Daily Current Affairs and GK | 27 September 2023

Topic: National Appointments

1. M. Rajeshwar Rao has been reappointed by centre as Deputy Governor of RBI for one year.

• This term of one year will begin from 9th of next month, or until further orders, whichever is earlier.
• M. Rajeshwar Rao handles the departments of Regulation, Communication, Enforcement, Legal and Risk Monitoring.
• Mr. Rao joined the central bank in 1984. He worked as the Banking Ombudsman in New Delhi.
• His three-year term as Deputy Governor started on 09 October, 2020.

Topic: Economy/Banking/Finance

2. Income Tax Department of India has demanded around $150 million from Dream11 for underpaying taxes during 2017-2019.

• Dream11 has filed a case in the High Court in Mumbai.
• It has challenged the notices which demand it to explain why it should not be forced to pay the shortfall.
• While Indian tax authorities are demanding a greater 28% tax on the overall gaming money Dream11 receives from players, Dream11 contends that it should pay a tax on the fees it charges users.
• The company was given 30 days by the tax authorities to provide justification as to why it shouldn't be required to pay a shortfall of 2.1 billion rupees ($26.07 million) for 2017–18 and 10 billion rupees ($120.85 million) for 2018–19.
• Tax officials are also looking into Dream11's four additional years of tax payments, up until March 2023.
• Dream11 is an Indian fantasy sports platform. In April 2019, it became the first Indian fantasy sport company to become a unicorn.
• It was set up in 2008. U.S. investment fund Tiger Global is a major investor in it.

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

3. Indian Oil launched India's first green hydrogen-run bus.

• India's first green hydrogen-run bus that emits just water has been launched by Indian Oil Corporation.
• 75 kg of hydrogen will be produced by splitting water using electricity from renewable sources.
• This hydrogen will be used to power two buses which will run in the national capital region.
• Hydrogen will help India in moving away from fossil fuels.
• Indian Oil Corporation Research and Development Center at Faridabad is producing green hydrogen for the pilot run.
• Four cylinders will be filled with 30 kg which will run the buses for 350 km. These cylinders will be filled in 10-12 minutes.
• Hydrogen fuel will have a three-time energy density and it will not release any harmful emissions.
• For the production of 1 Kg of hydrogen, 50 units of renewable electricity and 9 kg of deionized water will be required.
• India is one of the largest synchronous grids in the world.
• Oil and gas PSUs will produce around 1 million tonnes per annum of green hydrogen by 2030.

Topic: International News

4. Russia wants to rejoin the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

• After being removed in April 2022, Russia is now trying to join the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) forum.
• Russia is pushing member nations to extend support to a position paper in the UN.
• Russia believes that re-joining the UNHRC will restore its international credibility and help in washing the human rights abuse allegations against President Vladimir Putin's regime.
• UN General Assembly in April 2022 voted to remove Russia from the human rights body over allegations of rights violations by Russian soldiers in Ukraine.
• The motion to remove Russia was forwarded by the US and passed with 93 votes in favour.
• A two-thirds vote of the total members is required to remove a member.
• As per a report published by Special Rapporteur Mariana Katzarova, Russian authorities have carried out mass arbitrary arrests of critics of the war.
• United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC):
  • It is a body of the United Nations. It aims to promote and protect human rights worldwide.
  • It has 47 members. Its members are elected for a three-year term. It was founded on 15 March 2006.
  • It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
  • Vaclav Balek is the current president of UNHRC.

Topic: Indian Polity

5. The Law Commission of India is set to submit a report on simultaneous polls.

• The Law Commission of India will submit a report on simultaneous elections very soon.
• The Commission is likely to frame tentative timelines for simultaneous polls for the 2024 and 2029 cycles.
• The report of the 22nd Law Commission will be submitted to the Law Ministry.
• A report on the minimum age of consent under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and a recommendation of law to provide for online filing of First Information Reports will be also submitted by the Law Commission.
• Recently, the government has formed a high-level committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind for recommendations on holding simultaneous elections of Lok Sabha, state Assemblies, municipalities and panchayats.
• The panel has decided to invite the Law Commission and political parties to make suggestions on the issue.
• The 21st Law Commission headed by Justice B S Chauhan had also recommended the ‘One Nation, One Election’ idea.
• The 22nd Law Commission was constituted for a period of three years in 2020. Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi is the chairman of the Law Commission.

Topic: State News/Gujarat

6. PM Modi inaugurated and laid foundation stone of projects at Chhota Udepur in Gujarat on 27 September 2023.

• The projects are worth over 5200 crore rupees and include the school infrastructure projects worth over 4500 crore rupees under Mission Schools of Excellence programme.
• PM Modi will also preside over a function marking the two decades of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit.
• Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit started from Tagore Hall in Ahmedabad with merely 300 international participants in 2003.
• It is completing 20 years on 28th of September 2023.
• A special event to mark the two-decade celebration of the summit will be held at Science City in Ahmedabad in the presence of PM Modi.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

7. An MoU of investment worth Rs. 2,000 crore was signed by the Uttarakhand government with Poma Group.

• Uttarakhand Chief Minister Dhami took part in London roadshow for Global Investors Summit at Dehradun.
• Secretary industries Vinay Shankar Pandey, on behalf of govt. of Uttarakhand, signed the MoU.
• Poma Group is a key group in the field of ropeway construction.
• Poma Group has worked for Auli-ropeway of Chamoli district. It is also providing technical support in Dehradun-Mussoorie ropeway & Yamunotri ropeway projects.

Topic: International Appointments

8. Asian Development Bank has appointed Bhargav Dasgupta as vice-president of market solutions.

• He has been appointed for a period of three years. Dasgupta has recently resigned as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ICICI Lombard General Insurance.
• He joined ICICI Lombard in May 2009 as Managing Director and CEO.
• He will oversee the operations of ADB’s Private Sector Operations Department and the Office of Markets Development and Public–Private Partnerships.
• Asian Development Bank (ADB):
  • It is a regional development bank established in 1966.
  • Members: 68 countries
  • Headquarters: Mandaluyong, Philippines
  • Current President: Masatsugu Asakawa

Topic: Awards and prizes

9. The president presented awards to the winners of the India Smart City Awards Contest (ISAC) 2022.

• On September 27, the winners of the 4th edition of the ISAC 2022 were honoured by President Draupadi Murmu in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
• This Contest has been organized by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs since the year 2018 under the Smart Cities Mission.
• These awards were given during the India Smart City Conference, which was organized on 26-27th September 2023.
• This two-day conference was organized by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
• On the first day of the conference, Minister of State for Urban Development and Housing Kaushal Kishore inaugurated an exhibition of projects that won awards under the India Smart City Contest.
• The fourth edition of ISAC was launched during the ‘Smart Cities-Smart Urbanization’ event held in Surat in April 2022.
• ISAC 2022 Awards have been given to 5 States/UTs, 31 specific cities, and 7 partner organizations. There are a total of 66 winners of the ISAC Awards.
• ISAC recognizes and rewards cities, projects, and innovative ideas that promote inclusive, equitable, safe, and healthy cities while promoting sustainable development in the 100 Smart Cities.
• A total of 845 nominations were received for ISAC 2022 from 80 qualifying smart cities. These entries were evaluated in 5 stages.
• Launched on 25 June 2015, the Smart Cities Mission aims to provide core infrastructure, a clean and sustainable environment, and good quality of life to its citizens through the application of 'smart solutions'.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Sports

10. India won the gold medal at the Asian Games in horse riding after 41 years.

• Since 1982, India won the gold medal in equestrian at the Asian Games for the first time.
• In the team dressage event, the Indian team topped with a total score of 209.205, while China came second with 204.882 and Hong Kong China came third with 204.852.
• The Indian team of Sudipti Hajela (Chinsky–Name of the Horse), Hriday Vipul Chheda (Chemxpro Emerald), Anush Agarwalla (Etro), and Divyakriti Singh (Adrenalin Firfod) created history by winning the first gold medal for India in this event.
• Only the scores of the top 3 performers were considered for the overall team score in the dressage team event.
• Anush Agarwalla's score of 71.088 was a sensational performance, which helped lift India's medal hopes.
• This was only India's fourth gold medal in equestrian at the Asian Games and their 13th medal overall in the event.
• All three of India's gold medals in equestrian came at the 1982 Delhi Asian Games.

Topic: Biotechnology and Diseases

11. A novel molecule developed by IISER Bhopal scientists can hinder the viral transcription of the HIV-1 virus.

• Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER)' Researchers in Bhopal have identified a circular RNA virus, ciTRAN.
• Its role in HIV-1 virus replication has remained unclear for a long time.
• Circular RNA plays an important role in regulating gene expression and is essential for various biological processes.
• The researchers reported that the functional consequences of circular RNA (circRNA) expression on HIV-1 replication are largely unknown.
• Knowing how Citron controls the virus transcription process could potentially lead to new drugs and treatments to fight HIV-1.
• HIV-1 viral protein R (VpR) is a multifunctional protein that plays specific roles in multiple steps of the HIV-1 viral life cycle and influences anti-HIV functions of immune cells.
• HIV-1 infection induces ciTRAN expression in a VPR-dependent manner and ciTRAN interacts with serine/arginine-rich splicing factor 1 (SRSF1).
• The results show that HIV-1 hijacks ciTRAN, which is normally altered during immunological signalling, inflammation, and viral infection.
• This prevents Serine/arginine-rich splicing factor 1 (SRSF1) from performing its function, thereby promoting efficient viral transcription.

Topic: Important Days

12. World Tourism Day 2023: 27 September

• Every year on 27 September, World Tourism Day is celebrated.
• It is celebrated to foster awareness about the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic value.
• The theme of World Tourism Day 2023 is "Tourism and green investments".
• It has been celebrated every year since 1980. It also marks the anniversary of the adoption of the UNWTO Statutes on 27 September 1970.
• Many countries in the world are completely dependent on the tourism sector for financial stability.
• UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) expects tourism to grow at an average of 3% annually until 2030.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: State News/ Bihar

13. Bihar government announced a new scheme for unemployed youths from the minority community.

• The Bihar government has decided to launch 'Mukhyamantri Alpsankhyak Udyami Yojna' for unemployed youths from the minority community.
• This decision has been taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
• Under the scheme, the government will provide Rs 10 lakh to an unemployed minority woman or man to start a new industry.
• Out of the 10 lakh, Rs 5 lakh would be provided as a subsidy and the rest amount would be provided as a loan. The loan amount has to be returned in instalments.
• The scheme will be implemented like the existing Mukhyamantri SC/ST/EBC Udyami Yojana, Mukhyamantri Mahila Udyami Yojna (MMUY) and the Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Yojana (MYUY).
• The state government has also decided to make medical tests and treatment free at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS, Patna).
• Except for registration and bed charges, everything will be free for patients at IGIMS.
• The state government has also approved to formation of 28 dedicated traffic police stations. These will be set up in 23 towns.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

14. Waheeda Rehman to be conferred the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India's Highest Film honour.

• Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur announced that the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2021 will be conferred to Waheeda Rehman.
• She will get the award for her contributions to Indian cinema.
• She is famous for her role in many Hindi films such as Pyaasa, Kaagaz ke Phool, Chaudhavi Ka Chand, Saheb Biwi Aur Ghulam, Guide, Khamoshi and several others.
• She has worked in more than 90 films during her five-decade career.
• She is one of the most talented and elegant actors in Bollywood.
• She was awarded the Padma Shri in 1972 and the Padma Bhushan in 2011.
• She made her debut in the Tamil film 'Alibabavum 40 Thirudargalum' as a dancer.
• Asha Parekh was conferred the Dada Saheb Phalke Award for the year 2020.
• Dadasaheb Phalke Award:
  • It is India's highest award in the field of cinema.
  • It is given by the Directorate of Film Festivals at the National Film Awards ceremony.
  • The award comprises a Swarna Kamal (Golden Lotus) medallion, a shawl, and a cash prize of ₹1,000,000 (US$13,000).
  • It is given in memory of Dadasaheb Phalke, who is popularly known as "the father of Indian cinema".
  • It was first given in 1969 to Devika Rani.

(Source: News on AIR)