Current Affairs Daily Updates: 3rd May 2017

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Current Affairs Daily Updates: 3rd May 2017
APPOINTMENTS
Cyient Appoints Former US Ambassador To Board
  • Cyient Limited has appointed former US Ambassador Vinai Thummalapally to its Board of Directors. Ambassador Thummalapally will also serve on the Board’s Leadership, Nomination & Remuneration and Diversity & Inclusion committees.
Mallikarjun Kharge appointed as Chairman of Public Accounts Committee
  • Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of Congress in Lok Sabha, on 2 May 2017 was appointed as the Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the Parliament.
  • Kharge replaces his party's K.V. Thomas whose term has ended recently.
  • Apart from Kharge, the PAC has 14 members from Lok Sabha and seven from Rajya Sabha.
  • The members of the PAC from the Lok Sabha are Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Subhash Chandra Baheria, Prem Singh Chandumajra, Nishikant Dubey, Gajanan Chandrakant Kirtikar, Bhartruhari Mahtab, Riti Pathak, Neiphiu Rio, Abhishek Singh, Ram Shanker, Kirit Somaiya, Anurag Singh Thakur, Shivkumar C Udasi and P. Venugopal.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
Padma Venkataraman gets Avvaiyar award
  • The Tamil Nadu chief minister ‘K Palaniswami’ honored ‘Padma Venkataraman’ (daughter of former President of India, the late R Venkataraman) with the state’s Avvaiyar Award 2017.
  • She has been honoured for her efforts in the areas of women’s welfare and rehabilitation of leprosy-affected persons for the past 30 years.
  • The award carried a cheque for Rs. one lakh, a gold medal weighing 8 gm, and a certificate.
  • Last year, the award was conferred to M Sarada Menon founder of Schizophrenia Care and research Foundation (SCARF) for the welfare of mentally challenged.
Sunil Chhetri wins Hero of I-League 2016-17 Award
  • Bengaluru FC striker Sunil Chhetri on 2 May 2017 won the coveted Hero of the League 2016-17 Award.
  • Chhetri won the most number of votes cast by coaches and captains of the 10 teams, which took part in the I-League. The striker had scored seven goals for fourth-place finishers Bengaluru FC.
  • On the other hand, Khalid Jamil, who guided Aizawl FC to a historic title win, was chosen as the Coach of the Year. He was honoured with the Syed Abdul Rahim Best Coach Award.
Rajive Kaul Gets Diplomatic Service Award From South Korea
  • Chairman of Nicco group and past president of CII Rajive Kaul was conferred with the Order of Diplomatic Service Merit Sungnye Medal of the Republic of Korea for his services rendered as honorary consul general of South Korea in Kolkata.
  • The award was conferred by the acting President and Prime Minister of South Korea Hwang Kyo-ahn at a programme in New Delhi.
The 44th Annual Daytime EMMY AWARDS 2017 announced
  • The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) has announced the winners of the 44th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards held in California, USA.
  • The NATAS is a professional service organization dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of television and the promotion of creative leadership for artistic, educational and technical achievements within the television industry.
  • Here is the list of winners-
    • OUTSTANDING MORNING PROGRAM- Good Morning America (ABC)
    • OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES- Steve Burton, The Young and the Restless (CBS)
    • OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES- Kate Mansi, Days of Our Lives (CBS)
    • OUTSTANDING GAME SHOW- Jeopardy
    • OUTSTANDING INFORMATIVE TALK SHOW- The Dr. Oz Show (SYNDICATED)
    • OUTSTANDING ENTERTAINMENT NEWS PROGRAM- Entertainment Tonight (CBS)
    • OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES- General Hospital (ABC)
    • OUTSTANDING CULINARY PROGRAM- Eat the World with Emeril Lagasse (Amazon).
BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC AFFAIRS
AIIB approves $160 million loans for power project in Andhra Pradesh
  • The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has approved $ 160 million loans for a power project in Andhra Pradesh.
  • It is the first credit from the bank for an Indian project.
  • It has been approved the project with the objective to strengthen the power transmission and distribution system in Andhra Pradesh.
$770 billion Worth of Black Money entered into India during 2005-2014: GFI
  • US-based think tank Global Financial Integrity (GFI) in its report titled ‘Illicit Financial Flows to and from Developing Countries: 2005-2014’, has estimated that $770 billion worth of black money entered India during 2005-2014.
  • During the same time period, the think tank estimates the exit of $165 billion in illicit money out of the country. It translates into 3% of India’s total trade of $5500.744 billion between the time period 2005-2014.
  • This is the first global study that has placed equal emphasis on illicit outflows and inflows. As per the report, in 2014 alone, $101 billion black money entered India while USD 23 billion exited.
  • The report has suggested that the governments should set up public registries of verified beneficial ownership information on all legal entities to check the menace of black money. It has also asked all the banks to check for the true beneficial owner of any account.
DEATHS
Ex-Minister Bijit Saikia Passes Away
  • Former Assam Minister Bijit Saikia of the Congress died in a private nursing home. He was 75.
  • He was elected to the state Assembly from Tezpur constituency and held various positions in Congress.
IMPORTANT DAYS OBSERVED
World Press Freedom Day' being observed today
  • The ‘World Press Freedom Day’ is observed on 3rd May every year across the world to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression enshrined under Article 19 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  • The theme of the year 2017 is ‘Critical Minds for Critical Times: Media’s role in advancing peaceful, just and inclusive societies’.
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
World’s Highest Railway Bridge to Come up Over Chenab River
  • World’s highest railway bridge which will be 35 metres taller than the Eiffel Tower is to come up over the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir at a cost of around Rs. 1,100 crore in around two years from now.
  • The bridge will connect Bakkal (Katra) and Kauri (Srinagar). The bridge will be a part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link project. Once completed, the bridge will be an engineering marvel.
  • The project is expected to be completed by 2019. After completion of the bridge it will surpass the record of the Beipan river Shuibai railway bridge (275 m) in China.
  • The bridge is expected to contribute to the economic development of the state and improve its accessibility. The new railway bridge will be of an arch-shaped structure in hostile terrain.
  • It will be constructed using over 24,000 tonnes of steel and will rise 359 m above the river bed.
  • Steel has been chosen as the construction material as it would be cheap and would be able to resist temperatures of -20 degrees Celsius and wind speeds of above 250 kmph. The design of the bridge will be such that it will be able to withstand wind speed of up to 260 kmph.
China to Launch its Own Encyclopaedia as a Rival to Wikipedia
  • China plans to launch its own online encyclopaedia next year rivalling Wikipedia and Britain’s Encyclopaedia Britannica. The main objective of this project is to guide public thought.
  • China fears that its citizens who use Wikipedia are being corrupted by foreign influences. The project will be executed under the guidance of the state-owned China Publishing Group.
  • The project would be developed in such a way that it serves as a symbol of China’s cultural and technological development and promotes its soft power and international influence.
  • Unlike the Chinese version of Wikipedia, Baidu Baike which are written by volunteers, the new project will rope in the professionals for content creation.
  • For the compilation of the project, nearly 20,000 scholars and academics have been tasked to create more than 300,000 entries before its 2018 launch. The new project will be based on a previously printed version published in 1993.
  • The second edition was released in 2009. The new project will be released online before publishing the printed version.
NATIONAL AFFAIRS
UN report says India expected to achieve 7.1% growth this year
  • According to a UN report, the economic growth for India is projected to be stable at 7.1% in 2017 before edging up to 7.5% in 2018.
  • The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific(ESCAP) has launched its annual flagship report 'The Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2017'.
Govt. to set up Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra at Rajghat
  • The union government will set up ‘Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra’ under Swachh Bharat Mission at Rajghat in New Delhi.
  • Under the mission, around four crore individual toilets have been created.
  • 14 thousand crore rupees have earmarked for Swachh Bharat Mission in this year budget.
4th National Standards Conclave held in New Delhi
  • Department of Commerce, Government of India in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and the National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB) has organized the 4th National Standards Conclave on 1-2 May 2017 at New Delhi.
  • The objective of the two-day Conclave was to bring awareness and prepare Industries, Central Government Ministries, State Governments, regulatory/standards-setting and conformity assessment bodies on the growing importance of “Standards” in the changing scenario of global trade.
Madhya Pradesh becomes 1st state to shift to January to December financial year
  • Madhya Pradesh has become the first Indian state to switch to the January-December financial year from existing April-March cycle.
  • A decision to this effect has been taken at the state cabinet meeting in Bhopal.
  • This will break a 150-year old tradition of adopting the financial year from April to March.
Assam govt. to provide Rs 5000 each to divyangs for their development
  • The Assam government will provide Rs 5000 each to five lakh 'divyangs' for their development.
  • As per the 2011 census, there are 68 thousand divyangs in the state.
  • According to the Deputy Director of Social Welfare department Naba Kumar Tamuli,a survey is being conducted to know the exact number of divyangs in the state.
PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Patanjali Research Institute in Haridwar
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 3 May 2017 inaugurated Patanjali Research Institute at Haridwar, Uttarakhand.
  • Patanjali Research Institute was established with an aim to globally establish the Vedic knowledge of Ayurveda of ancient India's saints and sages.
  • Yoga Guru Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved Ltd has managed to secure a place for itself in India as well as in abroad. Patanjali is a fast growing Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) whose net sales for the financial year 2015-16 stood at Rs 5000 crore.
  • The company now aims to win over multinational firms manufacturing consumer products in the near future.
Odisha’s Sualgiri, Swalgiri Communities Notified as Scheduled Castes
  • Sualgiri and Swalgiri communities of Odisha have been notified as Scheduled Castes after President Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order (Amendment) Act, 2017.
  • Last month, Rajya Sabha had passed the bill after it was cleared by the Lok Sabha in March. Accordingly, the Sualgiri, Swalgiri communities have been notified as Scheduled Castes in the modified list for Odisha.
  • Similarly, the Constitution (Pondicherry) Scheduled Castes Order, 1964 has replaced the term Union Territory of Pondicherry to Puducherry.
Six Months After Note Ban, Telangana Tops In Digital Transactions
  • Nearly six months after the government announced its demonetisation drive, the southern states of Telangana, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh lead the country in digital transactions.
  • Data from the IT ministry shows Telangana clocking 5900 e-transactions per 1000 people, with Kerala and Andhra Pradesh registering 4300 and 4100 respectively.
India to Launch New IIP Series with 2011-12 Base Year On May 9
  • India will unveil a new series of Index of Industrial Production with a base year 2011-12 on May 9 with an aim to map economic activities more accurately.
  • The new series for Index of Industrial Production (IIP), which captures industrial activities on monthly basis, will be launched by Chief Statistician and MOSPI Secretary TCA Anant.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY / DEFENCE AFFAIRS
Indian army successfully test fires Block-III version of BrahMos cruise missile
  • Indian Army (IA) has successfully test-fired an advanced (Block-III) version of the BrahMos land-attack cruise missile from a mobile autonomous launcher (MAL)in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
  • This was the fourth successive successful launch of the missile.
  • The test firing of the missile demonstrated the weapon's unmatched lethality of hitting the center of a designated target with bull's eye precision.
  • The missile can be launched from land, sea, sub-seas, and air.
SPORTS AFFAIRS
India Slips To No. 4 In T20 Rankings
  • India has lost six points to slip to fourth position in the latest ICC T20I team rankings.
  • The Virat Kohli-led team is now on 118 points, three behind Pakistan, which has joined second-placed England after gaining five points but is ranked behind the latter by a fraction of a point. New Zealand is on top with 125 points.