Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 20 January 2022

::National::

Justice CT Selvam to head TN fourth police commission

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Wednesday announced the constitution of the fourth police commission under retired judge of the Madras High Court Justice C T Selvam.
The move, which fulfils the poll assurance of the DMK, would facilitate the commission to submit its recommendations to the government on the welfare of the police personnel and other aspects such as improving policing, preventing cyber crimes and making the men in khaki adopt a more humane approach to policing.
Retired IAS officer K Allauddin, retired IPS officer K Radhakrishnan, Dr C Ramasubramaniam and retired Prof Nalini Rao would be the members on the panel, an official press release here said. Senior police official Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal would be the member-secretary.

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::International::

Ukraine crisis: What Russia is demanding and how the West has responded?

The concentration of Russian forces along the Ukrainian border has concerned the West, in particular the United States, which has warned of "swift, severe, and united response". Western intelligence officials say that Russia has amassed 100,000 troops on the eastern side of the former Soviet republic.
They fear another invasion by Russia, on the lines of Crimea in 2014. Numerous rounds of talks have been held between the West and Moscow, but the Russian troops remain in the area.
Ukraine shares its border with Russia and the European Union (EU) countries. It has deep cultural ties with Russia and Russian is widely spoken there.
Russia has expressed its displeasure over Ukraine’s increasing move towards the European institutions and wants it shouldn’t join the Nato. The demand has been rejected by the Western alliance, which comprises of the United States, EU countries and Nato allies.
The deposing of Ukraine’s pre-Russia president in 2014 sent the alarm bells ringing in Moscow, which moved in and annexed Ukraine’s southern peninsula Crimea. It also backed separatists who them captured large parts of Ukraine’s eastern region. More than 14,000 people have been killed in nearly eight years of fighting there.
After the recent talks with his US counterparts in Geneva, Russian foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov assured that there are “no plans or intentions to attack Ukraine”.
But Putin’s recent statements about “appropriate retaliatory military-technical measures” against West’s “aggressive approach” has worried officials. At a press conference on Wednesday, marking his first year in office, Biden said he thinks Putin will “move in” on Ukraine although he suggested a full-scale invasion may not be in the Russian leader’s plans.
Russia has denied an intention to attack its neighbour but demanded guarantees from the West that Nato will not expand to Ukraine or other ex-Soviet nations or place its troops and weapons there. It has also asked Western countries to not adopt “aggressive” approach and abandon military activity in Eastern Europe.

::Economy::

Cabinet approves infusion of ₹1,500 crore in IREDA

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved infusion of ₹1,500 crore in Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA), which will help generate 10,200 jobs a year and reduce carbon emissions equivalent to approximately 7.49 million tonnes per year.
The additional equity infusion will enable the mini-ratna company under the ministry of new and renewable energy to lend ₹12,000 crore approximately to the renewable energy sector, thus facilitating the sector’s debt requirement of additional capacity of approximately 3,500-4,000 megawatt (MW), the CCEA said after its meeting on Wednesday.
The equity infusion will also enhance the specialised non-banking finance agency’s net worth, which will help it in additional financing, thereby contributing better to the government’s targets.
Union information and broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur said the IREDA played a big role in the field of renewable energy and its portfolio had increased from ₹8,800 crore to ₹28,000 crore in the past six years.
“But according to RBI (Reserve Bank of India), the loan can only be lent on 20% of the net worth. The net worth of IREDA is ₹3,000 crore. It could lend loans up to ₹600 crore only,” Thakur said, noting the importance of the decision.
Separately, the Union Cabinet approved a scheme for grant of ex gratia payment of ₹973.74 crore, the difference between compound interest and simple interest for six months, to borrowers in specified loan accounts.

Do 5G telecoms pose a threat to airline safety?

The chief executives of major US passenger and cargo airlines have warned of a "catastrophic" aviation crisis this week as AT&T and Verizon deploy new 5G services.
They said the new C band 5G service set to begin on Wednesday could render a significant number of aircraft unusable, causing chaos for US flights and potentially stranding tens of thousands of Americans overseas.
The United States auctioned mid-range 5G bandwidth to mobile phone companies in early 2021 in the 3.7-3.98 GHz range on the spectrum known as C band, for about $80 billion.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has warned that the new 5G technology could interfere with instruments such as altimeters, which measure how far above the ground an airplane is travelling.Altimeters operate in the 4.2-4.4 GHz range and the concern is that the auctioned frequencies sit too close to this range.
In addition to altitude, altimeter readouts are also used to facilitate automated landings and to help detect dangerous currents called wind shear.
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said last month the FAA's 5G directives would bar the use of radio altimeters at about 40 of the biggest US airports.
US airlines have warned the directives could disrupt up to 4% of daily flights.
Kirby said if left unresolved it could mean that at major US airports in the event of bad weather, cloud cover or even heavy smog "you could only do visual approaches essentially."
The European Union in 2019 set standards for mid-range 5G frequencies in a 3.4-3.8 GHz range, a lower frequency than the service set to be rolled out in the United States. The bandwidth has been auctioned in Europe and is in use in many of the bloc's 27 member states so far without issue.

::Science and tech::

Scientists develop Covid diagnosis test using X-rays, say it's 98% accurate

A group of scientists in Scotland has found a way to detect the presence of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) infection in a person using X-rays. The diagnosis test uses artificial intelligence (AI) to predict the presence of the virus inside a person.
They also said that it will be faster than the PCR test, which takes to hours to return a result.
“There has long been a need for a quick and reliable tool that can detect Covid-19, and this has become even more true with the upswing of the Omicron variant,” said Professor Naeem Ramzan, who led the three-person team at the UWS.
According to UWS researchers, the new technique utilises X-ray technology to compare scans to a database of around 3,000 images, belonging to patients with Covid-19, healthy individuals and those with viral pneumonia.
Professor Ramzan said that there are many countries are unable to carry out large numbers of Covid tests because of limited diagnosis tools. Their research utilises easily accessible technology to quickly detect the virus.
“It could prove to be crucial, and potentially life-saving, when diagnosing severe cases of the virus, helping determine what treatment may be required,” said the professor.
He, however, acknowledged that Covid-19 symptoms are not visible in X-rays during the early stages of infection so it cannot fully replace the PCR tests.

::Sport::

Sania Mirza says this season will be her last

The frustration, at times, was palpable on Sania Mirza’s face on court on Wednesday. The physical struggles for a 35-year-old competing in gusty, challenging conditions of Melbourne showing up ever so slightly.
Moments after losing her women’s doubles Australian Open first-round match partnering Nadiia Kichenok in straight sets, Mirza revealed the end of her pioneering professional tennis journey was nigh.
“I've decided that this will be my last season,” Mirza said in the post-match press conference after the 12th seeded Indian-Ukranian pair lost to Kaja Juvan and Tamara Zidansek 6-4, 7-6(5).
Mirza outlined several factors behind the decision: the body wearing down - she said she woke up with pain in her wrist a couple of days ago even as her right knee continued bothering her - the perils of travelling in a pandemic with a young child and having days where she just doesn’t feel up for it at 35.