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  • Current Affairs 15th March 2018

    Updated : 15-Mar-2018

    Current Affairs 15th March 2018 - Important Points

    • Stephen Hawking passed away, he was renowned - Physicist
    • ICMR awarded International Kochon Prize 2017 on - 13th March 2018
    • Assam government proposes insurance scheme for journalists on - 13th March 2018
    • Supreme Court bars foreign lawyers, law firms from practicing in India on - 13th March 2018
    • World Hindi Secretariat in Port Louis, Mauritius inaugurated by - President
    • India-UK Joint Team wins Newton-Bhabha Fund for  project of - Groundwater Arsenic Research

    Current Affairs 15th March 2018 - Details

    Stephen Hawking passed away, he was renowned - Physicist

    On 14th March 2018, Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking passed away. He was 76 years old. Stephen Hawking was born on 8th January 1942. He was diagnosed with life-threatening ALS disease in 1963 but still he went to Cambridge University to study Cosmology. There he got Phd also became a lecturer.

    His theories on Big Bang and Black Holes were most notable among other. He wrote "A Brief History of Time" which was bestseller. This book explains complex theories to common man. Also based on this book film was made which eventually won Oscar.

    After being diagnosed with life threatening disease, doctors said that he will survive for 2 more years only. But he lived more than 50 years with disease and still giving so much to society in terms of work and guidance.

    ICMR awarded International Kochon Prize 2017 on - 13th March 2018

    The Union Health Ministry’s research body, the ICMR, was rewarded the International Kochon Prize 2017 on March 13th, 2018 in New Delhi for its involvement to the national programme in TB research.
    The ICMR with its Tuberculosis Consortium enhanced the hard work for R&D on the terminal disease in the nation.
    More about TB Consortium

    • The India Tuberculosis Research Consortium- ITRC was developed to accelerate and align hard work in Tuberculosis research.
    • It focuses to attain its aim by harnessing national and international knowledge to advance technique and also product development by providing effective diagnostics, shorter medicine treatments, effective injections along with fresher interventions for Tuberculosis control.
    • The association is working with both public and private organizations to direct India’s research actions towards the progress of care-point diagnostics.
    • The Kochon Prize, which a non-profit foundation recorded in the Republic of Korea, is rewarded every year by Stop Tuberculosis Partnership to individuals or firms that have formed noteworthy contribution to fighting TB.
    • The reward consists of award money worth US 65,000 dollars.
    • The ICMR appeared the winner of the 2017 Kochon Prize among the 18 recommendations.
      Did you know?
    • The Union Government on March 13th, 2018 inaugurated a movement to eliminate TB from India by 2025, 5 years advance than the globally formed last lines.
    • TB is one of India’s unadorned health crises. India has the highest Tuberculosis problem in the world. 

    Assam government proposes insurance scheme for journalists on - 13th March 2018

    The state government of Assam has suggested an insurance plan for journalists and their families in its budget for 2018-19. The news was given by Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma during the presentation of state’s budget in the assembly on March 13th, 2018. Sarma informed that the state has reserved a budget distribution of Rupees 63 crores in 2018-19 for the Information and Public Relations Department that would device plans for media persons.
    Key Objective
    The new Journalist Insurance Plan would make sure security and fortification of the journalists including their families.

    Other Provisions for Journalists

    • The state has made essential provision for journalist fellowship for following higher studies in reporting so that 20 media-people can be carefully chosen for it at the price of Rupees 50,000 for each.
    • The state would also be issuing a single-time approval of Rupees 10 lakhs to Media Trust, in the form of a token of gratefulness of the work completed by it.
    • The state government has also stretched single-time ex-gratia worth Rupees five lakh each to the next of families of 31 journalists of the state who have lost their lives or announced missing on duty.
    • Further, a Pension Plan for Media people has been familiarized to provide post-retirement advantages to media persons working for over 20 years in Assam.
    • The state has already dispersed individual pensions of Rupees 8000 every month to many valued media persons.

    Supreme Court bars foreign lawyers, law firms from practicing in India on - 13th March 2018

    The Supreme Court of India governed on March 13th, 2018 that foreign law companies cannot form offices in India but their lawyers could visit in “fly-in and fly-out” style to provide legal advice on foreign laws to customers, which would be casual in nature. The 2-judge bench consisting Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and Justice Uday Umesh Lalit found that the foreign law companies or foreign lawyers cannot exercise the profession of law in India, either in the litigation or in the non-litigation way.
    Key Highlights

    • The bench found that the mode of “fly-in and fly-out” will only consist of a casual visit not accounting to practice.
    • It stated that foreign lawyers could derive to the India and can took part in international commercial negotiation but they have no full right to do that.
    • The court informed that if the Rules of Institutional Arbitration apply is enclosed by the necessities of the Arbitration Act, foreign lawyers may not be disqualified from directing arbitration proceedings rising out of intercontinental commercial negotiation in regard to Sections-32 and 33 of the Advocates Act.
    • However, the court gave the freedom to the Union Government and the Bar Council of India to design  regulations in this respect and foreign lawyers would be ruled by the code of conduct valid to the lawful profession in India.

    India-UK Joint Team wins Newton-Bhabha Fund for  project of - Groundwater Arsenic Research

    India and UK Joint Team has secured Newton-Bhabha Fund for project on Ground-water Arsenic
    Research in Ganga River Basin. The scheme was started by Department of Science and Technology in
    coordination with Natural Environment Research Council, United Kingdom to invention solutions to
    water-challenges faced in persistently arsenic contaminated Ganga River Basin.
    Key Points

    • The Indian team consisted delegates of Mahavir Cancer Sansthan and Research Centre, Patna, National Institute of Hydrology, IIT Kharagpur and IIT Roorkee.
    • The United Kingdom team comprised of delegates of University of Birmingham, University of
      Manchester, British Geological Survey and University of Salford.
    • The scheme is focused to evaluate problem of arsenic-harming and to understand worsening such
      situation in future 25-30 years and its effect on ground-water management activities and propose water remedial technologies according to it.
    • It is directed from 3 sites – Bijnor and Varanasi in UP and Nadia in West Bengal.
      Newton Bhabha Fund
    • It is issued by the British Council. It focuses to bring together United Kingdom and Indian scientific
      research and innovation areas to discover joint explanations to the encounters facing India in economic development and social welfare.
    • Arsenic is natural component in the earth’s layers and It is widely spread throughout in the air, water and land.
    • It is extremely toxic in its inorganic form. Arsenic polluted water utilised for various purposes
      including drinking, crop-irrigation and food-cooking results into greatest threat to health of public from arsenic.
    • Longstanding contact to arsenic from drinking water and food can cause chronic arsenic poisoning
      including skin lesions, cancer, body developmental issues, cardiovascular problems, neuro-toxicity and diabetes also.

    World Hindi Secretariat in Port Louis, Mauritius inaugurated by - President

    President Ram Nath Kovind initiated World Hindi Secretariat building in Port Louis, Mauritius. He also
    inaugurated secretariat’s logo, an Early Digital Learning Programme and also revealed foundation stones of social housing project and mega ENT hospital being built with Indian support. President  Kovind stay in Mauritius as part of first step to his 2-nation state visit including Mauritius and
    Madagascar. After that, he will visit Madagascar, making him 1st Indian President to visit major African
    island nation.
    World Hindi Secretariat

    • The Secretariat is completely financed by Government of India and issued funding of Rupees 33 crores.
    • Government of Mauritius provided land for this. PM Narendra Modi had placed the foundation stone of this building during his visit in 2015.
    • The focus of secretariat is to represent Hindi as common man’s language, in front of the world. Hindi language has played a crucial role in principles and society building in both India and Mauritius.
    • Indian movement in Mauritius has played a huge role in the widespread of Hindi language.