Daily Current affairs - April 13th, 2018 for all competitive exams
On the eve of the birth anniversary of Dr. Babasaheb
Ambedkar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Dr. Ambedkar
National Memorial at 26, Alipur Road in Delhi on April 13th.
- This
is the place where Dr. Ambedkar attained Mahaparinirvana on 6th December
1956.
- The
memorial is dedicated to the life and contributions
of Dr. Ambedkar, the principal architect of the Constitution.
The memorial has an exhibition area, meditation
hall with the Buddha Statue and 12 feet high bronze statue of Dr Ambedkar. It
is equipped with a sewerage treatment plant, a rainwater harvesting System
and rooftop solar energy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone
of the memorial on March 21, 2016.
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Government sets up committee to review the enforcement of CSR
provisions
Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs has set up a 12-member
panel to review the enforcement of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
provisions under the Companies law and to recommend a uniform approach for its
enforcement.
- The
panel is headed by Manmohan Juneja – Regional Director (Western Region)
while Seema Rath – Deputy Director (CSR) will be the convener. Other
members include Sanjay Shorey – Joint Director (Legal) and N K Dua – Joint
Director (Policy) N K Dua.
Under the Companies Act, 2013, profitable entities falling
under specified categories are required to spend at least two per cent of
their three-year annual average net profit towards CSR activities. This norm
came into force on April 1, 2014.
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NCERT published Child line and POCSO e-Box on books
To equip the
children with the information regarding the possible modes of
protection/complaints, the National Council Of Educational Research And
Training (NCERT) has published the information regarding Child line (1098) 24×7
Helpline for children and POCSO e-box on the back side of the front cover of
all course books from Class 6 to Class 12.
Protection
of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO), e-Box, is an online complaint
management system for easy and direct reporting of sexual offences against
children and timely action against the offenders under the POCSO Act, 2012.
E-Box is very simple to operate and will help to maintain the confidentiality
of the complaint.
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Being
concerned about offences against children, the Government enacted POCSO Act,
2012 to protect them from offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment and
pornography, while safeguarding the interest of the child at every stage of
the judicial process. Any human being up to the age of 18 years is recognised
as a child under the POCSO Act.
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Centre to snuff out ‘toxic’ e-cigarettes
The Centre has informed the Delhi High Court that it is in
the process of issuing guidelines to ban the manufacture, import, sale and any
kind of trade in e-cigarettes, dubbing it a “new emerging threat”.
- Terming
e-cigarettes or Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems “addictive” and
targeted at young smokers, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
said the decision has been taken in the larger interest of public health.
The Ministry submitted that the chief constituent of
e-cigarettes was nicotine, which was addictive. The Ministry’s response
came on a petition filed by anti-tobacco activist Seema Sehgal, through
Bhuvanesh Sehgal, seeking a ban or regulating the sale and use of
e-cigarettes.
Though there are no specific guidelines to deal with e-cigarettes,
several State governments and Union Territories have taken steps to prohibit
it.
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SIDBI plans to promote 115 Aspirational District Programme
Small
Industries Development Bank of India (Sidbi) has charted a plan to promote
micro enterprises in 115 aspirational districts across the country to
contribute in their development. The bank has tied up with Common Service
Centre (CSC) to meet this objective.
- ‘Transformation
of Aspirational Districts’ was launched in January with an aim to quickly
and effectively transform some of the most underdeveloped districts in the
country.
The broad
contours of the programme are Convergence (of Central & State Schemes),
Collaboration (of Central, State level ‘Prabhari’ Officers & District
Collectors), and Competition among districts driven by a mass Movement.
Under the
programme, identified districts are prodded and encouraged to first catch-up
with the best district within their state, and subsequently aspire to become
one of the best in the country, by competing with, and learning from others.
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NABARD to expand its long-term lending to Rs 80,000 crore in
FY19
NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development)
announced that, it has aimed to raise its long-term on-lending or refinance
portfolio to nearly Rs 80,000 crore in the current fiscal year in a move to
improve rural economy.
- NABARD’s
on-lending in 2017-18 was Rs 65,000 crore. NABARD earned a surplus of Rs
2,951 crore for the fiscal year that ended in March 2018.
- It
has planned to raise Rs 40,000 crore from the bond borrowing. Its
borrowing was Rs 33,000 crore in 2017-18. It has been one of the top three
borrowers in the market.
- NABARD’s
balance sheet grew 17 % to Rs 4.06 lakh crore in the fiscal year that
ended in March 2018, against Rs 3.48 lakh crore in FY17.
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development
(NABARD) is an apex development financial institution in India, headquartered
at Mumbai with branches all over India. The Bank has been entrusted with
"matters concerning policy, planning and operations in the field of
credit for agriculture and other economic activities in rural areas in
India". NABARD is active in developing financial inclusion policy and is
a member of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion
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Ruling on SC/ST Act is causing great damage,
Centre tells Supreme Court
The Supreme Court judgment banning immediate arrest of a
person accused of insulting or injuring Dalits is causing disharmony and “great
damage” to the country, the Centre said
- This
case dealing with an issue of very sensitive nature has caused a lot of
commotion in the country and is also creating anger, unease and a sense of
disharmony... the confusion created by this judgment may have to be
corrected by reviewing the judgment and recalling the directions issued by
the court
The government said the “confusion deserves to be
corrected” and the March 20 judgment is “directly in conflict” with the
Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act of
1989. The Centre’s note said the Supreme Court is bound to uphold the
written Constitution, which divides power among the government, the
legislature and the judiciary. Each of the three arms of governance has to
remain within its own terrain. The judgment is nothing but judicial
legislation.
The government said the Supreme Court, through its March 20
verdict, had encroached upon area reserved for Parliament and laid down a law
contrary to a statute passed by Parliament.
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Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal pledges to serve the
farmers on priority under APART project
Enveloping Assam’s ‘agri-business’ by focusing on farmers
income, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal directed to make farmers’ interests a
priority.
- He
advocated priority outlining and creation of adequate amenities for the
farmers under the Assam Agri-business and Rural Transformation Project
(APART).
- Reviewing
APART, an agriculture department project, in a meeting in Guwahati, CM
Sonowal asked the implementing agency to take into account the interests
and priorities of the farmers.
Haryana govt decided to launch Gram Swaraj Abhiyan
Haryana
government has decided to launch ‘Gram Swaraj Abhiyan’, an outreach campaign,
in the state on the birth anniversary of Dr B R Ambedkar on April 14, which
will continue till May 5.
- “Gram
Swaraj Abhiyan” will be organised starting from 14th April to 05th May,
2018.
- The
campaign, undertaken under the name of “Sabka Sath, Sabka Gaon, Sabka
Vikas”, is to promote social harmony, spread awareness about pro-poor
initiatives of government, reach out to poor households to enroll them as
also to obtain their feedback on various welfare programmes.
India rejects proposal to create SAARC Police
India has rejected Nepal’s proposal to create the
“SAARC Police”, a regional body to counter terrorism, narcotics and human
trafficking.
- The
proposal was floated during a meeting of senior police officers and
officials responsible for countering drug and narcotics trafficking.
- With
the situation currently not favourable for holding the stalled 19th Saarc
Summit, some observers believe the proposal was also affected by the
rivalry between India and Pakistan.
The SAARC process has been stalled since India pulled
out of the 19th Saarc Summit that was to be held in Islamabad in 2016.
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AIIB decides to invest $140mn to improve Rural Connectivity in
India
The Board of Directors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment
Bank (AIIB) have approved USD $ 140-million loan to improve the rural road
connectivity and management for residents in Madhya Pradesh, India, at a
Meeting held recently in Beijing, China.
- Nearly,
1.5 Million rural people of Madhya Pradesh will be benefited from improved
livelihoods, education and mobility offered through this project.
- This
project is co-financed by the World Bank. It aims to improve the rural
road connectivity and management for residents of nearly 5,640 villages.
The AIIB was
established as a new multilateral financial institution aimed at providing
“financial support for infrastructure development and regional connectivity
in Asia.” It was founded in October, 2014, and has its headquarters in
Beijing. Its goals are also to boost economic development in the region,
create wealth, prove infrastructure, and promote regional cooperation and
partnership.
The value of
AIIB’s authorized capital amounts to $100 billion, with almost $30 billion
invested by China. India is not only one of the founding members of AIIB but
is also the 2nd largest shareholder in AIIB.
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AAI to develop Myanmar’s Kalay Airport
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has signed an agreement
with the Ministry of External Affairs, for preparation of a Detailed Project
Report (DPR) on the first phase for development of the Kalay Airport as a green
airport in Myanmar.
- AAI
had developed more than 60 airports in metro and non-metro cities in India
and now AAI wants to leverage its expertise to other countries on bigger
scale.
NHAI signs agreement for its First International Project
To provide seamless vehicular movement for enhancing trade,
business, health, education and tourism between Indian, Myanmar and Thailand,
the National Highways Authority of India has signed an agreement for
upgradation of Yagyi – Kalewa section of highway (Milepost 40/0 to Milepost
115/5) in Myanmar to two lanes with earthen shoulder.
- Work
on the 1,000 km-long India-Myanmar-Thailand (IMT) Trilateral Highway
officially started with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI)
signing an agreement with a joint-venture (JV) between Punj Lloyd and
Varaha Infra to upgrade the Yagyi-Kalewa section of the India-Myanmar
Friendship Road in Myanmar.
- This
is NHAI’s first international project agreement. The
project has been funded by Ministry of External Affairs, Government of
India and would be executed on EPC mode at a cost of Rs.1177 crores.
- The
1,000 km India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway will run from Moreh in
Manipur to Mae Sot in Thailand via Myanmar. The highway will facilitate
easy movement of goods and people among the three countries.
Once
completed, greater flows of trade and investment will take place along the
route, stimulating the movement of goods and people, creating jobs, promoting
tourism as well as raising the livelihoods of the peoples in the region.
First, it
will help improve connectivity between India’s remote Northeastern part and
Southeast Asia. Secondly, with the construction of this road, which started
as the India-Myanmar friendship road way back in 2001, the recent
non-attendance by India at China’s Belt and Road Forum in Beijing seems to
have injected a new measure of earnestness among Indian policy planners when
it comes to executing such road projects.
Thirdly,
Northeast India has been lagging behind other parts of the country when it
comes to infrastructure. When completed, the IMT highway will also give easy
access to the Northeastern states to the sea (via Myanmar).
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The National
Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is an autonomous agency of the Government
of India, responsible for management of a network of over 70,000 km of
National Highways in India. It is a nodal agency of the Ministry of Road
Transport and Highways. The NHAI was created through the promulgation of the
National Highways Authority of India Act, 1988. In February 1995, the
Authority was formally made an autonomous body.
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World’s first long-distance electric bus line to begin in Paris
World’s first long-distance electric bus line began service
on April 12, 2018 in Paris, France.
- This
bus line has been presented by Flixbus, a brand which offers intercity bus
service in Europe.
- It
will link Paris to France’s northern city of Amiens, undertaking a 160
kilometers journey within two hours.
- This
49-seater bus has a maximum travel range of 250 kilometres. Its batteries
can be fully charged in 5 hours.
Sri Lanka president suspends parliament until
May 8
Sri Lankan President Maithripala
Sirisena suspended parliament until next month.
- A
government decree quoted the president as stating that he had halted
parliament’s meetings.
- The
move, scheduled to last until May 8, came hours after at least 16 Sirisena
loyalists, including six cabinet ministers.
Just hours before he announced the suspension
of parliament, Sirisena had appointed acting ministers to the positions of
those who quit the Cabinet.
The SLFP is to decide later this month if it
will remain in government. Rajapaksa is pressing for a 2020 national election
to be brought forward.
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WHO directives call for support for breastfeeding
The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations
Children’s Fund (UNICEF) issued a new 10-step guidance to increase support for
breastfeeding in health facilities that provide maternity and newborn services,
which provide the immediate health system platform to help mothers initiate
breastfeeding within the first hour and breastfeed exclusively for six months.
- Breastfeeding
all babies for the first 2 years would save the lives of more than
8,20,000 children under age 5 annually, noted a release issued by the WHO.
- The
guidelines describe how hospitals should have a written breastfeeding
policy in place, required staff competencies, and antenatal and post-birth
care, including breastfeeding support for mothers.
- It
also recommends limited use of breast milk substitutes, rooming-in,
responsive feeding, educating parents on the use of bottles and pacifiers,
and support when mothers and babies are discharged from hospital.
- Breastfeeding
saves lives. Its benefits help keep babies healthy in their first days and
last well into adulthood.
Breastfeeding is an important efficient and
cost-effective intervention promoting child survival and health.
Breastfeeding within an hour of birth could prevent 20% of the newborn
deaths. Infants who are not breastfed are 15 times more likely to die from pnuemonia
and 11 times more likely to die from diarrhoea than children who are
exclusively breastfed, which are two leading causes of death in children
under-five years of age.
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To intensify
the efforts further for promotion of breastfeeding, the Health Ministry has
initiated a nationwide programme called “MAA-Mother’s Absolute Affection’’ to
bring undiluted focus on promotion of breastfeeding and provision of services
towards supporting breastfeeding, along with ongoing efforts of routine
health systems.
The key
components of the MAA programme are awareness generation, promotion of
breastfeeding & inter personal counselling at community level, skilled
support for breastfeeding at delivery points and monitoring and Award/
recognition of health facility.
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Commonwealth leaders urged to tackle threat to
media freedom
Six Commonwealth organizations have called on member states
to sign up to a 12-point code of principles on freedom of expression and the
media, ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in London next
week, and amid concern about the threats faced by journalists.
- A
working group from bodies, including the Commonwealth Human Rights
Initiative and the Commonwealth Journalists Association, unveiled the 12
principles to uphold “an independent and vibrant” media across the
community, in the face of a “marked increase in the number of threats and
violent assaults, including murders, as well as arrests and imprisonment
in the course of their work”.
IIT-Delhi installs India’s first 5G lab
Massive Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) technology lab,
India’s first-of-its-kind 5G radio laboratory will be inaugurated at Indian
Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi on April 13, 2018.
- The
Massive MIMO Technology Lab has been set up at the Bharti School of
Telecommunication Technology and Management, at IIT Delhi.
Boeing joins the race to manufacture Super
Hornet fighter craft in India
Boeing proposed to build fighter jets in India
along with two local firms, as the US giant prepares to bid for the world’s
biggest combat aircraft order.
- The
Boeing will partner state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. and Mahindra
Defence Systems to manufacture the F/A-18 Super Hornet in India.
An Indian tender for 110 combat aircraft announced last
week mandates building at least 85% of the order locally. The country’s air
force and navy require as many as 400 single- and double-engine combat
aircraft, according to the government.
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Lenovo launches new ThinkPad laptops in India
Chinese technology company Lenovo refreshed its
ThinkPad lineup with laptops from its X1, X, T, and L series.
- Lenovo
launched a total of 11 laptops which are all powered by 8th-Gen Intel Core
processors.
- Lenovo
ThinkPad X1 Carbon starts at Rs.1,21,000, while X1 Yoga starts from Rs
1,26,000. These laptops are the first in the world to support Dolby Vision
HDR.
Google engineer develops the tool to detect
fake videos, images
Google engineer Supasorn Suwajanakorn has
developed a tool which, fed with the right input, can create a realistic fake
video.
- Like
any technology, it has great potential for both good and mischief.
- Suwajanakorn
is therefore also working with the AI Foundation on a ‘Reality Defender’
app that would run automatically in web browsers
Pressure on RBI to ease NPA norms
The finance ministry is in discussion with the Reserve Bank
of India (RBI) for relaxation of norms regarding stressed asset resolution that
was announced in February.
- This
follows representation by large banks to the ministry officials as they
worry about pressure on profitability due to the revised guidelines.
- RBI’s
mandate to implement a resolution plan even if the loan is overdue for a
day, has in particular upset banks. RBI had also mandated that if the
solution plan was not implemented within 180 days, bankruptcy process
should be initiated. Banks have to make 50% provision for accounts that
are referred to the NCLT for insolvency proceedings.
According to RBI norms, if the principal or interest is
overdue for one day to 30 days, the account is identified as Special Mention
Account - 0 (SMA-0) categories. If it is overdue for 30 to 60 days, it comes
under the SMA-1 category and if it is overdue for more than 60 days, till 90
days, it falls under SMA-2 category. If a loan is not repaid for more than 90
days, it is classified as non-performing asset (NPA).
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Jayant Sinha to head Task Force for UAV technology
The Government has decided to constitute a Task Force under
the chairmanship of Shri Jayant Sinha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation for
fast-tracking the roll-out of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technology.
- The
Task Force will develop a roadmap with implementable recommendations for
Central as well as State Governments, Industry and Research Institutions.
- The
Task Force will consist of representatives from the Government, PSUs,
industry and sectoral experts and submit report within 6 months of its
constitution. The Headquarters of the Task Force will be at Ministry of
Civil Aviation, New Delhi.
Index of Economic Freedom 2018: India ranks
130th, Hong Kong tops
India’s
economic freedom score is 54.5, making its economy the 130th freest in the 2018
Index. In 2017, India with a score of 52.6 points was ranked at 143 among 180
countries.
- India
is ranked 30th among 43 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, and its
overall score is below the regional and world averages.
- As per
the latest Index of Economic Freedom, China has jumped one spot to 110th
and Pakistan is now at 131 position.
- The
top 3 countries in the list are- Hong Kong, Singapore and New
Zealand.
India is
developing into an open-market economy. However, traces of its past
autocratic policies still remain. Economic liberalisation measures, including
industrial deregulation, privatisation of state-owned enterprises and reduced
controls on foreign trade and investment, that began in the early 1990s,
accelerated growth.
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The Heritage
Foundation has released its Index of Economic Freedom report 2017. The
Heritage Foundation is an American conservative public policy think-tank
based in Washington.
Economic
freedom is measured based on 12 quantitative and qualitative factors, grouped
into four broad categories, or pillars, of economic freedom:
Rule of Law
(property rights, government integrity, judicial effectiveness).
Government
Size (government spending, tax burden, fiscal health).
Regulatory
Efficiency (business freedom, labor freedom, monetary freedom).
Open Markets
(trade freedom, investment freedom, financial freedom).
Each of the
ten economic freedoms within these categories is graded on a scale of 0 to
100. A country’s overall score is derived by averaging these ten economic
freedoms, with equal weight being given to each.
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India hosts 16th International Energy Forum (IEF) Ministerial
Meeting
16th International Energy Forum Ministerial (IEF16) Meeting
was held on 10th -12th April 2018 in New Delhi.
- This
meeting was hosted by India and co-hosted by China and South Korea.
- IEF16
was the largest gathering of Energy Ministers from across the globe. From
the Indian side, the ministerial was attended by Union Petroleum and
Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The
International Energy Forum, also known as IEF, is the world's largest
recurring gathering of energy ministers. It is unique in that participants
not only include IEA and OPEC countries, but also key international actors
such as Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Russia, and South Africa.
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Sripriya Ranganathan appointed as the next ambassador of India
to the Republic of Korea
Sripriya Ranganathan was appointed as the next Ambassador of
India to the Republic of Korea.
- Sripriya
Ranganathan is an Indian Foreign Service Officer (IFS) of 1994 batch. She
is at present Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs.
Bhanu Pratap Sharma appointed chairman of Bank Board Bureau
(BBB)
Former DoPT (Department of Personnel and Training) Secretary
Bhanu Pratap Sharma was appointed the Chairman of Banks Board Bureau (BBB) by
the government.
- Bhanu
Pratap Sharma succeeds Vinod Rai. Vinod Rai was appointed as the first
chairman of BBB for a period of two years.
- Financial
Services Secretary Rajiv Kumar said that, Bhanu Pratap Sharma will be
given the same mandate as that of Vinod Rai.
Sanjiv Mehta to take over as HUL chairman from
Manwani
Sanjiv Mehta will take over as chairman of
Hindustan Unilever (HUL), succeeding Harish Manwani.
- He
is set to retire from the post of non-executive chairman at the company’s
forthcoming annual general meeting in June this year.
- He
took over as the non-executive chairman of the company in July 2005 and,
during these 13 years.
- Manwani
was the first Indian manager who rose to the COO level at Unilever, the
parent company of HUL.
Chandra Shekhar Ghosh re-appointed as MD & CEO of Bandhan
Bank
Chandra Shekhar Ghosh has been re-appointed as managing
director and CEO of Bandhan Bank for a three year term from 10thJuly 2018.
- Former
deputy governor at Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Harun Rasid Khan, has
joined Bandhan Bank board.
65th National Film awards
announced
The National Film awards were announced by Shekhar Kapur, the
head of the Jury for feature films
- Dada
Saheb Phalke Award: Vinod Khanna
- Best
Director: Jayaraj for Bhayanakam (Malayalam)
- Best
Feature Film: Village Rockstars (Assamese)
- Best
Actor: Ridhhi Sen for Nagar Kirtan (Bengali)
- Best
Actress: Sridevi for Mom (Hindi)
- Best
Popular Film: Baahubali 2(Telugu)
- Best
Telugu Film Gazi (Telugu)
The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award
ceremonies in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with
the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian
government's Directorate of Film Festivals since 1973.
Nandita Das’ ‘Manto’ gets a space at Cannes
Manto , directed by actor-filmmaker Nandita Das, will be
competing in the 71st Cannes Film Festival’s official “Un Certain Regard”
section. The festival is being held from May 8-19.
- The
biographical film on the celebrated Indo-Pakistani writer Saadat Hasan
Manto, with Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the titular role, is the only Indian
film to have made it to the official selection at the festival this year.
- The
poster of the film and some footage and images were unveiled at the India
pavilion at Marche du Film (Film Market) at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival
last year. A live script-reading session with Mr. Siddiqui was conducted
then in the HP Studio in Le Majestic hotel. Mr. Siddiqui had said that for
him the most outstanding aspect about Manto was that he always
dared to speak the truth.
Siddhartha Varadarajan will receive the Shorenstein Journalism
Award for 2017 at Stanford University
Siddhartha Varadarajan, the founding editor of The Wire, will
receive the Shorenstein Journalism Award for 2017 at Stanford University on
April 16.
- The
award is given annually by Stanford University’s Walter H. Shorenstein
Asia-Pacific Research Center and alternates between recipients from the
West and Asia.
“Siddhartha Varadarajan original perspective and courageous
accounts of India’s domestic and foreign policies have for years received
high acclaim, informing readers in India, the U.S., and around the world.
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CWG 2018: Anish Bhanwala Becomes India's
youngest CWG gold medalist
Fifteen-year-old shooter Anish Bhanwala
became India's youngest gold medalist at the Commonwealth Games, winning
the men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Finals with a record score at Gold
Coast, Australia.
- India's
Neeraj Kumar stood fifth at the event. Anish, who is participating in his
first Commonwealth Games, won gold at the ISSF Junior World Cup in Sydney
2017.
