Current Affairs Today 15th & 16th March 2020| Current Affairs News

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Daily Current Affairs PDF of 15th & 16th March 2020

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

World Consumer Rights Day

  • It is observed on 15 March every year for raising global awareness about consumer rights and needs.
  • Thetheme for World Consumer Rights Day 2020, will be ‘The Sustainable Consumer‘.
  • The campaign will discuss the need for sustainable consumption globally, as well as highlighting the important role thatconsumer rights and protection can play.”

National Vaccination Day

  • National Vaccination Day is observed every year on 16th march in India which is also known as National Immunisation Day (IMD).
  • It was first observed on 16 March, 1995 when the first dose of Oral Polio Vaccine was given. It is an attempt to increase awareness for the eradication of polio from the planet earth.
  • This year the theme promoted is “VaccinesWork for All”.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Union Government implementing POSHAN Abhiyaan to address problem of malnutrition across the country

  • Union Government is implementing POSHAN Abhiyaan across the country to address the problem of malnutrition. The programme was launched on 8th March in 2018 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Jhunjhunu.
  • The Abhiyaan aims to reduce malnutrition in the country in a phased manner through a life cycle approach.
  • Its goal is to reduce stunting, under-nutrition, anemia among young children, women and adolescent girls and reduce low birth weight.

India pledged $10 million toward a Covid-19 emergency fund

  • Government of India pledged $10 million toward a Covid-19 emergency fund. India also planned to put together a rapid response team of doctors and specialists for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) nations.
  • India suggested Integrated Disease Surveillance Portal (IDSP) that is currently being used to detect infected patients and contact tracing.

About SAARC

  • SAARC founded: 8 December 1985
  • Headquarters of SAARC: Kathmandu, Nepal.
  • Member countries of SAARC: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATES

Phool Dei Festival Uttarakhand

  • Phool Dei is the harvest festival of the state
  • The festival is celebrated on the first day of the Hindu month, Chaitra.
  • Phool Dei is all about flowers and springtime. In some places, the festival is celebrated as carnival and the celebration goes on for a month. The term ‘Dei’ refers to a ceremonial pudding which is the key food in this festival that is made from jaggery. White flour and curd are also offered to everyone.
About Uttarakhand
  • Capital- Dehradun (Winter capital), Gairsain (Summer capital).
  • Chief Minister-Trivendra Singh Rawat
  • Governor- Baby Rani Maurya.

Kerala govt orders poultry culling after bird flu in Parappanangadi

  • Kerala government ordered the poultry culling in Parappanangadi in the backdrop of bird flu.
  • Special squads have been deployed to cull all poultry within a one-kilometre radius of the epicenter.
  • Two avian influenza incidents were reported at Kodiathoor and Vengeri villages in the state.
Recent News in Kerala
  • The Kerala Real Estate Regulatory Authority (K-RERA) will help build trust in the real estate sector and infuse it with transparency and efficiency.
  • Kerala was the first to take the legislature route to register its opposition to the CAA law
  • Kerala CM launched ”Yodhavu” mobile app to combat drug menace
  • Kerala government declared coronavirus as state disaster
About Kerala
  • Capital- Trivandrum
  • CM- Pinarayi Vijayan
  • Governor- Arif Mohammed Khan

Manipur CM announces scheme for welfare of sportspersons and artists

  • Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh has announced the biggest ever scheme for the welfare of sports persons and artists of the State.
  • The announcement was made during third-anniversary celebrations of the BJP led government in Manipur at Imphal.
  • ‘Chief Minister’s Akhannaba Sanaroising gi Tengbang (CMAST)’ and Chief Minister Artist Sing gi Tengbang (CMAT)’ would provide benefits to thousands of sportspersons and artistes of the State who have brought laurels to the State and Country.
  • Under the CMAST Scheme, a suitable employment in government services will be provided to sports persons, who have won medals in notified disciplines in selected International Sports events. The scheme would also support the sports persons on purchasing of costly sports items. Also, cash awards for Olympic participants have been enhanced to 1 crore, 75 lakh, 50 lakh and 10 lakh rupees for different categories. Sportsperson who have represented in National and International tournaments and are unemployed would be given lifetime pension.
  • In scheme for artists, CMAT is designed with a view to encourage the artists in different fields and targeted to cover 4000 artistes in a year.
  • Pension will be given to selected artists who are 60 years and above. Monetary support would be extended to cultural groups or institutes for training and productions in various fields of arts and culture. Financial assistance will also be provided to the students studying in government dance and music institutes in Manipur.
About Manipur
  • Capital- Imphal
  • CM- Biren Singh
  • Governor- Najma Heptulla

Karnataka is the first state to invoke provisions of Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897

  • Karnataka has become the first state in the country to notify ‘Karnataka Epidemic Diseases, COVID-19 Regulations, 2020’ under the Epidemic Diseases Act , 1897, Karnataka.
  • The regulation will be in effect for a period of one year starting from March 11, 2020 to prevent the outbreak and spread of the novel coronavirus.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND ECONOMY

IDFC First Bank to invest Rs.250 cr in Yes Bank

  • IDFC First Bank will make an equity investment of Rs.250 crore in beleaguered Yes Bank to acquire 25 crore equity shares.
  • Federal Bank had committed to investing Rs.300 crore in Yes Bank for subscription of its 30 crore shares.
  • The Centre notified the YES Bank Limited Reconstruction Scheme, 2020, a day after the Union Cabinet approved a reconstruction plan proposed by the RBI for bailing out fund-starved Yes Bank.
  • The authorised capital of Yes Bank has been increased to Rs.6,200 crore

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING

India ranked 12th globally in ‘Women On Board 2020’ study

  • India has been ranked 12th in the world as per study titled ‘Women On Board 2020’. The list was topped by Norway with 40.72% women on board. A study on ‘Women On Board 2020’ has been done jointly by global recruitment tendering platforms MyHiringClub and Sarkari-Naukri. The 7824 listed companies across 36 countries were considered for the study. From India, 628 listed companies participated in an online study.
  • The study was based on the presence of women in companies’ board globally.Results of study on ‘Women On Board 2020′
  • Norway topped the list with 40.72% women on board
  • Around 54% of employees in Asia and 39% in India are women
  • India ranked 12th in the world in women member presence on board
  • Among 628 listed companies from India, 55% companies were having women directors

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOU

CRPF inks MoU to re-skill specially-abled troops in cyberspace ops, AI

  • The CRPF inked a deal with a disability support NGO in order to train its troops, who lost their limbs in operations, in various skills including cyber operations, artificial intelligence and para-sports.
  • A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was formalised between the force and the Aditya Mehta Foundation here in presence of CRPF Director General (DG) A P Maheshwari.
  • The MoU is aimed to create new opportunities for such personnel who remain an integral part of the force.
  • The DG also honoured five such specially-abled personnel of the force with DG’s commendation disc and certificates for bringing laurels in the field of para-sports
  • In a separate event, the CRPF chief also handed over appointment letters to a family member of each of 20 personnel who were killed in the line of duty.
  • The companies that offered jobs include Wipro, Toyota, Dream Studio, Virtusa and Garcorp
  • The 3.25 lakh personnel strong Central Reserve Police Force is country’s largest paramilitary and is categorised as the lead internal security and anti-Naxal operations armed police unit of the country.
About CRPF
  • Headquarters- New Delhi
  • Director General (DG)- A P Maheshwari.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION

Justice (Retd) Bansi Lal Bhat appointed NCLAT officiating Chairperson 

  • Justice (Retd) Bansi Lal Bhat, Member (Judicial) of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, was appointed NCLAT’s officiating Chairperson following the completion of the term of Justice (Retd) S J Mukhopadhaya.
  • Justice Bhat will hold the position of officiating Chairperson for a period of three months with effect from March 15 or until a regular Chairperson is appointed or till until further orders.
About National Company Law Tribunal
  • Founded- 1 June 2016
  • Headquarters- New Delhi

Jammu and Kashmir: Baseer Khan appointed as advisor to Lt Governor

  • The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) today accorded sanction to the appointment of Division Commissioner Kashmir, Baseer Ahmad Khan, as Advisor to Lt. Governor.
  • The Advisor, according to communication from MHA, shall assist the Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Girish Chandra Murmu, in effective discharge of his functions.
  • The appointment will be effective from the date from which he assumes charge.

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOURS

Rohini Mohan and Arfa Khanum Sherwani win the Chameli Devi Jain Award for outstanding woman journalists

  • The 2019 Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Women Mediaperson for the year has been awarded to independent journalist Rohini Mohan and The Wire‘s Arfa Khanum Sherwani.
  • First given in the 1980s, the award is instituted by the Media Foundation. Last year’s recipient was Priyanka Dubey of the BBC.
  • Sherwani was chosen for her reporting from conflict situations in Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh while Rohini was chosen for her report on the NRC exercise in Assam.
  • Chameli Devi Jain Award recognizes social concern, dedication, courage and compassion. It received over 40 entries from all over India representing the print, broadcast and online media.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

ARCI develops cost-effective solar technology for industrial process heat

  • Scientists from the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), Hyderabad, an autonomous institution under the Department of Science and Technology (DST), have developed a cost-effective solar receiver tube technology for industrial process heat applications.
  • The receiver tube technology developed by the ARCI team efficiently absorbs solar radiation and converts it into heat for the targeted applications, especially in industries. It exhibits high corrosion resistance suitable for Indian weather conditions.
  • The solar receiver tube is one of the key components in the CST technology. Currently, Indian CST plant developers are importing the high-end evacuated CSP receivers for CST applications. This has become a choking point for the commercialization of CST technology.
  • In this regard, scientists from ARCI have developed a cost-effective wet chemical process to prepare absorber coating on stainless steel tubes suitable for industrial process heat applications.
  • The receiver tube achieved around 93 % absorptance (effectiveness in absorbing radiant energy, It is the ratio of the absorbed to the incident radiant power) and around 14 % emittance (amount of light, emitted by an area of the surface of a radiating body) along with good thermal stability and high corrosion resistance.
  • The absorber coating has been successfully validated for heat gain and heat loss studies in a testing facility established at ARCI.
  • Two patent applications have been filed for this technology, and an MoU has been signed with M/s. Greenera Energy India Private Limited for technology transfer, which plans to mass-produce the solar receiver tube for wider market absorption.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPS AND PORTALS

BhoomiRashi portal significantly expedited land acquisition for National Highways

  • The ‘BhoomiRashi’ Portal launched in March 2018 has significantly expedited the process of land acquisition for National Highways.
  • The ministry claims that the portal has made the process error-free and more transparent with notifications at every stage being processed on a real-time basis.
  • The portal has been integrated with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) for depositing the compensation in the account of affected/ interested persons on a real-time basis.
  • This integration has resulted in avoiding the parking of huge public funds in the account of the Competent Authority for Land Acquisition.
About Ministry of National Highways
  • Minister for Road Transport & Highways of India and Shipping Ministry of MSME- Nitin Jairam Gadkari
  • Constituency- Nagpur, Maharashtra

Microsoft launches website to track COVID-19

  • Microsoft has launched a web portal to track the spread of COVID-19 worldwide. The web portal has been launched by Microsoft’s Bing team.
  • The portal aims to track the spread of novel coronavirus in the world. The website is accessible at “bing.com/covid” and provides up-to-date infection statistics for each country.

About Microsoft

  • Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft—- Satya Nadella.
  • Microsoft Founded—April 4, 1975;
  • Headquarters——– Washington, United States.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS

Rampaging ATK grab historic third ISL title 

  • A rampaging ATK claimed an unprecedented third Indian Super League (ISL) title triumph with a 3-1 victory over arch-rival Chennaiyin FC in a summit showdown that was played behind closed doors.
  • Javier Hernandez (10th) and Edu Garcia (48th) put ATK in the driving seat but Nerijus Valskis (69th) reduced their advantage to set up a tense end to the contest.
  • Hernandez scored another in injury time (90+4th) to confirm a record third title.

Achanta Sharath Kamal wins men’s singles title in Oman Open

  • Ace Indian paddler of Table Tennis, Achanta Sharath Kamal wins the ITTF Challenger Plus Oman Open men’s singles title.
  • He beat top-seeded Marcos Freitas of Portugal 4-2 in the final played in Muscat.

About Oman

  • Oman Capital: Muscat
  • Currency: Omani rial
  • King of OMAN- Haitham bin Tariq Al Said

DAILY CA 14TH MAR

  • World Sleep day- 13th March
  • International Pi Day- 14th March
  • The International Day of Action for Rivers-14th March
  • HM Amit Shah addresses Flag-in ceremony of Ganga Aamantran Abhiyaan
  • Census India-2021 to be conducted in two phasesIC
  • Union Cabinet approves construction of 780 kilometer of green highways in four states
  • Iran seeks financial assistance from IMF for the first time since 1962 to counter coronavirus pandemic
  • ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra, Axis join SBI for YES Bank stake
  • RBI to infuse Rs.4.05 lakh crore rupee liquidity
  • RBI cuts UCB exposure limits to group of connected borrowers; give one more year to meet enhanced PSL norms
  • UBS cuts India GDP growth forecast to 5.1 per cent for FY21
  • Meghalaya to invest Rs 450 crore for development of sports
  • HAL inks pact with Blue Ray Aviation for supply of two Dornier Do-228 multi-role aircraft
  • DFS secretary Debasish Panda nominated on central board of RBI
  • Sunil Mehta to be Non-Executive Chairman, Prashant Kumar to be MD & CEO of YES Bank
  • Bill Gates steps down from Microsoft, Berkshire boards to focus on philanthropy
  • Hyderabad boy Amgoth Tukaram scales highest Oz peak
  • India’s first culinary arts museum at WGSHA enters Limca Book of Records, founded by chef Vikas Khanna
  • Abilities in disabilities ‘Divya Kala Shakti’ event in Chennai
  • ‘Wings India 2020’ aviation exhibition kicks off in Hyderabad
  • Animal Protection Index 2020
  • Taylor Swift tops Google’s 2020 list of most-searched woman in music
  • Alibaba’s Jack Ma Overtakes Reliance’s Mukesh Ambani As Asia’s Richest Man
  • Jaydev Unadkat-led Saurashtra beat Bengal to clinch maiden Ranji Trophy title
  • Former Czech Olympic javelin champion Dana Zatopkova dies at 97

DAILY CA 15TH and 16TH MAR

  • World Consumer Rights Day observed on 15 March every year
  • National Vaccination Day is observed every year on 16th march
  • Union Government is implementing POSHAN Abhiyaan across the country to address the problem of malnutrition.
  • Phool Dei is the harvest festival held in the state Uttarakhand
  • Kerala government orders poultry culling after bird flu in Parappanangadi
  • Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh has announced the biggest ever scheme for the welfare of sports persons and artists of the State
  • Karnataka is the first state to invoke provisions of Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897
  • IDFC First Bank will make an equity investment of ₹250 crore in beleaguered Yes Bank to acquire 25 crore equity shares
  • India pledged $10 million toward a Covid-19 emergency fund
  • CRPF inks MoU to re-skill specially-abled troops in cyberspace ops, AI
  • India ranked 12th globally in ‘Women On Board 2020’ study
  • Microsoft launches website to track COVID-19
  • Justice (Retd) Bansi Lal Bhat appointed NCLAT officiating Chairperson
  • Jammu and Kashmir: Baseer Khan appointed as advisor to Lt Governor
  • Rohini Mohan and Arfa Khanum Sherwani win the Chameli Devi Jain Award for outstanding woman journalists
  • ARCI develops cost-effective solar technology for industrial process heat
  • BhoomiRashi portal significantly expedited land acquisition for National Highways
  • Rampaging ATK grab historic third ISL title
  • Achanta Sharath Kamal wins men’s singles title in Oman Open

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