current affairs – september 2020 - time4education.com

w w w . t i m e 4 e d u c a t i o n . c o m

Current Affairs – September 2020Topic Index

01. National 2

03. Banking Awareness 16

04. International 22

05. Science & Technology 27

07. Sports 36

08. Awards 40

09. Books & Authors 45

10. Indexes 47

11. Important Days 50

Click Next or on any Topic link to continue.

02. Business & Economy 12

1

06. Persons In News 30

NATIONAL

www.time4education.com

• The fourth edition of biennial Japan-India Maritime bilateral Exercise (JIMEX) was held in the northern Arabia Sea.

• Flight Lieutenant, Shivangi Singh to become the first woman fighter pilot of India to fly the Rafale combat aircraft that was formally inducted into the Indian Air Force(IAF)

• The Indian Navy (IN) has commenced a Passage Exercise (PASSEX) with Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in the East Indian Ocean Region.

• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and NITI Aayog will organize a summit on Artificial Intelligence (AI), RAISE 2020- ‘Responsible AI for Social Empowerment 2020′

National


• The 4th edition of Global Ayurveda Summit was virtually inaugurated by Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu on the theme “Emerging Opportunities for Ayurveda during Pandemic”.

• The Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote adventure sports activities at Tehri Lake in the state.

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the setting up of 3-member committee headed by Lt. Gen. Shekatkar (retired) to review the effective utilisation of the Armed Forces Headquarters Civil Services (AFHQ CS) cadre.

National


• Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched the Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC 4) during the iDEX event. iDEX4Fauji is a first of its kind initiative, launched to support innovations identified by members of the Indian Armed Forces and will bolster frugal innovation ideas from soldiers/ field formations.

• Indian Navy and Russian Navy has commenced the 11th edition of a biennial bilateral maritime exercise “INDRA NAVY”.

• India has withdrawn its participation from the multilateral Military Exercise “Kavkaz2020” to be held in Russia.

National


• Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Shri Thaawarchand Gehlot e-launched the “Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission (ASIIM)”. The mission has been launched under the Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Castes (SCs) in order to promote innovation and enterprise among SC students studying in higher educational institutions.

• Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has launched the ICMR’s vaccine web portal and National Clinical Registry for Covid-19.

• Union Home Minister Amit Shah has inaugurated the “Destination North East-2020” festival. The festival will be held with the theme of “The Emerging Delightful Destinations” which speaks of the tourism destinations emerging stronger and more attractive when the Sector picks up momentum.

National


• The Department of Biotechnology has launched the programme for “Strengthening Clinical Trial Research Capacity in Neighbouring Countries”. The programme will help neighbouring countries, and LMICs (Lowand Middle Income Countries) to build capacities for Covid-19 vaccine trials.

• Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare chaired ‘AarogyaManthan’ 2.0 celebrating the 2nd Anniversary of Ayushman Bharat- Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).

• In a first-of-its-kind initiative, eight beaches of India have been recommended for the Blue flag certification. Blue Flag beaches are considered the benchmark for clean and hygienic beaches in the world.

National


• The Lok Sabha has passed the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Bill, 2020 on 15 September 2020. The bill seeks to cut salaries of all Members of Parliaments (MPs) by 30 per cent for a period of one year

• India has been elected as a member of the United Nation’s Commission on Status of Women, a body of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

• Central Government has constituted an Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) to oversee the process of the corporatisation of the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB). Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is the chairman of this EGoM.

• India and the United States held a bilateral 2+2 Inter-sessional meeting in virtual mode.

National


• Union Minister for shipping Mansukh Mandaviya has launched a dispute redressalmechanism named “SAROD-Ports” (Society for Affordable Redressal of Disputes-Ports) to facilitate affordable and timely resolution of disputes for the maritime sector.

• Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri has launched the Climate Smart Cities Assessment Framework (CSCAF) 2.0.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will digitally launch the Pradhan Mantri MatsyaSampada Yojana. Along with the scheme, the PM will also launch e-Gopalaapplication. The scheme aims to enhance fish production to 70 lakh tonnes by 2024-25.

• India and Japan signed an agreement concerning Reciprocal Provision of Supplies and Services between the Armed Forces of India and The Self-Defense Forces of Japan.

National


• Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, has launched the Aatmanirbhar Bharat ARISE-Atal New India Challenges. The programme will spur applied research and innovation in Indian MSMEs and startups.

• Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry have launched a toll-free mental health rehabilitation helpline “KIRAN”. The helpline was launched in view of the growing incidence of Mental Illness, particularly in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic.

• Union Minister of Education has launched a free mobile app named as “EnglishPro“. The mobile application has been developed by the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad under University Social Responsibility (USR).

National


• National Nutrition Week is observed every year from 1st September to 7th September since 1982 and can be considered a significant period to raise awareness on the therapeutic effects of foods.

• The Union Cabinet has approved the launch of a “Mission Karmayogi” National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB).

• India will receive an Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan of an amount of JPY50 billion (approx. Rs. 3,500 crore) from the government of Japan.

National

BUSINESS & ECONOMY


• E-commerce marketplace, Flipkart and Bajaj Allianz General Insurance have launched a cyber insurance cover for online financial frauds. The product, ‘Digital Suraksha Group Insurance’, will help customers who want to cover themselves against financial losses caused as a result of cyber attacks.

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the acquisition of 100% equity shares of Medlife International Private Limited (“Medlife”) by API Holdings Private Limited (“API Holdings”).

• Vodafone Idea has announced its new unified brand identity by renaming all its products under a new name and logo “Vi”.

• Google Pay has partnered with VISA for the rollout of tokenization across its platform that will enable users to safely transact with their debit or credit cards.

Business and Economy


• HCL Technologies and Google Cloud has announced the expansion of their strategic partnership to bring HCL’s Actian portfolio, starting with Actian Avalanche, to Google Cloud.

• SBI General Insurance and YES Bank have signed a corporate agency agreement. Under the corporate agency agreement, the YES Bank will distribute the general insurer’s retail products to its customers.

• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has signed an agreement for $15 million of debt financing through the subscription of nonconvertible debentures for Suguna Foods Private Limited (Suguna). The deal will help in sustaining poultry farming operations, as well as rural livelihoods and food security in India during the COVID-19 pandemic.



• Infosys has announced that it would acquire product design and development firm, Kaleidoscope Innovation for up to $42 million. Kaleidoscope is a US-based firm and would bring to Infosys a diverse talent pool with extensive knowledge of design and engineering.

• The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has identified Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC) and New India Assurance as domestic systemically important insurers (D-SIIs). IRDAI has also subsequently decided to subject the three insurers to enhanced regulatory supervision.


BANKING AWARENESS


• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted in-principle approval to Vakrangee Ltd to set up Bharat Bill Payment Operating Unit (BBPOU) to handle payment services related to bills.

• IDBI become the first to implement the new feature of document embedding facility with Letter of Credit (LC) / Bank Guarantee (BG) messages over SFMS (Structured Financial Messaging System) platform of Indian Financial Technology and Allied Services (IFTAS). The objective of this new feature is to further digitise the trade finance transactions and to secure the financial communication system.

• SBI Card has launched its new brand campaign titled ‘Contactless Connections. Contactless payments, enabled by SBI Card, allow consumers to simply wave their card or phone or scan a QR code to make safe, secure payments, without handing over their card or punching in the PIN.

Banking Awareness


• The Reserve Bank of India has announced that it will launch “Positive Pay System” for Cheque Truncation System from 01st January, 2021. The RBI had announced the Positive Pay mechanism in order to prevent frauds with high value cheques. Banks will be required to enable the system for all account holders issuing cheques for amounts of Rs 50,000 and above.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will implement the “Technology Vision for Cyber Security’ for Urban Co-operative Banks (2020-2023) to enhance the IT security system of Urban Co-operative banking to prevent, detect, respond to and recover from cyber-attacks.

• IDFC First Bank will launch “SafePay” a contactless debit card-based payment facility. This payment facility will allow contactless debit card payments by simply waving one’s smartphone against a Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled POS terminal.

Banking Awareness


• Canara Bank has launched lead management system (LMS) – i-Lead 2.0 (Inspiring Leads System version 2.0). The system has been launched to provide its services to customers irrespective of where they reside.

• Bandhan Bank has set up a new vertical called “Emerging Entrepreneurs Business (EEB)”.

• The ICICI Home Finance launched “Apna Ghar Dreamz”, its new home loan scheme for skilled laborers like electricians, mechanics, painters, grocery store owners etc in the informal sector of Delhi.

• Titan Company has partnered with the State Bank of India (SBI) to launch India’s first contactless payment watches named “Titan Pay”. Using these watches, the account holders of SBI can tap their Titan Pay watch on the contactless payment POS machines for making payments. It is powered by YONO SBI.

Banking Awareness


• The Reserve Bank of India has released a notice on Compliance Functions in Banks and the Role of Chief Compliance Officer (CCO). The compliance function is to help the bank in managing its compliance risk, which can be defined as the risk of legal or regulatory sanctions, financial loss, or loss to prominence a bank may suffer as a result of its failure to fulfil with all applicable laws, regulations, codes of conduct and standards of good practice.

• State Bank of India is planning to launch a loan product named “SAFAL” for organic cotton growers. The product Safe and Fast Agriculture Loan (SAFAL) is primarily focussed on organic cotton growers who don’t have any credit history.

Banking Awareness


• On the occasion of Bank of India (BoI)’s 115th Foundation Day, BoI has launched an international contactless debit card, “Signature Visa Debit Card” for high net worth individuals who are maintaining an average quarterly balance of Rs 10 lakhs and above.

• The Priority Sector Lending (PSL) Guidelines have been reviewed by the Reserve Bank of India. In the revised PSL Guidelines, the Reserve Bank of India has included somefresh categories eligible for finance under priority sector. These include loans to farmers for installation of solar power plants; loans for establishment of Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) plants; and bank finance to start-ups of up to Rs 50 crore.

Banking Awareness

INTERNATIONAL


• The interim President of Mali, Bah Ndaw, has named former Malian Foreign Minister Moctar Ouane as the new prime minister of Mali.

• President of Somalia, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed has appointed Mohamed Hussein Roble as the new Prime Minister of Somalia.

• Former rebel military commander, Ishmael Toroama has been elected as president of Bougainville, an autonomous region of Papua New Guinea.

• Mexico has become the first country in the world to issue a sovereign bond linked to the sustainable development goals set by the United Nations.

International


• Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary, Yoshihide Suga has been elected as the new Chief of country’s ruling, Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Prime Minister-designate of Japan.

• Government of Australia has appointed former cricketer, Matthew Hayden and Indian-origin politician Lisa Singh as trade envoys for advancing business ties with India.

• President of the USA, Donald Trump has announced Wilmington, North Carolina as the first World War II Heritage City.

• The United Kingdom and the United Nations are going to co-organise a global climate summit on December 12, 2020, to mark the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015.

International


• The 10th Meeting of the BRICS High Representatives on National Security was held virtually. The 10th meeting of the NSAs was hosted by the current chair of BRICS i.e. Russia.

• External Affairs Minister of the Republic of India, Shri S. Jaishankar, chaired the customary meeting of IBSA Foreign Ministers through video conferencing.

• The Environment Ministerial Meeting (EMM) of the G20 countries was held through video conferencing under the Presidency of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

• The first India-France-Australia Trilateral Dialogue was held virtually. The meeting was held with the objective of building on the strong bilateral relations that the three countries share with each other and synergising their respective strengths to ensure a peaceful, secure, prosperous and rules-based Indo-Pacific Region.

International


• The 1st World Solar Technology Summit was held virtually. The summit was inaugurated by Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi. The main objective of the summit is to pay attention to state-of-the-art technologies and next-generation technologies.

• NITI Aayog and Embassy of the Netherlands, New Delhi, has signed a Statement of Intent (SoI) to support the decarbonization and energy transition agenda for accommodating cleaner and more energy.

• India has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Denmark in the field of Intellectual Property (IP) Cooperation.

International

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY


• The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has successfully eveloped ‘MOUSHIK’, an indigenously-made microprocessor for the Internet of things (IoT) devices. ‘MOUSHIK’ is a processor cum a system-on-chip that can cater to the rapidly-growing IoT devices, an integral part of smart cities of a digital India.

• Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully flight-tested a Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV), which is an unmanned scramjet vehicle with the ability to travel at six times the speed of sound.

• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, students have launched a free-of-cost mobile scanner application “AIR Scanner”.

Science & Technology


• World’s Largest Solar Tree has been developed by the CSIR-CMERI. The solar tree has been installed at the Residential Colony of CSIR-CMERI in Durgapur, West Bengal. The solar tree has the annual capacity to generate 12,000-14,000 units of Clean and Green Power.

Science & Technology

PERSONS IN NEWS


• P D Vaghela was appointed as chairman of TRAI.

• Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has announced Shekhar Kapur as the new President of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) Society and Chairman of FTII Governing Council.

• RBI appointed A K Dixit as administrator to PMC bank.

• A Joint Venture(JV) of Public Sector Undertakings, under the Ministry of Power, Government of India, Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) has appointed Rajat Sud as its new Managing Director.

• Anil Dhasmana has been appointed as the chief of the National Technical Research Organisation.

Person In News


• Narendra Singh Tomar takes additional charge of Ministry of Food processing Industries.

• Jane Fraser named first female CEO of Citi group.

• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has appointed Takeo Konishi as its new Country Director for India.

• Harivansh Narayan Singh was re-elected deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha.

• Rajesh Khullar has been appointed as Executive Director at World Bank .

• United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has appointed Bollywood Actor AyushmannKhurrana as its celebrity advocate for children’s rights campaign, ”For Every Child”.

Person In News


• Subhash Kamath has been elected as the chairman of the board of governors of the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI).

• Paresh Rawal was appointed chairman of National School of Drama.

• Anil Jain becomes President of All India Tennis Association.

• The Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) has announced the appointment of Vinkesh Gulati as its 35th President for the year 2020-22.

• Murali RamaKrishnan was appointed MD and CEO of South Indian Bank.

• S Krishnan was appointed MD and CEO of Punjab and Sind Bank.

Person In News


• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of the current chairman of the Railway Board VK Yadav as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

• Hemant Khatri (Retd) has assumed charge as the Chairman and Managing Director of state-owned defence shipbuilder, Hindustan Shipyard Ltd

• Usha Padhee has been given additional charge as Director-General of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS). She is the first woman and third IAS officer to have been appointed to the post.

• The Editor Emeritus and Vice Chairman of the Ananda Bazar Group of Publications, Aveek Sarkar has been elected as the chairman of Press Trust of India.

• Rajiv Kumar took charge as Election Commissioner of India.

Person In News


• The incumbent Emir (King or Ruler) of the Kuwait Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah, has passed away.

• The former Union Minister, Jaswant Singh passed away.

• Legendary singer S.P. Balasubramaniam has passed away.

Person In News

SPORTS


• Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes-Finland) has won the Formula One Russian Grand Prix 2020 held at Sochi Autodrom, Russia.

• Novak Djokovic has defeated Argentine Diego Schwartzman, to win 2020 Men’s Single Italian Open title. Simona Halep defeated champion Karolina Pliskova, to win women’s single Italian Open title.

• The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has announced that the Thomas Cup and the Uber Cup, which were scheduled to be held from 3 to 11 October 2020 in Denmark, has been postponed for 2021.

• Austria’s Dominic Thiem defeated Alexander Zverev to win the men’s singles title at the 2020 US Open tournament.

Sports


• Japan’s Naomi Osaka defeated Victoria Azarenka of Belarus to clinch the Women’s Singles title in the 2020 US Open Tennis tournament.

• Indian Police Officer, Poonam Khatri has claimed World Championship status after her silver medal at the Wushu World Championship last year has been upgraded to a Gold medal.

• Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-Great Britain) has won the Formula One Tuscan Grand Prix 2020 held at Mugello Circuit, Italy.

• Pierre Gasly (Scuderia AlphaTauri, France) has won the Formula One Italian Grand Prix 2020 held at Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Italy.

Sports


• Indian Grandmaster P Iniyan has won the prestigious 48th Annual World Open online chess tournament.

• Mercedes driver, Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) has won the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix 2020 at Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium.

Sports

AWARDS


• Kerala Tourism’s ‘Human by Nature Print Campaign’ bagged the Prestigious Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Grand Title Winner 2020 for Marketing.

• Sonu Sood has been conferred the prestigious SDG Special Humanitarian Action Award by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

• The Maharashtra government has announced the Gan Samragni Lata Mangeshkaraward for the year 2020-21 to veteran female playback singer Usha Mangeshkar.

• All India Football Federation (AIFF) awards 2019-20 has been announced.

• 2019-20 AIFF Men’s Footballer of the Year: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.

• 2019-20 AIFF Women’s Player of the Year: Sanju Yadav.

Awards


• 2019-20 AIFF Men’s Emerging Footballer of the Year: Anirudh Thapa.

• 2019-20 AIFF Emerging Women’s Footballer of the Year: Ratanbala Devi.

• Kerala has won the United Nations Inter-Agency Task Force on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases Awards 2020 for its “outstanding contribution” towards the non-communicable diseases-related sustainable development goals.

• The 72nd Emmy Awards 2020 marks the beginning of Hollywood’s first major show in the times of COVID-19.• Drama Series: Succession• Lead Actress in a Drama Series: Zendaya, Euphoria• Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Jeremy Strong, Succession

Awards


• Margaret Atwood has won the 2020 Dayton Literary Peace Prize’s lifetime achievement award. The award celebrates literature’s power to foster peace, social justice and global understanding.

• Chef Vikas Khanna has been chosen to be honoured with the prestigious Asia Game Changer Award 2020. This award is given to him for feeding millions of people across India in the COVID-19 pandemic through a massive food distribution drive ‘FeedIndia’.

• The Fiumicino International Airport (FCO) in Rome, Italy, has become the first airport in the world to be certified with “COVID-19 5-star airport rating” from Skytrax, a U.K.-based airport and airline review firm. FCO, also known as the Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport, is the busiest airport in Italy.

Awards


• Managing Director of HDFC Bank, Aditya Puri has been conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award by Euromoney Awards of Excellence 2020.

• Sir David Attenborough was conferred with the prestigious Indira Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2019. He is an English broadcaster and a historian. He is popular for writing and presenting the BBC Natural History Unit.

• Team of NTPC Limited, the Central PSU under Ministry of Power, has won the All India Management Association (AIMA) Chanakya (Business Simulation Game) National Management Games (NMG) 2020.

• The Hyderabad International Airport or GMR led Rajiv Gandhi International Airport won the ‘National Energy Leader’ and ‘Excellent Energy Efficient Unit’ awards at the 21st National Awards for ‘Excellence in Energy Management’.

Awards

BOOKS & AUTHORS


• A bouquet of flowers – Krishna Saxena

• Voices of Dissent – Romila Thapar

• Kitchens of Gratitude – Vikas Khanna

• Barack Obama has announced his first presidential memoir titled “A Promised Land.

• Azadi – Arudhati Roy

• My Life in Design – Gauri Khan

• Let Us Dream – Pope Francis

• The Big Thoughts of Little Luv” – Karan Johar

Books & Authors

Indexes


• According to the World Risk Index (WRI) 2020, India has been ranked at the 89th spot among 181 Countries. Vanuatu followed by Tonga topped the list.

• Time Magazine has released the TIME 100 Most Influential People List 2020. Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi is the only politician on the list. Professor RavindraGupta (Pioneer), Ayushmann Khurrana (Artists). Bilkis (Icons), the ‘Dadi from ShaheenBagh’ are the other Indians in the list.

• World Bank released the report titled “The Human Capital Index 2020 Update: Human Capital in the Time of COVID-19”. India ranked 116 in the list which is topped by Singapore.

Indexes


• The Institute for Management Development, in collaboration with Singapore University for Technology and Design (SUTD), has released the Smart City Index 2020. The index has been topped by Singapore, followed by Helsinki and Zurich as top three smart cities. Hyderabad was the top Indian city, placed at the 85th position.

• India has been ranked 105th position “Global Economic Freedom Index 2020 Annual Report” by Canada’s Fraser Institute, which has been released in India in conjunction with Center for Civil Society, New Delhi-based think tank. The list was topped by Hong Kong , followed by Singapore.

• India has joined the group of top 50 countries in the global innovation index for the first time, moving up four places to the 48th rank . Switzerland, Sweden, the US, the UK and the Netherlands lead the innovation ranking, and the top 5 positions .

Indexes

IMPORTANT DAYS


• September 5 – International Day of CharityNational Teachers Day

• September 8 – International Literacy Day

• September 10 – World Suicide Prevention Day

• September 12 – UN day for South South Cooperation

• September 14 – Hindi Diwas

• September 15 – International Day of DemocracyNational Engineers Day

Important Days


• September 16 – International Day for Preservation of Ozone Layer

• September 18 – World Equal Pay Day

• September 21 – International Day of peace

• September 23 – International Day of Sign Languages

• September 24 – World Maritime Day

• September 25 – Antyodaya Divas

Important Days


• September 26 – International Day for complete elimination of Nuclear Weapons

• September 26 – World Environmental Health Day

• September 27 – World Tourism Day

• September 29 – World Heart Day

Important Days

THANK YOU!

current affairs – september 2020 - time4education.com

Documents