Current Affairs 12th October 2017

Current Affairs 12th October 2017  - Important Points

• Actor Anupam Kher appointed as Chief of FTII on - 11th October 2017
• FIFA suspends the Pakistan Football Federation on - 10th October 2017
• Kazuo Ishiguro awarded with 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature on - 5th October 2017
• Union Cabinet approves revised pay scales of teachers and academic staff on - 11th October 2017
• Free bicycle ride scheme launched by - Chennai Metro Rail
• Implementation of 7th Pay Commission recommendations approved by - Tamil Nadu Cabinet
• MoU between India and Belarus for cooperation in Vocational Education approved by - Union Cabinet
• Signing of the MoC between India and Japan on establishing LNG Market by - Union Cabinet
• SANKALP & STRIVE Schemes to boost Skill India Mission approved by - CCEA

Current Affairs 12th October 2017 - Details

Actor Anupam Kher appointed as Chief of FTII on - 11th October 2017

Anupam Kher took charge as the Chief of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune on 11th October 2017. He succeeds Gajendra Chauhan, whose appointment as FTII Chairman triggered massive student protests.
Gajendra's term ended in March 2017. He was appointed as FTII chairman on 9th June 2015.
Many FTII students had protested against his appointment claiming that Chauhan was not fit for the job.

More about Anupam Kher

• Hailing from Shimla, he has done theatre and learned acting in the National School of Drama.
  Kher debuted as an actor with Agaman back in 1982.
• He received recognition with Mahesh Bhatt’s directorial Saransh in 1984.
• Kher has featured in over 500 Hindi films prtraying diverse characters.
• He is also known internationally with films like Bend It Like Beckham, Golden Lion-winning Lust and Oscar-winning Silver Linings Playbook.
• He has been a proud recipient of the Padma Shri in 2004 and the Padma Bhushan in 2016 for his vast contribution in Cinema.
• He also chairs acting school ‘Actor Prepares’.

FIFA suspends the Pakistan Football Federation on - 10th October 2017

The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) is suspending
the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) with an immediate effect in accordance with the verdict of the Bureau of the FIFA Council on 10th October 2017 on account of undue
third-party interference.

Important Points

• The decision from Bureau of the FIFA council came in the light on the fact that the PFF offices and its accounts remain in control of a court-appointed administrator, which accounts to the violation of the PFF commitment to manage its affairs independently and without pressure from any third parties in accordance with the FIFA Statutes.
• Only after the PFF gets all its offices and access to the accounts, FIFA will be lifting the suspension.
• After this decision, the Pakistan Football Federation loses all its membership rights as per FIFA Statutes.

More about FIFA

The Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) is an association governed by Swiss law founded in 1904 and based in Zurich with 211 member associations and its goal, enshrined in its Statutes, is the constant improvement of football.

Kazuo Ishiguro awarded with 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature on - 5th October 2017

The Nobel Prize in Literature 2017 was awarded to English author Kazuo Ishiguro on 5th October 2017 for uncovering the abyss beneath the illusory sense of connection with the world in his novels of great emotional force.
He has been a full-time author ever since his first book A Pale View of Hills published in 1982.

More about Kazuo Ishiguro

• Born on 8th November 1954 in Nagasaki, Japan, Ishiguro graduated in English and Philosophy in the University of Kentand then studied Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia.
• The themes Ishiguro is most associated with are memory, time, and self-delusion which are particularly notable in his most renowned novel The Remains of the Day in 1989.
• His writings are marked by a carefully restrained mode of expression.
• His novel Never Let Me Go in 2005 introduced a cold undercurrent of science fiction into his work.
• A striking example of his work is the collection of short stories titled 'Nocturnes: Five Stories of Music and Nightfall in 2009' where music plays a pivotal role in depicting the character's relationships.
• Apart from English, he has written in various other languages including Swedish, French, Spanish and German.

Union Cabinet approves revised pay scales of teachers and academic staff on - 11th October 2017

The Union Cabinet approved the revision of pay scales for about 8 lakh teachers and other equivalent
academic staff of universities and colleges recognised by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and also for the staff of Centrally Funded Technical Institutions on 11th October 2017. The approval came after the implementation of the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission for the Central Government employees.
Important Highlights

• The decision will be benefitting 7.58 lakh teachers and equivalent academic staff in the 106 Universities and Colleges which are funded by the UGC/MHRD.
• It will also be benefitting 329 Universities which are funded by State Governments and 12912 government and private aided colleges affiliated to State Public Universities.
• The revised pay package will be covering teachers of 119 Centrally Funded Technical Institutions such as IITs, IISc, IIMs, IISERs, IIITs, NITIE, etc.
• The approved pay scales will be effective from 1st January 2018.
• The annual Central financial liability on account of this measure will be approximately Rs 9800 crore.
• The implementation of this pay revision will be enhancing the teachers' pay in the range of Rs 10400 and Rs 49800.
• This revision will be registering an entry pay growth in the range of 22 percent to 28 percent.
• For the State Government funded institutions, the revised pay scales will be requiring adoption by the respective State Governments.

Free bicycle ride scheme launched by - Chennai Metro Rail

The Chennai Metro Rail, has introduced a free bicycle ride scheme for its customers. The metro corporation has tied up with a private agency to provide 100-hours of bicycle ride free of cost each month.
Speaking on the development, the CMRL said that the initiative is an effort towards providing last-mile connectivity service to passengers  in order to help promoting eco-friendly travel in the city. The move is expected to decrease dependence on private vehicles and provide a more economical option to the travellers.

Registration & Fee

• No registration fee or charge has to be paid to rent the bicycles.
• The users can also avail 100 hours of free ride under the condition that the cycle is returned back within 24 hours.
• There are 10 cycles in each of the stations and people can also gain access to them at any time of the day.

Renting of the bicycles

• All you need to rent a cycle is to send an SMS and they will be shared with a number. This number can then be used to unlock the bicycle.
• The cycles would be kept locked using a software-based locking system.
• In case of any problem during the ride in cycle, the ground staff will be attending to it.
• A strong network of mechanics is set up so that the users can also leave the bicycle at the spot where the staff would be rushing to resolve the issue.

Implementation of 7th Pay Commission recommendations approved by - Tamil Nadu Cabinet

The Tamil Nadu Cabinet has approved the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission  recommendations to benefit the teachers and state government employees. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting in Chennai on 11th October 2017 after receiving a report from a high-level committee led by State Finance
Department Principal Secretary K Shanmugam on the implementation of the pay panel report. The Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswamy chaired this meeting. The implementation of 7th Pay Commission in the state is set to be benefitted over 10 lakh staff and teachers apart from pensioners and those receiving family pension.

The decision will be a result in the following changes:

• The minimum basic pay for Tamil Nadu government staff and teachers will now be seeing a rise from Rs 6100 to Rs 15700.
• The basic pay will be capped at Rs 2, 25,000 with an increase by an amount of Rs 1, 48,000.
• Salaries of the state government employees and teachers will be reportedly increase by 20 percent overall.
• The decision is reportedly going to cost around Rs 15000 Crore annually to the state exchequer.
• The State employee associations welcomed the decision.

MoU between India and Belarus for cooperation in Vocational Education approved by - Union Cabinet

The Union Cabinet approved Memorandum of Understanding between India and Belarus for cooperation in the field of Vocational Education and Training (VET) on 11th October 2017.

The MoU was signed between both the sides on 12th September 2017 during the visit of Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko to India. India signed MoU for cooperation in area of vocational education, training and skill development with Eurasian country for the first time.

Key Highlights of the MoU

• It will be paved the way for systematic transfer of their expertise and knowhow in skilling the manpower specially in manufacturing sector.
• The agreement will be implemented by establishing institutional partnerships between RIPO (Republican Institute for Vocational Education) , an apex institution for Belarusian vocational education system development and Directorate General of Training in its sustainability and VET delivery.
• Belarus will be providing comprehensive transfer of know-how of emerging technologies, training and evaluation methodologies, content development for training of master trainers, competency building of the assessors.
• Belarus will also be providing vocational education services for Indian citizens for skill development in the field of construction, electric-power production, manufacturing, trade, auto service and household goods repair, transport, communication, hotels and restaurants.
• Retraining, up-skilling, internship for teachers and trainers of India will be conducted by the Belarusian Side apart from advisory services to boost planning, management and delivery of Vocational Education.
• The financial arrangement for the co-operative activities undertaken under the MoU will going to be mutually agreed upon by both the parties.

Signing of the MoC between India and Japan on establishing LNG Market by - Union Cabinet

The Union Cabinet approved the signing of the MoC (Memorandum of Cooperation) between India and Japan for establishing a liquid, flexible and global Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Market on 11th October 2017.

Key Highlights of the MoC

• It will be promoting bilateral relationship between India and Japan in the energy sector.
• It will be contributing to the diversification of gas supplies for India.
• It will be strengthening the energy security and lead to more competitive prices for consumers.
• It will be providing a framework to cooperate in facilitating flexibility in LNG contracts and abolition of Destination Restriction Clause.
• It will also be exploring possibilities of cooperation in establishing reliable LNG spot price indices reflecting true LNG demand and supply.

SANKALP & STRIVE Schemes to boost Skill India Mission approved by - CCEA

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved two World Bank supported schemes Skills
Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion and Skill Strengthening for Industrial Value Enhancement to boost Skill India Mission on 11th October 2017.

SANKALP is a scheme of Rs 4455 crore sponsored by center including Rs 3300 crore loan support from World Bank whereas STRIVE is a Rs 2200 crore central sector scheme with half of the scheme outlay as World bank loan assistance.

Key Highlights of STRIVE scheme

• This scheme will be incentivizing ITIs to improve overall performance including apprenticeship by involving SMEs, business association and industry clusters.
• It will be developing a robust mechanism for delivering quality skill development training by strengthening institutions- State Skill Development Missions (SSDMs), National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), Sector Skill Councils, ITIs and National Skill Development Agency (NSDA) etc.
• It will be supporting universalization of National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) including National Quality Assurance Framework (NQAF) across the skill development schemes.
• The required push to the National Skill Development Mission 2015 and its various sub missions will be supported by this.
• Make in India and Swachhta Abhiyan like government plans are aligned to flagship by this.

Key Highlights of SANKALP scheme

• The scheme envisages setting up of Trainers and Assessors academies with self-sustainable models. More than 50 such academies are to be set up in priority sectors.
• It will be leveraging institutions to train the trainers in both long & short term VET thereby bringing about convergence. Additional trainer academies will also be set up.
• Greater decentralization in skill planning would be ensured by strengthening institutions  at the State level which includes setting up of SSDMs and allowing states to come up with District and State level Skill Development Plans (DSDP/SSDP).
• It aims to enhance  inclusion of underprivileged and marginalized communities including women, Scheduled Castes (SCs), Schedule Tribes (STs) and Persons with Disabilities (PWD).
• It will be developing a skilling ecosystem that will support the country's rise in the Ease of Doing Business index.