DAILY UPDATED CURRENT AFFAIRS: 24.12.2019 TO 26.12.2019

.12.2018 NATIONAL PM launched.2018 'Atal Bhujal Yojana'  On the Birth anniversary of former Prime Minister , Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has.11.2018 launched Atal Bhujal Yojana (ATAL JAL) held in New Delhi.  ATAL JAL scheme has been designed with the principal objective of strengthening the institutional framework for participatory groundwater management and bringing about behavioural changes at the community level for sustainable groundwater resource management in seven States (Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, , Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh).  ATAL JAL will promote panchayat led groundwater management and behavioural change with a primary focus on demand-side management.  Implementation of the scheme is expected to benefit nearly 8350 Gram Panchayats in 78 districts in these States.  The CCEA approved for implementing Atal Bhujal Yojana (ATAL JAL). It is a central sector scheme with an outlay of Rs 6000 crores and will be implemented for a 5-year period (2020-21 till 2024-2025). Rohtang tunnel in Himachal Pradesh named as 'Atal tunnel'  Prime Minister Narendra Modi named Rohtang passageway in Himachal Pradesh as Atal Tunnel to mark the 95th birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.  The strategic Atal tunnel will change the fortunes of this region and will help in promoting tourism in the region.  The 8.8-kilometre-long tunnel is the world's longest tunnel above an altitude of 3,000 metres. Pradhan unveiled 's first long-distance CNG bus  Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan unveiled India's first long-distance Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) bus fitted with CNG cylinders at a function in New Delhi.  It can travel around one thousand kilometers in a single fill.  The first long-range interstate CNG bus will play from Delhi to . Urban India, except Bengal, declared open defecation-free  The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry announced that the -Urban had achieved its goal of making urban India free of open defecation.  Though it was said that the urban local bodies in had not been declared open defecation free (ODF). 'Chilai-Kalan' began in Jammu & Kashmir  The 40-day harshest winter period in Kashmir (known as 'Chillai-Kalan') has begun with the upper reaches of the valley receiving snowfall.  These 40 days are when the chances of snowfall are the highest and the maximum temperature drops considerably. Rajasthan government started first Janta Clinic  Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot inaugurated the first Janta Clinic in the Malviya Nagar area of to provide free primary health care to people living in slums.  In its first phase, 12 Janta Clinics will be opened in Jaipur where people would get free medicines and free medical examinations in some cases. Govt launched good governance index; TN tops the index in big states category  The Minister of State (MoS- Independent Charge) for the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) and MoS for Prime Minister‟s Office; Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions; Department of Atomic Energy and Dr. Jitendra launched the „Good Governance Index‟ (GGI) in New Delhi.  Tamil Nadu (TN) won the 1st position in the composite ranking for a good governance index (GGI).

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 Himachal Pradesh .12.2018 (HP) topped the ranking in followed North-east and hill category. It was followed by .2018 (2nd), Tripura(3rd).  Among the UTs, Puducherry topped the list. It was followed by Chandigarh (2nd), Delhi (3rd), Daman and Diu(4th)..11.2018 Tamil Nadu topped in coverage under micro-irrigation for 2019  As per the data, Tamil Nadu(TN) topped the list in coverage under micro-irrigation.  Out of the 3.64 lakh hectares brought under MI, TN accounts for around 1.39 lakh hectares, i.e., 38% of the total coverage in the country.  TN was followed by Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh (AP), Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh (UP) in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place respectively. Government approved Rs 56,443 cr Kerala semi-high speed rail project named “Silver line”  As per the order issued by the Ministry of Railways, the Central Government has gave its approval for Rs 56,443 crore worth of 532 km Thiruvananthapuram – Kasaragod in Kerala semi-high speed rail (SHSR) corridor project, named “Silver Line” project.  This highspeed corridor project will be implemented by Kerala Rail Development Corporation (KRDCL),a joint venture between the Government of Kerala and the Ministry of Railways. INTERNATIONAL Russia, the only nation in the world owns hypersonic weapons  According to the Russian President, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, Russia is the only country in the world that has hypersonic weapons. He revealed the new zircon missile at a meeting of senior military officials in Moscow.  As per Putin ,the Zircon missile, which can fly from land to land in 10 times faster than the speed of sound, has a range of more than 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) and can carry a nuclear or conventional warhead.  This Zircon will be part of the army later this month. The strength of this missile indicated by Avangard, which can fly in the atmosphere at a speed 20 times the speed of sound. was a hyper sonic glide vehicle. Kinzhal is already part of the Russian Air Force.  Besides Russia, the US (United States) and China are pursuing their own hypersonic weapons. China has been testing hypersonic aircraft while the US Air Force contracted Lockheed Martin to make missiles. WHO released 3rd global report on trends in tobacco prevalence 2000-2025  The World Health Organisation (WHO) released its 3rd edition of global report on trends in the prevalence of tobacco use 2000-2025. As per the report despite decline in tobacco usage, India is off-track to achieve a 30% reduction in tobacco use by 2025 when compared to its 2010 levels. 17th India-EU Summit 2020 to be held in Brussels, Belgium  The President of European Council Charles Michel invited Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to attend the 17th India-EU (European Union) summit in early 2020. The summit which will be held at Brussels, Belgium, is aimed at expanding strategic partnerships with Europe.  Previously the India-EU Summit in Brussels was held in the year 2016. It was the 13th edition at that time. Brazil and China Co-developed Earth Observation Satellite, CBERS-4A, Launched into Orbit  China and Brazil have jointly developed an Earth Observation (EO) satellite, China-Brazil Earth Resource Satellite (CBERS) 4A.  The CBERS 4A satellite was launched into space on December 20 via a Long March 4B rocket from the northern Chinese province of Shanxi. BANKING AND ECONOMY RBI launched new PPI for small digital transactions  The Reserve Bank of India has introduced a new semi-closed prepaid payment instrument (PPI) which can be used for the transaction of goods and services up to a limit of Rs 10,000.

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 The loading facility.12.2018 of the instrument will be linked only from a bank account. This direction has made under Section.2018 18 read with Section 10(2) of Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.  These PPIs will enhance the digitization of daily payments at local shops and retail outlets for the purchase of daily household.11.2018 goods and services.  PPIs are instruments that facilitate the purchase of goods and services, including financial services, remittance facilities, etc., against the value stored on such instruments. There are currently three kinds of PPIs allowed by RBI: closed system, semi-closed and open PPIs.  The PPIs may be issued as cards, wallets, and any such form/instrument which can be used to access the PPI and to use the amount therein. PPIs in the form of paper vouchers shall no longer be issued. RBI released report on „Trend and Progress of Banking in India 2018-19  India‟s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released the report on “Trend and Progress of Banking in India 2018-19”, a publication in compliance with Section 36 (2) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, records the performance of the banking sector, including co- operative banks, and non-banking financial institutions during 2018-19 & 2019-20 .  The gross NPA (non-performing assets) of the Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) improved to 9.1% in March 2019 from 11.2% in March 2018.While, Net non-performing assets of all commercial banks declined to 3.7 % in 2018-19 as compared to 6 %in the previous fiscal.  During the financial year (FY) 2017-18, there were 5916 cases were registered , out of which forgery accounts up to Rs 41,167.04 crore. It grew by 74% to reach 6801 cases of bank fraud in India worth of Rs 71,543 crore in 2018-19. AIIB sanctioned $210 million loan for irrigation & solar energy projects  The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has announced a loan of $210 million for irrigation and solar energy projects in India. The bank will lend $145 million to improve irrigation services and strengthen flood risk management in West Bengal. RBI caps lending on P2P platforms at Rs 50 lakh  The Reserve Bank of India has capped the permissible exposure limit of a lender on a Peer-to-Peer lending (P2P) platform for all borrowers. The aggregate exposure has been set at Rs 50 lakh at any given point of time. The step has been taken to protect the consumer‟s interest.  The lender investing more than Rs 10 lakh across P2P platforms has to produce a certificate to P2P platforms from a practising Chartered Accountant certifying minimum net-worth of Rs 50 lakh.  The central bank also stated that the “Escrow accounts” to be operated by bank promoted trustee for transfer of funds need not be mandatorily maintained with the bank which has promoted the trustee. It also mandates that all the transactions through bank accounts, and cash transaction are strictly prohibited. GoI infused Rs 8,655 crore into Allahabad Bank, IOB & UCO Bank  The has approved the release of Rs 8,655 crore as fresh capital to three public sector banks. The list includes Allahabad Bank, Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) and UCO Bank. PERSON IN NEWS  In , Grand Alliance leader Hemant Soren will take oath as Chief Minister.  Managing Director of Hiranandani Groups has taken the charge of Assocham‟s (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India) new President.  PR Ravi Mohan was appointed as the new chairman of ESAF Small Finance Bank (SFB).  The Government of India as appointed the Senior Diplomat and Indian ambassador to the United States (US), Mr. Harsh Vardhan Shringla as the next Foreign Secretary. He is the 33rd foreign secretary of the country.  Dr. Monisha Ghosh appointed 1st woman CTO of US' Communications Commission.  Director of Apollo Hospitals Group, Dr. Sangita Reddy has taken over as the President of the industry chamber FICCI.

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.12.2018 SPORTS AND GAME awardee .2018Leander Paes to retire from Professional Tennis in 2020  Professional tennis player, Leander Adrian Paes has announced his retirement in the year 2020.  He is a winner of 18.11.2018 Grand Slam titles consisting of eight in men‟s doubles and 10 in mixed doubles. 6th International Cup (Weightlifting) 2019 held in Doha, Qatar  The tournament comprises women‟s 49kg, 64kg and men‟s 61kg &67kg event. Liverpool wins 16th FIFA club world cup 2019 final for the 1st time in Doha, Qatar  England‟s football club (FC) Liverpool has won the 16th edition of Club World Cup (WC) title 2019 for the 1st time, after beating Flamengo (Brazilian sports club) with 1-0 scores in Khalifa International stadium, Doha, Qatar.  Liverpool defeated Tottenham Hotspur with 2–0 scores in the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) Champions League final 2019. ViratKohli named in Wisden cricketers of the decade list  Indian skipper is one of the five players named in the Wisden Cricketers of the Decade. Kohli, who has scored 5,775 more international runs than anyone else in the last 10 years, has arguably been the best batsman over the last decade.  Kohli joins Australian batsman , and South Africans, , and AB de Villiers. Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry is the only female cricketer in the list. MS Dhoni named of CA‟s ODI team of the decade  Former India skipper and -keeper batsman MS Dhoni been named captain of Australia‟s (CA) ODI team of the decade and the line-up features three Indian players. AWARDS AND HONOURS Kamareddy won Unicef-2019 Award for Swachh Bharat implementation  Kamareddy district of Telangana has secured the United Nations International Children‟s and Education Fund (Unicef)-2019 Award. The district has won the award for effective implementation of Swachh Bharat Mission in water sanitation and hygiene sectors. Vice President Venkaiahnaidu conferred 66th National film awards for 2018 in New Delhi  Shri , who skipped the Awards ceremony due to ill-health will be presented with the prestigious 50th Dadasaheb Phalke Award (Indian cinema‟s biggest honour in his 50th year in the Indian film industry).  The national awards were announced by the jury heads Rahul Rawail, AS Kanal and Utpal Bhorpujari after they submitted their report to Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Minister with their final recommendations. Indian weightlifter Rakhi created two new national records at Qatar International Cup  Indian weightlifter Rakhi Halder clinched a bronze medal in the women‟s 64kg weight category at the Qatar International Cup in Doha.  With this, she created two new national records in both snatch and total lift with her personal best effort of 218kg (95kg in snatch + 123 kg in clean and jerk). DAY AND DATE National Consumer Day: December 24  National Consumer Day 2019 theme: alternate consumer grievance/dispute redressal. Good Governance Day: December 25  In India, Good Governance Day (Susasan Divas) is observed annually on December 25 to commemorate the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee (25 December 1924 – 16 August 2018). ONELINERS  “Dreams of a Billion: India and the Olympic Games”- Book to chronicle India‟s Olympic journey by Boria Majumdar & Nalin Mehta.  Kotak Mahindra Bank & Pine Labs tie up to facilitate EMIs on debit cards.

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