Daily Current Affairs and GK | 6 and 7 October 2024

Topic: Summit/Conference/Meeting

1. External Affairs Minister Jaishankar will visit Pakistan for the SCO meeting.

• On October 15 and 16, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will visit Islamabad to attend the meeting of the Heads of Government (HOG) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
• Mr. Jaishankar's visit is "primarily" for the SCO group meeting, as India is focusing on "regional cooperation mechanisms."
• No bilateral meeting has been decided during the meeting so far.
• The last time an Indian foreign minister visited Pakistan for the Heart of Asia conference and bilateral talks was in 2015, when Sushma Swaraj made the visit.
• The External Minister’s visit is based on "reciprocity,"  given that despite bilateral tensions, Pakistan had sent its then Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto to attend the SCO Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Goa in May 2023.

Topic: Sports

2. Mumbai won the Irani Cup for the 15th time after 27 years.

• On 5 September, Ajinkya Rahane-led Mumbai ended their long wait to clinch the Irani Cup title by defeating the Rest of India (ROI) at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
• Winning on the basis of a first-inning lead, Mumbai won for the 15th time, the most for any Ranji Trophy team.
• Mumbai have reached the final eight times since the 1997–98 season, when they last won the Irani Cup.
• The game turned out to be a one-sided contest, with Sarfaraz Khan's 222 runs helping Mumbai reach 537 runs.
• Sarfaraz Khan was named Player of the Match.
• In March, Mumbai also won the Ranji Trophy title for a record 42nd time at the Wankhede Stadium.

Topic: National Appointments

3. RBI appointed Aviral Jain as Executive Director.

• Aviral Jain's appointment as Executive Director has become effective from October 1, 2024.
• Before this appointment, Jain served as the Regional Director for Maharashtra.
• He has 30 years of extensive experience in various key areas, including supervision, currency management, foreign exchange regulation, and human resource management.
• Under the new role, Jain will oversee several crucial departments, including the Legal Department, the Premises Department, and the Right to Information Act as the First Appellate Authority.
• He is a Certified Associate of the Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF).

Topic: National News

4. Textiles Ministry has extended until December 31 the requirement to use jute bags for packaging.

• The Ministry of Textiles has extended the mandate for foodgrains and sugar producers to use jute packaging.
• The mandatory use of 100% jute packaging for foodgrains and 20% of the total sugar production has been extended by the Ministry of Textiles until December 31, 2024.
• The ministry further clarified that procurement of jute bags for packaging of initially 10 per cent of the foodgrains through reverse auction on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) platform will continue.
• In a notice dated December 26, 2023, the ministry stipulated that until June 30, 2024, foodgrains must be packaged entirely in jute, and 20% of all sugar output must be packaged in this manner.
• Additionally, it introduced the reverse auction system for purchasing jute bags through the GeM.