Daily GK Update: 26th September 2023

Honours & Awards

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced that Biswanath Ghat has been selected as the Best Tourism Village of India 2023 by the Ministry of Tourism.
Located on the banks of the Brahmaputra River, Biswanath Ghat is also popularly known as ‘Gupta Kashi’ and is named after the ancient Biswanath Mandir.
The village is located towards the south of Biswanath Charialii Town.
The ghat boasts a cluster of temples of different gods.

Honours & Awards

Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur announced that veteran actor Waheeda Rehman has been chosen for Dadasaheb Phalke Lifetime Achievement Award 2023
The actress has been critically acclaimed for her roles in Hindi films like Pyaasa, Kaagaz ke Phool and several others
A Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awardee, she has exemplified dedication, commitment and the strength of a Bharatiya Nari who can achieve the highest level of professional excellence

Sports

Indian women's cricket team won their maiden gold medal in Asian Games 2023 by defeating Sri Lanka by 19 runs in the final.
This is a historic feat achieved by the Indian Women's cricket team.
India secured a new world record and captured the gold medal in the men's 10 air rifle team event during the Asian Games 2023.
The Indian contingent participating in the men's four rowing final displayed their mettle, securing a well-deserved bronze medal.

State Affairs

Madhya Pradesh, which is home to the most tigers in the country, has got a new protected area for the big cats named ‘Veerangana Durgavati Tiger Reserve’, the seventh in the state and 54th in the country.
Veerangana Drugavati Sanctuary, recognized for their ecological significance in preserving biodiversity,including flora, fauna, geology, and zoology
Until now, M.P. was home to six tiger reserves – Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Satpura, Pench, Panna and Sanjay-Dubri.

International Affairs

New Jersey in the US is set to host the world's second-largest Hindu temple outside India, to be formally inaugurated on October 8.
Hailed as the world's largest Hindu temple outside India “in the modern era”, the Akshardham temple was built by the BAPS Swaminarayan Akshardham organization.
It is dedicated to Bhagwan Swaminarayan, a Hindu spiritual leader of the 19th century, and was inspired by his 5th spiritual successor Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Banking & Finance

The Small Industries Development Bank of India has inked an agreement with the Digital Lenders Association of India (DLAI) to boost the country's fintech sector.
Aim: To collaborate with SIDBI to develop standard protocols to expedite the adoption of digital lending partnerships including alliances between banks and Lending Service Providers
It also provides resource support to eligible DLAI member NBFCs and also explores Assignment and Securitisation transactions

State Affairs

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced an increase in honorariums and retirement benefits for kotwars.
The government would provide Rs 1 lakh to kotwars at the time of their retirement.
Kotwars are appointed at the village level to assist revenue officials and provide them with information.
kotwars, who do not own land, will get Rs 8,000 per month instead of the earlier Rs 4,000, while those with less than 3 acres of land will get Rs 2,000.

Important Dates

World Contraception Day is an annual observation that falls on September 26 every day.
Aim: To spread awareness around the importance of contraception and to empower couples.
The World Contraception Day 2023 theme is "The Power of Options,"
It is important to make women aware of how they can avoid unplanned motherhood.
In addition to family planning, contraception also prevents HIV AIDS, and other sexually transmitted infections.

Important Dates

World Environmental Health Day is celebrated on September 26.
Objective: To foster healthy and safer communities which can help both human beings and the environment to thrive. It also helps in promoting the importance of human health and their well-being
Aim: To focus on creating awareness about environmental health.
The theme of World Environmental Health Day 2023 is "Global Environmental Public Health: Standing up to protect everyone's Health each and every day."

Obituaries

Veteran Malayalam filmmaker and national award winner K G George died at an old age home near Kakkanad here.
He received the national award for best feature film 'Swapnaadanam' (1976) and has also bagged nine state film awards since he started his film career in 1970.
'Panchavadi Palam' directed by George in 1984 is considered one of the best political satire films in Malayalam cinema.
He worked to reduce the difference between artistic and commercial cinema

Banking & Finance

Indian banks will continue attracting global investment from investors looking for better returns as credit growth, improved margins, and stable asset quality boost the country’s lenders
The total market value of foreign institutional investors' holdings in Indian banks has increased to Rs 8.36 trillion as of June 30 2023 from Rs 7.71 trillion 2022
Top lenders that attracted foreign institutional investors include ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

National & International Appointments

Tata Sons has appointed Banmali Agarwal as the new chairman of the group’s aerospace and defense solutions unit Tata Advanced Systems (TASL).
He has been appointed in place of Vijay Singh, Who have retired.
He is also a senior advisor to Tata Sons and chairman of Tata Electronics.
Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons, is the strategic aerospace and defense arm of the Tata Group. TASL is both an operating and holding company.