Daily GK Update: 25th September 2022

Honours & Awards

Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) has received the Airport Service Quality award-2022 for its meticulous implementation of a programme ‘Mission Safeguarding’ in 2021-22.
This programme has ensured seamless traffic and reinforced passenger satisfaction in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Category: 5-15 million passenger category of airports operating in the Asia-Pacific region
The award was instituted by Airport Council International (ACI).

Schemes

The Govt has launched a Scheme Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment for 2022-23.
Aim: Provide financial aid to the States Govts in the form of 50-year interest free loan for capital investment projects.
Under the Part-V of scheme, Rs 3000 Crore is earmarked and will be available to States for capital projects on OFC network.
Dept of Expenditure has approved 50 Cr, 84 Cr, 65 Cr and 156 Cr to Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Haryana and Karnataka respectively.

National & International Organizations

Vitamin Angels India has partnered with the UNICEF India for Poshan Maah 2022.
Aim: To implement a comprehensive, unified outreach and awareness programme to enhance nutritional content, delivery, outreach, and immunity to disease and undernutrition.
This partnership also includes the launch of the Poshan Innovation Platform (PIP) in January 2023.
A phase-wise approach will be followed to assemble the PIP between September 2022 and December 2026.

Obituaries

Dame Hilary Mantel, an author of the best-selling Wolf Hall trilogy, has been passed away at the age of 70.
She had been honoured with the Booker Prize for Wolf Hall (2009) and Bring Up the Bodies (2012).
Her notable works: Fludd; Beyond Black
Her first novel 'Every Day is Mother's Day', was published in 1985.
She was also honoured with the Walter Scott Prize (2010, 2021) and Costa Novel Prize (2012).

National Affairs

India will receive its first flex-fuel vehicle that run on ethanol blended petrol and battery in October 2022.
The Flex Fuel Strong Hybrid Electric Vehicles (FFV-SHEV) will be imported from Brazil to use as a pilot.
Aim: To assess its performance in terms of reduced carbon emissions.
The road transport ministry has notified the guidelines regarding FFV and FFV-SHEV.
The automobile manufacturers are advised to manufacture vehicles complying with BS- 6 standards.

Banking & Finance

SEBI has allowed emerging investment vehicles, Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) and Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT), to issue commercial papers.
Reason: In August 2022, RBI has indicated that InvIT and REIT having net worth of at least Rs 100 crore are eligible to issue commercial paper.
Condition: They need to abide by the guidelines prescribed by RBI for issuances of commercial papers and follow the conditions of listing norms prescribed by Sebi.

Defense

The Israeli Navy has completed a complex test of the Gabriel V anti-ship missile system.
This was the first anti-ship missile test from the new Sa’ar 6 corvette of the Israeli Navy.
The missile was manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries, IAI.
Range: over 200 km
Seeker: Active radar seeker with advanced anti-jam features, all-weather capability, wide search range, and good discrimination resolution
Length: 5.5 m; Weight: 1250 kg

Banking & Finance

The World Bank has approved a USD 350 million (Approx ₹2,832 crore) loan to Gujarat for "Systems Reform Endeavours For Transformed Health Achievement In Gujarat (SRESTHA-G)".
Reason: For augmenting health services with primary focus on adolescent girls and disease surveillance in the state.
Funded by: International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
Maturity: 18 years (including a grace period of 5.5 years

Schemes

The government of India has launched an Indian Sign Language (ISL) dictionary mobile application named 'Sign Learn' which contains 10,000 words.
The app was launched by Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Pratima Bhoumik.
This mobile app is based on the Indian sign language dictionary of the Indian Sign Language Research And Training Centre (ISLRTC).
All the words in the ISL dictionary can be searched through Hindi or English medium.

Important Dates

The World Pharmacists Day is observed every year on September 25 to highlight the role of pharmacists and pay them a tribute.
This day was introduced in 2009 by the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) council in Istanbul.
Theme 2022: Pharmacy united in action for a healthier world
This date was selected to observe World Pharmacists Day as the International Pharmaceutical Federation was established on this day in 1912.