Daily updates 9 July 2020

National News

1. AIIB extends $50 mn loan to L&T Infra Finance Ltd

• Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has released $50 million loan to L&T Infrastructure Finance Ltd.
• This is the first tranche of a $100 mn loan to L&T Infrastructure Finance Ltd for funding Renewable Energy projects in the country.
• This loan has been extended by the Bejing-based multilateral development bank to on-lend to large and mid-scale wind and solar power infra projects in India.
• A $100 million loan sanctioned by the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to the unit of L&T Finance Holdings is AIIB’s first loan to a non-banking financial company (NBFC) in India.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Managing Director & CEO of L&T Finance Holdings: Dinanath Dubhashi.
• President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank: Jin Liqun.

International News

2. Maldives & Sri Lanka eliminate measles & rubella, ahead of 2023 target

• According to the World Health Organisation’s (WHO), South-East Asian Region (SEAR) office, Maldives and Sri Lanka were verified for having eliminated measles and rubella.
• Now, Maldives and Sri Lanka are the first two countries in the WHO South-East Asia Region to achieve measles and rubella elimination ahead of the 2023 target.
• The Maldives reported last endemic case of measles in 2009 and of rubella in October 2015, while Sri Lanka reported last endemic case of measles in May 2016 and of rubella in March 2017.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• President of Sri Lanka: Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
• Prime Minister of Sri Lanka: Mahinda Rajapaksa.
• Capital of Sri Lanka: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte.
• Currency of Sri Lanka: Sri Lankan rupee.
• President of the Maldives: Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
• Capital of Maldives: Male; Currency of the Maldives: Maldivian Rufiyaa.

3. US formally announced its withdrawal from WHO

• The United States has formalized to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO) on July 6, 2021.
• The actual project of disentangling the U.S. from WHO began on July 6, 2020, with a letter signed by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. It will take one year to go into effect.
• In April, the US stopped funding to WHO as the Trump administration reviewed the ties. A month later, President Donald Trump announced the US was terminating the relationship.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Headquarters of WHO: Geneva, Switzerland.
• Director-general of WHO: Tedros Adhanom.

4. Bangladesh launches "Digital Haat" for sacrificial animals

• ‘Digital Haat' platform has been launched by the government of Bangladesh for online sale and purchase of sacrificial animals ahead of the festival of Eid-Ul-Azha.
• The platform has been launched to save the cattle farmers and traders from financial loss amid the Corona pandemic.
• It also aims to avoid crowding in order to stop further transmission of the COVID-19 in the country.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Prime Minister of Bangladesh: Sheikh Hasina; Capital: Dhaka; Currency: Taka.

Agreements News

5. CBDT & SEBI signs MoU for data exchange

• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has signed an agreement for data exchange.
• The agreement will facilitate the sharing of information and data between the two organisations on an automatic and regular basis.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Chairperson of CBDT: Pramod Chandra Mody.
• Headquarters of CBDT: New Delhi.
• Chairman of Securities and Exchange Board of India: Ajay Tyagi; Headquarter: Mumbai.
• Chairman of National Highways Authority of India: Sukhbir Singh Sandhu.

Appointments News

6. GoI extends Bansi Lal Bhat's tenure as chairperson of NCLAT

• The tenure of Justice Bansi Lal Bhat as the chairperson of National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has been extended by the Government of India.
• His tenure has been extended for three months or till further orders.
• He is also holding the post of Member (Judicial) at the appellate tribunal.

Banking News

7. KVB tie-up with Bajaj Allianz Life to offer life insurance solutions

• Karur Vysya Bank has signed an agreement with Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance to offer life insurance solutions to its customers.
• Bajaj Allianz’s products will be available at the Bank’s 780 branch offices spread across India.
• Under this partnership, all retail and group products of Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance will be made available to the Bank’s customers, including savings, retirement, investment, protection and critical illness life insurance products.
• KVB will also benefit from the advantage to offer their customers a value-packed life insurance solutions for their financial requirements under a single roof.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Headquarters of Karur Vysya Bank: Karur, Tamil Nadu.
• The tagline of Karur Vysya Bank: Smart Way to Bank.
• Chairman of Karur Vysya Bank: N. S. Srinath.
• Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Headquarters: Pune, Maharashtra.
• Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance MD & CEO: Tarun Chugh.

Defence News

8. Akash Missile: BDL signs licence agreement & ToT with DRDO

• Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) has signed License Agreement and Transfer of Technology (ToT) with Defence Research and Development Organisation–Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDO–DRDL) for Akash Missile Weapon System (Indian Army Variant).
• Akash Missile is the first medium-range Surface to Air missile produced in India which can engage multiple targets from multiple directions.
• The missile flies at a speed of nearly 860 meters per second at a maximum altitude of 18 km.

Summits and Conferences

9. 4th edition of the virtual Ministerial on Climate Action held

• The fourth edition of the virtual Ministerial on Climate Action was co-chaired by European Union, China and Canada.
• In the meeting, India was represented by the Union Environment Minister, Shri Prakash Javadekar.
• The meeting witnessed the countries deliberating on how countries are aligning economic recovery plans with the Paris Agreement as well as the critical enabling conditions to ensure continued climate action.

Science and Technology

10. ‘Compact XL’ system for covid-19 tests lauched by MyLab

• Mylab Discovery Solutions has launched the ‘Compact XL’ system for conducting a wide range of tests, including RT-PCR tests for COVID-19.
• This is India’s first machine to automate the manual processes of molecular diagnostic tests such as RNA/DNA-based tests including COVID-19 RT-PCR tests.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Mylab Discovery Solutions Executive Director: Shailendra Kawade.
• Mylab Discovery Solutions Managing Director: Hasmukh Rawal.
• Mylab Discovery Solutions Headquarters: Pune, Maharashtra.

Obituaries

11. Veteran bollywood actor Jagdeep passes away

• Veteran Bollywood actor-comedian, Jagdeep passed away.
• He was born as Syed Ishtiaq Ahmed Jafri, the legendary actor was popularly known as Jagdeep, his stage name.
• He was best known for his roles in films such as Sholay, Purana Mandir and Andaz Apna Apna.
• He was last seen in 2012 movie Gali Gali Chor Hai, in which he played the role of a police constable.

12. Kannada TV actor Susheel Gowda passes away

• Kannada TV actor, Susheel Gowda passed away.
• He joined the Kannada television serials in 2015 and acted in one or two Kannada films also.
• He played a role in serial Anthapura and was looking forward to establishing himself in the Kannada Film Industry.
• Other than an actor, he was also a fitness trainer.

Miscellaneous News

13. Himalayan Golden Birdwing butterfly named as India’s largest butterfly

• Himalayan Golden Birdwing butterfly named as India’s largest butterfly, a record an unknown specimen had held for 88 years.
• The female Golden Birdwing with 194 mm wingspan was recorded at Uttarakhand’s Pithoragarh district’s Didihat town, while the male Golden Birdwing with 106 mm wingspan was recorded at the Wankhar Butterfly Museum (in Shillong).