Daily Current Affairs 3rd January, 2018

Daily Current Affairs 3 January 2018 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

Important Cabinet Approvals on 3rd January 2018

  1. Approved the establishment of an AIIMS facility in Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh, at a cost of Rs 1,351 crore.
  2. Cleared the Rs 6,808.69 crore strategic Zojila Tunnel project to provide all-weather connectivity to Kargil and Leh in Jammu and Kashmir which remain cut off from the rest of the country during the winter season.
  3. Approved Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) for capacity augmentation of navigation on National Waterway-1’s (Ganga river) 1,380-km Haldia-Varanasi stretch. It is a Rs 5,369 crore project, which is expected to be completed by March 2023.
  4. Approved the signing and implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, India, and Transport for London (TFL), United Kingdom (UK), to improve public transport in the country. The MoU will improve passenger services and promote the use of high-capacity buses in India.
  5. Ex-post facto approval to the stand adopted by India at the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) ministerial meeting in Argentina last month that concluded without an agreement because of lack of consensus on the public food stockholding issue.

Assam CM launches Chah Bagichar Dhan Puraskar Mela 2017-18

In a bid to add more dynamism to Assam government’s initiatives of financial inclusion and bringing all sections of the people under the ambit of banking sector and cashless transaction, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal ceremonially launched the ‘Chah Bagichar Dhan Puraskar Mela 2017-18’ by distributing cheques to beneficiaries at a function held at Sarbananda Singha auditorium in Tinsukia, Assam.

Karnataka govt to hold “largest” B2B travel event in the country

The Karnataka government announced that Karnataka International Travel Expo (KITE) will be held from February 28, billing it as the “largest” B2B travel event in the country. The three-day event will see close to 400 delegates from 25 countries take part.



INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Pakistan Replaces Dollar With Yuan for Bilateral Trade With China

The central bank of Pakistan gave its green signal to using the Chinese currency, Yuan, for bilateral trade with China. The decision came just a day after US President Donald Trump vowed to stop all aid to Islamabad.

  • Adoption of the Yuan would mean that Pakistan and China would be able to replace the US dollar for transactions in China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects.

UNESCO enters Turkey’s endangered ‘bird language’ in Intangible Cultural Heritage list

Unesco has accepted the Turkey’s endangered “bird language” of Black Sea villagers as an endangered part of world heritage in need of urgent protection. 

  • The language is an unusual and very efficient whistle language used as a means of communication by villagers in remote northern Turkey.

Pak Navy successfully tests missile in Arabian Sea

The Pakistan Navy demonstrated its ability to respond to any aggression by conducting a test fire of a cruise missile –  Harba Naval Cruise Missile, which is a surface-to-surface anti-ship missile, from its newly commissioned Fast Attack Craft (Missile), PNS Himmat, off Karachi in the North Arabian Sea.



BANKING & FINANCE

Nabard, SBI sign MoU with NGOs for financing of JLGs in Bengal

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) and State Bank of India (SBI) jointly signed an MoU with non-government organisations (NGOs) from West Bengal for financing of 2,500 Joint Liability Groups (JLGs), or informal credit group of farmers.

  • The agreement was with five NGOs for promotion of JLGs in Purulia, Paschim Medinipur, Purba Medinipur, Burdwan and North 24 Parganas districts of the state.
  • JLGs are informal groups of 4-10 members who are engaged in similar economic activities and who are willing to jointly undertake to repay the loans taken by the group from the banks.

IICA, IPPB sign MoU to provide training on payment banking

The Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) and India Post Payments Bank signed an agreement for the training of employees of the latter in the area of payment banking.

  • Under the agreement, IICA has been entrusted with the key responsibility of capacity building of IPPB through training of its officials/employees besides providing research support by instituting Research Chairs in the emerging area of payment banking.


ECONOMY

RBI Bonds Scheme Being Replaced by 7.75% Savings Bonds Scheme

The Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) has announced that the 8 per cent GoI savings bond is not closed but has been replaced by 7.75 per cent scheme. The news came a day after the government notified that the 8 per cent GOI Savings bond, 2003 shall cease for subscription from January 2, 2018.

India’s GDP growth rate may accelerate to 7% in 2018-19: HSBC

According to an HSBC report, India’s GDP growth rate is expected to accelerate to 7.0 per cent in 2018-19 from 6.5 per cent in this fiscal and improve further to 7.6 per cent by 2019-20 as key sectors would revive from disruptions related to the implementation of GST and demonetisation.



BUSINESS

Apple acquires mobile iteration platform Buddybuild

Technology giant Apple acquired a Vancouver-based mobile iteration platform, Buddybuild, with an aim to make it easier for developers to create and iterate their apps for its platforms



APPOINTMENTS

AB Mathur appointed government interlocutor for talks with ULFA

The Central Government has appointed AB Mathur as the interlocutor on their behalf to hold talks with the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA). A 1975-batch IPS officer, Mathur served as the former Special Secretary of Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).

Former RAW chief Rajinder Khanna appointed deputy NSA

The Central Government has appointed former RAW Chief Rajinder Khanna as the Deputy National Security Adviser (NSA). He will assist the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, who is also a former RAW chief.



AWARDS

JNPT wins “Samudra Manthan – Caring Organisation of the Year” award

India’s Premier Container Port, the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust has won the “Samudra Manthan – Caring Organisation of the Year” award. The award instituted by Bhandarkar Shipping aims to fuel healthy competition in the maritime sector.



OBITUARY

Odiya jatra actor, director Ananta Ojha passes away

Noted Odia playwright, jatra actor and director Ananta Ojha has passed away following a prolonged illness.



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