Current affair of 13th August 2019

1. Govt. Makes headgear compulsory for children aged above 4 years

The govt. has made a significant move on safety measures by making it mandatory for children above 4 years of age to wear headgear of prescribed standards. This safety measures for the children has been included in the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) act 2019 after amending Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which was passed by the government recently.

Key highlights:

1. Assent to the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) act 2019, was given by the Vice President of India Shri Venkaiah Naidu which was notified in the Gazette of India by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice on August 9, 2019.
2. Section 129 of the principal Act has been replaced in the act as “Every person above four years of age, driving or riding or being carried on a motorcycle of any class or description shall, while in public place wear protective headgear conforming to such standards as may be prescribed by the Central Government” to make protective headgear mandatory for children.
3. Violators will be fined an amount of Rs.1000.
4. At present only protective headgear for riding cycle are available for children in the market for children.

2. 33% of India’s skilled youth are jobless: PLFS 2017-18

An analysis of the unit-level data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2017-18, conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), found that 33% of India’s skilled youth are jobless. 4 out of 10 youth who received vocational training are out of the labour force. Nearly a third of trained young men and more than a third of trained young women were unemployed.

Key highlights:

1. Formal training: In 2017-18, only 1.8% of the population (15-29 years) reported receiving formal vocational/technical training. 42% of the youth who received formal technical training were not part of the labour force.
2. Informal training: Informal vocational training was received by 5.6% (such as hereditary, self-learning, and on the job training).
3. Not trained: 93% of the population did not receive any vocational/technical training from either formal or informal sources. Among this, 62.3% were out of the labour force.
4. Unemployed trained youth: The unemployment rate among freshly trained youth, who completed training, was higher at 40%.
5. Categories: The PLFS collected data on fields of training which are categorized under 22 heads. The bulk of the trainees were in the fields of electronics, Information technology (IT)/ Information Technology Enabled Services (ITeS) sector, apparels, and mechanical engineering.

3. Swachh Survekshan 2020 launched by MoS for housing Shri Hardeep Puri

The Minister of State (Independent charge) for housing and urban affairs (MoHUA), Shri Hardeep SinghPuri launched the fifth edition of annual cleanliness survey, Swachh Survekshan 2020 (SS 2020) which is to be conducted from January 2020.

Key highlights:

1. Apps launched: Swachh Survekshan 2020 Toolkit, SBM(Swachh Bharat Mission) Water PLUS Protocol and Toolkit, Swachh Nagar- an integrated waste management app and AI( Artificial intelligence) enabled mSBM app was launched.
2. Song launched: A special song based on the Swachh Survekshan theme was released. It features Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut, singers Kailash Kher and Monali Thakur.
3. People present: Secretary of Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Shri Durga Shanker Mishra.
4. Join secretary and mission director V.K Jindal and other representatives from urban local bodies were present.
5. The field survey to the Swachh Survekshan 2020 will be conducted from January 2020.
6. Swachh Survekshan 2020 toolkit: It contains methodology of detailed survey and component indicators to help cities prepare for the survey. 

4. Indian Army launches ‘Mission Reach Out’ post Article 370 revocation in Jammu

The Indian Army has launched a “Mission Reach Out” post revocation of Article 370 in Jammu Division to ensure basic necessities and essential services are available in the region.

Key highlights:

1. Mission Reach Out: Under this mission, Army has undertaken many initiatives which includes, providing water in locations where supply is disrupted and mobile medical care units with essential medicines, giving essentials including rations, assistance in transportation of patients to hospitals, facilitating people to speak to their near and dear ones through Army exchange and creating a safe environment for ATMs, banks and hospitals to function.
2. A high-level conference, “Mission Reach Out”, chaired by White Knight Corps Commander Lt Gen Paramjit Singh, to review the prevalent situation in the region was held in the Nagrota Military Station. It was attended by Jammu Divisional Commissioner Sanjeev Verma, members of civil administration, representatives of Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) Police, CRPF(Central Reserve Police Force i), BSF(Border Security Force)and intelligence agencies.
3. Paramjit Singh was appreciative of the cooperation between the Army, Civil Administration & other security forces in maintaining peace, harmony and favorable environment in the Jammu region.

5. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal lead a delegation to Vladivostok, Russia

Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Piyush Goyal led a high-power delegation to explore the opportunities for enhancing trade and investment from India to the Far East region of Russia at Vladivostok, Russia from August 11-13, 2019. His visit is a precursor to the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the 5th edition of the Eastern Economic Forum in September, 2019 where PM will be the guest of honour.

Key highlights:

1. The event was the result of collaboration between Invest India and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) on the Indian side, and the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic under the leadership of Alexander Kozlov and the Far East Investment and Export Promotion Agency on the Russian side.
2. The delegation included the Chief Ministers of Goa (Pramod Sawant), Gujarat (Vijay Rupani), Haryana (Manohar Lal Khattar), and Uttar Pradesh (Yogi Adityanath) and an official from the State of Assam. The Chief Ministers of States were accompanied by business delegations who engaged with officials and businessmen from the provinces in Russia’s easternmost territory.
3. About 200 Russian companies, Investment Agencies and Funds took part from the Russian side.

6. Kajin Sara lake in Nepal is likely to set a new record of being the world’s highest 

A newly discovered Kajin Sara lake in Manang district of  Nepal is all set to record the world’s highest lake. It will replace the Tilicho lake, which is the current world’s highest lake situated at an altitude of 4,919 metres in Nepal(also in Manang) measures 4 km long, 1.2 km wide and around 200 metres deep.

Key highlights:

1. The lake called Singar locally, located at an altitude of  5,200 metres. But this measurement is yet to be officially verified. It is estimated to be 1,500-metre-long and 600-meter-wide.
2. Once its altitude of over 5,200 metres, it will be the world’s highest lake & will help promote tourism in the district.
3. A team of mountaineers discovered this lake about a few months ago at Singarkharka area of Chame rural municipality in Nepal.
4. The lake said to have formed out of the water melted from the Himalayas &it has Mt Manaslu to the east, Mt Damodar to the west, Mt Annapurna and Mt Lamjung to the south, and Mt Peri in the Tibet to the north.

7. After State Bank of India, BoB goes the same way to link home loan product to RBI’s repo rate

Indian multinational, public sector bank, Bank of Baroda (BoB) has linked its home loan product to RBI’s (Reserve Bank of India (RBI)repo rate after State Bank of India (SBI). With this, home loans at BOB will be available at repo rate linked interest rate starting at 8.35%, thus passing on the further benefit of 10 basis points to the present MCLR (Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate) rated pricing.

Key highlights:

1. Presently, the MCLR linked home loan product is available starting at 8.45%, which had come into effect on 7th August 2019 after the MCLR was reduced by 15 basis points (bps).
2. This decision is following RBI reducing the key interest rate (repo) by 35 basis points to a nine-year low of 5.40%.
3. SBI’s reduction: After RBI cut its key repo rate, State Bank of India (SBI), reduced home loan rates by 15 bps effect from August 10, 2019. The revised one-year MCLR stands at 8.25% per annum down from 8.40% earlier.
4. Many other state-run banks, including Union Bank of India, Allahabad Bank, Bank of India and Syndicate Bank, have also expressed their intention to launch loan products linked to an external benchmark, in most cases, it has been the repo rate.

8. OYO Hotels partners with ACKO General Insurance will launch complimentary insurance cover up to Rs.10 lakh for guests

Budget hotel chain Oyo Hotels and Homes have partnered with ACKO General Insurance to provide a complimentary insurance cover as part of the booking price for guests at its hotels across India. The visitors will get insurance protection against accidental death, baggage damage, accidental medical expenses amongst other benefits like OPD (Outpatient Department)treatment, etc during their stay.

Key highlights:

1. The package offers OYO guests insurance coverage up to Rs 10 lakh.
2. The complementary insurance cover will be applicable on OYO app, website, mobile website, direct bookings as well as booking done through walk-in.
3. The partnership will help create the hassle-free and comfortable experience of OYO guests.

9. Indresh Tripathi, a MIG police station in-charge in Indore will be conferred with the National Award

Indresh Tripathi, a MIG police station in-charge in Indore (Madhya Pradesh) will be conferred with the National Award on January 26, 2020, in New Delhi by the central Government for his excellent services at the national level.

Key highlights:

1. Tripathi already praised by the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath for finding a girl who went missing from her home.
2. Earlier, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath had praised the officer for finding a girl who went missing from her home.

10. 5th fast patrol vehicle- Kanaklata Barua, for Indian Coast Guard launched by GRSE Kolkata

The Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) which is a premier warship builder based at Kolkata, launched the fifth Fast Patrol Vessel (FPV) for the Indian Coast Guard(ICG).

Key highlights:

1. The ship is the last series of the five FPVs built by GRSE.
2. It is to be Commissioned as Kanaklata Barua, named after a freedom fighter from Assam.
3. The first ship of FPV class is ICGS (Indian Coast Guard Ship) Priyadarshini that was commissioned on March 27, 2019.
4. Its length is 50m and its breadth is 7.5m with displacement of 308 tonnes.
5. They have a maximum speed of 34knots (1 knot= 1.15miles per hour) enduring more than 1500 nautical miles.

11. Aishwarya Pissay creates history by becoming the first Indian woman to win FIM Bajas World Cup 2019

23-year-old Indian motorsport rider, Aishwarya Pissay from Bengaluru became the first woman from India as well as the first Indian to win the FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) Bajas World cup 2019 with a tally of 65 points. The final round of the championship was held at Varpalota, Hungary.

Key highlights:

1. Aishwarya Pissay also finished second in the FIM junior category with 46 points.
2. She was the only one to compete for all the four rounds over her rivals and represented TVS (Thirukkurungudi vengaram Sundaram) motors.
3. She finished 4th in the final level of the 2019 Bajas world cup to win the championship-leading with four points.
4. A total of 5 participants competed in the 2019 FIM Bajas World cup with Portugal’s Rita Vieira (61 points) finishing in the second spot.