Today Current Affairs for Competitive

Exams - Current Affairs 2018-2019

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If you are appearing for any Government Recruitment Exam, it is important that you are
familiar with the happenings around the world. Current Affairs is an important part of
your syllabus apart from English, Quantitative Aptitude or Logical Reasoning! Thus, we
bring you the Important General Awareness in PDF. Now, Banking, SSC and Insurance
aspirants can read the update containing all the Important Current Affairs 31st
December 2018. You can also attempt yesterday's current affairs quiz:

Current Affairs Quiz – 30th December 2018

Important Current Affairs 31st December 2018

 Annual bird census to begin from Jan 4

o Annual bird census in Chilika lake is slated to be carried out on 4 January
2019.
o Chilika lake is the biggest brackish water lake in the country.
o Experts from organisations like Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS),
Wild Odisha, National Board of Wildlife, Regional Museum and Natural
History, Chilika Development Authority (CDA) will take part in the census.

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/annual-bird-

census-of-chilika-lake-to-be-carried-out-on-jan-4-118123000234_1.html

 Banks recover ₹40,400 crore from defaulters

o According to RBI, in the fiscal ended March 2018, banks recovered
₹40,400 crore worth of bad loans as against ₹38,500 crore recovered in
FY17.

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 o The various channels through which lenders recovered their bad loans
include the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), SARFAESI Act, Debt
Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) and Lok Adalats.
o The amount recovered through SARFAESI was ₹26,500 crore in FY18.

Source Link: https://www.livemint.com/Industry/3qvS3ko4uJlJZnAxXOshUO/Banks-

recover-40400-crore-from-defaulters-RBI-report.html

 Smriti won the ICC 'Women's Cricketer' award

o India women's cricket vice-captain Smriti Mandhana won the 'Women's
Cricketer of the Year' and the 'Women's ODI Player of the Year' by the
International Cricket Council (ICC).
o She won the 'Women's Cricketer of the Year' for scoring 669 runs in 12
ODIs along with 622 runs in T20 Internationals in 2018.
o She became only the second India woman player to win an ICC award after
Jhulan Goswami.

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/smriti-mandhana-

wins-icc-women-s-cricketer-and-odi-player-of-the-year-awards-118123100343_1.html

 Govt extends import restrictions on peas

o The commerce ministry extended the import restrictions on peas for
another three months till 31 March 2019.
o Such measures help in curbing cheaper imports and boost local prices.
o The restrictions were imposed by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade
(DGFT.
o India is the largest producer of pulses in the world.

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/govt-extends-

import-restrictions-on-peas-till-mar-31-118123100433_1.html

 ICC name Women's ODI and T20I team of the year

o International Cricket Council (ICC) announced women's ODI and T20I
teams of the year 2018.
o New Zealand’s Suzie Bates was named as captain of the 50-over side and
Harmanpreet Kaur of India appointed captain of the T20 team.
o The teams have been selected by Voting Academy comprising of members
from media and broadcast.

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Source Link: https://www.sportskeeda.com/cricket/icc-name-women-s-odi-and-t20i-
team-of-the-year

 PM Sheikh Hasina wins the election

o Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina secured her third consecutive
term on 29 December 2018.
o Her ruling party Awami League and its allies have won 288 of the 300
parliamentary seats contested, surpassing its previous election wins.
o Bangladesh's parliament has 350 seats in total, 50 of which are reserved
for women and allotted proportional to the overall vote.

Source Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-46718393

 UN issues Chinese edition of its Basic facts

o The United Nations issued the Chinese version of the latest edition of the
'Basic Facts about the United Nations'.
o The Basic facts serve as the definitive introduction to the UN and its family
of related institutions and agencies.
o With this, the UN publication has been issued in all the six official
languages-- Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish.

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/un-issues-

chinese-edition-of-latest-basic-facts-about-un-118123000084_1.html

 Single-use plastic free flight introduced

o Portuguese airline 'Hi Fly' introduced single-use plastic free flight on 29
December 2018.
o The flight took off from Lisbon to Natale, Brazil, without a single piece of
single-use plastic on board.
o There were no plastic cups, plastic silverware, plastic cocktail stirrer, and
plastic food containers.

Source Link: https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/world-s-first-single-use-

plastic-free-passenger-flight-takes-off/story-wqdhLy4stW6ANXel3j4cfO.html

 Telangana govt hospital enters Guinness Book

o Telangana government's MNJ Institute of Oncology and Regional Cancer
Centre entered the Guinness Book of World Records.
o It organised the largest men's Health Awareness programme on prostate
cancer on a single day.

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 o Besides the Guinness World Record, the hospital also received recognition
from 'High Range Book of World Records

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/telangana-govt-

hospital-enters-guinness-book-of-world-records-118122800867_1.html

 ESAF is now ‘scheduled bank’

o ESAF Small Finance Bank Ltd has received the RBI’s approval for
inclusion in the second schedule of the RBI Act, 1934.
o Now the bank can seek funds from trusts, associations, religious
institutions, and mutual funds.
o It will also enable the bank to avail higher refinance facility.
o R Prabha is the Chairman of ESAF Small Finance Bank.
o The headquarters of the bank is in Thrissur, Kerala.

Source Link: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/money-and-banking/with-rbi-

nod-esaf-is-now-scheduled-bank/article25853930.ece

 Swachh Surveksahan award for GHMC

o The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation was awarded Best Capital
City in the Solid Waste Management in the Swachh Survekshan 2018
rankings.
o The Swachh Survekashan survey ranks cities on various sanitation
parameters.
o The GHMC was also at the 27th place among 4,041 cities.
o Swachh Survekshan 2019 was launched by the Ministry of Housing and
Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in January 2016.

Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/swachh-surveksahan-

award-for-ghmc/article25847518.ece

 Lt Gen Manoj takes charge of Gajraj Corps

o Lt Gen Manoj Pande took the command of the Indian Army's Gajraj Corps
on 30 December 2018.
o He replaced Lt Gen Gurpal Singh Sangha.
o Prior to this, he was the Chief of Staff in Headquarters Southern
Command.
o The Gajraj Corps (IV Corps) is a military field formation of the Indian
Army, created in 1961.

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Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/lt-gen-manoj-
pande-takes-charge-of-gajraj-corps-118123000518_1.html

 Railway Minister announces 'Honey Bee' plan

o Railway ministry announced that the 'Honey Bee' plan will be expanded to
other areas of the country.
o The initiative was started on an experimental basis in Assam in 2017.
o The aim is to avoid the death of animals particularly elephants on railway
tracks.
o In this plan, a device is used which amplifies the recorded sound of honey
bees to keep elephants away from the rail track.

Source Link: http://www.newsonair.com/Main-News-Details.aspx?id=357277

 Exhibition 'Dandi Yatra' organised by NGMA

o An exhibition titled 'Dandi Yatra' was inaugurated in New Delhi on 29
December 2018.
o It was organised by the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA).
o The exhibition is part of the celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of
Mahatma Gandhi.
o The exhibition showcases the unseen drawings of artist Chhaganlal Jadav
and also the masterworks of NGMA's collection of contemporaneous
artists.

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/dandi-yatra-

exhibition-to-propagate-gandhi-s-message-of-peace-118122900547_1.html

 Noted film maker Mrinal Sen passed away

o Legendary filmmaker Mrinal Sen passed away in Kolkata on 31 December
2018.
o He is a Padma Bhushan and Dada Saheb Phalke awardee.
o He made his directorial debut with 'Raat Bhore' in 1955.
o He is known for making films that focussed on socio-political issues
o He was also a member of the Indian People’s Theatre Association.

Source Link: http://www.newsonair.com/Main-News-Details.aspx?id=357314

 MP govt decides to form new Spiritual Dept

o Madhya Pradesh government decided to form a new Spiritual Department.
o The Religious Trust and Endowments and Happiness Department will be
merged in the new department.

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 o The objective of the formation of the Spiritual Department is to strengthen
inter-communal harmony and Sarvadharma Sambhav in the state
covering all religions, sects, and faiths.

Source Link: http://www.newsonair.com/Main-News-Details.aspx?id=357300

 'Trends & Progress of Banking' report released

o The report titled 'Trends & Progress of Banking in 2017-18' was released
by the Reserve Bank of India on 28 December 2018.
o As per the report, the number of ATMs has declined marginally to 2.07
lakh in FY18 from 2.08 lakh in FY17, primarily due to branch
rationalisation by few banks.
o The number of operational on-site ATMs too came down to 1.06 lakh in
2018 from 1.09 lakh in FY17.

Source
Link: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/banking/finance/banking/gross
-npas-jump-to-11-2-or-rs-10-39-tln-in-fy18-rbi-report/articleshow/67289351.cms

 'Ujjwala Sanitary Napkin' launched in Odisha

o Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan launched
'Ujjwala Sanitary Napkins' in Odisha on 30 December 2018.
o Under the initiative, Oil Marketing Companies (OMC) will set up 100
manufacturing units at the Common Service Centres in Odisha.
o The aim of the initiative is to educate women on female hygiene and
health, and improve accessibility to low cost eco-friendly sanitary pads.

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/minister-

launches-100-ujjwala-sanitary-napkin-units-in-odisha-118123000329_1.html

 National Nritya Shiromani Award for Anindita

o US-based Kathak exponent Anindita Neogy Anaam will be honoured with
the 'National Nritya Shiromani' award for 2019 on 2 January 2019.
o She will be given the award for promoting the Kathak Dance across the
world.
o The award would be conferred on her in Cuttack on the opening day of the
10th 'Cuttack Mahotsav: International Dance and Music Festival'.

Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/national-nritya-

shiromani-award-2019-for-anindita-118123000428_1.html

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  Government appoints Sudhir Bhargava as new CIC
o The government of India appointed Sudhir Bhargava as Chief Information
Commissioner in the Central Information Commission (CIC).
o The government of India also appointed IFS officer Yashwardhan Kumar
Sinha, ex-IRS officer Vanaja N. Sarna, former IAS Neeraj Kumar Gupta,
and former law secretary Suresh Chandra as information commissioners.
o The CIC was set up under the Right to Information Act.

Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/sudhir-bhargava-new-chief-

information-commissioner-govt-appoints-four-information-
commissioners/article25869926.ece

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