Daily Current affairs - November 2nd, 2017 for all competitive exams
Cabinet gave its approval for introduction of a Bill in Parliament which will amend the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) Act, 1993, namely the National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Act, 2017.
- The NCTE Act, 1993 enacted by Parliament aims to achieve planned and coordinated development of teacher education system, regulation and ensure proper maintenance of norms and standards in said system.
- The amendment will ensure that students studying in these Institutions/Universities, or already passed out from here, find employment as teacher.
- The amendment will grant retrospective recognition to all such Central/State/Universities which were found to be conducting teacher education courses without NCTE permission.
Cabinet approves agreement on cooperation and mutual assistance between India and Armenia in custom matters
This agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the second month after both parties notify each other in through diplomatic channels, that the necessary national legal requirements for entry into force of this agreement have been fulfilled.
- The agreement will further help in the availability of relevant information for the prevention and investigation of customs offences.
- It is also expected to facilitate trade and ensure efficient clearance of goods traded between both the countries.
CCEA nod for extending Rs 15,722cr RKVY-RAFTAAR till 2019-20
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) cleared the continuation of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) as Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana – Remunerative Approaches for Agriculture and Allied sector Rejuvenation (RKVY-RAFTAAR) for three years till 2019-20.
- It is aimed at making farming a remunerative economic activity through strengthening the farmer’s effort, risk mitigation and promoting agribusiness entrepreneurship
- The scheme will incentivise states in enhancing more allocation to agriculture and allied sectors.
- This will also strengthen farmer’s efforts through creation of agriculture infrastructure that help in supply of quality inputs and market facilities.
CCEA gives nod to Rs10,000 crore SBA for fertiliser subsidy
Govt gave ex-post facto clearance to implementation of the Special Banking Arrangement (SBA) of Rs10,000 crore for payment of outstanding claims of fertiliser companies towards fertiliser subsidy in 2016-17.
- Under the SBA, a total loan of Rs 9,969 crore for settlement of outstanding subsidy bills with SBI was raised by the government. The loan amount, along with interest liability, on the part of the government amounting to Rs 80.9 crore was paid to SBI.
- The government is making available urea and 21 grades of P&K (phosphate and potassium) fertilisers to farmers at subsidised prices through fertiliser manufacturers and importers.
Speed up trial of politicians, says SC
The Supreme Court asked the government to frame a central scheme for setting up special courts across the country to exclusively try criminal cases involving ‘political persons.’
- In a determined effort to cleanse politics of criminality and corruption, the apex court said it takes years, probably decades, to complete the trial against a politician.
- By this time, he or she would have served as a minister or legislator several times over.
EC for life ban on the convicted
The Election Commission (EC) took a definitive stand in the Supreme Court that convicted persons should be banned from contesting elections for life.
- While the government showed reluctance to make a commitment, the Commission reiterated its stand before a Bench led by Justice Ranjan Gogoi that such a move would be a firm step against criminalisation of politics.
- It had said that a uniform ban would be in the spirit of the fundamental rights of the Constitution, including the right to equality.
- As of now, a person, on conviction, is debarred from contesting any elections for the period of his or her prison sentence and six years thereafter.
Maximum Age of Joining NPS Increased from 60 to 65 years: Finance Ministry
The Ministry of Finance increased the maximum age of joining the National Pension System (NPS) from the existing 60 years to 65 years under NPS - Private Sector (i.e. all citizen and corporate model).
- In accordance with several initiatives undertaken by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) during the last few years, now any Indian citizen, resident or non-resident, between the age of 60 - 65 years, can join NPS and continue up to the age of 70 years.
Bihar approves reservation for contractual postings
Bihar cabinet approved reservation in outsourced contractual appointments made by the State government.
- The reservation policy would be implemented while hiring outsourced employees, including computer executives, IT assistants, drivers, peons and others.
- SCs (Scheduled Caste), STs (Scheduled Tribe), OBCs (Other Backward Class), EBCs (Economically Backward Class), physically challenged people, women and all other categories entitled to reservation would be given the benefit of reservation as per rules.
Unorganised workers form first-ever union in Rajasthan
Unorganised workers from different sectors in Rajasthan have come together to form their first-ever union to press for their rights for minimum wages, social security, monthly ration through public distribution system and implementation of law with the guarantee of 100 days of work in a year to each household.
- In the first election of the newly established union, Norti Bai, who has been in the forefront of the right to information campaign, was elected president.
Indiana, Karnataka in Pact for Sister-State Ties
Indiana, a State in the US, and Karnataka have signed an agreement to establish sister-state ties for cooperation in economic, educational and cultural fields.
- The two states will focus on workforce development, academic co-operation, information and communications technologies, advanced manufacturing, and materials.
- The agreement was signed between Indiana Governor Eric J Holcomb and Priyank Khage, Karnataka Minister for IT, BT and Tourism.
Assam Signs MoUs with Singapore for Skilling State’s Youth
Assam government has MoUs and Terms of Reference (ToR) with Singapore for skilling youth of the state.
- The MoU and ToR for North East Skills Centre (NESC) were signed between Skill, Employment and Entrepreneurship Department, of Assam government and ITE Education Service, Singapore.
- An MoU for Guwahati City Greening was inked between the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority and Singapore Corporation Enterprise.
CM Chouhan embarks on two-month-long ‘vikas yatra’
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday embarked on a two-month-long ‘Madhya Pradesh Vikas Yatra’ with an aim to meet people and chalk out new programmes for the State’s development.
- Claiming that M.P. now means “Mera Pradesh” for its residents.
AIIB Grants Rs13,000 cr Loan to Andhra Pradesh
China-sponsored Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) approved USD 2 million loan (Rs. 13,000 crores) for five projects in Andhra Pradesh.
- The five projects include two roads and buildings department, one each for rural safe drinking water department, municipal and urban development department and Panchayat Raj department.
Indian Air Force Contingent in Israel to Participate in ‘Ex Blue Flag-17’
A 45 member contingent of the Indian Air Force had left for Israel to participate in exercise ‘Blue Flag-17’.
- Blue Flag is a bi-annual multilateral exercise which aims to strengthen military cooperation amongst participating nations.
- Indian Air Force is participating with the C-130J special operations aircraft along with Garud commandos. The exercise is being conducted at Uvda Air Force Base in Israel.
Climbing Australia’s giant red rock Uluru to be banned
Climbing the world’s largest monolith Uluru was banned amid concerns it was becoming a “theme park”, undermining the giant red rock’s deep cultural significance.
- Scrambling up the symbol of the Outback, also known as Ayers Rock, is seen by many tourists as a must-do on their visit to Australia.
- The restriction will come into effect in October 2019, respecting the wishes of aboriginal tribes for whom the site is sacred
Carnivorous plants use CO2 to lure prey
Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Gardens and Research Institute here have come up with evidence that some carnivorous plants use carbon dioxide (CO2) to attract insects and ants to their prey traps.
- Carnivorous plants have been known to employ a variety of techniques like nectar, smell, colour and ultraviolet florescence to lure and capture prey.
- The Indian pitcher plant (Nepenthes khasiana) uses the gas, both to attract prey and to aid the digestive process.
Google India cloud region goes live in Mumbai
Google on Wednesday announced the opening of its first Google Cloud Platform region in Mumbai.
- The India region will offer several services including computing, big data, storage and networking.
- The India region going live, enterprises will be able to take advantage of the high speeds, low latency and performance benefits uniquely offered by Google Cloud Platform (GCP) services.
- The new Mumbai region joins Singapore, Taiwan, Sydney and Tokyo in Asia Pacific.
SBI Cuts Benchmark Lending Rate by 0.05% Across Maturities
The country’s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) slashed benchmark lending rate by 0.05 per cent across maturities.
- The reduction in the marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR) came after a gap of almost 10 months.
- The bank had last cut the rate on January 1, 2017. The move by the SBI will trigger rate cut by other lenders.
- With the reduction, the MCLR for one year has come down to 7.95 percent from 8 percent, SBI website said. The new rate would be effective November 1, 2017.
Srirangam temple bags UNESCO award
The massive renovation and restoration effort at the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam, executed through the public-private partnership model, has won the UNESCO Asia Pacific Award of Merit 2017 for cultural heritage conservation.
- The temple bagged one of the four Awards of Merit from a jury comprising nine international conservation experts, which considered conservation projects from 10 countries in the Asia Pacific region.
- The temple, considered the foremost of the 108 divyadesams , is situated on an islet between the Cauvery and the Coleroon rivers. It has seven prakaras and 21 towers, including the majestic 236-feet-high rajagopuram .
K Satchidanandan Selected for Ezhuthachan Puraskaram
Noted Malayalam Poet and literary critic, K Satchidanandan, has been selected for Ezhuthachan Puraskaram 2017.
- This is Kerala government’s highest literary honour.
- The award is for his contributions to Malayalam literature and poetry. This award has been Instituted in the name of Ezhuthachan, the father of Malayalam language, the award carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and a citation.
Delhi to Host 9th Global Green Film Fest
The ninth edition of CMS Vatavaran – an international film festival on environment and wildlife – has begun in New Delhi.
- It will showcase 113 films, including four from Kashmir, one of the most ecologically sensitive zones facing the threat of global warming.
- The theme of the fest is “Conservation 4 Water”.
- The festival aims to create awareness and sensitize people through films and discussions regarding water conservation and the inter-connectedness of climate change and water.
Gender Vulnerability Index: Goa Safest, Bihar Least Safe
Goa is safest for girls, and Bihar least safe, according to a newly-formed Gender Vulnerability Index (GVI) by NGO Plan India. National Capital Delhi ranks only better than Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
- The GVI attempts to “generate a normative consensus”on the status of girls and women in India and takes into account four core dimensions: Education, health and survival, poverty, protection.
- The GVI has analyzed the situation of girls and women in the country on the four dimensions and developed a multidimensional composite index with over 170 indicators.
- Top Three Safest States- Goa (Safest), Kerala, Mizoram
- Least Safe States- Bihar (Least Safe), Uttar Pradesh, Delhi
India Slips 21 Slots on WEF Gender Gap index
India slipped 21 places on the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap index to 108, behind neighbours China and Bangladesh, primarily due to less participation of women in the economy and low wages, according to the WEF Global Gender Gap Report 2017.
- India’s latest ranking is 10 notches lower than its reading in 2006 when the WEF started measuring the gender gap. According to the Report, India has closed 67 percent of its gender gap. Bangladesh ranked 47th while China was placed at 100th.
- Top 5 Countries in the List are- Iceland,Norway, Finland, Rwanda and, Sweden
Ajay Bisaria Named India’s Next High Commissioner to Pakistan
India has appointed Ajay Bisaria as the next high commissioner to Pakistan. He is currently ambassador to Poland.
- Bisaria takes over from Gautam Bambawale, who was last month appointed India’s ambassador to China.
- Bisaria was in charge of the Eurasia desk that looks after India’s ties with Russia and the Central Asian republics, prior to his appointment as India’s ambassador to Poland.
Mukesh Ambani Becomes Asia’s Richest Person: Forbes
Chairman of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) Mukesh Ambani overtook China’s Hui Ka Yan to become Asia’s richest person with a total wealth of $42.1 billion, according to Forbes’ real time billionaire’s list.
- Ambani’s personal wealth rose by $466 million. On the other hand, wealth of China Evergrande Group’s Chairman Hui Ka Yan slumped by $1.28 billion to $40.6 billion.
- Globally, Ambani stood at the 14th spot on Forbes’ real time billionaire’s list, which is based on the value of person’s stock holding and assets on a real time basis.
