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Current Affairs Updates - 19 and 20 November 2017

Current Affairs Updates - 19 and 20 November 2017

Current Affairs Updates - 19 and 20 November 2017

Do You Know?
The Karnataka Assembly on Thursday passed what is popularly known as the anti-superstition bill, with a few modifications like ban of advertisements about miracle cures for diseases, performing black magic, tantric acts, exorcism rituals and the practice of parading people naked or ostracising them in the name of a ritual, among other practices.
  • Opposition leaders in the state, except Bharatiya Janata Party MLA CT Ravi and Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Revanna, welcomed the Karnataka Prevention and Eradication of Inhuman Evil Practices and Black Magic Bill, 2017. They advised the government to concentrate on making lower-caste communities more aware about superstitions.
Important Days
World Toilet Day (WTD) is an official United Nations international observance day, celebrated on 19 November, to raise awareness of the global sanitation crisis
  • This is done through public communications, campaigns, reports and events. Worldwide, 4.5 billion people live without "safely managed sanitation."[1] The global sanitation crisis affects people in developing countries the most. World Toilet Day is a call to action. The human right to water and sanitation was officially declared a human right by the UN in 2010.
New Appointments: National
Anand Rajeshwar Baiwar takes charge as Sebi executive director
  • Markets regulator Sebi today said Anand Rajeshwar Baiwar has taken charge as an executive director. An Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer of the 1990 batch, Baiwar assumed office on November 16. 
New Appointments: International
Sarah Clarke, who is currently championships director at the All England Lawn Tennis Club has been appointed as the first female Black Rod in the 650-year history of the House of Lords.
  • Black Rod is named after the 3.5ft ebony staff, or mace, the holder carries, topped with a golden lion as a symbol of the office’s authority. The staff is used to knock three times on the door of the House of Commons ahead of the Queen’s Speech
Chakravarthi AVPS, the city’s packaging professional appointed Ambassador of World Packaging Organization, WPO. This appointment took place in Rio de Geneiro, Brazil at the 99th board meeting of WPO. 
  • The recognition is bestowed on him for his contribution to the Indian and Global Packaging Industry for over 30years. Incidentally he is the first Asian to get this honour. It is the great pride for the Indian Packaging Industry, especially to both the Telugu States. Chakravarthi is a pride of both Telugu states. He has been in paper, printing and packaging field for over three decades.
Banking/Economic Affairs
RBL Bank opens all women branch in Chennai
  • It is a matter of immense pride for us to launch our first all women branch in Chennai. This is a full service branch offering a range of products and services”, RBL Bank, Branch and Business Banking, Head-Geography, Surinder Chawla said.
  • The women branch is a testament to the bank’s efforts in encouraging gender equality, he said.



National Affairs
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for the creation of the posts of Chairman and Technical Members of the National Anti-profiteering Authority (NAA) under GST
  • The establishment of the NAA, to be headed by a senior officer of the level of Secretary to the Government of India with four Technical Members from the Centre and/or the States, is one more measure aimed at reassuring consumers that Government is fully committed to take all possible steps to ensure the benefits of implementation of GST in terms of lower prices of the goods and services reach them.
Assam Transport, Industries and Commerce Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary formally launched an air ambulance service at NEDF (North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd) House, Dispur which will operate from Guwahati airport.
  • The air ambulance is equipped with all emergency medical equipment and medical team to take care of patients onboard. Unveiling the service, Patowary hoped that the air ambulance service would usher in a new era of healthcare for the patients of Assam and Northeast.
  • Delhi-based Flaps Aviation Private Ltd will operate its air ambulance service from Guwahati with “Book Air Ambulance” as its brand. The aim is to expand this facility to the capitals of all states.
Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEEs) during the month of October 2017 was Rs.14,354 crore as compared to Rs.12,100 crore in October 2016 and Rs.10,549 crore in October 2015. The Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTA) have registered whopping growth of 18.1% in October 2017 in the country.
  • Based on the credit data of Travel head as available from Balance of Payments of RBI for the previous year, Ministry of Tourism estimates and releases the data of Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEEs) through tourism in India, both in rupee and dollar terms, for the current month applying suitable inflation factor and current month Foreign Tourist Arrivals data.
Deputy chief minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia on Friday said the Delhi government would form "Mahila Suraksha Dals" (women protection groups) to curb crimes against women in the national capital.
  • The deputy chief minister added these teams would work in coordination with the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW), adding that the excise department had been asked to conduct raids to check the illegal sale of liquor in the national capital.
The government has given a green signal for setting up the country's first mega Coastal Economic Zone (CEZ) at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Maharashtra which will stretch across Nashik, Thane, Mumbai, Pune and Raigarh.
  • It is part of the Union government's plan to develop 14 such industrial clusters in a bid to increase manufacturing activities and create more jobs
  • Around 45 companies from the telecom, auto and IT sectors are soon expected to bid for 200 hectares of land to start manufacturing units in the zone
Science & Technologies
Karnataka partners with NASSCOM to launch a Rs 40 crore Centre of Excellence for data science and artificial intelligence
  • The centre is based on a public-private partnership model and will accelerate the ecosystem in Karnataka by providing impetus for development of data science and artificial intelligence across the country, Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge said.
Books & Authors
Vice President receives first copy of Book ‘Journey of Women Law Reforms and The Law Commission of India – Some Insights’ from the Author former Joint Secretary, Law Commission of Indika, Dr. Pavan Sharma.
  • The Vice President said that the author has made an excellent analysis and more such studies can help focus nation’s attention to important areas like matrimonial laws, property laws, laws relating to inheritance, succession, guardianship as well as NRI marriages and issues of sexual violence. He hoped that this book will inspire many more experts to focus on women’s issues in the next few years.
Agreements (MoU)
Japanese automakers Suzuki Motor and Toyota Motor finalised an agreement to manufacture and sell electric vehicles in India by the turn of the decade. 
  • The move, particularly the involvement of Suzuki that sells one in every two passenger vehicles in India through local unit Maruti, gives further credence to the government’s vision of switching to full electric mobility from 2030 and boosts its ‘Make in India’ initiative. 
CANEUS International, involved in satellite and space technology has signed a tripartite agreement with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB) and the Andhra Pradesh State Skills Development Corporation (APSSDC) to establish a Center of Excellence on Space Sciences and Technologies for Development (CoE4SSTD) in Hindpur, Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh.
  • This MoU was signed by Milind Pimprikar, Chairman, CANEUS and J Krishna Kishore, CEO, APEDB in the presence of Chief Guest Simonetta Di Pippo, Director, UNOOSA (United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs) an Italian astro-physicist with over 30 years of expertise in aerospace affairs and senior officials of ISRO in Bengaluru.
The Karnataka government has partnered with Intel company Mobileye to launch a project for automotive safety Called “Automotive Safety Innovation”.
  • This repository can be used to develop and validate artificial intelligence technologies that can learn and analyse data of road conditions and assist drivers to make informed decisions for higher safety, said Priyank Kharge, Minister for IT, BT and Tourism. This initiative can be leveraged by academia and start-ups to build their capabilities and showcase their innovations which can enhance commuter, pedestrian and vehicle safety
Reliance General Insurance, a subsidiary of Reliance Capital, has signed a comprehensive bancassurance-corporate agency agreement with YES Bank.
  • This is the first partnership signed by YES Bank since the open-architecture norms under the corporate agency regulations were introduced by the IRDAI in April 2016.
  • Rana Kapoor, Managing Director, YES Bank, said in a statement: “With this alliance, we remain committed to leveraging our pan-India branch network to capitalise on the immense opportunities in the Indian bancassurance market.”
Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Action Construction Equipment Ltd (ACE) have tied up for augmenting tractors/agricultural implements financing to the farmers across the country through PNB's branch network.
  • This tie-up will enable PNB to facilitate the availability of quality farm machinery equipment to its farmer base at an interest rate of 9.2 percent per annum. For ACE, the tie-up will enable to tap into PNB's branch network and customer base and thus further strengthen its presence in India.
Digital payments major Paytm has announced its tie-up with ICICI Bank to jointly launch 'Paytm-ICICI Bank Postpaid', the most seamless way to access interest-free short-term digital credit.
  • Under the new offering, millions of Paytm customers will get access to instant credit for the first time for everyday use-cases, ranging from movies to bill payments to flights to physical goods.
  • Paytm-ICICI Bank Postpaid is a digital credit account with instant activation: with no hassles of documentation or branch visit, while activation is fully online. There is no transaction, joining or hidden administration fees.
Summit /Conference / Events / Host
India to host Asia Cup of Road Racing with National Championship. The 20th JK Tyre- FMSCI National Racing Championship will have a robust international flavour, with the addition of the high-profile FIM Asia Cup of Road Racing (ACRR) leg to the grand finale.
  • Top bikers from Japan, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Nepal, Taiwan and India will participate in Round 3 of the ACCR on November 18-19 at the Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida.
  • India will be represented by Sai Rahil Pillarisetty and Israel Vanlalhruaizela, who are fourth in the standings after the first two rounds in Thailand and Taiwan.
SPG India geared up for organizing its 12th Biennial International Conference & Exposition at JECC Jaipur from 17th -19th November 2017  to resolve & establish the technical ideas and practical experiences for improved interactions & knowledge sharing among E&P industries and academia.
  • SPG has made momentous progress, expanded its network by connecting E&P professionals, eminent scientists, Academic institutions and students with in country and abroad. SPG-India presently has ten Regional Chapters, including one overseas (N. America), 18 Student Chapters all over India.
An Interim Meeting of the Steering Committee of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s South Asia Regional Training and Technical Assistance Center (SARTTAC) was held here today in national capital to assess the Center’s activities since its inauguration in February 2017 and to review the Fiscal Year 2018 Work Plan
  • The Steering Committee Members welcomed the speed with which SARTTAC has become operational and the array of capacity development (training and technical assistance), the Center has delivered across all work streams in a short space of time. They strongly supported the demand-driven principles embedded in the preparation of the Work Program.
Awards & Honours
Manmohan Singh will receive the 2017 Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for his leadership and his achievements during the 10 "momentous" years when he was Prime Minister.
  • Former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh was chosen as the recipient of this year's Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development.
  • Singh received the international award, named after former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, for "improving India's stature in the world" and for his "for his contributions to the cause of economic and social development", a statement from the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust said.
India’s Manushi Chhillar won the coveted Miss World 2017 crown at a grand event in China, bringing to an end the country’s dry spell of 17 years at the top pageant contest.
  • The 20-year-old from Haryana, who is a medical student, edged out top five contestants from England, France, Kenya and Mexico at the event, which saw participation from 118 countries.
  • Chhillar was presented the crown by Stephanie Del Valle, the last year’s Miss World winner from Puerto Rico at an event held at a resort in the coastal city of Sanya.
Sports: Awards & Honours
Shagun Chowdhary bagged a national champion crown when she won the women's trap event at the 61st National Shooting Championship here.
  • Representing ONGC, Chowdhary, the first Indian woman trap shooter to win an Olympic berth, overcame the challenge from Punjabs Rajeshwari Kumari to prevail 41-38 in the final.
  • Defending champion Shreyasi Singh, representing Bihar, finished third with a final round score of 29 on day two of the competitions.
Obituary 
Former Supreme Court judge and eminent jurist Justice V Khalid passed away
  • He was 95. Justice Khalid served as the judge of the Supreme Court from June 25, 1984 till his retirement on June 30, 1987. Before his elevation as judge of the Apex Court, he had served as Chief Justice of the Jammu& Kashmir High Court
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