Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 08 March 2022

::National::

K-Rail will go ahead, says Vijayan as Oppn looks to intensify stir

Kerala chief minister PinarayiVijayan on Monday said the K-Rail project will go ahead as planned and initial works are progressing well, quashing opposition protests against the proposed high-speed rail corridor.
“We will not yield to unnecessary controversies and pressures. If we abandon the project, it will wreck the developmental aspirations of the state. K-Rail is a game-changer, and it will lift the face of the state,” Vijayan said in Kozhikode, adding that the government would not bow down before those who are blindly opposing the project.
The CM said the Union government initially favoured the project but has now developed cold feet after the state unit of the party opposed it for some political reasons. “Those who oppose the project will have to understand that they are torpedoing an ambitious development project of the state,” he said. “Initially the centre encouraged the project but now its interest waned reasons best known to it,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Kerala Rail Development Corporation Ltd, the nodal agency for the project, said it laid stones in the 140-km stretch of the project, and the relief package will be taken up once the social and economic impact studies were completed.
“We are busy with our schedule and we regularly conduct awareness sessions also to dispel fears,” said K Rail MD V Ajith Kumar.
Angry people had uprooted stones at many places throughout the state, but the agency said it wouldn’t affect the ongoing work.
The Opposition Congress and BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP) said they will intensify their agitation against the project.

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::International::

Russia backs IAEA chief's idea of Ukraine meeting but not at Chernobyl

Russia backs UN atomic watchdog chief Rafael Grossi's idea of a trilateral meeting with Ukraine on ensuring the safety of nuclear facilities there during Russia's invasion but not at Chernobyl as Grossi wants, Moscow's envoy to the watchdog said.
The country has four operational nuclear power plants, including Europe's largest by capacity, at Zaporizhzhia near Crimea.
A building close to but separate from the reactors at Zaporizhzhia caught fire last week after what Grossi said appeared to be a Russian military projectile hit it. Russia blamed Ukrainian saboteurs. Russian forces now control the plant, with Ukrainian staff working under their orders.
The fire was extinguished and the reactors undamaged but the incident highlighted the potentially catastrophic consequences if a nuclear plant were hit.
"Russia supported Grossi's idea regarding a trilateral meeting and we expect that the Ukrainians will also be cooperative," Russia's IAEA ambassador Mikhail Ulyanov told reporters on Monday.
"I believe Chernobyl is not the best place for such a meeting. There are numerous capitals in the world."
Grossi said on Sunday he was "extremely concerned" after Ukraine said Russian forces had switched off some mobile networks and the internet at Zaporizhzhia, making communication with the outside harder, and communication with Chernobyl was now only possible by email.
Ukrainian President VolodymyrZelenskiy backed the idea of a meeting, according to a French readout on Sunday of a conversation between him and French President Emmanuel Macron, who supports the Chernobyl plan.

::Economy::

Clix Capital targets Rs 40 billion loan disbursal in next fiscal year

Digital lending NBFCClix Capital Services said it plans to disburse over Rs 4,000 crore as loans in the next fiscal year beginning April 1.
The company has also crossed Rs 15,000 crore disbursement milestone since its rechristening from GE Capital 5 years ago, the company said in a release.
The non-banking financial company (NBFC) said it has been servicing individual borrowers and MSMEs and has disbursed more than 50 lakh loans till date.
A majority of the company's disbursements have gone to MSMEs who have received about 48 per cent of these funds.
The company has a month-on-month targeted disbursal rate of over Rs 350 crore, Clix Capital said.
"We have set a target of disbursing over Rs 4,000 crore for FY 2022-23 and we are very much on course for that. Ever since our inception, we have been redefining the lending space in India by creating products and services that meet the financial needs of our customers.
"Today, Clix Capital has created history by disbursing Rs 15,000 crore to individuals and businesses since we started 5 years ago," RakeshKaul, CEO Clix Capital, said.
He said, over the years the company has expanded its ecosystem and serviced individual borrowers and funded across sectors, and will continue to do so.
"Our vision lies in simplifying lending and enabling financial inclusion for all people. We have succeeded in this mission having touched over 50 lakh customer lives in our journey till date,"Kaul said.

Rupee sinks to record low with stocks as Ukraine crisis boosts oil

The Indian rupee tumbled to a record low along with stocks and bonds as a spike in oil prices spurred by the war in Ukraine threatened to inflate the nation’s oil-import bill and fan inflationary pressures.
The rupee declined as much as 1% to 76.9625 per dollar, past its previous low of 76.9088. Benchmark government bond yields rose six basis points to 6.87%, while the S&P BSE SENSEX Index fell as much as 3.3% to 52,542.64, the lowest since July.
Today’s move has turned the rupee into Asia’s worst performer this year as surging crude prices fueled worries about the country’s balance of payments. India imports nearly three-fourth of its oil, making it one of the most vulnerable in Asia to higher prices.
India’s benchmark equity index dropped to its lowest level in more than seven months with most of the 30 stocks of the S&P BSE Sensex trading in the red.
“Geopolitical risks will likely stay elevated, especially on the terms of trade shock and current-account deficit implications,” Barclays Plc. analysts including AshishAgrawal wrote in a note. “The INR is more sensitive to supply side oil shocks,” he said, adding that the Reserve Bank of India “is likely to continue selling USD passively, but is unlikely to defend any particular level.”
Foreign funds have taken out about $16 billion from India’s equity markets since September. The initial share sale of Life Insurance Corp., widely referred to as India’s Aramco moment, is also increasingly likely to be deferred given the volatile geopolitical conditions.

::Sport::

Rhythm, Anish win 25m rapid fire pistol mixed team gold as India top medal tally

India's Rhythm Sangwan and AnishBhanwala won the gold medal in the 25m rapid fire pistol mixed team event on the concluding day of the ISSF World Cup here.
The Indian duo emerged victorious by a margin of 17-7 over Thailand in the gold medal match.
The country thus topped the medal’s tally with four gold, two silver and one bronze as the year’s first ISSF World Cup concluded in the Egyptian capital.
On the final day of competitions, India also won a silver in the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol event, going down to Germany 7-17 in the title decider.
Rhythm and Anish made it through to the gold medal match after finishing second in round two of qualification with a score of 370 out of 400. Thailand’s PadukaChawisa and Ram Khamhaeng had topped the qualification with 381 to setup the title clash with India.