CURRENT AFFAIRS 10 DECEMBER 2020

 

 BITA (Banking Institute & TNPSC Academy)

                                                                                            10 December 2020

 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1. Kuwait emir reappoints Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid as prime minister

• Kuwait Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah has re-appointed Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah as prime minister.
•  The move comes two days after Sheikh Sabah submitted his government’s resignation in a procedural step following parliamentary polls.
• The country’s ruler accepted the premier’s resignation before reassigning him to form the upcoming government.
• Sheikh Nawaf who took over the leadership of the Gulf state in September after the death of his brother also asked Sheikh Sabah to nominate members of a new cabinet. The new cabinet would have to be approved by the Emir.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Kuwait Capital: Kuwait City.

Kuwait Currency: Dinar.

2. BoB launches Atmanirbhar Women Gold Scheme

•  Bank of Baroda (BoB) has recently launched the Atmanirbhar Women Scheme as part of its Baroda Gold Loan.
• This scheme aims to target the self-reliant woman in India. Under the scheme, the bank is offering loans at 0.50 per cent concession for women.
•  The bank under the gold loan scheme is offering agri-gold loan at 0.25 per cent concession and for a retail loan at 0.50 per cent concession.
• This Atmanirbhar scheme is exclusively meant for helping women to be self-reliant. The scheme was launched at BOB’s Ramamurthy Nagar branch in Bengaluru and simultaneously in 18 branches coming under 18 zones in the country.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Bank Of Baroda Headquarters: Vadodara, Gujarat, India.

Bank Of Baroda Chairman: Hasmukh Adhia.

Bank Of Baroda MD & CEO: Sanjiv Chadha.

3. Fitch Ratings lowers India’s GDP contraction at 9.4% for FY21

• Fitch Ratings has revised the GDP growth rate for India in its Global Economic Outlook, and now expects the economy to contract 9.4 per cent in the current financial year 2020-21, as compared to (-)10.5 per cent forecast earlier.
• Fitch has also projected the FY22 GDP growth at 11 per cent and 6.3 per cent growth in FY23.

4. Nomura Expects India to be fastest growing Asian economy in FY21

•  The Japanese research and brokerage house Nomura has projected India to be the fastest-growing Asian economy in 2021.
•  Nomura has estimated the gross domestic product (GDP) growth of India for the calendar year 2021 (CY21) at 9.9%. For the calendar year 2020 (CY20), Nomura expects GDP growth at -7.1 per cent.

5. Zena Wooldridge Elected As World Squash Federation President

• Zena Wooldridge from England has been elected as the World Squash Federation President. She will become the 10th WSF President to serve since the Federation’s inception in 1967.
•  She is the second female President after New Zealand’s Susie Simcock. She replaces outgoing President Jacques Fontaine, from France. She previously served six years as President of the European Squash Federation between 2013-2019.

·         Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

·                                             World Squash Federation Founded: 1967.

·                                            World Squash Federation Headquarters: Hastings, United Kingdom.

6. Annika Sorenstam elected president of International Golf Federation

• The International Golf Federation (IGF) elected Annika Sorenstam as its new president effective January 1, 2021.
• IGF President, Peter Dawson, is stepping down after 10  years of leadership and service.  Sorenstam, a 72-time winner on the LPGA Tour and former No. 1 from Sweden.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

International Golf Federation Founded: 1958.

International Golf Federation Headquarters: Lausanne, Switzerland.

Golf became an Olympic sport again in 2016 after 112 years.

7. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at 41 on Forbes 2020 list

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has grabbed the 41st spot in the 2020 list of Forbes 100 most powerful women in the world.
• This is the second time she features in the list, in 2019 ranked at 34 and ranked 41st in 2020.
• India’s leading Businesswomen, Kiran Mazumdar-shaw, Chairman of Biocon Limited also featured in the list at 68th position.
• The list also saw the biggest jump in ranking to 3rd position by Kamala Harris, Vice President-Elect of USA, and Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina Wajed is ranked at 39.

Here is the list of top 5 personality in the Forbes 100 most powerful women in the world:

Rank	Personality	Profession
1	Angela Merkel	Chancellor, Germany
2	Christine Lagarde	President, European Central Bank
3	Kamala Harris	Vice President-elect, United States
4	Ursula von der Leyen	President, European Commission, European Union
5	Melinda Gates	Co-Chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
41	Nirmala Sitharaman	Finance Minister of India
68	Kiran MazumdarShaw	Founder, Chair and Managing Director, Biocon Ltd.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Forbes is the 103-year-old American Business Magazine, issued weekly.

Editor in Chief- Steve Forbes.

First issued in September 1917.

8. World Economic Forum 2021 to be held in Singapore

• The World Economic Forum (WEF) has decided to host its 2021 annual meeting in Singapore, which earlier was scheduled to take place in Lucerne-Burgenstock, Switzerland from 13-16 May 2021.
• The decision to shift the annual forum from Switzerland has been taken in view of the Covid-19 situation in Europe.
•  This would be the second time since its inception in 1971 that the forum will be held outside Switzerland. In 2002, the forum was held in New York to show solidarity with the American people in the aftermath of 9/11.
• The meeting is generally held in Davos, Switzerland, but amid covid, the meeting was first shifted to Lucerne-Burgenstock, Switzerland in October 2020. Now again the venue has been shifted to Singapore. It would return to Davos, Switzerland, in 2022.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

World Economic Forum Headquarters: Cologny, Switzerland.

World Economic Forum Founder: Klaus Schwab.

World Economic Forum Founded: January 1971.

 

9. Madagascar replaces the Maldives as host of 2023 Indian Ocean Island Games

• Madagascar has replaced the Maldives as the host of the 2023 Indian Ocean Island Games due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The event had been awarded to the Maldives last year, but members of the Indian Ocean Island Games Federation voted to move the Games to Madagascar.
• The decision came as a result of the challenges the Maldives is facing in organising the event during the coronavirus crisis. 
• The Maldives had requested pushing back the 2023 Games to 2025 but the IOIGF was keen to avoid a six-year void between editions of the multi-sport event.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

                    Madagascar Capital: Antananarivo.

                    Madagascar President: Andry Rajoelina.

                    Madagascar Currency: Malagasy ariary.

10. World Human Rights Day: 10 December

 11. PM Modi, Uzbek President to hold first virtual summit on December 11

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be holding a virtual summit with Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on December 11, 2020 to discuss the entire spectrum of the bilateral relationship of India and the Central Asian country.
• This will be the first bilateral virtual summit meeting between India and Uzbekistan. This was informed by the Ministry of External Affairs in a statement on December 9, 2020. 
• During the summit, several agreements are expected to be concluded. The two leaders will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

 12. DRDO’s protective carbine successfully completes user trials

•  DRDO’s protective carbine completed its final phase trials on December 7, 2020. This comes at a time when the Indian Army is hunting for a new carbine.
• The carbine with a measurement of 5.56x30 mm reportedly met all the qualitative parameters. 
• The Indian Army has been looking for a carbine but its tender got stuck at the final stage in which a middle-Eastern weapon was selected.
• The latest trial success paves way for the induction of the carbine into the Army’s services. 

 13. Third wave of COVID-19 nearing its end in Delhi: Delhi’s Health minister

• Delhi’s Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on December 10, 2020 that the third wave of COVID-19 is on the verge of being finished in Delhi.
• While addressing the media, Jain said that the death rate of COVID will decrease slowly and the shortage of ICU beds will be addressed soon. He informed that currently, 13,000 beds are lying vacant in Delhi. He said that in total there are 18800 beds in hospitals. 
•  Further, Jain informed that Delhi reported less than 5 percent positivity rate during the last 7 days. The positivity rate of RT-PCR tests was also lower during this time. Overall, Delhi has registered a downfall of about 80 percent positive cases. 

 14. Covaxin to be available in the first quarter of 2021?

• Bharat Biotech’s Joint Managing Director Suchitra Ella informed that the COVAXIN will be available in the first quarter of 2021 to the priority population as per the vaccination plan of the Indian Government. 
• Ella further stated that a team of foreign heads of missions in India had visited leading biotech companies in Hyderabad involved in COVID-19 vaccine development.
• The Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech has applied to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) seeking emergency use authorisation (EUA) for its COVID-19 vaccine along with US drug giant Pfizer and the Serum Institute. The DGCI has reportedly asked them for more safety and efficacy data.

15. Italy’s Football legend Paolo Rossi passes away at 64

•  Paolo Rossi, who was the top scorer for Italy during the 1982 World Cup passed away at the age of 64 years on December 10, 2020. 
• Rossi was Italy’s star player during the nation’s world cup winning campaign in 1982 with 6 goals including a hat-trick against Brazil. 
•  Rossi is the second World Cup winner to pass away in two weeks following the death of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona last month.

 16. PM Modi lays foundation stone of new Parliament Building

•  Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the New Parliament Building today at Sansad Marg in Parliament Complex.
•  Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the New Parliament Building today at Sansad Marg in Parliament Complex. Tata Trusts' Chairman Ratan Tata, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Deputy RS Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh and various religious leaders were present on the occasion. 
• The new Parliament building will be an intrinsic part of the centre's Atmanirbhar Bharat vision. Tata Projects Ltd has been given contract for the project.

17. after UK, Canada approves Pfizer’s Corona vaccine

•  The first doses of Pfizer’s vaccine will be available at 14 Canadian distribution centres next week. 
• Canada has approved Pfizer’s Corona vaccine for people above 16 years and has opened a possibility of Canadians receiving the vaccine in the next week.
• Health Canada, a Canadian health Regulator informed that it has completed a full independent review of the data presented by Pfizer on the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness in preventing the virus.
• Canada has become the second country after the United Kingdom to give approval to Pfizer’s vaccine for its citizens.

18. Lakshadweep declared first UT to become 100% organic

• Lakshadweep has become 100% organic as all the farming in the region is carried out without the use of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.
• Lakshadweep after Sikkim has become the first Union Territory to become 100% organic as all the farming in the region is carried out without the use of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.
•  The step to opt for organic farming was taken to provide access to safer food choices as well as for making agriculture a more environment-friendly activity. Secretary, agriculture, Lakshadweep, OP Mishra stated that UT can benefit much from marketing organic products such as coconut milk and desiccated coconut.
• As per the Agriculture Ministry, only after going through the evidence and certificates provided by the administration of Lakshadweep, competent authority approved the proposal and declared the entire territory of UT as organic. Earlier in 2016, Sikkim was declared as the first organic farming state in India.

19. China activates nuclear-powered Artificial Sun: All you need to know!

• China’s artificial sun is a nuclear fusion reactor called HL-2M Tokamak reactor. It is called an "artificial Sun" because of the enormous heat and power it produces.
• China successfully activated its nuclear-powered ‘Artificial Sun’-HL-2M Tokamak reactor- for the first time on December 4, 2020. The fusion reactor was switched for a brief test. 
• The successful activation of the nuclear fusion reactor is being hailed as a significant scientific achievement, as it comes at a time when countries across the world are attempting to shift to safer, cleaner forms of nuclear energy.
•  The reactor is expected to fuel China’s energy ambitions for years to come if it is made more sustainable.