Current Affairs Today 17th December 2019-Download in PDF

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Current Affairs Today – 17th December 2019

BANKING CURRENT AFFAIRS

RBI recorded 11.4 lakh Online transaction in first 8 hours after NEFT was made 24/7 operational

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) operationalized National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) System 24X7 from 12:00 am on 16 December 2019.
• After making the NEFT operational on a 24X7 basis, around 11.40 lakh transactions were settled in the first eight hours after widely-used NEFT.
• The aim is to ensure the availability of anytime electronic funds transfer.

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RBI: The Reserve Bank of India is India’s central banking institution, which controls the issuance and supply of the Indian rupee.

• Founded: 1 April 1935, Kolkata
• Headquarters: Mumbai
• Governor: Shaktikanta Das
• Deputy Governors: B P Kanungo, M K Jain, N S Vishwanathan

NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS

GeM launched GeM Samvaad, a National Outreach Programme

• Government e-Marketplace (GeM) launched GEM Samvaad, the National Outreach Programme in New Delhi on 17 December 2019.
• The programme was launched by Anup Wadhawan, Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Chairman, GeM.
• The outreach programme will be held from 19 Dec 2019 to 17 Feb 2020.
• It will cover all the States and UTs of the country.

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GeM: GeM has more than 20,000 services, 15 lakh products and more than 3 lakh registered sellers. It has many service providers and more than 40,000 Government buyer organizations.

STATE CURRENT AFFAIRS

Madhya Pradesh CM to inaugurate International Film Festival in Khajuraho

• The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Kamal Nath will inaugurate the International Film Festival in Shilpkala village of Khajuraho.
• Films from the country and abroad including Bundelkhandi will be screened at the Tapra Talkies made for the festival.
• The International Khajuraho Film Festival is being organized by the Prayas Sanstha in collaboration with the State Government.

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Madhya Pradesh:

• Capital: Bhopal
• Chief Minister: Kamal Nath
• Governor: Lalji Tandon
• National Park: Bandhavgarh NP, Fossil NP, Kanha NP, Madhav NP, Panna NP, Pench NP, Sanjay NP, Satpura NP

Haryana Police became the first to introduce ‘Trakea’ software in FSL

• Haryana police have introduced a unique barcoding software “Trakea” to enable foolproof security of the samples collected in Forensic reports.
• Haryana became the first state in the country to introduce this unique barcoding system. Manohar Lal Khattar, Chief Minister (CM) of Haryana inaugurated the TRAKEA barcoding system of Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) at Madhuban, Haryana.

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Haryana:

• Capital: Chandigarh
• Chief Minister: Manohar Lal Khattar
• Governor: Satyadev Narayan Arya
• National Park: Sultanpur National Park, Kalesar National Park

Orange festival began in Manipur

The State-level Orange Festival began in Manipur on 16 December.

• The festival will be held on 16-18 December 2019.
• The 3-day festival was inaugurated by Chief Minister N. Biren Singh at district headquarters Tamenglong.
• The Orange Festival is conducted under the sponsorship of the North Eastern Council.
• The festival aims to promote the fruit and encourage its growers.
• The festival hosted more than 300 orange stalls.

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Manipur:

• Capital: Imphal
• Chief Minister: N. Biren Singh
• Governor: Najma Heptulla

Kerala launched schemes to support differently-abled people

• The Kerala state government launched two social welfare schemes to honour differently-abled people and NSS, NCC and Student Police Cadet (SPC) units working for their care and welfare. The schemes are Vijayamritham and Sahachari.
• The Vijayamritham scheme was introduced to provide financial assistance for differently-abled people who fought the odds and scored high marks in degree, PG and professional courses.

Eligibility:

♦ Such students should have passed degree, PG or professional courses in the first chance. For degree courses, the candidate should have scored at least 60%, for arts subjects, and 80%, for science subjects. For PG and professional courses, the students should have scored at least 60% marks.

♦ A total of 15 persons will be selected from each district.

♦ Students who have passed degree courses with the above criteria will be given cash awards of Rs.8,000. For those who have passed PG or professional courses will be given Rs.10,000.

Nagaland Governor R N Ravi to take additional charge of the State Meghalaya

Nagaland Governor R N Ravi has been given additional charge of the State Meghalaya.

The appointment was announced by the President of India. In addition to his own duties, the Governor of Nagaland will discharge the functions of the Governor of Meghalaya during the absence of Tathagata Roy, the Governor of Meghalaya.

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Kerala:

• Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
• Chief Minister: Pinarayi Vijayan
• Governor: Arif Mohammed Khan
• Festivals: Onam, Vishu, Thrissur Pooram, Nehru Trophy Boat Race
• National Parks: Anamudi Shola National Park, Eravikulam National Park, Mathikettan Shola National Park, Pambadum Shola National Park, Periyar National Park,Silent Valley National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuaries: Aralam WLS, Chimmony WLS, Idukki WLS, Periyar WLS, Wayanad WLS, Peppara WLS, Neyyar WLS, Kurinjimala WLS, Malabar WLS etc

SUMMITS AND CONFERENCES

5th EAC meeting of 15th Finance Commission held in New Delhi

• The 5th meeting of the Economic Advisory Council (EAC) of the 15th Finance Commission was held in New Delhi.
• In the meeting, possible macro assumptions related to real growth, inflation, ongoing structural reforms, tax revenue including GST, adherence to Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act and fiscal transparency were discussed.
• Further, the Advisory Council was informed about the submission of the 2020-21 report and Commission’s next course of actions pertaining to the preparation of the report for 2021-26 period.

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EAC: Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister is a non-constitutional, non-permanent and independent body constituted to give economic advice to the Government of India, specifically the Prime Minister.

CII organized the 2019 Steeling India in New Delhi

• Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) organized a meeting on Steeling India-2019: Driving metal intensity in key sectors on 16 December in New Delhi.
• The Union Minister for Steel and Petroleum & Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan participated in the meeting.
• The aim of the meeting is to increase metal intensity in key sectors.
• It aimed to enhance the steel intensity in key user sectors, especially in rural India.

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CII: The Confederation of Indian Industry is an industry association in India. CII is a non-government, not-for-profit, industry-led and industry-managed organization.

• Founded: 1895
• President: Vikram Shreekant Kirloskar
• Headquarters : New Delhi

RANKS AND INDICES

India slips to 112th place on WEF’s Global Gender Gap Report

• India has slipped four places to rank 112th globally as per the Global Gender Gap Report 2020. The report was released by World Economic Forum (WEF) headquartered at Geneva.
• Iceland has topped the report and remains the world’s most gender-neutral country while Yemen was ranked the worst (153rd) in the report.
• As per report, the most improved countries were Albania, Ethiopia, Mali, Mexico and Spain. Among regions, Western Europe has made the most progress on gender parity (standing at 76.7%).

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WEF: The World Economic Forum, based in Cologny-Geneva, Switzerland, is an NGO, founded in 1971. The WEF’s mission is cited as “committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic, and other leaders of society to shape global, regional, and industry agendas”.

• Headquarters: Cologny, Switzerland
• Founder: Klaus Schwab
• Founded: January 1971
• Motto: Committed to improving the state of the world
• Leader: Klaus Schwab

AGREEMENTS AND MOU SIGNED

ICAR & NABARD signed MoU to promote agriculture & farming systems research

• The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the National Board of Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote sustainable agriculture and climate-resilient farming systems.
• The research will be of active participation in climate-resilient practices, models and integrated and hi-tech farming practices in a participatory model.
• The aim of this MoU was to promote sustainable agriculture and climate-resilient farming systems.

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NABARD: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development is an Apex Development Financial Institution in India. The Bank has been entrusted with “matters concerning Policy Planning and Operations in the field of credit for Agriculture and other Economic activities in Rural areas in India”.

• Founded: 12 July 1982
• Headquarters: Mumbai
• Agency executive: Harsh Kumar Bhanwala
• Purpose: Development assistance; Poverty Reduction
• Formation: July 12, 1982

APPOINTMENT

Lt Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane to be next Army Chief

• Lt Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane will be the next Chief of Army Staff of India.
• He is currently serving as Vice Chief of the Army. Lt Gen Naravane will succeed Gen Bipin Rawat, who will retire on the 31st December.
• He has served in numerous command and staff appointments in peace, field and highly active counter-insurgency environments in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast.
• In a distinguished military career spanning almost four decades, Lt Gen Naravane has the distinction of tenanting key appointments in active Counter Insurgency environments, both in the North East and in Jammu and Kashmir and was a part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka during Operation PAWAN.

IAS Ravi Mittal takes charge as new I&B Secy

• IAS officer Ravi Mittal took charge as the new Secretary, Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
• Mr Mittal took charge from Amit Khare who has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Higher Education.
• Before this, Mr Mittal, a 1986 batch IAS officer of Bihar Cadre, was working as the Special Secretary in the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance.

Air Marshal D Choudhury is the new Commandant of National Defence College

• Air Marshal D Choudhury took charge as Commandant of National Defence College on 16 December 2019.
• He previously served as the Senior Air Staff Officer at the Headquarters of Western Air Command, New Delhi.
• He replaced Vice Admiral Srikant.

Sridhar Patra was appointed as the CMD of NALCO

• Sridhar Patra was appointed as the chairman-cum-managing director of the National Aluminium Company (NALCO).
• Patra is currently serving as the Director (Finance) in the National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO).
• He will be serving as the CMD of NALCO till the date of his superannuation, i.e. 31 October 2024.

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NALCO: National Aluminium Company Limited, abbreviated as NALCO, is a Navratna group ‘A’ CPSE having integrated and diversified operations in mining, metal and power under Ministry of Mines, Government of India. Presently, Government of India holds 52% equity of NALCO.

• Headquarters: India
• Founded: 7 January 1981

Anita Praveen is appointed as the additional secretary in DoT

• Anita Praveen is appointed as the additional secretary in the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications.
• The appointment was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC).
• Praveen will report to the telecom secretary Anshu Prakash.
• Praveen is currently serving as an additional secretary and finance advisor, Department of Posts (DOP).

DEFENCE CURRENT AFFAIRS

Exercise Surya Kiran-XIV held in Nepal

• A joint military training exercise “SURYA KIRAN-XIV” was held in Salijhandi, Rupendehi district of Nepal.
• The exercise was conducted between the armies of India and Nepal.
• Joint training exercise was based on counter insurgency operations in jungle and mountainous terrain and also practised response mechanism in the eventualities of natural and manmade disasters.

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Nepal (Capital/Currency): Kathmandu/ Nepalese rupee

• President: Bidhya Devi Bhandari

ITBP launches matrimonial site to help staff find ‘suitable matches’

• In a unique approach, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has started a dedicated matrimonial site for its staff.
• The website started will be managed by ITBP and only the staff will be able to access it.
• This is the first-ever dedicated and well-managed matrimony portal among the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).
• There are more than 25,000 unmarried men in the Force while more than 1000 women personnel are also unmarried.
• Keeping in view their duties and engagements after joining the service, finding suitable matches becomes an uphill task for the serving personnel.

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ITBP: The Indo-Tibetan Border Police is one of the five Central Armed Police Forces of India, raised on 24 October 1962, under the CRPF Act, in the wake of the Sino-Indian War of 1962. The ITBP was intended for deployment along India’s border with Tibet.

• Motto: Shaurya – Dridhata – Karm Nishtha
• General nature: Federal law enforcement
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Founder: Government of India
• Founded: 24 October 1962

IAF Phase of Exercise Indra 2019 began in Pune

• Exercise INDRA-2019 is the second edition of Joint Tri-Services Exercise between the Indian Armed Forces and the Russian Armed Forces.
• It is being conducted from 10-20 December 2019 simultaneously at Pune and Gwalior for Air Force elements.
• The aim of exercise INDRA 2019 is to enhance interoperability between India and Russia.
• Indian Air Force (IAF) is undertaking service-specific and joint missions during the exercise.
• The Russian Federation Air Force (RFAF) element is also participating in the exercise along with IAF counterparts.

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Russia (Capital/Currency): Moscow/Ruble

• Prime Minister: Dmitry Medvedev
• President: Vladimir Putin

DRDO successfully test-fired a BrahMos supersonic cruise missile

• Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on test-fired a BrahMos supersonic cruise missile off the coast of Odisha successfully on 17 December 2019.
• The target of the missile was a ship.
• The land-attack version of the missile was test-fired from a mobile autonomous launcher at Launch Complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur near Balasore, Odisha.
• The BrahMos missile is a medium-range ramjet supersonic cruise missile capable of being launched from submarines, ships, fighter jets or land.
• BrahMos was described as the world’s fastest supersonic cruise missile with a high rate of precision and accuracy.
• It can be fired from land, sea, and air.

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DRDO: The Defence Research and Development Organisation is an agency of the Government of India, charged with the military’s research and development, headquartered in New Delhi, India.

• Headquarters location: New Delhi
• Founded: 1958
• Motto: बलस्य मूलं विज्ञानम्; “Strength’s Origin is in Science” (Sanskrit)
• Minister responsible: Rajnath Singh, Minister of Defence
• Chairman: Dr G. Satheesh Reddy

AWARDS

Union Rural Development Ministry selected UT of J&K for National award

• Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has been selected for the national award by Union Rural Development Ministry for best performance in the implementation of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY).
• Union Rural Development Ministry has sanctioned 147 Road and Bridge projects under PMGSY-II covering a length of 783.88 kilometres at an estimated cost of 878.53 crore rupees for Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
• The entire road length has been sanctioned for up-gradation of existing road infrastructure with 10-year maintenance.

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United Nations: It is an International Organization. Its Objective of UN is to not only maintain International Peace and Security but also to develop Friendly relations among nations.

• Founded – 24th October, 1945
• Headquarter- New York,United States
• Secretary General- Antonio Guterres (9th SG OF UN)
• He is from PORTUGAL
• Portugal (Capital/Currency) – Lisbon/ Euro
• United States (Capital/Currency) – Washington, D.C/ US Dollar

UN Medal awarded to Indian peacekeepers to support the people of South Sudan

• Indian peacekeepers have been recognized for their strong contribution to building peace in conflict-affected South Sudan as well as for going above and beyond their duties to support local communities.
• Almost 850 Indian troops received the United Nations Medal for their dedication and sacrifice serving so far away from home to protect civilians and build durable peace in South Sudan.
• Currently, 2,342 Indian troops and 25 police personnel are deployed with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

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UNMISS: The United Nations Mission in South Sudan is the newest United Nations peacekeeping mission for the recently independent South Sudan, which became independent on 9 July 2011. UNMISS was established on 8 July 2011 by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1996.

• Head: David Shearer
• Founded: 9 July 2011
• Parent organization: United Nations Security Council
• Headquarters location: Juba, South Sudan

Amitabha Bagchi won the 2019 South Asian Literature award

• Amitabha Bagchi’s novel Half The Night Is Gone won the South Asian Literature 2019 award. Pradeep Gyawali, minister for foreign affairs of Nepal presented the award to Bagchi at the IME Nepal Literature Festival in Pokhara, Nepal.
• Bagchi won the prize money of $25,000.
• The novel topped among the chosen six works of fiction.

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Nepal (Capital/Currency): Kathmandu/ Nepalese rupee

• President: Bidhya Devi Bhandari

OBITUARIES

Veteran film actor Danny Aiello passes away

• Veteran film actor Danny Aiello, known for his roles in the movies Do The Right Thing and The Godfather Part II passed away.
• A veteran of stage and film, Aiello was best known for playing the pizza parlour owner Sal in Spike Lee’s 1989 Do the Right Thing.
• Former Union minister Ishwar Dayal Swami passed away
• The former Union minister and veteran BJP leader Ishwar Dayal Swami passed away on 15 December.
• He died due to a brief ailment. He was 90-years-old. He is survived by a son and 3 daughters.

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