Current affairs 01 September 2024

India’s UPI Surpasses Global Rivals with Record Transactions in 2024.

• UPI processed nearly ₹81 lakh crore in transactions from April to July 2024, a 37% increase year-on-year.
• UPI handled 3,729.1 transactions per second, a 58% rise from 2022, outpacing Alipay, PayPal, and Brazil's PIX.
• July saw UPI transactions exceed ₹20.6 lakh crore, marking the highest monthly value ever recorded.
• UPI transactions stayed above ₹20 lakh crore for three consecutive months.

Four Companies Upgraded to Navratna Status by Finance Ministry.

• `Railtel, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam, National Hydroelectric Power Corp., and Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd have been granted Navratna status.
• Navratna status allows increased autonomy, enabling companies to invest up to 30% of their net worth and form joint ventures without government approval.
• The total count of Navratna entities now stands at 25.

Union Minister Launches Rashtriya Poshan Mah with Focus on Nutrition.

• Event: Annapurna Devi launched the 7th edition of Rashtriya Poshan Mah in Gandhinagar.
• Focus: Anaemia awareness, education integration, tech initiatives, and extra diet.
• Minister’s Address: Stressed the role of women and girls in India's development, with ₹3 lakh crore allocated for related schemes.
• Nationwide Ek Ped Ma Ke Naam campaign was launched.

NCLT Approves Merger of Reliance’s Viacom18 with Star India.

• The NCLT approved the merger of Viacom18 Media with Star India, creating India’s largest media empire valued over ₹70,000 crore.
• The composite Scheme of Arrangement includes the transfer of media operations from Viacom18 and Jio Cinema into Digital18, and then into Star India.
• The merger received prior clearance from the Competition Commission of India with certain voluntary modifications.

Tamil Nadu Signs MoU with Google with Google for AI labs.

• Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin signed an MoU with Google to establish AI laboratories in the state.
• During his U.S. tour, he met senior officials from Apple, Google, and Microsoft to attract investment in Tamil Nadu.
• Stalin discussed expanding Google's product line and training 2 million youth in AI through the Naan Mudhalvan Scheme.