28 November 2016 Current Affairs

Dictionary.com’s 2016 Word of the Year Is Xenophobia

The website Dictionary.com named the word ‘Xenophobia’ as the Word of the Year for 2016. According to Dictionary.com, there was a massive surge in lookups for the word ‘Xenophobia’ that was larger than any of the peaks seen in 2016. This rise in lookups was connected to attacks on foreign workers and overall rising xenophobia in South Africa.The largest spike in Dictionary.com’s data for the word was in the month of June 2016 with a 938 per cent increase in lookups.


Goa to become India’s first cashless state

The Indian state of Goa prepares itself to become the first state to operate cashless in the country from 31 December 2016.This announcement was made by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who is also the former Chief Minister of the state, during a rally at Sankhali on 25 November 2016. The plan includes making even small vendors selling perishable goods accustomed to mobile payment


Akodara becomes India’s first Digital Village

Akodara village in Sabarkantha district of Gujarat has earned the coveted tag of becoming India’s first digital village in India. The village with a total population of 1,191 people and 250 households uses a various cashless system for payments of goods and services. All transactions in the village are carried out through digital modes like SMS, net-banking or debit cards. The village was adopted by ICICI Bank under its Digital Village Project in 2015 and made cashless by adopting digital technology. The project was launched in January 2016 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ICICI Bank MD and CEO Chanda Kochar to mark 60-year-celebration of the ICICI group’s existence.


Union Government introduces Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill

The Union Government has introduced the Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2016 (‘the Bill’) in the Parliament. The bill amends existing tax laws to impose a higher rate of tax and penalty in respect of undisclosed incomes. It proposes, Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 2016 (PMGKY), an anti-poverty scheme. It seeks to attract more people to disclose their unaccounted cash and also to put in a framework in place to use that for the welfare of the people especially in the rural areas. It also ensures that tax defaulting assessees and black money holders are subjected to tax at a higher rate and stringent penalty provision.


Iranian film Daughter wins Golden Peacock award at 47th IFFI 

Iranian film “Daughter” has won the coveted Golden Peacock award at the 47th International Film Festival of India (IFFI). It has been directed by Reza Mirkarimi. It is a family drama set in southern Iran. It brings out intergenerational conflict between a strict father and a young daughter. Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore conferred these awards during the concluding ceremony of IFFI held in Goa. Special jury award: The Throne (South Korea) directed by Lee Joon-Ik. Best Actor Female award: Elina Vaska (Latvia) for Mellow Mud. Best Actor Male award: Farhad Aslani (Iran) for Daughter. Best Director award: Jointly-shared by Soner Caner and Baris Kaya for Turkish film “Rauf”. ICFT UNESCO Gandhi Medal Prize: Turkish director Mustafa Kara for his film “Cold of Kalandar”. Special Jury mention award: Tiffany Hsuig for the Korean movie “The Apology”. Centenary Award for the Best Debut Feature of the director: Pepa San Martin for the film “Ra Ra”.


Argentina defeats Croatia to win 2016 Davis Cup

Argentina won its maiden Davis Cup title after defeating Croatia in the final.In the final match, Argentina’s Federico Delbonis defeated Ivo Karlovic 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to give Argentina its first title.As of 2016, the Argentina Davis Cup team has competed in the World Group since 2002 and reached the finals five times (1981, 2006, 2008, 2011 and 2016).At present, Argentina is Number 1 on the Davis Cup ranking by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).


Susan Kiefel becomes first woman appointed as high court chief justice

Susan Kiefel has been named Australia’s first female High Court chief justice – ending 113 years of men leading the nation’s highest court. After months of speculation about who would replace retiring chief Robert French, the Turnbull government appointed serving High Court Justice Kiefel to the role.


 

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