DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 17TH DEC 2019


DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 17TH DEC 2019
1.      PM Modi chaired 1st meeting of National Ganga Council
Ø  PM NarendraModi chaired the 1st meeting of the National Ganga Council (National Council for Rejuvenation, Protection and Management of River Ganga) in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Ø  The PM alone has personally contributed Rs. 16.53 crores to Clean Ganga Fund, from the amount realized from auction of the gifts he received since 2014 and the prize money of the Seoul Peace Prize in 2018.Holistic thinking process on ‘NamamiGange’ project  evolving to ‘Arth Ganga’ or a sustainable development model with a focus on economic activities related to Ganga river was discussed.

2.      Haryana Police introduce ‘Trakea’ software
Ø  Software named “Trakea-barcoding system of Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL)” introduced to enable foolproof security of the samples collected in Forensic reports. Haryana became the first state in the country to introduce this unique barcoding system. Developed by Amit Mishra, a software engineer who was in Bhondsi jail for 13 months imprisoned on the false dowry death case.


3.      Poland leaves European Union’s 2050 climate neutrality agreement
Ø  Poland, has left European Union’s (EU) 2050 Climate Neutrality Agreement as it demanded more funds for economic transition and support for nuclear power. The Czech Republic and Hungary agree with a course of action after winning a guarantee that nuclear energy recognized for greenhouse gas emission reduction.

4.      NEFT system operational on 24×7 basis
Ø  RBI has announced to provide an additional collateralized intra-day liquidity (IDL) facility for the smooth operation of National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) transactions on a 24X7 basis. This facility is called Liquidity Support (LS) and it became operational from December 16, 2019.

5.      Miss world 2019
Ø  Toni-Ann Singh of Jamaica was crowned as Miss World 2019at event held in London, United Kingdom(UK). 
Ø  Miss France, OphelyMezino was the first runner-up, while Miss India 2019, SumanRatan Singh Rao, who hails from Rajasthan, finished 3rd in the contest.
Ø  SumanRao bagged Miss World Asia 2019 title

6.      UNESCO removes ‘Carnival of Aalst’ from ICH List
Ø  UNESCO has removed the ‘Carnival of Aalst’ of Belgium from its Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity List. The 2019 carnival featured a parade float that included racist and anti-Semitic representations that mocked the Orthodox Jews. The carnival was added to the Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2010.

7.      First cricketer to score hundreds on both test and ODI debut
Ø  Abid Ali (32), Pakistani cricket player became the first batsman to score hundreds on both Test and One-Day International (ODI) on his debut. His match was against Sri Lanka which was held in Rawalpindi stadium in Pakistan.

8.      UN designates May 21 as International Tea Day
Ø  The UN has designated May 21 as International Tea Day after accepting the proposal moved by India

9.      48th Vijay Diwas-December 16 2019
Ø  Vijay Diwas is observed annually on December 16 celebrating India’s victory over Pakistan in 1971 Indo-Pakistan war.