Daily Current Affairs- 20 September 2024

Daily Current Affairs- 20th September 2024

INTERNATIONAL

Govt approves sale of FSNL to Japan's Konoike Transport for Rs 320 cr

• The government approved the privatisation of Ferro Scrap Nigam Ltd (FSNL) to Japanese corporation Konoike Transport Co Ltd for Rs 320 crore, Under the Steel Ministry, FSNL is a 100 per cent subsidiary of MSTC Ltd. The government had received two technically qualified financial bids for the company. 

NATIONAL

Government approves ISRO’s interplanetary mission to Venus

• The central government has approved the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) 's interplanetary Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM) to study the Venus planet. The Venus Orbiter Mission, also known as the Sukrayaan mission, was approved in a meeting of the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 18 September 2024. 

BEL secures order for indigenous radar worth Rs 850 cr from Cochin Shipyard

• Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited has secured an order worth Rs 850 crore from Cochin Shipyard Limited for the supply of indigenous Multi-Function Radar, The fully indigenous radar, designed by DRDO and manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), is capable of detecting, acquiring and tracking airborne targets to provide protection for naval ships. 

Nadi Utsav 2024 inaugurated at IGNCA New Delhi

• Celebrating the significance of India’s rivers, Nadi Utsav 2024 was inaugurated at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts – IGNCA in New Delhi September 5. The 5th edition of the festival is being celebrated under the theme ‘Rivers in Reverse: Making of a Lifeline’, focusing on the components of a river and its surrounding culture. 

National Centre of Excellence for Animation to be set up in Mumbai

• The Union Cabinet approved the establishment of the National Centre of Excellence (NCoE) for Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics, and Extended Reality (AVGC-XR). Designed to mirror the IITs and IIMs, this initiative aims to bolster India’s position as a global content hub, the centre will be located in Mumbai as a Section 8 Company under the Companies Act, 2013. 

Amit Shah launches 'White Revolution 2.0' to boost Indian dairy sector

• In a major push to transform India's dairy cooperative sector, Union Minister Amit Shah unveiled 'White Revolution 2.0', a comprehensive initiative aimed at empowering women farmers and creating job opportunities in dairy sector.
• The programme focuses on four key areas - empowering women farmers, enhancing local milk production, strengthening dairy infrastructure, and boosting dairy exports. 

SPORTS

Punjab lifts Hockey Junior Men’s National Championship 2024 trophy

• Punjab defeated Uttar Pradesh to clinch the 14th Hockey India Junior Men’s National Championship 2024 at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar. After a 3-3 finish, the match was decided in the shootout, with Punjab winning 4-3 to lift the trophy. Haryana defeated Karnataka 5-0 to secure third place on the podium. 

APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

RBI approves re-appointment of V Vaidyanathan as IDFC First Bank's MD & CEO

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the re-appointment of IDFC First Bank’s Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) V Vaidyanathan, effective from December 19, 2024, He took over as the MD and CEO of IDFC First Bank in December 2018, following the merger of Capital First and IDFC Bank. 

SUMMITS & MOUs

Indian Coast Guard inks MoU for marine conservation

• The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with The Habitats Trust and HCL Foundation for marine conservation in New Delhi. The primary objective of this initiative is to implement critical conservation efforts, including the removal of ghost nets, mapping and classifying areas affected by ghost gear, and enhancing understanding to prioritize cleanup efforts. 

BANKING & ECONOMY

Bank of Baroda introduces GenAI-powered virtual relationship manager

• Bank of Baroda (BoB) has introduced ‘Aditi’, a GenAI-powered virtual relationship manager, to enhance the digital customer service experience, These human-like interface presented in the form of digital avatars, offer conversational banking across a range of services, Available on the bank’s web portal, the capability supports audio, video and chat-based assistance ensuring 24x7 banking services with multilingual support. This service is being gradually rolled out to our existing customers through an enrollment process available on the bank’s website.