Current Affairs Quiz - July 2022

Notes:
DBS Bank was named as the ‘World’s Best SME Bank’ by Euromoney for second time. The bank also clinched three more awards.
They include World’s Best ‘Financial Innovation of the year’, ‘Asia’s Best Bank for Wealth Management’ and ‘Best Bank in Hong Kong’.

Notes:
Public sector lender Punjab National Bank (PNB) has gone live on the account aggregator ecosystem as financial information user (FIU) as well as financial information provider (FIP).
Union Bank of India, Canara Bank and Indian Bank have also connected to the account aggregator system. Other banks including SBI, BOB and UCO Bank are in the testing phase and some others are in the development phase.

Notes:
Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in the country to connect all registered commercial vehicles equipped with Vehicle Location Tracking Device (VLTD) with Emergency Response Support System (ERSS).
Now these vehicles can be tracked anywhere in the country through VLTD by both the police and the transport department. When the panic button is pressed, a signal will be received through satellite to 112 and the person in distress would be connected and alert the police.

Notes:
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has clarified that large packages of food items like pulses, cereals, rice, and wheat weighing more than 25 kilograms or 25 litres of commodity will not attract the 5% goods and services tax (GST).
For levying 5% GST on items like pulses, cereals, rice and flour, they have to be pre-packaged without the presence of the buyer, and are required to bear the declarations under the provisions of the Legal Metrology Act of 2009.

Notes:
The Andhra Pradesh State Wildlife Department has commenced the first-ever survey of blackbucks along a stretch of islands in the Godavari between Dowleswaram and Yanam.
The survey aims of drawing up a conservation plan to protect the endangered species.

Notes:
The Supreme Court has accepted the report of the Banthia Commission and directed the Maharashtra State Election Commission to hold elections as per the report.
It paves way for political reservation for candidates belonging to Other Backward Classes in the Local Bodies’ Elections in the state. The candidates will get 27 percent political reservation in local self-government elections in the state.

Notes:
Australian authorities have killed millions of honeybees recently in an effort to stop a catastrophic parasite plague from spreading to other parts of the country.
Honey sector, which is Australia’s multimillion-dollar business, is under severe threat from the outbreak of the varroa mite. Varroa mite or Varroa destructor is a parasitic bug that attacks and feeds on honeybees.

Notes:
As per a recent government data, Tamil Nadu tops the list of states so far as utilisation of funds under Smart City Mission.
Tamil Nadu has spent over Rs 3932 crore out of the Rs 4333 crore released by the Centre, Uttar Pradesh is at second position with utilisation of Rs 2699 cr out of the release of Rs 3142 crore. Ther Smart Cities Mission (SCM) was launched on 25 June, 2015.

Notes:
The Union Chemicals and Fertilisers Ministry recently rolled out the schemes under the banner of ‘Strengthening Pharmaceuticals Industry’ (SPI), to strengthen Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the pharmaceutical sector.
SIDBI will be the project management consultant for implementing the scheme. It includes the Pharmaceutical Technology Upgradation Assistance Scheme (PTUAS), Assistance to Pharma Industries for Common Facilities Scheme (API-CF), Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Promotion and Development Scheme (PMPDS).

Notes:
According to NITI Aayog’s India Innovation Index 2021, India’s gross expenditure on research and development (R&D) is one of the lowest in the world, with just USD 43 per capita.
It said that India needs to boost this expenditure and at least be on a par with its BRICS or ASEAN counterparts like Russia (USD 285) and Brazil (USD 173). In India, the government spends more than 55% on R&D and private sector is to be encouraged to take up research.