Current Affairs Daily Updates 19th January 2017
APPOINTMENTS
Bharti AXA General
appoints Sanjeev Srinivasan as MD & CEO:
- Bharti
AXA General (Joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and AXA) has
appointed Sanjeev Srinivasan as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and
Managing Director (MD).
- Earlier,
Srinivasan joined Bharti AXA General Insurance in August 2016 as Chief
Commercial and Principal Officer.
Former Italian Air Force officer elected President of the
European Parliament
- A former Italian Air Force officer Antonio Tajani has been elected the new president of the European Parliament.
- After
four rounds of voting Antonio Tajani was victorious, receiving 351 votes
and beating his fellow countryman Gianni Pittella who achieved a total of
202.
- Donald
Tusk is the President of European Council while Jean-Claude-Juncker is the
president of the European Commission.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
Priyanka bags second People's
Choice Award
- Indian
actress Priyanka Chopra has emerged winner of the favourite dramatic TV
actress trophy for her role in "Quantico" at the 2017 People's
Choice Awards.
- This
is the 34-year-old actress' second People's Choice win, having been named
the favourite actress in a new TV series last year.
- Priyanka
was not the only Indian-origin star to be feted at the ceremony. Lilly
Singh was named favourite YouTube star.
BANKING AFFAIRS
PNB, India Post Bank team
up:
- Punjab
National Bank and India Post Payments Bank have signed a memorandum
of understanding.
- PNB
will provide technology platform for pilot launch of IPPB on receipt of
regulatory nod from the Reserve Bank of India.
- IPPB
has been incorporated under the Department of Posts with 100 per cent
government equity.
30 More Countries to Join
Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank
- The
Foreign Ministry spokesperson of China, Hua Chunying on January 17, 2017
informed that thirty more countries have applied for joining the Asia
Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) besides 57 founding members.
BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC AFFAIRS
3rd Bengal Global Business
Summit to begin tomorrow
- The
3rd Bengal Global Business Summit will begin tomorrow at the Milan Mela
Prangan in Kolkata. The two-day summit will bring together policy makers,
corporate leaders from around the globe, delegations, academia, opinion
makers to explore business opportunities in West Bengal.
- Businessmen
from across India and more than 20 Countries are to participate in the
Summit. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is expected to release
the Export Strategy Paper for West Bengal, the New Township Policy, Design
Policy and Start-UP Policy.
- In
addition, many MoUs and Letters of Exchange cutting across sectors are
likely to be signed. President Pranab Mukherjee, West Bengal Governor
Keshri Nath Tripathi, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Ms. Mamata
Banerjee are lekely to attend the Inaugural Ceremony.
Indian economy projected
to grow by 7.7% in FY 2017: UN report
- The United Nations World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) 2017 report said India's economy is projected to grow by 7.7 per cent in fiscal year 2017 and 7.6 per cent in 2018, benefiting from strong private consumption.
- It
however cautioned that low capacity utilisation and stressed balance
sheets of banks and businesses will prevent a strong investment revival in
the short term.
- China's
growth on the other hand is projected to remain stable at 6.5 per cent for
fiscal years 2017 and 2018.
Only cash, deposits can be
declared under PMGKY:
- Undisclosed
income in assets such as jewellery, stock or immovable property or in
foreign bank accounts will not be accepted under the Pradhan Mantri Garib
Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY).
- The
Central Board of Direct Taxes on stated that only undisclosed income in
domestic bank accounts, post offices or stashed elsewhere will be accepted
under the scheme.
- Only
income represented in the form of cash or deposit in an account maintained
with specified entity can be declared.
ICICI Pru acquires 8.41% stake in Fino Paytech for Rs 100
crore
- ICICI
Prudential Life Insurance has acquired 8.41 per cent stake in Fino Paytech
Ltd (FPL) for a total consideration of Rs 100 crore.
- FPL
provides technology-based solutions and services related to financial
inclusion. Earlier this month, FPL was granted payment bank licence by the
RBI.
DEATHS
Veteran Actress Gita Sen
Passes Away
- Veteran film and stage actor Gita Sen, wife of film maker Mrinal Sen, died at her South Kolkata residence. She was 86.
- Sen
had acted in several films including Kolkata 71 (1971)
and Akaler Sandhane (1980).
- She
had also been part of the theatre movement.
Former Chhattisgarh
minister Tarun Prasad Chatterjee passes away:
- Senior
Congress leader and former state minister of Chhattisgarh, Tarun Prasad
Chatterjee (68-years) has passed away Raipur(Chhattisgarh)
- He
was elected as Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the first time
from Raipur (rural) constituency in 1980, 1990, 1993 and 1998.
- He
was the Public Works Department (PWD) minister between 2002 and 2003 in
Chhatisgarh government.
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
‘One China’ policy is
‘non-negotiable’ is China’s response to Trump
- The
suggestion of the newly elected American President Donald Trump that the
“One-China” policy is negotiable has been highly criticized by China.
Spokesman of China’s Foreign Ministry Lu Kang said that ‘One China’ policy
is non-negotiable.
- One
China Policy means that there exists only one “China” irrespective of the
fact that two government claim to be the real China . The two are People’s
Republic of China (PRC, Mainland China) and Republic of China (ROC,
Taiwan).
World witnesses hottest
year on record in 2016
- The
world witnessed the hottest year on record in 2016, surpassing the
exceptionally high temperatures of 2015, the UN weather agency said.
- The
globally average temperature in 2016 was about 1.1 degree Celsius higher
than the pre-industrial period, according to a consolidated analysis by
the World Meteorological Organization.
- According
to WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas, surging concentrations of carbon
dioxide and methane for human induced climate change and record breaking
average temperature rise in 2016.
Venezuela authorises new
currency notes, coins
- Venezuela's
President Nicolás Maduro authorised new banknotes ranging from 500 to
20,000 bolivars to deal with the soaring inflation in the country.
- He
also extended the deadline for exchanging 100 bolivar notes, formerly the
highest denomination in the country, for the third time until February 20.
- Notably,
inflation in Venezuela is expected to reach 1,600% this year.
NATIONAL AFFAIRS
- The
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between India and Serbia for
promoting cooperation in the field of Information Technology and
Electronics
- The
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Japanese Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on
November 11, 2016 at Tokyo, Japan for cooperation in the field of outer
space.
- India
and United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed a Memorandum of Understanding for
cooperation in the field of Small and Medium Enterprises and Innovation.
- The
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed between India and the
United Arab Emirates for Institutional Cooperation in Maritime Transport
for bilateral and multi-lateral benefit in sustainable trading activities.
- Union
Cabinet also approved the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India
and the United Arab Emirates on the Mutual Recognition of Certificates of
Competency.
- A
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between India and Vietnam in
the field of Cyber Security on September 3, 2016 at Hanoi
- The
MoU signed between India and Russia for cooperation in the field of Youth
Affairs
- The
Union Cabinet has approved the 12th Plan Proposal of the DARE/ICAR Plan
Scheme for the ‘Establishment of Indian Agricultural Research Institute
(lARI)- Jharkhand’.
- Gov
gave its ex-post facto approval for the Augmentation of the Corpus of
Credit Guarantee Trust Fund for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE), a
package set up for supporting Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs).
- PM
Modi approved amendment in the Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme
(M-SIPS) to attract investment in electronics manufacturing.
UDAN scheme set for take
off
- The
first flight is likely to take off next month under the government's
ambitious regional connectivity scheme- UDAN. The scheme UDAN (Ude Desh Ke
Aam Naagrik), seeks to boost regional air connectivity and provides
various incentives to airlines.
- The
fare for a one hour journey of approximately 500 kilometre on a fixed wing
aircraft or for a 30 minute journey on a helicopter will be capped at two
thousand 500 rupees under the scheme.
- The
scheme was launched in October last year, which seeks to provide
connectivity to un-served and under-served regions through revival of
existing air strips and airports. The Minister said, the scheme is likely
to give a major boost to tourism activities and employment generation in
hinterland.
Union HRD Minister
launches ‘ShaGun’ web-portal
- The
Union HRD Minister Shri Prakash Javadekar launched a dedicated web portal
‘ShaGun’ for the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan at New Delhi.
- ‘ShaGun’
aims to capture and showcase innovations and progress in Elementary
Education sector of India by continuous monitoring of the flagship scheme
- Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA).
- The
Union HRD Minister also unveiled the ‘Toolkit for Master Trainers in
Preparing Teachers for Inclusive Education for Children with Special
Needs’, which has been prepared by World Bank in collaboration with
Ministry of Human Resource Development.
Jaipur Literature Festival
begins today:
- Today,
the five-day Literature Festival has been inaugurated by the Chief
minister 'Vasundhara Raje' with poet Gulzar in the pink city,Jaipur (Rajasthan)
- Celebrated writers,
thinkers, journalists, historians, poets, novelists and musicians are
participating in the event.
- A
special session on Freedom to Dream will also be held where writers will
discuss their dreams and dreams of India.
Second Raisina Dialogue
held in New Delhi:
- The
second edition of Ministry of External Affairs’ annual Raisina Dialogue
was held in New Delhi with the theme 'The New Normal:
Multilateralism in a multipolar world'.
- The
flagship geo-political conference was inaugurated by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and was attended by delegates from 65 countries.
P Mukherjee to inaugurate
28th Dantan Gramin Mela in West Bengal:
- President
Pranab Mukherjee has inaugurated the 28th Dantan Gramin Mela in
West Midnapore district in West Bengal.
- He
is on a 4-day visit to West Bengal. The fair will display the rural
handicraft skills of the people of the region.
- The
different goods ranging from textile to terracotta will be on display.
Anandam Scheme Madhya
Pradesh to Help Poor People
- Madhya
Pradesh became the first State of the country to launch Aanandam programme
to help the needy persons.
- Under
it, government through volunteers will provide help to the needy and
economically sound citizens can donate items for the needy persons.
- This
initiative is of MP Government’s Happiness department, first of its kind
in India.
Bengaluru becomes the most dynamic city in the world
- Bengaluru has emerged as the most dynamic city in Jones Lang LaSalle's fourth annual City Momentum Index of cities around the world, followed by Ho Chi Minh City of Vietnam and Silicon Valley in the U.S.
- The
Index tracks the speed of change of a city's economy and commercial real
estate market.
- It
covers 134 major established and emerging business hubs.
- Top
10 cities in the JLL index are Bengaluru, Ho Chi Minh City, Silicon
Valley, Shanghai, Hyderabad, London, Austin, Hanoi, Boston and Nairobi.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY / DEFENCE AFFAIRS
Scientists names 3
diseases that could cause next global health emergency:
- Scientists
have named three relatively little-known diseases they think could cause
the next global health emergency.
- A
coalition of governments and charities has committed 460 million dollars
to speed up vaccine development for Mers, Lassa fever and Nipah
virus.
- They
are asking funders at the World Economic Forum Davos for another 500
million dollars.
Robot Journalist ‘Xiao Nan’
Writes Its First News Article
- A
first of its kind robot journalist named Xiao Nan on January 18, 2017 made
debut in the world of journalism by writing a 300-character-long article
in just a second.
- The
article written on the Spring Festival travel rush was published in the
Guangzhou-based Southern Metropolis Daily.
NASA Set to Explore Iron-Rich Asteroid 16 Psyche
- The
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has given its
approval to explore an iron-rich asteroid 16 Psyche as a part of its
mission to learn more about the history and composition of the celestial
body.
- Scientists
believe that 16 Psyche is one of the most mysterious objects in the solar
system at a distance of about 230 million miles (370 million km) away from
Earth and located in the large asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
SPORTS AFFAIRS
65-year-old sets record at
National Shooting Championship
- Nirmal
Yadav, a 65-year-old woman shooter from Delhi, set a record at the
recently-concluded National Shooting Championship in Pune.
- She
shot 341/400 in the Veteran Women's 10-metre Air Pistol event to claim the
national record in the category.
- Nirmal,
wife of a former Major General, started shooting two years back and has
won gold at a national championship last year.
