Current Affairs Updates - 28 December 2017
Today we have brought to you the current affairs and gk updates which are very important for the upcoming government exams like bank and ssc. Candidates should go through each of the news given in bullet points and also through the headlines. One liners are uploaded at the end of the day which have important note down points. So make sure you revise them as well.
New Appointments: National
The five-time Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Jairam Thakur sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.
- Governor Acharya Dev Vrat administered the oath of office to the Chief Minister and 11 other Ministers in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and a large number of senior party leaders and Union Cabinet Ministers including L.K. Advani, Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari.
Banking/Economic Affairs
Finance Ministry to issue recapitalisation bonds to PSBs in January
Rankings
India is set to overtake the United Kingdom and France to become the world's fifth largest economy next year as per 2018 World Economic LEague Table Report released by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, a London-based consultancy, said in its annual rankings.
- The Indian economy hit a three-year low in the first quarter of the current financial year, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's snap decision in November 2016 to scrap high-value banknotes and following a tax overhaul.
- Growth slumped to 5.7 percent for the three months ending June but recovered slightly to 6.3 percent for the quarter ending September.
National Affairs
Insurance operations at India’s only operational International Financial Services Centre (IFSC), at Gujarat International Finance Tec City (GIFT), will get a major boost with the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI) issuing enabling regulations for undertaking offshore insurance business from this IFSC.
- Under the regulations, for the first time in India, foreign insurers have been permitted to open IFSC Insurance Offices (IIO) at GIFT IFSC, which has been notified as foreign territory by the Government of India.
- GIFT IFSC, being a foreign territory, mainly conducts offshore business. Thus, the restriction on shareholding does not apply in IFSC and thereby a foreign direct insurer has option to set up operations directly without any local partner.
The World Bank will provide a 318 million dollar loan for modernisation of irrigation projects in Tamil Nadu and help small and marginal farmers improve water management and adopt climate resilient techniques.
- A tripartite agreement has been signed today between the central government, the World Bank and the Tamil Nadu government, an official statement said.
- This project will help Tamil Nadu scale up its efforts to unlock the full potential of its agriculture sector.
Agri service solutions provider Sohan Lal Commodity Management (SLCM) having operations across India and Myanmar has tied up with HDFC Bank and IndusInd Bank to provide collateral management services.
- This tie-up will not only help improve the farmers' access to post-harvest credits at affordable interest rates, it will also provide easy access to scientific storage facilities leading to a fair price discovery of their produce in the market.
The Andhra Pradesh State Fibernet Limited (APSFL), which is implementing the AP Fibre Grid project, will provide the three services at tariffs starting as low as Rs 149 for 5 GB data at 15 MBPS speed and 250 TV channels and a free telephone connection.
- Inaugurating the ambitious project at an event in Amaravati, President Ram Nath Kovind dedicated it to the nation. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu was also present at the vent.
Odisha to split tourism & culture department to promote Odia language
- The Odisha government today decided to split the tourism and culture department and take a slew of measures including setting up of an Odia Language Commission to spread and popularise the state language.
Narendra Modi government draws up tailor-made action plan for the backward districts
- Eyeing a rural outreach ahead of the general elections in 2019, the Narendra Modi government has drawn up tailor-made action plans for 115 identified “most-backward” districts in the country to improve their socio-economic profiles by making available basic services like healthcare, sanitation and education as well as basic physical infrastructure like roads and drinking water supply in a time-bound manner.
International Affairs
Saudi Arabia is hosting a world chess tournament for the first time
- Despite the mufti’s past criticism, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has pushed for greater social openings, including lifting a ban on women driving that goes into effect next year, allowing concerts and movies, and easing rules on gender segregation.
Guatemala defends decision to move embassy to Jerusalem
- Guatemala President Jimmy Morales announced the switch Christmas Eve, becoming the first country to follow President Trump’s controversial decision to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
A Chinese consortium has started the construction of Bangladesh's first eco-friendly thermal power plant with ultra modern clean coal technology near a sea port in Payra town in Patuakhali district of Bangladesh.
- It has two units - both of which are expected to be commissioned in April and October 2019 respectively, Xinhua reported.
- In March 2016, Bangladesh signed an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract with the consortium of two Chinese firms. The project will cost an estimated 1.56 billion US dollars.
Science & Technologies
The Space Application Centre (SAC) Ahmedabad is all set to develop a new advanced hi-tech "Remote Sensor" camera with a capacity to capture images/pictures from a height of over 300 kms.
- It was disclosed by the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh after a visit to the "Remote Sensor Unit" of the Ahmedabad Space Application Centre today.
Defence & Railway
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation + (DGCA) has allowed Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL)-manufactured Dornier 228 to be used for civilian flights.
- The 19-seater aircraft has, till now, been used by defence forces and is the first plane to be made in the country for commercial flights.
Armed Forces: The Five Day long process of SSB to be soon changed to three day process.
- The existing Services Selection Board (SSB), in vogue since 1948, is a five-day long process for officer selection which includes an interview, group testing and psychological testing of the aspirants.
IAF launched a unique and unprecedented series of mountaineering expedition 'Mission Seven Summits' with an aim to fly the tricolour and the IAF flag on the highest peaks in every continent.
- A team comprising five IAF mountaineers, led by Gp Capt RC Tripathi, in the early hours of 26 Dec 17, has successfully scaled Mt Vinson in Antarctica, thus completing the assigned Mission. With the successful ascent of Mt Vinson, the IAF added another feather to its cap, by becoming the first organisation in India to achieve this unique feat.
Schemes / Programme
The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) launched a new scheme under which a whole meal can be bought for Rs. 10 from the civic body's kiosks during the day
- According to the officials, the "Atal Jan Aahar Yojana" has been started to make a nutritious full meal accessible to the needy, in a phased manner. The scheme was started at kiosks in five different locations of south Delhi.
Summit /Conference / Events / Host
President Ramnath Kovind inaugurated the 100th Annual Conference of the Indian Economic Association at Acharya Nagarjuna University in Guntur of Andhra Pradesh.
- Indian Economic Association is a registered body of Indian economic professionals, established way back in 1917, with the objective of providing a forum for debate and discussion of policy-oriented issues. The Association currently has 5000 plus members, both individual and institutional.
Sports: Awards & Honours
Indian boxers Sham Kumar , Satish kumar, and Naman Tanwar won three gold, one silver and one bronze medal in the Galym Zharylgapov Boxing Tournament held in Karaganda, Kazakhstan.
- Indian boxers have claimed three gold, a silver, and a bronze medal at the Galym Zharylgapov Boxing Tournament in Karaganda, Kazakhstan.
Anisa Sayyed held on to her status as one of the premier pistol shooters in the country winning the women’s 25m air pistol gold in the 61st National shooting championships at the National Games shooting
- The Haryana shooter, who was third with a score of 576 in qualification, behind Heena Sidhu (581) and Rani Sarnobat (578), was in great form shooting a consistent 33 in the final to erase the National record of 28 set by Annu Raj Singh in Brisbane earlier this year.
Obituary
Music legend Robbie Malinga dies
- As South Africa celebrates Christmas, the music industry has suffered a huge loss as news surfaced that Robbie Malinga passed away.
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