1. Union Cabinet approves MoU between India & Germany in Railway sector

• Union Cabinet headed by the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi approves Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in February 2020 between Ministry of Railways with DB Engineering and Consulting GmbH of Germany for technological cooperation in railways.
• It will enable cooperation in freight operations (includes cross-border transport, automotive transport, logistics), passenger operations (includes high-speed cross-border traffic), infrastructure building & management (includes dedicated freight corridors, development of passenger stations).

Foot Notes:About Germany:
Capital: Berlin
Currency: Euro
Chancellor: Angela Markel
2. National Book Trust of MHRD Launches “StayHomeIndiaWithBooks” initiative due to Coronavirus outbreak

• National Book Trust (NBT) of Human Resource Development HRD Ministry launches #StayHomeIndiaWithBooks initiative to encourage people to read books while at home.
• As part of this initiative, it provides select and best-selling titles for FREE Download of 100+ books, in PDF format, from the NBT’s website https://nbtindia.gov.in.
• The books are available in  Hindi, English, Asamiya, Bangla, Gujarati, Malayalam, Odia, Marathi, Kokborok, Mizo, Bodo, Nepali, Tamil, Punjabi, Telugu, Kannada, Urdu and Sanskrit.
• The PDFs are read-only, and no unauthorized or commercial use is permitted.

Foot notes: About National book trust
Headquarters location: New Delhi
President: Govind prasad sharma
Publication: NBT Newsletter
3. 25 worshippers killed by ISIS suicide bombers attack in Gurudwara in Kabul, Afghanistan

• 25 worshippers were killed and eight were injured during the attack by heavily armed four suicide bombers attack at Dharamshala, a Sikh worship place (Gurudwara) located in Kabul, Afghanistan. The responsibility of this deadliest attack on the minority Sikh community is taken by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group by issuing a statement.
• The attack comes after a day when the United States (US)declared USD 1 billion reductions in aid to the Afghanistan government due to the latter’s inadequate efforts towards a negotiation with the Taliban for maintaining peace.
• All four suicide bombers were killed after six hours of fighting. 80 people, including women and children, were rescued from the Gurudwara.
• In July 2018, ISIS terrorists bombed a gathering of Sikhs and Hindus in the eastern city of Jalalabad, killing 19 people and injuring 20.

Foot Notes: About Afghanistan
Capital: Kabul
Presidents: Ashraf Ghani
Currency: Afghan afghani
4. Indian football captain Sunil Chhetri named in FIFA campaign against Coronavirus 

• Indian Football Captain Sunil Chhetri was selected among 28 members for FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) video campaign against Coronavirus.
• FIFA and WHO (World Health Organization) have teamed up to combat the coronavirus by launching ‘Pass the message to kick out coronavirus’ (awareness campaign) led by world-renowned footballers.
• The ‘Pass the message to kick out Coronavirus’ campaign promotes 5 key steps such as hand washing, coughing etiquette, not touching your face, physical distance and staying home if feeling unwell and these steps protect the people’s health according to WHO guidance.
• The 28 players will be involved in the video campaign to be published in 13 languages, which includes some of the best-known players like Argentina Superstar Lionel Messi and World Cup Winners like Philip Lahm, Iker Casillas and Carles Puyol.

Foot Notes: About FIFA
Headquarters– Zurich, Switzerland.
President– Gianni Infantino.

5. IRS officers KM Prasad and SK Gupta appointed as CBDT board members

• On March 25, 2020, The Appointment Committee of the Cabinet approved the appointment of two Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officers Krishan Mohan Prasad and Satish Kumar Gupta as members of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).
• The interaction for 2 vacant CBDT board member posts was held on January 23, 2020 & finally these 2 officers were appointed as board members from 8 shortlisted candidates.
• Krishan Mohan Prasad is a 1984 batch IRS officer, serves as the head of Faceless e-Assessment scheme as first Principal Chief Commissioner of Income-tax, National e-assessment centre in Delhi.
• Satish Kumar Gupta is a 1984 batch IRS officer, serves as the Principal Chief Commissioner (PCCIT) of I-T (Income Tax) in Mumbai, Maharashtra & also served as Director-General of Investigation of Bhopal and Jaipur.

Foot Notes: About CBDT
Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is the apex policy-making body of the Direct Tax department. It functions under the Department of Revenue of the Ministry of Finance.
Chairperson– Pramod Chandra Mody.
6. Pakistan’s efforts to launch 750 km range sub-sonic cruise missile Babur II crashes

• Pakistan’s efforts have suffered a set-back of launching 750 km range ground cruise missile Babur II with the delivery platform crashing to the ground after two minutes or 14 kilometres(km) in flight from the launch point at Sonmiani test range in Balochistan.
• According to national security planners and Pakistan watchers, this was the second consecutive test failure of the Babur II sub-sonic missile after the previous test failed on April 10, 2018. The second test launch failed while being witnessed by Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Chief of General Staff, Pakistan General Headquarters, Rawalpindi, and top officials of Army Strategic Forces Command (ASFC) and Strategic Plans Division.

Foot Notes: About Pakistan
Capital: Islamabad
President: Arif Alvi
Prime Minister: Imran Khan
7. Maharashtra overtakes Tamil Nadu & Telangana in organ donation, transplants for 2019

• For the year 2019, the state of Maharashtra has donated the highest number of organs which resulted beneficial for 449 patients. The state overtook Tamil Nadu and Telangana in the field of organ donation. Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation-State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (ROTTO-SOTTO) along with four Zonal Transplant Coordination Centre (ZTCC)of Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, and Aurangabad in Maharashtra were the top performers.
• On the occasion of the 10th Indian Organ Donation Day on 30th November 2019, the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation(NOTTO) presented the best state award to Maharashtra in the field of deceased organ donation.

Foot notes: About ROTTO-SOTTO
ROTTO-SOTTO was set up by the Directorate General of Health Services, Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. In Maharashtra, it works with the state Directorate of Health Services, while networking with private hospitals through ZTCCs. As the regional organisation, it also oversees Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
Director(Western-region)– Dr Astrid Lobo Gajiwala
8. Invest India, Investment Promotion & Facilitation Agency of India Launched “Invest India Business Immunity Platform” to help businesses and investors

• India’s national Investment Promotion & Facilitation Agency, the Invest India has launched “The Invest India Business Immunity Platform” to assist businesses and investors in getting real-time updates on India’s active response to COVID-19. 
• This platform tracks the regular developments with respect to the Coronavirus and aims to help businesses and investors by providing the latest information on various initiatives launched by central and state government, facilitates access to special provisions, and answers and also resolves queries via emails as well as on WhatsApp. 

Foot Notes:
MD & CEO of Invest India: Deepak Bagla.
Union Minister for Commerce and Industry: Piyush Goyal.
Chairman & Managing Director of SIDBI: Mohammad Mustafa
9. IMF launches Tracker of Govt. Policies in Response to COVID-19  

• The International Monetary Fund has launched a “Tracker of Policies Governments are Taking in Response to COVID-19” which outlines the key economic responses taken by the government of various countries in order to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. 
• The policy tracker brings into focus the discretionary measures that supplement existing social safety nets and insurance mechanisms. 
• The policy tracker covers the responses on the basis of three pillars, namely: Fiscal; Monetary And Macro-Financial and Exchange Rate And Balance Of Payments. 

Foot notes: About IMF
Purpose: Promote international monetary co-operation, facilitate international trade, foster sustainable economic growth, make resources available to members experiencing balance of payments difficulties
Formation: 27 December 1945
Headquarters: Washington, D.C, U.S.
Managing Director: Kristalina Georgieva
Chief Economist: Gita Gopinath
10.“Asterix and Obelix” co-creator & founding father of modern comics, Albert Uderzo, passes away  at 92

• The co-creator of the “Asterix and Obelix” comics, Albert Uderzo passed away. He produced Asterix in 1959 along with the fellow Frenchman and writer Rene Goscinny. 
• “Asterix and Obelix” entertained its audience over the past 60 years. “Asterix the Gaul” was the first Asterix book that was launched in 1961 and became an overnight sensation. 

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Current Affairs 26 March 2020

Current Affairs 25 March 2020

Current Affairs 24 March 2020