New Delhi: State Bank of India has waived service charges for all ATM transactions made on SBI ATMs as well as other bank ATMs. This will be applicable till June 30. The announcement made on the SBI's official website said, "In view of the announcement made by Finance Minister on 24th March, State Bank of India has decided to waive ATM charges for all ATM transactions made on SBI ATMs and other bank ATMs on account of exceeding the free number of transactions up to 30th June."

It is worth mentioning that on March 24, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that no charges will be levied on bank customers on cash withdrawal made from any other bank's ATMs for three months i.e. up to June 30. Debit cardholders can withdraw cash from any other banks for free. The decision was taken by the Finance Minister in view of the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The country's largest lender SBI offers eight free transactions to regular savings bank account holders, including five transactions at SBI ATMs and three at other bank ATMs.

In non-metros, such account holders get 10 free transactions, including five at SBI ATMs and five at others. Thereafter, it charges Rs 20 plus GST per financial transaction and Rs 8 plus GST for the non-financial transactions as mentioned on the bank's website.

Tata Power bags Edison Award for social innovation. The company bags the awards for its 'Club Enerji #Switchoff2SwitchOn' campaign. It has brought about 533 participating schools across India, saving over 29.8 million units of power since its inception in 2007.

Tata Power is India's largest integrated power company and has an installed capacity of 10,763 megawatts together with its subsidiaries and jointly controlled entities.

What is Edison Award?

The Edison Awards honours the world's best innovations and innovators. It is to honour excellence in new product and service development, marketing, design and innovation. The award winners represent products and services, leadership and excellence in innovation around four criteria: Concept, Value, Delivery, and Impact. It is established in 1987 in the memory of Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931).

Digital payments major Paytm on Wednesday said it has named Vineet Arora as the managing director and chief executive officer of Paytm General Insurance Ltd.

The appointment, which is subject to regulatory approvals, is a step for Paytm to further its journey into the insurance sector with an immediate focus on General Insurance, the company said in a statement.

Arora will lead the efforts to provide industry-leading solutions in the general insurance space, where Paytm continues to explore options to enter the sector, it added.

"The financial service solutions that Paytm is building for millions in India are relevant globally as well. With Paytm leading the way I believe just like payments, the general insurance industry would also go through a major transformation going forward," Arora said.

Modi thanked the people for following the lockdown and says the sacrifices made by Indians in the last 21 days like disciplined soldiers have helped control the spread of coronavirus in India. He says that India made timely interventions and this has prevented a situation prevalent in many developed countries.

The day coincides with the 130 birth anniversary of renaissance leader BR Ambedkar, with many leaders expecting the prime minister to speak on the occasion, besides the Centre's plan to battle the deadly COVID-19. There have been indications that the shutdown could be extended till April-end with certain relaxations to boost economic activities.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation at 10 am on 14th April 2020," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. With most states favoring the lockdown to be extended at least by two weeks beyond April 14, the government is broadly focusing on a two-pronged action plan — containing the spread of COVID-19 in the country and staggered resumption of economic activities.

14 April 2020 Current Affairs:World Chagas Disease Day is observed on 14 April every year. The day aims to raise the visibility and public awareness of people with Chagas Disease and the resources needed for the prevention, control or elimination of the disease.

Chagas disease:
Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis. The disease is common in places where the triatomine bug transmits the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. These places include South America, Central America, and Mexico.
Symptoms: The disease can cause swelling and fever. It can be long-lasting. If the disease is left untreated, it can cause congestive heart failure.
Treatment: Chagas disease can be treated by taking medication that kills the parasite and on managing symptoms.

Minister for Human Resource Development Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has launched a web-portal YUKTI (Young India Combating COVID with Knowledge, Technology and Innovation) in New Delhi today. The portal and dashboard will monitor and record the efforts and initiatives of Ministry of HRD. It intends to cover different dimensions of COVID-19 challenges in a holistic and comprehensive way.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Nishank said, in the wake of COVID-19 threat, the primary aim is to keep the academic community healthy, both physically and mentally and to enable a continuous high-quality learning environment. The portal is an effort of HRD Ministry to achieve this goal in these difficult times.

The Minister informed that it will cover the various initiatives and efforts of the institutions in academics, research especially related to COVID, social initiatives and measures taken for the betterment of the total well being of the students. The portal will cover both qualitative and quantitative parameters for effective delivery of services to the academic community at large. 

World Bank has praised the Aarogya Setu app launched by India to curb the Covid-19 pandemic. Citing example of the app, a World Bank report said innovative solutions can greatly help educate and track contagion across the populations at large. South Economic Focus report of the world Bank said that digital technology can also be used to monitor the spread of Covid-19. It said India recently launched Aarogya Setu app that uses location data from persons' smartphones to tell users if they have been near someone who tested positive for Covid-19.

Global tech majors Apple and Google said on Saturday that they are building a software into smartphones that will help in contact tracing and inform users whether they were in touch with Covid-19 infected persons.

Amid the nationwide lockdown, University Grants Commission (UGC) has constituted a committee to promote online learning. UGC Chairman DP Singh said it has also formed a committee to look after the examinations and academic calendar in the present circumstances. He said under the lockdown situation, it is essential to think about how the prescribed syllabus can be completed, what type of examination system would be followed. He said, on the basis of the committee's recommendations, which will be submitted next week,

UGC will issue guidelines for universities in consultation with Union HRD Ministry. He said to maintain social distancing, online learning and e-education is the only way out. UGC Chairman said online education is need of the hour for students, teachers and education system as a whole

Jana Small Finance Bank, a scheduled commercial bank, has launched DIGIGEN, a digital banking platform where customers can digitally open a savings account and fixed deposit instantly.

DIGIGEN onboarding is a hassle-free, three-step process to open an account. DIGIGEN also offers a host of other features, including online bill payment, instant money transfer and airport lounge access on debit card, to name a few. All a new customer requires to do is fill her/his minimum details and provide Aadhaar and PAN number as KYC, to open a DIGIGEN account.

Speaking on the launch, Ajay Kanwal, MD and CEO of Jana Small Finance Bank, said, “One does not require to be tech-savvy to open a DIGIGEN account, as we have made the platform simple and user friendly. Customers will get real ‘paise ki kadar’ when they choose the full feature zero balance saving account giving them 4.5 per cent p.a. and/ or a digital FD with 7.5 per cent p.a. interest.”