Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 08 December 2021

::National::

Sunil Arora invited to join the apex international democracy body IDEA
Former chief election commissioner (CEC) Sunil Arora has been invited to join the board of advisers at the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, also known as International IDEA, the Election Commission of India said.
Established in 1995, International IDEA is an intergovernmental organisation based in Stockholm, Sweden and has a mission to support sustainable democracy worldwide.

“The institute is assisted by a 15-member board of advisers who are eminent personalities or experts from a wide variety of backgrounds,” read the ECI’s statement.

International IDEA currently has 34 member countries from all continents.
Arora was the 23rd CEC from December 2018 to April 2021, when the commission conducted the general elections to the 17th LokSabha in 2019 apart from several assembly and bye-elections.
A 1980 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, Arora earlier headed various key departments in the Central government and the Rajasthan government.
The ECI said under the leadership of Arora, the commission provided a big push to its digital programme by creating a unified database of more than 930 million electors and a nationwide helpline among other innovations.

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::International::

India-Russia Summit 2021

Prime Minister NarendraModi and Russian President Vladimir Putin held the 21st India-Russia Annual Summit on Monday to discuss the entire gamut of relations, including regional and global issues.
Putin’s short visit to New Delhi was owing to Covid-19 which is why he came straight to Hyderabad House from the airport and went back to the airport after the talks and dinner. The visit lasted less than five hours. His ministers, however, had arrived a day earlier to participate in the inaugural 2+2 ministerial meeting and hold bilateral talks, including the meeting of the intergovernmental commission on military and technical cooperation.
“2021 is also special for our Strategic Partnership. Today was the inaugural meeting of the 2+2 dialogue between our Foreign and Defence Ministers. This has started a new mechanism to enhance our practical cooperation,” PM Modi said in his opening remarks ahead of the bilateral meeting.
He welcomed President Putin with a warm handshake and hug despite Covid restrictions. The Russian side was very particular about ensuring negative tests for all those present in the compound.
The India-Russia Joint Statement called ‘Partnership for Peace, Progress and Prosperity’ said, “The completion of 5 decades of the 1971 Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation and 2 decades of Declaration on Strategic Partnership is symbolic of the long standing and time-tested India-Russia relations characterized by mutual trust, respect for each other’s core national interests and similarity of positions on various international and regional issues.”
Among other deals, the two sides signed the ‘Agreement on Program of the Military-Technical Cooperation from 2021-2031’. This 10 year Defence Cooperation Program outlines the ongoing defence cooperation and future possible cooperation between the two countries. Such agreements are being signed since 1994.
The long awaited ‘A-203 assault rifles deal’ was inked at the end of bilateral talks between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoigu, paving the way for the production of over six lakh rifles in Amethi.
Regarding the threats of US sanctions on procurement of S-400 missiles, the Indian foreign secretary said, “S-400 is a legacy contract going back to 2018. Supplies have begun and will continue to happen. We follow an independent foreign policy and decisions are not taken in light of others.”
Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov also said in his press briefing after the conclusion of the 2+2 dialogue, “S-400 does not just have symbolic meaning. It has important practical meaning for Indian defence capability. The situation is basically underway. The deal is being implemented.”

::Economy::

India, ADB sign $125 million loan to improve water supply and sanitation in Uttarakhand

India and the Asian Development Bank today signed a 125 million dollar loan to improve access to safe and affordable drinking water supply and sanitation services in Dehradun and Nainital in Uttarakhand. The agreement was signed between Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Rajat Kumar Mishra and Country Director of Asian Development Bank’s India Resident Mission Takeo Konishi.
The project will construct 136 kilometers of water pipe system to replace defective water networks in South Dehradun to ensure reliable and continuous water supply. It will benefit more than 40 thousand people, including four thousand urban poor and vulnerable groups.
Water meters will also be installed in about five thousand 400 households to support efficient water use and consumption billing. In addition, the project will establish sewage treatment plants in Dehradun, supported by 256 kilometer of enclosed underground sewer networks and 117 kilometer of storm water drainage networks.
“The project complements previous ADB support to improve water supply and sanitation service (WSS) in the two cities with a focus on ensuring high-quality service delivery and a citywide sanitation approach to make it cost-effective," said Mr. Konishi. “Computerized maintenance and management systems will be introduced to advance the system operation and asset management while ensuring users’ satisfaction", stated Konishi.
Many innovative solutions like soak pit reuse and utilization for groundwater recharging, bus mobile toilets with gender-sensitive and inclusive design features, rainwater harvesting, and compact design and pre-fabricated sewerage treatment facilities will enhance climate resilience of the project.

RBI Monetary Policy: Repo rate unchanged for 9th consecutive time

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the repo rate unchangedat 4 per cent for the ninth consecutive time while maintaining an ‘accommodative stance’ as long as necessary, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced on Wednesday.
The central bank governor said that the MPC had voted unanimously 5:1 to maintain the accommodative stance and added that the reverse repo rate too was kept unchanged at 3.35 per cent.
The RBI had last revised its policy repo rate or the short-term lending rate on May 22, 2020, in an off-policy cycle to perk up demand by cutting the interest rate to a historic low.
Speaking on the GDP, Das said that the projection for real GDP growth is maintained at 9.5 per cent. However, the RBI revised its Q3FY22 GDP growth to 6.6 per cent from 6.8 per cent earlier. Additionally, Q4FY22 GDP was cut to 6 per cent from 6.1 per cent earlier. The real GDP growth is projected at 17.2 per cent for Q1FY23 and at 7.8 per cent for Q2FY23.
Speaking about inflation, the RBI governor said that the FY22 CPI inflation target is maintained at 5.3 per cent. This consists of 5.1 per cent in Q3FY22, and 5.7 per cent in Q4FY22 with risks broadly balanced.
Das said the headline inflation would peak in the fourth quarter of the current fiscal.
“Price pressures may persist in the immediate term. Vegetable prices are expected to see a seasonal correction with winter arrivals in view of bright prospects for rabi crops,” Das said.
In his speech, Das also touched upon petrol and diesel prices and said that the recent cuts in taxes on petrol and diesel should support the purchasing power of the consumer.

::Science and tech::

DRDO test-fires short-range surface-to-air missile

India successfully test-fired the Vertically Launched Short Range Surface to Air Missile (VL-SRSAM) from Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur off the coast of Odisha, the ministry of defence.
According to Defence Research and Development Organisation officials (DRDO), the air defence system can engage targets at around 15km. The VL-SRSAM, indigenously designed and developed by DRDO for the Indian Navy, is meant for neutralising various aerial threats at close ranges, including sea-skimming targets, the DRDO has said.
“The launch was conducted from a vertical launcher against an electronic target at a very low altitude. The flight path of the vehicle along with health parameters were monitored using a number of tracking instruments deployed by ITR, Chandipur. All sub-systems performed as per expectation,” the defence ministry said in a release.
The launch of the system was conducted to validate the integrated operation of all weapon system components, “including the vertical launcher unit with controller, canisterised flight vehicle, weapon control system etc. required for future launches of the missile from Indian Naval Ships”.
The test launch was monitored by senior officials of the DRDO and Indian Navy. The first trial was conducted on February 22 this year and this was a confirmatory trial to prove the consistent performance of the configuration and integrated operation.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO, the Indian Navy and industry for the successful flight test and said the system will further enhance defence capability of Indian naval ships against aerial threats.
The release added the department of defence research and development’s secretary and DRDO chairperson, Dr G Satheesh Reddy, also complemented the teams involved in the successful flight test.

::Sport::

Russia defeated Croatia to win Davis Cup Tennis Tournament 2021

Russia’s 15-year wait for a Davis Cup title ended Sunday after another clutch performance by Daniil Medvedev. Medvedev beat Marin Cilic 7-6 (7), 6-2 in the second singles match to give Russia an insurmountable 2-0 lead over Croatia in the final. It is Russia’s third Davis Cup title, and first since 2006.
AndreyRublev earlier had beaten BornaGojo in straight sets to put the Russians ahead at the Madrid Arena. Russia’s other Davis Cup title was in 2002. Croatia also was seeking its third title after triumphs in 2005 and 2018. Russia completed a sweep of team events after the women’s team won the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Prague last month. The last nation to do the double had been the Czech Republic in 2012.
The triumph also capped a special week for Russia captain ShamilTarpischev, the longest-serving Davis Cup captain. He first captained in 1974, and appeared in his 100th match as captain in the semifinals against Germany. The Russian team is officially being called RTF (Russian Tennis Federation) in the competition amid its ongoing doping suspension in international sport.