Daily Current Affairs and GK | 17 and 18 October 2021

Topic: Defence

1. PM Modi dedicated seven new Defence companies to the nation.

• Seven new Defence companies have been dedicated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the nation on the auspicious occasion of Vijayadashmi.
• After the approval of the Government to the dissolution of the existing Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), these new companies have been formed to ensure efficiency, better quality, competitiveness, and boost exports.
• There were 41 factories and 9 ancillary bodies under the OFB, which were producing small arms, artillery guns, anti-aircraft guns, rockets, bombs, leather equipment for the soldiers, tanks, armoured personnel carriers, and mine protected vehicles.
• On 1 October 2021, Ordnance Factory Board has been dissolved and its assets, employees, and management were transferred to seven companies.
• The government has already announced that there will be no change in the service condition of the employees.
• The seven new defence companies are:
  • Munition India Ltd
  • Armoured Vehicles Nigam Ltd
  • Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Ltd
  • Troop Comforts Ltd
  • Yantra India Ltd
  • India Optel Ltd
  • Gliders India Ltd.
• These companies have the responsibility of manufacturing parachutes, troop comfort items, weapons, vehicles, ammunition, optoelectronics gear, and more for the use of the three services, State police as well as Central Armed Police Force (CAPF).
• Ordnance Factories Day is celebrated every year on 18 March in India.

Topic: Important Days

2. International Day for the Eradication of Poverty celebrated on 17 October 2021 with the theme "Building Forward Together: Ending Persistent Poverty, Respecting all People and our Planet".

• International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is celebrated every year on October 17 to highlight worldwide poverty, violence and hunger.
• The theme of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 2021 is "Building Forward Together: Ending Persistent Poverty, Respecting all People and our Planet."
• The purpose of this day is to find ways to reduce and eradicate poverty, to acknowledge the efforts and struggles of people living in poverty, and to give them a chance to be heard.
• The day was first celebrated in Paris, France in 1987 at the Human Rights and Liberties Plaza in the Trocadero to honor the victims of poverty, hunger, violence, and fear.
• The United Nations (UN) had officially designated 17 October as the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty in 1992.

Topic: Defence

3. China and Russia conducting joint naval drills in Russian Far East.

• A joint Russian-Chinese naval exercise is being held in the Sea of Japan from October 14 to 17.
• The exercises Joint Sea 2021 kicked off with a ceremony in Russia’s Peter the Great Gulf. The Russian Navy is being represented by warships and support vessels of the Pacific Fleet.
• Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) naval forces are represented by the destroyers Kun Ming and Nan Chang.
• It will be the first time that the Chinese military has sent anti-submarine warfare aircraft and heavy destroyers for exercises abroad.
• The first Russian-Chinese joint naval drills took place in the Yellow Sea in August 2005.

Topic: Appointments

4. A K Goel elected as chairman of Indian Banks Association.

• A K Goel has been elected as chairman of the Indian Banks Association. He is the managing director and chief executive of UCO Bank.
• He has taken place of Rajkiran Rai G, MD & CEO, Union Bank of India.
• He has been elected at the managing committee meeting held on 14 October.
• Last month, Goel has been recommended for the post of managing director of Punjab National Bank (PNB) by the Banks Board Bureau.
• SBI Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara, Canara Bank MD L V Prabhakar, and IDBI Bank MD Rakesh Sharma are elected as deputy chairmen of the Indian Banks Association.

Topic: Defence

5. Indian army team wins gold medal in the Exercise Cambrian Patrol 2021.

• Indian army team has won the gold medal in the Exercise Cambrian Patrol 2021 organised at Brecon, Wales, UK from 13th to 15th October 2021.
• A team from 4/5 Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force) represented Indian Army at Exercise Cambrian Patrol and won the gold medal.
• Ex Cambrian Patrol is organised by the UK Army. It is sometimes referred to as the Olympics of Military Patrolling among militaries in the world.
• The Indian Army team competed against a total of 96 teams which included 17 international teams representing Special Forces and prestigious Regiments from around the world.
• General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, the Chief of General Staff of British Army presented the Gold Medal to the team members in a formal ceremony on 15 October 2021.
• Exercise Cambrian Patrol is an annual international military patrolling exercise. In Exercise Cambrian Patrol, the teams have to cover a 50-mile (80 km) course in less than 48 hrs.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

6. Ministry of Food Processing Industries organized Food Tech Summit 2021.

• Ministry of Food Processing Industries has organized Food Tech Summit under the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme on 16th October 2021.
• The summit was organized to commemorate World Food Day (16 October).
• The summit aimed at setting the stage for all food-tech stakeholders to impart, discuss and acquaint micro enterprises on the new emerging trends in food processing and technological innovation.
• The Food Tech Summit is one of a kind initiative by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries along with the support of distinguished industry experts.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Sports

7. India clinched South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship by defeating Nepal.

• India won the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship for the eighth time by defeating Nepal by 3-0 in Male.
• Captain Sunil Chhetri, Suresh Singh Wangzam, and Sahal Abdul Samad scored a goal each for India. Chhetri’s goal helped him equalizing 80 international goals record of Lionel Messi.
• India had taken a lead with a goal by Sunil in the 49th minute while Suresh scored in the 59th minute.
• This is the Indian football team’s first title victory under head coach Igor Stimac.
• Nepal has reached the final of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship for the first time.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: State News/ Uttar Pradesh

8. Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated 29^th Hunar Haat at Rampur in Uttar Pradesh.

• Union Minister for Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated the 29th Hunar Haat at Rampur in Uttar Pradesh.
• It is being organized by the Union Ministry for Minority Affairs as a part of a series of 75 Hunar Haat under Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
• The theme for this edition of 'Hunar Haat' is 'Best from Waste'. The products available at Hunar Haat are also available on Government-e-Marketplace.
• Around 700 artisans and craftsmen from across the country are participating in the Hunar Haat. Indigenous products made with wood, brass, bamboo, glass, cloth, paper, clay, etc. will be displayed at the Hunar Haat.
• Union Minority Affairs Ministry said that 'HunarHaat' has provided a platform for bolstering the vision of 'Swadeshi-Swavlamban' and 'Vocal for Local’.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Miscellaneous

9. Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya launched the anthem on India’s Covid 19 vaccination.

• Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya launched the anthem on India’s Covid 19 vaccination.
• The song has been sung by eminent singer Kailash kher. The anthem has been launched at Shastri Bhawan in New Delhi.
• Mansukh Mandaviya said that the government has already administered more than 97 crore corona vaccines in the country.
• Till date, more than 73 per cent of the eligible population in India has received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccines.
• Government is also planning to launch a mass campaign to encourage people to take their second dose of Covid-19 vaccine.
• The transportation of vaccines is one of the biggest challenge for India.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

10. Second edition of Naval Commanders’ Conference will be organized in New Delhi.

• The second edition of Naval Commanders’ Conference of 2021 will be organized in New Delhi from 18th to 22nd October.
• The conference will act as a platform for Naval Commanders to discuss important maritime issues at the military-strategic level. It will also provide a medium to interact with Senior Government Officials.
• It is an institutionalized platform to deliberate, direct, and decide important issues. It will shape future of the Indian Navy.
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will address the conference and discuss matters related to national security.
• Chief of the Naval Staff along with other Naval Commanders will review major operational, materiel, logistics, Human Resource Development, training and administrative activities.
• Indian Navy played a key role in the national security. Indian Navy ships deployed in the Gulf of Aden and the Persian Gulf continue provides security for trade flowing through these areas.

Topic: Miscellaneous

11. Mount Harriet located in Andaman to be named Mount Manipur.

• The Union government has decided to rename Mount Harriet, an island peak in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, as Mount Manipur.
• Union home minister Amit Shah made this announcement while addressing a function at Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• The name has been changed to give a tribute to the freedom fighters of Manipur. The freedom fighters of Manipur had played a key role during the 1857 revolution.
• Yubraj Tikendrajit and General Thangal of Manipur were publicly hanged by Britishers in Imphal. After that, Maharaja Kulachandra Dhwaja Singh and 22 freedom fighters were sent to Kalapani and kept on Mount Harriet.

Topic: International News

12. Norway’s left wing opposition wins general election.

• Norway's leftwing opposition headed by Labour Party leader Jonas Gahr Store has won general election.
• The left-wing opposition removed a centre-right coalition headed by Conservative Prime Minister Erna Solberg from power.
• Labour Party was expected to win an absolute majority with Centre Party and the Socialist Left.
• Preliminary results eliminated concerns about having to rely on the support of the Greens and the communist Red Party.
• The Greens said it would support a leftist government that will immediately end oil exploration in Norway.
• Store had rejected it. Store has like the Conservatives, called for a gradual transition away from the oil economy.
• The August "code red for humanity" report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) forced the Norway to think on its oil economy that has made it immensely rich.
• The oil sector accounts for 14 % of Norway's gross domestic product. The oil sector accounts for 40 % of its exports.

Topic: Corporates/Companies

13. BPCL launches an automated fuelling technology –Ufill.

• Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) has launched an automated fuelling technology –Ufill.
• Ufill has been launched to make sure that BPCL customers have a better experience at outlets.
• As of now, Ufill has been launched in 65 cities. It will soon be launched across the country.
• UFill functionality does not need any app download. It is payment app agnostic.
• Customer can use any payment app already downloaded on his/her phone like GPay, PayTM, PhonePe etc. UFill offers real time QR and voucher code through SMS.
• The technology provides the customer with control of fuelling as well as touch less pre-payment solution.
• The distribution unit automatically presets the fuel value paid by the customer in advance and eliminates any manual intervention at the point of sale.
• Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) is a Maharatna oil refining and marketing company. Its headquarters are located in Mumbai.

Topic: Space and IT

14. China launched its first solar exploration satellite.

• China has launched its first solar exploration satellite from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi Province.
• China has launched the satellite aboard a Long March-2D rocket. The satellite entered its planned orbit successfully.
• This was 391st flight mission of Long March carrier rocket series. Ten small satellites were also sent into space using Long March-2D rocket.
• These satellites included an orbital atmospheric density detection experimental satellite and a commercial meteorological detection constellation experimental satellite.