13/09/2018
Current affairs September 12th
Asiad gold medallist Amit Panghal nominated for Arjuna award
• Asian Games gold medal-winning Indian boxer Amit Panghal was on September 11, 2018 nominated for this year's Arjuna awards by the Boxing Federation of India.
• Amit joined Sonia Lather and Gaurav Bidhuri in the list of boxing nominees for the second highest sporting honour after the Khel Ratna.
• Amit claimed the light flyweight (49kg) category gold after defeating reigning Olympic champion Hasanboy Dusmatov of Uzbekistan in the final at the 18th Asian Games in Indonesia.
• The 22-year-old Amit is only the eighth Indian boxer to claim an Asiad gold.
UIDAI dismisses reports about Aadhaar Enrolment Software being vulnerable to hacking
• The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has dismissed news reports that Aadhaar Enrolment Software being vulnerable to hacking. The authority termed it as completely incorrect and irresponsible.
• The UIDAI said it has taken full measures to ensure end-to-end security of resident data, tamper resistance, physical security, access control and network security and fraud management system monitoring.
• The authority further clarified that no operator can make or update Aadhaar unless resident himself give his biometric.
• It said that any enrolment or update request is processed only after biometrics of the operator is authenticated and resident's biometrics is de-duplicated at the backend of UIDAI system.
• It added that as part of its stringent enrolment and updation process, UIDAI checks enrolment operator's biometric and other parameters before processing the enrolment or updates and only after all checks are found to be successful, enrolment or update of a resident is further processed.
US marks 17th anniversary of 9/11 attacks
• The United States of America on September 11, 2018 marked the 17th anniversary of 9/11 terrorist attacks that killed almost 3,000 people in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania.
• President Donald Trump attended a ceremony at the 9/11 memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the United Airlines Flight 93 had crashed after passengers retook control from the al-Qaida-affiliated terrorists who had hijacked the plane.
• Vice President Mike Pence attended a ceremony at the Pentagon for families of those killed when a hijacked plane crashed into the building.
• In New York, hundreds of survivors and family members of those killed gathered at Ground Zero, where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center stood before two hijacked commercial flights brought them down.
• Twin beams of light were projected into the sky in the memory of those who lost their lives in the attacks.
• The hijackings were carried out by 19 men affiliated with al-Qaida. It was the deadliest attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor in 1944.
India, US to carry out joint military exercise- 'Yudh Abhyas 2018'
• The armies of India and the US will carry out a military training exercise- Yudh Abhyas 2018 in the foothills of the Himalayas at Chaubattia from September 16.
• The military exercise is one of the longest running joint military training exercises and a major bilateral defence cooperation endeavour between India and the US.
• This will be the 14th edition of the joint military exercise hosted alternately by both countries which will conclude on September 29.
• The combined exercise will simulate a scenario where both nations are working together in counter insurgency and counter terrorism environment in mountainous terrain.
• The two-week exercise will witness participation of about 350 personnel of the US Army and similar strength of Garud Division of the Indian Army.
India, Mongolia commence joint military exercise ‘Nomadic Elephant – 2018’
• The joint military exercise between Indian and Mongolian armies, the Nomadic Elephant - 2018, began on September 11, 2018 in Mongolia.
• The Nomadic Elephant is an annual, bilateral exercise designed to strengthen the partnership between Indian and Mongolian Armed Force.
• The exercise would see both the countries improve their tactical and technical skills in joint counter insurgency and counter terrorist operations in rural and urban scenario under UN Mandate.
• The Indian contingent was represented by Arunachal Pradesh 17 Punjab Regiment while the Mongolian contingent was represented by Unit 084 of the Mongolian Armed Forces.
Indo-Kazakhstan joint exercise ‘KAZIND 2018’ begins
• The Indian Army commenced joint military exercise- ‘KAZIND-2018’ - with the army of central Asian nation Kazakhstan on September 11, 2018.
• The exercise takes the number of India’s on-going and scheduled drills with different nations, including the US, this month to four.
• The military exercise between the armies of India and Kazakhstan commenced in Otar region, approximately 175 kilometres from Almaty, Kazakhstan.
• The Kazakh contingent was represented by Military Base 85395, while India was represented by 5 Ladakh Scouts Regiment.
• The 14-day joint training aims to promote army-to-army relations and exchange skills and experiences between Indian Army and the Kazakhstan Army.
Haryana CM announces sharp reduction in electricity tariff
• Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has announced a sharp reduction in electricity tariff in the state.
• The chief minister announced in the state assembly varying slabs of rebates for households consuming up to 500 units of electricity per month.
• Under the revised tariff, consumers using up to 50 units per month will pay Rs 2 per unit, those using up to 200 units will pay Rs 2.50 per unit instead of Rs 4.69 and those consuming up to 500 units will pay Rs 4.68 per unit instead of Rs 5.55 from next month.
• The historic decision is expected to benefit around 41.53 lakh domestic consumers. The subsidy will cost the state government Rs 677 crore per annum.
WCD Ministry issues advisory on the deadly online game -Momo challenge
• The Women and Child Development Ministry has issued an advisory on the deadly online game Momo challenge, asking parents to monitor social media activity of their children to ensure that they are not engaging in the dangerous game.
• Noting that the game has become viral on social media platforms, the ministry asked parents to keep their eyes open and also said that they should not tell their children about it unless they believe that the child also knows about it. The Ministry also gave guidelines on ways to protect a child from the game.
• The Momo challenge consists of a variety of self-harming dares which becomes increasingly risky as the game progresses and it finally ends with a su***de challenge. The Ministry listed signs that might indicate that a child is involved in the game.
• Some of the signs include becoming withdrawn from friends and family, persistent low mood, visible marks such as deep cuts or wounds on any part of the body.
Freedom fighter Goura Chandra Mohapatra passes away
• Veteran freedom fighter Goura Chandra Mohapatra passed away at the age of 104 at Bhadrak District Headquarters Hospital on September 11, 2018.
• Mohapatra, who was jailed during Quit India Movement in 1942, was suffering from old age related ailments. He is survived by wife Mira Devi, four daughters and nine sons.
• Mohapatra was the son of poet 'Kantakabi' Laxmikanta Mohapatra, who penned the famous song "Bande Utkal Janani."
• Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik condoled Mohapatra's death and described him as a "true Gandhian", who dedicated his entire life for promotion of Gandhian values. He had dedicated himself for social upliftment.
Arunachal CM inaugurates state's first Sainik School
• Chief Minister Pema Khandu on September 11, 2018 dedicated Arunachal Pradesh's first sainik school to the people of the state. The state was granted three Sainik schools by the Union Ministry of Defence.
• The school at Niglok in East Siang district began its first academic session from August 27 with 60 students.
• The location of the two other schools would be decided with due consultation to cover the eastern and western belts of the state.
• The schools are expected to provide an opportunity to the youth of the state to pursue a career in the armed forces.
First ever bus services between Bihar and Nepal flagged off
• In a first, bus services between Bihar and Nepal were flagged off on September 11, 2018 by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
• The bus services have been commissioned following the agreement between India and Nepal.
• Following this, four buses will ply from Bodhgaya to Kathmandu and four buses will ply from Patna to Janakpur.
• The Kathmandu bound bus will go through Patna, Raxaul and Beerganj. The Janakpur bound bus will go through Muzaffarpur and Sitamarhi.
• The bus services from Kathmandu to Bodhgaya will be started by the Government of Nepal on September 13.
