5 November 2015 Important current affairs / Gk / GA

Nov 6, 2015

5 November 2015 Important current affairs / Gk / GA: Three Gold related schemes launched by PM Narendra Modi.

The three schemes were announced by the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his 2015-16 budget speech in February 2015.

Purpose :

The primary purpose of the schemes is to reduce dependence on imported gold, recycle the unutilized gold in the country and most importantly, streamline the gold business in the country.
At present, India is the largest consumer of gold in the world.

Operational Guidelines of Sovereign Gold Bonds 2015-16 also notified by RBI.

RBI will issue these bonds from 5 November – 20 November 2015.
Joint holding and nomination: Multiple joint holders and nominees (of first holder) are permitted. Necessary details may be obtained from the applicants as per practice.
Interest on application money: Applicants will be paid interest at prevailing savings bank rate from the date of realization of payment to the settlement date that is the period for which they are out of funds.
Processing through RBI’s e-kuber system: Sovereign Gold Bonds will be available for subscription at the branches of scheduled commercial banks and designated post offices through RBI’s e-kuber system.
Servicing and follow up: Receiving offices like branches of the scheduled commercial banks and designated post offices will own the customer and provide necessary services with regards to this bond. Receiving offices will be required to preserve applications till the bonds are matured and are repaid.

RBI imposes Rupees 1 crore penalty on Dhanlaxmi Bank.

Reserve Bank has imposed Rs 1 crore penalty on Dhanlaxmi Bank for violation of Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti Money Laundering (AML) norms.
It had issued a Show Cause Notice to the bank for not complying with KYC and AML guidelines “in respect of a current account under investigation” of the Economic Offences Wing (EOW), Mumbai.

PM Modi launches research project Imprint India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 November 2015 launched Imprint India, a Pan-IIT and IISc joint initiative.
The project encourages the Indian technical institutions to develop a blueprint for research to crack major engineering and technology challenges relevant to the nation.
Imprint India is a 1000 crore rupees project, which aspires to identify areas of immediate relevance to society requiring innovation and Direct scientific research into identified areas
This is to ensure higher funding support for research into these areas and Measure outcomes of the research effort with reference to impact on the standard of living in the rural/urban areas
The Imprint India will focus on 10 themes and each will be coordinated by one IIT/IISc.

Forbes released list of World’s Most Powerful People 2015.

This was Forbes’ seventh annual ranking of World’s Most Powerful People.
The list provided the annual ranking of the World’s 73 Most Powerful People.
The list was topped by Russian President Vladimir Putin for the third year in a row.
Putin is followed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel (rank 2) who moved up 3 spots from 2014, and President Barack Obama (rank 3) dropped 1 spot, making it the first year a sitting US President has not made it into the top 2 spots.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was ranked as the world’s ninth most powerful person.
In 2014, Modi was placed at 14th position.

Indian born Harjit Sajjan sworned in as Defence Minister of Canada.

Sajjan succeeded Conservative Defence Minister Jason Kenney.
He is one of the Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s 30-member Cabinet that was sworn-in at a public ceremony held at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, Canada.
Trudeau was sworn-in as the 23rd Prime Minister of Canada.
Sajjan is a decorated Lt Colonel in the Canadian Armed Forces who was elected as a MP for Vancouver South.

Indian High Commissioner to UK : Navtej Singh

Navtej Singh Sarna was appointed as Indian High Commissioner to UK.
He is a 1980 batch IFS officer.
Prior to this appointment, Sarna was working as Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs where he was responsible for looking after country’s diplomatic affairs with the UK and other European nations.
Earlier, he had served in Indian missions in Moscow, Warsaw, Thimphu, Geneva, Tehran and Washington DC.
He has also served as Indian Ambassador to Israel.

Union Govt. constitutes Empowered Committee to approve schemes under Nirbhaya Fund.

The Committee comprises officials from various ministries, including Women and Child Development, Home Affairs, Road Transport and Railways.
The Secretary of the Women and Child Development Ministry will be the chairperson of the committee.
The Members of the Empowered Committee may nominate an officer not below the rank of Joint Secretary as representative to the Empowered Committee of Officers.

V Sivaramakrishnan appointed as MD of Oxford University Press India.

Oxford University Press India (OUPI) has appointed V Sivaramakrishnan (Siva) as the managing director, with regional responsibilities including Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.
He will join OUP India from Manipal Global Education Services, privately owned service provider to the higher education and training sectors.

Michelle Payne became first female jockey to win Melbourne Cup.

Michelle Payne on 3 November 2015 became the first female jockey to win 6.2 million Australian dollars Melbourne Cup.
Payne rode rank outsider Prince of Penzance to a famous victory in Australia’s richest and most prestigious horse race.
The Melbourne Cup is one of Australia’s most prestigious Thoroughbred horse races.
The race is conducted annually by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria.

Also Attempt : Free Online IBPS Clerk Prelims Speed test

Jitu Rai wins silver in 13^th Asian Shooting Championship.

Ace shooter Jitu Rai on 4 November 2015 won India’s first senior medal at the 13th Asian Shooting Championship in Kuwait City.
He bagged the silver in the finals of the men’s 50 metre pistol event.