Important Days
World Alzheimer’s Day
The World Alzheimer’s Day is commemorated across the world on September 21 each year. The day triesto raise knowledge about the stigma that runs around Alzheimer disease and related dementia.
The theme for World Alzheimer Day 2020 is ‘Let’s talk about dementia’. World Alzheimer’s Day was launched at the opening of ADI’s annual conference in Edinburgh on 21 September 1994 to celebrate our 10th anniversary.
Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease, where dementia symptoms gradually worsen over a number of years. In its early stages, memory loss is mild, but with late-stage Alzheimer’s, individuals lose the ability to carry on a conversation and respond to their environment.
International Coastal Clean-Up Day 2020
The International Coastal Cleanup Day is traditionally held on the third Saturday in September. In 2020, the day is being held on 19 September. This year theme for International Coastal Cleanup Day 2020: “Achieving a trash-free Coastline”.
The first International Coastal Cleanup Day was observed in 1986. The day aims to increase public awareness about the accumulation and negative impacts of litter in oceans, on coastlines and on beaches.
International Day of Peace
International Day of Peace is observed globally on 21st September every year. The UN General Assembly has declared this as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, through observing 24 hours of non-violence and cease-fire.
The 2020 theme for the International Day of Peace is “Shaping Peace Together.” Celebrate the day by spreading compassion, kindness and hope in the face of the pandemic.
Stand together with the UN against attempts to use the virus to promote discrimination or hatred. Join us so that we can shape peace together.
Useful Notes for all competitive exams:
- United Nations Headquarters in New York, USA. It was founded on 24 October 1945.
- Mr Antonio Guterres is the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
National Headlines
Gujarat government launches Mukhyamantri Mahila Utkarsh Yojana
The Gujarat government has launched the Mukhyamantri Mahila Utkarsh Yojana (MMUY). The scheme will provide interest-free loans to women’s groups in the state.
Under the MMUY, 50,000 joint liability and earning group (JLEG) will be formed in urban areas. Similarly, 50,000 such groups will also be formed in rural areas. Each group will have 10 women members in it. The groups will be offered interest-free loans by the government.
The interest amount will be borne by the state government. The Gujarat government is going to sign MoUs with banks shortly and has also decided to waive the stamp duty charges for the loans to be given to these women groups.
Useful Notes for all competitive exams:
- Chief Minister of Gujarat: Vijaybhai R. Rupani; Governor: Acharya Dev Vrat.
Indian Railways observes “Swachhta Pakhwara”
Indian Railways is observing “Swachhta Pakhwara” from 16th to 30th September 2020. During the inaugural day of Pakhwara, Swachhta pledge was administered to Railway employees at all Zonal Railway HQs, Divisional Offices and other establishments.
During the Pakhwara, intensive cleaning and sanitization of stations, trains, tracks, colonies and other railway establishments is being carried out with special focus on plastic waste management.
Railway Board through Northern Railway, in partnership with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), organised a webinar on “Swachhata and Environment”.
The Webinar was held to flag off the “Swachhata Pakhwada” beginning from September 16 and ending on September 30, 2020.
Following issues were highlighted during the session:
- Steps taken by Indian Railways for proper solid waste management, saving of water and conservation of energy etc
- Convergence of IR initiatives with Swachh Bharat Mission
- Green Rating of Railway Stations
- Combating plastic waste
- Perspectives on circular economy
8 Indian beaches recommended for ‘Blue Flag’ eco-label
In a first-of-its-kind initiative, eight beaches of India have been recommended for the Blue flag certification. The selection of the beaches was made by an independent national jury composed of eminent environmentalists and scientists.
This announcement was made by the Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Prakash Javadekar on 18 September during a virtual event.
What is Blue Flag certification?
- The Blue Flag certificate is an internationally recognized eco-label given by ‘Foundation for Environment Education, Denmark’.
- Blue Flag beaches are considered the benchmark for clean and hygienic beaches in the world.
The eight beaches selected for Blue flag certification are
- Shivrajpur in Gujarat
- Ghoghla in Daman & Diu
- Kasargod in Karnataka
- Padubidri beach in Karnataka
- Kappad in Kerala
- Rushikonda in Andhra Pradesh
- The golden beach of Odisha
- Radhanagar beach in Andaman and Nicobar
- During the event, Union Minister Javadekar also announced the launch of India’s own eco-label ‘Beach Environment and Aesthetics Management Services’ (BEAMS).
Former PM HD Deve Gowda Takes Oath as Rajya Sabha MP
Former Prime Minister of India, H D Deve Gowda took oath as a member of the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka. This is the first time that the JD(S) leader has become a member of the Upper House since 1996.
Mr Deve Gowda was the 11th Prime Minister of India from 1 June 1996 to 21 April 1997. He had also served as the 14th Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1994 to 1996.
Appointments
Anil Dhasmana becomes new chief of NTRO
Former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) chief, Anil Dhasmana has been selected as the chief of the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO). He replaces former Intelligence Bureau officer Satish Jha.
He is a 1981 batch IPS officer and a Pakistan expert and was the lead planner of the Balakot airstrikes in February 2019. He had stepped down a few months later when his extended term due to the general elections ended in June 2019.
Narendra Singh Tomar takes additional charge of FPI Ministry
Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has been given the additional charge of Food Processing Industries Ministry.
He has been given the additional charge as President Ram Nath Kovind has accepted the resignation of Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal from the Union Council of Ministers, with immediate effect, under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution.
Banking and Economy News
Bandhan Bank sets up new vertical “Emerging Entrepreneurs Business”
Bandhan Bank has set up a new vertical called “Emerging Entrepreneurs Business (EEB)”. The new vertical has been launched to support the emerging needs of the unbanked and underbanked segment of customers.
The vertical will focus on supporting this segment of customers in their journey to becoming entrepreneurs. In addition to microloans, the vertical will also manage micro home loan, micro bazaar loan and micro-enterprise loan.
Useful Notes for all competitive exams:
- Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Bandhan Bank: Chandra Shekhar Ghosh.
- Headquarters of Bandhan Bank: Kolkata.
Canara Bank introduces i-Lead 2.0 to boost customer services
Public sector lender Canara Bank has launched a lead management system (LMS) – i-Lead 2.0 (Inspiring Leads System version 2.0). The system has been launched to provide its services to customers irrespective of where they reside.
Through lead management system (LMS), customers can enquire and get services rendered through simple modes such as internet banking, mobile banking, call centre, SMS and missed call.
This new initiative is being introduced with the motive of building and sustaining business relationships with both new customers to bank and existing customers to the bank.
Fitch Solutions projects India’s GDP growth at -8.6% in FY21
Fitch Solutions has revised downward its forecast for Indian economic growth and now estimates that India’s GDP will contract by 8.6% in 2020-21 (FY21).
Earlier this was estimated at -4.5%. It has also forecasted a 5% year-on-year growth in 2021 and 2022.
Awards & Honours
Margaret Atwood awarded 2020 Dayton Literary Peace Prize
Margaret Atwood has won the 2020 Dayton Literary Peace Prize’s lifetime achievement award. The award celebrates literature’s power to foster peace, social justice and global understanding.
The Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award is named for the late U.S. diplomat who brokered the 1995 Bosnian peace accords reached in the Ohio city. Margaret Atwood is a prolific writer of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, essays and comic books.
In the recent years, she has drawn a new round of acclaim for “The Handmaid’s Tale”, her bestselling 1985 novel of a dystopian future in which women are subjugated after a theocratic group overthrow the US government.
Ranks & Reports
India ranked 116th in the World Bank’s Human Capital Index
World Bank released the report titled “The Human Capital Index 2020 Update: Human Capital in the Time of COVID-19”.
The Human Capital Index (HCI) 2020 is a collaboration between the Human Development Practice Group and the Development Economics Group of the World Bank. India has been ranked at the 116th position among 174 countries in the Human Capital Index 2020.
Top 3 Human Capital Index 2020:
| Rank | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 116 | India | 0.49 |
| 1 | Singapore 0.88 | 0.88 |
| 2 | Hongkong and China | 0.81 |
| 3 | Japan | 0.80 |
- The 2020 Human Capital Index update includes health and education data for 174 countries covering 98% of the world’s population up to March 2020.
- It provided a pre-pandemic baseline on the health and education of children.
- Measuring the human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by her 18th birthday, the HCI highlights how current health and education outcomes shape the productivity of the next generation of workers.
Useful notes for all competitive exams:
- World Bank President: David Robert Malpass.
- World Bank Headquarters: Washington, D.C., United States.
Summits & Conferences
10th Meeting of BRICS National Security Advisors
10th Meeting of the BRICS High Representatives on National Security was held virtually. The 10th meeting of the NSAs was hosted by the current chair of BRICS i.e. Russia.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval represented India in a virtual meet of top security officials from Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) grouping.
The participants exchanged views on combating terrorism and extremism besides deliberating on global and regional security issues.
They also exchanged views on key issues of global and regional security, discussed the main areas of practical cooperation in the field of security among law enforcement agencies of the member nations.
PM Modi to inaugurate VAIBHAV Summit on 2nd October 2020
Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Vaishwik Bharatiya Vaigyanik (VAIBHAV) Summit on 2nd October’2020 through video conferencing.
The month-long Summit will provide a platform to leverage the expertise and knowledge of global Indian researchers for solving emerging challenges and create an ecosystem of Knowledge and Innovation in the country through global outreach.
The VAIBHAV Summit is a joint initiative of all S&T and Academic Organisations of India (working in Research, Academic and Scientific fields) to enable deliberations on thought processes, practices and R&D culture with a problem-solving approach for well-defined objectives.
Obituary
Tamil Director Babu Sivan passes away
Tamil director Babu Sivan passed away. He began his career by assisting director Dharani, who helmed films like Ghilli and Kurvi with Vijay. Later, he made his directorial debut with Vettaikaaran in 2009. It was one of the highest-grossing Tamil films of that year.
- Daily Current Affairs in English 11 Sep 2022 – Useful for all Competitive Exams
- Hindu Editorial with Vocabulary: Sep Month – Day 10
- 11 Sep 2022 Daily Current Affairs in Hindi – सभी प्रतियोगी परीक्षाओं के लिए महत्वपूर्ण
- 10 Sep 2022 Daily Current Affairs in Hindi – सभी प्रतियोगी परीक्षाओं के लिए महत्वपूर्ण
- Hindu Editorial with Vocabulary: Sep Month – Day 9
- Daily Current Affairs in English 10 Sep 2022 – Useful for all Competitive Exams
