NATIONAL NEWS
Pune to host joint military exercise with BIMSTEC countriesPune will host a multilateral and multi-agency exercise for the member countries of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) between December 20 and 22, which will focus on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations.
- A curtain raiser event for the HADR exercise titled, PANEX-21, was held at Kothari Auditorium DRDO Bhawan in New Delhi.
- The exercise will witness participation from subject matter experts and delegates from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
BANKING & FINANCE
Ujjivan SFB appoints Ittira Davis as new MD & CEOUjjivan Small Finance Bank (SFB) said it has appointed Ittira Davis as its managing director and chief executive officer for three years. The bank's day-to-day operations are currently being looked after by Martin P S as an officer on special duty (OSD). Before Martin, Carol Furtado was the OSD.
- Ittira Davis has been with Ujjivan since 2015 and was previously CEO of Ujjivan Financial Services. His appointment as Director (Executive) will be for a period co-terminus with his tenure as MD and CEO.
- Davis has also previously worked with Citibank in India and the Arab Bank Group in the Middle East and has been associated with Ujjivan since 2015. He played a pivotal role in its transition into a Small Finance Bank.
- Enabled by API integration, the partnership helps sellers to avail an OD from the Bank instantly in a process- from application to sanction to disbursement - that is entirely digital.
- Customers of any bank can avail of ODs from ICICI Bank if they are registered as sellers with Flipkart.
City Union Bank (CUB), in collaboration with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and its manufacturing partner Seshaasai, has announced the launch of RuPay On-the-Go contactless wearable keychain for its debit card customers.
- The keychain can be requested through net banking, mobile banking, and at CUB’s branches.
- This contactless wearable keychain will be part of their daily lifestyle and enable customers to tap and make cashless payments securely.
PayPhi, Phi Commerce’s API-first digital payments platform has become the first certified tokenization service for National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to support the tokenization of RuPay cards.
- To enhance security, RBI has issued a set of guidelines to store sensitive customer information in the form of encrypted ‘token’.
- To comply with this guideline, NPCI announced the launch of NPCI Tokenization system (NTS) to support tokenization of cards as an alternative to storing card details with merchants.
SPORTS
PV Sindhu wins silver in BWF World Tour FinalsIndian badminton ace P V Sindhu settled for a silver medal at the BWF World Tour Finals after going down meekly against Korean teen sensation An Seyoung in the summit clash.
- Sindhu, the reigning world champion and two-time Olympic medallist, could neither match the pace nor breach the defence of the world number six Korean, losing 16-21 12-21 in the 40-minute lop-sided clash.
- It was Sindhu's third successive loss, all straight games, to the Korean in as many meetings. With this victory, An Seyoung became the first ever South Korean woman to win the season-ending title.
Russia has won the Davis Cup for the third time after the side defeated Croatia 2-0 in the summit clash in Madrid.
- Andrey Rublev defeated Borna Gojo 6-4, 7-5 in the opening match and then the victory was sealed by Daniil Medvedev after he outclassed Marin Cilic.
- Medvedev defeated Cilic 7-6, 6-2 to seal the victory for Russia. This was the third final in five years for Croatia.
APPOINTMENTS
HUL chairman Sanjiv Mehta to take over as FICCI presidentHindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) chairman and managing director Sanjiv Mehta will become the president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) after the association concludes its 94th annual general meeting.
- He is also the president of Unilever South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal), and is a member of the Unilever Leadership Executive, which is Unilever’s global executive board.
- Mehta has been with Unilever for 28 years and for the last 19 years he has led businesses in different parts of the world.
- Mehta, who is currently holding the position of senior vice president of FICCI, will succeed Uday Shankar, the current president of the association, the FICCI statement said.
The Election Commission said that former Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora had joined the board of advisers for the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, a Stockholm-based inter-governmental organisation of 34 member countries.
- Sunil Arora has been selected as he brings rich leadership experience, skills and knowledge to contribute significantly towards working of the international institute.
- Mr. Arora, a retired 1980 batch Indian Administrative Service officer, had been Chief Election Commissioner from December 2, 2018 to April 12, 2021, having overseen the conduct of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections as well as 24 state assembly polls.
Leftist opposition candidate Xiomara Castro became the first female President of Honduras. The conservative ruling party accepted loss in presidential elections, handing victory to Castro and assuaging fears of a second contested election and violent demonstrations.
- According to the National Electoral Council, the former first lady garnered 53% of the vote and Tegucigalpa Mayor Nasry Asfura, the National Party's presidential candidate recorded 34%, with 52% of the votes counted.
AWARDS
Nilmani Phookan Jr, Damodar Mauzo win Jnanpith award for 2020, 2021Eminent Assamese Poet Nilmani Phookan Jr. has won the 56th Jnanpith Award while the 57th Jnanpith Award has gone to the Konkani novelist Damodar Mauzo.
- Phookan is the third Assamese author to win the Jnanpith award. He is a well-known poet from Guwahati who has penned Surya Henu Nami Ahe Ei Nodiyedi, Gulapi Jamur Lagna, and Kobita.
- Mauzo is based in Majorda, Goa, and has won the Sahitya Akademi Award. He is most known for his books Karmelin and Tsunami Simon and his short tales Teresa's Man and Other Goa Stories.
- The Jnanpith, the country's highest literary prize, is given to writers for "great contributions to literature." The Bharatiya Jnanpith organization bestows the Jnanpith Award on a writer from India every year.
ENVIRONMENT
Kazhuveli wetland in Tamil Nadu declared bird sanctuaryThe Kazhuveli wetland located near Villupuram in Tamil Nadu has been declared a bird sanctuary by the Environment, Climate Change and Forest Department, and will henceforth be called the ‘Kazhuveli Birds Sanctuary’.
- The 5,151.60 hectares of land in Vanur and Marakkanam taluks will be the 16th bird sanctuary in Tamil Nadu.
OBITUARIES
World's Oldest Test Cricketer, Eileen Ash passes awayWorld's oldest Test Cricketer, former English legend, Eileen Ash passed away at the age of 110.
- The right-arm seamer made her debut to the national side in 1937 against Australia and in a career spanning till 1949, she took 10 wickets in the seven matches she played.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
Housing finance pioneer, BK Madhur's autobiography releasedAt Home In The Universe, At Home In The Universe, a book that chronicles a poor boy's journey from a village in South India to the pinnacle of corporate success and personal spiritual growth spanning over six decades, has been released in Mumbai.
- In this unusual autobiography, B.K. Madhur, former Chief Executive Officer at DHFL Property Services Ltd, shares the tremendous obstacles he faced early in life as the son of a landless farmer and daily wage labourer in a remote village in South India (in Kasaragod district of present day Kerala) shortly after Independence.
- The book will be distributed worldwide by Bookworld Enterprises of Mumbai and will be available at all leading book stores across India.
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