Current Affairs 17 March 2020

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 17 March 2020, which have unique updates of Latest Current Affairs 2020 events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, PTI, Indian Express, Business Standard and all Government official websites.

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Click here for Current Affairs 16 March 2020NATIONAL AFFAIRS

PM Modi proposed the creation of COVID 19 emergency fund; SAARC: India offers the US $10 million.Prime Minister Narendra Modi has proposed the formulation of a common strategy to tackle COVID-19(Coronavirus) in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) region during the video conference with SAARC representatives. PM Modi has proposed the creation of COVID-19 Emergency Fund through voluntary contributions from all SAARC Nations. This fund can be used by any of the partner countries to meet the cost of immediate actions. India has offered the US $10 million for the fund. India is also assembling a Rapid Response Team of doctors and specialists, along with testing kits and other equipment, on standby mode, as an aid for other countries, if required….Click here to Read More

Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurates ROPAX Service from BhauchaDhakka to Mandwa in Maharashtra
On 15th March 2020, Shri Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of State for Shipping and Chemical and Fertilizers inaugurated ROPAX services at Alibag, Maharashtra. It is a Water Transport Service Project under Eastern Waterfront Development from BhauchaDhakka in Mumbai to Mandwa in Maharashtra.
Benefits of ROPAX services:
ROPAX Vessel M2M -1 was built in Greece in September 2019, which is specially designed for the passengers for a time-saving journey and it is highly manoeuvrable.
i.This service is introduced to reduce the travelling time, Vehicular emission, road traffic, and fuel consumption.
ii.The road distance from BhauchaDhakka, Mumbai to Mandwa will cover about 110km which takes a time duration of 3-4 hours but the waterway covers about 18km and takes about an hour one-way trip.
Features of ROPAX:
i.The Vessel has a speed of 14knots and can carry about 200 cars and 1000 passengers at a time.
ii.It consists of a ramp on both sides so that cars can directly travel into the ROPAX vessel and can move in and out easily. It can be operated even in the monsoon season.
iii.Development cost: Mumbai Port Trust has developed ROPAX jetty and terminal facilities at BhauchaDhakka at the cost of Rs.31 Crores and the ROPAX jetty and terminal facilities is developed at Mandwa by Maharashtra Maritime Board at a cost of Rs.135 Crores.
About Maharashtra:
Capital– Mumbai
Chief Minister– Uddhav Thackeray
Governor– Bhagat Singh Koshyari

BANKING & FINANCE

Flipkart teamed up with Aegon life insurance to sell quick-access life insurance policies
On March 16, 2020, Flipkart, an E-commerce company based partnered with Aegon Life Insurance to sell comprehensive insurance solutions to customers seeking instant digital policies with an assured sum up to Rs 10 lakh.
Key Points
i.One of the major problems faced by the insurance industry is the idea that buying is expensive & complicated which is followed by long, difficult tenures &mis-selling.
ii.This partnership aims to overcome the issue & make life insurance more convenient & transparent for customers at the click of a button.
iii.The life insurance policies have diverse offerings- sums assured ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 10 lakh, premiums starting from Rs 129 for Rs 1 lakh sum insured.
iv.The policies are available to the existing customers of Flipkart between the ages of 18 & 65 years.
v.With instant life insurance cover through a digital policy as its core value proposition, such policies do not require medical tests or paperwork.
About Aegon Life Insurance:
Headquarters– Mumbai, India
Chief Executive Officer(CEO)– Vineet Arora
About Flipkart
Headquarters– Bengaluru, India
CEO– Kalyan Krishnamurthy

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

39th GST Council meet on ‘Know your Supplier’; GST on mobile phones hiked to 18%On 14 March 2020, several decisions have been taken regarding the GST mechanism on particular sections during the 39th GST Council meet in New Delhi headed by Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Union Minister of State for Finance & Corporate Affairs Shri Anurag Thakur also attended the meet. One of the decisions includes calculation of delayed GST payment on the net tax liabilityw.e.f. 1st July 2017, the day the GST came into force. Net cash tax liability is arrived at after deducting the input tax credits available from gross tax liability.
-Changes in the GST rates; w.e.f April 1, 2020

• GST on mobile phones and specified parts were increased to 18% from 12%.
• GST on Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) service in respect to aircraft was reduced to 5% from 18% with full ITC (Input Tax Credit).
• GST on all types of matchsticks has been rationalised to a single GST rate of 12%. Till now, the handmade ones were taxed at 5% and the rest was taxed at 18%.

-‘Know your Supplier’ (KYS) scheme introduced
-New GSTR to be implemented from Oct 1, 2020
-Waiver and Extensions; no late fee for GSTR-9 for FY17-18 and FY18-19….Click here to Read More

Gold imports down 8.86 % to $ 27 bn during April-February of FY 2019-20: Commerce ministry
On March 15, 2020, According to commerce ministry data, India’s gold imports declined by 8.86 % to $ 27 billion (about Rs 1.90 lakh crore) during the first 11 months (April-February) of the current financial year-FY 2019-20.
In the same period last fiscal (FY 2018-19), gold imports stood at $ 29.62 billion.
Key Points:
i.India’s trade deficit was reduced to $ 143.12 billion in the first 11 months of the fiscal year due to a reduction in gold imports, from $ 173 billion in the same period last fiscal.
ii.In order to reduce the trade deficit and the negative impact of gold imports on the current account deficit (CAD), the government increased the import duty on it from 10 % to 12.5 %.
iii.The country’s annual gold imports are 800 to 900 tonnes & Companies in the region are shifting their manufacturing business to neighbouring countries due to high tariffs. Hence, Gems and jewellery exports declined by 8.25 % to $ 33.78 billion during the April-February period.
iv.According to Reserve Bank of India (RBI), India’s CAD fell sharply to $ 1.4 billion, or 0.2 % of GDP (gross domestic product), for the October-December 2019 quarter of FY 2019-20 due to the lower trade deficit.
About CAD: It is the difference between foreign exchange inflows and outflows.
About Ministry of Commerce and Industry:
Headquarters– New Delhi
Union Minister– Piyush Goyal

OIL signed Crude Oil agreement with Numaligarh Refinery
On March 15, 2020, the country’s second-largest national oil explorer Oil India Limited (OIL) signed an agreement named as Crude Oil Sales Agreement (COSA) with Numaligarh Refinery for sale &purchase of crude oil at Narengi, Guwahati.
Key Points:
i.The agreement to have a term of 5 years (from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2025)
ii.It is expected to organize the sale & purchase transactions of crude oil produced from fields in northeastern India.
iii.It is signed by Harish Madhav- Director Finance, OIL &IndranilMittra- Director Finance, NRL.
About OIL:
Headquarters– Noida, India
Chairman & Managing Director– Sushil Chandra Mishra

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS  

 Chameli Devi Jain Award 2019 for outstanding Women media persons.On March 14, 2020 Indian journalists Arfa Khanum Sherwani, senior editor of the news website ‘The Wire’ and Bengaluru-based freelancer Rohini Mohan jointly won the “Chameli Devi Jain Award 2019” for outstanding Women media persons. The honourable mention was received by Rukmini S, an independent data-journalist from Chennai….Click here to Read More

Prachi Salve of IndiaSpend and Pradeep Dwivedi of DainikJagran wins Road Safety (RS) Media Fellowship 2019
On March 14, 2020, Centre for Media Studies (CMS) announced that Prachi Salve of IndiaSpend and Pradeep Dwivedi of DainikJagran as the first winner of Road Safety (RS) Media Fellowship 2019, for their work in contribution towards reporting on road safety.
Key Points:
i.Centre for Media Studies (CMS) supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), conducted a three-month program for journalists to work on road safety issues in 2019. This program is conducted to Strengthen the capacities of the journalists. 
ii.Under this program, 12 journalists will be selected from Delhi, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
iii.The first prize will receive a citation of Rs.50,000, Rs.30,000 to the second and Rs.20,000 to the third.
Other Awardees:
i.The awardees in the second position are B Raveendra Shetty of Vijay Karnataka and Purnima Singh of Times Now Hindi.
ii.The awardees in the third position areMr. KishorDwivedi of Press Trust of India and Mr.SangameshMenasinakai of The Times of India.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Raj Kumar Singh Launched a new website of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.On March 16, 2020, the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power, New and Renewable Energy & Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Raj Kumar (R K) Singh launched a new website of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
Key Points

• The new website is created to address the latest needs of the ministry’s rapid and accurate information dissemination needs, making it more informative, interactive & user-friendly, including for those with visual disabilities….Click here to Read More

SPORTS

 112^th edition of All England Open 2020 held at Birmingham arena, England2020 All England Open (officially known as the Yonex All England Open Badminton Championships 2020), was the 112^th edition of oldest badminton tournament organized jointly by Badminton England & Badminton World Federation (BWF) was held at Arena Birmingham in Birmingham, England from March 11 -15, 2020….Click here to Read More

Table tennis star Sharath kamal wins men’s singles title at ITTF challenger plus Oman Open 2020 held in Muscat
On March 15, 2020, Achanta Sharath Kamal (37), a professional table tennis player from Tamil Nadu (TN) has ended the title wait of a decade by winning the ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation) Challenger Plus Oman Open 2020 men’s singles title by defeating Portugal’s top seed Marcos Freitas with 4-2 scores in the final played at Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat, Oman.
Key Points:
i.Sharath won his last title at the 2010 Egypt Open. He then reached the semi-finals twice at the 2011 Morocco Open and the 2017 India Open but failed to win the trophy.
ii.Sharath made a stunning comeback after trailing in two games to win the semi-final by defeating Kirill Skachkov of Russia.
About ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation):
Headquarters– Lausanne, Switzerland
President– Thomas Weikert

OBITUARY

Sahitya Akademi awardee, Malayalam poet Puthussery Ramachandran passed away On 14th March 2020, Dr Puthussery Ramachandran a Veteran Malayalam poet, a scholar of Dravidian linguistics and a teacher passed away due to age-related illness at the age of 91 years. 
About Dr Puthussery Ramachandran:
i.Dr. Puthussery Ramachandran was born on 23rd September 1928 in Vallikunnam, Kerala. He completed his Graduation B.A. in Malayalam language and literature at Sree Narayana College, Kollam. His PhD was in Linguistics in 1970 from the same university.
ii.His first poem Onnanthyakkuttamwas published at the age of 16.
iii.His poems have been translated and published in various languages like Hindi, English and Tamil.
Awards received by Dr Puthussery Ramachandran:
i.SahityaAkademihonoured the translation award in 2005 and BhashaSamman in 2014.
ii.He received the prestigiousEzhuthachchanPuraskaaram, highest literary honour in 2015, Yesenin Award, from Russian Cultural Centre and Sergei Yesenin Museum, Moscow in 2012.
iii.He is the Initiator for organizing first World Malayalam Conference at Thiruvananthapuram in 1977 and was also an organizing secretary at All India on Dravidian Linguistics in 1971.
iv.Due to his continuous efforts, Malayalam has been recognized as a Classic language by the Central Government in 2013.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

“An Extraordinary Life: A biography of Manohar Parrikar” to be released in April 2020On March 16, 2020, A book titled “An Extraordinary Life: A biography of Manohar Parrikar” was written by senior journalists Sadguru Patil and Mayabhushan Nagvenkar. The book was published by Penguin Random House India and to be released in April 2020.
Key Points:
i.About Manohar Parrikar: Late Shri Manohar Gopalkrishna Prabhu Parrikar was the former Chief Minister (CM) of Goa and also served as the Defense Minister in the Modi Government from the year 2014 to 2017.
ii.The book is announced on the occasion of the first anniversary of Late Shri Manohar Parrikar which falls on March 17, 2020.
iii.About the authors: Sadguru Patil, is serving as bureau chief with the Goa edition of Lokmat and also worked as chief reporter with Dainik Gomantak. He has been working with various Marathi newspapers since 1955.
iv.Mayabhushan Nagvenkar serves as the state correspondent for the Indo-Asian News Service based in Goa & has been a journalist for nearly 22 years in Delhi, Goa and Mumbai.

IMPORTANT DAYS 

World Consumer Day 2020 The World Consumer Day 2020 was observed on March 15, 2020. The day is celebrated every year on March 15 to spread awareness about consumer rights and needs since 1983. It is an initiative by Consumer International which is a membership organisation for consumer groups around the world.
Theme of the year 2020: ‘The Sustainable Consumer.’
Key Points:
i.About Consumer rights: According to the Consumer rights each customer has the “rights to have information about different aspects of a good or service such as its quality, quantity, potency, purity, price & standard”.
ii.In 2019, the Government has enacted the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 replacing the old 1986 Act to protect the consumers and timely settlement of disputes.
iii.There is also a provision of setting up of Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), under the new act and the authority has the dedicated wing to carry out inquiries relating to consumer rights, unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements.
iv.Consumer Affairs Ministry is also running various consumer awareness programmes through “Jaago Grahak Jaago”.
v.The day draws its inspiration from former US (United States) President John F Kennedy, who was the first leader in the world to address the issue of consumer rights in a special message sent to the US Congress on March 15, 1962.

National Vaccination Day 2020 is observed on March 16National Vaccination Day is observed every year on 16th March 2020. This day is celebrated throughout India to create awareness and the importance of getting timely vaccinations.
Key Points:
i.This day was first observed in 1995 and the first dose of Oral Polio Vaccine was given in India. Vaccination protects children from serious illness and complications of vaccine-preventable diseases.
ii.If children are not vaccinated they can spread diseases to the other children who are yet to be vaccinated and to people with weak immune systems. In order to prevent such issues, polio vaccination is provided.
iii.On March 27, 2014, the World Health Organization(WHO) declared India a polio-free country.
About WHO:
Headquarters– Geneva, Switzerland
Director-General– TedrosAdhanom

STATE NEWS

 CMAST and CMAT scheme for welfare of sportspersons & artistes announced: Manipur CM On March 15, 2020, Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam(N) Biren Singh announced the Chief Minister’s Akhannaba Sanaroisin gi Tengbang (CMAST) & Chief Minister Artist Sing gi Tengbang (CMAT) to provide benefits to sportspersons & artistes who have brought laurels to the State & country.
CMAST Scheme (for sportspersons)
i.This project is estimated to cost around Rs 7.36 crore (736 lakh).
CMAT Scheme (for artistes)
i.The project is estimated around Rs 5.7 crore (570 Lakh)….Click here to Read More

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