Current Affairs in English – August 25 2022

National Events:

IRDAI:

IRDAI provided insurers with more flexibility in paying commission by linking limits to the overall portfolio and company management expenses .
The utmost commission sanctioned for non – life products has been fixed at 20 % of the gross written premium in that financial year.
Commission and remuneration payout will be based on a board – approved policy which will be reviewed on a yearly basis.

‘ New India : Selected Writings 2014-19 ‘:

Former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu released a book titled A ‘ New India : Selected Writings 2014-19 ‘ on 24 August 2022.
It is a compilation of selected articles of former Union Minister and Padma Vibhushan Arun Jaitley.
Jaitley served as the Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of the Government of India from 2014 to 2019.

NHLML & IWAI & RVNL:

National Highways Logistics Management Limited ( NHLML ) , Inland Waterways Authority of India ( IWAI ) and Rail Vikas Nigam Limited ( RVNL ) signed a tripartite agreement in Aug 2022.
It has been signed for swift development of modern Multi Modal Logistics Parks MMLP under Bharatmala Pariyojna.
The objective is to reduce logistics costs to less than 10 % of GDP at par with International Standards.

HDFC Bank:

HDFC Bank announced the partnership with Tata Neu to launch two new credit cards . The co – branded credit cards will be launched in two variants namely Tata Neu Plus HDFC Bank Credit Card and Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank Credit Card.
The card will enable customers to earn rewards on all spends , both online and in – store in the form of NeuCoins . ( 1 NeuCoin = ₹ 1 ).

Azadi Quest:

Information and Broadcasting ( I & B ) Minister Anurag Thakur on 24 August 2022 launched the ‘ Azadi Quest ‘ , a series of online educational games based on India’s freedom struggle.
I & B Ministry in collaboration with Zynga India has developed these games . Aim : to highlight key milestones of India’s freedom struggle and encourage digital learning experience.

FAAN Fellow:

Senior neurologist , N. V. Sundara Chary has been elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology ( FAAN ).
He has been elected for making valuable contributions in the field of Neurology. It is widely regarded as one of the world’s most prestigious honours in the field of Neurology and Medicine.
Dr Chary is a Professor at Siddhartha Medical College , Vijayawada , Andhra Pradesh.

American Express ( Amex ) Banking Corp:

RBI has lifted business restrictions imposed on American Express ( Amex ) Banking Corp after 16 months. Amex can now issues cards to new customers in India.
Last year on April 23 , 2021 , RBI had imposed restrictions on American Express from on – boarding new domestic customers onto its card network from May 01 , 2021 for non – compliance with the RBI circular on Storage of Payment System Dat.

UNESCO & RE:

Royal Enfield has partnered with UNESCO to promote and safeguard the ‘ Intangible Cultural Heritage ‘ of India.
As a part of this partnership , a four – day creative exhibit is being organised in Delhi from 22 to 25 August 2022.
UNESCO HQ : Paris , France. The exhibition , titled ‘ Journeying Across the Himalayas ‘ , features the works of artists from the Himalayan & Northeast regions.

NDDB:

The Central government has extended the tenure of Meenesh C Shah , as the chairman of the National Dairy Development Board ( NDDB ) , for another six months until 30 November 2022.
This is the second time he has been given the extension. Shah was appointed as the Chairman of NDDB in 2021 .
NDDB Founded : 1965. Before Shah , Dilip Rath was the chairman of NDDB who resigned from the post in December 2020.

Thodupuzha Urban Co – operative Bank:

RBI imposed certain restrictions on Kerala – based Thodupuzha Urban Co – operative Bank for a period of six months due to its deteriorating financial condition.
RBI has banned the bank from granting or renewing loans and advances and making any investments.
RBI has also suspended withdrawal in the bank’s savings and current accounts for depositors.

Section 3(2):

Section 3(2) which imposes imprisonment for a term up to 3 years or fine or both, is void; The Supreme Court ruled that the section is against the Constitution.
In 2016, the Central Government brought an amendment to the Prohibition of Benami Transactions Act, 1988.The amendment was also passed by the Parliament and came into effect from November 1, 2016.
According to it, those involved in benami transactions can be punished with imprisonment up to 3 years or fine or both.

Tamil Nadu Events:

Yuva Puraskar and Bala Sahitya Puraskar:

Sahitya Akademi has announced Yuva Puraskar and Bala Sahitya Puraskar awards for the current year (2022).
The works of Tamil Nadu writers P. Kalimuthu and G. Meenakshi have been selected for the award.
The Sahitya Akademi Award is considered the highest award in the world of literature. This award is given to the best literary works published in 24 recognized languages in India.

International Events:

South Korea:

South Korea has once again shattered its own record for the world’s lowest fertility rate . Korean women were estimated , based on 2021 data , to have an average of just 0.81 children over their lifetimes , down from 0.84 a year earlier.
The number of newborns declined in 2021 to 260,600 , which equates to about 0.5 % of the population.

Independence Day of Ukraine : 24 August:

Independence Day of Ukraine is celebrated on 24 August in commemoration of the Declaration of Independence of 1991.
Ukraine is the second largest European country after Russia.The Soviet Union dissolved in the 1990s and on July 16 , 1990 , the Ukrainian government declared state sovereignty .
US President Joe Biden has announced $ 2.98 billion in military aid to Kyiv , on the occasion.

PM suspension:

Thailand’s Constitutional Court on 24 August 2022 suspended Prime Minister Prayut Chan – O – Cha from office.
This comes after the court accepted the Thai opposition’s petition on the expiration of the maximum term of office of PM Prayut Chan – O – Cha.
5 out of 9 judges voted for the PM’s suspension .Prayut is a retired Royal Thai Army officer who seized power as PM of Thailand in 2014.

Liberty Medal 2022:

The 2022 Liberty Medal will be awarded to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ,Zelenskyy will be honoured for ” his heroic defence of liberty in the face of Russian tyranny.
The Liberty Medal , established in 1988 , is an annual award administered by the National Constitution Center of the US to recognize leadership in the pursuit of freedom.

Sports Events:

Japan with 9 gold medals:

India finished their campaign at the World U20 Wrestling Championships 2022 with a total of 16 medals ( 1 gold , 4 silvers & 11 bronze ). Japan with 9 gold medals topped the medal tally.
The championship was held in Sofia , Bulgaria between 15-21 August 2022. During the championship , Antim Panghal became the first ever Indian woman to win a gold medal in the U – 20 world wrestling championships.

DreamSetGo:

DreamSetGo , a sports experiences and travel platform , has announced Sourav Ganguly as its first brand ambassador.
The company was launched in 2019 for people to get access to worldwide sporting events and is owned by Dream Sports.
As the ” Supercaptain ” for the company , he will promote its curated experiences offered through its key partnerships with Manchester City , Chelsea FC , etc.

VVS Laxman:

VVS Laxman has been named the interim head coach for the upcoming Asia Cup 2022 . He will oversee the team’s preparation in the absence of Rahul Dravid , who tested positive for COVID – 19.
Laxman was named the NCA chief recently after Rahul Dravid vacated the post in November in 2021 .Earlier , he was named head coach for Ireland – bound Indian side which was captained by Hardik Pandya.