Current Affairs Headlines - 12 January 2019

Current Affairs Headlines - 12 January 2019 - Fifteen useful headlines - for all examinations

CA - 15 HEADLINES

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News followed by its category

1. A day after being shunted out as CBI Director, IPS officer Alok Verma resigned from service. He said that "natural justice" has been scuttled. The 1979 batch officer, who was Delhi Police Commissioner previously, had a two year tenure as CBI Director till January 31, 2019. It emerged later that the CVC report given to HPC was different from the earlier report made in supervision of SC Judge Patnaik, which is quite surprising! (Constitution and Law / People and Personalities)
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2. US President Donald Trump pledged to reform the H-1B visa process, a skilled temporary guest worker programme widely used by Indian professionals, saying he wants to encourage talented and highly skilled people to pursue career options in the US and provide a potential path to citizenship. This is a change in his strident approach that earlier derided immigrants, skilled-talented or otherwise. (People and Personalities / World Politics)
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3. Sixteen years after Sameer Khan (a young man, identified by his aged father as just a rickshaw puller) was shot dead, a report submitted by a former SC judge, H.S. Bedi, concludes that he was killed in a fake encounter. However, there is no adverse finding against then CM Mr. Modi, public servants or senior police officers. The police version of the encounter is that he had been sent by the Pakistan-based terror organistion, Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), to assassinate the then Gujarat CM, N. Modi, shortly after the Akshardham temple attack. (Constitution and Law / Governance and Institutions)
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4. Former SC judge Justice H.S. Bedi, concluded that none of the 17 police encounters, which occurred between 2002 and 2006 and came under the SC scanner, was an instance of “selective elimination of Muslim extremists”. This is part of the 229-page report Justice Bedi had submitted to the SC in Feb.18. The report was ordered to be shared with the PIL petitioners who had moved the SC in 2007. (Constitution and Law)
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5. The intensive de-duplication work to identity farmers eligible for loan waiver is expected to identify at least 7 lakh people who have loans in both cooperative sector and commercial banks, resulting in saving of at least Rs.6,000 crore to the State exchequer. A farmer will be eligible for loan waiver from one of the two accounts if he holds both. Farm loan waivers have become a political hot cake in India. (Agriculture / Governance and Institutions)
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6. An influential U.S. lawmaker Republican Congressman Andy Briggs, has introduced a legislation in Congress to terminate the designation of Pakistan as a major non-NATO ally. The performance of Pakistan in containing terror has irked America in a big way recently, though Trump wants Pakistan to help in Afghan talks. (Regional Politics / Terrorism)
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7. The national council of BJP (held at Delhi) passed two resolutions, on agriculture and social welfare. This reflect the party’s political concerns after the loss in the three States of MP, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Both resolutions are about the various government initiatives in both these sectors, in the wake of growing concern over farmers’ distress, loss of income in rural areas and a jobs crunch hurting the party politically. LS 2019 will be a litmus-test. (Agriculture / Indian Politics / Social Issues)
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8. Sports: 1. Asian Cup football tournament: India lose 0-2 to UAE in Group-A match in Abu Dhabi. 2. Virat Kohli, Ravi Shastri receive honorary membership of Sydney Cricket Ground. 3. Tennis: 2012 & 2016 Olympic gold winner Andy Murray of UK retires at 31. (Entertainment Games and Sports / Trivia and Miscellaneous)
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9. Ashok Chawla, a former finance secretary to the central goverment, resigned as chairman of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), as the CBI got consent to prosecute him in the Aircel-Maxis corruption case. Former FM P. Chidambaram and his son are co-accused in that case. Ashok Chawla was appointed to NSE to clean up the mess in the co-location scam. (Governance and Institutions / People and Personalities)
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10. Financially troubled Jet Airways topped the ‘product’ category list with a score of 7/7 in the full-service carrier category. The ratings were released by global airline safety and product rating agency Airlineratings.com. Indigo has scored 4 in the low-cost airline category. Air India has scored five, while Air Asia India has got a rating of 2 on 5. (Trivia and Miscellaneous)
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11. Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe tabled an experts’ report on the proposals to draft Sri Lanka’s new Constitution at the Constitutional Assembly sitting held in Parliament. The move enables a discussion in the Constitutional Assembly, which in turn could help authorities present a draft of the Constitution in Parliament in the coming months. Sri Lanka has witnessed a sharp struggle between the President and the PM. (Regional Politics / People and Personalities)
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12. The Supreme Court of India closed the case seeking action against the U.S.-based pharmaceutical major Johnson and Johnson for faulty hip implants in India that left several patients disabled. Compensation is being promised by J&J to the affected patients, separately.  (Constitution and Law)
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13. The country's foreign exchange reserves jumped by USD 2.68 bn - one of the largest increase in recent months - to touch USD 396.084 bn in the week to January 4, driven by a rise in core currency assets and gold holdings. In 2018, the RBI had briefly intervened in the foreign exchange market - by spending dollars - to hold the value of the rupee, but later allowed market forces to take over. (Governance and Institutions - Indian Economy)
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14. A Saudi asylum seeker - 18-year-old woman, Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun - who fled alleged abuse by her Saudi family left Bangkok to fly to Canada, as per Thailand’s immigration police chief. The police said several countries including Canada and Australia were in talks with the UN refugee agency on accepting Alqunun. (Social Issues / World Politics)
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15. Eveready Industries India Ltd. (EIIL), the flagship company of B.M. Khaitan family-controlled Williamson Magor Group, has mandated Kotak Mahindra Bank to scout for either a strategic or a financial partner. Best known for its dry cell batteries and flashlights, EIIL recently diversified into the FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) segment. (Indian Economy / Trivia and Miscellaneous)
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