Important Current Affairs 24th July 2016

Startup India States’ Conference Held

1. The Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion has organised the Startup India States’ Conference in Delhi.
2. It was organized to provide a platform for all States to discuss the policies & good practices they have made on the Startup initiative.
3. The aim is to create a conducive Startup ecosystem.
4. The conference was presided over by Smt.Nirmala Sitharaman,Minister of State for Commerce & Industry.

Public Investments up 21% in FY’16

1. Public investments in India rose 21 % last fiscal while private sector funding, which forms 75 % of overall investor demand contracted.
2. Public investments by central, state & local government saw 21 % rise in 2015-16.
3. Private investments (households & corporate) contracted 1.4 % year-on-year, the worst performance.
4. This was according to a report by HSBC.

IMF Calls for more Government Spending

1. The IMF has called on G20 nations to boost government spending.
2.  The impact of ultra-low interest rates begins to reach its limits in developed countries.
3. Central bank chiefs & finance ministers from the world’s top 20 economies gathered in the Chinese city of Chengdu to tackle problems facing the global economy.
4. The problems have been aggravated by the British vote to leave the European Union.

Declare Black Money by Sept 30: Modi

1. PM Modi has warned black money holders of stringent action including imprisonment after September 30.
2. Under the Income Declaration Scheme (IDS) which opened on June 1, black money holders can come clean by declaring the assets by Sept 30 & paying tax & penalty of 45 per thereafter.
3. Those who fail to take advantage of the scheme will have to face stringent actions, including imprisonment.

India Receives $5.34 bn FDI in April-May

1. India received $5.34 billion foreign direct investment in the first two months of the current financial year.
2. During April-May the country attracted $4.76 billion FDI under automatic route,while $582 million came through approval route.
3. The govt has made changes in the FDI policy in several sectors.
4. The govt has relaxed FDI Policy in sectors like defence, pharmaceuticals, aviation & broadcast.

Internet Users in India Reached 342 mn

1. Total internet subscribers in India reached 342.65 million in March with Bharti Airtel leading the chart.
2. As per data there were 34,26,54,750 internet subscribers as on March 31,2016.
3. Telecom major Bharti Airtel topped the chart with 90.53 million internet subscribers.
4. It was followed by Vodafone with 67.55 million subscribers.
5. Max number of internet subscribers in urban area are from Maharashtra

Legendary Artist S.H. Raza Passes Away

1. Modern Indian internationally acclaimed painter Saiyed Haider Raza has passed away.
2. His work was recognised with the introduction of ‘Bindu’ released in 1980 which is a closer look at the Indian culture.
3. He was honoured with the highest french award- The Legion of Honour in 2015.
4. He was also received Padma Vibhushan in 2013 & Padma Bhushan in 2007.

TP Subramanian Passes Away

1. Former international basketball referee, T P Subramanian has passed away.
2. He was  Known as ‘TP’ in basketball circles and had even officiated in the Asian Games.
3. He officiated in a little over 20 nationals popular tournaments like the Ramu Memorial basketball tournament.
4. He was considered a strict referee and once sent former India captain Abbas Moontasir off the court.

Usain Bolt Powers to 200m Win

1. Usain Bolt posted a convincing victory in the men’s 200 metres at London Diamond League.
2. Bolt clocked 19.89 seconds – 0.15 ahead of Panama’s Alonso Edward in second.
3. Britain’s Commonwealth silver medallist Adam Gemili was third in a season’s best 20.07.
4. The fastest 200m time of the year is 19.74 by US  sprinter LaShawn Merritt & while Bolt’s word record – set in 2009 is 19.19.

Neeraj sets U20 Javelin World Record

1. Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra has stormed into the record books by becoming the first Indian ever to set a World Record in any Athletics event – senior or junior.
2. He won the javelin throw gold in the IAAF World U-20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland.
3. He recorded a stupendous 86.48 metres on his second attempt.
4. The previous record of 84.69m was set by Latvia’s Zigismunds Sirmais in 2011.

Sheila Dikshit ‘debuts’ on Twitter

1. Congress Uttar Pradesh chief ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit posted her first-ever tweet.
2. The three-time Delhi CM tweeted: “As we start our #27SaalUPBehal Yatra, I seek your support & blessings.”
3. The UP Congress promoted Ms. Dikshit on Twitter indicating that the party would utilize social media

INS Viraat Embarks on Farewell Voyage

1. India’s magnificent second aircraft carrier, INS Viraat has  lifted anchor for her final voyage from Mumbai to Kochi.
2. The ageing ‘giant’ served the Indian Navy with distinction for almost six decades.
3. It is expected to reach the Southern Naval Command base on Wednesday for the pre-decommissioning preparations.
4. It is the last British-built ship serving the Indian Navy

Sharmila Tagore,Shekhar Kapur get Award

1. Veteran actress Sharmila Tagore & filmmaker Shekhar Kapur were conferred with the Icon Awards at the Bagri Foundation London Indian Film Festival.
2. The actress has several hit films to her credit such as Aradhana,Amar Prem & Chupke Chupke.
3. The festival has had a special focus on women &cinema this year.
4. The seventh Bagri Film Festival showed films in venues across London in 15 different languages.

Ganesh Singh Appointed Chairman of JPC

1. JP Lok Sabha member Ganesh Singh was appointed as Chairman of the Joint Parliamentry Committe (JPC) to examine provisions of the Land Acquisition Amendment Bill, 2015.
2. He will replace S S Ahluwalia who was appointed Minister of the State (MoS) for Parliamentary Affairs.
3. The JPC will examine provisions of Right to Fair Compensation & Transparency in Land Acquisition Bill, 2015

Committee for Desiltation of Ganga

1. The govt has constituted a committee to prepare guidelines for desiltation of river Ganga from Bhimgauda (Uttarakhand) to Farakka (West Bengal).
2. Madhav Chitale member,National Ganga River Basin Authority has been appointed as chairman.
3. The committee has also been asked to establish difference between desilting & sand mining
4. It also to establish need for desilting for ecology & e-flow of Ganga.

Amazon Jeff Bezos now World 3rd Richest

1. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is now the third richest man in the world.
2. According to Bloomberg, Bezos’s total net worth hit $65.05 billion pushing him past Berkshire Hathaway’s founder Warren Buffett by $32 million.
3. Bezos’s rise is largely due to his stock ownership in Amazon.
4. Ahead of him are Spanish retail magnate Amancio Ortega, worth $73.4 billion & Bill Gates, worth $89.1 billion.

Russian Balloonist Sets World Record

1. Russian adventurer Fedor Konyukhov has broken the record for the fastest circumnavigation of the Earth in a hot air balloon in just over 11 days.
2. He embarked on his epic journey from Northam in Western Australia.
3. He has broken the 14 year old record set by American adventurer Steve Fossett, who completed the trip in 13 & a-half days.
4. He completed round-the-world solo flight on the first attempt.

China Unveil Largest Amphibious Aircraft

1. China has unveils world’s largest amphibious aircraft AG600.
2. The aircraftcan will be used  fight forest fires & perform marine rescue missions.
3. The aircraft has a maximum take-off weight of 53.5 tonnes, a maximum flight range of 4,500 km & it can collect 12 tonnes of water in 20 seconds.
4. An amphibious aircraft can take off and land on both land and water.

Turkey Shuts Schools in Emergency Decree

1. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has ordered the closure of more than 1,000 private schools
2. He has also extended the period in which suspects can be detained without charge in his first decree since declaring a three-month state of emergency.
3. All the institutions are suspected of having links to U.S.-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, accused of masterminding the abortive coup.

Solar Impulse Leave Egypt for Final Leg

1. Solar Impulse 2 powered by solar energy left Egypt on the last leg of the first ever fuel-free flight around the globe.
2. It took off from Cairo en route to Abu Dhabi to its final destination.
3. The plane began its journey in Abu Dhabi in March 2015 in a campaign to build support for clean energy technologies.
4. The round the world flight ends in Abu Dhabi.