16th January 2021 Daily GK Update: Read Daily GK, Current Affairs for Bank Exam

Here is the Daily GK Update of 16th January 2021 covering the following news headlines: Republic Day, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0, UN Rights Body, Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Council.

Daily GK updates are incorporated with the important news that made the current affairs headlines for banking or other competitive exams. Daily GK Update is the complete bag of the important news that held all day long. One should have complete knowledge about the banking terms, current affairs news, etc. So, here is the GK update of 16th January 2021 to help you prepare the Current affairs part. After reading this section, you can successfully attempt Current Affairs Quiz.

National News

1. No foreign leader as chief guest on Republic Day this year

• According to External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava, due to the global COVID-19 situation, it has been decided that this year there will not be a foreign Head of State or Head of Government as the Chief Guest for the Republic Day event. President Ramnath Kovind will take the salute at the parade this time.
• This will be the first time in over five decades that India will not have a chief guest at the Republic Day parade.
• This comes days after United Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister Boris Johnson cancelled his visit to India. Boris Jonhson was scheduled to be the chief guest at India’s Republic Day parade on January 26.

2. Centre launches Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0

• The Government of India launched the third phase of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana on 15 January 2021.
• The scheme has been rolled out for the current financial year, ending March 2021, and will be implemented by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. 
• Under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana-3.0, skills training would be provided in 600 districts across all states, (except four states including Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal) to 8 lakh candidates over next three months with an outlay of Rs 948.90 crore with a focus on Covid-related skills.
• The training will be imparted through 729 Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras (PMKKs), empanelled non-PMKK training centres and more than 200 industrial training institutes (ITIs).
• Further, a five-year PMKVY will be launched in 2021-22 with an enhanced target of skilling 1.5 crore youth.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship: Mahendra Nath Pandey.

International News

3. Indian-American Garima Verma named digital director in Office of the First Lady

Appointments News

5. TEPC appoints Sandeep Aggarwal as new Chairman

• The Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Council (TEPC) has appointed Sandeep Aggarwal as the new Chairman. Aggarwal, the Managing Director and Promoter of Delhi-based Paramount Communications, will take over from Shyamal Ghosh, ex-Telecom Secretary.
• TEPC is an independent body set up by the government to promote and develop the export of telecom equipment and services.

Agreements News

6. India and Japan inks MoU to enhance cooperation in ICT

• India and Japan have signed an MoU to enhance cooperation in the field of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) via videoconferencing.
• The MoU was signed between Union Minister for Communications, Electronics and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad and the Japanese Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications Takeda Ryota.
• Both countries will enhance mutual cooperation in the field of 5G technologies, telecom security, submarine optical fibre cable system to islands of India, spectrum management, smart cities, high altitude platform for broadband in unconnected areas, disaster management and public safety etc.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Japan Capital: Tokyo.
• Japan Currency: Japanese yen.
• Japan Prime minister: Yoshihide Suga.

Banking News

7. YES Bank launches wellness themed credit card

• Yes Bank has announced its partnership with Aditya Birla Wellness Private Limited to launch the ‘YES BANK Wellness’ and ‘YES BANK Wellness Plus’ Credit Cards – aimed at the holistic health, self-care and wellness of consumers.
• This is an innovative step to encourage and promote self-care, mental and physical well-being.
• Consumers can now enjoy the bouquet of complementary health benefits by simply registering on the Aditya Birla Multiply App.
• Benefits include reward points, diet plans, consultations etc
• The mobile app allows consumers to avail complimentary benefits such as annual health check-up, round the clock doctor or counsellor helpline, in-studio or home-based workout sessions, personalized diet plans, among others, right at their fingertips.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• YES bank HQ: Mumbai, Maharashtra.
• YES bank MD & CEO: Prashant Kumar.

8. ICICI Bank ties up with fintech Niyo to issue prepaid cards to MSMEs

• ICICI Bank, a leading Indian private sector bank, and Niyo, a new age fintech company announced a tie-up to issue prepaid cards to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) workers.
• MSMEs will now be able to get ‘ICICI Bank Niyo Bharat Payroll Card’ powered by Visa, for their blue-collar workers.
• With this, MSMEs can upload the salaries of their workers on the card, which the workers can then utilise as per their need seamlessly.
• These workers are mostly under-banked and are deprived of banking facilities.
• The ‘ICICI Bank Niyo Bharat Payroll Card’ allows an individual to receive funds up to Rs 1 lakh into the card account. It offers convenience and safety of digital banking to the blue-collar workforce while providing a state-of-the-art salary disbursement solution to the employers.
• Any MSME can tie-up with Niyo to avail of the prepaid card. After the tie-up, cards are issued to the workers at their workplace itself while their KYC verification is done simultaneously using a biometric device.
• Once activated, workers can use the card to withdraw funds at ATMs, make online transactions on e-commerce portals and make payment by swiping the card at Point of Sale (PoS) machines.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• ICICI Bank Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra.
• ICICI Bank MD & CEO: Sandeep Bakhshi.
• ICICI Bank Tagline: Hum Hai Na, Khayal Apka.

Summits and Conferences News

9. Piyush Goyal inaugurates the ‘Prarambh: Startup India International Summit’

• The Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food and Public Distribution, Piyush Goyal has inaugurated the two-day ‘Prarambh’, Startup India International Summit in New Delhi on 15 January 2021.
• The Summit has been organized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), under M/o Commerce & Industry.
• The inaugural event was participated by the members of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) countries.
• The ‘Prarambh’ Summit will provide a platform to the startups and young minds from around the world to come together and collaborate to work collectively to come with new ideas, innovation and invention.
• The focus of the Summit will be on enhancing multilateral cooperation and engagement with countries from around the globe to collectively develop and strengthen the startup ecosystems.
• The Summit marks the fifth anniversary of the Startup India initiative, launched by the Prime Minister on 16 January 2016.

Miscellaneous

10. Rajnath Singh unveils India’s 1st indigenously developed driverless metro car

• Union Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh has unveiled India’s first ‘Driverless Metro Car’ on 15 January 2021 during a function held at BEML’s Bangalore Complex.
• The indigenously designed & developed state-of-the-art Driverless Metro trains are being manufactured at BEML Bangaluru manufacturing facility, for Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).
• BEML recently opened its Depot office at Charkop Metro Depot, MMRDA, Mumbai for commissioning, testing and round-the-clock services for Driverless Metro cars.
• BEML bagged a total order of 576 cars for Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA)’s MRS1 project and the supply is scheduled progressively up to January 2024.

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16th  January Current Affairs 2021 | Current Affairs Today | Daily Current Affairs 2021

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