Current Affairs Update – 27th to 29th February, 2016

Hello and welcome to ExamPundit. Here are the Important Current Affairs from 27th February to 29th February, 2016. These are Important for the last phase of LIC AAO 2016.

Current Affairs at a Glance – 27th
to 29th February, 2016
  1. Union Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley on 29 February 2016 presented Union Budget 2016-17 in the Lok
    Sabha
    . This was the second full year Budget of the NDA government and the
    third budget of Jaitley. The finance minster announced nine pillars of the budget
    and they are Agriculture and farmers’
    welfare, rural sector, social sector including healthcare, education, skills
    and job creation, infrastructure, financial sector reforms, ease of doing
    business, fiscal discipline, tax reforms
    to reduce compliance burden.
  2. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 28 February 2016 approved the proposal of the Department of
    Financial Services for the constitution of the Banks Board Bureau (BBB).

    The BBB will start functioning from 1
    April 2016
    .
  3. London-listed Vedanta Resources Inc bagged a gold mine in Chhattisgarh
    that was put up for auction by the state government. The company quoted the
    highest price to get the Baghmara (Sonakhan) gold mine, which became country’s first mine carrying the
    yellow metal to be auctioned
    .
  4. President Pranab Mukherjee on 27 February 2016 inaugurated Kerala
    Tourism’s Muziris Heritage Project (MHP) at Trissur in Kerala
    . The project
    is India’s largest heritage conservation project and Kerala Government’s first
    green Project.
  5. Punjab government on 28 February 2016 imposed a ban on the sale of army uniforms across the state.
  6. The 88th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of
    Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Mad
    Max Fury Road
    won the most number of awards (6 all total) in the Oscar
    2016. Revenant followed it with 3 awards.
    Best Picture won by Spotlight. Best Director won by Alejandro G. Iñárritu
    for The Revenant. Best Actor won by Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant as Hugh
    Glassdouble-dagger. Bollywood actress
    Priyanka Chopra
    presented the “Best Film Editing Award”. Asif Kapadia wins best documentary Oscar
    for “Amy”.
  7. Actor Ranveer Singh was on 26 February 2016 selected for Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar award. The
    award will be bestowed upon Ranveer by Lata Mangeshkar at a function to be held
    in Pune.
  8. Delhi and Uttar Pradesh Government on 26 February 2016 announced
    that actress Sonam Kapoor-starrer Neerja
    will be tax free in the state. The film, released on 19 February, has already
    been declared tax-free in Gujarat and Maharashtra.
  9. Famous sound designer Resul Pookutty on 27 February 2016 became the
    first Asian to win the award for Best
    Sound for documentary India’s Daughter at the Motion Picture Sound Editors’
    (MPSE) 63rd annual Golden Reel Awards
    .
  10. Former Comptroller & Auditor General of India Vinod Rai has been
    named the first chairman of Banks Board Bureau
    , which will help the
    government appoint heads of public sector banks and advice on banking reforms.
  11. Vice-Admiral H C S Bisht took over as the flag officer
    commanding-in-chief
    , eastern naval
    command
    , from vice-admiral Satish Soni who retired today.
  12. Dinesh Sharma, Additional Finance Secretary and India’s Governor to the
    International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD)
    was unanimously
    elected as the Chairperson of the
    Governing Council of IFAD
    for a period of two years in its 39th Session
    held on 17 February and 18 February 2016 in Rome, Italy.
  13. Slovenian high-jumper Rozle Prezelj on 27 February 2016 was elected
    the Chairman of the International Association
    of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Athletes’
    Commission in Monaco.
  14. National Science Day was observed across India on 28 February 2016.
    The theme for the National Science Day 2016 is Scientific Issues for
    Development of the Nation.
  15. Gianni Infantino was elected as the President of FIFA (Fédération
    Internationale de Football Association) after winning a second-round vote at
    Extraordinary FIFA Congress held in Zurich on 26 February 2016.
  16. Swashbuckling former India opener
    Virender Sehwag has been roped in by Cricbuzz
    as its in-house expert analyst for the ICC World T20, which will kick off on
    March 8th.
  17. Mumbai on 26 February 2016 won the Ranji Trophy with an
    innings and 21 run victory over Saurashtra. It won the trophy for the first
    time in three seasons.
  18. India’s oldest first-class cricketer BK Garudachar, who represented
    Mysore (as Karnataka was called till 1974), United Province and Bombay, died on
    26 February 2016 in Bangalore. He was 99.

Current Affairs Update – 27th to 29th
February, 2016

Finance/Economy/Banking –

Union Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley presented Union Budget 2016-17

  • Union Finance Minister, Arun
    Jaitley on 29 February 2016 presented Union Budget 2016-17 in the Lok Sabha.
    This was the second full year Budget of the NDA government and the third budget
    of Jaitley.
  • The finance minster announced
    nine pillars of the budget and they are Agriculture and farmers’ welfare, rural
    sector, social sector including healthcare, education, skills and job creation,
    infrastructure, financial sector reforms, ease of doing business, fiscal
    discipline, tax reforms to reduce compliance burden.

Highlights of the Union Budget 2015-16
  • Agricultural policy will be
    reorganised to double farmer income in five years
  • For gas connections, new scheme to
    be launched for BPL families

Union Government approved Constitution of Banks of Board Bureau

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi on
    28 February 2016 approved the proposal of the Department of Financial Services
    for the constitution of the Banks Board Bureau (BBB). The BBB will start
    functioning from 1 April 2016.
  • The Bureau constituted with an
    aim to improve the Governance of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) will be chaired by
    former CAG Vinod Rai. In addition to the Chairperson, the autonomous body will
    have ex-officio members and three expert members. All the Members and Chairman
    will be part time.
  • The expert members are Anil K
    Khandelwal (former CMD of Bank of Baroda), Rupa Kudwa (former MD & CEO,
    CRISIL) and HN Sinor (former Joint MD, ICICI Bank). The three ex-officio
    members will be Secretary, Department Financial Services, Secretary, Department
    of Public Enterprises and Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India.

Ajay Shankar Committee recommendations on Prior Permission and
Regulatory Mechanisms

  • The Government-constituted expert
    committee to examine the Possibility of Replacing Multiple Prior Permissions
    with Pre-Existing Regulatory Mechanism submitted its recommendations in the
    fourth week of February 2016.
  • The Expert Committee was
    constituted by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) in April
    2015 to examine the possibility of replacing multiple prior permissions with a
    pre-existing regulatory mechanism with adequate safeguards.
  • The 11 member committee was
    headed by Ajay Shankar, Former Secretary of DIPP.

Vedanta wins country’s first gold mine auction in Chhattisgarh

  • London-listed Vedanta Resources
    Inc bagged a gold mine in Chhattisgarh that was put up for auction by the state
    government.
  • The company quoted the highest
    price to get the Baghmara (Sonakhan) gold mine, which became country’s first
    mine carrying the yellow metal to be auctioned. The company would be granted
    the composite licence that includes both prospecting licence and cum-mining
    lease.
  • The Baghmara mine is spread
    across an area of 608 hectares in a densely forested pocket of the
    Balodabazar-Bhatapara district — about 130 km northeast of Raipur. Based on the
    exploration and available reports, the mine has an estimate reserve of 2,700 kg
    of gold metal. The bidding went on for nearly 13 hours Friday and concluded
    late in the night. Over 160 bids were submitted.

India –
Kerala Tourism’s Muziris Heritage Project inaugurated by President
Pranab Mukherjee

  • President Pranab Mukherjee on 27 February
    2016 inaugurated Kerala Tourism’s Muziris Heritage Project (MHP) at Trissur in
    Kerala.
  • The project is India’s largest
    heritage conservation project and Kerala Government’s first green Project.
  • Muziris is the hub of the spice
    route and the bustling port of the first century BC that drew legions of Arab,
    Roman, Greek, Chinese and Jewish traders from across the seas. Its launch will
    unveil the history and heritage of Muziris described by Roman Naturalist Pliny
    the Elder as India’s first emporium
  • Featuring a host of initiatives
    including museums and a number of heritage sites, MHP, supported by the Union
    Government will conserve and showcase the culture of 3000 years or more for
    posterity.

Punjab imposed ban on sale of Army Uniforms in the state
  • Punjab government on 28 February
    2016 imposed a ban on the sale of army uniforms across the state.
  • Any person who wants to buy the
    uniform would have to submit a self-attested copy of his identity card and
    phone number with the shopkeeper. This record would be duly maintained along
    with date of sale in the record register of the shopkeeper.
  • These orders would remain in
    force till 21 April 2016 and next course of action will be decided afterwards.           

Awards & Honors –
The 88th Academy Awards presented, Leonardo DiCaprio wins Best Actor

  • The 88th Academy Awards ceremony,
    presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).
  • Mad Max Fury Road won the most
    number of awards (6 all total) in the Oscar 2016. Revenant followed it with 3 awards.

Awards and Winners:
  1. Best Picture – Spotlight
  2. Best Director – Alejandro G.
    Iñárritu – The Revenant
  3. Best Actor – Leonardo DiCaprio –
    The Revenant as Hugh Glassdouble-dagger
  4. Best Actress – Brie Larson – Room
    as Joy “Ma” Newsome
  5. Best Supporting Actor – Mark
    Rylance – Bridge of Spies as Rudolf Abel
  6. Best Supporting Actress –  Alicia Vikander – The Danish Girl as Gerda
    Wegener
  7. Best Foreign Language Film – Son
    of Saul (Hungary) in Hungarian – László Nemesdouble-dagger
  8. Best Animated Feature Film –
    Inside Out – Pete Docter and Jonas Riveradouble-dagger

Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra
presented the “Best Film Editing Award”.
Asif Kapadia wins best documentary Oscar for “Amy”

  • Indo-British filmmaker Asif
    Kapadia won the best documentary Oscar for “Amy”, a poignant examination of singer
    Amy Winehouse’s life and her tragic death at the age of 27.
  • Kapadia, who has already won the
    Golden Globe and Bafta awards for the documentary, paid tribute to Winehouse,
    who died in 2011 following a battle with drug and alcohol that was gleefully captured
    by tabloids.
  • The film has been critics
    favourite since making its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last year.
    However, the singer’s father Mitch distanced himself from the documentary
    calling it a disappointment.
  • Kapadia, 44, is known for directing
    “Senna” in 2012 and Irrfan Khan-starrer “The Warrior” in 2003.

Ranveer Singh selected for Dinanath Mangeshkar award

  • Actor Ranveer Singh was on 26
    February 2016 selected for Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar award. The award will be
    bestowed upon Ranveer by Lata Mangeshkar at a function to be held in Pune.
  • The award is annually conferred
    on artists on 24 April to commemorate Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar’s death
    anniversary.

‘Neerja’ declared tax free in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh

  • Delhi and Uttar Pradesh
    Government on 26 February 2016 announced that actress Sonam Kapoor-starrer
    Neerja will be tax free in the state.
  • The movie is based on the life of
    young flight attendant Neerja Bhanot, who died trying to save the lives of
    350-odd passengers on a hijacked Pan Am aircraft in 1986.
  • Libya backed Abu Nidal
    Organization’s tried to highjack Pan Am Flight 73 in Karachi, Pakistan on 5
    September 1986 but Bhanot thwarted the hijack attempt by preventing the plane
    from taking off.
  • The film, released on 19
    February, has already been declared tax-free in Gujarat and Maharashtra.

Resul Pookutty became first Asian to win Golden Reel Award

  • Famous sound designer Resul
    Pookutty on 27 February 2016 became the first Asian to win the award for Best
    Sound for documentary India’s Daughter at the Motion Picture Sound Editors’
    (MPSE) 63rd annual Golden Reel Awards.
  • The competing films/ television
    documentaries in the list included Beware Baltimore, Chef’s Table, Deadliest
    Catch, and The Undrafted, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, Star Wars: The Force
    Awakens and The Revenant among others.

Appointments –
Vinod Rai appointed first Chairman of Banks Board Bureau

  • Former Comptroller & Auditor
    General of India Vinod Rai has been named the first chairman of Banks Board
    Bureau, which will help the government appoint heads of public sector banks and
    advice on banking reforms.
  • The appointment has raised some
    eyebrows, especially after Rai was given Padma Bhushan this year. Under Article
    148 (4) of the constitution, the Comptroller and Auditor General shall not be
    eligible for further office either under the Government of India or under the
    Government of any State after he has ceased to hold his office. It is likely
    that the provision will not apply as this is a part time job post and there is
    no compensation.
  • The Bank Board Bureau (BBB),
    announced by the NDA government to improve governance at public sector banks,
    will become operational on April 1, the finance ministry said in a statement on
    Sunday.

Vice-Admiral HCS Bisht assumes Eastern Naval Command

  • Vice-Admiral H C S Bisht took
    over as the flag officer commanding-in-chief, eastern naval command, from
    vice-admiral Satish Soni who retired today.
  • Bisht inspected the ceremonial
    guard and reviewed platoons of the naval personnel drawn from various ships and
    establishments of the Command (ENC) at the parade held at naval base here.
  • Soni, who served Navy 40 years,
    was accorded farewell by traditional ‘pulling out’ ceremony wherein flag
    officers and commanding officers of ships and naval establishments pulled his
    jeep by ropes.
  • Bisht had served as Executive
    Officer of ASW corvette ‘INS Ajay’, commander work-up in Indian Naval Work Up
    Team (INWT) at Kochi, fleet gunnery officer of the Eastern Fleet at
    Visakhapatnam, commissioning commanding officer of the missile corvette INS
    Kora and also commanded stealth frigate, INS Tabar.

Dinesh Sharma elected as Chairperson of Governing Council of IFAD

  • Dinesh Sharma, Additional Finance
    Secretary and India’s Governor to the International Fund for Agriculture Development
    (IFAD) was unanimously elected as the Chairperson of the Governing Council of
    IFAD for a period of two years in its 39th Session held on 17 February and 18
    February 2016 in Rome, Italy.
  • The Governing Council Session of
    IFAD was marked by special focus on inclusive growth and on the investments
    required to meet the sustainable development goals in the realm of eradicating
    poverty and hunger.

Gianni Infantino elected FIFA President

  • Gianni Infantino was elected as
    the President of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) after
    winning a second-round vote at Extraordinary FIFA Congress held in Zurich on 26
    February 2016.
  • He was elected as the ninth FIFA
    President after the second ballot in which he secured 115 of 207 total votes.
    He will serve FIFA for the remainder of current term of office (until 2019).
  • Infantino, the 45-year-old
    general secretary of European governing body UEFA, succeeded the 79-year-old
    Sepp Blatter, who held the position since 1998.

Rozle Prezelj elected Chairman of IAAF Athletes’ Commission

  • Slovenian high-jumper Rozle
    Prezelj on 27 February 2016 was elected the Chairman of the International
    Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Athletes’ Commission in Monaco.
  • Prezelj took over as Chairman of
    the commission from Frank Fredericks with immediate effect.
  • On the other hand, Britain’s marathon
    world record-holder Paula Radcliffe was nominated Vice Chairwoman of the
    commission.

Days –
National Science Day observed with theme Scientific Issues for
Development of the Nation

  • National Science Day was observed
    across India on 28 February 2016. The theme for the National Science Day 2016
    is Scientific Issues for Development of the Nation.
  • The day is observed annually to
    mark the discovery of the Raman Effect (phenomenon of scattering of photons) by
    Indian physicist Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman on 28 February 1928.
  • Raman was awarded with the Nobel
    Prize in Physics in 1930 for his discovery and this was the first Nobel Prize
    for India in the field of Science.

Sports –
Cricbuzz signs Virender Sehwag as its expert for ICC World T20

  • Swashbuckling former India opener
    Virender Sehwag has been roped in by Cricbuzz as its in-house expert analyst
    for the ICC World T20, which will kick off on March 8th.
  • Sehwag, who has appeared as a
    panelist on several television-based cricket shows, will be making his first
    appearance on a wraparound show for a website.
  • As part of this engagement,
    Sehwag will provide his expert opinion for the World T20 matches and will also
    answer questions from Cricbuzz users around the world.

Wawrinka won Dubai ATP Tennis title
  • Stanislas Wawrinka on 28 February
    2016 won his ninth straight final to clinch the Dubai ATP Tennis title. In the
    final played in Dubai, Wawrinka defeated Marcos Baghdatis in straight sets with
    a 6-4, 7-6(13).
  • This was the third time that
    Wawrinka has played in Dubai. In his previous two visits, the Swiss star never
    won a match.

Mumbai won Ranji Trophy for the 41st time

  • Mumbai on 26 February 2016 won
    the Ranji Trophy with an innings and 21 run victory over Saurashtra. It won the
    trophy for the first time in three seasons.
  • With this, they have 41 titles in
    45 finals with 10 of them being an innings victory. Karnataka stands second in
    the overall Ranji standings with eight titles.
  • It was a repeat of the 2012-13
    final where Mumbai had made short work of Saurashtra with an innings and
    125-run victory.
  • Mumbai made 371 runs in 82.2
    overs in their first innings and in reply Saurashtra managed 235 and 115 runs
    in first and second innings respectively.

Obituaries –
BK Garudachar, India’s oldest first-class cricketer, died

  • India’s oldest first-class
    cricketer BK Garudachar, who represented Mysore (as Karnataka was called till
    1974), United Province and Bombay, died on 26 February 2016 in Bangalore. He
    was 99.
  • A right-hand batsman and a
    leg-break bowler, Garudachar made 1126 runs at an average of 29.63 from 27
    matches in first-class cricket between 1935 and 1946.

Former Maharashtra Minister Nihal Ahmed Maulavi Mohammed Usman died
  • Socialist leader Nihal Ahmed
    Maulavi Mohammed Usman died on 29 February 2016 in Nashik. He was 90.
  • He was popularly known as
    Nihalbhai and was the first mayor of the Malegaon Municipal Corporation.
  • He was the state president of
    Janata Dal (Secular). He was a former Minister of technical and higher
    education of Maharastra.
  • He was elected as legislator in
    the state Assembly for nearly three decades.


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