Current Affairs Daily Digest – September 04 2020
1. India attends BIMSTEC meet
India attended BIMSTEC meet and discussed ways to expand cooperation among its member countries. It further discussed ways to expand cooperation to deal with the current COVID-19 challenges.
The grouping accounts to 22% of global population. It has a combined Gross Domestic Product of 2.8 trillion USD. India has been pushing to make BIMSTEC a vibrant forum.
Highlights
BIMSTEC Expansion – Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
2. Assam Assembly passes bill to protect Tangible Heritage
The Assam Assembly passed bill to protect Tangible Heritage that are not currently covered by the state and national law. According the Assam Government the passage of the Assam Heritage (Tangible) Protection, Preservation, Conservation and Maintenance Bill, 2020 is a historic step towards implementing Clause 6 of Assam Accord.
The Tangible Heritage bill seeks to include museum objects such as sculptures, coins, manuscripts, epigraphs and other works of cultural artifacts and craftsmanship.
Highlights
Assam Capital: Dispur
Assam Chief minister & Governor – Sarbananda Sonowal & Jagdish Mukhi
3. THE World University Ranking 2021: No Indian University in top 300
The Times Higher Education announced the results of World University Rankings, 2021. The University of Oxford was at the top position followed by Stanford University, Harvard University, California Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Highlights
China’s Tsinghua University was the first Asian university to make it to top 20.
4. India to host Summit of SCO Council on November 30
India is to host a summit of council of heads of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) on November 30, 2020. India is in the plan of expanding its cooperation with the grouping.
India was an observer of SCO till 2005. It became a member in 2017 along with Pakistan.
5. 11th edition of exercise INDRA NAVY begins in Bay of Bengal
Indian Navy and Russian Navy has commenced the 11th edition of a biennial bilateral maritime exercise “INDRA NAVY”. The biennial bilateral maritime exercise will be conducted in the Bay of Bengal from 04 to 05 September 2020. The maritime exercise “INDRA NAVY” embodies the long-term strategic relationship between the two Navies.
Highlights
President of Russia: Vladimir Putin.
Capital of Russia: Moscow; Currency: Russian Ruble.
Chief of Naval Staff: Admiral Karambir Singh.
6. Raj Srivastava appointed as India’s Ambassador to Republic of Croatia
Raj Kumar Srivastava has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Croatia. He is an IFS officer of 1997 batch and is presently serving as the Deputy Chief of Mission in the Embassy of India, Tokyo.
Highlights
Capital of Croatia: Zagreb; Currency: Croatian kuna.
President of Croatia: Zoran Milanovic.
7. Saudi Arabia chairs G20 Foreign Ministers’ Extraordinary Meeting
Saudi Arabia chaired the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Extraordinary Meeting which was held in the virtual mode. External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar represented India in the virtual meeting that was convened in the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis.
Highlights
The members of the G20 group are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Republic of Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union (EU).
8. NTPC wins AIMA Chanakya National Management Games 2020
Team of NTPC Limited, the Central PSU under Ministry of Power, has won the All India Management Association (AIMA) Chanakya (Business Simulation Game) National Management Games (NMG) 2020. The team from NTPC Vallur, Tamil Nadu won the championship which featured the participation of teams from 112 organisations from different parts of the country.
Highlights
Founded: 1975
Headquarters: New Delhi, India
9. IIPA organizes “National Tribal Research Conclave”
The Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Tribal Affairs, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) organised 2-days long “National Tribal Research Conclave”. The inaugural session of conclave was addressed by the Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda.
10. ICICI Bank launches ‘Home Utsav’, a virtual property exhibition
ICICI Bank has launched a virtual property exhibition under the name ‘Home Utsav’. The exhibition will digitally showcase real estate projects by renowned developers, across India.
Highlights
ICICI Bank Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra.
ICICI Bank MD & CEO: Sandeep Bakhshi.
ICICI Bank Tagline: Hum Hai Na, Khayal Apka.
11. India’s P Iniyan wins World Open Online Chess Tournament
Indian Grandmaster P Iniyan has won the prestigious 48th Annual World Open online chess tournament. He scored 7.5 points out of a possible 9 with six victories and three draws to finish on top.
Highlights
Iniyan defeated Grandmasters Baadur Jobava of Georgia, Sam Sevian, Sergey Erenburg of the USA and Nyzhyk Illia of Ukraine.
12. Murali Ramakrishnan becomes new MD & CEO of South Indian Bank
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the appointment of Murali Ramakrishnan as Managing Director and CEO of the South Indian Bank for a period of three years with effect from October 1, 2020.
Highlights
South Indian Bank Headquarters: Thrissur, Kerala.
South Indian Bank Tagline: Experience Next Generation Banking.
13. Former England Cricketer David Capel passes away
Former England all-rounder and legendary cricketer, David Capel passed away. He had played around 15 tests and 23 One Day Internationals(ODIs) representing England from 1987 to 1990. He made his Test debut against Pakistan in 1987.
14. A new book titled “Let Us Dream” by Pope Francis
Pope Francis is set to release the book “Let Us Dream” in December 2020. In the book, Pope Francis explains how a crisis can teach an individual to deal with problems they face in their lives. He cites three major crises from his own personal life.
15. S Krishnan becomes new MD & CEO of Punjab & Sind Bank
Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of S Krishnan as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Punjab & Sind Bank. He will replace S Harishankar.
Highlights
Punjab & Sind Bank Tagline: Where Service is a Way of Life.
16. Hyderabad International Airport wins CII-GBC ‘National Energy Leader’ award
The Hyderabad International Airport or GMR led Rajiv Gandhi International Airport won the ‘National Energy Leader’ and ‘Excellent Energy Efficient Unit’ awards at the 21st National Awards for ‘Excellence in Energy Management’.
Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited-Vizag Steel Plant (RINL-VSP) has also been awarded ‘Excellent Energy Efficient Unit’ award by CII-GBC in national award competition for excellence in energy management.
17. India, Russia finalise deal to manufacture AK-47 203 Rifles
India and Russia on September 3, 2020 finalised a deal to manufacture AK-47 203 rifles in India. The deal was finalised during the ongoing visit of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Russia. This major development was reported by Russia’s state-run Sputnik news agency.
18. India to host Quad meet and 2+2 dialogue
India will soon be hosting the Quad meet involving Australia, Japan and the United States and the 2+2 dialogue with the United States. The details are being worked out for the same.
Highlights
Quad or the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue is an informal strategic forum, which was formed initially in 2007 between the United States, Japan, Australia and India.
