Roadmap for Banking of the Future
Current Affairs 01 September 2020
Daily Current Affairs 01 September 2020: This post contains the latest current affairs for 01 September 2020 that are important for all competitive exams like Bank, SSC, IBPS, SBI exams. You can improve your general knowledge with our daily online current affairs. You can also read the daily current affairs on our mobile app.
Banking & Economy News
RBI Announces Measures to Foster Orderly Market Conditions
The Reserve Bank of India has announced the following measures to ensure the orderly functioning of financial markets in India (weakened due to COVID-19):
- Additional special open market operation of Rs 20,000 crore: The Reserve Bank will conduct additional special open market operation involving the simultaneous purchase and sale of Government securities for an aggregate amount of Rs. 20,000 crore in two tranches of Rs. 10,000 crore each.
- Term repo operations for an aggregate amount of Rs. 100,000 crore: The Reserve Bank will conduct term repo operations for an aggregate amount of ₹100,000 crore at floating rates (i.e., at the prevailing repo rate) in the middle of September 2020 to assuage pressures on the market on account of advance tax outflows. The banks which had availed of funds under the previous long-term repo operations (LTROs) may reduce their interest liability by returning funds taken at the repo rate prevailing at that time (5.15 per cent) and availing funds at the current repo rate of 4 per cent.
- Increase of HTM up to an overall limit of 22 per cent of NDTL: Currently, banks are required to maintain 18 per cent of their net demand and time liabilities (NDTL) in SLR securities. The extant limit for investments that can be held in HTM category is 25 per cent of total investment. Banks are allowed to exceed this limit provided the excess is invested in SLR securities within an overall limit of 19.5 per cent of NDTL. RBI has decided to allow banks to hold fresh acquisitions of SLR securities acquired from September 1, 2020 under HTM up to an overall limit of 22 per cent of NDTL up to March 31, 2021.
India’s GDP contracts by 23.9% in Q1 of FY21: NSO data
- As per the official data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO), India’s GDP has contracted by 23.9% in the first quarter (April-June 2020) for FY21.
- This is the first instance of an economic contraction for India in at least four decades. It is also the first GDP decline since India began publishing quarterly numbers in 1996.
- Gross value added (GVA) for India declined by 22.8%. All the sectors except agriculture witnessed contractions during the April-June quarter of 2020-21. The highest drop was witnessed by the construction industry of 50.3%.
Adani Group buys 74% stake in Mumbai International Airport
- Adani Group has acquired 74% stake in Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) that operates Mumbai Airport. Mumbai Airport is the second largest airport in India.
- Under this, Adani Group will acquire 50.5% stake of GVK group. Additionally, Adani will also acquire 23.5% stake of minority partners Airport Company of South Africa (ACSA) and Bidvest.
- The acquisition will also give Adani’s ownership of the upcoming Navi Mumbai airport in which MIAL holds 74% stake.
Japan commits Rs 3,500 crore (approx.) as Official Development Assistance for health sector to fight the COVID-19 crisis in India
- The Govt. of Japan has committed Official Development Assistance loan of an amount of JPY50 billion (approx. Rs. 3,500 crore) for the COVID-19 Crisis Emergency Response Support to India.
- This programme loan aims to support India’s efforts in fighting COVID-19 and to prepare the health system to manage future epidemics and also to improve the resilience of India’s health systems against infectious diseases.
- Apart from this, Japan Government has given Grant Assistance of an amount of JPY 1 billion (= approx. Rs. 70 crore) to India for providing medical equipment to strengthen the public health and medical system.
‘Agriota’ e-market platform launched to bridge the gap between Indian farmers, UAE food industry
- The UAE has launched Agriota, an agri-commodity trading and sourcing e-market platform that will bridge the gap between rural farmers in India and the UAE’s food industry.
- The platform was launched by Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) and the government of Dubai’s authority on commodities trade and enterprise.
- The marketplace allows the farmers to bypass intermediaries, optimising the supply chain and ensuring traceability to create value for all stakeholders.
National News
September to be observed as ‘Nutrition Month’: PM Modi
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that the month of September will be observed as “Nutrition Month” in the entire nation.
- PM made this announcement during his monthly “Mann ki Baat” radio programme on 30 August 2020.
- During nutrition month, a food and nutrition quiz will be organized on MyGov portal and there will be a meme competition.
- PM Modi has appealed to the public to participate and motivate others too to take part in it.
Appointment
Myntra appoints Kiara Advani as brand ambassador
- E-commerce website Myntra has appointed Kiara Advani as its brand ambassador.
- Actress Kiara Advani will be the brand ambassador and nationwide celebrity endorser for Myntra.
- Her mass appeal as an actor and fashion trendsetter is poised to accelerate conversations around Myntra’s apparel segments.
Aveek Sarkar elected new Chairman of Press Trust of India
- Aveek Sarkar has been elected as the Chairman of the Press Trust of India.
- He replaces Vijay Kumar Chopra, Chief Editor of the Punjab Kesari Group of newspapers.
- Aveek Sarkar is the Vice Chairman of the Ananda Bazar Group of Publications. He was also the founding Managing Director of Penguin India.
Tamil Nadu Appoints India’s First-ever Woman Ambulance Driver
- Tamil Nadu has appointed India’s first-ever woman ambulance driver under a new initiative by CM Palaniswami.
- M Veeralakshmi was appointed driver of one of the newly launched ‘108’ ambulances in Tamil Nadu.
- As per the Tamil Nadu government, this is the first such instance in the country.
Obituary
Former President of India Pranab Mukherjee passes away at 84
- The former President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, passed away at the age of 84 years. He had been in coma since a brain surgery earlier this month. He had also tested positive for coronavirus.
- He had gone into septic shock due to his lung infection. He developed a lung infection and renal dysfunction over the past few days.
- Pranab Mukherjee was the President of India from 2012 to 2017. He was the 13th President of India. He was from Congress.
- He was Minister of Finance between 2009 and 2012, Minister of Defence (2004-2006), Minister of External Affairs (2006-2009).
- Pranab Mukherjee was conferred Padma Vibhushan in 2008 and Bharat Ratna in 2019.
India’s First Female Cardiologist, Dr S. Padmavati Passes Away at 103
- Noted cardiologist Dr S Padmavati passed away at the age of 103 years due to COVID-19.
- She was the first female cardiologist of the India and was popularly known as ”God Mother of Cardiology”.
- She was the founder of the National Heart Institute. She was born in Burma (now Myanmar) in 1917, a year before the world was hit by the Spanish Flu pandemic.