16th January 2014 Current Affairs Updates

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International Affairs

• South Korea's First women President Park Geun-hye, who is on a four-day state visit to India hold talks over global issues for boosting bilateral relations, received a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Delhi today.
• In a bid to give new momentum to bilateral ties, India and South Korea on Thursday decided to intensify cooperation in a range of key sectors including trade, investment and defence even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced that the work on the long-delayed Posco steel plant will start in coming weeks.
• Sri Lanka and India agreed to release all fishermen detained for poaching on Thursday following high level talks between the two governments, an official said.
• American Hustle and Gravity lead 2014 Oscar nominations with 10 nods each, while 12 Years A Slave earns nine. 

National Affairs

• 113th death anniversary of Indian scholar, social reformer and author Justice Mahadev Govind Ranade observed today.
• 76th death anniversary of the popular Bengali novelist and story-teller Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay observed today.
• The Supreme Court on Thursday put the ball in Centre’s court to take a call on providing reservation in appointment for faculty posts in speciality and super speciality posts in medical colleges including the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
• Union Minister for Commerce & Industry AnandSharma inaugurated 5th SAARC Business Leaders Conclave at FICCI, Federation House, New Delhi.
• The anti-talk faction of the banned United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) today claimed it had executed a senior leader Partha Asom alias Partha Gogoi after being convicted of some "serious charges"
• Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar appealed to the central government to sanction adequate funds for the north eastern states to build up proper sports infrastructure.
• Rahul Gandhi will lead the Congress campaign for the general election, but his mother and party president Sonia Gandhi has decided he will not be the  party's prime ministerial candidate. 
• The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today accused the BJP of scripting its rebel legislator Vinod Kumar Binny's public accusations against the party. Mr Binny has accused his AAP of reneging on its promises to people after coming to power, and described party chief Arvind Kejriwal as a 'dictator.'

Business and Economy

• Foodgrain production is likely to reach all-time high level this year as a bumper crop is expected in wheat, rice and pulses on the back of good rain, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar recently said.
• An informal group of ministers (GoM), headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, on Thursday approved incentives to the beleaguered sugar industry for exports of up to 40 lakh tonnes of raw sugar for two years.
• The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) headed by Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram on Thursday approved the sale of IOC’s 10 per cent government stake to state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India Limited (OIL) which likely to garner Rs. 4800 to 5000 crore.
• In the first disinvestment through block deal this fiscal, a ministerial panel today approved selling 10 per cent government stake in  Indian Oil Corp ( IOC ) to  ONGC and  OIL to rake in Rs 4,800-5,000 crore.
• Three months after taking over as the CEO of Jet Airways, Gary Kenneth Toomey has resigned from the position. Ravishankar Gopalakrishnan, the chief financial officer of the airline, will officiate as the "acting chief executive officer" till the board appoints a new chief.

Deaths

• Richard Shepherd, best known for producing 1961 Audrey Hepburn starrer 'Breakfast At Tiffany's', has passed away at the age of 86.
• Social anthropologist GeraldDBerreman (83), recognised for socially-responsible anthropology and work on social inequality in India dies.
• Noted Indian-American economist AdhipChaudhuri dies at the age of 62 from lung cancer complications.

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