Current Affairs-GK January 23-24, 2016

Google, Railtel launches free public Wi-Fi service at Mumbai Central Station

>> Google India and Indian Railways’ telecom arm RailTel has launched free Rail Wire Public Wi-Fi service for railway passengers at the Mumbai Central Station.

>> Launched by Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu.

>> Mumbai Central has become the first railway station in India to have free high-speed Wi-Fi Internet facility.

Key facts:

» Railwire Wi-Fi Service will be available to any user (passenger) having Wi-Fi enabled smart phones.

» Security: Users can use this facility after authenticating their cell phone number by entering a four digit OTP (One Time Password) sent to their smart phone via SMS.

January 24 – National Girl Child Day

>> National girl child day is celebrated every year on 24th of January as a national observance day for the girl child.

Key Points:

>> It is celebrated to promote the girls position in the society to make their living better among society.

>> It is very necessary to remove different types of social discrimination and exploitation that girls generally face in their life.

>> They should be aware of all their legal rights and the facts of life.

>> They should be aware that they have the good education, nutrition and health care rights.

>> They should be well aware about legislations including Domestic Violence Act 2009, Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 and Dowry Prohibition Act 2006 in order to get their proper rights and face all the challenges in life.

>> In India, female literacy rate is still 53.87% and one third of the youngster girls are malnourished.

Various steps have been taken at national and state level by the Ministry of Women and Child Development to improve the girl child status through a range of schemes.

PM Narendra Modi, Presient Hollande visit government museum, gallery in Chandigarh

>> Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande visited the Government Museum and Art Gallery after the latter's arrival here on a three-day official visit to India.

>> The two leaders then visited the Capitol Complex here which houses the seats of governments of both Punjab and Haryana.

>> During his brief stay in Chandigarh, Hollande, along with Modi, will also attend a CEOs' Forum and the India-France Business Summit.

>> The two leaders will inaugurate the Interim Secretariat of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and lay the foundation-stone of the ISA headquarters near New Delhi.

PM releases 100 secret files on Netaji

>> Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the first set of 100 declassified files pertaining to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at the National Archives of India here on Saturday in the presence of members of the Bose family.

>> The government plans to release in the public domain 25 declassified files each month.

>> The files do not seem to throw up any new evidence suggesting the freedom fighter survived the plane crash in Taihoku, now in Taiwan, on August 18, 1945.

Banks to get 2.5% commission under gold monetisation scheme

>> According to the Finance Ministry the government will pay banks a 2.5 percent commission for mobilising gold under the gold monetisation scheme and depositors will be permitted premature withdrawal of the deposited metal.

>> Under the modified rules, government will pay the participating banks fees for their services -- gold purity testing charges, refining, storage and transportation charges, among others -- on medium and long term gold deposits.

Key Points:

>> The monetisation scheme encourages individuals, households and temples to deposit gold jewellery or bars with banks or collection agents. The gold deposited would be later refined for domestic purpose and would help cut dependence on imports.

>> The government has already mobilised 900 kgs of gold in over two-and-a-half months time through the scheme.

>> Depositors will earn up to 2.50 percent interest per annum, a rate lower than savings bank deposits.

>> Under the modified rules, premature redemption under medium and long term government deposits have been permitted.

Google paid $1 billion for search spot on iPhones: Report

>> US Internet giant Google paid Apple a billion dollars in 2014 to be the go-to search tool on iPhones, Bloomberg reported, citing court documents.

>> An Oracle attorney had revealed that Google, a subsidiary of corporate parent Alphabet, paid a billion dollars in the year 2014 alone to secure its position as the default search engine on iPhones, Bloomberg reported.

>> Google lawyers argued that Oracle "improperly disclosed highly sensitive, confidential information" regarding revenues and profits related to its Android mobile operating software.

Amit Shah re-elected as BJP president

>> Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) elected Amit Shah as party president for the next three years on Sunday. His name has been proposed by some 20 leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Centre recommends President's rule in Arunachal Pradesh

>> The Union Cabinet recommended to impose President's rule in Arunachal Pradesh, which has been embroiled in political tussle for last few months.

>> The Cabinet will reportedly send the recommendation to President Pranab Mukherjee for further approval.

>> In an assembly session held in December last month, the Congress had lost the 'no trust motion' passed by a group of 13 party rebels against Chief Minister Nabam Tuki.

Sri Lanka tops South Asia in Human Development Index (HDI)

>> Sri Lanka topped the Human Development Index (HDI) 2015 in South Asian Region. But the country’s performance in terms of average annual human development index (HDI) growth rate during 1990-2014 was lower than many other South Asian countries.

Global Human Development Report (HDR) 2015 is released by the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Veteran West Indies batsman Chanderpaul announced his international retirement

>> Veteran West Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the seventh highest Test match run maker in history, has announced his international retirement, 22 years after his debut.

>> The 41-year-old former captain from Guyana ends his Test career on 11,867 runs.

Sourav Kothari won National Billiards title

>> Kolkata cueist Sourav Kothari put up a dominating display to outplay Siddharth Parekh 5-2 in the final of the National Billiards Championship.

>> Bagging his second National Billiards title, he won his maiden crown in 2014, Kothari started with a bang to win four straight frames in the best-of-nine frame (150-up each) summit clash.