Banking Current Affairs : 22nd May 2024

Today’s Current Affairs: 22nd May 2024 for SSC CGL, State SSC, RRB, Railways, Banking Exam & IBPS, etc

International Day for Biological Diversity 2024:

• The International Day for Biological Diversity is on May 22nd, 2024, raising its vibrant banner for the vital importance of biodiversity in our planet’s well-being and our own.
• The official theme for International Day for Biological Diversity 2024 is “Be Part of the Plan”.

India Rises to 39th Position in WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024:

• India has ascended to the 39th spot in the World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024, marking a significant improvement from its 54th position in 2021.

Tata Motors Partners with Bajaj Finance to Enhance Dealer Financing Options:

• Tata Motors’ subsidiaries, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (TMPV) and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM), have teamed up with Bajaj Finance to offer an innovative financing programme for their authorised passenger and electric vehicle dealers.
• The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD) under the Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India to digitalize vaccine cold chain management.

BARC India Appoints Dr. Bikramjit Chaudhuri as New Chief of Measurement Science & Analytics:

• The Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India, the world’s largest television audience measurement organization, has appointed Dr. Bikramjit Chaudhuri as its new Chief of Measurement Science & Analytics.
• He will succeed Dr. Derrick Gray, a veteran in the field of audience measurement and advanced analytics

Neeraj Chopra Federation Cup 2024 Athletics Meet:

• Indian athletic sensation Neeraj Chopra continued his dominance in the men’s javelin throw event, clinching the gold medal with a modest effort of 82.27m at the prestigious Federation Cup 2024 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

Bank of Maharashtra Leads PSU Banks in FY24 Business Growth:

• Bank of Maharashtra emerged as a frontrunner among public sector banks, showcasing remarkable growth in total business and deposit mobilization.
• Despite facing industry-wide challenges, the Pune-based lender recorded a notable 15.94% rise in total business, surpassing even the State Bank of India (SBI).

Student Enrollment Under SC Category Grows By 44%:

• The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) has reported significant increases in student enrollment under various categories from 2014-15 to 2021-22.
• According to data released on Saturday, enrollment of Scheduled Caste (SC) students rose by 44%, from 4.61 million to 6.62 million. SC female student enrollment increased by 51%.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Receives First Stamp Commemorating 200 Years of Indian Origin Tamils in Sri Lanka:

• Indian spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar received the first stamp released to commemorate the completion of 200 years of Indian Origin Tamils (IOT) in Sri Lanka.
• The stamp was presented by the Governor of the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka, Senthil Thondaman.

FIEO Projected India’s Merchandise to Grow USD 500 to 510 Billion in FY25I:

• According to the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), the apex body for exporters in India, merchandise exports from India is expected to increase around 14% i.e. to USD 500-510 billion in FY25(2024-25).
• India’s merchandise export saw a contraction of 3% with USD 437 billion in FY24 (2023-24).
• It also estimated that services exports will reach to USD 390-400 billion in FY25. Thereby, net worth of total exports from India will be around USD 890-910 billion.
• India’s total exports stood at USD 788 billion in FY24.

WB Report “Water for Shared Prosperity” Highlights Importance of Access to Safe Drinking Water

• The global flagship report titled “Water for Shared Prosperity”, co-published by the World Bank and the Government of Indonesia, was released during the 10th World Water Forum held in Bali, Indonesia.
• The report emphasized the importance of access to safe drinking water and sanitation for both human and economic development.
• The 10th World Water Forum is being held from 18th to 25th May 2024 with the theme “Water for Shared Prosperity”.
• The forum offers a platform for the water community and decision-makers to collaborate and make long-term progress on global water challenges.
• The report aims to identify the water challenges and risks faced by the poorest and most marginalized populations and to inform policies that enhance water accessibility and climate resilience while alleviating poverty and boosting shared prosperity
• As per the report, 2.2 billion people lacked access to safe drinking water services and 3.5 billion are deprived of safely managed sanitation in 2022.

SIDBI & Airbus Helicopters Signed MoU for Helicopter Financing in India:

• The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Airbus Helicopters for financing the purchase of Airbus helicopters in India.
• The MoU was signed by Rahul Priyadarshi, Chief General Manager(CGM), SIDBI and Sunny Guglani, Head of Airbus Helicopters, India and South Asia.
• Airbus Helicopters is a helicopter manufacturing division of Airbus, a European multinational aerospace corporation.

India’s GDP Growth to Dip to Four-quarter low of 6.7% in Q4 of FY24:ICRA

• ICRA Limited (formerly Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Limited) has projected India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth to moderate to a four-quarter low of 6.7% in 4th Quarter (Q4) of FY2024 from 8.4% in Q3 of FY24.
• For FY24 (full fiscal year), ICRA has expects GDP and Gross Value Added (GVA) growth of 7.8% and 7.0% respectively

RITES signs pact with Bangladesh Railway to Supply 200 BG Passenger Coaches:

• RITES Limited, export arm of Indian Railways, signed a USD 111.26 million (approximately Rs 915 crore) contract agreement to supply 200 Broad-Gauge (BG) passenger carriages to Bangladesh Railways.
• The contract is funded by Luxembourg-based European Investment Bank (EIB).
• RITES, has won this contract through a global competitive bidding process.

IOCL Exports 1st consignment of India’s 1st Premium Fuel “XP100” to Sri Lanka:

• Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), a leading energy company in India, exported its first-ever parcel of XP100, India’s 1st superior 100-octane premium fuel, from Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), Nava Sheva, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra to Lanka IOC, a subsidiary of IOCL in Sri Lanka.

Bloomberg Billionaires Index May 2024:

• According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index (daily ranking index as of 20th May 2024), Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL); and Gautam Adani, Founder and Chairman of the Adani Group, are featured among the top 15 of world’s richest people.
• Mukesh Ambani is ranked 12th with a total net worth of USD 110 billion and Gautam Adani is ranked 14th with a net worth of USD 100 billion.
• Bernard Arnault, the founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, tops the world’s richest list with a net worth of USD 220 billion.

Luis Abinader Re-elected as President of Dominican Republic for 2nd Term:

• Luis Rodolfo Abinader Corona has been re-elected as the President of the Dominican Republic for 2nd four-year term from 2024 to 2028. He has been serving as the President of the Dominican Republic since 2020.
• Abinader won the presidential election by securing 58.85% of the vote.
• Leonel Fernandez, former President, finished 2nd with 27.29% of the votes.

GalaxEye Tests SAR Technology on NAL’s High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite Galax:

• GalaxEye Space Solutions Pvt Ltd, has successfully tested its Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) technology on a subscale High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) developed by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) – National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL).

Whitley Gold Award 2024:

• Dr Purnima Devi Barman from India has been awarded the 2024 Whitley Gold Award (dubbed ‘Green Oscar’) by the UK charity Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) for her efforts to save the Greater Adjutant Stork (Hargila).

Green Credit Program:

• The Centre has approved 12 greening projects under the Green Credit Program (GCP), which was notified last year as a market-based mechanism designed to incentivize voluntary environmental actions across diverse sectors, officials aware of the development said.

India Middle East Europe Economic Corridor:

• The first inter-ministerial delegation from India held meetings from May 15-17 under the Intergovernmental Framework Agreement between the two countries concerning cooperation for the empowerment and operation of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor .

Sariska Tiger Reserve: Supreme Court Orders Mine Closures

• The Supreme Court of India told the Rajasthan government on May 15 to close 68 mines that are less than one kilometer from the Sariska Tiger Reserve.
• This decision is part of a larger attempt to keep illegal mining out of the important habitat for tigers, which has been a problem since the 1990s.
• The court’s ruling backs up rules from the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 and the Environment Protection Act of 1986, which both say that quarrying is not allowed near tiger reserves.

Indian Army Gets AK-203 Rifles:

• The Indian Army has received the first batch of 27,000 units of Russian AK-203 assault rifles.
• Under a contract signed between India and Russia in July 2021, over 6.1 lakh AK-203 assault rifles are to be manufactured in India with technology transfer from Russia.
• The joint venture Indo-Russian Rifles Private Limited (IRRPL) was established at Korwa in Uttar Pradesh in 2019 for this purpose.

Tokyo Atacama Observatory : Inaugrated

• The University of Tokyo Atacama Observatory (TAO) has recently been inaugurated.
• It is now the highest astronomical observatory (altitude of 18,500 feet) in the world, even surpassing the famous Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA), which stands at 16,570 feet.
• The TAO telescope, measuring 6.5 metres in optical-infrared capacity, is perched at an altitude of 18,500 feet on Mount Chajnantor in Chile’s Atacama Desert.
• Chajnantor is located in the Andes Mountains near the Atacama Desert.