27th September, 2022 Current Affairs

Archana Lakkavajula

NATIONAL
India’s first avalanche-monitoring radar installed in Sikkim

The Indian Army and the Defence Geoinformatics and Research Establishment (DGRE) have jointly installed the Avalanche Monitoring Radar, the first of its kind in India, in north Sikkim. Besides being used for the detection of avalanches, this radar can also be employed to detect landslides.
The avalanche radar was made operational by the Defence Research and Development Organisation’s wing DGRE, which is involved in forecasting and mitigating of avalanche hazards faced by the Indian Army in the Himalayan region.
The radar, which can permanently scan the targeted slope for avalanche release and track its path and its size in case it is triggered, can “see” through snow, and fog as well as in night, making it an all-weather solution and covers an area of two sq/km obviating the requirement to place additional instruments in dangerous avalanche prone areas.

PM NarendraModi to attend state funeral of former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe in Tokyo

Prime Minister NarendraModi will participate in the State Funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
He held bilateral meeting with his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida this morning reaffirming commitment to further strengthen India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership.

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INTERNATIONAL
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar meets US Secretary of DefenseLIoyd J Austin in Washington

External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar met US Secretary of DefenseLIoyd J Austin in Washington. In a tweet, Dr Jaishankar said, Defence and Security cooperation is a key pillar of the contemporary India-US partnership. Both leaders noted the steady progress in policy exchange, interoperability, defense trade, service exercises and military-industrial cooperation. They also exchanged perspectives on the Ukraine conflict, Indo-Pacific developments, maritime challenges and regional issues.
The External Affairs Minister began his Washington DC program with a Round Table organized by the National Science Foundation, NSF.

President Vladimir Putin grants Russian citizenship to former US security contractor Edward Snowden

Russian President Vladimir Putin has granted Russian citizenship to former US security contractor Edward Snowden. Snowden is one of 75 foreign nationals listed by the decree as being granted Russian citizenship. The decree was published on an official government website.
Snowden, a former contractor with the US National Security Agency, has been living in Russia since 2013 to escape prosecution in the US after leaking classified documents detailing government surveillance programs. He was granted permanent residency in 2020 and said at the time that he planned to apply for Russian citizenship, without renouncing his US citizenship.

South Korea, United States begins their first combined naval exercise near peninsula in five years

South Korea and the United States began their first combined naval exercise near the peninsula in five years on Monday. The drills come a day after nuclear-armed North Korea conducted another ballistic missile launch, the latest in its record-breaking blitz of weapons tests this year.
The US Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan, and its carrier strike group, including Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville, Arleigh Burke-class destroyers USS Barry and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold, have participated in the combined naval drills
The four-day exercise on South Korea’s east coast will involve more than 20 vessels and an assortment of aircraft, which will conduct drills on anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare operations, tactical manoeuvres and other maritime operations.
The exercise was prepared to demonstrate the strong will of the South Korea-US alliance to respond to North Korean provocations.

ECONOMY
British Pound Falls To Record Low Against The Dollar after Biggest TAX Cut

As a result of the markets’ response to the UK’s largest tax cuts in 50 years, the pound has reached a record low against the dollar. Sterling dropped almost to $1.03 in early Asian trading before reclaiming some ground to hover around $1.07. In anticipation of a rise in borrowing, Chancellor KwasiKwarteng has promised additional tax cuts on top of the £45 billion plan he announced.
The Bank increased interest rates last week by.25% to 2.25% in an effort to lower inflation, which is at a 40-year high of 9.9%.
The rate rise, which brought rates to their highest level in 14 years, was the eighth in a row.
Some analysts, however, have hypothesised that the Bank may call an emergency meeting this week to raise interest rates once more.
A statement from the Bank of England was declined.
Interest rates may rise as high as 5.5 percent by the spring of next year, according to market observers.

Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 extended for further period of six months

Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 has been extended for a further period of six months. The extension will come into effect from 1st of next month. Ministry of Commerce and Industry said, the government has received requests from Export Promotion Councils and leading exporters to extend the policy.
The exporters and industry bodies have strongly urged the government to extend the policy in view of volatile global economic scenario and geo-political situation. Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 was unveiled in 2015. The policy provides a framework for increasing exports of goods and services keeping Make in India vision of Prime Minister in focus. It also emphasizes on improving the ease of doing business.

Over-Reliance on Readymade Garments (RMG) exports and protective tariff regime challenge Bangladesh’s growth sustainability - World Bank

The World Bank (WB) has cautioned that over-reliance on Ready Made Garment (RMG) exports and the perpetuation of the protective tariff regime may challenge the sustainability of Bangladesh’s growth model.
Pointing out the low export to GDP ratio of Bangladesh at about 9 percent in 2020 and 2021, the World Bank said that the export basket is heavily dependent on RMG which accounted for over 83 percent of total exports in 2020.
It said that the lack of export diversification can be partly attributed to the country’s protective trade regime. Bangladesh’s average tariff rate on intermediate goods is 18.8 percent which is more than double the rate in China and substantially higher than Thailand and Vietnam.

Published date : 27 Sep 2022 06:26PM