24th March 2017 Important Daily Current Affairs

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Dear Great Ambitionists, here are today's (24th March 2017) Important Current Affairs updates. Happy Reading :)

Daily Current Affairs of 24th March 2017

International Current Affairs

• World Tuberculosis (TB) Day is being observed today. 
  • Theme of the year 2017 : Unite to end TB
  • Important Points to Note :
  • This day is designed to build public awareness about the global epidemic of tuberculosis (TB) and efforts to eliminate the disease. 
  • This year it is second year of a two year “United to End TB” Campaign. 
    
  • 8.6 million new cases of tuberculosis occur each year globally, of which 2.2 million occur in India.
  • This day is one of eight official global public health campaigns marked by the World Health Organization (WHO). The remaining 7 are, 
  1. World Health Day
  2. World Blood Donor Day
  3. World Immunization Week
  4. World Malaria Day
  5. World No Tobacco Day
  6. World Hepatitis Day 
  7. World AIDS Day.
• British Airways has started rolling out a facial recognition technology at its London Heathrow Airport to allow passengers to go through boarding gates faster. 
• The biometric devices at the airport's main security screening area capture a traveller's features and boarding pass, after which a facial scan at the gate allows them to board the plane without showing documents.
• For the first time, Chinese, Saudi and Turkish troops joined the Pakistan Day parade in the capital Islamabad yesterday (23rd March 2017). 
• President Mamnoon Hussain, who was the chief guest at the event, called the participation of Chinese troops a "historic event". 
• Pakistan's lower house of Parliament has passed a legislation to reinstate secret military courts that try civilians charged with terrorism-related offenses. 
• The military courts had a two-year mandate that expired on January 7 this year. 
• The courts were originally set up in response to the 2015 attack on a military-run school by the Pakistani Taliban wherein 134 children were killed.
• India ranked 87th on the Global Energy Architecture Performance Index (EAPI) released as part of report of Geneva- based World Economic Forum (WEF). 
• A total of 127 countries were surveyed. 
• Top 5 Countries in the Index : 
• Switzerland
• Norway
• Sweden
• Denmark
• France

National Current Affairs

• The Parliament has passed The Employees Compensation (Amendment) Bill, 2016. 
• The Bill amends the Employee’s Compensation Act, 1923. 
• It ensures compensation up to Rs 1 lakh to employee if an injured in an industrial accident and imposes hefty penalty in case of any violation by the employers.
• An Indian Navy team is set to scale Mount Everest as a part of its 'Sagar Tal se Sagar Matha (Seabed to Summit)' expedition. 
• The 24-member team, with personnel from INS Chakra and INS Chennai, will plant an ice-axe on the 8,848-metre high peak. 
• Earlier, the team took the ice-axe 40 metres below sea-level off Karwar in the Indian Ocean.
• The Union Cabinet approved setting up of National Commission for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (NSEBC) as a constitutional body. 
• In this regard, constitutional amendment bill for amending Constitution mainly by insertion of Article 338B will be soon introduced in the Parliament.
• Centre approves construction of 1 crore tonne capacity Silos (tall towers or pit on a farm used to store grain) for storage of #foodgrains by end of year 2019-20.

Science & Technology

• German scientists are testing an 'Artificial Sun', a massive light array for making hydrogen fuel by dissociating water molecules. 
• The array consists of 140 Xenon lamps, typically used as cinematic spotlights, in a honeycomb pattern focused on an 8-inch-by-8-inch patch. 
• The lamps can focus energy 10,000 times more intense than natural sunlight generating temperatures up to 3,000ºC on the patch.

New Appointments

• Dr Randeep Guleria was today appointed as the Director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
• He joined AIIMS as an assistant professor in 1992 and has been the HoD of the department of pulmonary medicine and sleep disorders, since April, 2011.
• He has replaced Rs M C Mishra, who retired from the post of AIIMS director in January after serving for over three years.

Business & Economic Affairs

• Flipkart is acquiring eBay India in a deal that is part of a $2 billion fundraising.
• This comes after recent reports claimed that Flipkart has closed its $1 billion funding from Microsoft, Tencent and eBay, and plans to raise $1 billion more. 
• Note : eBay is a small investor in Flipkart's rival Snapdeal.

Deaths

• Noted Tamil litterateur Asokamitran (85) passed away today.
• A well known novelist and essayist, he was noted for his subtlety and refreshing creativity in expression.
• Born Thiagarajan, he assumed the pseudonym Asokamitran in the 1960s.
• His work "Appavin Snegithargal", a collection of short stories won him the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1996.
• He was given the Tiru Vi Ka Award in 2014 for his contribution to Tamil literature by late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa.

Sports Current Affairs

• Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag has been roped in by a Mumbai-based entertainment company to anchor a TV sports programme called 'Umeed Olympic'. 
• The 13-part series will highlight the journey of country's top athletes preparing for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. 
• Indian para shuttler Sukant Kadam won the Singles and Doubles Bronze Medals in the recently-concluded Spanish Para-Badminton International 2017 held in Mallorca, Spain. 

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