Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 03 July 2022

::National::

Drive against single-use plastic items in Hubli-Dharwad

Hubli-Dharwad municipal corporation officials have conducted an inspection in local markets of the area and seized single-use plastic from the shops.
“We have conducted an inspection on ban plastic usage in Janta Bazaar market area and put fines on plastic bags. We have asked to issue a notice regarding this issue,” said Sridhar Dandappanavar, chief health officer.
He said, “From July 1 onwards, single-use plastic has been banned throughout the state, so we have issued a fine against those still using them.”
Under the Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021, the manufacture, import, storage, distribution, sale and use of any single-use plastic has been banned.
Sticks, plastic flags, candy sticks, ice cream sticks, polystyrene for decoration (thermocol), plastic plates, plastic cups, glasses, cutlery such as forks, spoons, knives, straws, sweet boxes, invitation cards, cigarette boxes trays, wrapping or packing film less than 100 microns, stirrers, etc. are banned including plastic or PVC banners. The trade of single-use plastic across the country is estimated to be around 20 thousand crores annually.
A National Control Room has been established in the Central Pollution Control Board to monitor the enforcement of the ban, besides asking the state boards to undertake comprehensive Awareness activities including social media campaigns, and interactive meetings with industries, colleges, schools and other institutions.
The state boards have further been directed to intensify inspections of industrial and commercial establishments for effective implementation of the ban.

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::International::

Crisis-hit Sri Lanka struggling to pay for fuel shipments, says minister

Sri Lanka is struggling to raise $587 million to pay for about half a dozen fuel shipments, a top minister said on Sunday as the cash-strapped country tries to cope with its worst financial crisis in decades.
The country of 22 million people is unable to pay for essential import of food items, fertiliser, medicines and fuel due to a severe dollar crunch.
Power and Energy Minister KanchanaWijesekera said new fuel shipments were being lined up but the country is struggling to raise enough funds to pay as the central bank can supply only about $125 million.
Sri Lanka only has 12,774 tons of diesel and 4,061 tons of petrol left in its government reserves, he told reporters in Colombo, the commercial centre of the island nation.
Faced with severely limited diesel and petrol stocks Sri Lanka last week closed schools, asked public employees to work from home and restricted government fuel supplies to essential services.
The minister said the country will have to attempt to raise funds from the open market and seek more flexible payment options from suppliers.
Plans to settle the $800 million owed to seven suppliers for purchases made this year were being discussed, he said.
International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials will continue to hold talks with Sri Lanka for a possible $3 billion bailout package, the global lender said last week after wrapping up a 10-day visit to Colombo.

::Economy::

HDFC and HDFC Bank merger proposal gets nod from stock exchanges

The proposal of merger of HDFC with its banking subsidiary HDFC Bank, the biggest transaction in India's corporate history, has got approval from stock exchanges.
Both HDFC and HDFC Bank have got no-objection from both stock exchanges.
HDFC Bank has received observation letter with 'no adverse observations' from BSE Limited and observation letter with 'no objection' from the National Stock Exchange of India Limited, both dated July 2, 2022, HDFC Bank said in a filing.
"The scheme remains subject to various statutory and regulatory approvals inter alia including approvals from the Reserve Bank of India, Competition Commission of India, the National Company Law Tribunal and the respective shareholders and creditors of the companies involved in the scheme, as may be required," it said.
Earlier on April 4, India's largest private lender HDFC Bank agreed to take over the biggest domestic mortgage lender in a deal valued at about USD 40 billion, creating a financial services titan.
The proposed entity will have a combined asset base of around Rs 18 lakh crore. The merger is expected to be completed by the second or third quarter of FY24, subject to regulatory approvals.
Once the deal is effective, HDFC Bank will be 100 per cent owned by public shareholders, and existing shareholders of HDFC will own 41 per cent of the bank.

Large borrowers' loan accounts and bad loans decline for SCBs: RBI

The share of large borrowers for scheduled commercial banks (SCB) has declined in the recent times while their share in the gross non-performing assets (GNPA) also went down, said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
According to the RBI's Financial Stability Report, June 22, the share of large borrowers, those having aggregate fund and non-fund based exposure of Rs 5 crore and above, has been declining in the recent years.
This indicates the reduction in credit concentration and diversification of borrowers.
Their share in total GNPA of SCBs moderated marginally to 62.3 per cent during second half of 2021-22 and remained well below its level in September 2020 (75.6 per cent).
The GNPA ratio of large borrowers has been declining over the last two years to reach 7.7 per cent in March 2022, the RBI said.
As industrial activity revived during the second half of the year, the share of top 100 large borrowers in SCBs' total loan books as well as in SCBs' GNPA increased.
These borrowers accounted for 17.1 per cent of SCBs' total credit and 6.9 per cent of their GNPA, the RBI report said.
According to the report, the asset quality of SCBs continued to improve through the year, with GNPA ratio declining from 7.4 per cent in March 2021 to a six-year low of 5.9 per cent in March 2022.
The Net non-performing assets (NNPA) ratio also fell by 70 bps during 2021-22 and stood at 1.7 per cent at the year-end.

::Sports::

Carlos Sainz takes his first F1 win in Silverstone thriller

Ferrari's Carlos Sainz claimed his first Formula One victory in a thrilling British Grand Prix halted by a first-lap crash and with the added mayhem of a track invasion by environmental protesters.
Red Bull's Mexican Sergio Perez was runner-up, 3.779 seconds behind the Spaniard, with seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton third for Mercedes in his home race and taking fastest lap for a bonus point.
"Yes! We did it! Vamos!" exclaimed a delighted Sainz over the radio after a win that had looked unlikely despite him starting on pole position for the first time and in his 150th race.
"I don't know what to say, it's amazing.
"First race win, 150 races later, with Ferrari in Silverstone. I cannot ask for more. It's a very special day, a day that I will never forget, a very special weekend in general."