Hello and welcome to exampundit. Here are the Important Current Affairs of 15 & 16 August, 2017. These are very important for the upcoming IBPS PO, IBPS RRB, OICL AO, UIIC Assistant & NICL Assistant Exams.
Banking & Financial News |
GeM and CII sign MoU to establish GeMSamvad
- The Government eMarketplace (GeM) SPV and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on 14 August 2017 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish GeMSamvad, a GeM -Industry forum.
- GeMSamvad will be a participative and collaborative approach with the industry for promoting Indian industry and entrepreneurship.
- The MoU was signed by S Radha Chauhan, CEO of GeM and Chandrajit Banerjee, DG of CII.
- GeM and CII will work together to create GeM related awareness and onboard industry members from across the country.
- It also includes creation of GeM-Industry Forum for collaboration with the Indian Industry for seeking inputs on the technical specifications of products.
- It calls for improving the quality of products procured from the MSMEs and organize annual Public Procurement Convention of all stakeholders.
- It also calls for setting up of GeM Resource Centres at CII Regional Offices.
India to host next steering committee meeting of TAPI gas pipeline
- India will host the next steering committee meeting of the proposed Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.
- The decision was taken during the sixth joint Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) meeting on trade, economic, scientific and technological cooperation.
- The Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India Pipeline, also known as Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline, is a natural gas pipeline being developed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
- The pipeline will transport Caspian Sea natural gas from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan into Pakistan and then to India.
- On 24 April 2008, Pakistan, India and Afghanistan signed a framework agreement to buy natural gas from Turkmenistan.
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News related to India and states |
Cabinet approves MoU between India, Sweden on IPR
- The Union Cabinet on Wednesday cleared MoU signed between India and Sweden on intellectual property right (IPR) cooperation, aimed at benefiting entrepreneurs, investors and businesses.
- The Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the memorandum of understanding (MoU), an official statement said.
- This will enable India to exchange experiences in innovation and IP ecosystems.
- "The MoU establishes a wide-ranging and flexible mechanism through which both countries can exchange best practices and work together on training programmes and technical exchanges to raise awareness on IPRs and better protect intellectual property rights," the statement read.
- The government hopes that the MoU signing will further the objective of National IPR Policy, 2016, and sees it as a landmark step towards becoming a major player in global innovation.
World News |
Italy to host G-7 Interior Ministers' summit on security
- Italy would be hosting the summit of the Group of Seven Interior Ministers on security issues in October 2017.
- According to Italy’s Interior Minister, Marco Minniti, the meeting is being organised at the request of Italy's G-7 partners- Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan and the United States.
- While speaking at a press conference, the Minister stated that while the terror alert level remains high in Italy, there is no trace of an imminent threat or attack.
- Minniti further said that since the beginning of the year 2015, Italy has deported over 199 foreigners, who were suspected of posing security threats to the nation. The people, according to the minister, initially showed signs of radicalisation but were expelled before they could reach the stage of planning an attack.
- Italy currently holds the rotating helm of the G-7 industrialised nations.
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Sports News |
Alexander Zverev beats Roger Federer to win 2017 Rogers Cup
- Germany's Alexander Zverev on 13 August 2017 defeated Roger Federer 6-3 6-4 to claim his second Masters 1000 title in Montreal, Canada.
- With this, Zverev became the third man to beat Federer in the year 2017.
- By claiming the 2017 Rogers Cup, Zverev became the first player outside the Big Four to win multiple Masters 1000 titles in a season since David Nalbandian in 2007.
Olympic Task Force recommends steps to improve sports in India
- The eight-member Olympic Task Force (OTF) that submitted its report in the second week of August 2017 has emphasised the need to be "athlete-centric, coach-led and system-driven".
- They submitted an extensive report titled as "Preparation of 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games" to the Sports Secretary, Injeti Srinivas. The report focuses on three fold formula of being athletic-centric, coach-led and system driven.
Highlights of the extensive document
- The extensive document is divided into three parts and they are key takeaways, an executive summary and the main report.
- It calls for the establishment of an Empowered Steering Committee (ESC) to drive all initiatives. ESC will be responsible for ensuring proper preparation for Tokyo 2020 Olympics and it should have full financial autonomy. The ESC should be supported by a special cell that will take care of all the logistical issues for athletes, so they can concentrate on training alone.
- It calls for the appointment of an internationally acclaimed High-Performance Director who will be working with the Empowered Steering Committee.
- It calls for a removal of the cap on salary for the Indian coached and support staff.
- It suggests that former athletes should be encouraged to return to respective sports as coaches, and support staff on deputation.
- It asks for issuing Pradhan Mantri Gold Card for the elite potential athlete and their coaches as an identity of being a 'National asset'. It says that this card will provide them with facilities like emergency quota for air/train/bus tickets as well as hassle free access at various places.
- It says that athletes should have an access to a 24x7 National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) helpline, where they can seek advice on any doubt.
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