Current Affairs in Short: 19 April 2022

Narayan Das Narang, Telugu Film Producer passes away

• Veteran Film Producer Narayan Das Narang passed away at the age of 76. He breathed his last in Hyderabad on April 19, 2022.
• The film producer reportedly bankrolled more than 600 movies, including Sai Pallavi and Naga Chaitanya’s ‘Love Story’ and Naga Shaurya’s Lakshya.
• The funeral took place at 4 PM at Mahaprasthanam on April 19 where several south stars paid their last respects and offer their condolences to the late producer’s family.
• The news of Narayan Das Narang’s demise was confirmed by the Indian film critic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh.

Smriti Handa appointed as Bharat Pe’s CHRO

• Fintech Company BharatPe has appointed Smriti Handa as the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO).
• In her new role, Handa will work closely with the senior leadership team and will also focus on strengthening the organisational culture and HR practices in the company.
• Smriti Handa had previously worked with Philips, Reckitt, and Airtel, in global and local roles. Before joining BharatPe, she was HR Head, Reckitt Hygiene- SoA.
• Smriti Handa on her new role said that her immediate focus will be on creating purpose-led leadership and a performance-driven culture in the company.

Supreme Court reconstitutes expert committee for Delhi-Dehradun Corridor Project

• The Supreme Court has reconstituted an expert committee for monitoring the compensatory afforestation in Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor Project.
• The National Green Tribunal had earlier appointed an independent 12-member expert committee headed by the Chief Secretary- Uttarakhand.
• The chairperson of the latest committee will be the Director-General Forests, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change.
• The Supreme Court has also directed to include additional members in the Committee- Vijay Dhamsana and Anil Prakash Joshi.

President of European Commission to visit India on April 24-25

• The President of the European Commission Ursula Von Der Leyen will visit India on April 24-25, 2022.
• The Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement that it will be her first visit to India as the President of the European Commission.
• During her visit, Ursula Von Der Leyen will hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Modi and will also meet President Ram Nath Kovind and other dignitaries.
• The President of the EU has been invited as the Chief Guest for this year’s edition of the Raisina Dialogue. She will address the inaugural session on April 25.

Government extends insurance scheme for health workers for another 180 days

• The insurance scheme by the Central Government for the health workers who have been fighting the COVID pandemic has been extended for another 180 days.
• The Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package has been extended so as to continue to provide the safety net to the dependents of the health workers who are deputed to take care of COVID patients.
• The insurance scheme was launched on March 30, 2020, to provide comprehensive personal accident cover of Rs. 50 lakh to 22.12 lakh healthcare providers, including private health workers and community health workers.