Daily Current Affairs, 18th and 19th November 2018

1) PM Modi inaugurates Kundli-Manesar Palwal Western Peripheral Expressway

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the Kundli-Manesar section of the Western Peripheral Expressway. He also inaugurated the 3.2-kilometre long Escorts Mujesar-Ballabhgarh corridor of the Delhi Metro. Mr. Modi also laid the foundation stone for Vishwakarma Kaushal Vishwa Vidyalaya.

•The Western Peripheral Expressway also known as KMP expressway is expected to divert more than 50 thousand heavy vehicles away from Delhi. The 136-kilometer long six-lane expressway has been built at a cost of over 6400 crore rupees.

2) President Kovind on 2-Nation Visit to Vietnam and Australia

•President Ram Nath Kovind is on 2 nation visit to Vietnam and Australia. He reached Da Nang in Vietnam on the first leg of his two-nation visit. Mr. Kovind is being accompanied by a high-level delegation.

•On the second leg of his visit, Mr Kovind will reach Australia. He will meet the Australian leadership and address students of Melbourne University.

3) Kerala Introduces New Open Online Learning Programme: ‘KOOL’

•The Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE) has rolled out– KOOL, its Online Open Learning training platform. The platform can be used to train teachers, students and the general public.

•With the state’s schools going Hi-Tech, requiring teachers and students to be trained on different domains simultaneously, it was decided to launch KOOL. KOOL has been designed in a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) model.

4) Sunil Mehta Panel Incorporates ‘Sashakt India AMC’ for Large NPAs

•Sunil Mehta, the chairman of a bankers’ panel working on the faster resolution of stressed assets in public sector banks, had announced that an asset management company (AMC) for resolving large bad loans has been formed and will be called as Sashakt India Asset Management. The panel is now working towards identifying potential investors for an alternate investment fund (AIF) which will fund the AMC.

5) Morocco Unveils Africa’s First Ever High Speed Train Line

•French President Emmanuel Macron and Morocco’s King Mohammed VI have inaugurated Morocco’s first high-speed rail line, the first ever such line in Africa. The $2 billion project was launched in September 2011 by the king and Nicolas Sarkozy, then president of France.

•Known as the LGV, it will connect the economic hubs of Tangier and Casablanca in 2 hours 10 minutes at a speed of up to 320 kph (199 mph) instead of almost 5 hours on a regular train.

6) Qaumi Ekta Week Observed Across Country

•Qaumi Ekta Week observed across the country from November 19th-25th to foster and reinforce the spirit of communal harmony and national integration. The observation of the week helps to highlight the inherent strength and resilience of the nation to withstand actual and potential threats to the eclectic and secular fabric of the country.

•The National Foundation for Communal Harmony, an autonomous organisation with the Ministry of Home Affairs, organises Communal Harmony Campaign coinciding with the Qaumi Ekta Week and observes the Communal Harmony Flag Day on 25th November.

7) INDO-Russian Joint Exercise INDRA 2018 Held in Jhansi

•The joint military exercise between India and Russia EXERCISE INDRA 2018 on combating insurgency under the aegis of United Nations (UN) was conducted at Babina Military Station in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh. Company sized contingents of the 5th Army of the Russian Federation and a Mechanised Infantry Battalion of India participated in the training exercise.

•The aim of the exercise is to practice joint planning and conduct to enhance interoperability of the two Armies in the peacekeeping/enforcement environment under the aegis of the UN. This is the tenth series of Exercise INDRA. 

8) Ustad Amjad Ali Khan Presented Lifetime Achievement Award In Delhi

•One of India’s greatest sarod masters, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, was presented the ‘Sumitra Charat Ram Award for Lifetime Achievement’ at the Kamani Auditorium, New Delhi, for his “immense contribution to the enrichment and promotion of the Indian classical music”.

•The award was presented to him by former diplomat Lalit Mansingh. Best known for his clear and fast ‘ekhara taans’, Khan was born in 1945 in Gwalior. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan (in 2001) and is among the tallest Indian classical musicians.

9) Karnataka Bank launches CASA campaign ‘KBL SB – TASC’

•Karnataka Bank has launched a special campaign for opening current account and savings accounts (CASA). The campaign will remain in force for a period of three-and-a-half months from November 15 to February 28.

•It has been introduced as a new SB scheme ‘KBL SB – TASC’ a specialized product forTrusts/Associates/Societies/Clubs. Bank intends to open more than 4.18 lakh Current & Savings accounts by the active involvement of its 8000 plus workforce in all the 823 branches across India.

10) Jalaj Srivastava Appointed New IWAI Chairman

•Jalaj Srivastava, a 1984 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, has been appointed the chairman of the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI). The IWAI comes under the Union Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, currently headed by Nitin Gadkari. Srivastava is presently working as Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture.

11) UIDAI CEO Ajay Bhushan Pandey Appointed New Revenue Secretary

•The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet appointed Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) CEO Ajay Bhushan Pandey as the new revenue secretary. He will succeed current Finance and Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia.

•Mr Adhia is retiring on November 30. Mr Pandey will continue to hold the charge as the CEO of UIDAI and GSTN Chairman until further orders. Pandey is a 1984 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Maharashtra cadre.

12) Oracle Veteran Thomas Kurian To Head Google Cloud

•Oracle’s ex-product chief Thomas Kurian will head Google’s cloud division. He will replace Diane Greene. Kurian will join Google Cloud on November 26 and transition into the leadership role in early 2019. Greene, who will remain a director on the Alphabet board, had joined Google in December 2015 to run its cloud business.