NATIONAL NEWS

Scheme for Mentoring Young Authors - YUVA 2.0

• Prime Minister’s Scheme for Mentoring Young Authors - YUVA 2.0 was launched to promote reading, writing and book culture in the country.

• In view of the significant impact of the first edition of YUVA with large scale participation from young and budding authors in 22 different Indian languages and English, YUVA 2.0 is now being launched.

• The launch of YUVA 2.0 (Young, Upcoming and Versatile Authors) is in line with the Prime Minister’s vision to encourage the youth to understand and appreciate India's democracy.

• It will help to develop a stream of writers who can write on a spectrum of subjects to promote Indian heritage, culture and knowledge system.

• The young authors will be trained by eminent authors and mentors from 01 March to 31 August 2023.

Indian Railways to Install RTIS

• Indian Railways has launched a real-time information system to track train movement timings.

• It has been developed in collaboration with ISRO.

• RTIS is automatically plotted on the control charts of trains in the Control Office Application (COA) system.

• Indian Railways has installed RTIS devices on 2,700 locomotives in 21 electric loco sheds.

• RTIS will update the location within 30 seconds.

• RTIS can more closely track the location and speed of the train without any human intervention.
• In the second phase, 6,000 more locomotives will be covered in 50 loco sheds using ISRO’s SATCOM hub.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India Signs Deal with Armenia

• India has signed 2,000 crores (USD 244.78 million) million deal to export arms and ammunition to Armenia which is currently engaged in a tense stand-off with its neighbor Azerbaijan.
• First, India will also export indigenous Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launchers (MBRL).
• The Pinaka system has been developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and is manufactured by Indian private firms.
• The rocket system, which is currently in service with the Indian Army, can fire 12 rockets in 44 seconds.
• Armenia is also set to get anti-tank rockets as well as a range of ammunition from India under the bundled deal.

BANKING

DBS Bank India Partners with HDFC ERGO and Atradius

• DBS Bank India Limited (DBIL) has partnered in collaboration with HDFC ERGO General Insurance Co Ltd and reinsured by Atradius, a worldwide provider of trade credit insurance.

• It is to provide a Credit Insurance – Accounts Receivable solution to Tata Metaliks Ltd (TML), a subsidiary of Tata Steel Limited.

• This credit insurance deal is amongst the first to leverage Trade Credit Insurance.

• The revised framework was rolled out by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) in November 2021 allowing banks to participate in this proposition.

• DBS is one of the first movers in the Indian market, supporting financial transactions backed by Trade Credit Insurance.

SPORTS

Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix

• Red Bull’s Sergio Perez won the 2022 Singapore F1 Grand Prix.

• He finished 7.5 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who came at the second position.

• Formula one is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars.

• Max Verstappen finished seventh in the race.

Indian Javelin Thrower Shivpal Singh Suspended

• Indian Javelin thrower Shivpal Singh has been suspended from competing till October 2025 due to a doping violation.

• He tested positive for the banned substance methandienone which is a performance enhancing steroid.

• Uttar Pradesh based Shivpal was a silver medalist at the 2019 Asian championship.

First Indian Cricketer to Play 400 T20s

• Team India captain Rohit Sharma has become the first-ever Indian cricketer to feature in 400 matches in T20 cricket history.
• India's second T20I against South Africa in Guwahati marks Rohit's 400th T20 match.
• He also holds the record for most runs in T20I cricket (3712).
• West Indian all-rounder Kieron Pollard holds the record of playing the greatest number of T20 matches (614).
• Dinesh Karthik, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni are the only Indian cricketers to have played more than 350 matches in T20s.

AWARDS & PRIZES

Swachh Survekshan Grameen 2022 Award

• President Droupadi Murmu conferred the awards for Swachh Survekshan Grameen 2022 in New Delhi.
• In the big states category (population of over 30 lakh)-Telangana secured the first prize under the Swachh Survekshan Grameen (SSG) 2022, Haryana won the second prize while Tamil Nadu was third.
• In the small states/Union Territories category (population less than 30 Lakhs)- Andaman & Nicobar secured the top position followed by Daman and Diu & Dadar Nagar Haveli in the second place and Sikkim took the third place.
• Under Swachh Survekshan Grameen, the top three districts of India are Bhiwani (Haryana), Jagtial (Telangana) and Nizamabad (Telangana) respectively.
• The Swachh Survekshan Gramin-2022 aimed to undertake ranking of States and Districts on the basis of their performance attained on key quantitative and qualitative Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen parameters.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

New Attorney General of India

• Senior advocate R. Venkataramani has been appointed as the 16th Attorney General (AG) of India by President Droupadi Murmu for three years.

• Venkataramani will succeed Mr. K. K. Venugopal, whose term comes to end on September 30, 2022.

• His appointment comes just days after senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi declined the government’s offer to become the next Attorney General.

• He has a rich experience of over 40 years as a lawyer and he was also a former member of the Law Commission of India.

• He was enrolled in July 1977 in the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and joined the chambers of the late senior advocate in SC P.P. Rao in 1979.
• He was designated as a senior advocate by the Supreme Court in 1997.

Deputy Election Commissioner

• Senior IAS officer Ajay Bhadoo was appointed the Deputy Election Commissioner.
• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved his appointment.
• A Gujarat cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, he will hold the post till 24 July 2024.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

New Book Titled Lata: A Life in Music

• On the 93rd birthday of India’s most iconic vocal artist Lata Mangeshkar, Penguin Random House India has announced the acquisition and publication of her biography titled Lata: A Life in Music.
• It was written in Hindi by writer-poet Yatindra Mishra.
• It was translated by the award-winning writer and translator, Ira Pande.
• The original Hindi version of this book Lata: Sur-Gatha, won the 64th National Film Award and the MAMI Award for Best Writing on Cinema (2016–17).

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day of the Older Persons

• International Day of Older Persons is celebrated every year on 01 October.
• It is to increase awareness about the importance of ageing and promote the rights of older persons.
• The theme for the year 2022 is ‘Resilience of Older Persons in a Changing World.’
• The International Day of Older Persons was declared by the UN General Assembly on 14 December 1990.
• This was preceded by programs like the Vienna International Plan of Action on Aging, which was approved by the UN General Assembly and the World Assembly on Ageing in 1982.

International Day of Non-Violence

• International Day of Non-Violence is celebrated every year on 02 October.

• It is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, leader of the Indian independence movement and pioneer of the philosophy and strategy of non-violence.

• The day is observed to spread the message of non-violence through public awareness and education.

• It is commemorated with the hope of building a culture of peace, tolerance, understanding and non-violence.