Daily Current Affairs and GK | 15 March 2024

Topic: Awards and Prizes

1. Sahitya Akademi Awards have been presented to 24 writers.

• Twenty-four writers, including English author Neelum Saran Gaur, received the Sahitya Akademi Award for 2023.
• The awards have been given for nine books of poetry, six novels, five short stories, three essays, and one literary study.
• Sanjeev received the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel "Mujhe Pehchaano" in Hindi.
• Sadiqua Nawab Saher received the award for her book "Rajdev Ki Amrai" in Urdu.
• Swarnjit Savi received the award for his book "Mann Di Chip" in Punjabi.
• Swapnamay Chakrabarti (Bengali), Krushnat Khot (Marathi), and Rajasekaran Devibharathi (Tamil) have also been awarded for their novels.
• Pranavjyoti Deka (Assamese), Nandeswar Daiman (Bodo), Prakash S Parienkar (Konkani), Taraceen Baskey (Turia Chand Baskey) (Santali) and T Patanjali Sastry (Telugu) have been awarded for their short stories.

Topic: Important Days

2. World Consumer Rights Day: 15 March

• World Consumer Rights Day is observed every year on March 15.
• The day is observed to create awareness about the rights of all consumers against fraud, discrimination, and other such practices.
• 'Fair and responsible AI for consumers' is the theme of this year’s World Consumer Rights Day.
• The theme sheds light on the rapid integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into our daily lives.
• World Consumer Rights Day helps to educate people about their rights and take proactive measures to address grievances.
• World Consumer Rights Day was first celebrated in 1983.
• National Consumer Day is observed every year on December 24.

Topic: International News

3. TikTok will be banned by the USA.

• The US House of Representatives has passed a historic bill that could ban TikTok in the US if the app doesn’t separate from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.
• Used by 170 million Americans, this is a major challenge for one of the world's most popular social media platforms.
• However, with a vote of 352-65, the bill has been passed overwhelmingly in a bipartisan.
• But it still needs to be approved by the Senate and signed by the President to become law.
• Lawmakers supporting the bill have argued that TikTok is a threat to national security.
• This is because the Chinese government could use its intelligence laws against ByteDance, forcing it to hand over the data of American app users.
• TikTok was initially released in September 2016.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

4. Digital Crime Management System and NIA Branch Offices launched by Home Minister Amit Shah.

• On 14 March, a unique digital Criminal Case Management System (CCMS), designed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) launched for a major fillip to India’s fight against terrorism and organized crime in New Delhi.
• To improve justice delivery, the newly developed CCMS will enable NIA personnel to better coordinate terrorism and organized crime cases.
• NIA’s 2 new branch offices in Jammu and Kochi and a residential complex in Raipur were also inaugurated. These will strengthen the agency's reach and presence.
• To combat the threat of terrorism and Left Wing Extremism, these premises also provide a secure environment for NIA officers and personnel to work in the states.
• In addition, a mobile app 'Sankalan' also launched by Amit Shah, a compendium of new criminal laws by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
• This app is designed to navigate through the new criminal laws as a bridge between the old and new criminal laws.

Topic: Sports

5. On March 12, the unique Khelo India Rising Talent Identification (KIRTI) program inaugurated in Chandigarh by Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur.

• This nationwide scheme has been launched for school children in the age group of 9 to 18 years.
• The scheme has two main objectives:
  • To hunt talent from every nook and corner of the country.
  • To use sports as a tool to curb addiction towards drugs and other gadgetry distractions.
• ‘KIRTI’ has taken a solid start across 50 centers in India.
• In the first phase, fifty thousand applicants are being evaluated for 10 sports, including athletics, boxing, wrestling, hockey, and football.
• The aim of KIRTI is to assess 20 lakh applicants across the country throughout the year to identify talent through notified talent assessment centers.
• For this, the government has already spent Rs 3000 crore on infrastructure and more than 1000 Khelo India centers are available across the country.
• Khelo India Scheme is the flagship central scheme of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
• The objective of the Khelo India's Mission is to promote sports culture in the country and achieve sports excellence, thereby facilitating the public to harness the power of sports.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Sports

6. Mumbai won the Ranji Trophy after 8 years.

• On March 14, Mumbai beat Vidarbha by 169 runs to win the Ranji Trophy 2024 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
• This is also their 42nd title for Mumbai.
• After last winning the title in the 2015-16 edition, Mumbai also ended its 8-year-long wait to win the championship.
• Rahane became the 26th captain of Mumbai to win the Ranji Trophy.
• Musheer Khan was declared player of the match for the final and Tanush Kotian was declared player of the series for the Tournament.
• In 2023, Saurashtra won the Ranji Trophy title by defeating Bengal.
• Ranji Trophy:
  • The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) annually organizes the Ranji Trophy, a domestic first-class cricket match between the country's state and regional cricket associations.
  • The premier domestic tournament is named after the first cricketer to represent India, Ranjit singh ji, also referred to as "Ranji."
  • It was first played in 1934–1935 with 15 teams divided into four zones in a knockout system, and it has since grown to a 32-team league and knockout competition.
  • Mumbai won the first-ever edition and also won the most Ranji Trophies.

Topic: Reports and Indices

7. India’s rank in Gender Inequality Index has increased significantly by 14 places.

• India has recorded a significant increase of 14 ranks in Gender Inequality Index 2022.
• UNDP has released the Human Development Report 2023-24.
• According to the report, India ranked at 108 out of 193 countries with a score of 0.437 in GII 2022.
• This is an increase of 14 ranks in comparison to the GII 2021 rank.
• In GII 2021, India was ranked 122 out of 191 countries with a score of 0.490.
• India’s rank in GII has consistently improved over the last 10 years. In 2014, India’s rank was 127.  
• However, India has one of the largest gender gaps in its labour force participation rate.
• It has 47.8% difference between women (28.3%) and men (76.1%).
• Gender Inequality Index:
  • The GII is an index that uses three dimensions to measure gender inequality.
  • These three dimensions are the labor market, empowerment, and reproductive health.
  • A smaller gender gap is indicated by a lower GII score, whereas a larger gender difference is indicated by a higher score.

Topic: Personality in News

8. Singer Sadi Mohammad passed away in Bangladesh.

• He was a renowned Rabindra Sangeet singer.  
• His younger brother and distinguished dancer Shibli Mohammad confirmed the death.
• The cause of his death is suicide by hanging. He was suffering mental trauma after his mother’s death last year.
• He served as the director of Rabi Raag, a cultural organisation.
• Rabindra Sangeet are songs written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking/

9. India ranked 134th in Global Human Development Index: Human Development Report 2023/24

• India’s rank on the UN Human Development Index (HDI) has improved by one place in 2022 to 134 out of 193 countries, compared to 135 in 2021.
• The data has been taken from the United Nations Development Programme’s report titled “Breaking the Gridlock: Reimagining Cooperation in a Polarized World”.
• India’s HDI value has increased to 0.644 in 2022. It was 0.633 in 2021.
• India’s showed improvement across all HDI indicators in 2022. India’s GII value of 0.437 is better than the global average of 0.462 and the South Asian average of 0.478.
• Life expectancy rose from 67.2 to 67.7 years, expected years of schooling reached 12.6, mean years of schooling increased to 6.57 and GNI per capita increased from USD 6,542 to USD 6,951.
• Switzerland is in the top position in the global Human Development Index. Norway and Iceland have been in second and third spots, respectively.
• India, Bhutan, and Bangladesh have been kept in the Medium Human Development category.
• China has moved up three ranks, while Sri Lanka has dropped five spots.
• Nepal (146) and Pakistan (164) have been ranked lower than India.
• The HDI is a composite index computed based on three parameters: life expectancy, mean years of schooling, and average income.

Topic: National Appointments

10. Rahul Singh has been appointed as chairperson of CBSE.

• Senior bureaucrat Rahul Singh has been appointed as the new chairperson of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).
• He will succeed Nidhi Chhibber, who has been appointed as an advisor to the Niti Aayog.
• The appointment has been approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC).
• He is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Bihar cadre, who was serving as the Additional Secretary in the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).
• Rajeev Kumar Mital has been appointed as the Director General of the National Mission for Clean Ganga under the Ministry of Jal Shakti.

Topic: Banking System

11. The private banks’ share in total deposits has increased from 25% in 2017-18 to 34% as of December 2023.

• Higher interest rates and better customer relationship management have helped it increase.
• On the other hand, public sector banks’ share in total deposits has decreased to 59%.
• It stood at 66% at the end of the financial year 2017-18 as per RBI data.
• Deposits of private sector banks have also grown at a faster rate compared with public sector banks.
• Deposits of private sector banks grew by 135% to Rs 68.4 trillion as of December 2023 from Rs 29 trillion as of March 2018.
• The deposits of public sector banks grew by 40% to Rs 116.5 trillion as of December 2023 from Rs 76.5 trillion as of March 2018.
• Private sector banks have also ensured ease of doing banking transactions with the help of technology.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

12. ‘Pradhan Mantri Samajik Utthan and Rozgar Adharit Jankalyan’ (PM-SURAJ) national portal has been inaugurated by PM Modi.

• PM Modi inaugurated the portal during an event organised by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
• PM Modi was the chief guest at the event. The Ministry launched a nationwide initiative.
• It is aimed at offering credit support to the marginalized segments of society.
• The portal supported credit assistance to 1 lakh entrepreneurs from disadvantaged communities.
• The ministry distributed Ayushman health cards and personal protective equipment (PPE) kits to sewer and septic tank workers (Safai Mitras) as part of the National Action for Mechanized Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE).
• The Ayushman health card is a form of identification. It is issued under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).
• AB-PMJAY is a government-sponsored health insurance scheme in India providing beneficiaries access to cashless and paperless healthcare services at empaneled hospitals.
• The Ayushman health card has essential information about the beneficiary. It contains their unique identification number and details of covered healthcare services.

Topic: Committees/ Commissions/Taskforces

13. 'One Nation, One Election' panel under the leadership of Ram Nath Kovind submitted its report to the President.

• Former President Ram Nath Kovind-led high-level committee on 'One Nation, One Election' submitted its report to the President on March 14.
• The committee recommended a three-tier simultaneous election for panchayats, assemblies, and Parliament.
• The panel suggested that the Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections should be held simultaneously and then municipality and panchayat polls should be conducted within 100 days.
• The 18,626-page report is the outcome of extensive consultations with stakeholders, experts, and research over 191 days.
• As per the report, simultaneous polls will foster the development process and social cohesion. This will deepen the foundation of democracy.
• The panel recommended to create a common electoral roll and voter ID cards by the Election Commission of India in association with state election authorities.
• The panel also recommended amendments to five articles of the constitution for the simultaneous polls.
• In the case of Hung House, a no-confidence motion or fresh election should be conducted for the new Lok Sabha or state Assembly for the unexpired term.
• The committee to give recommendations on 'One Nation, One Election' was constituted on September 2, 2023.
• Ghulam Nabi Azad, Amit Shah, N.K. Singh, Subhash Kashyap, Sanjay Kothari and Harish Salve are the members of this committee.
• Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal was a Special Invitee to the Committee.

Topic: National Appointments

14. Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu have been selected as new election commissioners.

• Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Gyanesh Kumar have been selected as new election commissioners by a PM-Modi-led committee.
• The committee comprised Prime Minister Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and the leader of the Indian National Congress in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.
• Utpal Kumar Singh, Pradeep Kumar Tripathi, Gyanesh Kumar, Indevar Pandey, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, and Sudhir Kumar Gangadhar Rahate were shortlisted for the post.
• These posts were vacant after the resignation of Arun Goyal on March 10 and Anup Chandra Pandey's retirement on February 15.
• The election commissioners are appointed by the president upon the recommendation of a committee led by the Prime Minister.
• Election Commission of India:
  • It is an independent body responsible for conducting free and fair elections in India
  • The Election Commission was established as per the Constitution on 25th January 1950.
  • On 16th October 1989, for the first time, two additional Commissioners were appointed.
  • Initially, the commission had only a Chief Election Commissioner. It currently consists of a Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners.
  • The tenure of Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners is six years, or up to the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.