Current Affairs - October 21, 2020 Current Affairs

The first-ever virtual G20 (Group of Twenty) Youth 20 (Y20) Global Summit was virtually hosted from Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia for exchanging ideas and dialogues for the empowerment of youth Post COVID, where Indian side was represented by Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Kiren Rijiju. Indian side emphasized on galvanizing the youth to take on the challenges set forth by the worldwide COVID 19 Pandemic.

The IIT-Madras incubated dairy-tech startup,"Stellapps" has launched a first-of-its-kind, fully-automated direct payment platform, 'mooPay', for dairy farmers in Rajasthan. The Digital technology solutions provider Stellapps is a first of its kind end-to-end dairy technology solutions company of India. It is also one of the technology pioneers of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Union Minister of State for Agriculture Shri Parshottam Rupala today launched AYUSHMAN SAHAKAR, a unique scheme to assist cooperatives play an important role in creation of healthcare infrastructure in the country formulated by the apex autonomous development finance institution under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC).

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the extension of the tenure of Home Secretary, Ajay Kumar Bhalla till August 22, 2021. Bhalla, a 1984 batch IAS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre, was appointed as Home Secretary in August 2019. He was to superannuate on November 30, 2020.

On October 20, 2020, the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved a new Defence Research Development Organization Procurement Manual, 2020. The main objective of release of the manual is to encourage MSME (Micro Small and Medium Enterprises) in Research and Development.

In Singapore, online government services can now be accessed by facial recognition -- a world first. This technology is being rolled out to the city-state's SingPass digital identity scheme, offering access to no less than 400 online services, including tax declarations and public housing applications. Facial recognition is also increasingly being used to access other online services, such as banking.

Uttar Pradesh (UP) Governor, Anandiben Patel has launched "Safe City Project" - a women's safety campaign in Lucknow, UP. The Project is a 180-day-long campaign under which police and other departments will work towards strengthening the security of women in public places. The campaign will involve the movement of women police personnel to inculcate a feeling of pride and safety for women in Lucknow. The UP Governor flagged off 100 pink scooters and 10 four-wheeler police vehicles as part of the campaign. The vehicles are equipped with first-aid kits, flashlights and other facilities.

Fino Payments Bank is planning to add another 300 points at BPCL outlets to its existing 1,075 in Tamil Nadu, to help truck drivers to get fleet cards recharged by paying equivalent cash, without any hassles, a top official said on Monday.

India has been ranked at 4th position, with a score of 39.7 out of 100, in the Asia Power Index 2020, released by the Sydney-based Lowy Institute. The Asia Power Index 2020 ranks 26 countries and territories to assess the relative power of states in Asia.

The Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and external affairs minister Jay Shankar will hold 2+2 dialogue with their United States counter parts mark as per and Mike pompeo. The dialogue is to be held between October 26 2020 and October 27 2020.u

The third World Statistics Day is observed globally on 20 October 2020. The celebration of World Statistics Day 2020 is a global collaborative endeavour, organized under the guidance of the United Nations Statistical Commission. The World Statistics Day 2020 theme "Connecting the world with data we can trust." This theme reflects the importance of trust, authoritative data, innovation and the public good in national statistical systems.

On an average an Indian spends 3.5% of his/ her daily income for a plate of food as compared to 0.6% by a New Yorker, according to the "Cost of a Plate of Food" report released by the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) on Friday.

IDBI Bank announced the launch of banking services on WhatsApp. The WhatsApp Banking service is being offered through a dedicated WhatsApp verified number ensuring end-to-end encryption, the Bank stated.

The World Osteoporosis Day (WOD) is observed globally on 20 October. The day is celebrated to raise global awareness of the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis and metabolic bone disease. WOD is organized by the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF), by the launch of a year-long campaign with a specific theme. WOD aims to make osteoporosis and fracture prevention a global health priority by reaching out to health-care professionals, the media, policymakers, patients, and the public at large.

In Badminton, former World Champion Nozomi Okuhara of Japan clinched the Denmark Open 2020 title beating three-time world champion Carolina Marin in women's singles. In the men's singles final, world number seven Anders Antonsen of Denmark defeated his compatriot Rasmus Gemke.

Visvesvaraya award recognises the countries with a maximum floating solar capacity in each of the four regions of ISA. Kalpana Chawla awards recognise the outstanding contribution of scientists and engineers working in the field of solar energy. Diwakar award recognizes organisations & institutions that have been working for the benefit of differently-abled people and have maximised the use of solar energy in the host country.

The 8th edition of the annual Indian Navy (IN) - Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) bilateral maritime exercise SLINEX-20 starts at Trincomalee, Sri Lanka from 19 to 21 October 2020. The Indian Navy will be represented by the indigenously built ASW corvettes Kamorta and Kiltan. The Sri Lanka Navy will be represented by SLN Ships Sayura (Offshore Patrol Vessel) and Gajabahu (Training Ship).

Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance has launched a new Unit Linked insurance plan (Ulip) titled 'Invest 4G'. It is an individual life insurance savings plan which can be customized as per the goals and changing requirements of the individual. This Unit Linked Individual Life Insurance cum Savings Plan provides a combination of Portfolio Management Options and flexibilities which gives choice to opt for protection suiting the demand for every individual as well as provide an opportunity to save for future goals.

To push agriculture finance, state-owned Bank of Baroda (BoB) said it has entered into a pact with Mahindra and Mahindra for tractor finance business. The lender, through its over 5,000 rural and semi-urban branch network, will provide tractor loan facility to customers of Mahindra and Mahindra.

Kati Bihu is one of the sets of three Bihu festivals (agricultural festivals) was celebrated in the state of Assam. The Kati Bihu is also known as Kangali Bihu, the festival of the poor (the word "Kongal" means "poor") is celebrated in mid-October when the crops are at growing stage and the granaries of the farmers are depleting.