DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 13 FEB 2018

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 13 FEB 2018
(DAILY NEWS INDIA)
SHARED BY: WWW.DAILYGK.IN

1.      R.K. SINGH INAUGURATES INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ‘INDIAN POWER STATIONS 2018’ IN NEW DELHI
i. Union Minister of State (I/C) for Power and New and Renewable Energy, Shri R.K. Singh inaugurated the ‘Indian Power Stations 2018’ in New Delhi. It is the 3-day International Conference on Operations and Maintenance.
ii. The Minister exhorted the NTPC to become India’s power sector multinational by setting up power plants in other Nations and become world’s largest power producer.

2.      FIRST INTERNATIONAL SOLAR ALLIANCE SUMMIT TO BE HELD IN NEW DELHI
i. India is to host the first International Solar Alliance Summit on 11th March 2018, in Delhi. French President Emanuel Macron will participate in the First International Solar Alliance Summit.
ii. Leaders of African countries, Presidents of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, leaders of South American countries and Pacific Islands are expected to attend the summit.
iii. Heads of World Bank, Asian Development Bank, BRICS Bank and European Investment Bank are also expected to participate in the summit. The International Solar Alliance is a treaty based inter-governmental alliance. It comprises of 121 solar energy abundant nations located between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn.
iv. The aim of ISA is to make solar energy affordable, develop solar grids and solar credit mechanism.


3.      12TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CSR HELD IN BENGALURU
i. The Institute Of Directors organised it’s 12th International Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
ii. In the conference, the Prestigious Golden Peacock Award 2017 were presented. The leadership award for philanthropy and social change was presented to Mr. Vineet Nayar, Founder Chairman, Sampark Foundation.

4.      8.4% GROWTH IN FOREIGN TOURIST ARRIVALS IN ONE YEAR
i. Ministry of Tourism compiles monthly estimates of Foreign Tourist Arrivals & FTAs on e- Tourist Visa on the basis of Nationality-wise, Port-wise data received from Bureau of Immigration.
ii. The growth rate in FTAs in January 2018 over January 2017 was 8.4%. During the month of January 2018, a total of 2.40 lakh foreign tourists arrived on e-Tourist Visa as compared to 1.52 lakh during the month of January 2017 registering a growth of 58.5%.
iii. The percentage share of top 3 source countries availing e- Tourist Visa facilities- UK (18.6%), USA (10.6%) and Russian Fed (6.5%).
iv. The percentage share of top 3 ports in foreign tourist arrivals on e-Tourist Visa- New Delhi Airport (37.3%), Mumbai Airport (19.6%) and Dabolim (Goa) Airport (12.4%)

5.      4TH NEPAL BUILDCON AND WOOD INTERNATIONAL EXPO 2018 HELD IN KATHMANDU
i. 4th Nepal Buildcon and Wood International Expo 2018 was held in Kathmandu from 8th – 11th February, 2018. The expo was inaugurated by Deputy PM of Nepal Kamal Thapa, while Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Sibgh Puri was the guest of honour for the event.
ii. This event served as a single platform for various stakeholders of construction industry viz. builders, architects, construction material suppliers, engineers, interior decorators, furniture suppliers and equipment manufacturers.
iii. More than 80 Indian companies participated in the expo through an Indian Pavilion. The Indian pavilion was jointly set up by Ministry of Commerce, Confederation of Indian Industry and Commerce Wing of Indian Embassy.

6.      WORLD'S TALLEST HOTEL 'GEVORA' OPENS IN DUBAI
i. The Gevora Hotel in Dubai, developed by the Al Attar Group has now become the “world’s tallest hotel”. It stands 356 metres and 53 centimetres tall.
ii. It is one metre taller than the previous holder of the title, the JW Marriott Marquis, in the same city. The title has been confirmed by Guinness Book of World Records.

7.      KISHAN GANGOLLI WINS 13TH EDITION OF NATIONAL CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP FOR BLIND
i. Defending champion Karnataka’s Kishan Gangolli won the 13th edition of the National ‘A’ Chess Championship for the blind in Mumbai. The championship was organised by All India Chess Federation for the Blin.
ii. Gangolli became the champion for the fifth consecutive time with 10.5 points. Gujarat’s Ashvin Makwana stood second with 9.5 points.

8.      WORLD'S 1ST AUTONOMOUS PODS UNVEILED IN DUBAI
i. Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority launched the first tests of the world’s first autonomous pods at the World Government Summit. The autonomous pods are launched in cooperation with Next Future Transportation (US-Based).
ii. They can be coupled together in as little 15 seconds or detached depending on the riders’ destination in five seconds.

9.      NATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY DAY- 12 FEBRUARY
i. The National Productivity Council observed the National Productivity Day. The council is also observing the National Productivity Week till February 18.
ii. The theme for NPD 2018 is 'Industry 4.0 Leapfrog Opportunity for India'.

OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS BASED ON TODAY’S NEWS

Q1. THE INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS ORGANIZED ITS 12TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN?
a)  Bengaluru
b)  Chennai
c)  Kolkata
d)  Delhi
Q2. MINISTRY OF TOURISM HAS COMPILED MONTHLY ESTIMATES OF FOREIGN TOURIST ARRIVALS & FTAS ON E- TOURIST VISA ON THE BASIS OF NATIONALITY-WISE, PORT-WISE DATA RECEIVED FROM BUREAU OF IMMIGRATION. THE GROWTH RATE IN FTAS IN JANUARY 2018 OVER JANUARY 2017 WAS?
a)  7.1%
b)  7.8%
c)  9.5%
d)  8.4%
Q3.  POWER AND NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY MINISTRY HAS RECENTLY ORGANIZED A 3-DAY INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE ‘INDIAN POWER STATIONS 2018’ IN?
a)  Chandigarh
b)  New Delhi
c)  Kochi
d)  Raipur
Q4. WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING CITY'S ROADS AND TRANSPORT AUTHORITY HAS RECENTLY LAUNCHED THE FIRST TESTS OF THE WORLD’S FIRST AUTONOMOUS PODS AT THE WORLD GOVERNMENT SUMMIT?
a)  Abu Dhabi
b)  Jerusalem
c)  Dubai
d)  Riyadh
Q5. THE 13TH EDITION OF THE NATIONAL ‘A’ CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP FOR THE BLIND WAS ORGANIZED RECENTLY BY ALL INDIA CHESS FEDERATION FOR THE BLIND. AICFB WAS ESTABLISHED IN?
a)  1997
b)  1998
c)  1985
d)  1981

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