Daily Current Affairs, 18th December 2018

1) PM Modi Launched Various Development Projects In Maharashtra

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched infrastructure and housing projects worth about Rs 41,000 crore in Maharashtra. During his day-long visit to the state, Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation stone for two important metro corridors at a public meeting in Kalyan (Thane-Bhiwandi-Kalyan Metro and the Dahisar-Mira-Bhayander Metro).

•Prime Minister also launched mass housing scheme worth 18,000 crore rupees which offers around 90,000 affordable homes for economically weaker sections under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). Prime Minister Modi also visited Raj Bhavan in Mumbai to release a book titled “Timeless Laxman”, based on the famous cartoonist, RK Laxman.

2) Jammu and Kashmir Becomes 1st State To Bring Law Against ‘Sextortion’

•Jammu and Kashmir has become the first state in the country to enact a law banning sexual exploitation of women “by those in positions of authority, having a fiduciary relationship or a public servant”, Under Section 354E of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC).

•Any person committing the offence of sextortion shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term not be less than three years, but may extend to five years and with fine. The offence is “non-bailable” and “not compoundable”.

3) Indian Film ‘Period. End of Sentence’ Made It To Oscars Shortlist

•‘Period. End of Sentence’ has made it to the Oscar shortlist in the Documentary Short Subject category. This is a film about women in India fighting against the deeply rooted stigma of menstruation and delving upon the work of real-life ‘Pad Man’ Arunachalam Muruganantham.

•A total of 104 films had originally qualified in the category. India’s entry for the Foreign Language Film Category, Village Rockstars is out of the Oscar race.

4) Uday Shankar Elected As Vice President Of FICCI

•Star India’s Chairman and CEO Uday Shankar has been elected Vice President of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) for 2018-19.

•He was recently appointed Star and Disney India’s Chairman and President of The Walt Disney Company Asia Pacific. Shankar is the first-ever Indian media and entertainment executive to assume the leadership position in a national industry chamber.

5) Madhavi Divan Appointed As Additional Solicitor General

•The Central government has appointed advocate Madhavi Divan as the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) to represent it in the Supreme Court. Divan is the third woman to be appointed as ASG in the top court.

•She has represented two state governments, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, in the apex court. She will hold the office till June 30, 2020. Senior advocate Indira Jaising was the first woman to be appointed as the ASG.

6) 37th Senior National Rowing Championship Begins in Pune

•The 37th Senior National Rowing Championship began in the Army Rowing Node in Pune. Around 500 rowers and coaches from various rowing associations across the country are taking part in the Championship.

•The Rowers for the World Championships-2019 will be selected from this event. World Championship -2019 is the first qualifying Championship for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.