Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 12 August 2021

::NATIONAL::

The LokSabha passed the Constitution (127th) Amendment Bill to restore the states' power to make their own OBC lists.
The bill was passed in LokSabha with 385 members voting in support and no opposition to it.
The opposition parties decided to "cooperate" with the government in passing the bill and suspend their protest in the House.
It was moved by social justice and empowerment minister Virendra Kumar, who termed it as historic legislation that 671 castes in the country would benefit from it.
Kumar said the bill will restore the states' rights to prepare their own lists of OBCs so that various communities can be given social and economic justice.
The minister said the bill should be considered as the 105th Constitution Amendment bill after being renumbered.

At first glance, a recently granted South African patent relating to a “food container based on fractal geometry” seems fairly mundane. The innovation in question involves interlocking food containers that are easy for robots to grasp and stack.
On closer inspection, the patent is anything but mundane. That’s because the inventor is not a human being – it is an artificial intelligence (AI) system called DABUS.
DABUS (which stands for “device for the autonomous bootstrapping of unified sentience”) is an AI system created by Stephen Thaler, a pioneer in the field of AI and programming. The system simulates human brainstorming and creates new inventions. DABUS is a particular type of AI, often referred to as “creativity machines” because they are capable of independent and complex functioning. This differs from everyday AI like Siri, the “voice” of Apple’s iPhones.
The patent application listing DABUS as the inventor was filed in patent offices around the world, including the US, Europe, Australia, and South Africa. But only South Africa granted the patent (Australia followed suit a few days later after a court judgment gave the go-ahead).

A bill to allow privatisation of state-run general insurance companies got parliamentary assent on Wednesday after RajyaSabha passed it with a voice vote amid tearing of papers and vociferous protest by opposition parties.
The General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Amendment Bill, 2021 was passed by the LokSabha on August 2.
The bill was taken in the upper house soon after it passed the Constitutional amendment bill regarding OBC list. The Constitution amendment bill was passed after a nearly five-hour discussion in an amicable settings in the House, which otherwise had witnessed disruptions since the start of the monsoon session on July 19.
However, moods changed soon after the passage of the OBC related bill, and Opposition returned to the Well of the House leading to a brief adjournment. The chair was forced to adjourn the proceedings as opposition kept raising slogans and threw papers in the air.
When the House re-assembled at 6.26 pm, some MPs spoke briefly on the insurance bill amid uproar, while speakers from the opposition benches chose not to. In the meanwhile, Tiruchi Siva (DMK) moved a motion to send the bill to a select committee of the RajyaSabha, but it was rejected by a voice-vote.

The Reserve Bank of India on Monday notified the enhancement of collateral free loans to self-help groups (SHGs) from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh under DeendayalAntyodayaYojana - National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).
The DAY-NRLM is the flagship programme of Government of India for promoting poverty reduction through building strong institutions of the poor, particularly women, and enabling these institutions to access a range of financial services and livelihoods.
DAY-NRLM adopts a demand driven approach, enabling the states to formulate their own state-specific poverty reduction action plans.
For loans to SHGs up to Rs 10 lakh, no collateral and no margin will be charged, the RBI said in a circular.
Also, no lien should be marked against savings bank account of SHGs and no deposits should be insisted upon while sanctioning loans.

After Prime Minister NarendraModi-led Centre renamed the Rajiv Gandhi KhelRatna Award, Maharashtra government on Tuesday announced a new award named after the former prime minister for outstanding performance in the Information and Technology (IT) sector. The award will be conferred upon companies and institutions for excellence in the IT sector.
Minister of state for Information and Technology SatejPatil said the award will be given yearly on August 20, the birth anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi.
“The award will be given to the institutions that excel in the IT sector every year. This will be a lasting tribute to Rajiv ji for his pioneering work in the technology sector of the country,” Patil said.
The Centre on Friday dropped Rajiv Gandhi’s name from the KhelRatna award and renamed India’s highest sporting honour after Major Dhyan Chand, the legendary hockey player. The Congress criticised the move terming it political vendetta.