Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 26 January 2017

:: NATIONAL ::

More common people in Padma awards category

• The Padma series of awards are conferred in three categories — Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri. Padma Vibhushan is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service; Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of high order; and Padma Shri for distinguished service in any field.

• The awards are announced on the occasion of Republic Day every year. They are presented by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rashtrapati Bhavan around March or April.

• This year the President of India has approved conferment of Padma Awards on 89 persons comprising seven Padma Vibhushans, seven Padma Bhushans and 75 Padma Shri awards; 19 awardees are women.

Padma Vibhushan:

• Sharad Pawar
• Murli Manohar Joshi
• K.J. Yesudas
• Prof. Udipi Ramachandra Rao
• P.A. Sangma (posthumous)
• Sunder Lal Patwah (posthumous)
• Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev

Padma Bhusan:

• Thailand’s Princess- Maha Chakri Sirindhorn
• Cho Ramaswamy (posthumous)
• Vishwa Mohan Bhatt
• Prof. Devi Prasad Dwivedi
• Tehemton Udwadia
• Ratna Sundar Maharaj
• Swami Nitanjana Nanda Saraswati

India's corruption ranking does not improve

• A major international index of corruption and transparency has placed India on the watch list for its inability to curb mega corruption scandals and petty bribery.

• The annual index of Transparency International issued for 2016 placed India with Brazil and China in the 40th position. India’s condition showed growth with inequality.

• India’s ongoing poor performance with a score of 40 reiterates the state’s inability to effectively deal with petty corruption and large-scale corruption scandals.

• The impact of corruption on poverty, illiteracy and policy brutality showed that not only was the economy growing but so was inequality.

• India’s current ranking, putting it in the high corruption zone, has drawn critical observations from transparency campaigners.

• South Asia had performed poorly. Bangladesh at 27th and Nepal at 29th positions were slotted in the highly corrupt section.

• Pakistan, at 32, also came in the red zone. Afghanistan ranked 15th was in the “highly corrupt” list with South Sudan, North Korea and Libya.

US finds true friend in India (Register and Login to read Full News)

Important agreements signed between India and UAE (Register and Login to read Full News)

Kerala will come up with all women police (Register and Login to read Full News)

:: International ::

China formally exited from TPP

• China is hoping to galvanise two regional trade proposals — the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Free-Trade Agreement of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) — following the formal exit of the U.S. from the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP).

• President Donald Trump signed an executive order, withdrawing the U.S. from the 12-nation trade deal, widely seen in China as a Washington-led attempt to contain its rise.

• Instead of the TPP, Prof. Wang backed the RCEP, which has the 10 countries of the Association of South East Asian Nations as the core of the proposed free trade agreement. Besides, six other nations  India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand are part of the arrangement.

• Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying pointed out that Beijing will back further negotiations on RCEP, which have already made substantial progress and should be completed at an early date.

• In the Asia-Pacific, the U.S.’s exit has triggered different responses — from calls to re-focus on the RCEP to revive the TPP with China as its new member.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations sworn (Register and Login to read Full News)

:: Science and Technology ::

New species of songbird found in western ghats

• The fragmented forests of the highest ranges of the Western Ghats have revealed a secret that is music to the ears of naturalists. Researchers exploring these “sky islands” have designated two new endemic genera and a new species of songbird.

• The research published in the latest issue of BMC Evolutionary Biology was undertaken by V. V. Robin; Sushma Reddy; C .K. Vishnudas; Pooja Gupta; Frank E. Rheindt; Daniel M. Hooper and Uma Ramakrishnan.

• The team has designated two new genera, the Western Ghats shortwings asSholicola (closely related to flycatchers) and the laughing thrushes asMontecincla (closely related to babblers. The newly described Sholicola ashambuensis is confined to the Agasthyar Malai mountain ranges.

• The species in the Montecincla genera include Montecincla jerdoni, Montecincla cachinnans, Montecincla fairbanki and Montecincla meridionalis belongs to theMontecincla genus. Sholicola major and Sholicola albiventris belongs to theSholicola genus.

• These birds live in the most vulnerable part of the ecosystem — fragmented forest patches on the highest peaks of the range — that is facing increasing pressure from humans activities and climate change.

GSLV’s cryogenic upper stage tested successfully (Register and Login to read Full News)

:: Business and Economy ::

Final view on digital payments yet to be taken

• Finance Ministry is yet to take a final view on the suggestions made by a panel on encouraging digital payments, which include a recommendation to levy a handling charge on cash transactions over Rs. 50,000.

• In its interim report submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 24, the panel has recommended levying of a handling charge for cash payments above Rs. 50,000, while pitching for tax breaks to consumers and merchants using digital modes of payments.

• It also suggested the abolition of merchant discount rate to make digital payments cheaper than cash.

:: Sports ::

Bolt looses one of his golds

• Usain Bolt lost one of his nine Olympic gold medals when the IOC stripped Jamaica of its 4x100m relay win at the 2008 Beijing Games after Nesta Carter tested positive for doping.

• The decision, which follows the retesting of hundreds of samples from the Beijing event, means that Bolt, as Carter’s teammate, loses one of the three gold medals he won there.

• This also meant the loss of one of Bolt’s ‘triple triples’ — he won gold in the 100m, 200 and 4x100m at Beijing and went on to repeat the feat in London 2012 and Rio 2016.

• The IOC said a re-analysis of Carter’s 2008 samples “resulted in a positive test for the prohibited substance methylhexaneamine.”

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