Current affairs : January 17, 2017 for all competitive exams
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has arrived at a consensus on
contentious issues such as administrative control over tax payers in the new
indirect tax regime, thus paving the way for GST to be introduced this year,
although three months after the Centre’s original rollout deadline of April 1,
2017.
- The consensus was reached after the Centre agreed to
the demand of states to go in for horizontal split with regard to tax
payers based on annual turnover.
National Alliance against online Child sexual abuse and
exploitation
The Ministry of Women & Child Development is planning to form a
National Alliance against Online Child Sexual Abuse and
Exploitation.
- The alliance aims to develop a comprehensive
outreach system to engage parents, schools, communities, NGO partners and
local governments (PRIs and ULBs) as well as police and lawyers to ensure
better implementation of the legal framework, policies, national
strategies and standards in relation to child protection and child rights.
Financing Agreement with World Bank for US$ 48 Million
for “Nagaland Health Project”
A financing agreement for IDA credit of US$ 48 million for the ‘Nagaland
Health Project’ was recently signed between India and the World Bank. A Project
Agreement was also signed.
- The Objectives of the project are to improve health
services and increase their utilization by communities in targeted
locations in Nagaland.
Ministry of Earth Sciences Commissions Higher Resolution
Weather Prediction Model
To track severe cyclonic storms, such as Vardah, the Ministry of Earth Sciences
has commissioned a very high resolution (12 km) global deterministic weather
prediction model for generating operational weather forecasts.
- The model has been on trial since September 2016. It
has shown significant improvements in skill of daily weather forecasts.
Privacy concerns over data-sharing policy: Supreme Court
notices to WhatsApp, Facebook
The Supreme Court has issued notices to WhatsApp, Facebook and the Telecom
Regulatory Authority of India to explain their legal positions over privacy
concerns raised in a petition on the instant messaging application’s
data-sharing policy.
- It is alleged that privacy of citizens has been
infringed by the social networking sites, which amounted to infringment of
Articles 19 (Freedom of Speech and Expression) and 21 (Right to Life) of
the Constitution.
Kozhikode Corporation becomes
1st Elederly-friendly corporation in Kerala
Kozhikode Corporation was
declared as the first Elderly-Friendly Corporation in Kerala.
- The Kozhikode Corporationstate government has
planned to setup Senior citizen’s club, Day care centres as a part of
Vayomitram project for the welfare of the elder people in the state.
- As part of the elderly friendly status, the
Corporation has begun to collect basic details of all the senior citizens
in the city through its 543 Anganwa
India most trusted nation in terms of institutions:
Report
According to the 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer released recently, India has
emerged as the most trusted nation in terms of its institutions by general
population.
- The 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer is the firm’s 17th
annual trust and credibility survey. The survey was done by research firm
Edelman Intelligence and consisted of 25-minute online interviews
conducted.
- Among the 28 nations, India has emerged as the most
trusted nation in terms of institutions with 72% of the respondents from
general population feeling so. The country is followed by Indonesia,
China, Singapore and UAE.
The Indian government is the second most trusted after neighbouring China.
India slips to 92nd rank on global talent competitiveness
India has slipped 3 places to 92nd rank on the global index of talent
competitiveness that measures how countries grow, attract and retain talent, a
list topped by Switzerland. Last year, India came in at 89th on the index.
- The index was released by INSEAD Produced in
partnership with The Adecco Group and the Human Capital Leadership
Institute of Singapore (HCLI).
World Government Summit:
The fifth edition of the World Government Summit (WGS) will get underway
soon in UAE as yet another initiative to generate ideas for global governance.
- There will be 10 new developments in the upcoming
edition, held under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al
Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai,
from February 12-14 in Dubai.
- During the summit, the UN will discuss the potential
of achieving its sustainable development goals (SDGs), while the World
Bank will highlight the future of governments and education. For its part,
IMF will debate the future of blockchain. OECD will focus on the future of
innovation in governments.
Pakistan Navy Receives Two
Ships From China to Ensure Security along Gwadar Port
China has sold two naval
ships to Pakistan to protect the strategic Gwadar port and trade routes under
the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
- The ships named Hingol and Basol gets its name from nearby rivers in Pakistan.China will provide two more ships to Pakistan Navy named Dasht and Zhob after two districts in Balochistan.
Mysuru Printing Press Breaks
Record by Printing Highest No. of Currency Notes in a December 2016
The Bharatiya Reserve Bank
Note Mudran PvtLtd, a fully controlled subsidiary of RBI has set records in
currency note printing.The RBI Note Mudran printing press in Mysuru printing
highest number of currency notes in December 2016 breaking all its past record.
- It printed 10.9 million currency note in a day that
even broke the world record made an American currency printing press of
printing 8.7 million notes in a day.As per the data, 1350 million currency
notes were printed in December 2016 in Mysuru which employess 650 workers
who work for 12 hours in two shifts.
IMF cuts India's growth rate
to 6.6% due to Demonetization
The International Monetary
Fund (IMF) has cut India's growth forecast for the current fiscal by one
percentage point, citing demonetisation woes from 7.6% to 6.6%.
- It sees India ceding the tag of the world's fastest
growing major economy to China in FY17.
National award-winning
filmmaker Deepak Roy dead at 67
Deepak Roy, known for his
movie "Limit to Freedom" which won him a National award in 1996 under
the category of best investigative film, has passed away at the age of 67 after
suffering a cardiac arrest.
Valtteri Bottas replaces Nico
Rosberg at Mercedes and joins Lewis Hamilton
Valtteri Bottas has been
confirmed as Lewis Hamilton's new team-mate for the forthcoming Formula One
season after he was finally unveiled by Mercedes at their headquarters.
- Bottas, who replaces world champion Nico Rosberg following his shock decision to retire from the sport, had long been favorite for the vacant seat.
Sports Minister Vijay Goel
inaugurates Khelo India competitions
The Minister of State for
Youth Affairs and Sports Shri Vijay Goel inaugurated the Khelo India National
level Competitions on various sports for Under-14 and Under-17 children in New
Delhi.
- The competition has been organized by Sports Authority of India under aegis of Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in Swimming, Cycling and Wrestling.
