Today’s Current Affairs 8th – August- 2018 – MyProgressCard

National News

1. TRAI launches integration & availability of TRAI Mobile Apps on UMANG platform

• Policy initiatives of TRAI, over the years, have been to protect the interests of the consumers. Recognizing the importance of reaching out to the consumers and to safeguard their interests, TRAI has now integrated its Mobile Apps namely DND 2.0 & MyCall with UMANG Platform.
• UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) is developed by the National e-Governance Division (NeGD), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
• UMANG provides a single platform for all Indian Citizens to access pan India e-Gov services ranging from Central to Local Government bodies and other citizen-centric services.

2. Maharashtra Government announces special assistance of Rs.500 crore for OBC community

• Maharashtra Government announced a special assistance of Rs.500 crore for OBC community to help them develop employment opportunities for the youth.
• This announcement was made by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at the 3rd National Convention of National OBC Association in Mumbai.
• He denied reports stating that, Maratha community may be included in the OBC category for reservation purpose.

Static/Current Implications:

• Capital of Maharashtra – Mumbai
• Governor – C. Vidyasagar Rao

3. India is a source of growth for the global economy for the next few decades: IMF

• International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said that India is a source of growth for the global economy for the next few decades.
• Releasing the report of its annual consultations with India, IMF’s mission chief for India, Ranil Salgado said that India contributes 15 per cent of the growth in the global economy in purchasing power parity measures. He said this is next to only China and the United States.  
• In its report, the IMF has forecast India’s growth to rise to 7.3 per cent in the financial year 2018-19 and 7.5 per cent in the financial year 2019-20, on strengthening investment and robust private consumption.

Static/Current implications:

• Headquarters of IMF – Washington D.C., USA
• Chairman – Christine Lagarde

International News

4. Tokyo 2020: First Olympics to deploy facial recognition technology to increase security

• Tokyo 2020 will be the first Olympics to deploy facial recognition technology to increase security.
• The Olympic organizers have partnered with NEC, a Japanese telecommunications and information technology firm, to develop the first system of this kind.
• It will use IC chips within identification cards to automatically verify the identity of those entering over 40 venues.
• It is the fastest system where the technology takes only 0.3 seconds to match up face with pre-registered photo.

Static/Current implications:

• Capital of Japan – Tokyo

• Currency – Japanese Yen

• Prime Minister – Shinzo Abe

Meetings/Conferences

5. PHDCCI and CNI sign MOU to set up Indo-Nepal Centre

• PHDCCI and CNI signed MOU to set up Indo-Nepal Centre.
• The MoU aims to promote Indian investment in Nepal, Work with Indian ventures in Nepal to resolve problems being faced by them, Promote industrialization in Nepal and provide training to Nepali entrepreneurs.
• The MoU was signed by Anil Khaitan, President of PHDCCI and Hari Bhakta Sharma, President of CNI, in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Banking News

6. S Gurumurthy & Satish Marathe appointed part-time Directors on RBI board by CAC

• S Gurumurthy and Satish Marathe were appointed as part-time directors on the Reserve Bank of India board by The Cabinet’s Appointments Committee for a four-year term.
• These appointments were proposed by the Department of Financial Services.
• S  Gurumurthy is the editor of Tamil political weekly Thuglak and the co-convener of RSS affiliate Swadeshi Jagran Manch. This is his 1st term as an RBI director.

Obituaries

7. Former Tamilnadu CM and leader of DMK Mr.M Karunanidhi Passed away

• DMK chief and five-time Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu M Karunanidhi died at the age of 94 in Chennai.
• Mr Karunanidhi became a Chief Minister in 1969,1971,1989,1996 & 2006.
• He was popularly referred to as Kalaignaror, the artist.
• Maanavanesan was his first manuscript magazine.

Expected GK Questions from the above Current Affairs

1. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has launched integration & availability of TRAI Mobile Apps namely DND 2.0 & MyCall on which platform?

A. UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance)
B. BharatNet
C. T App Folio
D. AppWare

2. Maharashtra Government has announced a special assistance of _____ for OBC community to help them develop employment opportunities for the youth?

A. Rs 700 crore                                               B. Rs 500 crore
C. Rs 350 crore                                               D. Rs 900 crore

3. Which will be the first Olympics to deploy facial recognition technology to increase security?

A. Qatar Olympics 2022                              B. Tokyo Olympics 2020
C. London Olympics 2020                          D. Canada Olympics 2020

4.  PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) and Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) have signed a MoU to establish India-Nepal Centre. Who is the President of PHDCCI?

A. Anil Khaitan                                             B. Arjun Rampal
C. Surjit Singh                                              D. Karan Thapa

5.  Name the 2 persons who were appointed as part-time directors on the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) board for a four-year term, on August 8, 2018?

A. Raghu Ram Krishnan, Sathya Kumar
B. Puneeth Rai, Rajinish Kumar
C. S Gurumurthy, Satish Marathe
D. Amar Kashyap, Kunal Singh

6. On August 8, 2018, DMK chief M Karunanidhi died at the age of 94. He was a five-time Chief Minister of which state?

A. Andhra Pradesh                             B. Telangana
C. Tamil Nadu                                     D. Karnataka