Daily Current Affairs and GK | 11 May 2021

Topic: Personality in News

1. Freedom fighter and INA veteran Lalti Ram passes away.

• Recently, Indian National Army (INA) Veteran Lalti Ram died at the age of 100.
• He will be remembered for his courage and contribution to India’s freedom struggle.
• On the occasion of the 75^th anniversary of the ‘Azad Hind Sarkar’ in 2019, Prime Minister presented him a cap of the pre-Independence INA.
• He had worked closely with Netaji Subash Chandra Bose in Indian National Army.
• Indian National Army:
  • It was formed by Mohan Singh in 1942.
  • It was revived under the leadership of Subhas Chandra Bose in 1943.
  • It is also known as Azad Hind Fauj.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

2. Anupam Kher Bags Best Actor Award at New York Film International Festival.

• Anupam Kher won the best actor award at New York City International Film Festival.
• He has got this award for his short film “Happy Birthday”. It has been directed by Prasad Kadam.
• This film has also won the Best Short Film award at the New York International Film Festival.
• New York City International Film Festival:  It was founded in 2009. It is an international film festival held every year in New York.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

3. Puducherry becomes ‘Har Ghar Jal’ UT.

• Puducherry has become ‘Har Ghar Jal’ UT as every rural home in Puducherry has a household tap connection.
• Earlier, Goa, Telangana and Andaman & Nicobar Islands have provided tap water supply to every rural home under Jal Jeevan Mission.
• So, Puducherry is the fourth State/UT to provide assured tap water supply to every rural home under Jal Jeevan Mission.
• Jal Jeevan Mission is being implemented in partnership with States/ UTs to provide safe tap water to every rural home by 2024.
• The State of Punjab and the UTs of Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu have covered over 75% of rural homes with assured tap water supply. 
• Recently, N Rangasamy has sworn in as the Chief Minister of Puducherry.
• Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM):
  • It is a flagship programme of the Union Government. It was announced in August 2019.
  • It aims to provide a tap water connection to every rural household of the country by 2024.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

4. Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka and Lewis Hamilton win awards at Laureus World Sports Awards 2021.

• Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka and Lewis Hamilton have won Laureus World Sports Awards 2021.
• Spain’s Rafael Nadal has won the Laureus Sportsman of the year award. Japan’s Naomi Osaka has won the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award.
• Lewis Hamilton won the Athlete Advocate of the Year Award for his involvement in the fight against racism.
• The names of other winners of the Laureus World Sports Awards 2021 are given below.
  • Team of the Year Award: Bayern Munich
  • Breakthrough of the Year Award: Patrick Mahomes
  • Comeback of the Year Award: Max Parrot
  • Lifetime Achievement Award: Billie Jean King
  • Sporting Inspiration Award: Mohamed Salah
  • Sporting Moment of the Year Award: Chris Nikic

Topic: Space and IT

5. SpaceX will launch DOGE-1 Satellite to Moon funded with the cryptocurrency Dogecoin in 2022.

• SpaceX will launch DOGE-1 Satellite funded with the cryptocurrency Dogecoin to Moon in 2022. 
• This announcement was recently made by Canadian company Geometric Energy Corporation, which will lead the lunar mission.
• DOGE-1 will be launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in the first quarter of 2022.
• The satellite will weigh 40 kg. It will aim to obtain lunar-spatial intelligence from sensors and cameras on-board.
• DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon will be the first-ever commercial lunar payload in history that will be paid entirely with” Dogecoin.

Topic: Important Days

6. National Technology Day 2021: 11 May.

• National Technology Day is celebrated every year on 11 May. “Science and Technology for a Sustainable Future” is the theme for National Technology Day 2021.
• National Technology Day was celebrated or acknowledged for the first time on May 11, 1999.
• On 11 May 1998, three successful nuclear tests were conducted by India at Indian Army’s Pokhran Test Range in Rajasthan under Operation Shakti.
• First indigenous aircraft, “Hansa-3,” was test flown at Bangalore on 11 May. India also performed a successful test firing of the Trishul missile on 11 May.
• TDB, on behalf of the Ministry of Science & Technology, celebrates May 11 every year as National Technology Day. National Science Day is celebrated annually on 28 February.
• Technology Development Board (TDB) is a statutory body of the Department of Science & Technology (DST).

Topic: Personality in News

7. Kerala’s prominent leader, K R Gouri, passes away.

• Kerala’s prominent CPI (M) leader, K R Gouri, passed away at the age of 102.
• Kalathilparambil Raman Gouri is popularly known as Gouri Amma in Kerala.
• She is one of the longest-serving politicians in Kerala.
• She was the first woman law graduate from the backward Hindu Ezhava community. She was elected to Kerala Assembly 11 times.
• She was active in agitations as part of the Quit India movement.

Topic: India and its Neighbourhood

8. K P Sharma Oli loses vote of confidence in House of Representatives.

• Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli has lost the vote of confidence in the House of Representatives.
• K P Sharma Oli got 93 votes in his favor while 124 voted against him. In the 275-member House of Representatives, he required at least 136 Votes to win the trust vote in the lower of the House of Representatives.
• After the NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) withdrew its support from the government, PM Oli faced a vote of confidence.
• In January, K P Sharma Oli was expelled from the primary membership of the Nepal Communist Party for his decision to dissolve the Parliament.
• Nepal:
  • It shares a border with Indian states, namely Uttrakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim, West Bengal, and Bihar.
  • Its capital is Kathmandu and the currency is Nepalese Rupees.
  • Bidya Devi Bhandari is the President.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Report and Indices

9. New Delhi declined to 32^nd position in Global Prime Residential Index.

• New Delhi and Mumbai are in 32^nd and 36^th positions, respectively, in the latest Global Prime Residential Index.
• New Delhi and Mumbai have moved one spot down as compared to Q4 2020 ranking.
• Bengaluru has ranked 40^th in the Prime Global Cities Index Q1 2021.
• Shenzhen is on the top position in the Prime Global Cities Index Q1 2021.
• Delhi registered a -0.2% annual price change for the period Q1 2020 – Q1 2021, while Mumbai registered a -1.5% annual price change for the same period.
• According to this latest index, 26 cities witnessed a rise in prime residential prices.
• Prime Global Cities Index:
  • It is released by property consultant Knight Frank.
  • It tracks movement in prime residential prices of more than 40 cities of the world.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

10. Environment Appraisal Committee has approved EIA studies for Great Nicobar Island project.

• The Environment Appraisal Committee has approved the “Terms of Reference for Environmental Impact Assessment” studies of the ambitious Great Nicobar Island project.
• Earlier, Environment Appraisal Committee had raised concern about the ambitious project for Great Nicobar Island.
• Seismic and Tsunami Hazards, impact on Giant Leatherback turtle, and cutting of trees were the main concerns of the Environment Appraisal Committee.
• The committee has also raised concern over the site selection criteria. The site has been selected based on technical and financial criteria by ignoring the environmental aspect.
• The committee also asked for information about the corporate environment policy of the implementing agency.
• Great Nicobar Island project includes setting up an international container trans-shipment terminal, a Greenfield international airport, a power plant, and a township complex.

Topic: Sports

11. A Parsi selected in Indian National cricket team after 28 years.

• A left-arm medium-pacer, Arzan Nagwaswalla, has been selected for the India men’s Cricket team.
• He will be part of the Indian squad for the World Test Championship final and the Test series against England.
• He becomes the youngest player of the Parsi community to join the Indian National cricket team.
• Farokh Engineer was the last Parsi cricketer who had played for India’s men’s cricket team in 1975.
• Diana Edulji played for the Women’s cricket team in 1993.

Topic: Reports and Indices

12. NITI Aayog and Mastercard released Report on ‘Connected Commerce: Creating a Roadmap for a Digitally Inclusive Bharat’.

• A report titled ‘Connected Commerce: Creating a Roadmap for a Digitally Inclusive Bharat’ has been released jointly by NITI Aayog and Mastercard.
• The report recommends ways to make digital services more accessible to people and it also highlights the challenges in accelerating digital financial inclusion in India.
• In recent years, the digitization of financial services has increased in India. People have shifted from cash to cards, wallets, apps, and UPI.
• Based on the five-round discussion, experts have highlighted the issues and recommended ways to accelerate digital financial inclusion.
• Key recommendations of this report:
  • Strengthening the payment infrastructure to promote NBFCs and banks.
  • Digitalization of the registration and compliance processes.
  • Creation of information sharing systems, including a ‘fraud repository’.
  • Online digital commerce platforms must carry warnings to alert consumers to the risk of fraud.
  • Diversify credit sources for the growth of MSMEs.