DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS : October 22, 23, 24 & 25, 2019

Daily Current Affairs (October 20 & 21, 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.

Check Daily CA from Race Youtube Channel

NATIONAL NEWS

India to sign Agreement on Kartarpur Asks Pak to consider waiving fee on pilgrims

  • New Delhi told Islamabad that it is ready to sign the Agreement on Kartarpur Sahib Corridor but termed Pakistan’s continuous insistence on levying a service fee of  USD 20 per pilgrim per visit to the Gurudwara Kartarpur Sahib as a matter of disappointment. 

 

  • It also said that in view of the long-pending demand of the pilgrims to have visa-free access to Gurudwara Kartarpur Sahib and in the interest of operationalization of the corridor in time before the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak.
  • Pakistan has been once again urged to reconsider its insistence to levy service fee on pilgrims. It said India will be ready to amend the Agreement accordingly at any time.

 

India stands for three Ds – Democracy, Demography and Dimaag: PM Modi

 

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India stands for three Ds- Democracy, Demography and Dimaag. He said, that the target of the government is to ensure Ease of Living.
  • Members of US India Strategic Partnership Forum, USISPF called on the Prime Minister in New Delhi. It was led by USISPF Chairman, John Chambers.

 

  • Mr Modi spoke about the steps taken by the government to ensure ease of doing business like Reduction of corporate tax, labour reforms and the entrepreneurial risk-taking capacity of Indian youth.

 

  • A non-profit organization, USISPF aims at strengthening the India-US strategic partnership in the fields of economic growth, entrepreneurship, employment-creation, and innovation.

 

Nobel Laureate Abhijit Banerjee meets PM Modi

 

  • Nobel Laureate Abhijit Banerjee called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi Mr Modi said, he had an excellent meeting with Mr Banerjee and both had a healthy and extensive interaction on various subjects. 
  • The Prime Minister said, Mr Banerjee’s passion towards human empowerment is clearly visible. Wishing him best for his future endeavours, Mr Modi said, India is proud of his accomplishments.

 

Govt employees of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh to get salaries as per 7th Pay Commission

 

  • The Central Government has approved the proposal of payment of Seventh Central Pay Commission allowances to the government employees of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. 

 

  • The two new Union Territories will come into existence from 31st of this month. Parliament, on 5th of August this year, approved a resolution abrogating special status to Jammu & Kashmir under Article 370 of the Constitution and a bill for splitting the state into two Union Territories.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation on 8th of August this year and announced that all the financial facilities being given to the employees of other Union Territories as per the recommendations of 7th CPC, will soon be extended to the employees of UT of Jammu and Kashmir and UT of Ladakh. The move will benefit 4.5 Lakh Government employees who are working in Jammu & Kashmir.

Heads of 91 Foreign Missions visit Golden Temple

 

  • The delegation of the Heads of 91 Foreign Missions in India reached at Amritsar to pay obeisance at Shri Har Mandir Sahib in connection to celebrations of 550th Prakash Purab of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji. 
  • They were welcomed at Shri Guru Ram Das Airport, Rajasansi by Punjab Cabinet Minister Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria.

 

  • The visit has been organized by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) in collaboration with the State Government of Punjab and the Shiromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and ICCR President Dr. Vinay Sahasrabuddhe are accompanying the Heads of Missions.

HRD Minister interacts with children for DHRUV programme

  • Union Minister for Human Resources Development Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank interacted with children selected for ambitious DHRUV programme at his residence in New Delhi.
  • The Minister said, out of 25 crore students in India 60 talented students are selected under this programme. He further said that the government is polishing these bright children with the right orientation to make them shine like the polar stars. 
  • DHRUV is a unique programme to identify talented students and mentor and train them in the centre of excellence for 14 days so that they can reach their full potential and work for society.

PV Sindhu, Deepika Padukone support PM Modi’s ‘Bharat Ki Laxmi’ movement

  • During the ‘Mann Ki Baat’ Programme Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urged people to highlight the achievements of daughters by using #BharatKiLaxmi on social media. He had said daughters are regarded as Laxmi in Indian culture and asked people to organize programmes to felicitate daughters in villages, towns and cities.
  • India’s badminton star PV Sindhu has supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharat Ki Laxmi movement. Ms Sindhu and Actress Deepika Padukone through a video appealed people to honour daughters who have made a mark with their achievements in various fields for the public good.

Piyush Goyal launches Jaipur-Sikar- DEMU Passenger Service

  • Minister of Railways and Commerce & Industry, Piyush Goyal inaugurated 79603/04 Jaipur-Sikar-JaipurDEMU (6 days a week) Service between Jaipur and Sikar through Video-conferencing today. 

 

  • Member of Parliament from Sikar Shri SumedhanandaSaraswati participated in the inaugural ceremony from Ringus. This service will operate on the newly Gauge converted Jaipur – Ringus section.

 

Govt. to set up 1 lakh digital villages in next few years: Ravi Shankar Prasad

  • Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad said that the government will set up one lakh digital villages in the country in the next few years at the MeitY Start-Up Summit 2019 in New Delhi, Mr Prasad appealed to the concerned stakeholders to patronize and mentor these digital villages in their own way. He said these villages will be the centres for promoting entrepreneurship.
  • The Minister also stressed on the need for digital mapping of all enterprise and entrepreneurship happening in the far corner of the country.
  • Mr Prasad also launched MeitY Starting Hub- MSH and BHIM 2.0 and Indian Software Product Registry.

8,000-Year-Old, World’s Oldest Pearl Will Be Displayed In An Exhibition In Abu Dhabi

 

  • The world’s oldest pearl has been found by archaeologists, who say that it is the world’s oldest which is 8,000-years-old. It will be displayed in Abu Dhabi, according to the authorities. The authorities also said that the oldest pearl is the proof that “the objects were traded since Neolithic times”.

 

  • During excavations, the natural pearl was found in the floor of a room at Marawah Island, which is off the capital of the United Arab Emirates, which is also the earliest structure in the country. “The layers from which the pearl came have been carbon dated to 5800-5600 BC, during the Neolithic period,”.

Panchayati Raj Minister to confer National Panchayat Awards 2019

  • Minister of Panchayati Raj Narendra Singh Tomar will confer the National Panchayat Awards 2019 at a function in New Delhi. The Awards will be given to awardee Panchayats and States in various categories. 
  • As many as 246 awards will be given out of which 195 awards will be given in Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Sashaktikaran Puraskar category and six states will be awarded in e- Panchayat Puraskar category.
  • The awards are given to the best performing Panchayats in recognition of their good work at different levels including the delivery of services and sanitation.

Indian Railways instal most advanced Electronic Interlocking System on Grand Chord route

  • Indian Railways has installed the most advanced Electronic Interlocking System on the Grand Chord route. The measure is expected to help Indian Railways speed up trains and achieve the objective of reducing the travel time between Delhi and Howrah to about 12 hours from the existing 17 to 19 hours. 
  • Grand Chord is part of the Howrah-Gaya-Delhi line and Howrah-Allahabad-Mumbai line. It acts as a link between Sitarampur in West Bengal and Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyay Junction, Uttar Pradesh, and covers a stretch of 450 kilometres falling in North Central Railway Zone. 
  • The new Electronic system has replaced outdated 65-year old mechanical signalling system at Tundla Junction in Uttar Pradesh on the route. 

IAF fires two BrahMos missiles at Trak Island in Andaman Nicobar

  • Two BrahMos surface to surface missiles were fired by Indian Air Force at Trak Island in the Andaman Nicobar group of islands. The twin firings have been carried out as a part of the routine operational training. 
  • Indian Air Force said, the missile engaged the designated mock targets close to 300 Kilometres away. A direct hit on the target was achieved in both cases. 
  • The firing of the missiles has enhanced Air force capability to engage the grounds targets with pinpoint accuracy from a mobile platform.

First India-Bangladesh Stakeholders’ meet emphasises on better trade and connectivity

  • Bangladesh Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi has said that Bangladesh and North East India could benefit from improved physical connectivity and people-to-people contact. Participating in the India-Bangladesh stakeholders’ meeting in Guwahati, Mr Munshi said better connectivity would enhance consumers’ welfare through access to goods at competitive prices and enhance opportunities for exporters.
  • The Minister requested India to withdraw the ban on the export of onions. He said India is the second-largest trading partner of Bangladesh and both the countries registered impressive growth in recent years.

Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the Fertilizer Application Awareness Program

  • In order to disseminate knowledge to farmers on optimum usage of fertilizer nutrients based on various parameters to sustain agricultural productivity and to make farmers aware of new developments in the field of fertilizer usage and management, the Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar along with Union Minister for Chemical and Fertilizers D. V. SadanandaGowda jointly inaugurated the bi-annual Fertilizer Application Awareness Program at Pusa in New Delhi. 
  • The event is organised jointly by both the Ministries before Kharif and Rabi season each year with the help of State Governments.

Vice President’s visit to Azerbaijan to participate in the 18th NAM Summit

  • Vice President Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu will lead the Indian delegation at the 18th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to be held in Baku, Azerbaijan on 25-26 October, 2019.
  • The theme for the Summit is “Upholding the Bandung Principles to ensure concerted and adequate response to the challenges of contemporary world”. Vice President will deliver India’s National Statement during the plenary meeting of the NAM Summit. He is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from other NAM member countries on the sidelines of the Summit.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Japan’s Emperor Naruhito completes his ascension to throne

  • Japan’s new Emperor Naruhito completed his ascension to the ancient Chrysanthemum throne in a solemn, ritual-bound ceremony performed before hundreds of dignitaries in the Imperial Palace.
  • Mr Naruhito officially assumed his duties as emperor on May 1, the day after his father became the first Japanese monarch to abdica two centuries.

PM Modi to visit Saudi Arabia will also attend the third edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII)

 

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Riyadh, Saudi Arabia later this month for a bilateral visit. He will also attend the third edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII), an annual investment forum being held on October 29-31, 2019, under the theme – What Is Next for Global Business’.

 

  • This would be Narendra Modi’s second visit to the Gulf nation. Being organised by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, this is a high-level platform to engage with Saudi decision-makers and global business representatives. The meet comes at a crucial time when India is still trying to get its message across on the issue of Kashmir. 

Canada Elections 2019: Trudeau’s Liberal Party wins but loses majority

  • Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party held onto power in a nail-biter of a Canadian General Election, Television projections declared the Liberals winners or leading in 157 of the nation’s 338 electoral districts, versus 121 for his main rival Andrew Scheer and the Conservatives, after polling stations across six time zones closed.
  • The Bloc Quebecois came back from a ruinous 2015 election result, tapping into lingering Quebec nationalism to take 32 seats, while the New Democratic Party (NDP) won 25 seats, according to projections.

Israel President to give Blue and White party next chance to form new govt

  • Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin has said that he would give Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz the next chance to form a new government. 
  • Rivlin is expected to formally announce his decision within 72 hours. Gantz will have 28 days to form a government. The statement came after long-standing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed the President of his inability to form a new government. His attempts to form a coalition government with Gantz’s party failed repeatedly.
  • Any lawmaker with a majority of at least 61 members would be able to form a government in 120 member assembly. 

RANKING AND INDEX

Delhi Lives Up to Its Reputation, Registers Highest Number of Crimes Against Women

 

  • Uttar Pradesh topped the list of states with most number of crimes against women, according to the annual report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) for 2017. Assam, on the other hand, registered the highest total rate of crime against women.
  • Delhi lived up to its reputation of being the city with the highest number of crimes against women. Lucknow topped the charts with the highest total rate of crime.
  • India registered a 6.16% rise in crimes against women in 2017 when compared to 2016. With 5,562 cases, the highest number of rape incidents were registered in Madhya Pradesh.

 

  • The list reported Assam as Most Unsafe State and Lucknow as Most Unsafe City.  The lowest rate of crimes committed against women was recorded in Nagaland. Seven women faced crimes for every one lakh of them. It is followed by Sikkim with 17 cases and Mizoram with 25 cases.

AGREEMENTS AND MOUS

DAC approves procurement of indigenous equipment worth over Rs 3,300 cr for armed forces

  • The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) has accorded approval for Capital Procurement for the Defence forces amounting to over 3,300 crore rupees of indigenously designed and developed equipment. Maintaining its impetus on the Make in India initiative, the DAC accorded approval for three projects to be indigenously designed, developed and manufactured by the Indian industry.
  • The projects will be progressed under the Make-II Category and will provide a boost to indigenous research and development in the Private Sector. With this, for the first time the Ministry of Defence has offered complex Military equipment to be designed, developed and manufactured by the Indian private industry.

India, South Korea look to boost business, defence ties

  • New Delhi India and South Korea are looking to boost their business and defence ties through two upcoming meetings, including a “Strategic Economic Dialogue” this week that will serve as the umbrella for all economic cooperation.
  • People familiar with developments said Amitabh Kant, CEO of NITI Aayog, the Indian government’s policy think tank, and Lee Ho-seung, advisor on economic affairs to the South Korean president, will lead the dialogue in Delhi on October 24.
  • By the yearend, the two sides are expected to hold their first official-level “2+2” dialogue between their defence and foreign ministries. The two initiatives dovetail with India’s “Act East” policy and South Korea’s “New Southern Policy” and are aimed at giving fresh impetus to economic and security ties.
  • “The Strategic Economic Dialogue will become an umbrella for all economic cooperation between South Korea and India South Korea’s focus is to work with India to usher in the fourth industrial revolution and to use it for the benefit of both sides, the person added.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

China unveils new commercial carrier rockets to compete with India for global market

  • China has unveiled its new generation of commercial carrier rockets which could carry up to 1.5 tonne payload as it gears up to compete with India to attract the lucrative global space launch market.
  • The new Long rocket series comprises a cluster of solid fuelled rockets codenamed the Smart Dragon (SD) family, and a Tenglong liquid-propellant rocket were unveiled by the China Rocket, a commercial space wing of the country’s leading rocket-maker China Academy of Launch Vehicle.
  • Tenglong rocket is expected to make its maiden flight in around 2021.

SPORTS NEWS

Andy Murray on winning 1st ATP title since 2017

  • Andy Murray won the men’s singles title at the European Open 2019 on 20 October. He defeated Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka by scoring 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. This is his 1st ATP title since March 2017.

 

  • The European Open is a men’s Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Tour 250 tournaments. It was held in Antwerp, Belgium. The 2019 tournament was held from 14 October to 20 October 2019.

 

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES

TechSagar, national repository of India’s cyber tech capabilities launched

  • The National Cyber Security Coordinator’s office in partnership with Data Security Council (DSCI) of India launched TechSagar – a platform to discover India’s technological capability through a portal.
  • The portal will list business and research entities from the IT industry, startups, academia, and individual researchers.
  • As India aspires to become a trillion dollar digital economy, the repository will facilitate new opportunities for businesses and academia to collaborate, connect and innovate in future.
  • Launched by Lt. Gen (Dr) Rajesh Pant, National Cyber Security Coordinator of India, TechSagar is a consolidated and comprehensive repository of India’s cyber tech capabilities which provides actionable insights about capabilities of the Indian Industry.

CCI approves infrastructure development worth 25000 crores for Arunachal Pradesh

  • The Cabinet Committee for Infrastructure (CCI) met for the second time under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister Pema Khandu and approved proposals worth Rs 2500 crore for infrastructure development in the state. 
  • The approved proposal is for taking up capital works pertaining to various departments across the state.
  • The State has decided to introduce ten electric buses between Itanagar and Naharlagun on a pilot basis in partnership with NTPC.

Railways to implement Rs 18,000-crore project to run trains at 160 kmph

  • The Indian Railways will implement a Rs 18,000-crore project to operate trains at a speed of 160 kmph on the busy Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Kolkata routes by upgrading infrastructure, Railway Board Chairman VK Yadav.
  • Once the project begins, it will take at least four years to complete, he said after inaugurating the International Rail Conference-2019 and the 13th International Railway Equipment Exhibition. The events have been organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with the Railways at Aerocity here.
  • The Indian Railways’s target is to operate high speed trains in two categories — at 160 kmph on the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Kolkata routes, and up to 320 kmph under the ongoing bullet train project between Mumbai-Ahmedabad.

APPOINTMENTS

ACC approves appointments in multiple ministries

 

  • The Appointments Committee of Cabinet approved the appointment of Odisha cadre IAS officer Tuhin Kanta Pandey as Secretary Department of Investment and Public Asset Management.1984 batch officer Braj Raj Sharma has been appointed Chairman of Staff Selection Commission while 1986 batch officer Sanjeev Nandan Sahai will be the new Power Secretary. 

 

  • 1987 batch IAS officer Pankaj Kumar will be the new CEO of Unique Identification Authority of India and Madhya Pradesh Cadre IAS Pramod Kumar Das has been appointed Minority Affairs Secretary. 
  • Himachal Cadre IAS Sanjeev Gupta will be the Secretary, Inter-State Council Secretariat and Sailesh will be Secretary, Department of Public Enterprises. 
  • 1986 batch officer Alok Tandon will be Secretary in Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances and Nagendra Nath Sinha will be Secretary, Department of Border Management in the Home Ministry. Rajesh Bhushan will be Secretary (Coordination) in the Cabinet Secretariat.

Shri Godavarthi Venkata Srinivas has been concurrently accredited as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Cabo Verde

  • Godavarthi Venkata Srinivas was appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Guinea Bissau, with residence in Dakar. A 1993 batch-IFS officer, Srinivas is presently the country’s Ambassador to the Republic of Senegal. He is expected to take up the assignment shortly. For decades, India and Guinea Bissau have maintained warm and friendly relations.
  • The Guinea Bissau government is generally supportive of India. There has been regular cooperation at international fora such as the UN and NAM.

Satya Pal Malik likely to be first Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir

  • The Centre has proposed Satya Pal Malik’s name as the new lieutenant governor of J&K ahead of October 31 transition of the state into Union territories of J&K and Ladakh, a home ministry official said .
  • The ministry further announced that the government employees of J&K and Ladakh will get salaries and benefits as per the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations

RANKING AND INDEX

IIT Bombay tops QS India university rankings 2020

  • The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB) has topped the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) India University Rankings 2020 released. Six other IITs have also made it to the list of top 10 institutes.
  • Bengaluru’s Indian Institute of Science has been ranked second followed by the IITs in Delhi, Madras, Kharagpur, Kanpur, Roorkee, and Guwahati.
  • The University of Hyderabad (8) and the University of Delhi (7) are the only two central varsities among the top 10 institutes. Last year, the University of Delhi was ranked 7 and the University of Hyderabad 8.

AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

Jennifer Aniston to receive People’s Icon Award 2019

  • Jennifer Aniston the actress-producer is set to receive the People`s Icon Award at the 2019 People`s Choice Awards. 
  • The actress would be the second-ever recipient of the title and will receive the honour at the 2019 People`s Choice award. Last year, Melissa McCarthy accepted the trophy for the inaugural award. The `Morning Show` star is best known for her performance in `Friends`.

YES BANK WINS DIGITAL PAYMENTS AWARD AT MEITY STARTUP SUMMIT 2019

 

  • YES BANK, India’s fourth largest private sector bank, won the DigiDhan Mission Digital Payments Award 2018-19 for ‘Overall Performance in Digital Payments’ at the MeitY Startup Summit 2019 held in Delhi.
  • The award was presented by Chief Guest, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister of Communication, Electronics & IT and Law & Justice.

 

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

“Biodiversity Hotspot”: 6 New Lizard Species Discovered In Western Ghats

  • Six new lizard species of ”Dravidogecko” family have been identified in the Western Ghats by a group of scientists, who claim this to be a significant development as only one species of the genus was known so far.
  • The study indicates the importance of Western Ghats, the world heritage mountain range traversing Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat, as a “biodiversity hotspot”, the researchers said.

 

  • ”Dravidogecko anamallensis” evolved around 58 million years ago when the Indian sub-continent was separated from the African land, Pune-based Foundation for Biodiversity Conservation’s director Varad Giri, who was also part of the research team.

 

SPORTS NEWS

Raunak Sadhwani, 13, set to become India’s 65th Grand Master

 

  • Raunak Sadhwani,teen from Nagpur, who had a training stint with former world champion Vladimir Kramnik  is all set to become India’s 65th Chess Grandmaster. 
  • The Indian has a round to go at the FIDE chess.com Grand Swiss 2019 and technically needs his opponents to show up for the next rounds so that he earns the third and final GM norm.

 

Canadian Denis Shapovalov wins first ATP title at Stockholm Open

  • The fourth-seeded Shapovalov, of Richmond Hill, captured the Stockholm Open with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Serbian Filip Krajinovic.
  • The Canadian was ranked No. 34 in the world prior but will crack the top-30 with this result for the first time.

NATIONAL NEWS

President Kovind lays foundation stone for Sri Sathya Sai Sanathana Samskruti Project in Japan

 

  • President Ram Nath Kovind laid the foundation stone for Sri Sathya Sai Sanathana Samskruti Project at Sai no Sato, Kakegawa, Japan.
  • Sai no Sato will be developed as a temple on the lines of Akshardham and Swaminarayan Temple to promote Indian traditional culture. The President also attended a banquet hosted in his honour by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan.

 

GIA presents ‘Report from Ground Zero’ on J&K, Ladakh to Dr Jitendra Singh

  • A delegation of Group of Intellectuals and Academicians (GIA) presented a ‘Report from Ground Zero’ on Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh after setting aside of Article 370 to Dr Jitendra Singh, Minister of State in PMO.
  • They briefed that common man across religions, sections and various professional backgrounds in Jammu and Kashmir has expressed happiness about the decision of the Government to scrap Article 370. 

EAM Jaishankar meets his Iranian counterpart on sidelines of NAM Ministerial Meeting

  • External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Iranian counterpart, Javad Zarif on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement Ministerial Meeting in Baku, Azerbaijan. The two leaders discussed issues of mutual and regional interest. They earlier met on the sidelines of UN General Assembly Session in September.

 

  • Mr. Jaishankar also met Afghanistan’s National Security Advisor Hamdullah Mohib, his Malaysian counterpart Saifuddin Abdullah and Myanmar’s Minister for International Cooperation U Kyaw Tin.

 

Venkaiah Naidu to lead Indian delegation at 18th Non-Aligned Movement Summit

  • Vice President, M. Venkaiah Naidu will lead the Indian delegation at the 18th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to be held at Baku, Azerbaijan on 25th to 26th of this month.
  • The theme for the Summit is –Upholding the Bandung Principles to ensure concerted and adequate response to the challenges of the contemporary world. 
  • The theme is significant as it relates to the forthcoming 65th anniversary of Bandung Principles in 2020 and the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Movement in 2021.
  • The Summit will focus on a whole gamut of contemporary issues such as Terrorism, threats to peace and security, UN reform, climate change, sustainable development, economic governance and south-south cooperation.
  • India is one of the founding members of the Non-Aligned Movement which was established in 1961 with 29 members. It has since grown to 120 members to become one of the largest groupings of nation-states.

Indian Army to conduct 2019 “Sindhu Sudarshan” exercise 2019 in Rajasthan deserts

  • The Indian Army (IA) is to conduct exercise codenamed “Sindhu Sudarshan” for the year 2019 in the deserts of Rajasthan from November 29 to December 4, 2019. 
  • The aim of this exercise is to evaluate the capability of the defence services in an integrated air-land battle.

Banking and Business Economy

Government hikes minimum support price of Rabi crops for 2020-21

  • The Union Cabinet has decided to hike Minimum Support Price, MSP, for Rabi crops for marketing season 2020-21.

 

  • Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said, MSP of wheat has been increased by 85 rupees per quintal to 1,925 rupees per quintal.
  • While MSP of Gram has been increased by 255 rupees, barley 85 rupees, mustard oil 225 rupees and sunflower 270 rupees per quintal. Javadekar said, the move will help increase farmers’ income.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES

Prakash Javadekar launches first national protocol to enumerate snow leopard population in India

  • Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change launched the first national protocol to enumerate the snow leopard population in the country on the occasion of International Snow Leopard Day. The Day is celebrated on October 23 every year to protect and conserve the snow leopards.
  • At the Inaugural session of the 4th steering committee meeting of the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Program in Delhi, He expressed happiness that 2,967 tigers reside in India, which is 77 per cent of the world tiger population.
  • Poaching is a major threat for the snow leopards. Project Snow Leopard is an initiative of the Environment Ministry which aims to safeguard and conserve India’s unique natural heritage of high altitude wildlife populations and their habitats by promoting conservation through participatory policies and actions. 
  • Snow leopards play a critical role in their ecosystem as top predators. India is believed to have 400 to 700 snow leopards spread across Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

IIM K, MRPL To Support Women Entrepreneurs Under La Eve Initiative

  • IIM Kozhikode and Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Ltd. (MRPL) have announced a special drive to support women entrepreneurs in the country. 
  • Labelled as La Eve (meaning The Woman)
  • This initiative aims to identify innovative, promising women founded start-ups to provide a comprehensive start-up support programme.

Assam: Starting 2021, no govt jobs for those with more than two kids

 

  • The Assam Cabinet decided that no government jobs will be given to persons having more than two children after January 1, 2021.

 

  • The important decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting that also adopted a New Land Policy, which will give three bighas of agricultural land to landless indegenous people and half a bigha for constructing a house.
  • A communique from the Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal’s public relations cell stated that those having more than two children will not be considered for government jobs with effect from January 1, 2021 as per the small family norm.
  • In September 2017, the Assam Assembly had passed the ‘Population and Women Empowerment Policy of Assam’ that specified that job candidates with two children only would be eligible for government employment and the existing government staff were to strictly follow the two children family norm.

Govt plans ‘Indradhanush 2.0’ for recapitalisation of public sector banks

  • Government plans to come out with ‘Indradhanush 2.0’, a comprehensive plan for recapitalisation of public sector lenders, with a view to make sure they remain solvent and fully comply with the global capital adequacy norms, Basel-III ‘Indradhanush 2.0’ will be finalised after completion of the Asset Quality Review (AQR) by the Reserve Bank, which is likely to be completed by March-end.

Indian Army to conduct exercise ‘Sindhu Sudarshan’ in the deserts of Rajasthan 

  • Indian Army to conduct exercise codenamed as ‘Sindhu Sudarshan’ in the deserts of Rajasthan from 29 November to 4 December 2019. More than 40,000 troops will be participating in an all-arms battle array of Divisions and Brigades carrying out offensive operations in deserts. 

 

  • The exercise will showcase a high degree of synergy between the Indian Army and Indian Air Force.The military exercise will witness Indian Army assessing operational efficiency of Strike Corps to fight in desert terrain as well as Indian Air Force (IAF) to provide intimate support in terms of destruction of targets and airlifting troops.

 

RANKING AND INDEX

World Bank Report: India takes Huge Strides in improving Ease Of Doing Business

  • The World Bank released its latest Doing Business Report (DBR, 2020). India has recorded a jump of 14 positions against its rank of 77 in 2019 to be placed now at 63rd rank among 190 countries assessed by the World Bank.

Kerala’s Nedumangad declared best block panchayat

  • Nedumangad block panchayat in Kerala has won the prestigious Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Sashaktikaran Puraskar for 2019.

 

  • Representatives of the panchayat in Thiruvananthapuram district received the award from Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar at the national panchayat awards function.

 

India ranks ahead of Bangladesh, Pakistan on fixed broadband speed: Ookla

  • India ranks ahead of Bangladesh and Pakistan with mean fixed broadband speed rising by 16.5% and 4G availability rising to a whopping 87.9% during Q2-Q3 2019, states a report by Ookla. ACT Fibernet has topped the chart on download speeds followed by Jio in Q2-Q3 of FY 2019.

APPOINTMENTS

Ashok Malik appointed as policy advisor in MEA with rank of additional secretary

  • Ashok Malik, former press secretary to the president, has been appointed as policy advisor in the Ministry of External Affairs with the rank of additional secretary, an order by the Department of Personnel and Training.
  • The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Ashok Malik, a distinguished fellow in the Observer Research Foundation, as policy advisor in the Ministry of External Affairs on contract basis, the order said.

Graeme Smith has been elected as MCC Honorary Life Member

South Africa v Australia - First Test: Day 1 : News Photo

 

  • Former South Africa skipper Graeme Smith has been elected an Honorary Life Member of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), custodians of the game’s law.
  • Smith, who has an impressive record in One-Day International cricket for his country, scoring 6,989 runs including 10 centuries, expressed his excitement on being bestowed upon the honour.

 

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Polio Day 24 October 2019

  • World Polio Day was established by Rotary International over a decade ago to commemorate the birth of Jonas Salk, who led the first team to develop a vaccine against poliomyelitis.
  • Use of this inactivated poliovirus vaccine and subsequent widespread use of the oral poliovirus, developed by Albert Sabin, led to the establishment of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) in 1988. 

October 24 has been celebrated as United Nations Day

Image result for united day

  • The International United Nations day is observed on 24 October 2019.
  • The UN Day marks the anniversary of the entry into force in 1945 of the UN Charter.
  • The United Nations was established in 1945.

SPORTS NEWS

Rohit Sharma becomes 3rd Indian batsman to reach top 10 in all formats

Sri Lanka v India - ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 : News Photo

  • Rohit Sharma has become the third Indian batsman to reach the top 10 in all three formats after a memorable series against South Africa in which he donned the new role of Test opener.

 

  • Rohit emulated captain Virat Kohli and retired opener Gautam Gambhir as his knock of 212 in the third Test in Ranchi helped him advance 12 places to 10th position in the ICC Test Player Rankings.

 

Praveen Kumar becomes first Indian man to win gold at Wushu World Championships

  • Praveen Kumar became the first Indian man to win a Wushu World Championships gold, beating Russel Diaz of Philippines in the 48kg category in Shanghai. The Indian saw off his Filipino opponent 2-1 in the men’s Sanda event of the 15th World Wushu Championships.
  • Among other Indians in the fray, Poonam (women’s 75kg) and Sanathoi Devi (women’s 52kg) secured silver medals while Vikrant Baliyan bagged the bronze in the men’s 60kg category.

World Military Games: Anandan Gunasekaran opens India’s account, wins two gold medals

 

  • Para-athlete Anandan Gunasekaran won two golds in the disabled men’s 100m and 400m IT1 events to open India’s medal count at the 7th CISM World Military Games.

 

  • Gunasekaran clocked 12 seconds to win the 100m, India’s first medal in the ongoing Games. Peru’s Casas Jose was second in 12.65s and Fajardo Pardo Teodicelo of Colombia took bronze in 12.72s.

NATIONAL NEWS

President Kovind to visit Rajgir for Golden Jubilee celebration of Vishwa Shanti Stupa

  • President Ram Nath Kovind will visit Rajgir in Bihar to inaugurate day long golden jubilee celebrations of Vishwa Shanti Stupa (World Peace Pagoda) in Rajgir. 
  • More than 300 Buddhist monks, devotees and eminent personalities from Japan, Thailand, Srilanka, Bhutan, Nepal, US and other countries have arrived to take part in the function the Vishwa Shanti Stupa has completed 50 years of its establishment. 
  • Situated on Ratnagiri hillock, this iconic structure was constructed by Japanese Buddhist monk popularly known as Fujii Guruji in 1969. 

Tamil Nadu may get six new medical colleges by 2020

  • The number of government medical colleges in Tamil Nadu will soon increase from 24 to 30, as the Union Health Ministry has granted approval to start six more medical colleges in the State with 150 MBBS seats in each of them.
  • “The Centre has given approval for the new medical colleges under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) scheme. 
  • As per the scheme, six government district headquarters’ hospitals, in Ramanathapuram, Virudhunagar, Nilgiris, Dindigul, Tirupur and Namakkal, will be upgraded as medical college hospitals.”
  • “While the Centre will sanction 60 per cent of the total expenditure for the facilities, the State will contribute the remaining, 40 per cent. With the approval, the number of MBBS seats in Government medical colleges is likely to go up from 3,350 to 4,250. Tamil Nadu has the highest number of government MBBS seats in the country,”.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Tunisia election: Kais Saied to become president 

Tunisia's new President Kais Saied takes an oath of office... : News Photo

  • Retired academic Kais Saied is set to become Tunisia’s next president after a landslide victor.
  • The electoral commission announced that the former law professor, 61, secured 73% of votes in the run-off election.
  • He was up against media mogul Nabil Karoui, 56, who had campaigned from prison after being arrested on charges of money laundering and tax fraud.

AGREEMENTS AND MOUS

India and the US signed pact on Science and Technology

  • India, US close to inking industrial security pact, will unlock key defence technology sharing.

 

  • PM Narendra Modi led Union Cabinet approved the proposal for Agreement on Science & Technology Cooperation between India and the US.

 

  • Under the agreement, both sides agreed to strengthen bilateral relations by a significant convergence of mutual interests in science and technology. Seminars and meeting will be held to deepen Science and Technology Cooperation.

BSNL, MTNL to be merged as part of a 56,000 crore rescue plan

Image result for bsnl mtnl

  • The 56,000 crore merger and revival plan for Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telecom Nigam Ltd (MTNL) was approved by the Union cabinet.
  • MTNL operates in Delhi and Mumbai, and BSNL in the rest of India.
  • The turnaround plan would include the allotment of spectrum for fourth-generation or 4G services at 2016 prices to the two companies with the costs borne by the government and issue of sovereign bonds worth 15,000 crore to be serviced by the two companies. 
  • In addition, assets worth 38,000 crore will be monetised over the next four years and a voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) will be introduced to cut employee costs.

RANKING AND INDEX

Global Wealth Report 2019: Global wealth rises by 2.6% driven by US & China, despite trade tensions

  • Credit Suisse Research Institute publishes its tenth edition of the Global Wealth Report, the most comprehensive and up-to-date source of information on global household wealth.
  • Global wealth grew during the past year by 2.6% to USD 360tn and wealth per adult reached a new record high of USD 70,850, 1.2% above the level of mid-2018. US, China and Europe contributed the most towards global wealth growth with USD 3.8tn, USD 1.9tn and USD 1.1tn respectively.

APPOINTMENTS

Arvind Singh appointed chairman of AAI, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu to be NHAI chief

  • Senior IAS officer Arvind Singh has been appointed as the chairman of Airports Authority of India and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu will head the National Highways Authority of India.

 

  • He has been appointed as the chief of AAI in the rank and pay of additional secretary, an order issued by the personnel ministry said. The appointment was approved by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions.

 

AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

Sadin-Pratidin’s Lifetime Achievement Award to Homen Borgohain

  • The Sixth Sadin-Pratidin Achievers Award was presented at a function at Sriamanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra in the presence of several social leaders drawing from different spheres of the State’s social spectrum.
  • The Sadin-Pratidin group award is conferred on persons who have excelled in their chosen area of activities ranging from literature to corporate, and from culture to sports.

 

  • This time the Lifetime Achievement Award was conferred on eminent writer-intellectual Homen Borgohain.

 

  • The ceremony was attended by Governor Prof Jagadish Mukhi and Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal while former President Pranab Mukherjee joined with a video link due to his indisposition.

Prasar Bharati CEO gives away Rajbhasha Awards

  • Prasar Bharati CEO, Shashi Shekhar Vempati gave away Rajbhasha Awards to the winners of Hindi Pakhwada competition held at Prasar Bharati secretariat.
  • The theme of the competition was Plastic Free India and Cleanliness drive. 

Nobel laureate Abhijit Banerjee gets life membership of Mohun Bagan Athletic Club

 

  • The Mohun Bagan Athletic Club conferred life membership to Nobel laureate Abhijit Banerjee.

 

  • Srinjoy Bose, honorary club assistant general secretary, and other club officials met the economist at his paternal residence here and conferred him with the life membership of Mohun Bagan Athletic Club.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS

A new book entitled “Ten Studies in Kashmir: History and Politics” released

  • A new book looks at the riveting history of Jammu and Kashmir from the time of its political and geographic consolidation to the abrogation of the state’s special status.
  • ‘Ten Studies in Kashmir: History and Politics’ by educationist and Padma Shri recipient Prof K N Pandit was released at a function at the Jammu University.
  • The book, which comes after the scrapping of Article 370 provisions in August, will shed light on the happenings from 1947 till the revocation of special status of the state.

IMPORTANT DAYS

National Unity Day to be celebrated on Oct 31

  • National Unity Day will be celebrated on 31st of this month to mark the birth anniversary of Ironman Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Kevadia in Gujarat to pay homage to the great leader at the Statue of Unity.
  • To celebrate the spirit of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat, celebrations will be held in more than 600 districts of the country.
  • Home Minister Amit Shah will flag off the commemorative Run For Unity from New Delhi’s Major Dhyanchand National Stadium.

Ayurveda Day to be celebrated on October 25

 

  • The fourth Ayurveda Day is set to be organised on October 25 at National Institute of Ayurveda (NIA) in Jaipur, Rajasthan.

 

  • “Dhanwantari Pujan and ‘National Dhanwantari Ayurveda Awards 2019’ ceremony will be held at NIA in the gracious presence of Om Birla, Speaker of Lok Sabha as Chief Guest. Minister of State (IC) for Ministry of AYUSH and Defence, Shripad Yesso Naik will also be present.
  • A National Conference ‘Ayurveda for Longevity’ will also be organized on October 24. Union Minister of Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat will be the Chief Guest.
  • Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India decided to celebrate Ayurveda Day every year on the day of Dhanvantari Jayanti (Dhanteras) since 2016.

Current Affairs Quiz – October  

Attend Current Affairs Quiz for the Month of August- 2019 from the link that is provided below.

Daily Current Affairs Quiz – October, 2019

Learn the Other Day Current Affairs from bankersdaily Team from the link that is provided below.

LEARN – Daily Current Affairs – October 2019

Buy the Quantitative Aptitude, Reasoning Ability & English Language Topic Wise Tests – Online Tests from the below given links.

 


Aspirants can get the test packages from our Official Bankersdaily Store (https://bankersdaily.testpress.in)

If you have any doubts regarding the 4 new Topic Wise Test Packages, kindly mail your queries to virtualracetest@gmail.com.

#1 TRENDING VIDEO in Race YOUTUBE CHANNEL

 

 

 

 

Tweet
Pin
Share
+1
0 Shares