Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 20 November 2018

SSC CGL Current Affairs


Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 20 November 2018


::NATIONAL::

CIC directs Registrar General of India to amend data collecting norms

  •  The Central Information Commission (CIC) has directed the Registrar General of India (RGI) to change its practices of data collection, especially with regard to births and deaths.
  •  Information Commissioner Yashovardhan Azad issued the directives to make changes in the software and practices of the RGI.He was hearing a petition filed by an RTI applicant, seeking information about the deaths reported in all the wards of Mumbai in 2016.
  •  During the hearing, the official representing the RGI said the office was a data aggregator.
  •  He submitted that the States were tasked with the overall implementation under Section 3 of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, whereas the ground-level record was maintained by the registrars appointed by the respective States.
  •  “Despite the contention of the PIO that the CRS (Civil Registration System) Division of the Registrar General, India, cannot be held to be the custodian of ward-wise data as sought by the appellant, the commission finds that the role of the Registrar General in the implementation of the RBD Act cannot be lost sight of,” he said.

OBC groups say Maratha quota an encroachment to their legal share of reservation

  •  A day after Maharashtra Chief Minister DevendraFadnavis announced a new Socially and Educationally Backward Class (SEBC) category under which Marathas will be given reservation, organisations of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) said on Monday that this was an attempt to give a share of their reservation to that community.
  •  “As per Section 340 of the Constitution, the term Socially and Educationally Backward Class is being used for the OBCs. How can Marathas be termed so and get the same reservation? This is nothing but an attempt to encroach on our legal share of reservation, and OBC organisations across the State will unite against this,” ShravanDeore, president, Maharashtra OBC Organisation, said.\
  •  He said the State Backward Classes Commission report, by giving Marathas the SEBC status, had included them in the OBCs. They would hence be eligible for a share of OBC reservation.
  •  The Opposition parties on Monday alleged that the government was delaying reservation for Marathas. Former Chief Minister PrithvirajChavan said that with the report of the Backward Classes Commission in hand, why was the Chief Minister waiting to announce the exact quantum of the reservation?
  •  Leader of Opposition in the Assembly RadhakrishnaVikhe-Patil said this reservation would not help Marathas benefit in Central exams or services. “This government had announced reservation for Dhangars in the first Cabinet meeting. It has now passed the topic to the Centre,” he said.

::ECONOMY::

Crucial RBI board meeting ends tension with centre for the time being.

  •  The tension between the government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) appeared to have defused for the time being with both agreeing to settle for a middle ground at the end of an over nine-hour board meeting on Monday.
  •  The most contentious issue between the central bank and the Finance Ministry was the RBI’s capital. Now, while the RBI has agreed to set up an expert committee on the economic capital framework (ECF), its mandate is restricted to future earnings and not the existing reserves, sources privy to the board deliberations told
  •  Sources indicate there were detailed presentations by the RBI on economic capital as well as other issues such as the prompt corrective action (PCA) framework.
  •  On the PCA, the Board for Financial Supervision (BFS) of the RBI will review the norms and take a call if some of the parameters like net non-performing asset (NPA) ratio could be relaxed so that some of the banks come out of the PCA. There are 11 public sector banks out of 21 that are on the PCA.
  •  The BFS consists of the Governor, four Deputy Governors and a few other board members. Another significant decision was relief to micro, small and medium enterprises the sector which is badly hit by the twin blows of demonetisation and patchy implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Centre in talks with foreign nations to bring reforms in WTO

  •  Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu on Monday said he was in talks with at least 150 countries to work out the way forward for reforming the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
  •  He said that the multilateral trading system was under stress and a number of fresh trade-restrictive measures, which would affect global trade and economic growth, had surged
  •  “It is necessary that we look at making the WTO improve further,” Mr.Prabhu said at a conference on a strategic alliance for the WTO and trade remedy laws. “The WTO has to change, and change for the better. We are preparing an agenda that does not exclude any country in the process of making the WTO better.”
  •  He said that he had personally met with 150 trade ministers to move a reformed WTO agenda forward. “I am getting a positive response from all concerned, including the Director General of WTO, in our endeavour to take all countries on-board.”
  •  “Expansion of global trade hinges on rules and processes determined by the WTO and unless global trade expands, national economies will not benefit,” he said.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

President Ramnath Kovind in Vietnam to boost cooperation

  •  The President of India, Shri Ram NathKovind, reached Hanoi today as part of his two-nation state visit to Vietnam and Australia. Later in the afternoon, the President addressed the Vietnam-India Business Forum in the Vietnamese capital.
  •  Speaking at the Business Forum event, the President said India and Vietnam are old civilisational friends, and trade is a driving force of our contemporary partnership.
  •  The President said the Vietnam-India business relationship presents prospects for engagement in financial services, IT and the digital economy, hydrocarbons, defence, renewable energy, mining, healthcare, tourism and civil aviation, among other sectors.
  •  The President said Vietnam is a very important trading partner for India within ASEAN, and India is now among the 10 largest trading partners of Vietnam.
  •  President Kovind also visited the My Son temple complex in Kwangnan province, where the oldest temples have been dated to the fourth century. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the My Son temple complex is among Vietnam’s most cherished cultural treasures.
  •  The ancient temples are being restored with support from the Archaeological Survey of India, and the President was briefed on the restoration project.

Srilankan Parliament adjourned amid violence

  •  The Sri Lankan Parliament, which met on Monday following violence and disruption last week, was adjourned minutes after it convened, without a resolution to the ongoing political crisis.
  •  Lawmakers aligned to ousted Prime Minister RanilWickremesinghe and from other Opposition parties in the House have sought the suspension of state funds to the PM’s Office, now occupied by former President MahindaRajapaksa, whose administration they consider illegitimate. The debate on the motion is expected to commence on Friday.
  •  The development is the latest in the series of events since President MaithripalaSirisena sacked Mr.Wickremesinghe on October 26, and replaced him with Mr.Rajapaksa.
  •  The political stalemate in Sri Lanka’s legislature has been dragging since, because MPs backing the Sirisena-Rajapaksa combine continue opposing a vote in the House that could test claims to a majority.
  •  In a bid to resolve the complex political quandary, Mr.Sirisena convened an all-party conference on Sunday evening, where he urged MPs to go for a vote by name or by the electronic system.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

Indo-Russian joint exercise INDRA begins

  •  Opening ceremony for the Tenth Indo-Russian Joint Exercise, INDRA 18 scheduled from 18 November to 28 November 2018 was held on 19 November 2018 at Babina Military Station.
  •  Contingents of the participating nations came together for the opening ceremony which was held in presence of a number of officers and officials of the participating nations.
  •  There was a fly past of Army Aviation helicopters which carried the national flags of both the participating nations during the parade. The members of both the participating nations also interacted and familiarised with each other after the opening ceremony.
  •  The aim of the exercise is to practice joint planning and conduct to enhance interoperability of the two armies in the peace keeping and enforcement environment under the aegis of United Nations.

::SPORTS::

Steve Smith & David Warner serve out their bans fully,says Australian cricket board

  •  Steve Smith and David Warner will serve out their one-year bans, and Cameron Bancroft his nine-month suspension, in full after a review of the punishments by the board of Cricket Australia, the governing body said on Tuesday.
  •  Former Test captain Smith, his vice-captain Warner and batsman Bancroft were handed the bans from international and state cricket after the ball-tampering scandal in South Africa earlier this year.
  •  The Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) have always contested the bans were unduly harsh and have continued to push for all three to be able to return to representative cricket immediately.
  •  The calls for the bans to be reviewed intensified after a cultural review into Cricket Australia last month that suggested that the culture fostered in the game by the governing body had contributed to the incident in a Test against South Africa.

 

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