RBI appoints Surekha Marandi as Executive Director
i.The Reserve Bank of India has appointed Surekha Marandi as its Executive Director (ED) in place of U S Paliwal, who retired on December 31, 2016.
ii.Marandi will look after Consumer Education and Protection Department, Financial Inclusion and Development Department, and Secretary’s Department.
United Nation Recognises 2017 as Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development
i.The United Nations 70th General Assembly has recognised the year 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.
ii.This recognizes the importance of international tourism and particularly of the designation of an international year of sustainable tourism for development, in fostering better understanding among peoples everywhere, in leading to a greater awareness of the rich heritage of various civilizations and in bringing about a better appreciation of the inherent values of different cultures, thereby contributing to the strengthening of peace in the world.
EC limits cash expense per candidate at Rs 20-28 lakh for Assembly polls
i.The Election Commission of India has issued a limitation for campaign expense per candidate.
ii. In Goa and Manipur, the limit on election expenses per candidate is Rs 20 lakh.
iii.In Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand the election expenses limit per candidate is Rs 28 lakh.
Rs. 5 discount for online payment of LPG cylinder
i.State-owned fuel retailers, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) will offer an upfront discount of Rs 5 on every LPG refill to all LPG customers who will book and pay for it online.
ii.To provide cashless transactions, the government had asked oil companies to pay consumers 0.75 per cent discount on cashless fuelling of petrol and diesel at petrol pumps.
iii. This has now been extended to cooking gas (LPG).
PM Narendra Modi Releases special commemorative postage in 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh in Patna
i.Prime Minister Modi released special commemorative stamps on Prakash Parv in 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh in Patna on 5 January 2017.
ii. Bihar Governor Ram Nath Kovind, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal, Union Minsters Ravi Shankar Prasad Ram Vilas Paswan and Harsimrat Kaur were present on this occasion.
Telangana, Assam join Uday Discom debt scheme
i.Telangana and Assam signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) to join the Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojna (UDAY) taking the total number of states covered under the scheme to 20.
ii.An overall net benefit of approximately ₹6,116 crore to Telangana and ₹1,663 crore to Assam will come from joining the scheme.
Supreme Court Removes Anurag Thakur as BCCI President
i.The Supreme Court of India has stripped Anurag Thakur of his powers as BCCI President for not complying with the orders of the apex court with regard to implementation of the Lodha committee reforms.
ii. He was elected as the BCCI president in May 2016 after Shashank Manohar was elevated to International Cricket Council’s chairman post.
iii.In 2011, he became BCCI joint secretary after spending little over a decade as president of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA).
Two-day Assam Biotech Conclave to begins in Guwahati
i.The two day Assam Biotech Conclave began today in Guwahati.
ii.Chief Minister Sarbanand Sonowal inaugurated the conclave in presence of
Science and Technology minister Keshab Mahanta.
iii.Chief Minister hoped that this conclave would help Assam in biotechnology sector.
iv.This is organized by Guwahati Biotech Park in association with industry body FINER. The conclave will create business and partnering opportunities for its stakeholders and to showcase the facilities and opportunities offered by Guwahati Biotech Park.
Ludhiana district administration develops mobile app for Election Commission of India
i.For the benefit of voters, candidates, election staff as well as the Election Commission of India (ECI), the district administration of Ludhiana has developed a mobile application named ECI360.
ii. Developed by Harpreet Singh Chandoke from a company named 01 Synergy on behalf of the district administration and a brainchild of deputy commissioner Ravi Bhagat, this mobile app would prove beneficial for all the stakeholders of upcoming assembly elections.
Yes Bank ties-up with Bajaj Electricals for vendor financing using blockchain
i.Private lender Yes Bank has entered into a tie-up with Bajaj Electricals for vendor financing using blockchain solution, and announced to use the technology more aggressively as it saves over 70 per cent in cost.
ii. As part of the tie-up, the bank has completely digitalised its processes and blockchain solutions can be implemented.
Paytm gets final approval for payments bank
i.Mobile commerce and payments company Paytm has got the final permission to open a payments bank by RBI.
ii.Reserve Bank of India gave permission to formally launch Paytm Payments Bank.
iii. Paytm and 11 other players, including Vodafone, Airtel and Fino PayTech, had applied for a payments bank licence in 2015.
Munich Re to open reinsurance branch office in Mumbai
i.Munich Re is opening a composite branch office in Mumbai to service the property-casualty, life, health reinsurance markets across the country.
ii. Munich Re Group or Munich Reinsurance Company is a reinsurance company based in Munich, Germany.
iii.It is one of the world’s leading reinsurers.
Azure Power Commissions Largest Solar Power Project (150MW)
i.Solar power producer Azure Power commissioned 150 MW solar power project in Punjab, which is its largest in North India.
ii.For this project, Azure Power had signed a solar power implementation agreement with Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) under its Solar Policy Phase III.
iii. The 150MW solar power plant represents a portfolio of three projects of 50MW each.
5 Indian Americans Takes Oath as Members of US Congress
i.Five Indian Americans Takes Oath as Members of US Congress.
i.They are Kamala Harris, Ami Bera, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Pramila Jayapal.
ii.The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States consisting of two chambers the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Jovenel Moise elected as the President of Haiti
i.Jovenel Moise has been elected as the President of Haiti.
ii. The electoral tribunal officially declared the winner on 3 January 2017.
iii.Jovenel Moise has been declared the winner of Haiti’s November 20 presidential election, ending a protracted electoral process that has paralysed the Caribbean country’s politics for more than a year.
Mahindra Singh Dhoni steps down as captain of T-20 & ODI format of cricket
i.MS Dhoni has stepped down as the captain of India’s limited-overs sides.
ii.He will, however, be available for the selection for the upcoming England ODI and T20I series starting 15 January 2017.
iii. Dhoni had given up the Test captaincy in December 2014.
India win record 4th straight SAFF Women’s Championship title
i.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.
ii.Dangmei Grace opened the scoring for India, with Sasmita Malik and Indumathi Kathiresan scoring second-half goals for the hosts.
iii.India have won all editions of the eight-nation tournament, which started in 2010.
Arthur Morris inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame
i.Arthur Morris, who became the 82nd player to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame, was given the honour posthumously.
ii.Arthur Robert Morris was an Australian cricketer who played 46 Test matches between 1946 and 1955. An opener, Morris is regarded as one of Australia’s greatest left-handed batsmen.
Ashirbad Behera, Ranjib Biswal quit posts from Odisha Cricket Association
On the direction of the Apex court, Odisha Cricket Association (OCA) secretary Ashirbad Behera, president Ranjib Biswal and all OCA office-bearers quit from their posts. 
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