Important Current Affairs of March 5, 2016

IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF MARCH 5, 2016

• 1. National Safety Day was observed on March 4

1. National Safety Day was observed across the country on 4 March 2016. The day is annually observed by the National Safety Council to commemorate its establishment and enhance the safety awareness among people.
2. The aim is to prevent and lessen the loss of life including various human being problems and their financial loss through availing them with safety, health and environment related support services.
3. The National Safety Council was established on 4 March 1966 under the Societies Act in Mumbai and has a membership of 8,000.
4. Additionally, National Safety Week will be celebrated from 4 March to the 10 March 2016.

•  2.  Journalist Shantanu Guha Ray's new book called "Fixed: Cash and Corruption in Cricket" released recently.

1. The book examines the corruption charges against players, cricket administrators and bookies. According to the author, this betting industry is an extremely secretive and complex network that works at various levels.

• 3. Dadasaheb Phalke Award to be conferred on actor Manoj Kumar

1. Veteran actor and director Manoj Kumar is to be conferred the 47th Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2015.
2. The award is conferred by the Indian government for outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cinema. The award consists of a Swarn Kamal (Golden Lotus), a cash prize of Rs.10 lakhs and a shawl.
3. Kumar is also a recipient of National Film Award for the film "Upkaar". In 1992, he was honoured with the Padma Shri.
4. Some of his notable films are Hariyali Aur Raasta, Upkaar, Patthar Ke Sanam, Neel Kamal, Purab Aur Paschim, Roti Kapda Aur Makaan, and Kranti. He is known for acting in and directing films with patriotic themes.
5. Some of the former recipients of the award are Dilip Kumar, Shashi Kapoor, Gulzar, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Soumitra Chatterjee, Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen.

• 4. IFC launches ₹300 million Uridashi Masala Bonds in Japan

1. International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has launched its first Uridashi Masala Bond.
2. The bonds are valued at Rs.300 million and will be utilised to promote the private sector development in India.
3. Masala bonds are rupee-denominated instruments sold only to offshore investors, while Uridashi bonds are sold to Japanese household investors. IFC has played a prominent role in India's capital-markets development, rolling out a $3 billion rupee-denominated Masala bond program over the past two years.
4. It may be noted that India is IFC's largest client country. IFC's committed portfolio in India totaled more than $5 billion as of June 30, 2015.

• 5. Jitu Rai wins gold in 50m pistol event at ISSF World Cup

1. Indian shooter Jitu Rai has bagged the 50m pistol gold at the ISSF World Cup in Bangkok. The gold medal winner scored 191.3 points in the final round.
2. Pang Wei and Wang Zhiwei occupy the second and third spot respectively. India's Prakash Nanjappa shot 549 in the qualification round to be placed 17th.
3. Rai is the current 50m pistol gold medallist at both the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games, winning the championships in 2014.

• 6.  Ex-Gujarat Chief Secretary Sudhir Mankad, TCS CEO appointed to RBI board

1. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has appointed former Gujarat Chief Secretary Sudhir Mankad, TCS CEO Natarajan Chandrasekaran and Bharat Narotam Doshi, non-executive chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra as as non-official directors to the board of Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
2. Mankad will act  as part-time non-official director on the central board of the RBI for a period of four years while  Chandrasekaran and Doshi have also been appointed for the same tenure.
3. The Reserve Bank's affairs are governed by a central board of directors. The board is appointed by the government of India. Besides the RBI Governor, there cannot be more than four Deputy Governors as full-time official directors of the central bank.

• 7. Indian film archivist and scholar Paramesh Krishnan Nair has passed away at the age of 82.

1. Nair was the founder and former director of the National Film Archive of India (NFAI) in 1964 and worked at the NFAI for over three decades, collecting films from India and from all over the world. He has been credited with acquiring a whopping 12000 films for the archive.
2. Nair is the recipient of the Satyajit Ray Memorial Award and is responsible for the existence of exhaustive archives in India, his contribution in preserving exquisite films such as Raja Harishchandra (1913), Achhut Kanya (1936) and Uday Shankar's Kalpana (1948) is significant.

• 8. Rahul Bhatia joins 'Make in India' brand team in new start-up

1. Promoter of Interglobe Aviation (IndiGo Airlines) Rahul Bhatia, and Lightspeed India Partners MD Bejul Somaia have joined V Sunil and Mohit Dhar Jayal, to launch a start-up, Motherland Ventures.
2. The new venture will design and sell lifestyle consumer products, including customized holiday experiences, luggage.

• 9.  Sterlite Tech signed deals with Airtel, Tata, Spectranet.

1. Sterlite Technologies, which is rolling out a fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) network in the country, has signed partnership deals with mobile carriers Airtel and Tata Teleservices, and internet service provider Spectranet.
2. Sterlite Technologies is the only fully-integrated fibre player in the country. Its competitors include US-based Corning Inc., Himachal Futuristic Communications Limited (HFCL) and Aksh Optifibre. Some firms import glass preform to draw fibre cables locally.

• 10. World's costliest train station opened in New York

1. World's costliest train station has been opened at the site of the World Trade Centre which was destroyed in the 9/11 attacks..
2. The structure has been designed by Spanish-Swiss architect Santiago Calatrava and named Oculus. It is a giant oval made up of steel ribs and glass laid out in elliptical shape, reaching for the sky like wings of a bird.
3. The transit hub will serve 250,000 people and more than 200,000 commuters each day, making it the third-largest transportation centre in the city.