Current Affairs Assam – December 2017
( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the month of December 2017 )
Current Affairs Assam – December 2017 eMagazine
December 1
Supreme Court rejects Centre’s plea on NRC deadline
The Supreme Court rejected the Centre’s plea for extension of deadline for publication of the draft National Register of Citizens (NRC) for Assam. The draft NRC is scheduled to be published on or before December 31.
A Supreme Court Bench comprising Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Rohinton Fali Nariman told Attorney General KK Venugopal that it can’t extend the deadline for publication of draft NRC list. The Centre through the Registrar General of Citizen Registration (RGCR) had proposed to publish the draft NRC on July 31, 2018.
Point2Remember – Attorney General of India – KK Venugopal
FACTFILE – National Register of Citizens (NRC)
- The National Register of Citizens (NRC) contains names of Indian citizens of Assam.
- The NRC was prepared in 1951, after the Census of 1951.
- It was prepared by recording particulars of all the persons enumerated during that Census and was further kept in the offices of Deputy Commissioners and Sub Divisional Officers according to instructions issued by the Government of India in 1951. Later these registers were transferred to the Police in the early 1960s.
- The NRC Updation is currently going on (2014-2016) across Assam and shall include the names of those persons (or their descendants) who appear in the NRC 1951, or in any of the Electoral Rolls up to the midnight of 24 March 1971 or in any one of the other admissible documents issued up to the midnight of 24 March 1971, which would prove their presence in Assam on or before 24 March 1971.
- The NRC (1951) and the Electoral Rolls up to the midnight of 24 March 1971 together are collectively called Legacy Data.
India’s manufacturing output rises in November
India’s manufacturing sector expanded exponentially in November due to accelerated increases in output and new orders, a key macro-economic data showed.
The Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), a composite indicator of manufacturing performance, increased to 52.6 in November from 50.3 reported for October.
An index reading of above 50 indicates an overall increase in economic activity and below 50 an overall decrease.
FACTFILE – The Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI)
- It measures the performance of the manufacturing sector
- It is derived from a survey of 500 manufacturing companies.
- The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index is based on five individual indexes with the following weights: New Orders (30 percent), Output (25 percent), Employment (20 percent), Suppliers’ Delivery Times (15 percent) and Stock of Items Purchased (10 percent), with the Delivery Times index inverted so that it moves in a comparable direction.
North Korea tests Hwasong-15 most powerful ICBM
North Korea claimed that “Hwasong-15” test-fired on 29th November 2017 is a new type of Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) that can strike anywhere on the US mainland. Represents the most successful and formidable part of its ballistic missile arsenal. “Hwasong-15” was North Korea’s 20th launch of a ballistic missile in 2017.
FACTFILE – Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM)
- It is a guided ballistic missile with a minimum range of 5,500 kilometres (3,400 mi) primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more thermonuclear warheads).
- Similarly, conventional, chemical, and biological weapons can also be delivered with varying effectiveness, but have never been deployed on ICBMs.
- Most modern designs support multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs), allowing a single missile to carry several warheads, each of which can strike a different target.
December 2
State bid to attract foreign investments
The Assam Government is looking to attract foreign investments in about 297 potential projects of ports, logistics parks, river transport and tourism. The Government recently held road shows in Japan, South Korea and Singapore to attract investments.
Guwahati is gearing up for air connectivity with Singapore, Myanmar and Bangladesh.
Ajeya Warrior-2017: Indo-UK combined military exercise held in Rajasthan
The Combined Military exercise ‘Ajeya Warrior- 2017’ between India and the UK was held at Mahajan Field Firing Range near Bikaner of Rajasthan.
- It was third joint military exercise between India and UK.
- The first exercise was conducted in 2013 at Belgaum, Karnataka and second exercise was held in and the second exercise was held in 2015 in the UK.
India and Singapore ink Bilateral Agreement for Navy Cooperation
India and Singapore have signed Bilateral Agreement for Navy Cooperation that will allow Indian Navy ships logistical support, including refuelling at Singapore’s Changi Naval Base located near disputed South China Sea (SCS). The naval logistics agreement is first for India with country located east of strategically important Strait of Malacca.
Point2Remember
Strait of Malacca – is a narrow, 550 mile stretch of water between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) and the Indonesian island of Sumatra. From an economic and strategic perspective, the Strait of Malacca is one of the most important shipping lanes in the world.
The strait is the main shipping channel between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, linking major Asian economies such as India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea.
South China Sea (SCS) – The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Karimata and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around 3,500,000 square kilometres (1,400,000 sq mi).
The sea carries tremendous strategic importance; one-third of the world’s shipping passes through it carrying over $3 trillion in trade each year, it contains lucrative fisheries that are crucial for the food security of millions in Southeast Asia, and huge oil and gas reserves are believed to lie beneath its seabed.
December 3
Siu-Ka-Pha Award conferred on Bimal Borpatra Gohain
The Assam government conferred the Siu-Ka-Pha Award on eminent Tai scholar Bimal Borpatra Gohain at Tipam village, on the occasion of Asom Divas (Siu-Ka-Pha Divas) celebration.
Tipam is a place of historic importance between Naharkatia and Namrup because Chaolung Siu-Ka-Pha, the first Ahom king had a stopover in the village during his journey into Assam. The village also has a moidam of the Ahoms.
The Siu-Ka-Pha Award that carries Rs 2 lakh along with a citation and a sorai, is given away annually to a prominent personality of the State who has made considerable contribution to the society in any field.
The Assam government has been observing December 2 as the Asom Divas or Siu-Ka-Pha Divas in commemoration of the first Ahom king.
Akash Missile Successfully Launched
The Surface to Air Missile AKASH with indigenous radio frequency seeker against target Banshee has been successfully launched from the Launch Complex-III at ITR Chandipur, Odisha. The Radars, telemetry and electro-optical systems along the coast have tracked and monitored all the health parameters of the missile. This missile is being inducted into Army as Short Range Surface to Air Missile (SRSAM). With this success, India has achieved the capability of making any type of Surface to Air Missile.
FACTFILE- Akash Missle
- It’s a medium-range mobile surface-to-air missile defense system developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and produced by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) for Missile Systems and Bharat Electronics (BEL) for other radars, control centers in India.
- The missile system can target aircraft up to 30 km away, at altitudes up to 18,000 m. It has the capability to “neutralise aerial targets like fighter jets, cruise missiles and air-to-surface missiles” as well as ballistic missiles.
Nagaland Statehood Day celebrated on 1st December
Nagaland has celebrated its 54th Statehood Day on 1st December at the Naga Heritage Village. The 10 day long 18th Hornbill festival was also inaugurated by President Ram NathKovind on the same day.
