Daily Current affairs - September 21st, 2017 for all competitive exams
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the proposal of the
Ministry of Home Affairs for extension of time period of the Scheme “Special
Industry Initiative for J&K” (Sll J&K)- Udaan till 31st December, 2018
without any modification and cost escalation. Initially the time period of
Udaan was upto 2016-17.
- Udaan provides exposure to the youth of J&K to
the best of corporate India and corporate India to the rich talent pool
available in the State.
- So far, 109 leading Corporate have partnered with
National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under UDAAN with a
commitment to train youth from the State covering Organized Retail,
Banking, Financial Services, IT, ITES, Infrastructure, Hospitality etc.
‘BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise- 2017’
The First ‘BIMSTEC Disaster
Management Exercise- 2017’ (BIMSTEC DMEx-2017) will be conducted by the
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) as the lead agency from October 10-13, 2017 in Delhi and the National Capital
Region (NCR). This Exercise will be a platform for sharing Best Practices on
all aspects of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), strengthening regional response
and coordination for Disaster Management among the BIMSTEC member countries.
- The main focus of the BIMSTEC DMEx-2017 will be on
testing the region’s preparedness and resilience towards effective
activation of inter-Governmental interaction/dialogue/agreements for
immediate deployment of regional resources for disaster response.
- It will help create synergy and synchronize efforts
to institutionalize regional cooperation among the member countries.
- The BIMSTEC region is home to around 1.5 billion
people, constituting around 22% of the global population with a combined
GDP of US $2.7 trillion economy.
Cabinet approves Revamped Khelo India Programme
The Union Cabinet has approved the revamped Khelo India programme at a cost
of Rs.1,756 crore for the period 2017-18 to 2019-20.
- This marks a watershed moment in the history of
Indian sports, as the Programme aims at mainstreaming sport as a tool
for individual development, community development, economic development
and national development.
- The revamped Khelo India Programme would impact the
entire sports ecosystem, including infrastructure, community sports,
talent identification, coaching for excellence, competition structure and
sports economy.
Cabinet approves
Rationalization/Merger of the Government of India Press (GIPs) and their
modernization
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has
given its for rationalization/merger and modernization of 17 Government of
India Presses (GIPs)/Units into 5 Government of India Presses (GIPs) at
Rashtrapati Bhavan, Minto Road and Mayapuri, New Delhi; Nashik, Maharashtra and
Temple Street, Kolkata, West Bengal.
- These 5 Presses will be redeveloped and modernised
by monetisation of their surplus land. Land measuring 468.08 acres of the
other merged Presses will be given to Land & Development Office,
Ministry of Urban Development.
Swachhta Pakhwada observed in
Ministry of Coal from 16th August 2017 to 31st August 2017
Ministry of Coal, along with its attached offices and PSUs under the
administrative control of Ministry observed the Swachhta Pakwada during the
fortnight from 16th August 2017 to 31st August 2017.
- The Pakhwada was formally launched on Independence
Day, 15th August 2017 by carrying out special activities to mark the
beginning of Swachhta Pakhwada.
- The highlight of the Pakhwada was large scale tree
plantation program that included fruit bearing, timber, medicinal plants
with the provision for maintenance and watering of plants for one year.
More than 5 lakh samplings were planted in the fortnight.
New rule on out-of-turn
hearings
On September 20, Chief
Justice of India Dipak Misra barred senior advocates from make any such urgent
mention before his Bench.
- The constitutional courts designate a lawyer as
senior advocate in recognition of his or her superior professional
abilities.
- At present, Every morning, the Supreme Court Bench
led by the Chief Justice of India gives leeway to lawyers who appear in
cases that require an urgent hearing. Lawyers must convince the top judge,
very briefly, that without an urgent hearing, the rights, even the
fundamental rights, of their clients may suffer a grievous harm.
- So, in keeping with the Supreme Court’s long
tradition as a people’s court, the Chief Justices have allowed lawyers to
“mention” cases for an early or out-of-turn hearing. The court uses its
discretion to allow or dismiss the plea.
A ‘Boat Lab’ to study Brahmaputra
The Centre plans to safeguard the fast-eroding Majuli island — Asia’s
largest riverine island — using research carried out on floating ‘B4’ boat labs
along the Brahmaputra river.
- ‘B4’ – the ‘Brahmaputra Biodiversity and Biology
Boat’, work on which will commence by December, will initially
cover the region from Pasighat, Dibrigargh, Neemati, Tejpur and Guwahati
in the state of Assam, said officials at the Department of Biotechnology.
The department has set aside Rs. 50 crore as an initial investment on the
project.
Gorkhaland Territorial
Administration (GTA) reconstituted by West Bengal government
West Bengal govt.
reconstituted the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) and appointed
rebel Gorkha Janmukti Morcha ( GJM) leader Binoy Tamang as its chairperson.
- It is a significant move that may impact the ongoing
agitation in the Darjeeling hills.
- The GTA is a regional autonomous body set up after a
tripartite agreement among the Centre, the State and the GJM in 2011.
- GJM president Bimal Gurung was elected its chief
executive in 2012, but he and other office-bearers resigned on June 23,
2017 when the agitation for a separate Gorkhaland State gained momentum in
the hills.
Punjab okays crop loan waiver scheme
The Punjab government has given its nod to notify the crop loan waiver
scheme announced by Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh in the State Assembly
earlier in June this year. The state Cabinet in its meeting has decided that
besides taking over the entire eligible loan amount of the farmers covered by
the debt waiver scheme, the government would also take over the outstanding
interest from April 1, 2017, till the date of notification.
- The notification envisages that in case of marginal
farmer (less than 2.5 acres) the entire eligible amount of those farmers
who have total outstanding crop loan liability up to Rs. 2 lakh shall be provided as debt relief and in case
of eligible amount of more than Rs. 2 lakh, only Rs. 2
lakh shall be provided as debt relief.
- In case of small farmers (from 2.5 acres to less
than 5 acres), the entire eligible amount of those farmers who have total
outstanding crop loan liability up to Rs. 2 lakh, shall be
provided as debt relief. The scheme will directly benefit nearly 10.25
lakh farmers across the State.
India’s stand on Paris deal
India reaffirmed its
commitment to the landmark Paris climate change agreement, saying it was
willing to “work above and beyond” the pact to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- During a UN ‘Leadership Summit on Environment Pact’,
India had been at the forefront of the debate on environment and
development.
- Her remarks came amid uncertainty over the U.S. role
in the deal after President Donald Trump in June announced that America
was withdrawing from the Paris deal, arguing that it gave undue advantage
to countries like India and China.
ONGC discovers oil in Arabian
sea
State-owned Oil and Natural
Gas Corp. (ONGC) has made a significant oil discovery to the west of its prime
Mumbai High fields in the Arabian sea.
- The discovery in the well WO-24-3 is estimated to
hold an in-place reserve of about 20 million tones.
- Mumbai High, India’s biggest oil field, currently
produces 205,000 barrels of oil per day (just over 10 million tonnes per
annum) and the new find would add to that production in less than two
years time.
- ONGC is carrying out a further appraisal of the
discovery and has intimated upstream regulator Directorate General of
Hydrocarbons.
India joins quantum computing race
Keen to tap into the next big advance in computing technology, the
Department of Science and Technology (DST) is planning to fund a project to
develop quantum computers.
- First proposed in the 1970s, quantum computing
relies on quantum physics by taking advantage of certain quantum physics
properties of atoms or nuclei that allow them to work together as quantum
bits, or qubits, to be the computer’s processor and memory. By interacting
with each other while being isolated from the external environment, qubits
can perform certain calculations exponentially faster than conventional
computers.
- A quantum computer, still largely a theoretical
entity, employs the principles of quantum mechanics to store information
in ‘qubits’ instead of the typical ‘bits’ of 1 and 0.
- Qubits work faster because of the way such circuits
are designed, and their promise is that they can do intensive
number-crunching tasks much more efficiently than the fastest comparable
computers.
$700-billion defence bill
passed by Senate
The U.S. Senate has
overwhelmingly approved the nearly $700-billion defence spending bill for 2018.
- It seeks to develop a strategy for Indo-U.S. defence
cooperation and asks Pakistan to take action against terror outfits like
the Haqqani network and the Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Hasina proposes ‘safe zones’
for Rohingya
Bangladesh’s Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina called upon members states of the Organisation of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC) to take a united stand to resolve the Rohingya issue “before
it is too late” and placed a set of proposals.
- The proposals, placed at the OIC Contact Group at
the United Nations headquarters, included a call for an immediate end to
atrocities against Rohingya Muslims, the creation of ‘safe zones’ in
Myanmar for the protection of civilians and an immediate and unconditional
implementation of the recommendations put forward by the Kofi Annan
Commission.
50 nations ink UN nuclear ban treaty opposed by big
powers
Fifty countries recently signed a treaty to ban nuclear weapons, a pact
that the world’s nuclear powers spurned but supporters hailed as a historic
agreement nonetheless.
- In July 2017, the United Nations adopted the Treaty
on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which bans and makes it illegal to
possess, use, produce, transfer, acquire, stockpile or deploy nuclear
weapons. This was the culmination of 10 years of preparation by many
national and international organizations.
- The treaty prohibits a full range of nuclear-weapon
related activities, such as undertaking to develop, test, produce,
manufacture, acquire, possess or stockpile nuclear weapons or other
nuclear explosive devices, as well as the use or threat of use of these
weapons.
Underwater ‘city’ built by
octopuses
Scientists have discovered
Octlantis — an underwater site built entirely by octopuses, where they
communicate with each other by posturing, chasing or colour changes.
- Researchers from the University of Illinois in the
U.S. found the site in the waters off the east coast of Australia, that is
the home of up to 15 gloomy octopuses. It is the second gloomy octopus
settlement found in the area, and the discovery lends credence to the idea
that octopuses are not necessarily loners.
- The first gloomy octopus site was found in Jervis
Bay off the east coast of Australia in 2009. The new site is located just
a few hundred meters away from the first site, and has been dubbed
Octlantis.
Peer-to-peer lending platforms to be treated as NBFCs
After a year or more of due-diligence, the RBI has notified that
peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms need to be regulated and treated on par
with non-banking financial companies (NBFCs). In a notification, the RBI has
pressed the need for regulation of this segment, which is fairly nascent in
India with only 10-12 small players.
- While the final guidelines are still awaited, P2P
lending platforms such as LenDen Club, Faircent, Qbera, Lendbox, Rupaiya
Exchange and Monexo are a relieved lot. The players, had themselves, been
asking the apex bank for regulations that would help bring credibility and
trust into the business.
- P2P lending is a form of crowd-funding used to raise
loans which are paid back with interest. It can be defined as the use of
an online platform that matches lenders with borrowers in order to provide
unsecured loans. The borrower can either be an individual or a legal
person requiring a loan.
Dr. Mahesh Sharma releases the
book “Bhartiya Kala Mein Salil Kridayen Evam Sadyahsnata Nayika”
Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (Independent charge) for Culture
released the book entitled “Bhartiya Kala Mein Salil Kridayen Evam Sadyahsnata
Nayika” authored by Dr. Kshetrapal Gangwar and Shri Sanjib Kumar Singh at a
function in National Museum.
- This is an Art Book based on original research,
written in Hindi and published by National Museum after few decades. Shri
Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Minister of State (Independent charge) for Labour
and Employment presided over the function.
DiCaprio declares $20 mn deal
for green grants
Hollywood star Leonardo
DiCaprio has awarded $20 million in grants through his environmental
foundation.
- The actor, who founded The Leonardo DiCaprio
Foundation, announced that the sum is to be spread across over 100
organisations committed to environmental sustainability.
BCCI recommends Padma Bhushan to Dhoni
M.S. Dhoni has been
recommended by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the Padma
Bhushan, the country’s third highest civilian honour.
- Apart from the Padma Shri, Dhoni has received the Arjuna Award and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna.
