Current Affairs Update – 3rd May, 2015

Hello and welcome to ExamPundit. Here are the important current affairs of 3rd May, 2015.

• The Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and the Coal India Limited today signed a Memorandum of Agreement to impart skill training to 1.7 lakh people.
• The training will be provided over a period of two years as per the National Skill Qualification Framework.
• Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Coal India chairman S Bhattacharya, Union Coal Secretary Anil Swarup and Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das were among several dignitaries present during signing of the MoA.
• Speaking on the occasion here, Rudy said besides the ten-year education period (schooling), a ten-week training skill was required for job guarantee.
• He said skill training certificates were mandatory for jobs along with educational certificates.
• As per the MoA, CIL would contribute funds to the National Skill Development Fund (NSDF) to be utilised for the purpose of implementation of skill development project, an official release said here.
• The project would provide training and undertake 'Recognition of Prior Learning' (RPL) to 1.7 lakh people over a period of two years, it said adding NSDF would disburse funds to NSDC, which in turn, would set up a project management unit to manage the project.

• Paytm’s mobile wallet will soon be accepted at quick service restaurants (QSRs), including Domino’s and Cafe Coffee Day, as the Alibaba-backed company forays into the offline retail space in the next two months.
• At present, Paytm offers and recharge services for DTH and mobile phone services as well as mobile wallet services for online transactions on Uber, Bookmyshow, eBay and IRCTC.
• A mobile wallet is a prepaid payment instrument, which allows customers to digitally store money in a secure virtual wallet and use it to pay bills and other services.
• The integration is on and the service should be available by mid-June, he said adding that some of the restaurant partners include names like Domino’s and Cafe Coffee Day.
• Recently, Paytm had forayed into the eCommerce space putting itself in direct competition with giants like Amazon, Flipkart and Snapdeal.

• Government collected over Rs 6,96,200 crore revenue under the direct taxes kitty in the just concluded financial year 2014-15, about 14 per cent short of target.
• Officials said the I-T Department which collects a variety of taxes like Income Tax and Corporate Tax collected approximately Rs 6,96,200 crore in the fiscal ending March 31, 2015.
• The achieved collections are about Rs 9,000 crore lesser, or 14 per cent short of the projected target of Rs 7,05,000 crore.
• The collections are, however, 19 per cent more than the last fiscal. In FY14, the mop-up was Rs 5,83,000 crore.
• The government had revised the direct tax collection target to Rs 7,05,000 crore for the fiscal 2014-15 against the initial projection of Rs 7,36,000 crore in view of the sluggish economic growth.

• Floyd Mayweather cemented his status as the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world with a unanimous decision over Manny Pacquiao as the "Fight of the Century" failed to live up to the hype here.
• Scattered boos rang out around the crowd of 17,000 in the MGM Grand after Mayweather comfortably outboxed his Filipino rival to frustrate hopes of a full-blooded slugfest last night.
• The 38-year-old Mayweather (48-0, 26 KOs) retained his WBC and WBA welterweight titles and seized Pacquiao's WBO belt by winning the fight on all three of the judges' scorecards.
• Mayweather received scores of 116-112 from two judges. The third judge scored it 118-110.
• But when the results were announced the pro-Pacquiao crowd booed lustily and tried to drown out Mayweather's post-fight comments over the public address system.
• Filipino star Pacquiao suffered the sixth loss of his career to go with 57 victories and two draws.
• The fight is widely believed to be the most lucrative in boxing history with revenues of $400 million.

• Chelsea clinched their first Premier League title for five years as Jose Mourinho's side produced a typically stubborn display to grind out a 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace at a jubilant Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
• Playmaker Eden Hazard scored the crucial goal in the 45th minute when he headed home the rebound after Palace keeper Julian Speroni had saved his weak penalty.
• Chelsea were tested at times by a dangerous Palace side but the final whistle was greeted by raucous scenes as Jose Mourinho's side clinched their fifth top-flight title and first since 2010.
• Chelsea have 83 points from 35 games and cannot be surpassed by closest rivals Manchester City, who visit Tottenham Hotspur later on Sunday, and Arsenal both of whom trail by 16 points. Palace remain 12th with 42 points.

• Tunisians have unfurled a national flag the size of 19 football pitches in a bid to set a Guinness world record and promote patriotism in the face of Islamist extremism.
• Hundreds of people turned out for the event at Ong Jmel in the southern desert yesterday, an AFP correspondent reported.
• An honour guard of troops saluted the red and white banner as it was unfurled on the sand to the strains of the national anthem.
• Organisers said that it took 80 kilometres of fabric to make the 104,544 square metre flag which weighed in at 12.6 tonnes.
• Spokeswoman Raya Ben Guiza said the project was the brainchild of a local textile manufacturer who had been shocked by a 2012 incident at Manouba arts faculty outside Tunis in which a hardline student tore down the national emblem and replaced it with a black Islamist flag.

• Swayambhunath Stupa, believed to be the world’s oldest Buddhist shrine, has been partially damaged by Nepal’s devastating April 25 earthquake that has killed over 7,000 people.
• Several monuments situated in the vicinity of the 2,000 year-old Lichchhavi-era Buddhist shrine situated on top of a hill in western Kathmandu have been damaged, though the main stupa has remained intact during the 7.9-magnitude earthquake.
• Three Buddhist monasteries, including Karmapa Bihar, Jyoti Kirti Bihar, Maha Bihar, Shantipur, Pratapur, Anantapur, and Manjushree temple were also damaged by the powerful temblor.
• The earthquake damaged more than two dozen houses situated in the vicinity of the stupa which is providing shelter to 27 local priest families, according to locals.
• The earthquake has threatened the existence of one of the seven UNESCO-listed world heritage sites of Kathmandu and the authorities need to respond quickly for its restoration, says a local priest.

• Philip S Goodman, a writer and director for film, television and stage, has died at his home in New York City. He was 89.
• Goodman wrote episodes of 1950s and '60s TV shows such as "Profiles in Courage," "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," and "Johnny Staccato", reported Variety.
• He directed the 1963 feature "We Shall Return" (United Pictures International), which centered on anti-Castro Cuban fighters in Miami and starred Cesar Romero.
• At the Actors' Studio in New York, where he was a member of the Directors Group, Goodman directed workshops of his plays, "Love Is a Candy Cane" and "This Notoriety Business."
• Goodman wrote and directed television documentaries and industrial films for many years.
• In 1970 he wrote three episodes of National Educational Television's "Our Vanishing Wilderness," one of the first series on television to focus on environmental issues. He also directed TV commercials for Coca-Cola, RCA, Revlon and Rheingold beer, among many others.

Regards



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