DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: MARCH 9, 2019 -

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: MARCH 9, 2019

Dear Aspirants,

Daily Current Affairs (March 9, 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

Mamata Banerjee launched Yuvashree Arpan scheme for financially assisting young entrepreneurs :

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launched a new scheme called Yuvashree Plan II or Yuvashree Arpan under which 50,000 youths will receive financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh for setting up an their own business initiatives.
Youngsters passing out of Industrial training institute (ITI) or other polytechnic institute will be eligible to get financial support from the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) department.

Labour Ministry Signs MoU with Simtars, Australia for Cooperation in Occupational Safety:

Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS) signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Safety in Mines, Testing and Research Station (SIMTARS), Australia for cooperation in occupational safety.
The MoU was signed between Shri Utpal Singh on behalf of Ministry of Labour and Employment and Shri Gitesh Agrawal on behalf of SIMTARS, Australia.
MoU was aimed at exploring new opportunities in the area of occupational safety, health and welfare of persons engaged in mining operations.

PM Modi unveils new series of visually impaired friendly Re 1, Rs 2, Rs 5, Rs 10, Rs 20 coins :

Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the new series of visually impaired friendly coins in the denominations of Re 1, Rs 2, Rs 5, Rs 10 and Rs 20 at an event held in New Delhi where visually impaired children were specially invited.
All the new series coins will be issued for circulation only through the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in terms of the RBI Act.
The coins are designed by the National Institute of Design and minted at state-owned mints at Mumbai, Alipore (Kolkata),Saifabad (Hyderabad), Cherlapally (Hyderabad) and Noida (U.P.).

Uttarakhand CM launches free milk scheme for anganwadi children:

Mukhyamantri Anchal Amrit Yojana was launched in Dehradun by Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat.
The scheme aims to provide 100 ml milk twice a week, free of cost, to 2.5 lakh children at 20,000 Anganwadi kendras of Uttarakhand.

‘Jal Amrutha’ Scheme has been Launched By Karnataka Government :

Jala Amrutha will be major water conservation scheme that will focus on drought-proofing measures, including protection and rejuvenation of water bodies.
State government has sanctioned grant of Rs 500 crore. Under it, state government aims to rejuvenate 14,000 water bodies and building 12,000 check-dams in next two years.

INTERNATIONAL

India and Costa Rica Signed 2 Documents During Venkaiah Naidu’s Visit to the Central American nation :

During Vice President Venkaiah Naidu’s first visit to the Central American nation, India and Costa Rica has signed two documents based on waiving visa requirements for Diplomatic and Official passport holders and the signing of the Letter of Intent to collaborate in the field of Biotechnology.

The documents were signed and exchanged following talks between Naidu and Costa Rican President Carlos Alvarado Quesada.

STATIC: Costa Rica

Capital: San Jose,

Currency: Costa Rican colon.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Bhubaneswar’s Biju Patnaik International Airport wins ASQ award :

The Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) in Bhubaneswar won the Airport Service Quality (ASQ) award for being the best airport in size and region (2-5 million passengers in Asia-Pacific) for the year 2018.It has been chosen for the award by the Airports Council International.
Chandigarh Airport, Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport in Indore, SM Badaruddin II Airport in Indonesia, SS Kasim II Airport in Indonesia and Yichang Sanxia Airport in China were also chosen for the award.

STATIC: Odisha

Capital : Bhubaneswar

Chief Minister : Naveen Patnaik

Governor : Ganeshi Lal

BANKING & ECONOMY

The Government of India, the World Bank and the representatives of 5 States sign the Loan Agreement for DRIP :

The Government of India,the World Bank, and representatives of 5 States of Government of India and Implementing Agencies signed the Loan Agreement for Additional Financing of $137 Million for the Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) in New Delhi.
This agreement will help rehabilitate and modernize over 220 selected large dams in the States of Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand.
The $137 Million Loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), has a 3-year grace period, and a final maturity of 16 years.

India and ADB sign $26 Million Loan Agreement to Assam Urban Project:

The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $26 Million Loan Agreement to provide additional financing for improving drainage infrastructure in Dibrugarh town of Assam under the ongoing Assam Urban Infrastructure Investment Program in New Delhi.
Mr. Hoe Yun Jeong, OIC, India Resident Mission signed the Agreement on behalf of ADB and Mr. Sameer Kumar Khare, Additional Secretary (Fund Bank and ADB), Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance signed on behalf of India.
The additional financing will further support in improving drainage system in Dibrugarh,and also support project management activities.

STATIC: Asian Development Bank

Headquarters: Manila, Philippines

President: Takehiko Nakao.

Government doubles income tax exemption to Rs 20 lakh for gratuity :

The government has doubled the income tax exemption limit for gratuity to Rs 20 lakh from the existing Rs 10 lakh. Gratuity law applies to all employees who work in an organization where there are 10 or more employees in a year.
It will be implemented from March 29, 2018. This will increase the burden of paperwork for those who retired on March 31, 2018.

APPOINTMENTS

Subhash Chandra Garg designated as Finance Secretary :

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved designating Subhash Chandra Garg, lAS, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance as the Finance Secretary.
Garg, 58, a 1983 batch IAS officer of Rajasthan cadre, has been working as the Secretary in Department of Economic Affairs since June 2017.Former finance secretary Ajay Narayan Jha superannuated on February 28.

Soumya Swaminathan has been appointed as WHO’s Chief Scientist :

Soumya Swaminathan has been appointed as the Chief Scientist of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
He is currently serving as a Deputy Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Ajit Kumar Mohanty appointed Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre :

59-year-old Eminent scientist Ajit Kumar Mohanty has been appointed Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) , the country’s premier multi-disciplinary nuclear research facility based in Mumbai.has been appointed for a period of three years.
Mohanty currently holds the post of Director of Physics Group at BARC and also heads the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics in Kolkata.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

ISRO & French space agency signed agreement on maritime surveillance :

The president of French space agency CNES(Centre national d’études spatiales),Jean-Yves Le Gall and K Sivan, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), signed an agreement in Bengaluru, to implement the short-term plan for the French-Indian programme to develop a space-based maritime surveillance system.
The CNES-ISRO agreement, intended to supply an operational system for detecting, identifying and tracking ships in the Indian Ocean, provides for a maritime surveillance centre to be set up in India in May 2019.

STATIC : France

Capital : France

Currency : Euro

President : Emmanuel Macron

SPORTS

16-year-old P Iniyan becomes India’s 61st chess Grandmaster :

Tamil Nadu’s 16-year-old P Iniyan defeated Ukraine’s 37-year-old Grandmaster Sergey Fedorchuk in Noisiel Open chess tournament in France to become India’s 61st Grandmaster. Iniyan crossed the mandatory 2500-mark in ELO ratings with the win to achieve the feat.