By: D.K. Choudhary
Lucky Grahak Yojana, Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojana launched
i.Government of India has launched Lucky Grahak Yojana for Consumers and Digi-Dhan Vyapar Yojana for Merchants to promote digital transaction.ii.The schemes are aimed at encouraging people to move towards significantly higher usage of digital transactions through the offer of incentives.
iii.The first Lucky Grahak Yojana draw was held in the presence of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and name of 15 thousand lucky winners were announced.
PM Modi lays foundation stone of Pune Metro Rail
i.PM Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of Pune Metro project’s Phase-I.ii.PM Modi said the government is actively working on the Rurban Mission, which caters to the places that are urbanising quickly.
iii.The government needs to improve the quality of life in villages as well as mitigate the challenges that the urban areas are facing.
Assam CM launches Atal-Amrit Abhiyan across the State
i.Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal has launched ‘Atal-Amrit Abhiyan’ Scheme across the State .ii.The initiative is a health assurance scheme which will give comprehensive coverage for six diseases and cover all individuals in eligible families with annual income below Rs 5 lakh.
iii.437 diseases are covered under this scheme.
‘Kuchipudi’ performers dance their way into Guinness World Records
i.Andhra Pradesh’s own classical dance ‘Kuchipudi’ found a place in the Guinness World Records yet again when a record 6,117 dancers came together to present a show at the IGMC Stadium in Vijaywada.ii.Guinness adjudicator Rishinath declared that “Jayamu Jayamu” item presented in unison by the participants created a new record and handed over a certificate to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu.
India’s first 2G Ethanol Bio-refinery set up in Punjab
i.The foundation stone for India’s first second generation ethanol bio-refinery to be set up by Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) at Bathinda in Punjab at a cost of Rs 600 crore .ii.The foundation stone laying ceremony will be held at village Tarkhanwala, in Bathinda district of Punjab.
UP CM inaugurates power projects worth Rs52,000 crore
i.Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav has inaugurated power projects worth over Rs52,000 crore across the state.ii.Along with projects covering transmission and distribution of electricity, three thermal power plants with the total capacity of 33,000 MW were also inaugurated.
iii.This is a major thrust to provide 24-hour electricity to all in the state.
India successfully test-fires nuclear capable Agni-V
i.India tested its Agni-V intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in its final operational configuration from Wheeler Island off Odisha , paving the way for its eventual induction into the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) after user-trials.ii.The nuclear-capable Agni-V, which can even reach the northernmost parts of China with its strike range of over 5,000-km, test-fired from its canister on a launcher truck
SBI adopts village of Maharashtra for Aadhaar-based payments
i.The State Bank of India (SBI) has adopted Shirki village in Pen taluka in Maharashtra for driving the Aadhaar-based merchant payment initiative.ii.Under the initiative, the merchants in the village have been provided with simple android phones with a USB-based fingerprint capture device.
iii.The merchant is required to have a bank account with an Aadhaar number needed.
Five global reinsurers, including RGA, Swiss Re, get final licence from Irda
i.The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irda) has approved the R3 application and granted certificate of registration to five global reinsurers to opens shops.ii.The R3 is the final approval from the regulator to begin branch operations.
iii.The five global reinsurers that were granted final approval by the regulator are the US-based reinsurer Reinsurance Group of America (RGA), Munich Re and Hannover from Germany, Swiss Re from Switzerland and French reinsurance major Scor.
Scientists find world’s most heat resistant material
i.Scientists have identified materials that can withstand temperatures of nearly 4,000 degrees Celsius, an advance that may pave the way for improved heat resistant shielding for the faster-than-ever hypersonic space vehicles.ii.Researchers from Imperial College London in the UK discovered that the melting point of hafnium carbide is the highest ever recorded for a material.
iii.Tantalum carbide (TaC) and hafnium carbide (HfC) are refractory ceramics, meaning they are extraordinarily resistant to heat.
Co-Artist of national emblem Dinanath Bhargava died at 89
Dinanath Bhargava, a co-artist in the team that sketched the national emblem ‘Lion Capital of Ashoka’ and decorated the pages of the Constitution’s manuscript, died at the age of 89 in Indore.British singer George Michael dies at 53
i.British singer George Michael who launched his career with Wham in the 1980s and continued his success as a solo performer.ii.He has died on 25 December 2016 at the age of 53 and cause of death was heart failure.
Pankaj Advani won National title in 6-red Snooker
i.Sixteen-time world champion Pankaj Advani ended the year on a high by bagging the National title in 6-red snooker, the shorter format of the game.ii.Starting off as the favourite, Advani lived up to the expectations and reclaimed the title, which he had won during the inaugural
edition in Bengaluru in 2010.
iii. In the final, Advani prevailed over local youngster Ishpreet Chadha 7-4 to clinch the title.
