Current Affairs 8 September 2021

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 8 September 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

Parshottam Rupala Chaired National Level Meeting with all State Animal Husbandry/Veterinary Ministers;Launched NLM PortalUnder the chairmanship of the Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Parshottam Rupala, a  National Level Meeting with all State Animal Husbandry/Veterinary Ministers was conducted. Government of India granted Special Livestock Sector Package with an outlay of Rs. 9800 crore for next 5 years leveraging total investment of Rs. 54,618 crore.

During the launch,Union Minister Parshottam Rupala launched the portal for the National Livestock Mission (NLM).It is developed by Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) in collaboration with the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying.

Highlights

• According to the Cabinet decision, the National Livestock Mission(NLM) and Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM) plans will have new components of breeder farm entrepreneurs and fodder entrepreneurs.
• 50% capital subsidy will be provided to the farm producer for increasing the production and supply of high genetic merit heifers under RGM.
• The NLM will help in creating employment in rural areas and also building better lifestyle opportunities for youth and livestock farmers. By providing 50% subsidy via hub spoke model, it will enhance the work towards Atmanirbhar Bharat.

About Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries-
Minister- Parshottam Rupala (Rajya Sabha,Gujarat)
Minister of State- Sanjeev Kumar Balyan ( Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh), L Murugan (Tamil Nadu)
>>Read Full News

PM Modi launched various initiatives in education sector at the inaugural conclave of Shikshak ParvThe inaugural conclave of Shikshak Parv 2021 was addressed by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi through video conferencing on 7 September, during which PM Modi has launched various schemes in the education sector under Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav(75th Anniversary of Indian Independence) such as Indian Sign Language Dictionary, Vidyanjali 2.0, NISHTHA 3.0, Talking Books and School Quality Assessment and Assurance Framework (SQAAF).
Shikshak Parv 2021 
It is being celebrated from September 5 to 17, 2021 by the Ministry of Education in order to recognise the contributions of teachers in the formulation of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

• The theme of the ‘Shikshak Parv-2021’ is “Quality and Sustainable Schools: Learnings from Schools in India”.

About Ministry of Education(MoE):
Union Minister–  Dharmendra Pradhan (Rajya Sabha- Madhya Pradesh)
Minister of State– Annpurna Devi (Kodarma- Jharkhand); Subhas Sarkar (Bankura- West Bengal); Rajkumar Ranjan Singh (Inner Manipur- Manipur)
>>Read Full News

Bail Pola Festival 2021 – September 6Bail Pola festival or the Festival of cattle, is a thanksgiving festival celebrated by the farmers to recognise and acknowledge the importance of oxen and bulls in agriculture and farming activities. The Bail Pola is also celebrated as Pola Amavasya in parts of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. ‘Bail’ in Marathi means ‘Bull’
The Bail Pola is annually celebrated on Pithori Amavasya or Amavasya in Shravan month which falls between late August and early September.

• Bail Pola festival 2021 is celebrated on 6th September 2021. 
• Bail Pola Festival 2020 was celebrated on 18th August 2020. 

Significance:
The Bail Pola festival is celebrated by the farmers across the states of Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka after the monsoon sowing and fieldwork.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

India & Australia conducts biennial Maritime Warfare exercise – ‘AUSINDEX 21’Indian Navy and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) conducts the 4th Edition of biennial Maritime Warfare exercise – “AUSINDEX 21” in the North Australian Exercise Area from 6th to 10th September, 2021. Indian Naval Ships (INS) Shivalik & Kadmatt, under the Command of Rear Admiral Tarun Sobti, participated in the Naval exercise.
i.HMAS Warramunga, an Anzac Class Frigate, represents the Australian side in the exercise.
ii.The Naval Exercise comes ahead of the 1st ever “2+2” Foreign and Defence Ministers meeting that is scheduled to be held between India & Australia in November 2021 at New Delhi.
About Australia:
Prime Minister – Scott Morrison
Capital – Canberra
About Indian Navy:
Chief of Naval Staff – Karambir Singh
Navy Day – 4th December
>>Read Full News

BANKING & FINANCE

SBM-India partners with OneCard to launch mobile-based credit card ‘mobile-first’In order to target the tech-savvy population, SBM Bank-India (State Bank of Mauritius), on September 6, 2021, has partnered with OneCard to launch a mobile-based credit card namely ‘mobile-first’ which will be offered through an app.

• This launch will be a part of the bank’s smart banking mission which acknowledges the expansion of digitalization in India.
• In this partnership, OneCard will utilize its Visa’s technology and global acceptance.

Key Points:
i.This credit card will be powered by a slick, smart OneCard app which, for the first time ever, gives the customer full control of their credit card i.e spends, rewards, limits, payments and more.
ii.In 2019, OneCard launched OneScore app allowing people to monitor and manage their credit health.

• Now with the use of this app, user can easily apply for the card digitally unlike traditional credit cards, besides fulfilling a host of eligibility criteria and documentation.

iii.It should be noted that, as per ResearchAndMarkets, the Indian credit card industry is expected to grow at a CAGR (Compound annual growth rate) of more than 25% during 2020 – 2025 due to ‘buy now pay later’.
About OneCard:
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)– Anurag Sinha
Headquarter– Pune, Maharashtra
SBM Bank (India):
It is the first foreign bank (Mauritius) to receive a banking license from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and to establish a universal banking business in India through the Wholly Owned Subsidiary (WOS) mode.
Establishment– 1994
MD & CEO– Sidharth Rath
Headquarter– Mumbai, Maharashtra

Project Dunbar: Central Banks of Australia, Malaysia, Singapore & South Africa to test CBDCs for international settlementsThe Central Banks of Australia, Singapore, Malaysia and South Africa have launched ‘Project Dunbar’ under which these quad banks will test the use of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) for international settlements.

• This project will be led by the Singapore Centre of Bank of International Settlements Innovation Hub.
• The project aims to develop prototype shared platforms for multi-CBDC settlement that fulfils the needs and requirements of central banks and financial institutions.

Participating Central Banks:
Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and South African Reserve Bank (SARB)
Key Points:
i.This quad will conduct a cross border payments trial using different CBDCs to assess if this allows transactions to be settled more cheaply and easily.

• These multi-CBDC platforms will allow financial institutions to transact directly with each other in the digital currencies issued by participating central banks which will eliminate the need for intermediaries and also decrease the time and cost of transactions.

ii.It should be noted that a separate BIS-led project exploring using CBDCs for cross border payments is also underway involving central banks from China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the UAE (United Arab Emirates).
The results of this project will be published by 2022, but the platform prototypes will debut at the Singapore FinTech Festival in November 2021.

HDFC Bank signs MoU with NSIC to offer credit support to MSMEsIndia’s largest Private sector bank, HDFC Bank has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) to offer credit support to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across the country.

• The MoU was signed by Gaurang Dixit, Director of Finance, NSIC  and Akhilesh Kumar Roy, National Head – Sales Excellence and Transformation, HDFC bank at NSIC office, Okhla, New Delhi.

Key Points:

• Under this collaboration, A set of specially tailored schemes will be offered by the HDFC bank in order to enhance their competitiveness.
• HDFC Bank branches will extend support to MSME projects in their location or other important industrial sectors.
• As per lending norms laid down in the lending policy of the Bank, the bank will sanction loan applications forwarded by NSIC.

About HDFC Bank:
Establishment – 1994
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra
MD & CEO – Sashidhar Jagdishan
Tagline – We understand your world
About National Small Industries Corporation(NSIC):
Chairman-Cum-Managing Director (CMD) –Vijayendra
Headquarters – New Delhi

UCO Bank partners with ‘Fisdom’ to offer Wealth Management ProductsUCO Bank (United Commercial Bank) partnered with ‘Fisdom’, a financial sector company that specializes in fund management, to offer wealth management services & products to its customers. Under this collaboration, UCO bank customers can now make seamless investments in Mutual Funds through its ‘mBanking Plus App’.
i.This partnership has enabled high-quality wealth management services on all mutual fund schemes, in a fully digital mode to the customers of UCO Bank.
ii.The collaboration between Fisdom and UCO Bank will focus on enabling large-scale facilitation and distribution of all mutual fund schemes
iii.The fully digital, paperless investment feature, will allow the customers to redeem investments or track fund performance through UCO Bank’s mBanking Plus App.
Note – In August 2021, the Central Government extended the tenure of Atul Kumar Goel, the Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of UCO Bank for 2-years.
About Fisdom:
CEO – Subramanya S V
Head Office – Bangalore, Karnataka
About UCO Bank:
MD & CEO – Atul Kumar Goel
Tagline – “Honours Your Trust”
Established – 1943
Headquarter – Kolkata, West Bengal

Visa in partnership with Innoviti Develop Stored Value Debit Card for Offline PaymentsVisa has partnered with payment solutions firm Innoviti to enable the service of storing money in the cards upto Rs 2,000. It will enable transactions without connectivity. It is mainly for making offline payments.Visa solution will be first of its kind in India that will deliver such services.

• The new Visa cards will be equipped with a chip, which holds a stored value of a daily spend limit of Rs 2,000 and has a per transaction limit of Rs 200. It is mandated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Highlights
i.The Proof of Concept (PoC) has been implemented in association with Yes Bank and Axis Bank.
ii.These stored value cards will be different from prepaid cards as the authorization is based on the network cloud.
iii.It will also work in rural areas where internet connectivity is abysmal.
Offline Visa cards are expected to increase the transition of payment from cash to digital.
iv.RBI is also promoting this initiative and urging other banks to come up with offline transaction facilities.
Innoviti Payment Solutions
MD & CEO-Rajeev Agrawal
Headquarters- Bengaluru, Karnataka

BOI & MAS Financial Services Enters Co-Lending Arrangement for MSME LoansThe Bank of India (BOI) has entered into a co-lending arrangement with the MAS Financial Services Limited for MSME to offer Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises(MSME) loans. Under this partnership, the Bank of India will utilize the reach of MAS Financial Services to build the MSME portfolio.

• The strategic co-lending arrangement was announced on the occasion of the 116th Foundation Day of the Bank of India.

Co-Lending:
Co-lending was introduced by the Reserve Bank of India(RBI) to increase the credit flow to the unserved and underserved sector by utilising a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) coverage to the informal sector.
116th Foundation Day:
BOI marked the celebration of its 116th Foundation day by celebrating the “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”. 

• BOI was established on 7th September 1906 and the bank was nationalised in July 1969.

About Bank of India(BOI):
Managing Director & CEO– Atanu Kumar Das
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra
Tagline– Relationship beyond banking
About MAS Financial Services Limited:
CMD– Kamlesh Gandhi
Director & CEO– Darshana Pandya
Incepted in 1995
Headquarter – Ahmedabad, Gujarat

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

Moody’s projects India’s GDP growth to 9.6% for CY2021; Morgan Stanley estimated at 10.5% for FY22i.The rating agency Moody in its August update to ‘Global Macro Outlook 2021-22’ projected India’s growth for calendar year (CY) 2021 at 9.6% and 7% for 2022.
ii.As per the update, the easing of COVID-19 restrictions gradually increases the growth in Indian economic activities.
iii.Morgan Stanley maintained its estimate of India GDP growth at 10.5% for FY22. As per the agency, by the end of Q2FY22 (quarter ending September2021) economic activities will start getting back to normal.
About Morgan Stanley
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO)– James Gorman
Headquarters– New York, United States (US)
About Moody:
President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO)– Rob Fauber
Headquarters– New York, United States (US)
>>Read Full News

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS        

Delhi Airport Won CII ‘National Energy Leader’ and ‘Excellent Energy Efficient Unit’ 2021

Indira Gandhi International Airport also known as Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) led by GMR Group won 2 Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) National Energy Leader 2021 and Excellent Energy Efficient Unit 2021 at the 22nd National Award Ceremony for ‘Excellence in Energy Management” organised by CII Green Business Centre (GBC).

• DIAL has won the National Energy Leader award for the 2nd year and the Excellent Energy Efficient Unit award for the 4th year in a row.
• The awards recognise the energy efficiency initiatives adopted by the company in its daily operations.

Additional Info:
Rajiv Gandhi International Airport also known as GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL) has clinched the prestigious awards of CII “National Energy Leader” and “Excellent Energy Efficient Unit” for the 3rd and 5th years in a row.

 ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS        

Amicus Insurance Broking to Merge with First Policy Insurance BrokerFirst Policy Insurance Brokers will merge with Amicus Insurance Brokers to consolidate its position in the market. After the merging, they will become one of the leading insurance brokers in the country.

• Insurance regulator, Insurance Regulatory and Development Association of India (IRDAI) granted the in-principle approval for this transaction on 5th August 2021.
• The merger process also needs to get few more closure formalities, specified in the Companies Act.

About the merger:
i.The merger of Amicus Insurance Broking with First Policy will contribute to a 40% growth in the revenues of the First Policy.
ii.Following this merger, Jitendranath Nayer, Chairman of Amicus Insurance will join the board of First Policy.
About First Policy Insurance Broker Private Limited:
Director- Ashok Jain
Headquarters– Pune, Maharashtra
Founded in 2002
About Amicus Insurance Broking Services Private Limited:
CEO– K.V. Satheesh Kumar
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

China successfully Launches Hyperspectral Observation Satellite ‘Gaofen-502’ by Long March RocketAccording to a report, the China National Space Administration has launched its hyper spectral observation satellite, called Gaofen-502 at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center using the Long March 4 Bingyao 40 carrier rocket.The satellite and launch vehicle are developed and produced by the Shanghai Aerospace Technology Research Institute of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.
Highlights

• It was the 387th flight mission by a Long March carrier rocket.
• The satellite will improve the hyperspectral observation capacity of China’s atmosphere,water, air and land.
• China will be able to efficiently monitor the environmental activities and provide domestic hyperspectral data support for environmental support.
• It will help in monitoring water, ecology, atmosphere etc.

What is Hyperspectral Imaging?
i.It is the process of scanning and displaying an image within a section of the electromagnetic spectrum.
ii.To create an image that the human eye can see, the energy levels of a target are color-coded and then mapped in layers.
iii.This set of images provide specific information about the way an object transmits, reflects, or absorbs energy in various wavelengths.
About China
President- Xi Jinping
Currency- Renminbi
Capital- Beijing

ENVIRONMENT

Tamil Nadu to get India’s 1st ever Dugong Conservation reserve in Palk BayDuring the Assembly session of the government of Tamil Nadu, K. Ramachandran, Minister for Environment, Climate Change, and Forests, Government of Tamil Nadu, announced the plan to establish India’s first-ever Dugong (also known as Sea cows) Conservation Reserve in the marine region of Palk Bay, in the southern coastal region of Tamil Nadu.
About Dugong Conservation:
i.The conservation reserve aims to protect the Dugong and its habitat.
ii.The Marine Conservation Reserve will cover an area of 500km in Palk Bay spanning from Adirampattinam to Amapattinam.
iii.The species of Dugong has been threatened due to the destruction of its feed which includes ocean surface weeds and seagrass/weeds.
About Dugong:
i.The dugong, a herbivorous marine mammal that is one of the four living species of the order Sirenia, is facing extinction due to water pollution,  habitat loss and loss of seagrass.
ii.The dugong are endangered and currently listed as vulnerable to extinction species based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature(IUCN) 1996 red list- species.
iii.It is estimated that there are more than 200 individual dugongs living in the area.
iv.In India, dugongs are found in Palk Bay, Gulf of Mannar in Tamil Nadu, Gulf of Kutch in Gujarat and Andaman and Nicobar islands.
v.The dugong is related to the Steller’s Sea cow, which became extinct in the 18th century.
Additional info:
Other major initiatives proposed by the government of Tamil Nadu are,

• Establishment of an elephant sanctuary
• Establishment of 3 medical facilities for Emergency critical care and rehabilitation of wildlife.

About Tamil Nadu:
Chief Minister– M.K.Stalin
Tiger Reserve– Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve; Srivilliputhur – Meghamalai Tiger Reserve
Zoological park– Arignar anna zoological park; Amirthi zoological park

SPORTS

Part-II: Overview of 2020 Tokyo Paralympics 

The Indian contingent has won a total of 19 medals with 5 Golds, 8 Silvers and 6 Bronze medals in the 16th edition of Summer Paralympic games that was held between 24th August and 5th September 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. The 19 medal count is higher than the total number of paralympics medals won by India in all the events since its 1st appearance in the 1968 Paralympic games.
i.India has won a total of 12 medals from 1972 to 2016 in Paralympic games, where it had a highest total medal count of 4, both in 2016 and 1984.
ii.A total of 17 athletes have won 19 medals, with 2 athletes – Avani Lekhara & Singhraj Adhana have won 2 medals each 
iii.India was ranked 24th in the overall medal tally with 19 medals, while the top 3 positions in the medal tally were occupied by China, Great Britain & USA.
Highlights:
i.Shooter Avani Lekhara becomes first Indian woman to win gold at Paralympics.
ii.Pramod Bhagat won the Gold medal in the men’s singles SL3 class.This is India’s first medal in badminton at the Paralympics Games.
iii.Suhas Yathiraj – 1st ever IAS Officer to win Paralympic Medal.
iv.Bhavinaben Patel creates history, Becomes 1st Indian para-paddler to win silver medal.
v.India’s 1st Medal in Archery – won by Harvinder Singh.
About Paralympics:

• The 1st ever Paralympic games were held in 1960 at Rome, Italy
• Paralympic Symbol consists of 3 ‘Agitos’ (meaning – ‘I Move’)
• Motto of 2020 Tokyo Paralympics – “United by Emotion”

>>Read Full News

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies 2021 – September 7The United Nations(UN)’s International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies is annually observed across the globe on 7th September to create awareness about the importance of healthy air and the effects of air pollution, one of the environmental threats, on humans health.

• 7th September 2021 commemorates the observance of the 2nd International Day of Clean Air for blue skies.
• The official commemoration of the 2021 International Day of Clean Air for blue skies takes place in Nairobi, Kenya; New York, United States of America and Bangkok, Thailand.

The theme of the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies 2021 is “Healthy Air, Healthy Planet”.
Background:
i.The United Nations General Assembly(UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/74/212 on 19th December 2019 and proclaimed the 7th September 2021 of every year as the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies.
ii.The first-ever International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies was observed on 7th September 2020 under the theme “Clean Air for All”. 
UNEP Report: European and Central Asian Actions on Air Quality:
The report titled “European and Central Asian Actions on Air Quality” by UNEP along with the IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute has been launched ahead of the International Day of clear air for blue skies.
>>Read Full News

STATE NEWS

Gujarat rolls out ‘Vatan Prem Yojana’ for Non-Resident Gujarat People to develop Rural areasThe state government of Gujarat initiated ‘Vatan Prem Yojana’ which encourages non-resident Indians (NRIs) from Gujarat or people living anywhere in India with Gujarati origins (Non-Resident Gujarat People) to fund development projects in their native villages.

• Under this scheme, the state government envisages to develop public welfare projects worth Rs 1000 crore by December 2022.
• The donor can fund a minimum 60% of projects and the balance up to 40% will be provided by the State government i.e. 60:40 ratio.

Key Points:
i.The governing board of this scheme will be chaired by the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Vijay Rupani, with members being ministers, bureaucrats, chairperson of the Non Resident Gujarati Foundation.

• There will be two distinguished persons involved in development work in rural areas as invitees.

ii.The development projects include school classroom renovations, primary health centres, anganwadi, mid-day meal rooms, store rooms, libraries, gymnasium, surveillance systems, drainage, water recycling, sports complex, sewage treatment plants, lake beautification, bus stands, solar street lights, tubewells, water tanks, among others.
iii.For the effective implementation of the scheme, a project management unit for effective implementation.

• Also, arrangement of payment will be through a separate bank account and portal for the ease of donors to make contributions online.
• There will be a 24×7 call centre for redressal of queries and exchange of information.

It should be noted that this scheme is the repackaged version of ‘Madar-e-Watan’ scheme launched by the state government in the 2020 annual budget to encourage collaboration of NRI with the government for village-level projects.

• The contribution of the state government and NRIs in the earlier version of the scheme was 50:50.

About Gujarat:
Governor– Acharya Devvrat
Zoological parks– Sakkarbaug zoo, Dr. Shyamaprasad Mukherjee Zoological Garden (Sarthana Nature Park), and Kamla Nehru Zoological Garden
Heritage Sites– Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park, Rani-ki-Vav (the Queen’s Stepwell), and Nalsarovar

TANGEDCO signs MoU with IREDA for Renewable Energy ProjectsOn 6th September 2021, Tamil Nadu Generation & Distribution Corporation Limited (TANGEDCO), the state Power distribution company of Tamil Nadu, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd (IREDA) to receive technical expertise in renewable energy (RE) projects.
Signatories – Pradip Kumar Das, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of IREDA and TANGEDCO CMD Rajesh Lakhoni, in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin.
i.TANGEDCO will receive technical expertise for RE projects and assistance for debt raising through developing financial models and conducting pre-market surveys.
Tamil Nadu Energy Targets:
Tamil Nadu targets to create 25,000 MW of new energy capacity in the next 10 years at an estimated cost of ₹1,32,500 crores.

• 20,000 MW of Solar power projects
• 3,000 MW of pumped storage Hydroelectric projects
• 2,000 MW of Gas-based power plants

About IREDA:
IREDA is a Mini Ratna company under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
CMD– Pradip Kumar Das
Headquarters– New Delhi
About Tamil Nadu:
Governor – Banwarilal Purohit
Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu is the Southernmost point of the Indian Mainland.
The coastline of Tamil Nadu & Andhra Pradesh is known as “Coromandel Coast”

Odisha Launched e-Receipt 2.0 for Payment of Taxes & DuesSuresh Chandra Mohapatra, Chief Secretary of Odisha, introduced the new model of electronic receipt(e-receipt) “e-Receipt 2.0” in Lok Seva Bhawan. The revamped e-receipt “e-Receipt 2.0” will avail the new modes of payment of taxes and other dues to the people of Odisha.
Background:
This is a part of the efforts of the Finance Ministry of the state to provide better management and delivery of service in electronic receipts and distribution under the Integrated Financial Management System(IFMS) which is in line with the 5T principles of Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister of Odisha.
Features of e-Receipt 2.0:
i.In e-Receipt 2.0, The Odisha Treasury Portal has integrated with the Payment Gateway Service providers of the Indian Bank and Axis Bank to avail services of the bank through their Payment Gateway Service providers.
ii.The Service Legal Agreements between the government of Odisha, and Axis Bank and Indian Bank for the use of their payment gateways namely “BillDesk” and “CC Avenue”.
iii.This will also provide facilities such as payment through Card, UPI ID, QR Code and Wallets based payments.
About Odisha:
Governor– Ganeshi Lal
Zoological park– Nandankanan Zoological Park
Airports– Biju Patnaik International Airport; Jharsuguda Airport

Mumbai became First South Asian City To Launch CAPState environment, tourism and protocol minister of Maharashtra, Aaditya Thackeray launched the first ever Climate Action Plan (CAP) for Mumbai, Maharashtra. Mumbai has become the first South Asian city to launch CAP. The CAP will ensure better planning and growth for climate resilient infrastructure and mitigation efforts.
Highlights
i.Mumbai has joined C-40 Cities Network December 2020. By following the compliance with guidance of C-40, a CAP will be drafted.
ii.BrihanMubai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is developing the climate action plan and technical support is provided by the World Resource Institute of India.
iii.The Mumbai Climate Action Plan (MCAP) website was also launched.
iv.A new portal for the National Livestock Mission (NLM) was launched.
v.The final completion of the MCAP will be done by November 2021. Which is also closer to the United Climate Change Conference (COP26) in 2021 .
vi.This project, the first of its kind in India, will make use of a special machine developed by Finland’s River Recycle, which would collect floating plastic waste to clean the river.

About  Mumbai Climate Action Plan(MCAP)
i.It would have six thematic action areas such as sustainable waste management, urban greening and biodiversity, urban flooding and water resource management, building energy efficiency, air quality and sustainable mobility.
ii.Assessment will be done by using satellite imagery data.
About C-40 Cities:
i.C40 is a network of the world’s megacities committed to addressing climate change. Chair of C40 – Eric Garcetti.
ii.The cities from India that are part of the C40 are Delhi NCT, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai.(Bengaluru is Temporarily Inactive).

ICAR-NBAGR Recognised Odisha’s Manda Buffalo as 19th Unique Breed Found in India 

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research – National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources(ICAR-NBAGR), Karnal, Haryana, has recognised the Manda Buffalo of Odisha as the 19th unique breed of buffalo found in India. Its accession number is “INDIA_BUFFALO_1500_MANDA_01019”.

• Manda Buffalo are found in the hill ranges of Eastern Ghats and plateau of Koraput region, Odisha.
• The germplasm of the buffalo was first identified by the Fisheries and Animal Resources Development (FARD) Department in collaboration with Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT).

The Dharwad Buffalo of Karnataka has also been recognised as a unique breed of buffalo found in India.

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