Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 03 January 2017

:: National ::

Supreme Court removed BCCI president

Noting that its diktats are not “written in sand” and are meant to be complied with, the Supreme Court stripped BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke of their posts.
SC ordered them to “forthwith cease and desist” from associating themselves with Indian cricket’s most powerful body.
A three-judge Bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur and Justices A.M. Khanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud declared Mr. Thakur and Mr. Shirke “unfit” to continue at the helm of the BCCI for their “obstructionist” attitude.
The BCCI bosses not only made “unfortunate comments” about the Lodha panel in public but also ended up hurting the dignity of the Supreme Court with their attitude, it noted.
Besides, the court found Mr. Thakur prima facie guilty of both contempt of Supreme Court proceedings and perjury (fabrication of false evidence), adding that such a person does not deserve to continue as BCCIpresident.

Service charge payment made optional

Consumer have the discretion to not pay ‘service charge’ ad- ded to your bill by any hotel/ restaurant.
Consumer Affairs Department asked the State to advise hotels/restaurants to prominently display that “the service charges are discretionary/voluntary and a consumer dissatisfied with the services can have it waived.”
This follows several com- plaints that hotels and restaurants are charging service charge in the range of 5-20per cent, in lieu of tips, which a consumer is forced to pay irrespective of the kind of service provided, the department said.
It said the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, provides that a trade practice which, for the purpose of promoting the sale, use or supply of any goods or for the provision of any service, adopts any deceptive method is to be treated as unfair.
The department said a consumer can make a com- plaint to the appropriate forum established under the Act against such unfair trade practices.

Appeal for votes on the basis of religion amounts to corruption

Terming religion a very private relationship between man and his God, a seven-judge Bench of the Supreme Court.
In a majority judgment, held that an appeal for votes during elections on the basis of religion, caste, race, community or language, even that of the electorate, will amount to a ‘corrupt practice’ and call for disqualification of the candidate.
“Election is a secular exercise and therefore a process should be followed… The relationship between man and God is an individual choice and state should keep this in mind,” the Supreme Court held in a majority judgment of 4:3.
The court was interpreting the pronoun ‘his’ used in Section 123 (3) of the Representation of the People Act.
The provision mandates that it would amount to a‘corrupt practice’ if a candid- ate or his agent or any other person, with his consent, appeals for votes on religious or such grounds.
The question referred to the Constitution Bench led by CJI T.S. Thakur on a batch of poll petitions was whether the word ‘his’ only meant a bar on appeals made in the name of the candidate or his rival or his agent or others in his immediate camp.
Or, does the word also extend to soliciting votes on the basis of the religion, caste, community, race, language of the electorate as a whole.

:: International ::

Sectarian violence in Myanmar

Myanmar said it has detained several police officers over a video shot by a fellow police- man that shows them beating Rohingya civilians, a rare admission of abuse against the Muslim minority.
Tens of thousands of people from the persecuted ethnic group — loathed by many of Myanmar’s Buddhist majority — have fled a military operation in Rakhine State, launched after attacks on police posts in October.
The refugees’ stories have raised global alarm and galvanised protests against Myanmar’s de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been accused of not doing enough to help the Rohingya.
Authorities pledged to take action “against police who allegedly beat villagers during area clearance operations on 5 November in Kotankauk village”.
The footage shows police hitting a young boy around the head as he walks to where dozens of villagers are lined up in rows seated on the ground, hands behind their heads.

:: Science and Technology ::

Agni-IV successfully launched

New Year 2017 began on a happy note for the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) and the DRDO with the flight-testing of India’s long- range, strategic ballistic missile, Agni-IV, turning out to be a “grand success”.
The SFC, which is entrusted with the launching of nuclear weapon delivery systems, fired the missile around 12 noon from a road- mobile launcher positioned on the Abdul Kalam Island, of Damra village on the Odisha coast.
The two-stage, surface-to-surface Agni-IV can carry a nuclear warhead weighing one tonne over a distance of more than 4,000 km. But on Monday, the SFC fired it for a range of about 3,100 km only.
Agni-IV had been tested twice earlier for ranges between 3,000 and 3,500 km instead of its full range of more than 4,000 km. The DRDO conceived, designed and developed the Agni-IV.
The latest victory, coming in the wake of the spectacular success of the Agni-V mission on December 26, 2016, confirmed India’s nuclear deterrence capability for, both the missiles can cover the entire area on the other side of the border.
Agni-V can carry a nuclear warhead weighing 1.5 tonnes over a distance of 5,000 km and plus.
Agni-IV has already been deployed by the Army. It is 20 metres long and weighs 17 tonnes. Solid propellants power its two stages. It had been flight-tested five times earlier — in 2011, 2012, twice in 2014 and in 2015.=

:: Business and Economy ::

Manufacturing output dip in Dec

Demonetisation of high-value currency notes in November has begun to hit the manufacturing sector, according to a private sector survey.
The Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index fell to 49.6 in December, the first time it hit below the 50-mark in 2016, from 52.3 in November. A reading below 50 implies contraction while one above 50 indicates expansion.
Companies saw new work and output dip for the first time in 2016. In turn, quantities of purchases were scaled back and employment lowered. Meanwhile, input costs increased at a quicker rate, whereas output charge inflation eased.
Having held its ground in November following the unexpected withdrawal of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes from circulation, India’s manufacturing industry slid into contraction at the end of 2016.
Rates of contraction in new work and production were marginal overall, but in both cases the reductions were the first in 2016.
Order backlogs rose for the seventh consecutive month but at the slowest rate in this sequence, according to the report.
With the window for exchanging notes having closed at the end of December, January data will be key in showing whether the sector will see a quick rebound.

Core sector recorded a growth of 4.9 percent

The eight core industries recorded a year-on-year growth in output of 4.9 per cent in November 2016, slower than the previous two months — that is, a 6.6 per cent increase in October and 5.01 per cent in September.
Output in electricity and coal posted healthy growth rates of 10.2 per cent and 6.4 per cent respectively in November as against 2.85 per cent and (-) 1.5 per cent respectively in October 2016, according to government data.
In November 2015, electricity and coal production posted a growth of 5.6 per cent and 3.8 per cent respectively.
The 10.2 per cent growth in output of electricity in November is the highest since 14.68 per cent in April 2016.
The eight core industries comprise close to 37.9 per cent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) and electricity has the maximum weight (of 10.32 per cent) among the eight sectors.
The coal sector posted a positive growth after three consecutive months of contraction in output, and the 6.4 per cent growth in November was the highest since 12.05 per cent in June 2016.
Steel production slowed to 5.6 per cent in November 2016, down from about 17 per cent growth during the August-October 2016 period.
The 5.6 per cent growth was also the lowest since 6.15 per cent in April 2016. In November 2015, steel output had contracted by 6.8 per cent.
Crude oil and natural gas output have been shrinking for several months now, and the trend continued in November 2016 as well.
Crude oil production contracted 5.4 per cent in November 2016 – shrinking for the ninth consecutive month. Natural gas production shrank 1.7 per cent in November 2016, falling for the fourth straight month.

Despite spending on welfare measures govt to meet fiscal deficit target

The Centre will meet its fiscal deficit target of 3.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) for 2016-17 despite a slew of sops announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The voluntary income disclosure scheme has already given us some revenue and this (demonetisation) scheme will also bring in some revenue so we will be able to meet the (fiscal deficit) target.
The Prime Minister’s announcement will be definitely honoured in terms of ensuring fiscal adherence to all our commitments as well as fiscal prudence, Railway minister said.
PM announced a package for farmers, senior citizens, small entrepreneurs, women and the rural poor along with a housing scheme for the poor and the middle-class.
The Centre’s fiscal deficit remained high at Rs. 4.6 lakh crore, which was 85.8 per cent of the budget estimates for the entire financial year, till the end of November this fiscal year.
Till October, the deficit was slightly lower at 79.3 per cent of the full fiscal deficit target.
The Union Budget had estimated fiscal deficit at Rs. 5.33 lakh crore for 2016-17 which works out to 3.5 per cent of the GDP. The fiscal deficit widened in November mainly due to muted gross tax revenues.