International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People
The International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is an UN-organized day held every year on November 29. The day aims to educate the public on the question of Palestine and support a peaceful settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is observed to mark the anniversary of resolution 181, wherein the Assembly adopted the resolution on the partition of Palestine on November 29, 1947.
History of the day:
In 1977, the General Assembly called for the annual observance of 29 November as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. On that day, in 1947, the Assembly adopted the resolution on the partition of Palestine. This date, which was chosen because of its meaning and significance to the Palestinian people, is based on the call by the United Nations General Assembly for an annual observance of the resolution on the partition of Palestine.
RBI raises higher cap on promoter stake in private banks at 26%
Reserve Bank of India had formed an Internal Working Group (IWG) in June 2020, to review the extant guidelines on ownership and corporate structure for Indian private sector banks. The IWG had 5 members with Shrimohan Yadav as the convenor. The Internal Working Group (IWG) had made 33 recommendations to RBI. Now RBI has accepted 21 recommendations out of these 33.
Some important points from these recommendations are given below:
- The initial lock-in requirements will continue as a minimum of 40 per cent of the paid-up voting equity share capital of the bank for the first five years.
- The cap on promoters’ stake in the long run of 15 years has been raised from 15 per cent (earlier) to 26 per cent of the paid-up voting equity share capital of the bank.
- The minimum initial capital requirement for licensing new banks has been increased as below:
- For Universal Banks: The initial paid-up voting equity share capital/ net worth required to set up a new universal bank has been increased to ₹1000 crore (from present ₹500 crores).
- For SFBs: The initial paid-up voting equity share capital/ net worth required to set up a new SFB, has been increased to ₹300 crores (from present ₹200 crores).
- For UCBs transiting to SFBs: The initial paid-up voting equity share capital/ net worth has been increased to ₹150 crores (from present ₹100 crores) which has to be increased to ₹300 crores in five years (from present ₹200 crores).
- All the new Small Finance Banks which are set up now, should be listed (on the stock exchange) within ‘eight years from the date of commencement of operations. Note that Universal banks shall continue to be listed within six years of commencement of operations.
Niti Aayog’s Poverty Index: Bihar poorest in multidimensional poverty
The government think tank Niti Aayog has released the first-ever Multi-dimensional Poverty Index (MPI) to measure poverty at the national, State/UT, and district levels. As per the inaugural index, Bihar has been adjudged as the state with the highest level of multidimensional poverty. 51.91 per cent of the state’s population are multidimensionally poor.
According to the Index:
- Jharkhand is at second position with 42.16 per cent of the state population as multidimensionally poor. This is followed by Uttar Pradesh at 37.79 per cent, Madhya Pradesh (36.65 per cent) and Meghalaya (32.67 per cent) in the top five poorest states.
- Meanwhile, Kerala (0.71 per cent), Goa (3.76%), Sikkim (3.82%), Tamil Nadu (4.89%) and Punjab (5.59 %) are the top 5 lowest poverty states across India.
- Kottayam in Kerala is the only district that registered zero poverty across the country as per the index.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- NITI Aayog Formed: 1 January 2015;
- NITI Aayog Headquarters: New Delhi;
- NITI Aayog Chairperson: Narendra Modi;
- NITI Aayog Vice Chairperson: Rajiv Kumar;
- NITI Aayog CEO: Amitabh Kant.
RBI imposes Rs 1 Crore penalty on SBI for not following norms
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 1 crore on the State Bank of India (SBI), for violating subsection (2) of section 19 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949. SBI held shares in the borrower companies of an amount exceeding 30 per cent of the paid-up share capital of those companies.
What is Sub-section (2) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949?
As per Sub-section (2) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, no banking company can hold shares in any company, as pledgee, mortgagee or absolute owner, of an amount exceeding 30 per cent of the paid-up share capital of that company or thirty per cent of its own paid-up share capital and reserves.
Harshwanti Bisht becomes 1st women President of Indian Mountaineering Foundation
Noted mountaineer from Uttarakhand, Harshwanti Bisht has earned the distinction of being elected the first woman president of the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF). The 62-year-old Bisht won 60 out of a total of 107 votes to get elected to the coveted post. It is for the first time that a woman has been elected as the president of the IMF, which was founded in the year 1958.
About the Harshwanti Bisht:
- Bisht, 62, who hails from a village named Sukai in Pauri district, says promoting mountaineering and other adventure sports, and bringing more women into the field will be among her priorities.
- Bisht, who has been honoured with the Arjuna award for her achievements in the field of mountaineering, said there was a time when Uttarakhand used to be at the top when it came to adventure sports like mountaineering but the scenario has changed in recent years.
- Bisht, who did a course in mountaineering from the Uttarkashi-based Nehru Institute of Mountaineering in 1975, scaled the Nanda Devi peak in 1981 which earned her the Arjuna award. She was also a member of an expedition team to Mount Everest in 1984.
- A professor of economics, Bisht recently retired as the principal of PG College, Uttarkashi.
Petr Fiala appointed as new Prime Minister of Czech Republic
Petr Fiala has been sworn in as the new Prime Minister of the Czech Republic by President Milos Zeman. Fiala, 57, heads the three-party coalition Together (Civic Democratic Party, Christian Democrats, TOP 09 party), which garnered 27.8% of the vote in early October. Fiala succeeds Andrej Babis. The alliance narrowly defeated the ANO movement led by billionaire Babis. The centrist group of the Mayors and Independents and the left-wing Pirate Party joined with Fiala’s coalition to remove Babis, who had served as prime minister since 2017.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
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Czech Capital: Prague; Currency: Czech koruna.
Indian Railways Constructing World’s Tallest Pier Bridge in Manipur
The Indian Railways is constructing the tallest pier railway bridge of the world in Manipur. The ambitious project of the Railways in Manipur is part of the Jiribam-Imphal railway line, which ultimately is part of a new broad gauge line being constructed to connect the northeastern state with the rest of the country. Currently, the tallest pier bridge record is held by 139-metre high Mala-Rijeka viaduct built at Montenegro in Europe.
About the bridge:
- The bridge is being built at a height of 141 metres.
- The total length of the Manipur bridge will be 703 metres.
- Once completed, the project will enable passengers to cover 111 km of distance in 2-2.5 hrs.
Cherry Blossom Festival 2021 celebrated in Meghalaya
The three-day Shillong Cherry Blossom Festival 2021 was inaugurated by Chief Minister of Meghalaya, Conrad K Sangma, and Ambassador of Japan to India, Satoshi Suzuki. It was celebrated from November 25 to 27. The festival was held in two venues, Ward’s Lake and Polo Grounds in Meghalaya. The annual festival coincides with the actual blooming of the cherry blossom flowers. It is also known as the Prunus Cerasoides, these flowers underline the Himalayas and cover the east and west Khasi hills.
Some Popular Festivals of Meghalaya:
- Nongkrem Dance Festival
- Wangala Festival
- Ahaia
- Behdeinkhlam Festival
- Shad Sukra
Kantar’s BrandZ India report 2021 announced
According to Kantar’s BrandZ India 2021 report, Amazon, Tata Tea and Asian Paints emerged as the most purposeful brands in India across technology, FMCG, and non-FMCG categories respectively. In technology ranking Amazonleads the index followed by Zomato, YouTube, and Google, and Swiggy jointly in 4th place.
While Asian Paints topped the non-FMCG rankings, Samsung and Jio ranked jointly in the 2nd position, followed by MRF. The FMCG category rankings saw Tata Tea topping the chart, Surf Excel in 2nd position.
India’s Top 5 Most Purposeful Brands:
| Rank | Most Purposeful Technology Brands | Most Purposeful FMCG Brands | Most Purposeful Non-FMCG Brands |
| 1 | Amazon | Tata Tea | Asian Paints |
| 2 | Zomato | Surf Excel(Detergent brand) | Samsung & Jio |
| 3 | YouTube | Taj Mahal (tea brand) | MRF |
| 4 | Google & Swiggy | Parachute & Maggi | Tata Housing |
| 5 | Flipkart | Britannia | Airtel |
Bajaj Allianz General Insurance tied up with TropoGo for Drone Insurance
Bajaj Allianz General Insurance announced its partnership with deep-tech startup TropoGo for the distribution of a drone Insurance product. With this Bajaj Allianz General Insurance becomes the 4th insurer to offer drone cover. HDFC Ergo was the first insurer to launch a drone insurance cover in June 2020, followed by ICICI Lombard in August 2021, and Tata AIG last month.
About the drone Insurance:
The drone insurance product will cover Damage to the Drone and Payload it carries Third Party Liability, BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) Endorsement, and Night Flying Endorsement.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Founded: 2001;
- Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Headquarters: Pune, Maharashtra;
- Bajaj Allianz General Insurance CEO & MD: Tapan Singhel.
Rajnish Kumar becomes non-executive Director on Hero MotoCorp
Two-wheeler major, Hero MotoCorp announced the appointment of former chairman of State Bank of India (SBI) Rajnish Kumar as an independent non-executive director on the board of the company. Kumar completed his three-year term as chairman of SBI in October 2020. He is currently serving as an Independent Director on the Boards of many other companies including HSBC, Asia Pacific, L&T Infotech, and is also the Non-Executive Chairman of Resilient Innovations (BharatPe).
Skyroot test-fired India’s 1st Privately Built Cryogenic Rocket Engine “Dhawan-1”
Skyroot Aerospace, a space technology startup based in Hyderabad, has successfully test-fired Dhawan-1, India’s first privately developed fully cryogenic rocket engine. This will power the upper stages of its upcoming Vikram-2 orbital launch vehicle. The rocket engine Dhawan-1 is named after Satish Dhawan, an Indian rocket scientist.
About the Dhawan-1:
Dhawan-1 is a completely ‘Made-in-India’ cryogenic engine, developed using 3D printing with a superalloy. The engine is fuelled by liquefied natural gas and liquid oxygen—a high-performance, low-cost, and clean rocket fuel.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Skyroot Aerospace Founded: 12 June 2018;
- Skyroot Aerospace Headquarters: Hyderabad, Telangana;
- Skyroot Aerospace Co-founder, CEO & CTO: Pawan Kumar Chandana;
- Skyroot Aerospace Co-founder, COO: Naga Bharath Daka.
A book on India-Pakistan War 1971 released by MM Naravane
General MM Naravane released a book ‘Bangladesh Liberation @ 50 years: ‘Bijoy’ with Synergy, India-Pakistan war 1971’, a compilation of personal accounts of the war by veterans from India and Pakistan. The book is an amalgamation of historical and anecdotal accounts of the 1971 War and comprises authors from both India and Bangladesh. Mostly who fought the war.
About the event:
- The event was organized by the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS) at the India International Centre (IIC), Delhi to commemorate 50 Years of India-Bangladesh Friendship as well as the decisive victory in India- Pakistan War 1971.
- An award ceremony was also conducted. The ‘Scholar Warrior Award’ was awarded by the former COAS (Chief of Army Staff) of Bangladesh, Bir Protik to Brigadier Narender Kumar for his outstanding contribution as a warrior and in the field of research.
NCC celebrates its 73rd Raising Day
The National Cadet Corps (NCC), the youth wing of the Indian Armed Forces and the largest uniformed youth organisation in the world, is observing the 73rd anniversary of its raising on November 28. NCC day is celebrated every year on the 4th Sunday in November. NCC day is observed throughout the country. The raising day is being celebrated all over the country with cadets participating in marches, blood donation camps and social development programmes.
About the NCC:
The NCC was formed on 15th July 1948. NCC is also the largest uniformed youth organisation in the whole world. The NCC headquarters is located in New Delhi. Headquarters is now open for school and college students. It is a voluntary “Tri-service Organisation”. This organisation includes the army, the naval and the wings.
