Daily Current affairs - March 21, 2018 for all competitive exams
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 21 March the
International Day of Forests (IDF) in 2012.
- The
Day celebrates and raises awareness of the importance of all types of
forests. On each International Day of Forests, countries are encouraged to
undertake local, national and international efforts to organize activities
involving forests and trees, such as tree planting campaigns.
- Theme:
Forests and Sustainable cities
International Day of Forests was established on the 21st
day of March, by resolution of the United Nations General Assembly on
November 28, 2012. International Day of Forests was observed for the first
time on March 21, 2013.
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March 21 - World Poetry day
World Poetry Day is celebrated on 21 March, and was declared
by UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization) in 1999.
- Its
purpose is to promote the reading, writing, publishing and teaching of
poetry throughout the world and, as the original UNESCO declaration says,
to "give fresh recognition and impetus to national, regional and
international poetry movements".
- It’s
also a day to give recognition to international, national and regional
poetry movements.
A decision to proclaim 21 March as World Poetry Day was
adopted during UNESCO’s 30th session held in Paris in 1999.
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March 21 - International day for the elimination
of racial discrimination
The United Nations’ (UN) International Day for the
Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed with a series of events and
activities worldwide on March 21 each year.
- The
day aims to remind people of racial discrimination’s negative
consequences. It also encourages people to remember their obligation and
determination to combat racial discrimination.
- Theme:
Promoting tolerance, inclusion, unity and respect for diversity in the
context of combating racial discrimination
On that
day, in 1960, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful
demonstration in Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid pass laws.
Proclaiming the day in 1966, the United Nations General Assembly called on
the international community to redouble its efforts to eliminate all forms of
racial discrimination
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BIRAC celebrated 6th foundation day
The
Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) celebrated its 6th Foundation
Day on 20th March, 2018.
- Theme
for this year is ‘Sustaining Innovation – A Market Driven Pathway’.
- The
event saw the announcement of the preliminary winners of the SoCH
(Solutions for Community Health) awards.
- This
award is an innovation challenge award which was launched on the MyGov
portal in September 2017.
BIRAC is a new industry-academia interface and implements
its mandate through a wide range of impact initiatives, be it providing
access to risk capital through targeted funding, technology transfer, IP
management and handholding schemes that help bring innovation excellence to
the biotech firms and make them globally competitive. In its three years of
existence, BIRAC has initiated several schemes, networks and platforms that
help to bridge the existing gaps in the industry-academia Innovation research
and facilitate novel, high quality affordable products development through
cutting edge technologies. BIRAC has initiated partnerships with several national
and global partners to collaborate and deliver the salient features of its
mandate.
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Cabinet approves Ayushman Bharat
The Union Cabinet has approved the launch of a
new Centrally Sponsored Ayushman Bharat -National Health Protection Mission
(AB-NHPM) having central sector component under Ayushman Bharat Mission
anchored in the MoHFW.
- The
scheme has the benefit cover of Rs. 5 lakh per family per year. The target
beneficiaries of the proposed scheme will be more than 10 crore families
belonging to poor and vulnerable population based on SECC database.
AB-NHPM will subsume the on-going centrally
sponsored schemes -RashtriyaSwasthyaBimaYojana (RSBY) and the Senior Citizen
Health Insurance Scheme (SCHIS)
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Cabinet approves Central Sector
"Integrated Scheme for Development of Silk Industry" for sericulture
sector
The
Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has given its approval for Central Sector
Scheme "Integrated Scheme for Development of Silk Industry" for the
next three years from 2017-18 to 2019-20.
The Scheme
has four components –
1. Research
& Development (R&D), Training, Transfer of Technology and IT
Initiatives
2. Seed
Organizations and farmers extension centres
3. Coordination
and Market Development for seed, yarn and silk products and
4. Quality
Certification System (QCS) by creating amongst others a chain of Silk Testing
facilities, Farm based & post-cocoon Technology Up-gradation, and Export
Brand Promotion.
Cabinet approves moving official amendments in
the "Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016"
The Union
Cabinet has given its approval formovingofficial amendments in the
"Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016".
- The
Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016 proposes to regulate surrogacy in India
by establishing National Surrogacy Board at the central level and, State
Surrogacy Boards and Appropriate Authorities in the States and Union
Territories.
- The
proposed legislation ensures effective regulation of surrogacy, prohibit
commercial surrogacy and allow altruistic surrogacy to the needy Indian
infertile couples.
Once the
Bill is enacted by the Parliament, the National Surrogacy Board will be
constituted. The States and Union Territories shall constitute the State
Surrogacy Board and State Appropriate Authorities within three months of the
notification by the Central Government.
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More autonomy for JNU, Hyderabad varsity
Jawaharlal Nehru University and University of
Hyderabad are the two Central institutions that will be granted the highest
autonomy as Category-1 institutions under the new scheme of higher autonomy for
quality institutions.
- This
was announced on Tuesday by Minister of Human Resource Development Prakash
Javadekar.
- Banaras
Hindu University, Aligarh Muslim University and the English and Foreign
Languages University, Telangana, are in Category-2, which too enjoys high
autonomy.
- As
per UGC’s February 2018 notification on graded autonomy, quality
institutions will get the freedom to start their own courses, departments,
centres and schools, provided they generate their own funds rather than
demand these from the government.
Institutions having a National Assessment and
Accreditation Council (NAAC) score of 3.5 and above, out of 4, are in
Category-1, and those with a NAAC score of 3.26 to 3.5 are in Category-2.
JNU has the highest NAAC score of 3.77 among
Central universities and University of Hyderabad is next with 3.72.
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Telangana, A.P. give highest for welfare
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh respectively allocated around
10% and 8% of their State budget spending for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled
Tribes and Other Backward Classes, making them the highest and the second
highest contributors to welfare among the 29 States for the previous year.
- Telangana
allocated 9.7% of its budget expenditure for welfare of Dalits, Adivasis
and Bahujan communities last year even as Andhra Pradesh allocated 7.9%.
Karnataka came third in 2017-18 budget estimates as it allocated 6.8% of
its budget for welfare. Maharashtra allocated 5.1% of its budget for SC-ST-OBC
welfare schemes in 2017-18. The findings were revealed in PRS Legislative
Research organisation’s State of States report-2018.
According to the PRS study, “Welfare programmess for SC, ST
and OBCs include expenditure on scholarships, in addition to construction and
maintenance of hostels for students”.
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Telangana to make Telugu mandatory in schools
till Class 10
The Telangana government has decided to make Telugu a
mandatory subject till Class 10 in all public and private schools.
- Government
has decided to make Telugu a compulsory subject as it is our
responsibility to respect our mother tongue and our culture.
- The
course should have content that inculcates ethical values among the
children, he added.
World’s last Male Northern White Rhiho dies in
Kenya
Sudan, world’s last male northern white rhino, has died
due to age-related complications.
- The Ol
Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya said the 45-year-old rhino was
euthanized on Monday after his condition worsened.
- The
rhino is survived by his daughter, Najin, and
granddaughter, Fatu.
Sudan was listed as “The Most Eligible Bachelor in the
World” on the Tinder dating app for a fundraising effort.
The last male northern white rhino had been born in Sudan,
the last of his kind to be born in the wild.
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EESL acquires U.K. energy firm Edina for Rs.
493 crore
Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) has acquired Edina,
a supplier, installer and maintenance provider for combined heat and power
(CHP), gas and diesel power generation solutions in the U.K. for £55 million
(Rs. 493 crore).
- The
acquisition, a first-of-its-kind by an entity under the Ministry of Power,
was made through EESL’s U.K. subsidiary, EnergyPro Assets Limited (EPAL).
- EESL
intends to bring CHP technology to India, providing an integrated service
offering to industries that would enable them to receive equipment
maintenance, electricity, heat and power at no upfront costs.
Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) is an energy
service company (ESCO) of the Government of India and is the world's largest
public ESCO. It is 100% government owned, a joint venture of state-owned NTPC
Limited, Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation and
POWERGRID. EESL was formed under India's Ministry of Power to facilitate
energy efficiency projects. Innovative business and implementation models can
significantly reduce consumption and costs.
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USA bans use of Venezuelan cryptocurrency-
Petro
The Donald Trump administration banned all use by Americans
of Venezuelan Cryptocurrency (Petro), saying that its introduction is intended
to skirt U.S. sanctions.
- The
prohibition applies to all people and companies subject to U.S.
jurisdiction.
- In
February 2018, cash-strapped Venezuela became the first country to launch
its own version of Bitcoin, the petro.
Global digital summit to be held in Kochi
A two-day global digital summit is scheduled to be held this
week in Kochi.
- The
event aims to position Kerala as a hub for digital innovation and
technology.
- The
event #Future will be held from March 22 to 23.
Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, Infosys
co-founder Nandan Nilekani, Aster DM Healthcare
founder-chairman Azad Mooppen will be attending the summit.
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106th Indian Science Congress to be Held in
Bhopal
General President-elect of Indian Science Congress Manoj
Kumar Chakrabarti announced that the 106th edition of the Indian
Science Congress will be held in January 2019 at Barkatullah
University Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
- The
theme for 2019 ISC will be “Future India: Science & Technology”.
PM Modi inaugurated the 105th Indian Science Congress
in Imphal, Manipur. The theme for ISC 2018 was 'Reaching the
unreached through science and technology'.
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1st G20 ministerial meeting held in Argentina
The first G20 meeting of finance ministers and
central bank governors began in Buenos Aires, Argentina with the
presence of 57 delegations from countries and institutions.
- The
summit, held at the capital's Center of Exhibitions and Conventions
(CEC), gathered 22 finance ministers, 17 central bank governors and 10
heads of international organisations, including IMF Director-General
Christine Lagarde. The second meeting of G20 finance ministers and
central bank governors will be held in Washington, the USA.
World's most liveable city report- Vienna tops,
Baghdad worst
Austria's capital city Vienna has been rated
the world's most liveable city for the ninth consecutive year by
Mercer in its annual Quality of Living survey.
- It
was followed by Switzerland's Zurich, while New Zealand's
Auckland and Germany's Munich tied for third place.
- Iraq's
capital city Baghdad has been rated the least liveable
city for the tenth consecutive year.
Hyderabad and Pune have been rated India's most
liveable cities as they have tied for the 142nd place in
Mercer's global Quality of Living survey.
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Bihar governor Satya pal mallik gets additional
charge of Odisha
Bihar Governor Satya Pal Malik will discharge the
functions of Odisha Governor in addition to his own duties till regular
arrangements are made. Odisha Governor SC Jamir completed his tenure.
- Mr
Jamir has earlier served as chief minister of Nagaland for five times, was
an union deputy minister in the cabinet Jawaharlal Nehru and governors of
Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa.
Nanda bahadur pun elected Nepal's Vice
President
Nanda Bahadur Pun has been re-elected as the
Vice-President of Nepal for the second term unopposed.
- Pun
has filed candidacy for the post of the Vice President and his candidacy
remained unopposed as no candidate came forward to contest with him for
the post.
Myanmar President, Htin Kyaw Resigns
Myanmar's President and Aung San Suu Kyi's right-hand
man Htin Kyaw stepped down after two years in the position.
- As
per the official report, a new leader would be selected “within seven
working days”.
Mary Kom’s NGO under the scanner
An NGO run by Olympian and Rajya Sabha member Mary Kom, the
Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust and NASSCOM are among the 42 organisations
investigated by the Home Ministry for alleged violations of foreign funding
laws.
- Prime
Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Ms. Kom’s boxing foundation during his
Manipur visit last week.
- The
Centre for Internet and Society, a Bengaluru-based NGO which had
reportedly flagged breach of Aadhaar data last year, was sent notice by
the Ministry.
- Union
Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said in the Lok Sabha that 21 NGOs
were served standard questionnaire, and they include Mary Kom Regional
Boxing Foundation, Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust, Delhi, Asianet New
Charitable Trust, Kerala, and Amnesty International (India) Foundation.
Indian Army releases book on Paramveer chakra
awardees
General Bipin Rawat, Chief of the army staff released a
book on Paramveer Chakra Awardees - ‘Paramveer Parwane’.
- The
book illustrates the bravery of Paramveer Chakra Awardees from 1947 to
1965. The book is written by Dr Prabhakiran Jain and is
published by Medha Books.
- Somnath
Sharma (from 4 Kumaon Unit) was the first recipient of Paramveer Chakra.
Kidambi Srikanth, Somdev Devvarman awarded
Padma Shri
Shuttler Kidambi Srikanth and former tennis
player Somdev Devvarman were felicitated with the Padma Shri by
President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
- Padma
Shri, the country’s fourth-highest civilian award was presented to them in
New Delhi.
- Srikanth
is currently World No 2 while Devvarman, who retired last year won a gold
medal for the country at the Asian Games.
- India’s
first Paralympic gold medallist, Murlikant Petkar also received
the Padma Shri.
- Other
awardees are former India cricket captain MS
Dhoni, cueist Pankaj Advani, for Padma Bhushan and
weightlifter Saikom Mirabhai Chanu with the Padma Shri.
