Daily Current Affairs, 08th January 2019

1) In A Historic Move, Private FM Channels Permitted to Carry All India Radio News

•Union Minister of State (IC) for Information & Broadcasting and Youth Affairs & Sports, Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore (Retd.) launched the sharing of All India Radio News with private FM broadcasters. This will be done free of cost, on trial basis initially till 31st May, 2019. 

•Any Private FM broadcaster which intends to broadcast the news bulletins will first have to register with News Services Division: All India Radio. 

2) 1st Ever Global Aviation Summit To Be Held In Mumbai

•In a first, the 2-day long Global Aviation Summit 2019 with the theme “Flying for all”will be organized by the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) in collaboration with FICCI from January 15-16, 2019 in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

•The summit is supported by International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Federal Aviation Administration of US (FAA), International Air Transport Association (IATA), CiviI Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO), Airports Council International (ACl) and Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA).

•The Summit aims to focus on the celebration of ‘Flying for All’ and to provide a platform to the aviation fraternity to showcase the challenges of the sector in the newly developing growth spots and understand how the technology-driven innovations will change the air travel in future. 

3) 4th Edition Of Raisina Dialogue Begins In New Delhi

•The fourth edition of the Raisina Dialogue has begun in New Delhi. Norway Prime Minister Ms. Erna Solberg delivered inaugural address in presence of PM Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. 

•The theme of the Dialogue this year is “A World Reorder: New Geometries; Fluid Partnerships; Uncertain Outcomes”. Ministry of External Affairs in partnership with Observer Research Foundation has organized the flagship annual geopolitical and geostrategic conference. 

4) 106th Session of Indian Science Congress Concludes in Jalandhar

•The 106th session of Indian Science Congress (ISC), 2019 concluded in Lovely Professional University, Jalandhar, Punjab. The five-day session was inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi and attended by Union Science & Technology Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan.

•As a part of the Indian Science Congress, Women’s Science Congress was held which was inaugurated by Union Minister for Textiles & Industry Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani. The major attractions were the 55-feet, 25-ton massive robot ‘Metal Magna’ installed at the entrance gate. 

5) Sheikh Hasina Sworn-In As Bangladesh PM For 4th Term

•Sheikh Hasina sworn-in as the Bangladesh Prime Minister for the fourth term. It is her third consecutive term after her victory in the 11th Parliamentary elections.

•President Mohammad Abdul Hamid administered the oath of office to Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka. This is the first time Hasina is forming a cabinet with the members of her own party. 

6) CSO Forecasts Indian Economy To Grow At 7.2% In 2018-19

•Releasing the first advance estimates of National Income for 2018-19, Central Statistics Office (CSO) stated that the growth in GDP during 2018-19 is estimated at 7.2% as compared to the growth rate of 6.7% in 2017-18, mainly due to improvement in the performance of agriculture and manufacturing sectors.

•Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg described the 7.2% GDP growth projection as very healthy. Mr. Garg stated that India continued to remain the fastest growing economy in the world and at current prices, GDP grows by 12.3% rising to 188. 41 lakh crore.

7) Alok Verma Reinstated As CBI Chief By Supreme Court

•Alok Verma has been reinstated as the CBI chief by the Supreme Court, three months after the government divested him of his powers and sent him on forced leave. Alok Verma and his deputy Rakesh Asthana were both sent on leave in October amid a bitter feud between the CBI’s top two.

•Supreme Court strikes down CBI Chief Alok Verma’s removal. However, at present, Alok Verma cannot take any major policy decisions. Supreme Court stated that the High Power Committee under the DSPE Act needs to act within a week to consider Alok Verma’s case. Supreme Court also stated that the government should have referred to the Select Committee consisting of the Chief Justice of India, Prime Minister and Leader of Opposition to initiate Alok Verma’s removal.

8) Kumar Rajesh Chandra Appointed Director-General of SSB

•Civil Aviation Security head and senior IPS officer Kumar Rajesh Chandra was appointed as the director general of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).

•Chandra, a 1985-batch IPS officer of Bihar cadre, is at present the director general of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS). He has been appointed as SSB DG up to December 31, 2021, i.e., the date of his superannuation, the order said.