Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 12 April 2021

SSC CGL Current Affairs

Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 12 April 2021

::NATIONAL::

Education Minister presents AICTE Lilavati Awards 2020 on Women Empowerment to the winners

  • Union Minister of Education Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' presented the AICTE Lilavati Awards 2020 on women empowerment to the winners in New Delhi.
  • MrPokhriyal welcomed the initiative of All India Council for Technical Education, AICTE for instituting the Lilawati Awards and stressed that such innovative steps shall be great motivation for girls to join higher education.
  • He said, this initiative will pave a path towards equality in education and innovation for women.
  • He also informed that Government has launched Udaan scheme which aims to enable girls of weaker socio-economic status at school level to gain access to higher education.
  • He said, the government has also  startedPragatiYojana to give young women opportunity to further their technical education.
  • The Education Minister  highlighted that the new National Educational Policy has greatly emphasised on gender equality and students should participate in such initiatives to promote women empowerment.

::INTERNATIONAL::

Sanskrit learning app 'Little Guru' launched in Bangladesh

  • A Sanskrit learning app will be launched in Bangladesh by the Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre (IGCC) of the High Commission of India on12th April.
  • The Sanskrit learning app is part of the campaign being run by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) to promote Sanskrit language among students, religious scholars, Indologists and historians across the world. 
  • The Sanskrit learning app ‘Little Guru’ is based on an interactive platform which will make Sanskrit learning easy, entertaining and fun. 
  • This app will help people who are already learning Sanskrit or those who are desirous to learn Sanskrit to do so in an easy manner based on games, competition, rewards, peer to peer interactions, etc.  This App combines education with entertainment, said a press release issued by the High Commission of India on Sunday.
  • ICCR has been receiving a large number of requests from across the world from people interested in learning Sanskrit. Many of the  Budhhist, Jain and other religious texts are in Sanskrit. 

::ECONOMY::

Provisional Direct Tax collections for the Financial Year 2020-21 show growth of almost 5%

  • The provisional figures of Direct Tax collections for the Financial Year 2020-21 show that net collections are at Rs. 9.45 lakh crore. 
  • The net Direct Tax collections include Corporation Tax (CIT) at Rs. 4.57 lakh crore and Personal Income Tax(PIT) including Security Transaction Tax(STT) at Rs. 4.88 lakh crore. The net Direct Tax collections represent 104.46% of the Revised Estimates of Rs. 9.05 lakh crore of Direct Taxes for the F.Y. 2020-21.
  • The Gross collection of Direct Taxes(before adjusting for refunds) for the F.Y.  2020-21 stands at Rs. 12.06 lakh crore. This includes Corporation Tax(CIT) at Rs. 6.31 lakh crore and Personal Income Tax (PIT) including Security Transaction Tax(STT) at Rs. 5.75 lakh crore; Advance Tax of Rs. 4.95 lakh crore; Tax Deducted at Source (including Central TDS) of Rs. 5.45 lakh crore; Self-Assessment Tax of Rs. 1.07 lakh crore; Regular Assessment Tax of Rs. 42,372 crore; Dividend Distribution Tax of Rs. 13,237 crore and Tax under other minor heads of Rs. 2,612 crore.
  • Despite an extremely challenging year, the Advance Tax collections for F.Y. 2020-21 stand at Rs. 4.95 lakh crore which shows a growth of approximately 6.7% over the Advance Tax collections of the immediately preceding Financial Year of Rs. 4.64 lakh crore.
  • Refunds amounting to Rs. 2.61 lakh crore have been issued in the F.Y. 2020-21 as against refunds of Rs. 1.83 lakh crore issued in the F.Y. 2019-20, marking an increase of approximately 42.1% over the preceding Financial Year.

:: SCIENCE AND TECH::

NASA's Ingenuity helicopter will attempt the first flight to Mars after April 14

  • NASA has decided to postpone the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter's first experimental flight to April 14 after a test completed earlier than planned. The flight was earlier scheduled for April 11.
  • "During a high-speed spin test of the rotors on Friday, the command sequence controlling the test ended early due to a 'watchdog' timer expiration," NASA said in a statement on Saturday.
  • "This occurred as it was trying to transition the flight computer from 'Pre-Flight' to 'Flight' mode. The helicopter is safe and healthy and communicated its full telemetry set to Earth," the US space agency said.
  • The watchdog timer oversees the command sequence and alerts the system to any potential issues.
  • It helps the system stay safe by not proceeding if an issue is observed and worked as planned.
  • The Mars Helicopter, Ingenuity, is a technology demonstration to test powered flight on another world for the first time. It hitched a ride to Mars on the Perseverance rover, which made a February 18 touch down on the Red Planet.
  • Once the rover reaches a suitable "helipad" location, it will release Ingenuity to perform a series of test flights over a 30-Martian-day experimental window.
  • For the first flight, the helicopter will take off a few feet from the ground, hover in the air for about 20 to 30 seconds, and land.

::SPORTS::

Joel Chianese agrees terms for one-year extension with Hyderabad FC

  • Indian Super League side Hyderabad FC and Australian attacker Joel Chianese have agreed terms for a one-year extension till the end of the 2021-22 season, the club can confirm.
  • The 31-year-old Aussie who can play in multiple positions in attack, will now join his former side Perth Glory on a short-term deal till the end of the current 2020-21 A-League season.
  • After missing some initial games with an injury, Joel returned with a bang for Manolo Marquez’s men scoring three times and providing one assist in 12 appearances.

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