Important Current Affairs 10th August

• Brazil Senate Votes for Rousseff Trial
  • The Brazilian Senate has voted to hold an impeachment trial of suspended President Dilma Rousseff.
  • The senate voted 59 to 21 in favour of going ahead with the trial against Ms Rousseff.
  • She is accused of breaking the budget law.
  • The Senate suspended Ms Rousseff in May over alleged illegal accounting practices.
  • A two-thirds majority is needed in the final vote following the trial.
• Maldives Passes Defamation Law
  • The Maldives’ parliament has passed a new defamation bill.
  • It was passed despite US-led international concern that it risked undermining basic freedom.
  • The parliament voted 47 to 31 in favour of the controversial bill that criminalises defamation.
  • The law criminalize defamatory speech, remarks, writings and other actions against any tenet of Islam in the Muslim-majority country.
• Duke of Westminster Dies
  • U.K Billionaire landowner the Duke of Westminster Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor has passed away.
  • He was one of the UK’s richest landowners, with a fortune estimated at $10.8bn Forbes magazine.
  • That would make him the world’s 68th richest person and the UK’s third.
  • He held the rank of Major-General in the Territorial Army.
  • He was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath by Queen Elizabeth II.
• Actor & Dancer Jyothi Lakshmi Dies
  • Popular southern actor Jyothi Lakshmi has passed away.
  • She made her cinematic debut with the 1963 Tamil film Periya Idathu Penn at the age of 10.
  • She acted in over 300 southern films, Telugu and Tamil films such as Pilla Pidagu, Bangara Babu and Gandharva Kanya.
  • Her last onscreen appearance was in last year’s Tamil adult comedy Trisha Illana Nayanthara.
• Former Arunachal CM Kalikho Pul Dies
  • Former Arunachal Chief Minister Kalikho Pul has passed away.
  • He held the CM’s post for about five months & had left office last month after a Supreme Court ruling ordered removal of his govt.
  • He was with the Congress till late 2015 when he rebelled along with a large section of legislators from the party against then CM Nabam Tuki.
  • He became chief minister with the backing of the BJP.
• MS Subbulakshmi to be Honoured at UN
  • Legendary carnatic vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi will be honoured at the United Nations on India’s 70th Independence Day.
  • She will be honoured by Oscar-winning composer A.R. Rahman at the world body’s iconic General Assembly.
  • Through his performance, Rahman will pay homage to Subbulakshmi, the first musician ever to be awarded India’s highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna.
• The Motor Vehicle Bill introduced in LS
  • The Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill 2016 was introduced in the Lok Sabha.
  • The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given its approval to the Bill last week.
  • The Amendment aims to address the issue of road safety .
  • The important provisions include increase in compensation for Hit & Run cases from Rs. 25000 to Rs. 2 lakhs.
  • The Bill also proposes insertion of 28 new sections.
• India Gets its First Tiger Repository
  • The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) will house the India’s first repository on tigers, under its new Tiger Cell.
  • India’s first tiger cell was set up at the WII campus in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
  • MOU was signed between the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) & WII.
  • The cell will house a database of tigers and their DNA sampling from over 50 tiger reserves of the state.
• Maha Govt Launches Quit India Movement 2
  • Govt of Maharashtra has launched the Quit India Movement 2 against various social ills in the presence of Venkaiah Naidu.
  • The launch took place at August Kranti Maidan in Mumbai from where Mahatma Gandhi had given the clarion call of Quit India in 1942.
  • Naidu said the country must make illiteracy, discrimination, disunity, disharmony & terrorism quit India.
  • CM Devendra Fadnavis was also present.
• Irom Sharmila Ends her 16-year Long Fast
  • Manipuri human rights activist Irom Sharmila has ended her 16-year-long fast and expressed desire to enter politics.
  • She had been on a hunger strike since 2000 demanding the removal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act [AFSPA].
  • She said that she will remove the Act from Manipur when she becomes Chief Minister of the state.
  • She is also called the Iron Lady of Manipur.
• Phelps Wins 21st Gold in Freestyle Relay
  • American swimmer Michael Phelps claimed his second gold medal & the 21st of his career as he won the men’s 4×200 meters Olympic freestyle relay.
  • The most successful Olympian of all time extend his career tally to a total of 25 medals, including two silver &two bronze.
  • Earlier he had won gold number 20 with victory in the 200m butterfly.
  • It was the 4th successive U.S. Olympic victory in the event.
• Ibtihaj Becomes1st Athlete to Wear Hijab
  • Fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad makes U.S. history by being the first American athlete to wear a hijab at the Olympics.
  • She advanced to the round of 16 in sabre fencing with a 15-13 win over Ukrainian athlete Olena Kravatska.
  • She was eliminated a round later by French fencer Cecilia Berder.
  • Muhammad made history, wearing her hijab to adhere to the tenets of her Muslim faith.
• Rafaela Silva Wins First Gold for Brazil
  • Host country Brazil won their first Gold of the Olympic Games when Judoka Rafaela Silva won the women’s 57kg judo gold.
  • She overcame top seed Sumiya Dorjsuren of Mongolia to win gold.
  • She  ended up in the Brazil team at the age of 15 & became a junior world champion.
  • She is the country’s first female world champion in judo.
  • Portugal’s Telma Monteiro & Japan’s Kaori Matsumoto won bronze.
• Sania Splits With Doubles Partner Hingis
  • Sania Mirza & Martina Hingis have decided to end their partnership that took the tennis world by storm last year when they won nine titles.
  • Sania became world no.1 in partnership with Martina when they won the Charleston event.
  • The duo had performed poorly in recent time winning just one major tournament.
  • The Indian will team up with Barbora Strycova while Hingis will join with Coco Vandeweghe.
• 1.36 cr Non-Filers Identified under NMS
  • Government has identified 1.36 crore non-filers with potential tax liability under the Non-Filers Monitoring System (NMS).
  • Minister of State for Finance Santosh Kumar Gangwar said about 1.36 crore non-filers with potential tax liability have been identified under NMS.
  • The total number of the Income Taxpayers in the country for the last financial year was over five crore 24 lakh.
• Pawan Munjal Reappointed Hero Moto CMD
  • The Board of Directors at Hero MotoCorp has reappointed Pawan Munjal as the Chairman, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of the company.
  • He has been appointed for a period of five years.
  • His current tenure comes to an end on 30th of September 2016.
  • The company has also elevated its Head of Operations & Supply Chain Vikram Kasbekar as a Director on the company’s board.
• NPA of Banks Increased by Around 4%
  • The Govt has announced that the Non-Performing Assets (NPA) of commercial banks have increased by around 4% in the last one year.
  • The NPA of banks was 5.43% in March 2015 which has risen to 9.32 % in March 2016.
  • The high incidences of NPAs are mainly related to power,road, steel & other sectors
  • NPAs are loans made by a bank on which repayments or interest payments are not being made on time.
• TCS Ranked 58th Most Valuable US Brand
  • Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) from India was ranked 58th most valuable brands in the US.
  • This was according to a survey, titled ‘Top 500 U.S. Brands’, by Brand Finance.
  • The Brand Finance study evaluates the financial value of a company’s brand name, intellectual assets & trademark.
  • TCS is one of only four global IT Services companies recognised as a Top 100 Brand in the US
• Randstad to Buy Job Ads Site Monster
  • Dutch human resources and recruitment firm Randstad has announced that it is acquiring US-based jobs portal Monster.
  • It will acquire the international job-hunting site for $429 million in an all-cash transaction.
  • Monster will retain its brand and work as an independent entity after the purchase.
  • Randstad hopes to complete the acquisition in the fourth quarter of 2016.
• Rajya Sabha Passes Loan Recovery Bill
  • Parliament has passed a bill which empowers banks to confiscate security in the case of loan default with Rajya Sabha giving its approval.
  • The bill was approved by Lok Sabha last week .
  • The Enforcement of Security Interest & Recovery of Debts Laws & Miscellaneous Provisions (Amendment) Bill,2016 will not apply to loans for farm land.
  • Jaitley said if loan has been taken it must be repaid.