i. In order to promote Micro irrigation amongst farmers, Ministry of Water resources and River development has organized 9th International Micro irrigation conference in Aurangabad, Maharashtra.
ii. The conference focused on the theme of “Micro Irrigation and Modern Agriculture”. Union Minister for water resources and river development Shri Nitin Gadkari officially inaugurated the event.
i. Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu inaugurated the ‘Global Aviation Summit 2019′ in Mumbai. The summit is a union and it will address the problems being faced.
ii. The summit, with a theme ‘Flying for all-especially the next 6 Billion’, is being organized by Ministry of Civil Aviation in association with FICCI.
4. Important Cabinet Approvals: 16th January 2019
i. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given the following set of approvals. The important Cabinet Approvals are given as follows:
ii. The Cabinet has approved-
1. MoU between India and Australia on the safety in Mines, Testing and Research Station.
2. Regularisation of Pay Scales of below Board Level Executives in NHPC Ltd., North East Electric Power Corporation, THDC India Ltd. and SJVN Ltd. w.e.f. 1.1.97.
5. Government Constitutes 7-Member GoM to Boost Real Estate Sector Under GST Regime
i. The government has constituted a seven-member Group of Ministers (GoM) to boost the real estate sector under the GST regime. Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat Nitin Patel is the convener of the GoM.
ii. Finance Ministers of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh and the Panchayat Minister of Goa are the members. The committee will examine legality of inclusion and exclusion of land or any other ingredient, in composition and suggest valuation mechanism.
Appointments/Resignations
6. India’s 1st CWG Boxing Gold-Medallist Mohammed Ali Qamar Appointed Women’s Team Coach
i. Mohammed Ali Qamar, the man who won India’s first Commonwealth Games gold medal in boxing, has taken over as the chief coach for the country’s female boxers.
ii. He has replaced veteran Shiv Singh. Qamar, who is set to turn 38, is also the youngest person to land the job. Qamar’s CWG gold came in the 2002 Manchester edition in the light flyweight category.
7. Manu Sawhney Appointed New ICC CEO
i. The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced that Manu Sawhney has been appointed as the organization’s new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
ii. Sawhney, the former CEO of Singapore Sports Hub and Managing Director of ESPN Star Sports, will join the organization before formally taking over the reins from David Richardson in July following the ICC World Cup 2019.
Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS Clerk Mains Exam:
- Chairperson: Shashank Manohar, Headquarters: Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
8. Stephen Constantine Resigns As Coach Of Indian Football Team
i. Indian football team head coach Stephen Constantine has stepped down after the team’s shock 0-1 defeat to Bahrain which led to its exit from the Asian Cup.
ii. The Anglo-Cypriot coach took over the reins of the team in 2015 for a 2-year tenure. He was given one-year contract extension twice. It was his second stint as India coach after serving as the coach in 2002-05.
Awards
9. Yu Wensheng Wins Franco-German Human Rights Award
i. A detained Chinese rights lawyer Yu Wensheng has won a Franco-German human rights award for his ‘exceptional contribution’ to the protection and promotion of human rights.
ii. Yu Wensheng, who is in pretrial detention on subversion charges, has been held incommunicado by authorities in Jiangsu’s Xuzhou city for more than a year. His wife Xu Yan received the Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law on her husband’s behalf from the French and German ambassadors to China.
Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS Clerk Mains Exam 2018:
- France and Germany have presented the Franco-German Prize for Human Rights since 2016.
Sports News
10. Chennai’s Gukesh Crowned India’s Youngest Grandmaster
i. Tamil Nadu lad D Gukesh became the 2nd youngest Grand Master in the world and the youngest Indian to achieve the feat at 12 years, 7 months and 17 days, erasing the mark set by his state-mate R Praggnanandhaa in June 2018.
ii. Gukesh becomes India’s 59th Grand Master. Ukraine’s Sergey Karjakin remains the youngest-ever GM, having achieved the feat at the age of 12 years and 7 months in 2002.
Obituaries