Daily GK Update: 22nd August 2022

 National & International Appointments

1. Paytm shareholders approve re-appointment of Vijay Shekhar Sharma as MD

• Shareholders of One97 Communications have approved the re-appointment of Vijay Shekhar Sharma as managing director and chief executive officer of Paytm.
• According to the scrutinizer report, 99.67% votes were in favour of Sharma's re-appointment while only 0.33% voted against the resolution.
• Remuneration of Vijay Shekhar will be remain fixed for the next three years without any annual increment.
• Paytm founded: August 2010, Noida

 International Affairs

2. Greece exits 'enhanced surveillance' framework of EU

• Greece Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced that it has exited the enhanced surveillance framework of European Union after 12 years.
• Economic performance and policies of Greece have been monitored under the framework since 2018 to ensure it implemented reforms promised under three international bailouts.
• Greece was badly hit with the pension cuts, spending constraint, tax increases and bank controls after it was forced to seek its first bailout in 2010. 

 State Affairs

3. Union Govt awarded GI tag to Bihar's Mithila Makhana

• Union government has awarded Geographical Indication (GI) tag to Bihar's Mithila Makhana, this move will help farmers to get the maximum price for their premium produce.
• It is a special variety of aquatic fox nut, that cultivated in Mithila region of Bihar and Nepal.
• Once a product gets this tag, any person or company cannot sell a similar item under that name.
• This tag will be valid for a period of 10 years.

 Summits & Conferences

4. 10th National Conference of Women Police to begin in Shimla, HP

• The 10th National Conference of Women Police has been started in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, inaugurated by the Union Minister of State for Home affairs Nityanand Rai.
• The conference is being organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) in collaboration with Himachal Police.
• Objective: To enhance the leadership potential of women police officers and discuss their problems and challenges. 

 State Affairs

5. Centre collaborate with Arunachal govt for district good governance portal

• The Central government has planned to collaborate with the Arunachal Pradesh government to develop a “district good governance portal”.
• Aim: To monitor the performance of each district of the state on a monthly basis and help in benchmarking performance.
• Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), under the Ministry of Personnel, in collaboration with the Arunachal Pradesh government will develop the portal.

 State Affairs

6. Maharashtra to take Rs 4000 cr loan from ADB to set up medical colleges

• Maharashtra govt will take a loan of 4,000 crore rupees from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for setting up medical colleges in 12 districts of the state.
• 12 districts: Jalgaon, Satara, Alibaug, Sindhudurg, Usmanabad, Parbhani, Amravati, Ratnagiri, Gadhchiroli, Bhandara and Ambernath.
• Asian Development Bank has agreed to provide 4,000 crore rupees for setting up medical colleges in these districts.
• The target is to complete all of these projects within the 2 years. 

 Defense

7. South Korea, US ready begin joint military drills Ulchi Freedom Shield

• South Korea and the United States have started began their largest joint military drills, 'Ulchi Freedom Shield', and scheduled to end on 1st of September.
• South Korea has also launched the four-day Ulchi civil defence drills separately, that is designed to boost government readiness.
• Aim: To normalise the combined exercises and boost deterrence against North Korea.
• The exercise also aimed at improving the country's preparedness to match the changing patterns of war.

 Banking & Finance

8. UPI expands to UK, provides hassle-free digital transactions

• The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is ready to foray into the UK market starting with QR code-based transactions.
• The NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL) has partnered with payments solutions provider, PayXpert to internationalise the acceptance of its payment solutions in the UK.
• UAE, Japan, the US, Singapore, Bhutan, Nepal and France are already accepting UPI payment services.
• NIPL is the wholly-owned subsidiary of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

 National Affairs

9. India's first hydrogen fuel cell bus unveiled in Pune

• The Union Minister of State, Jitendra Singh has unveiled country's first hydrogen fuel cell bus.
• The eco-friendly bus has been built by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and KPIT Limited.
• Hydrogen fuel cell: It works like conventional batteries of electric vehicles, but they don’t need to be recharged with electricity. 
• It provides a better alternative to completely eliminate the on-road emissions.

 Honours & Awards

10. Indian Neurologist Dr Sundara Chary elected to global prestigious FAAN

• Indian neurologist, Dr N V Sundara Chary has been elected as a Fellow of American Academy of Neurology (FAAN).
• It is regarded as one of the world's most prestigious honour in the field of neurology and medicine.
• This honour has been awarded by American Academy of Neurologists (AAN) to very few neurologists across the world for making valuable contributions in the field of neurology.
• He is a professor and HOD of neurology in Siddhartha Medical College, Vijayawada.