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04th Feb 2018 – Current Affairs Today

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National Current Affairs

Narendra Modi inaugurates investors’ summit in Assam

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Global Investors’ Summit -‘Advantage Assam’ on Feb 3rd.

  • The two-day event, will showcase the state’s manufacturing opportunities and geostrategic advantages to foreign and domestic investors.
  • The Summit has been organised by the Assam Government, in association with the industry body the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), aiming to position the state as India’s Expressway to Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.
  • Assam is hosting its first global investors summit to showcase its manufacturing opportunities and geostrategic advantages to foreign and domestic investors.
  • The summit aims at highlighting Assam’s core competencies in different sectors along with the policy initiatives taken by the state government.

 

Environment Ministry launches Green Good Deeds campaign

The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has launched Green Good Deeds campaign. It was launched by Environment Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan in New Delhi.

  • The purpose of the people-oriented campaign is to sensitise people and students, in particular about climate change and global warming.
  • Environment Minister has asked teaching community to join a campaign to sensitise all about climate change and global warming, which he termed was matter of concern for the world.
  • He also underlined need for ‘Green Sainiks’ on the lines of ‘Polio Sainiks’ to broaden the ‘Green Good Deeds’ campaign and take it to the grassroots level.
  • The campaign aims to broad its base with involvement of teachers, students and other voluntary organisations.

 

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival returns in 2018 with the theme “Hara Ghoda”

The 20th edition of Kala Ghoda Arts Festival began on 3rd Feb, 2018.

  • The Kala Ghoda Arts Festival is an annual multicultural festival held in the Kala Ghoda area of South Mumbai.
  • This year’s theme is Hara Ghoda (Green Horse) focussing on sustainability and environment friendliness.
  • The festival is organised by Kala Ghoda Associaion which was formed in 1998 with an objective of maintaining and preserving the heritage and art district of South Mumbai.

 

International Conference on ‘DemetriosGalanos and His Legacy’begins in New Delhi

The International Conference on ‘DemetriosGalanos and His Legacy’ was inaugurated at IGNCA in New Delhi on Feb 3rd.

  • Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) is organizing the 8-days International Conference on, ‘DemetriosGalanos and His Legacy’.
  • The 8-day long convention is being held in Delhi and Varanasi, in addition to organizing the exhibition and folk music of Greece.
  • DemetriosGalanos (1760–1833) is one among the foreign scholars who came to India to study in the nineteenth century.
  • He translated the Bhagvad Gita into Greek among many other Sanskrit texts. His major contribution was the compilation of a Sanskrit-English-Greek lexicon of about 9000 words.

 

International Current Affairs

India contributes $1 mn to UN Development Partnership Fund

India has pledged multi-year contribution of $100 million to the fund established in June 2017.

  • India-UN Development Partnership Fund was set up on 9 June 2017 on occasion of the World Oceans Day as a partnership between India and United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC).
  • It will be utilized to carry out country-level projects that would be catalytic towards achieving 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) of 2030 Agenda.
  • It prioritises projects reducing poverty and hunger, improving health, education and equality, and expanding access to clean water and energy and livel.
  • It mainly focuses on transformational sustainable development projects in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States.
  • The projects under fund are implemented by UN agencies in close collaboration with partnering governments.

 

Banking & Finance

PAN mandatory for entities in transaction over Rs 2.5 lakh

The Government has made PAN mandatory for any entity entering into a financial transaction of Rs 2.5 lakh or more with effect from April 1.

  • The 10-digit Permanent Account Number (PAN) would be used as Unique Entity Number for non-individuals
  • Besides, in order to link the financial transactions with the natural persons, the Finance Bill has also proposed that the managing director, director, partner, trustee, CEO, founder or any person competent to act on behalf of such entities shall also apply to the Assessing Officer for allotment of PAN.

 

Appointments & Resigns

Bangladesh appoints Syed Mahmud Hossain as new chief justice

Justice Hossain had been appointed as the 22nd chief justice of the country.

  • He was appointed three months after his predecessor and the country’s first Hindu chief justice was virtually forced to resign amid “grave” graft allegations.
  • Justice Hossain acted as deputy attorney general from December 1999 until he was elevated to the bench. In February 2011, he was elevated to the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division.

 

Awards & Recognition

MIFF 2018 honours Shyam Benegal with V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award

Eminent filmmaker Shyam Benegal has been honoured with the V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award of the Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Shorts & Animation Films.

  • Shyam Benegal has made 28 feature films including landmark films like Ankur, Nishant, Mandi and Junoon.
  • His filmography also includes 41 documentaries covering diverse subjects including cultural anthropology, sustainable growth, biography, art and culture.
  • His 1982 documentary Satyajit Ray won the National Award for Best Biographical Film, while his 1985 film Nehru won the award for Best Historical Reconstruction.

 

Science & Technology

Japan successfully launches mini-rocket

Japan’s space agency has successfully put a microsatellite into Earth’s orbit that was carried onboard an experimental mini-rocket.

  • The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, launched the rocket, one of the smallest in the world, from the Uchinoura Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, at 2:03 PM on Saturday.
  • It was the second time JAXA has attempted to launch the rocket. The first attempt in January last year was aborted because of technical issues.

 

Sports

Shubhankar Sharma claims Maybank Championship title in thriller

Shubhankar Sharma fired a stunning 10-under 62 in the final round to claim a two-stroke victory at the Maybank Championship.

  • The Indian holed 10 birdies without a blemish at the Saujana Golf and Country Club in Kuala Lumpur to finish at 21 under.
  • Spaniard Jorge Campillo (68) finished in the second position.

 

Obituary

BJP’s Kairana MP Hukum Singh passed away

BJP MP from Kairana, Hukum Singh passed away on 3rd Feb.

  • A seven-time MLA from UP and state ministers under both BJP and Congress governments, Singh had entered the Lok Sabha for the first time in 2014.
  • His followers fondly called him Babu Sahab.

 

Important Days

4th February: World Cancer Day

The World Cancer Day (WCD) is observed every year on 4 February across the world to raise awareness of cancer and to encourage its prevention, detection, and treatment. Its primary goal is to reduce the illness and related deaths by 2020.

  • The theme (tagline) for this year is “We can. I can”.
  • It reflects on what everyone can do to raise awareness of cancer and asks to take pledge and action in fight against cancer.
  • “We can. I can” is special three-year campaign for the World Cancer Day from year 2016 to 2018.
  • It seeks to explore how everyone- as individuals or as a collective – can do their part to reduce the burden of cancer globally.
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