Banking & Ssc

Current Affairs: 21 January 2017

Published on Saturday, January 21, 2017

AIFF president Praful Patel becomes a member of Fifa's finance committee

• All India Football Federation president Praful Patel was on Thursday appointed as a member of FIFA’s finance committee for a period of four years, PTI reported.
• The development follows just a month after Patel was made the senior vice-president of the Asian Football Confederation.
• According to the report, the FIFA finance committee takes care of the financial management and advises the FIFA executive committee on financial matters.
• The committee will also inspect FIFA budgets and financial statements prepared by the general secretary and submits them to the FIFA executive committee for approval

India's biggest ship INS Vikramaditya gets ATM

• Indian Navy's biggest aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya gets an ATM onboard. State Bank of India will launch the ATM facility onboard premier warship in Karwar, Karnataka.
• This was made possible after the Navy approached SBI, the country's largest bank. The cash dispensing machine will operate via a satellite communication link and facility would be inaugurated on Saturday in Karwar.INS Vikramaditya is based in Karwar and the jetty is located quite far away from the town. The topography of the area is such that travelling either from the jetty to the town or from the sailors' colony to the town can be arduous task.

Donald Trump appointed 45th President of United States

• Businessman-turned-politician Donald Trump was sworn-in as the 45th President of the United States at the Inauguration Day ceremony in Washington DC. 
• Trump, who was elected on his campaign promise of 'Make America Great Again', took his oath on two Bibles– the Lincoln Bible and one that had been gifted to him by his mother.

Physicists have created a new form of hydrogen

• Physicists from Austria have created new form of Hydrogen i.e. negatively charged hydrogen clusters. 
• It is a previously unseen form of hydrogen.
• For the past forty years, existence of hydrogen in ion clusters was known and is positively-charged clusters have already exists.

Shri Kalraj Mishra Inaugurates Workshop on MSME Cooperation among IORA

• Union Minister of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Shri Kalraj Mishra inaugurated a Workshop on MSME Cooperation amongst Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Member countries on January 19, 2017 in New Delhi
• Organizing a workshop on MSME Cooperation amongst IORA member countries was committed by India in the Economic Business Conference – II (EBC- II) held in Dubai in April, 2016.
• The Ministry of MSME in consultation with the Ministry of External Affairs and IORA Secretariat organized this Workshop.
• The workshop was participated by 23 representatives from 13 member countries, including Mozambique, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Comoros, Kenya, Seychelles, Malaysia, Mauritius, Singapore, Australia, UAE and Yemen.

Civil Aviation Ministry Announces First Flight under UDAN Scheme to Take off in February 2017

• The Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha, on January 19, 2017 announced that the under UDAN (Ude Desh Ke Aam Naagrik) Scheme is likely to take off in February 2017.
• Presently there are 75 operational airport in the country and after the implementation of UDAN scheme 43 new airports will be added.
• The UDAN scheme aims to boost regional air connectivity to and from un-served and under-served airports and make flying more affordable. Besides, it also aims to provide various incentives to airlines.
• The ministry announced that total 11 bidders have come forward to connect 30 airports which are currently operational, 12 which are underserved and 43 where not a single flight lands under the scheme.
• The fare for a one hour journey of approximately 500 km on a fixed wing aircraft or for a 30 minute journey on a helicopter has been fixed at Rs. 2500 under the scheme.

Dharamsala declared the second capital of Himachal Pradesh

• Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh announced Dharamsala as the second capital of the tiny hill state with a population of about 70 lakh.
• Dharamsala already figured prominently in national and international map due to its significance owing to many reasons including religious, natural and adventurous tourism and also being abode of Tibetan Spiritual head Dalai Lama.
• Dharamsala nestling in the lap of majestic snow-clad Dhauladhar ranges has a significance and history of its own and fully deserved to be the second capital of the state.

President Mukherjee inaugurated 28th Dantan Gramin Mela in West Bengal

President Pranab Mukherjee will inaugurate the 28th Dantan Gramin Mela in West Midnapore district in West Bengal in a few hours time.
He is on a four-day visit to West Bengal. The fair will display the rural handicraft skills of the people of the region.
The different goods ranging from textile to terracotta will be on display.

ISKCON’s Govardhan eco village bags UN award

• ISKCON’s Govardhan eco village at nearby Wada taluka in Thane district has been conferred the United Nations award for taking innovative measures of ’sustainable tourism’ in country.
• This is for the first time India has won such recognition from the UN in the NGO sector, an ISKCON release said on Friday.
• The award was presented at the annual United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Awards for Excellence and Innovation in Tourism at Madrid in Spain 

Adama Barrow sworn in as Gambia's president in Senegal

• Mr Barrow was sworn in as President in exile on Thursday afternoon, in the country’s embassy in neighbouring Senegal, while incumbent Yahya Jammeh continues to cling on to power.
• Mr Barrow’s inauguration ceremony was held in a small conference room at the Dakar embassy, and attended by dignitaries including the President of the Commission from the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas).

Punjab Royals wins Pro Wrestling League 2017

• Riding on Pankaj Rana and Nirmla Devi's brilliant show, Punjab Royals made the finals of the Pro Wrestling League Season 2 after beating defending champions Mumbai Maharathi 5-4 in the second semifinal in New Delhi.
• Haryana Hammers, who were beaten to the title in the final of the inaugural edition by the now renamed Mumbai Garudas, saw the trophy slip narrowly from their grasp for the second year in succession.