IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF OCT 20, 2016

IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF OCT 20, 2016

• Mumbai has been ranked 39th in the 2016 Global Power City Index report, which was released by the Mori Memorial Foundation’s Institute for Urban Strategies. 
• The report ranks 42 cities across six key measures of economy, research and development, culture, accessibility, environment, and livability. 
• Note : London topped the rankings for the fifth consecutive year while New York stood second.
• India and Myanmar On Oct 19,2016 agree to enhance engagement in several areas includingAgriculture, Renewable energy & Power sector.
• Note : India will develop Varietal Development and Seed Production Centre in Yezin in Myanmar to enhance quality of seeds.
• Global airlines body IATA has projected that India will be the third-largest aviation market by 2026.
• IATA expects India's air traffic to grow to 44.2 crore by 2035 with 32.2 crore new travellers, amid the domestic market growing by more than 20% for over a year now. 
• Note : China and the US will be the top two fastest-growing markets.
• A nuclear-capable US warship will enter New Zealand waters next month, for the first time in more than 30 years, New Zealand's Prime Minister John Key announced On Oct 19,2016. 
• Under a law made in the 1980s, New Zealand does not allow foreign ships to enter its territory until the Prime Minister is convinced that it does not have nuclear weapons.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the National SC/ST hub and the Zero Defect, Zero Effect (ZED) scheme for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) at Ludhiana in Punjab.
• Shuttler Saina Nehwal has been appointed as a Member of the International Olympic Committee's Athletes' Commission. 
• The Commission is chaired by American athlete Angela Ruggiero and comprises nine vice presidents and 10 other members.
• Actor and filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, known for directing the 1994 film 'Bandit Queen', has been named the President of the jury for the first International Film Festival and Awards at Macau, a Chinese autonomous territory. 
• Wrestler Geeta Phogat was appointed as a Deputy Superintendent of Police in Haryana Police by the state government On Oct 19,2016. 
• Phogat, a 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medalist, was given the rank under the sports quota after the Cabinet headed by CM Manohar Lal Khattar, approved the state Home Department's proposal. 
• Note : Mountaineer Ram Lal was appointed Sub-Inspector under the same quota.
• Former cricketers Anil Kumble and Virender Sehwag launched a book on India's Test captain Virat Kohli in New Delhi On Oct 19,2016. 
• Written by journalist Vijay Lokapally, the book, 'Driven: The Virat Kohli Story', features anecdotes on the cricketer's rise at the international level. 
• Water Jet Fast Attack Craft (WJFAC) INS Tihayu was On Oct 19,2016 commissioned into the Indian Navy by Flag-Officer-Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command Vice-Admiral HCS Bisht. 
• The highly manoeuvrable, 315-tonne INS Tihayu is a vessel fitted with three water jet propulsion systems and is loaded with an indigenously-built 30 mm CRN gun.
• Russia has quietly signed an agreement with India to lease out a second Russian Akula-2 class nuclear-powered submarine to the Indian Navy.
• The attack submarine will arrive in Indian waters in 2020-21. 
• Note : The lease agreement was signed between PM Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin during the BRICS Summit in Goa.
• Kochi became the first Indian city to be officially declared as one of the venues for hosting the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup.
• Sania Mirza has completed 80 consecutive weeks as the top-ranked women's doubles player. 
• Important Points to Note : 
• Sania achieved the world number one rank after winning the WTA Family Circle Cup with partner Martina Hingis in USA, in April 2015. 
• Sania, who is the first Indian woman to hold the WTA number one rank, now holds the top spot exclusively, after splitting with Hingis.
• The Indian Boxing Council, IBC has been inducted into the World Boxing Organisation with voting rights in the WBO's annual convention at Puerto Rico. 
• IBC is a licensing body for the country's professional boxers.