30 November 2018 - Daily Current Affairs

Current World champion Norwegian Magnus Carlsen (26-year-old) beat American Fabiano Caruana 3-0 and regain his World Chess Championship title-2018 in London, England.
Rapid chess was used as a tie-breaker, with Carlsen winning three consecutive games.
Carlsen won USD 625,000 as the winner, and Caruana received USD 511,400 as the runner-up.
The match was organised in a best-of-12-games format.

Note:

The World Chess Championship 2018 organised by the FIDE (commercial partner-Agon) at The College in Holborn, London.
The 2018 World Chess Championship was the first title showdown between the world’s top-ranked players since 1990.

Appointments

President of LG’s Home Entertainment Company Brian Kwon will leader the Mobile Communications (MC) Company.
Current president Hwang Jeong-hwan will focus fully on as head of LG’s Convergence Business Development Office.
It comes after LG’s mobile business posted a loss of USD 410 million this year, including a USD130.5 million net loss in the last quarter.

Note:

LG Electronics Inc. is a South Korean multinational electronics company headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.
LG comprises four business units: Home Entertainment, Mobile Communications, Home Appliance & Air Solution, and Vehicle Components.

The President Shri Ram Nath Kovind has inaugurated the 2nd International Ambedkar Conclave in New Delhi.
This International Ambedkar Conclave is a part of the commemoration of Constitution Day.
The Conclave is being organised by the Forum of SC and ST Legislators and Parliamentarians and the Dr Ambedkar Chamber of Commerce.

President Shri Ram Nath Kovind received the first copy of the book “Making of New India: Transformation under Modi Government”, from Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Shri Arun Jaitley.
Mr. Jaitley formally released it at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi.
This book contains fifty-one essays on themes ranging from economy to diplomacy, education to public health.

According to Power Minister R K Singh, Eight more States have achieved 100% household electrification under Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya).
The states are Madhya Pradesh, Tripura, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram, Sikkim, Telangana and West Bengal.
With this, a total of 15 States in the country have 100% household electrification.
Around 2.1 crore connections have been released under Saubhagya so far.
The Union Government is committed to ensuring 24x7 access to electricity for all by 31st March next year.

Note:

The Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya scheme) was launched in September 2018 with the objective to provide access to electricity to all the remaining households in the country.

NASA's robotic InSight lander successfully landed on Red Planet Mars after the six-month journey.
The spacecraft has been designed to dig deep into the rocky surface of the Mars to reveal its secrets.
The lander sent signals indicating that its solar panels are open and collecting sunlight on the Martian surface.
The Insight lander touched down near Mars' equator on the western side of a flat, smooth expanse of lava called Elysium Planitia.
InSight will study the interior of Mars and will teach about valuable science as they prepare to send astronauts to the Moon and later to Mars.

Air forces of the United States and India will participate in a 12-day joint exercise 'Cope India 2019' at two air force stations in West Bengal.
The exercise will be held from 3rd to 14th December at Air Station Kalaikunda and Air Station Arjan Singh (Panagarh).
The exercise showcases the efforts and commitment of the two nations to a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
The Cope India exercise is being held after a gap of eight years, with the last one having taken place in 2010.
Exercise CI19 focused on enhancing US-Indian mutual cooperation and building on existing capabilities, aircrew tactics and force employment,".
Around 200 US Airmen with 15 aircraft from the 18th Wing, Kadena Air Base, Japan and 182nd Airlift Wing, Illinois Air National Guard will take part in the exercise alongside their IAF counterparts.
Cope India began in 2004 as a fighter training exercise held at Air Station Gwalior.

Indian business tycoon Azim Premji (chairman of Wipro) conferred with the highest French civilian distinction Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) for his outstanding contribution to developing the information technology industry in India
Premji received the honour from Alexandre Ziegler (the Ambassador of France to India) in Bengaluru.
His economic outreach in France and his laudable contribution to the society as a philanthropist through the Azim Premji Foundation and Azim Premji University.

Note:

The Legion d'Honneur (Legion of Honour) award was instituted in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.
It is the highest civilian award given by the French Republic for outstanding service to France, regardless of the nationality of the recipients.

The Sustainable Blue Economy Conference was held in Nairobi, Kenya, organized by Kenya and co-hosted by Japan and Canada.
The theme of this conference was ‘The Blue Economy and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Blue Economy is an economic benefit and value that is realized from Earth’s coastal and marine environment.

Note:

Sustainable Blue Economy is a marine-based economy that provides social and economic benefits for current and future generations, restores, protects and maintains diversity, the productivity of marine ecosystems.

The European Union (EU) has urged government, businesses, citizens and regions to join it in an ambitious plan to cut emissions and make the bloc carbon neutral by 2050.
According to EU climate commissioner Miguel Arias Canete, Block is kicking off a process to determine how Europe's energy and climate policy will evolve between now and 2050.
Member states will submit their draft national climate and energy plans to the EU by the end of 2018.
While more homes will be insulated, and transport will be modernised, the key plank of any successful strategy will be to reduce fossil fuel use in energy production by 80 per cent by 2050.

State Bank of India (SBI) has increased fixed deposit (FD) rates for some select maturity periods.
According to the revised rates, SBI is offering 6.8% interest rate on FDs with a maturity period of one to two years (earlier 6.7%).
The interest rate for senior citizens also goes up to 7.30% on SBI FDs for one to two years (earlier-7.2%).
Now, SBI is offering 6.80% interest rate on FDs with maturity period between two to three years (earlier- 6.75%).
The interest rate for senior citizens goes up to 7.30% on SBI FDs for one to two years tenure (earlier 7.25%)
SBI has kept interest rate unchanged for FDs with other maturity tenures.