09 December 2016 Current Affairs
India, Vietnam sign Civil Nuclear deal, three other agreements
India and Vietnam have signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement. With this, Vietnam became 14th country with which India has signed the civil nuclear deal. The MoU in Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy was signed by Sekhar Basu, Secretary of Department of Atomic Energy and Pham Cong Tac, Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Science and Technology in New Delhi. The two countries also signed three other agreements in the fields of energy, aviation and government cooperation.
L&T to make world’s ‘biggest’ cricket stadium at Gujarat’s Motera, to surpass Melbourne Cricket Ground
India will soon have the world’s biggest cricket stadium in terms of seating capacity. Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) handed a contract to Larsen & Turbo (L&T) to make Sardar Patel Cricket Stadium in Ahmedabad, the biggest stadium in the world. This is said to be PM Narendra Modi’s dream project under the leadership of GCA president Amit Shah. The report of TOI further stated that the old structure has been razed and work will now begin to build a new stadium which will house 1,10,000 people, the biggest in terms of seating capacity. With this, the new Motera Stadium will surpass the Melbourne Cricket Ground which can hold 100,024 people. The new stadium, when completed, will be the largest cricket stadium in the world which will be made to meet all the latest the international standards.
Disabled children are illiterate due to lack of support services: Report
According to the India Social Development Report (SDR) 2016, about 45% of all persons with disabilities (PWD) in India are illiterate. They remain illiterate mainly because of lack of support services. The theme for this edition of report was ‘Disabilities Rights Perspectives’. The number of PWDs in India are 26.8 million or 2.2% of the population. However, the World Bank estimates it is 4 to 8% of the population. Men formed 56% of the PWDs and 70% of the disabled population is in rural areas.
Union Government launches DigiShala TV channel to promote digital payments
The Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has launched a TV channel named ‘DigiShala’ to promote cashless transactions. The channel was launched as part of the ‘Digidhan’ campaign which aims to spread awareness about digital transactions. DigiShala is dedicated 24*7 and 365 days free-to-air TV channel to inform citizens about digital payment ecosystem, benefits and processes. It is a satellite channel managed by Doordarshan (DD). It will be broadcasted nationally on DD Free Dish DTH service. It will be available through GSAT15 (DD Direct DTH), 93.5 degree East, Receive frequency: 11590 Mhz.
Rajasthan High Court scraps 5% quota for Gujjars
The Rajasthan High Court has scrapped the Rajasthan Special Backward Classes (SBC) Reservation Act, 2015 that provided 5% quota to five communities, including Gujjars in jobs and education. The verdict was given on bunch of writ petitions challenging the 2015 Act on grounds of violation of Supreme Court mandated limit of 50% on reservation. State government had given the reservation illegally to five communities and declared SBC Reservation Act, 2015 and its notification unconstitutional. It has failed to consider Article 16(4B) of the Constitution, which forbids reservation exceeding 50%.
Onir’s documentary on Down Syndrome wins international award
Director Onir’s documentary is elated after his documentary, Raising the Bar has won the Award Of Recognition at Australian film festival. The documentary is based on children who have Down syndrome. The filmmaker won at the Hollywood Independent Documentary Awards.
Japan successfully launches space junk collector into orbit
Japan’s space agency (JAXA) successfully launched a Kounotori 6 (HTV-6) spacecraft that will deliver a large magnetic tether, a space junk collector technology into orbit. The spacecraft was launched on board of H-IIB rocket from Tanegashima Space Center. It was also carrying essential supplies for International Space Station (ISS). The space junk collector (electromagnetic tether) will perform Kounotori Integrated Tether Experiments (KITE) in order to test out new technology. It is an experimental space scavenger that aims to study possibility of getting rid of space junk (debris) left into orbit by earlier space exploration missions.