Current Affairs 16th December 2015

Important Points : 

• Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes - Arun Kumar Jain
• Name the four players to receive IOC Olympic scholarships - Gaurav Bidhuri, Sumit Sangwan, Shiva Thapa and Mandeep Jangra
• Which online marketplace has launched mobile website in Hindi, Telugu - Snapdeal
• Where did the Commanders Conference held - Kochi
• Who has won the European Tour Golfer of the Year award - Rory McIlroy 
• Who has won Gold at 59th National Shooting Championship - Apurvi Chandela & Chain Singh
• World Bank approved 1.5 billion US dollar loan to - support Clean India Campaign
• Vijay Diwas observed on - 16th December 
• Who has been appointed as the Lokayukta of Uttar Pradesh - Virendra Singh
• National Air Quality Index of 17 cities released by - Green Peace India
• Who has launched 6 Singapore satellites into space - ISRO’ PSLV-C29 

Details : 

Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes - Arun Kumar Jain

Among the important appointments, On 15th December 2015, Senior revenue service officer Arun Kumar Jain was appointed as the Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).

His appointment was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet. He is a Indian Revenue Services officer of 1978 batch.

Do You Know : 

The CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) is a judicial authority operational under the 1963 Central Board of Revenue Act.

Name the four players to receive IOC Olympic scholarships - Gaurav Bidhuri, Sumit Sangwan, Shiva Thapa and Mandeep Jangra

Among the important Sports Current Affairs, On 15th December 2015, International Olympics Committee (IOC) selected Four Indian boxers, namely Gaurav Bidhuri, Sumit Sangwan, Shiva Thapa and Mandeep Jangra for a scholarship. 

The boxers will get a sum of 800 US dollars under the scholarship each month till August 2016 under the condition provided they qualify for the Olympic Games. Apart from this they are also eligible to get an additional 5000 US Dollars as the transportation cost for participation in the Olympic.

Mandeep Jangra won silver medal in Commonwealth Gamesin 69 kilogram segment whereas Shiv Thapa won bronze medal in World Championships in 56 kilogram event. 

After the recommendations from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), Sumit Sangwan and Gaurav Bidhuri were picked by the IOC.

Which online marketplace has launched mobile website in Hindi, Telugu - Snapdeal

On 15th December 2015, Snapdeal.com launched its mobile website in Telugu and Hindi language. 

Users can access the bilingual platform on the mobile website only. It will also be available with the Snaplite platform, which is a Snapdeal’s website for mobile browser. Snaplite allows the users to get access of the website with poor internet connectivity.

By 26th January 2016, Snapdeal is also planning to launch its mobile platform in 11 regional languages.

Where did the Commanders Conference held - Kochi

On 15th December 2015, the combined Commanders Conference chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi held on board INS Vikramaditya in Kochi.

The prime minister also surveyed the exercise like firing of surface-to-surface missile.

The Conference is an occasion in which India’s defence policy, doctrine and operational challenges are discussed.

Apart from this, Chiefs of Army, Navy and Airforce, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar also attended the conference.

Who has won the European Tour Golfer of the Year award - Rory McIlroy 

Among the important Sports Current Affairs, On 15th December 2015, the European Tour Golfer of the Year was won by Rory McIlroy for the third time in last 4 years.

About Rory McIlroy

• He is a Northern Irish professional golfer from Holywood in County Down.
• He is a member of both the PGA and European Tours.
• He has won the 2014 PGA Championship, 2014 Open Championship, 2012 PGA Championship and 2011 U.S Open. 
• He was named RTÉ Sports Person of the Year in 2011 and 2014.

Who has won Gold at 59th National Shooting Championship - Apurvi Chandela & Chain Singh

Among the important Sports Current Affairs, On 15th December 2015, Rajasthan's Apurvi Chandela won a Gold medal in the 10-metre Air Rifle event at the 59th National Shooting Championship.

Gold in the 50-metre Rifle 3 Positions event  was won by the Army man Chain Singh. Gagan Narang bagged the Silver whereas Swapnil Kusale won Bronze in the event.

Do You Know : 

50M Rifle 3 Positions is considered as one of the toughest Olympic events. 

World Bank approved 1.5 billion US dollar loan to - support Clean India Campaign

Among the important National Current Affairs, On 15th December 2015, The World Bank approved a 1.5 billion US dollar loan for the Clean India Campaign. 

Highlights of the World Bank program

• Every year, independent third-party agencies will conduct a national sample-survey of rural sanitation.
• After observing the results of the survey, the World Bank will issue funds to the Government of India which will be passed to the states according to their performance on certain parameters every year by the union government.

Vijay Diwas observed on - 16th December 

Among the important National Current Affairs, On 16th December 2015, Vijay Diwas was observed across the country to celebrate India’s victory in the war of 1971. This day honours the martyrs who sacrificed their lives during the war.

About Vijay Diwas

• On this day, Chief of Pakistan forces, General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi with 93000 troops surrendered after the defeat of Pakistan.
• The war resulted in the sepration of the East Pakistan into Bangladesh. 

Who has been appointed as the Lokayukta of Uttar Pradesh - Virendra Singh

Among the important appointments, On 16th December 2015, a retired judge Justice Virendra Singh  was appointed as the Uttar Pradesh’s Lokayukta by the Supreme Court. 

This is for the first time that after repeated orders to the state to appoint a new person in the position, court has used its authority to appoint a Lokayutka. 

In April 2014, the Court had ordered for the appointment of the Lokayukta and gave six months to the state government for electing a new Lokayukta Justice Mehrotra.

National Air Quality Index of 17 cities released by - Green Peace India

Among the important International Current Affairs, On 15th December 2015, a report on National Air Quality Index (NAQI) of 17 cities was released by Green Peace India. 

Delhi was at the top of the list of the most polluted city in the world, whereas 13 other Indian cities were mentioned in the list of 20 most polluted cities on earth. 

List of 20 most Polluted cities in World

• Delhi (India)
• Patna (India)
• Gwalior (India)
• Raipur (India)
• Karachi (Pakistan)
• Peshawar (Pakistan)
• Rawalpindi (Pakistan)
• Khoramabad (Iran)
• Ahmedabad (India)
• Lucknow (India)
• Firozabad (India)
• Doha (Qatar)
• Kanpur (India)
• Amritsar (India)
• Ludhiana (India)
• Igdir (Turkey)
• Narayonganj (Bangldesh)
• Allahabad (India)
• Agra (India)
• Khanna (India)

Who has launched 6 Singapore satellites into space - ISRO’ PSLV-C29 

Among the important International Current Affairs, On 16th December 2015, 6 satellites of Singapore were launched successfully by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C29 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC).

Details of the launch

• TeLEOS-One: It is a remote sensing satellite weighing 400 kg and can be used for disaster monitoring and urban planning.
• Apart from this, five other satellites launched are : VELOX-II (13 kg) 6U-Cubesat technology demonstrator; Athenoxat-1, Galassia (3.4 kg ) 2U-Cubesat; VELOX-CI (123 kg) micro-satellite; Kent Ridge-1 (78 kg), a micro-satellite; and a technology demonstrator nano-satellite.
• The satellites were launched into the orbit at 15 degrees inclination to the equator into a 550 km circular orbit.