Current Affairs 7th or 8th Oct 2018

National News

1. Air Force Day: 8 October 

Indian Air Force 

i. The Indian Air Force is celebrating its 86th Anniversary on 08 Oct 2018. To mark the occasion and in keeping up with the tradition, IAF has planned a grand Parade cum Investiture Ceremony at Air Force Station Hindan (Ghaziabad). 

ii. Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa, Chief of the Air Staff reviewed the parade. The air display commenced with flag bearing skydivers of famous Akash Ganga Team, who jumped from an An-32 aircraft. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         Indian Air Force was officially established on 8 October 1932 by the British Empire.

2. CII and UN Environment sign MoU 

i. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)  signed an MoU with the UN Environment for coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development.  

ii. It aims to provide a framework of cooperation and facilitate cooperation in areas including environment, climate change, renewable energy, energy efficiency, resource conservation and management, water sanitation, smart cities and urban infrastructure. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Main 2018- 

·         CII President: Rakesh Bharti Mittal,  Headquarters: New Delhi

3. Karnataka Unveils 'Unnati Scheme' to Help Entrepreneurs From SC/ST Communities 

i. The Karnataka Government has unveiled 'Unnati Scheme' to help entrepreneurs from SC/ST Communities. 
ii. Karnataka Social Welfare Minister Priyank Kharge announced that the state government, under the Unnati scheme, will invest up to Rs 20 crore to create end-to-end support infrastructure for startups and entrepreneurs from a marginalised background.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         Karnataka CM: H. D. Kumaraswamy, Governor: Vajubhai Vala. 

4. Indian Railways signed Agreements with Government of Russian Federation

i. A Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between the Ministry of Railways of the Republic of India and the Joint Stock Company ‘Russian Railways’ on the sidelines of India-Russia Summit. The MoC intends to carry forward the activities taken up under the MoU signed between the two countries on 24th December 2015.
ii. A MoU was signed between Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Transport of Russian Federation for development of cooperation in transport education. The MoU aims at providing organizational and methodological support to higher educational institutions implementing joint projects in the field of transport education of both countries. 

5. Odisha Government Launches 'Nirman Kusuma' Scheme 

i. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched 'Nirman Kusuma' programme for providing financial assistance to the children of the construction workers for their technical education in the state.
ii. The children of construction workers would get financial assistance for their education in Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and polytechnics. While an ITI student will be entitled to get financial assistance of Rs. 23,600, a diploma student to get Rs. 26,300 per annum. A total of 1,878 students will get benefit from the programme. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         Ganeshi Lal is the Present Governor of Odisha. 

6. Election Commission announces assembly election dates for 5 states

i. The Election Commission has announced the poll schedule for Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana. While Chhattisgarh will have two-phase elections, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Telangana will have single phase election.
ii. Chief Election Commissioner, OP Rawat stated the counting of votes in all states will take place on 11th of December. The Model Code of Conduct has come into force with immediate effect. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Exam 2018- 

·         Chief Minister of Madhya pradesh- Shivraj Singh Chouhan

·         Chief Minister of Telangana- Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao

·         Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh- Raman Singh

·         Chief Minister of Rajasthan- Vasundhara Raje Scindia

·         Chief Minister of Mizoram- Lal Thanhawla

·         Sunil Arora is Election Commissioner of India.

·         Ashok Lavasa is Election Commissioner of India.

·         Om Prakash Rawat is Chief Election Commissioner of India.

·         The Election Commission was established in accordance with the Constitution on 25th January 1950. 

7. Centre to reimburse nearly Rs 450 cr to Karnataka

i. The Centre has assured Karnataka government that nearly 450 crore rupees will be reimbursed to it in connection with the expenditure incurred for procuring cereals and coarse cereals.
ii. This assurance came during a meeting between Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan in New Delhi. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Main 2018- 

·         Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala is the current Governor of Karnataka.

·         Karnataka is the largest producer of coffee in India which contributed about 70% of the total coffee produced in the country in the year 2016-17.

8. Railway Minister lays foundation stone of two key railway projects in Chhattisgarh

i. In Chhattisgarh, Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and the state Chief Minister Raman Singh laid the foundation stone of two key railway projects. According to  Piyush Goyal, the construction of a new railway line connecting Katghora-Mungeli-Kawardha-Dongargarh would accelerate the growth of the mineral rich region and bring prosperity.
ii. Mr Goyal was speaking at the function held in Kawardha to lay the foundation of the 295 kilometre project, which will be built at a cost of Rs 6,000 crore. On the occasion, the union minister also flagged off Korba-Raipur-Korba Hasdeo Express through video conferencing.

9. Country's biggest skill competition 'India Skills 2018' concludes

i. The country's biggest skill competition, India Skills 2018 has concluded in New Delhi. The 164 winners were awarded by Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Anant Kumar Hegde. 
ii. India Skills 2018 was the second edition of the nationwide competition organized by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship to identify, recognize, promote and reward the best talents in various skills. 

10. PM Modi inaugurates First Uttarakhand Investors Summit in Dehradun

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first Uttarakhand Investors Summit in Dehradun. 

ii. All the leading business firms and industrial houses participated in the two-day event to explore investment opportunities in the hill state in 12 major sectors, including tourism and hospitality.  

Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Main 2018- 

·         Dehradun is the capital of Uttarakhand.

·         Trivendra Singh Rawat is Chief Minister of Uttarakhand.

·         Baby Rani Maurya is Governor of Uttarakhand.

11. Maritime Exercise Between Japan and India 'JIMEX 18' Begins In Visakhapatnam 

i. Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) Ships Kaga, an Izumo Class Helicopter Destroyer and Inazuma – a Guided Missile Destroyer arrived at Visakhapatnam to participate in Maritime Exercise Between Japan and India 'JIMEX 18'.

ii. The JMSDF Ships would be participating in the third edition of Japan-India Maritime Exercise (JIMEX) with the ships of Eastern Fleet of the Indian Navy. JIMEX-18 is aimed to enhance interoperability, improve understanding and imbibe the best practices of each other. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         The last edition of JIMEX was conducted in Dec 2013 off Chennai.

·         JMSDF Ships also participated in the recently concluded MALABAR 18 off Guam (along with Indian and US Navy units) in the Pacific Ocean in Jun and biennial multilateral exercise  RIMPAC-18 off Hawaii, USA. 

International News

12. President Ram Nath Kovind In Tajikistan On 3-Day Visit 

i. President Ram Nath Kovind has reached Tajikistan on a three-day visit to Central Asian Country. He arrived in Dushanbe and was received by Deputy Prime Minister of Tajikistan Zokirzoda Mahmad Toir. 

ii. He is scheduled to hold talks with the top leadership of Tajikistan to strengthen ties between the two nations. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         Tajikistan Capital: Dushanbe, Currencies: Tajikistani somoni, Ruble. 

13. Brett Kavanaugh Sworn In As US Supreme Court Justice 

i. In USA, President Donald Trump's controversial nominee Brett Kavanaugh was sworn in as the 114th Justice of the Supreme Court. 

ii. Kavanaugh was officially sworn by outgoing Chief Justice John Roberts who administered the Constitutional Oath, hours after the 53-year-old judge was confirmed by a bitterly divided Senate by 50-48 votes.

Awards

14. Complete List Of Nobel Prize Winners 2018 

i. The 2018 Nobel Prize were announced recently in 5 different fields viz. Physiology or Medicine, Physics, Chemistry, Peace, and Economic Sciences.
ii. This is for the first time that no Literature Prize was given in 70 years because of a #MeToo scandal.
Find The Complete List Of Winners Here

15. Nobel Prize 2018: Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences Goes To William D. Nordhaus and Paul M. Romer

i. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2018 to William D. Nordhaus “for integrating climate change into long-run macroeconomic analysis” and Paul M. Romer “for integrating technological innovations into long-run macroeconomic analysis.” 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2017 to Richard H. Thaler “for his contributions to behavioural economics”.

16. ESIC Wins ‘ISSA GOOD Practice Award, Asia & The Pacific 2018’ 

i. The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has won the ‘ISSA Good Practice Award’ for Administrative Solution for Coverage Extension at the “Regional Social Security Forum for Asia and the Pacific” held at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

ii. The award recognizes the measures taken by ESIC for extension of coverage-SPREE (Scheme for Promoting Registration of Employers and Employees), reduced rate of contribution rates for 24 months in newly implemented areas and raising the wage limit for coverage under the ESI Act, etc.

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         The ISSA (International Social Security Association) is the principal international organization for Social Security Organizations, Govts. and Departments of Social Security.

·         The ISSA was founded in 1927 under the auspices of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Geneva. 

17. Richie Benaud Named Sport Australia Hall of Fame Legend 

i. Sport Australia Hall of Fame has announced cricketing great Richie Benaud, who died in April, 2015, will become the 40th Legend of Australian Sport.
ii. He is only the third cricketer behind Sir Donald Bradman and Keith Miller to be given Legend status. Benaud is generally rated second to Bradman in terms of influential figures in the Australian game. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 

·         ICC Headquarters in Dubai, the UAE.

·         ICC CEO: Dave Richardson. 

Banking News

18. Electronic Trading Platforms Directions, 2018 Released By RBI 

i. The Reserve Bank of India issued guidelines for operating Electronic Trading Platforms (ETPs) to transact in eligible instruments. Trading on electronic platforms is being encouraged across the world as it enhances pricing transparency, processing efficiency and risk control. 

ii. As per the norms issued by the central bank ETPs will mean any electronic system, other than a recognised stock exchange, on which transactions in eligible instruments. ETP Operator’ shall mean an entity authorised by the Reserve Bank to operate an ETP under these Directions. 

Static/Current Takeaways Important for IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018- 

·         Urjit Patel- 24th Governor of RBI, Headquarters- Mumbai, Established on- 1st April 1935, in Kolkata.

Sports News

19. India’s Keerthana Pandian Wins Girls’ Title in IBSF World U-16 Snooker Championships 

i. India’s Keerthana Pandian has won the girls’ title in the IBSF World Under-16 Snooker Championships. In the final in St Petersburg, Russia, Keerthana outclassed her Belarussian rival Albina Leschuk 3-1.

ii. It is the Indian girl’s maiden international crown. In the corresponding boys category, Ben Martens of Belgium won the title. 

Obituaries

20. 'Nagaland's Gandhi' Natwar Thakkar dies in Assam 

i. Eminent Gandhian Natwar Thakkar, popularly known as Nagaland's Gandhi, died in a private hospital after a brief illness. He was 86.
ii. Mr. Thakkar, a Padma Shri awardee, had founded the Nagaland Gandhi Ashram at Chuchuyimlang.