Current Affairs Update – 10th April, 2015

Hello and welcome to ExamPundit. Here are the Important Current Affairs for 10th April, 2015.

• India’s first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at GIFT City near Gandhinagar became operational on Friday. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley unveiled rules and regulations for this global financial hub.
• The regulations are aimed at creating a vibrant IFSC on the lines of those in Dubai and Singapore and check the flight of trading in rupee and Indian securities to such offshore financial hubs.
• IFSC rules allow companies incorporated outside India to raise money in foreign currencies by issuance and listing of their equity shares on stock exchanges within the IFSC, where individual and institutional investors from India and abroad, including NRIs, would be allowed to trade.
• The IFSC regulatory regime allows Indian and foreign stock exchanges to set up separate bourses within IFSC as subsidiaries, while market entities from India and abroad would be allowed to operate there by providing issuance and trading in depository receipts and debt securities of domestic as well as overseas companies.
• The capital and other requirements have been relaxed for some time for exchanges, clearing corporations and depositories to set shop in the IFSC.
• Mutual funds and Alternative Investment Funds set up in the IFSC can also invest in the securities listed there.

• The Ministry of Railways and the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad, will together set up a 'Railway Design Centre to modernise passenger amenities and improve coach design.
• An MoU was signed between Railways and NID on Friday to set up the design centre at the NID campus. It will be operated with the interest accrued on the endowment fund of Rs. 10 crore deposited by the Railway Ministry.
• The MoU will be for a period of ten years and can be further extended.

• Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), the retirement fund body, on 9 April 2015 suspended the 1000 rupees minimum monthly pension scheme from April 2015.
• The end of the minimum monthly pension provided under Employee Pension Scheme (EPS)-95 will hit about 32 lakh pensioners.
• The decision to suspend the scheme was taken because, as per EPFO circular, there was no communication or direction from the Union Government to continue this scheme beyond 31 March 2015.
• The circular further said that the payment pension from the month of April 2015 will be released at earlier rates, that is, without minimum pension provision.
• Union Government had issued a notification on 19 August 2014 to hike the pension amount to flat 1000 rupees per month for those who were getting less than 1000 rupees per month as pension. The benefit of the scheme was made effective from 1 September 2014 to 31 March 2015.
• Employee Pension Scheme (EPS)-95 came into effect on 16 November 1995 and the scheme was launched under the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952.
• The Scheme applies to the employees of all factories and other establishments to which the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 applies.
• Under the scheme, monthly benefits for superannuation/ retirement, disability, survivor, widow(er), children is provided and the amount of pension is based on average salary during the preceding 12 months from the date of exit and total years of employment.

• Surface-to-Surface nuclear-capable Dhanush ballistic missile was successfully test-fired on 9 April 2015 from a naval ship off the Odisha coast.
• The missile is a naval variant of India’s indigenously-developed Prithvi missile.
• The missile was fired from an Offshore Patrolling Vessel (OPV) of Indian Navy by the Strategic Force Command (SFC).
• SFC is a part of India's Nuclear Command Authority (NCA) which is responsible for the management and administration of the country's tactical and strategic nuclear weapons stockpile.

• The Border Security Force (BSF) has inducted two Russian-built Mi-17 V5 medium lift choppers to carry out air support missions along the border and for anti-Naxalite operations in the hinterland.
• The Mi-17 choppers will boost the flying capability of the BSF troops that are deployed in some of the most arduous and inhospitable conditions for a variety of internal security tasks, BSF officials said here.
• The choppers were formally inducted into the fleet on Thursday.
• The BSF currently operates a mixed fleet of six older MI-17s, six Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters and a Cheetah helicopter.
• The new choppers are armed with latest avionics and night-flying capabilities that have been a long-time requirement of the BSF which is increasingly undertaking operations in Naxal violence affected zones.

• LeT operations commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, the 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind, on Friday walked free from a Pakistani jail after spending nearly six years in detention.
• Lakhvi was released from Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, a day after Lahore High Court (LHC) suspended his detention and ordered his immediate release.
• India had strongly reacted to the court’s decision, saying it “eroded” the value of assurances repeatedly conveyed to it by Pakistan on cross-border terrorism.
• Jamaat-ud-Dawa supporters were present outside the prison to receive 55-year-old Lakhvi.
• The court yesterday suspended the Punjab government’s order to detain Lakhvi under a security act and ordered his immediate release.
• Earlier on Friday, Lakhvi’s counsel Raja Rizwan Abbasi had said that the government was left with no other ‘legal option’ but to release his client.

• India has been designated to chair the ninth meeting of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Council. The meeting is scheduled to be held in June in Abu Dhabi.
• India is a founder Member of the IRENA. The body is an intergovernmental organisation that supports countries in their transition to a sustainable energy future.
• IRENA has two main governing structures. IRENA Assembly takes decisions at Macro level and gives policy guidance to IRENA.
• IRENA Council which is the main governing body of the agency responsible for implementing various decisions of the assembly.

• Seoul city, the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea, on 9 April 2015 was awarded the title of Global Earth hour Capital 2015 after it won the Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) of World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The challenge saw the participation of 163 cities from 16 countries.
• The award ceremony was held in Seoul, South Korea.
• The city of Balikpapan, Indonesia was recognized as the Most Loveable City for 2015 and Thane city was named as the National Earth Hour Capital 2015 of India.

• Thane in Mumbai, Maharashtra was named as the National Earth Hour Capital 2015 on 9 April 2015. It was named so after it emerged as winner among the three finalists from India viz., Thane, Rajkot and Pune, in the Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) 2015 conducted by World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
• For its city mobility plan and solar and waste-to-energy initiatives, Pune received a special mention from the jury. Rajkot was felicitated for the city’s performance in the field of renewable energy.
• Actions of Thane city administration that helped Thane to be named as the National Earth Hour Capital 2015 includes
• Mandatory use of solar water-heating systems for municipal buildings
• Solutions such as wind-solar hybrid systems
• Use of solar energy for lighting and air-conditioning
• Cities plan for solar rooftop net metering-based power generation and regular energy audits

• The book Suleiman Charitra written by Kalyana Malla was in news because on 9 April 2015 the translated version of it Sueiman Charitra of Kalyan Malla was released. The book has been translated from Sanskrit to English by diplomat-writer A.N.D. Haskar.
• The translated version was released by Prof. Akhtarul Wasey, the National Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities in New Delhi.
• The original book Suleiman Charitra was written by Kalyan Malla who was an esteemed poet at the court of Lodhi prince Lad Khan in eastern Uttar Pradesh at the beginning of 16th Century.
• Malla is known to have also composed Ananga Ranga which along with Suleiman Charitra were dedicated to his princely patron.

• Richie Benaud, the former Australian cricket captain and legendary commentator died in Sydney on 10 April 2015. He died after fighting a long battle with skin cancer. He was 84.
• Benaud born in Penrith, New South Wales, in 1930 was an Australian Test cricket all-rounder and a pioneering leg-spin bowler. He became Australia's Test captain in 1958. He retired as a captain in 1964. After retirement from international cricket, he became a highly regarded commentator of the game.
• After retirement, he pursued his career in journalism and broadcasting. After an impressive playing career, he became even better known as a prolific author, columnist and commentator on cricket.
• He made his first radio commentary in 1960 at the BBC from UK, after which he moved into television. His final commentary in England came during the 2005 Ashes series but he continued to work for Channel Nine in Australia until 2013.

1. Anything But (1998) Autobiography
2. My Spin on Cricket (2005)
3. Over But Not Out (2010)

• Former Air Chief Marshal of Indian Air Force (IAF) Hrushikesh Moolgavkar died in Pune on 9 April 2015. He was 95.
• Moolgavkar had the honour of leading the fly-past on India’s first Independence Day on 15 August 1947, and also on Republic Day on 26 January 1951. He had led the fly-past as a Squadron Leader.
• Selected and commissioned as a Pilot Officer in Royal Indian Air Force on 30 November 1940, he was appointed as the Chief of Air Staff on 1 February 1976.
• His major achievement as Chief of Air Staff was implementation of new measures that brought down the accident rates. After serving IAF for 38 years, he retired on 31 August 1978.

Regards



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