CURRENT AFFAIRS FOR IBPS RRB & PO-23RD AUGUST-2017

NATIONAL

NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant to launch Mentor India Campaign in New Delhi:

          NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant will launch the Mentor India Campaign in New Delhi. The campaign is a strategic nation building initiative to engage leaders who can nurture and guide students at more than 900 Atal Tinkering Labs.

The labs are dedicated workspaces where students from Class 6th to 12th learn innovation skills and develop ideas that will go on to transform India. Atal Tinkering Labs have been established across the country as a part of the Atal Innovation Mission. The mission aims to set up over 900 such labs across India and have 2,000 such labs by the end of 2017.

NITI Aayog

• Niti Aayog CEO: Amitabh Kant
• Head Quarters: New Delhi

NABARD sanctions Rs 1,350-cr loan to Rajasthan govt:

The National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned a loan assistance of Rs 1,349.55 crore to the Rajasthan government for creation of rural infrastructure in the state under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF).

The sanction includes assistance for construction of two rural drinking water supply projects, strengthening/ rehabilitation of 1,614 rural roads and modernisation of three major irrigation projects modernisation is located in Udaipur, Banswara and Dungarpur districts, a NABARD said.

Rajasthan

• Capital: Jaipur
• Chief Minister: Vasundhara Raje
• Governor: Kalyan Singh

Andhra Pradesh first to implement Bharat QR digital payments to make Vizag less-cash city:

          Andhra Pradesh’s Eastern Power Distribution Company Ltd (EPDCL) and the Southern Power Distribution Corporation of AP Ltd (SPDCL) have become the first state-owned distribution companies in India to accept payments through Bharat QR, the world’s first interoperable quick response code acceptance solution launched by the Reserve Bank of India. As part of the ‘Vizag less–cash city’ initiative underway between Visa and the Andhra Pradesh government, the state has witnessed a slew of initiatives aimed at increasing the rate of digital payment adoption.

Andhra Pradesh

• Capital: Amaravati
• Chief Minister: Chandrababu Naidu
• Governor: E. S. L. Narasimhan

National Sports Museum to be established in New Delhi:

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is going to establish National Sports Museum, first of its kind, at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, New Delhi. The decision was taken three months back and after a series of meetings and his personal visits to several locations in the capital, the current venue for museum was finalized by the Sports Minister Shri Vijay Goel himself.

Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh chairs 42nd AGM of Nehru Memorial Museum & Library Society:

The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh chaired the 42nd Annual General Body Meeting of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) Society.

The Meeting approved the Annual Report & Audited Accounts of the NMML Society for the years 2014-15 and 2015-16. During the meeting various issues including up gradation and renovation of Museum, Digitization of documents, Acquisition of Books in regional languages and setting up of a Museum for former Prime Ministers, were discussed.

Cabinet approves setting up of a Commission to examine the Sub-Categorization within OBCs:

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved a proposal for setting up of a Commission under article 340 of the Constitution to examine the issue of sub-categorization of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

The Commission shall submit its report within 12 weeks from the date of appointment of the Chairperson of the Commission. The Commission shall be known as the Commission to examine the sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes.

The proposed terms of references of the Commission are as follows:

(i)   To examine the extent of inequitable distribution of benefits of reservation among the castes/ communities included in the broad category of OBCs, with reference to the OBCs included in the Central list.

(ii)   To work out the mechanism, criteria, norms and parameters, in a scientific approach, for sub-categorization within such OBCs, and,

(iii)  To take up the exercise of identifying the respective castes/communities/ sub-castes/ synonyms in the Central List of OBCs and classifying them into their respective sub-categories.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley chairs 17th meeting of FSDC:

          Finance Minister Arun Jaitley chaired the 17th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) in New Delhi.

The Council discussed the issues and challenges facing the Indian economy and stressed the need to keep constant vigil to manage any external and internal vulnerability. India has macro-economic stability on the back of improvements in its macro-economic fundamentals, structural reforms with the launch of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), action being taken to address the Twin Balance Sheet (TBS) challenge, extraordinary financial market confidence, reflected in high and rising bond and especially stock valuations and long-term positive consequences of demonetization.

The FSDC also took note of the developments and progress made in setting up of Computer Emergency Response Team in the Financial Sector (CERT-Fin) and Financial Data Management Centre.

Chief Economic Adviser, Dr. Arvind Subramanian made a presentation on the state of economy. RBI Governor Urjit Patel was also present in the meeting.

UIDAI launches door step Aadhar enrolment in Delhi

UIDAI has joined hands with CSC India for launching door step enrolment facility in the national capital for the elderly, patients and others who cannot travel the Aadhar centres. The van was flagged off by Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. UIDAI Chief Executive Officer Ajay Bhushan Pandey said at the ‘National Conference on Emerging Opportunities through CSC”.

CSC India provides permit and monitors operations of common service centres across India which are meant to provide government services in rural area. There are about 2.5 lakh CSCs operational across country.

INTERNATIONAL

India, Uzbekistan should take trade to $1 billion: Venkaiah

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has said that India and Uzbekistan should work for increasing trade to the tune of one billion US dollar by March 2018. Mr Naidu said this while interacting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Uzbekistan, Abdulaziz Kamilov who called on him in New Delhi.

He said that India and Uzbekistan have close cultural and historical connections and peoples have similar developmental aspirations. He expressed happiness over several cultural events which were held in Uzbekistan to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between the two nations.

Uzbekistan

• Currency: Uzbekistani Som
• Capital: Tashkent

Typhoon Hato slams Hong Kong; streets flooded and flights cancelled:

          Typhoon Hato, a maximum category 10 storm, to hit Hong Kong since typhoon Vicente in 2012. This slammed into Hong Kong lashing destructive winds and waves which uprooted trees and flooded streets.

BANKING & BUSINESS

TRAI, Malaysian Telecom Regulator Ink Pact:

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has inked an agreement with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to deepen bilateral cooperation in telecom and broadcasting regulation.

The two telecom regulators signed a letter of intent (LoI), under which they will exchange information and regulatory best practices. TRAI chairman RS Sharma and MCMC chairman Halim Shafie were signatories to the pact, which will enhance cooperation and bilateral ties between the two entities. The telecom regulators of India and Malaysia will also undertake joint capacity building exercises in telecom and broadcasting regulation.

Malaysia

• Currency: Malaysian ringgit
• Capital: Kuala Lumpur

ONGC board approves HPCL takeover of 51.11% stake:

The board of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp, ONGC, has given ‘in-principle’ approval to acquire government’s 51.11 per cent stake in Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd. The government last month had approved sale of its 51.11 per cent stake in oil refiner HPCL to India’s largest oil producer ONGC. The deal will be completed within a year.

Prior to the merger, HPCL is likely to take over Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) to bring all the refining assets of ONGC under one unit. ONGC currently owns 71.63 per cent of MRPL while HPCL has 16.96 per cent stake in it.

FDI jumps 37% to $10.4 billion during April-June 2017:

Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the country grew by 37 per cent to USD 10.4 billion during the first quarter of the current fiscal, DIPP said.

According to the figures of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), India had received USD 7.59 billion FDI during April-June 2016-17.

Shahrukh, Salman and Akshay on Forbes list of highest paid actors:

Indian actors Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar are among the top 10 highest paid actors in the world in a list compiled by Forbes. The list is topped by Hollywood action star Mark Wahlberg.

Shahrukh is at the eighth spot on the list with earnings of 38 million dollars, followed by Salman on ninth position with 37 million dollars. Akshay is the 10th highest paid actor in the world with 35.5 million dollar earnings.

Wahlberg the leading man in the Forbes list has earning of 68 million dollars in the scoring period. He replaced last year’s top-ranked star, Dwayne Johnson who comes in at the second spot with 65 million dollar earnings. On the third spot is Vin Diesel with 54.5 million dollar earnings.

APPOINTMENT

N.B. Gupta appointed as Director (Finance), PFC:

          Shri N.B. Gupta has been appointed by Govt. of India as Director (Finance), Power Finance Corporation Ltd (PFC) for a period of five years or date of his superannuation whichever is earlier.

Shri Gupta has assumed the charge of ‘Director (Finance)’ in PFC 18th August, 2017.  Shri Gupta has more than 30 years of experience in Power Sector and carries with him rich experience in the fields of Fund raising, International Finance, Internal Audit and Accounts Finalization etc.

Ajay Vipin Nanavati is new Syndicate Bank chairman:

Ajay Vipin Nanavati was appointed as the chairman of Syndicate Bank.

The appointments committee of the cabinet has approved his appointment as non-official director/non-executive chairman of Syndicate Bank for three years, according to an order issued by the department of personnel and training.

Syndicate Bank

• Headquarters: Manipal
• MD & CEO: Melwyn Rego

AWARDS

Hyderabad startup wins award CMO Asia Excellence:

          Hyderabad based startup, Paynear Solution was awarded ‘Best Use of Mobile Technology in Financial Services in Asia’ at the ‘Eighth CMO Asia Excellence’ awards, which were held in Singapore.

Telangana

• Capital: Hyderabad
• Chief Minister: Chandrasekhar rao
• Governor: S. L. Narasimhan

Arkansas Novelist Padma Viswanathan Awarded 2017 Porter Fund Literary Prize:

          Indian American novelist and playwright Padma Viswanathan is the recipient of the 2017 Porter Fund Literary Prize for fiction.

The Porter Fund Literary Prize is presented annually to an Arkansas writer who has accomplished a substantial and impressive body of work that merits enhanced recognition. The $2000 prize makes it one of the state’s most lucrative as well as prestigious literary awards.

Book & Author

Prasar Bharati CEO Vempati launches corporate book on ‘Mann Ki Baat’ in Mumbai:

          CEO of Prasar Bharati Shashi Shekhar Vempati launched a corporate book on ‘Mann Ki Baat’ in Mumbai and said that the ‘Mann Ki Baat’ by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a very high bar on mass outreach initiatives.

Delivering the inaugural address at Chief Learning Officers Summit, Mr. Vempati lauded the ‘Mann Ki Baat’ for highlighting the efforts of many unsung heroes from everyday life calling it a great beginning.

SPORTS

Subroto Cup International Football Tournament begins in Delhi:

          58th edition of Subroto Cup International Football Tournament began in Delhi. Manipur defeated Haryana by 5-0 in the opening match of the Tournament.

A total of 99 teams from India and abroad are participating across three categories in this edition of famous inter-school football tournament. Teams from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nepal, Afghanistan and Singapore are participating in this edition.

The one month long football carnival will be played in three categories Sub-Junior boys (Under-14), Junior Girls (Under-17), Junior Boys (Under-17).

This season seems to be more promising with a special emphasis on ”BETI-BACHAO, BETI-PADHAO, BETI-KHILAO”.

OBITUARY

Former Manipur CM Rishang Keishing dies at 96:

Former Manipur Chief Minister and a member of the first Lok Sabha Rishang Keishing passed away following brief illness in Imphal. The veteran Congress leader was 96. Keishing, a Naga, served as the chief minister of Manipur from 1980 to 1988 and from 1994 to 1997.

Manipur

• Capital: Imphal
• Chief Minister: N. Biren Singh
• Governor: Najma Heptulla