Important Current Affairs 30th October 2021

NATIONAL

Maharashtra became the first state to release its own Wildlife Action plan 2021-30

•During the 17th meeting of the State Board for Wildlife (SBWL), the government of Maharashtra approved its own Wildlife Action Plan (2021-2030), which will be implemented over the next 10 years. Maharashtra became India’s first state to pass its own Wildlife Action Plan. The board has also approved the extension of the boundary of Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve, in the Chandrapur district of the Vidarbha region, by around 79 sq km.

•The plan has suggested integrating climate change adaption in wildlife conservation. “To develop a Climate Action Plan for the Coastal Region of the state in sync with the ‘State Climate Change Action Plan’ with special emphasis on ‘Climate Change Adaptation’ (CCA) and ‘Disaster Risk Reduction (DDR)’,” the plan states.

Google partners MeitY Startup Hub to launch Appscale Academy

•MeitY Startup Hub, an initiative of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), and Google have partnered to launch ‘Appscale Academy’, a growth and development programme, to train early to mid-stage startups across India. The programme focuses on the emerging startup ecosystem in Tier II and Tier III cities of India to provide them with the help needed to build scalable app solutions.

•Appscale Academy will focus on helping local early to mid-stage startups build and scale a range of world-class apps across domains, including gaming, healthcare, fintech, edtech, social impact, and others.

•Applications for the Appscale Academy will be open till December 15, 2021. Out of the applicants, 100 startups will be selected based on defined qualitative and quantitative parameters by a panel of industry experts, members of MeitY Startup Hub, and Google Play.

India ranked 9th In “Global Climate Tech Investment trend” report

•In accordance with the report ‘Five years on: Global climate tech investment trends since the Paris Agreement’ by London & Partners, and Co, India ranked 9th in the list of top 10 countries for climate technology investment from 2016 to 2021. Indian climate tech firms received USD 1 billion in venture capital (VC) funding in this period.

•The report analyzed the trends in the climate sector since the 2016 United Nations Conference of Parties (COP) in Paris, France. The list has been topped by the United States (US) with USD 48 billion which is followed by China USD 18.6 billion.

SPORTS

Netherland’s All-rounder cricketer Ryan ten Doeschate announced retirement 

•Ryan ten Doeschate, the 41-year-old Cricket all-rounder from the Netherlands, announced retirement from International Cricket after Netherland failed to qualify for the Super 12 stage of the International Cricket Council (ICC) T20 World Cup. During the qualifiers, Netherland lost to Namibia and failed to enter the Super 12 stage, which was his last international match.

•Ryan ten Doeschate has scored 2074 runs from 57 international Test matches, 1541 runs from 33 One Day Internationals & 533 runs from 24 T20 internationals, since his debut in 2006.

APPOINTMENT & RESIGNATION

Centre extends RBI Governor Das’s tenure for 3 more years

•The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the reappointment of Shaktikanta Das as the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) for a further period of three years with effect from December 10, 2021.

•He assumed the charge as the 25th governor of RBI on December 12, 2018, for three years. Before his appointment at RBI, Das served as a member of the 15th Finance Commission. He is a 1980 batch Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officer from the Tamil Nadu cadre.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Thrift Day 2021: 31st October

•World Thrift Day is celebrated every year on October 31, across the world, but in India, the day is celebrated annually on October 30. This day is celebrated to promote the importance of savings and how saving money is important in today’s world. It is an important day to be remembered for individuals as well as the country’s economy. Savings, as we all know, is a necessity for every depositor who contributes to economic development.

•World Savings Day was first introduced in 1924 as World Thrift Day at the first International Thrift Congress held in Milan, Italy. It was decided that the day will be marked across the globe to encourage the idea of saving money and restore the public’s confidence in banks.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

TVS Motor Company Wins India Green Energy Award 2020

•TVS Motor Company has been awarded the ‘Outstanding Renewable Energy User’ at the third Edition of India Green Energy Award 2020 by the Indian Federation of Green Energy (IFGE).

•The award was presented by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari. IFGE has recognized the efforts of TVS Motor in researching and implementing the use of alternative power sources in the renewable energy domain while ensuring their longevity and stability.

BOOKS & AUTHOR

Former Union minister Nishank gifts his book to PM Modi

•The former Union Minister of Education Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ has gifted a copy of his book titled ‘AIIMS Mein Ek Jang Ladte Hue’ to Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi in Delhi. The book was written by Pokhriyal while he was battling C-19 at AIIMS in Delhi. The book was published by Prabhat Prakashan Pvt. Ltd.

RANKING

State Energy Efficiency Index 2020: Karnataka on Top

•Karnataka has topped the State Energy Efficiency Index 2020 (SEEI), scoring 70 points out of 100 on the back of several initiatives to improve energy efficiency in the state. Rajasthan is on second rank followed by Haryana on third. Last year i.e in SEEI 2019 ranking, Rajasthan was on top. The State Energy Efficiency Index (SEEI) 2020 was released under the Ministry of Power.

•State Energy Efficiency Index is released by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) and Alliance for an Energy-Efficient Economy (AEEE).

•The SEE index, assesses the states in four categories of Aspirant with a score below 30 points, Contenders with a score between 30-50, Achievers with a score of 50-60 and the Frontrunners with above 60 points score.

•SEEI 2020 has assessed the performance of 36 states and Union territories in energy efficiency (EE) using 68 qualitative, quantitative, and outcome-based indicators aggregating to a maximum score of 100 across six sectors.

BANKING AND ECONOMIC

SBI General Insurance ties up with Google Pay for health insurance

•SBI General Insurance made a technological partnership with Google Pay to enable users to buy SBI General’s health insurance on the Google Pay app. This collaboration marks Google Pay’s 1st partnership with an insurer in India to offer health insurance.

•The users were enabled to buy both individual and family plans under SBI General’s Arogya Sanjeevani policy through Google Pay Spot.