1. Govt.
launches national anthem video in sign language
i. Union Minister of State for HRD Mahendra
Nath Pandey has launched an Indian National Anthem video in sign
language, featuring differently-abled and partially differently-abled children.
ii. Directed by filmmaker Govind
Nihalani, the three-minute video features Bollywood actor Amitabh
Bachchan along with physically challenged children performing the anthem in
sign language with the Red Fort in the background. The video was also launched
in Goa, Bhopal, Chandigarh and Kolhapur.
2.
Thaawarchand Gehlot inaugurates Inclusive Independence Day Celebrations
i. Minister for Social Justice and
Empowerment Thaawarchand Gehlot has inaugurated Inclusive Independence
Day celebrations organized by the National Trust. Around 2500 people from all
walks of life participated in the event along with 500 people with intellectual
and developmental disabilities.
ii. On the occasion, Mr Gehlot administered New
India Pledge "Sankalp se Siddhi" to participants.
The Initiative aims to provide equal access to people with intellectual and
developmental disabilities, by means of Inclusive Education, Inclusive
Employment and Inclusive Community Life.
3.
Gujarat Government to Give ‘Namo’ Tablets
i. Around 3.5 lakh college
students in Gujarat will get tablets at a subsidised
rate of Rs 1,000 each under a state government scheme launched
by chief minister Vijay Rupani in Ahmedabad. Under this scheme, the first year
college students in the state will get 7-inch ‘NAMO E-Tab’ tablets,
which have a market value of Rs 8,000 each, by just paying Rs 1,000.
ii. Several students, who had already registered
for the scheme, received the tablets from the chief minister at
the launch ceremony in Ahmedabad.
4.
Jharkhand Assembly passes Religious Freedom Bill
i.
Jharkhand Assembly has
passed Religious Freedom Bill 2017. It aims to stop the forced
conversions in the state. The bill will now be sent to the governor, following
whose approval it would go to the President for assent.
ii. The Bill has provision for the imprisonment
of three years and fine of 50,000 rupees or both, and
four-year imprisonment and 1 lakh rupee fine, or both, if the person converted
is a minor, woman or a member of Scheduled Caste or Scheduled
Tribe.
5. India
one of the most open economies globally for FDI
i. According to the Economic
Survey, India has now emerged as one of the most open
economies in the world for receiving foreign direct investments (FDI), on
the back of a host of liberalisation measures. It pointed out that measures
taken by the government have resulted in FDI equity inflow of $43.4 billion in
2016-17, which is not only an increase of 8% over the previous year but
also the highest ever.
ii.
Mauritius, Singapore and Japan have
been top three source countries of FDI inflows to India
contributing 36.2%, 20% and 10.8%, respectively, during
2016-17, according to the survey.
6.
Flipkart world’s 3rd most funded Pvt company
i. With the $2.4 billion it
just received from Japanese technology and telecom giant SoftBank,
Flipkart has become the third most funded private
company globally.
ii. The homegrown e-commerce company has to date
raised almost $7 billion in the capital, higher than that raised by global
behemoths like online house rental aggregator Airbnb ($3.3 billion) and mobile
phone maker Xiaomi ($1.4 billion). The top two are both ride
hailing platforms— China based Didi Chuxing and the US
based Uber.
7. Hike
Messenger acquires tech start-up Creo
i. Homegrown messaging and social media
technology company Hike Messenger has acquired Bengaluru-based
tech start-up Creo for an undisclosed amount.
ii. The Creo team constitutes over 50
members and was founded in December 2013 by Sai Srinivas Kiran
G and Shubham Malhotra. In the past, Creo has launched hardware
products that include streaming media dongles and smartphones.
8. I V
Subba Rao appointed secretary to Vice President
i. Retired IAS officer I V Subba
Rao has appointed the secretary to Vice President M Venkaiah
Naidu. The Prime Minister's Office cleared the appointment a day on
which Naidu assumed charge as the 13th vice president of the country. N
Yuvaraj, Andhra Pradesh cadre IAS officer of 2006 batch, will be the
private secretary to Naidu.
ii. Rao, a 1979 batch IAS officer of Andhra
Pradesh cadre, retired from service as special chief secretary last year. He
held several important posts in Andhra Pradesh and later served the UNESCO.
9. David
Rasquinha appointed as Exim Bank MD
i. David Rasquinha, who is
currently Deputy Managing Director of Exim Bank of India, has
been appointed as Managing Director of the bank. This
appointment will be valid for a period of three years.
ii. The Appointments
Committee of the Cabinet has given its nod for the elevation of Rasquinha
to the post of Managing Director, official sources said. A formal
order in this regard is expected from the Department of Financial Services in
the Finance Ministry in the next few days.
10.
Indian Oil buys first shale oil from the US
i. State-owned Indian Oil
Corporation (IOC) has brought the country’s first shale oil from the
US and is looking to step up imports from America as part of its crude
diversification strategy. IOC bought 1.9 million barrels of US crude in
its second import tender seeking oil from the Americas.
ii. India, the world’s third-largest oil
importer, joins Asian countries like South Korea, Japan and China to
buy US crude after production cuts by Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC) drove up prices of Middle East heavy-sour
crude, or grades with a high sulphur content.
11.
Finance Ministry issues norms for Central offices to retrofit energy efficient
appliances
i. The Union Finance Ministry has
issued guidelines for mandatory installation of energy efficient appliances in
all Central Government buildings across India. It has directed that usage
of LED based lightings and energy efficient cooling equipment
such as fans and air conditioners in government buildings will lead to savings
in the long run through the reduction in energy consumption.
ii. Under the programme, Energy
Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) intends to bring in the investment
of around Rs. 1000 crore covering more than 10,000 large
government/private buildings by 2020.
12. The
Obelisk Gate' wins Best Novel 2017
i. The
Hugo Award for Best
Novel 2017 was given to Nora K. Jemisin, an American
speculative fiction writer for her work 'The Obelisk Gate'. The award was
presented at the 75th World Science Fiction Convention in
Helsinki.
ii. The awarded book was the second in the
trilogy that started with 'The Fifth Season', which was New
York Times Notable Book of 2015 and won Jemisin the Hugo Award
for Best Novel in 2016.
13.
Aishwarya becomes the first woman to raise Indian flag at IFFM 2017
i. Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has
become the first female actor ever to hoist the Indian National Flag at
the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), Australia’s annual
celebration of film from India and the subcontinent.
ii. The official Twitter handle of IFFM posted
a picture of the 43-year-old actress.
14.
Maheshwari bags memorable bronze at Asian Shotgun Championship
i. Shooter Maheshwari Chauhan bagged
a bronze medal at the Asian Shotgun Championship to earn India's first women's
skeet individual medal at a top international competition in Astana,
Kazakhstan.
ii. Maheshwari also led India to the team
silver alongside compatriots Rashmmi Rathore and Saniya Sheikh.
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