Current Affairs - May 11, 2018 Current Affairs

Mahathir bin Mohamad has become the new Prime Minister of Malaysia on May 10, after scoring a historic victory at the 14th general election 2018. With this, 92-year old Mahathir became the oldest living Prime Minister of Malaysia and the world's oldest head of government. His coalition party 'Pakatan Harapan' defeated the governing Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which has been in power for more than 60 years. The victory capped a dramatic political comeback for Mahathir, who previously ruled the country for 22 years (from 1981 to 2003), and came out of retirement to take on Prime Minister Najib Razak after the leader became embroiled in a massive corruption scandal.

National technology day is being observed on May 11 to mark India's technological advancements and to promote the development of technology in various fields. The official theme for this year is Science and Technology for a sustainable future". The day is being commemorated to celebrate the anniversary of first five nuclear test. India also conducted successful test firing of Trishul missile on may 11, 1998.

India and Guatemala agreed to work together to combat terrorism. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed on enhancing cooperation in diplomatic academics. A Letter of Intent (LoI) of providing training for the English language to Guatemalan teachers was also signed under the ITEC (Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation) programme.

China successfully launched a hyperspectral imaging satellite 'Gaofen-5' for comprehensive observation of the atmosphere, including air pollution which is one of the country's major problems. The Gaofen-5 satellite was launched off the back of a Long March 4C rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. It was the 274th flight mission by a Long March carrier rocket. It has a designed life of eight years. Gaofen-5 is the first China-developed satellite that can monitor air pollution. It can dynamically reflect the state of air pollution in China through the monitoring of air pollutants, greenhouse gases, and aerosols. The Gaofen project began in 2010.

India is hosting the 15th edition of the Asia Media Summit (AMS-2018) in New Delhi with theme "Telling our Stories- Asia and More". New Delhi is hosting the annual summit of the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) Kuala Lumpur for the first time. The 3-day summit will encourage regional and bilateral dialogue and cooperation to respond to challenges to the broadcasting sector in the region. It will also provide a unique opportunity for broadcasters in the Asian region to share their thoughts on software and hardware aspects of broadcasting. Over 200 foreign delegates representing 39 countries and over a hundred Indian delegates would participate in the event. Dignitaries attending the Summit include Minister of Information from Bangladesh and Cambodia and Standing Commissioner Korea Communications Commission. The summit is hosted by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, jointly with the Indian Institute of Mass Communication and public sector firm Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL).

The National Small Industries Corporation Limited (NSIC) signed a MoU with Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) for the year 2018-19. The MoU envisages provision of enhanced services by NSIC under its marketing, financial, technology, and other support services schemes, for MSMEs in the country. The corporation projects to increase its total business by 21.30% from Rs. 22,258 crore in the year 2017-18 to Rs. 27,000 crore in the year 2018-19.

The department of youth and cultural affairs of the Gujarat government will be co-organisers for the centenary celebrations to mark the independence of Poland in Delhi and other parts of the world. A MoU was signed in this regard today between the Gujarat government and the Poland government. The MoU was signed by Polish ambassador to India Adam Burakowski and principal secretary of youth and cultural affairs department V P Patel in presence of Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.

Indian Government has sent 2nd relief consignment for Rohingyas (who fled Myanmar) residing in refugee camps in Bangladesh. The 373-tonne consignment, which was loaded on Indian Navy Ship INS Airavat sailed from Vishakhapatnam and reached Chattogram on May 7, 2018. The relief consignment contained 104 tonnes of milk powder, 61 tonnes of baby food, 102 tonnes of dried fish, 50000 raincoats and 50000 pairs of gum boots. This relief material specifically addresses the needs of Rohingya women and children in the wake of onset of monsoon. It is to be noted that nearly 600000 Rohingyas fled Myanmar's violence-hit Rakhine state to neighbouring Bangladesh since August 2017 post a military crackdown against alleged militant outfits of Rohingya Muslims.

Pawan Kalyan, actor and Jana Sena Party founder, unfurled the flag, claimed to be the world's largest Indian national flag at Hyderabad, Telangana. Pawan Kalyan unfurled the flag to commemorate the first war of the India's independence that took place in 1857. The flag was 122 feet in length and 183 feet in width. The flag was prepared by an organisation called 'Vibrants of Kalam'. This flag is claimed to be world's largest Indian National Flag. Pawan Kalyan administered a national integration pledge to youth who attended the event.

Indian Army's month-long Vijay Prahar exercise concluded in Suratgarh, Rajasthan. It was conducted by South Western Command of Indian Army. The exercise was aimed to orchestrate wide spectrum of threats including Nuclear, Chemical or Biological (NCB) attack which is planned to be tackled through high tempo joint air and land operation. The exercise was conducted to practice troops in penetrative maneuvers across obstacle-ridden terrain under a nuclear umbrella.

US and Philippines forces have begun their largest annual military exercises named Balikatan on 7th May. The Balikatan exercises involved combat drills in mock urban settings to train special forces in battling terrorists. In 2017, Balikatan focused mainly on honing humanitarian responses to the Philippines' frequent natural disasters.

Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu inaugurated the 6th US-India Aviation Summit. This three-day Summit is being jointly organised by Union Ministry of Civil Aviation and US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA). The Summit will serve as a platform for Indian civil aviation agencies and aviation industry representatives, including private sector airlines and airport operators, to identify advanced US technologies and practices, that can support their expansion and modernization efforts. Various sessions focusing on India's projected aviation growth in next five years, aviation and runway safety, aviation security, technologies for worldwide airspace management and regional connectivity will be held during the course of this summit.

The 'first sensitization meeting of stakeholders to make Delhi a model Accessible city' was held in the national capital on May 7. The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities took this initiative to coordinate the meeting of all key stakeholders, sensitize them about the legal mandates. Delhi being the capital city of the country is proposed to be selected for this drive.

In order to facilitate small and medium-sized trading members, NSE introduced a facility of 'managed co-location service'. In this facility, space will be provided to vendors along with provision for receiving market data. This facility enables the co-located entities to access the trade/order related data before other non-co-located entities.

The Indian tea industry reached the highest ever production of 1,325.05 million kg and export of 256.57 million kg during the financial year 2017-18. The total tea production in 2017-18 increased by 74.56 million kg or 5.96 % compared to 2016-17. In 2016-17, India produced 1,250.49 million kg of tea. The total quantity of tea exports during 2017-18 fiscal increased by 28.94 million kg or 12.71 % compared to 2016-17. The tea exports were 227.63 million kg in 2016-17. The foreign exchange obtained from tea exports was $785.92 million in 2017-18. It is an increase of $95.19 million or 13.78 % over 2016-17.