Daily Current Affairs March 21
Table of Contents
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March 21 | Daily Current Affairs 2022
Important Days – Daily Current Affairs March 21
1. World Sparrow Day 2022:
- World Sparrow Day is observed on March 20 every year.
- The first such event was held in 2010.
- World Sparrow Day is an initiative of the Nature Forever Society, which is a non-government organisation (NGO) run by Mohammed Dilawar, who’s an internationally acclaimed conservationist.
- To spread awareness for the decline are believed to be increasing pollution, urbanisation, global warming and vanishing ecological resources.
Theme:
- The theme for this year is “Monitor the Sparrows & other common birds” and the World Sparrow Day.
2. World Oral Health Day:
- World Oral Health Day is observed on 20 March every year to create awareness about better oral hygiene and health.
- Our mouth is a gateway to our body for everything that we eat, hence it is critical to pay special attention to our oral hygiene in order to live a healthy and cheerful life.
- The day also highlights the tools and knowledge people need to prioritise their oral health.
Theme:
- The three-year theme (2021-2023) for World Oral Health Day is “Be proud of your mouth”.
- The three-year theme was launched in the year 2021 to make people aware about what more they can do to improve their oral health.
History:
- The day was started as an initiative by the FDI World Dental Federation.
- The day marked the birth anniversary of Dr Charles Godon, who was the founder of the organisation.
- World Oral Health Day was first celebrated on 12 September 2007.
- The organisation is dedicated to bringing the world of dentistry together with the goal of promoting good oral health for everyone.
- Six years later, the date of World Oral Health Day was changed to 20 September to avoid a clash with the FDI World Dental Congress in September.
- A fully-active campaign for the occasion was established in 2013.
Sports – Daily Current Affairs March 21
3. Leclerc wins Bahrain GP as Verstappen retires near the end:
- Formula One champion Max Verstappen’s title defense turned into a nightmare when the Red Bull star retired near the end of the Bahrain Grand Prix allowing Ferrari to clinch a 1-2 finish with Charles Leclerc winning ahead of teammate Carlos Sainz Jr.
- Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton took an unexpected third place.
- Leclerc was leading comfortably from Verstappen when the back of Pierre Gasly’s AlphaTauri car caught fire as he parked it on the side of the track.
Banking and Finance – Daily Current Affairs March 21
4. Paytm launches ‘Payment Analytics’ to help SMEs make data driven decisions:
- Paytm Payments Services Limited (PPSL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of One97 Communications, has launched ‘Payment Analytics’, a data analysis feature for online and offline merchants.
- This service is available to all Paytm merchants at no extra cost, will enable merchants with data-driven payment insights to help them understand customers and their payment preferences.
- This will help business owners to analyse the transaction patterns and preferences of customers and to get deeper insights that will help them make technical improvements and define a targeted marketing strategy.
- Payment Analytics has been exclusively designed by Paytm Payment Gateway to provide ready-made reports about payment sources, payment flows, customer behaviour, user retention, payment success rates and reasons for payment failures.
- It offers services including Payment source analytics, performance of different payment sources with tips on how to reduce payment failures, Customer Analytics, businesses can understand their customers better with insights about their payment behaviours and Payment flow analytics, where businesses can get insights into success rates and cross platform as well as cross device performance.
- Paytm’s offline merchant partners can ascertain their GMV and find out the total number of transactions on a day-to-day or monthly basis.
- Retail chain businesses can choose to capture GMV data of every physical store using Payment Analytics.
5. ICICI Bank, Punjab & Sind to pick up stakes in bad bank NARCL:
- ICICI Bank and Punjab & Sind Bank have signed agreements to pick up stakes in National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARCL).
- While ICICI Bank will be investing Rs 137.5 crore to acquire a 5% stake, Punjab & Sind Bank will put in Rs 55 crore for a 2% stake.
- ICICI Bank plans to complete the first tranche of equity investment worth Rs 70.45 crore and Punjab & Sind Bank will invest Rs 28.18 crore in the first tranche, which are expects to complete by March 31.
Acquisitions and Mergers – Daily Current Affairs March 21
6. PhonePe acquires gig marketplace GigIndia:
- Digital payments platform PhonePe announced that it has acquired GigIndia, a network for freelance micro-entrepreneurs.
- As part of the acquisition, GigIndia which has 1.5 million entrepreneurs, and over 100 enterprises as customers, will integrate with PhonePe.
- PhonePe will leverage GigIndia’s network of freelance micro entrepreneurs to help corporates and enterprises acquire more customers and scale up their distribution channels.
- The acquisition is also meant to help strengthen PhonePe’s offerings and value proposition for its enterprise partners and create opportunities for individual freelance micro-entrepreneurs in India.
7. Reliance Retail acquires 89% stake in Clovia:
- Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL) has acquired 89 per cent equity stake in Purple Panda Fashions Private Limited, which owns and operates the Clovia business, with an investment of ₹950 crore through a combination of secondary stake purchase and primary investment.
- The founding team and management will own the balance stake in the company.
- Clovia offers innerwear and loungewear for millennial women was launched in 2013.
- With this acquisition, RRVL will strengthen its portfolio in the innerwear segment, having already acquired Zivame and Amante brands.
Books and Authors – Daily Current Affairs March 21
8. ‘Road to 1000’ book released at Sportstar Aces Awards 2022:
- Sportstar and The Hindu group released a coffee-table book, ‘Road to 1000’, at the 2022 Sportstar Aces Awards at The Taj Mahal Palace hotel.
- The book is a 520-page, special collection with 1000 pictures to commemorate Indian cricket’s journey.
- ‘Road to 1000’ was released by former India cricketers Sunil Gavaskar, Syed Kirmani, Dilip Vengsarkar, Mohammad Azharuddin, Chandrakant Pandit and Nilesh Kulkarni.
Appointments – Daily Current Affairs March 21
9. Former JNU Professor Jayati Ghosh named by UN to high-level advisory board on multilateralism:
- Indian development economist Jayati Ghosh has been appointed by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to a new high-level advisory board on effective multilateralism.
Ghosh, 66, is a Professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. - She was previously professor of economics and chairperson of the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University.
- She is also a member of the UN’s high-level Advisory Board on Economic and Social Affairs.
- UN chief Guterres announced the establishment of the Advisory Board on Effective Multilateralism to be co-chaired by former Liberian president and Nobel laureate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and former Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven.
- Ghosh has been named to the 12-member board, which will be supported in its work by the Centre for Policy Research of the United Nations University in close coordination with the Executive Office of the Secretary-General.
10. Pushkar Singh Dhami to continue as chief minister of Uttarakhand:
- Uttarakhand caretaker Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Monday was elected as the leader of the state Bharatiya Janata Party legislature party.
- Dhami for the party’s big win, bagging 47 out of 70 assembly seats, and wanted him to be the chief minister again so that he gets a full five-year term.
N Biren Singh sworn in as Manipur CM:
- N Biren Singh sworn in as Manipur CM, five others take oath as cabinet ministers.
Awards – Daily Current Affairs March 21
11. NITI Aayog to Organize 5th Edition of Women Transforming India Awards on 21 March:
- NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) is organizing the fifth edition of the Women Transforming India Awards (WTI).
- It’s a part of the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav to celebrate 75 years of India’s independence, the WTI Awards will be conferred on 75 women achievers to celebrate their contribution towards a ‘Sashakt Aur Samarth Bharat’.
- The Women Transforming India Awards is NITI Aayog’s annual initiative to highlight the commendable and ground-breaking endeavours of India’s women leaders and change-makers.
- Applications for the WTI Awards ’21 were invited from 1 October 2021 to 21 February 2022, under one or more than one of the following seven categories:
-
- Public and Community Service
- Manufacturing Sector
- Non-manufacturing Sector
- Financial Products enabling Economic Growth
- Climate Action
- Promote Art, Culture and Handicrafts
- Digital Innovation
- The 75 awardees represent different regions and sectors and have been selected through an elaborate process spanning several months.
- The awardees have been selected on the basis of nominations received on WEP and through shortlisting by a search-and-select committee.
About Women Entrepreneurship Platform:
- Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) is an aggregator portal that aims to catalyse the entrepreneurial ecosystem for women and address information asymmetry.
- To build a vibrant ecosystem for women-led enterprises, the platform works to strengthen industry linkages and increase awareness of existing programmes and services.
- More than 900 women entrepreneurs have been benefitted through 77 programmes and events hosted on the platform.
International Affairs – Daily Current Affairs March 21
12. 9th Joint Military Exercise LAMITIYE-2022 between India and Seychelles conducted:
- The 9th Joint Military Exercise LAMITIYE-2022 between the Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) is being conducted at Seychelles Defence Academy (SDA), Seychelles from 22 March to 31 March 22.
- An Infantry Platoon strength each from both the Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) along with Company Headquarters will be participating in this exercise which is aimed at sharing experiences gained during various operations against hostile forces in Semi-Urban environment and enhance capability to undertake joint operations.
- The Indian Army contingent comprising troops from the 2/3 GORKHA RIFLES group (PIRKANTHI Battalion) arrived at Seychelles on 21 March 2022.
- Exercise LAMITIYE-2022 is a biennial training event which is being conducted in Seychelles since 2001.
- Exercise LAMITIYE with Seychelles is crucial and significant in terms of security challenges faced by both the Nations in the backdrop of current global situation and growing security concerns in the Indian Ocean Region.
- The 10 days long joint exercise will include field training exercises, combat discussions, lectures, demonstrations and culminate with a two days validation exercise.
- The objective of the joint training exercise is to build and promote bilateral military relations in addition to exchanging skills, experiences and good practices between both the armies.
- The joint military exercise will enhance the level of defence co-operation between Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) and will further manifest in enhancing the bilateral relations between the two countries.
13. Second India-Australia virtual summit begins:
- The second India-Australia virtual summit began in New Delhi amid indications that discussion will seek to lay the roadmap for new initiatives to enhance cooperation in a diverse range of sectors between the two countries.
- During the summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison are expected to commit to closer cooperation in trade, critical minerals, migration and mobility, and education, among others.
- Trade pact by the Australian government in India with Canberra set to announce investments worth Rs 1,500 crore in India across multiple sectors.
- The two countries are also expected to conclude an early harvest agreement.
- The cooperation between the two countries has also been carried forward at the ministerial level, with the 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Dialogue.
National Affairs – Daily Current Affairs March 21
14. MoHUA launched Affordable Rental Housing Complexes to provide dignified living to urban migrants/poor:
- The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has launched Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHCs) as a sub-scheme of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U) to provide dignified living to urban migrants/ poor near their workplace.
- This scheme is being implemented through two models as under:
- Model-1: Utilizing existing Government funded vacant houses constructed under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM) and Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) to convert into ARHCs through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) or by Public Agencies.
- Model-2: Construction, Operation & Maintenance of ARHCs by Public/ Private Entities on their own available vacant land.
15. President Kovind inaugurates ‘Charti Lal Goel Heritage Park’ in Old Delhi:
- President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated ‘Charti Lal Goel Heritage Park’ in Old Delhi.
- The President stated that The ‘Charti Lal Goel Heritage Park’ is at Parade Ground Road, near Red Fort in Delhi and is developed by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation.
- President Kovind inaugurated the park by unveiling a plaque.
- The park was opened amid colorful cultural performances, strains of classical music, and traditional dance by a troupe of artists in the ‘baradari’ which was decked up with flowers and a chandelier.
- Endowed with rich stocks of flowers, the new heritage-themed park is near Jama Masjid in old Delhi.
16. EAM to visit Colombo for BIMSTEC summit:
- External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke with the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Thailand Don Pramudwinai, ahead of meeting him in Colombo at the end of the month for the BIMSTEC summit.
- Colombo is hosting the 5th BIMSTEC Summit (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) on March 30.
- The seven-nation BIMSTEC, comprising Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand was founded in 1997.
- The Colombo Summit is expected to approve the BIMSTEC Charter, BIMSTEC Master Plan for Transport Connectivity and BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.
- The group will also work towards finalisation of the BIMSTEC Coastal Shipping Agreement and the Motor Vehicles Agreement.
- Among the seven members of the BIMSTEC, five are also members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
17. Indo-Bangla Ship-to-Ship LPG Transfer begins:
- The century-old Kolkata Port, now renamed after Syama Prasad Mookerjee, has opened a new chapter in cargo handling by commencing ship-to-ship (STS) operations for LPG cargo bound for Bangladesh.
- STS operator, Pace Marine Solutions Pvt Ltd approached the port authorities here with such a proposal after commencement of successful STS operation involving LPG and other liquefied cargo bound for Haldia Port in the state.
- Apart from Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata (SMPK), Calcutta Customs also played a proactive role by permitting such operations in a time-bound manner.
- It would also open connectivity between Kolkata Port and Mongla port of Bangladesh, where the LPG cargo is bound for.
- The operation will continue with four such LPG barges loading from M T MIURA and discharging at Mongla.
- M T MIURA will act as a floater for LPG cargo.
- In foul weather conditions, such operations will be undertaken at Sagar in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district.
- The STS operation involving the floater and LPG barges was being undertaken in Indonesia earlier and SMPK is the first major port in the country undertaking such an operation within its limits.
18. Prof. K. VijayRaghavan, the Principal Scientific Adviser India, and Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director IIT Madras, inaugurate the AquaMAP Water Management and Policy Centre:
- The Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India inaugurated the new water management and policy centre, AquaMAP, at IIT Madras and launched its website – https://aquamap.iitm.ac.in/.
- AquaMAP is a national water centre and IIT Madras is collaborating with IIT Dharwad around the broad theme of ‘Data Science for Water Security and Agriculture Sustenance’.
- Our world faces the consequences of climate change and the pressure on biodiversity, thus renewing our air, water, and land and pressing sustainable development to become important.
- Water consumption in the agriculture sector is the maximum among all the needs, and therefore focus on improving the agricultural water use efficiency is one of the major focuses of AquaMAP.
- AquaMAP aims at providing solutions for complex and challenging water problems by designing and evolving smart and optimal water management practices and implementing them in the field, at different locations across the country, as a scalable model by leveraging best practices in management and innovative technologies.