Daily GK Update: 21st February 2023

 National & International Appointments

1. Government appoints BVR Subrahmanyam as the new CEO of Niti Aayog

• The government has approved the appointment of an IAS officer of the 1987 batch of the Chhattisgarh cadre, BVR Subrahmanyam as the CEO of NITI Aayog.
• He would succeed Parameswaran Iyer, who has been appointed as executive director of the World Bank for a period of two years.
• Earlier, he served as the chief secretary of Jammu and Kashmir and Additional Chief Secretary (Home) in Chhattisgarh.
• He also served as private secretary to then PM Manmohan Singh from 2004 to 2008

 Honours & Awards

2. Ranbir Kapoor wins Best Actor at the DPIFF awards 2023

• Ranbir Kapoor was awarded the Best Actor award at the Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival (DPIFF) Awards 2023 in Mumbai.
• He was awarded for his role in Brahmastra Part One-Shiva.
• Alia Bhatt won the Best Actress award for Gangubai Kathiawadi.
• Best Film: The Kashmir Files
• Film Of The Year: RRR
• Most Promising Actor: Rishab Shetty (Kantara)
• Critics Best Actor: Varun Dhawan (Bhediya)
• Critics Best Actress: Vidya Balan (Jalsa)
• Best Director: R Balki (Chup)

 Banking & Finance

3. PM Modi, Singapore counterpart launch real-time payment systems linkage

• Indian PM Narendra Modi and Singapore's PM Lee Hsien Loong witnessed the launch of the cross-border linkage between UPI and PayNow.
• The launch was done by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das and MD of the Monetary Authority of Singapore Ravi Menon.
• It enables residents of both countries to transfer cross-border remittances faster and more cost-efficient.
• It will also help the Indian diaspora in Singapore to transfer money from Singapore to India and vice-versa.

 Summits & Conferences

4. India to host Permanent Mission Roundtables at UN as G- 20 chair

• India will host the Permanent Mission Roundtables at United Nations Head Quarter as Chair of G- 20 and ahead of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Summit 2023 to be held in New York.
• A roundtable titled 'Gandhian Trusteeship: A panel discussion on Sustainable Lifestyles and Enduring Pace' will be held on the 23rd of February 2023.
• Focus: India’s growth story and achievements and how these might be scaled for the potential benefit of the global South

 Obituaries

5. Former Gujarat governor O P Kohli passes away

• Former Gujarat Governor and Rajya Sabha MP, Om Prakash Kohli passed away at 87 in Noida.
• He joined the political arena in January 1991.
• He was the 19th Governor of Gujarat between 2014 and 2019 during the term of chief ministers Anandiben Patel and Vijay Rupani.
• He also held the additional charge as Governor of Madhya Pradesh from 2016 to 2018 and Goa governor for three weeks in 2014.
• He was a lecturer at Hansraj College and Deshbandhu College in Delhi.

 Defense

6. INS Sumedha reaches Abu Dhabi to participate in IDEX and NAVDEX

• Indian Naval Ship Sumedha has reached Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) to participate in Naval Defence Exhibition (NAVDEX) 2023 and International Defence Exhibition(IDEX) 2023.
• Agenda: To showcase the strengths of India's indigenous shipbuilding and underscore the vision of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat.
• INS Sumedha:
  • It is the third ship of the indigenously built Saryu class Naval Offshore Patrol Vessels.
  • It was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 2014.

 Important Dates

7. International Mother Language Day 2023: 21st February

• International Mother Language Day is observed on every year February 21 to highlight the cultural and linguistic diversity in the country.
• Theme 2023: Multilingual education - a necessity to transform education
• This day was first initiated by Bangladesh and it was accepted at the UNESCO General Conference held in 1999.
• UNESCO decided to observe this day to understand the value of the mother tongue.

 National Affairs

8. Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launches Learning-Teaching Material

• Union Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan launched a Learning-Teaching Material named Jaadui Pitara.
• It was launched for the Foundational Stages of children.
• It is a unique initiative of the government that will help students of foundational stages to learn in a play-way method with ease.
• The Jaadui Pitara consists of playbooks, activity books, flashcards, posters depicting various stories, games, puzzles, puppets, and many more items.

 National Affairs

9. Politician Upendra Kushwaha launches new political party

• Senior Janata Dal (United) leader, Upendra Kushwaha has resigned from all party positions and launched a new political party 'Rashtriya Lok Janata Dal (RLJD)'.
• He has also resigned from the post of MLC.
• He was a key political aide of Nitish Kumar.
• He quit the JD(U) in 2013 to float Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP).
• He allied with the NDA and won the Lok Sabha polls a year later.
• In 2021, Kushwaha merged his RLSP with the JD(U).

 Banking & Finance

10. RBI cancels licence of MP-based Garha Co-operative Bank

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has canceled the license of Garha Co-operative Bank, Guna in Madhya Pradesh.
• Reason: The lender does not have adequate capital and earning prospects
• About 98.4% of the depositors of the bank are entitled to receive the full amount of their deposits from Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).
• The bank is prohibited from conducting various activities, such as acceptance, and repayment of deposits with immediate effect.

 Banking & Finance

11. Aviva India launches Aviva Signature Guaranteed Income Plan

• Aviva Life Insurance has launched Aviva Signature Guaranteed Income Plan.
• It is a non-linked, non-participating savings life insurance plan, that helps build long-term wealth.
• It also helps customers save tax and guarantees a steady income stream in the long run.
• It aims to meet the diverse financial needs of policyholders at different phases of their lives.
• The options include Signature Moneymaker, Signature Investor, Signature Builder, and Signature Saver.

 Sports

12. India win two Gold Medals in Shooting at ISSF World Cup, Egypt

• India has won two gold medals in the 10m Air Rifle Mixed team and 10m Air Pistol Mixed team at the ongoing ISSF Shooting World Cup, Cairo in Egypt.
• Indian 10m Air Rifle Mixed team of Narmada Nithin Raju and Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil defeated Hungary’s Eszter Denes and Istvan Peni by 16-6 to bag the top spot on the podium.
• While the 10m Air Pistol Mixed team of Rhythm Sangwan and Varun Tomar won gold.

 National Affairs

13. Ladakh sets Guinness world record for 21-km long frozen lake marathon

• Ladakh has created history by successfully conducting its maiden 21-km trail running event in sub-zero temperature at 13,862 feet high Pangong Tso.
• It was registered in the Guinness world record as the world’s highest frozen lake half marathon.
• The four-hour-long marathon started from Lukung and ended at Maan village.
• Five energy stations, consisting of energy drinks, medical teams, oxygen support, and mobile ambulances were set up along the route.