Daily Current Affairs August 10 2022

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: IMPORTANT DAYS

World Biofuel Day

• World Biofuel Day is commemorated on 10 August every year to raise awareness about the use of non-fossil fuels as an alternative to conventional fossil fuels.
• Any fuel that is derived from biomass, like plants, agricultural wastes, crops, algae, or animal wastes, is known as biofuel.

History:

• August 10 is observed as World Biofuel Day in honor of Sir Rudolf Diesel, inventor of the diesel engine.
• It was just one day before, on August 9 in 1893 that Sir Diesel, first successfully operated the mechanical engine with peanut oil.
• With this, he was able to predict the possibility of vegetable oil replacing fossil fuels as a feasible source of energy in the next century.
• To commemorate this achievement, the date was chosen to observe World Biofuel Day.

World Lion Day- August 10

• World Lion Day is celebrated annually on August 10 each year, with an emphasis to raise awareness and gather support for their declining population and conservation.
• Currently, they are listed as endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List.
• The Asiatic Lion is one of the five big cats that are found in India, the other four being the Royal Bengal Tiger, Indian Leopard, Clouded leopard, and Snow Leopard.

History:

• In 2013, co-founders of Dereck and Beverly Joubert the Big Cat Initiative, and National Geographic made a partnership to create World Lion Day.
• The lion is also known as Panthera leo and is considered the king of the jungle, being the largest species on earth.
• There has been a decline in 80 percent of the population of lions in the past 100 years.
• This is the major reason for the observance of the day to protect these wild cats in their natural habitat.
• This also works on the safety measures of the lion communities.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

Government launches short-term course namely ‘Drone Service Technician’ in 126 ITIs:

• The Government has started a short-term course namely ‘Drone Service Technician’ in 126 Industrial Training Institutes.
• It has been started across 19 States for the session 2022-23.
• Six short-term skilling courses have been developed for manufacturing, assembly, repairing, and maintenance of drones as well as to meet the requirement of skilled manpower in the drone sector.
• The course comprises ground classes and practical training.
• According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, approval for establishing a remote pilot training organization (RPTO) is granted as per Rule 39 of The Drone Rules, 2021.

Govt Ambitious: One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) Completes 3 years:

• With Assam being the newest state to join the effort in June 2022, the program has now been implemented nationwide.
• On August 9, 2019, four states hosted the debut of the ONORC, which has now been operational for three years.
• The technology-driven ONORC scheme is being implemented by the Centre for the nationwide portabilityof ration cards under the NFSA(National Food Security Act,2013).
• Currently, the initiative is recording an average of 3 crore portability transactions every month.
• About 77.88 crore portable transactions have occurred under the plan since its launch in August 2019.
• Nearly 80 crore eligible recipients are receiving 5 kilos of food grains per person each month under the NFSA from the Center at a heavily subsidized rate of Rs 2-3 per kilogram.
• The Center is also giving an additional 5 kg of food grains per person each month to 80 crore people “free of cost” to help the impoverished.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India adopts joint statement on cooperation on global supply chains

• India has adopted the United States Joint Statement on Cooperation on Global Supply Chains which was released by the USA Government & the 17 partner economies during the Virtual 2022 Supply Chain Ministerial Forum.
• The partner economies include Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
• For building collective long-term resilient supply chains based on international partnerships, all the partner countries aimed to follow various global supply chain principles including transparency, diversification, security, and sustainability.

Note :

• The Supply Chain Ministerial, hosted by Secretary of State Blinken and Secretary of Commerce Raimondo, was held virtually on July 19-20, 2022. 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS

Government of Telangana launches first-of-its-kind insurance scheme Nethanna Ku Bima for weavers 

• For the first time in India, Telangana Government has launched the ‘Nethanna Ku Bima’ Scheme, which extends insurance coverage to handloom and power loom weavers in
• Handlooms Minister Shri KT Rama Rao virtually launched the scheme on National Handloom Day 2022.

About the ‘Nethanna Ku Bima’ Scheme :

• Under the scheme, the Telangana government has joined hands with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India for the ‘Nethanna Beema’ scheme and termed the state department of handlooms and textiles as the nodal agency for its implementation.
• The annual premium of the beneficiaries will be paid by the government on their behalf to the LIC.
• It would benefit 80,000 handloom and power loom weavers in the State.
• In case of natural or accidental death of a weaver, 5 lakh would be deposited into the nominees’ account within 10 days.
• Extending assistance to the sector, the Telangana Govt has launched a few flagship programs like ‘Chenetha Mithra’ ( Input subsidy linked wage compensation scheme), ‘Nethannaku Cheyutha’ (Telangana Handlooms weavers Thrift fund saving and security scheme), ‘Pavala Vaddi’ scheme, 20% Yarn subsidy scheme, Marketing Incentives.

Note :

• In India, National Handloom Day is observed on August 7 every year to recognize the contributions of the handloom weavers of the country.
• In 2015, the first National Handloom Day was organized by PM Modi in Chennai.

About Telangana :

• Governor: Tamilisai Soundararajan
• Chief Minister : K. Chandrashekar Rao
• Capital: Hyderabad

Andhra Pradesh renames the newly created Konaseema district after BR Ambedkar

• The Andhra Pradesh cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Shri YS Jagan Mohan Reddy approved the renaming of Konaseema as Dr. BR Ambedkar Konaseema district.
• The Konaseema district was carved out from East Godavari with Amalapuram as its headquarters.
• It was one of the 13 districts created on April 4, taking the total number of districts in the state to 26.
• Also, the cabinet gave its nod to disburse Rs 6,594.60 crore under the Jagananna Amma Vodi scheme on June 27, 2022.
• Among the total Amma Vodi scheme beneficiaries, 54% are BCs, 21% are SCs, 6% are STs and 19% are OBCs.
• As many as 43,96,402 beneficiaries (mothers of school-going children), including 5,48,329 fresh applicants, will receive the aid.
• A total of 82,31,502 children stand to benefit from the welfare scheme.
• Under the agreement with the Byju’s for education-technology, the cabinet approved the distribution of tablets to 4.7 lakh Class 8 students.
• The government is taking measures to implement the CBSE syllabus in government schools by 2025.
• The Cabinet has decided to extend power subsidies to aqua farmers who have 10 acres of land.
• Further, a Resettlement and Rehabilitation (R&R) package of Rs 216.71 crore for those displaced by the Vamsadhara Project was also approved.

About AP :

• Governor: Biswabhusan Harichandan
• Chief minister: YS Jagan Mohan Reddy
• Capital: Amaravati

Arunachal Pradesh’s Hollongi greenfield airport named ‘Donyi Polo’ Airport, Itanagar

• The Arunachal Pradesh government has approved the naming of the under-construction Hollongi greenfield airport near Itanagar as “Donyi Polo Airport, Itanagar” which will start operations in August 15, 2022.

About the Airport :

• The proposed airport will be the first in Arunachal Pradesh with a runway of 2,300 meters, making it ideal for operating Boeing 747s, one of the largest passenger aircraft.
• The airport is located nearly 15 km away from Itanagar.
• It has been built at Rs 645 crores under the Centre’s Capital Connectivity Scheme, which has been designed to accommodate A-320 aircraft.
• Its terminal structure, which spans 4100 square meters, will be able to accommodate 200 people during peak hours.
• This terminal will be an energy-efficient structure with a rainwater harvesting system and a long-term landscape plan.
• The name of the airport, will symbolize the age-old tradition and rich cultural heritage of the tribal state and also will reflect the people’s age-old indigenous reverence for the Sun (Donyi) and the Moon (Polo).

About Arunachal Pradesh :

• Governor: B. D. Mishra
• Chief Minister : Pema Khandu
• Capital: Itanagar

Delhi launches ‘One Road – One Week’ initiative of NDMC

• Delhi Lieutenant Governor Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena launched the “One Road-One Week” initiative of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).
• The Delhi LG reportedly directed officials to complete the works of 15 road stretches under the NDMC areas on priority.
• The event was also attended by NDMC Acting Chairman Ashwini Kumar, Vice Chairman Satish Upadhyay, and member NDMC Kuljeet Singh Chahal among others.

About the Initiative :

• Under the initiative, the civic body will undertake repair and maintenance work along footpaths, pavements, and central verges.
• The project would include repair of footpaths, whitewash, painting, beautification of railing, ramps, kerbstones, central verge, maintenance of electrical poles, and removal of all types of encroachment.

About NDMC :

• It is one of three local bodies in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, the others being the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Delhi Cantonment Board.

About Delhi :

• Lt Governor: Vinai Kumar Saxena
• Chief Minister : Arvind Kejriwal
• Capital: New Delhi

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING & FINANCE

American Express launches Global Pay, a B2B payments solution

• American Express,  a Small Business Card issuer in the U.S has launched a cross-border payment solution Global Pay, that will let U.S. businesses make secure domestic and international B2B (Business to Business) payments.

Key Highlights :

• Through this, business customers can send payments funded from their business bank account to their suppliers in more than 40 countries across a range of currencies using a simple, mobile-friendly platform.
• Eligible customers can also earn Membership Rewards points on their foreign exchange payments.
• American Express Global Pay is available to eligible U.S. American Express Small Business Card Members.

About American Express :

• Founded: March 18, 1850
• Headquarters:  New York City, United States
• Chairman & CEO: Stephen J. Squeri

HDFC Bank Raises $300 Mn in NRE Deposits

• HDFC Bank raised $300 million in Non-Resident External (NRE) deposits, offering up to 50 basis points higher than the current rates.
• The Middle East drove the list of new NRI depositors, with the rest of Asia and Europe not far behind.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed banks to accept FCNR (B) and NRE deposits from the Indian diaspora without any interest rate caps.
• Such relaxations will be effective until October 31, 2022, and November 4, 2022,
• Further, the RBI also eased restrictions on external commercial borrowings to stem the outflow of funds and relieve pressure on the rupee.
• NRE and FCNR deposits differ in the approved currency denominations of their respective instruments, with the US dollar being the predominant unit of savings in the latter category.

About HDFC Bank :

• Founded: August 1994
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
• Chairman: Atanu Chakraborty
• CEO : Sashidhar Jagdishan

Dhanlaxmi Bank Limited ventures into Fintech services

• Dhanlaxmi Bank Limited has agreed with its first fintech partner, New Street Technologies Private Limited, for Micro Lending, Operations Management, and Technology Services under priority sector lending.
• New Street Technologies Pvt Ltd. will provide technical support to the Bank on Digital onboarding and extend support as the business correspondent in the Microlending space to start the operations in southern states of India and subsequently expand to more states.
• New Street Technologies Private Limited will augment the Bank to provide better customer connectivity and financial inclusion along with leveraging technological advancements.

About Dhanlaxmi Bank Limited :

• Founded: 14 November 1927
• Headquarters: Thrissur, Kerala, India
• MD & CEO: J. K. Shivan

About New Street Technologies Private Limited :

• Founded: 2017
• Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka

Indian Bank inks MoU with SRM University in AP to lend up to 50 crores for start-ups

• Indian Bank has collaborated with Hatchlab Research Centre, Technology Business Incubator (TBI) of SRM University-Andhra Pradesh to launch ‘IND SpringBoard’, an initiative for financing start-ups and Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
• The bank will extend loans of up to Rs 50 crore to start-ups incubated at SRM Hatchlab for their working capital requirements or purchase of machinery and equipment.
• This collaboration is one of its kind in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

About Indian Bank :

• Founded: 15 August 1907
• Headquarters: Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

• MD & CEO: Shanti Lal Jain

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOURS

Spiritual leader Dalai Lama was honored with Ladakh’s highest civilian award:

• The highest civilian honor in Ladakh, the “dPal rNgam Duston” award, was given to the head of the Tibetan spiritual order, the Dalai Lama.
• This honor is granted in recognition of his enormous contributions to mankind, particularly to the union territory.
• The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Leh, which celebrated the “dPal rNgam Duston” on the occasion of its founding day at Sindhu Ghat, presented the sixth prize.
• The 87-year-old spiritual leader, who has been in the union territory since July 15, praised the act of kindness and emphasized the need of preserving intergroup unity in the area.
• The “dPal rNgam Duston” commemorates the heroic deeds of Ladakh’s heroes and attempts to instill in the new generation a sense of pride in their accomplishments.

Indian-American Aarya Walvekar crowned Miss India USA 2022:

• Aarya Walvekar, an Indian American from Virginia, was named Miss India USA in 2022 in New Jersey.
• The first runner-up was University of Virginia’s second-year premedical student Saumya Sharma, and the second runner-up was Sanjana Chekuri of New Jersey.
• The longest-running Indian pageant outside of India celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
• Dharmatma and Neelam Saran, two Indian-Americans residing in New York, founded it under the name Worldwide Pageants.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Mr. Gustavo Petro was sworn in as Colombia’s first leftist President

• Gustavo Petro, a former rebel fighter, has been sworn in as the first leftist president of Colombia.
• He succeeds Ivan Duque.
• He defeated Rodolfo Hernández Suárez in the second round of the 2022 Colombian presidential election on 19 June 2022.
• He also announced that Colombia will stop granting new licenses for oil exploration and will ban fracking projects, even though the oil industry makes up almost 50% of the nation’s legal exports.

About Mr Gustavo Petro :

• Mr Petro was born in Ciénaga de Oro, Córdoba, Colombia.
• He is a former member of Colombia’s M-19 guerrilla group, as well as former senator and mayor of Bogota.
• He served as a senator as a member of the Alternative Democratic Pole (PDA)
• He received the worldwide “Climate and City Leadership” in 2013.

About Colombia :

• President: Gustavo Petro
• Capital: Bogotá
• Currency: Colombian peso

Ms. Nallathamby Kalaiselvi becomes CSIR’s first woman director general

• Senior electrochemical scientist Nallathamby Kalaiselvi has become the first woman director general of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), in two years.
• Kalaiselvi succeeds Mr. Shekhar Mande, who superannuated in April 2022.
• Also, Ms. Kalaiselvi will hold the charge as Secretary, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, under the Ministry of Science and Technology.
• Since then Mr. Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, was given the additional charge of the CSIR

About Ms Nallathamby Kalaiselvi :

• Kalaiselvi Hailing from Ambasamudram, a small town in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu.
• She became the first woman scientist to head the Central Electrochemical Research Institute (CSIR-CECRI) in February 2019.
• She is the present director of the CSIR-Central Electrochemical Research Institute at Karaikudi in Tamil Nadu.
• Currently, she is involved in the development of practically viable Sodium-ion/Lithium-sulfur batteries and supercapacitors.
• She also made key contributions to the National Mission for Electric Mobility.
• She has more than 125 research papers and six patents to her credit.

About CSIR :

• Established: 26 September 1942
• Located in: New Delhi
• President: Prime Minister of India (Shri Narendra Modi)
• CSIR is a consortium of 38 research institutes across the country.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Intellecap, Transform Rural India Foundation launch carbon finance platform for 1 million smallholder farmers

• Intellecap and Transform Rural India Foundation (TRIF) has launched a national carbon finance platform for 1 million smallholder farmers.
• It may assist Indian smallholder farmers to leverage local weather/carbon finance for sustainable agroforestry, local weather smart agriculture, and different actions that can lead to carbon sequestration and mitigation.
• More than a million smallholder farmers are linked together by the platform, and they will receive support and training in agroforestry and climate-smart farming.

Key Highlights :

• The platform will probably be registering several types of carbon offset initiatives wherein smallholder farmers would have the ability to take part and profit from the monetization of the carbon credits.
• The world’s voluntary carbon market is predicted to be valued at $200 billion by 2050. 
• The platform is already in dialogue with Indian and world corporations who are eager to take part and assist smallholder farmers by buying carbon credit from these initiatives.

About Intellecap :

• Founded: 2002
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• CEO: Vikas Bali
• Intellecap, a part of the Aavishkaar Group, is a pioneer in building enabling ecosystems and channeling capital to create and nurture a sustainable and equitable society.

About TRIF :

• Founded: 2015
• Headquarters: New Delhi, Delhi
• Co-Lead: Anish Kumar
• TRIF is a civil society-led multi-stakeholder platform, aimed at multi-thematic development in the most deprived regions of rural India.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS NEWS

India finishes fourth overall with 61 medals, including 22 gold: Commonwealth Games 2022

• In the overall medal standings at the Commonwealth Games 2022, India won 61 medals In Birmingham
• India placed fourth overall on the medals tally after their CWG 2022 campaign.
• India took home 22 gold, 16 silver, and 23 bronze medals from the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
• India’s bid for the Commonwealth Games 2022 is its fifth-best in terms of medals earned.
• India’s best performance came at the 2010 home games in Delhi, when it collected 101 medals.
• Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu won India’s first gold medal in Commonwealth Games 2022 after she topped the 49kg category.
• Paddler Sharath Kamal won India’s last gold medal in Commonwealth Games 2022 with a gold medal in the Table Tennis men’s singles competition.

Rank	Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Australia	67	57	54	178
2	England	57	66	53	176
3	Canada	26	32	34	92
4	India	22	16	23	61
5	New Zealand	20	12	17	49
6	Scotland	13	11	27	51
7	Nigeria	12	9	14	35
8	Wales	8	6	14	28
9	South Africa	7	9	11	27
10	Malaysia	8	8	8	24

India won the silver medal after losing to Australia in cricket:

• At the Commonwealth Games (CWG) 2022, the Indian women’s cricket team made history by winning the nation’s first-ever medal in the sport.
• After defeating the hosts England in a thrilling encounter at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground, the Women in Blue advanced to the gold medal final.
• In the final at Edgbaston field, Australia scored 161/8 while batting first.
• The Indian team’s response was limited to 152 runs in 19.3 overs.
• India fell short in the gold-medal contest by 9 runs.

Aussie Swimmer Emma McKeon Has Won More Gold Than 56 Countries:

• Emma McKeon, an Australian swimmer who is 28 years old, broke a kind of record in the 2022 Commonwealth Games by winning more medals than 56 different countries or territories combined.
• At the Commonwealth Games, she competed in a variety of swimming events and took home six gold, one silver, and one bronze medal.
• Only 16 of the 72 nations and territories that competed in the CWG 2022 received eight or more medals.

PV Sindhu won the gold medal in women’s singles badminton:

• P V Sindhu, a shuttler from India, won the women’s singles gold medal in the Commonwealth Games 2022 final.
• The Canadian Michelle Li was defeated by the double Olympic medallist to take home gold.
• Michelle Li was defeated by PV Sindhu 21-15, and 21-13.
• This is Sindhu’s first gold medal in a singles competition at the Commonwealth Games.

Daily CA on August 10:

• World Biofuel Day is commemorated on 10 August every year to raise awareness about the use of non-fossil fuels as an alternative to conventional fossil fuels.
• World Lion Day is celebrated annually on August 10 each year, with an emphasis to raise awareness and gather support for their declining population and conservation.
• The Government has started a short-term course namely ‘Drone Service Technician’ in 126 Industrial Training Institutes.
• With Assam being the newest state to join the effort in June 2022, the program has now been implemented nationwide.
• The highest civilian honor in Ladakh, the “dPal rNgam Duston” award, was given to the head of the Tibetan spiritual order, the Dalai Lama.
• Aarya Walvekar, an Indian American from Virginia, was named Miss India USA in 2022 in New Jersey.
• India placed fourth overall on the medals tally after their CWG 2022 campaign.
• At the Commonwealth Games (CWG) 2022, the Indian women’s cricket team made history by winning the nation’s first-ever medal in the sport.
• Emma McKeon, an Australian swimmer who is 28 years old, broke a kind of record in the 2022 Commonwealth Games by winning more medals than 56 different countries or territories combined.
• P V Sindhu, a shuttler from India, won the women’s singles gold medal in the Commonwealth Games 2022 final.
• India has adopted the United States Joint Statement on Cooperation on Global Supply Chains which was released by the USA Government & the 17 partner economies during the Virtual 2022 Supply Chain Ministerial Forum.
• For the first time in India, Telangana Government has launched the ‘Nethanna Ku Bima’ Scheme, which extends insurance coverage to handloom and power loom weavers in
• The Andhra Pradesh cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Shri YS Jagan Mohan Reddy approved the renaming of Konaseema as Dr. BR Ambedkar Konaseema district.
• The Arunachal Pradesh government has approved the naming of the under-construction Hollongi greenfield airport near Itanagar as “Donyi Polo Airport, Itanagar” which will start operations in August 15, 2022.
• Delhi Lieutenant Governor Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena launched the “One Road-One Week” initiative of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).
• American Express,  a Small Business Card issuer in the S has launched a cross-border payment solution Global Pay, that will let U.S. businesses make secure domestic and international B2B (Business to Business) payments.
• HDFC Bank raised $300 million in Non-Resident External (NRE) deposits, offering up to 50 basis points higher than the current rates.
• Dhanlaxmi Bank Limited has agreed with its first fintech partner, New Street Technologies Private Limited, for Micro Lending, Operations Management, and Technology Services under priority sector lending.
• Indian Bank has collaborated with Hatchlab Research Centre, Technology Business Incubator (TBI) of SRM University-Andhra Pradesh to launch ‘IND SpringBoard’, an initiative for financing start-ups and Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
• Gustavo Petro, a former rebel fighter, has been sworn in as the first leftist president of Colombia.
• Senior electrochemical scientist Nallathamby Kalaiselvi has become the first woman director general of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), in two years.
• Intellecap and Transform Rural India Foundation (TRIF) has launched a national carbon finance platform for 1 million smallholder farmers.