Daily Current Affairs, 09th January 2019

1) Rajya Sabha Passes Reservation Bill Granting 10% Quota For Upper Caste EWS

•The 124th Constitution Amendment Bill, 2019 to award 10% reservation to economically weaker sections was passed with a majority in Rajya Sabha. It was already passed in Lok Sabha. After 10-hour-long debate, most of the members in the Upper House of the Parliament agreed to go ahead with the bill despite opposition from some parties.

•The Constitution (124rd Amendment) Bill has passed the Rajya Sabha test with 165 ‘Yes’ and 7 ‘No’ votes. The was brought to the Upper House after the sitting of the House was extended by a day.

2) Citizenship Amendment Bill 2019 Passed in Lok Sabha

•The Citizenship Amendment bill seeking to provide Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan was passed by Lok Sabha. The Bill provides for Indian citizenship to such immigrants after six years of residence in India instead of 12 years currently. 

•Home Minister Rajnath Singh moved the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 in Lok Sabha and was passed after a discussion. The Bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act of 1955in order to grant citizenship to Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan if they have lived in India for six years. 

3) Interim Budget To Be Presented on 1 February

•The interim budget for 2019 will be presented on 1 February during the budget session of the parliament. The budget session of the Parliament to be held from 31 January to 13 February. The decision was taken in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs. 

4) Pranav R Mehta Becomes 1st Indian to Head Global Solar Council

•A visionary in the field of Solar Energy and the chairman of National Solar Energy Federation, Pranav R Mehta, has taken over as the president of Global Solar Council (GSC). He has become the first Indian to head the GSC. 

•The Global Solar Council (GSC) was launched on December 6, 2015, following the historic United Nations Climate Change Conference (UN COP 21). The GSC came into being as International Coalition of more than 30 nations, utilising maximum solar energy, decided to harness the renewable energy for the greater good. 

5) 2nd Edition Of Khelo India Youth Games Begins In Pune

•The second edition of Khelo India Youth Games has officially begun in Pune, Maharashtra. Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Rathore and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis attended a virtual torch ceremony at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the event through a video message. More than 9,000 players from different states will participate in 18 different events. 

6) World Bank Pegs India’s GDP Growth At 7.3 % in 2018-19

•India’s GDP is expected to grow at 7.3% in the fiscal year 2018-19, and 7.5% in the following two years, the World Bank has forecast, attributing it to an upswing in consumption and investment. India will continue to be the fastest growing major economy in the world, according to the World Bank. 

•China’s economic growth is projected to slow down to 6.2% each in 2019 and 2020 and 6% in 2021, according to the January 2019 Global Economic Prospects report released by the World Bank. 

7) RBI Forms Committee To Boost Digital Payments

•Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has constituted a High-Level Committee on Deepening of Digital Payments to encourage digitisation of payments and enhance financial inclusion. The five-member committee headed by UIDAI’s former Chairman Nandan Nilekani will include RBI’s former Deputy Governor Mr. H.R. Khan and Former Secretary, Ministry of Information Technology, Mrs. Aruna Sharma among others.

•RBI stated that the committee will review the existing status of digitisation of payments and suggest ways to bridge any gaps in the ecosystem if any. The committee will also undertake cross country analysis to identify best practices that can be adopted to accelerate digitisation of the economy and financial inclusion through greater use of digital payments.

8) Egypt to Host 2019 African Cup of Nations

•Seven-time champions Egypt have won the hosting rights for the 2019 edition of the African Cup of Nations. Egypt beat South Africa by 16 votes to one at the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) Executive Committee. 

•With just five more months for the tournament, Egypt has got a limited time to prepare for an event where a total of 24 teams will be participating.