150th birth anniversary of Lala Lajpat Rai
i. 150th birth anniversary of great freedom fighter Lala Lajpat
Rai, also known as Punjab Kesri is being celebrated 28th January 2016.
ii. To celebrate this occasion a state level function has been
organised in Punjab and special event will be held at village Dhudi Ke,
the birth place of Lala Lajpat Rai in Moga district.
iii. State government also has organised various seminars and symposia at many places in Punjab to remember Lala Lajpat Rai.
International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust observed
i. International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of
the Holocaust was observed on 27 January 2016 across the world. The day
was proclaimed so by the United Nations General Assembly.
ii. The theme for the Holocaust remembrance and education
activities in the year 2016 including the Holocaust Memorial Ceremony is
The Holocaust and Human Dignity.
iii. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) celebrate the day every year.
iv. The day marks the anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi
German Concentration and Extermination Camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau by the
Soviet troops in 1945.
Union Government launched National Job Portal for Persons with Disabilities
i. The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
Thaawarchand Gehlot on 27 January 2016 launched the National level Job
portal www.disabilityjobs.gov.in for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs).
ii. The Ministry aims to carry out skill training programme for 5 lakh Persons with Disabilities in next 3 years.
Union Cabinet approves raising of 17 Indian Reserve Battalions
i. The Union Cabinet has approved proposal of raising of 17
Indian Reserve Battalions (IRBs) in Jammu & Kashmir and 4 Left Wing
Extremism (LWE) affected states.
ii. Decision in this regard was taken by Union Cabinet Meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.
Key facts
- 17 IRBs includes 5 battalions in J&K, 4 in Chhattisgarh, 3 each in Jharkhand and Odisha and 2 in Maharashtra.
- The major thrust in raising these IRBs will be by recruiting local youths. State Government can relax age and educational criteria if required.
- In case of 5 IRBs of J&K, 60% of the vacancies for the posts of constables and class IV will be filled from the state’s border districts.
- In case of LWE states, 75% of the vacancies of constables will be filled up from 27 core districts under Security Related Expenditure (SRE) Scheme.
CERT-In inks cyber security agreements with 3 nations
i. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) has signed
cybersecurity agreement with its counterparts in Malaysia, Singapore and
Japan.
ii. In this regard, the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime
Minister Narendra Modi has apprised the Memorandum of Understandings
(MoUs) signed between CERT-In and 3 nations.
Rajasthan Govt inks MoU to join UDAY Scheme
i. Rajasthan Government along with its power distribution
companies (DISCOMS) has signed a MoU to join UDAY (Ujwal Discom
Assurance Yojana) Scheme.
ii. State DISCOMS part of this MoU are Jaipur Vidyut Vitran Nigam
Limited (JVNL), Jodhpur Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited (JVVNL) and Ajmer
Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited (AVNL).
India and Armenia sign Protocol amending the Double Taxation Avoidance Convention
i. India and Armenia has signed a Protocol to amend the existing
Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (DTAC) to curb instances of tax
evasion.
ii. The Protocol amends the Article on Exchange of Information
for tax in the bilateral DTAC signed between India and Armenia and has
been in existence since September 2004.
iii. It has been amended to bring it in line with the updated
provisions in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD) Model.
India overtakes Thailand as World's largest rice exporter
i. India has overtaken Thailand as the world’s largest rice
exporter in the year 2015 by shipping (exporting) 10.23 million tonnes
of rice.
ii. It was announced by the Bangkok based Thai Rice Exporters Association Chairman Charoen Laodhammatas.
Cognizant acquires KBACE Technologies
i. United States (US) based software services exporter Cognizant
Technology Solutions (CTS) has acquired cloud-based computing firm KBACE
Technologies.
ii. This acquisition will help Cognizant to strength and expands
its digital capabilities from its critical business applications to
cloud-based IT infrastructures.
iii. The terms and amount of the acquisition deal were not
disclosed by the company. This acquisition was part of Cognizant’s
strategy to diversify businesses into newer geographies.
iv. As part of the acquisition, KBACE Technologies’ 400 consultants and implementation experts will become part of Cognizant.
India successfully test fired Akash missile at Chandipur
i. India on 28 January 2016 test fired its indigenously-built
surface-to-air Akash missile from complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range
(ITR).at Chandipuri in Odisha. It was as part of a user trial mission.
ii. Three rounds of test were carried out by Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel aiming at para-barrel targets.
IPS officer Aparna Kumar became India's first civil servant to scale Mount Vinson Massif
i. Aparna Kumar, IPS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre, became
India's first civil servant to scale Mount Vinson Massif, the highest
peak in the Antarctica.
ii. She hoisted the Tricolour and the flag of the Uttar Pradesh Police Service on Mount Vinson Massif.
iii. She set out on the Antarctic expedition on 5 January 2016,
accompanied by a 10-member team of mountaineers from various countries.
Chennupati Jagadish, Jay Chandra honoured with Order of Australia
i. Chennupati Jagadish and Jay Chandra, Indian-origin persons,
were on 26 January 2016 honoured with the Order of Australia, highest
civilian honour of Australia on the occasion of the Australia Day. They
were awarded for their contribution in the fields of physics,
engineering and medicine.
ii. Chennupati Jagadish is an eminent professor at Australian
National University (ANU) in Canberra. He was conferred with the award
for his eminent service to physics and engineering, particularly in the
field of nanotechnology.
Indian activist Henri Tiphagne selected for Amnesty International Human Rights Award 2016
i. Indian lawyer and human rights defender Henri Tiphagne on 26
January 2016 was selected for the 8th Human Rights Award by Amnesty
International Germany.
ii. The award is a recognition of Tiphagne’s exceptional
commitment to human rights. He will be conferred with the award at an
official ceremony on 25 April 2016 at the Maxim Gorki Theatre in Berlin,
Germany.
iii. Henri Tiphagne is the founder of the organization People’s Watch, one of the most notable human rights organizations in India.
Australian batsman David Warner won Allan Border Medal 2016
i. Australian batsman David Warner on 27 January 2016 defeated captain Steve Smith for the prestigious Allan Border Medal for 2016.
ii. Warner polled 240 votes from players, umpires and media
representatives to beat 2015 winner and skipper Steve Smith on 219. Pace
bowler Mitchell Starc was third on 183 votes.
iii. Warner also won the Test Player of the Year Award with 30 votes ahead of Smith on 24.
