GK and Current Affairs Updates

India witnessed about 51 per cent mortality reduction from measles between 2000 and 2015 but the country is still among the six nations accounting for half of infants who did not get vaccinated last year, according to a new report by leading health organisations.
●    Despite a 79 per cent worldwide decrease in measles deaths between 2000 and 2015, nearly 400 children still die from the disease every day.
●    In 2015, about 20 million infants missed their measles shots and an estimated 134,000 children died from the disease.
●    India, Congo, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Nigeria and Pakistan account for half of the unvaccinated infants and 75 per cent of the measles deaths.
●    A highly contagious viral disease that spreads through direct contact and through the air, measles is one of the leading causes of death among young children globally. It can be prevented with two doses of a safe and effective vaccine.

About 2 lakh micro-ATMs will come to the rescue of people as the government has directed banks to activate nearly 1.1 lakh such ATMs in rural areas and nearly 90,000 in urban and semi-urban areas. 
●    Micro-ATMs are handheld devices enabled with GPRS and some have a fingerprint scanner attached to them, making them Aadhaar-compatible. 
●    All that a customer has to do is use the debit card as he would in an ATM, and the moment the card is swiped, the micro-ATM connects it to the core banking system and money is either debited or credited from the account. 
●    A large number of micro-ATMs will be deployed across the country to facilitate the disbursement of new currency. 
●    The government has also increased the cash holding limit of business correspondents to Rs 50,000. 
 

Chief Justice TS Thakur has dropped Supreme Court judge Justice Madan B Lokur as chairman of the apex court's e-Committee and substituted him with retired Rajasthan HC chief justice Sunil Ambwani.
●    The e-Committee was set up in 2004 to provide a guide map for use of information technology and administrative reforms in Indian judiciary. 
●    It was also asked to provide assistance to the CJI in formulating a national policy on computerisation of judiciary.
●    Justice Lokur was appointed judge-in-charge on July 26, 2012. 
●    Justice Ambwani was appointed chief justice of Rajasthan high court in March 2015 and retired on August 21, 2015.
●    Under Justice Lokur, the national e-Committee had made significant contributions to make courts litigant friendly and lower the cost of trial. 
●    The e-Committee, in consultation with high courts, got video conferencing facilities installed in 95% of the 830 locations. 
●    This will reduce cost of transportation of accused persons from jail to court as the trial can continue through video conferencing between the court and the jail. 
●    It is estimated to save government's Rs 100 crore every year.

Union Minister of MSME, Shri Kalraj Mishra today inaugurated MSME Expo 2016 in the India International Trade Fair at Pragati Maidan. Speaking on the occasion, Shri Mishra said that, Quality Manufacturing and Inclusive Growth of MSMEs play key role in the development of country. Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises forms major part of manufacturing sector and gives employment to a large number of people. 
●    He further said that this time our theme of the Expo is “Quality Manufacturing and Inclusive Growth of MSMEs” and MSME will play an important role in making India a startup hub. He also said that these EXPOs are a very good platform for the enterprises to showcase their products at National and International level. 
●    MSME Expo 2016 is organized by Ministry of MSME in the 36th IITF 2016. Over 80 enterprises have showcased their range of products during the trade fair. The theme of the fair is “Quality Manufacturing and Inclusive Growth of MSMEs” which includes Zero Defect, Zero Effect (ZED) Certification Scheme, SC/ST Hub & National Award. 
●    The participants have a diverse profile such as women entrepreneurs, SC/ST and Entrepreneurs from North Eastern States & Minorities. There are 50 Women, 14 SC/ST and 09 from North Eastern Region, 03 Minorities and others. 
●    The event also provides opportunities for creating sustainable business alliances. Wide range of products which includes Engineering, Food, Chemical, Cosmetics, Herbal products, Handicraft, Textile/Hosiery, Electrical/Electronic Appliances, Auto Components, Readymade Garments, Gems & Jewellery, and other products are being displayed in the MSME Expo, 2016. 
●    During the inauguration of MSME Expo 2016 Ministers of State for MSME Shri Giriraj Singh & Shri Haribhai Parthibhai Choudhary and Secretary MSME Shri K.K.Jalan and Additional Secretary & DC (MSME) Shri S.N.Tripathi were also present. 
 

A Festival of India is being organized in Oman from 15 November, 2016 to 24 March, 2017.  The Festival will showcase diverse Indian culture, i.e. classical and folk dance, music, Indian cuisine and Exhibition on Islamic Art Calligraphy.  
●    Artists from Jammu & Kashmir are also presenting folk dance and music of J & K.   The events will be held in four cities of Oman, namely, Muscat, Sur, Sohar and Salalah. Following events will be showcased:
●    An eight-member Classical (Indian creative ballet) by Hritaal Dance Group led by Mr. Jaydeep Palit from 15-19 November, 2016.
●    Exhibition of Islamic Art Calligraphy by Rampur Raza Library from 21 November – 3 December, 2016.
●    An eight-member Vocal Sufiana music by a group led by Dr. Soma Ghosh from 24 – 29 January, 2017.
●    A fifteen-member Jammu & Kashmir dance and music group organized by North Zone Cultural Centre, Patiala from 10 – 14 February, 2017.
●    Food Festival by India Tourism Development Corporation, Ministry of Tourism from 15 – 19 March, 2017.
●    Fashion Show by National Institute of Fashion Technology/Ministry of Textiles – March, 2017

The government extended use of old defunct Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes for paying household utility bills, fuel, taxes and fees and purchases from co-operative stores till November 24 .
●    While withdrawing Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes from the night of November 8-9, the government had allowed use of the old currency at government hospitals, railway ticketing, public transport, airline ticketing at airports, milk booths, crematoria/burial grounds and petrol pumps for 72 hours.
●    This list was later expanded to include payments for metro rail tickets, highway and road toll, purchase of medicines on doctor prescription from the government and private pharmacies, LPG gas cylinders, railway catering, electricity and water bills and ASI monument entry tickets.
●    As banks struggled to give alternate currency, the deadline was extended by another 72 hours. 
●    That deadline was to end at midnight tonight, but has now been extended till November 24, official sources said.
●    Old currency can also be used for purchases at consumer co-operative stores like Kendriya Bhandar with valid ID proof as also for paying court fee.

Israeli president Reuven Rivlin arrived  Delh on a six-day visit on Monday.
●    Mr. Rivlin landed in Mumbai and then left for Delhi with a delegation of leading agriculture, defence and university figures of Israel. 
●    He is scheduled to receive a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday and will hold bilateral talks with President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
●    Mr. Rivlin is likely to focus on agriculture cooperation between the two sides during the visit. 
●    He is accompanied by Michael Mirilashvili, chairman of Water Gen, one of the most important futuristic companies of Israel that specialises in optimal use of water resource.
●    Mr. Rivlin is expected to visit Chandigarh and Karnal as part of his plan to highlight agri-cooperation. 
●    In Chandigarh, he will inaugurate ‘Agro Tech 2016' along with President Mukherjee and in Karnal he will visit the Centre of Excellence of Indo-Israeli Agricultural Project.
●    This is a special visit to celebrate our 25 years of diplomatic relations between two countries.

Teen golf sensation Aditi Ashok scripted history on Sunday.
●    she became the first Indian woman to win a Ladies European Tour title.
●    She Won by clinching the Hero Women's Indian Open.
●    The 18-year-old shot an even par-72 in the final round to win the title.
●    The Indian, carded 3 under 69 on the second day to grab the sole lead at the DLF Golf and Country Club.
●    Aditi, who started her day on Saturday in tied ninth position, had an indifferent front nine.
●    She carded a birdie on the 2nd hole. However, a dropped shot on the 6th and miss-hit into the water on the 9th, which resulted in a double bogey, added to her woes.
●    Aditi Ashok is an Indian professional golfer who has qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics.
●    Aditi is the first and the only Indian golfer who played the Asian Youth Games (2013), Youth Olympic Games (2014), Asian Games (2014) and Rio Olympics (2016).

Producing wearable electronics that uses a portable nanogenerator which generates electric power when pressure or twist is applied got a shot in the arm, thanks to research carried out by Pune researchers. 
●    The nanogenerator, which was fabricated by them, produced 14 volts when thumb pressure was applied. 
●    The results were published recently in the journal Advanced Materials & Interfaces.
●    To demonstrate the potential of the nanogenerator to power small electronic devices, pressure equivalent to thumb pressure was continuously exerted on the nanogenerator for 20 minutes by using a vibration producing motor. 
●    14 volt that was generated was stored in a capacitor and used for charging a mobile phone.
●    Currently, there is considerable research emphasis to develop flexible or wearable devices. Such devices should be portable, lightweight, shock-resistant, and inexpensive. 
●    And the devices should ideally be powered by harvesting easily available mechanical or vibration energy, making battery or related wiring redundant. 

'Hand in Hand 2016', a joint military exercise between India and China will be held in Pune from November 15-27.
●    This will be the sixth such joint training exercise between the Indian Army and the People's Liberation Army of China.
●    It is held annually, alternately, in India and China.
●    The first exercise was held in China at Kunming, Yunnan province in the year 2007.
●    The aim of the joint training is to share expertise in drills and practices while tackling insurgency and terrorism.
●    It helps in promoting healthy military relations between the two armies.
●    The exercise is planned in three phases at the company level with the respective battalion headquarters controlling the training. 
●    The exercise will be supervised by a joint directing panel comprising senior officials of both the nations.
●    The exercise will be attended by the senior military observers of both the countries.