Current Affairs 03rd September 2020| Current Affairs News

 CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

MoD sets up a committee to review the AFHQ CS cadre

• To enhance the military’s combat potential and rebalancing the defence expenditure, a three member committee has been set up by the Ministry of Defence.
• This is in line with the recommendation of the Lt Gen DB Shekatkar (retd) committee and its main task is to review the utilisation of the Armed Forces Headquarters Civil Services (AFHQ CS) cadre.
• The other two members include R Chandrashekhar, a retired AFHQ cadre officer and AN Das from the MoD finance wing.
• It is expected to conduct a study and identify appointments in Service HQs and Inter-Service Organisations (ISO) which could be falling within the domains of AFHQ CS officers. And which have been recognized in the report by the committee of experts due to their longer tenures and expertise.
• This three member committee is expected to interact with other branches, directorates of the service Headquarters and ISOs for their study. The report of the study carried out is expected to be submitted in November.

About MoD

• Defence Minister of India: Rajnath Singh
• Constituency: Lucknow, UP

Cabinet Approves Mission Karmayogi – National Programme For Civil Services Capacity Building

• The Union Cabinet approved Centre’s Mission Karmayogi for Civil Servants aimed at  bringing post-recruitment reforms in government.
• The mission seeks to reincarnate the civil servants as an ideal servant to the nation.
• Mission Karmayogi which is the National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building will lay the foundation for capacity building for Civil Servants so they remain entrenched in Indian culture while they learn from best practices across the world.
• It aims to prepare Indian Civil Servants for future by making them more creative, constructive, imaginative, innovative, proactive, professional, progressive, energetic, enabling, transparent and technology-enabled.

The key highlights of the programme are: 

• Prescribe annual capacity building plan for all departments and services
• Monitor the implementation of the capacity building plan
• Massive capacity building initiative to ensure efficient service delivery
• Promotes technology driven learning pedagogy
• Strengthen common foundations and remove departmental silos
• Set benchmark for learning in public servants
• Democratization of learning to cover all categories

Ladakh, Lakshadweep join Centre’s ration card portability scheme

• Ladakh and Lakshadweep have the joined the Centre’s ration card portability scheme ‘One Nation-One Ration Card’, taking the total number of states and Union territories linked with the scheme to
• Under the scheme, eligible beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) will be able to avail their entitled foodgrains from any Fair Price Shop (FPS), also called ration shops, in the country using the same ration card.
• The integration of Ladakh and Lakshadweep with the national portability network was approved recently in a review meeting chaired by Union Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan.
• Remaining states are targeted to be integrated in the scheme by March 2021.
• The other 24 states/UTs which have joined the ration card portability network are — Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

About Ladakh

• Lieutenant Governor: Radha Krishna Mathur
• Capital: Leh, Kargil

About Lakshadweep

• Capital: Kavaratti
• Administrator: Dineshwar Sharma IPS

Qutub Minar illuminated in red and white to mark Poland’s Solidarity movement

• Embassy of Poland and Polish Institute in Delhi illuminated Qutub Minar in Poland’s national colours, white and red, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the creation of Poland’s Solidarity movement.
• This year, 2020, marks the 40th anniversary of the creation of Solidarity.
• The Solidarity movement of Poland is a trade union based on Gandhian principles of non-violence that fought for civil rights in the country during the communist rule.
• Solidarity was originated in Gdańsk, Poland on 31 August 1980 and in a short time gathered 10 million members.
• The Chief Guest at the Qutub Minar function is Dinesh K Patnaik who is the Director General of the Indian Council of International Relations.

About Poland

• Capital: Warsaw
• Currency: Polish złoty

Cabinet approves signing of MoU between India and Japan for improving quality of Indian textiles for Japanese market

• Cabinet has approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between India and Japan for improving quality and testing of Indian textiles and clothing for the Japanese market.
• The MoU would enable M/s Nissenken Quality Evaluation Centre, Japan in assigning Textile Committee as their cooperative Testing and Inspection service providers in India for Textiles and Apparel products.
• Government has also approved an MoU between India and Finland for cooperation in the field of Geology and Mineral Resources.
• The MoU facilitates cooperation in the field of geology, training, mineral prognostication and suitability analysis with the intent of reinforcing and strengthening scientific links.

About Japan:

• Capital: Tokyo
• Currency: Japanese yen

Current Affairs 02nd September 2020| Current Affairs News

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

National Nutrition Week

• National Nutrition Week is observed every year from 1st September to 7th September since 1982 and can be considered a significant period to raise awareness on the therapeutic effects of foods.
• The events of NNW are organised by the Food and Nutrition Board of the Ministry of Women and Child Development(WCD), Government of India to educate the importance and role of nutrition in the human body.

National Nutrition Month

• The month of September will be observed as ‘Nutrition Month’ in the entire nation.
• The entire month of September 2020 is being celebrated as Rashtriya Poshan Maah which is PM’s overreaching scheme for holistic nourishment – Poshan Abhiyaan is a multi-ministerial convergence mission to address malnutrition with a targeted approach by 2022.
• During nutrition month, a food and nutrition quiz will be organized on My Govportal and there will be a meme competition.

World Coconut Day

• World Coconut Day is celebrated on September 2 every year. The day is celebrated to create awareness about the benefits of coconut.
• The first-ever celebration of world coconut day was in the year
• This year the theme of World Coconut Day 2020 is – “Invest in Coconut to save the world”.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Coal India to invest over Rs 1.22 lakh crore on 500 projects by 2023-24

• Coal India Ltd (CIL) will invest over 22 lakh crore rupees on development of nearly 500 projects related to coal evacuation, infrastructure, project development, exploration and clean coal technologies in the country. The investment aims at making India self-reliant in terms of coal and achieve the production target of 1 billion tonnes by 2023-2024.
• Coal and Mines Minister Pralhad Joshi stated involvement of all concerned stakeholders in company’s affairs will reduce and uncover the project risks. He informed that the national miner, CIL, will be investing around 14 thousand 200 crore rupees over the next 3 to 4 years, in two phases for its 49 First Mile Connectivity projects. First Mile Connectivity is the transportation of coal from pitheads to dispatch points. Computer-aided loading technology of coal is being developed to replace the existing methodology of transportation via road.
• Coal India has also identified 15 greenfield projects which will be operated under the Mine Developer and Operator (MDO) model. Overall nearly 34 thousand 600 crore rupees will be invested through this route. In the meeting, Coal India also announced an array of measures for relaxations and exemptions for greater participation of its stakeholders. The experience criteria has been brought down from 65 per cent to 50 per cent for mining tenders, while work experience criteria are relaxed by 50 per cent in turnkey contracts.

About Coal India Ltd:

• CEO: Anil Kumar Jha
• Headquarters: Kolkata

Current Affairs 01st September 2020| Current Affairs News

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

PM Modi inaugurates college, administration buildings of Rani Lakshmi Bai Central Agricultural University in Jhansi

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated college and administration buildings of the Rani Lakshmi Bai (RLB) Central Agricultural University in Uttar Pradesh’s Jhansi through video conferencing.
• The RLB Central Agriculture University is located in Jhansi and is a prominent institute in the Bundelkhand region.
• This would improve the education infrastructure and contribute to cutting edge research in agriculture as well as further farmer welfare.

Rs 601.12 crore annual action plan approved for PMKSY in J&K

• An amount of Rs 601,12 crore annual plan has been approved for Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) for the year 2020-21, an official spokesman stated .
• The Committee approved 601.12 crore annual action plan of PMKSY for the year 2020-21. The annual plan lays emphasis on various components under the schemes Per Drop More Crop (PDMC), Har Khet Ko Paani (HKKP), Integrated Watershed Management Plan (IWMP) and Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP).
• It was informed that as a result of previous interventions, area irrigated by bore wells, community WHT and farm ponds has increased by 6798 Ha, whereas, area under micro-irrigation- drip, sprinkler and rain guns, has gone up by 6766 Ha. These measures have increased crop production by 30 per cent, saved water by 70 per cent and benefitted 7,000 agro-dependent families, besides, reducing water runoff and recharging ground water reservoirs.
• In the current financial year, the Department has proposed bringing 12,000 Ha additional areas under irrigation and reducing the gap between ultimate irrigation potential and irrigation potential by converging 144 existing schemes.
• The State Level Sanctioning Committee also approved top up subsidy amounting to Rs. 10.26 crore including 55 per cent central assistance, as Micro Irrigation Fund from NABARD, which will provide financial assistance to farmers adopting micro irrigation techniques as a part of sustainable agricultural activities.
• Earlier, while chairing a meeting of State Level Executive Committee of National Livestock Mission (NLM), Chief Secretary approved Rs 32.24 crore action plan of centrally sponsored scheme for the year 2020-21. NLM is an umbrella scheme comprising sub-missions on livestock development, feed & fodder development and skill development, technology & extension.

DEA holds Sustainable Finance Collaborative consultation with UNDP

• Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), Ministry of Finance, Government of India, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme India launched the Sustainable Finance Collaborative on 26th August 2020. The consultation was held on 26th, 27th and 28th August over virtual platform which brought forth thematic discussions around some key aspects of Sustainable Finance.
• The Collaborative saw a host of thematic discussions centred around the broad scope of Sustainable Finance architecture in India. It included dialogues on critical elements such as the barriers to deploying new and innovative financing such as impact investing, role of blended finance instruments, green finance instruments for sustainable development, need for taxonomy of environmentally sustainable activities, sustainability related disclosures by corporates, and preparing the financial sector for the risks posed by climate change and other environmental and social issues.
• Around 220 delegates representing different ministries and departments of Government of India, Indian financial sector regulators, Multilateral Development Banks, bilateral partner agencies, UN entities, financial institutions, impact and commercial investors, corporates, industry associations, Civil Society Organizations and academia participated in the dialogue.
• The Collaborative provided valuable insights and tangible recommendations that would be helpful in developing a Sustainable Finance framework/roadmap for India.

About United Nations Development Programme:

• Headquarters: New York, New York, United States
• Head: Achim Steiner

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL

New e-market platform launched to bridge gap between Indian farmers and UAE food industry

• The UAE has launched Agriota, a new technology-driven agri-commodity trading and sourcing e-market platform that will bridge the gap between millions of rural farmers in India and the Gulf nation’s food industry.
• Launched by the Dubai’s free-zone Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) and the government of Dubai’s authority on commodities trade and enterprise.
• The marketplace allows the farmers to bypass intermediaries, optimising the supply chain and ensuring traceability to create value for all stakeholders.
• The online marketplace also provides end-to-end traceability and transparency through last-mile verification and extension infrastructure in a blockchain environment.
• Initially, the platform will offer cereals, pulses, oil seeds, fruits, vegetables, spices and condiments.

About UAE

• President: Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan
• Capital: Abu Dhabi
• Currency: United Arab Emirates dirham

Israeli Airliner Completes First Direct Flight to Arab Emirates

• A chartered El Al airliner carrying Israeli and American diplomats landed in the United Arab Emirates, completing a symbolic first direct flight from Tel Aviv to Abu Dhabi.
• This would pave the way for formal diplomatic and commercial ties and might inspire other Arab nations to follow suit in normalizing relations with the Jewish state.

About Israel

• Capital: Jerusalem
• Prime minister: Benjamin Netanyahu
• Currency: Israeli Shekel

India to receive development assistance loan worth Rs 3,500 Cr from Japan to fight COVID-19

• Japan has committed an official Development Assistance loan of 3 thousand 500 crore rupees for the COVID-19 Crisis Emergency Response Support. The Notes were exchanged between the Additional Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs Dr C.S. Mohapatra and Ambassador of Japan to India Suzuki Satoshi for a Health sector programme loan to fight the COVID-19 crisis.
• Japan International Cooperation Agency, JICA is a governmental agency that coordinates Official Development Assistance for the Government of Japan.
• This programme loan aims to support India’s efforts in fighting COVID-19 and to prepare the health system to manage future epidemics and also to improve the resilience of India’s health systems against infectious diseases.
• This Grant-in-aid from the Government of Japan is for providing medical equipment to strengthen the public health and medical system in India. It will strengthen the health care facilities for managing critical and serious patients suffering from COVID-19 infection.

About Japan:

• Capital: Tokyo
• Currency: Japanese yen

Togo first in Africa to end sleeping sickness

• Togo has become the first country in Africa to eliminate human African Trypanosomiasis or sleeping sickness, a disease caused by parasites transmitted through infected tsetse flies. The World Health Organization (WHO) August 27, 2020 certified so, after the country applied for it in 2018.

Current Affairs 30th and 31st August 2020| Current Affairs News

 CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances

• The International Day of the Disappeared, on August 30 of each year, is a day created to draw attention to the fate of individuals imprisoned at places and under poor conditions unknown to their relatives and/or legal representatives.
• The day was adopted by UN General Assembly on 21 December 2010 and was first observed in 2011.

National Small Industry Day 

• Every year 30 August is observed as the National Small Industry Day.
• The day is observed to promote small industries across the country. The day acknowledges the contribution made by small scale industries.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATES

Assam Cabinet setting up of skill university in Darrang

• The Assam Cabinet approved the Assam Skill Development University Bill for setting up a state-of-the-art skill university at Mangaldoi in Darrang district.
• The university will be set up on a 100-bigha plot with an expense of Rs 900 crore.
• The university, which will be a Centre of Excellence, would be set up with financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank.
• The state Cabinet also gave its approval to complete the long-pending Dhansiri irrigation project in Udalguri district, a project that was launched in 1975 with a credit of Rs 116 crore from the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
• Other key decisions of the Cabinet include approval for the Assam Heritage Protection and Preservation Bill; increase of the upper age limit for group III and group IV posts for two years so that unemployed youths can apply for jobs up to 40 years; insurance to the tune of Rs 50 lakh to journalists, home guards and all casual employees who succumbed to COVID-19 while performing their duties.
• The Cabinet also approved the Orunodoi Scheme for giving financial assistance to families with an annual income below Rs 2 lakh, besides giving its nod to amendment of the Assam MSME Bill.

About Assam

• Capital: Dispur
• Chief minister: Sarbananda Sonowal
• Governor: Jagdish Mukhi

Kerala to set up India’s first International Women’s Trade Centre

• Kerala will set up India’s first international women’s trade centre (IWTC), in consonance with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at
• This initiative aims to accelerate women entrepreneurship and secure gender parity while providing women with a safe place away from home to start new businesses, set up or expand, and get their products marketed globally.
• IWTC will enable women entrepreneurs to come forward and participate in international trade, enjoy greater economic benefits and enhance their competitiveness to tap market opportunities.
• REACH (Resource Enhancement Academy for Career Heights) is also aimed at empowering women with the required skills to ensure success in life.

About Kerala

• Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
• Chief minister: Pinarayi Vijayan
• Governor: Arif Mohammad Khan

Current Affairs 29th August 2020| Current Affairs News

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

National Sports Day

• Every year on August 29, India celebrates its National sports day. The day is celebrated to honour the legendary hockey player Major Dhyan Chand.
• The National Sports Day was celebrated for the first time in 2012.
• Major Dhyan Chand Singh won Olympics gold medals for India in the years 1928, 1932 and 1936. He has scored over 400 goals in his career, from 1926 to 1948.
• President Ram Nath Kovind will virtually confer the National Sports and Adventure Awards 2020 on this occasion.
• Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Kiren Rijiju, President of the Indian Olympic Association Narendra Dhruv Batra and several other dignitaries will attend the ceremony from Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.

International Day against Nuclear Tests 

• The International Day against Nuclear Tests is observed on August 29. It was established on December 2, 2009
• The international community commemorates the tenth International Day against Nuclear Tests.
• The day aims to increase awareness about the effects of nuclear weapon test explosions or any other nuclear explosions and the need for their cessation as one of the means of achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Current Affairs 28th August 2020| Current Affairs News

 CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Social Justice Ministry to launch mental health rehabilitation helpline “Kiran”

• The Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry has launched a toll-free helpline to enable access to mental health resources.
• The “Kiran” mental health rehabilitation helpline number, 1800-599-0019, will provide callers “support for early screening, first-aid, psychological support, distress management, mental well-being, preventing deviant behaviours, psychological crisis management etc.,
• The helpline will offer services in 13 languages.
• It targets to resolve issues of people across the country experiencing stress, anxiety, depression, panic attack, adjustment disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, suicidal thoughts, pandemic-induced psychological issues and mental health emergency.

About MoSJE

• Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment: Thaawar Chand Gehlot
• Constituency: Shajapur , Madhya Pradesh

IIT-Hyderabad start-up launches world’s most affordable respirator mask

• With a vision to provide high-quality protection, especially in the healthcare industry and its frontline workers, USafe’s US9 Respirator Mask has 98.03% PM0.3 filtration rate and 99.7% bacterial filtration rate (better than N95 standards).
• The home-grown innovation in tune with the ‘Make in India’ and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ aspirations, US9 Respirator Mask, has been designed, developed and produced in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad under the mentorship of Prof Surya Kumar and Prof Renu John.

Govt approves 78 new routes under Udan scheme; focus on North East, islands

• Centre has approved 78 new additional routes to be awarded under the fourth round of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)- ‘Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik’ (UDAN) focusing on boosting connectivity in the North East, hilly states and islands.
• The Udan is a regional airport development scheme aimed at enhancing connectivity to remote and regional areas of the country and making air travel affordable.
• The scheme is a key component of Centre’s National Civil Aviation Policy led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and launched in June 2016.
• “Special boost is being given to connectivity in North East with routes from Guwahati to Tezu, Rupsi, Tezpur, Passighat, Misa and Shillong. People will be able to fly from Hissar to Chandigarh, Dehradun and Dharmshala under these UDAN 4 routes.
• Routes from Varanasi to Chitrakoot and Shravasti have also been approved. Agatti, Kavaratti and Minicoy islands of Lakshadweep have also been connected by the new routes of UDAN 4.0,” the ministry said in a statement.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATES

Arunachal Pradesh assembly passes resolution to bring state under Sixth Schedule

• The Arunachal Pradesh Assembly has passed a resolution to bring the state under the ambit of Sixth Schedule of the Constitution besides amending Article 371(H) by inserting provisions to safeguard tribes of the state.
• The resolution which was moved by Legislative Affairs Minister Bamang Felix on behalf of the State Government was passed by voice vote following a marathon discussion in the house.

About Arunachal Pradesh

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

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND FINANCE

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance launches real-time assistance service

• Private life insurer Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance has launched a new technology service called ‘Smart Assist’ that provides real-time assistance to customers.

About Smart Assist:

• Smart Assist is designed to help customers know all about their product, through virtual assistance, since face-to-face meetings have been a challenge amid the coronavirus pandemic.
• It can be accessed from any device, including desktop, laptop and mobile phone. This platform provides application processing, providing consent through a one-time password and online payment collection.
• Using a screen sharing feature, the agent will be able to assist customers live to fill up the proposal form and also help them in the policy purchase journey.
• Even if there is an error in the form that has to be corrected in the proposal form, this can be done through the screen-sharing process. No additional application needs to be downloaded.

About Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance

• CEO: Tarun Chugh
• Headquarters: Pune

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING AND INDEX

World Bank pauses publication of Doing Business report

• The World Bank has decided to pause the publication of its Doing Business report following a number of irregularities regarding changes to data in previous reports.
• A number of irregularities have been reported regarding changes to the data in the Doing Business 2018 and Doing Business 2020 reports, published in October 2017 and 2019.
• The changes in the data were inconsistent with the Doing Business methodology.

About World Bank:

• Headquarters: Washington, D.C., United States
• President: David Malpass

Current Affairs 27th August 2020| Current Affairs News

 CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

World Water Week

• World Water Week takes place between 24 to 28 August 2020, and is organized by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI).
• World Water Week aims to be a collaborative learning experience, providing a forum and opportunity to facilitate the exchange of views, experiences, and practices between scientific, business, policy and civil societies.
• World Water Week 2020 and this year’s theme ‘Water andClimatechange: Accelerating Action’.

International Dog Day

• International Dog Day is observed on August 26 every year for drawing attention to the plight of canines around the world and encouraging adoption.
• International Dog Day was started as National Dog Day in the US in 2004 by pet and family lifestyle expert and animal rescue advocate Colleen Paige.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

NITI Aayog releases Export Preparedness Index 2020

• NITI Aayog released the Export Preparedness Index (EPI) 2020. EPI intends to identify challenges and opportunities; enhance the effectiveness of government policies and encourage a facilitative regulatory framework.
• The structure of the EPI includes four pillars which are Policy, Business Ecosystem, Export Ecosystem and Export Performance.
• It also includes 11 sub-pillars like Export Promotion Policy, Institutional Framework, Business Environment, Infrastructure and Transport Connectivity.
• NITI Aayog, Chief Executive Officer Amitabh Kant stated that the Export Preparedness Index is a data-driven effort to identify the core areas which are crucial for export promotion at the sub-national level.
• This edition of EPI has shown that most Indian states performed well on average across the sub-pillars of Exports Diversification, Transport Connectivity and Infrastructure.
• It also says, overall, most of the Coastal States are the best performers. Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu occupy the top three ranks.

 About NITI Aayog:

• CEO– Amitabh Kant
• Headquarters– New Delhi

Ministry of Culture announces 7 new circles of Archaeological Survey of India

• The Ministry of Culture has announced 7 new circles of Archaeological Survey of India, ASI.
• New circles have been created in Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal and Gujarat. Mr Patel stated, Trichy, Raiganj, Rajkot, Jabalpur, Jhansi and Meerut have been announced as new circles.

Current Affairs 26th August 2020| Current Affairs News

 CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

Women’s Equality Day

• Women’s Equality Day is celebrated in the United States on August 26 to commemorate the 1920 adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment (Amendment XIX) to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the states and the federal government from denying the right to vote to citizens of the United States on the basis of sex.
• It was first celebrated in 1972, designated by Congress in 1973, and is proclaimed each year by the United States President.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Businesses with annual turnover of up to Rs 40 lakh are GST exempt: Finance Ministry

• The Ministry of Finance said that businesses with an annual turnover of up to Rs 40 lakhs are exempt from GST and those with a turnover up to Rs 1.5 crore can opt for the Composition Scheme and pay only one per cent tax.
• Earlier, the GST exemption limit was Rs 20 lakh.
• The Ministry also informed that significant relief has been extended to the construction sector, particularly the housing sector. It has now been placed at the 5% rate. GST on affordable housing has been reduced to 1%.
• Out of a total of about 230 items in the 28% slab, about 200 items have been shifted to lower slabs.

About Ministry of Finance

• Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of India: Nirmala Sitharaman
• Constituency: Rajya sabha, Karnataka

CURRENT AFFAIRS:INTERNATIONAL

World Health Organization declares Africa free of polio

• World Health Organization has declared Africa free of polio, a landmark in a decades-long campaign to eradicate the notorious disease around the world. This was announced by WHO Regional Director of Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti. She described this as a historic day for Africa.
• A commission  led by Rose Gana Fomban Leke, has certified that no cases had occurred on the continent for the past four years, the threshold for eradication of poliovirus. The WHO stated, polio virus now joins smallpox in the list of viruses that have been wiped out in Africa.

About WHO:

• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
• Founded: 7 April 1948
• Heads: Tedros Adhanom, Soumya Swaminathan, Jane Ellison

BRICS Industry Ministers attend video meeting to discuss ways to boost cooperation in 5G, AI

• Industry Ministers of BRICS countries have attended a video meeting to discuss ways to boost cooperation in areas including 5G and Artificial Intelligence (AI). As per Chinese state media, the meeting adopted a joint statement on cooperation in new industries such as 5G, AI and the industrial Internet, among the five members bloc which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
• The video meeting comes ahead of the proposed meeting of the BRICS foreign ministers in early next month, arranged by the current BRICS chair Russia. China’s push for cooperation in 5G among BRICS countries may be seen in the backdrop of China’s efforts to push Huawei internationally with regard to development of 5G infrastructure, despite the company being embroiled in controversies in many countries.
• India and China are currently seeing their bilateral relations undergoing a rough phase. This has also impacted the economic ties between the two countries with India taking the path of self-reliance depending on imports for necessary items only, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision and strategy of ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’. India has also banned some chinese apps and put tighter scrutiny for foreign investments from its neighbouring countries including China.