Daily Current Affairs, 28th May 2020

1) Fitch forecasts India’s GDP growth rate to contract 5% in FY21

•Amid Novel Coronavirus pandemic, rating agency Fitch Ratings has released its its latest Global Economic Outlook (GEO). In its Global Economic Outlook, the rating agency has forecasted the GDP growth rate of the world and individual countries.

•According to the Global Economic Outlook, the rating agency Fitch Ratings has slashed India’s GDP growth rate to 5% for the Fiscal Year 2021, citing the slowdown in economic activities and very stringent lockdown policy. While the Global GDP growth rate has been forecasted to fall by 4.6% in 2020.

2) S&P forecasts Indian economy to contract 5% in FY21

•S&P Global Ratings has slashed India’s GDP growth rate to 5% in the Fiscal Year 2021. The reduction in the growth rates has been made due to slump in the economic activities in the whole country amid lockdown imposed to contain Covid-19 pandemic.

•S&P Global Ratings stated that two months of lockdown have led to a sudden stop in the economy which has led to contaraction in the GDP growth rates of the present fiscal year.

3) NPCI rolls out AI virtual Artificial Intelligence assistant PAi

•An Artificial Intelligence (AI) based chatbot “PAi” has been launched by the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI). This chatbot has been rolled out to create awareness around NPCI’s products such as FASTag, RuPay, UPI, AePS on a real time basis, hence improving the digital financial inclusion in India. The chatbot “PAi” has been developed by Bengaluru based startup CoRover Private Limited.

•The AI virtual assistant “PAi” would have access to accurate information on products of NPCI and would be available round the clock to solve the queries of the customers in English and Hindi, via text or voice on the websites of NPCI, RuPay, and UPI Chalega. It would also be available to global RuPay Cardholders as well. PAi will give verified automated responses to the customer’s queries on all NPCI’s products.

4) IAF inducts Tejas Mk-1 FOC aircraft in Squadron “Flying Bullets”

•Tejas Mk-1 FOC aircraft has been inducted by the Indian Air Force (IAF) into the recently resurrected No 18 Squadron the “Flying Bullets” at Air Force Station Sulur. Tejas Mk-1 FOC is a single engine, light weight, highly agile and all weather multi role fighter aircraft. The aircraft is capable of air-to-air refueling and hence makes the Squadron the first in the IAF to induct this platform.

•Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria operationalised the Squadron. The Squadron comes under the operational control of Southern Air Command and hence it will responsible for the integration of the Squadron into the IAF Concept of Operations. The Tejas Mk-1 FOC aircraft is India’s indigenous fighter aircraft and hence marks an important milestone in the country’s indigenous fighter aircraft program along with providing significant boost to the ‘Make In India’ initiative.

5) Marcos Troyjo elected as next President of NDB

Marcos Troyjo has been elected as next President of New Development Bank (NDB). He was unanimously elected during the Special Board of Governors meeting of the NDB which was held through the video-conference. He will be taking charge as the President of NDB from July 7, 2020. India was represented by the Union Minister of Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman in the video-conference.

The prime objective of the meeting of Special Board of Governors meeting of the New Development Bank was the election of next President of NDB including the appointment of Vice-President, Chief Risk Officer and the membership expansion. Following appointments were made during the virtual conference:

•Marcos Troyjo from Brazil has been elected as next President of NDB.
•Anil Kishora from India has been elected as next Vice President and CRO of the NDB.

6) SN Rajeswari becomes new CMD of Oriental Insurance Company

•New India Assurance, General Manager, SN Rajeswari, has been selected as the Chairman and MD of the Oriental Insurance Company (OIC) by Banks Board Bureau (BBB). She will replace AV Girija Kumar, who retiring this month end after reaching 60. BBB had conducted virtual interviews of five senior general managers of the public sector general insurance industry, with two years of residual services untill May 2022,to select a CMD of OIC.

•Rajeswari is a qualified charted accountant and currently the second senior-most GM of the public sector general insurance industry and would be retiring in May 2022. She had started her career as an insurer with the Chennai base United India Insurance(UII) and was later shifted to NIA as a deputy general manager(DGM).

7) Airtel Payments Bank team up with Mastercard for farmers, SMEs

•Airtel Payments Bank has collaborated with Mastercard to create customised financial products for Indian farmers and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). These financial products particularly for those territories where there is less access to bank administrations. The coordinated effort will unite Mastercard’s worldwide and nearby involvement with developing advanced financial solutions and Airtel Payments Bank’s circulation system to arrive at the last mile and its large customer base.

•The association targets constructing a computerized stage which gives farmers information about advanced farming techniques and association with commercial centres, while at the same time empowering them to receive payments directly in their Airtel Payments Bank account.

8) Flipkart signs MoU with Karnataka Mango Board to support mango farmers

•India’s leading web-based business commercial centre Flipkart has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Karnataka State Mango Department and Marketing Corporation, to empower mango farmers to sell their produce online. This association will give farmers the genuinely necessary market access to shoppers, making a potential income stream during these testing times of coronavirus.

•As a part of the MoU, Flipkart will give its marketplace platform to the Mango Board farmer producer associations/venders, cultivators and dealers by selecting them on the platform. Flipkart has collaborated with different Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and retail organizations to welcome a more extensive scope of essentials on its platform. With this association, the organization invasions into the farmer producer organisation’s community further adding to supporting the jobs of mango producers and the farmer community.

9) JK Rowling to release her latest book “The Ickabog”

•The “Harry Potter” author, JK Rowling will release her latest book, “The Ickabog”, online for free, for the children during this lockdown period. The Ickabog’ is a story about truth and the abuse of power.

•The first two chapters of The Ickabog are available for free. Rowling has pledged to donate all royalties when the book is published to “groups who’ve been particularly impacted by the pandemic.”