Current Affairs Update - 12 August 2017

Daily Current Affairs Update - 12th August 2017

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Do You Know?

Venkaiah Naidu sworn in as 15th Vice President of India.

• M Venkaiah Naidu was on Friday sworn in as the Vice President of India.
• President Ramnath Kovind administered the oath of office to Naidu, 68, at a brief ceremony in the Durbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhawan attended by political leaders cutting across party lines.
• Wearing his trademark white panche (lungi) and white shirt, Naidu took oath in Hindi in the name of god.
• While he is the 15th Vice President, he is the 13th person to hold the constitutional post. His predecessor Hamid Ansari and the first Vice President S Radhakrishnan had held the post for two consecutive terms.

BCCI to challenge order lifting Sreesanth's ban: Reports

• The BCCI will reportedly appeal against the Kerala High Court order that lifted fast bowler Sreesanth's life ban for spot-fixing. BCCI had imposed a life ban on Sreesanth after the cricketer's involvement in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing case. After the court ruling on Monday, Sreesanth had said he was hoping to represent India at 2019 Cricket World Cup.

Brand Ambassador

Milkha Singh appointed WHO's Goodwill Ambassador

• Former athlete Milkha Singh has been appointed as the WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Physical Activity in the South-East Asia Region (SEAR). "With the support of Milkha Singh, we expect to promote and scale up physical activity in the region to be able to arrest and reverse the NCD (non-communicable diseases) epidemic," a senior WHO SEAR official said.

Banking/Economic Affairs

Coinbase becomes first Bitcoin startup to hit $1bn valuation

• Digital currency exchange Coinbase has become first Bitcoin startup to achieve a valuation of over $1 billion after it raised $100 million in a funding led by Institutional Venture Partners. Coinbase has raised over $217 million since its launch in 2012. Coinbase facilitated almost $15 billion in exchange of digital currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum in 2017's first half.

National Affairs

Kerala school has separate dress for 'good' & 'bad' students

• The Al Farooque English school in Kerala makes its students wear different uniforms based on their performance, according to reports. The 'good' performers are supposed to wear white uniforms and the 'bad' performers wear a red-checked shirt. Such a distinction would compel the 'non-performers' to fare better in school, the school principal has said.

Lipstick Under My Burkha opens Melbourne's Indian film fest

• 'Lipstick Under My Burkha' was the opening film at the eighth edition of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) 2017. The film festival's director Mitu Bhowmick said, "The audience was thrilled to have seen a film that has literally redefined the way women oriented content has been shaping up in India for the past few years."

Schemes / Programme

The Government of India has decided to launch a new sub-scheme named “Aajeevika Grameen Express Yojana (AGEY)” as part of the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).

• The Self Help Groups under DAY-NRLM will operate road transport service in backward areas. This will help to provide safe, affordable and community monitored rural transport services to connect remote villages with key services and amenities (such as access to markets, education and health) for the overall economic development of backward rural areas. 
• This will also provide an additional avenue of livelihood for SHGs. The basic outline of AGEY was discussed in a meeting of State Transport Ministers of 13 States held in June 2016 at Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh and all the Transport Ministers had expressed their appreciation of this initiative.

Telangana govt launches ‘Smart Streets Lab’ in Hyderabad to boost women and road safety

• In an effort to apply and figure out technology-based solutions for women and road safety in Hyderabad, the government of Telangana in association with the World Resources Institute (WRI) India – Ross Centre and the Indian School of Business (ISB) launched the ‘Smart Streets Lab’ programme on Thursday.
• Through the ‘Smart Streets Lab’, the state government aims to utilize technological interventions from outside and integrate them with its various departments, said Jayesh Ranjan, secretary, information technology, government of Telangana, at a press conference. The programme will largely be data-driven, he added.

Summit /Conference / Events / Host

India and US to co-host the Global Entrepreneurship Summit at Hyderabad in November 2017

• India and US will be co-hosting the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) at Hyderabad from 28-30 November, 2017.  
• In a series of tweets from his account the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi said: "India and US will co-host the Global Entrepreneurship Summit at Hyderabad from 28-30 November 2017. 
• The Summit is a unique opportunity for bringing together entrepreneurs and start ups with global leaders. Look forward to Ms. Ivanka Trump’s presence at Global Entrepreneurship Summit 2017-Hyderabad as the leader of the US delegation."

Sports: Awards & Honours

Ramil Guliyev pips Wayde van Niekerk to win 200m at world championships

• So much for the coronation – or the redemption. This night was supposed to be about Wayde Van Niekerk becoming the first athlete since Michael Johnson in 1995 to double up over 200m and 400m. Or Isaac Makwala defying sickness, the IAAF, and two punishing races in his legs on Wednesday to claim gold. Instead Ramil Guliyev, an Azerbaijani wearing a Turkish vest, ripped up the script to take the 200m world championship title.

Obituary 

Vijay Nambisan, poet and writer, well known for his poem ‘Madras Central’ that won the All Indian Poetry Competition in 1988, died on July 10 at the age of 54. 

• Nambisan was the co-author of the poetry book ‘Gemini’ with Jeet Thayil and Dom Moraes. Nambisan has also translated the devotional poetry of Poonthanam and Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri.
• Besides his large body published poetry, he is also known for his work ‘Language as an Ethic’ where he laments the "debasement" of language and appeals to readers and writers for language to be used correctly. 

Ruth Pfau: Pakistan's 'Mother Teresa' dies aged 87

• Ruth Pfau, a German doctor and nun who dedicated her life to eradicating leprosy in Pakistan and has been described as the country's Mother Teresa, has died in Karachi aged 87.
• She died in hospital after being admitted on Friday, her order said. Dr Pfau witnessed leprosy in Pakistan for the first time in 1960 and returned to set up clinics across the country.
• Her efforts meant that in 1996 the disease was declared to have been brought under control.
• Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said Dr Pfau "may have been born in Germany, but her heart was always in Pakistan".