Daily Current Affairs and GK | 28 June 2023

Topic: National News

1. 8th edition of Swachh Survekshan begins.

• Swachh Survekshan 2023 – Mera Shehar, Meri Pehchan, world’s largest urban swachhata survey, has been launched by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
• Around 3,000 assessors will take part in the field for assessment from 1 July 2023.
• The assessors will study the performances of 4500+ cities across 46 indicators.
• This year's assessment is set to engage 10 crore citizens.
• Swachh Survekshan was started under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in 2016.
• Its main objective is to help cities in achieving the goal of sustainable sanitation and waste management in a fast-track competitive manner.
• Swachh Survekshan has created a healthy spirit of competitiveness among cities to improve sanitation.
• Swachh Survekshan 2023 will focus on different parameters such as segregation door-to-door waste collection, zero waste events, Divyang-friendly toilets, improved plastic waste management, etc.
• It will emphasise transforming ‘manholes’ into ‘machine holes. The new indicator of Waste to Wonder Parks has been also inducted in the survey with a 2% weightage.
• The first three-quarters of the assessment have already been completed successfully. It was started on 24 May 2022, with telephonic feedback from citizens on various parameters of city cleanliness.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

2. Union Minister Narayan Rane has launched the ‘CHAMPIONS 2.0 Portal’.

• On the occasion of MSME Day, the ‘CHAMPIONS 2.0 Portal’ has been launched by Union Minister Narayan Rane.
• It will help in providing support to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in a more inclusive and user-friendly manner.
• It will be available in 11 languages and will offers a real-time feedback feature for users.
• The ‘CHAMPIONS’ portal was launched on 1 June 2020 as an ICT-based system for grievance redressal and information dissemination to MSMEs.
• As of now, 5,365 grievances have been received through this portal out of which 5206 were resolved.
• Union Minister Narayan Rane also launched a Mobile App for Geo-tagging of Cluster Projects and Technology Centers’.
• This app will capture coordinates and on-site images of organizational infrastructure and facilities.
• 'MSME Idea Hackathon 2.0' result was also declared and 'MSME Idea Hackathon 3.0' for women entrepreneurs has been launched.
• It will encourage women innovators and women-owned MSMEs to present ideas across various sectors.
• Ministry of MSME and SIDBI also signed a MoU to create a portal for ‘PM VIshwakarma KAushal Samman’ (PMVIKAS).

Topic: Books and Authors

3. 'The Yoga Sutra for Children' of Roopa Pai released on June 27.

• Author Roopa Pai's book will uncover the secrets of Patanjali's 2,000-year-old text on yoga.
• Hachette India has published the book 'The Yoga Sutras for Children'.
• The aim of the book is to connect and relate the practice of Yoga to children's everyday lives and help them to use their mind power to bring out the best in themselves.
• The book has been peppered with 'Think' and 'Do' sections for a wholesome and interactive experience.
• The book shares Maharishi Patanjali's techniques to "nurture energy and attitude and to do small and large tasks in a focused and balanced manner".

Topic: International Appointments

4. Aarti Holla-Maini has been appointed Director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.

• United Nations secretary general has appointed Indian-origin British satellite industry expert Aarti Holla-Maini as director of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) in Vienna.
• Aarti will succeed Simonetta Di Pippo of Italy.
• UNOOSA is an office of the United Nations Secretariat that promotes and facilitates peaceful international cooperation in outer space.
• Using space science and technology for sustainable socio-economic development, it works to strengthen the legal and regulatory framework for space activities and assist developing countries.
• Most recently, she held the role of Executive Vice President at Northstar Earth & Space.

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

5. India has now become the country with the second largest highway network after the United States.

• 1.45 lakh kms of the network of national highways in India, is now the second-largest network in the world after the United States.
• The network of national highways in India was 91,287 kms in 2013-14.
• Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari said that it has been increased by 59% in the last nine years of the Modi government.
• Revenue from tolls increased to Rs 41,342 crore in FY23 from Rs 4,770 crore in 2013-14.
• The aim of the government is to increase toll revenue to Rs 1,30,000 crore by 2030.
• The use of FASTags has helped to bring down the waiting time at toll plazas to 47 seconds, and various measures are underway to bring it down to less than 30 seconds.
• The 4-lane NH has almost doubled from 18,371 km to 44,654 km in 2013-14.
• 670 Roadside Amenities being developed to provide pleasant experience on National Highways.

Topic: National News

6. New CSR guidelines 'Sagar Samajik Sahyog' have been launched by Shri Sarbananda Sonowal.

• The new guidelines of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways empower ports to undertake CSR activities directly.
• The new guidelines for CSR activities will enable ports to come up with projects and expedite projects for community welfare.
• The new CSR guidelines issued on June 27 will better impact projects and programs relating to activities specified in section 70 of the Major Port Authorities Act, 2021.
• A Corporate Social Responsibility Committee will be constituted in every major port for the purpose of planning and implementing CSR projects.
• The Deputy Director of the port concerned will be the head of the committee, which will have two other members.
• Each Major Port shall prepare a CSR Plan for each financial year and link its CSR to the business plan with social and environmental concerns related to the port's business.
• The CSR budget will be mandatorily made as a percentage of the net profit of the port through a board resolution.
• A port with an annual net profit of Rs 100 crore or less can contribute an amount between 3% to 5% of the profit to the CSR Fund.
• Similarly, ports with an annual net profit between Rs 100 crore and Rs 500 crore can cap their CSR expenditure between 2% to 3% of their net profit, which should be at least Rs 3 crore.
• For ports whose annual net profit is more than Rs 500 crore, the CSR spend can be between 0.5% to 2% of its net profit.
• 20% of the CSR expenditure should be given to Sainik Welfare Board, National Maritime Heritage Complex and National Youth Development Fund at the district level.
• 78% of CSR spending goes to areas like drinking water, education, vocational training, skill development, etc.
• An amount of 2% of the total CSR fund has been earmarked for monitoring the projects undertaken under the CSR programs of the Ports.

Topic: Indian Economy

7. India’s Current Account Deficit declined to 1.3 billion dollars (0.2% of GDP) in the January-March quarter of the fiscal year 2022-23.

• Moderation in the trade deficit and an increase in services exports caused the decline in Current Account Deficit (CAD).
• A deficit of 2% of GDP was recorded in the current account balance for fiscal 2022-23.
• As per the data released by RBI, net services receipts increased on the back of an increase in net earnings from computer services.
• The decline in CAD in the January-March quarter of last fiscal was chiefly due to a moderation in the trade deficit from $71.3 billion in the preceding quarter to $52.6 billion.
• In the January-March period, private transfer receipts increased to $28.6 billion.
• Net Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) stood at USD 6.4 billion in Q4 2022-23. It was higher than USD 2.0 billion in Q3 2022-23. It was lower than a year ago (USD 13.8 billion).
• Net Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) recorded an outflow of $1.7 billion.
• Net External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs) recorded an inflow of $1.7 billion.
• Net invisible receipts were higher in 2022-23. Net FDI inflows stood at $28 billion in 2022-23. It was lower than $38.6 billion in 2021-22.

Topic: State News/ Jammu and Kashmir

8. CJI Dr Justice D Y Chandrachud laid the foundation stone of the new complex of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court.

• The complex is located in the Raika area in the outskirts of Jammu city.
• The complex is estimated to cost over 800 crore rupees. It will be completed in the shortest possible time.
• The complex will be equipped with modern facilities. It has been conceptualized as a self-contained integrated complex.
• It will have 35 courtrooms. It will also have chambers for 1000 lawyers with space for expansion in the future.
• Then Chief Justice of J&K High Court Gita Mittal conceptualized the project.
• High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh will for the first time host a two-day All India Legal Services Authorities Meet on June 30 and July 1 at Srinagar.

Topic: State News/ Odisha

9. Odisha government in association with QCI launched Odisha Gunvatta Sankalp.

• The Odisha Gunvatta Sankalp (Odisha Quality Mission) has been launched by the Odisha government in association with QCI, ASSOCHAM, FICCI, EEPC, OASME, PHDCCI, CIPET, FHRA.
• It has been inaugurated by the Chief Secretary of Odisha Shri Pradeep Kumar Jena.
• The main objective of the mission is to promote and prioritize quality across various sectors in the state of Odisha.
• It will help in creating an ecosystem of quality that will contribute to the progress and empowerment of Odisha.
• It will foster collaboration between policymakers, industry leaders, practitioners, and academia to create an environment of quality in Odisha.
• Quality Council of India (QCI):
  • It was established in 1997 by the Government of India.
  • It is an apex organization for establishing and operating the third-party national accreditation system and improving quality across sectors.
  • It has established constituent Boards such as NABL for labs and NABH for hospitals, NABCB for certification and inspection bodies.
  • Mr Jaxay Shah is the current Chairperson of the Quality Council of India (QCI).

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

10. Government allowed Aadhaar authentication for registration for births and deaths.

• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEiTY) has issued a gazette notification concerning this matter.
• It has allowed the Office of Registrar General of India (RGI) to use the Aadhaar database for authenticating the identity details provided during the registration of births and deaths.
• Under the Registration of Birth and Death Act, 1969, Registrar will be allowed to perform Aadhaar authentication for verification of Aadhaar.
• The State governments and Union Territory administrations will have to follow the guidelines issued by the Central government for the use of Aadhaar authentication.
• MEiTY has notified rules which will allow Aadhaar authentication by requesting entities in the interest of good governance, and promote ease of living.
• If a State government wishes to utilize Aadhaar authentication, it must prepare a proposal justifying the need for such authentication. This proposal should then be submitted to the Central government for consideration.
• Aadhaar is a 12-digit individual identification number issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India.

Topic: MoUs/ Agreements

11. A $454 mn deal signed by Infosys with Danske Bank to boost digital transformation.

• On 26 June, India's second-largest IT services firm Infosys signed an agreement with Denmark-based Danske Bank to accelerate the lender's digital transformation.
• The deal is valued at $454 million for five years, with an option to renew for one additional year up to three times.
• This is supported by significant investments in digitization and technology, including plans to further develop customer-facing digital solutions and modernize technology infrastructure to enable improved customer experience.
• In this partnership, Infosys is working with Danske to accelerate the bank's technology transformation.
• As a part of the deal, Infosys will also take over the Danske bank’s IT centre in Bengaluru for 13.6 Danish Krone (or Rs 16.3 crore).

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

12. IISc Bangalore has been ranked top in the Indian Institute in THE Asian University Rankings 2023.

• In the Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings 2023, Indian Institute of Science, IISc Bangalore has secured 48th rank.
• It has emerged as the top institute in India but has fallen six positions compared to last year.
• JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research in Mysuru has secured the second highest ranking of educational institutions in India with the 68th ranking.
• The rankings were released for 669 universities from 31 regions between Turkey in the west and Japan in the east.
• Overall, India has a total of 18 universities in the top 200 of the Asia University Rankings. One Indian university is in the top 50, while four are in the top 100.
• In first place, China's Tsinghua University retained the spot for the fourth year in a row.
• Chinese university, Peking University also retained the second spot for the fourth year in a row.
• National University of Singapore, University of Hong Kong and Singapore's Nanyang Technological University ranked 3rd, 4th and 5th in the ranking, respectively.
• Most universities are from Japan (117), followed by China (95), India (75), Iran (65) and Turkey (61).
• Some Top ranking universities of India:

Topic: National Appointments

13. Rajat Verma has been appointed as Managing Director of DBS Bank India.

• Rajat Verma, formerly heading HSBC, will be the new Managing Director of DBS Bank.
• He will take the place of Niraj Mittal, who has become country head of DBS Bank.
• He will lead the growth of the institutional banking franchise for DBS Bank in India.
• Rajat's appointment will strengthen the leadership team and commitment to growing institutional banking business.
• Under Rajat’s leadership, the bank will aim to strengthen its digitalization drive.
• DBS Bank:
  • It is a Singaporean multinational banking corporation.
  • It is headquartered in Singapore.
  • It is one of the largest foreign banks in India.
  • It is also trying to expand its franchise in Australia.

Topic: Important Days

14. International Pineapple Day: 27 June

• International Pineapple Day is observed every year on 27 June.
• In India, Pineapple is mainly produced in the Tripura.
• Queen Pineapple is one of the finest varieties of pineapple. Queen Pineapple is the state fruit of Tripura.
• Tripura is the largest producer of Queen Pineapple in India.
• In the last five years, the government has provided financial assistance under the horticulture mission scheme to promote the production of pineapple.
• In 2021-22, 11,505 hectares of pineapple were cultivated in Tripura.
• Costa Rica is the largest pineapple producer in the world. Indonesia and the Philippines are the other top Pineapple producers in the world.

(Source: News on AIR)