Current Affairs Today 19th March 2019 | Current Affairs News

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Daily Current Affairs PDF of 19th March 2019

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

National Ordnance Factories Day

• Ordnance Factories Day is observed every year all over India on 18th March
• The production of India’s oldest Ordnance Factory, which is at Cossipore of Kolkata, was started in 18th of March, 1802. On this occasion, the Ordnance Factory, Field Gun Factory, Small Arms Factory, Ordnance Parachute Factory and Ordnance Equipment Factory acknowledge the day.
• It is often called the Fourth Arm of Defence, and the Force Behind the Armed Forces of India. It is amongst the top fifty defence equipment manufacturers in the world.

Global Recycling Day

• Global Recycling Day is celebrated across the world on March 18^th.
• Global Recycling Day was created in 2018 to help recognize, and celebrate, the importance recycling plays in preserving our precious primary resources and securing the future of our planet
• The Global Recycling Foundation is urging the recycling industry to take heed of theUN’s Paris Climate Agreement (COP24 agreement) and continue to play its frontline role in preserving the planet’s resources and improving the circular economy.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Former SC Judge Justice PC Ghose to be India’s first Lokpal

• Former Supreme Court judge Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose was recommended to be the first Lokpal or anti-corruption ombudsman of India.
• His name was finalised and recommended by the Selection Committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and eminent jurist Mukul Rohatgi
• Justice Ghose is a member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) since June 2017
• He is a former judge of the Calcutta High Court and former Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE

Initiative to promote digital electoral literacy, ‘i-help’ launched in Assam

• The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) and Common Service Centres (CSC) in Assam has launched an initiative named ‘i-help’ to promote digital electoral literacy in the state of Assam.
• Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Assam, Chandra Sahu launched the ‘i-help’ initiative.
• This particular initiatve will fill the digital divide and fulfill the objective of turning the General Election more inclusive and participatory.
• The CSCs are internet-enabled access points spread throughout the country delivering various government and non- government digital services to the citizens and is uniquely positioned in rural areas to significantly extend the awareness and outreach activities of CEO, Assam.
• The entire initiative is being launched under the Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) in the state to ensure that no voter is left behind.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND FINANCE

MCCIL recognised as a Third-Country Central Counterparty (TC – CCP) by Bank of England

• Metropolitan Clearing Corporation of India Ltd (MCCIL)has become the first SEBI recognised clearing corporation in India to get recognition as a Third-Country Central Counterparty (TC-CCP) by Bank of England.
• MCCIL is an arm of Metropolitan Stock Exchange of India.
• The recognition granted by the Bank of England will enable MCCIL to offer clearing services to UK-based entities after Britain’s exit from the European Union. That is when BREXIT comes into effect.
• There are currently seven clearing houses recognized by SEBI including BSE’s Indian Clearing Corporation Ltd and NSE’s NSE Clearing Ltd.

ICICI Lombard partners with Mobikwik for Cyber Insurance Cover

• ICICI Lombard General Insurance, a leading non-life insurance company, has entered into a strategic partnership with MobiKwik, a digital financial services platform, to provide cyber insurance cover for the latter’s mobile wallet users.
• The relationship aims to provide protection against unauthorised and fraudulent transactions online, across bank accounts, debit/credit cards and mobile wallets.
• The cyber-insurance can be availed digitally through the app at only  99 per month and with a sum insured of Rs. 50,000.
• The policy’s validity is only for one month. MobiKwik users can enroll under this insurance product at the time of loading money into their wallet or in a standalone format.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS

Hyundai and Kia to invest $300 million in Ola

• Hyundai Motor Group and Kia Motors Corporation announced a strategic partnership to invest 300 million dollars (about Rs 2,000 crore) in ride-hailing platform Ola for providing smart mobility solutions.
• The agreement will see the three companies extensively collaborate on developing unique fleet and mobility solutions, build India-specific electric vehicles and infrastructure, as well as nurture opportunities for driver partners with customised vehicles on the Ola platform.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOU

India & Afghanistan signed a MoU on digital education initiatives

• The Ministry ofHuman Resource Development has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Afghanistan government to work on digital education initiatives, which include many prominent programs developed by Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).
• The MoU was signed atIIT-Madras. This collaboration hopes to contribute to bilateral relations and beget mutual benefits for the two countries.
• One of the main objectives of the MoU is to facilitate students and faculty from Afghanistan to enrol and learn from the courses offered on Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds (SWAYAM), which is an online education platform developed by Government of India.

Maldives sign agreement with Exim Bank to finance new government’s infrastructure projects

• Maldives finance ministry has signed an agreement with India’s Export-Import bank (EXIM) for line of credit (LOC) of 800 million US dollars to finance the new government’s infrastructure projects.
• The LOC is part of 1.4 billion US dollars finance assistance announced by Indian government during President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s state visit in December
• The EXIM Bank loans come with a 1.75 percent interest rate and a 15-year repayment period after five years of moratorium
• The agreement was signed in presence of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj who was on a 2-day visit to Male.

Ola signs MoU with Telangana government to implement smart traffic solutions in Hyderabad

• Ola, one of the world’s largest ride-hailing platforms, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Telangana, to support their efforts towards strengthening the traffic infrastructure in Hyderabad city
• Under the partnership, Ola share intelligent insights that enable the Government to implement smart solutions to enhance the mobility experience in the city,
• The first pilot project proposed to be implemented is the dynamic mapping of the ride quality of major roads in Hyderabad through Ola vehicles

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING

Mukesh Ambani tops Forbes’s The World’s Richest Sports Team Owners 2019 ranking

• The Reliance Industries Chairman,Mukesh Ambani has topped Forbes’ The World’s Richest Sports Team Owners 2019 list.
• The total net worth of Ambani is $ 50 billion. He bought the IPL team Mumbai Indians for over $100 million in 2008 through a RIL subsidiary.
• The former CEO of Microsoft,Steve Ballmer (Net worth: $41.2 billion) is placed second. He bought the NBA team Los Angeles Clippers for $2 billion in 2014.
• The third place is secured by the co-founder of Red Bull energy drink company,Dietrich Mateschitz (Net worth: $18.9 billion), who is the owner of Auto racing team Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda, Formula One team Red Bull Racing and MLS club New York Red Bulls.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION

Goa Speaker Pramod Sawant sworn in as Goa’s CM

• Goa Legislative Assembly Speaker and BJP leader Pramod Sawant was sworn-in as CM of Goa, two days after Manohar Parrikar passed away after his battle with cancer.
• BJP ally MGP’s Sudin Dhavalikar and Goa Forward Party’s Vijai Sardesai took oath as Deputy CMs of the state. Nine other leaders also took oaths as cabinet ministers.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING AND INDEX

Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi among world’s cheapest cities to live in: Economist survey report

• According to the latest Economist survey report, Bengaluru (129^th rank) has the lowest cost of living among the 133 cities surveyed across the world, more affordable than Karachi, Delhi and Chennai.
• Only Caracas (Venezuela), Damascus (Syria), Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and Almaty (Kazakhstan) had lower costs of living than Bengaluru. Chennai and New Delhi were the ninth and tenth most affordable cities in the world respectively.
• Also for the first time in the survey’s history, three cities – Singapore, Hong Kong and Paris – share the title of the world’s most expensive city.
• Zurich and Geneva rounded out the top five and New York and Los Angeles reclaimed spots in the top 10 — ranking in seventh and 10th respectively – for this year.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS

YONEX Swiss Open 2019 badminton tournament

• The YONEX Swiss Open 2019 badminton tournament was held at St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland from 12 to 17 March 2019.

Indian Wells Masters Tennis tournament winners complete list

• The Indian Wells Masters Tennis tournament held in California United States has come to an end. The list of winners is given below. Indian Wells Masters Tennis tournament is also known by the name BNP Paribas Open.
• Austrian tennis player Dominic Thiem registered a comeback victory over 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer to win the Indian Wells Masters. It was Thiem’s maiden ATP Masters 1000 title in three attempts.

Prajnesh Gunneswaran rises to career-best 84th position

• In Tennis, the breakthrough run at the Indian Wells has propelled India’s Prajnesh Gunneswaran to career-high rank of 84 in the latest men’s rankings of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).
• In the Women’s Tennis Association rankings, Ankita Raina continues to be India’s top-ranked player at 168. She was followed by Karman Kaur Thandi, who jumped seven places to 203.

Bengaluru FC crowned ISL champions for first time

• Bengaluru FC clinched their maiden Indian Super League title as Rahul Bheke found a championship-winning header in the dying minutes of the final against FC Goa in Mumbai
• The two teams were locked 0-0 after 90 minutes. Even the first extra time saw no goals but Bengaluru got better of a 10-men Goan team 1-0, four minutes from the end of the second extra half. 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARY

Veteran Bengali actor Chinmoy Roy passed away 

• Veteran Bengali actor Chinmoy Roy has passed away
• Roy had started his career in Bengali films in the 60s and became indispensable to the film makers for his portrayal of comic characters retaining the very essence of Bengaliness and a certain culture.

He was equally noticed along with big names like Soumitra Chatterjee and Rabi Ghosh in a classic comedy like ‘Basanta Bilap’ or in ‘Dhonni Meye’.

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