Daily GK Update : 7th July 2017

Schemes

1. Chhattisgarh tops list of states in issuance of soil health cards

• Chhattisgarh has topped the list among all the states in the country for having issued over 43 lakh soil health cards (SHCs) to farmers in the past two years.
• The process of providing soil health cards, a Union government’s initiative, to farmers for their land is going at a rapid pace in Chhattisgarh.

     Soil Health Card Scheme-

• Soil Health Card Scheme is a scheme launched by the Government of India in February 2015.
• Under the scheme, the government plans to issue soil cards to farmers which will carry crop-wise recommendations of nutrients and fertilisers required for the individual farms to help farmers to improve productivity through judicious use of inputs.
• This has reduced costs and increased returns through appropriate cropping pattern.

1. Govt to set up skill development centres for minority youth

• The government will set up ‘Garib Nawaz’ skill development centres in 100 districts of the country to offer employment-oriented training to the youth from minority communities.
• The government will also proffer marriage assistance to the tune of Rs 51,000 (per head) to families of girl students who complete their graduation availing the Centre’s Begum Hazrat Mahal scholarship.

Science & Defence

1. Navies of India, US and Japan to participate in Malabar exercise

• Naval ships, aircrafts and personnel from India, Japan and the United States will participate in the 10-day long Malabar exercise.
• The exercise will feature both ashore and at-sea training.
• Malabar 2017 is the latest in a continuing series of exercises that has grown in scope and complexity over the years to address the variety of shared threats to maritime security in the Indo-Asia Pacific.
• India's aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, Japan's largest warship JS Izumo and super-carrier Nimitz of the United States will be part of the exercise.

National Affairs

1. India declares itself free from Avian Influenza

• The government declared the country free from Avian Influenza, commonly called as bird flu.
• The outbreak of bird flu, an infectious viral disease of birds, was reported at various epicentres in nine states and Union Territories during October 2016 and February 2017.
• Agriculture Ministry said surveillance in the states showed no evidence of presence of bird flu.
• India has declared itself free from Avian Influenza (H5N8 and H5N1) from 6 June 2017 and notified the same to World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).

Sports

1. India 96th in FIFA World ranking, its best in 21 years

• India has moved four places up to the 96th position in recently released FIFA World ranking.
• This is the country’s second-best ranking-its previous best was the 94th position in February 1996.
• India, which had been ranked 100th in the previous list released on June 1.

Economic / Financial Awareness

1. Bank customers won’t have to bear loss from fraudulent transactions: RBI

• The Reserve Bank of India said that customers will not suffer any loss if unauthorised electronic banking transactions are reported to the bank within three days thus putting the onus of such transactions largely on the banks.
• In case the third-party fraud is reported with a delay of four to seven working days, a customer will face liability of up to Rs 25,000.
• In cases where the loss is due to negligence by the account holder such as sharing of payment credentials, the customer will bear the entire loss until the unauthorised transaction is reported to the bank.
• RBI said the revised directions are being issued amidst recent surge in customer grievances relating to unauthorised transactions resulting in debits to their accounts/cards.

1. BRICS' New Development Bank has 23 projects in pipeline, including 6 in India

• The BRICS' New Development Bank has 23 new projects amounting to $six billion in the pipeline for financing, including six ventures in India valued at $1.8 billion.
• Among the projects in the pipeline six are in India totalling up to $1.8 billion.
• The financing in India is aimed at improving rural infrastructure development
• The NDB was established with an initial fund of $100 billion pooled from five BRICS countries.
• Kamath is its first President of the bank.

1. RBI considering setting up a Public Credit Registry

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may consider setting up a Public Credit Registry (PCR), which will be an extensive database of credit information for India that is accessible to all stakeholders.
• PCR is managed by a public authority like the central bank or the banking supervisor, and reporting of loan details to the PCR by lenders and/or borrowers is mandated by law.

1. Canara, HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance ties up with Dhanlaxmi Bank for marketing Bancassurance

• Private life insurance company Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance has entered into an alliance with the Kerala based Dhanlaxmi Bank for marketing various life insurance products.
• As part of the agreement, the Bank will be a corporate agent for 3 years.
• Bancassurance is the partnership or relationship between a bank and an insurance company, or a single integrated organisation, whereby the insurance company uses the bank sales channel to sell insurance products.

1. SEBI seeks details of proposed IDFC-Shriram Capital mega merger

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has sought details from IDFC and Shriram Group's companies on the proposed merger.
• According to reports, Chennai-based Shriram Capital and IDFC Bank are set to begin negotiations for merging all or some of their businesses in a mega-union that could create a Ra 60,000-crore financial powerhouse.
• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is the regulator for the securities market in India.

"Thought of the Day"

“Failure is more frequently from want of energy than want of capital”

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