DAILY CURRENT
AFFAIRS: 4TH MAY 2017
(DAILY NEWS INDIA)
1.
MP FIRST TO SWITCH TO JAN-DEC FISCAL YEAR
i.
Madhya Pradesh became the 1st state in India to switch to the January-December
financial year from existing April-March cycle.
ii.
It will break a 150-year old tradition of adopting the financial year from
April to March.
iii.
CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan decided to shift the financial year to
January-December. It is mentioned the Budget session of the next financial year
will be held either in December 2017 or January 2018.
iv.
CM also give direction to all cabinet ministers to prepare a quarterly,
half-yearly and annual road map of works so that all works are done within a
fixed deadline.
2.
WORLD’S HIGHEST RAIL BRIDGE TALLER THAN EIFFEL TOWER ON CHENAB TO BE COMPLETED
IN 2 YEARS
i.
World’s highest railway bridge that is expected to be 35 metres taller than the
Eiffel Tower will be built on Chenab River in Jammu & Kashmir within next 2
years.
ii.
The arc-shaped bridge will have a height of 359 m above the river bed. 315 km
long bridge will connect Kauri (Srinagar) and Bakkal (Katra).
iii.
Estimated cost of construction is around 1100 cr. Once completed, it will
surpass the record of the Beipan river Shuibai railway bridge in China.
3. INDIA TO CLOCK 7.1% GDP THIS YEAR, 7.5% CENT
IN 2018: UN REPORT
i.
As per ‘The Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2017’ released
by UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Indian economy
is expected to register 7.1% GDP growth in 2017 and 7.5% in 2018.
ii.
The growth will come on the back of increased Government spending on
infrastructure projects and remonetisation activity by Reserve Bank of India,
which is expected to restore consumption patterns.
4.
FINMOMENTA LAUNCHES PEER-TO-PEERONLINE LENDING PLATFORM TACHYLOANS
i.
Singapore based Fintech startup FinMomenta has announced the launch of
Tachyloans. It is a 1st digital lending platform in India for individuals as
well as businesses.
ii.
Tachyloans is a credit scoring model which is used to assess the
creditworthiness of applicants.
iii.
Borrowers can avail loan at lower interest rates starting from 11.5% per annum.
The company’s innovative platform will electronically verify the borrower
information.
iv.
It verifies by using the KYC documentation provided, and qualifies them through
their credit decision model.
v.
Its main aim is to create the most user-friendly and accessible P2P lending
marketplace that will be completely automated.
5.
AIIB GRANTS $160 MILLION FOR ANDHRA PRADESH POWER PROJECT
i.
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank has approved $ 160 million loan for a
power project in Andhra Pradesh. Its main aim is to strengthen the power
transmission and distribution system in Andhra Pradesh.
ii.
The project helps in improving system reliability and also helps in improving
the commercial performance of the state’s distribution companies.
iii.
AIIB promotes the improvement of energy efficiency, such as upgrading the existing
transmission and distribution networks.
iv.
India is the 2nd largest shareholder of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
after China. D J Pandian is the Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of
AIIB.
6.
SHABANA AZMI STARRER THE BLACK PRINCE AWARDED AT FILM FEST IN HOUSTON
i.
On the occasion of the 50th annual world fest houstan international film
festival awarded the special jury remi award to Indian actress Shabana Azmi and
singer-poet Satinder Sartaaj.
ii.
Shabana Azmi got the award for her starring role in Hollywood film ‘The Black
Prince’ and Satinder Sartaaj for his acting debut with this film.
iii.
‘The Black Prince’ is a life story of the last king of Punjab – Maharaja Duleep
Singh. Maharaja Duleep Singh was also named as the Black Prince of Perthshire.
7.
MALLIKARJUN KHARGE APPOINTED AS NEW CHAIRMAN OF PAC
i.
Mallikarjun Kharge is appointed as the Chairperson of the Public Accounts
Committee of the Parliament.The Chairman of the PAC is appointed by the Speaker
of Lok Sabha.
ii.
Kharge replaced K.V. Thomas. The PAC has 14 members from Lok Sabha and 7 from
Rajya Sabha.
iii.
The PAC’s main function is to examine the audit report of Comptroller and
Auditor General after it is laid in the Parliament.
8.
INDIAN ARMY SUCCESSFULLY TEST-FIRES ADVANCED BLOCK-III VERSION OF BRAHMOS
CRUISE MISSILE
i.
Indian Army successfully test-fired Block III version of the Brahmos
land-attack cruise missile in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
ii.
Block-III version successfully hit the land-based target with desired precision
in a “top attack configuration”. This test fire has matched all the parameter
of the canonical textbook, involving high level and complex manoeuvring by the
missile.
9.
SOUMYAJIT GHOSH WINS SINGLES & DOUBLES GOLD AT CHILE OPEN
i.
Indian table tennis player Soumyajit Ghosh has won both the singles and doubles
gold at the Seamaster 2017 ITTF Challenge Chile Open in Santiago, Chile.
ii.
Soumyajit became the 3rd Indian to win a men’s singles title at an ITTF
Challenge Series or ITTF World Tour tournament.
iii.
In doubles final the Indian pair of Soumyajit & Amalraj defeated Philipp
Floritz and Hunor Szocs. This is the 1st time India has won a men’s doubles
title on either the ITTF Challenge Series or ITTF World Tour.
10.
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY: MAY 3, 2017
i.
World Press Freedom Day is celebrated on 3 May 2017. It celebrates the
fundamental principal of Press Freedom.
ii.
Theme of the World Press Freedom Day was ‘Critical Minds for Critical Times:
Media’s role in advancing peaceful, just and inclusive societies’.
iii.
The main objective of establishing this day is to celebrate the fundamental
principles of Press Freedom.
iv.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres give emphasis on the importance of having
leaders who will defend the free media and stop the rampant misinformation.
v.
It was jointly organised by UNESCO and the Government of Indonesia along with
the Press Council of Indonesia in Jakarta, Indonesia.
OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS BASED
ON TODAY’S NEWS
Q1.
WHICH AMONG THE FOLLOWING HAS BECOME THE 1ST STATE TO SWITCH TO THE
JANUARY-DECEMBER FINANCIAL YEAR FROM THE EXISTING APRIL-MARCH CYCLE?
a) Madhya Pradesh
b) Gujarat
c) Goa
d) Maharashtra
Q2.
WORLD’S HIGHEST RAIL BRIDGE, WHICH WILL BE TALLER THAN EIFFEL TOWER IS BEING
CONSTRUCTED ON WHICH INDIAN RIVER?
a) Narmada
b) Tapi
c) Chenab
d) Sabarmati
Q3.
WHICH PEER-TO-PEER ONLINE LENDING PLATFORM HAS BEEN LAUNCHED BY SINGAPORE-BASED
FINTECH START-UP FINMOMENTA?
a) Tachyloans
b) Instaloans
c) Peerloans
d) Quickloans
Q4.
WHO AMONG THE FOLLOWING HAS BEEN APPOINTED AS THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PUBLIC
ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE OF THE PARLIAMENT?
a) Rameswar Teli
b) Rajen Gohain
c) Mallikarjun Kharge
d) Ranjeet Ranjan
Q5.
WHAT WAS THE 2017 THEME OF ‘WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY’?
a) “Access to Information and Fundamental
Freedoms: This Is Your Right!”
b) ‘Critical Minds for Critical Times: Media’s
role in advancing peaceful, just and inclusive societies’
c) “Media Freedom for a Better Future”
d) “Ensuring Safety of Journalists”
ANSWERS:
1 - A 2 - D 3 - A 4 - C 5
- B
