Daily GK Update: 9th February 2023

 Honours & Awards

1. MRF Chairman K.M. Mammen receives the ATMA Lifetime Achievement Award

• Chairman and MD of MRF, K.M. Mammen was honoured with the ATMA Lifetime Achievement Award at the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association (ATMA) Annual Conclave 2023 in New Delhi.
• Reason: For his leadership qualities, an invaluable contribution to the Indian tyre industry
• Maruti Suzuki India MD & CEO Hisashi Takeuchi presented the award.
• He also leads the industry from the front for over 20 years.
• ATMA Headquarters: New Delhi

 Banking & Finance

2. MobiKwik becomes India's first app to support credit cards on UPI

• India’s leading fintech, MobiKwik has become the first fintech application to support RuPay Credit Cards on UPI.
• The RuPay Credit Cards are now linked directly to UPI IDs.
• MobiKwik’s customers can easily make payments to merchants by scanning the UPI QR code and using UPI PIN for payment authentication.
• Aim: To make financial services accessible and lead the way to financial inclusion
• The integration of RuPay Credit Cards with UPI is in line with the NPCI.

 Banking & Finance

3. Ujjivan Small Finance Bank launches app for 'digitally challenged'

• Ujjivan SFB launched a mobile banking application named 'Hello Ujjivan' with three Vs (voice, visual, and vernacular).
• Aim: To provide banking access to individuals who have limited reading and writing skills
• This application was co-created with Navana.AI.
• It is accessible by voice in eight languages (Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Gujarati, Kannada, Odia, and Assamese).
• Customers can perform banking transactions, and access services in their native language.

 Banking & Finance

4. RBI to launch QR code-based coin vending machines

• The Reserve Bank of India will launch QR Code-based Coin Vending Machine (QCVM) in collaboration with a few leading banks.
• Aim: To improve the distribution of coins
• This pilot project will be launched in 19 locations in 12 cities across the country.
• QCVM is a cashless coin dispensation machine.
• It will dispense coins against debit to the customer’s bank account using UPI.
• It would eliminate the need for physical tendering of banknotes and their authentication.

 Banking & Finance

5. Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launches ‘Digital Payments Utsav’

• Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology and Communications, Ashwini Vaishnaw launched the ‘Digital Payments Utsav’ in New Delhi on February 9, 2023.
• Aim: To promote Digital Payments across the nation
• This campaign particularly focuses on G-20 Digital Economy Working Group event cities - Lucknow, Hyderabad, Pune, and Bengaluru.
• It also witnesses the flagging off of the Digital Payment Sandesh Yatra.

 Summits & Conferences

6. First G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group Meeting

• The first G2O Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group Meeting under India's presidency is being started in Bengaluru from February 9 to 11, 2023
• Hosted by: MoEFCC
• Chaired by: Leena Nandan (Secretary)
• Theme: LiFE is an "important and cross-cutting" 
• Focus:
  • Arresting land degradation, Accelerating ecosystem restoration, and Enriching biodiversity
  • Promoting a sustainable and climate-resilient blue economy
  • Encouraging resource efficiency and circular economy

 Defense

7. Defence ministry, Larsen & Toubro sign contract for modular bridges

• The Ministry of Defence has signed a contract with Larsen & Toubro (L&T) for the procurement of 41 sets of Modular Bridges at an estimated cost of ₹2,585 crore for the Corps of Engineers, Indian Army.
• Designed and developed: DRDO
• It shall be produced by L&T as a DRDO-nominated production agency.
• Each set of bridges shall consist of seven carrier vehicles based on 8x8 heavy mobility vehicles and two launcher vehicles based on 10x10 heavy mobility vehicles.

 Banking & Finance

8. Edelweiss General Insurance rebranded as Zuno General Insurance

• Edelweiss General Insurance has rebranded itself as Zuno General Insurance.
• Aim: To make insurance easy, friendly, and transparent.
• Zuno GI also launched the findings of its survey "‘Usage Based Insurance: Decoding Awareness, Perception, and Behaviour".
• It was conducted in collaboration with Crownit.
• The Zuno GI conducted the survey in eight cities – Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, and Ahmedabad
• MD & CEO, Zuno GI: Shanai Ghosh

 Science & Technology

9. Skye Air launches India’s first traffic management system for drones

• Skye Air launched a drone-based traffic management system named 'Skye UTM' in India.
• It was unveiled by the Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, Nitin Gadkari.
• Skye UTM is a Cloud-based aerial traffic management system.
• It integrated unmanned air traffic with manned aviation airspace.
• The software will allow drone operators to plan routes, make flight plans and assess risks before running drone-based operations in the country. 

 National Affairs

10. Jio-bp introduces E20 blended petrol

• Jio-bp has launched E20 petrol and became one of the first fuel retailers in India to make E20 blended petrol available.
• E20 petrol: 20% blend of ethanol and 80% of fossil-based fuel
• E20 blending in petrol is being introduced in the country by the government of India.
• Aim: To reduce the country's oil import cost, energy security, lower carbon emission, and better air quality, among others.
• The government had advanced the target of E20 fuel from 2030 to 2025.

 Books & Authors

11. Salman Rushdie new novel 'Victory City' released

• British author, Salman Rushdie has released his new novel "Victory City".
• This novel was published by Penguin Random House.
• It is an "epic tale" of a 14th-century woman who defies a patriarchal world to rule a city.
• This novel purports to be a translation of a historical epic originally written in Sanskrit.
• Rushdie won the Booker Prize in 1981 for his second novel, Midnight's Children.
• His notable works: Grimus (1975); Shame (1983); The Satanic Verses (1988)

 National Affairs

12. NCAER Report on Farm Machinery Industry in India

• The National Council of Applied Economic Research’s (NCAER) report on “Making India a Global Power House on Farm Machinery Industry” was released.
• It was released by the Union MoS for Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare, Shobha Karandlaje
• This study was sponsored by Mahendra & Mahendra.
• Purpose: To analyze the non-tractor farm machinery industry from both demand and supply side perspectives.
• India’s farm power availability is at 2.49 Kw/ha in 2018-19.

 Sports

13. LeBron James becomes NBA's all-time leading scorer

• LeBron James becomes the all-time leading scorer in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
• He has surpassed a record held by the great Kareem Abdul Jabbar since 1984.
• He pushed his career total to 38,388 points.
• He has won four NBA titles and competed in 10 NBA finals.
• He has a career average of 27.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 7.3 assists.
• Abdul-Jabbar took 1,560 games to record his total, and James set his record in just over 1,400 appearances.