World’s longest Metro line opened in China
Shanghai has opened two new metro lines, upholding its rank as the city with the largest Metro network in the world. With the new lines, the total length of Shanghai’s metro network has extended to 831 km, continuing to be the longest in the world. China’s Shanghai opened two new metro lines – Line 14 and Phase One of Line 18.
The opening of the two new lines will bring the total number of fully automatic metro lines in Shanghai to five, with an operating length of 167 km, ranking first in the world for the first time. The city will now enjoy 20 metro lines with 508 stations, 83 of which are transfer ones.
Baldev Prakash named as MD & CEO of J&K Bank
Baldev Prakash has been appointed as the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO) of Jammu & Kashmir Bank for three years. His appointment will be effective from the date of taking charge or April 10, 2022, whichever is earlier. Apart from him, R K Chhibber has been appointed as an additional director on the board of the bank.
Prakash has over 30 years of experience in banking. He had joined SBI as a probationary officer in 1991 and was the Chief General Manager (Digital and Transaction Banking Marketing Department) at SBI, Mumbai. The appointment is effective from the date of taking charge or April 10, 2022, whichever is earlier.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Jammu & Kashmir Bank Headquarters: Srinagar;
- Jammu & Kashmir Bank Founded: 1 October 1938.
Danish Siddiqui gets posthumously Mumbai Press Club’s RedInk Award 2020
Photojournalist Danish Siddiqui, who died during an assignment in Afghanistan, has been posthumously awarded as the ‘Journalist of the Year’ for 2020 by the Mumbai Press Club. CJI N V Ramana presented the annual ‘RedInk Awards for Excellence in Journalism’. He presented the prestigious award to Siddiqui “for his spectrum of investigative and impactful news photography”. Danish Siddiqui’s wife Frederike Siddiqui received the award.
Senior journalist Prem Shankar Jha, 83, was bestowed with the lifetime achievement award “for his long and distinguished career of incisive and analytical writing”. The Mumbai Press Club instituted The RedInk Awards a decade ago to recognise good investigative and feature writing and raise the bar of journalism in the country.
Odisha launched Digital Life Certificate system for pensioners 2022
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has launched an online service for the verification of identity and submission of life certificates for pensioners of the state government. The chief minister virtually launched the new initiative while attending the orientation programme for newly recruited 153 officers of Odisha Civil Services.
Under the Digital Life Certificate system:
- Identification and life certificates can now be submitted by the pensioners using an artificial intelligence-based video-verification process.
- It will be of immense help to the pensioners as they can submit their identification and life certificates digitally, without visiting any government office simply by using their mobile phones.
- This facility will also be available at the ‘Mo Seva Kendras’ located across the state. Patnaik said the introduction of digital life certificates and E-dairy were part of his government’s 5T and ‘Mo Sarkar’ initiatives.
- The 5Ts include teamwork, technology, transparency, transformation, and time limit on which performance of government officials and projects are judged, while the ‘Mo Sarkar’ initiative attempts to bring in professionalism and behavioural change in public offices through a direct random feedback system from citizens.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Odisha Capital: Bhubaneswar;
- Odisha Governor: Ganeshi Lal;
- Odisha Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik.
Government approved 19th Tranche of Electoral Bonds
The government has approved the issuance of the 19th tranche of electoral bonds, which will be open for sale from January 1 to 10, 2022, ahead of assembly elections in five states Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Goa. In the 19th tranche of sale, the State Bank of India (SBI), has been authorised to issue and encash electoral bonds through its 29 specialised branches. There is no limit on the number of bonds an individual or company can purchase. An electoral bond will be valid for 15 days.
About the Electoral bonds
Electoral bonds have been pitched as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to bring transparency in political funding. However, Opposition parties have been raising concerns about alleged opaqueness in funding through such bonds.
IRDAI: LIC, GIC Re and New India systemically important insurers
Insurance regulator, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has stated that LIC, GIC Re and New India continue to be identified as Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-SIIs) for 2021-22. D-SIIs refer to insurers of such size, market importance and domestic and global interconnectedness, whose distress or failure would cause significant dislocation in the domestic financial system.
The continued functioning of D-SIIs is critical for the availability of insurance services. D-SIIs are insurers that are perceived to be ‘too big or too important to fail’. The three insurers “have to carry forward their efforts” to raise the level of corporate governance, and identify all relevant risks and promote a sound risk management framework and culture.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- IRDAI Founded: 1999;
- IRDAI Headquarters: Hyderabad;
- IRDAI Chairperson: Subhash Chandra Khuntia.
SBI Card joined hands with Paytm for Card Tokenization
SBI Cards and Payment Services has tied up with Paytm for card tokenisation to protect the data of the cardholders. SBI Card has collaborated with Paytm to enable cardholders to tokenise their cards on devices and make payments through Paytm. Tokenisation refers to masking the original card number by replacing it with a set of unique characters, termed as token, which secures the customer’s card details when a transaction is under process.
Currently, only cards issued in the Indian territory are enabled on the Paytm network. However, customers may transact using his/her SBI Card through the Paytm network in international locations.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- SBI Card Headquarters: Gurugram, Haryana;
- SBI Card Managing Director & CEO: Rama Mohan Rao Amara.
LIC inaugurates Digi Zone to sell policies online
Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India has inaugurated “Digi Zone”, at Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai, as part of its effort to enhance its digital footprint. LIC’s Digi Zone can be used by the customers to purchase policies online, pay the premium and avail of other services. As a part of its efforts to become a tech-driven life insurer, LIC will offer information related to its products and services through kiosks installed on the Digi Zone premises.
Customers can use LIC’s Digi Zone to buy policies online, pay the premium and avail of other services. LIC plans to undertake the next wave of digital transformation to unlock several benefits of accelerating growth, driving customer satisfaction and improving intermediary productivity and loyalty.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- LIC Chairperson: M R Kumar;
- LIC Headquarters: Mumbai;
- LIC Founded: 1 September 1956.
RBI extended deadline for Periodic KYC Update till March 31, 2022
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced that it has extended the deadline for periodic KYC updates by 3 months till March 31, 2022. Extension in view of prevalent uncertainty due to a new variant of COVID-19 – Omicron. Earlier the deadline for periodic KYC updates was December 31.
Meanwhile, the government has also extended the deadline for businesses to file GST annual returns for the 2020-21 fiscal ended March 2021 by two months till February 28. GSTR 9 is an annual return to be filed yearly by taxpayers registered under the Goods and Services Tax (GST). It consists of details regarding the outward and inward supplies made or received under different tax heads.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Reserve Bank of India Founded: April 1, 1935;
- Reserve Bank of India Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra;
- Reserve Bank of India Governor: Shaktikanta Das.
Vinay Kumar Tripathi named as Chairman and CEO of Railway Board
1983 Batch of Indian Railway Service, Vinay Kumar Tripathi has been appointed as new Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Railway Board. He is presently working as General Manager, Northeastern Railway to the post of Chairman of Railway Board. Indian Railway Board is the apex body of the Indian Railways, which reports to parliament through the Ministry of Railways. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has not only approved the appointment of Tripathi for six months from January 1 but also further granted an extension of his tenure till 31 December in 2022.
Vinay Kumar Tripathi has attended higher Management training programmes in Switzerland & USA. Tripathi had played a key role in commissioning of state-of-art three-phase locomotives and their indigenization, which are now the workhorse of Indian Railways. Tripathi holds wide experience in railway management and administrations.
V.S Pathania takes over as Director-General of Indian Coast Guard
V.S. Pathania took over as the 24th Director General (DG) of the Indian Coast Guard from Krishnaswamy Natarajan who retired from service. He is an alumnus of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington and National Defence College, New Delhi. He was elevated to the rank of Additional Director General in Nov 2019 and took over the reins as Coast Guard Commander (Eastern Seaboard) at Visakhapatnam.
About the V.S. Pathania:
- In a career of over 36 years, Pathania has held several key appointments afloat and ashore and has also commanded all classes of Coast Guard ships namely Inshore Patrol Vessel ‘Ranijindan’, Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) ‘Vigraha’ and advanced OPV ‘Sarang’, it said.
- He was elevated to the rank of Additional Director General in November 2019 and took over as Coast Guard Commander (Eastern Seaboard) at Visakhapatnam.
- Pathania is the recipient of President’s Tatrakshak Medal for Distinguished Service, Tatrakshak Medal for gallantry and DG Coast Guard Commendation.
India defeat Sri Lanka in U-19 Asia Cup 2021 finals
India has lifted the under-19 Asia cricket Cup by defeating Sri Lanka by nine wickets in a rain-interrupted One-Day International final in Dubai through the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method. In the match, Sri Lanka opted to bat first and scored 106 for nine in the stipulated 38 overs. India, who have won a record seven Asia Cup titles, looked a far superior team.
Dharmendra Pradhan launches reading campaign ‘Padhe Bharat’
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has launched a 100-day reading campaign ‘Padhe Bharat. The launch of the 100 Days Reading Campaign is in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 which lays emphasis on the promotion of joyful reading culture for children by ensuring the availability of age-appropriate reading books for children in local/mother tongue/regional/tribal language.
The Minister while launching the campaign has underlined the importance of reading that children need to develop to ensure continuous and lifelong learning. He also reinforced that the habit of reading, if inculcated at an early age, helps in brain development and enhances imagination and provide a conducive learning environment for children.
Padhe Bharat campaign:
- Padhe Bharat campaign will focus on children studying in Balvatika to Grade 8. The reading campaign will be organized for 100 days (14 weeks) starting from January 1, 2022, to April 10, 2022.
- The reading campaign aims to have the participation of all stakeholders at the national and state level including children, teachers, parents, community, educational administrators etc.
- One activity per week per group has been designed with the focus on making reading enjoyable and building a lifelong association with the joy of reading. This campaign has also been aligned with the vision and goals of the foundational Literacy and Numeracy mission.
1st electric boat built for Kochi Water Metro Project
In Kerala, the first battery-powered electric boat built for the Kochi Water Metro Project was handed over to the Kochi Metro Rail Limited. The fully air-conditioned boat is among the 23 boats being built by the Cochin Shipyard for the 747-crore rupee Kochi Water Metro project. Kochi Water Metro system will have 78 ferries, linking 38 terminals spread over 76 route kilometres.
The battery-powered water metro boat can carry 100 passengers. KMRL said it was for the first time in the world a centrally controlled integrated water transport system with a large fleet is powered by the battery.
Nirmala Sitharaman chairs 46th GST council meet in Delhi
The GST Council’s 46th meeting was held in New Delhi under the chairmanship of Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman. The GST Council has recommended deferring the decision to change the rates in textiles recommended in the 45th GST Council meeting. Consequently, the existing GST rates of 5 % instead of 12% in textile sector would continue.
This convention attains special significance as it comes days ahead of Sitharaman presenting the much-anticipated Union Budget 2022-23 on February 1, for which she has been holding a series of pre-budget consultations with stakeholders.
The 2022-23 Union Budget of India will be presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2022. This will be the fourth budget of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government in its second tenure. The 2021-22 budget, presented on 1st February this year, was the first one to be presented orally due to the ongoing coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
PM Modi to lay foundation stone of Major Dhyan Chand Sports University
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of Major Dhyan Chand Sports University in Meerut. The University will be established at Salawa and Kaili villages of Sardhana town in Meerut at an estimated cost of about 700 Crore rupees. The University will have the capacity of training 1080 sportspersons including 540 female and 540 male sportspersons.
About the University:
- The Sports University will be equipped with modern and state-of-the-art sports infrastructure including synthetic Hockey ground, Football ground, Basketball, Volleyball, Handball, Kabaddi ground, Lawn tennis court, Gymnasium hall, Synthetic running stadium, Swimming pool, Multipurpose hall, and a Cycling Velodrome.
- It will also house facilities for Shooting, Squash, Gymnastics, Weightlifting, Archery, Canoeing, and Kayaking, among other facilities with the capacity of training.
GST Collection Stood At Rs 1.29 Lakh Crore in December 2021
GST revenue collected in December 2021 was over Rs 1.29 lakh crore, 13 per cent higher than the same month in 2020. The gross GST revenue collected in the month of December 2021 is ₹ 1,29,780 crore, of which CGST is ₹ 22,578 crore, SGST is ₹ 28,658 crore, IGST is Rs 69,155 crore (including Rs 37,527 crores collected on import of goods) and cess is Rs 9,389 crore.
Though the collection was lower than Rs 1.31 lakh crore mopped up in November, December is the sixth month in a row when revenue from goods sold and services rendered stood at over Rs 1 lakh crore. The average monthly gross GST collection for the third quarter (October-December) of the current year has been Rs 1.30 lakh crore against the average monthly collection of Rs 1.10 lakh crore and Rs 1.15 lakh crore in the first and second quarter, respectively.
Tech Mahindra to acquire 100 percent stake in Allyis India, Green Investments
Tech Mahindra has approved a proposal for the acquisition of a 100 per cent stake in Allyis India and Green Investments, for a total consideration of up to USD 125 million. The acquisition will bolster Tech Mahindra’s capabilities in Digital Experience Solutions, Learning & Development, Marketing, Instructional Design; Engineering: Cloud & Automation, BI & Analytics, Technical support services.
Tech Mahindra will pay total consideration of up to $125 million, including employment-related and performance-related earnouts, as per a regulatory update filed with the exchanges. Allyis India Pvt Ltd and Green Investments LLC offer technology consulting and managed services for organisations to help reduce costs, improve performance, and meet their objectives. Allyis India Pvt Ltd was incorporated in 2018 whole Green Investments LLC was incorporated in 2013.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Tech Mahindra CEO: C. P. Gurnani;
- Tech Mahindra Headquarters: Pune;
- Tech Mahindra Founder: Anand Mahindra;
- Tech Mahindra Founded: 1986.
