Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 31 AUGUST 2019

SSC CGL Current Affairs

::NATIONAL::

Prime Minister NarendraModi has said that the New India is about participative democracy, a citizen-centric government and proactive citizenry.
New India is the era of responsive people and responsive government, he said. Addressing the Manorama News Conclave 2019 in Kochi through video conferencing, Prime Minister said that India is changing fast and this change is happening for the good.
Thousands of talented youngsters are creating fantastic platforms, showcasing their spirit of enterprise. India is now excelling in new arenas where we hardly present earlier, he added.
New India is not about the voice of a selected a few, it is about each and every Indian, Prime Minister said. We will be a nation free of corruption and we make good governance a mass movement, he added.
Our vision for New India includes not only caring for those living in the nation but also outside. Our diaspora is our pride, contributes to India's economic growth, PM said.

India and Pakistan are expected to participate in the Foreign Minister-level meeting of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) in New York on September 26, a diplomatic source has confirmed. The meeting has remained on track despite the state of tension between the two countries.
“We have asked both India and Pakistan informally and formally if they would proceed with the planned meeting of September 26 in New York and they have communicated that there is no change in the previous plans,” said the source.
The meeting is an annual affair that takes place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s session. It will be the first occasion since August 5, where the Foreign Ministers will be seen in a single venue.

The government has announced the merger of ten public sector banks into four banks. It announced the merger of Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank with Punjab National Bank as well as the merger of Canara Bank and Syndicate Bank.
The merger of Union Bank of India, Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank and the consolidation of Indian Bank with Allahabad Bank was also announced. Briefing media in New Delhi yesterday, Finance Minister NirmalaSitharaman said that government wants a strong financial system to make the country a five trillion economy.
The Finance Minister said, after the merger of banks, the country will now have 12 public sector banks instead of 27. She said, the profitability of public sector banks has improved and total gross non-performing assets have come down to 7.9 lakh crore rupees in March this year from 8.65 lakh crore rupees in December last year.

The government will embark on ‘total’, or 100%, privatisation of Air India, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri said on Thursday.
“The government’s determination to privatise AI is a given, it’s undiluted. It should be total privatisation. We have to get the best possible deal in the shortest time possible,” Mr.Puri said at a press conference. In its earlier attempt at disinvestment of Air India, the government had sought to sell 76% of its stake and retain the remainder.
The government has learnt from its past mistakes and, therefore, has realised the need for a complete exit from Air India. Another major obstacle it has sought to circumvent is the huge debt size of ₹58,000 crore until March 2019.
It has hived off ₹29,000 crore of this and transferred it to a special purpose vehicle to provide relief to the airline in terms of interest it has to pay on the debt as well as to attract private players.

Cash-strapped Pakistan will get about $7 billion in fresh assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for various development projects over the next three years.
The ADB plans to provide Pakistan about $7 billion in fresh assistance for various development projects and policy-based programmes during the next three years under the country operations business plan 2020—2022,” Mr. Chen was quoted as saying in the report.
Highlighting the ADB’s relationship with Pakistan, Mr. Chen said that over the last five decades, Pakistan and the ADB have worked together to develop the country’s key infrastructure, promote exports and improve private sector, develop the country’s financial market and improve urban services among other activities.
Pakistan has also received billions of dollars in financial aid packages from friendly countries like China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE in recent months.

Yemeni officials and local residents say forces loyal to the country’s internationally recognized government have wrested control of the capital of southern Abyan province from separatists backed by the United Arab Emirates.
They say government forces on Wednesday pushed the UAE-backed militia, known as the Security Belt, out of Zinjibar after clasher that left at least one dead and 30 wounded fighters. They say the militia fled to nearby Aden province.
The separatists had seized Zinjibar earlier this month. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the fighting while the residents spoke anonymously, fearing reprisal.
Meanwhile Yemen’s government on Thursday accused the UAE of launching air strikes against its troops in the interim capital Aden in support of separatists.

Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Friday launched an online directory, which provides information about Indian standards of various products and testing infrastructure in the country for the benefit of various stakeholders such as start-ups.
There are estimated 10,000 labs across the country. Currently, about 4,500 labs owned by public and private academic institutions are listed on the online directory.
“The directory is a one-stop solution for all testing requirements and houses information about all testing facilities available in the country today,” Mr.Paswan said after the launch of the directory.
At single click, from individual users to entrepreneurs to exporters to companies, everyone can know about testing requirements and location of testing labs in the country.