DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS : FEBRUARY 2, 2018

NATIONAL

India Joins Ashgabat Agreement

  • India has joined the Ashgabat agreement which envisages setting up of an international transport and transit corridor linking central Asia with the Persian Gulf .It is to to significantly improve the trade and investment.
  • Turkmenistan, as depository State of Ashgabat Agreement, informed India that all the four founding members have consented to the accession of India.
  • The other founding members of the agreement are Iran, Oman and Uzbekistan.

Iran

Capital: Tehran, Currency: Iranian rial.

Oman

Capital: Muscat, Currency: Omani rial.

Turkmenistan

Capital: Ashgabat, Currency: Turkmenistan manat.

Uzbekistan

Capital: Tashkent, Currency: Uzbekistani som

Surajkund crafts mela begins in Haryana

  • The 32nd Surajkund International Crafts Mela has begun in Haryana’s Surajkund city.
  • It is to showcase richness and diversity of the handicrafts and cultural heritage of India.
  • The mela has attained international stature with about 29 countries participating this year.
  • Uttar Pradesh is the theme state for the first time and it will be focusing on religious tourism, rural tourism and spiritual tourism apart from showcasing its art, culture and heritage in the mela.
  • The partner country for this year mela is Kyrgyz Republic.

Haryana State tourism minister: Ram Bilas Sharma

Haryana

Capital: Chandigarh

Chief Minister: Manohar Lal Khattar

Governor: Kaptan Singh Solanki

Kyrgyz Republic

Capital: Bishkek

Currency: Kyrgyzstani som

First defence industrial corridor between Chennai, Bengaluru

  • The first defence industrial production corridors link Chennai and Bengaluru.
  • The Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the government will develop two defence industrial production corridors in Budget 2018.
  • The Announcement for the second corridor will be made soon, by Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
  • The defence budget was increased by 7.81 per cent to Rs 2.95 lakh crore against last year’s Rs 2.74 lakh crore.

     

INTERNATIONAL

Rwanda :The Poorest Country to Provide Eye Care

  • Rwanda has become the first low-income country to provide universal eye care for its 12 million population.
  • The government has partnered with the organisation Vision for a Nation (VFAN) to train more than 3,000 eye care nurses.

Rwanda’s minister of Health: Diane Gashumba.

Rwanda

Capital: Kigali

President: Paul Kagame

Currency: Rwandan franc

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

World Bank commits $100 million for Tamil Nadu 

          

  • The government and World Bank signed a $100 million (about Rs 6,400 crore) loan agreement.It is to promote rural economy in selected blocks of Tamil Nadu across 26 districts, benefiting over 4 lakh people.
  • The loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), has a 5-year grace period, and a maturity of 19 years.

The project was signed by

1.Mr. Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance.

2.Mr. Junaid Ahmad, Country Director, World Bank India.

3.Mr. Praveen P. Nair, Project Director(Tamil Nadu).

World Bank

President: Jim Yong Kim

Headquarters: Washington, D.C., United States

India Slips to 42nd Place on EIU Democracy Index

  • India has slipped to 42nd place on the Economist Intelligence Unit’s annual Global Democracy Index.
  • Norway has again topped the list, followed by Iceland and Sweden, India has moved down from 32nd place last year
  • India has been remained classified among “flawed democracies”.The US (ranked 21 ), Japan, Italy, France, Israel, Singapore, and Hong Kong have also been named among “flawed democracies.
  • The index ranks 165 independent states and the list of countries has been divided into four categories: full democracy, flawed democracy, hybrid regime and authoritarian regime.

     

APPOINTMENTS

Neelam Kapur Appointed DG of Sports Authority of India

  • Neelam Kapur has been appointed as the director general (DG) of Sports Authority of India (SAI).
  • She is the senior-most Indian Information Service officer  and had served as UPA government’s spokesperson.
  • It is for the first time that an IIS officer has been appointed as SAI chief.

Lt. Gen Anil Chauhan Takes Charge as DGMO of Indian Army

  • Lt. Gen Anil Chauhan took charge as the new Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) of the Indian Army.
  • He succeeds Lt General A K Bhatt who will assume charge of the Srinagar-based 15 Corps.
  • Lt. Gen Chouhan had also served as military observer for UN peacekeeping mission in Angola.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

Magahi writer Madhukar awarded Sahitya Akademi’s Bhasha Samman

  • Magahi writer Shesh Anand Madhukar, who has been working extensively for the development of the language, was honoured with this year’s Sahitya Akademi Bhasha Samman award.
  • It comprises a Rs 1 lakh cheque and a memento and it was given by Sahitya Akademi President Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari.
  • Some of his important works in Hindi are “Magahi Kavita Ke Bimb”, “Eklavya”, and “Bhagwan Birsa”.

OBITUARY

World’s Oldest Man Passes Away at 113

  • Francisco Nunez Olivera, the worlds oldest man passed away.
  • He belongs to a Bienvenida village in spain.

SPORTS

Boxing: Mary Kom wins gold at India Open boxing

  • M C Mary Kom claimed a gold India Open boxing. She defeated Josie Gabuco 4-1 in the 48kg category.
  • Pinki Rani also fetched gold for India after defeating Jargalan Ochirbat in the final in (48-51 kg) category.In Total India bags 10 medals.
  • The event held at the Thyagraj Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.

     

 

 

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