Current Affairs PDF Free Download - February 9 2017

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We bring you the Latest General Knowledge, Current Affairs daily news, Events, General awareness Today  9th February 2017 Section in FREE PDF (English & Hindi), a section which outlines the latest news, Events headlines which are hardly covered elsewhere. This will help you with the Latest General Knowledge, Current Affairs 9th February 2017 asked in various competitive examinations of Banking (IBPS, RRB, SBI, PO, Clerk & other banks) & Government (SSC CGL, CHSL, JE, MTS, Railways, UPSC etc) Sector examination.

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NATIONAL NEWS

President’s Estate to Generate 670 KW Solar Energy through rooftop Solar Panels

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee will inaugurate the first phase of a Solarization Project in the President’s Estate tomorrow (February 10, 2017) under which 670 KW of solar power will be generated through rooftop solar panels installed on seven buildings in the President’s Estate. 
●    The savings in electricity bills resulting from this project is expected to be more than approximately Rs 80 lakh per year. The generation of solar power will result in significant reduction in carbon footprint and make the Estate more energy efficient. 
●    As part of the inaugural event, a day long exhibition showcasing various aspects of energy conservation and green energy is also being held with the support of Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL), Rural Electrification Corporation, Green Jobs Sector Skill Council, Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Central Electronics Limited and Energy Efficiency Services Limited. 
●    Painting and science model competitions as well as a Nukkad Natak on the theme of energy efficiency/solar power will be organized on the occasion. Quizzes and games on green energy will be conducted for students. A life-skill training course for girls of classes 11 and 12 of Dr. Rajendra Prasad Sarvodaya Vidyalaya by TPDDL will be also launched. 

NATIONAL NEWS

First Time a Buffer Stock of Pulses Crosses 10 lakh MT

The meeting of Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on prices and availability of select essential commodities held on February 9, 2017 under the chairmanship of Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs noted that for the first time a buffer stock of 10 lakh MT of pulses has been created through domestic procurement and imports. 
●    Of this, five lakh tonne have been procured during ongoing kharif marketing season.
●    The Government procurement intervention has helped farmers get remunerative prices for kharif pulses. 
●    IMC directed procuring agencies to continue procurement operations for pulses at MSP plus bonus. 
●    Procurement and price support would incentivize farmers to take up cultivation of pulses on larger scale.

NATIONAL NEWS

Opening of the first batch of new Post Office Passport Seva Kendras

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Department of Posts (DOP) announced on 24 January, 2017 their decision to utilize the Head Post Offices (HPO) in the various States as Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) for delivering passport related services to the citizens of our country. 
●    The objective of this partnership is to extend passport services on a larger scale and to ensure wider area coverage.
●    The pilot projects for this joint venture between MEA and DOP was inaugurated on 25 January, 2017 at the HPO at Mysuru in Karnataka by Shri Ananth Kumar, Minister for Chemicals & Fertilizers and Parliamentary Affairs; and at the Post Office at Dahod in Gujarat by Gen (Retd.) Dr. V.K.Singh, Minister of State for External Affairs, and Shri Jaswantsinh Sumanbhai Bhabhor, Minister of State for Tribal Affairs, Government of India. 
●    The POPSK at these two places have been running successfully since their inauguration. 
●    One hundred appointments are being released every day for each of these POPSK.

NATIONAL NEWS

Union Textiles Minister to chair Stakeholders’ Meeting of Silk Industry 

The Ministry of Textiles is organizing a Silk Industry Stakeholders Meet on 10th February, 2017 in New Delhi, to discuss various issues related to the development of Indian silk industry. 
●    The Union Textiles Minister Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani will preside over the meeting. Minister of State, Textiles, Shri Ajay Tamta; Secretary, Textiles, Smt. Rashmi Verma and Chairman, Central Silk Board, Shri K.M. Hanumantharayappa will grace the occasion.
●    The Union Finance Minister, Shri Arun Jaitley; Union Minister of Agriculture, Shri Radha Mohan Singh; Union Minister for Science & Technology, Dr. Harsh Vardhan; Union Minister for Rural Development, Panchayat Raj and Drinking Water & Sanitation, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar; and Union Minister of State (I/C), Environment, Forests & Climate Change, Shri Anil Madhav Dave have been invited to grace the occasion.
●    Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha), Bhagalpur, Bihar, Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey; Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha), Gorantla, Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh, Shri Nimmala Kristappa; Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha), Mysuru, Shri Pratap Simha; Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha), Akola, Maharashtra, Shri Sanjay Dattray; and Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Mangaldoi, Assam, Shri Ramen Deka, are also expected to participate.

NATIONAL NEWS

First Phase of the Station Redevelopment Program comprising 23 major Railway Stations launched

In order to transform the face of the Indian Railways, Minister of Railways, Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu launched the first Phase of the World’s largest Station Redevelopment Program comprising 23 major Railway Stations on Indian Railways network. Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Shri Krishan Pal Gurjar was present to grace the occasion. 
●    Chairman, Railway Board, Shri A.K. Mital, Member Engineering, Railway Board, Aditya Kumar Mittal, Member Traffic, Railway Board, Shri Mohd. Jamshed and other Board Members and other distinguished guests were present to grace the occasion.
●    Speaking on the occasion, Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu said that the Railways have certain advantages out of which one is holding of land on a large scale. He said that Railway Stations is a place where lots of people wait to board a train and thus Railway Station can be developed into an iconic property. 
●    He said that in the first phase, 23 stations will be bid out and redeveloped to the fullest use where so many facilities can be enjoyed by the passengers at one place. He also directed all the General Managers/DRM through video conferencing to collaborate with the Station Government for re-development of Stations.
●    Welcoming the Minister of Railways and other delegates, Chairman, Railway Board, Shri A.K. Mital said that our effort for last 10 years will see a culmination as we launch the first lot of stations for redevelopment through public-private partnership. 

NATIONAL NEWS

Maharashtra to become Open Defecation Free by March 2018

The Chief Secretary of Maharashtra, Shri Swadhin Kshatriya has conveyed to the Centre that the State will be declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) by March 2018. 
●    He said this in a meeting with the Secretary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Shri Parameswaran Iyer, in Mumbai, and mentioned that Maharashtra is on track to achieve this goal.
●    The Secretary was further informed that the Government of Maharashtra has a strong third party verification system for ODF declarations in the State, with three levels of verification. 
The Chief Secretary said that Maharashtra is not only aiming for ODF achievement, but also aiming to include handwashing, menstrual hygiene, community toilets etc. as part of Swachh Bharat implementation in the State. Multiple cleanliness campaigns – such as Clean Offices, Clean GPs, Clean Schools – are also underway in the State.

NATIONAL NEWS

 Health Ministry set for its Third Annual National Deworming Day to Tackle Worm Infections in Children

Close to 34 crore children will be reached out to as part of the National Deworming Day initiative on 10th February. 
●    This was stated by Shri C K Mishra, Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, here today as he briefed the media about the third annual National Deworming Day (NDD) on 10 February 2017. 
●    Currently the largest single day, public health program in the world, the National Deworming Day this year is set to reach approximately 34 crore children in the age group of 1-19 years in 34 states and union territories in government and government-aided schools, anganwadis, and private schools, he stated.
Secretary (Health) said that a mop-up day will be held on 15 February, to deworm any child who could not be dewormed on National Deworming Day. The NDD is being implemented through the combined efforts of Department of School Education and Literacy under Ministry of Human Resource and Development, Ministry of Women and Child Development and Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
●    All stakeholders are committed towards achievement of the NDD objectives, as reflected in the joint directives signed for NDD by MoHFW, MHRD and MWCD. 

●    The Health secretary further informed that Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Shri JP Nadda has also sent letters to the Chief Ministries of all States/UTs and all members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha for their assistance in key tasks related to NDD.

NATIONAL NEWS

CBDT signs four more unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements 

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT),Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance has entered into four more unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) yesterday. 
●    The four APAs signed pertain to the Manufacturing, Financial and Information Technology sectors of the economy. 
●    The international transactions covered in these agreements include Contract Manufacturing, IT Enabled Services and Software Development Services. 
●    With this, the total number of APAs entered into by the CBDT has reached 130. This includes 8 bilateral APAs and 122 Unilateral APAs. 
●    In the current financial year, a total of 66 APAs (5 bilateral APAs and 61 unilateral APAs) have already been entered into. 
●    The CBDT expects more APAs to be concluded and signed before the end of the current fiscal.

On This Day

On February 9, 1900, the solid silver trophy known today as the Davis Cup was first put up for competition when American collegian Dwight Filley Davis had challenged British tennis players to come across the Atlantic and compete against his Harvard team. Great Britain, then regarded as the world’s leading tennis power, answered Davis’ challenge, and on August 8, 1900, three top British players came to the Longwood Cricket Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, to compete against Davis and his all-Harvard team. Davis had devised a three-day format for the event that still exists today: two singles matches on the first and third days each, and a doubles match on the second day. He was captain of the U.S. team. He ended up triumphing in the singles match and the next day with Holcombe Ward defeated the British doubles team. Rain forced the cancellation of two of the singles matches, and the first Davis Cup ended with a 3-0 Harvard sweep. Today, the Davis Cup, as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge Trophy is commonly known, is the premier trophy of international team tennis.