Current Affairs Today September 9 2017

We are here for you to provide the important current affairs of September 9 2017 which have unique updates of all daily events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, India Today, Indian Express, Business Standard, all Government official websites. Our complete current affairs helps you to get more marks in Banking, insurance, UPSC, SSC, CLAT, Railway and all other competitive Exams.

• Daily Current Affairs
• Try our Current Affairs Quiz 2017
• Read Our 2017 Current Affairs
• Current Affairs 2017 September

Indian Affairs

21st GST Council meet in Hyderabad
On 9^th September 2017, the 21st meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council was held at Hyderabad International Convention Centre, in Hyderabad.
GST Council Meet:

1. This is the first time the GST Council met after filing of GST returns.
2. The meet was headed by Finance Minister Mr.Arun Jaitley. Finance Ministers of all states attended the meet.
3. The issues discussed in the GST Council meet were – increasing tax for luxury products, lowering tax for commonly used products like idli& dosa batter, dried tamarind, custard powder and kitchen gas lighter, operation of GSTN (GST Network), tax on khadi and handicraft items etc.
4. Telangana Government asked for rollback of GST on its developmental projects. It has also opposed the 12% tax on its pet projects such as Mission Bhagiratha and Mission Kakatiya.
5. Apart from the projects, Telangana has requested tax reduction for certain products such as granite, beedi and 33 such products.
6. Minutes of the previous GST meet were confirmed.
7. The state government hosted a dinner for all the council members and the finance minister at the Falaknuma Palace, in Hyderabad, after the meet.

About GST:

1. Goods& Services Tax
2. Indirect Tax
3. Consists of State GST (SGST), Central GST (CGST) and Integrated GST (IGST)
4. Implemented on 1^stJuly, 2017

Government approves cadre review policy for Army Officers; Indian Army to induct women in military police
On 8^th September 2017, in New Delhi, the Government announced that it has approved cadre review policy for Junior Commissioned Officers & other rank-holders in the Army, and Indian Army is to induct women in military police.
Cadre review policy:

1. Government approved the third cadre review on 1^st September, 2017.
2. The policy is now in the hands of Ministry of Defence for implementation.
3. This policy will improve promotion chances, financial benefits and career progression for the army personnel.
4. This upgradation process will take a period of 5 years.
5. This will have a positive impact on 1.45 lakh army officers.
6. The last cadre review for army personnel was done in 1984.

Induction of women in military police:

1. With Ms.Nirmala Sitharaman having taken charge as the new defence minister of India, a step towards increasing women’s participation in the army has been taken.
2. Currently women are allowed to join the Army as officers in the medical, legal, educational, signals and engineering wings only.
3. The new proposal will allow women to serve in the non-officer cadre for the first time in India.
4. The induction will start in 2018.
5. 800 women are planned to be inducted with a yearly intake of 52 women.

About the Ministry of Defence:

1. Headquarters – New Delhi
2. Minister – Ms.Nirmala Sitharaman
3. Deputy Minister (Minister of State) – Mr.Subhash Ramrao Bhamre

About the Indian Army:

1. Motto – Service Before Self
2. Chief of the Army Staff – General Bipin Rawat
3. Vice Chief of the Army Staff – Lieutenant General Sarath Chand…Click here for more detail

Anupriya Patel inaugurates 10th Medical Technology Conference in New Delhi
Anupriya Patel was inaugurating the 10th Medical Technology Conference organized by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi on 7^th of Sept. 2017.
Key Points:
i.The Government is committed to support the industry which help in providing affordable healthcare to masses and also help India to become a major manufacturing hub.
ii.The Commerce Ministry is also supporting the Health Ministry is setting up medical devices manufacturing units.
iii.Patel also mentioned in her speech that the web based health management system introduced by the Government at the states’ levels is creating a strong infrastructure for monitoring the progress made in the health sector.
iv.It also helps in minimizing the huge health losses being incurred in states due to inadequate health infrastructure.
v.In the medical technology manufacturing sector 100% FDI is allowed and the new medical devices parks anticipated in States like Gujarat, Tamil Nadu etc would augment the production.
vi.The Health Ministry is already at the forefront of incorporating the benefits of digital technology towardsachieving the goals elucidated in National Health Policy (2017) which are synchronous with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
vii.The National Health Mission (NHM) is already using throughout the country a web-based Health Management Information System (HMIS) to collect and collate data related to the health infrastructure.
viii.The medical technology industry is increasing manifolds and is expected to grow from 4.5 Billion US Dollars currently to 14 Billion US Dollars in 2022.

Eastern Fleet Ships departed for Overseas Deployment to East and South-East Asia
In accordance with the India’s ‘Act East Policy’, two Indian Naval Ships departed for deployment to East and South-East Asia.
Key Points:
i.INS Satpura and INS Kadmatt departed from Visakhapatnam on 8th of Sept. 2017 to visit 12 ports.
ii.The deployment aims to strengthen existing bonds between India and the regional countries.
iii.The ships will visit Singapore, Vietnam, Philippines, Cambodia and Brunei to celebrate the 25th anniversary of India-ASEAN dialogue.
iv.The two ships will be deployed for more than 3 months away from home port.
v.The ships will be participated in the International Fleet Review hosted by the Association of South East Asian Countries (ASEAN) at Thailand.
vi.The ships will also participate in the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise at Malaysia.
vii.At Russia, the ships will participate in the annual India-Russia bilateral exercise INDRA.
viii.For the first time, Ex-INDRA will witness the joint participation of Army, Navy and Air Force of both countries.
About INS Satpura
INS Satpura with the formidable mountain range in Central India is a multi-role stealth frigate and is commanded by Captain Rahul Shankar.
About INS Kadmatt
INS Kadmatt, named after an island in the beautiful Lakshadweep chain, is an Anti-Submarine Corvette and is commanded by Commander Nithin Cariappa.

Rajnath Singh inaugurated the new HQs building of Bureau of Police Research and Development
The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has inaugurated the new HQs building of Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), Ministry of Home Affairs on 8^th of Sept. 2017 in New Delhi.
Key Points:
i.The Union Home Minister has awarded the Union Home Minister’s Medal for best Police Trainer to Shri Sulkhan Singh, DGP, UP.
ii.He also gave away Police Medals to the officials of the BPR&D.
iii.The new headquarters building has been constructed at the cost of Rs. 100 crore approx.
iv.This building has modern facilities, such as, state of the art auditorium with seating capacity for 250, 9 big and small conference/syndicate halls, modern library to house 3.5 lakh books, hostel facilities equipped with industrial kitchen having, 52 twin seater rooms.
v.The BPR&D headquarters is fully air conditioned and follows green building norms and has rain-water harvesting system and the campus has sufficient green belt.
vi.BPR&D including the NCRB block has a total strength of more than 500 employees, for whom modular workstations have been provided.
vii.It has state of the art cafeteria equipped with industrial kitchen and officers lounge.
viii.Shri Rajnath Singh also released the volume on “Data on Police Organization as on 1.1.2017”, flagship presentation of the BPR&D. 
ix.It includes several achievements of the BPR&D in the fields of research and modernization of the Indian Police and introduced the latest initiative of BPR&D, i.e. e-Ustad Trainig e-Portal which was launched by the Union Home Minister.

First National Canine Seminar organised by NSG in Haryana
The first National Canine Seminar organized by National Security Guard (NSG) in NSG Campus, Manesar (Gurugram), Haryana on 7^th of Sept. 2017.
Key Points:       
i.The NSG, popularly known as “The Black Cats” of the country is organizing this two-day seminar.
ii.The theme of the two days National Canine Seminar is ”Canine as Tactical Weapon in Fight against Terrorism”.
iii.Its main objective is to discuss and deliberate on the techniques of dog training and strategies of deploying the dogs in Counter Terrorism and Counter Insurgency scenario.
iv.On the second day of the seminar, a workshop on ”Emerging Tools and Practices of Canines Training” will be organized.
v.It has been organized by demonstrations of the various nascent equipments by GIGN, the France Special Force.
vi.The Expedition team will traverse major cities of the country including NSG’s regional hubs at Gandhinagar, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata to cover a distance of 7000 kms.
vii.The sole objective is to spread a message of collective responsibility towards the fight against terrorism.

Government extends FAME India Scheme by six-month
Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Anant Geete mentioned that the government wasconsidering the extension of a scheme to promote electric and hybrid vehicles by another six months.
Key Points:
i.The scheme’s phase-I was introduced from April 1, 2015, to March 31, 2017.The phase was subsequently extended by six months till September end.
ii.The scheme extends incentives for purchase of electric and hybrid vehicles in particular areas. 
iii.Under the scheme, a total of 150,550 electric and hybrid vehicles were extended the incentive till 26^th July 2017.
About FAME India Scheme
The FAME India Scheme is learnt to have benefited a total of 148,275 electric and hybrid vehicles (xEVs) from April 1, 2015 till June 30, 2017.
It also aims to support hybrid or electric vehicles market development and its manufacturing eco-system in country in order to achieve self-sustenance in stipulated period.
These 148,275 xEVs have been given direct support by way of demand incentives amounting to Rs 192.56 crore, resulting in saving of 13,553,917 litres of fuel and reduction of 33,971,052 kg of CO2.

ICAR to undertake major research works on agriculture with World Bank fund
On 8^th September 2017, Deputy Director General of the National Apex Agricultural Research Body, Mr.Narendra Singh Rathore announced that ICAR (Indian Council for Agricultural Research) would undertake major research works on agriculture, in Chennai.
About the research works on Agriculture:

1. The announcement was made in the convocation function at the Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chennai.
2. The research work would be done in 2017.
3. World Bank granted a fund Rs.1100 crore for this project.
4. The funds would be allocated to each of the ten premier agricultural and veterinary universities in the country.
5. The areas of research would includeincreasing availability of fodder for cattle and climate change challenges.Since, in spite of India leading in the global milk production, the milk yield per animal is very low compared to international standards.
6. Two research centres would be established in Tamil Nadu for research on preserving and promoting domestic bull species.

About Ministry of Agiculture:

1. Headquarters – New Delhi
2. Minister – Radha Mohan Singh
3. Ministers of State – Mr.S.S.Ahluwalia, Mr.Parshottam Rupala, Mr.Sudarshan Bhagat

International Affairs

Engineless glider Perlan 2 soars at 52,000 ft sets new world record
The Airbus Perlan 2 aircraft has set a new altitude world record for a glider, climbing to 52,172 feet on 3^rdSept. in El Calafate, Argentina.
Key Points:
i.The Perlan 2 is a composite-intensive, engineless glider designed to fly at the edge of space using stratospheric mountain waves.
ii.The aircraft soared to an incredible 52,000 feet over the Patagonia region of Argentina, without the support of an engine.
iii.The previous altitude record was 50,727 feet set by Perlan 1 in 2006.
iv.According to Airbus, Argentina is one of the few places on Earth where the rising air currents can reach the stratosphere at a few times of the year.
v.According to Airbus when the gliding season ends in Argentina, the mission will return to its base in Minden, Nevada to assess the data from the Perlan 2’s flight recorders to improve the glider’s design.

Banking & Finance

PNB, BSNL join hands for mobile wallet Speedpay rollout
Punjab National Bank and BSNL has joined hands to roll out open mobile wallet Speedpay across 10 states in the country announced on 8^th Sept. 2017.
Key Points:
i.PNBs Speedway wallet will operate like any other mobile wallet for paying bills, recharging phone. Its users will be able to deposit and withdraw money from authorized retail outlets.
ii.Under the agreement, BSNL will expand Speedpay services in Punjab, Chandigarh (UT), Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand.
iii.Speedway users will be able to operate Internet banking services from the application.
iv.This technology will help India moving towards less cash economy and provide services in tier 2 and 3 cities.
v.SpeedPay also plays an important role for governments direct benefit transfer programme, to ensure quick and direct payment of subsidies to the citizens
About PNB
Founded on 19^th May 1894
MD& CEO: Sunil Mehta
HQ: New Delhi
Tagline: The name you can bank upon

United Bank of India waives retail loan processing fees up to 100 per cent        
On 8^th September 2017, United Bank of India announced that is has removed processing fee for retail home loans, car loans and two-wheeler loans, in Kolkata
About the processing fee waiver:
The processing fee waiver will be available till December, 2017.
100% processing fee waiver for:

1. Home loans
2. Car loans
3. Two-wheeler loans

50% processing fee waiver for:

1. Mortgage loans
2. Personal loans
3. Gold loans

About United Bank of India:

1. Nationalized bank
2. Headquarters – Kolkata
3. MD & CEO – Mr.Pawan Kumar Bajaj

Business

India imposes Countervailing Duty for a period of 5 years on some Chinese steel products
On 8^th September 2017, Government announced that a Countervailing Duty (CVD) for a period of five years is levied on certain Chinese flat steel products, in New Delhi.
About the Countervailing Duty (CVD):

1. This is the first time Countervailing Duty (CVD) has been imposed on any steel product in India.
2. The commerce ministry’s investigation arm –Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD)recommended this Countervailing Duty (CVD). Finance Ministry approved it.
3. Despite, sufficient demand and supply capcacities in India, the domestic steel industry had a downfall in sales due to subsidised imports from China.
4. Countervailing Duty (CVD) was imposed in a move to safeguard domestic traders from imports that are given unfair subsidies by the exporting nation.
5. It is a country specific duty for a term of 5 years.
6. The actual duty imposed would be the difference between the quantum of countervailing duty(CVD) (which is 18.95 %)and anti-dumping duty.
7. This will improve the quality, safety and health of Indian consumers, protecting them from low quality steels.

About ministry of commerce:

1. Headquarters – New Delhi
2. Minister – Mr.Suresh Prabhu

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) set to get Maharatna status
On 8^th September 2017, it was officially announced that Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) would be granted Maharatna Status soon, in New Delhi.
Bharat Petroleum to gain Maharatna status:

1. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) would be the 8^thPublic Sector Enterprise to obtain the Maharatna Status.
2. BPCL is currently a Navratna firm.
3. According to the Government rules, inorder to gain Maharatna status the company should possess:

– Navratna status
– Average turnover of at least Rs.25,000 crore  in the last 3 years
– Net worth of at least Rs.15,000 crore in the last 3 years
– Annual net profit after tax deduction of atleast Rs.5,000 crore in the last 3 years
– Significant global operations

4. The Maharatna status would help BPCL expand its operations in India and abroad.

About BPCL:

1. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited
2. Oil& Gas Company
3. Headquarters – Mumbai
4. Chairman& MD – Mr.D.Rajkumar

Amazon India opens largest fulfilment centre in Hyderabad
Amazon has opened its largest fulfilment centre (FC) at the GMR-led Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad announced on 8^th of Sept 2017.
Key Points:
i.The new facility has a carpet area of around 4 lakh square feet, along with a storage space of close to 2.1 million cubic feet.
ii.The retail major plans to facilitate faster deliveries in the region.
iii.Retail major is also looking to expand its grocery sales initiative to over 20 cities across the country this year.
iv.It had recently opened an FC in Haryana with 1.3 million cubic feet of storage capacity.
v.The FC will enable sellers to use local infrastructure, save capital and grow their business.
vi.Its online platform offers access to over 100 million products across multiple categories in India.

Appointments & Resigns

UIDAI Head A.B. Pandey Given Additional Charge as GSTN Chairman
Ajay Bhushan Pandey, the chief executive of the Unique Identification Authority of India will take over as the chairman of the Goods and Services Tax Network from immediate effect. Unique Identification Authority of India is the body that administers Aadhaar.
Key Points:
i.He has been heading UIDAI since its inception in 2010.
ii.He is an electrical engineer from IIT Kanpur and went to the University of Minnesota in 1998, where he obtained his MS and PhD degrees in Computer Science.
iii.He is an officer of Indian Administrative Service from the 1984 batch.
iv.The tenure of Navin Kumar, Chairman, Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has completed on 29 August.

Abhay Firodia takes over as SIAM president
Force Motors Chairman Abhay Firodia has been elected as the new president of the automobile industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).
Key Points:
i.Mahindra & Mahindra’s President-Automotive Sector Rajan Wadhera has been elected as the new vice-president of the organization.
ii.Maruti Suzuki India Managing Director & CEO Kenichi Ayukawa has taken over as Treasurer for the year 2017-18.
iii.Force Motors is a pioneer in the automobile industry in India for last 60 years and manufactures Tempo, 3-wheeler auto rickshaws, matadors, and similar vehicles.
iv.The company also makes engines for BMW and Mercedes.

Acquisitions & Mergers

Tierra Agrotech buys Monsanto cotton seed business
On 8^th September 2017, Tierra Agrotech Private Limited, a Hyderabad based company acquired Monsanto Holdings, a US based cotton seed company, in New Delhi.
About the acquisition:

1. Monsanto Holdings is a US Biotechnology giant.
2. It had been selling the Bollgard technology in cotton, in India.
3. Monsanto has sold its cotton business in India to Tierra Agrotech Private Limited after license issue and price control issues with the Indian Government.
4. Also it was locked in a dispute with Nuziveedu Seeds, which also uses Monsanto’s Cotton technology.
5. 5. The amount for which Monsanto Holdings was sold has not been revealed.
6. Tierra Agrotech would improve its breeding and research programmes and deliver high quality hybrid cotton seeds using this acquisition.

About Tierra Agrotech Private Limited:

1. Headquarters – Hyderabad
2. Founder & MD – Mr.Suresh Atluri
3. Co – Founder & Director – Mr.Surinder K. Tikoo

About Monsanto Holdings:

1. US based Bio-technology giant
2. Headquarters – Missouri, US
3. Chairman, President& CEO – Mr.Hugh Grant

Science & Technology

Scientists make cheap and clean fuel from air
On 7^th September 2017, scientists of Cardiff University, successfully created a fuel ‘methanol’ from methane and oxygen obtained from the free air, in the United Kingdom.
Making of methanol:

1. Earlier methanol was made from hydrogen gas and carbon-monoxide gas by breaking them down from natural gas at high temperatures.
2. This was an expensive and highly energy consuming process.
3. Now methanol is made from methane and oxygen, freely available in the air at low temperatures through a process called‘simple catalysis’.
4. Catalysis is a process where a substance called ‘catalyst’ is used to speed up the reaction.
5. Oxygen freely available in the air and hydrogen peroxide are used in this process.
6. Since, the main component oxygen is obtained from free air, this process is cheap, clean and less energy consuming.

About Methanol:

1. Used as a fuel and coolant for automobiles
2. Used as a solvent
3. Used as methylated spirit

Environment

New species of edible fish named as Labeo filiferus found in Pampa river
The new species of edible freshwater fish has been discovered in Pampa River in Pathanamthitta district of Kerala.
Key Points:
i.The two researchers, Mathews Plamoottil, Assistant Professor, Government College, Chavara, Kollam, and Primoz Zupancic from the Dinaric Research Institute, Slovenia, Europe, have reported the discovery in the latest issue of research journal Bioscience Discovery.
ii.It is named as Labeo filiferus and it belongs to Labeo genus.
iii.The fishes in the Labeo genus are widely distributed in the inland water bodies of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Burma, Malaysia, tropical Africa and Syria.
iv.They are medium- sized elongate fishes with rounded abdomen, swollen snout, finged lips and a straight lateral line.
v.At present 31 species of Labeo are discovered in India.
vi.Among these species L.rohita is commonly known as Rohu, extensively used in aquaculture.
vii.The only other Labeo species reported from Kerala is L.dussumieri.
viii.According to the researchers, L.filiferus was found to be distinct from the other species of the genus.
ix.Its features including black coloured body and fins, prominent barbels, smaller eyes, longer snout and elongated dorsal and anal fins.
x.The eyes are coloured with orange tinge. The specimens were 20 to 40 cm long and weighed four to five kg.

Sports

India’s Sonam Malik bags Gold in Cadet World Wrestling Championship; Neelam settles for bronze.
Young Indian wrestler Sonam Malik bagged a gold medal at the World Cadet Wrestling Championship. It is held in Athens, Greece.
Key Points:
i.Sonam Malik is competing in the 56kg category and she defeated Japanese Sena Nagamoto by 3-1 points in the final.
ii.Neelam bagged a bronze medal and competing in the 43kg category.
iii.She defeated Roxana Alexandra of Romania by 6-4 points.

Tottenham Hotspur will have world’s first dividing retractable pitch
Tottenham have announced plans for the world’s first dividing retractable football pitch at their new stadium on 7^th of Sept. 2017
Key Points:
i.The club’s new ground will boast separate playing surfaces for NFL and football.
ii.The fully retractable grass surface will be used for football matches while the artificial pitch will be used for NFL matches.
iii.The music concerts and a range of other events will be there in order to protect the integrity of both playing surfaces.
iv.Each section will roll into place from underneath the South Stand and join together to create a playing surface in a process which is said to take 25 minutes.
v.An artificial American football pitch will sit below a turf “soccer” pitch which slides out in three segments.
vi.Tottenham plan to move into the 61,000-capacity ground from the start of the 2018-19 seasons.

Obituary

Veteran kannada actor R.N. Sudarshan passed away
Veteran Kannada actor RN Sudarshan had passed away in Bengaluru. He was 78.
Key Points:
i.He was suffering from kidney-related ailments.
ii.RN Sudarshan, has acted in many Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films.
iii.Sudarshan was last seen in the 2010 Kannada film Super (2010), directed by Upendra.