Current Affairs Updates - 25th April 2018

Current Affairs Updates - 25th April 2018

In our  today's Current Affairs Updates - 25th April 2018 we have included some of the noteworthy points which have been mentioned under different sections of National, International. Summites, Conferences, Obituary and Awards and Banking. These includes the MOU between Hindustan Copper Ltd and Manganese Ore Ltd, MOU between Haryana government and IOC and other similar news. These are very important for all the upcoming examinations Bank, Rail and SSC. You may also like our Daily Current Affairs Quiz.

Important Days

National Panchayati Raj Day  is the national day of India celebrated by Ministry of Panchayati Raj on 24 April annually

• Then Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh inaugurated the first National Panchayati Raj Day in 2010. He mentioned that if Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs) functioned properly and locals participated in the development process, the Maoist threat could be countered.

First in India 

The Diu Smart City has become the first city in India that runs on 100 per cent renewable energy during the daytime, setting a bench-mark for other cities to follow.

• The city has developed a 9-MW solar park spread over 50 hectares rocky barren land, besides installing solar panels on the rooftops on 79 government buildings, generating 1.3 MW annually, the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry's release said.

Banking, Economic & Financial Affairs

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed in principle to give an aid of Rs 1,700 crore to Uttarakhand for infrastructure development and creation of sewerage treatment facilities in urban areas. 

• This was conveyed to Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat by the country director of ADB's India Regiment Mission Kenichi Yokoyama at a meeting between the two here today.  

National Affairs

The Sunderban Reserve Forest, spread of 4,260 sq. km. with over 2,000 sq. km. of mangrove forests and creeks, is likely to be declared a Ramsar Site 

• We have got approval from the government. All the necessary documents are ready and through the Government of India, we will apply to the Ramsar Convention Secretariat. It will take anything between three and six months for the status

Telangana can celebrate as two more craft forms that are unique to the state were granted the Geographical Indication (GI) tag by the GI registry in Chennai.

• Adilabad Dokra, an ancient metal craft that is popular in the state’s tribal regions, and Warangal durries or rugs, which are woven in handloom clusters in Warangal and Pochampally among other areas, have now been declared unique to the region.

International Affairs

Iran has banned the use of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies by its banks and financial institutions.

• It said the decision had been made in December by the government's money-laundering committee and it was now being put into effect.

Six countries suspend membership in UNASUR regional bloc

A South American bloc created a decade ago to counter US influence in the region has temporarily lost half its members after six countries suspended their memberships amid differences over who should lead the group.

Agreements/ MoUs Signed

The Government of India, the Government of Madhya Pradesh and the World Bank today signed a 210 million dollar loan agreement for the Madhya Pradesh Rural Connectivity Project. 

• The Project is expected to improve the durability, resilience and safety of the gravel surfaced rural roads and enhance the capacity of the state to manage its rural roads network.

India and the UAE have agreed to work together for harmonisation of skills that aims to match 

• India’s programmes for upskilling workers with the requirements of job market in the Gulf nation
• This will help meet the skill demands of the UAE’s employers and ensure that Indian workers are paid adequate skill-premium

SAIL ties-up with AAI under UDAN for air connectivity development

• Domestic steel giant SAIL today said it has inked a pact with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) for utilisation of airstrips at its three facilities -- Rourkela, Bokaro and Burnpur -- under the regional connectivity scheme UDAN.

Hindustan Copper Ltd said it has signed an MoU with Manganese Ore (India) Ltd for the Malanjkhand Copper Project, with an objective to create long-term business synergy for both the companies.

• The MoU was inked between HCL CMD, Santosh Sharma and MOIL CMD, Mukund Chaudhary.
• As per the memorandum, MOIL will procure its entire requirement of silica sand, used for backfilling of its mines, from HCL's unit located at Malanjkhand in Balaghat District.

The Haryana government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) for setting up a biomethenation plant in Faridabad.

• The MoU was signed by officials of Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, Indian Oil Corporation, Haryana Shahri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP), Ecogreen Energy and Iskcon in the presence of Industries and Commerce Minister Vipul Goel in Faridabad

Summit /Conference / Events

The EU and the UN will co-chair a two-day international conference, aiming to pump financial aid for Syrians and garner political support for UN-led intra-Syrian talks

• The conference, the second of its kind since 2017, will bring together participants from more than 85 countries and organisations at the ministerial level, as well as those from over 200 non-governmental organisations

Sushma Swaraj, Nirmala Sitharaman to attend SCO meet ; trade, terrorism likely to be on agenda

• Sitharaman will attend the SCO defence ministers meeting and Swaraj will take part in foreign ministers meeting. The annual summit of the SCO, in which India is the latest entrant along with Pakistan, will take place in the Chinese city of Qingdao in June 2018.

The Andhra Pradesh Government and Mastercard are together holding AP Cyber Security Summit at the Fintech Valley here on April 27 and 28.

• The summit is being conducted here, with the possible participation of 300 delegates from different segments, as a part of the MoU signed between the State Government and Mastercard to implement best practices in cyber security.

Awards & Honours: Sports

India have clinched the title of team champion in the 8th series of South Asian Judo Championship

• India ended their campaign in the tournament with a total of 12 Gold medals and three Bronze medals. “The Asian Games are ahead of us which is to be held in Indonesia, we are now giving all our strength for it. We will be practicing hard and well for it,” gold-medallist Anita Chanu told ANI.

Awards & Honours: Miscellaneous

The awards of Print Biennale India 2018 organised by Lalit Kala Akademi here were given at a function 

• Union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma in a message congratulated the winners of the event in which the participants were from the USA, China, Israel, Sweden, Lithuania, Poland, Argentina, and other countries.

Jailed Egyptian photographer Mahmoud Abu Zeid wins UNESCO Press Freedom Prize

• Jailed Egyptian photographer Mahmoud Abu Zeid, popularly known as Shawkan, on April 23, 2018 won the 2018 Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO).