IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS
OF MARCH 15th, 2019
IMPORTANT
CURRENT AFFAIRS OF MARCH 15th, 2019
1.
World Consumer Rights Day.
a. In India this
day is celebrated as Viswa Upabhokta Adhikar Diwas.
b. On this day
(March 15) in the year 1962 US President John F. Kennedy gave a speech
on consumer rights which led to the creation of the Consumer Bill of
Rights.
c. Consumer
rights activist Anwar Fazal later proposed the observance of a
"World Consumer Rights Day" marking that date, and from 15
March 1983 consumer organizations began observing that date as an occasion to
promote basic rights of consumers.
d. Theme of
World Consumer Rights Day 2019 : "Trusted Smart Products".
2.
Australia will embark on its largest ever defence engagement with Sri
Lanka next week as part of the Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2019.
a. More than
1,000 defence personnel will be involved in the exercise comprising of
Australian Naval, Army and Air force and their assets.
b. After
departing Sri Lanka, Australian Defence excercise team will visit India and
other regional partners.
c. Note : Australia
along with India, Japan and US had formed the Quad to promote their interests
in the Indo-Pacific region.
3.
France has decided to freeze all assets of Pakistan based terror
outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed, JeM chief Masood Azhar,
in application of the country's Monetary and Financial Code.
a. The decision
comes after China blocked the UNSC bid to designate Azhar as global
terrorist.
b. France, was
one of the main initiators of the proposal.
c. Note : Jaish e
Mohammad claimed responsibility of the deadly Pulwama attack on CRPF convoy on
14th February this year.
4.
AFINDEX-19, a Joint Field Training Exercise between the Indian
Army and 16 African nations will be held at Pune from
18th to 27th March 2019.
a. 10 personnel,
each from the participating nations from the African continent and personnel of
Maratha Light Infantry of the Indian Army will participate in the joint
exercise.
b. Aim of
AFINDEX-19 : To train the participating contingents in Humanitarian Mine Assistance
(HMA) and Peace Keeping Operations (PKO) under the United Nations Charter
through practical and comprehensive discussions and tactical exercises
5.
Global consulting firm Mercer has released
its Annual quality of living survey in which 231 cities across
the globe were ranked based on factors such as healthcare, education, public
services, recreation, crime, housing and personal freedom. Here are the top 10
global and Indian cities on the list.
a. Top 10 in
2019 City Ranking
i) Vienna
(Austria)
ii) Zurich (Switzerland)
iii) Vancouver
(Canada)
iv) Munich
(Germany)
v) Auckland (New
Zealand)
vi) Dusseldorf
(Germany)
vii)
Frankfurt (Germany)
viii)
Copenhagen (Denmark)
ix) Geneva
(Switzerland)
x) Basel
(Switzerland)
b) Top 3 Indian
Cities in the Rankings
i) Chennai topped the
list among the Indian cities with a rank of 105.
ii) Bengaluru was the 2nd
best with the ranking of 149.
iii) Mumbai with the
ranking of 154 stood 3rd among Indian cities.
6.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has chosen
"Modi Hai to Mumkin Hai" as its slogan for the upcoming Lok
Sabha elections, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has announced today.
a) Jaitley
further claimed that PM Modi had an "indefatigable approach" and
worked round the clock for the past five years, achieving results that would
not have been possible otherwise.
7.
For the 1st time in the arecanut sector, ‘Sirsi Supari’
grown in Uttara Kannada has received the Geographic Indication (GI) tag.
a) It is
cultivated in Yellapura, Siddapura and Sirsi taluks.
8.
Erode Turmeric has also received GI tag from the Geographical
Indication Registry after a long and cumbersome process which lasted for about
8 years.
a) Erode is the
city in the state of Tamil Nadu.
9.
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully
test fired the Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM) being
developed for infantry troops of the Army.
a) The
indigenously developed missile has features like a state-of-the-art imaging
infrared radar seeker with integrated avionics.
b) The missile,
with a range of 2-3 kilometres, hit the designated targets in both of its
tests.
10.The Centre
today sent a medical team to Malappuram district (Kerala)
where a 7-year-old boy tested positive for the West Nile virus.
a) The virus is
transmitted to humans through a mosquito bite and is mostly reported in the
continental United States.
b) The
four-member team will support state health authorities to manage the disease.
11.The Reserve
Bank of India (RBI) has re-categorised IDBI
Bank as
a Private Sector Lender.
a) This comes
after the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India acquired a
51% stake in the bank, becoming its majority shareholder.
b) Note : IDBI Bank
has been under the RBI's Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework which bans it
from activities including corporate lending and branch expansion.
12.Ministry of
Corporate Affairs has released National Guidelines on responsible
business conduct.
a) These
guidelines urge businesses to actualise the principles in letter and spirit.
b) The Ministry
has revised the National Voluntary Guidelines on Social, Environmental and
Economic Responsibilities of Business, 2011 and formulated the National
Guidelines on Responsible Business Conduct.
c) According to
the guidelines, businesses should conduct and govern themselves with integrity
in a manner that is ethical, transparent and accountable.
d) Businesses
should provide goods and services in a manner that is sustainable and safe.
13.Niti Aayog
CEO Amitabh Kant will head the National Mission on Transformative
Mobility and Battery Storage, which is being set up to promote clean and
sustainable mobility initiatives in the country.
a) Other members
of the panel are : Secretaries of Ministry of Road Transport and
Highways, Ministry of Power, Department of Heavy Industry, Department of
Science and Technology, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal
Trade, and Director General of Bureau of Industrial Standard.
b) The terms of
reference of mission includes ensuring implementation and compliance of the
decisions and recommendations of the steering committee.
c) The panel
will also propose and recommend policy guidelines and government interventions
and possible strategies for holistic, sustainable and transformative mobility
and energy storage in India.
14.Army Chief
General Bipin Rawat was conferred with the Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM),
the highest military medal award in recognition of peace-time service not
accounting to gallantry, by President Ram Nath Kovind.
a) Major Tushar
Gauba of 20 JAT regiment was given Kirti Chakra by
the President.
b) 12 officers
and jawans from the Army and CRPF received Shaurya Chakra.
15.Sweden's
16-year-old Greta Thunberg, who encouraged students to skip
school and protest for faster action on climate change, has been nominated by
Norwegian lawmakers for the Nobel Peace Prize.
a) She began her
weekly protest in August 2018 by riding her bicycle to the Parliament with ''School
strike for climate'' sign.
b) Note : The #FridaysForFuture movement
went viral and spread over 80 countries.
16.President
Ramnath Kovind awarded National Grassroots Innovators at
Grambharti near Gandhinagar in Gujarat.
a) Prakash Singh
Raghuvanshi (Uttar Pradesh) has been awarded Lifetime achievement award for
his innovations in new varieties of agriculture crops.
b) The 1st prize
in Veterinary, Herbal medication for coccidiosis was presented to Periyasami
Ramasami of Salem, Tamil Nadu.
17.1st woman
Lingayat 'jagadguru' and Basava Dharma Peetha President, Maate
Mahadevi (73) passed away.
a) Mahadevi took
part in the protests held for separate religion and grant of minority religious
status for Lingayats in Karnataka last month.
18.Anglo-Dutch
consumer goods giant Unilever promoted Nitin
Paranjpe, President of Foods and Refreshment division, to the position
of Chief Operating Officer (COO).
a) With this, he
became only the 2nd Indian after Harish Manwani to be elevated
to this role.
19.The US Senate
has voted to confirm Indian-origin Neomi Rao as a Judge
on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals.
a) Rao will
replace Brett Kavanaugh who was confirmed to the US Supreme
Court in October last year.
20.The Supreme
Court today appointed senior advocate P S Narasimha, who is
assisting the apex court as an amicus curiae in the BCCI matter, as mediator
for resolving various disputes related to cricket administration in
the country.
21.Karnataka defeated
Maharashtra in the final to win their maiden Syed Mushtaq AliTrophy
title.
a) Karnataka's Rohan
Kadam became the first batsman to score 500 runs in a single edition
of the tournament.
22.South
Africa's J P Duminy has announced that he will retire from the
ODI format after the ICC World Cup 2019.
a) The
34-year-old made his ODI debut against Sri Lanka in 2004 and has played 193
matches in the format.
23.The Supreme
Court has set aside the life ban imposed on cricketer Sreesanth by
BCCI over his involvement in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal.
a) The apex
court directed BCCI to hear Sreesanth and take a fresh decision on quantum of
punishment within three months.
b) However, the
court's order shall have no effect on criminal proceedings pending against
Sreesanth.
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