CURRENT AFFAIRS SEPTEMBER

1. Gujarat: First big state to use EVMs with VVPAT:

• In order to make the election process more transparent, Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) will be equipped with Voter Verified Paper Audit Trial (VVPATs) in the forthcoming assembly elections in Gujarat.
• With this, Gujarat will become the second state after Goa to use VVPAT system for the entire assembly election.

        Voter Verified Paper Audit Trial (VVPAT):

• VVPAT ensures free and fair election by allowing the voters to verify whether their votes have gone to their candidates or not. For this, a printer machine is attached to the EVM. When voter presses the button for his candidate, a paper slip containing serial number, name of the candidate and poll symbol will be printed for the voter which will be visible to him in a glass container for 7 seconds.

2. Government finalizing the Electoral Bonds Scheme:

• With an aim to bring reforms in the electoral process by bringing greater transparency in funding of political parties, the Union Government is finalizing the Electoral Bonds Scheme.
• The scheme was announced in 2017-18 Union Budget and will make India the first country in the World to provide the system of unique bonds for election funding.
• Under the scheme, the proposed electoral bonds will resemble promissory notes and not an interest paying debt instrument. These bonds will be issued only by the notified authorized banks and can only be bought using cheques or digital payment.
• All the political parties will have to notify their bank accounts to the Election Commission of India to avail the benefits of this scheme.

3. TK Viswanathan Committee submits report to deal with hate speech on internet:

• TK Viswanathan Committee which was constituted to deal with cybercrimes, especially online hate speech has submitted its report to the Union Home Ministry.
• The committee was constituted after Supreme court has struck down Section 66A of the IT Act 2000 in ShreyaSinghal vs. Union of India case.

        Recommendations:

• The committee has recommended to appoint cybercrime coordinators in all the states and establish cybercrime cell in each district. They will deal with hate speech related to religion, caste, sex, language, community, place of birth, disability etc.
• It has recommended punishment with prohibiting incitement to hatred of two years imprisonment or fine of Rs.5000 or both.

4. India registers significant decline in Infant Mortality Rate:

• The recently released Sample Registration Bulletin (SRB) has shown a significant reduction of 8% in the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) in 2016. IMR has been declined by 3 points from 37 per 1000 live births in 2015 to 34 per 1000 live births in 2016.

        Infant Mortality Rate (IMR):

• It is the number of deaths per 1000 live births of children under one year of age.

5. India and Norway signs Letter of Intent (LoI) for health cooperation:

• India has signed a letter of intent with Norway to extend the cooperation in the health sector through Norway India Partnership Initiative (NIPI) for a period of 3 years starting from 2018.
• This LoI has been signed keeping in mind the National Health Policy 2017 necessary for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• This bilateral cooperation will focus on different aspects of health like reproductive, maternal, new-born, adolescent health etc.

6. 28th September: World Maritime Day

• In order to acknowledge the importance of maritime security, environment and industry, the World Maritime Day is observed every year on 28th September.
• The theme for this year is- ‘Connecting Ships, Ports and People.’
• The World Maritime Day signifies the date of adaptation of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) convention in 1958. The day was first observed in 1978.

        International Maritime Organization (IMO):

• Established in 1958 in Geneva as Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO), the agency works under United Nations for regulating the global shipping.
• Renamed in 1982 with its Headquarters in London, United Kingdom.

Monuments of India's Medieval Period

India's Medieval period is generally known as the Mughal Empire, a period that lasted from 1525 to 1860 A.D. During this era, India became united as a single nation and began to flourish economically and culturally. Builders and craftsmen, working on orders from the emperors of the era, expanded on traditional Persian styles to create palaces, mausoleums and fortresses made from gleaming white marble and and red sandstone. Today, these architectural masterpieces still have the power to leave visitors in awe of their beauty and design.
As President Bill Clinton famously put it: "The world is divided into those who have seen the Taj Mahal and those who have not." The glorious Taj Majal, which was built in Agra in 1653 by Emperor Shah Jahan, represents the height of Mughal art and architecture. The dazzling architecture features the iconic marble dome and its flanking minarets made with pearl-like, luminescent marble that glows pink at dawn, sparkles in the sun and arguably looks the most breathtaking in the moonlight. Details in the interior rooms, such as walls carved with calligraphic writing, gemstone-inlaid mosaics and a series of mirrors and reflecting pools to compound its beauty, invariably astonish visitors and underscore President Clinton's statement.
Situated in Delhi, the Lal Qila (Red Fort) is a fort and palace built in 1648, during the Mughal era. The enormous, octagonal-shaped fort is a mini-city, protected by a moat and thick, red sandstone walls with turrets, bastions and ramparts. Visitors enter from the Lahori gate, near the Hathipol—or the area where rulers and guests would dismount from their elephants—and pass through a spectacular, hand-carved, red sandstone colonnade. The interior features a once-vital city and government center, with public halls, private meeting chambers, gorgeous marble palaces and private quarters that are decorated with mirrors, intricate stone mosaics and gilded support beams. The palaces open onto splendid, elaborate gardens with a number of reflecting pools and walking paths.
Located a quarter-mile from the Red Fort, Jama Masjid is India's largest mosque, built in 1650. The mosque features three graceful domes that are inlaid with alternating bands of white marble and red sandstone to create a stunning striped pattern. Visitors pass through a series of arched, carved and inlaid stone doorways to enter an expansive courtyard with minarets and towers that have carved facades and wide staircases. The courtyard can accommodate 25,000 worshipers and is open to the public. Non-Muslims can enter the Mosque only at specific times during the day.

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CURRENT AFFAIRS

QNo:1 India’s biggest gas importer____________ will build Sri Lanka’s first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal. ONGC HPCL H-Energy Petronet LNG Ltd None of These QNo:2 Who has taken charge as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Vijaya Bank? Rahul Sharma Rajiv Goyal R A Sankara Narayanan Jyoti Jain Saurabh Singh QNo:3 In which country GOI has launched UJALA Scheme? Australia Syria Bhutan Nepal Malaysia QNo:4 Which day is celebrated as International Literacy Day? 8 June 8 September 8 August 8 May 8 July QNo:5 Which State government has signed an MoU with the US-based Hyperloop Transportation Technologies to build India’s first Hyperloop system? Andhra Pradesh Jaipur Maharashtra Madhya Pradesh UP QNo:6 Who has assumed charge as the Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) of NMDC Limited?Who has assumed charge as the Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) of NMDC Limited? Sumit Verma Raj Arjun Rahul Ghosh Vipin Agrawal N Baijendra Kumar QNo:7 Which portal has been launched by the Union Ministry of Human Resource and Development (HRD) for providing digital platform to teachers? Diksha Sarashwati Vandana Gyan Yogyata QNo:8 Which country will host the 2019 edition of the Commonwealth (Youth, Junior and Senior) Weightlifting Championships? Australia China India Ghana Hungry QNo:9 Who has been given additional charge of the post of Chairperson of National Authority Chemical Weapons Convention (NACWC)? Dr. Inder Jit Singh Vivek Singh Aman Jain Piyush Sharma Garima Verma QNo:10 What is the name of India-Sri Lanka joint maritime naval exercise which has been started near Vishakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) in the Bay of Bengal? Indra Navy SLINEX 2017 Komodo Varuna Kakadu

GENERAL AWARENESS

Monetary policy Monetary policy refers to the policy of the central bank with regard to the use of monetary instruments under its control to achieve the goals specified in the Act. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is vested with the responsibility of conducting monetary policy. This responsibility is explicitly mandated under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. The goal(s) of monetary policy The primary objective of monetary policy is to maintain price stability while keeping in mind the objective of growth. Price stability is a necessary precondition to sustainable growth. In May 2016, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act, 1934 was amended to provide a statutory basis for the implementation of the flexible inflation targeting framework. The amended RBI Act also provides for the inflation target to be set by the Government of India, in consultation with the Reserve Bank, once in every five years. Accordingly, the Central Government has notified in the Official Gazette 4 per cent Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation as the target for the period from August 5, 2016 to March 31, 2021 with the upper tolerance limit of 6 per cent and the lower tolerance limit of 2 per cent. The Monetary Policy Process Section 45ZB of the amended RBI Act, 1934 also provides for an empowered six-member monetary policy committee (MPC) to be constituted by the Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette. The MPC determines the policy interest rate required to achieve the inflation target. The Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Department (MPD) assists the MPC in formulating the monetary policy. Views of key stakeholders in the economy, and analytical work of the Reserve Bank contribute to the process for arriving at the decision on the policy repo rate. Instruments of Monetary Policy There are several direct and indirect instruments that are used for implementing monetary policy. Repo Rate: The (fixed) interest rate at which the Reserve Bank provides liquidity to banks up to 90 days against the collateral of government and other approved securities under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) but limited up to .5% of NDTL . Bank can not use SLR Securities as collateral. Reverse Repo Rate: The (fixed) interest rate at which the Reserve Bank absorbs liquidity from banks against the collateral of eligible government securities under the LAF. Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF): The LAF consists of overnight as well as term repo auctions. LAF enables liquidity management on a day to day basis. All clients of RBI are eligible to bid and Bank cannot sell Government security to RBIfrom its SLR quota. Marginal Standing Facility (MSF): A facility under which scheduled commercial banks can borrow amount For a period up to 1 day,24 hours, overnight from the Reserve Bank of India. Here, banks BANK can use SLR securities. Bank Rate: It is the rate at which the Reserve Bank is ready to buy or rediscount bills of exchange or other commercial papers. RBI use BANK RATE as a penal rate in case BANKS are not able to maintain their CRR and SLR. Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR): The average daily balance that a bank is required to maintain with the Reserve Bank as a share of such per cent of its Net demand and time liabilities (NDTL) that the Reserve Bank may notify from time to time in the Gazette of India. Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR): The share of NDTL that a bank is required to maintain in safe and liquid assets, such as, unencumbered government securities, cash and gold. Changes in SLR often influence the availability of resources in the banking system for lending to the MARKET. Open Market Operations (OMOs): These include both, outright purchase and sale of government securities, for injection and absorption of durable liquidity, respectively. Market Stabilisation Scheme (MSS): This instrument for monetary management was introduced in 2004. Surplus liquidity of a more enduring nature arising from large capital inflows is absorbed through sale of short-dated government securities and treasury bills. The cash so mobilised is held in a separate government account with the Reserve Bank OF India.

GENERAL AWARENESS

Inflation/deflation is the percentage change in the valuable goods and services on a year-on-year basis with respect to a base year. Inflation is the increase in prices of goods and services while deflation is the decrease in prices of goods and services with respect to the base year. Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is the price of a representative basket of wholesale goods Formula for calculating Inflation = (WPI of current month in a year – WPI in same month previous year) ————————————————————————————– X 100 WPI in same month of previous year In India, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) was main index for measurement of inflation in India till April 2014. Then onwards RBI adopted new Consumer Price Index (CPI) (combined) as the key measure of inflation. Types of Inflation Demand-pull inflation: inflation from high demand for goods and high employment. Cost push inflation: inflation caused by the sudden decrease in the supply of goods, which would increase goods prices. Pricing Power Inflation: It happens in oligopolistic markets, where prices are increased just to increase profit margins. Taxation: Increase in taxes, cess, etc Production and Distribution Inflation: Increases in the cost of operations, production or supply chains. Sectoral Inflation: It takes place when certain sector of industries increase the price of its goods and services, which have a cascading effect on other industries, for example, cost of crude Fiscal Inflation: Excessive government spending can lead to Fiscal Inflation, for example, Minimum SupportPrice, etc. Hyperinflation: Hyperinflation is also known as runaway inflation or galloping inflation. This can usually lead to the complete breakdown of a country’s monetary system. Effects of inflation: Price rise: Higher price is charged for the same quantity of goods and services. Creditors Lose: A creditor receives a reduced real interest rate. Debtors Gain: A debtor pays a lower real interest rate. A moderate level of inflation characterizes a good economy. An inflation rate of 2 or 3% is beneficial for an economy. In times of lower inflation, the interest rate also remains low, thereby encouraging buying and borrowing. Governments and Central Banks try to achieve lower levels of inflation.