14th September 2023 Daily Current Affairs
Sports
1. Maharashtra wins 5th National Wheelchair Rugby Championship 2023
- Maharashtra clinched the title of champions in the 5th National Wheelchair Rugby Championship 2023 by securing a convincing victory over Karnataka.
- Aim: To promote and expand the sport of wheelchair rugby across the nation.
- It was organized by The Indian Rugby Football Union (Rugby India), the governing body for rugby in India.
- It was conducted in association with the Wheelchair Rugby Federation of India and Mitsubishi Corporation.
National & International Appointments
2. Tharman Shanmugaratnam appointed as Singapore’s president
- Indian-origin Singapore-born economist Tharman Shanmugaratnam appointed as the ninth president of the city-state.
- He has served Singapore all his life in public service.
- Prior to being president-elect, he served as a senior minister and Deputy Prime Minister from May 2011 to May 2019.
- He is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum.
- This was the first contested presidential election since 2011.
Important Dates
3. Hindi Diwas 2023 is celebrated on 14th September
- Indians on 14 September celebrate National ‘Hindi Diwas’.
- On this day in 1949, the Hindi language was adopted as one of the official languages of the Republic of India.
- Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India, officially declared 14 September as the Hindi Diwas.
- 425 million people speak Hindi as their 1st language and about 120 million people speak Hindi as their 2nd language.
State Affairs
4. DMRC, BEL sign MoU to develop Communication Based Train Control system
- Delhi Metro Rail Corporation and Bharat Electronics Limited signed a MoU to develop an indigenous Communication Based Train Control system.
- Aim: To transform rail transportation in India, driving innovation, reducing costs, and fostering self-reliance in the field of train control signaling systems.
- The Communication-Based Train Control System will optimize train operations, and enhance passenger services while efficiently utilizing rail infrastructure.
State Affairs
5. PM Modi to be on a day-long visit to MP and Chhattisgarh
- In Chhattisgarh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated important rail sector projects to the nation.
- Prime Minister’s emphasis on improving connectivity across the country will get a boost with the dedication to the nation of important rail sector projects worth more than Rs. 6 thousand crores in the public programme in Raigarh.
- Aim: To provide impetus to socio-economic development by facilitating movement of passengers as well as freight traffic in the region.
State Affairs
6. VP Jagdeep Dhankhar inaugurated International Conference on dam safety
- VP Jagdeep Dhankhar inaugurated the International Conference on Dam Safety at Jaipur in Rajasthan.
- According to the Jal Shakti Ministry, there are over 6000 dams in India and it is ranked third globally in terms of large dams.
- Aim: To provide a major platform for experts to come together and debate cutting-edge topics in dam safety and management.
- It has been essential to civilization’s development, have role in meeting demand for drinking water, irrigation, hydropower
Banking & Finance
7. RBI released direction for the settlement of loan account
- The RBI has asked all banks, non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) and asset reconstruction companies (ARCs) to release all the original movable/immovable property documents and remove charges registered with any registry within a period of 30 days after full repayment/settlement of the loan account.
- In case where the delay is attributable to the RE, it shall compensate the borrower at the rate of ₹5,000 for each day of delay.
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Defense
8. Distant Planet may have Water Ocean and Possibly a life: NASA
- Nasa has announced the existence of a possible rare water ocean on a giant exoplanet scores of light years away and also a chemical hint of a sign of potential life.
- NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope in its study of K2-18 b, an exoplanet, discovered the presence of carbon dioxide and methane.
- This suggests that K2-18b could be a Hycean exoplanet, one which has the potential to possess a hydrogen-rich atmosphere and a water ocean-covered surface.
Defense
9. Amazon’s AWS ties up with ISRO to advance its AI capabilities
- Cloud behemoth Amazon Web Services has signed a strategic MoU with the ISRO and Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) to support space-tech innovations through cloud computing.
- Aim: To enable the space industry to make better decisions, faster – pushing the boundaries of possibilities, and AWS is committed to help startups identify use cases and accelerate solution development.
Honours & Awards
10. Bloomberg annual ranking of B-Schools 2023-24 released
- The Bloomberg Businessweek Best B-Schools Ranking 2023-24 which was released includes India B-schools among the top five ranks.
- Hong Kong HKUST bagged the top rank in the Asia Pacific B-School rankings category,
- Shanghai University of Finance and Economics secured second position and CIEBS at third rank.
- In the overall Asia Pacific B-school rankings category, IIM Bangalore clinched 4th position followed by the Indian School of Business (ISB) at 5th position.
National & International Appointments
11. S.R. Batliboi is appointed as a Paytm auditor
- Digital payment services provider Paytm has appointed a new statutory auditor, S.R. Batliboi & Associates LLP, for five years.
- The previous statutory auditor, Price Waterhouse Chartered Accountants LLP, completed its term at the conclusion of the AGM.
- Price Waterhouse Chartered Accountants LLP on August 7 had announced its resignation as auditor of Paytm Payments Services Limited with immediate effect.
Agreement
12. Cabinet approves signing of an MoU between India and Armenia
- The Government approved the signing of a MoU between the Ministry (E&IT) of India and the Ministry of High-Tech Industry of Armenia on Cooperation in the field of sharing successful Digital Solutions implemented at the Population Scale for Digital Transformation.
- Aim: To promote closer cooperation and exchange of experiences and digital technologies-based solutions in the implementation of digital transformational initiatives of both the countries.
Schemes
13. Cabinet approved the expansion of Ujjwala Yojana
- The Cabinet approved the expansion of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) allocating 7,500,000 new LPG connections over a three-year period until the FY26.
- Costing Rs 1,650 crore, this expansion will elevate the total number of PMUY beneficiaries to 103.5 million.
- The government announced this extension after reducing the price of cooking gas by Rs 200 across all markets last month.
- Data indicate that LPG penetration reached 99.9 per cent in 2022