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Daily Current Affairs 15th Dec 2020

To prepare for any competitive exam, one of the important sections to read and learn is current affairs. Exams like UPSC, Bank, SSC, RRB or any Government

IIT Bombay Released Urban Quality of Life Index 2020; Mumbai Tops, Patna Ranked Last

  • The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IT-B) released the Urban Quality of Life (UQOL) Index 2020 which ranked 14 Indian cities in India using 29 indicators grouped into 7 categories
  • In accordance to this, Mumbai (Maharashtra) tops the index followed by Delhi, Kolkata (West Bengal) and Chennai (Tamil Nadu) by providing Highest Quality of Life while Bihar's capital city Patna provides poorest quality of life to its people.
  • Following table shows the IIT-B Ranking (Highest/Lowest) of Indian Cities in 7 different categories:

     Index Categories

Highest Ranked City

Lowest Ranked City

Basic Amenities

Pune (Maharashtra)

Patna

Economic Development

Mumbai

Patna

Safety & Security

Kolkata

Patna

Transportation Access

Delhi

Indore (Madhya Pradesh)

Environmental Impact

Mumbai

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)

Infrastructure Development

Kolkata

Patna

Gender Role

Chennai

Patna

Overall (Including above 7)

Mumbai

Pune

  • Hyderabad has the highest percentage of houses with treated water connections of 90.3% & ranked in 5th in Urban Quality of Life (UQOL) Index 2020.
  • Hyderabad ranks lowest in road density (km per sq km).
  • Unemployment levels for Women: It was highest in Patna where the gap stood at 346 which is four times the urban average score of 73.
  • Crime Rate against Women: It is highest in Jaipur (Rajasthan) while Chennai recorded the lowest crime against women.
  • Literacy Rate: It was highest in Pune (91%) and lowest in Hyderabad (83%).
  • Literacy Gap between Men and Women: It was highest in Jaipur at 13.2% and lowest in Kolkata with 5.4%.

About Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B):

  • Director- Subhasis Chaudhuri
  • Headquarter- Mumbai, Maharashtra

NE states, UP, Bihar top in pandemic management: SBI Study

  • According to a study conducted by State Bank of India (SBI) Research, North-Eastern (NE) states (All NE states combined as one) topped the list of states in managing Pandemic, Bihar came second, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Himachal Pradesh were placed at the bottom.
  • Soumya Kanti Ghosh, SBI Group Chief Economic Advisor was the author of the report.
  • They were ranked based on 2 parameters
  • Fiscal deficit & Consumer Price Inflation,
  • Central Government Schemes (one nation one ration card, PM Svanidhi, PM Samman, emergency credit linked guarantee scheme and PM Awas Yojana).

MORTH signs MoU with Austria on Technology Cooperation in Road Infrastructure Sector

  • The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Federal Ministry of Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology of the Republic of Austria on Technology Cooperation in the Road Infrastructure Sector.
  • The MoU will cover Road Transportation, Road/Highways infrastructure development, management and administration, Road safety and Intelligent Transport Systems between both countries.
  • MORTH has signed MoU with Austria because, Austria has state of the art technologies for roads and highways, such as electronic toll systems, intelligent transportation systems, traffic management systems, tunnel monitoring system, geo-mapping and landslide protection measures.

About Austria:

  • Capital, Vienna
  • Currency- Euro
  • President-Alexander Van der Bellen

RBL Bank & ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Enters into a Bancassurance Partnership

  • RBL Bank Ltd & ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Ltd entered into a bancassurance partnership to offer a range of life insurance products, i.e., protection and long-term savings products of ICICI Prudential Life to the customers of RBL Bank.

About RBL Bank Ltd:

  • Incorporated in - 1943
  • Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Vishwavir Ahuja
  • Headquarters- Mumbai, Maharashtra
  • Tagline- Apno Ka Bank

About ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Ltd:

  • Commenced Operations- 2001
  • Head office Mumbai, Maharashtra
  • MD & CEO-N S Kannan

IRDAI proposes a cap of Rs 1cr in draft norms on Standard Accident Insurance Policies

  • Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India(IRDAI) issued draft guidelines on standard personal accident insurance policies. Under them, the insurance watchdog has recommended that all general and standalone health insurers will have to offer this product from April 1, 2021.
  • It will be offered on an individual basis and act as a standard product with common coverage across the sector.
  • The minimum and maximum entry age has been kept at 18 years and 70 years, respectively. The policyholder can pay premiums yearly, half-yearly, quarterly, or monthly
  • It will have a minimum sum insured of Rs 2.5 lakh and a maximum of Rs 1 crore.
  • There will be a proposed payout equal to 100% of the sum insured in case of death or permanent total disablement because of the accident.
  • For permanent partial disablement, the payout percentage will vary according to the type of disablement.
  • The optional cover will also pay out up to 10% of the base sum insured for hospitalization for a minimum of 24 hours as the result of an accident.

About Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI):

  • Chairman- Subhash Chandra Khuntia
  • Headquarter- Hyderabad, Telangana

SBI General Insurance Enters into Strategic Partnership with Mahindra Insurance Brokers

  • SBI General Insurance Company Limited entered into a strategic partnership with Mahindra Insurance Brokers Ltd(MIBL) to increase the insurance penetration in tier 2 & 3 cities(Rural Indian Cities ). MIBL has collaborated with SBI General Insurance under its 'Sajhedaari program.

About Sajhedaari program:

  • It is a unique partnership program designed to identify, train and develop a team of certified Point of Sales Persons (PoSPs) to distribute insurance through a combination of physical and digital (phygital) modes.
  • It will also enable deeper insurance penetration in India.
  • The PoSP model is regulated by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).

About Mahindra Insurance Brokers Ltd (MIBL):

  • Head Office- Mumbai, Maharashtra
  • Chairman of MIBL & Principal Advisor, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.-Rajeev Dubey
  • Managing Director(MD), Dr. Jaideep Devare

About SBI General Insurance Company Limited:

  • Headquarters- Mumbai, Maharashtra
  • MD & Chief Executive Officer(CEO)- Shri Prakash Chandra(P.C.) Kandpal

YES Bank in Partnership with Mastercard Launches 'Yes Private Prime Credit Card

  • YES Bank in partnership with Mastercard launched 'Yes Private Prime Credit Card' for the Affluent and Ultra High-Net Worth-Individuals (HNWIS) of India. The card is available on the Mastercard World Elite platform.
  • It meets the preferences of the HNWIs, by providing a different offering with global privileges and experiences across Travel, Lifestyle, Hospitality, Dining, Entertainment and Wellness, among others.

About YES Bank:

  • Headquarters, Mumbai, Maharashtra
  • Tagline- Experience our expertise
  • Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Prashant Kumar

About Mastercard:

  • Headquarters - New York, United States President and CEO-Elect- Michael Miebach
  • Chief Executive Officer(CEO)- Ajay Banga(Michael Miebach will take over as CEO by January, 2021)

Google Pay, PhonePe Together Accounts for More than 82% of UPI market by volume in November 2020

  • As per the data released by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), Google Pay and PhonePe together account for more than 82% of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) market by volume and more than 86% by value in November 2020.
  • Google Pay has done 960.02 million transactions, worth Rs 1.61 trillion and PhonePe has done 868.4 million transactions, worth Rs 1.75 trillion.
  • As per the October data, Google Pay accounted for 857.81 million transactions, and PhonePe for 839.88 million transactions, where they both accounted for more than 82% of the market by volume.
  • Recently, NPCI has imposed a 30% cap on third-party applications (apps) on total volume transactions processed through UPI, effective January 1, 2021.

Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance launched its new digital campaign, #heroesofmycity

  • Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce(OBC) Life Insurance launched its new digital campaign, #heroesofmycity'.
  • This 2 month long campaign is an extension to the initiative #meformycity. #meformycity was launched by Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance in 2018. The purpose of designing the new digital campaign is to recognise the heroes of everyday life of the people who kept the city going when everything was stopped due to COVID-19 pandemic.

ADB Revised India's GDP Forecast for FY21 to -8% from -9%

  • The 'Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2020 Supplement: Paths Diverge in Recovery from the Pandemic'- December 2020, has revised India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) FY21 rate upwards to -8%(contract by 8) from -9% projected in Asian Development Outlook 2020 Update in September 2020. The Growth will return in 2021 at 8.0% in India.
  • The GDP of Developing Asia(46 ADB-Asian Development Bank member economies across Asia and the Pacific) forecasted to contract by 0.4%(-0.4%) from -0.7% projected in September 2020. The growth will rebound to 6.8% in 2021.

About Asian Development Bank (ADB):

  • Establishment- 1966
  • President- Masatsugu Asakawa
  • Headquarters, Mandaluyong City, Manila, Philippines
  • Membership-68 countries (Including India)

Odisha Government launches 2nd Edition of Eco-Retreat programme at 5 locations

  • Tourism Department of Odisha launched the 2nd Edition of its flagship "Eco-Retreat" programme - Eco-Retreat 2020 at five locations in Odisha - Konark, Bhitarkanika, Daringibadi, Hirakud and Satokosia.
  • They will be open to Tourists till February 28, 2021.

"FICCI Sportsperson of the Year" at India Sports Award-2020

  • Federation of Indian Commerce and Industry (FICCI) virtually presented India Sports Awards-2020, to sports personalities for their outstanding contributions in the field of sports,

About Federation of Indian Commerce and Industry (FICCI):

  • Established in 1927
  • President- Elect - Uday Shankar
  • Headquarter - New Delhi, Delhi

Sri Lanka to host 2021 Edition of Asia Cup Cricket Tournament; Pakistan to host 2022 Edition of Asia Cup

  • Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief Executive Officer (CEO),Wasim Khan stated that Sri Lanka will host the 2021 Edition of Asia Cup, Cricket tournament and Pakistan will host the 2022 Edition of Asia Cup Cricket tournament.
  • In July 2020, Asia Cup's Governing body. Asia Cricket Council (ACC) announced that the 2020 Edition of Asia Cup was cancelled due to Pandemic.
  • The 2020 Edition was originally set to be hosted by Pakistan, as it was cancelled Pakistan were awarded to host the 2022 Edition as Compensation.
  • Asia Cup is a men's One Day International (ODI) & Twenty20 International Cricket Tournament
  • It is organized by ACC, which has 5 full members - India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh & Afghanistan.
  • India were the Champions of the Last Edition of the Asia Cup (2018) held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

About Asian Cricket Council (ACC):

  • President - Nazmul Hassan
  • Headquarters - Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid-Sabah reappointed as Prime Minister of Kuwait

  • Kuwait's Emir, Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah reappointed Sheikh Sabah Artufi Khalid Al- Sabah as the Prime Minister of Kuwait. Earlier Sabah took over the Country's Prime Ministership in September, 2020 after the death of his brother, Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah.

About Kuwait:

  • Capital- Kuwait City
  • Prime Minister (PM)- Sheikh Nawaf Al- Ahmad Al- Sabah

Hindi poet-journalist, Manglesh Dabral dies at 72

  • India's renowned journalist & Hindi Poet, Manglesh Dabral died at the age of 72 in New Delhi due to Covid 19. As a critic of government policies, he returned his Sahitya Akademi award in 2015 in protest against the growing climate of intolerance in the country, which he won in 2000 for his anthology "Ham Jo Dekhte Hain", Literary work in Hindi.
  • He worked as the Editor of Jansatta's Sunday Magazine, Ravivari.
  • Through his writings in the four-page literary magazine, Jansatta, he mentored a generation of Hindi writers.
  • Translated Multiple books to Hindi, which involves the famous translation of Arundhati Roy's "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness" to "Apaar Khushi Ka Gharana"

Indian Dancer, Padma Shri Astad Deboo Passed Away at 73

  • Padma Shri Astad Deboo, a renowned Indian Dancer passed away at the age of 73 at his residence in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
  • Astad Deboo was well known as the pioneer of modern dance in India who utilised his training in the classical dance form of Kathak and Kathakali and created a new fusion dance form.
  • He founded the Astad Deboo Dance Foundation to provide creative training to marginalised sections and differently abled.
  • He received the Padma Shri for arts in 2007.