PERSONS IN NEWS
A). APPOINTMENTS
Geeta Phogat appointed DSP in Haryana Police
Haryana Government has appointed international woman wrestler Geeta Phogat as a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in Haryana Police. A proposal of the Home Department was approved at a meeting of the state cabinet presided over by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.
Sanjay Singh appointed Member Secretary, Law Commission
Former legislative secretary Sanjay Singh has been appointed as Member Secretary, Law Commission of India. President Pranab Mukherjee has appointed Singh to the post for a period upto August 31, 2018. The tenure of Twenty-first Law Commission, which was constituted on September 1, 2015 is till August 31, 2018. The Law Commission of India is mandated to identify laws which are no longer needed or relevant and can be immediately repealed.
Abdelilah Bekirane elected as Prime minister of Morocco
Abdelilah Bekirane was re-appointed as the Prime Minister of Morocco for second term. Benkirane has been serving as Prime Minister since November 2011. It was officially announced by Mohammed VI, the king of Morocco after Benkirane’s Is-lamic Justice and Development Party (PJD) emerged victorious in recent general election. Now PM Bekirane will now reach out to other parties to form a coalition government as he does not have absolute majority in lower house.
Antonio Guterres appointed UN Secretary-General
Portugal’s former Prime Minister Antonio Guterres was on 13 October appointed as the next Secretary-General of the United Nations by the General Assembly. The 193 member states of the General Assembly adopted the resolution by acclamation, appointing 67-year-old Mr. Guterres as the ninth U.N. Secretary-General to take over from Ban Ki-moon, whose tenure will end on December 31, 2016. Mr. Guterres, who was Prime Minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002, and the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees from June 2005 to December 2015, will assume his new role on January 1, 2017 for a five-year term that can be renewed by member states for an additional five years. Mr. Guterres had emerged as the frontrunner in all the six informal polls conducted in the Security Council to select the Secretary-General amid a heightened call by several U.N. member states and civil society organisations to elect a woman chief for the world body, which has had a man at its helm for all the 71 years of its existence.
Renu Pall appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Austria
Former Indian Foreign Service officer Ms. Renu Pall has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Austria. It was announced by Ministry of External Affairs. Austria is a German-speaking country in Central Europe, characterized by mountain villages and baroque architecture.
Obama nominates ambassador to Cuba
The United States President Barack Obama has appointed its first Ambassador Jeffrey DeLaurentis to Cuba in 55 years. The new ambassador DeLaurentis had been working at the new US embassy in Havana, which opened since 2014.
Jim Yong Kim re-appointed as World Bank President
Jim Yong Kim has been re-appointed as President of World Bank for a second five-year term beginning 1 July 2017. He was unanimously chosen by the Executive Directors of the World Bank. He was the only candidate in a process. Jim Yong Kim is a South Korean-American physician and anthropologist. He is the 12th President of the World Bank and for first time was appointed in 2012. He was a global health leader and was formerly the Chair of Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School. The Forbes Magazine had named him in its list of the world’s 50th most powerful in 2013.
Sachin, Amitabh in new Swachh Bharat campaign
The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation has launched an ad campaign featuring Amitabh Bachchan and Sachin Tendulkar, for the Swachh Bharat Mission. Under this campaign, three ad films featuring.
B). RESIGNS
Visa CEO Charles Scharf to resign
The San Francisco-based payments network Visa’s CEO Charles Scharf had resigned from his post October 18, 2016. The company named Alfred Kelly Jr, a former president of American Express Co and a current Visa board member, as CEO.
Usain Bolt to retire after the 2017 World Championships
Jamaican athlete Usain Bolt has confirmed that he is going to retire after the 2017 World Championships in London, and also informed that the Racers Grand Prix later this year will be his last race on Jamaican soil. Bolt is expected to feature in both the 100m and 200m events at the 2017 World Championships. Bolt is widely considered as the greatest sprinter of all-time and is the first man to hold both the 100m and 200m records as well as the record being a part of the 4X100m relay. The Jamaican is also the reigning world and Olympic champion.
British Olympics icon Jessica Ennis-Hill announces retirement from athletics
Jessica Ennis-Hill has announced her retirement from athletics. Ennis-Hill, 30, who won a gold medal for heptathlon at London 2012, hinted after winning silver at Rio 2016 that she could leave the sport, and confirmed her decision on 13 October. Ennis-Hill became the poster girl for London 2012 after her gold medal success in the heptathlon event on “Super Saturday”. She returned to defend her title in Rio this summer but fell just short, finishing in second place behind Nafissatou Thiam of Belgium. The Sheffield-born heptathlete leaves her sport having also won gold medals in two world championships, one world indoor championship and a European championship.
Jawhar Sircar resigns as CEO of Prasar Bharati Corporation
Prasar Bharati Corporation CEO Jawhar Sircar has resigned four months ahead of the end of his tenure, which was to draw to a close in February 2017. As per rules of the Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act, 1990, chairman or any other member may resign the office by giving notice thereof in writing to the President of India and on such resignation being accepted, the chairman or other member shall be deemed to have vacated his office.
Govt removes Sushil Muhnot as CMD of Bank of Maharashtra
The Centre on 26 September has sacked Sushil Muhnot, chairman and managing director of Pune-based Bank of Maharashtra, four days short of his scheduled retirement, and appointed Ravindra Marathe as the state-owned lender’s new chief. Mr. Muhnot was appointed as the chairman of the bank in November 2013, and was scheduled to retire on September 30. The new chief executive officer Mr. Marathe, who was an executive director with Bank of India, took charge on 26 September. The head office of Bank of Maharashtra is in Pune.
Ritu Rani retires from international hockey
Former Indian women’s hockey captain Ritu Rani has retired from international hockey after being deeply hurt following her axing from the Rio Olympics-bound squad. Ritu was controversially dropped from the team for the Rio Olympics citing “attitude” issues. Under her captaincy the team qualified for the Olympics after 36 years after finishing fifth in the 2014-15 Women’s FIH Hockey World League Semifinals. The 24-year-old midfielder made the announcement in a mail to Hockey India president Narinder Batra.
C). DEATHS
King of Thailand dies
Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej – the world’s longest-serving monarch – has died aged 88. King Bhumibol, the ninth king of the 234-year-old Chakri dynasty. After the demise of the Thai King, 63-year old Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn is expected to become the new king.
Dario Fo, Nobel-winning playwright, dies aged 90
Italian satirical dramatist Dario Fo, who won the Nobel prize for literature in 1997, died on 13 October aged 90, prompting an outpouring of tributes for a provocative playwright unafraid to clash with authority. The writer and actor succumbed to complications arising from a lung condition he had suffered for several years. Left-winger Fo, one of the leading figures in 20th century farce and political theatre, was best known for his works “Accidental Death of an Anarchist” and “Can’t Pay, Won’t Pay”.
Style icon Parmeshwar Godrej passes away at 70
Parmeshwar Godrej, philanthropist and wife of Godrej group chairman Adi Godrej passed away in Mumbai on October 11 2016. She was 70. She was among India’s foremost style icons and a gracious host. She was Mumbai’s original queen bee and will be fondly remembered by many as a style icon in her signature beret, who hosted some of Mumbai’s most memorable evenings peppered with a globally eclectic guest list – including businesspersons, Hollywood actors and beautiful people – with an ease which no one has since been able to match. Godrej used her position and natural charm to champion many social causes. She campaigned for AIDS at a time when people were still embarrassed to talk about it. One of her biggest initiatives in philanthropy was joining hands with actor Richard Gere, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Clinton Global Initiative to combat AIDS through the launch of the ‘Heroes Project’ in 2004.
Oscar-winning Polish film director Wajda dies aged 90
Oscar-winning Film director Andrzej Wajda, best known for chronicling Poland’s struggle for democracy during half a century of communist rule, has died at the age of 90. One of his best-known releases, 1957’s “Canal”, showed the struggle of the Polish underground army in the Warsaw uprising.
Former boxing champion Aaron Pryor dies at 60
Aaron Pryor, whose erratic swings and stances won him the world junior welterweight boxing championship but also mirrored a career-ending struggle with cocaine addiction, died on 9 October at his home in Cincinnati. He was 60. The cause was complications of heart disease. Pryor built a 39-1 record with 35 knockouts during his career.
Shimon Peres, former Israeli president, dies aged 93
The former Israel’s defining political figures and a Nobel peace prize laureate, Shimon Peres has died at the age of 93. He had served twice as a prime minister and once as a president.
Golf legend Arnold Palmer passes away
US golfer Arnold Palmer passed away on 25 September 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania due to heart complications. He was 87. Palmer is generally regarded as one of the greatest players in professional golf history.
Oscar-winning writer and director dies at 71
Oscar-winning writer and film director Curtis Hanson has died at his home in Hollywood at the age of 71. He is known for his work in films like Kevin Spacey-starrer LA Confidential, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle and The River Wild. Hanson won an Oscar in 1998 for best adapted screenplay for LA Confidential. He also directed Detroit hip-hop movie 8 Mile starring Eminem, who led the tributes.
D). VISITORS
India, Singapore sign three agreements
“India and Singapore have signed three agreements (MoUs) in the fields of skill development and IPR to boost bilateral relations between them. These agreements were signed in New Delhi during Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s official state visit to India.
Signed MoUs are:
1. Signed MoUs are:MoU in the field of Industrial Property Cooperation
2. MoU on collaboration in the field of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (between National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and ITEES Singapore).
3. MoU on collaboration in the field of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (between Government of Assam and ITEES Singapore).
Abu Dhabi Crown Prince to be Chief Guest on 2017 Republic Day
The crown prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will be the chief guest for the 68th Republic Day celebrations on 26 January 2017. In this regard, announcement was made the by Union Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesman Vikas Swarup in New Delhi after the crown prince accepted invitation. Earlier Chief guests of Republic Day parades: 2016- Francois Hollande (French President), 2015-Barack Obama (US President), 2014- Shinzo Abe (Japanese Prime Minister), 2013- Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (King of Bhutan), 2012- Yingluck Shinawatra (Then Prime Minister of Thailand), 2011- Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (Then President of Indonesia). It should be noted France holds distinction of being the guest of honour for the maximum five times of Indian Republic Day parade followed by Bhutan (four times); Mauritius and Russia (three times each).
E). MISCELLANEOUS
Mizoram’s Pachuau declared India’s oldest working journalist
The Mizoram government and the Mizoram Journalists’ Association declared Lalbiakthanga Pachuau as the “oldest working journalist in the country”. The 90-year-old former soldier is the editor of ‘Zoram Tlangau’, a Mizo daily, started by him in 1970. Notably, Pachuau studied only till class III before joining the British Army in 1945 at the age of 18.
Bathukamma Event Enters Guinness Book of World Records
The Telangana government on 8 October organised the traditional state festival of ‘Bathukamma’ on a grand scale at the Lal Bahadur stadium in Hyderabad. The event, attended by about ten thousand women, found a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. The Telangana government has declared ‘Bathukamma’ as a state festival.
World’s largest radio telescope built in China
China has built world’s largest radio telescope nicknamed Tianyan (Heavenly Eye” or “The Eye of Heaven) or the five-hundred-metre aperture spherical radio telescope (FAST). It has started its operation and is part of China’s drive to become a science powerhouse. It is located in the Dawodang depression (vast natural crater), a natural basin in Pingtang County in the Guizhou Province, Southwest China. With its opening, the intensive testing phase of the telescope will begin. It is the world’s largest filled aperture (single dish) radio telescope and the second largest radio telescope after the Russian RATAN-600, which has a sparsely filled aperture. It is made up of 4,450 panels and has reflector as large as 30 football pitches. It has 500 meters diameter, giving it more sensitivity.
Visaranai to take a shot at Oscar nomination
Visaranai, the Tamil docu-drama crime thriller, has been chosen India’s official entry to Best Foreign Language Film category at the 89th Academy Awards to be held in 2017. The national award-winning film, directed by Vetrimaran, and produced by actor Dhanush’s Wunderbar Films, documents four migrant workers who suffer police brutality and corruption after being jailed on false charges.
Read more: Current Affairs Oct 2016 Study Material | FreeJobAlert.com http://currentaffairs.freejobalert.com/oct-2016-current-affairs-study-material/14175/#ixzz5TLrKzwYI
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