Current Affairs May 24, 2017  – Rehana Ameer elected as Councillor of ward in UK

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

UP raises ‘Divyang’ pension to Rs.500:

The Uttar Pradesh government has hiked the monthly ‘Divyang’ pension from Rs.300 to Rs.500. A decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Tripura assembly to adopt GST Bill:

A three-day special session of the Tripura Assembly set to ratify the Goods and Services Tax bill as part of the constitution (122 Amendment) Bill, 2014. State Finance Minister Bhanulal Saha introduced the Bill, which is expected to be passed unanimously.

The GST bill has been passed unanimously by both Houses of Parliament, but it requires legislative ratification from 50 percent of the state Assemblies.

Cochin Port Trust won two awards from ministry of shipping:

 Cochin Port Trust has received two Best Performance Awards from Ministry of Shipping for the highest growth in operating surplus and also for achieving third highest growth in cargo traffic among the major ports in the year 2016-17.

The awards were received from Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping by P Raveendran, Chairman and A V Ramana, Deputy Chairman, Cochin Port Trust at function held at Goa Port Trust.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Philippines declare martial law on Mindanao Island:

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has declared martial law for 60 days on Marawi, island of Mindanao after clashes between the army and militants linked to so-called Islamic State (IS). Marawi is about 800km (500 miles) south of the capital Manila.

Martial law allows the use of the military to enforce law and the detention of people without charge for long periods.

Rehana Ameer elected as Councillor of ward in UK:

            Rehana Ameer has become the first India-born woman to be elected as a councillor to ward in City of London Corporation, UK. She was elected as a councillor to the Court of Common Council.

 Azraq becomes world first clean energy refugee camp in Jordan:

          Azraq has become the world first refugee camp powered by renewable energy in Jordan.

The $9.7 million plant was funded by IKEA, the global furnishings retailer. With the solar plant, the refugee agency is going to save $1.5million a year in electricity cost.

Banking & Business

Karnataka Bank ink pact with LIC:

          Karnataka Bank Ltd has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India for selling life insurance products of LIC.

• MD & CEO of Karnataka Bank: Mahabaleshwara M.S
• LIC Chairman: K.Sharma
• LIC Headquarter: Mumbai

HDFC Life launches India’s first life insurance email bot -“SPOK”:

HDFC Life, one of India’s leading private life insurance companies, announced the launch of India’s first life insurance email bot named as “SPOK”.

SPOK is an artificial intelligence-based application. It can automatically read, understand, categorise, prioritise and respond to customer emails that are sent to HDFC Life, within milliseconds.

Moody’s cuts China’s Credit rating score:

Moody’s, one of the world’s big three ratings agencies downgraded China’s credit score and warning that economy-wide debt is expected to increase as potential economic growth slows over the coming years. It was the first time the agency has downgraded the country since 1989.

The agency lowered China’s long-term local currency and foreign currency issuer ratings to A1 from Aa3, but said its outlook changed from “negative” to “stable“.

AWARDS

Jacqueline Fernandez wins UK humanitarian award & Author Jeffrey Archer won Life Time Achievement award:

Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez received the International Humanitarian award and “bestselling” writer Jeffrey Archer the Lifetime Achievement award at the second annual Asian Voice Charity Awards.

They won the awards to recognise the work of charity organisations in the UK and abroad.

Adoor Gopalakrishnan gets J.C. Daniel Award:

Malayalam filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan has been chosen for the prestigious J.C. Daniel Award for 2016(Kerala’s highest award in Malayalam cinema)

The award was conferred by the Kerala government annually in recognition of an individual’s contributions to Malayalam cinema, carries a purse of Rs.1 lakh, a plaque, and a citation.

OBITUARY

Former James Bond star Sir Roger Moore passes away:

     Hollywood actor and former James Bond star Sir Roger Moore who played James Bond role in seven feature films between 1973 and 1985 died at age of 89 in Switzerland due to cancer.

SPORTS

New Table Tennis league “Ultimate Ping Pong” to be launch in July:

A new table tennis league, named Ultimate Ping Pong (UPP), with six teams on board, will kick off on July 13 with support from the Indian national federation. The launch was announced by 11Even Sports Pvt. Ltd (ESPL), a company formed to promote table tennis in India.

The inaugural season will be played from July 13 to July 30 in three different cities – Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai.

Kumar Sangakkara to retire from First Class cricket:

          Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara will retire from First Class cricket in September at the end of England’s county championship season.

At age 39, Sangakkara, one of the legends of Sri Lankan cricket, has over 20,000 runs in first-class cricket, besides being the fifth-highest run-getter of all time in Tests. He also has over 14,000 runs in the ODI format.

Indian Medley Relay team won gold in Asian Youth Athletics Championship:

The Indian boy’s medley relay team, comprising Gurindervir Singh, Palender Kumar, Manish and Akshay Nain, won the gold medal in the 2nd Asian youth athletics championship.

Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong took the silver and bronze medals respectively.

Chelsea won the Premier League title:

          Chelsea got the Premier League trophy (Football) after their win over Sunderland. Chelsea earns Euro 150 million for Premier League title win. Sunderland at bottom place earns Euro 100 million in the season.

John Terry, Captain of Chelsea bid adieu to the club he had been part of 22 years and 13 years as Captain.

Antonio Conte named as Barclays Premier League Manager of the Year:

Antonio Conte, Manager of Chelsea team won Barclays Premier League Manager of the Year by the League Managers Association (LMA) as well as LMA Manager of the Year after guiding Chelsea to win the Premier League title.

India beat Indonesia in Sudirman Cup:

India defeated Indonesia in the Sudirman Cup mixed team badminton championship at the Carrara Indoor Sports Stadium in Gold Coast, Australia.

Mixed Team: Ashwini Ponnappa and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy

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