12 September 2019 - Daily Current Affairs
1. Bandaru Dattatreya takes oath as Himachal Pradesh Governor
- Former Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya (72-years) took oath as the Governor of Himachal Pradesh.
- The Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court V. Ramasubramanian administered him,oath of Office and Secrecy at Rajbhavan in Shimla.
- Dattatreya has replaced Kalraj Mishra who is now taking over as the Governor of Rajasthan.
- Bandaru Dattatreya was born at Bandaru Anjaiah and Eswaramma at the city of Hyderabad.
- Dattatreya began his political career and joined Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1965.
- He was made a Minister of State for Labour and Employment in the Modi ministry and became the lone minister from Telangana.
- The governors (exist in the states) and lieutenant-governors/administrators (union territories and in the NCT of Delhi) of the states and union territories of India have similar powers and functions at the state level as that of the President of India at Union level.
- The governor acts as the nominal head whereas the real power lies with the Chief ministers of the states and his/her councils of ministers.
2. DR. PK Mishra takes charge as Principal Secretary to PM Modi
- Senior Indian Administrative Service officer(retired) Dr. Pramod Kumar Mishra (1972 batch (retired-IAS): Gujarat cadre] took charge as principal secretary to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
- He succeeds Nripendra Misra who stepped down recently.
- Mr Mishra holds a PhD in Economics / Development Studies from the University of Sussex in England.
- The United Nations conferred him with the SASAKAWA award in 2019 for his efforts towards disaster risk reduction.
- Former Cabinet Secretary Pradeep Kumar Sinha (1977-batch IAS officer of the Uttar Pradesh Cadre) has been appointed as the new principal advisor to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
- P K Sinha served as the Cabinet Secretary from 13th June 2015 to 30th August 2019.
- He graduated in Economics from St Stephen's college and completed his Post Graduation from Delhi School of Economics.
- He has varied experience in the management of programmes relating to agriculture, disaster management, power sector, infrastructure financing and regulatory issues.
Important Days
3. 12th September: International Day for South-South Cooperation
- The International Day for South-South Cooperation is being observed every year on 12th September by United Nations (UN) to work on technical cooperation among developing countries.
- International days are occasions to educate the public on issues of concern, to mobilize political will and resources to address global problems and to celebrate and reinforce the achievements of humanity.
- The theme for 2019: From Commitment to Action — Follow up to Buenos Aires Plan of Action+40.
- The Second High-level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation (BAPA+40) was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina (20-22 March 2019).
- South-South Cooperation is a term historically used by policymakers and academics to describe the exchange of resources, technology, and knowledge between developing countries.
International Affairs
4. U.K. opens up two-year post-study work permit visa again
- The U.K has decided to re-introduce the two-year post-study Visa for International students.
- It will boost the opportunities for talented students to build successful careers thereafter their education.
- According to the British High Commission, the new ‘graduate’ route will be open to all international students, who have valid U.K. immigration status as a student.
- Students have successfully completed a course of study in any subject at undergraduate level or above at an approved U.K. Higher Education Provider.
- The work visa was revoked in 2012 by the then government, affecting the international student admissions as they had to leave just four months after completing their course.
- The move comes after intense debate and demand by the universities in the U.K. that feared losing talent to other countries.
5. Vietnam opens Southeast Asia's largest solar power farm
- Vietnam has inaugurated Southeast Asia's largest solar power farm which has the capacity to produce 688 million kWh of electricity per year.
- The Dau Tieng Solar Power Complex is a joint venture with the Thai industrial group B.Grimm Power Public Company and has an investment of more than USD 391 million.
- It is expected to generate 10% of the country's solar energy to guarantee supply to 320,000 homes.
- It will also prevent the emission of 595,000 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year.
Honour & Awards
6. Pawan Munjal to be inducted to Asia Pacific Golf Hall of Fame
- Pawan Munjal (Managing Director and Chairman of Hero MotoCorp) will be inducted into the 2019 Asia Pacific Golf Hall of Fame for his support to the sport in India and around the world.
- With the honour, he will join the legendary players such as Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and other leading personalities such as David Chu who were bestowed with the highest honour in the Asia Pacific golf industry.
- The induction ceremony will be held on 6th November at the 2019 Asian Golf Awards Gala Banquet at DLF Golf & Country Club in Gurugram.
- Hero MotoCorp has been the title sponsor of Indian Open for men, co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour, since 2006 and the Women's Indian Open, which is a part of the Ladies European Tour, since 2010.
7. Navdeep Singh Suri honoured with first Class Order of Zayed II
- India’s envoy to United Arab Emirates ‘Navdeep Singh Suri’ has been honoured with the First Class Order of Zayed II award by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan (Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation).
- Mr Suri was given the honour in recognition of his efforts during his tenure and his contribution to the development and strengthening of relations between the UAE and India.
- Suri has been heading the Indian mission in the UAE since October 2016.
8. England greats Boycott & Strauss honoured with knighthoods
- England cricket greats Geoffrey Boycott (78-years) and Andrew Strauss (42-years) have been honoured with ‘Knighthoods’ by Theresa May in her resignation honours list.
- Both former cricketers have received the honour for their services to sport after outstanding careers for England.
- Geoffrey Boycott played 108 tests between 1964 and 1982 for England and scored 8,114 Test runs at an average of 47.72.
- Andrew Strauss played 100 tests for England from 2004-12, scoring more than 7,000 runs at an average of 40.91.
- He also served as England’s director of cricket between 2015 and 2018.
Science & Defence
9. DRDO successfully tests indigenous anti-tank missile (MPATGM)
- The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully flight tested an indigenously developed low weight, fire and forget Man-Portable Antitank Guided Missile (MPATGM) in the ranges of Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh.
- The missile hit the target in top attack mode and destroyed it with precision.
- This is the third series of successful testing of MPATGM.
- The missile is incorporated with state-of-the-art Infrared Imaging Seeker along with advanced avionics.
- The test paves the way for the Army to have developed third-generation man-portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile indigenously.
International Affairs
10. Canada's Justin Trudeau calls general election on 21st October
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (47-years) dissolved the parliament and called a federal election for 21st October this year.
- Justin Trudeau (leader of the Liberal Party) visited Governor General Julie Payette, Canada's acting head of state to formally launch the campaign.
- The prime minister of Canada is the primary Minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and Canada's head of government.
11. Nepal Infrastructure Summit 2019 held in Kathmandu
- The Nepal Infrastructure Summit 2019 (3rd) was held in Kathmandu, Nepal (11th-12th September 2019).
- It deliberates on issues that shape incentives for investment and enable the private sector to partner for sustainable prosperity.
- The theme of the two-day summit is "Resilient Infrastructure for Sustainable Development".
- The Summit will focus on the global and regional megatrends, including climate change, and their relevance to the local context, issues surrounding infrastructure project delivery, financing modalities, and opportunities for cross-border economic cooperation and investments.
- Over 500 participants from various countries are attending the event which is organised by the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) in association with Govt. of Nepal.
National Affairs
12. Indian Railways across the country is observing “Swachhta-Hi-Seva Pakhwada”
- Ministry of Railways is observing ‘Swachhta-Hi-Seva Pakhwada’ across its entire network from 11th September to 2nd October 2019.
- Prime Minister of India at an event on Swachhta Hi Seva (SHS) offered Shramdaan at Mathura leading and giving a message to the nation on the removal of plastic waste.
- According to Shri Piyush Goyal (Minister of Railways and Commerce & Industry), officers and staff of all departments to be involved in various activities during ‘Swachhta-Hi-Seva Pakhwada’.
- Mr Goyal also directed Zonal Railways to upload selected photographs on E-Drishti, Minister’s dashboard for monitoring purposes.
13. NITI Aayog joins hands with McKinsey for first digital capability centre
- McKinsey & Company has secured a contract from the NITI Aayog to set up India’s first digital capability centre (DCC) at New Delhi.
- The Union government will act as a facilitator to bring together industry, academia and research on one platform to help set up the centre, which has to be driven by the private sector.
- The Aayog has lined up extensive stakeholder consultations over the next few months to firm up the plan.
- DCC is a unique digital manufacturing learning centre offering company leaders and their workforces hands-on experience and workshops in next-generation technology.
14. Kerala to set up India's first global trade centre for women
- Kerala will set up India’s first international women’s trade centre (iWTC), in consonance with the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs), in Kozhikode.
- This will not only help women to develop and expand their ventures and build relationships but also be a platform for their creative expression.
- It is envisaged as a safe space away from home for women to harness their entrepreneurial capabilities, set up or expand their businesses and get their products marketed globally.
- The first phase of iWTC, being executed under the gender park’s “Vision 2020”, is scheduled to be completed by 2021.
