IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF NOVEMBER 18, 2016

IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF NOVEMBER 18, 2016

• On November 17, 2016 World Philosophy Day was observed.
• This day was was introduced in 2002 by UNESCO to honour philosophical reflection in the entire world by opening up free and accessible spaces.
• Pakistan conducted Raad ul Barq (Strike of Thunder) military exercise in a strategically located area in Punjab province, bordering India. 
• It was the comprehensive joint exercise carried out jointly by Pakistan Army and Air Force to reflect the preparedness of our armed forces to respond to any threat to its national security.
• Indian government On November 17, 2016 announced that over 12 lakh houses have been sanctioned for urban poor under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).
• A scheme to construct one crore houses in next three years has been approved by the government with the objective of 'Housing for All by 2022'.
• "To pursue the objective, the Union Cabinet approved re-structuring of the erstwhile rural housing scheme Indira Awaas Yojana into Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin," Rural Development Minister NS Tomar said.
• The 3-day Great Indian Film and Literature Festival will begin at DLF CyberHub, Gurugram on December 2. 
• The festival will feature panel discussions on several themes, including filmmaking and advertising, as well as film screenings, book readings, a music concert and a poetry slam. 
• It will be attended by author Ruskin Bond and actor Piyush Mishra, among others.
• Sachin Tendulkar has announced that his adopted village Puttam Rajuvari Kandriga in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh is open defecation free. 
• Yesterday, Tendulkar visited the village in Gudur mandal that he had adopted under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana two years ago.
• Government On November 17, 2016 launched revamped Aadhaar toll-free helpline number -1947 to help citizens to get quick access to information about Aadhaar.
• The helpline number will be available 24x7 throughout the year on Interactive voice response system mode (IVRS), while Call-Centre agents will be available from 7 A.M. to 11 P.M.
• On an average, the helpline number handles about 1.5 lakh calls per day.
• Chief Executive Officer of Unique Identification Authority of India : Dr Ajay Bhushan Pandey
• The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) for the first time has deployed ateam of women commandos in anti-Naxal operations in Jharkhand. 
• The 135 women commandos belonging to the 232 battalion’s Delta company have started carrying out anti-Naxal operations.
• Chhattisgarh On November 17, 2016 became the first state to pass a motion supporting the demonetisation policy introduced by the BJP-led Central government.
• The motion was introduced in the state assembly by Chhattisgarh CM and BJP leader Raman Singh. 
• He also announced that e-payment devices have been exempted from Value Added Tax (VAT) to encourage digital transactions.
• Iran has surpassed rival Saudi Arabia to become India's top oil supplier in the month of October, according to shipping data. 
• India's oil imports from Iran shot up this year after sanctions over its nuclear development programme, which limited exports, were lifted in January.
• The surge is also due to Iranian price discounts, which attracted purchases from India's programme.
• The upper limit of exchanging old ₹500 and ₹1,000 notes for new ones will be reduced from ₹4,500 to ₹2,000 from November 18. 
• Earlier, the government had also announced using indelible ink mark on the customers by banks in an effort to deter repetitive exchanging of notes by the same people.
• The government has made quoting the PAN card mandatory on combined cash deposits exceeding ₹2.5 lakh till December 30. 
• Until now, the limit for cash deposits without PAN was fixed at ₹50,000 per transaction. 
• The move will help government to stop people who are depositing less than ₹50,000 in multiple batches to escape quoting the PAN card.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which was established on April 1, 1935, issued its first note worth ₹5 in January 1938. 
• The note had a portrait of King George VI. 
• This was followed by the introduction of ₹10 notes in February, ₹100 notes in March and ₹1,000 and ₹10,000 notes in June 1938.
• Telangana government On November 17, 2016 signed an MoU with Microsoft Corporation India for helping the government explore cloud, machine learning and mobile-based solutions to improve citizen services, education, healthcare and agriculture.
• Actor-turned-author Twinkle Khanna launched her second book titled 'The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad' On November 17, 2016.  
• Her first book was 'Mrs Funnybones: She's Just Like You and a Lot Like Me', which was published in 2015.
• Rustom-II (TAPAS 201), India's indigenously developed drone, successfully completed its maiden-flight, which enhanced India's development programme for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV).
• NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, at an age of 56 years, will become theoldest woman in space history after she takes off for the International Space Station (ISS) On November 17, 2016. 
• Important Points to Note : 
• Whitson, who holds the record for most time spent in space by a woman, is also the first woman to become ISS commander. 
• This will be Whitson's third spaceflight.
• Actor Mukesh Rawal (65), who played the role of 'Vibhishan' in Ramanand Sagar's television series 'Ramayana', passed away.
• Actor Tom Hanks and television host Ellen DeGeneres are among 21 recipients of the 2016 'Presidential Medal of Freedom' award, America's highest civilian honour. 
• It is given to "individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions" to the country's security or national interests, to world peace or to cultural endeavours. 
• The presentation of the awards will take place on November 22.
• The term 'post-truth' has been chosen as the 'Word of the Year 2016' by Oxford Dictionaries, after the word's usage increased following Brexit and the United States presidential election. 
• The adjective is defined as "relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief".