Current Affairs 1st March 2017

Current Affairs 1st March 2017 - Important Points

• Assam to host river festival - Namami Brahmaputra
• Gujarati Writer and play writer passed away on - 1st Mar 2017
• Who has been appointed as UN Deputy Secretary-General? - Amina J Mohammed
• Who has been appointed as Secretary (West) in MEA - Ruchi Ghanashyam
• Zero Discrimination Day observed on - 1st March 2017
• Who has been appointed as Chief Secretary of Maharashtra - IAS officer Sumit Mullick 
• India successfully test fired -  Prithvi Supersonic Interceptor Missile

Current Affairs 1st March 2017 - Details

Assam to host river festival - Namami Brahmaputra

Assam’s Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal announced its first river festival-‘Namami Brahmaputra’ at the Brahmaputra riverfront in Guwahati from 31st March to 4th April 2017. The five-day festival objects to promote the state’s economy, culture, art, tourism, skill industry, investment option, trade, commerce and heritage.

Important Details-

•  Namami Brahmaputra will showcase the grandeur of the river and the land it flows through.
• This fest will spread across 21 districts of Assam.
•  The international event would feature traditional Assamese sports, cultural performances, business meets, exhibitions, seminars and symposiums, river ecosystem and interpretation zones.
• This festival has other events like tea festival, river cruises, rafting, visits to tea gardens and programmes related to history, tradition and legends of Assam too.

Do you know?

Namami Brahmaputra means “Obeisance to the Brahmaputra”.

Gujarati Writer and play writer passed away on - 1st Mar 2017

Gujarati writer and noted play writer Tarak Mehta passed away on 1st March 2017 due to prolonged age related illness. He was 87 at the time of his death.

About Tarak Mehta

•  Tarak Mehta was an Indian writer, columnist, and humorist.
• He was best known for his column “Duniya Ne Undha Chasma” in Mumbai-based Gujarati news weekly “Chitralekha”. Its television version is popular comic serial ‘Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah'.
• He wrote around 80 books on various pressing issues.
• He had translated and adapted several comedies into Gujarati and he had also served in Films Division-Mumbai as a script writer.
•  Gujarat Sahitya Akademi awarded him Sahitya Gaurav Puraskar in 2011 and Ramanlal Nilkanth Hasya Paritoshik in 2017.

Do you know?

Tarak Mehta was honoured with the prestigious Padma Shri Award for his contribution in literature in 2015.

Who has been appointed as UN Deputy Secretary-General? - Amina J Mohammed

Amina J Mohammed has been appointed as UN Secretary- General on 28th February 2017. She was a former Environment Minister of Nigeria.

More about Amina

• She resigned from Nigerian Federal Executive Council on 24th February 2017 and sworn in as UN Secretary- General.
•  She also served as Founder and CEO of the Center for Development Policy Solutions prior to above mentioned positions.
•  She was honoured the National Honours Award of the Order of the Federal Republic in 2006.
•  Amina was inducted in the Nigerian Women’s Hall of Fame in 2007.

Who has been appointed as Secretary (West) in MEA - Ruchi Ghanashyam

Senior diplomat Ruchi Ghanashyam was appointed as the Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) by the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) on 28th February 2017. In the new role Ruchi will be responsible for looking after the country's diplomatic affairs with the United Kingdom and other European nations. 

Key Highlights-

•  She joined the Indian Foreign Services in 1982 after obtaining a Masters in Psychology from the Bhopal University.
• She is serving as the High Commissioner of India to South Africa presently. 
•   She served as the Minister in the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations in New York from May 2004 to March 2008. 
• She was the Director for Pakistan at headquarters in Delhi from August 2000 to March 2004.

Zero Discrimination Day observed on - 1st March 2017

Zero Discrimination Day was observed on 1 March 2017 globally with the theme "Make Some Noise for Zero Discrimination". This day aims to join people together against discrimination and respect everyone's right to live a full and productive life with dignity.

Do you know?

UN started to celebrate it at first from 1st March 2014 after it first launched its first campain "UNAIDS".

Who has been appointed as Chief Secretary of Maharashtra  - IAS officer Sumit Mullick 

Sumit Mullick, a 1982 batch IAS officer, has been appointed as the Chief Secretary of Maharashtra on 28th February 2017. He succeeds Swadheen Kshatriya.

Key Highlights

At the time of appointment, Mullick was working as an Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) and was serving the state as its Chief Protocol Officer in the General Administration department.

Do you know?

Chief Secretaries rank above the Principle Secretaries but are subordinate to the Cabinet Secretary of India.

India successfully test fired -  Prithvi Supersonic Interceptor Missile

India successfully test-fired the Prithvi supersonic interceptor missile on 1st March 2017. The missile was test-fired from the Abdul Kalam Island off Odisha coast by the Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). After Prithvi, India has become the fourth country in the world to have a ballistic missile defense program after US, Russia and Israel.

Important Highlights

•  Prithvi Missile is a surface-to-surface battle field missile.
•  It uses a single state,strap-down inertial guidance and twin-engine liquid propulsion system with real-time software.
•  These features are incorporated in the on board computer to achieve the desired accuracy during impact.
• Prithvi has a higher lethal effect as compared to any equivalent class of missiles in the world.