Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 17 November 2018

::NATIONAL::

The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has said that India is witnessing an urban renaissance and has been set in motion. He was interacting with the Mayor of Houston, USA, Mr. Sylvester Turner, who called on the Vice President along with a high level trade and investment delegation including counselors, city planners, urban development officers and members of the Indo-American Business Chamber, in Mumbai today.
The Vice President said that Government’s initiatives such as Smart Cities, AMRUT Mission, Housing for all are changing the urban landscape by providing amenities to common man at an affordable price.
A good beginning has been made and it needs to be taken to its logical conclusion to realize a new and resurgent Urban India, he said. With a new found spirit of confidence and a healthy competition among cities to improve urban amenities and quality of life of citizens, he added.
Shri Naidu said that the ultimate aim of the Government is to recast the urban landscape of our country and to ensure decent living for the rapidly growing urban citizens besides making our cities and towns dynamic engines of economic growth.

Indian startups have the capacity to bring about transformational change to India’s growth story said Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, in New Delhi today.
He was speaking at the launch of a report on the State of the Indian StartupEcosystem-2018 by Inc 42 which is an Indian information platform known for its coverage of the Indian startup ecosystem.
The Minister went on to say that the Commerce & Industry Ministry is taking many initiatives to foster a positive and empowering ecosystem for startupstogrow and flourish in the country.
To this end many regulations which were in place for traditional industries are now being reviewed and either scrapped or modified in order to facilitate the ecosystem which will fosterand encourage startups to take root in India.
Commerce Minister also said that the Ministry is holding a global investors meeting next month in India where top investors are being invited to participate in a roundtable meeting in order to pave the way for greater investments in Indian startups.

The Empowered Committee of Officers under Nirbhaya Fund, under the Chairmanship of Secretary, Women and Child Development Ministry has today approved the following three major proposals:
Department of Justice, Ministry of Law and Justice proposal to set up 1023 Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) to dispose off pending cases of rape, and POCSO Act across the country. The project has a total financial implication of Rs. 767.25 crores. In the First phase, 777 FTSCs may be set up in 9 states and in second phase 246 FTSCs will be set up.
The Proposal of Ministry of Home Affairs for procurement of forensic kits for sexual assault cases to kick start usage of such kits in States/UTs through TOTs (Training of Trainers), capacity building/training for forensics in sexual assault cases and strengthening of State FSLs under Nirbhaya Fund with a total financial implication of Rs. 107.19 crores was also approved today.
The Proposal from Konkan Railway Corporation Limited for setting up video surveillance system at 50 Railway Stations with a total Project cost of Rs 17.64 crores that will be utilised for surveillance hardware and accessories, local connectivity equipment and power supply devices also stands approved.

India’s Act East policy and China’s Belt and Road Initiative (One Belt One Road or OBOR) are a “natural” area of cooperation between the two countries, said China’s Ambassador to India LuoZhaohui on Thursday, making another pitch for India to join China’s mega-infrastructure corridor, which New Delhi has rejected thus far.
However, instead of the more contentious part of the Belt and Road Initiative, the China-Pakistan-Economic-Corridor that he has spoken of in the past, Mr.Luo suggested that the cooperation could come through the “China-India-Myanmar” BCIM corridor to India’s North-East.
In a written message for the Youth event, Prime Minister NarendraModi said he hoped it would “provide a platform for the youth of both nations to build a ‘Great Wall of Trust and Cooperation’ between the two countries.” .

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India today signed a $105 million loan to continue financing the transmission system upgrades in Himachal Pradesh for increased supply of hydropower to the state and the national grid.
The tranche 3 loan is part of the $350 million multi-tranche financing facility (MFF) for Himachal Pradesh Clean Energy Transmission Investment Program approved by the ADB Board in September 2011.
The program is aimed at developing and expanding the transmission network to evacuate clean and renewable power generated from the State’s hydropower sources to load centers within and outside the State.
It also supports the institutional capacity development of the state transmission utility, Himachal Pradesh Power Transmission Corporation Limited (HPPTCL), as the executing agency for this project.
The loan will have a 25-year term, including a grace period of 5 years, an annual interest rate determined in accordance with ADB’s lending facility based on the London interbank offered rate (LIBOR), and a commitment charge of 0.15% per year.

CSIR-Central Road Research Institute has organized a two-day international conference titled “Pavements and Computational Approaches” from 16-17 November 2018, at its premises in New Delhi.
The objective of the conference is to deliberate upon advancements in pavement technology and road infrastructure engineering across the world, with special emphasis to the requirements of developing countries.
Experts will discuss issues related to design and construction of pavements, material characterization, computational analysis and modelling. Deliberations during the conference are likely to bring out new thoughts on technology up-gradation and its successful implementation in the field.
ShriNitinGadkari, Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Shipping, Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation has said in a video message that the mission of the Road Transport & highways Ministry is to build high quality roads at low costs.
He called upon the experts at the conference to be ready to experiment with innovative technology, make all possible use of indigenous raw material including waste material, and promote pre-cast technology.

India's ace cueist PankajAdvani yesterday won his third straight IBSF billiards crown in the 150-up format, taking his overall tally of world titles to 20. Advani overcame Nay ThwayOo of Myanmar in the final.
This win also marks a hat-trick of wins for Advani in the shorter format. He had won in his hometown Bengaluru in 2016 before doing the same in Doha last year.