Current Affairs - March 19, 2019 Current Affairs

IIT Roorkee and ISRO have signed an MoU to develop Space Technology Cells on the campus of the varsity. IIT Roorkee issued a statement saying the premier technology school has inked an MoU with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) to setup Space Technology Cells. The Space Technology Cells developed under this MoU will help students and faculty members of the institute to pursue advanced research in different areas related to futuristic space technology.

Ola has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Telangana to support the latter's efforts in strengthening traffic infrastructure in the city. The partnership would see Ola 'share intelligent insights' that enable the Government to implement smart solutions to enhance 'mobility experience' in the city, an Ola release stated. The first pilot project proposed to be implemented under the MoU is the dynamic mapping of riding quality of various major roads in Hyderabad through the network of vehicles operating on the Ola platform.

Darryl D'Monte (7D), the senior journalist and environmental activist, has passed away in Mumbai on March 16, 2019. During his long career, D'Monte worked as the resident editor with leading media organisations such as 'The Times of India' and 'Indian Express' in Mumbai. He also wrote for websites and penned the book 'Ripping the Fabric' on the decline of cotton mills in Mumbai and the resulting challenges.

President Ram Nath Kovind awarded the 'Nari Shakti Puraskar' to the renowned Kathak dancer Seema Mehta for her contribution towards women empowerment over the last 15 years at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi as part of the Women's Day celebrations. She began her journey in Kathak and set up her dance school in Mumbai in 2010. She is the Director of 'Chhandam Nritya Bharati' in Mumbai and was actively involved in promotion of Kathak dance form.

Indian Writer Raghu Karnad has won the Windham-Campbell Prize $165,000 under the non-fiction category for his debut book, The Farthest Field: An Indian Story Of The Second World War. Raghu Karnad is the second Indian to receive the award. Earlier in 2016, Jerry Pinto had won the award for his novel, Em And The Big Hoom. Karnad is one of the eight winners chosen across four categories: fiction, non-fiction, drama, and poetry. The other awardee in the non-fiction category was American writer Rebecca Solnit for the diverse body of work she has produced over her career. The Windham-Campbell Prize is administered by the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University in the US.

34th Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisations (SCOs) Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) Council held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. A joint exercise 'Sary - Arka - Antiterror 2019' will be held as decided by the RATS in the session. India, Pakistan and other member nations will participate in the joint anti-terrorism exercise which will be held this year.The meeting was chaired by Russia. The meeting also decided to hold the first stage of joint border operation 'Solidarity 2019 -2021.India and Pakistan entered the SCO in 2017 where China plays an influential role along with Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.RATS promote cooperation of member states against terrorism, separatism and extremism. It is a permanent organ of the SCO.

Former Supreme Court judge Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose was recommended to be the first Lokpal or anti-corruption ombudsman of India. Justice Ghose, 67, is a member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) since June 2017.

Ms. Padmaja has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Fiji. At Present, Ms. Padmaja working as Deputy Director General of Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).

The Ministry of Human Resource Development has signed a memorandum of understanding(MoU) with the Afghanistan government to work on digital education initiatives, which include many prominent programs developed by Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). The MoU was signed at IIT-Madras. This collaboration hopes to contribute to bilateral relations and beget mutual benefits for the two countries.

In Asian Youth Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, boys medley relay team won a gold medal for India on the final day to help Indian youth team finish second in the overall medals tally with a total of 26 medals including 8 gold, 9 silver and 9 bronze medals. China topped the overall medals tally with 31 medals that included 12 gold, 11 silver and eight bronze medals and Japan finished third with 20 medals that included 6 Gold, 8 Silver and 6 bronze.

Maldives finance ministry has signed an agreement with India's Export-Import Bank (EXIM) for line of credit (LOC) of 800 million US dollars to finance the new government's infrastructure projects. The agreement was signed in presence of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj who was on a 2-day visit to Male. The LOC is part of 1.4 billion US dollars finance assistance announced by the Indian government during President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's state visit in December 2018. The EXIM Bank loans come with a 1.75% interest rate and a 15-year repayment period after five years of moratorium.

The two-day national convention of War Decorated India was held at the Manekshaw Auditorium in Chandimandir, the headquarters of the Western Command, near Chandigarh and was attended by some living gallantry award winners and relatives of the deceased awardees. Next of kin, relatives of the awardees were felicitated at the convention. Chief of Staff Western Command Lt General P.N. Bali addressed the convention. Among Victoria Cross awardees, the relatives of Late Naib Subedar Nand Singh (Sikh Regiment), Late Subedar Ram Sarup Singh (1 Punjab) and Late Badlu Ram (Cavalry) were felicitated. Among Param Vir Chakra awardees, relatives of Late Col. Hoshiar Singh (Grenadiers) and Late Subedar Joginder Singh (Sikh Regiment) were felicitated. Among Maha Vir Chakra awardees those felicitated were the relatives of late Brigadier N.S. Sandhu (Dogra), late Brigadier K.S. Chandpuri (Punjab Regiment), late Lt General Gowry Shankar (Signals), late Lt Ved Prakash Trehan (Rajputana Rifles), late SepoyAnusuya Prasad (Mahar Regiment) and late Porter Mohammed Ismail (Punjab Regiment Civilian Porter).

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur will adopt Amazon Web Services (AWS) Educate programme to help students gain cloud computing skills including hands-on experience in artificial intelligence (AI). It will be introduced to provide AWS Cloud Computing experience and AI-enablement for all our students, irrespective of their branch of study. The programme offers a robust set of no-cost tools, resources and AWS Promotional Credits for students and educators to boost their cloud skills and experience. As part of AWS Educate, the students will gain access to 12 Cloud Career Pathways covering topics that are in demand by employers, such as machine learning, cybersecurity, and software development, each with over 30 hours of content.

Researchers led by Guihua Yu from the University of Texas (UT) at Austin, USA have developed a novel solar-powered harvesting system that absorbs moisture from the air and converts it into clean, usable water. The technology is described in the journal Advanced Materials and could be used in disaster situations, water crises or poverty-stricken areas and developing countries.Access to clean water remains one of the biggest challenges facing humankind and this breakthrough innovation may offer a new solution through solar-powered technology that absorbs moisture from the air and returns it as clean, usable water.It relies on hydrogels, gel-polymer hybrid materials designed to be "super sponges" that can retain large amounts of water. The researchers used hydrogels that are both highly water absorbent and can release water upon heating.With an estimated 50,000 cubic kilometers of water contained in the atmosphere, this new system could tap into those reserves and potentially lead to small, inexpensive and portable filtration systems.

Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas from Finland beat his world champion teammate Lewis Hamilton to clinch the season-opening Australian Formula One Grand Prix. Bottas, who claimed his first race win since Abu Dhabi in 2017, also claimed the extra point for the fastest lap in the race. Hamilton finished the race in the second spot, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen finished third.

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit's (EIU) Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, Asia's Lion City - Singapore has been joined by Paris and Hong Kong in a tie at the top of the table. Switzerland's Zurich and Geneva and Japan's Osaka are also among top five most expensive cities. According to the report, India's Bengaluru, Chennai and New Delhi are among the ten cheapest locations surveyed. EIU's 2019 Worldwide Cost of Living Survey compares the prices of more than 400 items across 160 products and services. These include food, drink, clothing, household supplies and personal care items, as well as private schools, domestic help and recreational costs.

Reliance Industries CMD Mukesh Ambani leads Forbes list of richest sports team owners with a net worth of around $50 billion. Ambani purchased the IPL team Mumbai Indians through a RIL subsidiary in 2008 for just over $100 million. Steve Ballmer (Net worth: $41.2 billion), the American Businessman and Dietrich Mateschitz (Net worth: $18.9 billion) were at 2nd and 3rd positions, respectively.

Pramod Sawant (45), former Speaker of Goa legislative Assembly and MLA from Sankhelim in North Goa was sworn-in as 11th Chief Minister of Goa, succeeding Manohar Parrikar, who died after a prolonged battle with advanced pancreatic cancer. He was given the oath of office and secrecy at Raj Bhavan by Goa Governor Mridula Sinha. The entire Cabinet of Manohar Parikkar has been retained.

Hyundai Motor Group and Ola announced a strategic partnership under which Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors Corporation will invest a total of $ 300 million in Ola, making it their biggest combined investment to date. The agreement will see the three companies collaborate on developing fleet and mobility solutions, building India-specific electric vehicles and infrastructure, as well as nurturing opportunities and offerings for aspiring driver partners with customized vehicles on the Ola platform.