Current Affairs For SSC CGL Exam - 02 February, 2014

Current Affairs For SSC CGL Exam

Iran and the six global powers are set to hold fresh nuclear talks on February 18 that promise to encourage further lifting of sanctions and unlock foreign investment flows into the country.
Iranian foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif said that the dialogue will be held in Vienna, the Austrian capital, following a meeting with the European Union (EU) foreign policy chief, Catharine Ashton on the sidelines of a security conference in Munich.
A decision on the new round of talks is part of cycle of steps that could end sanctions against Iran, after it was verifiably confirmed that Tehran is not pursuing development of atomic weapons. Iran and the five Security Council members--United States, Russia, China, Britain and France--along with Germany signed a nuclear deal in Geneva on November 24.
On January 20, Iran's negotiating partners confirmed that Tehran had halted production of uranium enriched to 20 per cent level, paving the way for a partial lifting of sanctions.
The smooth conduct of inspections by experts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), of some Iran's major nuclear facilities, is further building up the momentum of confidence building between the two sides.

Union Water Resources Minister Harish Rawat has sworn in as the eighth Chief Minister of Uttarakhand .
Mr Rawat succeeded Congress leader Vijay Bahuguna who stepped down from his position of Uttarakhand’s Chief Minister after 22 months of holding the office.
The 11 Cabinet Ministers, who were a part of the Bahuguna government, were also sworn in.
This decision of the Congress to make Mr Rawat the Chief Minister of the State comes ahead of the Lok Sabha elections to strengthen the chances of the Congress in the Lok Sabha where the State has five seats.
Mr. Bahuguna’s performance during and after the June disaster last year raised questions over his leadership. The slow rehabilitation work after the disaster proved to be detrimental for his tenure.

The Bombay High Court has directed the Union government to respond within two weeks to a public interest litigation petition, which claims that survey data forms for 2011-12 incorrectly mention ‘Muslim’, instead of ‘Islam’, in the religion column.
The petition demands that the correction be carried out and that the erroneous forms be withdrawn immediately.
Petitioner Aziz Pathan alleged that the government did not respond to his plea despite his bringing the mistake to its notice.
The forms were meant to collect data on socio-economic and caste and religious issues from the citizens.

Former President of Bharatiya Janata Party Nitin Gadkari has slapped a defamation notice on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for accusing him of being “corrupt” while senior Congress leader and Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal has challenged him to prove his charges or resign.
Mr. Kejriwal had caused a flutter across party lines when he reeled out list of names of leaders who he alleged are “corrupt”. The list includes the names of Mr. Gadkari, Mr. Sibal and several others.
Reacting to Mr. Kejriwal’s accusation, the BJP leader has served a notice, urging him to withdraw his statements within three days, failing which legal action will follow.