Daily Current affairs - April 20th, 2018 for all competitive exams
As part of the “Gram SwarajAbhiyaan”, the “Swachh Bharat Parva” was
recently organized all over the country.
“Gram Swaraj Abhiyan” is being organised between 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.
- As a special endeavour during the Gram Swaraj
Abhiyan, saturation of eligible households/persons would be made
under seven flagship pro-poor programmes in 21,058 identified
villages.
The programmes covered are Pradhan Mantri
Ujjwala Yojana, Saubhagya, Ujala scheme, Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana,
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana
and Mission Indradhanush.
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Beginning on 2nd October, 2014, the Swachhta Campaign
has been implemented by the Central Government all over the country with the
help of States, NGOs, PSUs, Corporate Houses among others due to which 1.95
lakhs villages and 137 districts in the country have now become open
defecation free, Shri SudarshanBhagat explained. The SwachhtaParv
celebrations were organized by the representatives of Panchayats and local
rural people at Lohardaga.
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Group of ministers on roads constituted for Uniform road tax
A group of ministers (GoM) on transport constituted by the roads ministry
has recommended a uniform road tax structure for vehicles across states.
- The group was constituted to find a solution to the
various problems plaguing the road sector in the country. It was also
asked to suggest ways to improve road safety and facilitate ease of
transport.
- One national bus and taxi permit: The GoM has recommended one national
bus and taxi permit on the lines of permits for goods transporters. Public
transport in the country is growing annually at a rate of just about 2%,
as against a 20% annual growth in private transport. Therefore, a national
permit will give the much-needed fillip to public transport and help
reduce road congestion.
- Boost to electric vehicles: The
GoM proposed to liberalize the permit system for electric vehicles to
promote alternative fuels. It suggested raising the tax on diesel vehicles
by 2% while lowering the tax on electric vehicles.
Benefits of uniform road tax:
It will end the practice of people registering their vehicles in low-tax
states and using them in other states. The move will also bring relief to
consumers moving across states.
If the states agree to One Nation, One Permit, One Tax then the revenues
of the states will increase. This will also reduce the chances of one
operator taking a few permits and running a large number of buses.
It will also go a long way in improving the interstate transfer of used
cars making the lengthy and rather a cumbersome process that exists today
into a much more streamlined and less complicated one.
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Union government set up Defence Planning Committee
The Centre has set up a Defence Planning Committee (DPC) chaired by
National Security Advisor (NSA) to facilitate “comprehensive” planning for the
defence forces besides focusing on military doctrines to deal with emerging
security challenges.
- The DPC will be a permanent body chaired by the
National Security Advisor.
The committee will comprise:
- National Security Advisor (NSA), Foreign secretary,
Chairman of chiefs of staff committee, The Army, Navy and Air Force chiefs
and Secretary (expenditure) in the Finance Ministry.
- The chairman of the DPC can co-opt experts into it
depending on requirement.
Because the Prime Minister’s Office, the defence ministry, the finance
ministry and the three services are part of the same committee, decisions on
military purchases could now happen much faster.
The DPC would submit its draft reports to the Defence Minister according
to “given timelines” following which further approvals will be obtained as
required.
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MoEF&CC framed new
draft on Coastal Regulation Zone
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has
framed a new draft Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification, 2018.
The salient features of the draft CRZ Notification, 2018 and changes with
respect to CRZ Notification, 2011, are as under:
- CRZ limits on land along
the tidal influenced water bodies has been proposed to be reduced from 100
meters or the width of the creek, whichever is less, to 50 meters or the
width of the creek, whichever is less.
- A No Development Zone (NDZ) of
20 meters has been proposed to be stipulated for all Islands close to the
main land coast and for all Backwater Islands in the main land.
Coastal Regulation Zone or CRZ is a coastal land up to 500m from the High
Tide Line and a range of 100m along banks of creeks, estuaries, backwaters
and rivers subject to tidal fluctuations is CRZ. According to Coastal
Regulation Zone notifications, it is divided into 4 zones:
1.
CRZ I – It
refers to the ecologically sensitive areas, essential in maintaining
ecosystem of the coast. These lie between the HTL and LTL. Only exploration
of natural gas and extraction of salt is permitted.
2.
CRZ II – These
areas form up to the shoreline of the coast. Authorized structures are not
allowed to be constructed in this zone.
3.
CRZ III – This
includes rural and urban localities. Only certain activities relating to
agriculture and public utilities allowed here.
4.
CRZ IV – This
includes the aquatic area up to the territorial limit (12 nautical miles).
Fishing and allied activities permitted in this zone. Solid waste can be let
off in this zone.
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Opposition parties submit
impeachment motion against CJI
Opposition parties led by Congress MP
Ghulam Nabi Azad have submitted an impeachment motion against Chief Justice of
India Dipak Misra to Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu.
- For the first time in the history of India a motion
for the impeachment of a Chief Justice has been moved. Around 60
opposition leaders signed the motion, while TMC and DMK MPs refrained from
it.
- The move comes after CJI-led Supreme Court bench
dismissed petitions seeking a probe into Judge BH Loya's death.
Article 124(4) of the Constitution and
the Judges (Inquiry) Act 1968 deal with the impeachment of a judge. As
described in Article 124(4), a judge can be removed on the grounds of
"proved misbehaviour or incapacity". However, neither misbehaviour
nor incapacity is defined.
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Chhattisgarh to distribute
free smartphones to over 50lakh People under Sanchar Kranti Yojana
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh
announced that his government would distribute over 30 lakh smartphones to
college students, farmers, workers in tendu leaf plantations and labourers in
the State over the next five months under Sanchar Kranti Yojana.
- The Chief Minister’s announcement is being viewed as
an attempt by the government to appease certain sections of the State’s
population ahead of Assembly polls. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led
State government will be battling anti-incumbency after a 15-year-long
rule.
UP govt orders govt.
hospitals and orphanages to establish Shishu Swagat Kendra- Palna
In Uttar Pradesh, Government has ordered
all government hospitals and orphanages to establish SHISHU SWAGAT KENDRA-
PALNA and put up cradles in front of their buildings so that parents can give
up unwanted babies safely.
- Yesterday an order was issued to all district
magistrates and other higher officials of the state to ensure the setup of
PALNA centres.
- This will help in tackling the problem of abandoning
the infant at the roadside.
Maharashtra to ban plastic
microbeads by month end says govt
Maharashtra could become the first state
to prohibit the use of microplastics or plastic microbeads.
Government officials said a notification
will be issued by the end of the month.
- The ban is aimed at protecting marine life
threatened by microplastics.
- The US banned the use of microbeads in personal care
products in 2015. In January, the United Kingdom imposed a ban.
India to invest more than
£1 billion in the UK
India will invest more than 1 billion
pounds in the UK, which will help create or safeguard 5,750 British jobs.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit as the two
sides signed a wide range of MoUs, agreements and initiatives across
technology, trade and investment.
- According to DIT figures, total trade in goods and
services between the UK and India was 18 billion pounds in 2017, a 15
percent increase from 2016.
Swaziland King changes
country's name to 'Kingdom of eSwatini'
Swaziland’s King Mswati
III, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, officially changed the name of
his country to the ‘Kingdom of eSwatini’.
- Accordingly, the country, a member of the
Commonwealth, will now be known by its historic name of eSwatini.
- The announcement was made during the Golden Jubilee
celebrations of the King’s 50th birthday as well as the 50th
anniversary of Swazi’s independence from British colonial rule.
Absolute monarchy, or despotic
monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which one ruler has supreme authority and
where that authority is not restricted by any written laws, legislature, or
customs.
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Swaziland
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Capital
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Mbabane (executive) Lobamba
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Currency
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Rand
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King
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Mswati III
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Poland marks the 75th
anniversary of the uprising in Warsaw Ghetto
Polish capital began a day of
commemorations today on the 75th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.
- The daffodils tradition comes from Marek Edelman,
who was the last surviving commander of the uprising and on every anniversary
used to lay these spring flowers at the monument to the fighters. He died
in 2009.
- The revolt ended in death for most of the fighters,
yet left behind an enduring symbol of resistance.
The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest of
all the Jewish ghettos in German-occupied Europe during World War II. It was
established by the German authorities in the Muranów neighborhood of the
Polish capital between October and November 16, 1940; within the
new General Government territory of German-occupied Poland.
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Ad blockers are legal,
rules Germany's Supreme Court
Germany's Supreme Court has ruled that
every internet citizen possesses the right to block unwanted advertisements
online.
- The court dismissed a case filed by publisher Axel
Springer, which was seeking to ban Adblock Plus, an extension that allows
users to block advertisements.
- The court also said that Adblock Plus does not
violate the law against unfair competition.
NASA’s planet-hunting
probe successfully launched on SpaceX rocket
TESS, NASA’s planet-hunting satellite was recently launched on a SpaceX
Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
- The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is
a NASA mission that will look for planets orbiting the brightest stars in
Earth’s sky, which is expected to find thousands of new exoplanets
orbiting nearby stars.
- The twin solar arrays that will power the spacecraft
were successfully deployed soon after. After approximately 60 days of
check-out and instrument testing, the spacecraft will begin its work.
- The mission will monitor at least 200,000 stars for
signs of exoplanets, ranging from Earth-sized rocky worlds to huge gas
giant planets. TESS, however, will focus on stars that are 30 to 100 times
brighter than those Kepler examined. This will help astronomers better
understand the structure of solar systems outside of our Earth, and
provide insights into how our own solar system formed.
TESS will occupy a
never-before-used orbit high above Earth. The elliptical orbit, called P/2,
is exactly half of the moon’s orbital period; this means that TESS will orbit
Earth every 13.7 days. Its closest point to Earth (67,000 miles or 108,000
kilometers) is about triple the distance of geosynchronous orbit, where most
communications satellites operate.
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Apple unveils robot that
recycles iPhones
Apple has unveiled a new robot 'Daisy'
which can disassemble iPhones to recover components that contain high-quality
materials.
- Daisy has been made from Apple's Liam robot which
was launched in 2016 and is capable of disassembling nine versions of
iPhones.
- The new robot, which can also sort high-quality
components for recycling, can take apart up to 200 devices per hour.
Google launches
Grasshopper app for beginners to learn coding
Google launched a new app to help
beginners learn coding on their smartphones.
A team of coders from Google’s workshop
has made this Grasshopper for experimental products – “Area 120”.
- According to Techcrunch, the goal is to get
coders proficient in the basics and core concepts, so they can take the
next steps in their coding education.
- The app offers several courses, beginning with “The
Fundamentals,” where users learn how the code works.
Human brains grown in mice
for first time survive 233 days
In a first, American scientists have
grown miniature human brains in mice skulls that survived for an average of 233
days.
- Around 80% of the 200 mice survived the operation
and within two weeks the brain implants, grown from human stem cells, were
generating new neurones.
- The breakthrough could help treat neurological
disorders like autism, dementia, and schizophrenia, said researchers.
Yes Bank gets RBI nod to
open offices in London and Singapore
Private sector lender Yes Bank has
received the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) approval to open two
representative offices in London and Singapore.
- Yes Bank opened its first representative office
in Abu Dhabi in April 2015 and also launched IFSC banking unit (IBU)
at GIFT City, Gandhinagar, in the same year.
Yes Bank
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Headquarters
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Mumbai
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Tagline
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Experience our Expertise
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MD&CEO
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Rana Kapoor
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SBI India's most trusted
bank, ICICI tops in Private sector: Report
According to the TRA Brand Trust Report
2018, the State Bank of India was the most-trusted bank (both
public and private sector) in the country and ICICI Bank topped the
chart among the private ones.
- This year, State Bank of India tops the chart
of BFSI (Banking and Financial Services
Institutions) super-category despite seeing a dip in its overall
brand trust index ranking.
- The leader among the private banks is ICICI Bank,
rising nine ranks in overall ranking, it ranked 38th overall in 2018.
Fraud-hit PSB Punjab National Bank ranks sixth among the
PSB and is 297th in the overall ranking, according to the survey.
India has world’s 2nd
largest unbanked population: World Bank
India has 19 crore adults without a bank
account, making it the world’s second-largest unbanked population after China,
a World Bank report has said.
- Almost half of Indian account owners had an inactive
account in past year, it added. The report added that the share of Indian
adults with an account has more than doubled since 2011 to 80%.
Kochi to host India Skills
Kerala 2018
Kerala will host the India Skills Kerala
2018 – in Kochi from April 28 to 30, as part of the World Skills India 2018.
- The event is aimed at identifying and training
talents to get medals at the World Skills Competition Kazan 2019.
- Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence (KASE), the
State Skill Development Mission (SSDM) and Industrial Training Department
under the Department of Labour and Skills are spearheading the activities
for the event.
The proposed India Skills Kerala 2018
is an avenue provided to the youngsters in the State to showcase their
vocational skills. It also aims at generating interest and creating awareness
among the general public.
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Syrian Prez returns French
award, calls France a US slave
Syria's Foreign Ministry has returned
the Legion of Honor award given to President Bashar al-Assad, saying he would
not wear the honour of a country that was "slave" to the US.
- The award was presented to Assad by former French
President Jacques Chirac in 2001. This comes after France, the US, and the
UK launched coordinated air strikes in Syria.
The Legion of Honour, with its full
name National Order of the Legion of Honour is the highest French order of
merit for military and civil merits, established in 1802 by Napoléon
Bonaparte and retained by all the divergent governments and regimes later holding
power in France, up to the present. The order's motto is "Honneur et
Patrie" ("Honour and Fatherland")
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Karan Johar, 1st Indian
filmmaker in Madame Tussauds collection
Karan Johar has become
the first-ever Bollywood filmmaker to get a place at the famous
Madame Tussauds.
- The process has begun in London and it will take
about six months for the wax figurine to be ready.
Madame Tussauds is a wax museum in
London with smaller museums in a number of other major cities. It was founded
by wax sculptor Marie Tussaud.
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Dilip Chenoy takes over as
FICCI Secretary General
Dilip Chenoy was appointed as
the Secretary-General of industry body Federation of Indian Chambers of
Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
- He has replaced Sanjaya Baru.
- Chenoy was working as Director General of the
industry body.
Kayakalp awards given to public health facilities
Kayakalp awards were recently given to felicitate Public Health Facilities
for maintaining high standards of sanitation and hygiene.
- Kayakalp – Award to Public Health Facilities”
was instituted as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan on 15th
May 2015 as a National Initiative to give Awards to those public health
facilities that demonstrate high levels of cleanliness, hygiene and
infection control focuses on promoting cleanliness in public spaces.
- On the basis of numbers of patients and bed
occupancy, the awards have been listed in two categories. In the first
category, AIIMS, New Delhi received the first prize worth Rs. 2.50 crore,
while PGI Chandigarh won the second prize worth Rs. 1.50 crore.
- In the second category, North Eastern Indira Gandhi
regional Institute of Health and Medical Science, Shillong was adjudged
the winner with a prize money worth Rs. 1.50 crore. The second prize went to
AIIMS, Bhubhaneswar with a prize money worth 1 crore.
BCCL Chairman Indu Jain
gets Lifetime contribution to media award
Indu Jain, chairman of Bennett, Coleman
& Co, India’s largest media house, has received the All India
Management Association’s (AIMA’s) annual award for lifetime contribution
to media.
- AIMA, which recognises achievers who have made a
fundamental difference to society through its annual Managing India
Awards, conferred on Jain the award for managing the Times Group.
Virat Kohli named in
TIME’s 100 most influential people.
IME magazine’s names Indian cricket
captain Virat Kohli as one of T100 most influential people of
2018.
- Kohli’s tally was the third most ever after Kumar
Sangakkara and Ricky Ponting. He led India to the final of the Champions
Trophy.
- TIME’s annual list of the world’s most influential
people is a designation of individuals whose time, in our estimation, is now.
Official mascot of FIBA
basketball World Cup 2019 unveiled
'Son of Dreams' was unveiled
as official Mascot of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in China.
- The selection of Son of Dreams as China 2019's
Official Mascot was the culmination of a unique process by FIBA.
- The mascot finalists were Chinese dragon ('Son
of Dream'), a Siberian tiger ('Speed Tiger') and a lion ('Qiu Qiu').
The tournament will take place in eight Chinese cities from August 31
until September 15.
