1 NICK OF TIME C.A. FOR IBPS CLERK – MAINS(2018) 2 NICK OF TIME C.A. FOR IBPS CLERK – MAINS(2018) NATIONAL AFFAIRS Swachhta Pakhwada of Ministry in Civil Aviation, Government of India: Pawan Hans Ltd, Airports Authority of India and Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi awarded the 3 best performing organizations Swachhta Pakhwada observed by Ministry of Civil Aviation to highlight the importance of cleanliness to all the employees by citing the example of Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi. Shri Rajiv Nayan Choubey, Secretary (Civil Aviation) inaugurated the event and requested the employees to maintain cleanliness around their workstations. The event was concluded on 15th November 2018. Ministry of Civil Aviation plans to introduce 15 helipads across the country Ministry of Civil Aviation plans to introduce 15 helipads across the country to improve tourism prospects. Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the helipads will be established in hilly areas to explore the tourist potential in the north and north-eastern parts of the country. While addressing at STEP conclave organized by Prabudha Bharat in Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU), Belagavi. He also said that the government was committed to improving air connectivity at tier-II cities, including Belagavi. The government was also contemplating opening three airports in the State for international destinations. India to host G20 summit in 2022 India is to host the annual G20 summit in 2022 as it will be celebrating its 75th anniversary of Independence. This will be India’s first time to host the G20 summit. The announcement was made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the closing ceremony of the 13th G20 summit in the Argentinian capital on 1st December 2018. The Prime Minister thanked Italy for allowing India to play the host as it was to host the summit in 2022. Union Government launches Bhasha Sangam to introduce school students to 22 Indian languages The Government launched ‘Bhasha Sangam’, a unique initiative to introduce school students to 22 Indian languages. Bhasha Sangam launched under Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat. It is a programme for schools and educational institutions to offer multilingual exposure to students in Indian languages. The main aim is to improve linguistic tolerance and respect and promote national integration. DAIC And JNU Sign MoU To Facilitate Research Activities & Policy Formulation Dr. Ambedkar International Centre (DAIC), 15 Janpath, New Delhi, and Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to facilitate and enhance research activities and policy formulation aimed at Socio-economic Transformation and Sustainable Development. 15th Global SME Business Summit in New Delhi The 15th edition of a two day Global SME Business Summit was organised by the Ministry of MSME and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with Government e-marketplace in New Delhi. The theme of the event was ‘Building Partnerships through Global Value Chains.’ The agenda of the summit was to bring together renowned speakers with unbounded experience and expertise, a global audience, and various national and international SME stakeholders to integrate Indian MSMEs into the Global Value Chains (GVCs). National Medical Devices Promotion Council To Be Set Up Under DIPP To give a fillip to the medical device sector, which is a sunrise sector, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, announced setting up of a National Medical Devices Promotion Council under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) in the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. The Council will be headed by Secretary, DIPP. The announcement was made at the occasion of the 4th WHO Global Forum on Medical Devices, at Andhra Pradesh Medtech Zone, in Vishakhapatnam. CRZ approved the construction of Pulicat bridge Expert Appraisal Committee of the Ministry of Environment approved a proposal by the Highways Department for the construction of the bridge for the people of Pasiyavaram island on Pulicat Lake to the mainland. The committee, while granting Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance for the bridge, with a width of 7.5 m to meet the IRC requirements, and costing Rs. 18.2 crore, noted that it was informed that the Pulicat Sanctuary Eco- Sensitive Zone (ESZ), that starts from the inter-state boundary of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, is about 2 km away from the proposed bridge site. DU has been ranked A+ in the NAAC review Delhi University has been ranked A+ in the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) review held in the last week of October. The grading provided by the council is crucial for funds and grants allotted to a university by the University Grants Commission (UGC). The grading provided by the council is crucial for funds and grants allotted to a varsity by UGC. 3 NICK OF TIME C.A. FOR IBPS CLERK – MAINS(2018) Last year, the Jawaharlal Nehru University was ranked A++ in the NAAC review. DU got a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 3.28. The CGPA for A++ accreditation is between 3.51 to 4. First Global Aviation Summit to be held in Mumbai Supported by ICAO, IATA, ACI and CANSO, the 1st Global Aviation Summit will be held on January 15 and 16, 2019 at The Grand Hyatt in Mumbai. It aims to focus on the celebration of 'Flying for All' and to provide a platform to the aviation fraternity to highlight the challenges of the sector in the newly-developing growth spots. India To Chair Kimberley Process From January 2019 The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) Plenary 2018, was held in Brussels, Belgium, in November 2018. EU handed over the Chairmanship of KPCS to India from 1st January 2019. This year was the fifteenth anniversary of KPCS. Four Indian-Origin Women In Forbes US Top 50 Females In Tech Four Indian-origin technology executives have made it to the Forbes’ list of America’s 50 women in technology space in 2018. The list includes Neha Narkhede, chief technology officer and co-founder of streaming platform Confluent; Kamakshi Sivaramakrishnan, CEO, and founder of identity-management company Drawbridge; Padmasree Warrior, former chief technology officer (CTO) of Cisco, and Komal Mangtani, senior director at Uber. Centre proposes ban on use of animals in circuses, performances The Centre has proposed a prohibition on the use of all animals for performances, exhibition at any circus or mobile entertainment facilitiesand has invited comments from various stakeholders on the issue within 30 days. Though the ministry had banned the use of lions, tigers, panthers, monkeys, bears and bulls in 2011 as part of its species-specific rules, the new draft will now be applicable for all animals across the country. SC rejected the fresh plea against Article 370 The Supreme Court (SC) declined to look at the fresh petition challenging Article 370, which gives special autonomous status to Jammu and Kashmir. Another pending writ petition is by NGO ‘We the Citizens’. This petition challenged the validity of both Article 35A and Article 370. It argues that four representatives from Kashmir were part of the Constituent Assembly involved in the drafting of the Constitution and the State of Jammu and Kashmir was never accorded any special status in the Constitution. Article 370 was only a ‘temporary provision’ to help bring normalcy. The Constitution makers did not intend Article 370 to be a tool to bring permanent amendments, like Article 35A, in the Constitution. The petition said Article 35A is against the “very spirit of oneness of India”. Restricting citizens from other States from getting employment or buying property in J&K is a violation of their fundamental rights. PM Modi to be invited to Pakistan for SAARC summit Pakistan’s Foreign Office Spokesman Mohammad Faisal said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to be invited to Pakistan for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit. SAARC Summits are usually held biennially hosted by a member state in alphabetical order. The member state hosting the summit assumes the Chair of the Association. The summit 2018 was called off after Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan also declined to participate in the Islamabad meet. The Maldives and Sri Lanka are the seventh and eighth members of the initiative. Centre approves release of Rs 353 crore to Tamil Nadu as relief The Centre has approved the release of Rs 353.70 crore to Tamil Nadu as assistance for the damage caused by Cyclone Gaja on November 15 and 16, during which 12 districts of the state were severely affected. Further, assistance will be provided from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), based on the final report of the Inter-ministerial Central Team (IMCT). Govt forms6-member panel to look at selling 149 fields of ONGC, OIL to private companies The panel is headed by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar and includes Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha, Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg, Oil Secretary M M Kutty, NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant and ONGC Chairman and Managing Director Shashi Shanker. The fields will be sold to private companies to boost domestic output. The government gave out 34 fields to private firms by offering them pricing and marketing freedom for oil and gas they produced from the fields in the first round of Discovered Small Field (DSF). The second round of DSF with 25 fields on offer is currently under bidding. Akshay Kumar becomes first Honorary Ambassador of Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial Foundation Actor Akshay Kumar has been known to be a vocal supporter of the Indian Armed Forces (jawan) as well as the farmer (kisan) community. Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial Foundation is the social organisation founded by the 4 NICK OF TIME C.A. FOR IBPS CLERK – MAINS(2018) family of India’s second Prime Minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri.