Daily Current Affairs 9th December, 2021

Daily Current Affairs 9 December 2021 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

PM Modi inaugurates AIIMS, ICMR centre in UP
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. He also inaugurated a fertilizer plant and a new building of the Regional Medical Research Center of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in Gorakhpur.

• The three big-ticket projects are worth over Rs 9,600 crore.The newly built fertiliser plant will be operated by the Hindustan Urvarak Rasayan Limited (HURL)
• The Gorakhpur AIIMS, built at a cost of Rs 1,011 crore, will benefit not only the people of eastern Uttar Pradesh but also a huge population of Bihar, Jharkhand and Nepal with its world-class health facilities, officials said.
• Similarly, the regional medical research centre set up at a cost of Rs 36 crore will facilitate the test and research of vector-borne diseases.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India ‘very unequal’, top 10% hold 57% of national income: Inequality Report
India stands out as a “poor and very unequal country, with an affluent elite”, where the top 10 per cent holds 57 per cent of the total national income while the bottom 50 per cent’s share is just 13 per cent in 2021, according to the latest World Inequality Report 2022.

• The report has also flagged a drop in global income during 2020, with about half of the dip in rich countries and the rest in low-income and emerging regions. This is attributed primarily due to the impact of “South and Southeast Asia, and more precisely” India.
• While the top 10 per cent and top 1 per cent hold respectively 57 per cent and 22 per cent of total national income, the bottom 50 per cent share has gone down to 13 per cent. India stands out as a poor and very unequal country, with an affluent elite,” the report states.
• According to the report, India’s middle class is relatively poor with an average wealth of only Rs 7,23,930 or 29.5 per cent of the total national income, as compared with the top 10 per cent and 1 per cent who own 65 per cent (Rs 63,54,070) and 33 per cent (Rs 3,24,49,360), respectively.
• The average annual national income of the Indian adult population is Rs 2,04,200 in 2021. The bottom 50 per cent earned Rs 53,610, while the top 10 per cent earned over 20 times more (Rs 11,66,520), the report states. The average household wealth in India is Rs 9,83,010, with the bottom 50 per cent owning almost nothing, with an average wealth of 6 per cent of the total Rs 66,280.

India 4th most powerful country in Asia; China loses ground to US: Report
In the Asian Power Index for 2021 that ranks 26 nations and territories in Asia, prepared by the Lowy Institute of Sydney, India has been ranked 4th most powerful country.

• On the basis of various measures of power such as economic capability, military capability, resilience and cultural influence, India has retained its 4th position as compared to 2020 ranking. Among various countries that exerted influence over the region, the United States ranked top due to better diplomatic relations and vaccination-driven speedy recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Overall, US ranked first in six of the eight measures of the index in 2021, an improvement from being ranked first in only four measures in 2020. China, on the other hand, was ranked lower in half of the Index’s measures of power in 2021, that included diplomatic and cultural influence, economic capability and future resources.

BANKING & FINANCE

KVG Bank signs agreement with Liberty General Insurance
Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB), a regional rural bank headquartered in Dharwad, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Liberty General Insurance for selling general insurance products through 629 branches of KVGB.

• The company will provide a variety of general health insurance products to the customers with reasonably affordable cost.
• The bank has consistently enhanced its portfolio to meet the diverse financial needs of its customers and alliance in this regard is a step in that direction.

RBI Monetary Policy: Repo rate unchanged for the 9th consecutive time
The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the repo rate unchanged at 4 per cent for the ninth consecutive time while maintaining an ‘accommodative stance’ as long as necessary, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced.

• The reverse repo rate too was kept unchanged at 3.35 per cent.The Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) rate and bank rate also remained unchanged at 4.25 percent, bank rate at 4.25 percent, CRR at 4 percent and SLR at 18 percent.
• The projection for real GDP growth is maintained at 9.5 per cent. However, the RBI revised its Q3FY22 GDP growth to 6.6 per cent from 6.8 per cent earlier. Additionally, Q4FY22 GDP was cut to 6 per cent from 6.1 per cent earlier. The real GDP growth is projected at 17.2 per cent for Q1FY23 and at 7.8 per cent for Q2FY23.
• The inflation projection was retained for FY22 at 5.3%, 5.1% for Q3, 5.7% for Q4, and 5% for Q1 FY23.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

HAL, BEL, Indian Ordnance Factories among top 100 global arms manufacturers in 2020
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Indian Ordnance Factories were among the top 100 global arms-producing and military services companies in 2020, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said.

• Their aggregated arms sales of USD 6.5 billion were 1.7 per cent higher in 2020 than in 2019 and accounted for 1.2 per cent of the top 100 total, it mentioned in a statement.
• The arms sales of HAL, ranked 42nd, and BEL, ranked 66th, increased by 1.5 per cent and 4.0 per cent, respectively, the SIPRI statement said.
• The world top arms manufacturers are US-based companies: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon Technologies, Boeing, Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics.
• With a 13 per cent share of total Top 100 arms sales, Chinese arms companies had the second-highest volume of aggregated arms sales in 2020, behind US firms and ahead of British companies. 

Fitch Ratings cut India’s FY22 economic growth forecast to 8.4%
Fitch Ratings cut India’s economic growth forecast to 8.4 per cent, from the previous 8.7 per cent for the current fiscal year (2021-22, or FY22).

• The rating agency said risks to recovery remain, especially in the near term, given that less than one-third of the population is fully vaccinated. The newly discovered Omicron variant has added to the risk, it said.
• It raised GDP growth projections to 10.3 per cent, from the earlier expected 10 per cent for the next fiscal year (2022-23).

APPOINTMENTS

Olaf Scholz selected as Germany’s next Chancellor
Social Democrat Olaf Scholz has been sworn in as Germany’s new chancellor, ending 16 years of conservative rule under Angela Merkel and paving the way for a pro-European coalition government that has promised to boost green investment.

• Scholz, 63, who served as vice chancellor and finance minister in Merkel’s outgoing government, got a clear majority of 395 votes from lawmakers in the Bundestag lower house of parliament, Bundestag President Baerbel Bas said.

AWARDS

Ash Barty wins second WTA Player of Year; Barbora Krejickova gets two honours
Ash Barty’s Wimbledon title and hold on the No. 1 ranking helped her win WTA Player of the Year for the second time in voting results announced. Barbora Krejcikova was selected as Most Improved Player and shared the Doubles Team of the Year award with Katerina Siniakova. 

• Emma Raducanu was picked as Newcomer of the Year after winning the U.S. Open at age 18 and becoming the first player to go from qualifying rounds all the way to a Grand Slam title.
• Carla Suárez Navarro is the Comeback Player of the Year after returning from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma to play on tour and represent Spain in the Billie Jean King Cup finals.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman features on Forbes’ 100 most powerful women list
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has made it to the Forbes’ annual list of powerful women — The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women. She is ranked at number 37. This is the third year in a row that she made it to the list. Last year, she was in the 41st spot and 34th in 2019.

• Besides Sitharaman, other Indians to feature on the list are the HCL Corporation CEO Roshni Nadar Malhotra (52), Biocon Executive Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (72), and Nykaa founder Falguni Nayar (88).
• Jeff Bezos’ former wife Mackenzie Scott has earned the topmost spot on this list. Philanthropist Mackenzie Scott is in the number one position. On number two is US vice president Kamala Harris. European Central Bank Head Christine Lagarde is at number 3 position followed by General Motors CEO Mary Barra. Melinda French Gates, the former wife of Microsoft founder Bill Gates, is on the fifth spot on this list.

Ram Nath Kovind presents President’s Standard award to 22nd Missile Vessels Squadron of Indian Navy
President Ram Nath Kovind presented the President’s Standard award to the 22nd Missile Vessels Squadron of the Indian Navy at a ceremony held in the naval dockyard.

• The President’s Standard is the highest honour bestowed by the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces to a military unit in recognition of the service rendered to the nation.
• The year also marks the fifty years since the inception of the Missile Vessel Squadron, also known as the ‘Killers’ who over the past five decades have maintained the capability of delivering a credible offensive punch from the sea.

IIT-Kanpur Scientist Bags “Young Geospatial Scientist” Award for Developing Indian Geoid Model
Ropesh Goyal from IIT-Kanpur won the ‘Young Geospatial Scientist’ award in recognition of his unique contribution to developing the Indian Geoid Model and computation software.

• Member of Space Commission, Government of India, and former ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar presented the award to Goyal during the inaugural event of the DigiSmart India 2021 conference hosted by the Geospatial World.
• The ‘Young Geospatial Scientist’ prize and a gold medal have been awarded every year since 2011 to promising scientists under the age of 35 in memory of Rachapudi Kamakshi, a strategic analyst with a strong inclination towards geography and geospatial studies.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

NITI Aayog launches ‘e-Sawari India E-Bus Coalition’ in tie-up with CESL
Government think tank NITI Aayog announced the launch of ‘e-Sawaari India Electric Bus Coalition’ in partnership with Convergence Energy Service Ltd (CESL) and World Resources Institute, India (WRI India), with support from Transformative Urban Mobility Initiative (TUMI).

• The coalition has been launched with the aim to share knowledge and learnings on e-bus adoption in India among various stakeholders, including central and state governments, city-level government agencies, transit service providers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), financing institutions and ancillary service providers.
• The e-Sawaari India Electric Bus Coalition is a step toward ensuring steady and paced electrification of the bus transport system in India.

OBITUARIES

Padma Shri awardee Nanda Kishore Prusty passes away
Noted Educationist and Padma Shri awardee Nanda Kishore Prusty passed away, at the age of 104, after fighting a prolonged battle with Covid-19.

• Nanda Prusty, popularly known as Nanda Sir, was an exceptional educationist, who was honoured with the Padma Shri award this year itself.
• In his native Kantira village, he was popularly known as Nanda Master or Nanda Sir. Working to educate the masses, he had always upheld the tradition of Chatshali. The Chatshali tradition refers to a non-formal school for primary education common in Odisha.

Click here to read Daily Current Affairs