31st October, 2023

1. REC Power Development and Consultancy Limited (RECPDCL) has handed over the project specific Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to Power Grid Corporation of India Limited.
2. Ericsson has announced to set up a 6G Research and Development centre in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
3. Norway will support India’s Hunger Project in Uttarakhand.
4. Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has removed Cayman Island from its grey list in its review published on 27 October, 2023.
5. Ministry of Finance has notified 18% GST on parent corporate guarantee.
6. IndusInd Bank has collaborated with Viamericas to offer inward remittance service to NRIs in USA.
7. Yes Bank has raised its stake to 9% in JC Flower Asset Reconstruction Company.
8. AU Small Finance Bank board has approved merger with Fincare SFB.
9. RBI has raised the criteria for ‘Bulk deposits’ for Regional Rural Banks from ₹ 15 lakh to ₹1 Crore.
10. Swan Energy has paid ₹231.42 crore to acquire Reliance Naval & Engineering.
11. Mahatma Gandhi National Rual Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has seen a 5% decrease in active workforce participation as per the report by LibTech India.
12. 25T Bollard Pull (BP) Tug, ‘Mahabali’ has been launched at M/s Shoft Shipyard Pvt Ltd, Bharuch, Gujarat.
13. Personnel from the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force have departed for Kazakhstan to participate in the 7th edition of the Joint Military ‘Exercise KAZIND-2023.’
14. October 29– World Stroke Day
15. October 30– Birth Anniversary of Dr Homi Jehangir Bhabha
16. October 30- November 5– Vigilance Awareness Week
17. October 31– World Cities Day
18. UST has won the 2023 Mahatma Awards for sustainable and impactful contributions to corporate social responsibility (CSR).
19. Nita Ambani has received US-India Strategic Partnership Forum’s 2023 Global Leadership Award for Philanthropy and CSR.
20. Paytm has become the official sponsor of 37th National Games to be held in Goa.
21. India has won 111 Medals at 4th Asian Para Games held in Hangzhou, China.
22. State Bank of India has appointed Indian cricketer MS Dhoni as the bank’s official Brand Ambassador.
23. Katrina Kaif has been appointed as the brand ambassador of Swiss Watchmaker Rado.
24. Former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has passed away. Actor Mathew Perry has died at the age of 54.
25. Baijnath Agarwal, Trustee of Geeta Press Gorakhpur has passed away.

National News

1. REC Power Development and Consultancy Limited (RECPDCL) has handed over the project specific Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to Power Grid Corporation of India Limited.
   • SPV is formed for the construction of ‘Ramgarh II Transmission Limited’
   • SPV involves the implementation of a 765/400kV & 2×500 MVA 400/220 kV pooling station at Ramgarh along with 765kV D/c line (Ramgarh PS to Bhadla-3 PS) in the state of Rajasthan.

2. Ericsson has announced to set up a 6G Research and Development centre in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
   • Objective-
   • To develop the technology which will help to deliver a cyber-physical continuum where networks will deliver-
     • critical services
     • immersive communications
     • omnipresent IoT
     • To ensure the integrity of the delivered information.
       Source: Financial Express
3. Norway will support India’s Hunger Project in Uttarakhand.
   • Objective–
     • To help strengthen women leaders to protect the environment and promote food security in Uttarakhand.

Source: livemint

International News

1. Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has removed Cayman Island from its grey list in its review published on 27 October, 2023.
   • About FATF Grey list–
     • These are jurisdiction which are actively working with the FATF to address strategic deficiencies in their regimes to counter money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.
   • Other countries removed–
     • Panama, Jordan and Albania
   • Country added to the list–
     • Bulgaria

Source: Business Standard, FATF

Banking and Economy

1. Ministry of Finance has notified 18% GST on parent corporate guarantee.
   • Key points–
     • Parent company’s corporate guarantee to its subsidiary for a bank loan will attract 18% GST.
     • The value of supply of services will be deemed to be 1 % of the amount of such guarantee offered, or the actual consideration, whichever is higher.

2. IndusInd Bank has collaborated with Viamericas to offer inward remittance service to NRIs in USA.
   • About collaboration–
     • This collaboration has enabled NRIs in USA to use effortless inward remittance services to India.
     • This partnership works under the Rupee Drawing Arrangement scheme of RBI.
     • It will allow NRIs to effectively transfer funds to their beneficiaries in India through the reliable Indus Fast Remit platform.
   • About Indus Fast Remit platform–
     • It offers NRIs the flexibility to initiate remittance transactions using the auto-debit payment method (Automated Clearing House – ACH) or by transferring funds directly from their overseas bank accounts.
   • How it will work?
     • With its established IndusInd Bank Vostro relationship Viamericas Corporation will utilise the RBI’s RDA scheme to credit the beneficiary’s account in India.

3. Yes Bank has raised its stake to 9.9% in JC Flower Asset Reconstruction Company.

4. AU Small Finance Bank board has approved merger with Fincare SFB.
   • Objective–
     • To extend the bank’s footprint in southern India and entering the microfinance sector

   • Managing Director & CEO of Fincare SFB will become the Deputy CEO of AU SFB after the merger.
   • The shareholders of Fincare SFB will receive 579 shares in AU SFB for every 2000 shares they hold in Fincare SFB.
     Source: livemint
5. RBI has raised the criteria for ‘Bulk deposits’ for Regional Rural Banks from ₹ 15 lakh to ₹1 Crore.
   • “Bulk Deposit” means:
     • Single Rupee term deposits of Rupees two crore and above for Scheduled Commercial Banks (excluding Regional Rural banks) and Small Finance Banks.
     • Single Rupee term deposits of Rupees one crore and above for RRBs.

6. Swan Energy has paid ₹231.42 crore to acquire Reliance Naval & Engineering.

Source: ET

Reports and Indices

1. Mahatma Gandhi National Rual Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has seen a 7.5% decrease in active workforce participation as per the report by LibTech India.
   • Key Observations–
     • Workforce Contraction:
       • The data analysis for April-September 2023 shows a 7.5% reduction in the number of active workers, from 15.49 crore to 14.33 crore.
       • There has been a net deletion of 80 lakh workers in the ongoing financial year.
     • Increased Demand for Work:
       • Despite the reduction in the workforce, there has been a 9% increase in person days (total work days by a person registered under the scheme in a financial year) compared to the previous fiscal year.
     • Interesting Trend in Person Days:
       • 188 crore person days were generated in the ongoing fiscal year compared to 172.24 crore person days in the previous fiscal year, despite the reduction in the number of active job cards and workers, indicating a persistent demand for employment opportunities.
     • State-level Variations:
       • Fourteen states reported an increase in employment, while six states experienced a decline.
       • West Bengal witnessed a significant drop (99.5%) as the scheme was suspended by the Union government due to alleged corruption.
       • Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Tamil Nadu saw the highest increases in employment.

Source: The Hindu, LibTech.in

Defence News

1. 25T Bollard Pull (BP) Tug, ‘Mahabali’ has been launched at M/s Shoft Shipyard Pvt Ltd, Bharuch, Gujarat.
   • These Tugs are built under the classification rules of Indian Register of Shipping (IRS).
   • Uses–
     • The availability of Tug will provide momentum to Operational commitments of Indian Navyby facilitating assistance to Naval ships and submarines during berthing and un-berthing, turning and manoeuvring in confined waters.
       Source: PIB

2. Personnel from the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force have departed for Kazakhstan to participate in the 7th edition of the Joint Military ‘Exercise KAZIND-2023.’
   • Participation– India & Kazakhstan
   • Venue– Otar, Kazakhstan
   • Objective-
     • To improve the capabilities of both sides in counter-terrorism operations within a sub-conventional environment under the purview of United Nations mandates.
       Source: Financial Express

   
   

Important Days

1. October 29– World Stroke Day; Theme– Together we are #Greater Than Stroke
   Source: livemint
2. October 30- November 5– Vigilance Awareness Week; Theme– Say no to corruption; Commit to the Nation
   Source: AIR
3. October 30– Birth Anniversary of Dr Homi Jehangir Bhabha
   Source: CNBC
4. October 31– World Cities Day; Theme– Financing a sustainable urban future for all
   Source: UN

Awards

1. UST has won the 2023 Mahatma Awards for sustainable and impactful contributions to corporate social responsibility (CSR).
   • About Mahatma Awards–
     • It is an initiative of Aditya Birla Group.
     • Award is presented on Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary.
     • Mahatma Award is the highest honour for social impact leaders and change makers, who are working towards making this world a better place.

2. Nita Ambani has received US-India Strategic Partnership Forum’s 2023 Global Leadership Award for Philanthropy and CSR.
   • She has been awarded for being at the forefront of women’s empowerment, children’s education, promoting Indian arts and sports.

Source: Business Today, usispf

Sports

1. Paytm has become the official sponsor of 37th National Games to be held in Goa.

2. India has won 111 Medals at 4th Asian Para Games held in Hangzhou, China.
   • It is the biggest victory for the country in any major international multi-sport event.
   • India finished at fifth place in the medals tally.
   • Medal tally-

Source: The Hindu

Appointments

1. State Bank of India has appointed Indian cricketer MS Dhoni as the bank’s official Brand Ambassador.
   • Objective–
     • To strengthen its connection, especially with the younger population.
   • He will play an important role in various marketing and promotional campaigns of SBI.

2. Katrina Kaif has been appointed as the brand ambassador of Swiss Watchmaker Rado.
   Source: HT

Miscellaneous

1. Former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has passed away.
   Source: Reuters
2. Actor Mathew Perry has died at the age of 54.
   • He was best known for his portrayal of the wise-cracking Chandler Bing on the most famous show ‘Friends’.
     Source: The Hindu
3. Baijnath Agarwal, Trustee of Geeta Press Gorakhpur has passed away.
   Source: HT

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