02 November 2017 Current Affairs

India and US Ocean Dialogue held in Goa

The India-US Ocean Dialogue, hosted by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, began at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Institute of Oceanography (CSIR-NIO) in Goa. It is aimed at promoting sustainable development of the Blue Economy. Blue Economy is the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health.


9th ‘CMS Vatavaran’ begins in Delhi

The 9th edition of ‘CMS Vatavaran’, a global film festival on environment and wildlife begins in New Delhi. The Theme of CMS Vatavaran is “Conservation 4 Water”. The event is supported and partnered by Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change, National Geographic, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).


President inaugurates Global Clubfoot Conference

President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated Global Clubfoot Conference organised by CURE India in partnership with Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in New Delhi. 500 doctors from 20 countries and 29 Indian states are attending the conference. It is one of the most common orthopedic birth defects that affect the child’s mobility. It can cause permanent disability if not treated early.


Ajay Bisaria named India’s next High Commissioner to Pakistan

India has appointed Ajay Bisaria as the next high commissioner to Pakistan. He is currently ambassador to Poland. Bisaria takes over from Gautam Bambawale, who was last month appointed India’s ambassador to China. Bisaria was in charge of the Eurasia desk that looks after India’s ties with Russia and the Central Asian republics, prior to his appointment as India’s ambassador to Poland.


K Satchidanandan selected for Ezhuthachan Puraskaram

Noted Malayalam Poet and literary critic, K Satchidanandan selected for 2017 Ezhuthachan Puraskaram award, Kerala government’s highest literary honor. This award is instituted in the name of Ezhuthachan, the father of Malayalam language. This award carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and a citation. His important works are Kurukshetram and Anchusooryan. He has edited several magazines like ‘Jwala’, ‘Uttaram’ and ‘Pachakkutira’. He was a former editor of Indian Literary Journal and former secretary of Sahitiya Akademi.


Maharashtra Govtt adds 18m to Shivaji statue, to be World’s Tallest at 210m

The 210-metre-high statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj received environmental clearance, making it the world’s tallest statue, once built. the Maharashtra government plans to build it in the sea off the Mumbai coast. The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) approved the government’s application to increase the height from the earlier proposed 192 metres. Currently, the Spring Temple Buddha statue, which stands at 208 metres in China, is the world’s tallest statue.


Mukesh Ambani becomes Asia’s Richest Person: Forbes

Chairman of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) Mukesh Ambani overtook China’s Hui Ka Yan to become Asia’s richest person with a total wealth of $42.1 billion, according to Forbes’ real time billionaire’s list. Ambani’s personal wealth rose by $466 million. On the other hand, wealth of China Evergrande Group’s Chairman Hui Ka Yan slumped by $1.28 billion to $40.6 billion. Globally, Ambani stood at the 14th spot on Forbes’ real time billionaire’s list, which is based on the value of person’s stock holding and assets on a real time basis.


Max age of joining NPS increased from 60 to 65 years: Finance Ministry

The Ministry of Finance increased the maximum age of joining the National Pension System (NPS) from the existing 60 years to 65 years under NPS – Private Sector (i.e. all citizen and corporate model). In accordance with several initiatives undertaken by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) during the last few years, now any Indian citizen, resident or non-resident, between the age of 60 – 65 years, can join NPS and continue up to the age of 70 years.


Goa tops Gender Vulnerability Index, Bihar at bottom

The Gender Vulnerability Index (GVI) prepared by Child development NGO Plan India has ranked the state of Goa at the top and Bihar at the bottom. The other two states to occupy the top positions include Kerala and Mizoram, which were ranked 2nd and 3rd respectively. Bihar was joined by Uttar Pradesh at the bottom, while Delhi was placed near bottom at the 24th place. The composite index has been developed after analysing the situation of girls and women in the country on the basis of four important dimensions – Health, Education, Protection and Poverty. It will be useful in understanding the situation in states, as it ranks each state in every dimension of gender vulnerability.


India slips 21 slots on WEF Gender Gap Index

India slipped 21 places on the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap index to 108, behind neighbours China and Bangladesh, primarily due to less participation of women in the economy and low wages, according to the WEF Global Gender Gap Report 2017. India’s latest ranking is 10 notches lower than its reading in 2006 when the WEF started measuring the gender gap. According to the Report, India has closed 67 percent of its gender gap. Bangladesh ranked 47th while China was placed at 100th.


Odisha imposes 7-month ban on fishing to protect endangered Sea turtles

The state government of Odisha on 1 November 2017 imposed a seven-month ban on sea fishing activity in order to protect the Olive Ridley sea turtles. The move has been brought on, as the breeding season of the endangered marine animals is approaching. The ban will hold until 31 May 2018.


Mumbai’s Royal Opera House gets UNESCO heritage award

The restored Royal Opera House, located at Mumbai’s Charni Road, has received the Award of Merit from the 2017 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation. The building, which was closed to the public in 1993 and reopened in 2016, was restored by architect Abha Narain Lambah.


Fake news’ named word of the year 2017

Fake news, a term heavily popularised by US President Donald Trump, has been named the word of the year by Collins dictionary due to its widespread use around the world. It was found that the use of this word registered a 365 per cent rise in the last 12 months. Defined as “false, often sensational, information disseminated under the guise of news reporting”, fake news takes over from Brexit – which was named the definitive word last year after the June 2016 referendum in favour of the UK’s exit from the European Union.


Srikanth rises to career-best 2nd rank

Indian ace shuttler Srikanth Kidmabi has risen to the zenith of his career as he established himself as world number 2 in the latest BWF men’s singles ratings. He has once again created history as he became only the first Indian male badminton player to achieve this rank. The top spot of the men’s singles ranking has been held by Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen.


Chanda Kochhar named most powerful woman in India by Forbes

CEO of ICICI Bank Chanda Kochhar was named the most powerful woman in India as she ranked 32nd in World’s 100 Most Powerful Women list by Forbes. CEO of HCL Enterprise Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Chairperson of Biocon Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson of Hindustan Times Group Shobhana Bhartia and actress Priyanka Chopra are the other Indian women who featured on the list. This year’s list is topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who retains the number one position for the seventh consecutive year and 12 times in total. She is followed by UK Prime Minister Theresa May (rank 2), who is leading her country through Brexit-a historic and transforming time for the European Union.


 

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