24th May 2017 - Current Affairs Today

Download : 24th May, 2017 – Current Affairs PDF

India Ranks Third Highest Globally In Internal Displacement Numbers

With 2.4 million people displaced in 2016, India ranked third globally after China (7.4 displacement million) and the Philippines (5.9 million).
Out of 2.4 million, about 796,000 people were displaced as a result of conflict and violence.
Monsoon season floods in Bihar between mid-July and October led to more than 1.6 million displacements.

Saral Eindhan Vitaran Application (SEVA) App launched

SEVA is aimed at increasing the Consumer Connect as well as the Transparency and Accountability in Coal dispatch.
SEVA Dashboard provides summary of quantity of coal dispatched along with grades for the given day, month, and the latest yearly updates as well.
By using this app the common man would be able to hold the Government accountable for the coal linkage allocations and would be able to check any pilferage or inefficiencies in coal consumption for power generation.

Maharashtra Govt Forms ‘Good Morning Squad’ To Monitor Open Defecation

Maharashtra government has decided to form ‘good morning’ squads to curb open defecation in all villages and districts across the State.
The squads will comprise representatives of local bodies, self-help groups, NGOs, students and social workers working in the area of sanitation and cleanliness.
The members of the squads have been asked to monitor areas where the practice is still prevalent.

India becomes second largest steel producer in the world

India overtook Japan to become the second-largest steel producer in the world in 2016.
The top producer of the steel of the world in the year 2016 is China.
In 2016-17 India became net exporter of steel with 8.2 MT of exports, registering a 102 per cent growth over previous fiscal
India’s stainless steel production rose to 3.32 million tons for 2016.
The industry produced 91.46 million tons of total finished steel and 9.7 million tons of pig iron.

2nd India-OPEC Institutional Dialogue held in Vienna Austria

Bilateral issues of mutual interest were also discussed at a delegation level dialogue.

UN Publishes First Draft of Nuclear Ban Treaty

This draft was strongly opposed by nuclear armed states including US.
The treaty would require ratification by 40 states to come into force.
The treaty does not contain clauses to destroy the current stockpiles held by nuclear states.
Rather it seeks to stigmatise nuclear arms, in a similar manner to cluster munitions and landmines.

Japan to build World War 2 museum in Manipur

Japanis going to build a war museum at MaibamLokpaChing in Manipur’s Bishenpur
MaibamLokpaChing is a historical place where the British and the Japanese fought during the Second World War.
On special occasions, relatives of the Japanese soldiers who died during the war, come to Manipur in memory of their loved ones.
About 70,000 Japanese has lost their lives in the Imphal and Kohima battles, which are regarded as the fiercest.

Paytm launches Payments Bank

Paytm launched its Payments Bank on May 23, 2017, and thereby became third entity (after Airtel Payments Bank and India Post Payments Bank) to commence operation as Payments Bank.
The first physical branch of Paytm Payments Bank is in Noida.
Over the next two years, Rs. 400 crore will be invested to build the banking network.

Federal Bank launches new trading platform ‘Selfie’

The Selfie Trading Platform has a uniform feature across multiple platforms and devices and an advanced charting platform.
It enables users to trade directly from charts, among others.
It will give its users absolute control over their investments with timely research inputs to make sound investment decisions.

Karnataka Bank pact with HDFC Asset Mgmt

The main aim of signing the agreement is to sell the mutual fund products of HDFCAML.

Entertainment, Cable, DTH to attract lower taxes under GST

Government has announced that ‘entertainment tax’ levied by states has been subsumed in the GST and thus, taxation on cable and DTH services shall come down post the roll-out of GST
Finance Ministry has stated that services by way of admission to entertainment events or cinematography films in cinema theatres will attract 28% GST.
Currently, states impose entertainment tax of up to 100 per cent in respect of exhibition of cinematography films in theatres/cinema halls.
Under GST, the entertainment tax has been subsumed, and hence only the taxes levied by a panchayat or municipality on entertainments and amusements will continue.
In addition to the benefit of lower headline rates of GST, the entertainment service providers shall be eligible for full input tax credits (ITC) of GST paid in respect of inputs and input services.
GST Council has finalised 18% tax rate on cable TV and Direct-To- Home (DTH) services.

CBDT signs 2 more unilateral pacts with taxpayers

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has signed two unilateral advance pricing agreements (APAs) with Indian taxpayers in a bid to reduce litigation by providing certainty in transfer pricing.
The two APAs signed pertain to sectors like chip design or development of embedded software and information technology (software development).
The APA Scheme endeavours to provide certainty to taxpayers in the domain of transfer pricing by specifying the methods of pricing and determining the arm’s length price of international transactions in advance for the maximum of five future years.

Rohan Chakravarty wins top conservation award for issues related to Wildlife, Environment

Rohan Chakravarty, a young Indian wildlife and environment cartoonist has won WWF International President’s Award
He won for his efforts to inspire change and attitudes towards nature.
The award is given to recognize outstanding leadership in young conservationists from around the world.

Drake beats Adele’s Billboard Music Awards record with 13 wins

Drake has beaten the Adele‘s record and was the big winner at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards.
Adele set a record at the show in 2012 with 12 wins.

ISRO and NASA collaborate to build Earth – imaging satellite NISAR

It has launched the world’s biggest and most expensive earth imaging satellite.
It total cost $1.5 billion.
The satellite has been named NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR).
It will this is two frequency RADAR, it is an L-band 24 centimetre RADAR and S-band 13 centimetre.
It will provide time lapse images of the motion of tectonic plates, ice sheets and changes in vegetation over land in agriculture and forests.

Israel Aerospace Industries has signed a $630 million deal with the India

Israel’s Barak 8 long-range surface-to-air missile system was successfully tested aboard an Indian Navy ship.
This deal was a part of the Make in India initiative, BEL will be used as the main contractor for the project.

Sweden beat Canada to win ice hockey world title

Harsh Malhotra Committee on Scouts & Guides submits final report

A High-Level Committee on 7-member Scouts and Guides has submitted its Final Report to Ministry for State (Independent Charge) for Youth Affairs & Sports with various recommendations.
The committee has suggested for the nomination of government nominees on the Boards of both the organizations.
The committee has suggested for completely revamping the Bharat Scout & Guides and Hindustan Scouts and Guides.
The committee has suggested for the constitution of an Enquiry Committee to take stock of complaints and grievances and submit its report.