By: D.K Chaudhary
1. Indian Army Releases Book on Paramveer Chakra Awardees
i. General Bipin Rawat, Chief of the Army Staff released a book on Paramveer Chakra Awardees – ‘Paramveer Parwane’.
ii. The book illustrates the bravery of Paramveer Chakra Awardees from 1947 to 1965. The book is written by Dr Prabhakiran Jain and is published by Medha Books.
- Somnath Sharma (from 4 Kumaon Unit) was the first recipient of Paramveer Chakra.
2. 106th Indian Science Congress to be Held in Bhopal
i. General President-elect of Indian Science Congress Manoj Kumar Chakrabarti announced that the 106th edition of the Indian Science Congress will be held in January 2019 at Barkatullah University Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
ii. The theme for 2019 ISC will be “Future India: Science & Technology”.
- PM Modi inaugurated the 105th Indian Science Congress in Imphal, Manipur. T
- The theme for ISC 2018 was ‘Reaching the unreached through science and technology’.
3. India Signs Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty With Hong Kong
i. India and Hong Kong signed a double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA) that seeks to improve transparency in tax matters and help curb tax evasion and avoidance.
ii. The agreement between India and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of the People’s Republic of China was signed by Indian Ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale and Hong Kong Finance Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po in Hong Kong.
ii. The agreement between India and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of the People’s Republic of China was signed by Indian Ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale and Hong Kong Finance Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po in Hong Kong.
4. 3rd Edition of National Conclave on Mines and Minerals
i. The Ministry of Mines has organized the 3rd National Conclave on Mines & Minerals in New Delhi. The event was inaugurated by the Minister of Mines, Narendra Singh Tomar.
ii. Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) has agreed to partner in the event. A portal on Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojna (PMKKKY) scheme was also launched on the occasion.
- The Ministry of Mines organized the 1st National Conclave on Mines & Minerals in July 2016 at Raipur.
5. USA Bans Use of Venezuelan Cryptocurrency- Petro
i. The Donald Trump administration banned all use by Americans of Venezuelan cryptocurrency (Petro), saying that its introduction is intended to skirt U.S. sanctions.
ii. The prohibition applies to all people and companies subject to U.S. jurisdiction. In February 2018, cash-strapped Venezuela became the first country to launch its own version of bitcoin, the petro.
- Venezuela Capital- Caracas, Currency- Venezuelan bolívar, Venezuelan President- Nicolas Maduro.
- The petro is backed by Venezuela’s crude oil reserves which is the largest in the world.
