Current Affairs One liners – September 21-30

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

• Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje inaugurated the 6th edition of the four-day international textile and apparel fair, ‘VASTRA‘ in Jaipur.
• Himachal Roads Transport Corporation (HRTC) finally launched its electric bus service on the route on a regular basis. With this, Himachal Pradesh has become the first hill state in the country to run electric buses. Electricity charging points have been installed at Manali and Marhi.
• President Ram Nath Kovind said the youths of Jammu and Kashmir are the future of the State and it is their responsibility to play a role in its development.He asked the youth, participating in the Operation Sadbhavana, to learn from the discipline of the Army. The Sadbhavana tour was organised by the 109 Infantry Brigade of the Indian Army with an aim to develop trust among and reignite the minds of youth towards national integration. As part of this tour, these youth are visiting Srinagar, Delhi, Lansdowne, Rishikesh and Dehradun.
• The first of the Scorpene class submarines, Kalvari, was delivered to the Indian Navy by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL).The submarines, designed by French naval defence and energy company DCNS, are being built by Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai as part of Project-75 of the Indian Navy.
• Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) signed a memorandum of understanding with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB) to connect Vijayawada and Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh in Guntur district.
• Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu launched national teachers portaldiksha.gov.in in the function of National Awards to Teachers 2016 on Tecaher’s Day. Basically the DIKSHA Portal is created to provide digital and advance technology to the teachers. The HRD ministry has also set up a slogan National Digital Infrastructure for Our Teachers Our Heroes for DIKSHA national teachers portal.
• ‘Newton’ will be India’s official entry to the Best Foreign Film catgoryat the Oscars next year, says a Film Federation of India official.
• Kochi will host the fifth edition of the ‘Coastal Shipping and Inland Water Transportation Business Summit 2017’
• Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu laid the foundation stone for Ranchi Smart City and this would be the country’s first ‘green-field’ smart city
• The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the revamped Khelo India programme at a cost of 1,756crore for the period 2017-18 to 2019-20.
• Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas and Skill Development Dharmendra Pradhan launched the Pradhan Mantri LPG Panchayat initiative in Gujarat.
• The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, DrJitendra Singh will inaugurate the first ‘Pension Adalat’. The event is being organized by Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Government of India.
• Funds from a Japanese government loan will soon be utilised for the first time in the $100 billion, Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project. The DMIC spans six States (Uttar Pradesh, Delhi National Capital Region, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra).
• Kerala opens India’s first transgender-exclusive clinics at government medical colleges across the state. They are planning to open Transgender Clinics in all government medical colleges in the state.
• Gender Alliance Bihar, a collective effort of over 270 civil society organisations backed by the UN Population Fund, has come up with a mobile application to fight the rampant social evil of child marriage in the state. Launched by Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, the “BandhanTod” app will try to create awareness on resisting child marriage and will also provide round-the-clock help to adolescent girls saying no to the practice in the form of an SOS button.
• The Prime Minister dedicated the nation, the Deendayal Hast kala Sankul – a trade facilitation centre for handicrafts – at Bada Lalpur”.
• The Prime Minister flagged off the Mahamana Express through a video link. This train will connect Varanasi with Surat and Vadodara in Gujarat.
• Prime Minister Modi inaugurated banking services of the Utkarsh Bank, and will also unveil a plaque to mark the laying of foundation stone of the headquarters building of the Bank. The Utkarsh Bank specializes in micro-finance.
• The Prime Minister dedicated a Jal Ambulance service, and a JalShavVahan service to the people of Varanasi, through a video link.
• The Prime Minister will briefly participate in a sanitation related activity in the village of Shahan shahpur. He will then visit a Pashudhan Arogya Mela.
• Prime Minister NarendraModi will launch ‘power for all’ scheme to mark the birth anniversary of RSS ideologue PanditDeendayalUpadhyaya. The scheme will aim at providing 24X7 electricity to all and the development was confirmed by power minister RK Singh.

• Ministry of Minority Affairs is working to establish “Hunar Hub” across the country to provide a platform to master artisans and craftsmen to display as well sell their products. Shri Naqvi and Pondicherry Chief Minister Shri Narayanasamy inaugurated Hunar Haat“, being organised by Ministry of Minority Affairs at Pondicherry.

• The Minister of State for Home Affairs Shri Kiren Rijiju addressed at the seminar “Pralay Sahayam”- “Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief” held at College of Defence Management in Secunderabad

• The Centre decided to extend interest subsidy of Rs2.60 lakh on home loans for the Middle Income Group (MIG) up to March 2019 under the NDA government’s flagship ‘Housing for All’

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a postage stamp on different aspects of Lord Ram’s life at the historic Tulsi Manas Mandir, and said he was a source of inspiration for every individual.

• Prime Minister NarendraModi has launched a 16,320-crore Scheme to supply electricity to all households by December 2018, providing free connections to the poor and at very low cost to others. The Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli HarGhar Yojna, named `Saubhagya‘, which will be executed just before the next general elections, aims to improve the environment, public health, education and connectivity with the help of last-mile power connections across India.
• Odisha government has launched ‘SAMPURNA’ (Sishu Abond Matru Mrityuhara Purna Nirakaran Abhijan) programme making provision of Rs 1,000 as transport cost for pregnant women to hospital from inaccessible areas.
• The board of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has approved the setting up of aRs 27,460 crore refinery by its subsidiary, Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd (CPCL).
• The Ministry of Women and Child Development will hold the first ever National Conference in New Delhi on Mission Mode to address Under-Nutrition in the country.
• A two-week long joint exercise named ‘DRUZBA (Friendship) 2017’ between the special forces of Pakistan and Russian armies kicked off in Minralney Vody, Russia.
• Indonesian scientists have found the world’s smallest squirrel in the country’s Borneo rain forest. The Bormean pigmy squirrel or exilisciurusexilis was found in Meratus mountain of South Kalimantan province
• Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh launched portal namely ‘PENCIL’ (Platform for Effective Enforcement for No Child Labour).PENCIL web portal stands for Platform for Effective Enforcement for No Child Labour an electronic platform for no child labour that has been developed by the Labour Ministry. This web portal has been was launched during the National Conference on Child Labour in New Delhi.
• The Minister of Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Harshvardhan launched “Pt Deen Dayal Upadhayay Vigyan Gram Sankul Pariyojana” which will experiment and endeavour to formulate and implement appropriate S&T Interventions for Sustainable Development through cluster approach in Uttarakhand.
• Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu declared the year of 2017 as e-pragati year.
• Union minister Anupriya Patel launched a nationwide health campaign to sensitize women about the early screening and the preventive care for cancer. Themed ‘Nurturing the Nurturer’, the campaign was launched by FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) in partnership with the Apollo Hospitals group.
• Shri Ram Vilas Paswan, Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution today launched the Web Portal of Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA)& “Electronic Negotiable Warehouse Receipt (e-NWR) System” in New Delhi.
• India’s low-cost Mars Orbiter Mission completed its three year
• The Ministry of Shipping has rename Kandla Port Trust as Deendayal Port Trust with effect from 25th of September, 2017.
• The Odisha government decided to establish the Handloom and Handicrafts Development and Promotion Council in the state and restructuring of the cadre of the Odisha Administrative Service (OAS).
• A new interceptor boat (V-409) built by Bharathi Defence and Infrastructure Limited (BDIL) was launched at a function held at the Coast Guard yard.
• India is third in the world in the number of nuclear reactors being installed, at six, while China is leading at 20, the World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2017.
• The Minister of Communication Shri Manoj Sinha announced DoT’s first ever Mobile, Internet and Technology event in India – India Mobile Congress 2017 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.
• Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) has signed contract with Research Centre Imarat (RCI) for supply of Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missiles (MRSAM) to Indian Army.
• The Union Home Minister ShriRajnath Singh inaugurated the 13th Formation Day of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The theme of this year’s Formation Day is School Safety.
• The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval for implementation of umbrella scheme of “Modernization of Police Forces (MPF)” for years 2017-18 to 2019-20.
• The World Quality Congress (WQC) has awarded the best security award to the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.
• The Asia’s oldest Mountain Biking (MTB) Himalaya cycle race was flagged off by the state Governor Acharya Dev Vrat from the Ridge Maidan in Himachal Pradesh.
• Gujarat will be the second state after Goa to use the VVPAT system for the Assembly elections.
• A high-level committee set up to recommend new laws or amendments to deal with hate speech on the Internet, has submitted its report to the Home Ministry.
• The third India International Science Festival will be held in Chennai in October 2017. The event will be jointly inaugurated by science and technology ministers of Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Portugal.  
• Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan will inaugurate the Global Wildlife Programme on 2nd of October. India is hosting the programme jointly with World Bank and United Nations Development Programme to address illegal wildlife trade across 19 Asian and African countries.
• The Karnataka government launched Vision-2025 project aimed at evolving a draft policy for development of the state in next seven years by seeking the opinion of the public.
• The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad has become the first airport to provide a wheelchair lift or vert-lift. The move comes as part of GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd’s Accessible India Campaign for passengers with reduced mobility.

INTERNATIONAL

• Sekhar Basu, Chairman of Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary of Department of Atomic Energy attended the 61st IAEA General Conference held in Vienna, Austria.
• India is collaborating with Russia to build the Roppur power plant in Bangladesh. This is India’s first atomic energy plant abroad.
• Multilateral funding agency ADB said it has sanctioned a USD 300 million loan facility for carrying forward fiscal reforms in West Bengal. The first ADB policy-based loan of $400 million in 2012 for the first West Bengal Development Finance Program aimed to create the fiscal space necessary to sustain higher public investment in the state.
• Britain and Saudi Arabia signed a framework deal on military and security cooperation, redoubling efforts to counter Iran in the Gulf region and defeat Islamic State.
• Chinese and Russian commanders conducted a simulation exercise in Kaliningrad province for the ongoing joint military drills code-named “Joint Sea 2017” in the Baltic Sea.
• Sri Lankan naval ships Sayura and Sagara entered Visakhapatnam harbour to participate in the fifth edition of SLINEX 2017, a bilateral naval exercise between India and Sri Lanka, from 7 to 14 September.
• China has launched the world’s fastest bullet train, running at 350 kilometres (217 miles) per hour. Route: Beijing to Shanghai
• India’s dream for high horsepower locomotive moved closer to reality with the arrival of the first body shell of 12000 HP loco from Alstom France at Kolkata port.
• External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj three-day visit to Russia’s port city Vladivostok where she had participated in the third Eastern Economic Forum.
• Hurricane Irma has become the first storm in the world to sustain winds of 185 miles per hour for more than 24 hours. It’s the longest storm to sustain this speed since the 1970s.
• ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) gathers in Pasay City, Philippines, for the 49th AEM Meeting and Related Meetings, which will be held from 7 to 11 September.
• The WHO has released its first tranche of emergency funding of $175,000 to provide lifesaving healthcare to the “vulnerable population” in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar
• The 7th ASEM (Asia–Europe Meeting) Economic Ministers’ Meeting was held in Seoul, South Korea. Theme for this year’s meeting was ‘Innovative Partnership for Inclusive Prosperity’.
• China and Australia joint military training exercise called “Panda-Kangaroo 2017” concluded in Kunming, capital of southwest China’s Yunnan Province.
• Finance Minister Arun Jaitley along with Chief Executive of Afghanistan Abdullah Abdullah inaugurated an India-Afghanistan Trade and Investment Show ‘Passage to Prosperity’. The three-day event, sponsored by the US, will focus on better regional integration by strengthening economic ties between Afghanistan and India.
• Deakin University, Australia has inked a memorandum of understanding with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) for conducting data analytics and impact evaluation studies in the skills ecosystem and the duration of the MoU is five years.
• SBI has launched its sixth branch in Singapore.
• IDBI Bank said it has launched ‘Project Nishchay’ in partnership with The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to accelerate its turnaround programme and improve financial performance.
• India has been ranked as the 40th most competitive economy — slipping one place from last year’s ranking — on the World Economic Forum’s global competitiveness index which was topped by Switzerland.
• The 2nd Biennial Trade Ministers Forum (BTMF) meeting was held at New Delhi between delegations led by the Minister of Commerce and Industry of India, Shri Suresh Prabhu and the Minister of Trade of the Republic of Indonesia, enggartiasto lukita

BANKING & BUSINESS

• YES BANK, India’s fifth largest private sector Bank, and Indian Institute of Management Lucknow (IIM-L) are signing a charter to further the common objective of spreading ‘Climate Literacy’ to achieve sustainable development through shared learning. YES BANK will support IIM-L in updating the 2-year course curriculum in accordance with global standards, along with delivering guest lectures.
• SBI Card, the second largest credit card selling company after HDFC, is all set to offer pre-approved cards to customers of its parent State Bank of India. It has entered into a tripartite agreement with SBI and India’s first credit bureau Trans Union CIBIL to this end.
• India has replaced China as the numerouno retail destination in 2017 as part of the global retail development index, according to industry experts.
• The insurance regulator has given the go-ahead to Digit Insurance to carry on its General Insurance, including health insurance business.
• US banking regulators ordered Pakistan’s Habib Bank to shutter its New York office after nearly 40 years, for repeatedly failing to heed concerns over possible terrorist financing and money laundering and also slapped a $225 million fine on the bank, although that is much smaller than the $629.6 million penalty initially proposed.
• India has been placed at a low 103 rank, the lowest among BRICS economies, on the WEF’s Global Human Capital Index, which has been topped by Norway.
• Fintech ecosystem in India, Fino Payments Bank has launched its mobile banking app called
• The Reserve Bank relaxed norms for issuance of rupee-denominated overseas bonds, popularly known as masala bonds, saying they will be treated as external commercial borrowings from October 3, thereby freeing up more investments by FPIs.
• State Bank of India (SBI) has launched the FTSE SBI Bond Index series in partnership with global index provider FTSE 100, which it is hoped will give tools to investors from India, the UK and globally to analyse India’s government bond market, and drive growth in this market.
• Markets regulator SEBI has imposed a penalty of Rs 9 lakh on ING Vysya Bank former official Vinay Agarwal for violating insider trading regulations.
• The government of India has partnered with Amazon to sell tribal products through the online marketplace. Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED), a PSU under Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India, and Amazon would sign a MoU next week for the same. TRIFED is also expanding its operations through other ecommerce portals.
• HuiKa Yan, the chairman of big China real estate developer China Ever grande Group, has become Asia’s richest man following a run-up in the company’s Hong Kong-listed shares.
• Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has formed a ten-member steering committee to help implement by March 2021 the new risk-based capital (RBC) regime that will also enhance protection to policyholders.
• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) allowed Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) and Real Estate investment Trusts (REITs) to raise capital by issuing debt securities. The move could help attract investors to the capital-starved property sector.In addition to allowing bond issuances, SEBI also introduced the concept of strategic investor for REITs, similar to InvITs.
• Country’s largest lender, State Bank of India will be unveiling its sixth apex management training facility in At present, of the five such institutes run by the bank, three are in Hyderabad and one each in Gurgaon and Indore.
• SBI has lowered the average minimum balance requirement under its savings account for metro customers to Rs 3,000 from Rs 5,000 earlier following protests. Minimum balance for urban, semi-urban and rural centres continues to be at Rs 3,000, Rs 2,000 and Rs 1,000,
• Asian Development Bank has downgraded India’s growth projection to seven per cent for the current fiscal year, while lowering its forecast for the next financial year as well.
• Two Indians — Chanda Kochhar and Shikha Sharma — have made it to the rankings of most powerful women in business outside the United States drawn up by the Fortune magazine while Indra Nooyi featured in the top three on the US edition list.
• The Asian Development Bank said it will increase its annual lending to India to a maximum of $4 billion between 2018 and 2022 to help fasten inclusive economic transformation towards upper middle income status
• India and Norway have extended bilateral cooperation in health sector through the Norway-India Partnership Initiative for a period of three years starting 2018. A letter of Intent was signed to this effect in New Delhi between the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• Interpol has admitted the Palestinian territories as a new member, despite opposition from Israel and also have approved the membership of Solomon Islands.
• Russia and the United States have agreed to co-operate on a NASA-led project to build the first lunar space station, part of a long-term project to explore deep space and send humans to Mars.
• India launched an Incredible India campaign to woo Egyptian travellers and make them aware of the magnificent holiday options in the country.
• The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) registered National E-Governance Services Limited (NeSL) as an Information Utility (IU) under the IBBI (Information Utilities) Regulations, 2017.
• The Union Cabinet under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister ShriNarendraModi has given its approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on General Cooperation with New Development Bank (NDB) through the BRICS Interbank Cooperation Mechanism by Government at the level of Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs/ Export Import Bank of India.
• Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue collections in August stood at 90,669 crore rupees. The Finance Ministry also released the revised data of GST collection for July which is to the tune of 94,063 crore rupees.
• Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd has jumped five places to rank as the world’s third-biggest energy company behind Russian gas giant Gazprom and German utility E.ON, according to Platts Top 250 global energy company rankings released.
• Government has extended the deadline to sell pre-GST goods by three months till 31st of December this year.
• India’s largest private sector lender by consolidated assets, ICICI Bank announced a new home loan scheme that offers borrowers the benefit of 1% cashback on every EMI, for the entire tenure of the loan. The offer will be valid for home loans with a minimum tenure of 15 years and maximum tenure of 30 years.
• Patanjali Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer AcharyaBalkrishna has made it to the list of top 10 richest Indians riding high on the success of the Baba Ramdev-run Ayurveda FMCG brand. Balkrishna has ranked eighth in the Hurun India rich list 2017.

APPOINTMENTS

Books & Authors

RESIGNS

AWARDS

SPORTS

1. FIFA and the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup France 2018 unveiled the Official Emblem of the competition in Rennes, France. The slogan of the tournament “Dare To Shine” reflects the development of football, especially women’s football.
2. Asian champions Lakshmanan and P.U. Chitra won gold medals in the athletics events of the fifth Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games Ashgabat (Turkmenistan).
3. Indians added four medals, including a gold through wrestler Bajrang, on the ninth day of the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat.
4. Indian shuttler Vaishnavi Reddy notched up the women’s singles U-19 title at the Belgian Junior Open after defeating top seed Vivien Sandorhazi in a three-game final at Herstal, Belgium.
5. Pakistan batsman Khalid Latif has been banned by the PCB from all forms of cricket for five years for his role in the spot-fixing scandal that marred the 2017 Pakistan Super League (PSL).
6. India grabbed the 11th spot in the 5th Asian Indoor & Martial Arts Games in Turkmenistan after winning four more medals.
7. India is the 1 spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) One-Day International (ODI) rankings. The three Top three teams in ODI are India, South Africa, and Australia.
8. India’s Sourav Kothari overcame a stiff challenge from former World Billiards champion Praprut Chaitanasakun of Thailand to win the gold medal in the Asian Indoor Games.
9. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has launched an anti-corruption investigation in Sri Lanka but did not specify if any particular series involving the country is under the scanner.
10. Asian champion Govindan Lakshmanan cruised to victory in the men’s 5000 metre race on the opening day of the 57th National Open Athletics Championships at the Nehru Stadium.
11. The Boxing Federation of India has included the prestigious South Asian Championship to be held in Guwahati 6-10.This is the first time India will host the South Asian Boxing Championship, which will see a potential blockbuster clash against arch-rival Pakistan along with other South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation nations, including Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, among others.
12. Mithali Raj, the captain of India’s national women’s cricket team. BCC named her as one of the 100 most influential women.
13. Hosts Turkmenistan topped the medals tally with 89 gold, 70 silver and 86 bronze, followed by China and Iran in the 5^th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games 2017.

HISTORIC EVENTS OF THE DAY

OBITUARIES