OCTOBER CURRENT AFFAIRS– 2018 ENGLISH VERSION nd No: 646, 2 floor, K.K. Nagar, Madurai – 625020 | 7397150273, 8489228855 nd No: 81, 2 floor, South Veli Street, Madurai – 625001 9751999264, 0452-4951150/4217492 www.seniasacademy.in OCTOBER CA – 2018 President Ram Nath Kovind has given his assent to the Karnataka Good Samaritan and Medical Professional (Protection and Regulation during Emergency Situations) Bill, 2016. The bill provides legal protection to the good Samaritans in Karnataka, who help accident victims with emergency medical care within the golden hour. Indian midfielder Manpreet Singh will be captain of the 18-member Indian team at the 5th edition of Asian Men‘s Hockey Champions Trophy 2018, which is scheduled to be held in Muscat, Oman from October 18 to 28. This is India‘s first tournament after the retirement of Sardar Singh. The tournament will feature host nation Oman, reigning champions India, Malaysia, Pakistan, South Korea, and Japan. Renowned Hindi commentator Jasdev Singh (87), who was the voice of Indian sports on Doordarshan, has passed away in New Delhi on September 25, 2018. From 1963, he was also an official commentator on Independence Day and Republic Day parade broadcasts for 48 long years. Arun Kumar, a 1985 batch officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre, has been appointed the new Director-General of Railway Protection Force (RPF). He will hold the charge as RPF‘s DG till his superannuation on June 30, 2021. He succeeded Dharmendra Kumar. Prior to this post, Arun Kumar was the as Special Director General of Border Security Force (BSF). The World Health Organization (WHO) has recently launched a new alcohol control initiative ‗SAFER‘ to prevent and reduce alcohol-related death and disability. It provides five high-impact strategies that can help governments reduce the harmful use of alcohol and related health, social and economic consequences. The WHO-led initiative and action package aim to support global target of reducing harmful use of alcohol by 10% by 2025. Dr. Evan Atar Adaha, surgeon and medical director at a hospital in Bunj of north- eastern South Sudan, has won the prestigious the 2018 UNHCR Nansen Refugee for his outstanding 20-year commitment in providing medical services to people forced to flee conflict. The Mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporaton (KMC) has recently launched India‘s first Flood Forecasting and Early Warning System (FFEWS) for Kolkata City to help city officials and citizens act decisively to minimize damage before and during disasters. The 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded jointly to Dr. James P. Allison of the United States and Dr. Tasuku Honjo of Japan for their discovery of cancer therapy by inhibition of negative immune regulation. Four-time Olympic gold medallist athlete Sanya Richards-Ross will be the event ambassador for the Airtel Delhi half marathon to be held on October 21. She is the fastest American woman in the history of 400m with her time of 48.70s set at the 2006 IAAF World Cup. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has expected India‘s economy to grow 7.0% in calendar year 2018 compared with 6.2% in 2017. As No: 646, 2nd floor, K.K. Nagar, Madurai – 625020 | 7397150273, 8489228855 No: 81, 2nd floor, South Veli Street, Madurai – 625001 | 9751999264, 0452-4951150/4217492 www.seniasacademy.in 1 OCTOBER CA – 2018 per the report ―Trade and Development‖, the effects of demonetization are still evident in private consumption trends within the economy. India‘s first AICTE Training and Learning (ATAL) Academy will be established by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) in Jaipur. In a bid to introduce upgraded teaching methods and modules to make technical education more effective and accountable, AICTE is building the training academies where the faculties would be trained on the eight-module course. The Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has recently constituted an 11-member high-level committee on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to review the existing framework and guide and formulate the roadmap for a coherent policy on CSR under the companies‘ law. Dr.Susane Giti has been appointed the first-ever female major general in the 47 years history of Bangladesh. She was presented with the rank badge of Major General by Bangladesh Army chief General Aziz Ahmed and Quarter Master General Lt General Md Shamsul Haque on September 30. Gita Gopinath, professor at Harvard University, has been appointed chief economist of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The India-born economist will succeed Maurice (Maury) Obstfeld, who is to retire at the end of 2018.With this,Gopinath will become the 2nd Indian after former RBI Governor RaghuramRajan to be appointed to the position. The 17th century ‗OonthKadal‘ is a Mughal period arch-shaped bridge, located at the middle of the picturesque Dal Lake in Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir. Recently, the Government of Germany has granted Rs 32 lakh for the conservation of the camel hump-shaped bridge. Pandit Tulsidas Borkar (83), the legendary harmonium exponent, has passed away in Mumbai, Maharashtra on September 29, 2018. He was conferred with the Padma Shri award in 2016 for his contributions to Indian music. He was also a recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2005. Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan has recently launched an innovative initiative called SATAT (Sustainable Alternative towards Affordable Transportation) in New Delhi on 1st October 2018 to promote Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG) as an alternative fuel. The nationwide Action Research Project of Gram Panchayat development scheme has been inaugurated by the Minister of Rural Development Narendra Singh Tomar at a function organized at Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh on October 1. The project is designed for the sustainable and holistic development of rural areas of the country. On September 30, the Madhya Pradesh government has announced to set up a Ministry for Cows at a function in Khajuraho in Chhattarpur district to take care of cattle in a better way. It was attended by Digambar Jain monk Vidhyasagarji Maharaj. No: 646, 2nd floor, K.K. Nagar, Madurai – 625020 | 7397150273, 8489228855 No: 81, 2nd floor, South Veli Street, Madurai – 625001 | 9751999264, 0452-4951150/4217492 www.seniasacademy.in 2 OCTOBER CA – 2018 Teenage shooting star Manu Bhaker has been named as the flag-bearer of the Indian contingent for the 3rd Youth Olympic Games to be held at Buenos Aires in Argentina from October 6-18. Goa Olympic Association Secretary Gurudutta D Bhakta will be the Chef-de-Mission of the contingent. It is India‘s largest ever contingent at the Youth Olympics. On the occasion of 149th Gandhi Jayanti, the Odisha government has launched its own food security scheme to benefit 25 lakh poor people that were excluded from the National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013. The scheme was launched by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the State Secretariat in Bhubaneswar. India has been ranked 5th, jointly with Hong Kong and Thailand, in terms of the largest pictorial warning on cigarette packs with 85% of both sides of the packets covered, according to latest Canadian Cancer Society report. On the 149th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal hoisted India‘s tallest National Flag from the average city elevation at the Gandhi Mandap in Guwahati. The 9,600 sqft flag stands on a 319.5 ft flag pole at Gandhi Mandap, a memorial for Mahatma Gandhi atop the Sarania Hill in the heart of Assam‘s principal city. Thampi Kannanthanam (64), the noted Malayalam film director, has recently passed away in Kochi, Kerala on October 2, 2018. The 6th edition of joint Multi – National Maritime Exercise ―IBSAMAR 2018‖ between the Indian, Brazilian and South African Navies has started at Simons Town, South Africa from 1st Oct 2018. The aim of the 13-day exercise is to undertake collective training for participating navies, building inter-operability and mutual understanding as well as sharing of best practices. The Government of India has recently constituted a 7-member ministerial panel headed by Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi to examine modalities for revenue mobilisation in case of natural calamities and disasters The Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention (MGISC) has recently concluded in New Delhi on October 2. The purpose of the 4–day event was to share sanitation success stories and lessons from the participating countries. In it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres addressed the convention. American scientist Arthur Ashkin, French engineer Gerard Mourou and Canadian professor Donna Strickland have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their work in the field of laser physics. Rio Paralympic gold medalist Thangvellu Mariyappan has been named as flag-bearer of the Indian contingent for the 3rd Paralympic Asian games to be held in Jakarta, Indonesia from October 6-13. The Ministry of Railways has been declared the best department for its contribution to ―Swachchta Pakhwada‖ under the ―Swachchta Hi Seva‖ category of awards in an inter- No: 646, 2nd floor, K.K. Nagar, Madurai – 625020 | 7397150273, 8489228855 No: 81, 2nd floor, South Veli Street, Madurai – 625001 | 9751999264, 0452-4951150/4217492 www.seniasacademy.in 3 OCTOBER CA – 2018 ministry initiative organised by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation to promote cleanliness in government offices and health facilities On October 3, the Government of India (GoI) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed $240 million loan for providing safe and sustainable drinking water to about 1.65 million people in three districts of the state of West Bengal affected by arsenic, fluoride, and salinity. The Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister, Prakash Javadekar has recently announced the ―Swachh Campus rankings 2018‖ under different categories.