Current Affairs 9 February 2018

International Current Affairs 1. Former Bangladesh PM Khaleda Zia sentenced to five years in prison A Special Court in Dhaka ha...

International Current Affairs

1. Former Bangladesh PM Khaleda Zia sentenced to five years in prison

A Special Court in Dhaka has sentenced former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia to jail for five years in a 10-year-old graft case.

• The court also sentenced her son, Tarique Rahman, and four others to jail for 10 years. Rahman is a resident of London.
• The Anti-Corruption Commission filed the case, accusing Ms. Zia and the five others of misappropriating over 2.1 crore Bangladeshi Taka that had come from a foreign bank as grants for orphans.

National Current Affairs

2. 11 states are now open defecation free: Government

The government informed the Lok Sabha that till date 11 states and union territories (UTs) have been declared open defecation free (ODF) under Swachh Bharat Mission.

• The government is taking various steps under the SBM to make all states in the country ODF, the minister of state in the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ramesh Chandappa Jigajinagi, said in a written reply.

3. Pon. Radhakrishnan inaugurates the Third Global Procurement Summit

The Minister of State for Finance and Shipping, Government of India, Shri Pon. Radhakrishnan said that the Government of India attaches great importance to fairness, transparency and accountability in public procurement and it has raised the citizen’s expectation in terms of efficiency and outcomes of public spending.

• He said that the present Central Government has a clear vision of transforming the procurement and public service delivery.
• The Minister for State for Finance Shri Pon. Radhakrishnan was delivering the Inaugural Address after inaugurating theThird Global Procurement Summit in New Delhi.
• The two day Summit is being organized by All India Management Association(AIMA), World Bank and the Government of India.

4. Inter-Ministerial Committee to tackle menace of trafficking

An Inter- ministerial Committee (IMC) with concerned stake holders, Ministries/ departments of Government of India along with representatives of some State/UT Governments and CSOs under the Chairpersonship of Secretary, Women and Child Development has been constituted to tackle the menace of trafficking.

• As per Ministry of Home Affairs, National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) the total number of cases of ‘Procuration of minor girls’ has risen from 231 in the year 2006 to 2465 in the year 2016.

5. Two-day Conference on Jobs and Livelihood opportunities with CII

NITI Aayog has organized a two-day Conference on Jobs and Livelihood opportunities in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industries, CII at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre in the capital.

• The Conference will provide a platform for dialogue between various stakeholders to share their views on the potential of job creation and livelihood opportunities. 

6. 1,86,777 Affordable Houses Sanctioned for Urban Poor Under Pmay(Urban)

Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has approved the construction of 1,86,777more affordable houses for the benefit of urban poor under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) with an investment of Rs.11,169crwith central assistance of Rs. 2,797 cr.

• The approval was given in the 30th meeting of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee in its meeting.
• With the above proposed houses, cumulative houses under PMAY(U) would become 37,83,392 after final approval from CSMC. 
• Further after subsuming projects of RAY scheme the total number of houses being funded under PMAY(Urban) would be 39,25,240 houses.

Business

7. Forbes releases first-ever crypto-rich list

Forbes has released its first ever list of richest people in cryptocurrency, which is topped by Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen, with an estimated crypto net worth of USD 7.5-8 billion.

• According to Forbes, the average 2017 price change of Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP, three of the most common cryptocurrencies, is a whopping 14,409 per cent.
• As per the publication, there are now nearly 1,500 cryptoassets in existence, valued at an aggregate USD 550 billion.

8. CCI imposes Rs 135.86 crore penalty on Google for search bias

Competition Commission of India (CCI) has found Google to have violated in online general web search and web search advertising services in India, and imposed a penalty of Rs 135.86 crore against the company.

• The order was passed in response to informations filed by Matrimony.com and Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS) in 2012.

Sports

9. 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony

The opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics will take place at the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium in Pyeongchang, South Korea on February 9, 2018.

• The site of the opening ceremony Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium was built specifically for the games.
• These Games will feature 102 events in fifteen sports disciplines.
• ‘Peace will be the central theme of the games.

Books

10. Rajnath Singh Release Book Titled “Mere Sapnon ka Bharat”

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh released a book titled “Mere Sapnon ka Bharat”. It is a compilation of interviews of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee by Tarun Vijay, an ex-MP, at a function in New Delhi.

• The Home Minister described Mr Vajpayee as a distinguished personality who stands alone because of his stature. He is respected by all cutting across the political parties divides.