Current Affairs Update – 24th-25th March, 2016

Hello and welcome to ExamPundit. Here are the important Current Affairs of 24th and 25th March, 2016.

• Union Cabinet chaired by Prime
  Minister Narendra Modi on 23 March 2016 approved the 1500 million US dollar
  project of World Bank to support Swachh Bharat Mission – Gramin (SBM-G).
• The approval seeks to provide for
  the mechanism of incentivisation of States under the SBM-G through World Bank
  credit.   The incentivisation of the
  States on the basis of their performance under the SBM-G was approved by the
  Union Cabinet on 24 September 2014.
• Under the project, the
  performance of the States will be gauged through certain performance
  indicators, called the Disbursement-Linked Indicators (DLIs).

•    Reduction in the prevalence of open
  defecation: The funds under this result area shall be released to the States on
  the basis of reduction in prevalence of open defecation amongst rural
  households in the State, compared to the previous year.
•    Sustaining Open Defecation Free (ODF) status
  in Villages: The funds under this result area, shall be released on the basis
  of estimated population residing in ODF villages.
•    Increase in percentage of rural population
  served by improved Solid and Liquid Waste Management (SLWM): The funds under
  this will be based on the population served with acceptable level of SLWM
  services.

• Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited
  (BHEL), a Maharatna central public sector enterprise, has successfully
  commissioned a 600 Mw coal-based thermal power plant in Telangana, the company
  said on Friday.
• “The unit has been commissioned
  at the upcoming 2×600 Mw Singareni thermal power project located in Adilabad
  district,” the power plant equipment manufacturer said in a BSE filing.
• The company has built 600 Mw
  rating sets which comprise of a four cylinder turbine, designed in-house.
• With the commissioning of the
  unit, Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) has successfully diversified into
  the power generation business.
• According to the filing, the
  second unit of Singareni is also in an advanced stage of construction and is
  expected to be commissioned shortly.

• The Union Cabinet chaired by
  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 23 March 2016 gave its approval for India to
  accede to the Ashgabat Agreement. The Agreement is an international and transit
  corridor facilitating transportation of goods between Central Asia and the
  Persian Gulf.
• India’s accession to the
  Agreement would enable it to utilise this existing transport and transit
  corridor to facilitate trade and commercial interaction with the Eurasian
  region.
• Further, it would also
  synchronise India’s efforts to implement the International North South
  Transport Corridor (INSTC) for enhanced connectivity.

• The Indian Space Research
  Organisation (ISRO) on 21 March 2016 established the Gadanki Ionospheric Radar
  Interferometer (GIRI) near Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh.
• It was set up at the National
  Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL) which is an autonomous research
  institute of the Department of Space.

1. It is a 30 MHz
   radar system that will be engaged in meteor and space weather research in a
   comprehensive way.
2. It consists of a
   rectangular antenna array of 160 two-element Yagi-antenna, arranged in a 20×8
   matrix, 20 transmitter units, 6 digital receivers including data processing
   systems, a radar controller, and a host computer.
3. Its primary
   objective is to carry out unattended observations towards studying the forcing
   from the sun like variation in solar flux, solar flare and magnetic storm on
   the ionospheric irregularities.
4. It also seeks to
   study unattended observations from the underneath atmosphere (e.g., waves
   generated by weather phenomena) on the ionospheric irregularities.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi on
  23 March 2016 inaugurated broadband connectivity to North Eastern States via
  Bangladesh to strengthen telecom services in the region.
• Under the project, an
  international gateway for broadband connectivity will be set up at Agartala in
  Tripura.
• Using this platform, connectivity
  will be provided to other North Eastern States like Manipur, Nagaland, etc
  through Bangladesh.
• The cost of the project is around
  19 crore rupees and BSNL will bear annual operational expenditure of around
  seven crore rupees from its own resources.

• The Fast Patrol Vessel (FPV),
  ICGS Arnvesh, of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) was commissioned on 21 March 2016
  in Visakhapatnam.
• The vessel was commissioned by
  the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command, Vice-Admiral
  HCS Bisht.
• The ship is mainly intended to
  undertake surveillance at sea, coastal patrol, anti-smuggling and anti-piracy
  operations.
• Arnvesh is the 16th vessel among
  the 20 vessels in this category being constructed by Cochin Shipyard Limited.
• The 300-tonne and 50-m long
  vessel is propelled by triple Rolls Royce Kamewa water jets and can achieve a
  maximum speed of 33 knots.

• The Ministry of Health and Family
  Welfare on 22 March 2016 launched the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India
  (LASI).
• The Longitudinal Ageing Study is
  the largest survey of its kind. It will survey more than 60000 elderly over 25
  years plan. The survey will provide scientifically validated data on various
  issues of the elderly.
• The study will be important as it
  will investigate various health structures, and impact of social determinants
  on health of the elderly. It will also help in framing evidence-based policy.

• National Green Tribunal (NGT) on
  22 March 2016 fined 20 lakh rupees on Uttarakhand-based Darrameks Hotels and
  Developers Pvt Ltd (DHDPL) for construction on Ganga floodplains.
• It was fined for constructing a
  hotel within 200 meters from the Ganga river bank.

• It slapped the
  environmental compensation on the developer for violating the order passed by
  Uttarakhand High Court. In the said order, the HC had prohibited construction
  of any commercial unit within 200 meter of the river bank.
• DHDPL also
  violated the conditions set in the Consent to Establish issued by the
  Uttarakhand Environment Protection and Pollution Control Board (UEPPCB).

• World Tuberculosis Day (WTD) 2016
  was globally observed on 24 March 2016 with the theme Unite to End TB.
• The theme was selected against
  the backdrop of the adoption of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda by the
  United Nations General Assembly in September 2015.
• The Goal 3 of the Agenda aspires to
  ensure health and well-being for all, including a bold commitment to end the
  epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other communicable diseases by
  2030.

• International Day of Remembrance
  of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade 2016 was observed
  globally on 25 March 2016. The theme for the year 2016 is Remember Slavery:
  Celebrating the Heritage and Culture of the African Diaspora and its Roots.
• The theme draws attention to the
  rich African culture and traditions that have impacted life in countries that
  were involved in the slave trade and where the African Diaspora continues to
  make major contribution in all aspects of life. It also highlights the cultural
  linkages that exist among people of African descent throughout the world.

• Arvind Kejriwal has been named
  among the world’s 50 greatest leaders by Fortune magazine with the Delhi Chief
  Minister being the sole Indian leader on the list topped by Amazon CEO Jeff
  Bezos.
• Fortune’s third annual ‘World’s
  50 Greatest Leaders’ list features men and women from across the globe from the
  fields of business, government, philanthropy and the arts who are
  “transforming the world and inspiring others to do the same.”
• The 47-year-old Aam Aadmi Party
  chief is ranked 42nd on the list and is the sole leader from India.
• However, South Carolina’s
  Indian-American Governor Nikki Haley is also on the list at 17th while another
  Indian- American Resham Saujani is at the 20th spot.
• Fortune credits Kejriwal for his
  efforts to curb pollution in New Delhi through the scheme of allowing vehicles
  of odd and even numbers on alternate days on the city’s roads.

• The Appointments Committee of the
  Cabinet (ACC) on 23 March 2016 approved the appointment of Justice (retd)
  Permod Kohli as the Chairman of Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT). He is a
  former Chief Justice of Sikkim High Court.
• He was appointed for a period of
  five years with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post, or
  till attaining the age of 68 year, whichever is earlier.

• Australia’s Shane Watson on 24
  March 2016 announced that he will retire from international cricket at the end
  of the 2016 World Twenty20 Tournament.
• Watson retired from test cricket
  in September 2015 and since then he didn’t play any One Day Internationals
  also.

• 9th International Abilympics
  started on 23 March 2016 at Bordeaux in France. Abilympics is coined from
  Olympics of abilities of persons with disabilities.
• It is a global work skills
  competition held every four years. The event aims to promote social awareness
  in the field of skills development and employment both locally and
  internationally, and foster friendship among the competing nations.
• The name Abilympics comes from
  the idea of organizing a competition to promote the skills of persons with
  disabilities. It combines Abilities with the idea of the Olympics.

• The Netherland’s soccer legend
  Johan Cruyff died of  lung cancer on 24
  March 2016 in Barcelona, Spain. He was 68.
• Cruyff’s talent was such that he
  is comfortably placed alongside Pele, Diego Maradona, Franz Beckenbauer and
  Lionel Messi as the best footballers of all time.
• He was considered as one of the
  best player, coach, thinker, speaker and mentor in the football world.

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