12th February 2016 - Important Current Affairs updates

sponsored links

International Affairs

• Today (12th February) is Darwin Day.
• This day is a celebration to commemorate the 207th birth anniversary of Charles Darwin (12 February 1809).
• Note : Charles Darwin is best known for his contributions to evolutionary theory.
• The International Syria Support Group today agreed to implement a nationwide “cessation of hostilities” in Syria by the end of next week. 
• The ceasefire would not apply to the fight against groups designated as terrorist organisations by the UNSC.
• The world powers also agreed to immediately accelerate and expand the delivery of humanitarian aid.
• India ranked 37th among 38 countries, in USCC's Intellectual Property Index (IPI) by , among the surveyed 38 countries. 
• Note : Venezuela ranked lowest below India at 38th position.
• USCC - United States Chamber of Commerce

National Affairs

• Today is Vasant Panchami.
  
• This day is dedicated to Saraswati, the Goddess of knowledge, music, arts, science and technology.
• West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee has launched a project 'Muktir Alo' (Light of Freedom), under which sex workers from Kolkata's Sonagachi area are being trained to act in films and serials.
• The Goa government is considering to list the national bird peacock and state animal and 'protected species' wild bison as 'vermin' or 'nuisance animals'.  
• Note : Wild species including the wild boar and monkeys will also be termed 'nuisance animals'.
• Vermin Animals  - Animals that can be ​harmful to crops and are ​difficult to ​control .
• Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya has announced that PM Modi will launch the Unorganised Workers’ Identification Number (UWIN) smart cards within a month for India's 40 crore unorganised sector workers. 
• Note : The UWIN cards will give unorganised sector workers access to insurance, pension and other social security benefits.
• Nearly 1,200 residents of the Elephanta island, famous for its Hindu cave sculptures and located around 10 km off Mumbai coast, will have electricity from the Independence Day this year.
• Note : Elephanta, a popular tourist destination, despite its proximity to the country’s financial capital and housing caves which were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site, is still without electricity.

Awards & Honors

• Vinita Gupta, Chief Executive Officer and Nilesh Gupta, Managing Director, Lupin Limited, will be conferred the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2015 award. 
• Note : They will represent India at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year Award in Monte Carlo from June 7-12, 2016.
• FC Kohli, former Vice-Chairman of Tata Consultancy Services, has been selected for the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution towards the Indian software industry and nation-building.
• Karnataka’s flagship mobile-one governance application has won Gold medal at the 4th World Government Summit in Dubai, UAE in the m-governance awards category. 

People in News

• Fathimath Rahila, a class nine Muslim girl from Karnataka has topped the 'Ramayana' exam in state with 93%, conducted by the Bharatha Sanskriti Prathisthan. 
• Celebrity chef and TV host Sanjeev Kapoor was elected to prepare the menu of food to be served on the Indian Railways. 

Science & Technology

• Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is going to launch the Cryogenic mark-III based GSLV satellite launch vehicle in December. 
• This will be the first time India will use electric propulsion to launch a satellite. 
• Note : The high-thrust cryogenic engine (CE20) was recently test-fired at the ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) in Mahendragiri.

Business & Economy

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today announced plans to "actively inject" more cash to support the banking system in March. 
• This will be in addition to the short-term cash loans given to banks under RBI's Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF).
• Uber has updated its app in India for drivers who are hearing impaired or are hard of hearing. 
• It brings a special switch for such drivers, which informs the customer about the driver's hearing imparity. 
• The customers in this situation need to send their pickup instructions through text and their destination through an additional screen popped up by the app.
• The Southern Railway announced that a maximum of only 6 tickets can be booked by an individual user in a month online through ‎IRCTC‬ with effect from February 15, 2016.
• Note : At present, a maximum of 10 tickets can be booked online through IRCTC in a month by an individual user.

New Appointments

• Indian-origin lawyer Davinder Singh (58) has been named as Vice-Chairman of International Chamber of Commerce Commission (ICC) on Corporate Responsibility and Anti-corruption. 
• He is one of top Indian-origin lawyer in Singapore. 
• Currently he is chief executive of the Singapore based law firm Drew & Napier. 
• He was member of Singapore Parliament from 1988-2006.
• The TERI council today appointed former Competition Commission chief Ashok Chawla as its new chairman, and sent its Executive Vice Chairman Dr RK Pachauri on indefinite leave. 
• Note : This move came after TERI was criticised for appointing Pachauri as its Executive Vice Chairman, a newly created post, earlier this week, because Pachauri faces charges of sexual harassment.
• TERI  - The Energy and Resources Institute
• Tamar Hahn of Israel wa took the charge as the Director of the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) in Buenos Aires that serves Argentina and Uruguay.  
• She was appointed by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Deaths

• Soviet football legend Anatoli Ilyin (84) passed away.
• Ilyin was the scorer of the first ever UEFA European Championship qualifying goal and the strike that earned the Soviet Union Olympic gold in 1956.
• The legendary footballer won five Soviet Top League titles and two Soviet Cups during a club career spent at home-town Spartak Moskva. 

Sports

• Sri Lankan all-rounder Thisara Perera has became only the fourth bowler after Tim Southee, Jacob Oram and Brett Lee to take a hat-trick in Twenty20 internationals. I
• Argentine professional footballer Lionel Messi won the La Liga Player of the Month Award for the first time ever in his career. 
• He becomes only the second ever Barcelona player to win the award, after his Brazilian teammate Neymar had won the award earlier in the season. 
• Note : Messi scored six goals in the month of January to win the award.
• The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has slapped a five-year ban on Pakistani umpire Asad Rauf over charges of corruption and misconduct. 
• Indian athlete Kavita Raut qualified for the 2016 Olympics after winning Gold in the marathon event at the 12th South Asian Games today.
• In the last test series of his career, New Zealand's Brendon McCullum became the first cricketer ever to play 100 consecutive Tests since debut. 
• Latest Medals Tally of ‎South Asian Games 2016‬
• India
• Gold - 146
• Silver - 79
• Bronze - 23
• Total - 248
• Sri Lanka
• Gold - 25
• Silver - 53
• Bronze - 79
• Total - 157
• Pakistan
• Gold - 7
• Silver - 23
• Bronze - 43
• Total - 73
• Note : Pakistan has won Gold medal in Hockey, India had to satisfy with Silver, Bangladesh won Bronze Medal.

Read more Daily Current Affairs updates from here

sponsored links