Daily GK Update: 20th October 2023

National Affairs

PM Modi inaugurated India's first Regional Rapid Transit System, NaMo Bharat, priority section of Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut.
NaMo Bharat is a high-speed, high-frequency transit system developed by the National Capital Region Transport Corporation to improve urban mobility in the region.
The entire system will have 24 stations between Delhi and Meerut.
The priority section will be 17 km long and have five stations: Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, Guldhar, Duhai, and Duhai Depot.

Banking & Finance

The Federal Bank inaugurated the ‘Mookkannoor Mission’, an initiative under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, on the 106th birth anniversary of its Founder KP Hormis.
Mookannoor, a village in Ernakulam district, is the birthplace of the Founder.
The Bank adopted a comprehensive plan of digitizing the entire village as well as a cleanliness drive that includes waste management, tree plantation, community development, etc that will be implemented in stages.

Banking & Finance

The Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC) received approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for its merger with IDFC First Bank.
Aim: To create an institution with diversified public and institutional shareholders, like other large private sector banks, with no promoter holding.
These include clearances from the Stock Exchanges, Securities and Exchange Board of India, Reserve Bank of India, and National Company Law Tribunal.

Important Dates

The third World Statistics Day will be celebrated around the globe on 20 October 2020.
Aim: To provide an opportunity for statisticians, government organizations, policymakers, and other agencies to promote the values of high-quality date and statistics in the current data-driven world.
Theme 2023 is Connecting the world with data we can trust, reflecting the importance of trust, authoritative data, innovation, and the public good in national statistical systems.

National & International Appointments

Former Jharkhand Chief Minister, Raghubar Das, has been appointed as the Governor of Odisha.
He will succeed Ganeshi Lal as the new governor of Odisha.
He is currently a national vice-president of the BJP.
The political journey of Raghubar Das began during his college days when he actively participated in the Jayprakash Narayan-led movement.
He faced arrests and imprisonment during the movement and later joined the Janata Party in 1977.

National & International Appointments

President Droupadi Murmu has appointed Indra Sena Reddy Nallu as Governor of Tripura.
Indra Sena Reddy Nallu is a national secretary of the BJP and has thrice served as an MLA in Andhra Pradesh.
Currently, Satyadev Narayan Arya is serving as the 19th governor of Tripura.
He is a BJP leader from Bihar and has previously served as a Governor of Haryana.
He also served as the floor leader of the BJP in the combined Andhra Pradesh Assembly.

Sports

India’s Karthikeyan Murali became just the third player from the country to defeat World number one Magnus Carlsen in classical chess 2023
Before Murali, Harikrishna, who defeated the Norwegian in 2005, and Viswanathan Anand, the only other player from the country to have defeated Carlsen.
With this significant triumph, he joined the ranks of other leading players such as SL Narayan, Javokhir Sindarov, David Paravyan, Arjun Erigaisi, and Nodirbek Yakubboev.

Schemes

PM Narendra Modi launched 511 Pramod Mahajan Grameen Kaushalya Vikas Kendras in Maharashtra.
Established across 34 rural districts of Maharashtra, these Kendras will conduct skill development training programs across various sectors to provide employment opportunities to rural youth
Aim: To provide training in soft skills such as basic foreign language skills, using AI tools for language interpretation which will make them more attractive for the recruiters.

Honours & Awards

REC Limited has been recognized for its exceptional performance in risk management with the esteemed Golden Peacock Award 2023.
About REC Limited
REC Limited is an NBFC focusing on Power Sector Financing and Development across India.
It provides financial assistance to state electricity boards, state governments, central and state power utilities, independent power producers, rural electric cooperatives and private sector utilities.

Honours & Awards

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has bagged a prestigious UN Award 2023 for its contribution to sustainability reporting.
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) honored ICAI during the 8th World Investment Forum for its contributions to sustainability reporting.
ICAI’s efforts aim to promote sustainable practices in India and align with international standards.