DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: NOVEMBER 18&19, 2018

Daily Current Affairs ( November 18&19, 2018) 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

India, Bahrain will ink pact for cooperation in space tech

  • The Bahrain government will sign an agreement with India early next year for cooperation in space technology.
  • In February next year, the Gulf nation, will sign a pact with Indian space agency ISRO for training and research purposes. It was announced by Kamal Bin Ahmed Mohammed, Minister for Transportation and Telecommunications, Bahrain.
  • The agreement will be mainly for training purposes and both countries will cooperate

Bahrain

Capital: Manama

Currency: Bahraini dinar


Government approves 3 new proposals under Nirbhaya Fund

  • The government has approved three new proposals – fast-track special courts, procurement of forensic kits in sexual assault cases and setting up video surveillance system at 50 railway stations under the Nirbhaya Fund.
  • The decision was taken by the Empowered Committee of Officers headed by Women and Child Development Ministry (WCD) Secretary Rakesh Srivastava.
  • Under the fund, the Ministry of Law and Justice has proposed to set up 1,023 Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) to dispose of pending cases of rape and those under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act across the country.
  • With a total financial implication of Rs 767.25 crore, the project in the first phase may be set up in nine states with 777 FTSCs while in second phase 246 FTSCs will come up.
  • Nirbhaya Fund is an Indian rupee 10 billion corpus announced by Government of India in its 2013 Union Budget.

Kerala launched new open online learning programme – ‘KOOL’

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  • The Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE) has rolled out– KOOL, its Online Open Learning training platform.
  • The platform can be used to train teachers, students and the general public. KOOL is a major step by the State of Kerala to become India’s first complete digital state in Education.
  • KOOL has been designed in a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) model, which is becoming popular worldwide.

Government inks pact with ADB for 3 important projects

  • The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Centre have signed a $300-million loan agreement to support lending by India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL).
  • The move is expected to enhance the availability of long-term finance for public-private partnership projects, improve operational capacity of IIFCL, and expand the portfolio of infrastructure financing instruments available to the company.
  • The Centre and ADB also signed a $105-million loan to support upgrading infrastructure for hydro-power transmission projects in Himachal Pradesh.
  • The Tranche-3 loan is part of the $350 million multi-tranche financing facility for Himachal Pradesh Clean Energy Transmission Investment Programme approved by the ADB Board in September 2011.
  • India and ADB sign $169 Million Loan to Provide Water and Sanitation Services in Tamil Nadu.

AYUSH Ministry celebrating first Naturopathy Day

  • The AYUSH Ministry is celebrating its first Naturopathy Day across the country on November 18, 2018.
  • The Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy is organising health camps, workshops and exhibitions in association with local naturopathy centres and hospitals.
  • More than 1,000 Naturopathy specialist doctors from all over the country participated in the event, which was organised by International Naturopathy Organisation in association with Ministry of Ayush.

14th edition of international children’s theatre festival held in New Delhi

  • The 14th edition of international children’s theatre festival, ‘Jashne Bachpan’, was inaugurated in New Delhi.
  • The plays will be performed in vernacular languages like Bengali, Marathi, Assamese, and Malayalam besides non-verbal, English, Hindi and other foreign languages.
  • Organised by the National School of Drama (NSD), the opening ceremony of the theatre festival saw “Udaan”, an act comprising of four presentations by groups — Thangata Pung Cholam (Manipur), Kalboliya (Rajasthan), Gotipua (Odisha) and Bhangra/folksong (Punjab).

BANKING AND ECONOMY

Myntra merges with Jabong

  • Myntra and Jabong, the fashion retail portals of the country’s top ecommerce firm Flipkart, will soon integrate all their functions, and Myntra chief executive Ananth Narayanan will continue to lead the team.
  • Myntra and Jabong have laid off close to 150 employees as part of their integration in the first such consequence of the restructuring.
  • Myntra and Jabong have been integrating key business functions and streamlining processes since the former acquired Jabong in 2016, helping in revenue growth and improvement in the customer experience.
  • The development comes days after US retailer Walmart, which acquired 77% stake in Flipkart this year, put Myntra and Jabong under direct control of Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy.

Karnataka bank launches new SB scheme “KBL SB – TASC”

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  • Karnataka Bank has launched CASA campaign of FY 2018-19 & introduced a new SB scheme “KBL SB – TASC” a specialized product for Trusts/Associates/Societies/Clubs.
  • Under this nationwide campaign starting from 15th Nov 2018 to 28th Feb 2019, Bank intends to open more than 4.18 lakhs Current & Savings accounts by active involvement of its 8000 + work force in all the 823 branches across India.
  • Bank offers host of Savings / Current Account Schemes loaded with multiple add-on facilities / services to suit the needs of varied segments.
  • Bank also provides Personal Accident Insurance cover of upto ₹ 10.00 lakh under “KBL Suraksha” to its Savings Bank customers with a nominal annual premium of ₹ 125.00 + GST only.

IndusInd Bank Launches India’s 1st Interactive Credit Card With Buttons

  • IndusInd Bank has announced the launch of IndusInd Bank Nexxt Credit Card, which empowers customers with a choice of payment options such as EMI, Reward Points or Credit at the push of a button, on the card, at the point of sale (POS). The bank claims it to be the nation’s first interactive credit card with buttons.
  • The card has been created in partnership with Dynamics Inc, which is headquartered in Pittsburgh USA, and designs and manufactures intelligent, battery powered payment cards.

APPOINTMENTS

Amir Yaron appointed as Bank of Israel Chief

  • Amir Yaron, a professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, set to be the next governor of Israel’s central bank.
  • The economist is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s choice for the post and would succeed Karnit Flug, whose five-year term ended last week.
  • The Bank of Israel is the central bank of Israel. It is located in Kiryat HaMemshala in Jerusalem, with a branch office in Tel Aviv.

Oracle veteran Thomas Kurian to head Google Cloud

  • Oracle’s ex-product chief Thomas Kurian will head Google’s cloud division, replacing Diane Greene.
  • Greene, who will remain a director on the Alphabet board, had joined Google in December 2015 to run its cloud business. Deputy governor Nadine Baudot-Trajtenberg is currently acting governor and will head the monetary policy committee meeting on interest rates on Nov. 26.

SPORTS

Alexander Zverev shocks Novak Djokovic to win ATP Finals

  • Alexander Zverev claimed the biggest win of his career in London, beating Novak Djokovic in two sets to win the 2018 ATP World Tour Finals.
  • The set scores were 6-4, 6-3. Alexander Zverev is a German professional tennis player of Russian descent. He is currently the youngest player in the ATP top 10.

Manav Thakkar won bronze in Belarus open

  • India’s Manav Thakkar settled for a bronze medal in the U-21 singles category in the ITTF Challenge Belgosstrakh Belarus Open.
  • Manav, who had an impressive run in the tournament, lost to Russia’s Denis Ivonin in the semifinals (2-3) to miss out on the gold.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Toilet Day – November 19

  • World Toilet Day (WTD) is an official United Nations international observance day on 19 November to inspire action to tackle the global sanitation crisis.
  • 2018 Theme is Nature-based solutions and the Slogan is When Nature Calls.

OBITUARY

Asia’s 1st Woman Neurosurgeon TS Kanaka Passed Away

  • Asia’s first woman neurosurgeon, T.S. Kanaka has passed away.
  • Dr. Kanaka, who retired as professor of Neurosurgery, Institute of Neurology, Madras Medical College (MMC), in 1990, was known to have inspired many women to take to the field of neurosurgery in the country.
  • She was the third woman neurosurgeon in the whole world. She also served as an army medical officer for two years during the India-China war.

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