Daily Current affairs - October 13th, 2017 for all competitive exams
The International Day for Disaster Reduction was observed across the world on 13 October. The theme for 2017 IDDR is ‘Home Safe Home: Reducing Exposure, Reducing Displacement’.
- The 2017 campaign aims to raise global awareness about effective actions, policies and practices taken to reduce exposure to disaster risk at the community level, thereby contributing to saving homes and livelihoods.
Arun Jaitley Attends G-20 Finance Ministers Meeting
The Union Minister for Finance Arun Jaitley participated in the G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) Meeting in Washington D.C.
- The discussion focused on the agenda items pertaining to Global Economy and Framework for Growth, Compact with Africa and International Financial Architecture.
Calamities displace 23 lakh every year in India
According to the study, ‘A Global Disaster Displacement Risk Model’, conducted by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre of the Norwegian Refugee Council and the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), calamities displace 23 lakh people every year in India.
- India ranks the highest among the world’s most disaster-prone countries for displacement of residents, with 23 lakh, on average, uprooted due to calamities such as floods, cyclones and earthquakes. Rise in homelessness will continue, according to the report.
- The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), created in December 1999, is the successor to the secretariat of the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction.
SC allows mop-up counselling
The Supreme Court has revised its earlier order refusing to extend the deadline for filling vacant seats in medical super-speciality courses.
- In a separate order, SC directed the Director General of Health Services (DGHS) to hold mop-up counseling to fill 553 vacant medical super-specialty seats within next 10 days.
- DGHS should decide the date of counselling and the scheduled time, giving adequate time for the candidates to attend.
- The information should be duly publicised for five days continuously in national newspapers and also put up on the DGHS and Medical Council of India websites at the earliest. The joining period post the counselling should not exceed four days.
- The extension of the deadline is only applicable for the present academic year
India 100th on global hunger index
Global Hunger Index for the year 2017 has been released.
- The report is released by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
- The hunger index ranks countries based on undernourishment, child mortality, child wasting (low weight for height) and child stunting (low height for age).
- The GHI ranks countries on a 100-point scale. Zero is the best score (no hunger), and 100 is the worst, although neither of these extremes is reached in practice.
- India has a “serious” hunger problem and ranks 100th out of 119 countries on the global hunger index. India stood at 97th position in last year’s rankings.
“Sankalp Se Siddhi” programme launched in Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Thursday launched the “Sankalp Se Siddhi” programme for the State.
- A brainchild of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, “Sankalp se Siddhi” (Attainment through Resolve) is a five-year plan that aims at good governance under the New India Movement 2017-2022.
U.S., Israel quit UNESCO
The U.S. has announced its withdrawal from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), accusing it of “continuing anti-Israel bias.” Besides the US, Israel has also decided to pull out of UNESCO.
- As required by law, the U.S. has stopped funding UNESCO. The U.S. withdrawal will take effect on December 31, 2018. Until then, it will remain a full member.
Russia puts Crimea on new bank note
Russia presented a new bank note that shows images of Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Moscow in 2014.
- The note worth 200 rubles ($3.5) shows a naval memorial in the city of Sevastopol, where Russia's Black Sea fleet is based, and UNESCO-protected Greek and Roman ruins.
El Nino caused record CO2 spike in 2015-16: NASA
Scientists have found that the impact of the 2015-16 El Nino-related heat and drought occurring in tropical regions of South America, Africa and Indonesia was responsible for the largest annual increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration seen in at least 2,000 years.
- The findings are based on analysis of the first 28 months of data from NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) satellite.
- In 2015 and 2016, OCO-2 recorded atmospheric carbon dioxide increases that were 50% larger than the average increase seen in recent years preceding these observations.
Amazon, Microsoft Ties up to Launch Deep Learning Platform
Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft have teamed up to launch an open-source and deep learning interface 'Gluon' that will help developers to deploy machine learning models across several platforms.
- The interface would give developers a place where they can prototype, build, train and deploy machine learning models.
Mastercard Launched its First Innovation Centre in India
US-based fintech company Mastercard has announced the launch of its global research and development arm Mastercard Labs in Pune, India.
- After Singapore, this will be the second Mastercard Labs in Asia-Pacific, and ninth in the world. The initiative aims to bring and harness new commerce, payment and technology ideas at a fast pace in the country.
Yuvraj Singh Named Laureus’ First Indian Ambassador
Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh was announced as the Laureus' first Brand Ambassador.
- The left-hander becomes Laureus' first Indian ambassador and joins a host of cricket legends in the Laureus Family, including Indian Academy members Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Kapil Dev.
Gautam Bambawale Appointed as India's Ambassador to China
Gautam Bambawale was appointed as India's new Ambassador to China. Bambawale is an Indian Foreign Service Officer of the 1984 batch.
- He will succeed Vijay Gokhale. He is currently serving as India’s High Commissioner to Pakistan.
India Beat Macau to Qualify for 2019 AFC Asian Cup
Indian football team has qualified for the 2019 Asian Cup after they had a convincing 4-1 win over Macau with two matches still to go in the qualifying round. This is the third time the country has qualified for the continental showpiece.
- India has qualified for the AFC Asian Cup finals only twice in the past 37 years. The last time it happened was in 2011 and their only appearance before that was way back in 1984.
Staubli set to create history
Esther Staubli is set to become the first female referee to officiate a match at the FIFA U-17 World Cup.
- According to a FIFA release, Staubli is one of seven women referees invited to this World Cup.
New Test Championship, ODI League Gets ICC’s Nod
The International Cricket Council Board has given an in-principle nod to the proposed nine-team Test Championship and a 13-team One-Day International league at the end of the meeting in Auckland.
- The Test competition will begin after the 2019 World Cup and the 50-over event sometime in 2020. The Test Championship will have nine teams play six series over two years – three at home and three away.
Arjen Robben Retires from International Football
Netherlands captain Arjen Robben announced the end of his international career after his country failed to reach the 2018 World Cup finals despite a 2-0 win over Sweden.
- The 33-year-old Robben scored 37 times in 96 appearances for The Netherlands and helped them reach the 2010 World Cup final where they lost 1-0 to Spain after extra-time.
