Current Affairs Headlines - 18 January 2019

Current Affairs Headlines - 18 January 2019 - Fifteen useful headlines - for all examinations

CA - 15 HEADLINES

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News followed by its category

1. President Donald Trump cancelled the US delegation’s trip to the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) at Davos, Switzerland, due to the ongoing partial government shutdown (longest in US history). The announcement came as the shutdown entered its 27th day on January 17. The Republicans and Democrats are unable to hammer out a mutually acceptable solution, and Trump refuses to sign any appropriation bills without the $5.7 b needed for the Mexico border wall. (People and Personalities / World Economy / World Politics)
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2. PM Modi inaugurated the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Medical and Research in Ahmedabad. At the inauguration event he said that total of seven lakh poor people have been guaranteed free treatment at hospitals in just 100 days with an average of 10,000 people in the country receiving free treatment under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. This is claimed to be the largest hospital run by any Urban Local Body (ULB) with more than 1,500 beds. Few ULBs provide health and medical facilities across the nation. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation conceptualised the hospital in 2012. (Governance and Institutions / Social Issues)
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3. Navy divers detected the body of one of 15 miners trapped in the ratohole coal mine in Meghalaya. The 15 men, who went down the narrow pit on December 13, were trapped after water from a nearby river and from an adjacent mine flooded it. The illegal mines of Meghalaya were banned by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2014, after several complaints from Assam. (Governance and Institutions / Infrastructure)
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4. The Supreme Court permitted conditional re-opening of dance bars that were shut down by the Maharashtra government on August 15 , 2005. The SC decision was hailed by bar dancers, who had otherwise been suddenly left without a job due to the ban. This decision again opened up a debate on constituional morality versus social morality. (Constitution and Law / Social Issues)
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5. IIT Hyderabad launched India's first B. Tech course in Artificial Intelligence (AI). The program will start from upcoming academic year (2019-20). The institute is already offering an M.Tech program in Artificial Intelligence. AI is touted as one of the futuristic technologies that will define the world in decades to come, alongwith quantum computing and machine learning, etc. (Education / Science and Technology)
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6. Two commemorative coins in the denomination of Rs 100 and Rs 5 were released to mark the 102nd birth anniversary of late Tamil Nadu chief minister and ruling AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran. A 66 feet wide and 52 feet tall "Dr MGR Centenary Arch", was also unveiled in Chennai.  (Indian Politics / People and Personalities / Social Issues)
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7. The special CBI court has sentenced the Sirsa based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Insaan and three others to life imprisonment for the murder of journalist Ramchander Chhatrapati. The court also imposed a fine of Rs. 50,000 each. Gurmeet is already serving a 20 year sentence on other convictions. (Constitution and Law / People and Personalities)
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8. Electric-vehicle maker Tesla will recall 14,123 cars in China over airbags that contained a part made by now-defunct Japanese manufacturer Takata. The US giant has already announced the recall of some Model S vehicles as part of a global industry-wide rooting out of parts made by Takata, which went bust in 2017 after its airbags were blamed for a number of deaths. (Science and Technology / Trivia and Miscellaneous / World Economy)
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9. A North Korean envoy arrived in Washington for expected talks with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and a possible encounter with President Donald Trump aimed a laying the groundwork for a second U.S.-North Korea summit. The envoy arrived on the same day Mr. Trump unveiled a revamped U.S. missile defense strategy that singled out North Korea as an ongoing and extraordinary threat. The first Trump-Kim summit happened in 2018 at Singapore, but did not produce desired results later. (Defence and Military / World Politics)
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10. In a first move before the appointment of the new CBI Director, the Modi administration shunted out four top officials, including controversial Special Director Rakesh Asthana, from the country’s premier investigation agency with immediate effect. The Centre has called a meeting of the high-power selection committee on January 24 to select a new CBI chief. (Governance and Institutions / People and Personalities)
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11. The Congress has decided to send its envoys to attend the rally and public meeting hosted by West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee, to be held on Saturday at the Brigade Parade Ground. At least 18 top leaders — including three Chief Ministers — will attend what is being described by Ms. Banerjee as United India Rally. This rally is the mega attempt to project an alternative to Narendra Modi led NDA in 2019 LS elections. (Indian Politics / People and Personalities)
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12. Cash-strapped state broadcaster Prasar Bharati is expecting a fresh influx of funds after auctions for slots on DD Free Dish open again. DD Free Dish fetches close to Rs. 300 crore in revenue. The auctions have been on hold for more than 17 months. DD Free Dish reaches out to 30 million households, who get 80 channels without paying any money. (Governance and Institutions / Indian Economy)
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13. Onion farmers of Nashik district who are struggling to even recover production cost now, have been seeing bumper crop as the area under onion cultivation has almost doubled in four years due to an upswing in prices. The problem may recur now, as oversupply often leads to price drops. (Agriculture)
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14. In a setback for hundreds of bankers facing corruption-related charges, the government has advised state-run lenders to withdraw any legal or financial support to fight cases, especially when the bank itself is a complainant. Indian PSBs have seen a rash of corruption cases in recent years. (Constitution and Law / Governance and Institutions)
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15. Media reports revealed that PM N. Modi’s decision to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets from France instead of the 126, as asked for by the Indian Air Force for six, squadrons pushed the price of each fully fitted, combat-ready aircraft up by 41.42%. The Rafale issue is a controversial one, just prior to the Lok Sabha elections 2019. (Defence and Military / Governance and Institutions)
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