30-31 December 2018 - Daily Current Affairs

National Appointment

1. Sudhir Bhargava appointed new chief information commissioner

The Union government has appointed Sudhir Bhargava as the Chief Information Commissioner (CIC), along with four information commissioners in the Central Information Commission.
Four new information commissioners are Yashwardhan Kumar Sinha (IFS officer), ex-IRS officer Vanaja N. Sarna (the only woman), Neeraj Kumar Gupta (1982-batch IAS officer) and Mr Suresh Chandra(former law secretary).
Mr. Bhargava was Information Commissioner in the CIC.

Note:

The Central Information Commission (CIC) set up under the Right to Information Act is the authorised body, established in 2005, under the Government of India to act upon complaints from those individuals who have not been able to submit information requests to a Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer.

National Affairs

2. Delhi Metro’s Lajpat Nagar-Mayur Vihar Pocket 1 corridor opens today

Union Minister Hardeep S Puri & Deputy CM of Delhi Manish Sisodia jointly flag off Lajpat Nagar-Mayur Vihar Pocket 1 section of Pink Line of Delhi Metro.
Around ten-kilometre stretch is the extension of 59 kilometres long Majlis Park-Shiv Vihar corridor.
The section has five stations namely Vinoba Puri, Ashram, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Mayur Vihar -I and Mayur Vihar Pocket-1.
It will be a major boon for the commuters of prominent areas like Ashram and Mayur Vihar.
With the opening of this section, the Delhi Metro network has become 327 kilometres long with 236 Metro stations.

3. Indian Railways to grant fare concession to transgender senior citizens

The Indian Railways has decided to grant 40% concession in passenger fares to transgender senior citizens (60 years or above).
It will be available from 1^st January 2019.
Though a column for transgender (T) was introduced in the reservation form, the concession was not admissible to them.

Note:

The Indian railways grants 40% concession in fares to men aged 60 years or above and 50% concession in fares to women aged 58 years or above.

4. PM Modi renames Ross, Neil & Havelock Islands in Andaman and Nicobar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the renaming of three islands of Andaman and Nicobar on 75th anniversary of Tricolour hoisting by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in Port Blair.
The Ross Island has been renamed as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Dweep.
Now, The Neil Island would be known as Shaheed Dweep and Havelock Island as Swaraj Dweep.
The Prime Minister also visited the Cellular Jail and laid a wreath at the Martyrs’ Column.
The Prime Minister inaugurated the ITI Arong and interacted with Members of Tribal Council.

Obituaries

5. Veteran filmmaker Mrinal Sen passes away

Legendary filmmaker Padma Bhushan and Dada Saheb Phalke awardee Mrinal Sen(95-years) passed away due to age-related ailments in Kolkata.
He was the recipient of 12 international film awards including Cannes Film Festival.
Mrinal Sen was also a member of the Indian People’s Theatre Association.

Note:

He was born on 14^th May 1923, in the town of Faridpur (now in Bangladesh).
In 2001, he was awarded the Commandeur de l'ordre des Arts et letters by the French government.

Banking & Finance

6. Government infuses Rs 2159 Crore in United Bank of India

According to The United Bank of India, the Union government has decided to infuse Rs 2,159 crore in the bank.
The government has decided to pump Rs 28,615 crore into seven public sector banks (PSBs) through recapitalization bonds soon.
Bank of India is likely to get the highest amount of Rs 10,086 crore.

7. MSP for Copra hiked by more than Rs. 2000 per quintal

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved a hike in Minimum Support Price for Copra by more than two thousand rupees per quintal for 2019 season.
The MSP of Copra has been increased to 9521 rupees per quintal from 7511 rupees per quintal in 2018.
The MSP of Ball Copra will now be 9920 rupees per quintal which were earlier 7750 rupees.

Note:

Minimum Support Price (MSP) is a form of market intervention by the Government of India to ensure agricultural producers against any sharp fall in farm prices.

International Affairs

8. Bangladesh Elections: Awami League registers landslide victory

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's (71-years) Awami League has registered a landslide victory in Parliamentary elections.
The ruling Awami League-led grand alliance bagged 266 seats and its ally Jatiya Party secured 21 in the 300-member House.
The opposition National Unity Front (UNF) with BNP being its key partner got only seven seats and Independent candidates won in two seats.
The election was postponed in one seat due to the death of a candidate.

Note:

The 350 members of the Jatiya Sangsad consist of 300 directly elected seats using first-past-the-post voting in single-member constituencies, and an additional 50 seats are reserved for women.
The reserved seats are distributed based on the proportional vote share of the contesting parties.

9. The United Arab Emirates reopens its embassy in Syria

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) resumed its diplomatic services at its embassy in Damascus (Syria) after six years of suspension.
In February 2012, The UAE broke ties with Syria as the repression of nationwide protests demanding regime change was escalating into a devastating war.
The decision follows a careful reading of the latest developments and a conviction that the next phase requires Arab involvement to protect Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The UAE had closed its Embassy in the early years of the Syrian conflict.

Books

10. Tony Joseph’s Early Indians Tells Us The Story Of Our Ancestry

The book titled “Early Indians: The Story of Our Ancestors and Where We Came From” written by Tony Joseph was released.
The book talks about the migration of the First Indians also known as ‘Aryans’ who arrived here 65,000 years ago.
This book relies heavily on path-breaking DNA research of recent years.

Sports

11. Luka Modric wins Balkan Athlete of the year award 2018

Croatia soccer star Luka Modric has been chosen Balkan athlete of the year 2018.
Now, He became only the second soccer player to scoop the prize after Bulgaria’s former European Footballer of the Year Hristo Stoichkov in 1994.
Tennis great Novak Djokovic of Serbia was second in the Balkan poll, and Romania's Simona Halep third.
Modric also won the prestigious Ballon d’Or for the first time earlier in December.

12. Sports Ministry embarks Rs 100 Cr for funding athletes under TOPS

According to Director General of Sports Authority of India (DGSAI) Neelam Kapur, the sports ministry has earmarked Rs. 100 crores for funding the athletes under the (TOPS) Target Olympic Podium Scheme ahead of 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
Under the scheme, the athletes were also given financial assistance to prepare for Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.
The scheme was launched in September 2014 to provide financial assistance to potential Olympic medal winners.
The flagship scheme of the government will also nurture future sporting talent by supporting a group of athletes who are a potential medal winner in 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games.

13. Saurabh Chaudhary sweeps men's air pistol national trials

Indian Shooter Saurabh Chaudhary has won the 10m air pistol trials at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range by winning the second National trial competitions in both the men's and junior boy's categories.
Asian Games and Youth Olympic Games champion
Earlier, Saurabh had won the first trial in both events as well and in one final shooting event way above the existing world record score.
He won the men's final with a relatively modest 243.3 score, leaving behind Punjab's Arjun Singh Cheema, who shot 239.8 to emerge second.

14. 3rd Edition of Women's national boxing championships begins today

The third edition of women's national boxing championships begins in Vijayanagara, Karnataka.
Country's top boxers will be vying for top honours as the tournament will be held at the JSW Sports-owned Inspire Institute of Sport till 6th of the next month.
Around 250 entries received from 31 states and institutions, pugilists will compete in all 10 weight categories (48kg, 51kg, 54kg, 57kg, 60kg, 64kg, 69kg, 75kg, 81kg and +81kg class.).