19 December 2017 Current Affairs
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BJP wins Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Elections
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is back in power for the sixth straight term in Gujarat and also it has won the Himachal Pradesh Elections. With this, the party now controls 19 of the 29 states. Never before has any political party controlled as many states in India. Congress, 24 years ago, was the last time a political party was in control of 18 states.
Odisha CM inaugurates Tribal Sports Meet 2017
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the Tribal Sports Meet 2017, a first-of-its kind event in the country to promote sports among tribals in Odisha. The meet was inaugurated in Bhubaneswar. Patnaik also unveiled the logo of the event and mascot of the meet ‘Olly’.
Smita Nagaraj takes over as UPSC member
Senior IAS officer Smita Nagaraj took over as the member of Union Public Service Commission. Nagaraj was appointed to the post with effect from Dec 1 for a period of 6 years or until she attains the age of 65 years. With her appointment, strength of UPSC has gone up to 8. Nagaraj is a 1984 batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, her last posting was Director General in the Defence Ministry.
Rekha receives first Smita Patil Memorial Award
The first ever Smita Patil memorial award was given to Rekha for her contribution in the film industry. National award-winning actor Smita Patil passed away in 1986.
India won 10 medals in Wushu Sanda Asian Cup
India bagged as many as 10 medals in the first Wushu Sanda Asian Cup that concluded in Guangzhou, China. Rajvir Singh was the coach of the Indian contingent. Praveen (48kg), Mukesh Chaoudhary (70kg), Rajender Singh (90kg), Arunpama Devi (60kg) and Vishakhapatnam Malik (70kg) won silver medals for India. Besides this, India also bagged five bronze medals.
Losar Festival celebrated in Ladakh
The traditional festival of Losar was celebrated in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir to mark the beginning of New Year in this Himalayan region. The 10 day long festival began with illumination of religious and residential places and by visiting monasteries for prayer. The Losar festival marks the beginning of New year in Ladakh and Tibet region and falls in December. Losar is Tibetan word for ‘new year’.
Aakarshi Kashyap wins U-17 & U-19 singles titles at Badminton Jr Nationals
India’s top-ranked junior shuttler Aakarshi Kashyap won U-17 and U-19 singles titles at Badminton junior Nationals in Guwahati, Assam. In Under-17 category, 16-year-old from Bhilai defeated Malvika Bansod in the final. In under 19 categories final, Kashyap has beaten Vaidehi Choudhari.
India finishes 1st at Junior Boxing Championship in Germany
Indian junior boxers clinched total 11 Medals (six gold, four silver and a bronze medal) at the fifth International Sven Lange Memorial Tournament to finish as overall champions in the German city of Schwerin. Bhavesh Kattamani (52kg) picked up the best boxer trophy along with his gold medal. In the three-day tournament, the other gold-medallists for India were Vijeydeep (63kg), Akshay (60kg), Ish Pannu (70kg), Lakshay Chahar (80kg) and Vinit (75kg). India was named the tournament’s best team.
India ranked 60th most Innovative Country, Switzerland Tops
India currently ranks 60th out of 127 countries on the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2017 as compared to 66th rank on GII 2016. The list was topped by Switzerland. NITI Aayog, Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) together launched a mega initiative “India Innovation Index”. This Index will rank states on Innovations through country’s first online innovation index portal that will capture data on innovation from all Indian states on innovation and regularly update it in real time.
Goa celebrates 56th Liberation Day
Goa has celebrated its 56th Liberation Day. The state was liberated on 19th December in 1961 from Portuguese control after almost 450 years of colonial rule. The main program was organised at the Sports Authority of Goa Ground, Campal in state capital Panaji. Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar unfurled the national flag at the Goa Liberation Day celebrations in Panaji.
Tata Steel Joda Mine gets Golden Peacock Innovation Award
Joda East Iron Mine (JEIM) of Tata Steel has been honored with the prestigious Golden Peacock Innovation Management Award for the year 2017 for driving innovation in mines. The award was given at Institute of Directors India’s 2nd Global Convention held at Singapore. Golden Peacock Awards Secretariat receives over 1,000 entries per year for various awards, from over 25 countries worldwide.
Iraq overtakes Saudi Arabia as top Oil supplier to India
Iraq overtook Saudi Arabia for the first time to become India’s top crude oil supplier in the current fiscal, according to the Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Saudi Arabia traditionally has been India’s top oil source but in the April-October period of 2017-18, Iraq dethroned it, supplying 25.8 million tonnes (MT) of oil. Iran was India’s second biggest supplier of crude oil after Saudi Arabia till 2010-11 but western sanctions over its suspected nuclear programme relegated it to the 7th spot in the subsequent years. Iran fell to third and Venezuela is in fourth followed by Nigeria.