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Important Current Affairs 21st April 2020

National

Section 115BAC of IT Act, 1961

• Section 115BAC was recently inserted into the Income-tax Act, 1961, which states that an individual or a person belonging to an undivided family earning income other than the business or profession may opt to be taxed and furnish his or her Income Tax Return under sub-section (I) of Section 139 of IT Act.

• The Section 115BAC provides a concessional rate, if the total income is computed without any specified exemption or deduction.

UP becomes first state to geo-tag community kitchens

• Uttar Pradesh became the first state on April 19, 2020 to geo-tag community kitchens. The state geo-tagged around 7,368 community kitchens and community shelters located across 75 districts. The kitchens produce 12 lakh food packets per day.

• The state has also tied up with Google to 'Geo-map' the locations of all these community kitchens on the Google Maps app for ease of the beneficiaries. The state government mobilised state resources to set up the kitchens through the medium of religious organisations and non-government organisations.

International

China begins testing of digital currency – DC/EP

• People’s Bank of China (Central Bank of China) has started testing its digital currency named Digital Currency Electronic Payment, DC/EP.

• It is built with Blockchain and Cryptographic technology. The currency is pegged 1:1 to the Chinese National Currency – the RenMinBi (RMB).

• China’s official digital currency is undergoing testing and has not been officially released.

Banking and Economy

ICICI Bank launches voice banking services on Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant

• Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India(ICICI) bank starts a new feature of voice banking services on Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant for their customers.

• The service will enable customers to #BankWithTheirVoice and get answers to banking queries, check account balance & transactions, credit card due date and more.

Fitch slashes India’s GDP growth forecast to 1.8%

• Fitch solution has reduced its GDP growth forecast for India for FY21 to 1.8% from 4.6% earlier.

Science and Technology

NASA to launch 1st crewed US mission to International Space Station

• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will on May 27, 2020 launch its astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley for the first crewed mission to International Space Station (ISS) since the retirement of Space Shuttle Program in 2011.

Obituary

BMW India CEO & President Rudratej Singh passes away

• BMW Group President and CEO Rudratej Singh has passed away. Rudratej was the first Indian to lead the BMW India operations. He was appointed as the head of India operations from August 1, 2019.

•  He had also held multiple leadership positions in the automotive as well as non-automotive industry.

Sports

Charles Leclerc wins Chinese Virtual Grand Prix

• Charles Leclerc of Ferrari has won the Chinese Virtual Grand Prix. The series will use the official F1 2019 PC video game, developed by Codemasters.

Appointments and Resignations

Kapil Dev Tripathi appointed Secretary to the President of India

• Kapil Dev Tripathi has been appointed as the Secretary to the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind. He will replace Sanjay Kothari, who was selected as the Chief Vigilance Commissioner in February.

•  The appointment of Kapil Dev Tripathi has been approved by Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Days

World Creativity and Innovation Day

• World Creativity and Innovation Day is observed globally on 21 April every year. This day is celebrated to raise awareness around the importance of creativity and innovation in problem-solving with respect to advancing the United Nations sustainable development goals, also known as the “global goals”.

• The main objective of the day is to encourage people to use new ideas, make new decisions, and do creative thinking. Creativity is what makes the world go ‘round.

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