Daily Current Affairs and GK | 5 April 2022

Topic: Miscellaneous

1. Aamir Khan becomes brand ambassador of PharmEasy.

• PharmEasy has launched its latest campaign with Bollywood star Aamir Khan.
• PharmEasy is an Indian healthcare app and e-commerce platform. Siddharth Shah is the current CEO of PharmEasy.
• Other brand ambassadors in News:
  • Godrej Appliances named Ayushmann Khurrana as its brand ambassador.
  • Softline Womenswear roped Kiara Advani as brand ambassador.

Topic: MoUs/ Agreements

2. SBI inked an MoU with Border Security Force.

• State Bank of India (SBI) and Border Security Force have signed an MoU to give special benefits to the serving and retired BSF personnel and family pensioners.
• These special benefits will be given under the Central Armed Police Salary Package (CAPSP) Scheme.
• State Bank of India (SBI) will offer Personal and Air Accidental Insurance (Death) cover, additional cover in case of on-duty death, and Permanent Total Disability/ Partial Disability cover to BSF personnel.
• Under this MoU, SBI will support child education and the marriage of girl children of deceased BSF personnel.
• State Bank of India (SBI) will also offer zero-balance savings bank accounts with many complementary benefits.
• The Bank will give Home, Car, Education, and Xpress Credit Personal loans at low rates.
• Border Security Force (BSF):
  • It was founded on 1 December 1965.
  • It works under the Ministry of Home Affairs and its headquarters is located in New Delhi.
  • Pankaj Kumar Singh is the current Director-General of the Border Security Force.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

3. India’s Falguni Shah and Ricky Kej wins Grammy Award 2022.

• Ricky Kej and Falguni Shah, two Indian musicians, are among the winners at the 64^th Annual Grammy Awards, which was held in Las Vegas.
• Kej won his second Grammy Award for the album "Divine Tides" in the Best New Age Album category. Kej won his first Grammy for "Winds of Samsara" in 2015.
• Shah won the award for her album "A Colorful World" in the Best Children's Music Album category.
• The first Grammy Awards ceremony was held on May 4, 1959.
• It is an award presented by the Recording Academy to recognize achievement in the music industry.
• The winners of the 64^th Grammy Awards are as follows:
  • Album of The Year: ‘We Are’ by Jon Batiste
  • Record of The Year: “Leave the Door Open” by Bruno Mars and Anderson Paak
  • Song of The Year: “Leave the Door Open,” Silk Sonic (Brandon Anderson, Christopher Brody Brown, Dernst Emile II and Bruno Mars)
  • Best Music Video: “Freedom,” Jon Batiste
  • Best Music film: “Summer of Soul”
  • Best R&B Album: “Heaux Tales,” Jazmine Sullivan
  • Best Country Song: “Cold” by Chris Stapleton

Topic: Appointments

4. Vikas Kumar took over as the new Delhi Metro Chief.

• The Delhi government has appointed Vikas Kumar as the new Managing Director of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) on April 1.
• He will hold the post for a period of five years.
• Kumar has succeeded Dr. Mangu Singh, who was the Managing Director of DMRC since January 1, 2012.
• After E Sreedharan and Mangu Singh, he will be the third MD of DMRC.
• DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Corporation):
  • The DMRC is the largest and busiest metro rail system in India.
  • Its Chairman is Manoj Joshi.
  • It began operations on December 24, 2002.

Topic: Banking System

5. HDFC and HDFC Bank will merge to create the country's third most valuable enterprise.

• HDFC Bank, India's most valuable lender, agreed to acquire the country's largest mortgage lender HDFC Limited in a USD 40 billion deal.
• Once the deal comes into effect, HDFC Bank will be owned 100% by public shareholders, and existing shareholders of HDFC will hold 41% of the bank.
• HDFC Ltd shareholders will get 42 shares in the combined company for every 25 equity shares held.
• Subject to regulatory approvals, the merger is expected to be completed in the second or third quarter of FY24.
• Under the deal, HDFC and its two wholly owned subsidiaries -HDFC Holdings and HDFC Investments will be merged with HDFC Bank.
• It is the second such merger after ICICI Ltd was merged with its banking unit, ICICI Bank, in October 2001.
• HDFC was the brainchild of H T Parekh and was incorporated in 1977 (promoted by institutions led by ICICI).
• HDFC Bank:
  • HDFC Bank is India's largest private sector bank.
  • It is headquartered in Mumbai.
  • It was founded in 1994. The CEO of HDFC Bank is Sashidhar Jagdishan.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Awards and Prizes

6. Aarefa Johari won the Chameli Devi Jain Award.

• Aarefa Johari, a Mumbai-based journalist, has been declared the winner of the Chameli Devi Jain Award for the year 2021.
• The Media Foundation named Johari as the winner of the award. She works for 'Scroll.in' in Mumbai.
• A three-member panel selected the winner, which included Nirupama Subramanian of 'The Indian Express,' writer Githa Hariharan and Ashutosh of 'SatyaHindi.'
• Chameli Devi Jain Award:
  • The award is named after Chameli Devi Jain, a freedom fighter and a community reformer.
  • The award was established in 1982.
  • It is a prominent award given to Indian women media persons who have reported topics like social development, politics, equity, gender justice, health, war and conflict, and consumer values.

Topic: Indian Polity

7. Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, 2022 has been passed in Lok Sabha.

• The bill repeals The Identification of Prisoners Act, 1920. It provides legal sanction to taking appropriate body measurements of persons.
• Under the bill, persons are required to give body measurements like finger-impressions, palm-print and foot-print impressions, photographs, iris and retina scan, physical and biological samples.
• The bill gives National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) powers to collect, store and preserve the record of measurements for at least 75 years.
• The bill also empowers NCRB for sharing, dissemination, destruction and disposal of records.
• Under the bill, police or prison officer up to the rank of a Head Constable are allowed to take measurements of any person who resists or refuses to give measurements.
• The motive behind bringing the bill is to increase conviction rate in country and to bring down the crime rates.
• As per NCRB data, conviction rate in cases of murder stood at 44% in 2022. It stood at mere 24% in attempt to murder cases.

Topic: Important Days

8. National Maritime Day: 05 April

• National Maritime Day is celebrated each year on 5 April to create awareness regarding support for intercontinental commerce and worldwide economy.
• The day was for the first time celebrated on 5 April, 1964. On this day, NMD Award of Excellence is given.
• Varuna Award is also given on this day to recognize people who made outstanding contribution to Indian Maritime Sector. 
• National Maritime Day 2022 is 59th edition of National Maritime Day.
• National Cadet Corps (NCC) has launched a nationwide campaign 'Puneet Sagar Abhiyan'.
• The campaign has been launched to clean up plastic and other types of waste from beaches and other water bodies including rivers and lakes.
• The initial phase of 'Puneet Sagar Abhiyan 2022' is being organized from 01-05 April, 2022 on the occasion of National Maritime Day.

Topic: Reports and Indices

9. Chhattisgarh has lowest unemployment rate in India.

• As per the latest data released by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), Chhattisgarh had an unemployment rate of 0.6% in March 2022.
• In March 2022, India’s overall unemployment was 7.6 per cent. The unemployment rate in the country was 8.10 percent in February.
• According to data, Haryana has the highest unemployment rate (26.7 percent), followed by Rajasthan and Jammu and Kashmir.
• Chhattisgarh government has launched various schemes like Suraji Gaon Yojana, Narva-Garva-Ghurva-Bari programme, Godhan Nyay Yojana, etc. for strengthening rural economy.
• New employment opportunities have been created in rural areas with the effective implementation of these schemes.
• Chhattisgarh government has also launched ‘Chhattisgarh Employment Mission’ to create 15 lakh jobs in the next five years.
• Different Types of Unemployment in India are:
  • Seasonal unemployment: It occurs when people fail to get work during some months of the year.
  • Disguised Unemployment: It occurs when productivity is low and too many workers are applying too few jobs.
  • Structural Unemployment: It is a type of unemployment that arises due to the mismatch between the jobs and skills of manpower available in the market.
  • Frictional Unemployment: It occurs when worker quit their jobs in search of better opportunities.

Topic: National News

10. Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi inaugurates ‘Temple 360’ website.

• On the occasion of Nav Varsha at IGNCA, Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi inaugurated the ‘Temple 360’ website under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
• With the help of this website, people can digitally see the grandeur of some of the most sacred Hindu pilgrimage sites.
• With the help of the ‘Temple 360’ website, people can do darshan of 12 Jyotirlinga and Char Dham from any location.
• People can see and participate in e-Darshan, e-Prashad, and e-Aarti through this website.
• Anyone can now watch live streaming of rituals from four major temples: Somnath (Gujarat), Kashi Vishwanath (Uttar Pradesh), Trimbakeshwar (Maharashtra), and Ghrishneshwar (Maharashtra).

Topic: State News/ Uttar Pradesh

11. Uttar Pradesh government launched ‘School Chalo Abhiyan’ to ensure 100% enrolment in primary and upper primary schools.

• Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched the campaign from Shravasti district. It is one of the most illiterate districts of the state.
• Under the campaign, students will be provided uniforms, shoes and socks.
• Public representatives will also be associated with the 'School Chalo Abhiyan’. Chief Minister urged each MLA to adopt a school.
• He said the government has revamped schools under Operation Kayakalp.
• Government is committed to provide basic facilities like infrastructure, toilets and electricity.
• Yogi Adityanath said the officials should also adopt schools for the overall development.
• Literacy rate in Uttar Pradesh:
  • According to the latest statistics, the Male Literacy Rate % in Uttar Pradesh is 79.24 percent and the Female Literacy rate is 59.26 percent.
  • The overall literacy rate in Uttar Pradesh is 69.72%.
  • The highest literacy rate is recorded in the Gautam Buddha Nagar district while lowest is in the Shravasti district.

Topic: National News

12. Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur launched the Broadcast Seva Portal in New Delhi.

• The Broadcast Seva Portal will add a new chapter in Ease of Doing Business in the Broadcasting sector.
• Broadcast Seva Portal is an online portal solution, under which applications for various types of licenses, permissions, registrations, etc. can be filed by broadcasters expeditiously and scrutiny of these applications can also be completed faster.
• The Broadcast Seva Portal will help applicants in tracking the progress and reduce the turnaround time of applications.
• It will reduce the presence of applicants and bring transparency to the system.
• This portal will provide its services under the Digital India initiative to private satellite TV channels, teleport operators, MSOs, community and private radio channels etc.
• It will benefit more than 900 Satellite TV Channels, 70 Teleport operators, 1700 Multi-service operators, and 350 Community Radio Stations (CRS).

Topic: Sports

13. Iga Swiatek clinched Miami Open title.

• Poland’s Iga Swiatek clinched the Miami Open title by defeating Japan's Naomi Osaka in the final.
• She defeated Naomi Osaka in women's singles by 6-4, 6-0. She has won 17 consecutive matches.
• Iga Swiatek has become the only fourth woman to win the Indian Wells and Miami tournaments back-to-back.
• Iga Swiatek will occupy the top rank.
• Spanish player Carlos Alcaraz became the youngest man to win the Miami Open by defeating Casper Ruud 7-5, 6-4 in the men's singles final.
• Miami Open:
  • It is a tennis tournament usually held between March and April in Miami Gardens, Florida.
  • It is played on the Hard court (outdoors).

Topic: Art and Culture

14. Gangaur festival celebrated across Rajasthan with traditional reverence and gaiety.

• Women celebrated the Gangaur festival by praying Isar-Gaur i.e. Lord Shiva and Parvati for happiness and prosperity.
• On this occasion, the royal procession of Gangaur was also taken out from the City Palace of Jaipur.
• Hundreds of folk artists performed dances before the royal procession and the route is decorated with Rangoli.
• The five-day Gangaur Mahotsav has also started in Udaipur.
• Gangaur festival is also celebrated in some parts of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and West Bengal.

(Source: News on AIR)