Daily Current Affairs, 17th March 2018

1)  NITI Aayog Released SATH-E Roadmaps

•NITI Aayog released comprehensive roadmaps and detailed timelines for its initiative ‘Sustainable Action for Transforming Human Capital in Education (SATH-E)’ project. Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog released the forward-looking blueprints.

•These roadmaps, which operate between 2018 to 2020, lay out detailed interventions which will be taken by the three participating States- Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha – aiming to become ‘Role Model States’ in school education. 

2)  LaQshya Program Launched To Improve Quality Of Maternity Care

•The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare launched 'LaQshya program' aimed at improving quality of maternity care in labour room and maternity Operation Theatre (OT). The program aims to improve quality of care for pregnant women in labour room, maternity Operation Theatre and Obstetrics Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and High Dependency Units (HDUs).

•‘LaQshya’ will reduce maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality, improve quality of care during delivery. The Program aims at implementing ‘fast-track’ interventions for achieving tangible results within 18 months.

3)  Lok Sabha Passes Gratuity Amendment Bill

•Lok Sabha has passed gratuity amendment bill. The Payment of Gratuity (Amendment) Bill, 2017 aims at increasing the upper ceiling of the gratuity from the present 10 lakh rupees to 20 lakh rupees for employees in the private sector and in Public Sector Undertakings at par with Central Government employees.

•The House also passed the Specific Relief (Amendment) Bill, 2017 which seeks to grant a party the right to seek damages from the other side in case of a breach of a business contract and to reduce the discretion of courts in such matters.

4)  Xi Jinping Re-Elected China President, Wang Vice President

•Xi Jinping was re-elected as President for a second five-year tenure by China's rubber-stamp parliament. The Parliament has recently allowed Xi to have a life-long tenure.

•Xi was also elected as the head of the powerful Central Military Commission, the overall high command of the Chinese military.  He became president in 2013. Wang Qishan has been elected as the new Vice President of China.

5)  Sri Lanka Pays Tribute To J Dalmiya With Book 'A Tribute To Jagu'

•Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) paid tribute to former BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya with a book titled, 'A Tribute to Jagu'.

•The cricket association felicitated Dalmiya posthumously as the greatest non-Sri Lankan contributor to Sri Lankan cricket.

6)  SEBI Raises Currency Derivative Trade Limit To $100 Million

•Capital markets regulator SEBI raised the exposure limit under exchange-traded currency derivatives trading for residents and FPIs to USD 100 million across all currency pairs involving the Indian rupee.

•The move will help entities engaged in forex transactions to maintain their currency risks in a better manner.