5th February 2017 Important Daily Current Affairs

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Dear Great Ambitionists, here are today's (5th February 2017) Important Current Affairs updates. Happy Reading :)

Daily Current Affairs of 5th February 2017

International Current Affairs

• India is going to host a key meet on nuclear security in New Delhi next week.
• The MEA in coordination with the Department of Atomic Energy is hosting the Implementation and Assessment Group Meeting of the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism (GICNT) from February 8 to 10.
• Approximately 150 delegates from various GICNT partner countries and international organisations will participate in this event.
• Sweden's deputy Prime Minister Isabella Lövin signed a climate bill aimed at cutting all greenhouse gas emissions in the country by 2045.
• The US State Department has announced today that it will allow people with valid visas to enter the country in compliance with a Federal judge's ruling which overturned President Donald Trump's immigration ban. 
• Visitors with valid visas not physically cancelled will now be allowed to visit the United States.
• United Nations Security Council today lifted sanctions including a travel ban and arms embargo against the Afghan warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, previously branded as "a global terrorist" and accused of war crimes. 
• The move follows a peace deal between Hekmatyar's insurgent group Hezb-i-Islami and the Afghan government in September last year that granted him legal immunity from past offences.
  

National Current Affairs

• As voting ended in Punjab and Goa on Saturday for the 2017 Assembly elections, the Election Commission of India announced that Goa witnessed its highest-ever voter turnout of 83%. 
• Goa had recorded 81.7% voter turnout in the previous Assembly elections. 
• Meanwhile, the 117-member Punjab Assembly recorded 75% voter turnout.
• Important Points to Note : 
• To encourage female voters, election officials gave away pink teddy bears to first-time female voters and pens for male voters during the voting for the Goa Assembly polls.
• The pink-coloured model polling booths were completely managed by women officials.
• The iconic Mughal Gardens of the Rashtrapati Bhavan will open for the general public from today. 
• President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the gardens, as part of the annual Udyanotsav yesterday.

Recent Committees in News

• The Centre has formed a 6-member committee to give a report on ways to improve India’s Haj policy and also look into issue of subsidy to the pilgrimage. 
• The panel has been constituted in the light of 2012 Supreme Court order on gradually reducing the subsidy and abolishing it by 2022.
• Convener of the Committee : Afzal Amanullah (Former Consulate General of India, Jeddah)
• Member Secretary : J Alam (Ministry Joint Secretary)
• Other Members :
• SS Parkar (Bombay High Court judge (retd))
• Qaiser Shamim (Chairman, ex-Haj Committee of India)
• Michael Mascarenhas (former Air India CMD)
• Kamal Faruqui (Muslim scholar-chartered accountant)

New Appointments

• Anand Kumar Gupta has taken over the charge as Director commercial at National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (NTPC).
• As director commercial, he will be responsible for the activities relating to commercial, international and domestic business development and consultancy business of NTPC.
• AIADMK General Secretary VK Sasikala elected as the President of the legislature party.
• Important Note : She is expected to take over as the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister on February 9.

Science & Technology

• US-based scientists have set a new record of data transfer via superdense coding, a process by which the properties of particles like photons, protons, and electrons are used to store information. 
• While computers transmit information in the form of bits (1 or 0), quantum bits can employ two states simultaneously and therefore represent more information than a traditional bit.
• Google-owned video hub YouTube has rolled out a new feature that lets smartphone users double-tap on the left or right side of the screen to fast forward or rewind any video by 10 seconds. 
• The functionality works only in full-screen mode and is available in the latest version of the YouTube app for both iOS and Android.

Deaths

• Eminent stage craft director, theatre personality, actor, director, artist, painter and writer Asim Basu (82) passed away.
• He was closely associated with the art and culture scene of Odisha for over five decades. 
• He has received the state Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1998 and was chosen for Dharmapada Award for the year 2010.

Banking & Economic Affairs

• A penalty of equal amount will be levied for any cash transaction of over ₹3 lakh from April 1, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia has announced today. 
• "Supposing you do a transaction of ₹4 lakh in cash, then the penalty would be ₹4 lakh," Adhia explained. 
• Note : A ban on cash transaction of over ₹3 lakh has been proposed in the Union Budget.
• Atlanta-based startup Greenlight has developed a debit card for children that their parents can manage with a smartphone app. 
• The company claims the card enables parents to give a child a specific amount that he or she can spend at a specific store or website. 
• The parents are alerted when purchases are made or the child makes a new request.
• India will allow non-state mining companies to mine and sell coal for the first time in more than four decades, 
• The Coal Ministry will auction four mines to both state-run and private companies in April. 
• The winning bidders will be allowed to sell the coal, which can currently be done by few state-run companies.

Awards & Honors

• England Test captain Alastair Cook has been honoured with Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE). 
• He is the only England player to have scored over 10,000 runs in Tests and has also led England in the most number of Tests.

Sports Current Affairs

• ICC has approved the consistent use of Decision Review System (DRS) in all international cricket, besides approving its use in the World T20 next year. 
• The decision was taken in principle at an ICC meet today and will be formalised in May, with a roll-out expected to begin in October. 
• Note : Till now, DRS was not used in T20Is.

Read more Daily Current Affairs updates from here

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