Daily Current Affairs and GK | 8 April 2022

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

1. QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022 have been released.

• QS Quacquarelli Symonds, a higher education think-tank, has released the ‘QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022’.
• The ranking has been released for a total of 51 disciplines grouped into five broad subject areas.
• The University of Oxford has topped the list with a score of 98 in the Arts and Humanities stream, followed by the University of Cambridge and Harvard University.
• The Jawaharlal Nehru University has got 188^th place in the stream of Arts and Humanities.
• No Indian university has got a place in the top 100 universities in the Arts and Humanities.
• In the Engineering and Technology stream, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has got first place with a score of 96.5.
• The Indian Institute of Bombay and the Indian Institute of Delhi got 65^th and 72^nd ranks respectively. IIT Kharagpur has been ranked 101 with a score of 76.2.
• In Life Sciences and Medicine, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences has been placed at 204^th rank while the University of Delhi got 330^th rank.
• Harvard University has topped in the Life Sciences and Medicine and Social Sciences and Management streams.
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has got the first rank in the 12 disciplines.

Topic: Indian Economy

2. RBI kept repo rate unchanged and projected real GDP growth of 7.2%.

• The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has decided to keep the repo rate and reverse repo rate unchanged.
• The repo rate remained unchanged at 4 % for the 11^th time while the reverse repo rate remains unchanged at 3.35 %.
• MSF rate and Bank rate remained unchanged at 4.25 %.
• RBI has projected that inflation will rise to 5.7 % from 4.5 % projected earlier for the current financial year.
• RBI has reduced its GDP growth rate forecast from 7.8 % to 7.2 % for FY23.
• The monetary policy committee (MPC) maintained an accommodative monetary policy stance.
• Note:
  • MPC is a 6 member committee formed after the amendment in the RBI Act, 1934 through the Finance Act, 2016. Its main objective is to maintain price stability with growth.
  • Repo rate is the interest rate at which the RBI provides short-term money to banks against the collateral of government and other approved securities.
  • Reverse Repo Rate is the interest rate at which the RBI absorbs liquidity from banks against the collateral of eligible government securities.

Topic: Appointments

3. Ketanji Brown Jackson became the first black woman US Supreme Court judge.

• The Senate announced Ketanji Brown Jackson as the Supreme Court Judge, making her the 116^th and first Black woman to serve on the nation's highest court.
• Jackson was nominated by President Joe Biden in February after Associate Justice Stephen Breyer announced his retirement from the Supreme Court.
• In the 233-year history of the Supreme Court, 108 of the 115 justices have been white men. Only five of them have been women, with three of them being black.
• First black woman Vice President Kamala Harris presided over the Senate for the vote.

Topic: Books and Authors

4. The book ‘The Maverick Effect’ has been released.

• "The Maverick Effect," a new book, tells the untold story of how, in the 1970s and 1980s, a "band of dreamers" came together to form NASSCOM and pave the way for India's IT revolution.
• Harish Mehta, the co-founder and first elected Chairperson of the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM), has authored this book.
• It is an authoritative biography of the apex body of software and IT service companies.
• The Indian IT industry directly employs more than four million people.
• As the world's greatest forex earner, it has aided millions of Indians in escaping poverty and moving into the middle class.
• National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM):
  • It was established in 1988.
  • It is a non-governmental trade association of the Indian software industry.
  • It is a not-for-profit industry association.
  • Rekha M.Menon is the current chairman.
  • Its headquarters is in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

Topic: Appointments

5. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic re-elected with a resounding victory.

• According to the state election commission, Vučić received 58.5 % of the vote after 96.2 % of ballots were counted.
• Zdravko Ponos, a retired army general and the main opposition presidential candidate received 18.3 % of the vote.
• Aleksandar Vucic was first elected President in 2017, succeeding Tomislav Nikoli.
• Serbia:
  • It is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe.
  • Its capital is Belgrade.
  • Its currency is the Serbian dinar.
  • Its Prime Minister is Ana Brnabic.

Topic: MoUs/ Agreements

6. An agreement signed between HAL and Israel Aerospace Industries for MMTT aircraft.

• Defence PSU Undertaking Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) have signed an MoU to convert civil (Passenger) aircraft to Multi-Mission Tanker Transport (MMTT) aircraft.
• HAL will convert pre-owned Civil (passenger) aircraft into air refueling aircraft with cargo and transport capabilities under the agreed deal.
• The MoU will facilitate the decades-old expertise of HAL and IAI in the development, manufacturing, and production of key defence platforms.
• D Maiti, HAL's CEO, and Yaacov Berkovitz, IAI's VP signed the formal MoU in Delhi.
• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL):
  • It works under the Ministry of Defence.
  • It is a government-owned corporation involved in the design, fabrication, and assembly of aircraft, jet engines, and helicopters.
  • Its headquarters is located in Bangalore.
  • It was formed on 1 October 1964.

Topic: National News

7. University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to establish Bhima Bhoi chairs at two central universities.

• These universities are Delhi University and Guru Ghasidas University in Chhattisgarh.
• Bhima Bhoi was a 19^th century saint-poet of Odisha. Bhima Bhoi is popularly referred to as Santha Kabi.
• He was a proponent of Mahima Dharma, a religion practiced in Odisha and surrounding states.
• He was a devotee of Mahima Swamy (Mahima Gosain), who founded Mahima Dharma. 
• University Grants Commission (UGC):
  • It was established in 1956.
  • It is a statutory body set up under the UGC Act 1956.
  • It is responsible for maintaining higher education standards in India.

Topic: International News

8. UN General Assembly has passed a resolution to suspend Russia’s membership in Human Rights Council.

• 93 countries voted in favour of the resolution, 24 voted against the resolution and 58 abstained from voting on the resolution.
• India also abstained from voting. Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and the Maldives abstained from voting. China voted against the resolution.
• The resolution was put forward by Ukraine, the U.S., the EU, and several Latin American countries.
• For the passing of the resolution, a two-thirds majority of those present and voting was required.
• The resolution came after the mass graves and excesses of human rights have been recently found in Bucha city of Ukraine.
• Russia was elected to Human Rights Council (HRC) in 2020. Libya is the only member state to be suspended from the UNHRC. It was suspended in 2011.
• A three-membered panel of experts has been formed on 04 March 2022 to monitor human rights in Ukraine.
• Only Russia and Eritrea had opposed the resolution for the formation of this commission of enquiry.
• 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.
  • Federico Villegas is the current president of UNHRC.

Topic: Agriculture and allied sectors

9. India’s agricultural products export value crossed 50 billion dollar mark.

• According to data released by the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS), agricultural exports have grown by 19.92% during 2021-22.
• India’s agricultural products export reached its highest ever level during FY 2021-22.
• The export of Wheat has increased four-fold from $568 million in 2020-21 to $2.12 billion.
• The export of marine products also touched its highest peak at $7.71 billion.
• For the first time, the export of coffee crossed the $1 billion mark. Export of Spices reached $4 billion mark for the second consecutive year.
• Exports have taken place from clusters like Varanasi (fresh vegetables, mangoes), Ananthpur (banana), Nagpur (orange), Lucknow (mango), etc.
• Department of Commerce is promoting agriculture export through its various initiatives.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

10. Amar Mitra won the prestigious O. Henry Prize for Short Fiction.

• He received the award for his short story “The Old Man of Kusumpur” originally written in Bengali with the title “Gaonburo”. He is one of the 20 winners of the award.
• Gaonburo was written by Amar Mitra in 1977 in Bengali and was published in Amrita Patrika.
• Anish Gupta, a senior journalist, translated this story into English and it was published last year in the web magazine ‘The Common’.
• Amar Mitra has earlier also received the Sahitya Akademi Award and Bankim Puraskar.
• O. Henry Prize:
  • It is awarded for short stories.
  • It is conferred only to the writers whose short stories are published in Canada and America.
  • Since 1919, it is being given in the memory of the acclaimed writer, O. Henry.

Topic: Space and IT

11. Indian Scientists discovered a ghost-like galaxy.

• Scientists of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics along with scientists from France have discovered a faint star-forming galaxy by using Ultra-Violet Imaging Telescope (UVIT).
• The galaxy has been named UVIT J2022. It appears like a ghost due to low disk density. It is located around 136 million light-years away.
• Scientists found the first clues about this galaxy when they looked at the scattered blue emission in a colour image of NGC 6902A.
• The Indo-French team of researchers found this galaxy while studying the NGC 6902A galaxy.
• The researchers also used data from the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer instrument located in Chile.
• Extremely faint galaxies are called low surface brightness galaxies or ultra-diffuse galaxies. They may account for up to 15 % of the mass of the universe.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Banking System

12. Union Bank launched super app "Union nxt", under its digital initiative "Sambhav".

• Union Bank is planning to invest Rs 1,000-crore under digital initiatives in the financial year 2022-23.
• The super app UnionNXT will reduce the need to visit branches physically.
• Union Bank has also launched a Software Point of Sale digital application for payments and its customer relationship management.
• Union Bank will bring all the banking services on the UnionNXT super app.
• Union Bank has launched its digitization vertical last year. Currently, the bank has 1.6 crore customers digitally.
• Union Bank of India:
  • It is a government-owned bank founded in 1919.
  • Its CEO is Rajkiran Rai G.
  • It is headquartered in Mumbai.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

13. Civil Aviation Ministry launched International Air Connectivity Scheme (IACS) scheme.

• International Air Connectivity Scheme (IACS) scheme has been launched to enhance air connectivity between some selected states of India and International destinations.
• The scheme is supported by the State Governments. The state governments of Assam, Manipur and Tripura have identified some air routes.
• Under this scheme, Guwahati, Imphal and Agartala will be connected with Bangkok, Dhaka, Kathmandu, Yangon, Hanoi, Mandalay, Kunming & Chittagong.
• Currently, there are two international airports in the northeast region which are located at Guwahati and Imphal.
• The Airports Authority of India has taken several steps to boost international connectivity to/from North Eastern Region.

Topic: Committees/ Commissions/ Taskforces

14. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology formed an advisory committee to guide on semiconductor mission.

• This 17 member committee will be headed by Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw while Rajeev Chandrasekhar will be the vice-chairperson.
• Niti Aayog member V K Saraswat, Principal scientific advisor to the Government of India, and secretaries of various departments will be members of this committee.
• The secretary of the ministry of electronics and information technology will be the convenor of the committee.
• Apart from these, Vinod Dham, Ajit Manocha, and Neelkanth Mishra will be also part of this advisory committee.
• The committee will give input to the government for building a resilient supply chain, promoting investments and innovation as well as intellectual property generation.
• The committee will also work to develop an ecosystem for startups and micro, small and medium scale industries.
• Last year, the Union Cabinet had approved a Rs 76,000 crore scheme for promoting semiconductor and display manufacturing.