Daily Current Affairs, 07th March 2019

1) Janaushadhi Diwas is being celebrated across the country

•Janaushadhi Diwas is being celebrated across the country on 07th March. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address five thousand Janaushadhi stores across the country through video-conferencing on the occasion.

•He will also interact with owners of Janaushadhi Kendras and beneficiaries of the scheme. More than five thousand 50 Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana Kendras, PMBJP, are functional in 652 districts.

2) CCEA approves Rs 2,790 cr interest subvention on loans to sugar mills

•The CCEA has approved Rs 2,790 crore interest subvention for extending loans by banks to sugar mills. This is in addition to Rs 1,332 crore already approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) in June 2018.

•The interest subvention is for extending loans of Rs 12,900 crore by banks to sugar mills under the scheme for extending financial assistance to sugar mills for enhancement and augmentation of ethanol production capacity.

3) Government announces new Rs 20 coin

•The Centre has announced a new Rs 20 coin which will come in 12-edged polygon (dodecagon) shape. The government is also planning to release new coins of Re 1, Rs 2, Rs 5 and Rs 10. However, the govt has not announced the exact date for the issuance of these new series coins.

•The Finance Ministry stated that the new Rs 20 coin will be made in copper, zinc and nickel. It will be 27mm (millimeters) and weigh 8.54 grams. The Lion Capitol symbol of Ashoka Pillar with the legend “Satyamev Jayate” below it will be inscribed on its front side. The words “Bharat” in Hindi and “INDIA” in English will be there on the right and left-hand side of the symbol respectively.

4) Malaysia joins International Criminal Court

•Malaysia has become a member of the International Criminal Court. The ICC is the world’s only permanent war crimes court and aims to prosecute the worst abuses when national courts are unable or unwilling. Malaysia becomes the 124th member of the court since its establishment in 2002.

•But the tribunal in The Hague has come under fire over high-profile acquittals, while Burundi became the first country to quit the court in 2017 and the Philippines has announced its intention to withdraw.

5) NASA astronauts to carry out first all-female spacewalk

•Just in time for International Women’s Day, NASA announced that it will be conducting the first-ever, all-female spacewalk.

•Astronauts Christina Koch and Anne McClain will exit the International Space Station on March 29, 35 years after the first woman performed a spacewalk. They’ll be guided from the ground by flight director Mary Lawrence, and flight controllers Jackie Kagey and Kristen Facciol.

6) Google launches ‘Bolo’ to tutor children to read Hindi, English

•Tech giant Google has unveiled a new app ‘Bolo’ that aims to help children in primary school learn to read in Hindi and English. The free app, which is being launched in India first, uses Google’s speech recognition and text-to-speech technology.

•The app features an animated character ‘Diya’, who encourages children to read stories aloud and helps if the child is unable to pronounce a word. It also lauds the reader when he/she completes the reading.

7) India, Paraguay agree to promote bilateral investment, explore new areas of collaboration

•India and Paraguay have agreed to identify sectors of mutual interest to promote bilateral investment and decided to explore new areas of collaboration, including Information and Communication Technology and space and biotechnology.

•The decisions were taken as Vice President Venkaiah Naidu visited the country. He is the highest-level representative of India to visit Paraguay since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1961.

8) IRDAI, NHA form working group to curb fraud in Ayushman Bharat scheme

•The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and the National Health Authority (NHA) have formed a working group on the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY). The joint working group, to be chaired by Dinesh Arora, Deputy CEO of NHA, will have 10 members from both the organisations.

•In six months, it will submit a report on how to detect and deter fraud through a common repository and capacity-building.