Current Affairs 12 May 2021

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 12 May 2021, which have unique updates of Latest Current Affairs 2021 events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, PTI, Indian Express, Business Standard and all Government official websites.

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NATIONAL AFFAIRS

NITI Aayog & Mastercard release report on Digitally Inclusive BharatNITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) & Mastercard released a report titled ‘Connected Commerce: Creating a Roadmap for a Digitally Inclusive Bharat’. FTI Consulting was the Research and Curation Partner of the report.

• It identifies the challenges in accelerating digital financial inclusion in India and provides recommendations for making digital services accessible to 1.3 Billion citizens of India.
• The report was released by Dr Rajiv Kumar, Vice-Chairman of NITI Aayog and other key persons.
• NITI Aayog was the knowledge partner in the five roundtable discussions based on which the report has been prepared.

Key Recommendations of the report
i.Enhancing the payment infrastructure to promote a level playing field for Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) & Banks.
ii.Digitizing registration & compliance processes, and diversifying credit sources to enable growth opportunity for MSMEs.
iii.To create an information-sharing system, including a ‘fraud repository’, making it necessary for all e-commerce platforms to carry warnings to alert consumers about the risk of frauds.
iv.Enabling Agricultural NBFCs to deploy a ‘phygital’ model (physical+digital) to achieve better long-term digital outcomes. Digitizing land records also was recommended.
v.To develop a fully open system similar to that of London ‘Tube’ (rapid transit system of London) to make city transit accessible to all with minimal crowding and queues. 
About Mastercard
CEO – Michael Miebach
Headquarters – New York, USA
>>Read Full News

IIT Madras, MPFI partner to boost Digital Money Transactions in IndiaResearchers of Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) & members of Mobile Payment Forum of India (MPFI) are set to work together for boosting digital money transactions in India.

• The two entities will develop voice-based solutions, especially in multiple vernacular languages to enable larger adoption of digital money transactions in India.
• As part of the collaboration, IIT Madras will work on key technical areas like Machine Learning (ML) & Artificial Intelligence (AI), applied to the digital payments space.
• The collaboration  is part of MPFI’s efforts to achieve 500 million active Unified Payments Interface (UPI) users in India by 2025. At present, there are more than 100 million active UPI users every month in India.
• Union Government in its budget for the FY 2021-22  has allocated INR 1, 500 Crore for increasing the adoption of digital payments.

Mobile Payment Forum of India (MPFI)

• It is a Joint initiative of the Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT), Hyderabad and Rural Technology Business Incubator (RTBI), IIT Madras.
• It played a key  role in developing interoperability and security standards for Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), and UPI.

About Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras)
Director – Bhaskar Ramamurthi
Location – Chennai, Tamil Nadu
About Mobile Payment Forum of India (MPFI)
Chairman – Dr Gaurav Raina
>>Read Full News

MoEFCC notifies area around Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary as Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ)The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has notified 48.32 Square Kilometres area around the Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary (TCFS), Thane, Maharashtra as an Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ).

• The 48.32 Sq Km notified area extends from 0 – 3.89 km from the boundary of TCFS, which is spread across Mumbai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai.
• ESZ will act as a buffer zone for protected areas and reduce the developmental pressures around a wildlife sanctuary or national park.
• ESZ is notified by MoEFCC under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. 

Key Points
i.The Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary (TCFS) lies along the western bank of Thane Creek.

• It is the 2nd marine sanctuary of Maharashtra after Malvan Sanctuary, Sindhudurg, Maharashtra. 
•  It is home to 12 Mangrove species, 39 categories of mangrove species, 167 species of birds like flamingos, 45 fish species, 59 species of butterflies, 67 insect species and mammals like Jackals among others.

iii.Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZs) are areas within 10 km around Protected Areas, National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries.

• They act as ‘Shock Absorbers’ to Protected Areas (National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries).
• ESZs areas are regulated by MoEFCC. 

About Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC)
Union Minister – Prakash Javadekar (Rajya Sabha, Maharashtra)
Minister of State – Babul Supriyo (Lok Sabha – Asansol, West Bengal)
>>Read Full News

MoAFW Formulated Special Kharif Strategy To Achieve Self Sufficiency In Pulses

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare(MoAFW) formulated a special Kharif strategy for implementation in the ensuing Kharif 2021 season. The strategy aims to attain self-sufficiency in the production of pulses. 

• A detailed plan for the expansion and productivity enhancement of Tur, Moong and Urad has been formulated through consultations with the state governments. 
• For the 2021 Kharif season more than 20 lakh seed mini kits, 10 times more than 2020-2021, amounting to around Rs. 82 crores are proposed to be distributed. 
• The total cost of these kits will be borne by the Central government. 
• The kits used for the intercropping and sole crop will cover around 4.05 lakh hectare area in the 2021 Kharif season. 

Note:
The production of pulses in India has increased 65% in 2020-2021 compared to 2007-2008. 

Japan, UNDP India joint efforts to Boost Oxygen Supply in India’s NE Region

The Government of Japan & United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), India have partnered to provide oxygen generation plants to the North Eastern (NE) Region in India.

• The entities will procure and install 8 Pressure Swing Absorption (PSA) oxygen generation plants in the states of Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura.
• UNDP, India has already been supporting the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare with digitization of the supply chain of vaccines & tracking beneficiaries to ensure better access and coverage.
• India is facing a severe shortage of Medical Oxygen in the 2nd wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

BANKING & FINANCE

ADB launches Asia Pacific Tax Hub to enhance International Tax CooperationThe Asian Development Bank (ADB) has launched the ‘Asia Pacific Tax Hub’ to enhance International Tax Cooperation. 
i.The Hub will create an open and inclusive platform for promoting strategic policy dialogue, improving knowledge sharing & strengthening coordination on tax policy and administration among ADB members and development partners.

• It will maximise the regional and international resources to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation and international tax cooperation among ADB’s Developing Member Countries (DMCs).
• The hub will support DMCs on 3 main building blocks – Preparation of Medium-Term Revenue Strategies (MTRS),  roadmaps for automation of tax administration, and proactive participation in International Tax Initiatives.
• ADB will establish a Secretariat to operationalize the hub. The hub will organise a first high-level conference by the end of 2021.

Nirmala Sitharaman participates in 54th Annual Meeting of ADB 2021
Union Minister of Finance & ADB’s Governor for India Nirmala Sitharaman participated in ADB’s 54th Annual Meeting 2021, which took place virtually from May 3-5, 2021.
ADB’s 5 Point Agenda
Ahead of the 54th Annual Meeting, ADB outlined an 5-point agenda to achieve lasting equitable recovery in Asia and the Pacific in the Post COVID-19 era. They are climate actions, addressing inequality, green and digital infrastructure, strengthening regional cooperation and enhancing domestic resource mobilization.
About Asian Development Bank (ADB)
President – Masatsugu Asakawa
Headquarters – Mandaluyong City, Manila, Philippines
Members – 68 (including India)
Establishment year – 1966
>>Read Full News

Muthoot Finance tie-up with NIRA to Provide Personal LoansThe Muthoot Finance Limited collaborated with NIRA, a Bangalore-based fintech start-up to strengthen its digital footprint and enhance the personal loans growth.

• Loan Benefit under the partnership: The salaried customers could avail personal loan up to Rs 1 lakh from Muthoot Finance through the NIRA app (downloadable from Google’s Play store).
• NIRA fintech is offering small ticket personal loans to salaried customers of India’s middle class. They offer loans to the low-income salaried class starting with an income of Rs 12,000 per month onwards.

About NIRA:
Headquarters – Bangalore, Karnataka
CEO and Co-founder – Rohit Sen
About Muthoot Finance Limited:
Managing Director – George Alexander Muthoot
Headquarters – Kochi, Kerala

Federal Bank ties up with Mashreq Bank of UAE to offer money transferFederal Bank has entered into a strategic tie-up with Mashreq Bank of UAE, to facilitate money transfers from the UAE to India. 

• The partnership will support Mashreq’s payment product “QuickRemit”, which was launched in 2017. 
• The agreement made Mashreq bank as the first bank in the UAE to offer instant and same day credit facility to so many places, including the UK, Singapore, Philippines, Australia, Canada, Sri Lanka and majority of European countries.

Note:

• Personal inward remittances to India has a market share of 17%. 
• Federal Bank, a major player in the personal inward remittance space with around 90 remittance arrangements across the globe.

About Mashreq Bank:
Mashreq Bank has a presence in twelve countries across Europe, US, Asia and Africa. It is also the only privately-owned bank in the UAE.
Headquarter:Dubai,UAE
Chief Executive Officer(CEO):Ahmed Abdelaal
About Federal Bank:
Headquarter:Aluva,Kerala.
Managing Director(MD)& Chief Executive Officer(CEO):Shyam Srinivasan
Tagline:Your Perfect Banking Partner
>>Read Full News

RBI Revised the Guidelines for Private Banks to Undertake Govt Business; Amended the Master Direction on KYCOn May 10, 2021, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), revised the existing guidelines on “Appointment of Scheduled Private Sector Banks as Agency Banks of RBI” for authorising Scheduled Private Sector Banks as agency banks of RBI for conducting government (Central and/or State) business.
About the revised guidelines:
i.The Private Sector Agency Banks which already have agency banking agreements with RBI were authorized to continue the government agency business for Central and/or State Governments without taking any fresh approval from RBI.
 ii.For private sector banks that not having agency banking agreement with RBI and if wish to undertake government business, it will be approved by RBI only if it is not under the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework of the RBI.
-RBI Amended the Master Direction on KYC
RBI Amended the Master Direction on know your customer(KYC) to further leverage the video-based customer identification process (V-CIP) and simplify the process of periodic updating of KYC.
i.Amended Definition of V-CIP (Clause (xx) of Section 3):
V-CIP is an alternate method of customer identification with facial recognition and customer due diligence by an authorised official of the regulated entity (RE) by undertaking seamless, secure, live, informed-consent based audio-visual interaction with the customer.
ii.Amendment over the Clause (v) of Section 17:
Both the deposit and borrower accounts that are opened using OTP based e-KYC, will not be allowed for more than one year without identification.
iii.Amendment over Section 18 on V-CIP:
Under this, REs are allowed to undertake V-CIP for the following conditions:
i.To carry out CDD for, 

• Individual customers – in case of new customer onboarding
• Proprietor – in case of proprietorship firm
• Authorised signatories and Beneficial Owners (BOs)- in case of Legal Entity (LE) customers.

About Reserve Bank of India(RBI):
Establishment – 1st April 1935
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Governor – Shaktikanta Das
Deputy Governors – Mahesh Kumar Jain, Michael DebabrataPatra, M Rajeshwar Rao, and T Rabi Sankar (appointed on May 2021)
>>Read Full News

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

Tahera Qutbuddin won 15th annual Sheikh Zayed Book Award in 2021;1st Indian to Win the AwardMumbai born American, Tahera Qutbuddin, Professor of Arabic Literature, Department of NELC, University of Chicago, won the Sheikh Zayed Book Award in 2021 for her book titled “Arabic Oration: Art and Function”. She became the first person from India to win the award. 

• She won the award under the Arab Culture in Other Languages category. 
• The awards under 8 different book categories were announced at the 15th annual Sheikh Zayed Book Award held in Abu Dhabi. 
• The awards will be formally presented to the winners in a digital ceremony in May 2021 in Abu Dhabi.

Note:
i.The Sheikh Zayed Book Award named Prominent German philosopher Juergen Habermas as the “Cultural Personality of the Year(2021)”.
ii.Juergen Habermas has refused to accept the award.
About Sheikh Zayed Book Award:
i.The Sheikh Zayed Book Award is an independent initiative administered by the Department of Culture and Tourism, Abu Dhabi. The first edition of the award was presented in 2006.
ii.The award commemorates the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Founding President of the United Arab Emirates(UAE) and Ruler of Abu Dhabi. 
iii.The award is annually presented to outstanding writers, intellectuals and publishers. 
Other Winners of 2021:

Justice Gita Mittal became 1st Indian to Receive Arline Pacht Global Vision Award for 2021 by IAWJJustice Gita Mittal, Former Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) High Court received the Arline Pacht Global Vision Award for 2021 by the International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ). She became the first India Judge to receive the honour. 
She was declared as one of the recipients of the award. She shared the award with Justice Margarita Luna Ramos of Mexico. 

• The award was presented at IAWJ’s Biennial Conference during the virtual opening ceremony. 

About Arline Pacht Global Vision Award:
The Arline Pacht Global Vision Award was instituted by IAWJ in 2016 to recognise the contribution of the sitting or retired women judges to the IAWJ and the goals of IAWJ. 
About Gita Mittal:
i.Gita Mittal is currently serving as the Chairperson of the Broadcasting Content Complaints Council (BCCC), a self-regulatory body for general entertainment channels established by the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF). She is the first woman to hold this post. 
ii.She has served as the Acting Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court in 2017. 
In 2018 she became the first woman to be appointed as the Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court. 
About International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ):
President- Hon. Vanessa Ruiz
Founded in– 1991
Headquarters– Washington, DC, United States

Indian UN Peacekeeping Officer Yuvraj Singh Honored by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres honored Indian UN Peacekeeping officer Yuvraj Singh, who died in line of duty in 2020, during the UN annual Memorial Service 2021.

• Permanent Representative of India to UN, T S Tirumurti saluted Yuvraj Singh’s valour and contribution, and conveyed condolences to the family.
• Corporal Yuvraj Singh was among the 336 UN personnel who lost their lives in the line of duty due to the COVID-19 and related circumstances between January 1 and December 31, 2020.

        APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Arun Kumar Singh Appointed as CMD of BPCL: PESB
Arun Kumar Singh was appointed as the Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) by the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) panel.The post was vacant after D.Rajkumar retired in August, 2020.

• Currently he is serving as Director (Marketing) in BPCL and also holds additional charge of the post of Director (Refineries).
• Currently, BPCL’s Director (HR) K Padmakar holds the additional charge of the BPCL CMD post.
• Padmakar was given an additional charge of the post in September 2020 after Rajkumar’s superannuation.

About Arun Kumar Singh:
i.Arun Kumar Singh is a Mechanical Engineer with the first rank from the National Institute of Technology, Patna.
ii.He has also held the position of President (Africa & Australasia) in Bharat PetroResources Ltd (BPRL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of BPCL.
iii.He was also a Director on the board of Bharat Gas Resources Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of BPCL.
About Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL):
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) is a government-controlled oil and gas company headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is a Maharatna PSU under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG).

Jose J Kattoor Appointed as Executive Director of RBI 

The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has appointed Jose J Kattoor as its Executive Director (ED) with effect from 4th May 2021. He has been serving as the Regional Director for Karnataka at the Bengaluru Regional Office of RBI. His appointment comes after RBI’s Executive Director, T Rabi Sankar appointed as the 4th Deputy Governor of RBI in April 2021. 
As the ED of RBI he will manage the Human Resource Management Department, Corporate Strategy and Budget Department and Rajbhasha Department. 

          ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS 

CPP Invests Rs 1,005 cr in Indinfravit for an Additional 15.9% StakeThe Canada’s Largest Pension Fund, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) acquired an additional 15.9 percent of the total units in IndInfravit Trust, an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT), through 2 separate transactions, for Rs 1,005 crore (~173 million Canadian dollars ).

• About the deal: CPP Investments has acquired 7 percent of the units from Sadbhav Infrastructure Project, and 8.9 percent from L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Ltd (L&T IDPL).
• After the acquisition, CPP’s stake in IndInfravit increased from 27.9 percent to 43.8 percent.

About IndInfravit Trust:
i.It is an irrevocable trust set up under the Indian Trusts Act, 1882.
ii.It was sponsored by L&T IDPL and it acquires and maintains stable brownfield road concessions in India.
iii.L&T IDPL is also the Investment Manager of the Trust and it is the Project Manager to the trust along with Sadbhav Infrastructure Project Limited.
iv.Currently it holds a portfolio of 13 operational road concessions across Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. The roads have been operational, on average, for around 7 years.
About IndInfravit Trust:

• It is the first private InvIT formed in India

Headquarters – Chennai, Tamil Nadu
CEO – Pawan Kant
About CPP Investments:
Establishment – 1997
President & CEO – John Graham
Headquarters – Toronto, Canada

MMFS Extended the Date of Investment in Sri Lanka’s Ideal Finance to September 30, 2021

Due to COVID-19, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services (MMFS) has extended the date of investment of the third and final tranche for the acquisition of shares of Ideal Finance Ltd (from its existing shareholders) to September 30, 2021.
Note – Ideal Finance Ltd, is a Sri Lankan non-banking financial company.
Background:
i.On August 20, 2019, a “Share Subscription, Share Purchase and Shareholders’ Agreement” executed by MMFS with Ideal Finance and its existing Shareholders.
ii.As per the agreement, 58.20 percent of the Equity Share Capital of Ideal Finance, has to be subscribed/ acquired by MMFS in one or more tranches, for an amount not exceeding Sri Lankan Rupee 200.30 crore (~ $ 11.25 million, or Rs 80.77 crore) by March 2021.
About the Date Extension:
i.Both MMFS and Ideal Finance have mutually agreed to extend the date of completion of the acquisition of shares by 30th September 2021 (from March-end 2021).
 ii.Till now, 38.20 percent of the equity share capital of Ideal Finance was acquired by MMFS, to acquire the remaining shares from existing investors.
About Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services (MMFS):
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Non-Executive Chairman – Anish Shah
Vice-Chairman & MD – Ramesh Iyer
About Ideal Finance Ltd:
Establishment – March 2012
Chairman –  Nalin Welgama
Headquarters – Colombo, Sri Lanka
Director/CEO – Duminda Weerasekare 

       SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

SpaceX to launch DOGE-1 Satellite to the Moon in 2022SpaceX is set to launch the ‘DOGE-1’ Satellite to the Moon in 2022. It will accept the cryptocurrency ‘Dogecoin’ as full payment for the mission. It will be the 1st ever commercial lunar payload in history to be paid entirely with a Cryptocurrency.

• The Satellite is being developed by Geometric Energy Corporation (GEC), and will be launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon9 rocket.

Key Points
i.The cubic satellite will obtain ‘lunar-spatial intelligence from sensors and cameras on board with integrated communications and computational systems.
ii.Dogecoin is a cryptocurrency invented by Software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer. It was launched in 2013.

•  Globally, it is the 4th Largest Digital Currency (1st – Bitcoin).

About SpaceX
Chief Executive Officer – Elon Musk
Headquarters – California, USA
>>Read Full News

Mayflower 400, World’s First AI Ship to Navigate across The AtlanticWorld’s First Artificial Intelligence(AI) Ship named “Mayflower 400” is set to Navigate Across Atlantic.It is an Unmanned Vessel & was built by the marine research organization ProMare in collaboration with IBM.
It will begin its transatlantic voyage on May 15, 2021, to track aquatic mammals, analyze plastic in the water, and study marine pollution.
Key highlights
i.Mayflower 400 is a completely autonomous ship. It is a 15-m-long trimaran that weighs 9 tons.
ii.It is powered by Artificial Intelligence and the Sun’s energy via solar panels.
iii.Currently, the ship is trained to handle 50 meters high waves.
About International Business Machines(IBM):
International Business Machines(IBM) Corporation is an American multinational technology and consulting company.
Chief Executive Officer(CEO):Arvind Krishna
Headquarters:Armonk,USA
>>Read Full News

ATMAN AI-DRDO’s CAIR Developed AI Tool for COVID-19 Detection from Chest X-rays Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)’s Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR) in association with 5C Network & HCG Academics has developed an Artificial Intelligence(AI) tool named ATMAN AI for COVID-19 detection from chest X-rays.
About ATMAN AI:
i.The tool will help in automatically detecting radiological findings indicative of Covid-19 in seconds, enabling physicians and radiologists to more effectively triage the cases, especially in an emergency environment
ii.This tool can be used widely because of its features like,

• Fastness
• Cost-effectiveness
• Efficiency

iii.Atman AI used for Chest X-ray screening has shown an accuracy rate of 96.73 per cent
iv.It can be a very useful tool especially in smaller towns in our country owing to lack of easy access to CT scans

IMPORTANT DAYS

National Technology Day – 11th May 2021The National Technology Day is annually observed across India on 11th May to celebrate India’s major advancement in the field of Science and Technology. The day marks the anniversary of the 1998 Pokhran Nuclear tests, a series of 5 nuclear tests conducted by India.

• The theme of National Technology Day 2021 is “Science and Technology for a Sustainable Future”.
• The day also marks the first flight of the first indigenous aircraft “Hansa-3”.
• The day also celebrates the various achievements of India in the field of Technology and innovation. 

Background:
Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1998 – 2004) declared the 11th May as the National Technology Day to mark the successful nuclear test conducted at the Indian Army’s Pokhran Test Range, Rajasthan in 1998. 
The first National Technology Day was celebrated on 11th May 1999. 
About Technology Development Board(TDB):
TDB was constituted in September 1996 under the Technology Development Board Act, 1995.
Chairperson– Ashutosh Sharma
Headquarters– New Delhi
>>Read Full News

STATE NEWS

‘Miyon ka Bara’ Railway Station renamed Mahesh Nagar in Jodhpur, Rajasthan

The  Miyon ka Bara railway station has been renamed to Mahesh Nagar in Jodhpur, Rajasthan after getting an approval. Prior to this, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had approved and changed the name of the village from Miyon ka Bara to Mahesh Nagar and conveyed the decision to the Rajasthan government in 2018.

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