Current Affairs Daily Digest – March 27 2019
1. Karur Vysya Bank appoints N S Srinath as non-executive chairman
Karur Vysya Bank has appointed N S Srinath as non-executive chairman for a period of three years.
Srinath, 66, was the non-executive independent director on the board of the private sector lender. Srinath had earlier served as an executive director on the board of Bank of Baroda and superannuated on May 31, 2012.
2. Cabinet approves acquiring land of Central Water Commission at Nallagandla, Hyderabad by Telangana State Government
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval for acquiring 372 sq. yards out of 10 acres of land including compound wall (about 200m) in the eastern side of Central Water Commission land by the Telangana State Government for improvement of Radial Road No.30 by widening of road with nil charges.
3. Cabinet approves MoU between India and Croatia in the field of tourism
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its ex-post facto approval on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Croatia in the field of tourism.
The MoU in the field of Tourism will help the two parties in creating an institutional mechanism for enhancing cooperation in the tourism sector. The MoU has been signed on 26 March, 2019 during the visit of President of India to Croatia.
4. Cabinet approves five year’s extension of Biomedical Research Career Programme
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the continuation of the Biomedical Research Career Programme (BRCP), and Wellcome Trust (WT) / DBT India Alliance beyond its initial 10-year term (2008-09 to 2018-29) to a new five year phase (2019-20 to 2023-24) with Department of Biotechnology (DBT) increasing its commitment to two times that of WT.
The total financial implication will be Rs. 1092 crore with DBT and WT contributing Rs.728 crore and Rs.364 crore respectively.
Over its 10 years of funding in a 1:1partnership, the Programme has fulfilled its objectives of building and nurturing talent of highest global standards in cutting-edge biomedical research in India, which has led to important scientific breakthroughs and applications to meet societal needs.
5. Cabinet apprised aboutMoU between India and Saudi Arabia for cooperation in the field of Housing
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, was apprised about an MoU signed in February, 2019 between India and Saudi Arabia for cooperation in the field of Housing.
The MoU will promote technical cooperation in the field of Housing, including affordable/low income housing and enhance participation of authorities and companies in the housing and infrastructure projects undertaken in both the countries. .
6. Cabinet approves MoU between India and Indonesia om combating illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and its precursors
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Indonesia on combating illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and its precursors.
The MoU will help in mutual cooperation in regulation of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and in combating drug trafficking. It will come into force on the date of signing and will remain in effect for a period of five years.
7. Cabinet apprised about MoU on Antarctic cooperation between India and Argentine
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, was apprised about an MoU signed in February, 2019 between India and Argentine on Antarctic cooperation.
The MoU will help scientific cooperation on projects in the fields of Earth
sciences, as well as those related to the protection and conservation of the natural environment of Antarctica and the Southern Oceans.
8. Vice Admiral MA Hampiholi, AVSM, NM assumes charge as Director General Naval Operations (DGNO)
Vice Admiral MA Hampiholi, AVSM NM has assumed charge as Director General Naval Operations . He is a graduate of the National Defence Academy and was commissioned in the Executive Branch of the Indian Navy on 01 Jul 85.
The Admiral is a graduate from the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington and the prestigious National Defence College, New Delhi. He is a recipient of the Nao Sena Medal in 2011 and the AthiVishistSeva Medal in 2019.
9. Cabinet approves MoU between India and Republic of Korea on Startup Cooperation
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its ex-post facto approval on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Republic of Korea on Startup Cooperation. The MoU was signed in February, 2019.
10. India successfully tests anti-satellite missile
Defence Research and Development Organisation, DRDO on Wednesday successfully conducted an Anti-Satellite (A-SAT) missile test, Mission Shakti from Dr A P J Abdul Kalam Island in Odisha.
A DRDO – developed Ballistic Missile, Defence Interceptor Missile successfully engaged an Indian orbiting target satellite in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) in a Hit to Kill mode. the interceptor missile was a three-stage missile with two solid rocket boosters. Tracking data from range sensors has confirmed that the mission met all its objectives.
11. EC appoints special expenditure observers in six states
Election Commission has appointed Special Expenditure Observers for six States in view of the forthcoming elections. These states are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Nagaland and Telangana.
The poll body appointed former member of CBDT, Gopal Mukherjee as special expenditure observer for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana while former Director General I-T(Investigation), D D Goel has been deployed in Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.
12. Comoros President Azali Assoumani re-elected with over 60% of votes
Comoros President Azali Assoumani was re-elected according to results published by the electoral commission of the Indian Ocean archipelago.
Electoral commission chief Djaza Ahmed Mohamed said, Azali, who first took office in 2016, was way ahead of his closest rival Mahamoudou Ahamada, who garnered only 14.62 percent of the ballots cast.
The Comoros is a volcanic archipelago off Africa’s east coast, in the warm Indian Ocean waters of the Mozambique Channel.
13. Savita Punia to lead Indian women’s hockey team in Malaysia tour
Goalkeeper Savita will captain an 18-strong Indian women’s hockey team for the five-match series against Malaysia starting from 4th of next month. Hockey India announced that Savita will stand in for regular skipper Rani Rampal, who is nursing an injury.
14. Manu Bhaker-Saurabh Chaudhary bag Gold medal in 10m Air Pistol Mixed event at Asian Airgun C’ship
In Shooting, Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Chaudhary have bagged a Gold medal in the 10-metre Air Pistol Mixed team event at the 12th Asian Airgun Championship at Taoyuan in Taipei. The teenage Indian duo went on to win the five-team final with a score of 484.8 points.
The pair made it to the Final after smashing the world record in the qualification. 17-year-old Manu and 16-year-old Saurabh shot a combined score of 784, breaking the record set by Russians Vitalina Batsarashkina and Artem Chernousov at the European Championships.
15. Nepal Investment Summit to be organised on March 29-30
The Government of Nepal is organizing “Nepal Investment Summit 2019” on March 29 -30 in Kathmandu. Nepal’s Finance Minister Dr. Yuba Raj Khatiwada said, the main objective of the event is to project Nepal as a favourable investment destination.
He said that summit will unveil potential opportunities for investment in various sectors in Nepal including Hydropower, Tourism, Infrastructure, Industry, Transport, Agriculture and Information and Communication Technology.
77 projects worth 31.93 billion dollars in various sectors will be showcased and 12 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) will be signed during the summit. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli will inaugurate the summit .
16. Former Australia cricketer Bruce Yardley dead
Former Australian Test cricketer, coach and commentator Bruce Yardley lost his battle to cancer and passed away at the age of 71.
Bruce, who debuted for Australia at the age of 30, started his cricketing carrer as a medium-pacer but later turned to be an off-spinner.
17. Apple CEO Tim Cook’s biography’s India launch soon
The India edition of the first biography of Apple CEO Tim Cook, ‘Tim Cook: The Genius Who Took Apple to the Next Level’, will hit the stands here on April 18, publisher Penguin India said.
The book will draw on authorised insiders to give a peek into the life of the man who led Apple to become the world’s first trillion-dollar company. He is also the first openly gay CEO of a Fortune 500 corporation.
18. JCB Literature Prize announces 2019 jury, includes Arvind Subramanian
The JCB Prize for Literature, India’s richest literary prize given out annually, announced the jury for its secondA edition . It includes former Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian.
The five-member 2019 jury comprises author and critic Anjum Hasan, authors K.R. Meera and Parvati Sharma and economist and former Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian. Filmmaker and environmentalist Pradip Krishen is the jury’s Chair, JCB said.
The Rs 25-lakh prize, presented each year to a distinguished work of fiction by an Indian author selected by the jury, aims to create greater visibility for contemporary Indian writing.
19. India gets anti-satellite capability to become space superpower: PM
India became “a space superpower” by becoming the fourth country to acquire anti-satellite capability, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced.
“Our scientists, a little while ago, have targeted a live satellite in space 300 km away in low earth orbit,” he said .
“The pre-fixed target was destroyed by the A-SAT in just three minutes. With this, India has established itself as a space superpower.”Mission Shakti was a difficult operation but a huge success,” the Prime Minister added.
20. The Beat singer Ranking Roger dead at 56
Ranking Roger, popularly known as the vocalist of The Beat, has died. He was 56. Roger founded The Beat in Birmingham in 1978. The band was behind the hit songs “Mirror in the bathroom”, “Too nice to talk to” and their cover versions of “Can’t get used to losing you”.
