Current Affairs - October 16, 2020 Current Affairs

Former New Zealand cricket all-rounder, John Richard Reid passed away. He was also New Zealand's oldest surviving Test player. He was the first cricketer to lead New Zealand to a Test victory.

The Indian Army and Maharashtra police organised a joint anti-terror exercise to coordinate their drills and procedures to counter any terrorist attack in Pune, an official said on Tuesday. The joint anti-terror exercise was organised by Agnibaaz Division (41 Artillery Division) of Southern Command of the Indian Army here at Lullanagar on October 9.

Renowned Kuchipudi dancer, Shobha Naidu passed away. Her major achievements include choreography and presentation of Ballets Vipranarayana, Kalyana Srinivasam and many others, in which she was the main protagonist and portrayed various roles like Satyabhama, Devadevaki, Padmavathi, Mohini, Sai Baba, and Goddess Parvati which won her great appreciation. Some of the famous awards won by her includes, Padma Shri in 2001, Sangeet Natak Akademi in 1991.

"Bank of Ghana" has won the Central bank of the year award 2020. Apart from this, Mark Carney (Governor of the Bank of England) has won the Governor of the year at the Central bank of the year award 2020. Central Banking Awards is held annually to recognize excellence in the central banking community. This was the 7th edition of the award and the ceremony was held virtually on.

Microsoft and All India Council For Technical Education (AICTE) have partnered to empower students and educators in new-age technologies. This technology including artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), data science and cloud computing.

The International Day of Rural Women is observed globally on 15 October each year. The day recognizes the crucial role of women and girls in ensuring the sustainability of rural households and communities, improving rural livelihoods and overall well-being. In India, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare observes the day as the Rashtriya Mahila Kisan Diwas since 2016, to increase the active participation of women in agriculture.

Haryana government now has a water testing lab on wheels! The Manohar Lal Khattar-led Haryana government has launched a state-of-the-art van for testing the quality of drinking water. An initiative under the Jal Jeevan Mission, the van can measure different parameters of water quality. The van would also be an effective method for carrying out surveillance on the quality of drinking water even in the remotest areas of the state. The Jal Jeevan Mission aims to provide every rural household with a tap water connection by 2024, and for that surveillance and monitoring of the water quality is imperative.

Russia has given regulatory approval to a second Covid-19 vaccine, named 'EpiVacCorona', after early-stage studies. The new coronavirus vaccine comes two months after a similar move for Russia's first vaccine Sputnik V prompted widespread criticism from scientists both at home and abroad.

The Government of Odisha and Indian Rugby Football Union (IRFU) signed an agreement to sponsor the Indian national rugby teams for the next three years, till 2023, and facilitate high performance training and conditioning of the players.

World Students' Day is observed every year on 15 October to mark the birth anniversary of former President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. This year marks the 89th birth anniversary of the former president and 'Missile Man' Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.

In order to promote innovation across schools, Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog has signed a Statement of Intent (SOI) with IT company CGI India. As a part of continuous support to Atal Tinkering Lab initiative (ATL), AIM has collaborated with CGI India which is known to be one of the largest IT and business consulting services firms. This latest collaboration will help in creating a successful and innovative workforce from the ATL schools, the plan envisions.

India has contributed one million dollars to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine Refugees in Near East region. This will support the UNRWA's programmes and services including the education, health care, relief and social services. India's support to the Palestine is an integral part of the India's foreign policy.

Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik has inaugurated "Sujal", 'Drink from Tap Mission' scheme, to provide round the clock supply of quality tap drinking water in all urban areas of the state.

New Zealand has knocked off Japan for the strongest passport in the world according to the latest Global Passport Index compiled by global financial advisory firm Arton Capital. The US passport ranked 21 and India, 58.

The sixth-session of the India-Norway Joint Commission Meeting was held virtually on October 13, 2020. The meeting was attended by India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Norwegian counterpart Ine Eriksen Soreide.

India's leading private sector bank, HDFC Bank and Apollo Hospitals have collaborated to launch the "Healthy Life Programme", a holistic healthcare solution. This programme will be launched for HDFC Bank customers, to make healthy living accessible and affordable while making the process convenient and easy for the customers.

The Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) on behalf of the Government of India has extended a Line of Credit (LoC) of USD 400 million (about Rs 2,932 crore) to the Maldives.

Romania's 2008 Olympic champion Constantina Dita has been named an ambassador for the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships to be held in Gdynia on Saturday. The Romanian competed at eight editions of the World Half Marathon Championships and earned seven medals in the process, making her one of the most successful athletes in the history of the event. Her double victory in Edmonton in 2005, taking individual and team gold medals, remains one of the highlights of her career.

Gujarat government has signed a pact with Vedanta Group firm Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL) to set up a greenfield zinc smelter in the state. This facility will entail an investment of Rs 5000- 10,000 crore in phases, creating more than 5,000 direct and indirect jobs and will be operational by 2022. The proposed 300 (kilo tonnes per annum) production capacity project would provide big employment opportunities to the local youths in this tribal area.