Current Affairs December 14, 2018
In this post, GKToday presents Current Affairs of December 14, 2018 in Short Notes form for preparation of IBPS, Banking, CLAT, SSC, Railway, UPSC, IAS/PCS, UPPSC, BPSC, MPPSC, RPSC, TNPSC, MPSC, KPSC and all other competitive examinations of India.
1. The 4th Partners’ Forum 2018 has been inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on December 12 to discuss issues related to maternal and child health. The 2-day forum was organised by the Union Ministry of Health in association with the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH). About 1500 participants from across 85 countries participated in the international conference. The mission of PMNCH is to support the global health community to work successfully towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Partners’ Forum is a global health partnership launched in September 2005 to accelerate efforts to reduce child and maternal mortality, improve adolescent, child, newborn and maternal health. The previous chapters were held in Johannesburg, South Africa (2014), New Delhi, India (2010) and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (2007). This is the second time India is hosting the Partners’ Forum.
2. As per Article-316 of the Constitution, the Chairman and other members of UPSC shall be appointed by the President. In case the office of the Chairman becomes vacant his duties shall be performed by one of the other members of the Commission as the President may appoint for the purpose. A member of a UPSC shall hold office for a term of six years from the date on which he enters upon his office or until he attains the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier. Recently, Bharat Bhushan Vyas took the Oath of Office and Secrecy as Member of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). He will have a term of nearly three years, when he attains the age of 65. Prior to this post, he was serving as Adviser to the Governor of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K).
3. The International Mountain Day (IMD) is observed every year on December 11 to celebrate and bring awareness to the world's mountain environments and the people and cultures that inhabit them. It is an opportunity to create awareness about the importance of mountains to life, to highlight the opportunities and constraints in mountain development and to build alliances that will bring positive change to mountain peoples and environments around the world. The purpose of the 2018 theme “#MountainsMatter” is to create a large social movement that can bring mountain issues on the tables of politicians.
4. Sascha Bajin, coach of the World No.5 five Naomi Osaka, has become the first-ever recepient of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Coach of the Year award. Bajin was behind the Osaka’s victory in the US Open 2018. She lifted the women’s singles title of US Open 2018 by defeating Serena Williams of US in straight sets 6-2, 6-4. Now, Osaka became the first Japanese woman to contest a Grand Slam singles final and the first Japanese Grand Slam singles champion. The WTA Coach of the Year Award is given to the coach with not only success on-court, but also who serves as an ambassador of the sport and brings coaching to the forefront of the game.
5. India has been ranked 11th out 56 nations & the European Union (EU) at the 2019 Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), which was published by Germanwatch, the NewClimate Institute and the Climate Action Network. The CCPI analysis shows that India has improved its standing by 3 places compared to the 2018 report. However, the report has warned that coal projects threaten India’s progress on clean energy. The top three ranks have not been acquired by any country because none does well in all categories assessed. But, Sweden has acquired 4th spot, while Morocco spotted at 5th place. The 2019 CCPI was released on the sidelines of 24th Conference of the Parties (COP 24) UN climate summit on global warming in Katowice, Poland. The CCPI is an instrument designed to enhance transparency in international climate politics. Its aim is to put political and social pressure on those countries, which have, up until now, failed to take ambitious action on climate protection. It also aims to highlight those countries with best practice climate policies.
6. Manika Batra has become the first-ever Indian athlete to be decorated with the Breakthrough Table Tennis Star award at the prestigious 2018 ITTF Star Awards in Incheon, South Korea on December 12. Batra won four medals at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and a bronze at the 2018 Asian Games.
7. Prof. Mushirul Hasan (69), a renowned historian & former vice-chancellor Jamia Millia of Islamia, has passed away in New Delhi on December 10, 2018. He wrote extensively on the partition of India, communalism, and on the history of Islam in South Asia. He has also served as the DG of the National Archives of India (NAI) and President of the Indian History Congress (IHC). Some of his notable works are as follows: India Partition: The Other Face of Freedom, When Stone Walls Cry, Partners in Freedom: Jamia Millia Islamia (co-authored with Rakshanda Jalil) and From Pluralism to Separatism: Qasbas in Colonial India.
8. In Madhya Pradesh, the Pratibha Parva, a programme to nurture talent in school children is being organized in all primary and secondary schools from December 13, 2018. It is an important programme of the School Education Department to improve the quality of elementary education. Around 70 lakh students of more than one lakh government schools will take part in this congregation of children. The aim of this 3-day programme is to assess the skill of students in quality education and strengthening the corrective academic efforts.
9. The International Human Rights Day (IHRD) is observed every year on December 10 to commemorate the day when the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris in 1948. The 2018 theme is ‘Stand up for the human rights’. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the document which declared inalienable rights which everyone is inherently entitled to as a human being -- regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinions, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
10. Israel has recently become a full member of the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global financial watchdog on money laundering, terror financing and other threats to the international financial system. The FATF is empowered to ensure that financing of UN-designated terrorist organisations is blocked. It has the power to publicly name countries not abiding by its norms, making it difficult for such countries to source financial flows internationally. Now, FATF has 38 members, including all five permanent members of the Security Council, and countries with economic influence.
