15 December 2017 Current Affairs
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Lucknow’s Jitesh Singh Deo named Mr India 2017
Jitesh Singh Deo from Lucknow was declared the winner of the 2017 Mr India pageant. Indian footballer Prathamesh Maulingkar won the title of Mr India Supranational and will compete at Mr Supranational 2018. Abhi Khajuria was declared the first-runner up while Pavan Rao was the second runner-up. Actress Kangana Ranaut felicitated the winners.
Sri Lanka accede to landmine ban treaty
Sri Lanka has become the 163rd nation to accede to the anti-personnel mine ban convention. By joining the Convention each state undertakes to destroy all stockpiled anti-personnel mines it owns or or control, not later than 4 years after the acceding to this treaty. The treaty, which came into force on March 1, 1999, prohibits use, stockpiling, production & transfer of antipersonnel mines.
Norway becomes 1st Nation to Shut National Broadcasts on FM
Norway became the world’s first country to shut down national broadcasts of its FM network by completing its transition to digital radio. The transition will allow for better sound quality, a greater number of channels and more functions, at a cost eight times lower than FM radio. The transition concerns only national radio channels.
India hosted 4th India-Australia-Japan trilateral meeting
Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar hosted the 4th India-Australia-Japan trilateral meeting with his Australian and Japanese counterparts in New Delhi. Issues of maritime security, counter terrorism and economic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region were discussed.
Sachin Siwach named Asia’s youth boxer of the year
World youth champion Sachin Siwach was named the Asian Boxing Confederations best youth boxer of the year after winning an online poll conducted by the continental body. Siwach who won the world title in 2016, claimed the Asian youth championships silver in 2017 besides a gold at the Youth Commonwealth Games. India also fetched the Best Asian International technical Official (ITO) award with Lenny DGama winning the online poll.
JK Rowling named a ‘Companion of Honor’
The royal family has presented J.K. Rowling with a Companion of Honor award at Buckingham Palace. The “Harry Potter” author received the prestigious award from Prince William, as recognition of her services to literature and philanthropy. The prestigious award is given to people who have made major contributions in their field.
WTO talks collapse, no agreement on food security
The 11th ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization hung in the balance after the US refused to budge on relaxations demanded by developing countries to provide for their food security programmes. The matter went into deadlock after India and China stuck to their stance. An outcome on the permanent solution is key, as this is the only mandated issue for the Buenos Aires meeting.
Telangana develops app to connect citizens, technicians
The Telangana government has announced to launch a mobile application ‘Urban Genie’ which will enable citizens in urban areas across the state to find certified technicians and workers. The service will be available in over 70 municipal towns and cities. Job seeking technicians can also register themselves with the app, following which the government will provide training.
Mumbai Metro launches ‘SecuCare’ app for safer commuting
Mumbai Metro launched a new security app ‘Secucare’, which can be downloaded on Android and IOS platforms, for raising an alarm to ensure passengers’ safety. Through the app, commuters can raise an alarm in case of any problem. The control room will be alerted once the alarm is raised. The security personnel in the control room will be able to track the exact location of the passenger through the application.
Disney to acquire 21st Century Fox assets for USD 52.4 Billion in stock
Disney has reached a deal to acquire certain assets of 21st Century Fox (FOXA), the parent company of FOX Business, for approximately USD 52.4 billion in stock. The total transaction is valued at USD 66.1 billion, including 21st Century Fox’s debt. The deal includes 21st Century Fox assets- Twentieth Century Fox Film and Television studios, along with cable and international TV businesses like Star India. Prior to this acquisition, Fox will separate the Fox Broadcasting network and stations, Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, FS1, FS2 and Big Ten Network into a newly listed company. Disney’s Robert Iger will continue to serve as the Chairman and CEO of Disney through 2021.
Narinder Batra New President of Indian Olympic Association
Narinder Batra formally took over as the new president of the Indian Olympic Association after winning elections at the Annual General Meeting. Batra received 143 of the 160 votes polled to elect the office-bearers for the next period of four years from 2018-22 while his rival Anil Khanna, honorary life president of the All India Tennis Federation, got 13. Handball Federation of India’s Anandeshwar Pandey was elected as the treasurer after Rakesh Gupta withdrew and Mukesh Kumar of Judo Federation of India was rendered ineligible. Rajeev Mehta was re-elected unopposed as the secretary-general while R. K. Anand won to the lone senior vice-president post defeating kabaddi federation’s Janardhan Gahlot.
Michael Jordan, World’s Highest-Paid Athlete of All Time
In the latest list released by Forbes, Michael Jordan has been named as the highest-paid athletes of all time. The 54-year-old has a whopping $1.7 billion in the bank. Former world number one golfer Tiger Woods is standing at the second spot. Late America golfer Arnold Palmer is at No.3 with incredible $1.4 billion to his name.
Union Cabinet clears bill criminalising Instant Triple Talaq
The Union Cabinet cleared the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017, or the Triple Talaq bill, which makes the practice a non-bailable offence. The bill proposes a three-year jail term for men who practise instant Triple Talaq. Under the draft law, triple talaq in any form – spoken, in writing or by electronic means such as email, SMS and WhatsApp – would be banned or illegal. The draft law also provides for three years in prison and a fine for a Muslim man trying to divorce his wife by uttering “talaq” three times.
Indian Diaspora is Largest in the World: World Migration Report 2018
The Indian diaspora is the largest in the world, with over 15 million migrants from India living abroad, according to the World Migration Report 2018 published by the International Organisation for Migration, the United Nations migration agency. Because the country has the largest number of migrants abroad, India also receives the highest amount in remittances ($68.91 billion). The largest migration corridor is from India to UAE, where 3.5 million Indians were residing in 2015. The United States remained the top destination for migrants in the world in 2015, with 46.6 million migrants moving to the US in that year.