Daily Current Affairs Capsule 19 March 2019

Daily Current Affairs th Capsule 19 March 2019 1. World's most expensive cities revealed It's the first time three cities have shared the top spot in the 30-year history of the annual Economist Intelligence Unit survey, which compares prices in 133 cities globally. Paris, Singapore and Hong Kong are the most expensive cities according to the survey. The survey compares the cost of common items, such as bread, haircuts etc in 133 cities. Bangalore, Chennai, New Delhi and Karachi feature among the 10 cheapest locations surveyed. 2. Indian Army starts Military Exercise With 17 African Nations The Indian Army began a 10-day military exercise with armed forces of 17 African nations at Aundh in Maharashtra. The countries participating in the inaugural edition of the Africa-India Field Training Exercise (AFINDEX) include Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Benin and Botswana. The inaugural ceremony of the exercise held at the Aundh military station was attended by defence attaches and other senior officials of the participating nations. The exercise will focus on the exchange of best practices between the participating nations, team building and tactical level operations in the conduct of the UN-mandated tasks. 3. Pune-based firm developing software to operate the world’s largest ground telescope in Hawaii A Pune-based IT firm is developing software for the world’s largest ground-based telescope. The telescope is named as Thirty Metre Telescope (TMT), which is likely to come up on Mauna Kea in Hawaii. The telescope is being constructed jointly by India, US, China, Japan and Canada and is likely to become operational in the mid-2020s. India is building the telescope’s complex optical structure, called the Segment Support Assembly (SSA). An eight-member team at the IT firm, ThoughtWorks, is designing three different software - Common Software Services (CSS), Data Management Services(DMS) and Executive Software (ES). 4. Special Stamp on Ice Stupa released Chief Postmaster General of Jammu and Kashmir Circle P.D.Tshering in presence of Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL) founder Sonam Wangchuk has released a special stamp on Ice Stupas in a program in Ganglas village. Wangchuk said that this year twelve villages in Ladakh made Ice Stupas and during World Water Day celebration on 22nd March the best Ice Stupas will be awarded. Stamps are to create awareness about depleting glaciers and effect on the ecology around the Himalayas. Over 12 villages in Ladakh have built ice Stupas this year in various villages. 5. International Workshop on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure in New Delhi International workshop on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure began in New Delhi. The two-day event is being organised by the National Disaster Management Authority in collaboration with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. The aim of the workshop is to identify good practices of disaster risk management in key infrastructure sectors. It will bring together countries from different parts of the world, multilateral development banks, UN agencies, academia and research institutions. 6. BJP's Pramod Sawant sworn-in as new Goa CM BJP MLA Pramod Sawant was sworn-in as the new Chief Minister of Goa. He succeeds Manohar Parrikar, who passed away following a prolonged illness. Goa Governor Mridula Sinha administered the oath of office and secrecy to the 46-year-old Sawant. He represents Sankhalim constituency in Goa Assembly. The Governor also administered the oath to 11 other ministers, including those from BJP's allies Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and the Goa Forward Party (GFP). 7. Rear Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, VSM assumes Charge as Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) Rear Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, VSM, has assumed charge as Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) at Kochi. Rear Admiral Swaminathan, a specialist in Communication and Electronic Warfare was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 01 Jul 1987 and is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla at Pune. He has commanded five frontline ships of the Indian Navy including the missile vessels, INS Vidyut and INS Vinash; the missile corvette, INS Kulish; the guided missile destroyer, INS Mysore; and the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya. FOST functions under the operational and administrative jurisdiction of Flag Officer Commanding-in- Chief, Southern Naval Command. His charter includes the conduct of operational sea training for ships of the Indian Navy and Coast Guard. 8. Bottas wins Formula One season opener, Australian Grand Prix Valtteri Bottas won the season-opening Australian Formula One Grand Prix. He upstaged his Mercedes world champion team-mate, Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton finished the race in the second spot, while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen finished third. 9. Gopi Thonakal qualifies for World Athletics Championships India's Asian champion Gopi Thonakal has qualified for the World Athletics Championships to be held in the Qatari capital Doha in September-October this year. He achieved qualification after finishing 11th in the Seoul International Marathon yesterday, clocking his personal best time of 2 hours 13 minutes 39 seconds. The Seoul International Marathon is a world-class IAAF Gold label event. Gopi's time was the second-best ever by an Indian after the four-decade-old national record of 2 hours 12 minutes, held by Shivnath Singh. Gopi also bettered the World Championships qualification mark of 2 hrs. and 16 minutes. .

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