Latest Current Affairs – November 06 & 07 2018
1. US elects its first openly gay Governor
Democratic Congressman Jared Polis has become the first openly gay person to be elected as a Governor in the US. The 43-year-old defeated Republican candidate Walker Stapleton in the mid-term elections to secure the governorship of the state of Colorado. The millionaire politician is a five-term Congressman from the city of Boulder in Colorado.
2. Japan wins WTO ruling against India’s safeguard duty on steel
A World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement panel upheld Japan’s complaint against safeguard duty imposed by India on imports of hot-rolled flat steel products for two-and-a-half years. The ruling said India had violated core global trade rules and urged India to take corrective action. The dispute panel’s ruling should be adopted within 60 days, unless a party decides to appeal.
3. Ozone layer will be completely healed by 2060s: UN study
A United Nations’ study has revealed that the Ozone layer, which shields the Earth against cancer-causing solar rays, will be completely healed by 2060s. The hole above the Antarctic is healing at a rate of 1-3% a year, the study further revealed. The study was a four-yearly review of the Montreal Protocol which banned man-made gases damaging the Ozone layer.
4. Air purification devices installed at ITO in Delhi
With air quality dipping to ‘very poor’ in Delhi and National Capital Region, air purification devices have been installed at the ITO crossing in Delhi. The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) on Monday said that Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi was detected at 329. An AQI between 301-400 is considered as ‘very poor’.
5. PM Modi celebrates Diwali with jawans in Uttarakhand
PM Narendra Modi celebrated Diwali with jawans of the Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at Harsil in Uttarakhand. “Your devotion to duty in the remote icy heights is enabling the strength of the nation and securing…the dreams of 125 crore Indians,” he told the jawans. PM Modi then also visited the Kedarnath shrine and offered prayers.
6. India pledges ₹97 cr for UN agencies, development activities
India announced contributions of $13.36 million (over ₹97.2 crore) for various United Nations (UN) agencies and development activities at the 2018 United Nations Pledging Conference for Development Activities. Around 19 countries pledged a total of $425.69 million at the conference. India has committed over $100 million to the India-UN Development Partnership Fund which was set up last year.
7. Indonesia: Data recovered from crashed Lion Air flight recorder
In Indonesia, investigators have succeeded in retrieving hours of data from a crashed Lion Air flight recorder. Deputy chairman of National Transportation Safety Committee told a news conference in Jakarta that 69 hours of flight data was downloaded from the recorder including its fatal flight. The Boeing 737 MAX 8 jet crashed just minutes after takeoff from Jakarta on the 29th of October, killing all 189 people on board in the country’s worst airline disaster since 1997.
8. Nitten, Vlada duo won silver in theITF World championship
Nitten Kirrtane, former National champion, and Vlada Kirlovska of Latvia won the mixed doubles silver in the International Tennis Federation (ITF) World championship for over-40. The top seeds Stefanie Kolar and Marcus Hilpert beat the Indo-Latvian pair 7-6(13), 6-2 in the final.
9. India, Zimbabwe signed 6 Agreements in various fields
During the visit of Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu, India agreed for the deputation of experts in five fields to assist Zimbabwe. Around 6 agreements in various fields were signed in areas including Mining, Visa waiver, Broadcasting and Culture.
India will extend Line of credits of more than 350 million US Dollars to Zimbabwe for two power projects and a drinking water project. India will give about 3 million US dollar grant for upgradation of Indo-Zim Technology center. Assistance for construction of Mahatma Gandhi Convention Centre in Zimbabwe will also be granted by India.
10. India clinched bronze in SAFF U 15 at Nepal
India clinched the bronze medal in the SAFF U-15 Championship at Nepal. India beat Nepal, the host, and registered a 1-0 win in a third-place playoff. Thlacheu Vanlalruatfela’s goal eventually proved to be enough. The goal came in the 18th minute after Vanlalruatfela scored following nice build-up by his teammates.
11. Actor Anupam Kher honoured with ‘Distinguished Fellow Award’ in Boston
Actor Anupam Kher was awarded at the 3rd India Global Summit held at MIT Sloan School of Management in Boston. The Summit discussed the growing importance of relationship between India, USA and China. Anupam Kher holds the record for winning the Filmfare Award for Best Comedian five times in total for: Ram Lakhan (1989), Lamhe (1991), Khel (1992), Darr (1993) and Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995).
12. Union Cabinet approves opening up of International Solar Alliance membership to all UN countries
The decision was taken to put solar energy on the global agenda with the universal appeal for developing and deploying solar energy. International Solar Alliance (ISA) is an alliance dedicated to the promotion of solar energy among its member countries and is headquartered at Gurugram, India. The main objective of ISA is to include global deployment of over 1,000GW of solar generation capacity and mobilisation of investment of over US$ 1000 billion into solar energy by 2030.
13. Rahul Dravid became the fifth Indian to be inducted in the ‘ICC Hall of Fame’
Dravid was presented with the framed cap by Gavaskar as he was formally inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. The four Indians who were inducted in the ICC Hall of Fame prior to Dravid are:
♦ Sunil Gavaskar (1971-1987) – inducted in 2009
♦ Bishan Singh Bedi (1966-1979) – inducted in 2009
♦ Kapil Dev (1978-1994) – inducted in 2010
♦ Anil Kumble (1990-2008) – inducted in 2015.
Earlier this year, Dravid, along with Ricky Ponting and England women wicketkeeper Claire Taylor, were announced as the new inductees in the Hallf of Fame.
14. India and Japan signed a Loan Agreement worth Rs. 1,817 crore for Hydel power project in Bengal
Turga pumped storage hydel power project is to be constructed at Purulia in West Bengal. This project will contribute to the industrial development and living standards in the state. The deal was signed by the Additional Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), C.S. Mohapatra, and Katsuo Matsumoto, chief representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
15. Scientists found microplastics in marine life
Scientists at the Integrated Coastal and Marine Area Management Project Directorate at Chennai’s National Institute of Ocean Technology recorded fluorescent blue and green microplastic particles and fibres are found in species of marine worms. Research says that Microplastics are practically everywhere. Microplastics are an issue because once inside the bodies of marine life forms, they can cause internal lesions.
Apart from accumulating toxins, microplastics can threaten microfauna such as plankton (tiny, single-celled creatures that fish and even whales feed on) that thrive in oceans. Now, scientists have recorded these tiny plastic particles, less than one millimetre in length, closer home, in the marine life off the Kochi coast. Invertebrates dwelling on the ocean floor as well as fish now house microplastics.
16. Vietnam to host a Formula One race in April 2020
Vietnam capital Hanoi will be the second Southeast Asian city to host a race in 2020 along with Singapore. Vietnam will be only the third Southeast Asian country to host a Formula One race in history after Malaysia and Singapore. Formula One (F1) was taken over by US firm Liberty Media last year for $8 billion.
17. GSAT 11 returned to Guiana space centre for December launch
GSAT-11, the heaviest Indian communication satellite built to date is back at the Guiana Space Centre for an early December launch. The satellite is for faster Internet connectivity. It returns to the South American port for the second time in six months after it was taken back to Bengaluru in April for inspections.
K. Sivan, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Secretary, Department of Space said that the 5,700 kg spacecraft was shipped out of Bengaluru and has reached the European launch port. GSAT-11 is built to provide superior communication and 12 GBPS connectivity with its multiple spot beams in Ka and Ku bands.
18. National Cancer Awareness Day observed on 7 November across the nation
‘National Cancer Awareness Day’ started in 2014 when it was first announced by the former Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan. February 4th is World Cancer Day, when organizations and individuals around the world unite to raise awareness about cancer and work to make it a global health priority.
19. Lucknow’s Cricket Stadium renamed after Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a day before India-WI T20I
UP government on November 5 renamed Lucknow’s Ekana International Cricket Stadium as ‘Bharat Ratan Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium’. This would be the first international cricket match to be played in the stadium. India defeated Windies in the first T20I to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
The stadium, a dream project of former UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav was completed in 2017. The stadium which has a seating capacity of 50,000 was built as a public-private partnership.
20. India re-elected as member of ITU council till 2022
India elected as a member of the International Telecommunications Union-ITU Council for another four-year term from 2019 to 2022. The elections to the Council were held during the ongoing ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2018 at Dubai. India secured 165 votes and ranked third among the 13 countries elected to the council from the Asia-Australasia region, and eighth among the 48 countries elected to the council globally.
21. UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath renamed Faizabad as Ayodhya
During the celebrations on the eve of Diwali, the Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath made three major announcements:
♦ Faizabad district will be renamed as Ayodhya,
♦ a new airport will be named after Lord Rama,
♦ and a new medical college will be named after King Dasharatha.
22. Namrata Ahuja bags IPI-India Award for excellence in journalism 2018
Namrata Ahuja is a senior special correspondent with The Week magazine. She has received this award for her exclusive story on Nagaland underground camps. The award consisted of a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh, a trophy, and a citation. The jury was headed by former Attorney-General of India Soli Sorabjee.
23. Gafur Rakhimov elected as President of AIBA
Gafur Rakhimov won 86 of the 134 second-round votes collected by International Boxing Association (AIBA) officials in Moscow to beat his only opponent, former boxer Serik Konakbayev of Kazakhstan.
24. India and Malawi Sign MoUs in Extradition Treaty, Atomic Energy and VISA Waiver
India and Malawi signed three MoUs on Extradition Treaty, cooperation in the field of Atomic Energy for peaceful purposes and VISA Waiver for Diplomatic and Official Passports. The MoU was signed during Vice President Venkaiah Naidu visit in Malawi.
