IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF MAY 17, 2017

IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF MAY 17, 2017

India’s ‘Ujala’ to light up homes in the United Kingdom 

i. India has taken a new initiative to supply cheap LED bulbs for the citizens of London in the United Kingdom. Taking this process to the final stages India will launch ‘UJALA’ scheme in the United Kingdom. 
ii. UJALA is globally one of the largest efficiency programs and being run by Energy Efficiency Services Ltd, an energy services company promoted by Indian state-run power majors.
Andhra Pradesh ropes in Singapore firms to develop start-up area in Amaravati

i. Singapore-based Ascendas-Singbridge Pvt Ltd and Sembcorp Development Ltd 

were awarded a contract by the Andhra Pradesh government to act as the master developer for a start-up area in the capital city of Amaravati.  

ii. For the speedy implementation of the project, a high-level joint implementation steering committee (JISC) will also be formed. 

iii. The JISC will be co-chaired by the AP CM chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Minister of trade and industry of Singapore govt S.Iswaran.
IIEST creates India's first smart grid project 

i. IIEST has successfully created the country's first smart grid project, which will generate power from renewable sources of energy. 
ii. The project will be inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee.
iii. The smart grid will be synchronized to generate power from solar, wind and vegetable waste resources, depending on the weather conditions and availability of waste products. It is the first of its kind in the country.
India ranked second in renewable energy attractiveness index 

. India has moved up to the second spot from third position in this year's (2017) 'Renewable energy country attractiveness index' released by EY (Earnest and Young). ii. China, which has been ranked first in the index and India have surpassed the US, which fell for the first time since 2015 to third place in the ranking of top 40 countries.
Ovais Sarmad Appointed Deputy Executive Secretary in UNFCCC
i. Ovais Sarmad, an Indian has been appointed by the U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to the post of Deputy Executive Secretary, which is a key post in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Admiral Sunil Lanba attends international maritime review in Singapore

i. Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba attended Singapore's first International Maritime Review (IMR) held at the country's prime Changi Naval Base. 
ii. Mr. Lanba attended the review along with navy ships INS Sahyadri and INS Kamorta. 
iii. The INS Sahyadri was part of the land review INS Kamorta was part of the sea review.
Indian Navy signs MoU with Space Application Centre
i. The Indian Navy and Ahmedabad- based Space Application Centre (SAC)  inked a pact on data sharing and scientific cooperation in the field of meteorology and oceanology. 
ii. The pact provides for the creation of a common platform for sharing expertise achieved by SAC with the Navy in a number of areas, including satellite data acquisition technology. 
iii. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Vice Admiral S N Ghormade, Director General Naval Operations, and SAC Director Tapan Misra at an event in Ahmedabad.
ISRO, NASA to jointly inspect 'oldest civilization' site in Haryana 

i. Teams of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) would inspect the excavation being carried out at an archaeological site in Haryana's Fatehabad district to verify claims of it being the oldest civilization in the world. 
ii. Archaeologists have recovered artifacts pre-dating the Harappan Civilisation from the site, located in village Kunal in Fatehabad district. 
SpaceX launches Inmarsat communications satellite

i. The USA based SpaceX has launched a communications satellite for Inmarsat, marking its first launch for the London-based mobile broadband company. 
ii. The Inmarsat-5 F4 satellite, built by Boeing, blasted off atop Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Deepti Sharma, Poonam Raut create cricket history with record 320-run stand
i. India women’s cricket team openers Deepti Sharma and Poonam Raut became the first-ever pair to share a 300-run stand in a One-Day International. 
ii. This feat was accomplished in a match against Ireland at Potchefstroom during the quadrangular series in South Africa.