DAILY UPDATED CURRENT AFFAIRS – 01.12.2017 TO 5.12.2017

NATIONAL Cabinet approves setting up of National Nutrition Mission (a) The Union Cabinet approves setting up of National Nutrition Mission (NNM) with three year budget of 9046.17 crore rupees commencing from 2017-18. (b) Under the mission, the government is targeting a reduction of 2% a year in stunting, undernutrition and low birthweight among 100 million people. (c) It aims to reduce anaemia among young children, women and adolescent girls by 3% a year. The programme would be undertaken in a phased manner, covering 315 districts in 2017-18, 235 districts in 2018-19 and the remaining districts in 2019-20. HUA approves construction of over 1 lakh more houses for urban (a) The Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has approved the construction of 1.12 lakh more affordable houses for urban poor under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban). (b) There will be an investment of Rs 8,105 crore for construction of these houses. The Centre will provide an assistance of Rs 1,681 crore for their construction. (c) The approval was given in the 28th meeting of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee (CSMC).With this, the total number of houses sanctioned so far under the scheme would be over 30.52 lakh (d) In the latest approvals, Madhya Pradesh got the highest sanction of 34,680 houses, followed by Haryana 24,221 houses, Maharashtra 11,523 houses, Jharkhand 28,477 houses, Kerala 9836 houses and Mizoram 3,270 houses. (e) Under PMAY(U), the government targets to provide houses to all urban poor by 2022. Currently, the shortage of houses is pegged at 1.2 crore. (f) Ministre of Housing and Urban Affairs-Narendra Singh Tomar (Constituency-Gwalior) Telangana announces WE-Hub, an innovation hub for women, special Rs 15-cr fund for women (a) The Telangana Government announced a move to set up an exclusive innovation hub on the lines of T-Hub for women called WE-Hub, backing it with an exclusive Rs. 15-crore fund. (b) NITI Aayog announced it will back the proposed WE-Hub with funds under the Atal Innovation Mission. Government proposes to register only BS-VI vehicles from June 2020 (a) In a bid to curb emissions from the vehicles based on outdated technology, the Central government has proposed to set the registration deadline for BS-IV standard vehicles to June 30, 2020. (b) While the government had already ordered the implementation of the Bharat Standard-VI compliant cleaner transport fuels across the nation by April 2020 and by April 2018 in Delhi, it has now invited suggestions and objections in a draft notification on the Central Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Rules, 2017. (c) New motor vehicles conforming to Emission Standard Bharat Stage-IV, manufactured before 1st April, 2020 shall not be registered after 30th June, 2020. (d) It added that if the new motor vehicles of category M (eight-seater cars) and category N (trucks), conforming to Emission Standard Bharat Stage-IV and manufactured before April 1, 2020 and sold in the form of drive-away chasis, then they will not be registered after September 30, 2020. (e) At par with its Europen counterpart "Euro-VI", under the BS-VI standard fuel, petrol and diesel are at the same level of emissions. Apart from this, while BS IV-compliant fuels which are currently being used in the country, has 50 parts per million (ppm) sulphur, BS VI emits a low 10 ppm. (f) The move is being welcomed by the Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA) that had earlier in April this year recommended to the apex court that only BS-VI emission standards compliant vehicles should be allowed to be sold from April 1, 2020. Chhattisgarh bans use of fire crackers in six cities The Chhattisgarh government has ordered a ban on bursting fire crackers in six of its cities, including the state capital – Raipur, ahead of the wedding season from December 1 to January 31.The Chhattisgarh Environment Conservation Board said the ban will be implemented every year during the period to curb pollution in the state. Shared Value Summit held in New Delhi Shared Value Summit 2017 was held in New Delhi where the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Suresh Prabhu, was the chief guest. The theme of the summit was “Equity and Empowerment”. Bengal first state in to setup green university West Bengal Assembly passed the West Bengal Green University Bill 2017 for setting up an environmental studies university at Hooghly district. President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated Nagaland’s Hornbill Festival President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the Hornbill Festival and State Formation Day celebrations of Nagaland in Kisama. The Hornbill Festival is the perfect showcase of rich Naga culture and traditions, preserved over the years in the form of music, dance and food. Centre increases agricultural education budget by 47.4 percent The Agriculture minister said that the Government has started implementing programmes towards strengthening Agricultural Education, Research and Extension for a long term and sustainable development in agriculture. He mentioned that the government of India has increased the budget of Agricultural Education by 47.4% this year as compared to the financial year 2013-14. First ever International Conference cum Exhibition on AYUSH and Wellness inaugurated in New Delhi The First Ever International Conference on AYUSH and Wellness ‘Arogya 2017’ was inaugurated by the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Shri Suresh Prabhu and Minister of State for AYUSH, Shri Shripad Yesso Naik in New Delhi. Nearly 1500 delegates from India and 60 countries are participating in ‘Arogya 2017’.

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DAILY UPDATED CURRENT AFFAIRS – 01.12.2017 TO 5.12.2017

PM Modi inaugurates unique world-class hospital in Ahmedabad Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a unique world-class hospital at the Swaminarayan Gurukul Vidyapeeth Pratisthanam in Ahmedabad. The 200-bed hospital is an integration of Yoga, Ayurveda and Allopathy. The hospital has world-class facilities in all the 3 streams offering the best possible care for any ailment. Telangana soon to have an IT campus for differently-abled Telangana government has signed an agreement with Vindhya E-Infomedia Private Limited to set up World’s first Information Technology (IT) campus for persons with disabilities that will focus on creating employment opportunities for them. The announced IT campus will be spread across 10 acres of area near the Hyderabad International Airport in the IT Park developed by the state government. India’s largest floating solar power plant opens in Kerala Kerala Electricity Minister MM Mani inaugurated India’s largest floating solar power plant at the Banasura Sagar dam in Wayanad district. The plant, worth approximately Rs 9.25 crore, floats on 6,000 square metres of water surface. With a capacity of 500 kilowatts, the plant comprises 1,938 solar panels and 17 inverters. Newly-formed 15th Finance Commission holds its first meeting The newly constituted 15th Finance Commission, held its first meeting in Delhi and touched upon preliminary discussions regarding its terms of reference. The commission also agreed that it would expedite meetings with the government and the various stakeholders in order to meet those terms. Uttar Pradesh’s Shamli District Included in NCR Uttar Pradesh’s Shamli district has been included in the national capital region, taking the total number of districts in the NCR to 23. Cities in the NCR get funds at “attractive” interest rates from the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) for infrastructure development. Besides Delhi, there are at present 22 districts — 13 of Haryana, seven of Uttar Pradesh and two of Rajasthan — in the NCR. Missile AKASH successfully launched from Chandipur, Odisha The Surface to Air Missile AKASH with indigenous radio frequency seeker against target Banshee has been successfully launched from Chandipur, Odisha. With this success, India has achieved the capability of making any type of Surface to Air Missile. INTERNATIONAL Russia to create ‘Independent Internet’ for BRICS Countries (a) The Russian Security Council has asked the Russian government to develop a separate infrastructure for BRICS countries’ internet needs while still being linked to the World Wide Web, which they claim will continue services in the event of a global internet infrastructure collapse. The plan has a deadline set for August 1, 2018. (b) Russia-Capital:,Currency:Rubel, President:Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister:Dmitry Medvedev (c) BRICS Nations: China, Russia, India, , South Africa, Founded: June 2006 India wins election to global maritime body (a) India won the election to the Council of International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in Category-B which represents the developing countries and countries with largest interests in international sea-borne trade. (b) The IMO, known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organisation (IMCO) until 1982, is a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for regulating shipping. (c) IMO-Headquarters: London, United Kingdom, Head: Kitack Lim SCO summit held in Russia (a) The annual SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) summit held in Russia’s Sochi discussed issues related to the regional security scenario including the situation in the Gulf and Afghanistan. From India, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj went Russia to attend the SCO summit. (b) The 2017 SCO summit was the 17th annual summit of heads of state of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation held between 7 - 10 June in Astana, . (c) SCO-Formation:15 June 2001, HQ: , China, Secretary General: Rashid Alimov (d) 8 member state- China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan(India and pakistan became member on 9 June 2017) to host ministerial meeting of UNSC on 15th Dec (a) Japan announced that it will host a ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council on 15th December. (b) United Nations Security Council-Head:Sebastiano Cardi,Headquarters: New York Cit ‘Populism’ named Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of the Year The word ‘populism’ has been announced as Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of the Year 2017. The dictionary defined populism as “political ideas and activities that are intended to get the support of ordinary people by giving them what they want”. Venezuela to launch oil-backed cryptocurrency, Petro Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has announced the creation of a new virtual currency ‘Petro’ in a bid to ease the country’s economic crisis. International conference on climate change begins in An international conference to draw attention on climate change and its adverse effects on people in the Hindu Kush mountain range has started in Kathmandu, Nepal. President Bidya Devi Bhandari will inaugurate the four-day long conference.

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DAILY UPDATED CURRENT AFFAIRS – 01.12.2017 TO 5.12.2017

ECONOMY Fitch lowers 2017-18 growth projection to 6.7% According to Fitch’s December Global Economic Outlook (GEO), the global ratings agency reduced the growth forecast for the fiscal year to end-March 2018 (FY18) to 6.7% from 6.9%. It has also lowered India’s growth forecast for FY’19 to 7.3% from 7.4% earlier. Bharti Airtel acquires strategic stake in Juggernaut Books Bharti Airtel, the telecommunications service provider, has acquired a strategic stake in Juggernaut Books, a digital platform to discover and read high quality, affordable books and to submit amateur writing. ADB Funds $580 Million for Reliance’s Bangladesh Power Plant Project The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Directors has approved debt financing and partial risk guarantees totaling $583 million to develop the Reliance Bangladesh Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Power Project. The financing package of ADB includes loans and partial risk guarantees for the power generation facility, as well as for the LNG terminal and the power project, being set up for $1 billion. Paytm unveils ‘Paytm Ka ATM’ partner outlet for banking operations India’s largest digital bank Paytm Payments bank has unveiled ‘Paytm Ka ATM’ outlets that allows customers to open Saving Accounts and deposit/withdraw money from their bank accounts. These specially branded outlets will play a key role in bringing banking access to smaller cities and towns by ensuring customers find it easy to locate an access point near them. The Bank is the only bank providing zero balance accounts and zero charges on digital transactions. Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance launches digital branches through Mosambee Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company has started adoption of digital branch services through its offering Mosambee to add depth and breadth to its service offerings. Mosambee is a handheld device that offers the services of a mobile branch and assists customers with an entire range of customer services such as obtaining premium payment certificates, procuring account statements, paying insurance renewal premiums, checking claim status, locating branches, SMS services for updating PAN and Aadhaar details, etc. PERSON IN NEWS Legendary Bollywood actor Shashi Kapoor passes away at 79 Legendary Bollywood actor Shashi Kapoor, the romantic screen icon of ‘70s and ‘80s, died this evening. He was 79.He took his last breath at the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital. He made his debut as a leading man in the 1961 film Dharmputra and went on to appear in more than 116 films during ‘70s and until the mid ‘80s. He was honoured with Padma Bhushan in 2011 and received the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke award in 2015. A. Surya Prakash: Dr. A. Surya Prakash has been re-appointed as the Chairman of Prasar Bharati Board. Dr. Prakash will hold this position till February 8, 2020, till he turns 70 years. CEO of Prasar Bharati- Shri Shashi Shekhar Vempati Sanyukta Bhatia : BJP’s Sanyukta Bhatia will be the first woman to hold the Lucknow Municipal Corporation Mayor’s post in 100 years after the Uttar Pradesh Municipalities Act came into being in 1916. Bhatia will succeed Dinesh Sharma. Dia Mirza: Actress Dia Mirza has been appointed as UN Environment’s Goodwill Ambassador for India. She will work with the UN to further spread the message on priority areas including clean air, clean seas, wildlife protection and climate change. Salil Parekh: IT bellwether Infosys has appointed Salil S. Parekh as its Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director with effect from January 2, 2018 for a five-year term. He will succeed U.B. Pravin Rao. Ellie Goulding : British singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding is appointed as Global Goodwill Ambassador for UN Environment, joining the fight to save the lives and habitats of people and animals by cleaning up the planet’s air and seas, fighting climate change and protecting species. Adarsh Sen: Former Chief Justice of India (CJI) Adarsh Sen Anand has passed away after prolonged illness. Purabi Mukhopadhyay: Veteran Rabindrasangeet singer Purabi Mukhopadhyay has passed away at her city residence in Kolkata after suffering from age-related health problems. She was 83. AWARD Miss Korea crowned Miss Supranational 2017 Miss Korea Jenny Kim was crowned Miss Supranational 2017 in . Tica Martinez of and Bianca Tirsin of were named the first runner-up and second runner-up respectively. India’s official entry to the competition, Peden Ongmu Namgyal, reached top 25, but failed to make it to the top 10. India wins award for putting high effort to combat Illegal Wildlife Trade India wons award for putting high effort to combat Illegal Wildlife Trade. The award was given to Wildlife Crime Control Bureau by the Secretary-General of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITIES) of Wild Fauna and Flora. 16-year-old Syrian wins Children’s Peace Prize 2017 Sixteen-year-old Mohamad Al Jounde from Syria was awarded the International Children’s Peace Prize for his efforts to ensure the rights of Syrian refugee children. Al Jounde, a refugee of the Syrian civil war, set up a school together with his family in a Lebanese refugee camp that currently provides 200 children with eduction. SPORTS Odisha CM unveils logo & mascot of Hockey World Cup 2018 Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik unveiled the logo and mascot for the Hockey Men’s World Cup 2018 at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. As many as 16 countries, including hosts India, will participate in the 14th edition of the Hockey World Cup in Kalinga Stadium.

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DAILY UPDATED CURRENT AFFAIRS – 01.12.2017 TO 5.12.2017

Hockey World League Final begins in Bhubaneswar (a) The Hockey World League (HWL) Final began at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurating the tournament, where the best eight teams in the world will battle for supremacy. These teams are – , , Belgium, England, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and hosts India. (b) In addition to being crowned HWL champions, the winners of the event in Bhubaneswar will also be guaranteed qualification for the Men's Champions Trophy 2018, which will take place in the Netherlands in June/July. (c) In the inaugural match, Germany defeated England 2-0 to start their campaign in a dominating fashion here on Friday. Germany scored through Mats Grambusch (19) and Christopher Ruhr (25). Mary Kom resigns as boxing's national observer Five-time world champion MC Mary Kom has resigned as the national observer for Indian boxing after Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore made it clear that active sportspersons will not be considered for the position. Chungneijang Mary Kom Hmangte, better known as Mary Kom,is an Olympic Indian boxer hailing from the Kom tribe in Manipur. She is a five-time World Amateur Boxing champion, and the only woman boxer to have won a medal in each one of the six world championships. Kohli becomes 4th fastest Indian to 5,000 Test runs (a) Virat Kohli became the fourth fastest Indian batsman to reach the landmark of 5,000 runs in the five-day format on the opening day of the third and final cricket Test against in New Delhi. Other three are legendary Sunil Gavaskar followed by former star opener Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar. (b) Captain Virat Kohli also surpassed Brian Lara to set the record for most double centuries scored by a Test captain on the second day of the third and final Test against Sri Lanka in Delhi on Sunday, 3 December. This is the second double century on the trot for the Indian skipper. Prithvi Shaw named India’s captain for U-19 World Cup Mumbai batsman Prithvi Shaw saw his performance in domestic season bear fruit as the 18-year was named as the captain of India’s squad for the upcoming ICC U-19 World Cup next year in New Zealand. Shubman Gill is named the vice-captain. India win South Asian badminton title India beat Nepal 3-0 to win the first ever South Asian Regional Badminton Tournament (team championship) held at Guwahati, Assam. Afghanistan crowned ICC Intercontinental Cup champions Afghanistan grabbed the ICC Intercontinental Cup defeating United Arab Emirates by 10 wickets on the fourth and final day at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Melbourne to host golf World Cup for 3rd straight time Organizers of the golf World Cup announced that Melbourne (city in Victoria, Australia) will host the grand team event for the third straight time in 2018. MISCELLANEOUS Gulzar pens debut novel in English on Partition Veteran lyricist Gulzar has come out with his debut novel titled “Two” in English which examines the status of refugees after the Partition. Madame Tussauds debuts in Delhi with Indian celebrities (a) Madame Tussauds has debuted in Delhi, with 50 wax models of Indian and international celebrities. Waxworks of Bollywood actors, sports stars, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and father of the Indian nation Mahatma Gandhi are on display at the museum. (b) The museum is located in the historic Regal building in Connaught Place. (c) The Delhi centre is the 23rd museum for Madame Tussauds which has centres in major cities across the globe, including London, Washington, New York, Amsterdam, , , Tokyo and Beijing. Cyclone Ockhi hits southern Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Lakshadweep Heavy rains and gushing winds hammered the southern coast of Tamil Nadu and Kerala as a deep depression in the Bay of Bengal turned into a cyclone named Ockhi, leaving behind a trail of destruction. It also hit Lakshadweep Islands. Google launches ‘Files Go’ for smarter mobile-first approach Tech giant Google announced the launch of Files Go app that takes a mobile-first approach to freeing up space, finding files faster and easily sharing them with others, even when offline. IMPORTANT DAY World AIDS Day: 1 December World AIDS Day, designated on 1 December every year since 1988, is a day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease. The theme for World AIDS day 2017 is ‘Right to health’. International Day of Persons with Disabilities: 3 December (a) International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3) is an international observance promoted by the United Nations since 1992. The observance of the Day aims to promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities. (b) The theme of International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2017: “Transformation towards sustainable and resilient society for all”. World Soil Day: 5 December World Soil Day (WSD) is held annually on 5 December as a means to focus attention on the importance of healthy soil and advocating for the sustainable management of soil resources. The theme of World Soil Day 2017 is “Caring for the Planet starts from the Ground”.

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