Daily Current Affairs GK 23rd November 2019

Daily Current Affairs International

The US clears sale of MK-45 naval guns to India

The US State Department cleared the sale of sophisticated naval guns worth $1 billion to India.

  • The MK-45 guns will enhance India’s naval capabilities, particularly in the Arabian Sea.
  • The Gun System will provide the capability to conduct anti-surface warfare and anti-air defence missions while enhancing interoperability with the U.S. and other allied forces.

Global Terrorism Index 2019

According to the 2019 Global Terrorism Index (GTI), deaths from terrorism fell for the fourth consecutive year, after peaking in 2014.

  • The number of deaths has now decreased by 52 per cent since 2014, falling from 33,555 to 15,952.
  • Afghanistan was the country most impacted by terrorism in 2018, replacing Iraq, which had held that position since 2004.
  • With 350 Indians killed and 540 injured in 748 terrorist incidents in 2018, India is at seventh place in the list of countries most affected by terrorism.

World Philosophy Day: 21 November

World Philosophy Day is an international day proclaimed by UNESCO to be celebrated every 3rd Thursday of November.

  • The day aims at promoting an international culture of philosophical debate that respects human dignity and diversity
  • It was first celebrated on 21 November 2002.
  • This year it was observed on 21st November.

Russia is Country of Focus at IFFI 2019

International Film Festival of India, IFFI features a Country of Focus that brings out the cinematic excellence and contributions of that particular country every year and this year, the country of focus is Russia.

  • The section will showcase eight movies from Russia.
  • Also, For the first time, Haryana is participating in the ongoing International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa.

Daily Current Affairs National

NASA Unveils First Electric Plane X-57 “Maxwell”

NASA showcased an early version of its first all-electric experimental aircraft, the X-57 Maxwell.

  • Adapted from an Italian-made Tecnam P2006T twin-engine propeller plane, the X-57 has been under development since 2015.
  • The target of the agency is to fly this aeroplane in late 2020.

Habitats of Great Indian Bustards to be declared as conservation reserves

Seeking to protect the critically endangered Great Indian Bustard, the Union environment ministry has decided to declare their habitats as conservation reserves.

  • Ministry also asked power companies to consider placing high voltage lines under the ground as the birds have died after coming in contact with them.
  • As per a report by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) only 150 GIBs are left in India, out of which around 90 per cent are found in Rajasthan and Gujarat.
  • The GIBs are dying at the rate of 15% annually due to collision with high voltage power lines.

NIA to host first counter-terrorism cooperation exercise for ‘Quad’ countries

The National Investigation Agency is hosting the first counter-terrorism exercise for the “Quad” countries, India, the US, Japan and Australia at the NIA headquarters in Delhi.

  • The ‘CT-TTX’ (counter-terrorism table-top exercise) is first such engagement among the Quad countries on regional and global issues of common interest and also in the domain of counter-terrorism and cooperation.
  • It is being conducted as the partner countries have resolved to take the international counter-terror offensive, preparedness, mitigation and synergy to the next level.

4-Day ‘Destination North East’ in Varanasi

A four-day festival showcasing art, culture, cuisine, handicrafts and handlooms of the northeastern region will be held for the first time in Varanasi.

  • The festival will exhibit the striking similarities between the Ganga and Brahmaputra basins in terms of ancient culture, diverse handlooms and silk products, spiritual heritage and vibrant tourist hubs.
  • All eight Northeastern states will participate in the event, to be held at the IIT (BHU) ground, to display their handicrafts, handloom, organic products and cultural troupes.

Women in Karnataka now allowed to work night shifts at factories

The Karnataka government issued a notification enabling women to work in night shifts in factories.

  • The Government allows employment of women workers, who come forward to work during night shifts, between 7.00 PM to 6.00 AM in the factories registered under the Factories Act 1948.
  • However, employers have been directed to put in place facilities conducive for women to successfully carry out night shift jobs.
  • Employers are required to set up mechanisms to avert sexual harassment and also establish a complaints committee to address women’s grievances.

Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai make it on the new global prosperity index

Bangalore emerged as India’s highest-ranked city at No 83 in a new index of the world’s 113 cities in terms of economic and social inclusivity.

  • The list is topped by Zurich in Switzerland.
  • The first-ever Prosperity & Inclusion City Seal and Awards (PICSA) Index, has been released in Spain.
  • Delhi at 101 and Mumbai at 107 are the other Indian cities to make at the index.

First woman pilot of Indian Navy ‘Lieutenant Shivangi’

First woman pilot of Indian Navy will join Naval operations on December 2.

  • The first woman pilot, Lieutenant Shivangi, will join naval operations on completion of operational training on December 2.
  • She hails from Muzzafarpur, Bihar and completed her schooling from DAV Public school, Muzzafarpur.
  • She was inducted into Indian Navy as SSC (Pilot) as part of 27 NOC course in Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala and got formally commissioned by Vice Admiral AK Chawla, in June last year.
  • Shivangi, who had been undergoing training at the Southern Naval Command here, will get authorisation on December 2 to fly Dornier aircraft.

Daily Current Affairs – Awards

Manoj Bajpayee bags best Actor Award at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards for ‘Bhonsle’

Manoj Bajpayee has recently bagged the Best Performance by an Actor Award at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards for his role in ‘Bhonsle.’

  • The acclaimed actor won against international actors like Wang Jingchun (China), Navid Mohammadzadeh and Mohsen Tanabandeh (Iran), and Eran Naim (Israel).
  • Ridham Janve won the Young Cinema Award for his directorial debut film The Gold-Laden Sheep and the Sacred Mountain.

Daily Current Affairs – Business

SEBI doubles PMS investment size to Rs 50 lakh

Securities and Exchange Board of India has doubled the minimum investment limit for clients of Portfolio Management Services to Rs 50 lakh.

  • Currently, the minimum ticket size for investing in PMS is Rs 25 lakh.
  • The market regulator also increased the net worth requirement for PMS to Rs 5 crore from Rs 2 crore earlier, giving the existing portfolio managers 36 months to meet the enhanced requirement.
  • The regulator has set a deadline of 31 days for listed companies to disclose to the stock exchanges with respect to default.

Daily Current Affairs – Appointments

Sri Lanka: Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in as new PM

In Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapaksa has been sworn in as the new Prime minister.

  • He was sworn in by President Gotabaya Rajapksa, his younger brother after Ranil Wickremesinghe resigned from his post.
  • The changes followed the victory of Gotabaya Rajapksa at elections.
  • Mahinda Rajapaksa served as two-term President from 2005 to 2015 and was barred from contesting Presidential elections because of the two-term limit.

Daily Current Affairs – Sports

ISSF WC Final: Manu, Elavenil, Divyansh treat India to triple gold

Manu Bhaker continued her gold rush this year by winning yet another gold in the women’s 10m air pistol event, this time at the ISSF World Cup Final in Putian, China. Bhaker shot a score of 244.7 in the final in the process setting a new junior world record in the event.

  • Fellow prodigy Elavenil Valarivan also capped an impressive 2019 by winning gold in the women’s 10m air rifle event after shooting 250.8 in the final.
  • Divyansh Singh Panwar also won gold in the men’s 10m air rifle event after shooting a score of 250.1 in the final.
  • This is 17-year-old Panwar’s maiden World Cup Final win in just his first appearance at the tournament.

India-Bangladesh first pink ball test at Eden Garden

The first-ever pink-ball Test match between India and Bangladesh begin at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

  • The second test of the two-match series against Bangladesh will also be a historic Day-night Test.
  • The play will begin at 1 PM.
  • Pink balls will be used in place of red balls for better visibility under lights.
  • 11 Day-night Tests have been played so far and Australia is the most dominant team with 5 wins in 5 matches.

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