Latest Current Affairs – December 04 2018
1. ISRO’s heaviest satellite launched, will increase internet speed
France-headquartered Arianespace successfully launched GSAT-11, the heaviest satellite built by ISRO from its port at French Guiana. Weighing 5,854 kg, GSAT-11 will boost broadband speeds (at least 16 Gbps) and provide the capacity to meet growing demands for internet connectivity, said ISRO. The satellite, with a mission life of 15 years, will be placed in a Geostationary Orbit.
2. Government may ban antibiotic used to fatten chicken
The government has reportedly proposed a ban on colistin, an antibiotic widely used in the poultry industry to make chickens gain weight faster. The usage of colistin and other such drugs in livestock has been linked to antibiotic resistance in humans. Colistin is called the “last hope” antibiotic as it’s used to treat patients with infections resistant to most drugs.
3. Gautam Gambhir announces retirement from all forms of cricket
Gautam Gambhir announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on Tuesday. The 37-year-old, who was India’s highest run-scorer in both the 2007 WT20 and 2011 World Cup finals, played 58 Tests, 147 ODIs and 37 T20Is. “I think someone up there was writing my script, but looks like now he has run out of his ink,” he said.
4. Delhi Daredevils renamed as Delhi Capitals ahead of 2019 IPL season
Indian Premier League franchise Delhi Daredevils has been renamed as Delhi Capitals ahead of the 2019 Indian Premier League season. “We wanted this name to mean something to each and everyone from Delhi,” Parth Jindal, the co-owner of the franchise said. Parth’s JSW Sports had bought a 50% ownership stake in the team earlier this year.
5. Kylian Mbappe wins Best Young Player award at Ballon d’Or event
France’s 19-year-old World Cup-winning forward Kylian Mbappe won the Trophee Kopa, awarded at the Ballon d’Or ceremony to the best young player under 21 years of age at Monday’s ceremony in Paris. Mbappe became the first-ever recipient of the trophy, which has been named after France legend Raymond Kopa and voted for by former Ballon d’Or winners.
6. Amazon briefly becomes world’s most valuable company at $870 bn
World’s richest person Jeff Bezos’ Amazon briefly became the world’s most valuable company, days after Microsoft dethroned Apple. The online retailer’s shares surged 5.2% at its highs, pushing the company’s market capitalisation to around $870 billion. At Monday’s close, Apple was back on top with a market value of $877 billion followed by Amazon at $866.6 billion.
7. December 4 celebrated as Indian Navy Day
India celebrates Navy Day to commemorate the success of Operation Trident during the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war. On December 4, 1971, the Indian Navy sank four Pakistani ships and destroyed Karachi harbour fuel tanks, killing several Pakistani Navy personnel without suffering any damages. The attack cut off Pakistan’s western command from East Pakistan, which later led to the liberation of Bangladesh.
8. PUBG wins ‘Best Game of 2018’ among 3 Google Play awards
Online multiplayer battlefield game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) has won three awards in Google’s ‘Best of 2018’ awards for Android apps on Play Store. The game was awarded ‘Best Game of 2018’ and ‘User’s Choice Game of 2018’ alongside a spot as the ‘Most Competitive’ app. Made by Tencent Games, PUBG was released for both Android and iOS in March 2018.
9. Croatia captain Modrić wins Ballon d’Or to end Ronaldo, Messi era
Midfielder Luka Modrić, who led Croatia to their first-ever FIFA World Cup final, won this year’s Ballon d’Or on Monday. The 33-year-old was named 2018 FIFA World Cup’s best player and had also won this year’s The Best FIFA Men’s Player award. This is the first time since 2007 that neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor Lionel Messi won the Ballon d’Or.
10. Musk’s SpaceX launches 64 satellites at once, sets US record
Elon Musk-led startup SpaceX on Monday successfully launched 64 satellites aboard its Falcon 9 rocket into Earth’s orbit, setting a new US record. The rocket carried India’s first fully private satellite ‘ExseedSat-1’, built by Mumbai-based startup Exseed Space for less than ₹2 crore. ISRO holds the record for most satellites launched in one go, at 104 satellites in February 2017.
11. Russia’s Soyuz successfully docks at ISS with 3 astronauts
Russian space agency Roscosmos has said the Soyuz MS-11 carrying three crew members, successfully docked at the International Space Station (ISS). The members including female NASA astronaut Anne McClain will spend over six months on the Earth-orbiting laboratory. This was Soyuz’s first manned mission after a mid-air failure in October forced it to make an emergency landing minutes after launch.
12. International airport to come up in Punjab’s Ludhiana
The Punjab Cabinet cleared a proposal to set up an international civil terminal at Air Force Station, Halwara in Ludhiana district. The Punjab government will provide over 135 acres of land, free of charge, for the terminal. Further, the terminal will be jointly developed by the state government and Airports Authority of India.
13. Ada Hegerberg – the 1st ever Women’s Ballon d’Or winner
Ada Hegerberg became the recipient of the first-ever Ballon d’Or awarded to a female footballer. Hegerberg has represented Norway at the youth international level, and made her debut for the senior team in 2011. Hegerberg won the 2016 UEFA Best Women’s Player in Europe Award and in 2017, was named BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year.
14. World Bank to raise $200 billion to fight climate change
The World Bank Group said it will double its 5-year investments to $200 billion to fight climate change between 2021-2025. The fund will aid high-quality forecasts, early warning systems and climate information services. World Bank will contribute $100 billion and the rest will be raised by International Finance Corporation, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency and private capital.
15. Nagaland becomes second state to adopt pan-India women helpline
Nagaland became the first state in the Northeast and second in the country, after Himachal Pradesh, to launch a pan-India single emergency number ‘112’ under the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS). The launch coincided with the state’s formation day and the inaugural day of the 2018 edition of the Hornbill Festival.
The Union Government has allocated Rs 321.69 crore under the Nirbhaya Fund for the implementation of the ERSS project across the nation. Nagaland alone has been allocated Rs 4.88 crore for the project.
16. Yes Bank appoints T.S Vijayan as an independent director to the board
Yes Bank appointed T.S Vijayan, former Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) chairman, as an independent director on the board of the private sector bank with immediate effect. The board was formed by the bank to select the successor of its MD & CEO, Rana Kapoor, whose present term ends on January 31. He was the only external member in the search and selection committee. He has been given a five-year term.
Mr.Vijayan’s appointment comes after a spate of resignations from the board which raised concerns over corporate governance practices among investors. Three board members had resigned in November. With the current appointment, the board now has eight members.
17. Pawan Singh is the first Indian to be elected in ISSF judges committee
Pawan Singh is also the Joint Secretary General of National Rifle Association of India (NRAI). He was a former coach of the Indian shooting team. Members of the administrative council of ISSF voted to select the committee, at the elections held at Munich. The Judges Committee consists of a Chairman and 7 members. It is responsible for the uniform application of shooting rules.
18. GlaxoSmithKline merges with HUL
GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Ltd. is to merge with Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUL), India’s biggest consumer goods company, in a deal worth Rs.31,70 0 crore.
Because of this transaction HUL’s parent, Unilever will gain control of popular health drink brand Horlicks while other brands from GSK CH, such as Boost, Maltova, and Viva, will be a part of the merged entity in India. GSK CH had acquired Maltova and Boost from Jagatjit Industries in 2000.
19. Nagaland signs MoU with Estonian academy on e-governance
Nagaland government signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with e-Governance Academy of Estonia to provide advisory and technical knowledge for setting up of e-Governance Academy of Nagaland (e-GAN). The MoU is aimed at strengthening bilateral technical cooperation in the fields of information technology and e-governance.
