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Current Affairs Today – 5th December 2019
IMPORTANT DAYS AND THEMES
International Volunteer Day observed on 5 December
- The International Volunteer Day (IVD) is observed across the world on 5 December every year.
- This year theme is ” Volunteer for an inclusive future”.
- This year’s theme highlighting Sustainable Development Goal 10 (SDG 10) and the pursuit of equality including inclusion through volunteerism.
World Soil Day observed on 5 December
- World Soil Day is celebrated annually on the 5th of December at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) headquarters in Rome, Italy.
- This year, by addressing the increasing challenges of soil management, the FAO campaign “Stop soil erosion, Save our future” aims to raise awareness of the importance of sustaining healthy ecosystems and human well-being.
- By encouraging people around the world to engage in proactively improving soil health, the campaign also aims to raise the profile of healthy soil.
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FAO: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate arguments and debate policy.
- Headquarters: Rome, Italy
- Head: Qu Dongyu
- Founded: 16 October 1945, Quebec City, Canada
- Formation: 16 October 1945; 74 years ago
- Parent organization: United Nations Economic and Social Council
BANKING CURRENT AFFAIRS
5th Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy
- RBI has released its 5th Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy.
- Repo Rate: 5.15%
- Reverse Repo Rate: 4.90%
- MSF: 5.40%
- Bank Rate: 5.40%
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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
Fit India School Rating System launched as part of Fit India Campaign
- Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ and Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports Kiren Rijiju has jointly launched the Fit India School Rating System.
- The “Fit India School Rating System” has been launched as part of the Fit India Campaign.
- The Fit India school rating system as per certain parameters is expected to enhance the image of the schools.
- Fit India program is an innovative initiative launched by the Prime Minister to increase the awareness among the masses and to encourage people to adopt healthy lifestyle.
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- Union HRD Minister: Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’
- Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports: Kiren Rijiju
STATE CURRENT AFFAIRS
Odisha launches ‘Madhu’ app to help school students
- Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has launched ‘Madhu’ app. It is an e-learning mobile phone application which will help school students to understand their subjects in a better and most efficient way.
- The app is named after ‘Utkal Gourab’ Madhusudan Das.
- The app is developed by Ganjam district administration for school students.
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Odisha:
- Capital: Bhubaneswar
- Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik
- Governor: Ganeshi Lal
- National Park: Bhitarkanika NP, Simlipal NP
UP approved Noida-Greater Noida Metro construction project
- Uttar Pradesh State government approved the construction of an extension line of the Noida-Greater Noida Metro.
- The State also allocated a sum of Rs.2,682 crore for the project.
- The decision was approved at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The announcement was made by Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC).
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Uttar Pradesh:
- Capital: Lucknow
- Chief Minister: Yogi Adityanath
- Governor: Anandiben Patel
- Nation Park: Dudhwa National Park
Punjab partnered with WEF to promote electric mobility
- Punjab State government partnered with the World Economic Forum (WEF) to design a Public-Private pilot on shared, clean and electric mobility.
- The move aims to combat the growing problem of environmental pollution in the state.
- The state is preparing its own EV policy to support the adoption of e-vehicles.
- WEF chose Punjab, as it is well-positioned for shared EV transition.
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Punjab
- Capital: Chandigarh
- Chief Minister: Captain Amarinder Singh
- Governor: P. Singh Badnore
Karnataka govt. and NDMA conducts workshop on 2020 Heatwave
- National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), in collaboration with the Government of Karnataka, organized a two-day national workshop titled on Preparedness, Mitigation, and Management of Heat Wave in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- The workshop is conducted to emphasize the importance of Climate Change that has led to the rise of average summer temperature by 0.5 deg C in the past five years.
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Karnataka:
- Capital: Bengaluru
- Chief Minister: B. S. Yediyurappa
- Governor: Vajubhai Vala
- National Park: Anshi NP, Bandipur NP, Bannerghatta NP, Kudremukh NP, Rajiv Gandhi (Nagarahole) NP.
SUMMITS AND CONFERENCES
The 2nd edition of the Startup India Global Venture Capital Summit to be held in Goa
- The 2nd edition of the Startup India Global Venture Capital Summit is to be held from 6-7 December 2019 in Goa.
- The summit aims to support the Fund Managers and Limited Partners of Top Global Venture Capital Firms.
- The Summit aims to provide an opportunity for Indian startups to meet the Top Global Investors to get business guidance and to discuss investment opportunities.
- The theme of the Summit is India Opportunity-Investing in tomorrow together.
- The summit aims to mobilize global capital for innovation in India.
- The Summit is organized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry in partnership with the government of Goa.
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Goa
- Capital: Panaji
- Chief Minister: Pramod Sawant
- Governor: Satya Pal Malik
The 3rd edition of National Public Procurement Conclave is held in New Delhi
- The 3rd edition of National Public Procurement Conclave began held in New Delhi.
- The conclave was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Commerce & Industry and Railways, Piyush Goyal along with Minister of State of Commerce and Industry, Som Parkash.
- The two-day conclave is organized by Government e-Marketplace (GeM) in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
- The two-day deliberations an actionable agenda will emerge that will facilitate work contracts in the form of tenders to be made available on the GeM portal in the future.
RANKS AND INDICES
India ranked 73rd in the 2019 E-commerce Index
- India ranked 73rd in the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (UNCTAD) Business-to-Consumer (B2C) E-commerce Index 2019.
- The ranking was conducted for 152 countries.
- The Netherlands topped the index for the second consecutive year.
- The survey was conducted among 152 countries.
- The index measured an economy’s preparedness to support online shopping.
- The index marked the readiness of the countries that are engaged in online commerce.
Top 10 countries of the list:
1) Netherlands
2) Switzerland
3) Singapore
4) Finland
5) The United Kingdom
6) Denmark
7) Norway
8) Ireland
9) Germany
10) Australia
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UNCTAD: UNCTAD deals with investment, trade, and development issues. It formulates policies for the development including trade, transport, finance, and technology.
- Formed on: 30 December 1964
- Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
- Secretary-General: Mukhisa Kituyi
- Parent organization: United Nations General Assembly
AGREEMENTS AND MOU SIGNED
Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank signs MoU for bancassurance
- Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB) and Canara, HSBC, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Life Insurance Company Ltd. signed an MoU for bancassurance (for selling life insurance products through the branches of KVGB).
- As per the pact, KVGB will market wide range insurance products of the Canara HSBC through its 636 branches in 9 districts of Karnataka.
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Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank
- Founded: September 12, 2005.
- Headquarters: Dharwad, Karnataka.
- Chairman: Puttaganti Gopi Krishna.
- Sponsored by: Syndicate Bank.
IEPFA signed MoU with Bank of Baroda for Investor awareness
- Investor Education & Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) signs MOU with Bank of Baroda on 4 December 2019 for information dissemination and reaching out to investors and stakeholders.
- It aims to help various investors who often fall prey to tempting offers for investments and Ponzi schemes.
- The MoU will spread customer awareness and investor education by strengthening ties with IEPFA.
- The MoU is expected to inculcate the habit of educating oneself among the stakeholders and potential investors.
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BOB: Bank of Baroda is an Indian Multinational, public sector Banking and Financial Services Company. It is the third largest public sector bank in India with a business mix of close to US$225 billion.
- Headquarters: Alkapuri, Vadodara
- CEO: P. S. Jayakumar
- Tagline: India’s International Bank
ICAI MoU KAAA signed MoU to offer technical training programs
- The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Kuwait Accountants and Auditors Association (KAAA) on 4 December 2019.
- Under the MoU, the ICAI will offer technical training programs in collaboration with the KAAA to employees of the Kuwait government, Kuwait nationals and members of the KAAA.
- The MOU will strengthen the relationship between the two organizations.
- It will establish areas of cooperation for the benefit of the two organizations and enhance their reputation and global influence.
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Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI):
- Formed on: 1 July 1949
- Headquarters: New Delhi, India
- President: Prafulla Chhajed
- Vice President: Atul Kumar Gupta
APPOINTMENT
Ravneet Singh took charge as the Chief of Personnel of the Indian Navy
- Vice Admiral Ravneet Singh took charge as the Chief of Personnel of the Indian Navy on 2 December 2019. He replaced Vice Admiral R Hair Kumar.
- He will be heading the Personnel Branch of the Indian Navy.
- He will be responsible for all personal issues of Service and Civilian manpower of the Navy including training, induction, discipline, career management, pay, and allowances.
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The Indian Navy is the naval branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy.
- Vice Chief of the Naval Staff (VCNS): Vice Admiral G Ashok Kumar, AVSM, VSM
- Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (DCNS): Vice Admiral M. S. Pawar, AVSM, VSM
- Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS): Admiral Karambir Singh, PVSM, AVSM
- Headquarters location: New Delhi
- Founded: 5 September 1612
DEFENCE CURRENT AFFAIRS
Exercise Hand-in-Hand 2019
- The 8th India-China joint training exercise ‘HAND-IN-HAND 2019’ with the theme counter-terrorism under United Nations mandate is scheduled to be conducted at Umroi, Meghalaya from 07 to 20 December 2019.
- The Chinese contingent from the Tibet Military command comprising of 130 personal and the Indian Contingent of similar strength will participate in the 14-day long training exercise.
- The aim of the exercise is to practice joint planning and conduct of counter-terrorist operations in semi-urban terrain.
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China (Capital/Currency): Beijing/Renminbi
- President: Xi Jinping
AWARDS
New Zealand wins MCC’s Spirit of Cricket award
- The New Zealand cricket team has been awarded the Christopher Martin-Jenkins Spirit of Cricket award.
- The team has been awarded for its exemplary show of sportsmanship during the final match of the ICC World Cup at Lord’s in July 2019, which it lost under controversial circumstances.
- Martin-Jenkins was the former MCC president and BBC Test Match Special commentator.
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New Zealand (Capital/Currency): Wellington/ New Zealand dollar
- Prime Minister: Jacinda Ardern
ET Lifetime of Public Service Award for Former FM (Late) Arun Jaitley
- Arun Jaitley former Finance Minister of India was bestowed with the Economic Times (ET) Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service 2019.
- The award was received by Arun Jaitley’s spouse Sangeeta Jaitley.
‘Joker’ fame Joaquin Phoenix named 2019 ‘Person of the Year’ by PETA
- ‘Joker’ fame Joaquin Rafael Phoenix, American actor from California, United States (US) has been bestowed with the PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) ‘Person of the Year’ Award 2019.
- Joaquin Phoenix has been a vegan since the age of three and has been a supporter of PETA for a long time.
- He has recently appeared in an advertisement of PETA titled “We are all animals”, which was displayed in the Times Square and Sunset billboards to promote the prohibition of travelling wild-animal circuses.
Mumbai Central gets first ‘Eat Right Station’ certification from FSSAI
- The Mumbai Central station of Railways was conferred with the ‘Eat Right Station’ certification with four stars rating by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), as a part of ‘Eat Right India’ movement launched last year.
- The Mumbai Central Railway Station is the country’s first “Eat Right Station.”
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FSSAI
- Founded:August 2011.
- FSSAI Act: Food and Standards Act, 2006.
- Headquarters: New Delhi.
- Chairperson: Rita Teaotia.
- Chief Executive Officer: Shri Pawan Kumar Agarwal.
President Kovind presented the National Florence Nightingale Awards
- The President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind presented the National Florence Nightingale Awards to nursing personnel in New Delhi on 5 December 2019.
- The event will be held from 5-6 December 2019.
