Hello and welcome to exampundit. Here are the important Current Affairs Today 13th December 2019. These are important for the upcoming Exams. Candidates those who were preparing for the examination can use these current affairs and also you can download the same as PDF.
Current Affairs Today – 13th December 2019
BANKING CURRENT AFFAIRS
SBI reduced MCLR by 10bps
- State Bank of India (SBI) announced a reduced 1-year marginal cost-based lending rates (MCLR) by 10 bps.
- MCLR will be reduced to 7.90% from 8%.
- The new rates will come to effect from 10 December 2019.
- All the other rates remain the same.
- This is the eighth consecutive MCLR cut in the financial year 2019.
Extra Shots:
MCLR: MCLR is abbreviated as the Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate.
MCLR is the minimum interest rate of a bank below which any bank cannot lend, except in some cases allowed by the RBI. MCLR is the reference rate or an internal benchmark set by and for the bank.
SBI: The State Bank of India is an Indian multinational, public sector banking and financial services statutory body. It is a government corporation statutory body headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. SBI is ranked as 236th in the Fortune Global 500 list of the world’s biggest corporations of 2019.
- Chairperson: Rajnish Kumar
- Headquarters: Mumbai
NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS
National Tribal Dance Festival to be held in Raipur
- A National Tribal Dance Festival will be held in Chhattisgarh’s capital Raipur from December 27 to 29.
- In the event, international folk artists from 23 states and six other countries are expected to take part and portray their respective tribal folk culture.
- Nearly 1,400 artists belonging to 151 art troupes from 23 states and guest artists from six countries including Sri Lanka, Belarus, Uganda and Bangladesh will participate in the three-day programme.
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Chhattisgarh
- Capital: Raipur
- Chief Minister: Bhupesh Baghel
- Governor: Anusuiya Uikey
STATE CURRENT AFFAIRS
Puducherry government unveils start-up policy
- The Puducherry government unveiled a start-up policy.
- The policy, launched by Minister for Industries M.O.H.F Shahjahan, aims to create a corpus fund of Rs10 crores to support the setting up of start-up incubators and to develop co-working spaces.
- The department plans to provide a grant of Rs 3 lakh to projects recommended by incubators established by the government/private sector/academic institutions as a start-up grant.
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Puducherry:
- Chief Minister: V. Narayanasamy
- Governor: Dr Kiran Bedi
INTERNATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS
US, Mexico, Canada sign USMCA trade deal
- The representatives from the United States, Mexico and Canada inked a revamped version of their regional trade pact after months of negotiations.
- The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will now go to the countries’ legislatures for final approval.
- The accord is meant to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a deal in place since 1994.
Extra Shots:
USA (Capital/Currency): Washington, D.C./ United States Dollar
- President: Donald Trump
Canada (Capital/Currency): Ottawa/ Canadian dollar
- Prime Minister: Justin Trudeau
Indonesia foreign minister Retno L P Marsudi is to attend Delhi Dialogue XI
- Indonesia foreign minister Retno L P Marsudi arrived on 13 December on a two-day visit to India.
- The Minister will attend key talks on the Indo-Pacific region.
- She will hold talks with the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on 13 December.
- The ministers have been scheduled to attend the sixth Joint Commission Meeting between India and Indonesia at the Hyderabad.
Extra Shots:
Indonesia (Capital/Currency): Jakarta/ Indonesian rupiah
- President: Joko Widodo
RANKS AND INDICES
Nirmala Sitharaman 34th among world’s 100 most powerful women: Forbes
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has been ranked 34th by Forbes in ‘The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women’.
- HCL Corporation CEO and Executive Director Roshni Nadar Malhotra and Biocon Founder Kiran Mazumdar Shaw are two other Indians who also featured in the above list.
- The Forbes 2019 list of ‘The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women’ has been topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, followed by President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde in the 2nd spot and Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, ranked 3rd.
- Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also featured on the list on the 29th position.
Extra Shots:
Forbes is an American business magazine. Published bi-weekly, it features original articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. Forbes also reports on related subjects such as technology, communications, science, politics, and law. Its headquarters is located in Jersey City, New Jersey.
- Editor-in-chief: Steve Forbes
AGREEMENTS AND MOU SIGNED
Mongla and Chattogram declared as Ports of Call under the “Coastal Shipping Agreement’
- The Ministry of Shipping (MoS) announced that Mongla and Chattogram (Both in Bangladesh) have been declared as Ports of Call under “Coastal Shipping Agreement” between India & Bangladesh.
- The Port of Mongla is declared as Port of Call under PIWT&T (Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade ) and Chattogram port is not part of PIWT&T.
- The Ports of Call in India are Kolkata (West Bengal), Haldia (West Bengal), Pandu, Karimganj (Assam), Silghat (Assam), Dhubri (Assam).
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Bangladesh (Capital/Currency): Dhaka/Taka
- Prime Minister: Sheikh Hasina
AWARDS
Gurgaon-based startup won ‘Space Oscar’ award
- The Gurugram-based startup blue Sky Analytics has created an application called ‘Zuri’ that won the Copernicus Masters Award also called Space Oscars, under the Social Entrepreneurship category.
- The award was given by the Earth observation program managed by the European Commission (EU) in partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA).
Extra Shots:
EU: The European Union is a political and economic union of 28 member states that are located primarily in Europe.
- Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium
Greta Thunberg named Time Person of the Year for 2019
- Sweden’s Greta Thunberg has been named as Time magazine’s Person of the Year for 2019.
- Greta Thunberg is the Swedish schoolgirl who inspired a global movement to fight climate change and became popular with the “#FridaysForFuture“.
- She is the youngest person to be chosen by the magazine in a tradition that started in 1927.
1. Greta Thunberg (Climate activist) -Person of the Year
2. Bob Iger (Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company) – Businessperson of the Year
3. The Public Servants (Federal workers of the US)-Guardians of the Year
4. United States women’s national soccer team (Women’s Soccer) -Athlete of the Year
5. Melissa Jefferson (Singer) – Entertainer of the Year
Rani Rampal, Saurabh Chaudhary Win Top Honours at FICCI India Sports Awards
- Indian women’s hockey team captain Rani Rampal and ace pistol shooter Saurabh Chaudhary won the Sports Person of the Year awards at the FICCI India Sports Awards 2019.
- The FICCI India Sports Awards are an attempt by FICCI to acknowledge and recognise the contribution of sportspersons and various stakeholders who deliver excellent results throughout the year.
- Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) India Sports Awards 2019 was presented to the Railway Sports Promotion Board under the category of Best Company Promoting Sports (Public Sector) on 11 December 2019 at New Delhi.
Extra Shots:
FICCI: The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry is an association of business organisations in India. Established in 1927, on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi by GD Birla and Purushottam Das Thakurdas, it is the largest, oldest and the apex business organization in India.
- Headquarters location: New Delhi
- Founded: 1927
Harsh Vardhan presented the UHC awards
- The Universal health coverage (UHC) Awards were awarded to the best performing Primary Healthcare teams of States and Union Territories (UTs) on the occasion of Universal Health Coverage Day on 12 December.
- The awards were presented by the Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan at an event organized by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
