DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 15 JAN 2018

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 15 JAN 2018

(DAILY NEWS INDIA)

SHARED BY: WWW.DAILYGK.IN

1.      NITISH KUMAR LAUNCHES SCHEMES WORTH OVER RS 200 CR DURING VIKAS SAMIKSHA YATRA

i. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar launched schemes worth over Rs.200 cr during his state-wide “Vikas Samiksha Yatra” and lays foundation stones for more than 100 projects.

i. Nitish Kumar visited Rohtas and Bhojpur districts for the “Vikas Samiksha Yatra”. He inaugurated 257 schemes worth Rs. 222 cr, at a village in the Jagdishpur block of Bhojpur.

iii. He also visited a village under Amethi panchayat of the Sanjhauli block of Rohtas, which is the first panchayat in Rohtas to become ODF.

2.      ISRAELI PM BENJAMIN NETANYAHU IN INDIA

i. India and Israel have agreed to enhance co-operation in the areas of agriculture, science and technology and security.

ii. Benjamin Netanyahu, who is the 2nd Israeli PM to visit India after Ariel Sharon, was accorded a ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhawan. The first one took place when PM Narendra Modi visited Israel in July 2017, becoming the first Indian leader to visit the Jewish state.

3.      BIKANER CAMEL FESTIVAL 2018 IN RAJASTHAN

i. The Bikaner camel festival was held in Rajasthan. This festival is celebrated every year in Rajasthan to honour camels. The festival 2018 started with a procession of camels adorned with decorations and folk artists.

ii. Both Indian and foreign tourists participated in the festival. The procession was held from Junagarh fort to Karni Singh stadium. During the festival, camel dances, camel races, camel rides etc. were also held. The camel festival was organised by the Department of Tourism, Art and Culture.

4.     INDIA CONTRIBUTES USD 50,000 TO UN YOUTH ENVOY'S OFFICE

i. India has contributed USD 50,000 to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres's Office of Envoy on Youth to help with its mission of involving young people in the world body's goals.

ii. The contribution is voluntary with no strings attached and is in addition to the regular payments India makes to the UN's general and peacekeeping budgets.

5.      7TH EDITION OF ‘RASHTRIYA SANSKRITI MAHOTSAV-2018’ BEGINS IN KARNATAKA

i. 7th edition of the Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav, under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme, began in Karnataka. This event will continue till January 20, 2018.

ii. This event is being organised by Union Ministry of Culture. Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers and Parliamentary Affairs, Ananth Kumar and Union Minister of State for Culture (I/C) and Environment, Dr. Mahesh Sharma inaugurated the Mahotsav at Gandhi Nagar and Bengaluru.

iii. This Mahotsav will be various forms of art performances from classical and folk, music and dance, theatre to literature and the visual arts. A handloom and handicrafts-utsav is also being held at the event.

iv. Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme was launched by PM Narednra Modi on October, 31 2016. This programme aims to celebrate the idea of unity in diversity by promoting engagement amongst the people of different States/Union Territories and thereby strengthening people-to-people bond. Under this programme, Karnataka is paired with Uttarakhand.

6.      WEF RANKS INDIA 30TH ON GLOBAL MANUFACTURING INDEX

i. The World Economic Forum has ranked India at 30th position on a global manufacturing index - below China’s 5th place but above other BRICS peers, Brazil, Russia and South Africa.

ii. Japan has been found to have the best structure of production in the Geneva-based WEF’s first ‘Readiness for the future of production report’ and is followed by South Korea, Germany, Switzerland, China, Czech Republic, the US, Sweden, Austria and Ireland in the top 10. Among BRICS nations, Russia is ranked 35th, Brazil 41st and South Africa at 45th place.

7.      IDFC BANK, CAPITAL FIRST TO MERGE IN SHARE SWAP DEAL

i. IDFC Bank and Capital First has approved a merger of Capital First with IDFC Bank. Pursuant to the merger which is subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals, IDFC Bank will issue 139 shares for every 10 shares of Capital First.

ii. The deal values Capital First - owned more than a third by private equity firm Warburg Pincus - at Rs. 938.25 a share based on the two companies' price and giving the company a market value of Rs. 9,278 cr ($1.46 billion), Reuters calculations showed.

8.      FEDERAL BANK TIES UP WITH HEDGE EQUITIES

i. Federal Bank has entered into a strategic partnership with Hedge Equities Ltd for providing Portfolio Investment Scheme services to NRIs. A formal agreement was executed in which Jose K Mathew (EVP & Head Retail Business, Federal Bank) and Alex Babu (MD, Hedge Equities Ltd) exchanged the MoU announcing the tie-up.

ii. Federal Bank is authorised by the RBI to issue permission letter to NRIs on behalf of the RBI to transact in secondary market.

9.      BSE'S INDIA INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE LISTS IRFC'S FIRST GREEN BOND

i. The Bombay Stock Exchange's India International Exchange listed the first bond on its Global Securities Market.

ii. The bonds issued by Indian Railways Finance Corporation are one of the highest credit rated bonds issued by an Indian corporate and has been IRFC's first foray into the Green Bond market.

10.  JOHNSON & JOHNSON PARTNERS WITH MAHARASHTRA GOVT. ON HEALTH INTERVENTIONS

i. Maharashtra’s mine workers who face an increased risk of tuberculosis will be part of awareness programmes on the illness, as part of a partnership that the Maharashtra Government recently formalized with Johnson & Johnson. Other interventions under the ambit of the agreement include hospital acquired infections and maternal and infant mortality.

ii. The collaboration would also look at infection prevention, diabetes, obesity and menstrual hygiene and support healthcare professionals and nurses in the State to develop skills in these areas.

11.  15TH JANUARY 2018: 70TH ARMY DAY

i. The 70th Army Day is being celebrated on 15th January 2018. The day is celebrated to pay homage and salute to the courageous and brave Indian soldiers who have been sacrificing their lives for protecting the country.

ii. Every year on this day, the ‘Army Day’ is celebrated to commemorate the day when General (later Field Marshal) K.M Carriappa took over the command of Army from General Sir F.R.R Bucher, the last British Commander-in-Chief in 1949 and became the first Commander-in-Chief of Indian Army post Independence.

OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS BASED ON TODAY’S NEWS

Q1.  WHICH BANK HAS ENTERED INTO A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH HEDGE EQUITIES LTD FOR PROVIDING PORTFOLIO INVESTMENT SCHEME SERVICES TO NRIS RECENTLY?

a)  Bank of Baroda

b)  State Bank of India

c)  Federal Bank

d)  Axis Bank

Q2. WHICH BANK AND CAPITAL FIRST HAS APPROVED A MERGER IN SHARE SWAP DEAL RECENTLY?

a)  ICICI Bank

b)  IDBI Bank

c)  Axis Bank

d)  IDFC Bank  

Q3. WEF HAS RANKED INDIA AT WHICH POSITION ON A GLOBAL MANUFACTURING INDEX - BELOW CHINA’S 5TH PLACE BUT ABOVE OTHER BRICS PEERS, BRAZIL, RUSSIA AND SOUTH AFRICA?

a)  44th

b)  32nd

c)  30th

d)  25th

Q4. FEDERAL BANK IS AUTHORIZED BY THE RBI TO ISSUE PERMISSION LETTER TO NRIS ON BEHALF OF THE RBI TO TRANSACT IN SECONDARY MARKET. FEDERAL BANK BASED IN?

a)  Kerala

b)  Andhra Pradesh

c)  Karnataka

d)  Tamil Nadu

Q5. WHICH COUNTRY HAS BEEN FOUND TO HAVE THE BEST STRUCTURE OF PRODUCTION IN THE GENEVA-BASED WEF’S FIRST ‘READINESS FOR THE FUTURE OF PRODUCTION REPORT’?

a)  USA

b)  Japan

c)  Germany

d)  South Korea

ANSWERS: 

1 - C    2 - D    3 - C    4 - A    5 - B