Current Affairs Update - 01 September 2016

Updated on : 15:24, 6 September 2016

— NATIONAL —

– BRICS Convention on Tourism begins in Madhya Pradesh

• The two day “BRICS Convention on Tourism” began at world heritage site Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh today. State’s Tourism Minister SurendraPatwa and Union Tourism Secretary VinodZutshi inaugurated the event. Delegations from the BRICS countries India, Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa are participating in the convention.
• The event comprises of inter- governmental exchange of views and ideas and panel discussions on different subjects including cooperation between the BRICS countries for promoting intra-regional tourism. Business to Business meetings between the India Travel Trade and their counterparts from the BRICS countries will also be organised.
• The convention is being organised as a precursor to the BRICS Summit to be held in Goa in October this year.

– Odisha Assembly ratifies GST Bill

• The Odisha assembly today ratified the 122nd Constitutional amendment bill on Goods and Services Tax, GST. The members cutting across party lines gave their nod for ratification of the bill today in a special one day session of the assembly a short while ago.
• AIR correspondent reports that after a decade-long dilly-dallying and deliberations among political think-tanks of the country, the much awaited one nation, one market dream would soon be a reality.
• With Odisha emerging as the 16th state to have ratified the historic GST bill today, the bill has enlisted the support of at least 50 per cent of the states, thereby fulfilling the constitutional obligation of making the bill into an act.
• Now the deck is cleared for the bill to head for the Presidential assent, before the new indirect tax regime becomes a reality from the ensuing financial year, making the nation savour its multiple benefits.

– Justice Dhingra submits report on Robert Vadra’s land deals

• A judicial inquiry into the controversial land deals in Haryana allegedly involving Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra has submitted its report to the state government.
• Justice S N Dhingra heading the inquiry commission, presented a 182-page report to Chief Minister ManoharLalKhattar yesterday. The Commission had been appointed to probe land deals in Gurgaon during the tenure of the then Chief Minister, Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
• Interacting with media after submitting the report, Justice Dhingra said he has elaborated in the report the manners adopted to commit irregularities and the people behind it. He, however, refused to give details of the report as the government has not made it public yet.
• The Chief Minister said, the government is studying the report and action will be taken against guilty thereafter. Former Chief Minister Bhupender Singh Hooda has said that inquiry is nothing but witch hunt against political opponents.

– Cabinet approves permanent residency plan for foreign investors

• The Union Cabinet has approved the scheme for grant of Permanent Residency Status (PRS) to foreign investors subject to the relevant conditions in the FDI Policy notified by the Government from time to time.
• The scheme is expected to encourage foreign investment in India and facilitate Make in India Programme.
• Under the scheme, suitable provisions will be incorporated in the Visa Manual to provide for the grant of PRS to foreign investors.
• The PRS will be granted for a period of ten years with multiple entry. This can be reviewed for another 10 years if the PRS holder has not come to adverse notice. The scheme will be applicable only to foreign investors fulfilling the prescribed eligibility conditions, his/her spouse and dependents.

– Centre notifies National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme

• Centre today notified National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme. The Scheme has an outlay of 10,000 crore rupees with a target of 50 Lakh apprentices to be trained by 2019-20. Ministry of Skill development in a release said, it is for the first time a scheme has been notified to offer financial incentives to employers.
• Under the scheme, government will share 25 per cent of prescribed stipend subject to a maximum of 1,500 rupees per month per apprentice with employers. The Ministry said all transactions including registration by employers, apprentices, registration of contract and payment to employers will be made as online mode.

– MoU signed between MoUD and Amar Chitra Katha for Swachh Bharat Mission

• The Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) signed a Memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Amar Chitra Katha to publish and distribute a special edition of the comic book, focusing on Swachh Bharat Mission here today.
• The 32-page comic book will carry messages pertaining to sanitation and solid waste components of Swachh Bharat Mission.
• The book would comprise a series of inspirational stories from the mission, cleanliness rankings of cities, the public figures and ambassadors, environmental impact, and stories of individuals and organizations that can inspire children to the concept of ‘Swachhata’.

– Maharashtra and Gujarat governors get additional charge of TN and MP

• The Centre announced that the governors of Maharashtra and Gujarat will hold the additional charge of Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh.
• Governor of Maharashtra ChVidyasagarRao and Governor of Gujarat Om PrakashKohli will hold additional charge of the states of Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh.
• Rao will discharge the functions of the Governor of Tamil Nadu until regular arrangements for the office are made in place of K Roshaiah whose tenure ended on August 30.
• Kohli will discharge the functions of the Governor of Madhya Pradesh until a regular appointment in place of Ram NareshYadav, who completes his tenure on September 7, is made, a RashtrapatiBhavan Communiqué said.

– Centre constitutes expert committee to study silt in river Ganga in Bihar

• The Centre will send a team to Bihar to study silt in river Ganga. The Centre has constituted an expert committee of four members to study the silt in the river. In a letter addressed to Bihar government, it said that the team has been instructed to submit its report within 10 days.
• Member of Ganga Flood Control commission A .K. Sinha has been made Chairman of the committee. Other members are Chief Engineer of Central Water Commission S.K.Sahu, Prof. of IIT, A.K. Gosain and members of National Disaster Management Authority Dr. RajnishRanjan.
• During meeting with Prime Minister NarendraModi Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had requested him to send an expert team to study silt in Ganga which caused devastating prevailing flood in the state. Mr. Kumar also said the centre should frame National Silt Policy to sort out various problems related to rivers throughout the state.

 

— INTERNATIONAL —

– Brazilian Senate impeaches Rousseff

• Brazil’s Senate has removed President, DilmaRousseff, from the office for breaking budgetary laws.
• This ends an impeachment process that polarized the country and paralyzed its politics for nine months.
• Senators voted 61 to 20 to convict MsRousseff for illegally using money from state banks to boost public spending.
• Michel Temer has been sworn in as 37th President of the country.

– Gabon’s President Bongo re-elected, national assembly set on fire

• In Central African country, Gabon, supporters of opposition candidate Jean Ping have set the national assembly on fire after President Ali Bongo was declared winner of Saturday’s presidential election. Police used tear gas and water cannon to try to quell street protests.
• Bongo secured a second seven-year term with 49.8 per cent of the vote to Mr Ping’s 48.2 per cent, a margin of 5,594 votes. Ping disputes the result.

– Festival of India to be held across 6 cities in Australia

• A 10-week-long festival showcasing dance, music, theatre, sports and other visual arts from India and Australia is set to launch next month across six cities of the island nation. It aims to foster cultural ties between the two countries.
• Minister of State for External Affairs, V K Singh, said it will give a cross-section of how rich this culture is and with this collaborated effort we are looking at much more interaction between the people of two countries. The festival will also foster collaborations between artists from both countries.
• The “Confluence-Festival of India,” which was announced by Prime Minister NarendraModi during his visit to Australia in November 2014, will witness some of the finest elementsfrom the rich tapestry of Indian culture and civilization.

– President of Egypt to arrive on three-day visit to India today

• President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, is arriving on a three-day visit to India today. He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising Ministers, officials and business leaders.
• Mr Al-Sisi will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Modi tomorrow. President Pranab Mukherjee will host a Banquet in the honour of the visiting dignitary.

 

— BANKING —

– RBI to regulate P2P lending

• The RBI has proposed that peer-to-peer lending platforms would be regulated as a separate category of NBFCs.
• The regulator said it was examining feedback received from various stakeholders to finalise the regulatory framework.
• Peer-to-peer (P2P) lending is a form of crowd-funding with financial returns. Borrowers and lenders are brought together online with the help of the P2P lending platform, which is used to raise unsecured finance.
• The platform conducts a preliminary assessment of a borrower’s creditworthiness and collection of loan repayments and charges both borrowers and lenders a fee.

– To launch UPI-based app; Flipkart’sPhonePe ties up with Yes Bank

• Mobile payments start-up PhonePe Internet Pvt. Ltd, which is owned by Flipkart, in partnership with Yes Bank has launched unified payments interface (UPI) based payments app.
• PhonePe allows users to link their bank accounts securely to their smartphone using National Payments Corporation of India’s encrypted libraries.
• Once linked, users can authorize money transfers or merchant payments instantly by simply entering their 4-6 digit MPIN, a personal code.
• Money is instantly transferred directly from the sender’s bank account to the recipient’s bank account. There’s no need to enter one time password to authorize a transaction.

 

— BUSINESS AND ECONOMY —

– Government to issue Fifth Tranche of Sovereign Gold Bonds

• The Government of India, in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has decided to issue 5th Tranche of Sovereign Gold Bonds. Applications for the bonds will be accepted from September 01, 2016 to September 09, 2016.
• The Bonds will be issued on September 23, 2016. The Bonds will be sold through banks, Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited (SHCIL), designated post offices and recognised stock exchanges viz., National Stock Exchange of India Limited and Bombay Stock Exchange.
• It may be recalled that the Union Finance Minister ShriArunJaitley had announced in his Budget Speech while presenting the Union Budget 2015-16 in Parliament about developing a financial asset, Sovereign Gold Bond, as an alternative to purchasing the metal gold.

– Britian-India bilateral relationship has potential to become stronger partnership in trade, investment: Liam Fox

• Bilateral relationship between the Britian and India has the potential to become a stronger partnership, particularly in trade and investment. United Kingdom Secretary of State for International Trade Mr. Liam Fox said this while addressing a gathering of business leaders in Mumbai yesterday.
• In his keynote address to Mumbai’s business community, Mr. Fox underscored the UK’s place in the global economy post EU referendum and assured the country’s support to Indian businesses. He said a more open economy means a greater two-way flow of investment, both fuelling an increased capacity in the industrial base and opening the way to greater export potential.

– Country’s economic growth recorded 7.1% in first quarter of current fiscal

• The country’s economy grew at 7.1 % in the April to June quarter of the current fiscal. This is the slowest growth in the last six quarters and was mainly due to subdued performance of the mining, construction and farm sectors.
• GDP had expanded 7.5 % growth in the year-ago quarter, and 7.9% in the January to March 2016 quarter. According to data released by the Central Statistics Office, growth in the farm sector was 1.8%, and in construction it was 1.5% during the quarter under review. But manufacturing sector growth accelerated to 9.1 %.

 

— APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGN—

– AishwaryaaDhanush appointed U.N. Women’s advocate for Gender Equality

• Noted filmmaker and actor Rajinikanth’s daughter AishwaryaaDhanush was on Monday appointed United Nations Women’s Advocate for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in India.
• Ms. Aishwaryaa’s appointment was announced by Lakshmi Puri, U.N. Assistant Secretary General and U.N. Women Deputy Executive Director.
• Aishwaryaa will help raise awareness of U.N. Women’s core message of gender equality and women’s empowerment across India, boosting the organisation’s efforts to close the gender gap and achieve a more equal world — a Planet 50-50, by the year 2030.

– RK Pachauri Replaced: Ashok Chawla is TERI’s New Chancellor

• TERI has ended its last major association with RK Pachauri who has been facing sexual harassment charges with former finance secretary Ashok Chawla replacing him as the chancellor of the university.
• The announcement of Chawla replacing Pachauri was conveyed to the students of the university on Tuesday by its pro vice chancellor Rajiv Seth.
• Earlier named as the chairman of TERI, Chawla will replace Pachauri who had gone on leave after communicating that he would skip the institution’s convocation in March after a group of students refused to receive degrees from him.

 

— AWARDS AND HONOURS —

– Bezwada Wilson, T.M. Krishna receive Magsaysay award

• Two Indians — Carnatic singer T.M. Krishna and campaigner for eradication of manual scavenging Bezwada Wilson — were among six persons who received the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay prize for 2016 here on Wednesday.
• Wilson, 50, the national convenor of the SafaiKarmachariAndolan (SKA), got the award for “asserting the inalienable right to a life of human dignity” while 40-year-old Krishna won it under the ‘Emergent Leadership’ category for bringing “social inclusiveness in culture.”
• Four others who received the award are: ConchitaCarpio-Morales of the Philippines, DompetDhuafa of Indonesia, Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers and ‘Vientiane Rescue’ of Laos.

– Irrfan Khan awarded with ‘Entertainer of the Year’

• Actor Irrfan Khan, known for his work in Bollywood and the west, was honoured with the Entertainer of the Year award.
• The 49-year-old actor, credited with films like Paan Singh Tomar, The Lunchbox, Life of Pi, Piku and Talvar, was presented the honour by Finance Minister ArunJaitley.
• He was last seen on the big screen in director NishikantKamat’s social-thriller Madaari. He now looks forward to the release of his American mystery thriller Inferno, which also features Hollywood star Tom Hanks.

 

— SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY —

– ISRO to launch two satellites in September

• Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) that had braced itself for one launch every month is planning two launches this month.
• “INSAT-3DR is scheduled for September 8 and by end of September we will have ScatSat along with an Algerian satellite as its co-passenger,” ISRO chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar told reporters here on the sidelines of Bangalore Space Expo-2016 (BSX-2016).
• The launch of GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) Mark II carrying the geostationary weather satellite INSAT-3DR was earlier postponed due to a technical issue found in a satellite component while carrying out tests.
• It was earlier scheduled for launch on August 28.

 

— SPORTS —

– Paes, Mirza, Bopanna win at US Open

• Indian tennis stars Leander Paes, SaniaMirza and RohanBopanna began their US Open campaign on a sound note. They won their respective opening round matches at Flushing Meadows in New York.
• Bopanna kicked off India’s day with 6-3, 6-7 (3), 6-3 win with his Danish partner Frederik Nielsen over 16th seeds RadekStepanek and NenadZimonjic in the first round men’s doubles yesterday.
• Seventh seeds SaniaMirza and her Czech partner BarboraStrycova defeated unseeded American pairing of Jada Myii Hart and Ena Shibahara 6-2, 6-3 in a fairly comfortable fashion in women’s doubles.
• Leander Paes and his mixed doubles partner Martina Hingis also had a light workout at the court. They secured a 6-3, 6-2 win against Americans Sachia Vickery and Frances Tiafoe.

– Ashwin Slips to 3rd in ICC Test Rankings

• Off-spinner R Ashwin dropped a rung to 3rd but remained the highest-placed Indian bowler.
• AjinkyaRahane at 8th in the batsmen’s list of the latest ICC Test rankings .
• Rahane was the lone Indian in the top-10 of batting charts.
• South Africa pace bowler Dale Steyn stormed back to the number-one position rankings for Test bowlers.
• India stands 2nd in the list of test rankings team behind Pakistan.

– Indian Para athletes leave for Paralympic Games

• Indian para athletes left for the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro last night for the Summer Paralympic Games beginning next week.
• The Indian contingent, largest-ever from the country, comprises of 18 athletes.
• Prime Minister NarendraModi in a tweet wished the very best to the athletes. He said, the people of country will be enthusiastically cheering for them.
• He expressed the hope that the athletes will give their best and make everyone proud.The Paralympic Games begin on Wednesday and will conclude on 18th of this month.