Current Affairs Daily Updates 2nd January 2017
APPOINTMENTS:
Indian origin man
appointed as Major General in Kyrgyzstan:
- Sheikh Rafik Mohammed, a Keralite, was appointed
Major General by Kyrgyzstan Defence Minister Ali
Mirza.
- This is the first time a
Keralite has been included in top military leadership of a foreign
country.
- Rafik worked as an adviser to
the former President Kurmanbek Saliyevich Bakiyev (2005-2010).
Archana Nigam is new
Controller General of Accounts
- The Centre has appointed Archana
Nigam as the next Controller General of Accounts in the Finance Ministry.
- Prior to this appointment, Nigam
was involved in the critical task of setting up of the accounting
framework for the GST regime to be launched by Government in next
financial year.
- Nigam, who assumed charge as CGA
on 2 January 2017, has been appointed in the place of M.J.Joseph, who has
superannuated on 31 December 2016.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
Shraddha, Ghyansham Kumar
Devansh chosen for 2016 Bharatiya Jananpith Navlekhan award
- Two new Hindi writers Shraddha
and Ghyansham Kumar Devansh have been chosen for Bharatiya Jnanpith
Navlekhan Award for the year 2016, the literary organisation announced .
- The decision to confer the award
on Shraddha for her short story, 'Hawa Mein Phadphadati Chitthi' and on
Devansh for his poem 'Akash Mein Deh' was taken unanimously by a selection
panel chaired by eminent poet Vishnu Nagar.
NHPC CMD honoured at 10th
ENERTIA Awards 2016
- State-run National Hydroelectric
Power Corporation (NHPC) Chairman and Managing Director K M Singh
has been conferred the 'Power & Energy Persona's Award for
Individual Excellence' at the 10th ENERTIA Awards 2016.
- India and South Asia's awards
for excellence in sustainable energy and power.
- Singh received the award from
Former Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Upendra Tripathy.
BANKING NEWS
Govt permits 12 PSU banks
to raise Rs 3,000 crore from market:
- The Finance Ministry granted
approval to 12 proposals of PSBs to raise a sum of Rs
2,914.038 crore through preferential allotment and permission
given to raise Rs 200 crore by United Bank of India through QIP mode.
- The government had already
infused a sum of Rs 25,000 crore in 19 PSBs during FY 2015-16.
RBI extends period of
enhanced Prepaid Payment Instruments limit
- The Reserve Bank of India has
extended the period of enhancedPrepaid Payment Instruments (PPI)
limit of Rs 20,000 as part of efforts to promote digital
payments.
- Bank has decided to extend the
measures till the completion of review of the PPI guidelines.
- RBI had introduced additional
measures by way of special dispensation for small merchants and
enhancement in limits for semi-closed PPIs.
- The merchants can transfer funds
from such PPIs to their own linked bank accounts up to Rs 50,000 per
month, without any limit per transaction.
- Now , 47 non-bank
entities and 45 banks are operating payment
systems for PPI.
BUSINESS AND ECONOMY NEWS
NRIs can exchange defunct
notes up to June 30: RBI
- Resident Indian citizens who
were abroad from November 9 to December 30 during Demonetization can avail
exchange facility up to March 31, 2017
- NRI citizens, who were abroad
during this period, can exchange their defunct notes up to June
30, 2017.
Mother Dairy unveils
Aadhar-enabled payment
- To promote cash less
transactions, Mother Dairy Fruit & Vegetable Pvt. Ltd. introduced
Aadhar-Enabled Payment System (AEPS) in more than 1,000 milk
booths and ‘Safal’ retail stores.
- This service would now be
available in addition to the existing modes like e-wallets and
SmartChange Cards.
- The service was commissioned in
association with CSC e-Governance Service India Ltd. under the aegis of
Department of Electronics and Information Technology (Deity).
DEATHS
Bambi artist Tyrus Wong
passes away
- A Chinese immigrant Tyrus
Wong (106-year) has passed away.
- Mr. Wong best
known for his sketches for the Walt Disney animated feature "Bambi".
- After studying as an artist, he
began working with Disney in 1938 as an inbetweener.
Pakistan first Test team
member Imtiaz passes away
- A member of Pakistan's first-ever
cricket Test team Imtiaz Ahmed (88-year) has passed away
in a Lahore(Pakistan).
- He featured in Pakistan's first
Test played in Delhi against India inOctober 1952 and went on
to play 41 matches as a wicket keeper-batsman.
- Batsman Waqar Hasan is
now the only surviving member of Pakistan's first Test team.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
India’s Petronet Signs MoU
to Set Up $950 Mn LNG Project in Bangladesh:
- India's largest LNG
importer Petronet has signed an agreement to set up a $950 million
liquefied natural gas import project in Bangladesh.
- Petronet signed a MoU with with
Petrobangla to set up a 7.5 million tonnes a year project to receive and
regasify LNG on Kutubdia Island in Cox's Bazar and lay a 26-km pipline to
connect it to the consumption markets.
Russia delivers Sukhoi
jets to China:
- Russia has finally
delivered four Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets to China after a
delay of two years.
- The Su-35 is an advanced version
of the Su-30s operated by the Indian Air Force. The delivery was
reportedly made on December 25.
NATIONAL NEWS
India's 1st transgender
school opens in Kerala
- India's first transgender
school, Sahaj International, was inaugurated in Kochi (Kerala)
- The alternative learning centre,
which works in collaboration with the National Institute of Open
Learning, will help the transgenders who dropped out of school
to appear in Class X and XII examinations.
- The school is headed by six
transgenders and a woman and has 10 students.
Chhattisgarh hosts
Digi-Dhan Mela today in Raipur
- Chhattisgarh is hosting a
Digi-Dhan Mela in Raipur. It is the first in a series of such
fairs to be organised in the next fortnight to promote digital
modes of payment.
- State government is taking
various measures to promote digital payments. In the Digidhan fairs being
organised in the state from today, users of digital payment mode like,
Ru-pay Card, USSD, UPI and AEPS will be given prizes through lucky draw.
26 crore accounts open
under Jan Dhan Yojana across country:
- Over 26 crore
accounts have been opened under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan
Yojana across the country now.
- The Scheme was launched by the
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August, 2014 with the objective of
covering all households with at least one bank account.
Centre launches mobile app
for Haj applications:
- Minister of State for Minority
Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has launched mobile app 'Haj Committee
of India', which will provide information and facilitate
e-payments for Haj pilgrimage.
- It is for the first time that
Haj application process is going to be digital.
- The mobile app will be available
on Google Play store from Monday.
World famous 11-day gala
festival Bargarh Dhanua Jatra to begin today:
- The World famous gala
festival Bargarh Dhanua Jatra has begun in Odisha.
- All rituals were performed
before Goddess Samaleswari, the presiding deity of the event.
- It is the annual drama-based
open air theatrical performance celebrated in and around Bargarh city and
is considered to be the world’s largest open air theatrical festival.
BHIM becomes most popular
Android app in India:
- Govt's online payments app, BHIM
is now the number one free app on Google Play Store. The app
was launched on Friday by PM Modi to simplify digital payments.
- The app, with a rating of 4.2,
has been downloaded more than 1 million times.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
India successfully
test-fires intercontinental ballistic missile Agni-IV:
- India has successfully
test-fired its home-grown long range intercontinental surface-to-surface
nuclear capable ballistic missile Agni-IV from the Abdul Kalam
Wheeler Island off Odisha coast.
- Agni-IV test is aimed at
re-validating new technologies incorporated in Agni-IV system and checking
the readiness of armed forces to launch the missile on its own.
- Agni-IV is the 20 metres
long and weighs 17 tonnes and carry a one-tonne nuclear warhead
over a distance of 4,000 kilometre.
- The missile also possesses a
submarine launch capability.
Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani
dedicated India’s first laser technology-based advanced AVMS RTO check-post:
- Gujarat chief minister Vijay
Rupani dedicated India's first laser technology -based advanced
AVMS RTO check-post at Shamlaji of Aravalli district.
- The check-post is equipped with
advanced ray technology with a cost of Rs 4.72 crore. Along with this
programme, Rupani also laid foundation stones of various developmental
works worth Rs 30 crore in tribal area of Aravalli district.
SPORTS
Sivalingam Sathish Kumar
of Railways clinches gold for sixth time:
- Rio Olympian Sathish
Sivalingam from Railways won the gold, for the sixth consecutive
year, in the men's 77 kg category in the69th men's and 32nd women's
Senior National Weightlifting Championship, at the Ponjesly College of
Engineering.
- Sivalingam Sathish lifted a
total of 317 kg (141 (snatch) and 176 (clean & Jerk)) while Ajay Singh
from Services won the gold in the clean & jerk category by lifting 177
kg and 137 kg in the snatch category and finished second with a total of
314 kg.
Rafael Nadal wins Mubadala
Tennis Championships 2016 in Abu Dhabi:
- Rafael Nadal defeated Belgian David
Goffin 6-4, 7-6 to win the Mubadala World Tennis Championships.
- Rafeal Nadal, 30, trailed at 1-3
in the first set but regained advantage over Goffin, who overcame world
No.1 Andy Murray in the semi-finals.
India's premier Tennis
tournament Chennai Open begins
- Today, India's premier tennis
event Chennai Open, begins and this year in the singles event, three
Indians (Saketh Myneni, Ramkumar Ramanathan and Yuki
Bhambri) are in the main draw.
- Saketh and Ramkumar were
handed wild card entry and Yuki qualified for the singles
main draw after registering a straight sets 6-3, 6-1 win over
Argentine Nicolas Kicker.
- In the first round Saketh will
be playing against seventh seed Russian Mikhail Youzhny.
- In the doubles main draw,
besides 3rd seeded Leander Paes along with his Brazilian
partner Andre Sa, 4 Indian pairs are also competing.
Supreme Court sacks Anurag
Thakur, Ajay Shirke from BCCI
- The Supreme Court has sacked
BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke and asked all
others, who were disqualified to hold posts under new court
mandated norms, to step down.
- The court also issued contempt
notices to Thakur and Shirke. A board of administrators will be
named soon to take charge of the BCCI.
- SC has appointed Fali Nariman
and senior SC lawyer Gopal Subramanium as Amicus Curiae to find out who
would be the BCCI officials.
Karjakin pips Magnus
Carlsen to win World Blitz Chess Championship
- Russia's Sergey Karjakin pipped
Norway's Magnus Carlsen on the basis of a better tiebreak record to win
the World Blitz Chess Championship title in Doha, Qatar
- Karjakin, who lost his Classical
Chess World Championship match to Carlsen last month, ended at par with
Carlsen, but was awarded the title for having better individual results
between the two.
