Current Affairs Update – 29th April, 2015

Hello and welcome to ExamPundit. Here are the Important Current Affairs for 29th April, 2015.

• The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has launched an awareness campaign on motor third-party insurance jointly with Cyberabad Police.
• Speaking at the launch of the campaign here on Wednesday, R Raghavan, Chief Executive Officer, Insurance Information Bureau (IIB), an arm of the insurance regulator, said 55 per cent of the vehicles plying on the roads in the country did not have the mandatory motor third-party insurance.
• In number terms, this would translate into seven crore vehicles! ``India ranks among the top five countries in the world in the number of accidents which makes insurance vital. Today is just a beginning. We will roll out a national campaign soon,’’ he added.
• Lack of the third-party insurance will not only lead to severe social security perils for the victims but also losses to the insurers, he added.
• Lack of third-party insurance will attract a Rs. 1,000 fine or three months’ imprisonment or both in line with the Motor Vehicles Act.

• Government on Wednesday decided to continue its Rs 1,000 per minimum monthly pension scheme in perpetuity, a move which would benefit over 20 lakh pensioners under social security scheme run by EPFO. The scheme was initially effective only till last month.
• “The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today gave its approval for continuation of the minimum pension of Rs 1,000 per month to the pensioners of Employees’ Pension Scheme, 1995 (EPS) beyond 2014-15 on perpetual basis.
• Currently, it is effective only up to March, 2015,” an official press release said.
• Retirement fund body EPFO had suspended the Rs 1,000 minimum monthly pension scheme from April 1.
• The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) had to suspend the scheme in the absence of any direction from the government to continue with this benefit beyond March 31.
• The scheme was launched with effect from September 2014, hiking the pension amount to a flat Rs 1,000 per month for those who were getting lower amount earlier.
• The Cabinet also approved corresponding grant of continuous annual budgetary support for implementing the minimum pension, which will be to the tune of Rs 850 crore per year on a tapering basis.

• Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance today said it has simplified its claim settlement norms for the victims of devastating earthquake in Nepal and northern and eastern parts of India.
• "In the massive earthquake in Nepal, Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Sikkim, Delhi, NCR, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Jharkhand many lost their near and dear ones and some are still missing," a company release said.
• Considering the situation, Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance has reduced the documentation for claim applications for the earthquake victims.
• While the requirement for documents has been already minimised, procedure for investigation conducted by the insurer may be waived if prima-facie documents establish the life assured's death is due to earthquake, it added.
• The company would make the best efforts to settle a majority of the claims coming out of this natural disaster within 72 hours.

• Bank of Maharashtra, Dena Bank and Oriental Bank of Commerce have been imposed with a monetary penalty of Rs. 15 crore each by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for violation of Know Your Customer (KYC)/ Anti Money Laundering (AML) norms.
• “Failure on the part of these banks to take timely remedial measures had aggravated the seriousness of the contraventions and its impact,” RBI said in a release.
• The RBI also cautioned eight other banks -- Central Bank of India, Bank of India, Punjab and Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur, UCO Bank, Union Bank of India and Vijaya Bank – “to put in place appropriate measures and review them from time to time to ensure strict compliance of KYC requirements in future.
• RBI said it received a complaint from a private organisation, on the basis of which a scrutiny of fixed accounts opened in its name in Mumbai based branches of certain public sector banks was undertaken in July 2014.

• In a major action against black money hoarders and money launderers, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached assets to the tune of Rs. 9,003 crore and filed 173 chargesheets in the financial year 2014-15.
• The agency, as part of its efforts to crack down on illicit funds in India and abroad, in the last year registered a mammoth 400 per cent rise in the numbers of assets attached, over 500 per cent increase in the number of criminal FIRs lodged, over 600 per cent more numbers of arrests made of people suspected to be involved in laundering crimes and more than 200 per cent jump in the filing of prosecution complaints or charge sheets as compared to the 2013-14 fiscal.
• The agency which probes financial crimes under two prime laws of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) along with some old cases pending under the repealed Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) has broken all records of lodging complaints and prosecuting the accused of financial frauds, hawala and money laundering.

• The Union Cabinet has approved official amendments in the Prevention of Corruption Act to help the bureaucracy take faster decisions besides making more stringent provisions against corrupt persons. The bill to amend the act is currently pending in the Rajya Sabha.
• The amendments, as approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday, prescribe extending the protection of prior sanction for prosecution to public servants who cease to hold office due to retirement, resignation, etc. Further, prior sanction for inquiry and investigation shall be required from the Lokpal or Lokayukta, as the case may be, for investigation of offences relatable to recommendations made or decisions taken by a public servant in the discharge of official functions or duties, a Government statement said.
• However, intentional enriching by public servants will be construed as criminal misconduct and possession of disproportionate assets as proof of such illicit enrichment. Besides this, non-monetary gratification has been covered within the definition of the word gratification.
• Meanwhile, the amendments have provided more stringent punishment for the offence of bribery, both for the bribe giver and the bribe taker. “Penal provisions being enhanced from minimum 6 months to 3 years and from maximum 5 years to 7 years (The seven-year imprisonment brings corruption to the heinous crime category),” the statement said.

• Government has accorded 'in principle' approval to 10 sites for setting up nuclear power projects, Lok Sabha was informed today. The ten sites are located in nine states.
• In reply to a question, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh said indigenous reactors would be established at Gorakhpur in Haryana, Chutka and Bhimpur in Madhya Pradesh, Kaiga at Karnataka and Mahi Banswara in Rajasthan.
• Reactors with foreign cooperation would be set up in Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu, Jaitapur at Maharashtra, Chhaya Mithi Virdhi in Gujarat, Kovvada at Andhra Pradesh and Haripur in West Bengal.
• Singh also said that BHAVINI, a Public Sector Undertaking of Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) is presently constructing a Prototype Fast Breeder Reaction (PFBR) of 500 MWe capacity at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu. In addition, two Fast Breeder Reactors of 600 MW are also proposed to be constructed at Kalpakkam, he added.
• Responding to another question, he said that PFBR is under advanced stage of commissioning. The physical progress achieved as on 31-03-2014 is 97.64 per cent.

• Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave its nod to NDA government’s flagship 100 smart cities project and the new urban renewal mission with a total outlay of about Rs one lakh crore.
• A meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved Smart Cities Mission for development of 100 smart cities and Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) of 500 cities with outlays of Rs 48,000 crore and Rs 50,000 crore respectively, according to a statement issued by the Urban Development Ministry.
• Smart City is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project aimed at recasting the urban landscape of the country by making cities more livable and inclusive besides driving the economic growth. Each selected city under the ambitious scheme would get central assistance of Rs 100 crore per year for five years.
• AMRUT is the new avatar of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and has been named after former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
• The Cabinet also approved central funding under AMRUT to the projects sanctioned under JNNURM and not completed. JNNURM projects sanctioned during 2005-2012 and which have achieved physical progress of 50 per cent availing 50 per cent of central assistance released and those sanctioned during 2012-2014 will be supported till March 2017.

• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on 28 April 2015 successfully tested an indigenous cryogenic engine CE-20 at Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu. This engine will enable scientists to put satellites of up to the capacity of four tonnes in geostationary orbit.
• The engine will also give boost to India’s interplanetary probes and manned space missions. So far India's GSLVs were being powered by cryogenic engines given by Russia. But this development marks a milestone in the country's effort to develop a big cryogenic engine to fly satellites of up to five tonnes.

• Government of Delhi on 28 April 2015 gave its approval for setting up of a farmer compensation scheme named after Gajendra Singh. Gajendra Singh is the person who allegedly committed suicide during an AAP (Aam Aadmi Party) rally on 22 April 2015 by hanging himself with a tree.
• The decision on name of the scheme was taken during a Cabinet meet chaired by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. As per reports, the state government will distribute compensation to rain-hit farmers from first week of May 2015.
• Besides, the government also decided to give job to a member of Gajendra's family and martyr status for him, as demanded by the farmer's kin.

• The logo for International Day of Yoga was launched here today by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Minister of State for AYUSH Shripad Yesso Naik.
• The United Nations General Assembly had on December 11 adopted an India-led resolution declaring June 21 as the 'International Day of Yoga'. This came less than three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed the idea.
• The theme for 2015 International Yoga Day is “Yoga for Harmony and Peace”.
• Folding of both hands in the logo symbolises Yoga, which reflects the union of individual consciousness with that of universal consciousness, a perfect harmony between mind and body, man and nature, the holistic approach to health and well being, a senior government official said.
• The brown leaves in the logo symbolise the earth element, the green leaves the nature, blue the fire element while the sun symbolises the source of energy and inspiration, the official said.

• World Dance Day or International Dance Day was observed globally on 29 April 2015. It is observed with an aim to attract the attention of the wider public to the art of dance.
• As part of celebrations, the President of the CID annually sends the official message for Dance Day which circulates in every country around the world.
• International Dance Day was introduced in 1982 by the International Dance Council (CID) at United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) headquarters in Paris, France. CID is the official organization for all forms of dance in all countries of the world.

• Margarita, with a Straw directed by Shonali Bose of India in the fourth week of April 2015 won the Audience Award for Best Feature Film at the Washington DC International Film festival.
• Kalki Koechlin-starrer film is a disability drama. In the film, Kalki has played the role of a cerebral palsy patient named Laila. The film also stars Revathi and Sayani Gupta in prominent roles.
• The film, through layers of discovery and revelation has explored and challenged Indian culture and society in so many ways. The director Bose through the film has tried to weave a story in form of a specific culture along with simply human story.
• The film, before its release on 17 April 2015 made its world premiere at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Later, it was screened at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in Estonia, BFI London Film Festival, Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) and the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

• Flipkart, India’s largest online marketplace, has acquired New Delhi-based mobile engagement and marketing automation company Appiterate, to strengthen its mobile technology presence. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
• Appiterate started out testing products for mobile apps, which later on expanded into a full-fledged mobile marketing automation platform. The company, in the past, has helped leading e-commerce companies combine the power of mobile apps and big data to allow them to do one-on-one targeting of their users through push notifications and in-app messages.

• D Harika and Koneru Humpy came up with fine individual performances to win a silver and a bronze, respectively, even as the Indian eves finished fourth in the women’s world team chess championship here.
• Harika’s silver and Humpy’s bronze though were a big consolation for the team, overall it was a disappointing show by the Indian girls given the missed opportunities. The medal for the team was always within reach, but it failed to finish off well.
• Considering that the Indian team entered the tournament as a wild card, a fourth-place finish can be justified as a pretty decent show. However, the medal was within the grasp as the team finished just one point shy of China, which bagged the bronze.

• Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) on 28 April 2015 won 5th Senior Men’s National Hockey championship 2015. In the final match played in Pune, Maharashtra, Railways defeated Uttar Pradesh Hockey (UPH) by 5-3.
• In the Position match, Air India Sports Promotion Board (AISPB) defeated Hockey Gangpur-Odisha by 5-3 to finish at 3rd position in the tournament.

• In another setback for Sunil Narine, the West Indies player has been barred from bowling off-spinners in all matches organised by the BCCI, including the ongoing IPL.
• Kolkata Knight Riders’ ace spinner Narine underwent a biomechanical analysis in Chennai after being reported for a suspected illegal action again during the IPL tie against SunRisers Hyderabad in Visakhapatnam on April 22.
• After reviewing the footage of the game and analysis in Chennai, the BCCI has decided to ban his off-spinners.

• China won the World Team Chess Championship which was held at Tsaghkadzor, Armenia from 18 April 2015 to 29 April 2015.
• China emerged champion, with 15 points. Ukraine finished runner-up with 12 points, while host Armenia was third with 11.
• India finished the championship at ninth position with seven points, losing the final round match 3-1 to China.

• Georgia on 29 April 2015 won the Women’s World Team Chess Championship. The championship was held at Chengdu, China from 18 April 2015 to 29 April 2015 under the aegis of FIDE.
• Georgia won the gold with 17 match points by defeating China. Russia won the silver medal, with 15 match points while China was placed third with 11 match points, claiming the bronze.
• Mariya Muzychuk was declared as the 2015 Women's World Champion.

• Veteran actor Mukesh Khanna, who made his way into the hearts of children with his popular superhero TV series "Shaktimaan", has been appointed as the new chairperson of the Children Film Society of India (CFSI).
• The 56-year-old actor has taken over the charge from actor-director Amole Gupte, who resigned in June 2014.
• Khanna made his debut on the small screen with B R Chopra's "Mahabharat" where he gained much fame after he played Bhisham Pitamah in the epic. He was last seen in daily soap "Pyaar Ka Dard Hai Meetha Meetha Pyaara Pyaara".
• Kumar said the organisation expects Khanna to give his creative leadership in making good content for children's programmes and bring in his experience and expertise.
• With a catalogue of 250 films in 10 different languages, CFSI remains the prime producer of children's films in South Asia.

• The Oscar-winning cinematographer Andrew Lesnie passed away on 27 April 2015 following a fatal heart attack. He was 59.
• Lesnie was famously known for his cinematography in movies Lord of the Rings series and The Hobbit. He also shot the remake of King Kong (2005), The Lovely Bones (2009) and Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) during his career.
• Lesnie won the Oscar (Academy Award) as a cinematographer in 2002 for the first part of Lord of the Rings film- The Fellowship of the Ring. He was also inducted into the Australian Cinematographers Society Hall of Fame in 2002.

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