Breen has passed away at the age of 33 in an accident, due to a crash while driving his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 rally car in a testing session for the 2023 Croatia Rally.
• Breen won the WRC Academy Cup in 2011, winning his first event at the 2011 Rallye Deutschland.
• He won the 2012 Super 2000 WRC, scoring class wins in the Monte Carlo Rally, Wales Rally GB, Rally France and the Rally of Spain.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: IMPORTANT DAYS

World Heritage Day 2023: April 18

• Every year April 18th is celebrated as World Heritage Day or International day for monuments and sites.
• The International Council on Monuments and Sites encourages cultural heritage and a range of the world’s monuments and heritage sites on this day.
• The International Council on Monuments and Sites 1982 suggested that April 18 should be celebrated as World Heritage Day.
• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural organization in its 22nd general conference in 1983 approved the date.
• Since then International Council on Monuments and Sites every year suggests a theme for the celebrations.
• This day is not just about the listed sites but all cultural heritage landscapes of global state and local significance.

Daily CA One-Liner: April 18

• Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has launched the pilot financing scheme Called the Mission 50K-EV4ECO for better financing terms in the electric vehicle space (EVS) and strengthening the whole ecosystem.
• Chennai Metro Rail Ltd in association with State Bank of India (SBI) (banking partner) launched the Singara Chennai Card (NCMC – National Common Mobility Card).
• The State Bank of India (SBI) has reintroduced its special fixed deposit scheme, ‘Amrit Kalash’, for retail customers.
• Northern Arc Capital,the technology-enabled diversified financial services platform has structured and arranged $20 million external commercial borrowings (ECB) funding from The Development Bank of Austria, Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank AG (OeEB) for microfinance institution,CreditAccess Grameen Limited (CA Grameen).
• The Central government has tightened the fund flow rulebook on Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) even further and for the first time has also brought in a ‘penal interest’ clause for delays in fund transfers by states
• UGC released new regulations for the grievance redressal of students.
• Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) has envisaged a special project called ‘The Language Friendship Bridge’ to expand India’s cultural footprint in nations with whom it has historical ties.
• Truck and bus maker Ashok Leyland has launched its e-marketplace ‘Re-AL’ for used trucks.
• The Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) has upped the coverage ceiling under its Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme from ₹2 crore to ₹5 crore per borrower for credit facilities extended by lending institutions to Micro and Small Enterprises
• Chennai-based NBFC, Northern Arc Capital today announced that it has structured and arranged $20 million in external commercial borrowings (ECB) for microfinance institution, CreditAccess Grameen Ltd
• IRB Infrastructure Trust has become the first Private InvIT listed on the National Stock Exchange, after SEBI’s listing framework for non-listed InvITs came into force from June
• India’s imports in Financial Year 2023 (FY23) rose 16.5 per cent to $714 billion as against $613 billion in FY22 while exports saw a rise of 6% to $447 billion in FY23, up from $442 billion in FY22
• Russia has moved up 16 ranks to become the fourth largest import source for India in FY 2022-23, with a 369.4 per cent increase (year-on-year) to $46.33 billion, comprising primarily crude and petroleum products, while its share in India’s imports expanded to 6.5 per cent from 1.6 per cent in the previous fiscal
• Ghana has become the first country in the world to receive regulatory approval to market the malaria vaccine R21/Matrix-M developed by the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom (UK).
• Japan, India and France have announced a common platform for dialogue between bilateral creditors to coordinate debt restructuring of Sri Lanka.
• Cyclone Ilsa hit a remote stretch of coast in Western Australia near Port Hedland.
• Himachal Pradesh (HP) celebrated its 75th anniversary of formation on April 15, 2023.
• The Northeastern state of India, Assam’s Bihu dance (traditional folk dance of Assam) made it to the Guinness World Records with a performance by 11,304 dancers and 2,548 drummers at the Sarusajai Stadium in Guwahati, Assam.
• Naveen Jindal promoted Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) will commission a 1.2 million tons per annum (MTPA) rail and heavy structure modern mill at Angul in Odisha, at an estimated cost of ₹3,000 crore.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves acquisition of 5.51% of the equity share capital in Mukand Sumi Special Steel Limited (MSSSL) by Jamnalal Sons Private Limited (JSPL) (Acquirer) from Mukand Limited (Mukand).
• The Russian defence ministry has conducted the successful test launch of an “advanced” intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
• Virginia Norwood, an American aerospace pioneer who invented the scanner that has been used to map and study the earth from space for over 50 years, has passed away at the age of 86 in Topanga, Calif.
• Ireland’s top rally driver Craig Breen has passed away at the age of 33 in an accident, due to a crash while driving his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 rally car in a testing session for the 2023 Croatia Rally.
• Every year April 18th is celebrated as World Heritage Day or International day for monuments and sites.