Daily Current affairs - January 3rd, 2018 for all competitive exams
On January 3, the Earth will be at closest to the sun in a phenomenon
called ‘Perihelion’. The event, however, cannot be observed.
- At 11.05 am on January 3rd, the earth will be
at the closest point to the sun in its annual elliptical orbit, at a
distance of 14,70,97,237 km approximately.
Perihelion is an important event for
research and educational purposes although the public cannot observe it.
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Centre Unveiled Contours of
‘Electoral Bonds’ Scheme
The Centre unveiled
the contours of the ‘Electoral Bonds’ scheme, which seeks to ensure
the flow of clean money to political parties, without revealing the donors’
names.
- As per the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, the
electoral bonds will be a bearer instrument in the nature of
a Promissory Note and an interest-free banking instrument.
- A citizen of India or a body incorporated in India
will be eligible to purchase the bond from specified branches of the State
Bank of India.
- The bonds can be purchased for any value in
multiples of Rs1,000; Rs10,000; Rs1 lakh; Rs10 lakh; and Rs1 crore.
Electoral Bond is a financial
instrument for making donations to political parties. These are issued by
Scheduled Commercial banks upon authorisation from the Central Government to
intending donors, but only against cheque and digital payments (it cannot be
purchased by paying cash). These bonds shall be redeemable in the designated
account of a registered political party within the prescribed time limit from
issuance of bond.
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Parliament passes Insolvency
& Bankruptcy Code Amendment Bill
Finance minister Arun
Jaitley said the government has entered into an unchartered territory as
far as bankruptcy and insolvency Code.
The objective of the bill is
to allow creditors to move to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in case
of insolvency.
- The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment)
Ordinance, 2017 Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha last week.
- The Bill prohibits certain persons from submitting a
resolution plan in case of defaults. These include: (i) wilful
defaulters, (ii) promoters or management of the company if it has an
outstanding non-performing debt for over a year, and (iii) disqualified
directors, among others. Further, it bars the sale of property of a
defaulter to such persons during liquidation
- The Bill prohibits certain persons from submitting
resolution plans or participating in the liquidation process. One
argument may be that these persons may be considered undesirable to take
charge of the company. However, this may reduce competition among
applicants and result in lower recoveries for creditors.
Parliament cleared NABARD
(Amendment) Bill, 2017
Parliament has cleared the
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Amendment) Bill, 2017 to
amend the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development Act, 1981.
- According to the bill the authorized capital is
raised to 30000 Cr from 5000 Cr in future it may also increase with
consultation of RBI.
- At present Union government has the 99.6% share in
the bank rest with RBI.
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Development (NABARD) is an apex development financial institution in
India, headquartered at Mumbai with branches all over India.
Chairman: Dr.Harsh kumar Bhanwala
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Cabinet Nod to India, UK Pact
to Improve Public Transport
The Cabinet has approved the
signing and implementation of the MoU between Ministry of Road Transport
and Highways and ‘Transport for London’ to improve public transport in the
country.
- The MoU is aimed at improving the overall public
transport system, improve passenger services and promote the use of high
capacity buses in India.
CCEA approves construction of
bi-directional Zojila Tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir
The Cabinet Committee on
Economic Affairs, CCEA approved construction, operation and maintenance of
2-lane bi-directional Zojila Tunnel with Parallel Escape Tunnel on Srinagar-Leh
section in Jammu and Kashmir.
- It will provide all-weather connectivity to strategically
important Leh region. The total capital cost of the project is over 6
thousand 800 crore rupees.
- The Project aims at construction of around 14
kilometer long two lane bidirectional single tube tunnel with a parallel
14.2 kilometer long egress tunnel excluding approaches between Baltal and
Minamarg.
GI recognition: Famed Nilambur teak
Kerala’s Nilambur teak aka Malabar teak has found its place in the
Geographical Indications (GI) Registry. GI tag denotes quality and origin of
the products and helps keep unscrupulous commercial operators at bay.
- The golden brown teak is known for its log
dimensions, desired wood figure and wide reputation in the world of trade.
A geographical
indication (GI) is a name or sign used on certain products which
corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g. a town,
region, or country).
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Uttar Pradesh to introduce
vehicle registration number portability soon
The Uttar Pradesh Transport
Department will introduce vehicle registration number portability soon,
allowing owners to retain vehicle numbers even if they sell it.
- This proposal had been approved by the previous
government.
- It will reportedly cost Rs.25,000 for porting a
number from a two-wheeler to another and Rs.50,000 for cars.
GAIL Commissions India's
Second-Largest Rooftop Solar Plant in UP
State-owned gas utility GAIL
India Ltd has commissioned the country's second-largest rooftop solar
power plant in Uttar Pradesh.
- The firm has installed a 5.76 MWp (Mega Watt
peak) solar plant at its petrochemical complex at Pata in Uttar
Pradesh.
- The plant over the roofs of warehouses covers a
total area of 65,000 square meters.
China to invest $1 billion in
mega Sri Lanka project
China will invest $1 billion
in the construction of three 60-storey buildings at a mega-project near Sri
Lanka’s main port, Colombo.
- The deal follows an earlier Chinese investment of
$1.4 billion to carry out reclamation work for the wider Colombo
International Financial City development.
Country
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China
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Capital
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Beijing
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Currency
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Renminbi
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President
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Xi Jinping
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China starts collecting environment tax
China has started collecting an environment tax to better protect the
environment and cut pollutant discharge, as the country’s Environmental
Protection Tax Law took effect on Jan. 1, 2018.
- This is China’s first tax clearly designed for
environmental protection, which will help establish a “green” financial
and taxation system and promote pollution control and treatment of
pollutants.
China to become world’s first country to launch a lunar
probe on far side of moon
China announced its plans to launch a lunar probe in 2018 to achieve the
world’s first soft landing on the far side of the moon to showcase its
ambitious space programme. The mission is called Chang’e 4 project.
- Chang’e 4 is the fourth mission in the country’s
lunar mission series which is being named after the Chinese moon goddess.
A Long March 4C rocket will start its course to 60,000 kilometers behind
the moon carrying a 425-kilogram relay satellite. This relay satellite will
act as an initial communication link between earth and the lunar far side.
Once China’s space agency succeeds in establishing the link, China will
trigger the second part of the mission i.e. sending a lander and rover to the
unexplored region of the moon.
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69,000 babies born on New
Year’s Day in India: UNICEF
The UNICEF has estimated
that 69,000 babies were born on New Year’s Day in India, the highest number of
births across the world on the day.
- Over half of the 3.86 lakh births across the world
on New Year’s Day took place in nine countries.
- The world’s most populous nation, China, registered
44,760 births on the day.
The United Nations Childrens' Fund
is a United Nations (UN) program headquartered in New York
City that provides humanitarian and developmental assistance
to children and mothers in developing countries.
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Six Countries Enter UN
Security Council
Equatorial Guinea, Ivory
Coast, Kuwait, Peru, Poland and the Netherlands formally joined the ranks
of the non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to make a
difference.
- The UN Security Council has 15 members, including
five with permanent seats who have the power to veto resolutions -
Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.
- The six countries who left the UN Security Council
recently are Egypt, Italy, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay.
World’s first ‘speed breeding’ technique to boost
production of wheat
Australian scientists have developed the world’s first ‘speed breeding’
technique that can boost the production of the crop by up to three times.
- The scientists have used the technique to develop
the new ‘DS Faraday’ wheat variety due for release to industry this year.
DS Faraday is a high protein, milling wheat with tolerance to pre-harvest
sprouting.
- This technique uses fully controlled growth
environments and can also be scaled up to work in a standard glass house.
- It uses LED lights optimised to aid photosynthesis
in intensive regimes of up to 22 hours per day.
Pakistan State Bank Allows use
of Chinese Currency Yuan for Bilateral Trade & Investment Activities
Pakistan has allowed Chinese
currency Yuan for exports and financing transactions.
- According to Pakistan, external affairs ministry,
both public and private sector enterprises of Pakistan and China are free
to choose Yuan for bilateral trade and investment activities.
- As per current foreign exchange regulations, Chinese
Yuan is an approved foreign currency for denominating foreign currency
transactions in Pakistan.
TRAI issues interconnect rules
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has issued the
Telecommunication Interconnection Regulations, 2018, that are effective from
February 1.
- It lay down the ground rules for telcos to enter
into initial interconnect pacts, provision points of interconnection
(POIs) needed to complete calls, undertake augmentation of such points and
the associated charges. It has termed interconnection the “lifeline of
telecommunication services”.
- Phone companies have to ink interconnect pacts on a
non- discriminatory basis within 30 days of receiving a request from any
licensed carrier.
- Also, a telco receiving an interconnection request
has to offer a draft interconnect pact within five days to the requestor,
who, in turn, can submit suggestions/objections in the next five days.
- Currently, there is no explicit timeline for inking
of interconnect agreements.
TRAI is the independent regulator
of the telecommunications business in India.
It was established in 1997 by an Act
of Parliament to regulate telecom services and tariffs in India.
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Indian Railways debit cards,
in tie-up with SBI
Indian Railways is set to
launch its own co-branded debit card and also hold monthly lottery draw to give
100% cash-back to 10 lucky passengers.
- The debit card will be launched in association with
the country’s biggest lender State Bank of India and the transporter’s arm
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).
- It will be a railway debit card which can be used
for any transaction but on buying rail tickets, it will be free of
charges.
SBI, NABARD Tie up to Promote
Joint Liability Groups in Bengal
State Bank of India and
NABARD have signed an agreement with five NGOs in Bengal for the promotion of
2,500 joint liability groups (JLGs) in select districts of the State.
- JLGs are informal groups of 4-10 members engaged in
similar economic activities and willing to jointly undertake the
responsibility to repay loans taken by the group from a bank.
Sushma Swaraj to visit
Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore
As India marks 25 years of
its partnership with ASEAN external affairs minister Sushma
Swaraj will visit Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore from January 4-8.
- Sushma Swaraj will visit Thailand during the course
she will hold a meeting with Thai Minister of Foreign Affairs Don
Pramudwinai.
- During her Indonesia visit, Sushma Swaraj will
co-chair the fifth meeting of the India-Indonesia Joint Commission with
her Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi.
The Association of Southeast
Asian Nations is a regional intergovernmental
organisation comprising ten Southeast Asian states which
promotes Pan-Asianism and intergovernmental cooperation and
facilitates economic, political, security, military, educational and socio-cultural integration
amongst its members and Asian states.
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JNPT Wins Samudra Manthan
Award
The Jawaharlal Nehru Port
Trust has won the “Samudra Manthan – Caring Organisation of the Year” award
2018.
- This award aims to increase the healthy competition
in the maritime sector.
- JNPT provides excellent facilities to their staff
like medical insurance, residential township with school, transport
service, canteens, rest rooms, recreation, sports activities and regular
training programs on various key topics.
AB Mathur takes the
appointment as interlocutor for talks with ULFA
The Centre announced
the appointment of AB Mathur as the interlocutor on their behalf to
hold talks with the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA).
- The 1975-batch IPS officer, Mathur served as the
former special secretary of the Research and Analysis Wing.
ULFA is a separatist outfit operating
in Assam for the indigenous Assamese and seeks to establish a sovereign Assam
with an armed struggle in the Assam conflict.
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Former RAW chief Rajinder
Khanna appointed deputy NSA
Rajinder Khanna, a former
chief of the country’s external intelligence agency RAW, was appointed as
the Deputy National Security Adviser (NSA).
- He headed the Research and Analysis
Wing (RAW) from December 2014 for a fixed two-year period.
- Khanna is at present Officer on Special Duty
(Neighbourhood Studies) in the National Security
Council Secretariat.
Carnatic singer Radha
Vishwanathan passed away
Carnatic singer Radha
Vishwanathan died in Bengaluru at the 83.
- She was a daughter of a legendry
singer M.S. Subbulakshmi.
G Sathiyan Becomes India’s
Highest-Ranked Player in ITTF
G Sathiyan has become
India’s highest-ranked player in the latest International Table Tennis
Federation (ITTF) rankings.
- He overcomes his competitor
Sharath
- Ovtcharov Dimitrij the Germany
player topped the list.
New Zealand’s Colin Munro 1st
batsman to hit 3 T20I hundreds
New Zealand opener Colin
Munro became the first cricketer to hit three centuries in T20I cricket after
smashing a 47-ball ton against West Indies.
- Munro scored 104 runs off 53 balls
to help New Zealand post their highest-ever T20I total of 243/5.
- The ton was the fastest by a New
Zealand cricketer in T20Is.
