VINTAGE: IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF OCT 19, 2016

Brazil On Oct 18, 2016 announced that it will work with member countries of Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) to facilitate India's entry into the group that controls global trade in the atomic field.

Brazil's support was conveyed by its President Michel Temer to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the first National Tribal Carnival in Delhi on 25th October 2016.

Aim of this 4 Day Carnival: To showcase and promote various facets of tribal culture.

Human rights activist Irom Sharmila On Oct 18, 2016 announced the name of her party as ‘People’s Resurgence and Justice Alliance’.

The Iron Lady of Manipur, after ending her 16-year-long fast against AFSPA in Manipur, had declared that she would be contesting the state election.
Important Note : Irom had ended her hunger strike, the longest such fast in the world, on August 9.

A pilot project to supply ration food articles at the doorstep as part of implementing the Food Security Act is set to launch in Kerala on 1st November 2016.

The scheme will be initially launched at Kollam city in November and is expected to cover the entire state by April 2017.

Haryana has the worst sex ratio in India, with only 866 females reported for every 1,000 males at birth in the 2012-14 period, the Sample Registration System of 2014 has shown.

Note : Kerala reported the highest sex ratio of 974 and the national sex ratio stood at 906 in the same period.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated three Hydro-Electric Projects (HEPs) with a generating capacity of 1,732 MW in Himachal Pradesh. They are,

Koldam HEP : It is 4×200 MW capacity project executed by National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).
Parbati HEP : It is Stage-III project with a capacity of 530 MW of National Hydropower Corporation (NHPC).
Rampur HEP : It is 412 MW capacity project of Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN).
Note : All these three power projects are equipped with generating equipment supplied and commissioned by state owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL).

Nigeria is going to sign a cash-raising oil deal with India for $15 billion by the end of 2016, the country's Oil Minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu said during his visit to India.
Eminent writer C Radhakrishnan was selected for the prestigious Mathrubhumi Literary Award 2016.
The Maharajas' Express, a luxurious train operated by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation, has received a 'Seven Star Luxury Hospitality and Lifestyle Award' in the 'Seven Star Experience Sector'.
Senior IFS officer Amandeep Singh Gill was appointed as the India’s Ambassador to the UN Conference on Disarmament, Geneva.
Apple has hired Carnegie Mellon University professor Ruslan Salakhutdinov as director of Artificial Intelligence (AI) research.
Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi has announced plans to reveal his autobiography next year, titled 'Shahid Afridi: An Autobiography'.

India's first indigenously-made nuclear submarine 'INS Arihant' has been commissioned into Indian Navy's service.

The nuclear submarine was commissioned in August this year by Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba, but it has not been formally declared.
Important Points to Note :
INS Arihant is a 6,000-tonne submarine that is capable of launching nuclear weapons from underwater.
With INS Arihant, India has joined a select group of countries which can carry out nuclear attacks from sea, land and air.

NASA's latest commercial resupply mission Cygnus was successfully launched from Virginia into space On Oct 18, 2016.

The spacecraft is missioned to deliver over 2,313 kilograms of cargo supplies to its International Space Station.
The cargo aboard the Cygnus is estimated to support about 250 science and research studies including studies on fire in space and measuring neutrons.

NASA has announced the 'Electric Aircraft Testbed', a new research wing to test electric aircraft at the NASA Glenn Research Centre's Plum Brook Station in Ohio.

The facility will enable NASA engineers to design, develop and test electric aircraft like the GL-10 Greased Lightning VTOL.
NASA had earlier announced its goal to transition to electric aircraft systems within 10 years.

Brazil hosted the Junior South American Cricket Championship's 2016 edition, which saw participant teams from Chile, Argentina, and Peru.

The J-SAC tournament, as known in the Latin American nations, witnessed both under-13 and under-17 cricket teams compete to be crowned the cricket champions of the South American continent.

Pages