Current Affairs 16th Oct 2018

National News

1. India International Silk Fair-2018 Begins In New Delhi 

i. Union Minister of Textiles, Smriti Zubin Irani, inaugurated the 6th edition of India International Silk Fair (IISF) in New Delhi. Minister of State for Textiles, Ajay Tamta was also present on the occasion.

ii. Over 108 exhibitors of silk and blended silk products manufactured in different parts of the country will display their products during the three-day event, organized by the Indian Silk Export Promotion Council (ISEPC). India is the 2nd largest producer of silk in the world. 

2. Government Announces Rs 100 Crore Award For States Completing Household Electrification Early 

i. The government has announced 100 crore rupee award for states that would complete the household electrification early under the Saubhagaya scheme.
ii. Apart from discoms, employees would also collectively get 50 lakh rupees award for completing the task of electrifying households under the scheme which was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September 2017. 

iii. The states which have already achieved almost 99 percent of household electrification work would be kept out of the award scheme. These states are Gujarat, Punjab, Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Himachal Pradesh.

3. IRCTC Gets New AI-based Assistant 'Disha' To Help Resolve Problems 

i. IRCTC has launched a new AI-based assistant, 'Ask Disha' for its website. This new assistant will be prompt in answering generic queries about most frequently asked questions on the ticket booking platform. 

ii. The AI chatbot called Disha is powered by CoRover, a Bengaluru-based startup that owns the platform which is built on artificial intelligence and machine learning. 

4. Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Approves Renaming of Allahabad to Prayagraj 

i. Uttar Pradesh Cabinet led by CM Yogi Adityanath has approved the proposal to rename Allahabad, which will be called Prayagraj with immediate effect. 

ii. Uttar Pradesh Health Minister Sidharth Nath Singh informed the media regarding the decision. The new name derives from a place in the city called Prayag, where three rivers flowing across the state meet. 

5. Government Laid Foundation Stone for Prime Ministers’ Museum In New Delhi 

i. Minister of state for culture, Mahesh Sharma and Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri jointly laid the foundation stone for proposed Museum on Prime Ministers of India at Teen Murti Estate, New Delhi. 

ii. The new museum will incorporate the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) at the Teen Murti Estate, the official residence of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The Museum will be constructed at a cost of Rs. 271 crore. 

Economy News

6. GPF Interest Rate Hiked To 8% For October-December Quarter 

i. The government has increased the rate of interest for General Provident Fund (GPF) and other related schemes by 0.4% points to 8% for the October-December quarter. 

ii. The rate is in line with that for Public Provident Fund (PPF). The interest rate on GPF was 7.6% for the July-September quarter of 2018-19. 

Appointments

7. Nimesh Shah Elected As AMFI Chairman 

Nimesh Shah

i. , Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund, has been elected as Chairman of trade body, Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).
ii. Shah has replaced A Balasubramanian, CEO of Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund. 

Static/Current Takeaways From Above News For IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018:

·         AMFI, the association of SEBI registered mutual funds in India of all the registered Asset Management Companies, was incorporated on August 22, 1995, as a non-profit organization. 

8. Priyank Kanoongo Appointed Chairperson of NCPCR 

i. Priyank Kanoongo appointed to the post of Chairperson, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) in the rank and pay of Secretary to the Government of India for a period of 03 years.
ii. Kanoongo has been member of the commission from November 2015. 

Static/Current Takeaways From Above News For IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018:

·         NCPCR has been constituted by the Government of India, under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act,2005. 

Awards

9. Prema Gopalan Honoured As India Social Entrepreneur Of The Year 2018 

i. Prema Gopalan, founder of Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SSP), was awarded the 8th Social Entrepreneur of the Year award, 2018, for her work in promoting women’s entrepreneurship at the grassroots and ensuring rural livelihood.

Static/Current Takeaways From Above News For IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018: 

·         Jointly founded by Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship in 2010, the award recognizes promising and high-impact social entrepreneurs who implement practical and sustainable solutions. 

·         Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship is a sister organization of the World Economic Forum.

Important Days

10. World Food Day: 16 October 

i. World Food Day is celebrated every year around the world on 16 October in honor of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in 1945.
ii. The theme for WFD 2018 is "Our Actions Are Our Future". 

Static/Current Takeaways From Above News For IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018:

·         Food and Agriculture Organization (United Nations) headquarters in Rome, Italy. 

Books and Authors

11. 'Building a Legacy': Vice Prez Releases Biography of Anumolu Ramakrishna

i. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu released a biography of late Anumolu Ramakrishna, a pioneer in the application of innovative systems and construction techniques in the Indian construction sector. 

ii. The biography titled 'Building a Legacy' is authored by Chartered Accountant V Pattabhi Ram. Ramakrishna was posthumously awarded Padma Bhushan in 2014. 

Sports News

12. Asian Para Games 2018 Concludes: Complete Highlights 

i. The third Asian Para Games took place in Jakarta, Indonesia. Around 3000 athletes from 43 countries took part in 15 Paralympic and three non-Paralympic sports. 
ii. The official mascot of the 2018 Asian Para Games is a Bondol eagle named MOMO, which was chosen to represent motivation and mobility.

iii. India recorded its best-ever medal haul at the Asian Para Games by ending the 2018 edition with 72 medals (15 gold, 24 silver, and 33 bronze medals). Continental giants, China were at the top of the pecking order with 172 gold. 

Find The Complete Medal Tally Here


13. Youth Olympic Games 2018: Suraj Panwar Wins India's 1st Athletics Medal 

i. Suraj Panwar won India's first medal in athletics at the Youth Olympic Games 2018 after claiming the silver medal in the men's 5000m race walk event Buenos Aires, Argentina.
ii. The 17-year-old's silver was India's third overall medal in athletics in the history of the Youth Olympic Games. Panwar had finished second, behind Patin Oscar of Ecuador.

Obituaries

14. Environmentalist G D Agarwal Passes Away 

i. Environmentalist G.D. Agarwal, who was on a fast for the last 111 days demanding a clean Ganga, died after a heart attack in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand.
ii. The 86-year old former IIT-Kanpur professor, Agarwal had been on hunger strike for a pollution-free and uninterrupted flow in the Ganga. 

15. Microsoft Co-Founder Paul Allen Passes Away 

i. Paul Allen, who co-founded Microsoft in 1975 passed away aged 65 after battling cancer. Allen was the childhood friend of Microsoft Co-Founder Bill Gates. 

ii. As on date of his death, he ranked 44th on Forbes’ 2018 list of billionaires with an estimated net worth of more than $20 billion.