ENGLISH NEWS- 21-09-2016

DAILY G.A UPDATE : 21-09-2016

In this competitive age, everyone needs to be updated with the current affairs. So, here is the important news for your upcoming exams like IBPS PO, IBPS CLERK, RRB and many more. 

1. Delhi the worst place to work if you're a woman, Sikkim the best: report

According to the joint report of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a top American think-tank, and Nathan Associates, tiny northeastern state of Sikkim has the best working conditions for women whereas national capital Delhi has the worst.

The report gave Sikkim the highest possible 40 points while Delhi received just 8.5, reflecting the state of affairs in the capital.

The states were ranked according to four main factors: legal restrictions on women working hours in factories, retail, and the IT industry; the responsiveness of the state's criminal justice system to crimes affecting working women, such as sexual harassment; the number of women workers in the state as a percentage of total workers; and the number of incentives the states startup and industrial policies offer women entrepreneurs.

Sikkim is followed by Telangana (28.5 points), Puducherry (25.6), Karnataka (24.7), Himachal Pradesh (24.2), Andhra Pradesh (24.0), Kerala (22.2), Maharashtra (21.4), Tamil Nadu (21.1) and Chhattisgarh (21.1).

Four states (Sikkim, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu) have removed all restrictions on women working at night in factories, retail establishments and the IT sector, the report said.

2. Jayalalithaa inaugurated 8.6 km Airport-Chinnamalai service 

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, J Jayalalithaa inaugurated the 8.6 km-long Airport-Chinnamalai metro rail service. Jayalalithaa inaugurated the service and also six metro rail stations on the route through video conferencing. 

Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu and Minister of State for Shipping and Roadways, Pon Radhakrishnan participated in the ceremony. 

The first ever metro rail service in the city, the 10 km Alandur-Koyambedu stretch, was flagged off in June 2015 by Jayalalithaa.

3. Rushiraj wins rapid fire pistol gold at ISSF Junior World Cup

Indian shooter Rushiraj Barot won gold medal in the junior men's 25m rapid fire pistol event on the third day of the ISSF Junior World Cup.

4. Flipkart Crosses 100 Million Customers Milestone

Homegrown e-tailer Flipkart has crossed the 100-million registered users mark, becoming the first e-commerce company in the country to hit the milestone.

The Bengaluru-based company has doubled its user base over the last year and added 25 million users in the past six months alone.

One of the most valued start-ups in the country, Flipkart has Tiger Global, Accel Partners, Morgan Stanley and T Rowe among its investors. The company has raised over $3 billion in funding so far and has acquired companies like Myntra, PhonePe and LetsBuy. It has also invested in start-ups like Cube26, NestAway and BlackBuck.

A recent Bank of America Merrill Lynch Report pegged Flipkart as the leader with over 43 per cent market share. It forecast that by 2019, Flipkart would increase its share to 44 per cent.

5. India to host 6th Brics agriculture meeting on Sep 22

India will host the sixth Brics meeting on Agriculture and Agrarian Development from September 22, and will deliberate on priority areas of cooperation between the five countries of the bloc.

The two-day conference will start with an official-level meeting to be followed by ministerial meeting the next day.

The discussion will centre around five priority areas of cooperation in the Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) Action Plan for 2012-2016, an official statement said.

The areas of cooperation include creating basic agricultural information exchange system, strategy for ensuring access to food for the most vulnerable population, reducing negative impact of climate change on food security and adaptation of agriculture to climatic changes, enhancing agricultural technology cooperation and innovation, trade and investment promotion, it said.

Detailed discussions will also be held on the Brics Agricultural Research Centre, which is likely to be set up in India.

The proposed Centre is expected to work on Agricultural Science, Policy Research and Development Extension, Technology Transfer, Training and Capacity Building and Scientific Information Sharing.

The agenda of the Brics meetings has considerably widened over the years encompassing global issues such as climate change, food and energy security, Strategic Development Goals (SDGs) and International Economic and Financial Situation among others.

Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy of Brics being the major producers, consumers and exporters of agricultural, horticultural and meat products.

Brics countries enjoy strength in the form of knowledge, expertise and research facilities and capabilities in agriculture. These strengths need to be converged and galvanized for ensuring global food security.

India assumed the Presidency of Brics countries this year and has been hosting a number of mega level meetings in different sectors at the ministerial and official level. The Brics summit is scheduled to be held in Goa on October 15-16.

6. Uber inks pact with tech startup incubator T-Hub

Taxi-hailing app Uber signed a pact with technology startup incubator T-Hub, set up by Telangana government, for UberExchange programme. 

As part of the deal, T-Hub will be leveraging its expertise in shortlisting 20 start-ups through existing network of both the organisations, according to Eric Alexander, Head of Business, Uber Asia.

7. Amritsar tops the list of 27 new smart cities 

The Golden Temple city of Amritsar topped the list of 27 new smart cities announced by the Minister of Urban Development Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu. Eight other cities of pilgrim and tourism importance that made to the third list of smart cities are; Ujjain, Tirupati, Agra, Nashik, Madurai, Thanjavur, Ajmer and Varanasi. With this the number of cities selected under Smart City Mission for financing implementation of smart city plans has gone up to 60.

8. Adani unveils world's largest solar power plant in Tamil Nadu

Adani Green Energy, part of the Adani Group has dedicated to the nation the worlds largest 648-mw solar power plant in Tamil Nadu entailing an investment of Rs 4,550 crore. The solar power plant, producing 648 mw at a single location, was formally dedicated to the nation, a company statement said. "The plant is set up at Kamuthi, Ramanathapuram, in Tamil Nadu with an investment of Rs 4,550 crore. It is part of the state governments ambitious target of generating 3,000 mw as per the solar energy policy unveiled by the government in 2012," it said. The entire 648-mw plant is now connected with Kamuthi 400 kv sub-station of Tantransco, making it the worlds largest solar unit at a single location, it said.