Daily Current affairs - March 13, 2018 for all competitive exams
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched a
campaign to eradicate tuberculosis (TB) from India by 2025, five years ahead of
the globally-set deadline.
- After
inaugurating the Delhi End-TB Summit Modi launched the TB-free India
Campaign to take the activities under the National Strategic Plan for TB
Elimination forward in a mission mode for ending the epidemic by 2025.
- A
target has been set to end TB globally by 2030.
Centre forms tribunal to solve Mahanadi water
dispute between Odisha & Chhattisgarh
The Ministry of Water
Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation has issued a notification
constituting the Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal. The Tribunal will have its
headquarters at Delhi.
- The
Tribunal will comprise of: Justice A.M. Khanwilkar,
Supreme Court Judge (Chairman), Justice Ravi Ranjan, Patna High Court
Judge., Justice Indermeet Kaur Kochhar, Delhi High Court Judge.
- The
Government of Odisha had sought to refer the water dispute regarding the
inter-state river Mahanadi and its river valley to a Tribunal for
adjudication under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.
The tribunal
will be formed according to the provisions of the Inter-State River Water Disputes (ISRWD), 1956.
It will
have a chairperson and two other members nominated by the Chief Justice of
India from among the judges of the apex court or high courts.
As per
provisions of the ISRWD Act, 1956 the Tribunal is required to submit its
report and decision within a period of 3 years which can be extended to a
further period not exceeding 2 years due to unavoidable reasons.
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Odisha and
Chhattisgarh are locked in a dispute over the Mahanadi waters since the
mid-80s. Odisha claimed that Chhattisgarh government has been constructing
dams in the upper reaches of the Mahanadi, depriving its farmers who are
heavily dependent on the rivers waters. Chhattisgarh has been against the
setting up of a tribunal, and argued that the water sharing agreement was
with the erstwhile Madhya Pradesh government, before the state was carved out
in 2000.
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Govt to institute award for best Investigators
of crime
The government has decided to institute an award
for carrying out best investigation of crime for promoting high professional
standards among police forces.
- The
award - Union Home Minister's Medal for Excellence in Police Investigation
- will be given to the best investigators of police forces of States,
Union Territories and central investigating agencies.
Based on the average crime data for the last
three years, a total of 162 medals will be awarded every year. Out of these,
137 will be for the states and Union territories and 25 for the central
investigating agencies - National Investigation Agency, CBI and Narcotics
Control Bureau.
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Major Port Authorities Bill introduced in parliament
With a view to
providing more autonomy and flexibility to Major Ports and to professionalize
their governance, the Government has introduced the Major Port Authorities Bill
in Parliament to replace the existing Major Port Trusts Act, 1963.
- The
Bill will apply to the major ports of Chennai, Cochin, Jawaharlal Nehru
Port, Kandla, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Mangalore, Mormugao, Paradip, V.O.
Chidambaranar.
- Under
the 1963 Act, all major ports are managed by the respective Board of Port
Trusts that have members appointed by the central government.
- The Bill provides for the creation of a Board of
Major Port Authority for each major port. The Boards will succeed
the existing Port Trusts.
- The
Board will comprise of a Chairperson and a deputy Chairperson, both of
whom will be appointed by the central government on the recommendation of
a select committee. Number of Board Members will be 11-13.
India attracts $209 bn FDI during Apr 2014 to
Dec 2017
Foreign direct investment has increased
“steadily” in the country with total capital inflows reaching $208.99 billion
during April 2014 to December 2017 period.
- The
main sectors that received maximum foreign inflows include services,
computer software and hardware, telecommunications, construction, trading
and automobile.
- The
number of functional units in 2015-16 was 2,269 and 2,293 in the previous
fiscal.
India emerges as world’s largest importer of arms
India has
emerged as the largest importer of major arms according to a latest research
released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- Top
importer: India became the world’s largest importer of major arms in
2013-17 accounting for 12% of the total global import. The country that
accounts for the maximum arms import of India is Russia with 62%.
- America
is the second largest arms supplier to India.
- Top
exporters: The US emerged as the world’s top exporter of weapons
accounting for 34% of global arms sales in the last five years. Russia
accounted for 20% of the export ranking second in the list.
Department of
Biotechnology constituted committee on illegal cultivation of HT Cotton
Department of
Biotechnology in the Ministry of Science and Technology has constituted a Field
Inspection and Scientific Evaluation Committee (FISEC) to investigate the
matter of illegal cultivation of HT cotton.
- The
cultivation of BG-III or HT cotton has not been approved by Genetic
Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) of Ministry of Environment. However, there are several media reports
and complaints regarding the illegal or unauthorized cultivation of HT
cotton in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
BG Cotton – III, also known as Herbicide-Tolerant Cotton, contains
Round-up Ready and Round-up Flex (RRF) gene. HT cotton in an innovation
in Bt cotton as it takes care of the weeds problem at a much lower cost than
the labour farmers have to engage for weeding.
Monsanto, a
US-based multinational seed giant, has developed herbicide-tolerant trait
(BG-III) and commercialised it as ‘Round-up Ready Flex (RRF)’ in USA.
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SC extends deadline for linking Aadhaar to
mobile, bank accounts till judgment
The Supreme Court extended the deadline for linking Aadhaar cards to services, such as bank accounts and mobile
phone connections, from March 31 till it decides on petitions challenging the
Constitutional validity of The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and
other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016.
- A
five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra
said that its interim order of December 15, 2017, fixing the March
deadline, “shall stand extended till the matter is finally heard and the
judgment is pronounced”.
- The
court specified that the direction shall also apply to the Tatkal passport
scheme for which Aadhaar had been mandated.
The interim order had stated that the extension would cover
“the schemes of the Ministries/Departments of the Union government to all
state governments in similar terms”. This will also remain in force.
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Bengal cancels transport agreement with Sikkim
West Bengal government has cancelled the transport agreement
with Sikkim which allowed free movement of commercial vehicles between the two
neighbouring states.
- West
Bengal Transport Minister Suvendu Adhikari accused the Sikkim Government
of not abiding by the agreement and imposing several restrictions on
vehicles entering Sikkim from Bengal.
- The
relationship between the two states got strained during the Gorkhaland
agitation last year.
Karnataka's Belgaum is now home to India's
tallest flag
India's tallest national flag was unfurled in
Belagavi (also known as Belgaum) in Karnataka.
- The
event was attended by leaders, schoolchildren, and leaders of Hindu,
Muslim, Christian and Sikh institutions at the Kote Kere front.
- Belagavi
District Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi unfurled the 9,600 sq ft wide flag on a
110-metre-tall flagpole. The size of the flag
is 120X80 ft. It will weigh 500 kg.
Part of four-lane Biju Expressway inaugurated
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the four-lane
163-km-long Biju Expressway from Rourkela to Sambalpur in western Odisha
- Mr.
Patnaik inaugurated the expressway at a function held at Jharsuguda. The
road has been built by the State government at a cost of Rs. 1,200 crore.
- The
road is part of the 650-km-long expressway which will link western parts
with the southern districts of the State at a cost of Rs. 3,000 crore.
Nasscom, Facebook launch ‘Design4India Studio’
in Bengaluru
In a bid to provide mentorship in design,
innovation and entrepreneurship for software companies and startups, the
National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) in
association with Facebook launched “Design4India Studio” in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- The
platform would provide interactions with design industry mentors and give
an opportunity to aspiring designers and startups to explore innovate and
build design as a tool for innovation.
India announces USD100mn LoC for Mauritius
India has announced a new Line of Credit of USD
100 million for defense procurement by Mauritius as the two sides signed many
agreements on the second day of President Ram Nath Kovind's visit.
- The
agreements were signed after President Kovind held delegation-level talks
with Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth and members of his
Cabinet.
A line of credit (LOC) is an arrangement between a
financial institution, usually a bank, and a customer, that established the
maximum amount of a loan that the customer can borrow.
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Donald Trump ousts Rex Tillerson as Secretary
of State
US President Donald Trump has ousted Rex Tillerson as
Secretary of State and said he will be replaced by CIA Director Mike Pompeo.
- Mike
Pompeo, Director of the CIA, will become our new Secretary of State.
- Trump
also announced the appointment of Gina Haspel to head the Central
Intelligence Agency — the first woman selected for the agency’s top post.
New Zealand joined with UN’s CleanSeas campaign
New Zealand
has joined the United Nations-led CleanSeas campaign to rid oceans of plastic.
More than 40 other countries have already signed up.
- Scientists
estimate that there are over 150 million tonnes of plastics in the ocean
today. If nothing changes then plastic in oceans will weigh more than all
the fish that live in them by 2050.
The CleanSeas campaign was launched by the UN Environment in February
2017.
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Maldives Parliament approved Anti-Defection
bill
The Maldives Parliament has approved the
anti-defection bill with retrospective effect amidst the boycott by opposition
MPs.
- According
to the bill, MPs elected on political party tickets will lose their seat
if they leave their party, get expelled, or switch parties.
- The
bill would take effect from 13th July 2017, meaning that the 12 MPs that
switched to the Opposition last year would lose their seats. The bill was
passed with 35 votes as opposition MPs continued to boycott the
sittings.
Russian Aerospace Forces conducted first
successful test firing of Kinzhal
missile
The Russian
Aerospace Forces have conducted the first successful test firing of the
air-launched Kinzhal (Dagger) hypersonic missile.
- Kinzhal
is claimed to be a strategic air-to-surface strike missile.
- The
missile is claimed to have maneuverable flight characteristics not
typically seen in hypersonic, solid fuel missiles. The missile is reported
to have a range of 1,200 miles (approximately 2,000 kilometers).
Scientists found first ever samples of Ice-VII
Scientists
have found the first ever samples of naturally occurring ice-VII on Earth. The
samples were found in a diamond.
- Commonly
used is called as ice-I. When water freezes, the oxygen atoms move into a
hexagonal arrangement. That’s why ice expands and has lower density than
water. Compressing ice can change the shape of the crystals, turning ice-I
into ice-II (rhombus-shaped crystals), ice-III (tetragonal crystals), and
so on.
Ice-VII,
with its cubic crystals, is unique in that it remains stable even as pressure
increases dramatically. It’s 1.5 times more dense than ice-I as well.
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Gallium joins graphene in the second dimension
Researchers
have isolated a 2D form of the soft metal gallium, dubbed “gallenene,” which
could make for efficient, thin metal contacts in electronic devices.
- Gallium
is a metal with a low melting point. It has a low melting
point of just below 30° C (86° F). That makes it a great candidate for
applications that need liquid metals at roughly room temperature.
Unlike
graphene and many other 2-D structures, it cannot yet be grown with vapor
phase deposition methods.
It also has
a tendency to oxidize quickly.
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Google
to rebrand Android Wear as Wear OS
Google has hinted it might be rebranding Android
Wear the operating system (OS) that is designed for smartwatches and other
wearables to simply “Wear OS”.
- According
to a report by 9to5mac, this new name was first spotted by a
Reddit user who received a pairing notification.
Bharti board gives nod to raise up to $1
billion
The country’s largest telecom services provider Bharti Airtel
said its board had approved raising up to Rs. 16,500 crore through a mix of
non-convertible debentures and foreign currency bonds, to be used for
refinancing of debt and payment of spectrum liabilities
- In
a communiqué to the stock exchanges, Bharti Airtel said the board of
directors, in its meeting held on Monday, approved “issuance of
non-convertible debentures (NCDs) of up to Rs. 10,000 crore on a private
placement basis in such tranches / series and at such rates as may be
approved from time to time on cumulative basis along with all NCDs issued
by the company; and issuance of foreign currency bonds up to a limit of $1
billion or equivalent in one or more tranches.
RBI discontinues LoUs for trade credit to
make imports
A month after the Punjab National Bank (PNB) reported
fraudulent transactions that are now estimated to be over Rs 12,700 crore, the
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Tuesday banned the use of Letters of Undertaking
(LoUs), illegally used by companies of diamantaire Nirav
Modi and Mehul Choksi to defraud the bank.
- This
decision of the central bank could have repercussions for trade finance
activities in the country.
- The
RBI, in a notification to all banks, said it has decided to discontinue
the practice of issuance of LoUs and letters of comforts (LoCs) for trade
credits for imports into India by banks with immediate effect.
LoUs or letter of comfort, are issued against import
documents which are normally for 90 days and this facility is used regularly,
especially by companies which are in the business of gold, gems and
jewellery.
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SBI reduces charges on Non-maintenance of
minimum balance
The country’s largest lender, SBI has slashed
charges for non-maintenance of Average Monthly Balance (AMB) in savings
accounts by nearly 75 percent. The revised charges will be effective from April
01, 2018 and will benefit over 25 crore customers.
- The
charges for non-maintenance of AMB for customers in Metro and Urban
centers have been reduced from a maximum of Rs 50 per month to Rs 15 per
month.
- Similarly,
for Semi-Urban and Rural centers, the charges have been reduced from Rs 40
every month to Rs 12 and Rs 10 GST charges will be applicable over and
above the rates specified above.
KVGB rolls out loan scheme ‘Vikas She Plus’ for
women entrepreneurs
Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB) has launched ‘Vikas She
Plus’, a loan scheme for women to take up new ventures or for
expanding/modifying the existing enterprises.
- This
scheme provides loan up to a maximum of Rs 2 lakh with a repayment period
of 60 months.
- The
bank has disbursed loans amounting to Rs 22 crore to about 2,500 women
beneficiaries on the day of launch itself.
ICICI Bank Launches Online Overdraft Facility
For MSME Customers
ICICI Bank has launched instant overdraft ‘InstaOD’
facility for MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) customers in a
completely online and paperless manner. Customers can get overdraft facility up
to Rs 15 lakh for a year anytime, anywhere using the bank’s Internet and mobile
banking app.
- The
new facility will enable a few lakh of pre-qualified current account
customers of the bank to instantly avail of the facility without visiting
a branch and submitting physical documents. ICICI Bank will also offer the
facility for instant online sanction of the overdraft facility to MSME
customers of other banks shortly.
National
Conference on Counterfeiting and Role of Enforcement Agencies
held in New Delhi
The Cell for
IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM) is organizing a National Conference on
Counterfeiting and Role of Enforcement Agencies in New Delhi, in collaboration
with European Union (EU).
- The
conference intends to bring together national and international experts on
the same platform to have a dialogue and exchange best practices for the
benefit of enforcement agencies, attorneys and industry representatives
and provide fresh ideas for further strengthening the IPR protection
ecosystem.
Cell for IPR
Promotion and Management (CIPAM) has been created as a professional body
under the aegis of DIPP to take forward the
implementation of the National IPR Policy that was approved by the Government
in May 2016, with the slogan – “Creative India; Innovative India”.
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India placed 33rd worldwide in web-borne
threats: Kaspersky
Global cyber security provider Kaspersky Lab in a summit
stated that India ranks 33rd worldwide in the list of countries facing
web-borne threats.
- The
Summit had about 100 participants from all over India, and brought
together the most important names from the world of information security.
Sitanshu Kar to be next head of PIB
All India Radios News Services Division (NSD) Director
General Sitanshu Kar will be the next head of the Press Information Bureau
(PIB) after superannuation of Frank Noronha on April 30.
- Kar,
a senior Indian Information Service (IIS) officer, will take charge as PIB
head on May 1.
- Doordarshan
News DG Ira Joshi will hold additional charge of DG of AIRs NSD with
immediate effect.
KL Rahul becomes first Indian to be dismissed
hit wicket in T20Is
KL Rahul became the first Indian to set the dubious record in
the list of batsmen who were dismissed hit wicket in Twenty20 Internationals.
- Rahul
achieved the unwanted feat against Sri Lanka in the fourth T20I of
the Nidahas Trophy Tri-Series.
- For
India, the first to be dismissed hit wicket in Tests was Lala Amarnath in
1949, while in ODIs it was Nayan Mongia in 1995.
IPL launches anthem for 2018 edition
The Indian Premier League (IPL)
launched the anthem for the 2018 edition, starting April 7.
- The BCCI and
Star India have collaborated to create an anthem for the campaign this
year.
- The
anthem is released in five languages – Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Kannada and
Telugu – across all platforms (TV, radio, and digital).
Paytm to be official umpire partner for IPL
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced
Paytm as the official umpire partner for the Indian Premier League (IPL) for
the next five years.
- Paytm
is also the title sponsor for Indian Cricket.
