Current Affairs for the days 8 – 9 October
National News
- 13th edition of Aero India will be held from February 3 to 7, 2021 in Bengaluru, Karnataka. 13th edition of Aero India, 2021, was chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa participated in the ambassador’s round table virtual summit. Theme- The runway to a billion opportunities.
- Bharti Airtel and Ericsson on Wednesday announced to renew their multi-year contract to supply and deploy 5G-ready radio and transport solutions from the Swedish telecommunication giant.
- Union Cabinet has approved the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Zoological Survey of India, International Barcode of Life. The MoU will enable ZSI to participate at the global-level programmes like Bioscan and Planetary Biodiversity Mission.
- The second meeting of the Apex Council on issues of water resources between Andhra Pradesh and the Telangana States will be held virtually. It will be chaired by Union Minister of Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.
- National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) has signed an agreement with Ladakh to promote dairying and rural livelihoods.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a Jan Andolan campaign for COVID-19 Appropriate Behaviour on October 8, 2020.
- Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has launched the Application Programming Interface (API) between Prime Minister Street Vendor Atmanirbhar Nidhi portal (PM SVANidhi portal) and SBI eMUDRA portal.
- Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has launched an online start-up discovery platform, “Startup India Showcase” to boost Indian startups.
- Union Minister for Education Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank virtually inaugurated the Gyan Circle Ventures, a MeitY funded Technology Business Incubator (TBI) of Indian Institute of Information Technology, Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh.
- The wholly-owned subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) will invest ₹5512.50 crores in the Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd for 1.20% stake.
- Union Minister of Science and Technology Dr. Harsh Vardhan inaugurated the “DBT- BIRAC Clean Tech Demo Park” at Barapullah drain site, New Delhi.
- Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment ThawarChand Gehlot inaugurated the virtual International Conference on Mental Health: Looking Beyond COVID-19.
- All India Institute of Ayurveda has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Amity University for Ayurveda Research.
- IISC Bengaluru has developed a bandage with magnetic nanofibres that kills skin cancer cells with heat in association with Centre for Biosystems Science and Engineering.
- Government has decided to set up an industrial biotechnology park in the Kupwara District, which will offer state of the art facilities to Start-ups. The biotechnology park will be run by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine and construction work is being carried out by National Projects Construction Corporation (NPCC).
International News
- India and Japan have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on cybersecurity and the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given approval the MoU.
- India and Japan have finalized an ambitious agreement that provides for Cooperation in 5G technology, artificial intelligence.
- Russia has successfully launched a new Zircon hypersonic cruise missile.
- New Development Bank, also known as BRICS Bank has approved infrastructure projects worth 741 million dollars in India.
Bank has approved a loan of USD 500 million for the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) Project and a loan of USD 241 million for Mumbai Metro Rail II (Line 6) Project. - King of Jordan Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein has appointed Bishr al-Khasawneh as new Prime Minister of the country.
- Infosys will acquire Blue Acorn iCi, a US-based data analytics company for up to $125 million.
- Diplomat Jaideep Mazumdar has been concurrently accredited as the next ambassador of India to the Holy See.
State News
- The Meghalaya Government entered into a partnership with Israel to establish a Centre of Excellence on high-value vegetables in the state.
- Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath inaugurated the state’s largest oxygen production plant (INOX oxygen plant) in Modinagar, Ghaziabad, at a virtual ceremony.
- Uttar Pradesh Government signed an agreement with Zurich Airport to start the development of Jewar Airport.
National and International Appointments
- The centre appointed RBI’s senior-most Executive M. Director Rajeshwar Rao as Deputy Governor and he succeeds N.S.Vishwanathan.
- Nilesh Shah has been re-elected as the Chairman of Association of Mutual Funds in India.
- J Venkatramu has been appointed the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of India Post Payment Bank.
- Sadyr Zhaparov has been appointed as the Acting Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan.
Awards and Honours
- Emmanuelle Charpentier (France) and Jennifer A Doudna (USA) won Nobel Prize in chemistry,2020 for the development of a method for genome editing (CRISPR/Cas9 genetic scissors).
- Noted Odia poet Nityananda Nayak has been selected for the prestigious Sarala Puraskar for poetry “Setebelaku Nathiba”.
- 2020 Nobel Prize for literature has been awarded to American Poet Louise Gluck.
- Jindal Steel and Power Limited have been conferred with Green Tech CSR India 2020 Award for its outstanding achievements in promoting health care under its CSR programmes.
Obituaries and Retirement
- Former Governor of Manipur and Nagaland and ex-CBI Director Ashwani Kumar has passed away recently.
- Minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet and the founder of the Lok Janshakti Party, Ram Vilas Paswan passed away.
- Tamilnadu Premier League Spinner M Prasanth Rajesh has died recently.
- Nobel Prize winner Mexican Scientist Mario José Molina has passed away recently.
- Veteran Marathi Actor Avinash Kharshikar passed away.
Banking News (Domestic and International Banks)
- HDFC Bank offers instant loans up to ₹40 lakh for customers’ medical expenses at Apollo Hospitals.
- Chqbook, India’s first neobank for small business owners has launched India’s first Financial Control Centre, a new mobile platform to empower small business owners of India.
- Reserve Bank of India has extended the tenure of Rajesh Kumar Chibber as chairman and managing director of Jammu and Kashmir Bank, for another six months.
Sports
- World champion Joshua Cheptegei from Uganda broke the world record in the men’s 10,000 meters.
Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey broke the Women’s 5000m world record.
Economic Affairs
World Bank has estimated 9.6% contraction of India’s economy in the current fiscal year 2020-21.
Important Days
- World Cotton Day is observed on 7th October. Union Minister of Textiles and Women & Child Development, Smriti Irani launched the first-ever brand and logo for Indian cotton on second World Cotton Day on 7th October.
- Indian Air Force has celebrated its 88th anniversary on 8th October 2020.
- World Post Day is celebrated each year on 9th October, the anniversary of the establishment of the Universal Postal Union in 1874 in the Swiss capital, Bern.
- World Sight Day is observed annually on the second Thursday of October, this year it falls on 8th October. Theme 2020- Hope in Sight.
