Current Affairs May 13, 2019
In this post, GKToday presents Current Affairs of May 13, 2019 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 United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed 17 global figures including Indian actress Dia Mirza and Alibaba chief Jack Ma as the new advocates to drive action and solidify global political will for the ambitious Sustainable Development Goals. The new class of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Advocates are influential public figures committed to raising awareness, inspiring greater ambition and pushing for faster action on the SDGs, which were adopted by world leaders on September 25, 2015. The Advocates represent the universal character of the SDGs, hailing from governments, entertainment, academia, sport, business and activist organizations around the world. The other newly-appointed SDG Advocates include Queen Mathilde of the Belgians, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Founder, Education Above All Foundation (State of Qatar), British screenwriter, producer and film director Richard Curtis, Nobel Laureate Nadia Murad, Director of Center for Sustainable Development, Columbia University Jeffrey Sachs, Brazilian footballer and UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative, Forest Whitaker.
2. Thopil Mohammed Meeran (74), the well-known Tamil novelist and Sahitya Akademi awardee, has passed away at Pettai in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu on May 10, 2019. Born in the coastal hamlet of Thaengaaipattinam in Kanniyakumari district on 26th September 1944, Mohamed Meeran authored the novels - Oru Kadalora Graamaththin Kathai, Thuraimugam, Koonan Thoppu, Saaivu Naarkkaali and Anju Vannam Theru - between 1988 and 2011. Of these, Saaivu Naarkkaali (The Reclining Chair) bagged him the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award in 1997. His short story collections — Anbukku Muthumai Illai, Thangarasu, Ananthasayanam Colony, Oru Kutti Theevin Varippadam, Thoppil Mohamed Meeran Kathaigal and Oru Maamaramum Konjam Paravaigalum — and translations gave him a prominent place in the literary world.
3. Veteran actor Pankaj Kapur will soon release his debut novel 'Dopehri', based on a play of the same name which he wrote and directed several years ago. "Dopehri" is the story of Amma Bi, an elderly widow who lives alone in her deserted family haveli in Lucknow. Her only companion is a dishevelled young servant who comes in twice a day. Every afternoon, Amma Bi hears the sound of footsteps on the stairs and her heart fills with panic. She peeks out the door only to find no one there. After considering a move to an old peoples' home, an anxious Amma Bi ends up taking in a lodger, a young woman named Sabiha, with a mysterious occupation and a winsome personality. When Sabiha's secret is revealed, Amma Bi discovers reserves of ingenuity, skill and love she never knew she had, and what started out as the tale of a haunted haveli turns into a heart-warming one about ageing, self-discovery and female bonding. Originally written in Hindi, "Dopehri" will be published simultaneously by HarperCollins in three editions: Hindi (in Devanagari script), Hindi (in Urdu script) and in English translation.
4. Iran has recently announced to stop respecting limits on its nuclear activities agreed under a 2015 nuclear deal with major powers until they find a way to bypass renewed US sanctions. The Iran nuclear deal was formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has given an ultimatum of 60 days to remaining signatories - the UK, France, Germany, China and Russia - to implement their promises to protect Iran's oil and banking sectors from US sanctions. The nuclear deal was designed to curb Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. Under the landmark deal, Iran is required to sell its surplus enriched uranium abroad, rather than keep it, thereby allowing it to generate nuclear power without building nuclear weapons. In it, Iran agreed to limit its sensitive nuclear activities and allow in international inspectors in return for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions.
5. Justice (Retd.) K S Radhakrishnan has been appointed as a member of the Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal in London. He will render his services as a member of the Tribunal for a period of four years from 1st of June, 2019 to 31st of May, 2023. Justice Radhakrishnan served as the Chief Justice of the Gujarat and Jammu & Kashmir High Courts before his term in Supreme Court from 2009-2014.
6. BharatPe has launched India's first UPI Bahi Khata for merchants, which allows merchants to record their cash/ credit (udhar) sales customer wise, request accounts receivable from customers via SMS payment links, and keep track of accounts payable to suppliers, among other services. It also serves as a networking platform for merchants to connect and collaborate with other BharatPe merchants near them to source and expand their businesses. BharatPe is the India’s first fintech start-up enabling payments for merchants through interoperable UPI QR codes.
7. A team of herpetologists led by Ashok Captain have described a new species of reddish-brown pit viper — a venomous snake with a unique heat-sensing system — from a forest in West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh. The discovery makes the Arunachal pit viper (Trimeresurus arunachalensis) the second serpent to have been discovered after the non-venomous crying keelback in the State’s Lepa-Rada district in 2018. The new species also makes Arunachal Pradesh the only Indian state to have a pit viper named after it. Before the Arunachal Pradesh discovery, India had four brown pit vipers — Malabar, horseshoe, hump-nosed and Himalayan — which were discovered 70 years ago. The discovery was recently published in the March-April volume of the Russian Journal of Herpetology.
8. Bajaj Auto Executive Director Rakesh Sharma has been elected as Vice-President of Geneva-based International Motorcycle Manufacturers Association (IMMA) at Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Sharma is a representative of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). IMMA represents the manufacturing industry of powered two wheelers at the global level.
9. Samsung Electronics Co has recently launched the world's highest-resolution image sensor for smartphones at 64-Megapixels to meet the growing demand for mobile devices with better image quality. The company expands its 0.8μm image sensor lineup with 64Mp ISOCELL Bright GW1 and 48Mp ISOCELL Bright GM2 that allow vibrant ultra-high resolution mobile photography. With the addition, Samsung expanded its 0.8μm image sensor lineup, the smallest pixel size currently available in the market, from existing 20Mp to ultra-high 64Mp resolutions.
10. Two Indian Navy ships - Guided Missile Destroyer INS Kolkata and Fleet Support Ship INS Shakti carried out a 6-day long exercise ‘Group Sail’ with naval ships of Japan, Philippines and the United States of America (USA) in the disputed South China Sea from 03 May to 09 May 19. The aim of the Group Sail is to deepen the existing partnership and foster mutual understanding among participating navies. The ships undertook various exercises enroute which included formation manoeuvering, underway replenishment runs, cross-deck flying and exchange of Sea Riders. The Group Sail exercise with naval ships of Japan, Philippines and United States showcased India’s commitment towards operating with like-minded nations to ensure safe maritime environment through enhanced interoperability.
