DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: MARCH 20 , 2019 -

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: MARCH 20 , 2019

Dear Aspirants,

Daily Current Affairs (March 20, 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

GST Council approves transition plan for new tax rates :

GST Council approved a transition plan for the implementation of new tax structure for housing units under which developers of under-construction buildings may either opt to shift to the revised lower rates without input tax credit or stick to the previous rates.
Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey informed that for housing projects launched on or after the first of April 2019, the developers will have to adhere to the new GST rates recommended by the council.
The meeting deliberated on the transition provision and related issues for the implementation of lower GST rates for the real estate sector.

India Post releases ‘Special Stamp Cover on Ice Stupas’ :

PD. Tshering,Chief Postmaster General, Jammu & Kashmir Circle, released a ‘Special Stamp Cover on Ice Stupa’ by the Department of Post, Government of India during a function organised at the Ice Stupasite at Gangles in Leh.
Ice Stupa team of Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL) with support from Leh-Phodo society and Army, has built an Ice Stupa at Gangles with an aim to reduce shortage of water in Leh.

Centre approved the name change of a Nagaland village Old Mangkhi to Mungankhun :

The Union Home Ministry has approved the changing of name of the Old Mangkhi village in Tuensang of Nagaland to Mungankhun village.
The central government has given its ‘no-objection’ to renaming of 22 villages, towns and railway stations across the country since December 2017.

INTERNATIONAL

Indo-Sri Lanka Joint Exercise Mitra shakti-VI To Be Held in Sri Lanka

Exercise ‘Mitra Shakti’ is conducted annually as part of military diplomacy and interaction between armies of India and Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka.The exercise will involve tactical level operations in an international counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism environment under United Nations mandate.
Troops from 1st Battalion the BIHAR Regiment of the Indian Army and Gemunu Watch Battalion of Sri Lankan Army would be jointly undertaking the exercise.
The aim of the exercise is to build and promote close relations between armies of both the countries and to enhance the ability of joint exercise commander to take military contingents of both nations under command.

Mobile App ‘Conquer Exam, Be a Warrior’ Developed to combat exam pressure :

A mobile application ‘Conquer Exam, Be a Warrior’ to cope with exam related stress and anxiety for students and their parents has been developed by Indian Institute of Public Health Gandhinagar, Gujarat, (IIPHG) in collaboration with National Mental Health Program, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Gujarat.
‘Conquer Exam – Be a Warrior’ is a powerful and intuitive collaborative idea of IIPHG to create awareness and help students and parents to analyse and overcome exam pressure.
This application creates awareness as well as help students to analyze their weak points and overcome from the exam pressure by providing assistance.

STATIC : Gujarat

Capital: Gandhinagar

CM: Vijay Rupani,

Governor: Om Prakash Kohli.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

Mumbai social Gauri Sawant Becomes India’s 1st Transgender Election Ambassador:

Transgender social activist Gauri Sawant has been appointed, as one of the 12 election ambassadors from Maharashtra by The Election Commission of India.
Gauri Sawant’s appointment would help in more people from this category getting registered during the final phase of voters enrollment. It stated that in the next few days, Gauri Sawant would visit every transgender and inspire them about the need for voting.

Kazakhstan president Nazarbayev steps down after 30 years in power :

Kazakhstan’s president has announced his retirement after nearly 30 years as leader of the central Asian nation.
The 78-year old leader had ruled the country since it emerged from the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.The Chairman of the Kazakh Senate would take over.

STATIC : Kazakhstan

Capital: Astana,

Currency: Kazakhstani tenge.

BANKING & ECONOMY

IBBI, SEBI sign MoU to improve implementation of IBC :

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for effective implementation of the new bankruptcy law.
The IBBI and the SEBI seek effective implementation of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (Code) and its allied rules and regulations, which have redefined the debt-equity relationship and aims to promote entrepreneurship and debt market.
Executive Directors Anand Baiwar of the SEBI and Ritesh Kavdia of the IBBI signed the pact which provides for sharing information and resources.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Karen Uhlenbeck becomes first woman to win prestigious Abel Prize for mathematics

Professor Karen Uhlenbeck has become the first woman to win the Abel Prize for mathematics since it was first established in 2002.
The award was awarded by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters in Oslo and included a prize of £530,000.
It is often referred to as the Nobel Prize for mathematics and was awarded to her for “the fundamental impact of her work on analysis, geometry and mathematical physics.”

OBITUARY

Famed economist, professor Alan Krueger dies at 58 :

Alan Krueger , Former White House economist and Princeton University professor passed away at the age of 58.
Krueger served as chief economist at the Department of Labor under President Bill Clinton and chair of the Council of Economic Advisers from 2011 to 2013 under former President Barack Obama.

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day Of Happiness is being observed on 20 March :

International Day of Happiness is being observed on 20th March every year all over the world.The United Nations has celebrated the International Day of Happiness as a way to recognise the importance of happiness in the lives of people around the world.
The theme for International Day of Happiness 2019 is ‘Happier Together’, focusing on what we have in common, rather than what divides us.

Global Recycling Day 2019 observed on 18th March :

Global Recycling Day is held on 18th March every year, with an aim to change the mindset of governments, businesses, communities and individuals around the world, to see recyclables as resource – not waste.
The theme for Global Recycling Day 2019 was “Recycling into the Future”.