Current Affairs Today 24th December 2019 | Current Affairs News

Dear Readers, Daily Current Affairs News Updates about the National and International events were listed here. Read Current Affairs here and stay updated with current news. Candidates those who are preparing for IBPS/SBI/PO/Clerk exam and all other competitive exams can use this and try Current Affairs Quiz to test your knowledge level.

Daily Current Affairs PDF of 24th December 2019

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

Kisan Diwas

• Kisan Divas or Farmer’s Day in India or National Farmer’s Day is celebrated on 23 December across the country to commemorate the birth anniversary of the former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh.

National Consumer Rights Day

• National Consumers Right Dayis observed on 24 December to raise awareness about the rights of consumers and responsibilities.
• This is theday when the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 had received the assent of the President.
• Thetheme for World Consumer Rights Day 2019 will be ‘Trusted Smart Products’.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Indian Railways to modernize its Signalling system

• Indian Railways has decided to modernize its Signalling system on its entire network by implementing Modern Train Control system.
• Ministry of Railways stated that, this is one of the most ambitious modernization projects which envisages up-gradation of a signaling system for improving safety, Line Capacity and to run trains at a higher speed.
• The Ministry stated, four works of the total 640-kilometre route at a cost of 1810 crore rupees have been sanctioned as pilot projects in Supplementary Works Programmes 2018-19 for extensive trials of Modern Train Control System.
• The work of Modernization of Signalling system has been included in Works Programme 2018-19 at a cost of around 78 thousand crore rupees.
• The work includes revision of Automatic Train Protection System, Electronic Interlocking System and Remote Diagnostic and Predictive Maintenance System.
• In connection with works of raising the speed up to 160 kmph to reduce travel time from existing 18 hours to 12 hours, Modern Train Control system shall be implemented on Delhi – Mumbai and Delhi – Howrah High-Density routes.

Urban India declared Open defecation free

• India Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban has achieved its target of creating Urban India Open Defecation Free.
• Urban areas of 35 states and Union Territories have become ODF. In all, 4,320 cities out of 4,372 have declared themselves ODF, of which 4,167 cities have been certified through third-party verification.
• This has been achieved by the construction of nearly 81 lakh individual household toilets against Mission target of 59 lakhs and 5.89 lakh seats of public toilets against Mission target of 5.08 lakh seats.

Govt notifies rules for fixation of microdots identifiers on vehicles

• The government has notified rules for fixation of microdots identifiers on motor vehicles and their parts.
• Road Transport and Highways Ministry stated , microdots will enhance the security of vehicles. The notification was issued after consideration of suggestions and objections on the draft notification issued in July this year.
• The invisible microdots will now come affixed on vehicles and their parts to prevent theft as well as to check fake spare parts.
• Microdot technology involves spraying the body and parts of the vehicle or any other machine with microscopic dots, which give a unique identification.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATES

Harshest winter phase ‘Chillai-Kalan’ begins in Kashmir

• Chillai-Kalan, a 40-day long period of extreme cold in Kashmir, began on December 21 and will continue till January 31 followed by Chillai-Khurd and Chillai-Bachha.
• A 20-day long Chillai-Khurd (small cold) starts from January 31 to February 19 and a 10-day long Chillai-Bachha (baby cold) occurs between February 20 and March 2.
• As per India Meteorological Department, the period mostly remains wet as the upper part of the Valley received heavy snowfall and the maximum temperature drops considerably.
• During this period, water bodies like lakes, river and stream get frozen with a thick layer of sheets.
• The maximum and minimum temperature at isolated places over Jammu and Kashmir was recorded between -1.6°C and -3.0°C below normal.
• In Srinagar minimum temperature 0 degree Celsius, Pahalgam -7. In Gulmarg, the temperature was below – 9 Degree Celsius.

About J&K

• Capital Jammu (Winter) and Srinagar (Summer)Lieutenant Governor  Girish Chandra Murmu

Arunachal to mark schools as ‘hard’ and ‘soft’

• Arunachal Pradesh will soon have schools marked ‘hard’, ‘soft’ and ‘medium’. Geography, lack of infrastructure and reluctance of teachers to work beyond their comfort zones are the reasons for this categorisation.
• Teacher absenteeism has been a major issue across 3,513 government schools, including 211 community schools, in the State.
• The student-teacher ratio has consequently been skewed in favour of urban centres with better connectivity.
• Under the new policy, all government schools will be divided into three categories — hard, medium and soft — based on topography, accessibility and degrees of difficulty in staying at the place of posting.
• All new recruits will be given a hard posting for a mandatory three years, inclusive of their probation period. The next five years will be in schools with levels of medium difficulty, followed by posting in soft schools.

Recent News in Arunachal Pradesh

• Arunachal Pradesh to mesmerise tourists with Tawang Festival
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurates Sisseri River Bridge in Arunachal Pradesh

About Arunachal Pradesh

• Capital: Itanagar
• CM: Pema Khandu
• Governor: B D Mishra

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND FINANCE

Number of active GST taxpayers crosses 1 crore

• A range of measures to go after tax defaulters and simplifying the GST filing process was discussed by the Group of Ministers headed by Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi in Bengaluru.
• Briefing media persons in Bengaluru, Sushil Modi informed that the number of active GST taxpayers has gone up to one crore twenty-one lakh of which 79 lakh are new registrations, since the launch of GST.
• However, only 15 per cent of the new taxpayers have paid taxes. Hence Mr. Modi stated that states have started physical verification of the new taxpayers by visiting their premises. He informed that a new return system will be launched from April 1st next year which will be user-friendly and simpler with a very few fields to fill.

IMF retains India’s FY20 GDP growth rate forecast at 6.1%

• IMF’s projection is much higher than those by most
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has retained India’s economic growth forecast at 1 per cent for FY20, but stated risks to the outlook are tilted to downward side. IMF’s projection, given in its much-awaited country report on India under Article IV of the Fund, is much higher than those by most agencies.
• For example, the Reserve Bank of India’s latest projection pegged the growth at 5 per cent, Standard & Poor’s at 1 per cent, Moody’s at 4.9 per cent and Fitch’ at 4.6 per cent for the current financial year.

Recent news related to GDP forecast:

Organizations	FY20 (2019-2020)	FY21 (2020-2021)
Global Economic Prospects Report 2019 byWorld Bank titled “Darkening Skies”	7.5%	7.5%
United Nations’ World Economic Situation and Prospects (UNESP) 2019	7.1%	–
FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry)  Economic Outlook Survey	7.1%	7.2%
Goldman Sachs	7.2%	–
Asian Development Outlook by ADB (Asian Development Bank)	6.5%	7.2%

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOU

Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan lays foundation stone for Rs 15,000 crore steel plant

• Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy laid the foundation stone for establishing a high-grade steel plant at Sunnapuralla palli village in his native Kadapa district.
• The Rs 15,000-crore plant with a three-million-tonne capacity per annum would provide jobs to about 25,000 people, and would be completed in three years.
• The state government had signed a memorandum of understanding with the NMDC for the supply of about five million tonnes of iron ore for the steel plant every year.
• A total of 3,295 acres of land has to be acquired in Jammalamadugu area of Kadapa district for the plant to be set up with private investment.

About  Andhra pradesh

• Governor: Biswabhusan Harichandan
• Chief minister: Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy
• Capitals: Amaravati, Hyderabad

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION

Sangita Reddy takes over as FICCI President

• Sangita Reddy, joint managing director, Apollo Hospitals Group has taken over as the President of industry chamber FICCI for 2019-20.
• She succeeds Sandip Somany, vice chairman and managing director, HSIL.
• The Walt Disney Company APAC President and Star & Disney India Chairman Uday Shankar has been elevated as Senior Vice President of Ficci, and Sanjiv Mehta, chairman and managing director, HUL has joined FICCI leadership as Vice President

About FICCI

• The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry is an association of business organisations in India.
• It is the largest, oldest and the apex business organization in India.
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Founded: 1927

Govt extends tenure of NABARD chief Harsh Kumar Bhanwala by six months

• The tenure of NABARD chairman Harsh Kumar Bhanwala was extended by six months.
• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved a six-month extension to the tenure of Bhanwala, with effect from December 18, 2019.
• Bhanwala was in December 2013 appointed as the chairman of the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).

About National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development

• National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development is an Apex Development Financial Institution in India.
• Operations in the field of credit for Agriculture and other Economic activities in Rural areas in India.
• Founded: 12 July 1982
• Headquarters: Mumbai

Ghani Set To Win Second Term As Afghan President

• Afghan President Ashraf Ghani appears set to win a second term after Afghan election.
• He had won 50.6 percent of the preliminary vote count.
• Hawa Alam Nuristani, chairwoman of the Independent Election Commission, made the announcement.
• Results for the September 28 presidential poll have been repeatedly delayed amid accusations of misconduct and technical problems with counting ballots.

About Afghanistan

• Capital: Kabul
• Currency: Afghan afghani
• President: Ashraf Ghani

Senior diplomat Harsh Vardhan Shringla appointed new foreign secretary

• The Narendra Modi government  approved the appointment of Indian ambassador to the United States Harsh Vardhan Shringla as the next foreign secretary. He has replaced Vijay Gokhale. The Appointments Committee of the cabinet officially announced Shringla’s appointment , making him the 33rd foreign secretary of the country.
• An order issued by the government on that Harsh Vardhan Shringla will take over next month after the completion of Vijay Gokhale’s two-year term on January 28, 2020.
• Harsh Vardhan Shringla has also served at UNESCO in France, UN in New York besides Vietnam, Israel and South Africa.
• He served in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) as Joint Secretary for Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Maldives and therefore understands the neighbourhood well.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOURS

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu honours winners at 66th National Film Awards

• Vice President Venkaiah Naidu honoured the winners of the 66th National Film Awards at a ceremony held in New Delhi’s Vigyan Bhavan.
• Traditionally, the winners are conferred the honour by the President of India.
• However, this time the President will be hosting a high tea for the winners. Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar also attended the ceremony.
• The66th National Film awards were announced by Rahul Rawail, head of the Jury for feature films
• The winners in the Feature Film and Non-Feature Film categories were announced in August this year.

Best Feature Film	Hellaro
Best Direction	Aditya Dhar, Uri The Surgical Strike
Best Actor (Male)	Ayushmann Khurrana (Andhadhun), Vicky Kaushal (Uri The Surgical Strike)
Best Actor (Female)	Keerthy Suresh (Mahanati)
Best Supporting Actor (Male)	Swanand Kirkire (Chumbak)
Best Supporting Actor (Female)	Surekha Sikri (Badhaai Ho)
Best Popular Film providing wholesome entertainment	Badhaai Ho
Best Hindi Film	Andhadhun
Best Original Screenplay	Chi La Sow, Rahul Ravindran
Best Adapted Screenplay	Andhadhun, Sriram Raghavan, Arijit Biswas, Yogesh Chandekar, Hemant Rao & Pooja Ladha Surti
Best Film on Social Issues	Padman
Best Music Direction	Padmaavat, Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Best Background Score	Uri The Surgical Strike, Shashwat Sachdev
Best Female Playback Singer	Bindu Malini (Maayavi Manave – Nathicharami)
Best Male Playback Singer	Arjit Singh (Binte Dil – Padmaavat)
Best Lyrics	“Maayavi Manave…” from Nathicharami
Special Mention Awards	Sruthi Hariharan, Chandrachoor Rai, Joju George and Savithri
Special Jury Award	Hellaro actresses Shraddha Dangar, Shachi Joshi, Denisha Ghumra, Neelam Paanchal, Tarjani Bhadla, Brinda Nayak, Tejal Panchasara, Kaushambi Bhatt, Ekta Bachwani, Kamini Panchal, Jagruti Thakore, Riddhi Yadav, Prapti Mehta and Kedara director Indradip Dasgupta
Best Cinematography	Olu, MJ Radhakrishnan
Best Dialogue	Tarikh
Best Action Direction	KGF, Vikram More & Anbu Ariv
Best Choreography	Padmaavat, Kruti Mahesh Madya & Jyoti Tomar for Ghoomar
Best Costume Design	Mahanati
Best Special Effects	Awe (Srushti Creative Studio) and KGF (Unifi Media)
Best Makeup artist	Awe, Ranjith
Best Editing	Nathicharami, Nagendra K Ujjani
Best Production Design	Kammara Sambhavam, Bangalan
Best Sound Design	Uri The Surgical Strike, Bishwadeep Dipak Chatterjee
Best Location Sound Recordist	Tendlya, Gaurav Verma
Best Re-recordist of the final mixed track	Rangasthalam, Raja Krishnan MR
Nargis Dutt Award for Best Film on National Integration	Ondalla Eradalla
Best Child Artist	PV Rohit, Sahib Singh, Talha Arshad Reshi and Shrinivas Pokale
Best Debut Film of a Director	Naal (Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti)
Best Malayalam Film	Sudani from Nigeria
Best Marathi Film	Bhonga
Best Urdu Film	Hamid
Best Tamil Film	Baaram
Best Rajasthani Film	Turtle
Best Telugu Film	Mahanati
Best Assamese Film	Bulbul Can Sing
Best Punjabi Film	Harjeeta
Best Bengali Film	Ek Je Chhilo Raja
Best Garo Film	Maama
Best Kannada Film	Nathicharami
Best Konkani Film	Amori
Best Gujarati Film	Reva
Best Sherdukpan Film	Mishing
Best Panchanga Film	In The Land Of Poisonous Women
Best Film on Environment Conservation	Paani
Best Children’s Film	Sarkari Hiriya Prathamika Shale Kasargodu

Actor Sharad Ponkshe gets Janakavi P Sawlaram Memorial Award

• Noted Marathi actor Sharad Ponkshe has got the Janakavi P Sawlaram Memorial Award for his contribution in the field of cinema and theatre.
• Thane Mayor Naresh Mhaske presented the award to Ponkshe.
• The award is jointly given by the Thane Municipal Corporation and the Janakavi P Savlaram Kala Samiti.
• Ponkshe is known for his role in the play ‘Mi Nathuram Godse Boltoy’, based on the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, and his work in Marathi films like “Sandook” and “Well Done Bhaiya”.
• Besides, popular Marathi actor Usha Naik got the Ganga-Jamuna Award on the occasion.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SUMMITS AND CONFERENCE

Army Tech Seminar ‘ARTECH 2019’ for ‘Make in India’ Defence industry begins in Delhi

• ARTECH Seminar was launched in 2016 as part of overall vision of ‘Make in India’ and is conducted every year as a part of events leading up to Army Day celebrations.
• The seminar is the flagship event of Indian Army which sets the agenda for focus areas of harvesting indigenous capabilities in the Defence sector.
• The ARTECH platform provides an opportunity to practitioners of military operations, policy makers in the Ministry of Defence, industry, and academia to put forth their contemporary Defence related capabilities.
• It is also a forum for innovators in uniform to showcase their products and offer these to industry to refine & productionise.
• The 5th edition of ARTECH is being organised by Indian Army on ‘Technologies for Non Contact Warfare’ which will be organised, at Manekshaw Centre, Delhi Cantonment.
• There is a select equipment display planned during the seminar by industry, academia, innovators in uniform and startups, DRDO and DPSUs.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOU

WE Hub Partners with Startup India DPIIT To Launch WING Program for Women Entrepreneurs in Telangana

• WE Hub, India’s first state led incubator to foster and promote women entrepreneurship to start-up, scale-up and accelerate with global market access, announced its partnership with Start-up India, DPIIT.
• The two have joined hands to launch Startup India’s flagship program for women entrepreneurs called WING (Women Rise Together program) in Telangana.
• We Hub, will drive the program for women entrepreneurs in Telangana in collaboration with KSUM and provide them with access to incubation, investors and business support.
• Through WE Hub, the Telangana women entrepreneurship ecosystem will target to conduct 10 workshops to promote women entrepreneurship.
• It targets to create a conducive environment to share best practices and experiences that will help women leaders in the Telangana region to overcome challenges for their business growth.
• Importantly, WE Hub has also partnered with Startup India for National Start-Up Award 2020 to help them recognize and reward outstanding women-led startups in the Telangana region.
• In a short span of time WE Hub has impacted a lot of women entrepreneurs through its various programs and initiatives like Community Slate (Social Enterprise Accelerator), BizArena (Corporate Innovation Challenge), Incubation Program, Girls in STEAM (Student Engagement Program), Women in Manufacturing Program and Project Her & Now with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.

About Telangana

• Capital: Hyderabad
• Chief Minister: Chandrasekar Rao
• Governor: Tamilisai Soundarajan

About Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)

• The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is a central government department under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Founded: 1995

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DEFENCE

Trump officially launches US Space Force

• United States President Donald Trump has signed the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, authorising the establishment of Space Force which would become the sixth branch of the armed forces.
• Space Force would become the youngest US military branch, and the first new service since theestablishment of the US Air Force back in 1947.
• John Raymond, the commander of US Space Command and Air Force Space Command, as many as 16,000 active-duty airmen and civilians currently in the Air Force Space Command will be assigned to the Space Force.
• The Space Force would be part of the Department of the Air Force.

CURRENT AFFAIRS:SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

President  Kovind releases mobile app of Red Cross Society of India in Hyderabad

• President Ram Nath Kovind released the mobile app of the Red Cross Society of India in Hyderabad. The President is in Hyderabad on his Southern Sojourn.
• He inaugurated the mobile app formally at a dinner hosted by Telangana governor Tamilisai Sounderarajan at Rajbhavan in his honour.
• Developed by the Telangana Centre for Good Governance in less than three months, the mobile app is accessible in all languages. So far, 13 lakh members including junior red cross members downloaded the app. The developers informed that the access to blood bank and Red Cross membership will become easy with the launching of the mobile app.
• Chief Minister K Chandra Sekhar Rao, Himachal Pradesh Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, Minister of state for Home Kishan Reddy attended the event.
• A number of Ministers, Members of Parliament besides leaders of various parties, senior officials and eminent from different walks of life attended the programme.

Recent news related to APPS:

• FSSAI, Nasscom Foundation partners to develop app to prevent food wastage
• launches ‘Krishi Kisan’ mobile app
• launches ‘CHC-Farm Machinery’ mobile app for farmers
• Maitri mobile app: to connect old-age homes and orphanages, win tech prize in US

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS

Indian weightlifter Rakhi creates two new national records

• Indian weightlifter Rakhi Halder with creating two new national records clinched a bronze medal in the women’s 64kg weight category at the Qatar International Cup in Doha.
• The Commonwealth Championship gold medal list, superseded the senior national record in both snatch and total lift with her personal best effort of 218kg 95kg in the snatch with 123 kg .
• At the Commonwealth Championship in June, Halder had clinched the gold with a combined effort of 214kg including 94kg and 120kg in clean and jerk.
• India ended the Olympic qualifying silver level event with three medals. Former world champion Mirabai Chanu had won the gold on the opening day while teenager Jeremy Lalrinnunga had claimed silver in a power-packed performance.
• The points from this tournament will come in handy when the final rankings for 2020 Tokyo Olympics cut are done.
• To qualify for Tokyo Games, a weightlifter must compete in at least one event in each of the three periods of six months spread over November 2018 to April 2020, at least six events overall and in at least one gold and one silver-level event.

Ahmedabad Gets Provisional Clearance to Host FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2020 Games

• Ahmedabad has been cleared as a provisional venue for FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2020 by the Local Organising Committee (LOC) . The World Cup is set to take place in the country next year from November 2-21.
• Ahmedabad received the privisional clearance after the FIFA delegation visited the country last month and checked the facilities in Kolkata, Guwahati, Bhubaneswar, Ahmedabad and Navi Mumbai. The FIFA delegation had also expressed their satisfaction at the progress in the city upon inspection on November 30.
• FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2020 will be held next year between November 2 and November 21.

About FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2020:

• Edition– 7th
• Teams– 16 (from 6 confederations)

About FIFA:

• Founded– 21 May 1904.
• Headquarters– Zürich, Switzerland.
• Motto– For the Game,For the World.
• President– Gianni Infantino

Vernon Philander announces international retirement

• Seasoned South Africa pacer Vernon Philander will retire from international cricket following the upcoming Test series against England.
• Philander was an important part of the Proteas pace troika, comprising Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, both of whom have retired from Tests.
• Philander, 34, mainly represented South Africa in the longest format, and has played 60 Tests in comparison to 30 ODIs and seven T20 Internationals.
• He also took a record-breaking 51 wickets in his first seven Test matches which earned him the 2012 SA Cricketer of the Year accolade.

DAILY CA-22

• National Mathematics Day- 22 DECEMBER
• ‘Oxygen Parlour’ at Nashik Railway Station to combat air pollution
• Integral Coach Factory produces 3000 Coaches in record 215 days
• Regional Conference on ‘Improving Public Services Delivery – Role of Governments’ inaugurated in Nagpur
• S Jaishankar co-chairs 19th Joint Commission meeting with Iran Foreign Minister
• Central government to organize 100 ‘Hunar Haats’ in next five years
• Eight West African nations rename common currency to Eco
• Union ministers, CMs to join over 100 CEOs at World Economic Forum’s 50th Annual Meeting in davos

• Ecuador declares emergency after fuel spill in Galapagos Islands
• YSR Neetanna Nestham scheme launched in Krishna district’s Pedana tow
• Secunderabad Railway Station Gets India’s First ‘Water From Air’ System
• Hyderabad – New Delhi Telangana Express adorned with “Singareni Colours” starts its run from Hyderabad to New Delhi
• FPIs flock to Indian capital market despite decline in GDP growth rate in 2019
• Reliance Infrastructure wins Rs 1,250 cr arbitration award against DVC
• Three proposals get automatic nod under CCI green channel
• Cuba names Manuel Marrero Cruz as first prime minister since 1976
• Anish Shah to replace Pawan Goenka as Mahindra Group,’s MD and CEO
• Razorpay appoints former American Express executive Arpit Chug as CFO
• Indian-American Dr Monisha Ghosh named 1st woman CTO at FCC in US
• Archaeologist Nagaswamy honoured in Bangladesh
• Kozhikode boy Aditya bags top bravery award
• UAE and Oman sign MoU to enhance trade & economic cooperation
• Bengaluru Has Maximum Number Of Young Billionaires In India
• Army to sign deal for six Apache attack helicopters
• CBERS-4A: New China-Brazil earth resource satellite launched into space
• Sierra Leone pro football league gets first female coach
• Maisnam Meiraba Luwang wins Bangladesh Junior International Badminton Series
• ICC T20I rankings: Radha retains 2nd position in bowlers’ list as Deepti, Poonam slip
• Veteran cinematographer Ramchandra Babu passes away
• Renowned Hindustani classical vocalist Vidushi Savita Devi passes away
• Sahitya Akademi Winner Dr G Nanjundan passed away

DAILY CA-24^TH DEC

• Kisan Diwas– 23 December

• National Consumer Rights Day-24 th december
• Indian Railways to modernize its Signalling system
• Urban India declared Open defecation free

• Govt notifies rules for fixation of microdots identifiers on vehicles
• Harshest winter phase ‘Chillai-Kalan’ begins in Kashmir
• Arunachal to mark schools as ‘hard’ and ‘soft’
• Number of active GST taxpayers crosses 1 crore
• IMF retains India’s FY20 GDP growth rate forecast at 1%
• Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan lays foundation stone for Rs 15,000 crore steel plant
• Sangita Reddy takes over as FICCI President
• Govt extends tenure of NABARD chief Harsh Kumar Bhanwala by six months
• Ghani Set To Win Second Term As Afghan President
• Senior diplomat Harsh Vardhan Shringla appointed new foreign secretary
• Vice President Venkaiah Naidu honours winners at 66th National Film Awards
• Actor Sharad Ponkshe gets Janakavi P Sawlaram Memorial Award
• Army Tech Seminar ‘ARTECH 2019’ for ‘Make in India’ Defence industry begins in Delhi
• WE Hub Partners with Startup India DPIIT To Launch WING Program for Women Entrepreneurs in Telangana

• Trump officially launches US Space Force
• President Kovind releases mobile app of Red Cross Society of India in Hyderabad
• Indian weightlifter Rakhi creates two new national records
• Ahmedabad Gets Provisional Clearance to Host FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2020 Games
• Vernon Philander announces international retirement