Banking, Financial and Economic Awareness of 18 and 19 March 2020

1. Rs. 10,000 crore worth Open Market Operations (OMO)

• RBI will carry out Rs. 10,000 crore worth Open Market Operations (OMO) on March 20, 2020.
• Through OMO, RBI wants to put in Rs. 10,000 crore of liquidity into the banking system. 
• As part of OMO, RBI will buy Rs. 10,000 crore worth government securities.
• OMO will be carried out through a multi-security auction using the multiple price method.
• Multiple price method is a commonly used auction procedure accepted by RBI. Another method of auctioning is the uniform price method.
• In a uniform price method, successful bidders pay for securities at the same rate. In multiple price method, successful bidders pay price which they give in their bid.
• In OMO, RBI decides to buy or sell Government securities depending on the rupee liquidity.
• Due to COVID-19 pandemic, there is less liquidity in the market. So, RBI has decided to purchase securities and release money in the market.
• On 11 March 2020, WHO has declared COVID-19 as a pandemic. Pandemic refers to a sudden increase in infections of a disease simultaneously in a large number of countries and continents.

2. Negotiations between government and Saudi Aramco-led consortium for land allotment

• Government and Saudi Aramco-led consortium are negotiating land allotment for a refinery and petrochemicals complex in Maharashtra.
• The proposed refinery and petrochemicals complex in Maharashtra carries a cost of $44 billion.
• It was scheduled for completion by 2022 at Ratnagiri in Maharashtra.
• The project's deadline was shifted to 2025 due to delay in land allocation. The project may be allotted land at Roha in Raigad district of Maharashtra.
• Saudi Aramco or Saudi Arabian Oil Company is a petroleum and natural gas company. It is based in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

3. Clix Capital Services produces Maya

• Clix Capital Services has produced an AI-enabled chat bot, named as Maya.
• Maya will improve customer experience by allowing them to get instant loans, find out their eligibility and credit score.
• Maya is also linked with WhatsApp. Clix Capital Services is a financial service provider. Its CEO is Bhavesh Gupta.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) refers to human-like intelligence shown by machines.
• John McCarthy coined the term Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• For his work on AI, McCarthy was given Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)'s annual Turing Award in 1971.
• Turing Award is also known as the Nobel Prize of computing.

4. Arundhati Bhattacharya to be chairperson and CEO of Salesforce India

• Arundhati Bhattacharya will be chairperson and CEO of Salesforce India from April 20, 2020 onwards.
• Earlier, she was chairperson of State Bank of India (SBI). She retired from SBI in 2017.
• She was assigned the role of independent director in Reliance Industries (RIL) after retiring from SBI.
• In December 2018, she became chairperson of the Indian division of Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT).
• Salesforce India is the Indian branch of Salesforce. It is a cloud-based service provider. Its headquarters are located in San Francisco, California.
• Marc Benioff is its Chairman and CEO. Parker Harris is its Co-Founder.

5.  Aircraft (Amendment) Bill, 2020 passed by Lok Sabha

• Lok Sabha has accepted Aircraft (Amendment) Bill 2020, which enables the government to give statutory status to DGCA, BCAS and AAIB.
• Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) were established by executive order.
• Aircraft (Amendment) Bill, 2020, also makes provision for keeping aircraft that belong to armed forces of India outside of the Aircraft Act, 1934. 
• The bill increases fine for breaking of new rules from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore.
• Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) was formed in 1997. It registers civil aircraft, certifies airports, provides license to pilots and air traffic controllers and coordinates International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) matters.
• Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) was established in 1976. It is responsible for Civil Aviation Security and is the implementing authority of Annexure 17 to the Chicago convention of ICAO.
• Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) was formed in 2011. It was formed in compliance with the Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) of ICAO.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. RBI has decided to carry out Rs. 10,000 crore worth Open Market Operations on

1. March 20, 2020
2. March 21, 2020
3. March 22, 2020
4. March 23, 2020
5. March 24, 2020

2. Recently rupee liquidity has been declining in the market due to risks of COVID-19 pandemic. When did WHO declare COVID-19 as a pandemic?

1. 31 December 2019
2. 30 January 2020
3. 15 February 2020
4. 11 March 2020
5. None of the above

3. Government and Saudi Aramco-led consortium are negotiating land allotment for a refinery and petrochemicals complex in which of the following states?

1. Maharashtra
2. Kerala
3. Karnataka
4. Jharkhand
5. Madhya Pradesh

4. Clix Capital Services has recently produced an AI-enabled chat bot. The chat bot is named as

1. AI bot
2. Maya
3. Clix bot
4. CCS bot
5. None of the above

5. Who will be chairperson and CEO of Salesforce India from April 20, 2020 onwards?

1. John McCarthy
2. Marc Benioff
3. Arundhati Bhattacharya
4. Parker Harris
5. None of the above

6. Lok Sabha has recently accepted Aircraft (Amendment) Bill 2020. It gives statutory status to

1. Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)
2. Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS)
3. Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB)
4. Both A and B
5. A, B and C

Solution:

1. A
2. D
3. A
4. B
5. C
6. E

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