Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 13 November 2019

::NATIONAL::

President’s rule imposed in Maharashtra, with no party able to prove majority

President's rule has been imposed in Maharashtra. The state legislative assembly has been kept under suspended animation. This follows Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's report to the Centre which stated that the formation of a stable government is impossible in the current situation despite all his efforts.
The development came as the political impasse lingered on for 19 days after the assembly election results were declared. Congress and the NCP said that they have not yet taken any decision on Shiv Sena's proposal of forming a government and will hold further discussions. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi considered the Governor's report to the President.
The governor noted that he made attempts to explore the possibility of formation of government by having appropriate communications with all political parties which could have formed the government in alliance with other political parties, but they have not succeeded.
In the assembly polls held last month, the BJP won 105 seats, followed by the Shiv Sena, 56, the NCP-54 and the Congress, 44 in the 288-member House.
Despite their alliance getting a majority, the BJP and the Shiv Sen parted ways following disagreement over powersharing with the Sena insisting on the chief minister's post.

Public service broadcasting day celebrated by AIR

Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi had visited All India Radio on 12 November 19947 to address to displaced people, who had temporarily settled at Kurukshetra in Haryana after partition.
That was Bapu's first and the only visit to All India Radio. Public Service Broadcasting Day is celebrated every year on this to commemorate this visit of Bapu.
A special function was organized in the premises of the broadcast house of All India Radio last evening. A cultural show was marked by the favourite bhajans of Bapu, 'Vaishnav Jan'.
Information and Broadcasting Secretary Amit Khare lauded the role of Akashvani as the nation public service broadcaster. He announced two Akashvani Public Broadcasting Awards for radio programmes by AIR Jammu and Shimla.
Director-General AIR, F. Sheheryar along with several other dignitaries and artists attended the event. School children rendered the song, 'Bande mein tha dam' from a movie based on the inspiration from the life of Mahatama Gandhi.

::ECONOMY::

Economists say India to attain 5% growth this fiscal

Two of India’s leading banks see growth slowing to 5% in the current financial year, following a sharper-than-expected contraction in industrial production in September and little evidence of a meaningful recovery. GDP grew 6.8% in FY19.
Growth in the July-September period may have dropped to 4.2% from 5% in the first quarter, according to estimates compiled by ET, increasing pressure on the government to take more steps to revive sentiment and demand. Official GDP data for the second quarter will be released on November 29 and the first full-year estimate will be available in January.
The central bank has already cut policy rates by135 basis points in the current year. In its last policy review the RBI had cut its growth forecast for the year to 6.1% from 6.8% estimated earlier. The central bank had forecast a 5.3% rise in GDP in the July-September quarter.
However, the SBI report said “a larger rate cut” is unlikely to lead to an immediate revival and could result in potential financial instability.
Debt-financed consumption against increasing household leverage has not worked overseas and India can’t be an exception it warned, calling for fiscal measures from the government.
The government has unveiled a series of measures, including a cut in the corporate tax rate to 15% and a Rs 25,000 crore special window for stalled real estate projects to help revive the economy.

India becomes MFN for energy investments ,claims centre

In the last 5-6 years India has become the most favoured destination for energy investments. Indiar eceived 286 US dollars billion FDI in the last 5 years. This is almost half of the total FDI in India in the last 20 years.
Addressing the investors in AbuDhabi today at the roadshow organized by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) to promote India as a favourable investment destination in the oil and gas sector, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, India is among the top 10 FDI destinations in the world.
He also said that India presently being the 3rd largest energy consumer in the world is poised to drive the global energy demand in the coming decades.
The Minister said the oil and gas industry will continue to play a crucial role in meeting India’s energy requirement despite system-wide energy transition measures.
He also added that oil demand is projected to rise at the fastest pace in the world and is expected to reach 10 million barrels per day by 2030.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

Bangladesh and Nepal discusses bilateral issues, expand cooperation

President of Bangladesh Md. Abdul Hamid is on a four day visit to Nepal. On first day of his visit, Nepal's Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali paid a courtesy call on Bangladeshi President in Kathmandu last evening.
During the meeting, matters pertaining to cooperation in the areas of trade, investment, energy, connectivity, waterways, aviation, education, transportation and agriculture were discussed. Both the leaders also shared views on enhancing cooperation on matters of regional and global interests, including climate change.
President of Bangladesh also visited famous Bhaktapur Durbar Square and observed with interest the archaeological and historical sites. President Hamid is scheduled to meet his Nepalese counterpart Bidya Devi Bhandari. President of Nepal will also host a Banquet in his honour.
Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun, Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and Chairperson of the National Assembly Ganesh Prasad Timilsina will pay courtesy call on Bangladeshi President. During his stay in Nepal President Hamid will also visit Pokhara.

European countries worried on Iran’s nuclear activities

France, Germany, Britain and the European Union have said they are "extremely concerned" by Iran's decision to restart nuclear activities at one of its key sites.
In a joint statement on Monday, they expressed concern that Iran is restarting uranium enrichment activities at the Fordow facility. It was confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in its report.
They said that Iran's action was "inconsistent" with the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPoA, under which Tehran had agreed to curb some of its nuclear activities- notably uranium enrichment- in return for a lifting of economic sanctions.
But the Iran said it no longer feels bound by the JCPoA after the US unilaterally pulled out of the accord last year.
The IAEA report also confirmed that Iran has ramped up uranium enrichment, with its stockpile now reaching the equivalent of 551 kilogrammes, as opposed to the 300-kilogramme limit laid down in the JCPoA.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

Vietnamese mouse der spotted after thirty years

A tiny deer-like species not seen by scientists for nearly 30 years has been photographed in a forest in southern Vietnam, a conservation group said Tuesday.
Images of the silver-backed chevrotain, commonly called the Vietnamese mouse deer, were captured in the wild by trap cameras, Global Wildlife Conservation said.
It said the rabbit-sized animal is not a deer or a mouse, despite its nickname, but is the world's smallest hoofed mammal.
They are shy and solitary, have two tiny fangs, appear to walk on the tips of their hooves, and have a silver sheen, the group said.
`For so long this species has seemingly only existed as part of our imagination. Discovering that it is, indeed, still out there, is the first step in ensuring we don't lose it again, and we're moving quickly now to figure out how best to protect it,'' said An Nguyen, a conservation scientist at the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, a partner of GWC in the project.
The chevrotain was first described in 1910 by four people. A fifth sighting was reported in 1990 in central Vietnam, making it one of the rarest animals in the world, GWC said in a statement.

::SPORTS::

Kento Momota wins Chine open Badminton crown

Kento Momota won his 10th title as Japan's world number one defeated Taiwan's world number two Tien-chen to retain his Fuzhou China Open Badminton crown on Sunday. Momota battled past Chou 21-15, 17-21, 21-18 at Fuzhou.
Home hope Chen Yufei similarly successfully defended the women's title with a victory over Japan's Nozomi Okuhara.
Chen lost the first game 21-9 to Okuhara but recovered to lift the Fuzhou title for the second year in a row by winning the next two 21-12, 21-18. It was more disappointment for Okuhara, who has now lost all six finals, she has contested this year.