Current affairs : April 5th, 2017 for all competitive exams
National Maritime
Day:
54th National Maritime Day was
observed on April 5th. It was first celebrated on April 5, 1964.
- In India, April 5 is marked as the National Maritime
Day commemorating the first voyage of the SS Loyalty, the first ship of
Scindia Steam Navigation Company towards United Kingdom on this day in
1919.
India has
become part of IEA Association that will allow the country play a more “visible and influential”
role in the global energy landscape. This does not cast any
additional obligation on India, however, gives an opportunity
for the country to become the voice of the developing countries.
- India’s
engagement with the International Energy Agency (IEA) has enhanced over
the last two decades and the “Association” status would facilitate it to
participate in meetings of the standing groups, committees and
working groups that constitute the IEA governance
structure.
- The
“Activation of Association” is expected to serve as a bridge and platform
for wider-ranging and deeper co-operation and collaboration between IEA
member and Association countries in the future.
National conference on Communicating India to be
organized
A day-long national conference on Communicating
India will be organized in New Delhi which will be inaugurated by
Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore.
- Telling
the India's story to the world, Communicating via Journalism and Dialogue
with Diaspora are three main themes which are outlined for the
conference.
BS-IV Grade Fuel launched by Central Government
after BS-III ban
Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State (I/C) for
Petroleum and Natural Gas officially launched the low emission Bharat
stage (BS)-IV Grade fuel in Bhubaneswar.
- The
launch was made on the special occasion of Utkal Diwas which is
the foundation day of Odisha.
- The launch was made in 12 cities of India. They were Varanasi, Vijayawada, Durgapur, Gorakhpur, Imphal, Bhopal, Ranchi, Madurai, Nagpur, Patna, Guwahati and Shillong.
CAG
to audit UN Secretariat in New York
The
Comptroller and Auditor General of India will audit the UN Secretariat in New
York, a job which till now was the exclusive domain of developed countries.
- The CAG
is the external auditor of several UN organisations and India’s Shashi
Kant Sharma is the Chairman of the UN Board of Auditors.
- The General
Assembly established the United Nations Board of Auditors (Board) in 1946
as an important mechanism to promote accountability and transparency in
the United Nations.
New
tree-living crab species found in Kerala:
Scientists
have discovered a new species of long legged, tree-dwelling crabs in Western Ghats of Kerala.
- This
is the first report of its kind to offer a record of an arboreal crab — a species
that lives in trees.
- The
new species named Kani maranjandu after the Kani tribe in
Kerala, are substantially different from other congeners.
Jhargram becomes 22nd Bengal district
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee declared Jhargram
as the 22nd district of West Bengal.
- Jhargram has been formed by bifurcating West Midnapore, which has a population of more than 11.37 lakh. Mamta Banerjee announced a budget of Rs 200 crore for the development of Jhargram.
Padayani
Dance celebrated in Kerala
Padayani festival was recently celebrated in Kerala.
- Padayani
is a traditional folk dance and a ritual art from the
central portion of the Indian state of Kerala. A ceremonial dance involving
masks, it is an ancient ritual performed in Bhagavati
temples.
- Padayani
was performed by magico-medicine men of Kerala to heal
the illnesses not amenable to medical modalities of intervention. It is believed that it is evolved from a symbolic past
reminiscent of fencing march of martial art Kalari.
Berhampur Thakurani Yatra fetival begins in Odisha
The famous Berhampur Thakurani Yatra, one of the
biggest festivals of southern Odisha, has been celebrated with pomp and gaiety.
- Nearly a month-long festival celebrates the journey of the deity Maa Budhi Thakurani.
WTO sets up panel to resolve steel dispute with
India, Japan
The WTO’s dispute settlement set up a panel to
resolve the dispute between Japan and India over imposition of
safeguard import duty on iron and steel products.
- Japan in December 2016 dragged India to the WTO against
certain measures taken by New Delhi on imports of iron and steel products.
- Japan, which is the second largest steel producer in the world, had alleged that duties imposed on steel imports by India violates WTO trade norms.
Myanmar
joins ADB’s South Asia economic body
Myanmar has
formally become a full member of South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation
(SASEC) programme of Asian Development Bank (ADB) being the seventh country to join the group.
- Myanmar’s
membership in SASEC can offer a host of opportunities for realising
synergies from economic cooperation in the sub-region.
- Myanmar is the key to realising greater connectivity and stronger trade and economic relations between SASEC sub-region and the countries of East and Southeast Asia.
Doctors
artwork finds place in Guinness Book
A fingerprint painting, created
by a group of Indian doctors as a symbolic representation to end frequent
attacks against the fraternity, has found place in the Guinness Book of World
Records as the world’s largest such artwork.
- Titled “Ray of Hope“, measuring 469.75 m, the painting was made up of 15 lakh finger impressions of doctors from different parts of the country, collected over a period of four months.
ICICI, Axis Bank sell Rs 1800 crore Ballarpur loans
to Edelweiss
ICICI Bank and Axis Bank sold
Rs.1,800 crore of loans to paper maker Ballarpur Industries Ltd to Edelweiss
Asset Reconstruction Company.
- It is the first time that loans have been sold to an asset reconstruction firm. Axis Bank sold loans of Rs.1,200 crore and ICICI Bank sold loans of Rs.600 crore.
Amazon.in launches ‘Classroom’ for new sellers
To make on-boarding easy for new sellers, Amazon
India has launched an initiative called 'Amazon Classroom', a virtual training
program to help teach them the nuances of online selling.
- The
program focusses on areas such as order processing, adding products and
managing returns that are required to operate a successful online
business.
Geetha Johri- Gujarat's first woman Police Chief
A 1982 batch Indian Police Service
(IPS) Geetha Johri has been appointed as the first woman Director
General of Police (DGP) of Gujarat.
- She has replaced P P Pandey, who resigned recently. Johri is posted at the State Police Housing Corporation in Gandhinagar.
Gionee India ties up with RCB for IPL 10
Handset maker Gionee India announced its
association with the ‘Royal Challengers Bangalore’, as their presenting
sponsors for the tenth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
- Gionee is already the principal sponsor of the Kolkata Franchise — ‘Kolkata Knight Riders’. Gionee has become the first brand ever to sponsor front jerseys of two IPL teams in the same edition and will have its logo feature on the front jersey of both the teams.
Indian Cricketer MS Dhoni named CEO of Gulf Oil for
1 day
The former Indian cricket team skipper MS Dhoni
became an acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Gulf Oil India just for
a day.
- He took charge of Gulf Oil India at the Mumbai head
office. Mahendra Singh Dhoni was also named as the brand ambassador for
Gulf Oil in the year 2011.
