Daily Current Affairs China launches biodiversity fundfor

Daily Current Affairs

for app_20201213 China launches biodiversity fund

Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the launch of a 1.5 billion yuan ($232.47 million) fund to

support biodiversity protection in developing countries, as talks continue on a new post-2020 global

pact to tackle species loss. He welcomed other parties’ contributions to the Kunming Biodiversity

Fund. Xi was addressing virtually the COP15 global biodiversity summit in Kunming, China.

China, the world’s biggest polluter has sought to play a more prominent role internationally on

biodiversity conservation in recent years.

France unveils $35 bn revival plan

French President Emmanuel Macron has unveiled a five-year, €30 billion ($35 billion) investment plan

for developing innovative technology and industrial activity, including building small nuclear reactors,

electric cars and greener airplanes. The goal of the state-funded France 2030 plan is to boost France’s

economic growth over the next decade amid growing global competition with China and the U.S., Mr.

Macron said. The money will start being spent next year, he said.


for app_20201213 Pak Among Top 10 Nations With Largest External Debt Stocks: World Bank Report

Pakistan is among the top 10 countries that possess the largest external debt stocks and became

eligible for the Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic,

said a World Bank report. The combined external debt stock of the 10 largest DSSI-eligible borrowers

(Angola, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mongolia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, and Zambia)

was 509 billion dollars at end-2020, 12 per cent higher than the comparable figure at end-2019 and

equivalent to 59 per cent of the external debt obligations of all DSSI-eligible countries combined.

They also accounted for 65 per cent of the end-2020 private non-guaranteed external debt of DSSI-

eligible countries.

IMF Board decides not to sack its chief Kristalina Georgieva

The International Monetary Fund’s Executive Board has backed its embattled managing director (MD),

Kristalina Georgieva, who has faced accusations of meddling with figures in the World Bank’s Doing

Business Report in 2018 at China’s behest, when she was CEO of the World Bank. The Board’s decision

was announced weeks after an independent inquiry concluded that Ms. Georgieva and then World

Bank President Jim Yong Kim had pressured Bank staff so that China could get a better business

ranking.


for app_20201213 Brazil leader Jair Bolsonaro accused of "crimes against humanity" for Amazon deforestation

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was accused of "crimes against humanity" at the International

Criminal Court (ICC) for his alleged role in the destruction of the Amazon, the first case seeking to

explicitly link deforestation to loss of life. Planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions from burning and

industrial-scale agriculture in the Amazon are higher than the total annual emissions of Italy or Spain..

AllRise, an environmental law organization, filed the official complaint at The Hague-based court.

The complaint accuses the Brazilian leader of waging a widespread campaign resulting in the murder

of environmental defenders and of endangering the global population through emissions caused by

deforestation.

India calls for IPR waiver in WTO, dismantling trade barriers in global fight against pandemic

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal called for a waiver of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)

in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and dismantling new trade barriers in the global fight against

the Covid pandemic. Goyal called for actively resolving new trade barriers such as vaccine

differentiations or Covid passports, which impose mobility restrictions and impede the movement of

personnel needed for delivering critical services.

On the ongoing talks in the WTO about fisheries subsidies, Goyal said countries engaged in distant

water fishing should stop subsidising their fishing in high seas and gradually reduce their fishing

capacities, particularly, for overfished stocks.


for app_20201213 Expert panel clears Covaxin for emergency use in 2-18 age group

Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin (BBV152) has been recommended for Emergency Use

Authorisation (EUA) for 2-18- year-olds by the Subject Expert Committee (SEC) of the Central Drugs

Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO). Covaxin is the country’s first indigenous, whole-virion,

inactivated vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Medical Research

Council (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV). If given the green signal, it will emerge as

the first COVID-19 vaccine globally to be used for vaccinating children as young as 2 years.

Modi to launch master plan for multimodal connectivity

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan on 13 October to

provide multi-modal connectivity infrastructure to various economic zones. This plan seeks to address

the issue of a lack of coordination among various agencies by institutionalising holistic planning. The

prime minister had announced 'PM Gati Shakti — National Master Plan' in his Independence Day

speech on 15 August this year.

At the initial stage, the national master plan will include 16 ministries including railways, civil aviation,

petroleum, MEITY, shipping, road transport, textiles and food processing. Gati Shakti seeks to use

technologies like Geographic Information System-based Enterprise Resource Planning with 200+

layers of evidence-based decision-making besides planning tools for route planning, dashboard-based

periodic monitoring and latest satellite imagery


for app_20201213 Govt. nod for fertilizer subsidy

The Centre has approved an additional fertilizer subsidy of Rs. 28,655 crore for the rabi or winter

planting season, which runs from October 2021 to March 2022. The Cabinet Committee on Economic

Affairs approved the new nutrient-based subsidy rates for phosphatic and potassic fertilisers. Unlike

urea where the Centre sets a fixed maximum retail price, non-urea fertilizer prices are decontrolled,

with the government fixing nutrient-based subsidy rates instead. The subsidy is paid to fertilizer

companies as compensation for selling their products to farmers below market prices.

Anticipatory bail can be set aside: SC

The Supreme Court of India has held that a superior court can set aside an anticipatory bail order if

there was enough material to suggest that factors like gravity of the offence and the role of the

accused in the crime were not considered by the lower court. A Bench led by Justice D.Y. Chandrachud

said a court, while considering an application for grant of anticipatory bail, had to consider the nature

of the offence, the role of the person, the likelihood of his influencing the course of investigation, etc.


for app_20201213 Govt. announces plastic waste recycling targets

The Environment Ministry has issued draft rules that mandate producers of plastic packaging material

to collect all of their produce by 2024 and ensure that a minimum percentage of it be recycled as well

as used in subsequent supply. It has also specified a system whereby makers and users of plastic

packaging could collect certificates — called Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) certificates —

and trade in them. The notification was expected to come into force by December 6.

Government lifts cap on number of flights airlines can operate

Airlines will be able to operate at 100 per cent capacity from October 18, with the civil aviation ministry

lifting all restrictions on domestic flight movements. These curbs were imposed when airlines resumed

operations after a Covid-induced break last May. However, the government is yet to remove the fare

caps. Last month the government allowed airlines to increase their capacity from 72.5 per cent to 85

per cent. The decision coincided with the festival season which has seen improved seat occupancy and

rise in air traffic.


for app_20201213 IMF pegs India growth at 9.5%,

The IMF has projected that India will grow at 9.5% and 8.5% this fiscal year and next, after a

contraction of 7.3% last year. It has projected global growth at 5.9% this year and 4.9% in 2022 in its

latest World Economic Outlook, unveiled at the start of the World Bank IMF Annual Meetings.

Tata Motors to raise $1 billion for new electric vehicle unit

In a boost to its electric vehicle (EV) push, Tata Motors closed a deal to raise Rs 7,500 crore from TPG

Rise Climate and Abu Dhabi’s ADQ. This is the first major fundraising by an Indian carmaker to push

clean mobility. The investment will be in a newly formed subsidiary Tata Motors has formed for the

EV business. The Rs 7,500 crore (close to $1 billion) will give a stake of 11-15 per cent stake to the TPG-

ADQ combine in this subsidiary.


for app_20201213 Retail inflation falls to five-month low of 4.35%

The Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation rate fell to a five-month low of 4.35 per cent in

September, from 5.59 per cent in the previous month, as food prices rose at a significantly lower pace

of 0.68 per cent, compared to 3.11 per cent over this period. However, the inflation rate in fuels rose

to 13.63 per cent in September, from 12.94 per cent in the previous month. Within food items,

vegetable prices fell at a much faster rate of 22.47 per cent in September, compared to 11.68 per cent

in the previous month.

Orders of Rs. 65,000 cr. moved to new DPSUs

Ahead of the formal launch of the seven new Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSU), formed out

the erstwhile Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has converted all pending

orders with the 41 factories under it into deemed contracts worth over Rs. 65,000 crore for the new

companies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will formally launch the seven new DPSUs on October 15

via videoconferencing.

The Union Cabinet approved a long-awaited reform plan to corporatise the OFB, following which

effective October 1, all its assets, employees and management were transferred to the seven DPSUs.


for app_20201213 Germany becomes first nation to qualify for 2022 FIFA World Cup after host Qatar

Germany became the first country after host Qatar to qualify for next year's FIFA World Cup with a 4-

0 win against North Macedonia. Kai Havertz opened the scoring for the visiting side, which suffered a

shock defeat to North Macedonia in March, before two goals from Timo Werner and one from Jamal

Musiala wrapped up a comfortable victory in Skopje.

Badminton: India women qualify for quarterfinals

Indian women team progressed to the quarterfinals of the Uber Cup with a convincing 4-1 victory

over Scotland as shuttlers Aditi Bhatt and Tasnim Mir registered confident singles wins. India are now

sitting second in Group B with two wins from as many matches.

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Daily Current Affairs China launches biodiversity fundfor