Current Affair - 27/March/2019

Rajesh Pendharkar: Flag Officer –

·       Rear Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar, VSM assumed the charge as the Flag Officer Commanding Maharastra Naval Area on 25 March 2019.

·       His notable sea appointments include aExecutive Officer of Missile corvette INS Kripan and missile destroyer INS Mysore and Command of missile corvette INS Kora.

·       He is recipient of the Vishisth Seva Medal for distinguished service.

1^st Indian Army Expedition –

·       1^st Indian Army Mountaineering Expedition to Mt Makalu (8485m) was flagged of by the Director General Military Training on 26 March2019.

·       It comprises 5 officers, two JCOs and eleven OR.

·       Mt Makalu, situated in the Himalayas is considered amongst the best dangerous peaks.

·       The team will embark for it from New Delhi and will set up 6 campus enroute to summit point on Mt Makalu.

India, Bangladesh to begin cruise service –

·       India and Bangladesh will start a cruise service from 29 March 2019 that would take passengers through the Sunderbans to Dhaka.

·       The move aims to strengthen inland waterway routes between the two countries.

·       Good from India can go into the cheapest possible form upto Narayanganj and Dhaka in Bangladesh.

·       India and Bangladesh also have very strong power connectivity through waterways.

Comoros President re-elected –

·       Comoros president Azali Assoumani was re-elected on 27 March 2019 according to results published by the electoral commission of the Indian Ocean archipelago.

·       Azali was way ahead of its closest rival Mahamodou Ahamada, who garnered only 14.62% of the ballots cast.

·       Comoros is a volcanic archipelago off Africa’s east coast, in the warm Indian Ocean waters of the Mozmbique Channel.

RBI slapped Rs 2 crore penalty on PNB –

·       The Reserve Bank of India slapped the penalty of Rs. 2 crore on Punjab National Bank for non-compliance of regulatory directions with regard to SWIFT operations.

·       SWIFT is a global messaging software used for sharing information on inter-banking transactions by financial entities.

·       RBI had earlier imposed penalties worth 71 crore rupees on 36 public, private and foreign banks for non-compliance.

Seamaster 2019 ITTF concluded –

·       Seamaster 2019 ITTF Challenge Plus, Oamn Open, concluded at Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Bausher on 25 March 2019.

·       Chinese Taipei Lin Yun-Ju, in the title-deciding contest, beat Sweden’s Mattias Falck (11-8, 8-11, 11-7, 11-7, 8-11, 11-8).

·       Japan’s Hina Hayata, the no.9 seed, beat Chinese Taipei Cheng I-Ching, the top seed, in the final (11-3, 11-5, 7-11, 11-9, 11-8).

Croatia honoured President Kovind –

·       President Ram Nath Kovind was honoured with Croatia’s highest civilian award, the Grand Order of the King of Tomislav on 26 March 2019.

·       He is on an 8-day visit to Croatia, Bolivia and Chile to further strengthen bilateral ties between India ad three countries.

·       It was awarded to heads of state for their important contribution towards the development of relations with Croatia.

INS Kadmatt to participate in LIMA 2019 –

·       Indian Navy’s INS Kadmatt will participate in the 15^th edition of Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition, LIMA-19.

·       Vice Admiral Karambir Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command, and the Chief of Naval Command designated, would lead the Indian delegation.

·       INS Kadmatt was commissioned into the Indian Navy in January 2016.

Sharada Corridor plan approved by Pakistan –

·       The Pakistan government approved a proposal to established a corridor that will allow Hindu Pilgrims from India to visit Sharada Peeth.

·       It is an ancient Hindu Temple and cultural site in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir (PcK).

·       Established in 237 BC during the reign of Ashoka, the Sharada Peeth is 5000 years old.

ITC sold John Players too Reliance –

·       ITC has sold its John Players apparel band and related trademark and intellectual property to Reliance Retail.

·       Launched about 2002, the apparel brand started with men’s shirt was later extended to jeans, tees, and trousers.

·       ITC will now focus on the premium end through its WLS stores.

A-Sat missile destroyed live satellite –

·       India has entered its name as an elite space power. An anti-satellite weapon A-SAT, successfully targeted a live satellite in 3 minutes on a low earth orbit.

·       Till now only the US, Russia and China have achieved this; now India is the 4^th country to achieve this feat.

·       Mission, Shakti was a difficult target to achieve which was completed successfully within 3 minutes of launch.

TATA to invest in GMR unit –

·       The TATA Group has made its first investment in India’s burgeoning airports sector by buying 20% stake in the GMR groups airport’s vertical.

·       GMR Infrastructure Limited (GIL) announced that it has raised Rs. 8,000 crore from 3 investors in its airports vertical, GMR Airports Limited (GAL).

·       The Investments bring multiple strategic benefits and will pave the way for restructuring of the business.

Lokpal members took oath –

·       All 8 members of the Lokpal were administered the oath of office on 27 March 2019.

·       Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose administered the oath of office to them.

·       Dilip B. Bhosale, Pradip Kumar Mohanty, Abhilasha Kumari, and Ajay Kumar Tripathi are the judicial members.

·       The non-judicial members are Archana Ramasundram, Dinesh Kumar Jain, Mahendra Singh, and Inderjeet Prasad Gautam.

Manu and Saurabh bagged gold medal –

·       Manu Bahker and Saurabh Chaudhary bagged a gold medal in the 10 m Air Pistol Mixed Team event at the 12^th Asian Airgun Championship at Taoyuan in Taipei.

·       The teenage Indian duo went on to win the five-team final with a score of 484.8 points.

·       The duo won the ISSF World Cup stage gold at the same event in Delhi in February 2019.

Cyrus Poonawala and Rahat Khan to be honoured –

·       Cyrus Poonawalla and Singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan are among 8 people, who will honoued by the University of Oxford at a ceremony on June 26, 2019.

·       The University will also confer the honoary degrees on academics Jennifer Doudna, Andrea Ghez, Shafi Goldwasser, Daniel Kahneman and Simon Wessely, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

·       Cyrus Poonawalla is the Founder and Chairman of Serum Institute of India.

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