Daily Current affairs - January 24, 2018 for all competitive exams
National girl child day is celebrated every
year on 24th of January as a national observance day for the girl child.
- This
celebration was started to offer more supports and new opportunities to
the girls in the country.
National Girl Child Day celebration was started by the
Women and Child Development Ministry since 2008 to celebrate as the national
observance. Through this campaign, the Indian Government has highlighted the
inequalities towards the girl in the Indian society.
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Rapid Reporting System for SAG Launched on
National Girl Child Day
Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child
Development (MWCD), Mr Rakesh Srivastava launched the Phase -1 i.e. the
beneficiary module of the Rapid Reporting System (RSS) for
the Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG) on the occasion of National
Girl Child Day (24th January).
- It
is a web-based online monitoring for the Scheme for Adolescent Girls
in New Delhi. The URL for the portal is 'sag-rrs.nic.in.'
- Presently,
MWCD is implementing the Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG) in selected 508
districts across the country.
- The
RRS will facilitate the monitoring of the scheme and taking corrective
measures by ensuring faster flow of information, accurate targeting of the
beneficiaries and reduction of leakages. This Portal has been developed in
collaboration with National Informatics Centre (NIC).
January 24 - Uttar Pradesh foundation Day
In Uttar Pradesh, Foundation Day of the State
is being celebrated on January 24 2018.
- After
independence, in the year 1950, on January 24, the State was renamed as
Uttar Pradesh. Earlier it was known as United Provinces during British
rule. This is the 68th foundation day of the State.
- UP
Government has announced policy of one district one product to promote
minimum one product from each and every district.
- Several
programs and cultural events are also being organised in all 75 districts
of the State and State Government Ministers have graced the functions.
Union Environment ministry decided fro Himalayan Research Fellowships
scheme
The union
environment ministry has decided to start a ‘Himalayan Research Fellowships
scheme’. This is among the series of programmes that MoEFCC is running for
conservation and protection of Himalayas.
- The
scheme aims scheme’ to create a young pool of trained environmental
managers, ecologists and socio-economists. This pool will help generate
information on physical, biological, managerial and human aspects of
Himalayan environment and development.
- The
fellowship scheme will be executed through various universities and
Institutions working in the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) and preference
will be given to the Institutions from north-eastern states.
- The
financial support will be provided under the National Mission on Himalayan
Studies (NMHS) and the fellowships will be awarded for a maximum period of
three years and last date for submitting fellowship proposals is 12
February.
GoI, Uttarakhand, and World Bank Sign $120
million Loan Agreement for Water Supply in Uttarakhand
The Government of India, the Government of
Uttarakhand and the World Bank Board signed a $120 million Loan
Agreement which will help increase access to improved water supply
services in peri-urban areas in the State of Uttarakhand.
- The
$120 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and
Development (IBRD) and has a 5-year grace period.
Chief Minister-gi Hakshelgi Tengbang (CMHT)
Chief
Minister-gi Hakshelgi Tengbang (CMHT) is Manipur government’s
pioneering health assurance scheme for the poor and disabled people.
- The
CMHT will provide cashless treatment to the poor at government hospitals,
health centres and other empanelled selected private hospitals.
- The
scheme will provide cover up to Rs 2 lakh per eligible family identified
from the Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC) in the treatment of seven
critical identified critical ailments – cardiovascular diseases, kidney
ailments, neurological conditions, liver ailments, cancer, neo-natal
diseases and burns per year.
Constitute Mahanadi tribunal: SC
The Supreme Court directed the Centre to set up a
tribunal within a month to resolve the long-standing dispute between Odisha and
Chhattisgarh over the sharing of Mahanadi water.
- The
court, however, refused to grant any stay as sought by Odisha government
on the seven pick up weirs across the Mahanadi river, which flows through
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha, before pouring into the Bay of Bengal.
The Mahanadi basin extends over states of
Chhattisgarh and Odisha and comparatively smaller portions of Jharkhand,
Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, draining an area of 1,41,589 Sq.km which is
nearly 4.3% of the total geographical area of the country.
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Trump claims win in ending shutdown
U.S. federal workers prepared to return to work
after Congress ended a three-day government shutdown, with President Donald
Trump claiming victory in his stand-off with Democrats.
- The
House voted 266 to 150 to extend federal funding for another three weeks,
hours after Senate Democrats dropped their opposition to the plan after
winning Republican assurances of a vote on immigration in the coming
weeks.
- Mr.
Trump signed the measure into law on January 22 night and government
operations were essentially to return to normal on January 23.
Scientists discover a piece of America in
Australia
Researchers have discovered rocks in Queensland
that bear striking similarities to those found in North America.
- They
are suggesting that a chunk of Australia was actually part of America 1.7
billion years ago.
- Our
research shows that about 1.7 billion years ago, Georgetown rocks were
deposited into a shallow sea when the region was part of North America.
Facebook invents a new time unit called
‘Flicks’
Facebook has just invented a new unit of time,
called Flicks. Flicks could be a big boon for programmers or
developers working on visual effects or post-production.
- The
unit is slightly larger than a nanosecond and is aimed to help content
creators working on visual effects for film, television or any other
media.
- Flicks
are 1/705600000 of a second which makes it slightly longer than one
nanosecond which is equal to 0.000000001 seconds.
5th Global Talent Competitiveness Index released by
INSEAD
The fifth
edition of the Global Talent Competitiveness Index has been released by INSEAD
in partnership with The Adecco Group and Tata communications.
- India
has moved up to the 81st position, but remains a laggard among the BRICS
nations. India was at the 92nd position last year and at the 89th place in
2016.
- Among
the five BRICS countries China is at 43rd, Russia 53rd, South Africa 63rd
and Brazil 73rd.
- Switzerland
has topped the list. It is followed by Singapore and the US. European
countries dominate the top ranks, with 15 out of the top 25 places.
Launched for
the first time in 2013, the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) is an
annual benchmarking report that measures the ability of countries to compete
for talent. The index that measures how countries grow, attract and retain
talent. With this fifth edition, GTCI addresses the theme of Diversity for
Competitiveness.
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‘Reward Work, Not Wealth’ report by Oxfam
A report
titled ‘Reward Work, Not Wealth’ has been released by the international rights
group Oxfam.
- The
report reveals how the global economy enables wealthy elite to accumulate
vast wealth even as hundreds of millions of people struggle to survive on
poverty pay.
- The
richest 1% in India cornered 73% of the wealth generated in the country
last year. Besides, 67 crore Indians comprising the population’s poorest
half saw their wealth rise by just 1%. The wealth of India’s richest 1 per
cent increased by over Rs. 20.9 lakh crore during 2017, an amount
equivalent to total budget of the central government in 2017–18, Oxfam
India said. This presents a worrying picture of rising income inequality.
- Globally,
82% of the wealth generated last year worldwide went to the 1%, while 3.7
billion people that account for the poorest half of population saw no
increase in their wealth.
US Senate confirms Jerome Powell as next
chairman of the Federal Reserve
The Senate confirmed Jerome Powell as the
next chairman of the Federal Reserve.
The Senate approved Powell by a margin of 85 to
12, as the nominee was supported by a majority of Democrats and nearly all
Republicans.
- Powell,
a former Carlyle Group executive, also worked in President George H.W.
Bush’s Treasury Department, as well as at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a
Washington think tank.
Lokesh receives innovation in governance award
Panchayat Raj & Rural Development and IT
Minister of Andhra Pradesh N. Lokesh received the Kalam Innovation in
Governance Award-2018 (KIGA) presented by the Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Centre in
New Delhi as part of the Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Memorial Summit and Awards on
Innovation in Governance.
- The
Kalam Centre for Livable Planet Earth and Sustainable Development,
recognising the development of rural areas and integration of technology
in rural governance, selected Andhra Pradesh for the innovation award in
the Panchayat Raj & Rural Development category.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Palaniswamy receives UNESCO Award
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K
Palaniswamy received the UNESCO Award of Merit awarded to the iconic Srirangam
Ranganathaswamy temple in Tiruchirapalli.
- The
award of merit is being awarded by UNESCO Asia Pacific region for the
reconstruction activities undertaken in the temple without in the least
affecting its traditional splendour and Vedic rituals.
- The
temple complex, situated in a sprawling ground of more than 156 acres, is
the most sacred pilgrimage centre of the Vaishnava Hindus.
7th Asia Steel International Conference to be
Held in Bhubaneswar
The 7th Asia Steel International
Conference will be held in Bhubaneswar, Odisha in February 2018. The
announcement was made by Tata Steel, in association with the Indian Institute
of Metals.
- This
major conference is held every three years and provides a platform for the
exchange of knowledge on various aspects of the global steel industry.
S Somanath Takes Charge as Vikram Sarabhai
Space Centre's Director
ISRO's Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC)
director S Somanath has taken charge as the new director of
Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC). It is ISRO's lead centre for
launch vehicles.
- He
has replaced K Sivan who has joined ISRO as Chairman.
Shape of Water leads Oscar table with 13 nominations
The team Shape of water lead the Oscar
nomination table with the list of 13 nominations.
- The
Shape of Water is a American fantasy drama film directed by Guillermo del
Toro and written by del Toro and Vanessa Taylor.
Twitter COO Anthony Noto Resigns
Anthony Noto resigns COO post from Twitter. He
has been with Twitter since 2014 and is the company’s most important executive
outside of CEO.
- He
going to take charge as the CEO job at finance startup SoFi from March 1.
Veteran South Indian actor Krishna Kumari passes away
Actress Krishna Kumari, who has acted in over
200 Telugu, Tamil and Kannada films and dominated the south Indian film
industry for more than two decades passed away in Bangalore. She was 84.
- Her
Kannada films included Jaladurga, Asha Sundari, Bhakta Kanakadasa,
Dashavatara, Shrishaila Mahatme, Swarna Gauri, Bhakta Kabira,
Chandrakumara, and Sati Savithri and shared the screen with legendary
actors of Kannada cinema, including Rajkumar.
Ursula K. Le Guin, Best-Selling Science Fiction
author Passes Away
Ursula K. Le Guin, the award-winning science
fiction and fantasy writer who explored feminist themes and was best known for
her Earthsea books, has passed away at the age of 88.
- Le
Guin won an honorary National Book Award in 2014. Le Guin’s first
novel was Roncannon’s World in 1966. Her book, 'The Left Hand of
Darkness' won the Hugo and Nebula awards top science fiction prizes.
Ceylon Manohar of Surangani fame passes away
Pop singer and actor A.E. Manoharan, popularly
known as ‘Ceylon Manohar’ passed away. He was 73.
- He
was best known for the song Surangani. Mr. Manoharan began his singing
career in Colombo in the 1970s.
Harmanpreet is T20 captain
Harmanpreet Kaur has been named captain of the
women’s T20 team for the series in South Africa.
- Harmanpreet
will be assisted by Smriti Mandhana, who has been named as the
vice-captain. India women are scheduled to play five T20Is against South
Africa women after the completion of the ODI series.
