09 August 2018 - Daily Current Affairs

1. Harivansh Narayan Singh elected as Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha

Rajya Sabha elected Harivansh Narayan Singh (NDA's candidate) as Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson against the B K Hariprasad (joint opposition candidate).
Mr. Harivansh got 125 votes, while Hariprasad received 105 votes.
The last Deputy Chair of Rajya Sabha was Prof P J Kurien (tenure ended on 1^st July this year).
Harivansh was nominated for Rajya Sabha in 2014 by the Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal United (JDU).

Harivansh Narayan Singh:

Mr. Harivansh born on 30^th June,1956 in Balia (Uttar Pradesh) in a middle-class family.
Harivansh is a post-graduate in Economics from Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and PG Diploma in journalism from BHU.

Note:

The Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha presides over the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha in the absence of the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

The Deputy Chairman is a constitutional position (under Article 89 of the Constitution), specifies that Rajya Sabha shall choose one of its MPs to be the Deputy Chairman as often as the position becomes vacant.

2. S Gopakumar appointed Director and General Manager in UIIC

Public sector non-life insurance firm the United India Insurance Company (UIIC) has appointed S Gopakumar as its Director and General Manager with immediate effect.
Earlier, Gopakumar was serving GIC Housing Finance Ltd as its Managing Director (MD)and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
On the 2nd of February 2018, the Government of India announced the merger of United India Insurance Company (UIIC) with Oriental Insurance and National Insurance Company Limited.

Note:

The United India Insurance Company (UIIC) is the 2nd Largest General Insurance company in India.

It was incorporated on 18th February 1938 and nationalised in 1972.

Important Dates

3. International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples observed today

The International Day of the World's Indigenous People is observed on 9^th August each year to promote and protect the rights of the world's indigenous population.
This year’s the day is devoted to the right to education.
The theme of this year is - ‘Indigenous peoples’ migration and movement’.

Note: On December 23, 1994, The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 9^th August as the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples through its resolution 49/214.

4. The nation celebrates the 76th anniversary of Quit India Movement

The nation is celebrating the 76th anniversary of the Quit India Movement.
The Quit India Movement was an important milestone in the Indian freedom struggle.

The Quit India Movement (India August Movement) was a movement launched at the Bombay session of the All-India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8 August 1942 (during World War II), demanding an end to British Rule of India.

Note: In 1992 Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued a 1rupee commemorative coin to mark the Golden Jubilee of the Quit India Movement.

5. Madhya Pradesh government observes Adivasi Diwas today

The Madhya Pradesh government is observing Adivasi Diwas and announced a holiday in 20 tribal-dominated districts.
The State government would felicitate achievers from the tribal community and distribute certificates to beneficiaries of various welfare schemes.
The Govt also felicitate meritorious tribal students.

Honours & Awards

6. Indian-American high schooler wins International Geography Bee World Championship

Indian-American high school student Avi Goel (14-year) has won the world championship at the International Geography Bee's junior varsity division held in Berlin.
He won a gold medal in seven out of the 10 medal events and a silver medal in two of the events.
Avi is at Silver Creek High School in Evergreen, San Jose, California.
He also bagged the top spot in all the three events counting towards the world championship title

The International Geography Exam
The International Geography Showdown, and
The International Geography Bee.

Note: The competition took place from 11th to 18th July, bringing together over 100 of the world's top geography students to vie for the world championship title in the subject.

Banking & Finance

7. IMF forecasts India's GDP to grow at 7.5% in 2019-20

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) latest report, India is projected to clock an economic growth of 7.5% in the 2019-2020 fiscal year on the strengthening of investment and robust private consumption.
The Growth is forecast to rise to 7.3% (fiscal year 2018/19) and 7.5% (in 2019/20) on strengthening investment and robust private consumption.
The report recommended that continued fiscal consolidation is needed to lower elevated public debt levels, supported by simplifying and streamlining the GST structure.
The current account deficit is projected to widen further to 2.6% of the GDP on rising oil prices and strong demand for imports.

National Affairs

8. Suresh Prabhu launches mobile app 'Niryat Mitra'

The union Minister Suresh Prabhu has launched mobile app 'Niryat Mitra' on Android and on IOS platforms.
The app has been developed by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), the largest exporters’ organisation of the country.
It provides wide range of information required to undertake international trade right from the policy provisions for export and import, applicable GST rate, available export incentives, tariff, preferential tariff, market access requirements – SPS and TBT measures.
The most interesting part is that all the information is available at tariff line.

9. Khangchendzonga biosphere reserve added to UNESCO list

The Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve (at Sikkim) has been added to UNESCO's list of World Network of Biosphere Reserve (WNBR).
With the inclusion of Khangchendzonga, the number of internationally designated WNBR has become 11 with seven BRs as domestic designated biosphere reserves.
The decision was taken at the 30th Session of International Coordinating Council (ICC) of Man and Biosphere (MAB) Programme of UNESCO held at Palembang, Indonesia.

10. Maharashtra govt announces special assistance of 500 crore rupees for OBC community

The chief minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis has announced a special assistance of 500 crore rupees for OBC community to help them develop employment opportunities for the youth.
The state government has recommended to the Centre that the Bharat Ratna be conferred posthumously Jyotiba Phule (19th-century social reformer) and his wife Savitribai Phule (pioneer of women’s education).
The state government would assess the extent of representation given to OBCs in jobs and take steps to address the backlog, in a time-bound manner.

11. Goa gets first app-based cab service ‘GoaMiles’ amid protests

The Chief Minister of Goa Manohar Parrikar and Manohar Ajgaonkar (Tourism Minister) flagged off the Goa Tourism Development Corporation’s app-based taxi service ‘GoaMiles’ in Panaji.
The ‘GoaMiles’ would ensure that commuters are not cheated and at the same time would increase the earnings of taxi drivers by ‘two to three’ times.

Sports

12. Indian U-20 & U-16 team wins titles in Football

India’s under-20 team has won over Argentina (under-20) in the final group stage match of the COTIF Cup held in Valencia’s Els Arcs Stadium.
India was playing in the tournament for the first time.
The under-16 team of India defeated under-16 champions team of Iraq by 1-0 in the West Asian Football Federation Cup in Amman, Jordon.