Top Best Current Affairs 28 March 2020 (1)

CRISIL has cut its base-case Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth forecast for fiscal 2021 to 3.5% from 5.2% expected earlier. The global growth forecasts have reduced geometrically due to the COVID-19 pandemic spread geometrically. It highlighted that the world economy, unlike the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, has jeopardized financial stability and brought enormous human suffering.

The Sawai Man Singh (SMS) Government Hospital in Jaipur is to introduce the usage of humanoid robots to provide services to the COVID-19 patients. The hospital is conducting a series of trials on a humanoid robot to check if the robot can be pressed into service to deliver medicines and food to the COVID-19 patients admitted in the hospital.

The Maharashtra state government has decided to stamp the left hand of the people who have been kept under quarantine amid coronavirus pandemic in the country. The announcement was made by Maharashtra state health minister Rajesh Tope. The government has also declared evading from the screening a punishable offence under the Epidemic Act 1897.

The United States has reported more coronavirus cases than any other country with over 82,400. The report was announced by Johns Hopkins University. The number has overtaken China and Italy. The country made the coronavirus tests available in all 50 states and more than 552,000 tests had been conducted nationwide.

In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Reserve Bank of India's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to advance the Bi-monthly Monetary Policy meet which was scheduled to be held on 31st March 2020 and the announcement was meant to be made on 3rd April. The key decisions are: The repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) has been reduced by 75 basis points to 4.40%. The reverse repo rate under the LAF has been reduced by 90 basis to 4.00%. The marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate have been reduced to 4.65%.

Finance Minister announced Rs 1.70 Lakh Crore relief package under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) for the poor in view of coronavirus lock.

The United States Space Force has launched an Advanced Extremely High-Frequency satellite (AEHF-6) for its military communications. With the launch, the United States has begun its first National Security Mission. The Lock Heed Martin AEHF-6 (Advanced Extremely High Frequency) satellite was launched on the Atlas V551 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida to provide global protected communications. The Space Force was recently set up by President Trump to identify and develop new space defence technologies.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has set up a CII COVID Rehabilitation and Relief Fund (CRR) for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) to tackle Covid-19. The fund will assist small enterprises or MSME in rehabilitation and is expected to curtail the impact of Coronavirus on the MSME sector. CII will also request to all its members to contribute an amount from their Corporate social responsibility (CSR) allocation for the CII COVID Rehabilitation and Relief Fund (CRR).