DAILY GK: 13 MAY 2021

 DAILY GK: 13 MAY 2021

1.AROUND 219 ENDANGERED SPECIES THREATENED BY ARMED CONFLICT

•        According to the report ‘Nature in a Globalised World: Conflict & Conservation’ released by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) – Civil unrest and military exercises pose high risk to 219 Endangered Species (out of 30, 178 species assessed as threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species).

•        The report is the 1st in IUCN’s Nature in a globalised world report series.

 

2.GOOGLE PAY LAUNCHES INTERNATIONAL MONEY TRANSFERS FOR US USERS

•        Google Pay has launched International Money Transfers for its United States (US) users, it has launched the initiative in partnership with remittance firms – Wise and Western Union Co.

•        Using the feature, Google Pay users in the US can transfer money to app customers in India & Singapore.

•        Google Pay has 150 million users in 40 countries, and this initiative is seen as a step to expand its financial services offering, and increase competition in the digital payments sector.

 

3.INDIA’S GDP TO GROW 7.5% IN 2021, 10.1% IN 2022: UN

•        In its mid-year report of the World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP), United Nations(UN) has increased India’s GDP growth forecast for the calendar year 2021 to 7.5 percent, a 0.2 percent increase from its earlier projection (January 2021 projection – 7.3 percent) following a contraction of 6.8 percent (-6.8) in 2020.

•        The report forecasted India’s GDP to grow at 10.1 percent in 2022, becoming the fastest-growing major economy in the world.

 

4.WORLD FOOD PRIZE 2021

•        Indian Descent Dr Shakuntala Harak singh Thilsted, a native of Trinidad and Tobago and a citizen of Denmark, won the 2021 World Food Prize for her research, insights and innovations in developing holistic, nutrition-sensitive approaches to aquaculture and food systems.

•        She was born in 1949 on the Caribbean island of Trinidad.

•        The award carries a cash prize of 250,000 USD (around Rs 1.8 crore).

•        The award was announced by Barbara Stinson, President of the World Food Prize Foundation.

 

5.IREDA WON THE “GREEN URJA AWARD 2021”

•        Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA) under the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) won the Green Urja Award 2021 for its developmental role towards the Green Energy Financing.

•        IREDA won the award for being the Leading Public Institution in Financing Institution for Renewable Energy.

•        The award was conferred by the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

 

6.NASA SPACECRAFT OSIRIS-REX HEADS FOR EARTH

•        National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA)’s Spacecraft Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx), started its 2-year long journey towards earth with the samples- rocks and dust -collected from the Asteroid Bennu.

•        The Spacecraft will orbit the sun twice before delivering the samples to the Earth in September 2023.

•        The Asteroid Bennu is located around 200 million miles (around 1.9 Astronomical Units) away from Earth.

 

7.“SHOOTER DADI” CHANDROTOMAR PASSED AWAY DUE TO COVID-19

•        The 89-year-old sharpshooter ChandroTomar passed away in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh after suffering from COVID-19.

•        ChandroTomar popularly known as “Shooter Dadi”, started her shooting career in her 60’s and was acclaimed as the World’s Oldest Women Shooter.

•        The 2019 movie “Saand Ki Aankh” was based on the biography of ChandroTomar and PrakahiTomar (2nd oldest woman shooter in the world).

•        BothChandroTomar and PrakahiTomar belong to Johri village of Uttar Pradesh.

 

8.INTERNATIONAL NURSES DAY 2021

•        The International Nurses Day (IND) 2021 is annually celebrated across the globe on May 12 to highlight the importance of nurses in healthcare and to appreciate their work towards healthcare.

•        The International Nurses Day marks the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale.

•        The theme of IND 2021 is Nurses: A Voice to Lead – A vision for future healthcare.