Current Affairs - September 25, 2020 Current Affairs

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has conducted a successful flight test of ABHYAS, a High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT) from the Interim Test Range, Balasore in Odisha. ABHYAS can be used as a target for evaluation of various missile systems. ABHYAS has been designed and developed by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) of the DRDO.

A hackathon named "KRITAGYA" has been planned by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) under National Agricultural Higher Education Project (NAHEP). This hackathon has been planned to promote potential technology solutions for enhancing farm mechanization with special emphasis on women friendly equipments. Students, faculties and innovators/entrepreneurs from any university / technical institution across the country can apply and participate in the event in the form of a group.

Theatre personality and Bollywood actor Bhupesh Pandya, who is best known for his role in Ayushmann Khurrana's debut film 'Vicky Donor' has passed away. He was an alumnus of National School of Drama (NSD).

Security forces of Nepal and India have initiated a joint security patrol of the Nepal-India border in Kapilvastu district to control the spread of Covid-19 and check illegal cross-border activities. The local administration said security along the sealed border has been heightened in light of possible illegal cross-border movement and smuggling. A joint security patrol of Nepal Police and Armed Police Force of Nepal and Seema Suraksha Bal of India has begun from Saturday.

Railways has planned for 100 percent electrification of its broad gauge routes by 2023. This was stated by the Railway Minister Piyush Goyal in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today. The Minister informed that around 63 per cent broad gauge lines have already been electrified out of a total 63,631 route kilometres as on 1st of April this year.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed today between Israel's Start-Up Nation Central and India's International Centre for Entrepreneurship and Technology (iCreate) to initiate a bilateral program to accelerate innovation and technology cooperation between start-ups and corporates from both countries.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has called upon G-20 to play a leadership role in crafting a pathway to recover from COVID-19. Piyush Goyal on Tuesday participated in the virtual meeting of the G-20 Trade and Investment Ministers. Mr Goyal in a tweet said, "Addressed G-20 Meeting of Trade & Investment Ministers, & stressed on importance of small retailers in supply of food & essentials. Also highlighted India's stand on data sovereignty, as well as our economic reforms to build an Aatmanirbhar Bharat"

Union Minister of State for Railways, Suresh Angadi has passed away after he contracted coronavirus disease. He is the first member of the Union Cabinet to die due to coronavirus. Suresh Angadi was a four-time Lok Sabha MP from Karnataka's Belagavi constituency. He was elected in 2004, 2014 and 2019.

A new book titled "Voices of Dissent" authored by Historian Romila Thapar will be jointly published by Penguin Random House India and Seagull Books. The book is set to publish in October 2020. The book is a historical essay that explores dissent, including its articulation and public response to its forms, with a focus on the recent protest in India against the citizenship law and the National Register of Citizens.

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday approved a Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation's scheme to allow free bus travel to two members of a family to immerse ashes of their loved ones in the Ganga in Haridwar. The state road transport corporation would be the nodal agency to run the scheme, named ''''Moksha Kalash Yojana-2020'''' and the expenses on it would be borne by Devasthan Department, an official statement said. Chief Minister Gehlot had earlier started the facility of free bus travel to Haridwar for two members of a family during the COVID lockdown for immersion of ashes in Ganga there.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday launched the AP Police Seva app in an event which saw a participation of 46,000 police personnel from about 1,000 locations across the state via a video conference which he chaired from the Tadepalli Camp Office.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed AK Das (ex-general manager at Union Bank of India), as the new administrator of the Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative (PMC) Bank. He has replaced JB Bhoria who has stepped down from his role as the administrator of the bank due to health reasons. In September 2019, the RBI had superseded the board of PMC bank due to fraud and financial irregularities in the PMC bank.

New Zealand could be the first country in the world to require its major financial institutions to report on the risks posed by the climate crisis. This means that about 200 of the country's biggest companies and banks would have to report on the impact that extreme weather events or climate polices will have on their business.

The World Maritime Day is observed on September 24 by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and other international organizations . The day is celebrated on the last Thursday of the September every year. Theme for this year is Sustainable Shipping for a Sustainable Planet.

Embattled leader Alexander Lukashenko has been sworn in for his sixth term as the President of Belarus at a secret ceremony held with no prior announcement, state-owned Belta news agency reported on September 24. As per the news agency, the inauguration ceremony took place in the Palace of Independence, Minsk which hosts landmark events in the country. Earlier this day, the majority of roads in the capital were blocked by forces to allow Lukashenko's motorcade to pass.

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has predicted that the GDP of India will contract by 5.9% in the year 2020. For the year 2021, UNCTAD projects the Indian economy to grow by 3.9%. The projection was made in its Trade and Development Report 2020.

The Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers has approved to set up ten plastic parks in the country under the Plastic Park scheme. The Scheme was launched in 2019. Key Facts The plastic parks will be set up in Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttrakhand.

A 17-year-old girl, Khushi Chindaliya has been appointed as Regional Ambassador for India by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)- Tunza Eco-Generation. In her new role, Khusi will raise awareness about climate change and the importance of environmental conservation and the need to safeguard environmental treasures. She will work with the TEG on various environmental awareness programmes till February 2021.

The Central Pollution Control Board celebrated its 46th Foundation Day. The CBCB was established on September 23, 1974 under The Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 as a technical arm of Central Government for environmental research, monitoring, regulation and enforcement in the country.

Former rebel military commander, Ishmael Toroama has been elected as president of Bougainville, an autonomous region of Papua New Guinea. This was the first general election since Bougainville voted overwhelmingly to separate from Papua New Guinea in November 2019. Bougainville is a mineral-rich and lush group of islands in the South Pacific.