Daily Current Affairs and GK | 31 December 2024

Topic: Indian Economy

1. Net claims of non-residents on India declined by USD 19.8 billion in Q2.

• During the second quarter of the current financial year, the Net claims of non-residents on India stood USD 348.5 billion in September 2024.
• The amount has declined due to a larger increase in Indian residents' overseas financial assets compared to foreign-owned assets in India.
• Net claims of non-residents on India is the difference between the assets and liabilities held by non-residents in India.
• The inward portfolio investment has reached to USD 16.5 billion and loan to USD 15.4 billion.
• The inward portfolio investment and loan accounted for over two-thirds of the rise in foreign liabilities of Indian residents during this quarter.

Topic: Sports

2. Jasprit Bumrah became the fastest Indian to take 200 test wickets.

• Jasprit Bumrah became the fastest Indian bowler to take 200 Test wickets.
• He achieved this feat in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
• Bumrah achieved the landmark with his 8484th legal delivery in Test cricket.
• He surpassed Mohammed Shami, who reached the same milestone after 9896 deliveries.
• He is now the fourth-fastest bowler to take 200 wickets after Waqar Younis (7725 balls), Dale Steyn (7848 balls), and Kagiso Rabada (8154 balls).

Topic: Banking System

3. RBI proposed lookup facility for NEFT, RTGS by April 1.

• The RBI proposed to introduce a lookup facility for beneficiary accounts in the Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) systems to prevent fraud.
• It will allow users to view and verify the name of the beneficiary before making a transaction.
• It is similar to the existing features in the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Immediate Payments Service (IMPS).
• At present, the sender cannot see the beneficiary's name before making a transaction through NEFT and RTGS.
• NPCI has been given this task for developing this facility and onboarding all banks for this facility in NEFT and RTGS.
• Under this new facility, the remitting and beneficiary banks will need to store data related to the lookup queries and responses.
• NPCI will not store any data related to the lookup queries.

Topic: New Developments

4. IIT Bombay has developed needle-free shock syringes for painless injections.

• IIT Bombay carried out test on rats and it performed better than traditional needles in many ways.
• The needle-free shock syringes have been developed for painless and safe drug delivery.
• A team from IIT Bombay has developed a shockwave based syringe that delivers medicine without piercing the skin with sharp needle.
• The newly developed syringe uses high-energy shockwaves to create a microjet of liquid drugs.
• This microjet moves at around twice the speed of a commercial aeroplane during takeoff, penetrates the skin quickly and softly.
• This new development has the capability to bring a revolution in vaccination campaigns and reduce risks of infections from needle injuries.

Topic: National Appointments

5. Dr. Sandip Shah has been appointed as Chairperson of NABL.

• Joint MD of Neuberg Diagnostics, Dr. Sandip Shah, is appointed as the chairperson of NABL.
• He served as the chair of the Medical Labs Accreditation Improvement Committee (MLAIC).
• National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL):
• NABL provides accreditation to Conformity Assessment Bodies (Laboratories) in India.
  • It was established in 1988.
  • Its headquarters is located in Gurugram.
  • It is a constituent board of Quality Council of India. QCI is an autonomous body set up under DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
  • NABL celebrates World Accreditation Day (WAD) every year on 9 June.

Topic: Defence

6. Defence Ministry signed contracts to strengthen submarine capabilities.

• Ministry of Defence signed two contracts, worth around 2,867 crore rupees.
• Contracts are for the construction of the Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) Plug for the DRDO-AIP system and its integration onboard Indian submarines.
• Contracts are also for the integration of the Electronic Heavy Weight Torpedo (EHWT) onboard the Kalvari-class submarines.
• Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh was present during the signing of both the contracts.
• The contract for the construction of the AIP Plug and its integration was signed with Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited, Mumbai. It is worth around 1,990 crore rupees.
• The contract for the integration of the EHWT was signed with Naval Group, France. It is worth around 877 crore rupees.
• DRDO is indigenously developing AIP technology.
• The Indian Navy, DRDO, and Naval Group, France will work together to integrate the EHWT.
• According to the Ministry, it would significantly increase the Indian Navy's Kalvari-class submarines' firing capabilities.

Topic: Space and IT

7. The 100^th launch of ISRO's GSLV Mission from Sriharikota is scheduled for January.

• On December 30, 2024, the PSLV-C60 mission was the 99th launch from Sriharikota.
• This effectively put two spacecraft in a circular orbit for the Space Docking Experiment.
• The navigation satellite NVS-02 will be launched by GSLV in January.
• In May 2023, ISRO placed a navigation satellite onboard the GSLV-F12/NVS-01 rocket.
• The NVS-01 navigation satellite, which weighed roughly 2,232 kg, was successfully launched into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) by this GSLV rocket.
• Of the second-generation satellites planned for the Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) services, the NVS-01 was the first.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

8. Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme timeline has been extended till January 31.

• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has extended the Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme deadline to January 31, 2025.
• This scheme period was scheduled to end on 31st December 2024.
• After the extension, the taxpayers will get additional time to file their declarations and settle disputes at reduced tax rates.
• The Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme was announced by the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the 2024 budget.
• From February 1, 2025, taxpayers applying for the scheme will need to pay extra charges as per the revised rate.
• This scheme was launched to help taxpayers to resolve disputes with the income tax department.
• It has enabled taxpayers to settle their outstanding tax liabilities by paying the disputed amount and a specified percentage.

Topic: National Appointments

9. Vitul Kumar assumed the charge of Director General of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

• The Ministry of Home Affairs has appointed Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Vitul Kumar as the Director General of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
• He assumed the office after the retirement of the incumbent force chief, Anish Dayal Singh.
• He is currently serving as the special director general of the CRPF.
• He was also awarded the Director General’s Commendation Disc in Silver on January 26, 2016.
• He will serve as the officiating Director General of the CRPF until a permanent replacement is appointed.
• He has received many awards and honours, including the President’s Police Medal (PPM) and the Police Medal (PM).

Topic: Indian Economy

10. India now ranks fourth in the world with foreign exchange reserves that have risen to over 700 billion US dollars.

• The overall amount of foreign direct investment inflows throughout the last ten years, from 2014 to 2024, was around $709 billion.
• On the Global Competitiveness Index, India rose from 71st place in 2014 to 39th place in 2018.
• India's economy is currently the fifth largest in the world, and it is moving closer to becoming the third largest.
• Between 2015 and 2018, India rose 42 spots in the Ease of Doing Business index.
• India surpassed China as the world's second-largest producer of crude steel in 2024.
• Additionally, it became the world's second-largest producer of mobile phones.
• The education sector in India is also expanding remarkably.
• Seven of India's universities are currently ranked in the Top 100 in Asia, according to the QS World University Rankings: Asia 2025.

Topic: Indian Polity

11. According to figures released by the Election Commission of India, Puducherry had the highest percentage of female voters in the nation during the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections. 

• According to a press statement from the Puducherry Chief Electoral Officer, women make up 5,42,979, or 53.03%, of the 10,23,699 electorate.
• With all 31 polling places were staffed only by trained female officials, the Mahe Assembly Segment created history.
• The gender ratio in the Union Territory also increased significantly, rising from 1127 in 2023 to 1130 in 2024.
• The ECI data also shows a 5.19% increase among registered voters.
• Of the 151 transgender voters who were registered, about 70% of them cast ballots.
• According to the data, the number of NOTA votes dropped from 12,199 in 2019 to 9763 in 2024.

Topic: MoUs /Agreements

12. India and Australia's economic cooperation and trade agreement completed two years.

• The India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement ECTA has completed two years of remarkable success.
• It has enhanced trade ties and created new opportunities for MSMEs, businesses and employment in both countries.
• Bilateral merchandise trade has more than doubled. It has surged from over 12 billion dollars in 2020-21 to 26 billion dollars in 2022-23.
• Total trade reached 24 billion in 2023-24, with India’s exports to Australia growing by 14 per cent.
• Many sectors like textiles, chemicals, and agriculture have shown substantial growth.
• Imports of essential raw materials, such as metalliferous ores, cotton, wood and wood products have supported India’s industries.

Topic: Sports

13. Hemanth Muddappa scripted history by winning the 15th National Title in Motorcycle Drag Racing.

• Hemanth Muddappa has become a triple champion in the Indian National Motorcycle Drag Racing Championship 2024.
• Muddappa of Mantra Racing participated in three classes in the 2024 Nationals.
• He has taken an unbeatable lead of 29 points in the 4-stroke 1051 to 1650cc Super Sport class.
• He achieved this milestone by taking part in three more classes and winning two of them.
• He is known for his exceptional skills and dominance on the drag strip.