Daily Current Affairs For Competitive Exam - 12th August

National Affairs

·         Union Cabinet approved the introduction of pension and post-retirement medical schemes

·         The Union Cabinet led by Shri. Narendra Modi approved the introduction of pension and post-retirement medical schemes for the 22,000 existing employees of Food Corporation of India (FCI) as per the guidelines of Department of Public Enterprise.

·         Pension Scheme:-

·         In order to qualify for this pension scheme one should have a Minimum service period of 15 years before superannuation except in case of death.

·         The Employer’s Contribution is 10% of Basic pay and DA per month in respect of all existing employees as on 01.12.2008 or appointed thereafter.

·         The Employees’ Mandatory Contribution is about 2% of basic pay + DA per month. Employees’ Voluntary Contribution and up to 25% of basic pay + DA per month.

Lok Sabha passes the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2016

·         The Lok Sabha passed the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2016. It creates the way for employers in the textile sector to avail of the income tax benefit on additional employment provided the employee. This applies for the employee who has worked for 150 days and not 240 days as mandated earlier.

·         The bill, which will amend the Income Tax Act, 1961, and The Customs Tariffs Act, 1975, seeks to exempt land banks of erstwhile public sector undertakings from levy of capital gains tax when transferred to the government.

·         This bill provide tax incentives to the garment sector and enable the government to raise customs duty on marble and granite from 10 to 40%.

·         The changes in the Income Tax Act will give effect to the conditions attached to the transfer of shares by the government.

Union Cabinet approves amendments to Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act

·         The cabinet gave ex-post facto approval to a proposal to amend the Lokpal Act to exempt Central government employees sand NGOs executives from filing details of assets of their spouses and children.

·         Union cabinet gave its approval for amendments to section 44 and consequential amendments to the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 by introducing the Lokpal and Lokayuktas (Amendment) Bill, 2016 in Parliament.

·         As per old Lokpal rules, every public servant will file declaration, information and annual returns pertaining to his assets and liabilities, along with those of spouse and dependent children, as on March 31 every year on or before 31 July of that year.

·         This was changed through the amendment bill to exempt spouse and children of public servants and the declarations under the Lokpal law are in addition to those filed by the employees under various service rules and the last date for filing such declarations has been extended till 31 December, 2016.

CCEA approves R&D project for development of Advanced Ultra Super Critical (AUSC) Technology with 1,554 crore

·         The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave its nod for a proposal of R&D project for development of Advanced Ultra Super Critical (AUSC) Technology for thermal power projects with an estimated cost of Rs 1,554 crore.

·         The CCEA “approved a proposal of R&D project for development of Advanced Ultra Super Critical (AUSC) technology for thermal power plant with an estimated cost of Rs 1,554 crore and providing one time budgetary support of Rs 900 crore spread over a period of three years, commencing from 2017-18, to be provided as plan Gross Budgetary Support to Bhel for implementation of the R&D project.

International Affairs

Azim Premji and Shiv Nadar bags their spots in the prestigious Forbes list of 100 richest people in the technology field

·         Forbes has released its first ever list of the 100 richest people in the technology field. This list is as usually dominated by Americans with Microsoft founder Bill Gates at the top.

·         Two Indian tech tycoons, Wipro chairman Azim Premji and HCL co-founder Shiv Nadar bagged their spots in this prestigious list.

Business & Economy

NABARD sanctions Rs 26.06 crore to Punjab

·         The National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned Rural Infrastructure Development fund of Rs 26.06 crore to the state of Punjab also upon this the total grand stood at Rs 7,826.17 crore so far.

·         The financial grand will be used for tackling waterlogging by building lift schemes in low-lying areas, village ponds and other allied works in the state.

Union finance Minister Arun Jaitley launches MSME Data Bank Portal and Online

·         Finance Facilitation Web Portal.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley launched an online finance facilitation portal for the micro, small and medium enterpris (MSMEs) to facilitate ease of doing business at New Delhi on August 11.

·         He launched two important initiatives of the Ministry of MSME – MSME Data Bank Portal and Online Finance Facilitation Web Portal.

Hindustan Copper Limited inaugurates India’s first facility to produce nickel

·         As the first facility in India to produce Nickel metal of LME grade from primary resource, Shri. Balvinder Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Mines, inaugurated the Nickel, Copper and Acid Recovery Plant of Hindustan Copper Limited in Indian Copper Complex, Ghatsila, Jharkhand. 

·         It is the only unit in India to produce nickel metal of (London Metal Exchange) LME grade.
The Singhbhum Copper Belt has unique ore characteristics which contains appreciable quantity of Nickel. HCL has installed and commissioned the technology to recover the Nickel metal.

Ola launches intra-city rental service ‘Ola Rental’

·         Cab aggregator Ola has launched Ola Rentals which will simplify intra city travel with affordable hourly packages on Ola Lux, Ola Prime Sedan & SUV vehicles as well as OLA mini.

·         The OLA rentals currently being available in 35 cities and will be rolled out in 100 cities across India soon. This Rentals platform is the only platform that provides luxury A/C cabs at hourly packages.

Awards & Appointments

Bill Maris, Founder of Google Ventures leaves the company

·         One of the influential tech financiers in Silicon Valley Bill Maris, the investor who started Google Ventures is leaving Google Inc.

·         Maris will be leaving both the firm and its parent company Alphabet making him the third executive to quit the megacorp of late.

·         Maris, a neuroscientist by training, built Google Ventures into one of the more idiosyncratic venture firms — relying on data science for its investment decisions and a seemingly endless stream of capital from its parent, Google.

Birender Singh Yadav appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Ghana

·         IFS officer of 1997 batch Birender Singh Yadav currently working as Joint Secretary in the Ministry, has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the West Africa’s Republic of Ghana. Yadav will succeed K. Jeeva Sagar in Ghana.

·         IFS officer’s serves as Ambassadors, High Commissioners, Consul General, Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations and Foreign Secretary are some of the offices. Also IFS appointment renders a person ineligible to reappear in Civil Services Exam.

Science & Technology

Union Minister Harsh Vardhan Launched I Feel Safe for Women Safety

·         Union HRD Minister Harsh Vardhan Launched “I Feel Safe”- A mobile application aimed at helping women ensure their safety in the national capital was launched at Delhi University on August 10.

·         I Feel Safe” is a personal safety application that works across mobile networks. The app is powered by Nirbhaya Jyoti Trust and developed in association with Mobile Standards Alliance of India.

First Indian channel on skill development launched in Pune

·         Educational Service provider Millionlights in partnership with DEN Manoranjan Satellite has rolled out a first and only Indian TV Channel focused on higher education and skill development in Pune.

·         The launch intended to create a landscape of content, delivery platforms and certifications leading to higher employability.

Sports

Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis end partnership

·         World No. 1 Mixed Doubles pair Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis have mutually agreed to end their partnership after the pair showed poor performances in recent times.

·         In the US Open- women’s doubles they advanced up to draw, but with different partners – Sania with former partner Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic, and Hingis with USA’s Coco Vandeweghe.

Obituary

Yesteryear Tamil actress Jyothilakshmi passes away

·         Veteran Tamil and Telugu actress Jyothi Lakshmi passed away after had long battle with blood cancer at a hospital in Chennai. She was 63 year old.