Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 11 September 2021

::National::

CAG GirishMurmu elected as the new President of ASOSAI

CAG G C Murmu has been elected as chairman of the Assembly of the Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI) for the period 2024-27, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India said in a statement.
It further said India will host the 16th Assembly of ASOSAI in 2024.
“The 56th governing board of ASOSAI elected G C Murmu and approval conveyed by the 15th Assembly of ASOSAI today (Tuesday). The CAG, as the chairman, will be the chief executive of ASOSAI and represent ASOSAI in its dealings with national and international organisations,” it said.
After the election, the CAG assured the members that during SAI India’s three-year term as chair of the ASOSAI, SAI India will focus on the areas of environmental audit and leveraging emerging technologies for audit.
Murmu said SAI India will seek the active participation of members to create processes and structures within ASOSAI to address the challenges faced by SAIs in the region in dealing with big data, with an aim to leverage artificial intelligence, machine learning and collaborative remote access data audits.

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::International::

World's largest plant to take carbon from the air started in Iceland

Global emissions last year were 31.5 billion tonnes, according to the International Energy Agency.
Direct air capture is seen by scientists as vital to efforts to limit global warming.
Iceland's Orca plant - a reference to the Icelandic word for energy - is made up of eight large containers that use filters and fans to extract carbon dioxide.
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The CO2 is then mixed with water and pumped underground, where it slowly turns into rock.
The system is powered renewably by a nearby geothermal plant.
Direct air capture is still a new and expensive technology, but it's hoped the price will fall as it becomes more widespread.
There are currently 15 plants globally, capturing more than 9,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, according to the IEA.
Occidental, a US oil firm, is developing the largest facility, designed to pull one million tonnes per year from the air near its Texas oilfields.
Iceland's plant is a partnership between Swiss start-up Climeworks AG and Icelandic company Carbfix.
Climeworks also offers a subscription allowing consumers to pay monthly for carbon removal.

::Economy::

Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm launched the US-India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP)

Indian Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) today announced the launch of the India-US Task Force on Biofuels.
The announcement was made yesterday during the India-U.S. Strategic Clean Energy Partnership dialogue led by Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India, and Hon'ble Jennifer M. Granholm, U.S. Secretary of Energy. U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) will serve as the Secretariat for the Task Force.
The newly launched India-US Task Force on Biofuels will integrate private and public sector inputs towards energy security, promote the exchange of the latest technology and encourage the adoption of business models in the Indian and U.S. markets to accelerate the development of the biofuels sector and further strengthen the U.S.-India relationship. The task force will report its findings to the U.S.- India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP).

ADB approves $300 million loan to expand rural connectivity in Maharashtra

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India today signed a $300 million loan as additional financing to scale up the improvement of rural connectivity to help boost rural economy in the state of Maharashtra.
The additional financing for the ongoing Maharashtra Rural Connectivity Improvement Project will help improve an additional 1,100 rural roads and 230 bridges for a total length of 2,900 kilometers (km) in 34 districts. The ongoing project with $200 million financing, approved in August 2019, is already enhancing and maintaining the condition and safety of 2,100 km of rural roads across Maharashtra.
The signatories to the loan agreement were Ministry of Finance’s Department of Economic Affairs Additional Secretary Rajat Kumar Mishra, who signed for the Government of India, and ADB Country Director for India Takeo Konishi, who signed for ADB.
“With the additional financing, the overall project will improve the condition and safety of 5,000 km of rural roads and over 200 bridges connecting rural communities with productive agricultural areas and socioeconomic centers in Maharashtra,” said Mr. Mishra after signing the loan agreement.
“Improved connectivity through climate-resilient, all-weather rural roads will help accelerate Maharashtra’s economic recovery from COVID-19 shock by generating rural employment and transforming agriculture,” said Mr. Konishi.
The new project is expected to generate about 3.1 million person-days of employment for local communities, of which at least 25% will be for women, over the construction and maintenance periods. A gender action plan has been prepared to focus on capacity development of women workers so that they can benefit from the semiskilled and unskilled labor opportunities.

::Science and tech::

China successfully launched new earth observation satellite "Gaofen-5 02"

China launched the Gaofen 5 (02) hyperspectral Earth observation satellite on Tuesday as the country races towards carrying out 40 missions in 2021.
A Long March 4C rocket lifted off from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center at 11:01 p.m. EDT Sept. 6 (0301 GMT or 11:01 a.m. local time Sept. 7). Insulation tiles can be seen falling from the payload fairing and uppermost stage as the rocket climbs from the launch pad.
The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), announced the success of the launch once the satellite had entered its planned orbit. U.S. space tracking reported the satellite to be in a roughly 426 mile (685 kilometers) altitude orbit inclined by 98 degrees.
This so-called sun-synchronous orbit means the satellite will pass the same point on Earth at the same local time each day. Gaofen 5 (02) — the second of two identical Gaofen 5 satellites — was developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST), one of the major arms of CASC. The satellite is based on a SAST3000 platform and carries seven instruments for hyperspectral monitoring of the atmosphere, water and land.
Hyperspectral imaging means the satellite will monitor hundreds of very narrow channels of light, from ultraviolet to long-wave infrared, allowing the satellite to produce images indicating the chemical-physical composition of objects in the image.
The new satellite will join other optical and radar remote sensing satellites in the Gaofen series which together form the China High-resolution Earth Observation System (CHEOS). The first CHEOS satellite, Gaofen 1, was launched in 2013. Little is known about newer, higher numbered Gaofen satellites like Gaofen 11, which may have very high-resolution optical imagers.

::Sports::

Fifth and final Test between India, England at Old Trafford, Manchester canceled due to COVID-19 fears

England’s fifth and final Test against India, due to start in Manchester at 8pm AEST on Friday night, has been cancelled at the last minute over fears of a Covid-19 outbreak.
It follows four Covid-19 cases among India support staff this week, with multiple reports stating India’s players were unwilling to play until the results of another round of Covid-19 tests were received.
An England Cricket Board statement read: “Following ongoing conversations with the BCCI, the ECB can confirm that the fifth LV= Insurance Test between England and India Men due to start today at Emirates Old Trafford, will be cancelled.