·       The Czech Republic gained a new government on  Nov 8 after two party coalitions that garnered a sizeable chunk of votes in the country's parliamentary election last month signed a power-sharing deal.

·       A three-party, liberal-conservative coalition dubbed Together, composed of the Civic Democratic Party, Christian Democrats and the TOP 09 party, led the election with a 27.8% share of the vote.

·       Together teamed up with a center-left liberal coalition made up of the Pirate Party and STAN - a group of mayors - which came in third place with 15.6% of votes.

·      The new partnership will hold a 108-seat majority in the the 200-seat lower house of Parliament, relegating outgoing populist Prime Minister Andrej Babis and his centrist ANO (YES) movement to the opposition.

·       India is now ahead of China in financial inclusion metrics, as the number of persons with deposit accounts at banks has significantly increased, comparable with emerging economy peers and even some of the advanced economies, says a latest report by the SBI Ecowrap.

·       According to the report, written by Soumya Kanti Ghosh, group chief economic adviser at State Bank of India (SBI), online banking transactions rose to 13,615 per 1,000 adults in 2020 from 183 in 2015 and the number of bank branches inched up to 14.7 per 1 lakh adults in 2020 from 13.6 in 2015, which is higher than Germany, China and South Africa.

·       The SBI report also added that during the past seven years of the financial inclusion drive, the number of no-frills bank accounts opened has reached 43.7 crore with Rs 1.46 lakh crore in deposits as of October 20, 2021.

·       Of these, nearly two-thirds are operational in rural and semi-urban areas and over 78% of these accounts are with state-owned banks, 18.2% with regional rural banks, and a paltry 3% are opened by private sector banks.

·       During this period, the number of bank branches in rural areas has increased from 33,378 in March 2010 to 55,073 in December 2020. The number of banking outlets in villages and banking correspondents (BCs) has soared from 34,174 in March 2010 to 12.4 lakh in December 2020.

·       During this period, the number of commercial bank branches per one lakh adults rose from 13.5 to 14.7. The number of deposit accounts with banks rose from 1,536 to 2,031, the number of loan accounts from 154 to 267, and the number of mobile and internet banking transactions rose from 183 to 13,615. The RBI in January 2016 allowed the business correspondent model of branchless banking.

·       Meanwhile, the finance ministry has said that the number of PM Jan Dhan accounts have trebled to 43.76 crore over the last 6 years. In March 2015, there were 14.72 crore such accounts. The ministry also informed that  31.67 crore reupay debit cards with inbuilt accident insurance coverage issued to Jan dhan account holders till October 21. 

·       The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has given a go-ahead to Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) acquiring debt securities issued by Infrastructure investment Trusts (InvITs) and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).

·       Earlier, the government had made an announcement in the Union Budget 2021-22 that debt financing of InvITs and REITs by FPIs would be enabled by making suitable amendments in the relevant legislations.

·       In order to facilitate this, necessary amendments to Foreign Exchange Management (Debt Instruments) Regulations, 2019 have been made.

·       Investments by FPIs in debt papers of InvITs and REITs can be made under the Medium-Term Framework (MTF) or the Voluntary Retention Route (VRR). Such investments will be subjected to limits and the terms and conditions for investments by Foreign Portfolio Investors in debt securities under the respective regulations of MTF and VRR.

·       Domestic air passenger traffic grew by a whopping 67 per cent year-on-year at around 87-88 lakh in October, on the back of festive season demand amid continuous fall in the number of COVID-19 infection cases, says an ICRA report.

·       According to credit ratings agency ICRA, domestic passenger volume in October 2020 was at 52.71 lakh. The growth in domestic passenger traffic, on a sequential basis, was nearly 24-25 per cent higher compared to 71 lakh, as per ICRA.

·       Moreover, domestic carriers operated 46 per cent more flights at 72,000 during the month under review over 49,150 departures logged in October 2020, ICRA said, adding, on a sequential basis, the number of departures in October 2021 were higher by around 18 per cent, as COVID-19 infections demonstrated a downward trajectory.

·       The much-anticipated India-Pakistan match at the ongoing T20 World Cup clocked a record reach of 167 million viewers, making it the most viewed T20 International till date, the official broadcaster of the event claimed.

·       The T20 World Cup registered a cumulative reach of 238 million till last week which included the Qualifiers and first 12 games of Super 12 stage, Star India said in a release.

·       The 2016 T20 World Cup semifinal between India and West Indies was the previous highest watched T20 game, with a reach of 136 million viewers.

·       India and Pakistan opened their campaign against each other on October 24 with the Men in Green outplaying their arch-rivals to register a 10-wicket win.

·       While Pakistan have advanced to the semifinals, India exited the tournament.

·       Indian Premier League side Royal Challengers Bangalore on November 9, 2021, elevated its batting consultant Sanjay Bangar to the post of head coach for the next two years.

·       Bangar, who was appointed as the side's batting consultant in February, will be taking over the reins from Mike Hesson.

·       Hesson, who remains with the team in his existing role as Director of Cricket Operations, had donned the additional hat of head coach for the second leg of the IPL in UAE after Australian Simon Katich stepped down due to personal reasons.

·       Bangar comes with vast experience having served as the batting coach of the Indian men's senior team for five years from 2014 when Ravi Shastri took over as team director.

·       He continued in the role till the 2019 World Cup before being replaced by Vikram Rathour.

·       The 49-year-old, who represented India in 12 Tests and 15 ODIs between 2001 and 2004, will have his work cut out with the IPL mega auctions scheduled ahead of the new season.

·       Young Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi came up with an impressive performance to finish third in the Lindores Abbey Blitz tournament, organised to mark the 85th birth anniversary of legendary chess player Mikhail Tal.

·       The Indian GM scored 9.5 points out of 10 games, crushing along the way the likes of Levon Aronian, David Howell and Rauf Mamedov with 2-0 margins, and convincingly beating American ace Fabiano Caruana in the first game of their match.

·       However, towards the final rounds, it was Ukrainian GM Kirill Shevchenko who took the spotlight, delivering a 2-0 blow to the Indian in their direct duel.

·       England and Wales Cricket Board Chief Executive Tom Harrison has flown to Pakistan to meet PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja in a bid to mend relations which were damaged by the cancellation of last month's tour.

·       According to sources in the PCB, besides meeting Raja, Harrison is also due to call Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad before he flies out to Dubai for the final of the T20 World Cup and the ICC Executive Board meeting on November 17.

·       The England men's team was set to tour Pakistan in October for the first time since 2005, while their women have never played in that country.

·       Harrison's decision to come to Pakistan comes on the heels of the announcement by Cricket Australia that it will be touring Pakistan early next year.

·       Australia's confirmation to send its team to Pakistan had come just days after the West Indies board also announced it would be touring Pakistan in December for a white ball series.