CURRENT AFFAIRS : ( DATE: 22-02-217 & 23-02-2017)

HEALTH SECRETARY LAUNCHES ‘SAATHIYA’ RESOURCE KIT AND ‘SAATHIYA SALAH’ MOBILE APP FOR ADOLESCENTS:

·         Shri C K Mishra, Secretary, Health and Family Welfare launched the SAATHIYA Resource Kit including ‘Saathiya Salah’ Mobile App for adolescents as part of the Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK) program.

·         One of the key interventions under the programme is introduction of the Peer Educators (Saathiyas) who act as a catalyst for generating demand for the adolescent health services and imparting age appropriate knowledge on key adolescent health issues to their peer groups.

·         In order to equip the Saathiyas in doing so, the Health Ministry has launched the Saathiya Resource Kit (including ‘Saathiya Salah’ Mobile App).

·         To address and cater to the health and development needs of the country’s adolescents, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare launched Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK) in January 2014.

INDIA LAUNCHES ‘CYBER SWACHHTA KENDRA’ TO PROTECT CITIZENS :

·         The government through its Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in) launched “Cyber Swachhta Kendra” — a new desktop and mobile security solution for a secure cyber space in the country. The new solution will notify, enable cleaning and secure systems of end-users to prevent further infections.

·         This centre will work in coordination with the internet service providers (ISPs) and Industry.

·         This Kendra will also enhance awareness among citizens regarding botnet and malware infection along with measures to be taken to secure their devices

·         Part of the solution, USB Pratirodh is a desktop security solution that controls the usage of removable storage media like pen drives, external hard drives and other USB-supported mass storage devices.

·         M-Kavach tool offers a comprehensive mobile device security solution for Android devices addressing threats related to mobile phones.

·         AppSamvid is a desktop solution which protects systems by allowing installation of genuine applications through white listing.

RAVI SHANKAR PRASAD HAS LAUNCHED THE CYBER SWACHHTA KENDRA IN NEW DELHI:

·         Mr.Ravi Shankar Prasad, Union Minister of Electronics, has launched the Cyber Swachhta Kendra in New Delhi. The main aim of this Kendra is Botnet cleaning and Malware analysis.

·         On this occasion, Ravi Shankar Prasad has also launched two Applications named Mkavach and Samvid.

·         This helps in preventing threats from malicious applications.

·         The Cyber Swachhta Kendra is part of the government of India’s Digital India initiative under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

GOVT LAUNCHES ITS OWN QR CODE PLATFORM - BHARATQR:

·         Bharat QR will be the first platform with interoperability which will allow payments from various cards, including Visa and Mastercard.

·         QR code or Quick Response code is a two-dimensional machine-readable code made up of an array of black and white squares, used for storing URLs or other information for reading by the camera on a smartphone.

·         It will make payments seamless for the buyer, making them possible without card swiping machines.

·         It will also enable the buyer to make payments to retailers without using the merchant's ID or number.

·         Bharat QR will also let the users make Aadhaar-enabled payments and through UPI.

EDII WINS INTERNATIONAL MERCURY AWARD 2016-17:

·         The Ahmedabad-based Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), an acknowledged national resource institute for entrepreneurship education, research, training and institution-building, has received the prestigious International Mercury Awards for the year 2016-17 for the best overall presentation of its 2015-2016 annual report.

·         Instituted by MerComm, Inc. the world's only independent awards organization, the International Mercury Awards, honor outstanding achievement in professional communications in around 80 countries

·         Founded in 1987, the Mercury Awards promote excellence, quality and performance in the various fields of public relations.

KASHMIR TO OBSERVE 2017 AS THE ‘YEAR OF APPLE’:

·         Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti declared 2017 as ‘Year of Apple’ in a major bid to promote the famed Kashmiri apples in domestic and foreign markets.

·         The Chief Minister launched the High Density Apple Plantation Scheme in Srinagar. These high-density plants will be routed through J&K Bank along with the subsidy.

·         Fifty per cent subsidy would be provided by the government to the farmers under the scheme,

·         Jammu and Kashmir is the largest apple producing State in India at 11.2 metric tonnes, which accounts for 71% of national production

ARUNACHAL CM PEMA KHANDU INAUGURATES COMPOSITE REGIONAL CENTRE IN ITANAGAR:

·         Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu in the presence of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju inaugurated the Composite Regional Centre at Itanagar Banquet Hall, Arunachal Pradesh.

·         Its aim is to create resources and infrastructure required for developing services for persons with disabilities. Total outlay for this project was Rs.20 Cr.

·         The centre is established under the National Institute for Locomotor Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Govt. of India Kolkata of Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities.

INDIA WIN 'HANDBALL-ON-SKATES' WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP:

·         India won the men's Roll Ball World Cup Championship as they beat Iran 8-7 in the final on Wednesday.

·         India also won the tournament in the women's category, defeating Iran 6-4 in the final.

·         Roll Ball is a combination of roller-skating, handball, and basketball, and it was invented by an Indian sports teacher Raju Dabhade in 2003.

FIRST GRAMIN KHEL MAHOTSAV TO BE HELD NEXT MONTH IN DELHI

·         Union Sports Minister Vijay Goel announced that the first Gramin Khel Mahotsav will be held from 25th to 31st of next month in New Delhi.

·         Addressing a press conference in the national capital, Goel said the games will be held in five sports disciplines Athletics, Kabaddi, Kho-Kho, Volley Ball and Wrestling. He said a need has been felt to deepen the sports culture among the rural youth.

·         The Sports Minister said this festival will help participation of rural youth in large numbers in popular sports and encourage them to achieve excellence and adopt healthy life style.

·         These games are intended to act as a catalyst to promote sports in rural areas across the country and will be replicated in other states and union territories as well.

·         In order to capture the popular imagination and encourage the youth of Delhi to take keen interest in sports, renowned wrestlers Sushil Kumar, Yogeshwar Dutt and Geeta Phogat are being invited to participate in demonstration matches.

INDIA WILL HOST THE 2019 COMBINED WORLD CUP FOR SHOOTING:

·         National Rifle Association of India has recently confirmed that India will host the Combined World Cup for shooting in 2019. It will include the three categories like shotgun, rifle, and pistol.

·         Combined World Cup will a qualifying event for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY CONGRESS 2017 IN KERALA:

·         The Third National Biodiversity Congress (NBC) 2017 has begun in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala state. The main Aim of this Congress is to identify the practical, evidence-based case studies and to support the plan of action. “Mainstreaming Biodiversity for Sustainable Development” is the theme of the National Biodiversity Congress 2017.

AMARINDER SINGH’S BIOGRAPHY ‘THE PEOPLE’S MAHARAJA’ RELEASED:

·         Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh’s biography, ‘The People’s Maharaja‘, written by Khushwant Singh was released in Chandigarh.

·         Captain Amarinder Singh is an Indian politician of the Indian National Congress.

·         He was CM of Punjab from 2002 to 2007. Now, he is the sitting President of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee.

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CURRENT AFFAIRS : ( DATE: 21-02-2017)

1.      BARREN ISLAND: INDIA’S ONLY LIVE VOLCANO ACTIVE AGAIN:

·         According to scientists from Goa based National Institute of Oceanography (NIO), India’s only live volcano at Barren Island in the Andaman and Nicobar has become active again.

·         After lying dormant for 150 years, Barren Island volcano had erupted in 1991 and since then it is showing sporadic activity. Now it is erupting in small episodes of five to 10 minutes.

·         It is claimed that volcanoes is erupting the rising magma formed deep in the mantle due to the melting of the subducted Indian Ocean crust.

2.      BIHAR GOVERNMENT PROHIBITS STATE OFFICIALS FROM CONSUMING LIQUOR ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD:

·         The Bihar Cabinet under the chairmanship of CM Nitish Kumar has ruled out a new rule under which no officials of the state government would be allowed to consume liquor either in the state or outside the state and not even abroad.

·         This makes Bihar the 1st state to have such restrictions for officials and judges.

·         The cabinet amended the Bihar Government Servants’ Conduct Rules 1976 and approved the Bihar Judicial Officers Conduct Rules, 2017.

·         Any officer found guilty would be liable to face dismissal, suspension or even salary cuts.

3.      KHAJURAHO DANCE FESTIVAL STARTS IN MADHYA PRADESH:

·         The Khajuraho Dance Festival kicked off at Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh.

·         This cultural festival showcases various Indian classical dance styles such as Bharathanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Kathakali, Kuchipudi and Manipuri with performances of some of the best exponents in the field.

4. HEMA MALINI: BEYOND THE DREAM GIRL AUTHORED BY RAM KAMAL MUKHERJEE:

·         Hema Malini’s journey from an actor and filmmaker to a politician penned by Ram Kamal Mukherjee is being chronicled as an authorised biography titled ‘Hema Malini: Beyond the Dream Girl‘.

·         The biography is written by author-columnist Ram Kamal Mukherjee.

5.      TATA STEEL OWNED KATAMATI IRON MINE WINS BEST GREEN ORGANIZATION AWARD:

·         Katamati Iron Mine, owned by Tata Steel, was conferred with the Best Green Organisation of the Year Award in recognition of its environmental protection measures, at the Global Green Future Leadership Awards in Mumbai.

·         The Global Green Future Leadership Awards is awarded to any organization that participates in environmentally friendly or green activities to ensure that all processes, products, and manufacturing activities adequately address environmental concerns while maintaining a profit.

6. WORLD DAY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE: FEBRUARY 20:

·         20th February is observed as World Day of Social Justice to recognize the need to promote efforts to tackle issues such as poverty, exclusion and unemployment.

·         2017 Theme was “Preventing conflict and sustaining peace through decent work”.

7. INDIA IS THE WORLD’S LARGEST ARMS IMPORTER IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS:

·         As per the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report, it is clear that the India has emerged as the world’s largest importer of major arms during the year 2012–16.

·         Under this report, India accounted for 13 percent of the global total sales. According to the data, it is made clear that the India increased its arms imports by 43% between 2007–11 and 2012–16.

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EXPECTED CUT OFF MARKS FOR TNPSC GROUP -1 PRELIMS: 2017

1. OC:

·        MALE: 127 (+/- 2) CORRECT QUESTIONS OUT OF 200 QUESTIONS. 

·        FEMALE: 125 (+/- 2)

2. BC:

·        MALE: 123 (+/- 3).

·        FEMALE: 118 (+/- 3).

·        PSTM: (-10).

3. MBC:

·        MALE: 120 (+/- 3).

·        FEMALE: 115 (+/- 3).

·        PSTM: (-10).

4. SC:

·        MALE: 115 (+/- 3).

·        FEMALE: 110 (+/- 3).

·        PSTM: (-10).

OPEN SESSION ON ART OF ANSWER WRITING FOR GROUP 1 MAINS:

·        TNPSC GROUP 1 MAINS ANSWER WRITING PROGRAM & SCHOLARSHIP TEST (TAMIL AND ENGLISH).

·        ANSWER WRITING PROGRAM: 10 AM TO 1 PM.

·        SCHOLARSHIP TEST: 2 PM TO 4 PM .(25/02/2017).

FEATURES:

1. SEPARATE BATCHES FOR TAMIL AND ENGLISH MEDIUM.

2. TOTAL TEST 60 WITH ANSWER DISCUSSION.

3. TEST PAPER CORRECTION WITHIN TWO DAYS.

4. ONE TO ONE FEEDBACK AND COUNSELING FOR ANSWER WRITING.

5. FEES REDUCTION UP TO 100% BASED ON MARKS.

6. UPDATED MATERIALS.

ALL THE BEST...

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IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS FOR TNPSC GROUP-1 (October - 2017 Part-1)

v Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi inaugurated the INDOSAN – India Sanitation Conference, which is meant for taking stock of the progress made under the Swachh Bharat mission.

v 19 States and the Union Territory of Chandigarh were rewarded with performance incentive for promoting urban reforms under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) during 2015-16- Tamil Nadu (Rs.61.34 cr) tops the list that received the maximum incentive.

v India may consider Iran's plan to develop Chabahar airport.

v Philippines President, Mr. Rodrigo Duterte said that, he will slaughter 3 million drug addicts.

v Google to set up "Cloud Region" in Mumbai.

v Almost one of every four species of flowering plants found in India is endemic to the country: BSI (Botanical Survey of India).

v Mr. Somesh Chandra of 'RashtradootSaptahik' was elected as President of INS (Indian Newspaper Society) for 2016-17.

v Scientists claim to have dsicovered a new species of "Pika", a mammal belonging to the rabbit and hare family (Lagomorpha), in the Himalayas in Sikkim.

v Oct 02: International Day of Non – Violence.

v Ministry of Information & Broadcasting released a book called ‘In the Footsteps of Mahatma : Gandhi and Sanitation’ ( authored by Prof. 

SudarshanIyangar, a veteran Gandhian).

v Young filmmaker KatyayanSivpuri (Maharashtra) won the first prize at the Swachh Bharat Short Film Festival for his work "Murga".

v Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will be the Chief Guest of Republic Day Parade 2017.

v Social activist Ms. MedhaPatkar began her 10 day "NashaMukt Bharat Yatra" (Addiction free India) from Kanniyakumari urging the implementation of prohibition across India.

v Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) became the first full member of the BCCI to adopt the MoA and Rules and Regulations as recommended by the Supreme Court appointed Justice Lodha Committee.

v India's Gaganjeet Bhullar won Korea Open 2016 (Golf).

v A U.N. postal administration stamp to honour singer M. S. Subbulakshmi was released (on Oct 02, 2016)- Carnatic singer SudhaRaghunathan and team performed at the event; M. S. Subbulakshmi performed at the U. N. in 1966.

v An Indian NGO, SwayamShikshanPrayog, has bagged a UN Climate award for 2016.

v Kiara Nirghin, an Indian - origin (South Africa) teen has won a $50000 scholarship, the grand prize at the annual Google Science Fair for her work using orange peel to develop a cheaper "super - absorbent material" that helps soil retain water.

v India’s RTI Act ranked 4th best in the world.

v Union Government has accepted the recommendation of the 7th Pay Commission on Modified Assured Career Progression (MACP) for Central Government employees which would ensure one minimum promotion for every 10 years till 30 years of service.

v India to organise a trade fair for BRICS nations (First BRICS Trade Fair & Exhibition); Oct 12-14, 2016 in New Delhi.

v Gujarat: 900-year-old World Heritage Site Rani kiVav beat 10 other iconic heritage structures across the country to bag an award for the “Cleanest Iconic Place” at the Indian Sanitation Conference (INDOSAN) 2016.

v Jharkhand: becomes the first State to implement Direct Benefit Transfer in Kerosene.

v Telangana: IT Minister Mr. K T Rama Rao (KTR) was awarded with the Global Champion of Digital Literacy Award by Certiport.

v Canada: world's tallest wood building has 18 storeys; 174 feet; located at British Columbia's Brock Commons student residence.

v Estonia: Ms. KerstiKaljulaid elected as first female President of Estonia.

v Centre has constituted a four-member Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) under the Chairmanship of Madhusudan Sahoo.

v Filmmaker and elephant researcher Ms. PrajnaChowta has been appointed Chevalier de l'Ordre National de Merite (Knight in the National Order of Merit), one of the highest civilian recognitions of the French Government.

v World Space Week: Oct 04 - 10; Theme: "Remote Sensing: Enabling Our Future".

v Haiti: Hurricane Matthew hits the country.

v SBI becomes first domestic bank to open branch in Yangon With this SBI has now 198 branches in 37 countries.

v An 18-year-old girl AnoyaraKhatun, who was trafficked from the remote islands of Sundarbans in West Bengal, is an international child rights crusader and has been invited twice to speak at the United Nations.

v Ms. NayanjotLahiri has been awarded the 2016 John F. Richards Prize for her book "Ashoka in Ancient India".

v Union Cabinet has given its approval to M/s. HLL Lifecare Ltd., a Mini Ratna PSU under Ministry of Health & Family Welfare to sub- lease 330.10 acres of land at Chengalpattu, located in the outskirts of Chennai, to setup a medical devices manufacturing park (Medipark) through a special purpose Vehicle.

v Social networking site Facebook is collaborating with the Election Commission of India in five states (Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand) going to polls next year to run a voter registration drive aimed at encouraging youth to participate in the democratic exercise.

v National Book Trust (NBT) - an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Human Resources Development is launching a new scheme titled "Mahila Lekhak Protahan Yojana"; to promote women writers.

v Maharashtra: Chief Minister Mr. DevendraFadnavis declared Nagpur as the first digital district of India in Mumbai - All 776 gram panchayats in Nagpur district have been digitally transformed.- 29,000 gram panchayats across Maharashtra would be digitally transformed by December 2018.

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