DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: MARCH 17&18 , 2019

Dear Aspirants,

Daily Current Affairs (March 17 & 18, 2019) like many other sections is inevitable and this also helps to score in the Banking awareness, Static GK and Financial Awareness sections. Remember, Banking Awareness and Static Awareness Questions are asked from the General Awareness section. This will also help you to ride your preparations for the forthcoming exams.

NATIONAL

Third Edition Of Namaste Thailand Festival Held In New Delhi :

Third edition of Namaste Thailand festival, organised by the Royal Thai Embassy with an aim to strengthen bilateral ties and increase cultural exchange between India and Thailand, began at Select Citywalk in New Delhi.

STATIC : Thailand

Capital: Bangkok,

Currency: Thai Baht.

Former SC judge Pinaki Chandra Ghose named as India’s first Lokpal :

Pinaki Chandra Ghose is likely to be India’s first anti-corruption ombudsman or Lokpal. He is the former Supreme Court judge and current member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). The decision was made by the PM-led high-level selection committee.
A Lokpal is an anti-corruption authority or ombudsman who represents the public interest. The Lokpal has jurisdiction over all Members of Parliament, central government employees, including the Prime Minister and the Chief Ministers in cases of corruption.

INTERNATIONAL

First BRICS Sherpa Meeting Under Presidency Of Held In Curitiba, Brazil :

The first BRICS Sherpa meeting held in Curitiba, Brazil under the Presidency of Brazil.(BRICS- Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa)
The Indian delegation was led by Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs T S Tirumurti. India conveyed its support for the priority areas started by Brazil which particularly take forward counterterrorism as a rising issue.

STATIC : BRICS

Headquarters: Shanghai, China;

President: K V Kamath.

Cyclone Idai hits Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe :

Vicious cyclone Idai hits Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi that has killed nearly 150 people, left hundreds more missing and stranded tens of thousands who are cut off from roads and telephones in mainly poor, rural areas.
Hardest hit is Mozambique’s central port city of Beira where the airport is closed, electricity is out and many homes have been destroyed.

‘Vijit’ becomes the first Indian Coast Guard ship to visit Indonesia :

Highlighting the close maritime proximity between India and Indonesia, Indian Coast Guard Ship ‘Vijit’ became the first-ever Coast Guard ship to visit Sabang, Indonesia.
During its maiden voyage, officers and crew of Vijit will hold interaction with officials of Bakamla (Indonesian Coast Guard), Indonesian Armed Forces and the civil administration at Sabang, read a press release from Indian embassy in Jakarta.
Vijit’s visit also highlights strengthening cooperation in the area of maritime security and safety between New Delhi and Jakarta.

APPOINTMENTS

KVS Manian & Gaurang Shah has been appointed as board directors of Kotak Mahindra Bank :

KVS Manian and Gaurang Shah appointed as Kotak Mahindra Bank’s whole-time directors for a three-year term effective from the date of approval from the Reserve Bank of India.
KVS Manian is currently working as the president – corporate, investment bank and Gaurang Shah is the president- group chief risk officer of the bank.

BANKING & ECONOMY

Bandhan Bank gets RBI’s nod for acquisition of Gruh Finance :

Bandhan Bank has received no objection from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the proposed acquisition of Gruh Finance, the affordable housing finance arm of HDFC.
It is a Housing Finance Company (HFC) recognized by the National Housing Bank (NHB) and it was taken over in January by Bandhan Bank in a share-swap deal.
India’s largest mortgage lender HDFC can hold 9.9% in the bank, according to its exchange filing. That’s the maximum a non-banking finance company can own in a private bank.

SBI introduces cardless ATM withdrawals with YONO Cash :

India’s largest bank State Bank of India (SBI) announced the launch of YONO Cash using which customers can withdraw money from ATMs without using a card.
This facility is available over 16,500 of its ATMs through the You Only Need One (YONO), mobile app platform for the first time in the country. The ATMs enabled for this service will be called as YONO Cash Point.

ICICI Lombard partners with Mobikwik To Offer Online Fraud Protection Policy :

ICICI Lombard partners with Mobikwik to provide cyber-insurance cover which aims to provide protection against unauthorised and fraudulent transactions online, across bank accounts, debit and credit cards and mobile wallets.
MobiKwik users can avail the commercial cyber-insurance policy underwritten by ICICI Lombard and enjoy the benefit of stress-free and secured transactions.It can be availed at Rs 99 per month and with a sum insured of Rs 50,000.

RBI names SBI, ICICI and HDFC as systemically important banks :

The RBI named State Bank of India (SBI), ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank as Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs), which in other words mean banks that are too big to fail.
As per the norms, these banks will have to set aside more capital for their continued operation.Inclusion in D-SIB indicates that failure of any of these banks would have a cascading effect on Indian financial system.

Microsoft with its Project ‘Sangam’ boost India’s Swachh Bharat Mission :

Microsoft India has partnered with The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) to deploy Microsoft’s Project Sangam (cloud-hosted, mobile-first community learning platform) to prepare functionaries and officers crosswise over India on Swachh Bharat e-Learning Portal.
Project Sangam is developed to accelerate Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) in India.
Through this partnership, MoHUA has successfully trained 110,000+ municipal functionaries on best sanitation practices crosswise over 4000 or more cities in India.

RANKINGS & REPORTS

Tata, Reliance and Airtel named three most valuable Indian brands of 2019

Brand consultancy firm Interbrand has named Tata, Reliance and Airtel as the three most valuable Indian brands of 2019.
Tata continued to hold the top position in the best Indian Brands ranking as its brand value grew by 6%, mainly due to Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).
Knocking Airtel off from the 2nd spot, Reliance’s brand value grew by 12%, bolstered by the success of Jio. Airtel stood at number 3.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Diksha 2nd Indian Golfer To Win Ladies European Tour :

Eighteen-year-old Diksha Dagar became the second Indian to win an event on Ladies European Tour after clinching South African Women’s Open in Cape Town.
Aditi Ashok was the first Indian to win on the Ladies European Tour after clinching Hero Women’s Indian Open in Gurugram in 2016.Dagar had finished tied-fifth at the NSW Open.

Former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan received Padma Bhushan :

President Kovind presented Padma Bhushan to Shri Sankaralingam Nambi Narayanan for Science & Engineering.Shri Narayanan is an accomplished scientist with more than three decades of experience in Indian Space Research Organisation.
The scientist was instrumental in developing the Vikas engine that would be used for the first PSLV that India launched.

SPORTS

K T Irfan becomes first Indian athlete to qualify for Tokyo Olympics :

29-year-old Indian athlete K.T. Irfan from Kerala ,has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics as he finished fourth in the men’s 20 kilometer category at the Asian Race Walking Championships in Nomi, Japan.
He got qualified for next year’s Tokyo Olympics.He made the cut after finishing fourth at the Asian Race Walking Championship at Nomi in Japan.

OBITUARY

Four-time Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar passes away at 63 :

Goa Chief Minister and former defence minister Manohar Parrikar, has passed away at the age of 63 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.Parrikar was diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer in February 2018.