ASCEND 2020-Kochi to host Global Investors Meet on 9-10 Jan

NATIONAL NEWS

ASCEND 2020-Kochi to host Global Investors Meet on 9-10 Jan

• An electronic hardware and a defence park in Kerala are among 18 mega projects the state government will highlight at the Global Investors Meet on 9 and 10 January.
• The government will highlight, among others, a Kochi-to-Palakkad integrated manufacturing cluster, a defence park at Ottapalam and an electronic hardware park in Ernakulam district.
• Also, the focus would be on a medium density fiberboard plant in Perumbavoor and integrated solid waste management systems at Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur and Malappuram.

CISF to observe 2020 as ''year of mobility'' for troops'' welfare, housing

• The CISF will observe 2020 as the ''year of mobility'' that will have a special focus on creation of more residential units and implementation of various welfare measures for the troops.
• It will emphasise on taking all measures for welfare of troops and their families, creating infrastructure and logistics like housing, acquiring new land and procuring modern equipment, training with focus on physical fitness and sports and leveraging modern gadgetry and technology on duty.

Challakere to be ISRO’s astronaut training hub

• India’s world-class facility for training astronauts will come up not in the space headquarters in Bengaluru, nor in any glitzy metropolis. It will be established in three years at Challakere, a shrubby, arid oilseeds town on the Bengaluru-Pune NH4 in Chitradurga district of Karnataka.
• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has proposed a ₹ 2,700-crore master plan to create top infrastructure that will house its young Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC).

Kochi to host global meet on marine ecosystem

• Eminent marine scientists, oceanographers, fisheries researchers and marine biotechnologists from across the globe are expected to participate in the third international symposium on marine ecosystems – challenges and opportunities (MECOS-3) in Kochi from January 7 to 10.
• Organised by the Marine Biological Association of India, MECOS-3 will serve as a platform for discussions on a range of topics, including the impact of the climate crisis on marine ecosystems and an unusual warming of the Arabian Sea.

ECONOMIC AND FINANCE

Operation Twist-III- RBI buys and sells bonds worth ₹10k crore each

• In the third special open market operation in as many weeks, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) bought ₹10,000 crore of three long-term securities while selling a same amount of three short-term bonds.
• The RBI had announced to simultaneous purchase and sale of government securities (G-Secs) under open market operations (OMOs) for ₹10,000 crore each.
• Like last week, though the RBI offered to sell four securities in the auction, it accepted bids for three bonds. In the current OMO purchase auction, the RBI offered to purchase three securities including 10-year benchmark government bond, as against just one bond in the previous two auctions.

RBI gives in-principle nod to Shivalik Mercantile to convert to SFB

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)  granted in-principle approval to Uttar Pradesh-based Shivalik Mercantile Co-operative Bank Ltd to convert to a small finance bank (SFB), becoming the first urban cooperative bank (UCB) to make the transition since the guidelines came out nearly two years ago.
• The Reserve Bank of India has granted in-principle approval to Shivalik Mercantile Co-operative Bank Ltd (the applicant) for transition into a small finance bank under the scheme on voluntary transition of urban co-operative bank into a small finance bank issued on September 27, 2018.

Karur Vysya Bank CEO, MD PR Seshadri resigns

• Karur Vysya Bank's chief executive officer (CEO) and managing director (MD) P R Seshadri has resigned, citing personal reasons. The bank has informed stock exchanges that Seshadri will continue to function till the end of this financial year 2019-20.

RESIGNS

All-rounder Irfan Pathan announces retirement from all forms of cricket

• All-rounder Irfan Pathan announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, ending an injury-ridden career that prevented him from realising his true potential.
• The 35-year-old's retirement was on expected lines, considering he last played a competitive game in February 2019 during the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy for Jammu and Kashmir.