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Important Current Affairs 2nd June 2020

National

Government launches Mudra Shishu loan

• The Central Government has announced the launch of ‘Mudra Shishu loan’ for small businesses and industries. The scheme would benefit around one lakh companies to avail of the loan with an interest benefit of 2% in a year.

• Earlier, the scheme was announced by Finance Minister NirmalaSitharaman under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat package.

Cabinet revises Definition of MSME

• The Union Cabinet has approved the revised definition of the MSME on June 1, 2020. As per the new Definition of MSME, the investment of up to Rs 50 crore and a turnover of Rs 250 crore will now define a company as a Medium Unit.

• The new and old definition of MSME is mentioned below:

Category New Capital New Turnover Old Capital Old Turnover

Micro 1 Crore 5 Crore 25 Lakh 10 Lakh

Small 10 Crore 50 Crore 5 Crore 2 Crore

Medium 50 Crore 250 Crore 10 crore 5 Crore

• The turnover with respect to exports will not be counted in the limits of turnover for any category of MSME units whether micro, small or medium. This will help in attracting investments and creating more jobs in the MSME sector.

• Earlier, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced few economic measures under the Rs 20 lakh crore Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan to revive the economy of India.

DRDO develops ‘Ultra Swachh’ to disinfect PPEs, electronics items, fabrics

• The Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has developed a disinfection unit called ‘Ultra Swachh’ to disinfect a wide range of materials including Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), electronics items, fabrics and others.

• The technology has been developed by a Delhi-based laboratory of DRDO, Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences along with industry partner Gel Craft Health care Private Ltd. The ‘ultra swachh’ uses an advanced oxidative process comprising of multiple barrier disruption approach using Ozonated Space Technology for disinfection.

Banking and Economy

Moody’s downgrades India’s sovereign rating to ‘Baa3’, maintains negative outlook, revises GDP for FY21 to -4%

• Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded India’s sovereign rating one notch to the lowest investment grade (Baa3) from ”Baa2”, with negative outlook.

• ”Baa3” is the lowest investment grade, just a notch above junk status.

• Moody’s has also revised its FY21 GDP estimate for India to 4% contraction against 0% growth projected earlier. However, the economic growth is projected to pick up at 8.7% in FY22 and 6% in FY23.

Obituary

Former Olympic sprint champion Bobby Morrow passes away

• American sprinter, Bobby Joe Morrow passed away. He won three athletics gold medals at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. He won the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay in Melbourne, becoming the first man only after fellow American Jesse Owens (1936) to win sprint treble.

• He was named Sports Illustrated’s “Sportsman of the Year” in 1956 and set 11 ratified world records during his career.

Days

World Milk Day

• The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations celebrates World Milk Day every year on 01st June to recognize the importance of milk as a global food, and to celebrate the dairy sector.

• The World Milk Day 2020 is the 20th anniversary of World Milk Day. This year, the day was celebrated with a “Enjoy Dairy Rally” that commenced on 29th May 2020 and culminated with World Milk Day i.e. on 01st June 2020.

• The theme of World Milk Day 2020 is “20th Anniversary of World Milk Day”.

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Important Current Affairs 29th May 2020

National

NPCI Launches AI virtual assistant ‘PAi’ to create product awareness

• The National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) has launched an artificial intelligence (AI) based chatbot called PAi, to create awareness around its products like FASTag, RuPay, UPI, AePS on a real time basis.

• PAi is developed by Bengaluru based startup CoRover Private Limited. The AI virtual assistant, PAi will be available round the clock to provide accurate information on NPCI products.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman chairs 22nd Meeting of FSDC

• The 22nd Meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) was chaired by the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi.

• The FSDC meeting featured the participation of senior officers of the Government of India as well Financial Sector Regulators. The participants of the meeting reviewed the measures taken by the Government of India and the regulators in the recent months to maintain the financial stability

International

European Union announces Euros 750 billion recovery fund

• European Union (EU) Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni recently announced that the EU has proposed a recovery fund of 750 billion euros to revive the economy of member countries.

• The proposal came as the 27-nation group has gone into deep recession, which is ravaging the economies of the nations worldwide.

Banking and Economy

ADB approves USD 177 mn loan for road projects in Maharashtra

• The Asian Development Bank on May 27, 2020 approved a USD 177 million loans for road projects in Maharashtra. The projects aim to improve connectivity to national highways, interstate roads, seaports, airports, district headquarters, rail hubs, enterprise clusters, industrial areas and agricultural areas.

• Under the project, around 450 km of state highways and major district roads will be upgraded in Maharashtra.

Science and Technology

NASA postpones its long-awaited launch of American Astronauts to ISS due to bad weather

• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) postponed the scheduled launch of American Astronauts to the International Space Station from American soil on May 27, 2020 due to bad weather. NASA called off its most-awaited mission minutes before the launch.

• This will be the first launch of astronauts from American soil since 2011. Large crowds had gathered along Florida's Space Coast to watch the historic moment. The launch is a joint operation between NASA and SpaceX.

Sports

36th National Games postponed indefinitely

The 36th National Games, planned for October-November in Goa, was deferred indefinitely. The National Games organising board has chosen to defer National Games.

Days

World Hunger Day

• World Hunger Day is observed globally on 28 May every year. The objective of this day is to raise awareness about more than 820 million people living in chronic hunger worldwide.

• It is observed since 2011 to not only spread awareness about the malaise of chronic hunger but also to solve hunger and poverty through sustainable undertakings.

• The Hunger Project is US based organization committed to the sustainable end of world hunger.

International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers

• The International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers is observed on May 29 annually to pay tribute to all the men and women who have served and continue to serve in United Nations peacekeeping operations for their high level of professionalism, dedication, and courage and to honor the memory of those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace.

• The day was designated by United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 2002 and first celebrated in 2003.The 2020 Theme: Women in Peacekeeping: A Key to Peace.

World Digestive Health Day

• Every year, the World Digestive Health Day (WDHD) is observed on 29 May. It is organised by the World Gastroenterology Organisation (WGO) in collaboration with the WGO Foundation (WGOF).

• The theme of WDHD 2020 is Gut Microbiome – A Global Perspective

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Important Current Affairs 9th May 2020

National

Defence Minister inaugurates link road to Mansarovar Yatra

• The 80 km long link road to Mansarovar Yatra was inaugurated recently by the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The road starts from Dharchula in Uttarakhand to Lipulek, China Border.

•  The road will not only reduce the time taken to cover Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrimage but will also boost border area connectivity.

UP suspends labour laws for 1000 days to boost investment

• Uttar Pradesh government has decided to suspend majority of the labour laws for a period of 1000 years or over 3 years to attract investment. The move is expected to make UP a favourable destination for investment in existing and new industrial units.

• The government will soon set up a Japanese Help Desk to attract investors from Japan.

ICMR partners India Post for delivery of testing kits

• Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has entered into a tie-up with the India Post for delivery of its testing kits.

Defence Ministry signs contract with Tata Power SED for infra modernisation at 37 airfields

• The Ministry of Defence has signed a pact with the TATA POWER SED to modernize infrastructure of 37 airfields of Indian Air Force. The total cost of the project is estimated to be around Rs 1,200 crore.

• The contract has been signed in Two Phases. Under 1st-Phase of the contract is to Modernization of Airfield Infrastructure, the airfields of the Indian Air Force were upgraded.

 Banking and Economy

AIIB approves USD 500 million loan to support India’s fight

• Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has approved a loan worth of $500 million for India’s Emergency Response. The assistance will help India to scale up efforts to restrict the transmission of instances, strengthen the public health system to broaden its response capability and to improve preparedness to handle future outbreaks.

Nomura predicts Indian GDP for FY21 at -5.2%

• Nomura has made the following GDP growth/contraction prediction for India for various years:

• For year 2020 (Jan-Dec 2020)= -5.0% (contraction by 5%)

• For FY21 (April 2020 to March 2021)= -5.2% (contraction by 5.2%)

• For year 2021= 7.9%

Moody’s cuts India’s GDP growth to “zero” in FY21

• Moody’s cuts down India’s Gross Domestic Product(GDP) growth to “zero” for the current fiscal 2020-21. Its previous estimate was 2.6%.

• In 2021-22 India’s GDP growth rate will bounce back to 6.6%.

Goldman Sachs predicts India’s GDP growth at -0.4% for FY21

• The global investment banking group, Goldman Sachs has predicted India’s GDP growth for FY21 at -0.4%.

• It means as per Goldman Sachs the GDP of India will contract by 0.4% in FY21.

Days

World Migratory Bird Day

• World Migratory Bird Day is observed globally on 9 May every year. The aim of the day is to raise awareness of migratory birds and the importance of international cooperation to conserve them.

• This time the theme of World Migratory Bird Day 2020 is “Birds Connect Our World”.

World Thalassaemia Day

• World Thalassaemia Day is observed on every 8th of May to create awareness about the disease and help thalassaemia patients lead a normal life.

• The theme for the International Thalassaemia Day 2020 is ‘The dawning of a new era for thalassaemia’.

• Thalassaemia is a blood disorder in which your body has less hemoglobin than normal.

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Important Current Affairs 1st May 2020

National

Chhattisgarh top state in providing employment to workers under MGNREGS

• Chhattisgarh has topped the list of states in providing employment to unskilled labourers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).

• The data was released by the Union Rural Development Ministry. Chhattisgarh has provided employment to 18.51 lakh workers under MGNREGS.

• Rajasthan is on second while Uttar Pradesh is on the third.

MP govt launches ‘Jeevan Amrit Yojana’ to boost Immune system

• Madhya Pradesh government has launched ‘Jeevan Amrit Yojana’ to boost the immune system of people to fight disease.

• A target has been set to distribute this packet of 50 grams to 1 crore families of the state.

International

US to host world's largest maritime exercises this year

•The US Navy announced recently that it will host the world’s largest maritime exercises in Hawaii again this year. The drills will be held only at sea.

•The US Navy has hosted the Rim of the Pacific exercises in Hawaii every two years since the early 1970s.

•The military exercise is aimed at being a meaningful exercise with maximum training value and minimum risk to the force, allies and partners, and the people of Hawaii.

Banking and Economy

KVG bank launches “Vikas Abhaya” loan scheme

• Karnataka VikasGrameenaBank(KVGB) has launched ‘VikasAbhaya’ a loan scheme to provide some relief to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise(MSME) borrowers.

• This scheme is for those borrowers whose business activities are disrupted on account of the current situation in Dharwad, Karnataka.

Obituary

Legendary footballer Chuni Goswami passed away at 82

• Former India footballer Chuni Goswami passed away at the age of 82 years. Apart from playing football, he had also played first-class cricket for Bengal.

• He has captained the 1962 Asian Games gold-winning Indian football team. He played 50 matches for India as a footballer from 1956 to 1964.

Appointments and Resignations

Former Axis Bank CEO Shikha Sharma named advisor to Google Pay India

Former Axis Bank CEO, Shikha Sharma named advisor to Google Pay India. Google Pay is one of the leading apps on Unified Payments Payments Interface (UPI), battling with the likes of Amazon Pay, Paytm, etc.

Ranking

India ranks 53rd in budget transparency, accountability: IBP survey

• International Budget Partnership (IBP) has provided a transparency score of 49 out of 100 to India’s Union budget process. The provided score to India is higher than the global average score of 45.

• New Zealand has topped the chart. It has a score of 87 out of 100.

Karnataka tops in total installed renewable capacity:  CRISIL

• According to a CRISIL Research report, Karnataka retained its 1st position in terms of total installed renewable capacity in FY20 followed by Tamil Nadu(2nd) & Gujarat(3rd).

• The top 3 states in overall solar energy capacity addition are Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka & in wind energy- Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.

• Karnataka’s total renewable energy installed capacity stood at 15,232 MegaWatt(MW) as on March 31, 2020, against 13,845 MW as on March 31, 2019. It has the highest installed capacity for solar at 7,278 MW, up from 6,096 MW a year ago. Its wind energy capacity is at 4,791 MW.

Days

Ayushman Bharat Diwas is celebrated on 30 April.

• The day aims to promote affordable medical facilities in remote areas of the country based on the Socio-Economic Caste Census database.

• It will also promote health and wellness and provide insurance benefits to the poor.

• Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PMJAY), also known as the National Health Protection Mission (AB-NHPM), was launched by PM Narendra Modi on 14 April 2018, at Bijapur, Chhattisgarh.

International Workers’ Day

• The International Workers’ Day is held annually on May 1 worldwide to honour the contributions of the labourers or working class people.

• This day is also known as Workers’ Day, Labour Day as well as May Day in some of the countries.

• India celebrated the first Labour day in the year 1923 and the day is referred nationally as Antarrashtriya Shramik Diwas or Kamgar Din.

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Important Current Affairs 29th April 2020

National

SC rules adoption of ‘one nation, one ration card’ scheme

• Supreme Court recently directed the central government to adopt the ‘one nation, one ration card’ scheme. The scheme will benefit the stranded migrant workers who cannot get basic amenities and also help EWS section to get subsidised food.

• The scheme was expected to be launched in June 2020..

UIDAI permits Aadhaar updation facility through CSC

•The Unique Identification Authority of India has decided to make Aadhaarupdation facility available through Common Service Centre (CSCs). The decision has been taken to make the Aadhaar updation process easier for citizens.

•The Common Service Centre are designated banking correspondents of banks. Over 20,000 CSCs will now be able to offer this service to the citizens.

•The CSC Village Level Entrepreneurs have also been urged to start the Aadhaar work with responsibility, as per instructions issued by UIDAI in this regard.

Airtel partners with Nokia to enhance network capacity

• Nokia and BhartiAirtelhas signed a deal of about $1 billion in order to enhance the network capacity of BhartiAirtel.

• A multi-year agreement has been signed by the two companies to deploy Nokia’s SRAN solution across nine circles in India.

• This $1 billion deal aims to improve customer experience of BhartiAirtel’s customers by providing them best-in-class connectivity.

Maruti Suzuki partners with AgVA Healthcare to make 10,000 ventilators per month

Automobile giant Maruti Suzuki has developed low-cost ventilators for helping the government. The production is going on in Gautam Buddha Nagar of Uttar Pradesh, where the company is supporting a start-up Agva Healthcare to scale-up ventilator production.

Banking and Economy

ADB approves USD 1.5 bn loan to India

•The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on April 28, 2020 approved USD 1.5 billion loan to India.

•The loan has been sanctioned to support immediate priorities such as containment, prevention and social protection of the poor and economically vulnerable sections, especially and disadvantaged groups.

•The fund is part of a larger package of support that ADB will provide in close coordination with the government and other development partners.

Axis Bank to pick about 30 per cent stake in Max Life Insurance for Rs 1,600 crore

• Axis Bank would acquire a 29% additional stake in Max Life Insurance for an estimated price of Rs 1,592 crore. The deal will increase the Axis Bank‘s stake in Max Life to 30%. Max Financial Services will hold the remaining 70% in the joint venture.

• The acquisition may be completed in 6-9 months & Post the deal, Max Financial Services and Axis Bank will get to nominate four and three directors respectively on the Max Life board. The total premium generated from both companies exceeded Rs 38,000 crore.

CRISIL cuts India’s GDP growth forecast for FY21 to 1.8%

• Rating agency CRISIL has cut the GDP growth rate forecast for India for 2020-21 (FY21) to 1.8% from the previous prediction of 3.5%.

• CRISIL has projected a total losses of Rs 10 lakh crore or Rs 7,000 per person.

Science and Technology

Everest sized Asteroid 1998 OR2 to fly-by Earth Today

• According to the details shared by NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies, an Everest sized Asteroid 1998 OR2 will fly-by Earth today i.e. on 29th April 2020.

• NASA and other researchers have ruled out any potential threat to the planet due to the asteroid.

Obituary

Former Liverpool player Michael Robinson passes away

• Former Liverpool striker, Michael Robinson passed away. He was born on July 12, 1958, in Leicester, England. He has featured in more than 300 official matches in England for five clubs, including Liverpool.

• Robinson was part of the Liverpool squad that captured the league, League Cup and European Cup treble in 1984.

Appointments and Resignations

Shiv Das Meena becomes new CMD of HUDCO

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, additional secretary, Shiv Das Meena has been appointed as chairman and managing director of Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) for a period of six months with immediate effect.

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Important Current Affairs 17th April 2020

National

Government sets foodgrain production target at 298.3 mb tons for 2020-21 crop year

• The agriculture ministry has set a target to increase foodgrain production to record 298.3 million tonnes in the 2020-21 crop year (July-June). This is more by 6.35 million tonnes from the previous years’ estimate.

• To be bifurcated, the target is 149.92 million tonnes of foodgrain production in the Kharif (summer) season and 148.4 million tonnes in the rabi (winter) season.

• The foodgrain output in the 2019-20 crop year is estimated at 291.95 million tonnes.

Finance Minister attends 2nd G20 Finance Ministerial Meeting

• Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman represented India in the virtual session of the 2nd G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting.

• The 2nd G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting was held under the presidency of Saudi Arabia.

International

South Korean President’s party wins absolute majority in Parliamentary Elections

• South Korean President, Moon Jae-in’s party won an absolute majority in the recent Parliamentary Elections.

• Moon Jae-in’s left-leaning Democratic party and its allies won 180 seats in the 300-member National Assembly, while the conservative opposition coalition won 103 seats. The Democratic party has 120 seats currently.

• The provisional results were released by the National Election Commission on April 16, 2020.

Banking and Economy

Goldman Sachs downgrades India from ‘overweight’ to ‘marketweight’

• Goldman Sachs has downgraded its stance on the Indian market from ‘overweight’ to ‘marketweight’ due to “delayed recovery and extended valuations.”

• Golman Sachs says that the domestic equities could underperform, unless India unleashes a big stimulus package.

Awards

Viswanathan Anand Joins WWF India As Ambassador For Environment Education

• Five-time world chess champion Viswanathan Anand has joined WWF (World Wide Fund) India as its ambassador for environment education programme.

• WWF India is celebrating its 50 years of conservation in India and it is delighted to see Anand lend his support to conservation and protection of the environment. 

• In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, governments, development organisations, corporates and individuals around the world are doing their bit to prevent the spread of the disease.     

Obituary

Actor Ranjit Chowdhry passes away

• Actor-writer Ranjit Chowdhry passed away at the age of 65 years on April 15, 2020 in Mumbai. He was the son of veteran theatre artiste Pearl Padamsee and stepson of Theatre and ad world stalwart Alyque Padamsee.

• Chowdhry will be remembered for his roles in Hrishikesh Mukherjee's 'Khubsoorat', Mira Nair's 'Mississippi Masala' starring Denzel Washington, Basu Chatterjee's 'Khatta Meetha' and 'Baton Baton Mein'.

National Football League’s Hall of Famer Willie Davis Passes Away at 85

• Former American football defensive player, Willie Davis, passed away. He was 85.

• Davis was inducted into the National Football League’s Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1981.He spent 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and played for the Cleveland Browns (1958-59) and the Green Bay Packers (1960-69).

• Davis become the first African-American captain in Green Bay Packers’ history in 1965.

Sports

BCCI suspends IPL 2020 indefinitely

• The Indian Premier League (IPL) governing council of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided that the IPL 2020 Season will be suspended till “further notice”. 

•  The IPL was set to start on March 29 and end on May 24, but it was first postponed till April 15.

Appointments and Resignations

BSNL CMD P K Purwar takes additional charge of MTNL

• P. K. Purwar, the chairman and managing director of BSNL has been given the additional charge as CMD of Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited.

• He has been given the additional charge w.e.f April 13, 2020. In the last 6 years, this is the third time that Purwar has been given charge of MTNL CMD.

Days

World Hemophilia Day

• World Hemophilia Day is an international day held annually on April 17 to raise awareness for hemophilia and other bleeding disorders and bring understanding and attention for proper care for these rare inherited bleeding disorders community.

• The theme of World Hemophilia Day 2020 is “Get+involved”.

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Important Current Affairs 14th April 2020

National

Prasar Bharti launches new channel “DD Retro”

• India’s Public service broadcaster Prasar Bharti has rolled out a new channel called DD Retro.

• The new channel “DD Retro” would be specifically dedicated to old classics of Doordarshan.The channel has been launched by Prasar Bharti to keep viewers engaged.

• After the return of memorable classics likes mythological epics Ramayana and Mahabharat, historical drama Chanakya and superhero series Shaktimaan, Doordarshan has also emerged as the most watched channel in India, surpassing any other genre in the Hindi-speaking markets.

Ahmedabad station becomes 1st station to get sanitizing tunnel

• The Ahmedabad railway station at Kalupur has installed a Walk Through Mass Sanitizing Tunnel.

• The Sanitizer Tunnel has been set up by Ahmedabad division of the Western Railway and is the first station on Indian Railways to get such tunnel.

Obituary

Former US Baseball Player Glenn Beckert Dies at 79

• America’s former professional baseball player Glenn Alfred Beckert, has passed away at the age of 79.

• He played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman for the Chicago Cubs for nine seasons from 1965 to 1973 before ending his career with the San Diego Padres in 1975.

Legendary driver Stirling Moss passes away

• The legendary motor-racing driver, Sir Stirling Moss has passed away. Moss was widely regarded as the greatest driver never to win the Formula One drivers’ world championship.

• The British driver took part in Formula One from 1951 to 1961 and also made 67 starts in the F1 World Championship, claiming victory winning 16 races and claiming 16 pole positions and 24 podium positions.

Days

April 13, 2020 marked the 101st anniversary of Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

• 13 April 2020 marked the 101st anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.

• On this day, the martyrs who were killed mercilessly in Jallianwala Bagh are remembered.

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Important Current Affairs 13th April 2020

National

HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Launches web-portal YUKTI in New Delhi

• The Union Minister for HRD Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal “Nishank” has launched a web-portal YUKTI in New Delhi on 12 April 2020.

• The unique portal and dashboard aims to monitor and record the efforts and initiatives of MHRD to keep the academic community healthy, both physically & mentally.

• The portal will establish a two-way communication channel between the MHRD and the institutions (academic or research) so that the Ministry can provide the necessary support system to the institutions.

RBI should implement 'Helicopter Money' to counter economic crisis: Telangana CM

• 'Helicopter Money will facilitate the states and financial institutions to accrue funds. We can come out of the financial crisis. Release 5% of funds from GDP through Quantitative Easing Policy,' said K. Chandrashekar Rao.

• Helicopter Money means extension of non-repayable money transfer from the central bank to the state and central governments, to infuse liquidity in the system.

• The policy aims at putting more money into the pockets of people to nudge them to spend more money and in turn pick-up economic activity in the country.

• The direct impact of Helicopter Money is rise in disposable incomes of the people, increase in money supply with an intention to boost demand and inflation in the economy.

• The term Helicopter Money was given by American Economist Milton Friedman in his famous “The Optimum Quantity of Money”. By definition, Helicopter Money is a monetary policy tool for Quantitative Easing (QE), which aims at "unexpectedly dumping money onto a struggling economy with the intention to shock it out of a deep slump.”

Banking and Economy

World Bank Projects India’s GDP Growth at 1.5-2.8 pc in 2020-21

• The World Bank has estimated India’s economy to grow 1.5 percent to 2.8 percent in the 2020-21 fiscal in its South Asia Economic Focus report, released on 12 April, 2020.

• This is the worst growth performance to be recorded by India since the 1991 liberalisation.

• For 2019-20, India will grow 4.8 percent to 5 percent.Growth is expected to rebound to 5% in Fiscal 2021-22.

Appointments and Resignations

Mahabaleshwara M S Reappointed as MD & CEO of Karnataka Bank

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the reappointment of Mahabaleshwara M S as MD and CEO of private sector lender Karnataka Bank for a period of three years.

• The regulator has also approved for reappointment of P Jayarama Bhat as Part Time (Non Executive) Chairman of the bank.

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Important Current Affairs 8th April 2020

National

Ministry of Civil Aviation launches “Lifeline UDAN” initiative

• The Ministry of Civil Aviation has launched the initiative called “Lifeline UDAN” to help India. Under Lifeline UDAN initiative of Ministry of Civil Aviation, 132 cargo flights have been operated so far across the country to transport medical cargo including to remote and hilly areas.

• With support from Air India, Alliance Air, IAF and private airlines, medical supplies of more than 184 tons have been delivered till date during lockdown period.

Essential services, medicines delivered at doorstep of patients by Swasth ke Sipahi under PMBJP

• “Swasth ke Sipahi” of Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendra are delivering essential services and medicines at doorstep of patients and elderly.

• Swasth ke Sipahi are providing the essential medicines at the doorsteps of patients under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) of the Government of India.

• Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendra are being run under the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Government of India by the Bureau of Pharma PSUs of India (BPPI). The objective of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendra was to provide quality and affordable healthcare to anyone in need.

MHRD declares DigiLocker as National Academic Depository

• The Ministry of Human Resource Development has designated DigiLocker as the sole National Academic Depository (NAD).

• The ministry has directed the University Grants Commission (UGC) to implement NAD as a permanent scheme within DigiLocker.

• NAD will be implemented as a permanent scheme without the levy of any user charges by DigiLocker through the Ministry of Electronics and IT.

Banking and Economy

RBI increases the number of days for which a State/ UT can be in overdraft

• The Reserve Bank of India allows State Government to tide over their cashflow mismatches (consider it as a loan) in form of Special Drawing Facility (SDF) and Normal Ways and Means Advances.

• Now RBI has increased the number of days or which a State/ UT can be in overdraft continuously as under:

• The number of days for which States/UTs can be in overdraft continuously has been increased to 21 working days from the previous 14 days.

• The number of days for which a State/ UT can be in overdraft in a quarter has been increased to 50 working days from the previous 36 days.

Super Pink Moon visible on April 7

• Super Pink Moon, the biggest supermoon of the year 2020 will be visible in the skies on April 7, 2020. The moon will be at its closest distance from Earth, which is 356,907 km away.

• The Earth, Moon and the Sun will all align, making the Moon look larger and brighter than usual. This particular moon was named ‘Super Pink Moon’.

Obituary

Kannada comic actor 'Bullet' Prakash passes away

• Kannada actor “Bullet” Prakash passed away. He was known for his comic roles and performances in films like Aithalakkadi and Aryan.

• He was named ‘Bullet’ because of his love for Royal Enfield Bullet motorbikes which he used to ride.

• He had been a part of more than 300 films and had recently signed a couple of projects in Kannada.

• He was also a member of the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2015.

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Important Current Affairs 30th March 2020

Banking and Economy

SBI raises $100 million via green bonds

• State Bank of India has raised USD 100 million green bonds, the first such bond by any state-owned bank in this fiscal.

• The bonds were priced at 3M Libor + 80 basis points. This is the third set of green bond issue by SBI, aggregating USD 700 million.

• The proceeds will be used to fund the non-convention energy sector. These bonds will be issued through SBI’s London branch and shall be listed on Singapore Exchange (SGX).

Science and Technology

SpaceX wins NASA award for planned lunar space station

• A new space capsule from SpaceX has been picked up by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to ferry cargo and supplies to the agency’s planned lunar space station.

• Hence, with a $7 billion NASA contract, SpaceX will use its biggest rocket, Falcon Heavy to send spacecraft named as “Dragon XL” to the Lunar Gateway.

• This is an outpost that NASA is planning to build and that will orbit the moon sometime within the next decade.

Obituary

Air Vice-Marshal Chandan Singh Rathore passed away

• Air Vice Marshall Chandan Singh Rathore passed away at his Jodhpur residence on March 29, 2020. He had served in the Indian Air Force at the time of the 1962 Indo-China war and the 1971 India-Pakistan war.

• The Air Vice Marshall had planned and executed helicopter operations during India’s 1971 war with Pakistan for the liberation of Bangladesh.

• He had flown 8 missions into the enemy territory during the war to supervise the progress of lifting two companies of troops in the Sylhet area by the Indian Air Force.

• He will be awarded the Maha Vir Chakra, the second-highest military award, posthumously for his acts of bravery in the presence of the enemy.

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