NATIONAL NEWS
PM Modi transfers Rs 1000 crore in bank account of SHGsPrime Minister Narendra Modi transferred Rs 1,000 crore to bank accounts of self help groups to benefit around 16 lakh women.
- The amount was transferred under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM).
- The mission aims to provide women, especially those at the grassroots, with necessary skills, incentives and resources.
Aiming at a more diversified food basket under its free food distribution programme with focus on coarse grains and millets, NITI Aayog has entered into an agreement with United Nations World Food Program (WFP) to address issues related to inclusion of millets in government programmes.
- Under the statement of intent signed between the Aayog and the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), the focus will be on mainstreaming millets and strengthening of climate resilient agriculture for enhanced food and nutrition security in India, the Aayog said.
- According to the statement, numerous steps have been taken to promote millets including establishment of center for excellence, integration of nutri-cereals in National Food Security Act and establishment of Millet Mission in multiple states.
In order to help smallholder farmers across Asia and Africa, NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission, and the United Nations Capital Development Fund rolled out their first AgriTech Challenge cohort for its innovative Agri-tech program.
- It is a part of the South-South Innovation platform launched earlier this year.
- The Cohort represents a diverse range of solutions across the value chain of smallholder farmers, including soil analysis, farm management & intelligence, dairy ecosystem, carbon credits, solar-based cold storage, digital marketplace, fintech, and livestock insurance.
Government has declared 19 thousand 535 villages as Sampoorna Sukanya Gram under Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana campaign till March this year. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said this in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
- Mr. Chaudhary said, the Government has taken many effective steps for successful implementation of Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana to ensure maximum benefits to girls.
- He added, the Sukanya Samriddhi Account Scheme is being given due audio, video electronic and print media publicity.
India’s rooftop solar capacity addition tripled to 1.3 GW during January-September 2021 as compared to the same period a year ago, as per a report. The country added 448 megawatts (MW) of rooftop solar in July-September this year, a 14 percent drop quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) compared to 521 MW installed in April-June, according to Mercom India Rooftop Solar Market Report Q3 2021.
- Gujarat is the leading state for cumulative rooftop solar installations with 26 percent, followed by Maharashtra and Rajasthan.
- Uttarakhand registered the highest compounded quarterly installation growth with 35 per cent, followed by Maharashtra and Haryana with 31 per cent and 29 per cent.
- In Q3 2021, 54 percent of rooftop solar was installed in the residential sector, followed by commercial & industrial, and government sectors, with 44 per cent and 2 per cent, respectively. Residential installations were the highest for the second quarter in a row.
The Jammu and Kashmir government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with University College Birmingham (UCB) at India Global Forum, Dubai to explore potential progression opportunities through institutional partnership with vocational colleges and universities in the valley.
- For the first time, UCB has decided to set up an office in Jammu and Kashmir to tie up with local educational institutions, facilitate academic exchange programmes and enable students to secure admissions at reduced fees.
- The objective of the MoU is to provide a framework within which the parties will seek to develop a formal relationship in exchange for undergraduate/graduate students, technical programs, academic mobility, teaching and research programs.
The Uttar Pradesh government, led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath,becomes the third state after Chattisgarh and Delhi, launching a 'happiness curriculum' for primary classes from the next session; the pilot project aims to sensitize students about nature, society and the country.
- The syllabus that would be implemented for classes 1 to 8 would help the children connect better with themselves and their families and help them understand the interrelationships.
- In the pilot project, 150 schools in 15 districts have been asked to work on the curriculum design.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated T-Setu, the State’s longest bridge over Mahanadi in Cuttack district.
- The 3.4 km long bridge, connecting Gopinathpur in Badamba, Baideswar in Banki to Singhanath Pitha located in the middle of the river, has been built in the shape of English alphabet ‘T’ at a cost of Rs 111 crore.
- The bridge, which has a footpath of 1.5 metre width on its both sides, will benefit people of Cuttack and Khurda and reduce the distance between Badamba and Baideswar in Banki by 45 km.
BANKING & FINANCE
ICICI Lombard ties up with Clove Dental to offer OPD, dental insuranceICICI Lombard General Insurance Company, one of India’s leading private general insurance companies, has collaborated with Clove Dental, India’s largest network of oral clinics to offer dental insurance.
- The offering will be covered under the OPD benefit and will be available on a cashless basis to customers.
- This partnership will provide oral health support to Clove Dental’s consumers that will encompass all necessary dental treatment expenses under the OPD benefit of ICICI Lombard.
Mastercard and Google announced the rollout of tokenization that will enable Google Pay users to safely transact using their Mastercard credit and debit cards.
- Through tokenization, Mastercard cardholders can make payments through a secure digital token without having to share their credit or debit card details such as card number and expiry date with a merchant.
The Bellari-headquartered Karnataka Gramin Bank (KGB), sponsored by Canara Bank, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Care Health Insurance Ltd to market health insurance products for customers of the bank across 22 districts of Karnataka.
- The health insurance products will go a long way in building a sense of security amongst the customers in the current Covid pandemic situation.
- The bank is working on a tailor-made product to suit farmers and Kisan Credit Card holders to face challenges arising out of illness and hospitalisation, through bundled products at affordable premia.
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has announced its partnership with Udemy Business, a leading destination for learning and teaching online, to encourage continuous learning and skill development for its employees.
- NPCI said it offers programmes to build capability in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Blockchain, Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), Advance Open Source, Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Product Strategy and Relationship Management, among others.
ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS
SBI Acquires Rs 100 Crore Worth Stake In JSW CementThe State Bank of India (SBI) has acquired a minority stake in JSW Cement by investing Rs 100 crore in the cement manufacturer via a compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS).
- The conversion of such CCPS into common equity of the company will be linked to the company’s future business performance and valuation determined at the time of the proposed initial public offering.
- This capital infusion will support JSW Cement’s capacity expansion from current 14 MTPA to 25 MTPA.
APPOINTMENTS
DRDO scientist Atul Dinkar Rane appointed DG for BrahMos AerospaceDRDO scientist Atul Dinkar Rane has been appointed as the new chief executive officer (CEO) and chief managing director (CMD) of the Indo-Russian multinational aerospace and defence corporation, BrahMos Aerospace Limited.
- Atul Rane is renowned for his decades of sustained R&D contributions in the indigenous design and development of mission-critical Onboard computers (OBC), hardware in loop simulation studies, systems analysis, development of mission software and avionics technologies for defence applications.
- His pioneering contributions and techno-managerial leadership has been transformative for the successful development and induction of BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile into Armed Forces.
India's two-time Olympic medallist shuttler PV Sindhu was appointed as a member of the Badminton World Federation's (BWF) Athletes' Commission.
- The-26-year-old former world champion was named alongside five others who will serve as members till 2025.
- The members are as follows: Iris Wang (USA), Robin Tabeling (NED), Greysia Polii (INA), Kim Soyeong (KOR), Pusarla V. Sindhu (IND), Zheng Si Wei (CHN).
- The Chair of the BWF Athletes' Commission, following a vetting process as required for all Council members, will become a member of the Council until the next elections in 2025.
AWARDS
Bank of Baroda achieves top position in Digital Payments for 2020-21Bank of Baroda announced that it has won the number one position in overall digital transactions among large banks for FY20-21.
- The bank showed the exceptional growth of digital payment transactions achievement and was felicitated by the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), Govt. of India at the Digital Payments Utsav.
- To commemorate 75th anniversary of Independence of India, MeitY is celebrating “Digital Payments Utsav”. As a part of the celebration, Bank of Baroda has been conferred with five DigiDhan awards for FY 2019-20 & 2020-21 in various categories.
Divya Hegde from Udupi, coastal Karnataka, has won the UN Women's Award for Leadership Commitment at the 2021 Regional Asia-Pacific Women's Empowerment Principles Awards ceremony.
- Divya has been recognised for her sustained efforts in advancing gender equality through climate action efforts. Her organisation, Baeru Environmental Services, works in the areas of waste management, creation of livelihoods for rural women, and developing a circular economy in the region.
- The UN Leadership Commitment Award recognises leaders who have been instrumental in setting up strong commitments that aim to promote gender equality in the workplace, marketplace and/or community.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
GIS based ‘Automatic Water Supply System', 1st of its kind in the country launchedThe GIS based ‘Automatic Water Supply System’ for citizens of Cantonment Boards was recently launched by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on the occasion of Defence Estates Day 2021.
- The module of GIS based Water Supply system for Cantonment Boards has been developed by Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geo informatics under the guidance of Defence Secretary and Director General of Defence Estates, Delhi.
- This GIS system is first of its kind in the country. It is based on 'minimum government'. It supports the concept of 'maximum governance' as there is no manual intervention for clearance or sanction of the water connection.
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