Important Current Affairs 11th May 2016

RBI to Issue Rs1000 notes with Insert R

• The Reserve Bank of India will shortly issue banknotes of Rs 1,000 denomination with inset letter ‘R’ in both the number panels.
• Banknotes will also have all the other security features including ascending size of numerals, bleed lines & enlarged identification mark.
• Banknotes will bear the signature of RBI Governor Raghuram G Rajan.
• It will also have the year of printing ‘2016’.

11th-May : National Technology Day

• The National Technology Day is observed every year on May 11.
• The event is marked with great pride as the country achieved a huge technological progression on this particular day.
• It was on this day that the first, indigenous aircraft Hansa-3 was test flown at Bangalore.
• India  executed three successful nuclear test on May 11.
• The theme for this year is Technology enablers of Startup India.

Indian Navy Bids Adieu to Sea Harriers

• Indian Navy has decommissioned its fleet of iconic fighter plane Sea Harriers.
• The planes were decommissioned at a function organised at INS Hansa base in Vasco, Goa.
• The aircraft, developed by the British in the 1960s, are best known for the ability to take off & land vertically & the only class of jet that can hover like a helicopter.
• The Harriers will be replaced by Russian Mig 29k jets.

Amazon Launch YouTube-Like Video Service

• Amazon announced the launch of new service Amazon Video Direct (AVD).
• A new service allows independent content creators to upload content and get paid.
• The program aims to allow video creators to upload original or licensed videos to the service to reach a wider audience.
• Amazon will pay content creators 50 percent of the revenue earned from rental receipts or sale of the videos.

Rodrigo Wins Philippines Elections

• Rodrigo Duterte has won the Philippine presidential elections.
• Mr Duterte stirred controversy during campaigning with his incendiary comments.
• He has credited his success to his tough stance on law and order.
• His record as the crime-crushing mayor of the southern town of Davao earned him the moniker The Punisher.
• Manuel Roxas is in second place with 9m (23%) of votes cast.

Mrugank Takes Charge as MCX MD & CEO

• Mrugank Paranjape took over as managing director & chief Executive officer of the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX),
• Prior to joining MCX, Paranjape was the India Head of DB Centre of Deutsche Bank across all business divisions.
• His term is for three years.
• MCX has been headless for the past two years.
• P K Singhal was handling the affairs of the exchange as joint MD.

BCCI President Shashank Manohar Resigns

• Shashank Manohar has stepped down as president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
• He had taken over as cricket body’s president after the demise of Jagmohan Dalmiya in October 2015.
• Mr. Manohar would now contest for the post of Chairman of ICC.
• The ICC has set a rule that its Chairman should be of independent nature & can’t act in dual role.

Japan Honours N.K. Singh

• N.K. Singh was honoured with Japan’s second highest national decoration for his contribution in strengthening Indo-Japan ties in the field of trade & investment.
• The Order of the Rising Sun,Gold & Silver Star award was conferred on Mr. Singh by PM Shinzo Abe.
• Mr. Singh is a politician, economist & former top bureaucrat.
• The Order of the Rising Sun is a Japanese govt. honour established in 1875.

Indians’ Average Wealth Soars 400%

• Average wealth of an Indian surged by 400% in 10 years to 2015 while that of an European citizen declined by 5% during the period.
• In emerging markets such as India, China & Vietnam, average wealth has gone up by over 400% during the 10-year period (2005-15).
• The average European citizen is currently worth around $86,000.
• This was according to a report by New World Wealth.

India, Mauritius Tax Treaty Amended

• India & Mauritius signed a protocol for amendment of a three-decade-old double taxation avoidance agreement.
• The govt. has gained the right to tax capital gains arising in Mauritius from sale of shares acquired on or after April 1, 2017, in Indian companies.
• During a transition period of two years, the tax will be limited to half the Indian tax rate.
• The full tax rate will kick in from 2019-20.