Current Affairs Update – 18th May, 2015

Hello and welcome to ExamPundit. Here are the important current affairs of 18th May, 2015.

PM
Visit to South Korea –
India, South Korea
signed 7 agreements to upgrade relations to special strategic partnership level
  • India and South Korea on 18 May 2015 signed seven agreements
    to upgrade relations to special strategic partnership level.
  • The agreements were inked during the Prime Minister Narendra
    Modi visit to South Korea. Prime Minister Modi is on a three nation visit to
    China (14 May to 16 May 2015), Mongolia (17 May 2015) and South Korea (18 May
    to 19 May 2015).

List of
Agreements/MoUs signed during the visit of Prime Minister to South Korea
  • Agreement for the
    Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect
    to Taxes on Income:
    India-South Korea Double Taxation Avoidance Convention
    (signed 1985) has been revised with a view to avoiding the burden of double
    taxation on taxpayers in the two countries.
  • India-Korea Agreement
    on Cooperation in Audio-Visual Co-Production:
    The Agreement is being signed
    under the provisions of India-South Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership
    Agreement (CEPA); it would enable co-production of films, animation and
    broadcasting programmes. The Agreement would enable opportunities for
    collaboration between Indian and Korean film industries, and facilitate
    collaboration and exchange.
  • MoU for Cooperation
    between the National Security Council of India and South Korea:
    The MoU
    would formalize consultations between National Security Council structures of
    the two countries in a number of areas.
  • MoU for Cooperation
    in the field of Electric Power Development and New Energy Industries:
    The
    MoU envisages cooperation in areas of electric power development and new energy
    industries such as renewable energy, smart grids and power information and
    technology, transmission and distribution of electric power, energy efficiency
    and storage system.
  • MoU on Cooperation in
    Youth Matters:
    The MoU will strengthen and encourage cooperation on youth
    matters through participation in events and activities through exchanges,
    international conferences, seminars, youth camps, festivals etc.
  • Framework of
    Cooperation in the Field of Road Transport:
    To be signed under the
    provisions of India-South Korea CEPA, the FOC envisages cooperation in areas
    including road policies, design and construction, road operation, road
    management and safety, intelligent transport systems and electronic toll
    collection systems.
  • MoU on Cooperation in
    the Fields of Maritime Transport and Logistics:
    The MoU envisages
    cooperation between the two countries in the fields of maritime transport and
    logistics including through sharing of technologies, information and
    experiences, the training of seafarers, exchange of experts and port operations
    etc.

During the visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with
South Korean President Park Geun Hye in Seoul. Later, the two leaders released
a joint statement.
Banking
HDFC Bank launches
medical prepaid card
  • HDFC Bank, the country’s second largest private lender,
    launched medical benefits prepaid card for corporates to disburse medical
    benefits to their employees.
  • HDFC Bank has partnered with Apollo Hospitals for this
    prepaid product that allows corporates to load the specified allowance onto the
    card each month, which can be used by employees for medical expenditure at
    pan-India VISA/ MasterCard outlets, the bank said in a statement.
  • The card also offers employees access to a wide range of
    additional benefits such as free accidental insurance of Rs. 3 lakh,
    complimentary ambulance services at select hospitals and offers and discounts
    at Apollo Network.

Federal Bank, SBI
Cards join hands for co-branded credit card
  • Federal Bank on Monday forayed into credit card segment
    through the launch of co-branded credit cards in partnership with SBI Cards, a
    leading credit card issuer.
  • In the first year, Federal Bank aims to issue as many as 1.5
    lakh credit cards to its customers, Shyam Srinivasan, Managing Director &
    Chief Executive Officer, told a press conference here.
  • Initially, two variants—Platinum and Gold’ N More—will be
    issued under the Visa platform for a specified fee.
  • While the Platinum card variant will come with a fee of ₹ 2,999, the fee in the case of
    Gold N’ More card is ₹ 499.

India
Union government
allocated 5000 crore for development of AYUSH

  • The Union Government on 17 May 2015 allocated 5000 crore
    rupees for the growth of Department of AYUSH (it comprises Ayurveda, Yoga and
    Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy).
  • It also launched an independent National AYUSH Mission aimed
    at capacity building for the sector.
  • Besides, the Union Minister of State (MoS) for AYUSH Sripad
    Naik in Mumbai informed that to create awareness about Ayurveda his ministry is
    planning to observe Ayurveda Day.
  • The Union Government on 19 November 2014 approved and
    notified National AYUSH Mission (NAM) as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.

Govt launches NITI
Aayog Web site with blogs section
  • The Government today launched the NITI Aayog Web site with a
    blogs section that will have articles, field reports, work in progress and
    opinions by officials.
  • The Government had replaced the Planning Commission with
    NITI Aayog on January 1. Thereafter, it had archived the website of the
    Commission in the first week of January.
  • However, the final Web site is under construction and will
    be updated soon, it added.
  • The portal will provide details of the constitution,
    functions and current activities of the NITI Aayog. The Web page will also have
    reports prepared by the Aayog in its initial stages.
  • The Web site also has a unique feature — NITI Blogs, which
    will incorporate articles, field reports, work in progress, and opinions by
    NITI officials, it added.
  • The Aayog has been mandated to serve as a policy think-tank
    for the central as well as state governments and has the Prime Minister as its
    Chairperson.

Appointments
Former Army Brigadier
David Granger sworn-in as eighth President of Guyana
  • Former Army Brigadier David Granger on 16 May 2015 was sworn
    in as the eighth President of Guyana.  He
    was sworn-in as the President after his A Partnership for National Unity (APNU)
    party-led coalition won the national elections.
  • In the national elections held on 11 May 2015, his coalition
    APNU – Alliance for Change (AFC) defeated the ruling People’s Progressive Party
    (PPP). With this, it ended the 23 year old grip on power of Indo-Guyanese PPP.

Draupadi Murmu sworn
in as first woman Governor of Jharkhand

  • Draupadi Murmu was on Monday sworn in as the first woman
    Governor of Jharkhand.
  • Ms. Murmu succeeds Syed Ahmed, who will take over as Manipur
    Governor.
  • A two-time BJP MLA from Odisha, Ms. Murmu was a Minister in
    the Naveen Patnaik Cabinet when the Biju Janata Dal ruled the State with the
    support of Bharatiya Janata Party.
  • She headed the BJP’s Mayurbhanj district unit in Odisha and
    had represented Rairangpur in the Odisha Assembly.
  • Jharkhand High Court Chief Justice Virendra Singh
    administered the oath of office to Ms. Murmu.

World
India assumed
Presidency of the 68th World Health Assembly after 19 years

  • India on 18 May 2015 assumed Presidency of the 68th World
    Health Assembly (WHA) after 19 years. The session was presided by the Union
    Minister of Health & Family Welfare Jagat Prakash Nadda at Geneva.
  • The 68th World Health Assembly will be held from 18 May 2015
    to 27 May 2015.
  • The 68th World Health Assembly will deliberate on key issues
    of global interest including anti-microbial resistance, air pollution and
    health, global health emergency, preparedness and surveillance, global strategy
    and plan of action on public health, innovation and intellectual property, and
    research and development in neglected tropical diseases.

Sports
Novak Djokovic won
4th Rome Masters Tennis title

  • Novak Djokovic of Serbia on 17 May 2015 won his fourth Rome
    Masters Tennis title. In the summit clash, Djokovic defeated Roger Federer of
    Switzerland 6-4, 6-3.
  • With this win, Djokovic earned prize money of 628100 US
    dollar and 1000 Emirates ATP Rankings points.
  • This was the fifth title of the season for Djokovic, the
    other titles are the Australian Open (defeated Andy Murray), the BNP Paribas
    Open in Indian Wells (defeated Roger Federer), the Miami Open (defeated Andy
    Murray) and the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters (defeated Tomas Berdych).

Obituaries
Mumbai KEM Nurse
Aruna Shanbaug died after 42-years in coma
  • Aruna Shanbaug, the nurse of Mumbai’s King Edward Memorial
    (KEM) Hospital, died on 18 May 2015. She died after battling with coma for past
    42-years following a sexual assault by a hospital ward boy.
  • 66-year old Shanbaug was sexually assaulted on 27 November
    1973 by a ward boy-cum-sweeper of the hospital, Sohanlal Bharta Valmiki, after
    throttling her with a dog chain. Since then, she was hospitalised in KEM
    hospital and was cared by hospital staff.
  • While hearing the Aruna Shanbaug case in March 2011, the
    Supreme Court of India rejected the mercy killing (euthanasia) petition for
    her. The petition was filed by former journalist and author Pinki Virani.

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