Top GKToday’s News Headlines- 27 December 2019
Here are the top News Headlines of 27 December 2019 for all competitive examinations of India.
National Current Affairs
SOLAR ECLIPSE
- A partial solar eclipse visible in parts of India along with several other countries
- This was an annular solar eclipse that happens when the Moon covers the sun’s centre, leaving the sun’s visible outer edges to form a ‘ring of fire’ or annulus – around the moon.
GOOD GOVERNANCE INDEX
- A good governance index (GGI) has been launched by the central government to assess the state of governance in the country.
- Tamil Nadu bagged the top position for Big States followed by Maharashtra, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh.
- In the North-East and Hill category, Himachal Pradesh topped the ranking.
- Among the Union Territories, Pondicherry got the first position.
UGC DOCUMENTS ON QUALITY MANDATE
- Union HRD Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank launched five documents developed by University Grants Commission, UGC covering the 5 verticals of Quality Mandate
- These five documents cover evaluation reforms, eco-friendly & sustainable university campuses, human values & professional ethics, faculty induction and academic research integrity.
TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
- Union Home Minister Amit Shah laid the foundation stone for the country’s first transit-oriented development (TOD) project in New Delhi
- Under TOD, a state-of-the-art infrastructure zone, including the national capital’s tallest tower, will be built in east Delhi
- DRI STAMP
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman released a postage stamp on Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI)
- DRI was formed on December 4, 1957 to function as an apex intelligence agency of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs to counter the menace of smuggling.
PMVVY
- makes Aadhaar mandatory for subscribers of the Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY), a pension scheme for senior citizens.
- The scheme, which envisages an assured rate of return of 8% annually, is being implemented through LIC
RAILWAYS RECRUITMENT
- All new recruits in railways will be inducted through the UPSC civil services exams under five specialities, Railway Board Chairman V K Yadav said
- Four of them will be engineering specialities for ‘technical’ operations comprising of civil, mechanical, telecom and electrical, and one ‘non-technical’ speciality which will recruit officers for accounts, personnel and traffic.
- Earlier the Cabinet approved the merger of its eight services into one — the Indian Railway Management Service (IRMS).
International Current Affairs
- Typhoon Phanfone kills 20 in Philippines
- 5th Round of India-Japan Maritime Affairs Dialogue held in Tokyo
- Turkey’s Constitutional Court rules government’s ban on access to Wikipedia breaches free speech
Sports Current Affairs
- Wisden Cricketers’ Almanac names five Cricketers of the Decade: Indian captain Virat Kohli, South Africans Dale Steyn and AB de Villiers, Australia’s Steve Smith and Australia’s woman all-rounder Ellyse Perry