Daily GK : 22 Dec 2016

Honours & Awards

1. R.Ashwin named ICC Cricketer of the Year and Test cricketer of the Year

• Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin (right-arm off break bowler) has been named the ICC Cricketer of the Year and the ICC Test cricketer of the Year at ICC awards in Dubai.
• Ashwin has become the second Indian player after Rahul Dravid to bag the two coveted prizes in the same year.
• Ranked Number one bowler and all-rounder in Test cricket.
• Ashwin picked up 72 wickets in 12 matches this year at an outstanding average of 23.90 and scored 612 runs at an average of 43.17.

2. Indian movies MS Dhoni, Sarbjit make it to Oscars long list

• Indian biopics "MS Dhoni: The Untold Story" and "Sarbjit" have made it to the long list of 336 feature films eligible for the Oscars.
• Indian-American filmmaker Mira Nair's directorial venture "Queen of Katwe"  is also part of the list.
• The list also includes awards season favourites La La Land, Moonlight, Manchester by the Sea, Silence, Arrival, and Hacksaw Ridge.

Science & Defence

3. China launches satellite to monitor global carbon emissions

• Today, China has launched a global carbon dioxide monitoring satellite to understand climate change.
• The TanSat ( 620-kg satellite) was put into orbit by Long March-2D rocket from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in north west China's Gobi Desert.
• This was the 243rd mission of the Long March series rockets.
• The rocket also carried a high-resolution micro-nano satellite and two spectrum micro-nano satellites for agricultural and forestry monitoring.
• China is the third country after Japan and the USA to monitor greenhouse gases through its own satellite.

4. Mizoram's Aizawl becomes first free Wi-Fi city in North-East

• Today, Aizawl became the first free Wi-Fi city in the North-East region.
• The free Wi-Fi facilities would enable the much needed internet accessibility to one and all.
• It is a pilot project of the Aizawl Municipal Corporation.

National & International Appointment

5. Praful Patel re-elected unopposed as AIFF president for 3rd time

• The former Union Minister Praful Patel has been re-elected unopposed as  the president (third successive term) of All India Football Federation (AIFF)  for the term 2017-2020.
• Earlier, the Annual General Meeting was held in New Delhi after the Delhi High Court vacated a stay on the elections.

6. Najeeb Jung resigns as Lieutenant Governor of Delhi

• Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung has submitted his resignation to the Government of India.
• The tenure of Jung was scheduled to end in 2018.
• Mr. Jung is a former IAS officer from the Madhya Pradesh cadre and a former Vice Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia.
• He was appointed as the 20th Lieutenant Governor of the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi in July 2013.

Banking & Finance

7. The two-day meeting of GST Council begins today in Delhi

• The two-day GST council meeting (7th) has begun in New Delhi to consider the model GST laws and iron out differences on the issue of jurisdiction over assessees in the new indirect tax regime.
• The decision includes the threshold limit of 20 lakh rupees exemption from levy of GST for normal States and 10 lakhs for the Special Category States.
• In the last meeting, GST Council had cleared 20 chapters of the model GST law and today they will discuss the remaining 7 chapters

Note:

• The government has time till 16th September next year to implement the Goods and Services Tax Act as per the Constitution Amendment Bill passed by both the Houses with two-thirds majority and by half of the States.

8. Union Cabinet approves the ordinance to amend Payment of Wages Act.

• The Union Cabinet has approved an ordinance to amend the Payment of Wages Act for allowing business and industrial establishments to pay salaries through cheques or electronically in the bank accounts.
• The employers will also have the option to pay wages in existing provisions of payment in currency notes.
• The Bill seeks to amend Section 6 of the principal Act to enable employers to pay wages to employees through cheques or by crediting it into their bank accounts.

National Affairs

9. Aadhar card must for pilgrims to get privileged darshan in Tirupati

• The Lord Venkateswara's devotees who want to trek the Tirumala hills in Andhra Pradesh on foot will now have to produce their Aadhar card as identity proof for getting authorised tickets for privileged special entry darshan and laddus.
• Devotees who do not have Aadhar card can submit any authorised identity proof to avail the facility midway on the 10 km long stairway leading to the shrine.
• Now, the devotees after reaching Tirumala are given a free laddu and two additional laddus on subsidised price besides special entry into the shrine.

Note: 

• Those devotees not submitting proof of identity will be allowed to Tirumala but will not be permitted to avail the privileged special entry darshan and laddus.

10. Govt.to soon set up helpline number for pregnant women

• The union government will soon set up a toll-free number 10588 to provide relevant information and guidance directly to the pregnant women.
• This toll-free number will be functional at Mother and Child Tracking Facilitation Centre (MCTFC) in New Delhi.
• The caller can give a missed call at this number and the operator will call back within 90 seconds to address their queries.
• The call centres will spread awareness about and promoting health initiatives also provides the necessary foundation for tracking the pregnant women and children to assist them in availing timely and full range of healthcare services.

11. Gujarat govt. announces Aerospace and Defence Policy-2016

• The Gujarat government has announced Aerospace and Defence Policy-2016 to attract investment into fields of aerospace and defence design, development and manufacturing in the state.
• Investors will be entitled to get 100% reimbursement on stamp duty and registration charges paid for purchase, lease or mortgage of land meant for setting up the facility in the areas of Aerospace and Defence.
• The government has also made a provision of giving cash subsidy of 25% on capital investment made by MSME units to set up their facility in the Aerospace and Defence sector.

12. Delhi govt to slash DTC & cluster bus fares by 75% from Jan 1

• The Delhi government has decided to slash fares of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and cluster buses by 75% from 1st of Jan to encourage people to shun their private vehicles and use public transport extensively to bring down vehicular pollution.
• The Delhi government is also plannig to make DTC bus travel free for students up to the age of 21-years.
• The state government is also planning to reduce the rate of monthly bus pass from Rs. 800  to Rs. 250 for non-AC buses and from one thousand rupees to 250 rupees for AC buses.