Current Affairs Questions & Answers - Oct 09, 2016

ANSWER: Apparel manufacturing

Explanation:
GoI has introduced fixed term employment in the apparel sector. The Labour Ministry notified the amendments in the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) paving the way for fixed term employment in the apparel manufacturing sector

• Decision would facilitate employment of workers in the apparel manufacturing sector on a fixed term basis against the backdrop of the seasonal character of the sector
• It would also ensure sam working conditions, wages and other benefits for fixed term employees in the sector as a regular employee
• Following the termination of fixed term employment, workers will not be entitled to notice or pay
• This move has been critiqued by many labour unions including BMS which have termed it anti worker
• Fixed term employment in the apparel manufacturing sector was introduced as part of the Industrial Employment(Standing Order) Act vide notification dates Oct 7, 2016
• The working conditions in terms of hours, wages, allowances and statutory dues of the fixed term employee would be at par with a permanent one
• FIxed term workers will also be eligible for statutory benefits available to permanent workers in proportion to the period of service rendered by them though the period of employment does not extend to the qualifying period of the employment required in the statue
• This is one of the measures approved in an INR 6000 crore package for textile sectors announced in June in 2016
• Measures assume significance due to massive potential for social transformation through women empowerment
• Close to 70 percent of the workforce in the garment industry are women
• Therefore, a majority of the new jobs created are more likely to go to women

ANSWER: 16

Explanation:
Reliance Jio has introduced Aadhaar based paperless Reliance Jio SIM activation across 3,100 cities and towns. This ensures that the customer completes SIM activation in minutes with only the Aadhaar number

• The company has created a world record by crossing the 16 million subscriber mark in the first month of operations in Sept 2016
• Jio is a fresh entrant in the 4G market and has achieved faster growth than any other telecom operator or startup across the globe including the likes of Skype, Facebook, WhatsApp.
• Reliance Jio Infocomm is a subsidiary of RIL
• It launched commercial services on September 5, 2016
• At RIL’s 42nd AGM, Mukesh Ambani the RIL chief said that the new telecom venture would aim to acquire 100m customers in the shortest time possible and create a fresh world record
• This would mean data usage of 250 crore GB per month
• Jio introduced Aadhaar based paperless Jio SIM activation and had an entry into the world’s second largest telephony market which sparked off a tariff war
• It has onboard 1.5 million users on its 4G network during the test phase
• The company is competing head-on with players like Bharti Airtel and Vodafone by giving users free data
• Vodafone currently has over 200 million subscribers and Idea close to 177 million subscribers in August
• The subscriber count of Aircel was 89.7 million while Telenor was pegged at 53.2 m
• State owned MTNL had 3.6m users while Bharti Airtel broadband reached 35 million. Vodafone and Idea have 25 million broadband users together.

ANSWER: The Dancing Girl

Explanation:
Pakistan has gone on an offensive in the cultural front aiming to unsettle India.

• The warring neighbouring country has demanded a bronze Mohenjodaro statuette called the Dancing Girl
• This is a 4500 year old artefact which British archaeologist Mortimer Wheeler has called perfect.
• The statute is 10.5 cm or 4.1 inch high in terms of its height
• It dates around 2500 BC
• It was discovered in 1926 from the ancient city of Mohenjodaro of the Indus Valley Civilisation in Sindh by British archaeologist Ernest Mackay.
• Syed Jamal Shah, director General of the Pakistan National Council of Arts has said the statue will be demanded under UNESCO conventions and the aim of Pakistan was “to protect the heritage.”
• The statue recovered in excavation from the HR area of Mohenjo Daro indicates two major breakthroughs
• Indus artists knew metal blending and casting as well as other technical aspects of metallurgy
• Well developed society of the Indus had innovated dance and other performing arts as modes of entertainment

ANSWER: 84^th

Explanation:
The 84^th anniversary of the Indian Air Force was celebrated with pomp and splendour at the NDA, Khadakwasla near Pune

• The IAF is the world’s fourth largest air force with a main responsibility to secure the India airspace and conduct aerial warfare during conflict
• It was established on Oct 8, 1932 as an auxiliary force of the British empire
• The prefix Royal was added in 1945 in recognition of services during WW2
• After India gained freedom in 1947, the Royal Indian Air Force served the Indian dominion
• The prefix was Royal was dropped in 1950 when India became a republic. The IAF has been involved in wars numbering 4 with Pakistan
• It also fought the 1962 Indo-China war
• Commandment of NDA Air Marshall JS Kier was the chief guest of the traditional cutting of the cake
• An oath taking ceremony was also held by the IAF personnel
• NDA is a unique ti-service military training centre where all three armed forces’ cadets receive training
• There are close to 65 Air Force cadets enrolled in each course
• Cadets were given flying training.
• Air Force cadets also get trained in aviation related subjects such as Air Traffic and Flight, meteorology, aero-modelling, paragliding, skeet shooting and deflection shooting to sharpen their skills
• Distinguished IAF personnel have originated from the institute including Rakesh Sharma, India’s first and only Indian cosmonaut and Air Chief Marshall Arup Raha.

ANSWER: A mistaken belief

Explanation:
A new study has found that apes possess the human ability to guess what others are thinking, even when someone holds a mistaken belief.

• The study was led by comparative psychologists at the Kyoto University
• Apes were found to show they could think like humans
• While watching videos, the apes correctly anticipated when errors in thinking would be made
• Scientists demonstrated this using eye tracking technology to show the apes correctly tested when the wrong option would be made
• This finding has been replicated in chimpanzees. orang-utans and bonobos.
• The scientists demonstrate that apes can predict the beliefs of others, even when the presumption is known to be false
• In the experiment, apes would be able to anticipate someone would look for a hidden item in a certain location even though the apes know it was not there
• The ability to predict someone holds a mistaken belief, which according to psychologists is the theory of the mind, and is a cognitive development children reach by age 5, was also held by the apes.

ANSWER: Delhi

Explanation:
LG Najeeb Jung on Oct 7, 2016 dismissed the Delhi Waqf Board

• The Board’s constitution was referred to a CBI probe for alleged corruptions and procedural irregularities in the functioning
• The constitution of the Board and appointment of its CEO and members was also marked illegal and void ab innate
• In view of the deliberate acts of illegality, rule violation, corruption allegations and malafide intentions, the entire matter pertaining to Delhi Waqf Board was referred to the CBI for investigation
• LG further directed Divisional Commissioner A. Anbarasu to set up a committee to review the legality and proprietary of action decisions and action taken by the board after the constitution in 2015
• A Waqf is a permanent dedication of movable and immovable properties for religious, pious and charitable purposes is recognised by Muslim law, as per philanthropy
• Grant is called mushrut-ul-khidmat where the person making the dedication is called Waqf
• State Waqf boards were established by the state government as per Sections 13 and 14 of the Waqf Act 1995
• The 1995 Act is not applicable to Jammu & Kashmir
• Currently, there are 30 Waqf boards around the country in 29 states and UTs
• The states like Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Sikkim, Mizoram and the UT of Daman and Diu currently have no Waqf board.
• At present, there are 30 Wakf Boards across the country in twenty-nine states/Union territories. The States like Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim and the UT Daman & Dieu have no Waqf Board at present.

ANSWER: Mumbai

Explanation:
Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis has inaugurated India’s first centre for International Arbitration in Mumbai.

• The Mumbai centre for International Arbitration is located in Express Towers but will be shifted to Mumbai’s business district BKC
• MCIA is an important milestone in the journey for developing an ecosystem for International Financial Services Centre in Mumbai
• The London Court of International Arbitration and Singapore International Arbitration Centre accounting for 30 percent of the cases that involved Indian businesses.
• Businesses lose their precious money and time in arbitrations
• It will attract cases and business world over to make India the top arbitration centre in the world
• The MCIA demonstrates the Maharashtrian government’s resolve to create an IFSC in Mumbai
• MCIA will be governed by a 17 member governing council
• The attempt is being made to pull in place policy mechanism and physical apparatus for transparent, efficient and credible dispute resolution systems

ANSWER: Bathukamma

Explanation:
Telangana state festival Bathukamma has entered the Guinness Book of World Records.

• Close to 9300 women participated in this festival also attended by Tennis star Sania Mirza
• They dance around the bathukamma or flower stack arranged with different unique seasonal flowers attributed with medicinal values
• Bathukamma festival is a symbol of Telangana cultural identity and celebrated during the latter half of the monsoon and before the onset of winter
• Festival celebrates the relations between earth, humans and water
• During the week before, when make Boddemma a Gauri deity/ Mother Durga image with early mud along with the Bathukamma and submerge it in the pond
• This helps to reinforce the pond and retain more water
• Flowers used in Bathukamma purify the water, cleanse the ponds and ensure the environment becomes better.