Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 23 June 2022

::National::

Gender Responsive Governance: NCW launches workshop to train women MLAs
The National Commission for Women (NCW) on Wednesday launched the Workshop on Gender Responsive Governance for the elected women representatives under ‘She Is AChangemaker’ project.
The three-day workshop has been organised with an aim to train women MLAs on gender-responsive governance in different sessions.
“The three-day workshop has been organised in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh in collaboration with LalBahadur National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) and the Nation Gender and Child centre of LBSNAA from 22nd to 24th June, 2022,” the Union women and child development ministry said in a statement.

The event was inaugurated by the governor of Uttar Pradesh Anandiben Patel. Giving real-life experience, she explained the importance of discipline in the life of a public representative during her inaugural address.

A total of 29 participants from Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have taken part in the workshop that will be conducted in different sessions such as ‘overview on gender-based violence with a special focus on trafficking of women and adolescents’, ‘effective leadership’, gender sensitive and inclusive communication’ and ‘emotional intelligence’.
She Is AChangemaker’ project is NCW’s national capacity building programme to improve the leadership skills of women representatives. The commission has organised 49 training batches and trained 1,700 women representatives of panchayati raj institutions and urban local bodies in eight states.

Printed Study Materials for IBPS, SBI Bank Exam

::International::

G7, NATO leaders to ratchet up pressure on Russia, keep eye on China: US

Leaders from the Group of Seven rich democracies and the NATO alliance will work to increase pressure on Russia over its war in Ukraine next week, while underscoring their continued concerns about China, senior US officials said.
President Joe Biden leaves Saturday to meet with other G7 leaders in southern Germany before heading to Madrid for a summit where NATO is expected to announce plans to expand its forces in eastern Europe and Washington will lay out steps to strength European security.
Inclusion, for the first time, of leaders from Australia, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand in the NATO summit was aimed at showing that the war in Ukraine has not detracted from Western nations' focus on China, the officials said.
G7 leaders, meeting at an alpine castle an hour south of Munich on June 26-28, are also expected to address China's "coercive economic practices," which have become even more aggressive in recent years, one of the officials said.
In fact, a new strategic concept to be endorsed by NATO leaders when they meet in Madrid June 29-30 will address threats posed by Russia, and for the first time, China, the official said.
Germany, which leads the G7 this year, has also invited Argentina, India, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa to participate in select sessions at the summit.
G7 leaders will launch a new infrastructure initiative aimed at offering low- and middle-income countries high-quality, transparent investment alternatives, officials said, a clear reference to China's Belt and Road project, which has been criticized for opaque contracts and onerous loan terms.

::Economy::

High inflation weighed on MPC members as RBI raised rate: Minutes

All the six members of the MPC, including the RBI Governor, expressed concern over continued high inflation and stressed that the cental bank's endeavour would be to bring down price rise within the target range, as per minutes of the latest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting released.
The Reserve Bank's rate-setting panel, which met during June 6-8, raised the key interest rate by 50 basis points -- the second hike within five weeks. In early May, the policy repo rate was hiked by 40 basis points.
As per the minutes, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said while high inflation continues to be the major concern, revival of economic activity remains steady and is gaining traction. The time is appropriate to go for a further increase in the policy rate to effectively deal with inflation and inflation expectations.
"Accordingly, I vote for a 50 bps increase in the repo rate which would be in line with the evolving inflation-growth dynamics and will help in mitigating the second round effects of adverse supply shocks," he said.
The rate hike, he added, will reinforce the RBI's commitment to price stability -- its primary mandate and a pre-requisite for sustainable growth over the medium term.
Besides raising the repo rate to 4.9 per cent, the Reserve Bank also revised upwards its inflation forecast for the current fiscal to 6.7 per cent from its earlier estimate of 5.7 per cent.
With inflation majorly being driven by supply constraints amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, Patra said to gain time for supply to respond, the blunt instrument of monetary policy has to be deployed, and there is no other recourse at this juncture.
He said if inflation is allowed to go out of hand, it could corrode the foundations of the recovery that is gaining traction, and deter investment decisions.
"The battle would be lost but the war would have been won if India is able to bend down the future trajectory of inflation,' he said, and exuded confidence retail inflation would fall back to below 6 per cent by the fourth quarter of the fiscal.
Rajiv Ranjan, RBI Executive Director and MPC member, said with protracted geopolitical tensions and no early resolution of the conflict in sight, considerable uncertainty clouds the evolving inflation trajectory.

AU Small Finance Bank to invest over Rs 500 cr for IT, digital makeover

AU Small Finance Bank expects to invest over Rs 500-700 crore to scale up its digital banking and information technology over the next three-five years, taking the total tech spending to over Rs 1,000 crore. This would mean its cost-to-income ratio may remain above 50 per cent in the medium term.
Sanjay Agarwal, managing director and chief executive, said the lender was in a growth phase and is spending to achieve digital ambitions. Also, human resources need a lot of support. The cost-to-income ratio has gone up from 52.4 per cent in FY21 to 57.1 per cent in FY22.
While the cost of income ratio may not have peaked, it is close to it. It takes three-five years to see benefits of the investments. The bank is building digital ambitions with a five to seven years’ horizon in mind, Agarwal said. The bank unveiled a new credit card offering called Live-It-Today (LIT).
The Jaipur-based lender has spent close to Rs 500 crore in recent years on the digital infrastructure. There is a plan to enhance super apps functionality, also of QR code, credit cards and data analytics capability. It estimates that about Rs 500-700 crore is required in the next three to five years to build this up.
Agarwal said while interest rates have been on rise, the bank has managed cost of funds very well till now. It still has scope available as cost of funds is 5.7-5.8 per cent. Also, the bank is working more in building current account money, which will help to manage costs. Banks do not pay interest on the money kept in current account. This pool of liabilities, along with savings account, forms part of low-cost funds.

::Science and tech::

South Korea's second space rocket launch successfully puts satellites in orbit

South Korea's second test launch of its domestically produced Nuri rocket successfully placed several satellites in orbit, officials said, taking a major step in efforts to jumpstart its space programme after a first test failed last year.
The rocket lifted off from Naro Space Center on the southern coast of South Korea at 4 p.m. (0700 GMT). A 162.5-kg (358 lb)satellite designed to verify the rocket's performance successfully made contact with a base station in Antarctica after entering orbit, officials said.
"The sky of the Korean universe is now wide open," Science and ICT Minister Lee Jong-ho told a briefing. "Our science and technology has made great strides."
The three-stage KSLV-II Nuri rocket, designed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) to eventually put 1.5-ton payloads into orbit 600 to 800 km (370 to 500 miles) above the Earth, is a cornerstone of the country’s ambitious goals for 6G networks, spy satellites, and even lunar probes.
It uses only Korean rocket technologies, and is the country's first domestically built space launch vehicle. South Korea’s last booster, launched in 2013 after multiple delays and several failed tests, was jointly developed with Russia.

::Sports::

Sports Minister Thakur, FIFA delegation discuss way forward for Indian football

Fears of the All Indian Football Federation being banned eased after the joint delegation of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the world body, FIFA, met union sports minister, Anurag Thakur, and agreed on preserving the autonomy of the national body and holding an early election.
The joint FIFA and AFC team led by AFC general secretary Datuk Seri Windsor John and including three representatives of the world body is on an assessment trip after the Supreme Court disbanded the office-bearers and appointed a three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA). There was concern that FIFA could ban AIFF on grounds of government interference.
The delegation’s meeting with Thakur was also attended by senior bureaucrats of the ministry.
“It was a long and fruitful meeting. The delegation and the government have both agreed that it is imperative the autonomy of the NSF is of utmost importance and both supported an early election for AIFF to ensure that the NSF can perform its duty as an autonomous body. The government will provide all support for the implementation of the sports code in the AIFF constitution (it is being drafted) so that an early election can take place,” an official in the know of things said.