15 September 2017 Current Affairs
15 September: International Day of Democracy
The International Day of Democracy is observed on September 15th across the world. The theme of the year 2017 is Democracy and Conflict prevention. This year’s theme of democracy and conflict prevention focuses on the critical need to strengthen democratic institutions to promote peace and stability.
Odisha to set up the first Odia language university
The Odisha government passed a bill to launch the first-ever Odia language university for post-graduation in literature and linguistics among other subjects. The university which will be established in Bhubaneswar will also devise ways to make Odia script more adaptable to technology. It mainly aims at making Odia script more adaptable to computer technology. It would also administer PG courses in literary criticism, the evolution of East Indian language scripts, historical scripts, archaeology, musicology and translation into and from Odia.
Maharashtra CM launches Maha Mission 1 Million
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today launched the ‘Maharashtra Mission 1 Million’ initiative under which over 10 lakh students across the state will play football. It is the first time in the country and Maharashtra to support was decided by Tawde. The entire Maharashtra becomes Pro football the Mission will not only create football players and lovers of the game but will also help in overall development of the state. Under the initiative, the state government aims to ensure that children come out in open spaces and play.
15th September: Engineer’s Day
The Indian nation celebrates Engineer’s Day to mark the 156th birth anniversary of Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya, one of the greatest engineers India produced and a person behind many iconic constructions in India. He will mark the 49th anniversary of the Engineers Day in India. He began his career as an Assistant Engineer with Public Works Department (PWD) at Mumbai (then Bombay) in 1884 and was later requested to join the Indian Irrigation Commission. As a Public Works Department engineer, he accomplished several projects related to maintenance of public buildings, road construction and laying out city developments plans in several important towns.
India and Pakistan begin high-level talks on Indus Waters Treaty
The two-day high-level talks on technical issues of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) began between India and Pakistan in Washington, United States. According to the World Bank, the meetings between two countries are taking place between 14 and 15 September. The talks are a continuation of a discussion on how to safeguard the traety for the benefit of the people in both the countries.
“Unstoppable: My Life So Far” authored by Maria Sharapova
The book titled “Unstoppable: My Life So Far” authored by tennis star Maria Sharapova was unveiled in September 2017. The book talks about Sharapova’s rise from nowhere to tennis stardom, and the unending fight to stay on top. The book tells how a seventeen-year-old Maria Sharapova became an overnight sensation by defeating the two-time defending champion Serena Williams to win the prestigious Wimbledon.
Former UN Secretary-General elected as Chair of the IOC Ethics Commission
Former United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was elected as Chair of Ethics Commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for a four-year term. Ban succeeds Youssoupha Ndiaye of Senegal whose term has come to an end. His appointment was proposed by the IOC Executive Board and was approved during the IOC Session in Lima with a 74-4 majority.
Frank Vincent, Veteran Actor passes away
Frank Vincent, who played tough guys and mobsters in “The Sopranos” and a number of director Martin Scorsese movies, died at age 80. In 2006, Vincent wrote the nonfiction book ‘A Guy’s Guide to Being a Man’s Man’. “The Death Collector,” was his debut movie.
Stephane Cottalorda, India’s first foreign coach for Women Boxers resigns
Indian women’s boxing’s first foreign coach, Stephane Cottalorda, has resigned after just one month of appointment, alleging delay in salary and other payments. Cottalorda has claimed in his resignation letter that he hasn’t been paid his salary for the first month in full and has also cited ‘lack of professionalism’ on part of Boxing Federation of India (BFI) as his reasons for not coming back to India.
Scientists create first global map of water on Moon
Scientists from Brown University in US have created first map of water trapped in uppermost layer of Moon’s soil. The was build using NASA’s Moon Mineralogy Mapper onboard of India’s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft. The map builds on initial discovery of water and related molecule – hydroxyl (consists of one atom each of hydrogen and oxygen) in lunar soil in 2009. It may prove useful
to lunar explorers.
Amazon ties up with Bank of Baroda to attract more sellers
Online marketplace giant Amazon India is racing against time to bring in more sellers so that they sell more on its platform during the festive season. Amazon tied up with the Bank of Baroda to offer micro loans to its sellers. The firm’s arm, Amazon Seller Services Pvt Ltd (ASSPL), is bringing in more financial partners so that it can cater to its 225,000 seller base. The company had last year announced the launch of a seller lending programme in India for small and medium businesses to get fast and easy access to working capital.
New Plastic Jane Austen 10-pound note launched in Britain
In an effort to tackle counterfeiting, Britain launched a new plastic 10-pound note featuring Jane Austen, one of Britain’s most renowned authors. Apart from the Queen, whose portrait is on all U.K. currency, Austen is only the third woman to feature on a modern-day British banknote, after medical innovator Florence Nightingale and social reformer Elizabeth Fry. The new ‘tenner’, as it’s commonly known, is the first British banknote with a tactile feature, a series of raised dots in the top left-hand corner to help blind and partially sighted users. In 2016, it launched a similar five-pound note that showcases Winston Churchill. A new 20-pound note featuring artist JMW Turner will follow in 2020.
Tunisia abolishes ban on Muslim women marrying non-Muslims
Tunisia has abolished a decades-old ban on Muslim women marrying non-Muslims. Unitll now a non-Muslim man who wished to marry a Tunisian woman had to convert to Islam and submit a certificate of his conversion as proof. The announcement comes a month after President Beji Caid Essebsi called for the government to scrap the ban dating back to 1973. Human rights groups in the North African country had campaigned for the ban’s abolition, saying it undermined the fundamental human right to choose a spouse.
Shuttlers Sai Praneeth and Sameer Verma improve BWF ranking
Shuttlers Sai Praneeth and Sameer Verma improved a rung each to reach the 16th and 25th spots respectively in the latest BWF ranking. Female Shuttler PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal were static at the fourth and 12th positions respectively. Women’s doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and N Sikki Reddy slipped a place to be at the 25th spot, while mixed doubles pair of Pranv Jerry Chopra and Sikki was steady at the 20th position.
President launches Swachhata Hi Campaign
President Ram Nath Kovind launched the nation-wide ‘Swachhata Hi Seva’ (Cleanliness is Service) campaign. The fortnight long campaign will conclude on Gandhi Jayanti on October 2, 2017. The campaign is an initiative under Swachch Bharat Mission and it was launched from Ishwari Ganj village, Kanpur. He administered nation-wide Swachhta Hi Seva pledge initiating parallel action in all the two lakh 50 thousand plus Gram Panchayats and cities in India. It is being coordianted by the Ministry of Drinking water and sanitation and will focus on mass mobilisation and reinforce ‘jan andolan’ for sanitation to contribute to Mahatma Gnadhi’s dream of a clean India.