1.Person in News
Veteran Indian-origin activist Rashid ‘Ram’ Salojee passes away
Dr Rashid Ammed Mahmood, a famous Indian-origin activist breathed his last in Lenasia, South Africa at the age of 87.
Salojee was a leading figure in South Africa’s Liberation Movement of 1980s which eventually led to the release of Nelson Mandela from prison.
Salojee served as a Member of Parliament, Senator and Member of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature under the president-ship of Nelson Mandela.
Quick Fact: Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was the first black President of South Africa and a Nobel Peace Prize awardee.
2.Science and Technology
IIT Kharagpur develops AI-based system to inspect quality of MSME goods
IIT Kharagpur researchers developed the portable Artificial intelligence based device for automatic inspection of goods manufactured in MSMEs.
The portable device clicks pictures of products and sends feed to the AI-based software for quality control.
The innovation will immensely benefit MSMEs which rely on manual inspection of goods which lacks effectiveness and increases cost of production.
Quick Fact: The full form of MSME is ‘Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises’.
3.Sports
New Zealand cricketer Corey Anderson retires from International cricket
Corey Anderson, the 29- year old all rounder quits from International Cricket after his retirement from New Zealand cricket.
Anderson has signed a 3- year contract with Major League Cricket (MLC) T20 in the USA where he will serve in Major and Minor League and coach cricket academies that come under MLC.
Anderson’s biggest achievement was his 36-ball 100 against West Indies in January 2014 which was the fastest hundred in ODIs at that time.
Quick Fact: New Zealand’s national cricket team is nicknamed the Black Caps.
4.Summits and Conferences
India-Mongolia Joint Committee on Cooperation held virtually
The seventh meeting of the India-Mongolia Joint Committee on Cooperation was held virtually to focus on strengthening bilateral relations.
External Affairs Minister (EAM) Dr S Jaishankar and Chief Cabinet Secretary of Mongolia L Oyun-Erdene headed the meeting wherein the two ministers held comprehensive discussions on a range of issues.
India welcomed the decision of Mongolia to join the ISA promoting use of clean energy and the two sides agreed to establish AYUSH Information Cell in Ulaanbaatar.
Quick Fact: The full form of ISA is ‘International Solar Alliance’.
5.Miscellaneous
‘Swarnim Sewa’ launched at Hyderabad International Airport
Central Industrial Security forces (CISF) in collaboration with GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd. (GHIAL) has commenced ‘ Swarnim Sewa’ at Hyderabad International Airport.
The service was launched by Chief Guest Aditya Mehta and Special Guest Pradeep Panicker in presence of other top officials.
Swarnim Sewa is a unique platform which would provide special service to passengers in need of help at the airport wherein a team of CISF personnel has been deployed to actively help out the passengers.
Quick Fact: Aditya Mehta is a renowned para-cyclist and founder of Aditya Mehta Foundation (AMF).
6.Defense
Government approves creation of New Deputy Chief of Strategy
The government sanction letter for the creation of the new Deputy Chief of Strategy came as a plan first envisaged during the India- China doklam crisis back in 2017.
Lt. General Paramjit Singh will be the first officer to assume charge as the Deputy Chief of Strategy.
The new office of the third deputy chief in the army would be incharge of military intelligence and military operations and reduce the burden on the Vice Chief of Army.
7.Defense
PASSEX conducted by Indian Navy and Russian Navy
The Indian Navy (IN) and the Russian Federation Navy (RuFN) are undertaking Passage Exercise (PASSEX) in the Eastern Indian Ocean Region.
Indian Navy is being represented by indigenously built guided- missile frigate Shivalik and anti- submarine corvette Kadmatt along with integral helicopters.
The exercise aims to enhance interoperability, improve understanding and imbibe best practices between both the friendly nations.
Quick Fact: The President of India is the Supreme commander of the Indian Navy.
8.Economy
Axis Bank launches ‘Axis Bank Rupi Business Credit Card’ for MSMEs
Axis Bank Ltd. in partnership with Rupifi and Visa launched the ‘Axis Bank Rupifi Business Credit Card’ for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).
The contactless Co- branded credit card powered by Visa is applicable only to MSMEs businesses that transact on the aggregator platforms partnered with Rupifi PAN India.
The average credit limit offered by the card will be between the range of 1 Lakh and 2 Lakh per month.
Quick Fact: Axis Bank Tagline is “ Badhti ka naam Zindagi”.
