Daily Current affairs - August 24th, 2017 for all competitive exams
The Union Cabinet has approved a proposal for setting up of a Commission under article
340 of the Constitution to examine the issue of sub-categorization of the Other
Backward Classes (OBCs).
The Commission shall submit its report within 12 weeks from the date of
appointment of the Chairperson of the Commission. The Commission shall be known
as the Commission to examine the sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes.
The proposed terms of references of the Commission are as follows:
- To examine the extent of inequitable distribution of
benefits of reservation among
the castes/ communities included in the broad category of OBCs, with
reference to the OBCs included in the Central list.
- To work out the mechanism, criteria, norms and
parameters, in a scientific approach, for sub-categorization within such OBCs.
- To take up the exercise of identifying the respective castes/communities/
sub-castes/ synonyms in the Central List of OBCs and classifying them into
their respective sub-categories.
Creamy Layer Ceiling Raised to
Rs 8 LPA
The government has hiked the
ceiling for the creamy layer from Rs. 6 lakh per annum to Rs. 8 lakh per
annum for central government jobs, according to the Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley. In the OBC category, those earning up to Rs. 8 lakh per annum will get
reservation benefits.
- The Cabinet also approved a commission to examine
sub-categorization of OBCs. The better-educated member of Other Backward
Classes who cannot avail government-sponsored educational and job benefits
are called the creamy layer.
New Central Sector Scheme – “Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada
Yojana”
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister
Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the renaming of the new Central Sector Scheme –
SAMPADA (Scheme for Agro-Marine Processing and Development of Agro-Processing
Clusters) as “Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY) “ for the period of 2016-20 coterminous with the 14th Finance
Commission cycle.
- The objective of PMKSY is to supplement
agriculture, modernize processing and decrease Agri-Waste.
- PMKSY with an allocation of Rs. 6,000 crore is
expected to leverage investment of Rs. 31,400 crore, handling of 334 lakh
MT agro-produce valuing Rs. 1,04,125 crore, benefit 20 lakh farmers and
generate 5,30,500 direct/ indirect employment in the country by the year
2019-20.
- The implementation of PMKSY will result in creation
of modern infrastructure with efficient supply chain management from farm
gate to retail outlet.
Modi breaks protocol to meet
Deuba
Nepal Prime Minister Sher
Bahadur Deuba, who arrived india on August 23, asserted Kathmandu’s role in
regional affairs, and committed himself to the new democratic Constitution of
his country.
- Though the official visit will begin only on August
24, Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke protocol and held a formal meeting
with Mr. Deuba in the evening.
- The new Constitution of Nepal has been in the middle
of protracted bilateral diplomatic tension as India has been demanding
amendments to the document to ensure greater role for the Madhesi population.
- Mr. Deuba’s visit comes in the backdrop of the
India-China standoff at Doklam. There had been reports earlier that Nepal
is under pressure from New Delhi and Beijing to take sides in the
standoff.
MoU between India and Nepal on Drug Demand Reduction and
Prevention of Illicit Trafficking
The Union Cabinet has given its approval for signing of a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) between India and Nepal on Drug Demand Reduction and
Prevention of Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances
and precursor chemicals and related matters.
- The MoU lists out the areas of cooperation on drug
matters between the two countries. It also indicates the mechanism of
information exchange and the competent authorities in the two countries
who are responsible for the implementation of the MoU and exchange of any
information.
- Cooperation on drug matters is expected to curb the
illicit traffic of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursor
chemicals in the two countries.
SC: liquor sale ban does not
extend to municipal areas
The Supreme Court has
clarified that its nationwide ban on sale of liquor within a distance of 500
metres along National and State Highways does not extend to municipal areas.
- The court explained that the December 15, 2016 ban
on liquor sale only extends along and in proximity to highways which
provide connectivity between cities, towns and villages.
Naveen launches rooftop solar
project
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen
Patnaik launched a grid-connected rooftop solar programme through net-metering
system.
- Grid-connected solar systems are best options for
adding renewable solar capacity through people’s participation. These
centralised systems also have the ability to strengthen the grid.
- Under the programme, consumers can install small
solar plants on their rooftops and consume the generated solar power
during daytime. Excess power if any can be exported to the grid at
220V/440V level through their service cables.
A new Bridge over Mechi River at Indo-Nepal border
The Union Cabinet has approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to be
signed between India and Nepal for laying down implementation arrangement on
Cost sharing, Schedules and Safeguard issues for starting construction of a new Bridge over Mechi
River at Indo-Nepal border.
- The estimated cost of construction of the bridge is
Rs. 158.65 crore, which would be funded by Government of India through ADB
loan.
- The new bridge is part of up-gradation of the
Kakarvitta (Nepal) to Panitanki Bypass (India) on NH 327B covering a
length of 1500 meters.
- Mechi Bridge is the ending point of Asian Highway 02
in India leading to Nepal and
provides critical connectivity to Nepal.
- The Mechi River is a trans-boundary river
flowing through Nepal and India. It is a
tributary of the Mahananda River. The Mechi originates in
the Mahabharat Range in Nepal.
Microsoft launches ‘Project Brainwave’ for real-time AI
Software giant Microsoft has announced its Project Brainwave deep learning acceleration platform for real-time artificial
intelligence (AI).
- The ‘Project Brainwave’ uses the massive
field-programmable gate array (FPGA) infrastructure that Microsoft has
been deploying over the past few years.
- With the help of ultra-low latency, the system
processes requests as fast as it receives them.
YouTube has removed Syria
videos
In an effort to purge
extremist propaganda from its platform, YouTube has inadvertently removed
thousands of videos that could be used to document atrocities in Syria,
potentially jeopardising future war crimes prosecutions, observers and rights
advocates say.
- An unspecified number of individual videos and some
YouTube channels were deleted in recent weeks after the company put in
place new technology to automatically flag and remove content that
potentially breached its guidelines. Some videos were reinstated after
their creators alerted YouTube.
- The new technology applies “machine learning” to
identify and prioritise extremist videos for review.
- The system was designed to identify videos posted by
extremists groups, especially the Islamic State and its sympathisers, but
any content from Syria and conflict zones where extremists operate risks
being caught in YouTube’s net.
Moss serves as a cheap pollution monitor
As per the latest research by scientists from Japan, delicate mosses found on
rocks and trees in cities around the world can be used to measure the impact of
atmospheric change and could prove a low-cost way to
monitor urban pollution.
- Researchers found that moss- the “bioindicator”-
responds to pollution or drought-stress by changing shape, density or
disappearing, allowing scientists to calculate atmospheric alterations.
Approval for Public Sector Banks to amalgamate through an
Alternative Mechanism (AM)
The Union Cabinet has given in-principle approval for Public Sector Banks
to amalgamate through an Alternative Mechanism (AM). The decision would
facilitate consolidation among the Nationalised Banks to create strong and
competitive banks.
- The decision regarding creating strong and
competitive banks would be solely based on commercial considerations.
- The proposal must start from the Boards of Banks.
- The proposals received from Banks for in-principle
approval to formulate schemes of amalgamation shall be placed before the
Alternative Mechanism (AM).
- After in-principle approval, the Banks will take
steps in accordance with law and SEBI’s requirements.
- The final scheme will be notified by Central
Government in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India.
Wayne Rooney calls time on
England career
Former England captain Wayne
Rooney announced his retirement from international football, ending a 14-year
career in which he became the country’s top goalscorer with 53 goals.
Rooney Performance:
- Debut: vs. Australia in 2003 aged 17 years and
111 days
- Caps: 119. England’s most-capped outfield
player
- Goals: 53. Most by an England player
