Daily Current Affairs and GK | 13 April 2021

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

1. ‘Little Guru’- Sanskrit learning app launched in Bangladesh.

• Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre (IGCC) of the High Commission of India has launched a Sanskrit learning app ‘Little Guru’ in Bangladesh.
• It has been launched as part of the campaign launched by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) for promoting the Sanskrit language.
• The ‘Little Guru’ app will help students, religious scholars, and others to learn Sanskrit in a very easy and interactive way.  The app will teach Sanskrit through games, competition, rewards, etc.
• Sanskrit is taught in various universities across the world and many people are interested in learning Sanskrit.
• Sanskrit: It is one of the oldest languages of India. Many historical texts of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism were written in Sanskrit.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Awards and Prizes

2. “Nomadland” won four prizes in BAFTA 2021.

• BAFTA Film Awards are given by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to honor British and international contributions to the films.
• Nomadland has bagged four prizes at the British Academy Film Awards, including the Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Cinematography.
• Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland” filmmaker, has become the second woman to win BAFTA for the best director.
• Frances McDormand has won the best actress award and Anthony Hopkins has won the best actor award.
• “Promising Young Woman” has received the award of best British film.
• Indian film, The White Tiger was nominated in the categories of best actor and best adapted screenplay.
• BAFTA 2021 winners:

Topic: Indian Economy

3. Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam issues India’s first municipal green bonds.

• Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam (GNN) has issued India’s first municipal green bonds.
• India’s first Green Municipal bond issue has been successfully raised and listed by Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam.
• Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam raised ₹150 crore. The money will be used to clean up dirty water by establishing a tertiary water treatment plant.
• It will also be used to supply piped water. K Capital was the lead manager for the issue bonds.
• Ahmedabad, Surat, Visakhapatnam, Amravati, Indore, Bhopal, Pune, Hyderabad and Lucknow are nine cities that have earlier issued municipal bonds.
• Green Bonds are financial instruments designed to fund environment related and climate related projects. European Investment Bank and the World Bank launched green bonds in 2007.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

4. PM Modi will inaugurate 6^th edition of Raisina Dialogue.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the sixth edition of the Raisina Dialogue today.
• The Raisina Dialogue is scheduled to be organised between 13 April to 16 April. It will be held virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
• “ViralWorld: Outbreaks, Outliers and Out of Control” is the theme of this year’s Raisina Dialogue. More than 150 speakers from 50 countries will participate in this event. Foreign ministers of many countries will also take part in this dialogue.
• Prime Minister of Denmark, President of Rwanda, Prime Minister of Australia, and European Council President Charles Michel will also participate in this dialogue.
• During the conference, five major topics will be discussed-
  • Whose Multilateralism? Reconstructing the UN and Beyond
  • Securing and Diversifying Supply Chains
  • Global ‘Public Bads’: Holding Actors and Nations to Account
  • Infodemic: Navigating a ‘No-Truth’ World in the Age of Big Brother
  • The Green Stimulus: Investing in Gender, Growth, and Development
• Raisina Dialogue:
  • It is being held annually since 2016.
  • It is a multilateral conference organized to discuss international issues.
  • It is a flagship conference of India on geopolitics and geoeconomics.
  • It is organised by the Ministry of External Affairs and the Observer Research Foundation.

Topic: Appointments

5. Sushil Chandra appointed as Chief Election Commissioner of India.

• President has appointed Sushil Chandra as the Chief Election Commissioner of India.
• Earlier, he was working as the chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).
• He will assume the charge in place of Sunil Arora. Sunil Arora’s tenure ended on April 12.
• Election Commission of India:
  • It is an autonomous constitutional body.
  • Articles 324 to 329 of the Constitution deals with the powers, functions, tenure, eligibility, etc., of the Election Commission and its members.
  • It is the body responsible for the conduct of Union and State election procedures in India.
  • The Commission consists of a Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners. Their tenure is for six years or till the age of 65, whichever is earlier.
  • The Election Commissioners are appointed by the President.
  • The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed from office by Parliament.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Geography

6. Tropical cyclone Seroja hits the Western coast of Australia.

• A tropical cyclone ‘Seroja’ hits the western coast of Australia. It has damaged an area of 1000 km along the west coast of Australia.
• It has hit the Kalbarri town with a speed of 170km/h. It has damaged the houses, trees, and downed power lines. It is one of the strongest cyclones that have affected Australia.
• Kalbarri is a tourist town in Western Australia.
• Tropical Cyclones:
  • Tropical cyclones are violent storms that originate over oceans in tropical areas and move over to coastal areas. It develops mainly due to the differential heating over land and sea.
  • Conditions favourable for the formation of tropical cyclones are —
    • Sufficiently warm sea surface,
    • Atmospheric instability,
    • High humidity in low to medium levels of the troposphere,
    • Sufficient Coriolis force to maintain a low pressure center, etc.

Topic: Sports

7. Davis Cup Finals 2021 will be held in three cities.

• The International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced that the Davis Cup Finals 2021 would be held in Madrid, Innsbruck, and Turin. Innsbruck is a city in Austria while Turin is in Italy.
• Madrid will host two quarter-finals, the semi-finals and the final.
• The finals of the Davis Cup 2021 will be organised between 25^th November to 5^th December 2021.
• Davis Cup:
  • It is an international tennis tournament of men’s tennis.
  • It was founded in 1990 as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge.
  • It is organised by the International Tennis Federation.

Topic: Personality in News

8. Renowned Historian Yogesh Praveen passed away.

• Noted Historian Yogesh Praveen died at the age of 82 in Lucknow.
• He had written many books and articles on the heritage culture of Avadh and Lucknow.
• He was associated with the All India Radio Lucknow. In 2019, he was conferred with the Padma Shri award for his work in the field of literature and education.
• He was awarded U.P. Ratna Award (2000), the National Teachers Award (1999), and the Yash Bharti Award (2006).
• Some famous books written by him are given below:
  • Dastane Avadh
  • Aapka Lucknow
  • Apraajita
  • Dastane Lucknow
  • Doobta Avadh

Topic: International News

9. Singapore became first country to ratify the mega free trade agreement RCEP.

• Singapore has become the first nation to ratify the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement.
• 10 ASEAN economies and Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea are part of the RCEP.
• The RCEP is the world’s largest free trade agreement led by China.
• India did not accept this agreement. US is also not a part of this trade agreement.
• In November 2020, 15 participating countries had signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement at a regional summit in Hanoi, Vietnam.
• Free Trade Agreement:
  • It is a pact between two or more countries to import and export goods and services and reduce restrictions to do business.
  • It is basically two types- Bilateral trade agreements and Multilateral trade agreements.
  • Bilateral trade agreements occur when two countries cooperate with each other and allow both to expand the trade opportunities.
  • Multilateral trade agreements occur when three or more countries cooperate with each other and negotiate and agree with terms.
• Singapore:
  • It is a sovereign island nation in Southeast Asia.
  • Its capital city is Singapore and the currency is Singapore Dollar.
  • Its President is Halimah Yacob.
  • Its Prime Minister is Lee Hsien Loong.

Topic: Important Days

10. National Safe Motherhood Day: 11 April.

• The National Safe Motherhood Day is celebrated annually on April 11.
• The theme of Safe Motherhood Day 2021 is ‘Stay at home during coronavirus, keep mother and newborn safe from coronavirus’.
• On the recommendation of White Ribbon Alliance India (WRAI) in 2003, the government had declared April 11 as National Safe Motherhood Day.
• It is celebrated on the birth anniversary of Kasturba Gandhi.
• The aim of the campaign is to increase awareness that every woman has a right to live and survive pregnancy and childbirth.
• According to a report, the total number of maternal deaths in India is 15 percent of total deaths in the world.
• A total of 44,000 pregnant women die in India during their pregnancy due to lack of care.

Topic: Appointments

11. S Ramann appointed as SIDBI’s new Chairman and Managing Director.

• S Ramann has been appointed as Chairman and Managing Director of Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) by the central government.
• He is appointed for a three-year tenure.
• Banks Board Bureau had suggested his name for the post in December last year.
• He is the current CEO of India’s first Information Utility, National E-Governance Services Ltd.
• SIDBI:
  • It is the principal financial institution in the MSME sector.
  • It works under the Department of Financial Services.
  • It is regulated and supervised by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
  • It was established in 1990.
  • Headquarters: Lucknow, UP