Current Affairs Questions & Answers: March 17, 2017

Notes:
The Krishi Unnati Mela (or Agriculture Science Fair) 2017 was held at the campus of IARI in New Delhi from March 15-17, which was jointly organized by Indian Agricultural Research Institute (ICAR) and Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare. The purpose of the mela is to display and popularise the latest advancement in agricultural research and technology development among farmers and end users since 1972.

Notes:
The HDFC bank has launched an instant digital Loan Against Securities (LAS) facility in collaboration with the National Securities Depository (NSDL), which allows customers to avail loans in less than 3 minutes. The service will also be available to customers with no credit history. The bank will offer 10.5% interest rate on the product and will soon expand the offering to other securities such as mutual funds, bonds and insurance policies. Under this facility, customers can avail a minimum loan of Rs 1 lakh and maximum loan up to Rs 20 lakh.

Notes:
The State Bank of India (SBI) has recently signed MoU with Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI) to jointly conduct various initiatives towards the development of the Real Estate Sector for a period of 3 years. The purpose of the MoU is to work towards providing housing for all. Under this MoU, SBI will be a national partner for all CREDAI activities and both will jointly work together for various marketing activities like conclaves, seminars, exhibitions, campaigns and CSR activities as well. CREDAI is the largest real estate association in the country with over 11,500 members.

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The book “The Sleepwalker’s Dream: A Novel” has been authored by Dr. Dhrubajyoti Borah, the President of Assam Sahitya Sabha. Through the book, the author traces the journey of a group of militants towards an elusive freedom and an uncertain future. It is about June, Ron and several other rebels fleeing their hideout in Bhutan after an army attack along with their injured unconscious leader, who is unlikely to survive the ordeal of their journey towards the Assam border.

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India has been ranked 148th out of 193 countries in the world for the number of women MPs in Parliament, according to the 2017 edition of “Women in Politics 2017 Map” published by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and UN Women. Rwanda topped the list, followed by Bolivia, Cuba, Iceland, Nicaragua and Sweden. The map of Women in Politics not only provides a country ranking for both ministerial and parliamentary representation, but also statistics on women in political leadership positions – Heads of State or government, women Speakers of Parliament, as well as ministerial portfolios held by women throughout the world.

Notes:
Babul Supriyo, the singer-turned BJP MP, has become the Vice-President (VP) of the Local Organising Committee (LoC) of the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017, which is to be hosted by India. The event will be held in October 2017. Currently, he is the Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises.

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The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting has started in Baden-Baden, Germany from March 17, 2017. The 2-day meeting is an opportunity to discuss developments in the global economy with my international counterparts and decide on actions we can undertake to respond to the major challenges we all face.

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The 3-day International Buddhist conference on “Buddhism in 2lst Century: Perspectives and Responses to Global Issues” has started at Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, Rajgir in Nalanda district, Bihar on March 17, 2017. During the conference, the scholars will give their deliberations on Perspective and Responses to global challenges and crisis. Over one thousand delegates from 35 countries including Sri Lanka, Nepal, Singapore and Indonesia are participating in it. The session would focus on issues like perspectives and responses to global challenges and crisis, conflicts, peace building and Buddhist responses, environment and nature conservation and Buddhist perspectives, women and Buddhism, among others.

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The Committee of Petitions headed by BJP MP Bhagat Singh Koshyari has tabled a report in Lok Sabha which suggests the merger state-run telecom firms Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) for their long-term survival. As per the Parliamentary committee report, the merger will create a bigger state-owned telecom company, which would give a tough competition to other private telecom players present in the market.

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India’s most successful Badminton Doubles specialist Jwala Gutta has been appointed a new member of the governing body of Sports Authority of India (SAI). Two-time Olympian Jwala won the bronze medal at the 2011 World Championships. She is also a 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games champion and a silver medallist at the 2014 Glasgow Games in women’s doubles.