Current Affairs: January 2017 : #CAT #CLAT #UPSC #IIFT #MAT #MBA Entrance Exams

1) Portugal’s Antonio Guterres’ appointed as 9th Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) he replaced Ban Ki-moon. (South Korea)
Past Presidents
1) Trygve Lie (Norway) – 2 Feb 1946-10 Nov 1952.
2) Dag Hammarskjöld (Sweden) – 10 April 1953 to 18 September 1961.
3) U. Thant (Burma) – 30 November 1961 – 31 December 1971.
4) Kurt Waldheim (Austria) – 1 January 1972 – 31 December 1981.
5) Javier Pérez de Cuéllar (Peru) – 1 January 1982 – 31 December 1991.
6)  Boutros Boutros-Ghali (Egypt) – 1 January 1992 – 31 December 1996.
7) Kofi Annan (Ghana) – 1 January 1997 – 31 December 2006 and
8) Ban Ki-moon (South Korea) – 1 January 2007 – 31 December 2016.


2) Marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR)

3) Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Ordinance, 2016 Ordinance approved by the President of India that seeks to cancel the legal tender character of the existing series of banknotes in the denominations of Rs.500 and Rs.1000 in circulation

4) India’s star singles tennis player Somdev Devvarman announced his retirement from professional tennis.

5) Consumers have the discretion to not pay service charges added the bill by any hotel/restaurant declared by The Consumer Affairs Department of the Union Government

6) Agni-IV is a two-stage, surface-to-surface missile that can travel 4,000 km and can carry a nuclear warhead weighing one tone. Developed by DRDO & tested at Abdul Kalam Island, off Odisha coast

7) The Supreme Court removed BCCI President Anurag Thakur and Secretary Ajay Shirke because Failing to comply with its order on implementing administrative reforms in BCCI as recommended by the Lodha panel

8) Shankar Balasubramanian India-born DNA expert honored as British knighthood award year 2017.

9) 3 crore Kisan Credit Cards will be transformed to RuPay credit cards. Farmers had to go to banks to withdraw money. It will help farmers to sell and buy.

10) pregnant women will get Rs. 6,000 for their delivery, vaccination, and nutritious meals. This will be transferred straight to their account. This will help in saving lives of mothers and new born kids.

11) NRIs can exchange defunct notes up to June 30: RBI

12) Sikkim became India’s first fully organic state in 2016 converting around 75,000 hectares of agricultural land into sustainable cultivation.

13) 26 crore accounts open under Jan Dhan Yojana across country
The Scheme was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August, 2014 with the objective of covering all households with at least one bank account.

14) Bargarh Dhanua Jatra begins festivals started in Odisha

15) Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani dedicated India's first laser technology-based advanced Automatic Vehicle Monitoring System AVMS RTO check-post at Shamlaji of Aravalli district. check overloaded vehicles and fine them. It will help to eliminate influence of mafia and middlemen at check posts.

16) The 104th Indian Science Congress (ISC) was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh)
First Conference in 1914 at the premises of the Asiatic Society, Calcutta. Honorable justice Sir Ashutosh Mukherje

17) Guru Gobind Singh’s 350th historic birth anniversary

18) Prof. David R. Syiemlieh (Khasi community) appointed as Chairman of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) He succeeded former IAS officer Alka Sirohi as chairman.
Rose Millian Bathew firs women UPSC chairperson (1992-1996)

19) Google CEO Sundar Pichai on 4 January 2017.

20) Rajiv J. Shah Indian origin trustee was appointed President of the US Rockefeller Foundation (1913)
donates almost $200 million annually.

21) Savitribai Phule country's first woman teacher & also stared India’s first Girls school in Poona (1848)

22) India 3rd among nations offering highest salaries to experts
Switzerland, Bahrain.

23) Election commission announces poll dates for five state Assembly
five states UP (403) Uttarakhand (70) Punjab (117) Manipur (60) Goa (40).

24) Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar (first Sikhs) sworn-in as 44th Chief Justice of India. He replaced Justice TS Thakur

25) Finland First Country to introduces basic income for unemployed

26) RBI appoints Surekha Marandi as Executive Director

27) United Nation Recognizes 2017 as Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development

28) EC limits cash expense per candidate at Rs 20-28 lakh for Assembly polls
In Goa and Manipur- 20 lakh.
In Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand- 28 lakh.

29) Telangana, Assam join Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojna (UDAY) cheme

30) Paytm gets final approval for payments bank

31) India's women's football team defeated Bangladesh 3-1 in Siliguri to win the 2016 South Asian Football Federation Women's Championship for the fourth consecutive time.

32) 14th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) was inaugurated at Bengaluru
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa is the Chief Guest of this edition of PBD.

33) ‘Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana new skill development scheme aimed at Indian youth wishing to seek jobs abroad that was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at PBD.

34) Actor Om Puri passed away
Om Puri, won the National Award for Best Actor how many times? – Twice

35) Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for appointing Suresh Kalmadi and Abhay Chautala as life presidents. I. Srinivas (Sports Secretary) was headed by committee

36) Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) become the first major public sector undertaking (PSU) to be sold through 26% stake by strategic disinvestment
After the strategic sale, government stake in the PSU would come down to 28.03% from the present 54.03%.
India’s first pharma company Bengal Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd

37) Norway become the first country in the world to turn-off its FM radio network and switch entirely to digital broadcasting

38) Basic Savings Bank Deposit Accounts (BSBDA)

39) Kalyan Krishnamurthy appointed as the new CEO of Flipkart by replacing co-founder Binny Bansal
Binny Bansal was named as Flipkart’s group Chief Executive.

40) China has launched its longest high-speed train service from Kunming capital of south-west China's Yunnan Province to Beijing. The train named 'Shangri-la of the World'

41) Japan to Help in Developing Chennai, Ahmedabad and Varanasi Smart Cities

42) Central Statistics Office (CSO), the per capita net national income during 2016-17 is “estimated to be Rs 103,007” at current prices. This is higher by 10.4 per cent compared to Rs 93,293 during 2015-16.
India’s GDP is expected to slow down to 7.1 per cent during 2016-17 from 7.6 per cent in the previous fiscal mainly due to slump in manufacturing, mining and construction activities.

43) China is setting up the world's highest altitude gravitational wave telescopes in in Tibet near Line of Actual Control (LAC)

44) Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has made Aadhaar mandatory for its about 50 lakh pensioners and around four crore subscribers.

45) Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurate Vibrant Gujarat Global Trade Show
'Vibrant Summit inaugurated (10-13 January) at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar.

46) Power Minister Piyush Goyal unveiled world's largest street light replacement programme in South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) area. where two lakh LED lights will replace inefficient lamps.

47) Donald J. Trump took charge as 45th the new President of the United States of America (USA) at Washington D.C.

48) National Small Savings Fund (NSSF-1999) to allow all states to borrow from the market at more competitive rates. Now NSSF in Arunachal Pradesh, Delhi, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh

49) Ude Desh Kaa Aam Nagrik (UDAN), the regional aviation connectivity scheme, which will be in operation for 10 years, envisages providing connectivity to un-served and underserved cities and towns by reviving existing 11 airports.
The fare for a one-hour journey of about 500 km on a fixed wing aircraft or a 30-minute journey on a helicopter will be capped at Rs. 2,500
number of operational airports from the current 75 to 118.

50) Alok Kumar Verma appointed as Director of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
three-member selection panel headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and comprising Chief Justice of India Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar and Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge as members.

51) India became as 6th associate member of CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire (Geneva-Swiss)
CERN is the biggest name in nuclear research and operates the largest particle physics lab in the World.

52) 2nd edition of “Raisina Dialogue” held at New Delhi

53) ‘Mission 41K’ that was unveiled by Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu for Reducing energy consumption

54) Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) listing of five public sector general insurance companies in the stock market. The government will bring down its holdings in these companies from 100% to 75%
These companies are – New India Assurance, United India Insurance, Oriental Insurance, National Insurance, and General Insurance Corporation of India.

55) According to the data released by mobile analytics firm App Annie(USA) , during 2016 India overtook both the US and Brazil that downloaded the most apps from Google’s Play Store
also, claimed that China became the biggest source of revenue for Apple’s iOS App Store for the first time.

56) Hexa new flagship model launched by Tata Motors as a replacement of Aria

57) The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) announced that it would invest at least Rs. 2,800 crore in the Central Public Sector Enterprises exchange-traded fund (CPSE-ETF)’s follow-on sale or further-fund offer (FFO).
The CPSE ETF was launched by Goldman Sachs Asset Management India in March 2014, and comprises stocks of 10 PSU firms – Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd, Coal India Ltd, Indian Oil Corp. Ltd, GAIL (India) Ltd, Rural Electrification Corp. Ltd, Oil India Ltd, Power Finance Corp. Ltd, Container Corp. of India Ltd, Bharat Electronics Ltd and Engineers India Ltd.

58) M.G. Ramachandran was founder of the AIADMK-All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) He thus became first film actor to become Chief Minister of an Indian state.

59) Gene Cernan was U.S. astronaut who was the last human to walk on the Moon

60) Goods and Services Tax (GST) was rolled out 1 July 2017
In another important development, the GST Council also reached a consensus on the crucial issue of dual control. Under this, 90% of the GST taxpayers with up to Rs. 1.5 crore turnover would be assessed by the States and those above Rs. 1.5 crore would be assessed by both the States and the Centre on a 50:50 basis.
The GST will subsume a host of indirect taxes levied by the Centre and the States, including excise duty, VAT, service tax, entry, luxury and entertainment levies.

61) According to an analysis by anti-poverty organization Oxfam that released, just 8 men own as much wealth as 3.6 billion people comprising around a half of world’s population.
Which are these 8 super-rich men named in this study? – Bill Gates, Amancio Ortega, Warren Buffett, Carlos Slim Helu, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison and Michael Bloomberg
According to the Forbes list, Microsoft founder Gates is the richest individual with a net worth of $75 billion. The others, in order of ranking, are Amancio Ortega, the Spanish founder of fashion house Inditex, financier Warren Buffett, Mexican business magnate Carlos Slim Helu, Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg, Oracle’s Larry Ellison and Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York.

62) ‘Dangal’ emerged as the best film at the 62nd Jio Filmfare Awards 2017? –
Alia Bhatt was honored with the Best Actress
Critics Award for Best Film: ‘Neerja’
Critics Award for Best Actor (Male): Shahid Kapoor for ‘Udta Punjab’ and Manoj Bajpayee for ‘Aligarh’
Critics Award for Best Actor (Female): Sonam Kapoor for ‘Neerja’
Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award: Shatrughan Sinha

63) Chennai Smashers won the 2017 Premier Badminton League (PBL) title after defeating Mumbai Rockets in the finals at the Siri Fort Indoor Stadium in New Delhi
The first edition of PBL (2013) was won by Hyderabad Hotshots while 2016 edition was won by Delhi Acers.
PBL was earlier known as Indian Badminton League (IBL) when founded in 2013.
It is a franchisee league managed and commercially owned by the Badminton Association of India (BAI).

64) Ignis’ is the sports utility vehicle (SUV) of Maruti Suzuki

65) Gujarat won, maiden Ranji Trophy against Mumbai in the finals of the 2016-17 at Indore’s Holkar Stadium.
Parthiv Patel is Gujarat Team Captain

66) Joe Biden (Vice President) was conferred with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States’ highest civil honour, by President Barack Obama

67) N. Chandrasekaran appointed as the new Chairman of Tata Sons (Tata Group)

68) INS Khanderi second indigenously built Scorpene submarine of India that was launched Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) in Mumbai
It is the second of the six submarines being built at the MDL in collaboration with DCNS of France, as part of Project-75 of the Indian Navy. The first one, Kalvari,

69) Airtel Payments Bank became India’s first payment bank
Bharti Airtel has 80% stake in the entity, Kotak Mahindra Bank has 20% stake in it.

70) Kerala first-of-its-kind solar-powered boat service was started

71) India INX is the name of India’s first international exchange. It has been established at the International Financial Service Centre (IFSC) in GIFT City, Gandhinagar (Gujarat). It is a wholly owned subsidiary of BSE and is expected to compete with similar bourses in Singapore and Hong Kong.
The exchange will be open for 22 hours a day
first head of India INX, country’s first international exchange is V. Balasubramanian

72) Haryana, Sex ratio stood at 914 in the state.
834 in 2011
It is worth mentioning that Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the ambitious “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” (B3P) campaign against female foeticide in Panipat in January 2015.
73) Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 8th Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2017 in Gandhinagar
‘Vibrant Gujarat’ is the name given to a biennial investor’ summit organized biennially by the state government of Gujarat.
The event was organized for the first time in year 2003 and was the brainchild of the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. It was inaugurated on 10 January 2017.

74) FIFA World Cup (men) will expand to 48 teams from its current 32,

75) The marching band of United Arab Emirates (UAE) taking part in India’s Republic Day Parade 2017
UAE’s crown prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is the Chief Guest of this year’s Republic Day Parade.
It seems that after the French marching band joined the parade in 2016 in honour of French President

76) Union Government directed banks to obtain the permanent account number (PAN) from all bank account holders by 28 February 2017
this rule will not apply to Basic Savings Bank Deposit Accounts (BSBDA), which include zero balance savings accounts such as Jan Dhan.
The BSBDA were introduced to take care of simple banking needs of people and come with free ATM card, monthly statement and a cheque book.

77) Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India has cut its equity investment target for the year ending March 2017 to Rs. 50,000 crore due to adverse market conditions. From Rs. 60,000 crore
LIC controls total assets worth about Rs. 21 trillion and manages life insurance for at least 250 million people through 300 million life policies.
78) Technical Achievement Award, popularly called the ‘Technical Oscar’, awarded by the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences USA
79) Youth Day, the birthday of Swami Vivekananda being observed:12 January
80) India's Haj quota increased from 1,36,020 to 1,70,520.
81) Norway becomes first country to cease FM radio broadcasting
The northern county of Norrland has stopped broadcasting using analogue frequencies as the Government plans to roll out digital-only radio over the course of the year.
82) China launches 1st commercial space mission with Kuaizhou-1A rocket. The rocket, carrying the satellite JL-1 and two CubeSats XY-S1 and Caton-1, blasted off from northwestern China's Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu
83) Former wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat’s biography'Akhada' released in Chandigarh.  
84) World’s first gender literature fest to be held in Patna
85) Government to sell 51% stake in Pawan Hans
86) Pongal being celebrated with traditional gaiety in Tamil Nadu
87) India's First Madame Tussauds Museum in Delhi Unveils Wax Figures Of Big B, Lady Gaga
88) 69th Army Day being observed on 15th January 2017
89) SpaceX resumes flights; launches Falcon 9 vehicle on California coast
90) NPCI declares the two schemes are - Lucky Grahak Yojna (LGY) and Digi-Dhan Vyapar Yojna (DVY).
91) SC allows 24-week pregnant woman to have abortion
92) Mysuru Printing Press Breaks Record by Printing Highest No. of Currency Notes in a December 2016
It printed 10.9 million currency note in a day that even broke the world record made an American currency printing press of printing 8.7 million notes in a day.
93) Timothy Gonsalves Committee Suggests 20 % Reservation for Girl Students in IITs
94) Manipur’s Karang is India’s first cashless island
95) Kolkata’s Sitalpati or cool mat Gets place in UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage
96) Yes Bank Launches India’s First Customizable Savings Account
That enables the customer to choose various features of a savings accounts that suits one’s own lifestyle.
97) Government Launches Web-Portal ‘ShaGun’ for Monitoring Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan
ShaGun has been coined from the words ‘Shala’ meaning schools and ‘Gunvatta’ meaning quality.
98) UDAN with the AAI receiving 43 initial proposals from 11 bidders for 190 routes under the regional air connectivity scheme UDAN. (Ude Desh Ke Aam Naagrik), seeks to boost regional air connectivity and provides various incentives to airlines.
99) Delhi Police commissioner Alok Verma appointed next CBI chief
100) Only cash, deposits can be declared under PMGKY
101) BSE is the world’s largest exchange by number of listed companies. It is India’s largest and the world’s 10th largest exchange by market capitalisation.
102) Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Pvt Ltd (BRBNMPL) disclosed printing cost of Rs. 3.09 (for Rs. 500 note) and Rs. 3.54 (for Rs. 2000 note)
Mysore and Salboni, West Bengal are subsidiary of RBI These are then bought by the central bank and circulated in the market.
103) Donald J. Trump took charge as the 45th President of the United States of America (USA)
104) All but four states-Arunachal Pradesh, Delhi, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh were exempted from mandatory investment norms for the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF-1999)
It is worth mentioning that the 14th Finance Commission had recommended that the state governments should be excluded from mandatory investment norms for the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF). The main reason given was that NSSF loans come at an extra cost to the State Governments compared to the market rates which are considerably lower.
105) India's biggest aircraft carrier ship INS Vikramaditya first to have ATM onboard by SBI Bank
106) Cooperative banks can't accept deposits under PMGKY-Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme (PMGKDS).
107) Dharamsala declared the second capital of Himachal Pradesh
108) More than 3.5 lakh people in Gujarat’s Rajkot district set a new world record by singing the national anthem at an event. The feat took place at the installation of a Khodiyar goddess idol at the newly-built Khodal Dham temple in the town.
109) Bihar forms world’s longest human chain of 11,000 kilometers. involving over two crore citizens against alcoholism and liquor.
110) The Union cabinet cleared the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) Bill, 2017 that aims to IIMs will be able to grant degrees instead of diplomas
111) 3% approved interest subsidy on loans of up to Rs. 2 lakh for all rural households which are not covered under Pradhan Mantri Grameen Aawas Yojana
112) Rest of India won the 55th Irani Trophy against Gujarat at Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium.
113) India celebrated her 68th Republic Day at the Rajpath. National Security Guards (NSG) & indigenously developed light combat aircraft Tejas participated.  
114) Havildar Hangpan Dada awarded country’s highest peacetime gallantry award ‘Ashok Chakra’ posthumously on the occasion of the 68th Republic Day
115) The committee of state chief ministers led by Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu recommended cash withdrawals above 50000 Rs. Under banking cash transaction tax (BCTT) could be levied on cash withdrawals
116) 8%is the guaranteed interest rate under the Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (VPBY)
117) President Donald Trump signed an executive order of far reaching proportions that temporarily 90 Days bars refugees and citizens of 7 Muslim countries- Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen from entering the United States.
118) Serena Williams created tennis history as she won the women’s singles title of the Australian Open 2017 by defeating her elder sister Venus Williams
to win her record 23rd Grand Slam title and thus become the most successful tennis player in the open era.
she now sits just one shy of Margaret Court’s long-standing record of 24.
Roger Federer (Swiss) won the men’s singles title of Australian Open 2017 as he defeated Rafael Nadal (Spain) –
he won 18 rand Slams
119) Financial Action Task Force (FATF) was established in 1989. Its objectives are to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.
January 2017 the RBI prohibited Indian entities from making direct investments in any entity located in ‘non-co-operative countries and territories, as identified by the FATF. The prohibition on investment is “in order to align” instructions under FEMA with the objectives of the FATF.
The FATF currently comprises two regional organizations and 35 member jurisdictions, including India, US, UK, China and the European Commission.
120) General anti-avoidance rules (GAAR) will be implemented from 1 April 2017
GAAR seeks to give the tax department powers to scrutinize transactions structured in such a way as to deliberately avoid paying tax in India.
121) Former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Vinod Rai was named the head the four-member committee of administrators to run the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI), as was announced by the Supreme Court
122) The Union Sports Ministry constituted an 8-member panel (Task Force) of preparing the blueprint for the country’s success at the next three Olympic Games. Which included by Abhinav Bindra, Pullela Gopichand, Viren Rasquinha, Om Pathak, S Baldev Singh, G L Khanna, Rajesh Kalra and Sandeep Pradhan
123) Vijay Pandurang Bhatkar, a technocrat who is considered the father of the Indian Supercomputer, was appointed the new Vice-Chancellor of Nalanda University, Rajgir, in Bihar. For three years duration. Nalanda University established in 2010
124) Iris Mittenaere (Miss France) crowned Miss Universe 2016 at Philippines
125) National Girl Child Day to be celebrated today (24 January 2017)
126) Banking Codes and Standards Board of India (BCSBI)
127) Tamil Nadu Assembly Unanimously Passes Jallikattu Bill. bill amends the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, making Jallikattu a permanent sport in rural Tamil Nadu.
128) Guided Pinaka rocket successfully test fired
129) The Delhi International Airport (Private) Limited (DIAL) has won the ‘Golden Peacock Award for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the transportation sector under the Aviation category for the year 2016
Goa First State to Send Postal Ballots Electronically to Service Voters
130) National Voters’ Day being observed 25 January 2017 it started from 2011
25th January is also the foundation day of the Election Commission,
131) Nikki Haley confirmed as new US envoy to UN
132) China Develops World’s Biggest Solar Park at Longyangxia Dam Solar Park, in the western province of Qinghai.
park spans over 27 square km of area and can produce 850 MW of power
133) Kremlin (Russia) to host 2018 FIFAWorld Cup finals
134) Madhya Pradesh CM announces total ban on polythene bags
135) US President Trump orders 2,000-mile wall to be built on Mexico border
136) Burj Khalifa lights up in 'Tricolour' to mark 68th Indian Republic Day
137) India ranked 79th in the Corruption Perception Index 2016 out of 176 Countries
138) ISRO successfully ground-tests Cryogenic Upper Stage engine meant for rocket GSLV-Mark-III at Mahendragiri in southern Tamil Nadu
139) National Immunization Day 29th January 2017
140) India’s largest startup incubator to be built at Hubballi
141) Kuwait prohibited migrants from 5 Muslim countries Syria, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran
142) ‘TAMO’ new sub-brand was launched by Tata Motors with the primary objective of regaining the lost ground in passenger vehicles segment
143) The Economic Survey 2016-17, that was presented on 31 January 2017, has recommended Universal Basic Income (UBI) tool as an alternative to the various subsidy focused social welfare schemes
Universal Basic Income (UBI) is a form of social security in which all citizens or residents of a country regularly receive an unconditional sum of money, either from a government or some other public institution, in addition to any income received from elsewhere.
projected Real GDP growth in 2017-18 is 6.75 – 7.5%
144) India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) kicked off its operations from Raipur and Ranchi
The bank will offer an interest rate of 4.5% on deposits up to Rs. 25,000; 5% on deposits of Rs. 25,000-50,000 and 5.5% on Rs. 50,000-1,00,000. Also 1,000 ATMs of India Post will be transferred to IPPB.
145) highlights from the Economic Survey 2016-17:
 Gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2016-17 to dip to 6.5%, down from 7.6% in last fiscal.
Economic growth to rebound to 6.75 to 7.5% in 2017-18.
Economic Survey sees fiscal windfall from Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, low oil prices.
Farm sector to grow at 4.1% in the current fiscal, up from 1.2% in 2015-16.
Fiscal gains from Goods and Services Tax (GST) will take time to realise.
Growth rate of industrial sector estimated to moderate to 5.2% in 2016-17 from 7.4% last fiscal.
146) First Edition of the North-East Investors Summit Held in Shillong
147) Priyanka Chopra among 150 most fashionable women
148) Ashok Amritraj Appointed UN in India Goodwill Ambassador for the Sustainable Development Goals
149) Amulya Patnaik appointed as Delhi Police Chief
150) Atomic clocks of Satellite IRNSS-1A Develops Technical Snag
Extra
1) Cryonics-some organs keep in less temperature for their future uses.
2) PM Yuva Scheme-2016-21 for 7lakh youth will Trained 
3) 1lakh call over 100 &112 Help line number but 40% were haux call
4)
5) Section 123(3) Political party candidates cannot demand religious based Voting. Declared by 7Members SC Bench it means any candidates can’t demand religious based voting behalf of their Religious Guru
6) 2000 Rs cash donation to Political party before Was 20K
Subsidy of GDP- 2010-2.22%, 2016-1.72%,2017-1.61%
Corporate tax-India-34.61%, USA-40, RS-20, CH-25
MGNREGA-2011-31KCr,2016-17 46500 Cr,2017-19-48kCr
Road Built-5013 km-2011,
6061 Km-2015-16
6029 Km-2016-17
Railway Budget-1.31 Lakh Cr
68% India 69% cash transaction
26.68 Crore PMJDA-
Fiscal deficit -3.9(2016) 3.5 (17)
Defense -2.74 Lakh Crore
10lakh cr Agriculture loan
Indirect tax 8 times while Direct tax grew 22 times in 20 year
Customs 5 times excise 7 times service 239 in 20 years growth
Only 3.7 crore pay income tax (2015-16)
95% Indian household (95 Rural-90-Urban Household) earning less than 2.5 lakh Rs.
Cess: income is 193893 crore Rs. In 2016
Cess on petrol, Diesel, Education, Clean Environment, Swachh Bharat, Income Tax, Krishi Kalyan, Infrastructure, pan Masala & Tobacco 
7) firoz shah Tughluq also ordered to 1.5 lakh labor to discover Saraswati River.
8) Anti-Tank Missile ‘PROSPINA’: ‘Nag’ is a third-generation anti-tank missile (ATM) with 'Fire & Forget' and 'Top Attack' capabilities, which can be used in day and night. It is deployed on a specially modified Infantry Combat Vehicle (ICV) BMP-2 vehicle 'NAMICA
Ø  The medium range surface-to-air missile ‘Akash’ has been developed and inducted into IAF and Indian Army
Ø  Rustom-II, a multi-mission Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is being developed to carry out the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) roles
Ø  Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) ‘Tejas’
Ø  highly maneuverable Fast Attack Craft INS Tarmugli at a ceremony at Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam
Ø  INS Kadmatt: INS Kadmatt, second ship of Project 28 (P-28) class Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvettes, indigenously designed by the Indian Navy’s in-house organization, Directorate of Naval Design and constructed by M/s Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited, Kolkata, was commissioned at Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam
Ø  Alternate Train Accommodation Scheme (ATAS) also known as VIKALP
Ø  Cabinet approves Continuation Programme of fifteen operational flights of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C36 to PSLV-C50
Ø  Cabinet gave its approval for launch of “Housing for All by 2022”
Ø  Quality Education' has been emphasized with the thrust on promoting research & innovation, and initiatives like Impacting Research Innovation and Technology (IMPRINT), Global Initiative of Academic Network (GIAN), National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), Higher Educational Financing Agency (HEFA), Digital ISBN, National Academic Depository (NAD), Seema Darshan, Kala Utsav, Prashikshak Portal etc.
Ø  Shagun portal – (from the words Shaala and Gunvatta) an Initiative to monitor the implementation of SSA
Ø  Under SSA Program-   The 'Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat' (PBBB),    The Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyan (RAA),  Vidyanjali
Ø 
Ø  Also, Ronald Regan started policy against Muslim Countries like Iran, Libya, during (1980-88)
Ø  UBI-unique Basic Income,88 % Expense over Revenue (Salary, Subsidy, Intrest, Debt) while 12% over Capital Expense (Railway, Dam, Roads, Bridge)  appromitaly
Ø  Women and Child Development
Progress on 33% Reservation for women in police force: As a result, reservation has been extended in 13 States/Union Territories of Bihar, Gujarat, Odisha, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Chandigarh, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep & Dadra Nagar Haveli, NCT of Delhi. The Process has been initiated in 9 more States/UTs (Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Mizoram, Punjab, Kerala, Haryana, Uttarakhand and West Bengal).
Panic Button on Mobile Phones:
Sexual Harassment of Workplace Act, 2013
Women Helpline (181)
National Policy for Women, 2016,
Nirbhaya Fund: (2k Cr)
Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection & Rehabilitation) Bill, 2016:
Mahila e-Haat :
POCSO
SABLA-Scheme for Adolescent Girls
Child helpline 1098
Aadhar Cards for Children in Child Care Institutions:
National Children’s Fund:2016

Ø  Space technology
PSLV-C31/IRNSS-1E Mission: In this flight, the workhorse launch vehicle PSLV launched IRNSS-1E, the fifth satellite of the Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) constellation, on January 20, 2016.

1.2. PSLV-C32/IRNSS-1F Mission: In this flight, which was its 34th, PSLV launched IRNSS-1F, the sixth satellite of the Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) constellation, on March 10, 2016.

1.3. PSLV-C33/IRNSS-1G Mission: In this flight, PSLV launched the seventh and the last satellite IRNSS-1G of the Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) constellation on April 28, 2016.  With this, the space segment of the IRNSS is fully deployed. IRNSS signals are now available and trials with the receiver system are in progress. The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi dedicated IRNSS to the nation as ‘NavIC’ (Navigation Indian Constellation). This is an independent regional navigation satellite system designed to provide position information in the Indian region and 1500 km around the Indian mainland. IRNSS provides two types of services, namely, Standard Positioning Services (SPS) - provided to all users and Restricted Services (RS) - provided to authorised users only.

1.4. Reusable Launch Vehicle – Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD): India’s first winged body aerospace vehicle, RLV-TD i.e. Reusable Launch Vehicle-Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD), was successfully flight tested on May 23, 2016.         From the peak altitude of 65 km, RLV-TD began its descent followed by atmospheric re-entry at around Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound). After successfully surviving a high temperature of re-entry, RLV-TD successfully glided down to the defined landing spot over Bay of Bengal. In this flight, critical technologies such as autonomous navigation, guidance & control, reusable thermal protection system and re-entry mission management were successfully validated.

1.5.PSLV-C34/Cartosat-2 Series Mission: On June 22, 2016, PSLV-C34 successfully launched 20 satellites in a single mission. It included India’s CARTOSAT-2 series of satellite (weighing 727 kg) as primary payload and two academic institutes’ satellites, namely, SWAYAM and SATHYABAMASAT and 17 satellites (total weighing 555 kg) of foreign customers from Canada, Germany, Indonesia and USA as co-passengers.

1.6. GSLV-F05/ INSAT-3DR Mission: On September 08, 2016, GSLV-F05, India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, equipped with the indigenous Cryogenic Upper Stage (CUS), successfully launched the country's weather satellite INSAT-3DR. INSAT-3DR is a follow-on meteorological satellite to INSAT-3D. This launch is significant, considering that fact that this is the third consecutive success of the indigenous CUS, which signified the country’s successful assimilation of the complex cryogenic rocket propulsion.

The satellite carries two meteorological payloads, viz., 6 channel imager & 19 channel sounder. It also carries a Data Relay Transponder (DRT) and Satellite Aided Search and Rescue (SA&R) payload to provide continuity to INSAT SA&R services. The satellite has started providing services to the weather and meteorological community in tandem with INSAT 3D that is already in the orbit. By virtue of these 2 satellites in orbit, the country gets weather updates every 15 minutes which is yet another unique service from space.     

1.7. Successful Flight Testing of ISRO's Scramjet Engine Technology Demonstrator: The first experimental mission of ISRO’s Scramjet Engine towards the realisation of an Air Breathing Propulsion System was successfully conducted on August 28, 2016 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota. The Scramjet engine designed by ISRO uses Hydrogen as fuel and the Oxygen from the atmospheric air as the oxidiser. This marked the maiden short duration experimental test of ISRO’s Scramjet engine with a hypersonic flight at Mach 6. ISRO’s Advanced Technology Vehicle (ATV), which is an advanced sounding rocket, was the solid rocket booster used for the test of Scramjet engines at supersonic conditions.  ATV carrying Scramjet engines weighed 3277 kg at lift-off.

India is the fourth country to demonstrate the flight testing of Scramjet Engine. The successful technology demonstration of air-breathing Scramjet engines in flight by ISRO during the year was a modest yet important milestone in its endeavour to design and develop advanced air breathing engines including engines for ISRO’s future space transportation system

2. PSLV-C35/SCATSAT-1: By successfully launching SCATSAT-1 satellite carrying a scatterometer for wind vector measurement into the required polar Sun Synchronous Orbit in its PSLV-C35 mission on September 26, 2016, the PSLV facilitated continuity to Oceansat-2 Scatterometer, which completed its service in March 2014.  The wind vector at sea surface information facilitated by SCATSAT-1 is used in weather prediction models and helps in accurate prediction of cyclone track.  This launch of PSLV had yet another unique achievement of placing satellites in 2 different orbits and also the longest of the missions that lasted for more than 2 hrs 15 mins after lift-off. In this mission, engine multiple restart experiment of upper stage of PSLV was also demonstrated.

2.1. PSLV-C36/Resourcesat-2A: In its 38th flight, PSLV successfully launched RESOURCESAT-2A satellite on December 07, 2016 into an 822 km polar Sun Synchronous Orbit.  This was PSLV’s 37th consecutive success.  The 1235 kg RESOURCESAT-2A is a follow-on mission to Resourcesat-2 and intended to ensure data continuity to the users for land and water resources applications. The satellite is configured with three-tier imaging capability consisting of three solid-state cameras, viz., LISS-IV, LISS-III and an Advanced Wide Field Sensor (AWiFS).

2.2. GSAT-18: The 3405 kg  communication satellite GSAT-18, launched on October 06, 2016 by European Ariane V, carries a total of 48 transponders in Ku-band, C-band and Ext C-band for providing continuity of services and has further augmented the transponder capacity.

Mars Orbiter Mission: India’s first inter-planetary mission completed two years in its orbit around Mars. The health parameters of Mars Orbiter spacecraft are normal and all the five payloads are sending useful data. The Mars Colour Camera has produced more than 530 images so far, one of which has appeared on the cover page of the November 2016 issue of the National Geographic Magazine. The spacecraft successfully negotiated ‘whiteout’ geometry during May 18 - 30, 2016 using onboard autonomy. The archived data is now made public for free download and scientific research through ISRO’s website. More than 1.75 Lakh hits and about 40 GB data was downloaded in just 2 weeks. ISRO has also launched MOM Announcement of Opportunity (AO) programmes for researchers in the country to use the MOM data for R&D. The success of Mars Orbiter Mission has showcased India’s technical capability in exploring planetary bodies and has motivated India’s student and research community in a big way.

5.  ASTROSAT Mission: ASTROSAT, India’s first multi-wavelength observatory has completed one year in orbit as of September 2016.  An Announcement of Opportunity (AO) was made in June 2016 for Indian researchers to explore the universe using data from ASTROSAT.  As a part of one year completion of ASTROSAT in orbit, a one-day workshop was organised at Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune on Sept 29, 2016, to highlight the technical and scientific achievements of this satellite. The first scientific set of results and the future scope of the satellite were presented during the meeting.

International Cooperation: As part of the ongoing civil space cooperation, cooperative Agreements/MoUs were signed with UAE space agency (February 2016); US Geological Survey (July 2016); Afghanistan (September 2016); Vietnam (September 2016); Russia (October 2016) Japan (November 2016) and NASA of USA (November 2016). India hosted the two international events, viz., i) UN/India workshop on “Use of earth observation data in disaster management and risk reduction: sharing the Asian experience” in Hyderabad in March 2016 and ii) 10th SPIE-Asia Pacific Remote Sensing Symposium (APRS) in New Delhi in April 2016. ISRO along with French space agency hosted a meeting of heads of space agencies on April, 03, 2016 in New Delhi to highlight the importance of space inputs for climate change studies. Space Agencies of India and Mexico organised a joint workshop in Mexico on use of space technology for disaster management in July 2016. Bilateral space cooperation meetings were organised with delegations of Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, Switzerland, Sri Lanka, the Netherlands, UK and USA.

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