Daily Current affairs - April 24th, 2018 for all competitive exams
The nation celebrates
the National Panchayati Raj Diwas (24th Aril) as this date marks a
defining moment in the history of decentralization of political power to the
grassroots level.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Mandla in
Madhya Pradesh on the National Panchayati Raj Day.
- He launched the Rashtriya Gramin Swaraj
Abhiyan, at a public meeting, and addressed Panchayati Raj
representatives across the country.
- The scheme focuses on training, building
infrastructure and stepping up initiatives for e-governance under the
e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project.
The Constitution (73rd Amendment) Act,
1992 that came into force with effect from 24th April, 1993 has vested
constitutional status on Panchayati Raj institutions. This date thus marks a
defining moment in the history of decentralization of political power to the
grassroots level. The impact of the 73rd Amendment in rural India is very
visible as it has changed power equations irreversibly. Accordingly, the
Government of India decided in consultation with the States to celebrate 24th
April as National Panchayati Raj Day. The commemoration is being anchored by
the Ministry of Panchayati Raj. The National Panchayati Raj Day (NPRD) is
being celebrated on 24 April since 2010.
|
India to grow at 7.4
percent in 2018, says IMF
The International Monetary
Fund, IMF has said that India is expected to grow at 7.4 per cent in 2018 and
7.8 per cent in 2019 and would re-emerge as one of the fastest growing major
economies in the period.
- The IMF explained this is due to the strong private
consumption as well as fading transitory effects of currency exchange
initiative and implementation of the national goods and services tax.
Nitin Gadkari inaugurates
29th Road safety week in New Delhi
Union Road Transport
Minister Nitin Gadkari has inaugurated the 29th Road Safety
Week at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.
- He released a book named "Have a Safe
Journey".
- The central government has increased the number of
National Highways keeping in mind the traffic density and various other
factors. Mr Gadkari has announced that India will sign a pact
with South Korea for enhancing road safety measures.
RS Chairman rejects motion
against Chief Justice Misra
Rajya Sabha Chairman M.
Venkaiah Naidu refused to admit the motion for removal of Chief Justice of
India Dipak Misra, a first in India’s constitutional history.
- Mr. Naidu ruled that the Opposition’s petition was
based on “suspicion, conjectures and assumptions, and doesn’t constitute
proof beyond reasonable doubt.”
- The motion further states with regard to the Chief
Justice of India that ‘he too was likely to fall under the scope of
investigation.’ It further states that the Chief Justice of India ‘appears
to have ante-dated an administrative order.’
Recently, Congress and six other opposition parties have moved a notice
for the impeachment of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra, accusing him
of “misbehaviour” and “misusing” authority. So far, no Chief Justice
has ever been impeached in India.
Article 124(4) of the Constitution
lays down the procedure for removal of a judge of the Supreme Court,
including the CJI, who can be impeached on grounds of “misbehaviour or
incapacity”.
|
Union Home ministry decided to relax Protected Area
Permit regime
The Union Home Ministry has decided to relax the six-decade-old Protected
Area Permit regime from Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur for five years with
effect from April 1.
- Foreign tourists, except those from Pakistan, China
and Afghanistan, would now be allowed to visit some of the most pristine
locations of the country which, so far, were out of bounds for them
without a special permit.
Under the Foreigners (Protected Areas) Order, 1958, all areas falling
between the Inner line and the International Border of some states have been
declared as protected areas. The protected areas currently include whole of
Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim, besides parts of
Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir. Some parts of
Sikkim fall under the protected area regime while others under the restricted
area.
|
Intra-State e-way bills:
phase 3 to start Apr. 25
The Goods and Services Tax
(GST) Council announced the third phase of the roll-out of the e-way bill
system for intra-State movement of goods.
- The system would become applicable for Arunachal
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim and Puducherry from April 25,
according to a statement from the Centre on Monday.
- While the system is applicable across the country
for inter-State transport of goods, it is so far applicable for
intra-State transport in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal
Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand and
Uttar Pradesh.
Till April 22, 2018, more than 1.84
crore e-way bills have been successfully generated, the government said in a
statement.
Unofficial data showed Gujarat topped
the list in the number of such bills generated since April 1, when the system
was rolled out.
|
Diu Smart City becomes
first to run on 100% Renewable Energy during Daytime
Diu Smart City has become
the first city in India that runs on 100% renewable energy during daytime
setting a new benchmark for other cities to become clean and green.
- Diu had been importing 73% of its power from Gujarat
until last year.
- It has now adopted a two-pronged approach whereby a
9 MW solar park spread over 50 hectares rocky barren land has been
developed besides installing solar panels on the roof tops on 79
government buildings thereby generating 1.3 MW annually.
- To further enhance its solar capacity, Diu offers
its residents a subsidy of Rs 10, 000-50,000 for installing 1-5KW roof top
solar panels.
PM Modi awarded Manipur’s
Karang – India’s first cashless island
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
honoured bureaucrats for making Manipur’s Karang the first cashless island of
the country, and implementing the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and other
priority initiatives of the Centre.
- Modi awarded civil servants for smooth implementation
of four priority programmes — Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, Pradhan
Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban and Rural), Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen
Kaushalya Yojana, and for promoting digital payments.
- Himachal Pradesh’s Kangra and Madhya Pradesh’s Neemuch
were awarded for the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana
(Gramin).
Adilabad Dokra and Warangal Durries get GI tag
Two craft forms that are unique to Telangana were recently granted the
Geographical Indication (GI) tag by the GI registry in Chennai.
- Adilabad Dokra is an
ancient metal craft that is popular in the state’s tribal regions. The
uniqueness of this art form is that no two sculptures are the same, as
they are not made out of a pre-designed cast. The craftsmen of this art
form belong to the Woj community, commonly referred to as Wojaris or Ohjas
in the rural areas of Telangana.
- Warangal durries - In this
style of durries, weavers create beautiful patterns and dye them using
vegetable colours, which are washed in flowing water after the printing
process. Warangal district became a renowned hub for weaving these rugs
due to the availability of cotton, which is grown by farmers in the area.
A GI is primarily an agricultural, natural or a manufactured product
(handicrafts and industrial goods) originating from a definite geographical
territory. Typically, such a name conveys an assurance of quality and
distinctiveness, which is essentially attributable to the place of its
origin.
|
SC notice to govt. on
petition to outlaw Section 377
Supreme Court asked the
government to respond to a plea by a hotelier to strike down the colonial
Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code which criminalises homosexuality.
- A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra issued
notice to the Centre on the plea by the Lalit Suri hospitality group head
Kesav Suri, seeking the ‘Right to choice of sexual orientation’ to be
declared as part of the fundamental right to life and personal liberty
under Article 21 of the Constitution.
- The Bench, also comprising Justices A.M. Khanwilkar
and D.Y. Chandrachud, considered the submission of senior advocate Mukul
Rohatgi on behalf of the hotelier and asked the Centre to respond within a
week.
On January 8, the three-judge Bench
decided to re-visit a December 2013 verdict of the Supreme Court
in Suresh Kumar Kaushal versus Naz Foundation , which dismissed the
LGBT community as a negligible part of the population while virtually denying
them the right of choice and sexual orientation.
|
Indian Ocean Naval
Symposium (IONS) – 2018 hosted by Iran
The 6th edition of Indian
Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) and Conclave of Chiefs is being hosted by Iran at
Tehran from 23 to 25 April 2018.
- The Chief of the Naval Staff is leading a four
member Indian delegation for the event.
The IONS was conceived by the Indian
Navy in 2008. The forum seeks to enhance maritime cooperation among navies of
the littoral states of the Indian Ocean Region by providing an open and
inclusive forum for discussion on regionally relevant maritime issues that
would lead to common understanding on the way ahead.
|
Uzbekistan to join
Turkmenistan-India $8 billion gas pipeline project
Uzbekistan plans to join an
$8 billion project to build a natural gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to India.
- Turkmenistan, which sits on the world’s fourth-biggest
gas reserves and borders Afghanistan, started laying the Afghan section of
the pipeline this year.
- Uzbekistan also exports gas, mainly to China and
Russia, although its export volumes are much lower than the Turkmen ones
due to higher domestic consumption.
Uttarakhand to get Rs1,700
crore aid from ADB
The Asian Development Bank
(ADB) has agreed in principle to give an aid of 1,700 crore
rupees to Uttarakhand for infrastructure development and
creation of sewerage treatment facilities in urban areas.
- This was conveyed to Chief Minister Trivendra Singh
Rawat by the country director of ADB’s India Regiment Mission Kenichi
Yokoyama at a meeting in Dehradun.
India and World Bank signs
agreement to improve Rural road network in MP
India and the World
Bank signed a $210 million loan agreement for the Madhya Pradesh
Rural Connectivity Project.
- The Project is expected to improve the durability,
resilience and safety of the gravel surfaced rural roads and enhance the
capacity of the state to manage its rural roads network.
- The Project will cover 10,510 km stretch of rural
roads in Madhya Pradesh that fall under the Chief Minister’s Gram
Sadak Yojana (CMGSY) program
EU, UN Co-host conference
on Syria aid
European Union and the
United Nations co-chaired a two-day international
conference in Brussels, Belgium aiming to pump financial
aid for Syrians and garner political support for UN-led intra-Syrian
talks.
- The conference will bring together participants from
more than 85 countries and organisations at the ministerial level, as well
as those from over 200 non-governmental organisations.
- It is the second conference of its kind since 2017.
China’s first home-built
carrier looks set to start sea trials
China first domestically
developed aircraft carrier looks set to begin sea trials after pictures
appeared on the Chinese internet .
- The still-unnamed carrier was launched this time
last year but since then has been undergoing fitting of weapons and other
systems and has not yet entered service.
- The new conventionally powered carrier will be able
to operate China’s Shenyang J-15 fighter jets.
164-year-old Singapore
temple reconsecrated
Singapore Prime Minister Lee
Hsien Loong led some 40,000 devotees and four Ministers at an iconic
164-year-old Hindu temple’s reconsecration ceremony on Sunday, following the
completion of its $3.4 million restoration work.
- This 164-year-old temple has been undergoing
renovations for the last 1.5 years to prepare for its re-consecration,
which takes place every 12 years
- This was the first time Mr. Lee visited a Hindu
consecration ceremony since he assumed office in 2004.
Scientists proposed Earth BioGenome Project
Scientists have proposed Earth BioGenome project, a massive project to
sequence, catalog and analyze the genomes of all eukaryotic species on the
planet.
- Eukaryotes include all organisms except bacteria and
archaea. It includes plants, animals, fungi and other organisms whose
cells have a nucleus that houses their chromosomal DNA.
- There are an estimated 10-15 million eukaryotic
species on Earth.
Central goal of the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP) is to understand the
evolution and organization of life on our planet by sequencing and
functionally annotating the genomes of 1.5 million known species of
eukaryotes.
The project also seeks to reveal some of the estimated 10 to 15 million
unknown species of eukaryotes, most of which are single cell organisms,
insects and small animals in the oceans.
The Project also plans to capitalize on the “citizen scientist” movement
to collect specimens. The initiative is led by a coordinating council with
members from the United States, the European Union, China, Brazil, Canada,
Australia and some African countries. This will take 10 years, cost $4.7
billion and require more than 200 petabytes of digital storage capacity.
|
Iran bans banks from using
Cryptocurrencies
Iran has banned the use of
bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies by its banks and financial
institutions.
- As per the central bank of
Iran, the ban was necessary since all cryptocurrencies have the capacity
to be turned into a means for money-laundering and financing terrorism and
in general can be turned into a means for transferring criminals' money.
Wikipedia launches page
previews for its English web pages
Wikipedia has deployed a new
“page previews” feature for its English web pages to help users get a peek of
the information behind a link without clicking on it.
- The goal of “page previews” was to
decrease the cost of exploration for each blue link users come across,
“allowing readers to satisfy their curiosity.
- The feature would decrease the
efforts of going back and forth between articles, allowing readers to decide
if the information on that link is what they needed or not.
- In 2017, Wikipedia deployed this
feature as a default experience to all language Wikipedias, except English
and German.
Walmart close to $12
billion deal for a majority stake in Flipkart
Walmart Inc. is close to finalizing a deal to
buy a majority stake in India’s leading e-commerce company for at least $12
billion.
- All the major investors in
Flipkart Online Services Pvt are now on board with the Walmart purchase,
after an earlier debate over an Amazon.com Inc.
- Tiger Global Management will sell
nearly all its 20 percent stake in Flipkart, while SoftBank Group Corp.
Paytm Payments Bank
Registers 100mn KYC Wallets
Paytm Payments Bank now
has over 100 million KYC wallets, against the constant campaigning
done by the bank about the benefits of the Know Your Customer (KYC)
system.
- The bank has introduced several
options that include Paytm KYC centres and 'Paytm-Ka-ATM' outlets
to offer more localised support.
- Paytm Payments Bank is owned 51
percent by Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma and 49 percent by One97
Communications Limited.
BoI inks pact with NeSL to
share data under Insolvency rules
State-run Bank of India
(BoI) has entered into an agreement with National E-Governance
Services (NeSL) for information utility (IU) arrangement under the
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
- As per the agreement, BoI will
avail NeSL service to expedite corporate insolvency resolution process.
- The NeSL became India's first
information utility (IU) for bankruptcy cases under the 'Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Code (IBC) 2016' in October 2017.
Inter-country removal & retention of children
committee submitted report
Committee headed by Justice Rajesh Bindal has submitted its report on legal
issues related to Inter-country removal & retention of children to the
Ministry of Women and Child Development.
- The Committee has recommended that
the Government may establish an ‘Inter Country Parental Child Removal
Disputes Resolution Authority’.
- The Authority may be chaired by a
retired High Court Judge, with Members from Legal and Social sector
background along with representatives from key Ministries.
- Over three crore Indians living
abroad have cross-border marriages. When such a diverse family unit breaks
down, children suffer as they are dragged into an international legal
battle between their parents. Inter-spousal child removal is one of the
most unfortunate outcomes of such break ups. Children are “abducted” by
one parent and taken to a country with a different culture. This can be
traumatic as they are also cut off from the other parent.
The Protection of Children (Inter-Country Removal and Retention) Bill,
2016 seeks to address the issue. The Bill is in consonance with the
principles of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International
Child Abduction, 1980, which seeks to protect a child from the harmful effect
of wrongful removal and secure prompt return and reintegration of the child
in an environment of his/her ‘habitual residence’.
|
India highest recipient of
remittances in 2017
India retained the top
position as a recipient of remittances with its diaspora sending about $69
billion back home last year, the World Bank said.
- Remittances to India picked up
sharply by 9.9%, reversing the previous year’s dip, but were still short
of $70.4 billion received in 2014.
- In its latest Migration and
Development Brief, the World Bank estimated that officially recorded
remittances to low-and middle-income countries reached $466 billion in
2017. This was an increase of 8.5% over $429 billion in 2016.
- Global remittances, which include
flows to high-income countries, grew 7 per cent to USD 613 billion last
year, from USD 573 billion in 2016, the bank said.
India continued to top in terms of
receiving remittance, and was followed by China ($64 billion), the
Philippines ($33 billion), Mexico ($31 billion), Nigeria ($22 billion) and
Egypt ($20 billion). The Bank said remittances to South Asia grew a moderate 5.8%
to $117 billion. Reversing the previous year’s sharp decline (8.9% in 2016),
remittances to India in 2017 picked up by 9.9%, the Bank said. As against
$62.7 billion in 2016, it received $69 billion last year.
|
World's 50 greatest
leaders 2018: Mukesh Ambani ranks 24th
Richest Indian Mukesh Ambani
(24th Rank) and human rights lawyer Indira Jaising (20th
Rank) have been named by Fortune magazine as the World's
Greatest Leaders of 2018.
- This year's list is topped
by 'The Students' of Marjory Stoneman Douglas and other schools
of US that witnessed gun violence.
- This year's list has
the #MeToo Movement, which described the pervasiveness of sexual
abuse, at No.3 behind Bill and Melinda Gates (2nd Rank).
PM Modi to visit Nepal on
May 11
Indian Prime
Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a two-day state visit to Nepal
on May 11.
This is the third time Modi
is visiting Nepal after assuming the office in 2014.
- Modi’s trip comes just a month
after his Nepali counterpart K.P. Sharma Oli visited India.
- Modi will visit Janakpur, which he
wished to see in 2014 but could not. The chances of him visiting the
famous Hindu pilgrimage site Muktinath are also on the cards.
1st ever International SME
Convention-2018 held in New Delhi
First Ever International SME Convention-2018 is being held in New Delhi.
150 participants from 31 countries and 400 entrepreneurs from India
participated in the convention.
- The convention has specific focus
on inclusion of MSMEs in the Make in India program & empowering women
entrepreneurs.
- The SME International Convention –
2018 is being organised by the Ministry of MSME and National Small
Industries Corporation (NSIC) along with KVIC and Coir Board.
- Theme: “Business beyond Borders”.
The International SME Convention 2018 is a platform for intensive
business discussion, progressive interaction and trade association between
progressive entrepreneurs from all over the world and offers a special focus
on business and trade opportunities in India for International Entrepreneurs.
The platform facilitates exchange of relevant business partnerships and
trade opportunities for India’s Best Small and Medium Enterprises.
|
Canada, EU to host World’s
1st female foreign ministers meeting
Canada and the European
Union will host the world’s first 2-Day female foreign ministers’
meeting in September 2018 in Canada.
- The announcement was made by
the Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland.
- Female Foreign ministers from
about 30 countries will be invited to the gathering, which is aimed at
deepening global discussion on women’s empowerment.
Egyptian Photographer
Mahmoud Abu Zeid wins UNESCO Press Freedom Prize
Jailed Egyptian photographer
Mahmoud Abu Zeid, popularly known as Shawkan won the 2018 Guillermo
Cano World Press Freedom Prize of the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO).
- The UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World
Press Freedom Prize was established in 1997 by UNESCO in honour of
Guillermo Cano Isaza, a Colombian journalist.
Prize Created in 1997, the annual UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press
Freedom Prize honours a person, organization or institution that has made an
outstanding contribution to the defence and, or promotion of press freedom
anywhere in the world, and especially when this has been achieved in the face
of danger.
The Prize was established on the initiative of UNESCO’s Executive Board
and is formally conferred by the Director-General of the Organization, on the
occasion of World Press Freedom Day, on 3 May.
It is named in honour of Guillermo Cano Isaza, a Colombian journalist who
was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper El Espectador in
Bogotá, Colombia on 17 December 1986.
|
Armenian PM Serzh Sargsyan
resigns in face of protests
Armenian Prime
Minister Serzh Sargsyan resigned unexpectedly, an apparent move to bring
to an end massive anti-government protests.
- The surprise move, announced on
his website, followed 10 days of protests in the capital, Yerevan.
- Critics saw the move as an attempt
to stay in power by Sargsyan, who served as president from 2008 until term
limits forced him out in March.
- Thousands of anti-government
protesters have been rallying on the streets of Yerevan since April 13,
and Sunday’s rally attracted some 50,000 demonstrators.
Mario Abdo Benitez elected
as Paraguay’s president
Conservative candidate Mario
Abdo Benitez of Paraguay’s ruling Colorado Party narrowly defeated his
opposition in the country’s presidential elections.
- The group has dominated the
country’s political landscape for more than 70 years. Benitez vowed to
focus on Paraguay’s persistent poverty by stimulating foreign investment.
Govt replaces Gopal Singh
as Coal India chief with Suresh Kumar
The Appointments Committee
of the Cabinet has removed Gopal Singh from the position of Acting Chairman of
Coal India Ltd.
- Suresh Kumar, Additional Secretary
of Coal, has been handed the charge of handling the responsibility on a
temporary basis.
- Singh, CMD of Central Coalfields,
was earlier given additional charge as CIL Chairman in September. His
tenure was recently extended till May.
Axis Bank appoints global
leadership advisory firm Egon Zehnder to hunt for MD and CEO
Private sector lender Axis
Bank has appointed global leadership advisory firm Egon Zehnder to appoint a
new Managing Director and CEO for the bank.
- The move follows Shikha Sharma,
the current Managing Director and CEO of the bank, deciding to step down
from the post after December 31 this year.
- Axis Bank had on April 9 announced
that Sharma had decided to cut short her fourth term and leave at the end
of the year.
Velavan Senthilkumar wins
maiden PSA World Tour title
Velavan, who is pursuing a
course in statistics at Columbia University in New York, defeated fourth
seed Tristan Eysele of South Africa in the final of the Madison
Open.
- He is currently being coached by
England’s Alister Walker, a former world No. 12, aside from his coaches in
Columbia.
India wins 8th South Asian
Judo Championship
India has won 8th
South Asian Judo Championship held in Lalitpur, Nepal.
On the concluding day of the
championship, Indian women and men won team events.
- Keeping the unbeaten
streak, Indian women whitewashed the championship by beating
host Nepal in the final of team events.
- Indian men also won the team
championship.
- India topped the medal tally
winning 10 Gold and 3 Bronze medals in the individual category. Host
Nepal remained second and Pakistan got third place.
