UNIQUE IAS ACADEMY- DECEMBER 2017 01st December 2017 1. World AIDS Day: 1 December i. World AIDS day is celebrated every year all over the world on December 1st to raise the public awareness about Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome, AIDS. The theme for World AIDS day 2017 is 'Right to health'. ii. It is a pandemic disease caused due to the infection of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). News in-a-line: World AIDS day- 1st December- theme for 2017- 'Right to health' Static/Current Takeaway Points Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- The day is marked by the World Health Organisation as a global public health campaign. 2. BSF Raising Day: 1 December i. Border Security Force (BSF), the sentinels of Indian borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh, celebrated its 52nd Anniversary of Raising Day on 1st December. ii. BSF is the biggest border guarding force in the world. It came into existence on the eventful day of 1st December, 1965. BSF is deployed on Indo-Pakistan International Border, Indo-Bangladesh International Border, Line of Control along with Indian Army and in Anti-Naxal Operations. Static/Current Takeaway Points Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- K K Sharma is the Director Genereal of BSF. Headquarters- New Delhi. 3. India, Singapore Sign Agreement on Enhancing Naval Cooperation i. India and Singapore sign agreement on enhancing naval cooperation. The agreement will enhance security of sea lanes between the two countries. The Singapore Defence minister Ng Eng Hen was in India and signed the agreement with Defence Minister Nirmala Seetharaman. ii. A Navy to Navy agreement was also signed between the two nations that will allow temporary deployments and logistic support in each other's bases. News in-a-line: India and Singapore- signed agreement- for enhancing naval cooperation. Static/Current Takeaway Points Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- SIMBEX is the Joint Military Exercise between India and Singapore. Halimah Yacob was recently (September 2017) named Singapore's first female president. 0422 4204182, 9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore. Page 1 UNIQUE IAS ACADEMY- DECEMBER 2017 4. IMF Approves New USD 88 billion Credit Line For Mexico i. The International Monetary Fund has approved a new USD 88 billion credit line for Mexico, replacing the existing line. ii. The two-year flexible credit line boosts Mexico’s ability to immediately deal with a potential need for liquidity, without having to request an IMF loan. Static/Current Takeaway Points Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- Mexico- a Country in North America, Capital- Mexico City. 5. Nagaland Celebrates 54th Statehood Day i. Nagaland is all set to celebrate the 54th Statehood Day and the 18th Hornbill festival 2017 at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama. ii. President Ram Nath Kovind who is on a maiden visit to the state will grace the occasion and inaugurate the 10 day State Hornbill festival 2017. He was accorded the Guard of Honour by the Assam Rifles. News in-a-line: Nagaland- celebrate 54th Statehood Day and the 18th Hornbill festival 2017- inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind. Static/Current Takeaway Points Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- Nagaland CM- T R Zeliang, Governor- Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya. 6. Govt Fixes Sovereign Gold Bonds Rate at Rs 2,952/gram i. The government has fixed 2,952 rupees per gram as price of new series of sovereign gold bonds (SGBs). The government, in consultation with the Reserve Bank, has decided to offer a discount of Rs 50 per gram to investors applying online and making payments digitally. ii. The issue price will be Rs 2,902 a gram for investors applying online and the payment through digital mode. iii. About Sovereign Gold Bond- Sovereign Gold Bonds are Government securities denominated in multiples of gram(s) of gold. They are substitute for investment in physical gold. To buy the bond, investor has to pay the issue price in cash to an authorised SEBI Broker. These Bonds are issued by the Reserve Bank of India on behalf of the Government of India and are traded on stock exchange. 7. CBDT Signs two Indian Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) i. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has entered into 2 Bilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs). These Agreements are the first ever Bilateral APAs with The Netherlands. ii. With the signing of these Agreements, the total number of APAs entered into by the CBDT has gone up to 186. This includes 171 Unilateral APAs and 15 Bilateral APAs. These two APAs pertain to the Electronics and Technology sectors of the economy. Static/Current Takeaway Points Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- CBDT Chairperson- Sushil Chandra, Headquarters- New Delhi 0422 4204182, 9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore. Page 2 UNIQUE IAS ACADEMY- DECEMBER 2017 8. Pakistan's Law Minister Zahid Hamid Resigns i. Pakistan's law minister Zahid Hamid has quit as the Civilian government surrendered to the wishes of hardline religious groups. ii. The groups on their part, who had held Islamabad under a protest siege for nearly a month, called off their violent protests. Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- Pakistan PM- Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Capital- Islamabad. 9. S K Chourasia Appointed as DGOF and Chairman of Ordnance Factory Board i. Shri Sunil Kumar Chourasia, Indian Ordnance Factories Service Officer (IOFS), has been appointed as the new Director General of Ordnance Factories (DGOF) and Chairman of the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) w.e.f. 1st December, 2017. ii. Previously, he was Member, OFB and was in charge of Material & Components division. Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- Indian Ordnance Factories is the oldest and largest industrial setup which functions under the Department of Defence Production of the Ministry of Defence. The Indian Ordnance Factories organisation - a family of 41 Ordnance Factories under the aegis of its corporate headquarters Ordnance Factory Board, Kolkata. 10. Cabinet Approves Setting up of National Nutrition Mission i. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved setting up of National Nutrition Mission (NNM) with a three year budget of Rs.9046.17 crore commencing from 2017-18. ii. The program through the targets will strive to reduce the level of stunting, under-nutrition, anemia and low birth weight babies. More than 10 crore people will be benefited by this program. This will be funded by Government Budgetary Support (50%) and 50% by IBRD or other MDB. News in-a-line: National Nutrition Mission (NNM)- approved by cabinet- for 3 years- with budget of Rs9046.17. 11. Dia Mirza Appointed as UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador for India i. Former Miss Asia Pacific Dia Mirza was appointed as UN Environment‟s Goodwill Ambassador for India. A long-standing supporter of environmental conservation, Dia will take up the role to add more weight to her work on raising awareness of and seeking solutions to environmental issues. ii. As a Goodwill Ambassador, Dia will work with the United Nations to further spread the message on priority areas including clean air, clean seas, wildlife protection and climate change. 12. Shared Value Summit Held in New Delhi i. The Minister of Industry and Commerce, Suresh Prabhu was the chief guest for the Shared Value Summit 2017. The summit was held in New Delhi. The theme for this summit was “Equity and Empowerment”. ii. Mr Prabhu will unveil the Inclusive Business List and Emerging Social Enterprise List for the year 2017. 0422 4204182, 9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore. Page 3 UNIQUE IAS ACADEMY- DECEMBER 2017 02nd December 2017 1. Infosys Appoints Salil S Parekh as MD & CEO i. Infosys annouced the appointment of Salil S. Parekh as its new CEO and Managing Director. Salil was in Capegemini earlier. ii. The Bengaluru-headquartered company was searching for a new CEO after former CEO Vishal Sikka resigned in August 2017. Cofounder Nandan Nilekani returned to the company as non-executive chairman to steady operations. News in-a-line: Salil S. Parekh- new CEO and Managing Director of Bengaluru-headquartered Infosys, Nandan Nilekani returned as non-executive chairman. Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- Infosys is country's no. 2 software services exporter. 2. Miss Korea Jenny Kim Crowned Miss Supranational 2017 i. The 24-year-old model and Miss Korea Jenny Kim has bagged the title of Miss Supranational 2017 at the gala event, which was held in Poland's Spa Resort of Krynica- Zdroj. ii Miss Columbia Tica Martinez and Romania's Bianca Tirsin were adjudged First Runner's Up and the second runner-up in the event, respectively. iii. India's official entry to the competition, Peden Ongmu Namgyal, reached top 25. News in-a-line: Jenny Kim (Miss Korea)- crowned Miss Supranational 2017- in Poland, Miss Columbia Tica Martinez- 1st Runner Up. Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Mains 2017 Exam- Miss Supranational 2016 was India's Srinidhi Shetty. Poland Capital- Warsaw, Currency- Polish złoty. 3. India Re-Elected to International Maritime Organisation Council i. India has been re-elected to the Council of the International Maritime Organisation under a category that represents nations with the largest interests in international sea borne trade. ii. India was re-elected to the body under Category B at an assembly of the organization at its headquarters. Indian High Commissioner to the UK Y K Sinha represented Indiaat the assembly where India secured the second-highest number of votes (144) from member-countries, just after Germany's 146 and ahead of Australia's 143. News in-a-line: India- re-elected to the Council of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO)- under Category B- Y K Sinha (Indian High Commissioner to the UK) represented India.