Dec 1

BANKING AND ECONOMY

SBI board approves infrastructure bonds worth ₹10,000 cr

• State Bank of India plans to raise Rs 10,000 crore worth of infrastructure bonds during the current financial year. SBI confirmed the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Central Board of State Bank of India to seek approval for raising infrastructure bonds to Rs 10,000 crore through public issues or private placement.
• The planned insurance worth Rs 10,000 crore includes a greenshoe option of Rs 5,000 crore. The infrastructure bonds are likely to be of 10 years tenure according to the plans. Infrastructure bonds typically have an edge in such a scenario as the money raised through the issuance of these bonds will be excluded while maintaining a cash reserve ratio (CRR). With these, the banks will have more funds to lend.
• State Bank of India is an Indian Multinational public sector bank and financial services statutory body headquartered in Mumbai. SBI is the 49th largest bank in the world by total assets and ranked 221st in the Fortune Global 500 list. It is only Indian Bank on the list. The bank was founded on 1st July 1955.

 Yes Bank buys 9.9% stake in JC Flowers ARC, to acquire additional stake

• Yes Bank has signed a Share Purchase Agreement (SPA) with JC Flowers Asset Reconstruction Company (ARC), acquiring a 9.9 percent stake in the ARC at Rs 11.43 per share on 28th November 2022. A subsequent acquisition of the additional shareholding of 10 percent is subject to requisite regulatory approvals.
• Yes Bank’s board has approved the sale of stressed loans worth Rs 48,000 crore to JC Flowers. The bank intends to participate as a minority shareholder in the ARC. It is said that this will be ancillary to the main line of business of the bank. As of 31st March 2022, JC Flowers ARC had Rs 595 crore in assets under management with an annual turnover of Rs 19.9 crore.
• For the three-month ended 30 September 2022, the net profit of Yes Bank dropped by 32.2 percent year-on-year to Rs 152.8 crore. Total income during Q2 FY23, was higher at Rs 6,394.11 crore as against Rs 5,430.30 crore in the same period a year ago. Gross non-performing assets came down to 12.89 percent of gross advances as against 14.97 percent in the year-ago period.

Dec 2 2022

APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

GroupM Media’s CEO Prashanth Kumar elected president of AAAI

• Prasanth Kumar, CEO, South Asia of GroupM Media (India) Pvt Ltd, has been elected as the president of the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI). He has an experience of over 25 years in the Industry. Before joining GroupM, he held positions at Pepsi, The Hindu, The Media Edge, and McCann Erickson. He has served as AAAI’s vice president from 2020 to 2022.
• Rana Barua, group CEO of Havas Group India, was elected vice-president of the association. Anupriya Acharya, outgoing president, will be the ex-officio member of the AAAI board for 2022-23.
• Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) is the official, national organisation of advertising agencies, formed in 1945, to promote their interests. The Association promotes professionalism, through its founding principles, which uphold sound business practices between Advertisers and Advertising Agencies and the various media.

 IMPORTANT DAYS

National Pollution Control Day 2022: 2^nd December

• National Pollution Control Day is observed every year on 2 December in India. The day is recognized to commemorate the precious lives that were lost in the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, one of the greatest industrial disasters in the history of India. The main aim and objectives of celebrating the National Pollution Prevention Day 2022 in India is to create awareness among people about the judicious use of industries to prevent uncalled-for industrial disasters.
• The significance of celebrating the National Pollution Control Day is to avoid similar catastrophes like the Bhopal Gas Tragedy and save the earth from the damage caused by pollution. The day is dedicated to encourage the adoption of pollution control acts to prevent the environmental pollution caused by human negligence and industrial emissions.

World Computer Literacy Day 2022: 2^nd December

• December 2 is observed as International Computer Literacy Day. It was started in 2001 by NIIT, a world-famous Indian computer firm. The day is entirely devoted to Computers and how they are a significant source of concern with the modernisation of the planet. The aim is to highlight the importance of computer literacy, which is essential for the present times. The day promotes technological skills, especially in children and women, and aims to inspire them to learn more and make their work easier by the use of computers. To know, more about the World Computer Literacy day candidates are advised to read the below article.
• World Computer Literacy Day was launched in 2001 by an Indian company called N.I.I.T to celebrate its 22nd anniversary. Founded in 1981 by Rajendra Singh Pawar and Vijay K. Thadani, N.I.I.T, which stands for National Institute of Information Technology, is a skills and talent development company. World Computer Literacy Day was founded by the company in response to a study that revealed that men formed the majority of computer users in the world. As a result, N.I.I.T took up the cause to educate more women and children by equipping them with computer literacy skills. Since its inception in 1981, the company has spread to over 30 countries of the world.

NATIONAL

Meghalaya Cabinet on Tuesday passed its first ever Mental Health & Social Care Policy

• The Meghalaya cabinet has approved a policy aimed at addressing the issues of mental health and social care through collaborative engagement with communities. The Meghalaya Mental Health & Social Care Policy was approved at the cabinet meeting, chaired by the Chief Minister. In 2014, the Centre launched the first-ever National Mental Health Policy in an attempt to provide universal psychiatry care.
• Meghalaya is the third state in the country to have a comprehensive policy on mental health and social care, paying attention to these issues, especially among children, adolescents and youth. Kerala and Karnataka are the other two states in the country to have such policies.
• India being a signatory to it, launched her national mental health policy (NMHPolicy) in 2014.
• The policy was in concordance with WHO’s mental health (MH) policy, plan, and program (2005), and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD, 2007).
• Further, it aligned with and was supported by contemporary laws such as the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (RPWD, 2016), Mental Healthcare Act (MHCA, 2017), etc.

Nagaland: 23^rd Hornbill Festival 2022 kicks start

• 23rd Hornbill Festival 2022 begins at Naga Heritage Village Kisama in Nagaland. Nagaland’s famous Hornbill Festival is scheduled from 1st December to 10th December 2022. Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar graced the inaugural function of the festival as the Chief Guest. Now it has been more than 20 years that the Hornbill Festival of Nagaland has welcomed visitors from around the world. In 10 days festival, a visitor gets the opportunity to view all the Naga tribes, their culture and distinctiveness in one place.
• Hornbill Festival of Nagaland is also popularly known as the ‘Festival of Festivals’ and showcases Nagaland’s rich culture. It is organized by the Government of Nagaland, mainly to encourage inter-tribal interaction and to promote the cultural heritage of Nagaland. This year, in the 10-day festival, more than 130 stalls are set up in Kisama wherein, 100 stalls are taken up by the Micro Small & Medium Enterprises and 32 are temporary stalls. The daily cultural events include activities such as music festivals, photo fest, fashion shows, adventure sports, night carnivals, etc.

International Lusophone Festival to be held from 3-6 December in Goa

• Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in partnership with Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) and the Goa government will organize the International Lusophone Festival in Goa from 3-6 December. It will be inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Goa, Pramod Sawant at Durbar Hall in Raj Bhavan. Minister of State for External Affairs, Meenakshi Lekhi will be the Guest of Honour. AIR correspondent reports that Lusophones are people that speak Portuguese as a native or as a common second language.
• The festival seeks to further India’s connect with the Lusophone world. Goa has had historical linkages with the Lusophone world, which has been nurtured through the presence of Portuguese cultural institutions like the Orient Foundation and the Camoes Institute which promote Portuguese language and culture in India. This has deepened our economic, cultural co-operation and people-to-people ties with the CPLP member countries.
• The Community of Portuguese Language Countries (Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa) also known as the Lusophone Commonwealth (Comunidade Lusofona), is a multilateral forum, founded on 17 July 1996 at the 1st CPLP Heads of State & Government Summit in Lisbon.

J&K Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha inaugurates Amar Jawan Shourya Sthal in Reasi

• J&K Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday inaugurated Amar Jawan Shourya Sthal at Pouni, Reasi. On the occasion LG paid obeisance to Param Poojya Sant Balak Yogeshwar Das Ji Maharaj.
• While addressing the gathering LG saluted Veer Naris, and veterans, and paid tributes to all those martyrs who have sacrificed their lives for our country.
• Lt Governor observed that after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, the ecosystem nurturing terrorism has been dismantled. He said the nation is truly indebted to the brave Jawans for safeguarding national security.  

UP Govt Launches ‘One District One Sport’ Scheme to Promote Sports Culture

• In his mission to promote sports and sportspersons in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has launched One District One Sport (ODOS), modeled after the government’s highly successful One District One Product (ODOP) scheme.
• The scheme serves the government’s two interconnected goals of promoting sports culture and keeping the state’s younger generation healthy and providing a platform for athletes to develop their talents and skills to compete in prestigious national and international championships and win medals.
• According to a press release from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), under ODOS, one sport will be identified in each of UP’s 75 districts and necessary steps will be taken to find district-specific sport-specific talents and hone their skills to enable them to represent the district, state, national, and international level tournaments and championships.
• Because wrestling has a long history in Deoria, Maharajganj, Azamgarh, Chandauli, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency Kashi, and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s Gorakhpur in Purvanchal, the government has made it the ODOS here. Many local wrestlers have even flown the tricolor at national and international competitions.

India to assume chairmanship of wassenaar arrangement on january 1 2023

• India will assume chairmanship of the plenary of the Wassenaar Arrangement for a year on January 1, 2023, just five years after joining the 42-member voluntary export control regime that monitors transfers of conventional weapons and dual-use goods.
• At the 26th annual plenary of the Wassenaar Arrangement held in Vienna during November 30- December 1, Ireland’s ambassador Eoin O’Leary handed over the chairmanship to India’s ambassador Jaideep Mazumdar, who is the permanent representative to the UN and international organisations in Vienna.
• India joined the Wassenaar Arrangement in December 2017 as its 42nd participating state. The body is a multilateral export control regime that works to promote transparency and greater responsibility in transfers of conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies through regular exchanges of information among its members.
• The regime is aimed at tracking such transfers and preventing “destabilising accumulations” of conventional arms and dual-use goods, the external affairs ministry said.

Civil Aviation Minister launches Digi yatra for three Airports in India

• Union Minister for Civil Aviation Shri Jyotiraditya Scindia today launched Digi Yatra from the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi for three airports in the country, namely New Delhi, Varanasi and Bengaluru. Digi Yatra is conceived to achieve contactless, seamless processing of passengers at airports based on Facial Recognition Technology (FRT).
• Speaking about the Digi Yatra project conceived by Digi Yatra Foundation under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Minister said that the project envisages a traveller today pass through various check points at the airports through a paperless and contactless processing using facial features to establish her identity which could be linked to the boarding pass. To use this facility, one-time registration on Digi Yatra app is required using Aadhar based validation and a self-image capture. The project has tremendous advantages of improving passenger convenience and ease of travel.
• About the privacy features of the project, the Minister said that keeping in mind the privacy, there is no central storage of Personally Identifiable Information (PII). Passenger’s ID and travel credentials are stored in a secure wallet in the passenger’s smartphone itself. The uploaded data will utilise blockchain technology and all the data will be purged from the servers within 24 hours of use.

Dec 3 2022

BANKING AND ECONOMY

RBI comes out with four-tiered regulatory framework for urban cooperative banks

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced a four-tiered regulatory framework for categorisation of Urban Co-operative Banks (UCBs). Besides, the central bank has come out with norms pertaining to the net worth and capital adequacy of these banks.
• The Reserve Bank of India had constituted the Expert Committee on Urban Co-operative Banks, under the Chairmanship of Shri N. S. Vishwanathan, former Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank to examine the issues in urban cooperative banking sector and to review regulatory/ supervisory approach for strengthening the sector. Based on the recommendations of the Expert Committee, RBI had released the Revised Regulatory Framework for Urban Co-operative Banks (UCBs) on July 19, 2022. The four-tiered regulatory framework, based on size of deposits of the UCBs, will come into force with immediate effect.

Rs. 1,45,867 crore gross GST revenue collected for November 2022

• Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections for the month of November 2022 stood at Rs 1,45,867 crore, according to the data shared by finance ministry. The revenue for the month of November are 11% higher than the GST revenue in the same month last year, which itself was Rs 1,31,526 crore. This is the ninth straight month when collections from GST has remained above Rs 1.40 lakh crore.
• The gross GST revenue collected in November 2022 came in at Rs 1,45,867 crore of which CGST is Rs 25,681 crore, SGST is Rs 32,651 crore, IGST is Rs 77,103 crore (including Rs 38,635 crore collected on import of goods) and Cess is ₹10,433 crore (including Rs 817 crore collected on import of goods). The government has settled Rs 33,997 crore to CGST and Rs 28,538 crore to SGST from IGST as regular settlement.
• The total revenue of Centre and the state after regular settlements in the month of November 2022 is Rs 59678 crore for CGST and Rs 61189 crore for the SGST. In addition, the Centre had also released Rs 17,000 crore as GST compensation to States/UTs in November 2022.

 IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day of Persons with Disabilities: 3 December

• December 3rd is celebrated as the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, worldwide. The day is observed to highlight issues that affect people with disabilities and to champion their well-being, their dignity and fundamental rights. International Day of Persons with Disabilities is celebrated to encourage increased assimilation of persons with disabilities in the socio-political, economic and cultural aspects of life. The goals fall under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
• The theme of International Day of Persons with Disabilities, this year, is “Transformative solutions for inclusive development: the role of innovation in fuelling an accessible and equitable world“. The 2022 celebration will focus on the need for innovative solutions to help create an inclusive developmental model to aid people with disabilities.
• In 1976, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) proclaimed 1981 as the International Year of Disabled Persons (IYDP). On February 6, 1981, US President Ronal Reagan did the same. Then the UNGA declared 1983-1992 as the decade of Disabled Persons. The adoption of December 3 as the International Day of Persons with Disabilities happened during the UNGA’s 37th plenary meeting, on October 4, 1992.

RANKING

Pakistan tops ‘list of nations at ‘risk of Violence’

• Pakistan has topped the list of countries at the highest risk of experiencing new mass killings, according to a new report.
• The report cites violence by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as one of the main challenges for the nation already facing political and economic crises.
• It said that Pakistan is estimated to have about a one in six chance of experiencing a new mass killing in 2022 or 2023.

BOOKS & AUTHOR

Shekhar Pathak wins Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize 2022 for ‘The Chipko Movement’

• A book on the popular forest conservation campaign Chipko Movement, written by historian-activist Shekhar Pathak, was named the winner of the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize 2022. Translated from Hindi by Manisha Chaudhry, “The Chipko Movement: A People’s History” was selected from a diverse shortlist of five books covering a wide expanse of modern Indian history and encompassing distinct topics and perspectives.
• The winner was selected by a six-member jury panel chaired by political scientist Niraja Gopal Jayal. The other jury members were entrepreneur Manish Sabharwal; historians Srinath Raghavan and Nayanjot Lahiri; former diplomat Navtej Sarna; and attorney Rahul Matthan.
• The other shortlisted books were “Accidental Feminism: Gender Parity and Selective Mobility Among India’s Professional Elite” by Swethaa S Ballakrishnen; “Whole Numbers and Half Truths: What Data Can and Cannot Tell Us About Modern India” by Rukmini S; “Midnight’s Borders: A People’s History of Modern India” by Suchitra Vijayan; and “Born a Muslim: Some Truths about Islam in India” by Ghazala Wahab.

NATIONAL

Culture Ministry inaugrates a three-day long music, art and literature festival Swar Dharohar in New Delhi

• Three-day-long music, art, and literature festival Swar Dharohar was inaugurated by the Culture Ministry on Friday under Kalanjali. The festival aims at showcasing the iconic art, culture and heritage of the country.
• The program will facilitate the upcoming local artists to perform with renowned artists on the same platform. The national, as well as local poets, will also exhibit their artistry through Kavi Sammelan.
• The festival will continue till 4th of this month at Central Vista, New Delhi. Entry is free for everyone.

SPORTS

All-round Saurashtra beat Maharashtra by 5 wickets, win second Vijay Hazare Trophy

• Saurashtra beat Maharashtra by 5 wickets in the final to win the Vijay Hazare Trophy at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. They restricted Maharashtra at 248/9 in 50 overs as captain Ruturaj Gaikwad hit a century, scoring 108 off 131 balls after a slow start. Saurashtra bowler Chirag Jani claimed a hat-trick in the match. Man of the moment is Sheldon Jackson.
• Chasing the target of 249, Saurashtra started off cautiously before the openers sitiched a 125-run partnership. Batter Shledon Jackson held one end as wickets tumbled around him. He scored a match-winning 133 off 136 balls to help Saurashtra chase down the target in 46.3 overs, with five wickets to spare. It was Saurashtra’s second title triumph in history.
• The win enhanced Jaydev Unadkat’s credentials as captain, he had led Saurashtra to their first Ranji Trophy title in 2019-2020. He also finished at the top of the wicket-taking charts in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with 19 strikes to his name.

 OBITURY

Veteran odia film actress jharana Das passes away at 77

• Veteran Odia film actress Jharana Das died at her residence here, family sources said on Friday. She was 77.
• Das, a winner of the state government’s prestigious ‘Jaydev Puraskar’ for her lifetime contribution to Odia film industry, was suffering from old age-related aliment.
• Born in 1945, the versatile actress was known for her memorable roles in films ‘Malajahna’, ‘Amadabata’, ‘Adina Megha’, ‘Abhinetri’, ‘Shree Jagannath’, ‘Nari’, ‘Hira Nilla’ and many more Odia classics.
• Having started out as a child artiste in All India Radio in the 60s, Cuttack, she was a trained Odissi dancer and had learnt the art from Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra. In the later part of her career, she went on to become the voice of AIR-Cuttack.

APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Hansraj Ahir assumes charge as NCBC chairperson

• Former Union Minister Hansraj Gangaram Ahir assumed charge as Chairperson of the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) on Friday.
• He belongs to District Chandrapur, State of Maharashtra. He is an Agriculturist by profession, read a statement from the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.
• Hansraj Gangaram Ahir had been elected four times Member of Parliament from Parliamentary Constituency Chandrapur, Maharashtra and also he was Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council. He had been Member of various Standing Committees of Parliament and also served as the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Coal and Steel.
• He had been Union Minister of State for Home Affairs and Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers, Government of India the 16th Lok Sabha.

Vijender Sharma elected president, Rakesh Bhalla as VP of ICAI

• The Institute of Cost Accountants of India on Monday said that Vijender Sharma has been elected as the new president and Rakesh Bhalla as vice-president for 2022-23.
• The institute, which is a statutory body set up under an Act of Parliament, comes under the administrative control of Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
• Vijender Sharma has been elected as the President of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICAI) for the year 2022-23, according to a statement.
• The institute conducted the election of President on November 28.
• Sharma is a fellow member of ICAI and a law graduate. He is a leading practising cost accountant since 1998 and insolvency professional since January 2017.
• He has an experience of over 22 years in diversified areas of financial, cost and management accounting, internal audit, management consultancy, forensic audit, insolvency and liquidation, etc.