Current Affairs Update - 30 August 2016

Updated on : 15:24, 6 September 2016

— NATIONAL —

– Centre moves to raise minimum wage for workers, labour unions unimpressed

• The NDA government is in the process of revising the minimum wages of millions of workers in several sectors, including agriculture, construction and mining.
• The daily wages of a sweeper or an unskilled construction worker in Delhi, for instance, is proposed to be increased by Rs 81 to Rs 449.
• Likewise, the position of an unarmed security guard could be upgraded from the semi-skilled to skilled category with aRs 139 hike in his existing daily wage of Rs 407.
• These revisions form part of the labour ministry’s proposal to revise the minimum wages for 45 economic activities in the central sphere, including agriculture, construction, stone mining, sweeping, and loading-unloading.
• Despite being in the central sphere, they serve as a benchmark for minimum wages in the states too.

Telangana ratifies GST Bill

• A special session of the Telangana Legislature (Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council) has ratified the Constitutional amendment Bill for the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on Tuesday.
• While the Council passed the Bill unanimously, the Assembly had a debate on the Bill. Members of Opposition parties, especially the AIMIM and the Congress, in the House sought clarifications on the Bill, but supported its passage. The BJP members expressed confidence that the GST would benefit the State.
• The Bill was introduced by Deputy Chief Minister KadiyamSrihari in the Council.

– 2nd US-India Strategic & Commercial Dialogue to be held in New Delhi today

• US Secretary of State John Kerry will meet External Affairs Minister SushmaSwaraj in New Delhi this afternoon. Mr Kerry along with U S Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker will co-chair the second US-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue in the national capital later today.
• Secretaries Kerry and Pritzker will be joined by MrsSushmaSwaraj and Commerce and Industry Minister NirmalaSitharaman, along with members of the US delegation and their Indian counterparts.
• The US-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue is the signature mechanism for advancing the United States’ and India’s shared priorities of generating sustainable economic growth, creating jobs, improving the business and investment climate, enhancing livelihoods and sustaining the rules-based global order.

– Centre to launch ‘AsliTarakki campaign to promote awareness about sanitation

• Centre will soon launch an ‘AsliTarakki (Real development)’ campaign in the five cities of the National Capital Region to promote awareness about the need for sanitation. As many as 450 select youth with communication skills and leadership qualities will be engaged in the campaign as lead motivators.
• The Urban Development Ministry today signed a MoU with Nehru YuvakKendra(NYK) in this regard. As per the MoU, NYK will deploy 50 enthusiastic, experienced in public speaking and educated youth for 52 days each of the five municipal areas of Delhi, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Noida for a mass awareness movement for successful implementation of Swachh Bharat Mission.

– India’s first military heritage website launched

• India’s first military heritage website coloursofglory.org was launched by Glory Foundation. A veteran of the 1971 Indo Pak war, city based Captain D.P.Ramachandran who is also the executive trustee of the foundation said, the war heroes of South India held great significance to the history of India.
• The foundation will conduct various awareness programs throughout major cities in the Country to educate the people about the Nation’s military history and heritage.
• The programs will be in the nature of exhibitions, films, seminars and talks. The foundation is also planning battle re-enactments or military tattoos, before Independence.

– Madhukar Gupta Committee on border protection submits report to MHA

• The Madhukar Gupta Committee on border protection has submitted its report to the Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
• The Committee headed by former Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta was appointed in April, this year for strengthening border protection and addressing the issue of gaps and vulnerability in border fencing along Indo-Pakistan Border.
• An official release said, the panel has made a detailed study on threat perception, field visits and made a detailed recommendations pertaining to strengthening of border protection on Indo-Pakistan Border.

– Odish govt launches Municipal Cadre for urban local bodies

• Odisha government has launched a new cadre for urban local bodies called the Odisha Municipal Cadre. Chief minister Naveen Patnaik yesterday announced that 3,213 posts will be created in eight areas under the Odisha Municipal Cadre. Accordingly, the government will appoint people in the areas of cleanliness, health, e-governance and finance under the municipal cadre.
• While launching the cadre, during a workshop on excellent civic governance organised by the Urban Development Department in Bhubaneswar, Patnaik felicitated 27 urban local bodies for their excellent works during 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15. Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation won top position in municipal corporation category consecutively for three years.

– Five towns each in Maharashtra, Telangana declared Open Defecation Free

• The urban development ministry has certified 10 towns – five each in Maharashtra and Telangana – as Open Defecation Free (ODF). The 10 towns are the first to be certified as the ministry begins the process of third party verification under Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban).
• The towns certified include Kagal, Panchgani, Vengurla, Murgud and Panhala in Maharashtra and Siddipet, Shadnaga, Suryapet, Achampet and Huzurnagar in Telangana.
• Official sources said the Ministry has got ODF claims of 11 towns independently verified by the Quality Council of India and certified the claims of ten of them as per the protocol evolved for such certification.
• The claim of Bhongir in Telangana will be reassessed. A ward or city can be notified as ODF if, at any point of the day, not a single person is found to be defecating in the open.

– PM Modi launches first phase of SAUNI project in Jamnagar, Gujarat; Stresses upon conservation of water

• Prime Minister NarendraModi has launched the first phase of SAUNI-Saurastra Narmada Avataran Irrigation yojana today at Sanodara of Jamnagar district of Gujarat.
• Under the project, nearly 10 dams and reservoirs of Rajkot, Jamnagar and Morbi will be filled up with the water of Narmada river.
• The 12,000 crore rupees project will fill up nearly 115 dams of Saurashtra region which faces shortage of water for irrigation and drinking purposes.
• Saruashtra, which comprises 11 districts, faces drought like situation often and has been reeling under severe water scarcity due to scanty rainfall in the last two years.
• This project is considered to be an ambitious one for Mr. Modi. It was announced in 2012 when Mr. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat.

 

— INTERNATIONAL —

– India-US sign military logistic agreement

• India and the US on Monday signed a historical agreement on sharing logistics, with both Defence Minister ManoharParrikar and US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter clarifying that it will not involve in setting up of military bases.
• The Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) was “in principal” agreed on during Carter’s visit to India in April.
• The two sides also discussed India’s “Major Defence Partner” designation, which was announced during Prime Minister NarendraModi’s visit to Washington in June, and the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) between the two countries.
• It added that the US has agreed to elevate defence trade and technology sharing with India to a level commensurate with its closest allies and partners.
• Carter also welcomed India’s membership in the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and reaffirmed US support for India’s membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

– Pakistan foreign debt soars to Rs 74 trillion

• Pakistan’s foreign debt and liabilities touched the highest ever figure of over Rs 74 trillion in the first month of the current financial year, the country’s central bank said today.
• It showed an increase of about Rs 11.15 trillion in the last four years, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said.
• Pakistan’s foreign debt and liabilities in July 2013 stood at USD 61.9 billion, which was the first financial year of the present government.

– India and Myanmar sign four agreements

• India and Myanmar on Monday signed four agreements following bilateral talks between Prime Minister NarendraModi and visiting Myanmar President HtinKyaw here.
• The first agreement pertains to construction of 69 bridges on the Tamu-Kalewa section of the trilateral highway connecting India, Myanmar and Thailand.
• The second agreement is on upgrading the Kalewa-Yargi section of the trilateral highway.
• The third agreement is on cooperation in the field of renewable energy, while the fourth agreement is on cooperation in the field of traditional medicines
• This is the first presidential visit from Myanmar to India after Nobel laureate Aung San SuuKyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) came to power in March this year.

 

— BANKING —

– Doha Bank opens first branch in Kerala

• Doha Bank, one of the prominent banks in Qatar, is formally inaugurating its first branch in Kerala on August 27.
• The branch offers all banking products to corporate and retail customers. It will be formally inaugurated by the State Chief Minister PinarayiVijayan.
• The Bank has its other two branches in Mumbai.
• Doha Bank is one of the largest commercial banks in the State of Qatar. It was incorporated in 1978 and commenced its domestic and international banking services in Doha, Qatar on March 15, 1979.
• As one of Qatar’s leading financial services company, Doha Bank is committed to making banking work for customers and clients like it never has before. Through innovative technologies and the ingenuity of its people.

 

— BUSINESS AND ECONOMY —

– CBDT signs 20 Unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements with Indian taxpayers

• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) entered into twenty (20) Unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) yesterday and today, i.e., 29th August, 2016 and 30th August, 2016, with Indian taxpayers. Many of these agreements also have a “Rollback” provision in them.
• The APA Scheme was introduced in the Income-tax Act in 2012 and the Rollback provisions were introduced in 2014. The scheme endeavours to provide certainty to taxpayers in the domain of transfer pricing by specifying the methods of pricing and determining the arm’s length price of international transactions in advance for the maximum of five future years.
• Further, the taxpayer has the option to rollback the APA for four preceding years. Since its inception, the APA scheme has attracted tremendous interest among Multi National Enterprises (MNEs) and that has resulted in more than 700 applications (both unilateral and bilateral) having been filed in just four years.

– Amazon launches online Telugu book store

• Amazon.in has announced the launch of a dedicated online Telugu book store with a wide-range of over 10,000 Telugu titles.
• Readers can also get Telugu translations of English bestsellers in the store.
• Telugu will be the eighth dedicated language book store on Amazon India. Currently, Amazon caters to Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Marathi, Malayalam, Gujarati and Bengali languages.

– RBI Forecasts 7.6 percent GDP growth for this fiscal

• Reserve Bank of India has said that the near-term growth outlook for India seems brighter than last fiscal and the economy is likely to expand at 7.6 per cent in 2016-17.
• In its Annual Report 2015-16 released yesterday, RBI said a better than anticipated agricultural performance and the possibility of allowances under the 7th Pay Commission’s award being paid out in the fourth quarter of 2016-17 provide upsides to this projection.
• The report highlights that the passage of Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill marks a new era in co-operative fiscal federalism and a growing political consensus for economic reforms.
• RBI said that the commitment of the central government to the path of fiscal consolidation in 2016-17 has enhanced the credibility of fiscal policy, which will, in turn, help in anchoring inflation expectations and in improving the business environment.

 

— APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGN—

– CRPF ropes in PV Sindhu as its brand ambassador

• A news which is expected to bring cheer to country’s largest paramilitary force CRPF. Not just a cheerleader but CRPF has convinced the Champion, country’s latest sports star – Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu to be its Brand Ambassador. The entire Monday was spent by CRPF to formalise the proposal.
• Though MHA gave a quick nod to CRPF, the force will have await a final nod from President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister NarendraModi. Once the green signal is given, the largest Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) will bestow the honorary rank of Commandant on the ace badminton player.
• Sindhu will be honoured and presented the rank badges and camouflage combat fatigues of the CRPF at a ceremonial event. This is a symbolic representation, with no salary or fee being given to the sports star.

 

— AWARDS AND HONOURS —

– Padma Sachdev gets SaraswatiSamman for year 2015

• Eminent author Padma Sachdev was awarded the prestigious SaraswatiSamman for the year 2015 for her autobiography ‘Chitt-Chete’ in Dogri language. She was felicitated by Delhi’s Lt Governor Najeeb Jung in New Delhi yesterday.
• The award is given every year for an outstanding literary work written in any Indian language by an Indian citizen, published during the last 10 years. The award carries a sum of Rs 15 lakh besides a citation and a plaque.
• The 76-year-old poet and novelist’s autobiography, published in 2007, was shortlisted from 22 works written in as many languages published between 2005 and 2014.
• Sachdev, who is the first women poet in Dogri language, has been a recipient of SahityaAkademi Award in 1971 for her poetry book ‘MeriKavita Mere Geet.’ She has 60 books to her credit and recited poems in several regional languages, including Gujarati and Punjabi.

 

— SPORTS —

– Western Railway wins all India railway athletic championship

• Western Railway won the overall team championship in the 82nd All India Railway athletic Championship held at Tiruchirapalli Tamil Nadu yesterday. Central railway stood second and Southern Railway third in the overall team category.
• Best athlete award in men’s category was given to Jasdeep Singh of Northern Railway and best women athlete award to Dutee Chand of Northern Railway.
• Tiruchirapalli Railway Divisional manager A K Agarwal gave away the trophies and prizes. In the men’s category, Western Railway came first and in the women’s category Central Railway won the championship trophy.
• In the women’s 100 m race Dutee Chand of Central railway and in the men’s 100 m race Manikantha Raj of South Central Railway won the gold.

– NicoRosberg wins Belgian Grand Prix’16

• NicoRosberg of Mercedes on 28 August 2016 won the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix of Formula One.
• It was Rosberg’s 1st ever win at Spa and 6th of the 2016 season. This win has narrowed the gap between Hamilton & him to 9 points in the championship standings.
• Belgian Grand Prix is one of the most popular races of the F1 calendar, due to the scenic and historic circuit being favorite of drivers & fans.

– Wrestler YogeshwarDutt’s London Olympics bronze medal upgraded to silver

• Indian wrestler YogeshwarDutt’s bronze medal from the London Olympics has been upgraded to silver after second-place finisher late BesikKudukhov of Russia was stripped off his medal for failing a dope test.
• Yogeshwar informed via twitter that this morning he came to know that his Olympics medal has been upgraded to silver.
• The wrestler dedicated his medal to people of the nation. As per Russian agency, flowrestling.org, Kudukhov, who had died in a car crash in 2013 in southern Russia, was found to have used a banned substance in a test conducted by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
• As a result, Yogeshwar, who had bagged a bronze medal in men’s 60kg freestyle category in the London Games, has now joined Sushil Kumar as the other silver medallist wrestler from the 2012 Olympics.

 

— OBITUARY —

– Veteran painter Dinanath Pathy passes away

• Noted painter, writer and art historian Dr.DinanathPathy passed away following a cardiac arrest at a private hospital here today. He was 74.
• Pathy was admitted to Kar Clinic here after he felt chest pain while on his morning walk today. Though he was given treatment by doctors, he died shortly thereafter.
• A former secretary of the Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi and Bhubaneswar, Pathy was one of the pioneers of the art movement in the State.
• He dedicated his life to promotion of Odia art all over the world though his art work, poetry and teaching.
• He was also the former principal of the BK College of Art and Crafts in Bhubaneswar and chairman ofIla Panda Centre for Art