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13th March 2017 – Current Affairs Today

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National Current Affairs

Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime Claims) Bill, 2016 passed

  • The bill seeks to make changes in the existing laws on civil matters of admiralty jurisdiction of courts (jurisdiction of courts of law over cases concerning ships or the sea), proceedings on maritime claims, and arrest of ships.
  • The bill will repeal five obsolete British statues on admiralty jurisdiction in civil matters:
    (a) the Admiralty Court Act, 1840
    (b) the Admiralty Court Act, 1861,
    (c) Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act, 1890,
    (d) Colonial Courts of Admiralty (India) Act, 1891, and
    (e) the provisions of the Letters Patent, 1865 applicable to the admiralty jurisdiction of the Bombay, Calcutta and Madras High Courts.
  • The new legal framework will be applicable on every vessel irrespective of place of residence or domicile of owner.
  • However it will not apply on warships and naval auxiliary and vessels used for non-commercial purposes.

SSB signed MoU with NSDC and NSDF for skill development for its personnel  

  • After the MoU, SSB will be able to provide employment to its retiring personnel and also to those who are already retired.
  • This MoU will not only benefit the SSB Personnel but also their dependents and the people like school dropouts, victims and potential victims of human trafficking living in the area where SSB is deployed.
  • An in house developed mobile app named “MySSB” was launched.
  • Through this app employees can be updated about their service related details and grievance details. Also the app can be used to access the details of salary & allowance, GPF subscription, service particulars including posting profile etc.

India’s first air-conditioned rail ambulance

  • The four-coach air conditioned ambulance will be station at Kaylan (Maharashtra) and has been made by modifying AC coaches used for passenger services.
  • This rail ambulance which has been designed at the rail workshop at Matunga in Mumbai, can carry and treat 50 patients at one time. It will prove beneficial as it can carry accident victims to hospital in a short time.
  • When not in use for accident purpose the rail ambulance will also be used for providing medical facilities in large congregations.

Business & Economy

SBI incorporates wholly owned subsidiary for premises and estate matters of SBI

  • State Bank of India has legally incorporated SBI Infra Management Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (SBIIMS Pvt. Ltd.)as a wholly owned subsidiary of SBI. SBIIMS Pvt. Ltd. will now manage the premises and estate related matters of SBI.
  • The new subsidiary will save the time of bank employees who earlier performed these non-core functions. Now these employees can handle the core functions of the bank and increase the efficiency.
  • SBIIMS Pvt. Ltd. will handle the advisory services, transaction management, facility management and implementation of policies and initiatives.

YES Bank signs 3 projects of smart city for payments-related solutions

  • Private sector lender Yes Bank has signed three projects to provide payments-related solutions to smart cities.
  • Yes Bank has currently ties up with Udaipur, Nashik and Puducherry for the introduction of digital payment systems under the smart city initiative.
  • This tie up will prove fruitful for the bank as it is follows a revenue share arrangement. It means that the bank will get some per cent commission on the usage of its facility. This will also benefit the bank as it will get new clients and help in cross-selling.
  • Yes bank has already started its services in Udaipur by introducing RuPay card for payment for government services and retail services. It will also roll out its service in Puducherry by end of April and in Nashik in May.
  • As per the bank in Nashik the main focus will be on government payments, while in Puducherry the bank will be launching a prepaid card for tourists.

People in News 

Narendra Kumar Appointed New Chairman of Central Water Commission 

  • Narendra Kumar has been appointed as the new Chairman of the Central Water Commission (CWC),  upon the superannuation of former Chairman GS Jha.
  • Before this, Kumar had served in the Commission as its assistant director in Design Organisation, deputy director in Project Appraisal Directorate and director in Dam Safety Organisation and Project Monitoring Directorate.

Reliance Capital’s CEO Sam Ghosh Announces to Quit 

  • Soumen Ghosh, executive director and group chief executive officer of Reliance Capital Ltd for the last nine years has decided to quit.
  • Before joining Reliance Capital, Ghosh was the regional CEO of Middle East and India sub-continent region of Allianz group, a German insurance company. He also had served as the CEO of Bajaj Allianz Life and General.
  • Under him, Reliance Capital has built a strong portfolio of businesses across asset management, life and general insurance, commercial and housing finance, broking and distribution etc.

President Appoints New Chief Justices in MP, Patna, Kerala, Chattisgrah, Jharkhand HCs

  • Chhattisgarh High Court
    Justice Thottathil BhaskaranNair Radhakrishnan, Judge of the Kerala High Court was appointed as Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court.
  • Kerala High Court
    Judge of the Patna High Court, Justice Navaniti Prasad Singh, has been appointed to be the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court.
  • Madhya Pradesh High Court
    Justice Hemant Gupta, Judge of the Patna High Court appointed to be the Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
  • Patna High Court
    Justice Rajendra Menon, Judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, to be the Chief Justice of the Patna High Court.
  • Jharkhand High Court
    Justice Pradip Kumar Mohanty, Judge of Jharkhand High Court has been appointed to be the Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

John Surtees, British F1 Legend Dies At 83

  • John Surtees, the only racer to win both Formula One and Motorbike’s 500cc category World Championship died at the age of 83.
  • The former world champion won four 500cc world titles (1956, 1958, 1959 and 1960) as well as three consecutive 350cc championships (1958-1960) with motorbike.
  • Surtees later moved to the world of car racing where he made his Formula One career debut for Lotus at the Monaco Grand Prix in Monte Carlo.
  • He was signed by Ferrari in 1963 and won the World Championship with the Italian team in 1964 at the Nürburgring and one at Monza.

Former DSA President Sood Passes Away

  • Former football player Umesh Soodpassed away in New Delhi at the age of 73.
  • He was the president of Delhi Football Association(DSA) from 1993 to 1998.
  • He was honored by the AIFF and made manager of the Indian team in international tournaments.
  • Umesh played for clubs like New Delhi Heroes and City Club in the Delhi Senior Division League
  • He also played hockey for Khalsa Blues in the Delhi Hockey League and for Butlerian Club in basketball.

Awards

Thai Model Crowned Transgender Beauty Queen Title

  • Thailand’s Model, Jiratchaya Sirimongkolnawin was crowned Miss International Queen 2016  in the 12th edition of the beauty pageant event in Pattaya City, Thailand.
  • Miss International Queen began in the year 2004 and has been held annually in Pattya City since then and is considered the largest and the most popular transgender pageant of the world.
  • The beauty pageant brings together transgender people from around the world and is held to help transgender women feel more accepted by society.

Environment and Ecology

Great Barrier Reef Witnessing Mass Coral Bleaching for Second Year

  • In the first set of survey for the year 2017, scientists in Australia have revealed that the iconic Great Barrier Reef is experiencing mass coral bleaching for a second year in a row for the first time.
  • Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority informed that the widespread damage is being caused to the reef due to an underwater heatwave.
  • In 2016, similar bleaching event occurred which killed off 22% of coral. While the more remote northern section of the reef found severe bleaching in 2016, coral bleaching in 2017 has been mainly documented in the central part of the Reef, which last year escaped widespread severe bleaching and is more commonly visited by tourists.
  • The back-to-back recurrence of widespread coral bleaching indicated there was not enough time between last year’s extreme heat event for the corals to fully recover.
  • The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest collection of coral reefs, with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 mollusk species, and is the habitat of wildlife such as the dugong ‘sea cow’ and the large green turtle.