Sikri takes over as new CCI chairman
Former
Gujarat cadre IAS officer Devender Kumar Sikri has taken oath as the
Chairman of Competition Commission of India on 11 January 2016.Mr.
Sikri, a 1975 batch IAS officer, replaces Ashok Chawla who demitted
office on January 7 and will be the third chairman of the CCI. Mr.
Chawla had taken over from Dhanendra Kumar, who demitted office in June
2011. The 62-year-old Mr. Sikri, who superannuated as secretary,
department of justice in July 31, 2013, will have a two-and-a-half year
tenure (till he attains 65 years of age).
Syrian foreign minister visits India before peace talks
Syria’s
foreign minister arrived in New Delhi on 11 January 2016 for talks with
his Indian counterpart, trying to build international support for
President Bashar al-Assad’s government before peace talks in Geneva.
Peace talks between Assad’s government and the Syrian opposition are due
to begin on 25 January 2016 as part of an ambitious 18-month plan
endorsed by the UN Security Council. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid
Muallem meet Sushma Swaraj and “other government functionaries” during a
three-day official visit
India-Australia social pact comes into force
A
new social security agreement signed between India and Australia has
come into operation enabling people of both nations to avail retirement
benefits in each other’s country, a pact likely to boost bilateral
business linkages.Australian Minister for Social Services Christian
Porter and Minister for Small Business and Assistant Treasurer Kelly
O’Dwyer said the Commonwealth government wanted to make sure people who
lived and worked in more than one country were not disadvantaged.The
Agreement signed in November 2014 came into operation on January 1,
2016.
Reliance to set up Rs. 5,000-crore naval shipbuilding unit near Vizag
Reliance
Group, led by billionaire Anil Ambani, will set up a naval
ship-building facility near Visakhapatnam at a cost of Rs. 5,000 crore.
It is the single biggest investment in Andhra Pradesh after its
bifurcation.A memorandum of understanding to build the facility was
signed between Reliance ADA Group Chairman, Anil Ambani and AP Chief
Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu, at the CII Partnership Summit and
Sunrise AP Investment Meet on 10 January 2016.Reliance will establish
the facility at Rambilli, about 70 km from Vizag.
Binny Bansal appointed as CEO of Flipkart
E-commerce
firm Flipkart on 11 January 2016 appointed Binny Bansal as the Chief
Executive Officer and Sachin Bansal as the Executive Chairman.“Sachin
Bansal, CEO and co-founder of Flipkart, will be the Executive Chairman
of the company and Binny Bansal, COO and co-founder of Flipkart, will be
the Chief Executive Officer”.In his role as the Executive Chairman,
Sachin will provide strategic direction and mentor the senior leadership
as also look for new investment opportunities.While, Binny as the CEO
will now be responsible for operationally driving the company and be
accountable for Flipkart’s overall performance.
12 January 2016 Current Affairs
Sushma Swaraj to visit Palestine, Israel
External
Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will visit Israel and Palestine on
January 17-18 to further build on the goodwill generated by the trip of
President Pranab Mukherjee to the two West Asian nations three months
back.Palestine will be Ms. Swaraj’s first destination where she will
hold talks with leadership of the country with an aim to boost bilateral
engagement and deepen mutual understanding at the political level.After
completing her engagements in Palestine on January 17, Ms. Swaraj will
go to Israel the same day for a two-day visit during which she will hold
discussions with the Israeli leadership and review the entire gamut of
India-Israel relations.
EPFO bags National Award on e-Governance
The
Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation has won the National Award on
e-Governance 2015-16 for launching the Universal Account Number
(UAN).The UAN facility enables workers to transfer their provident fund
deposits while switching jobs anywhere in India easily.The EPFO won the
gold award in the ‘innovative use of technology in e-governance’
category and the retirement body will get a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh.The
award will be presented by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances
and Pensions to the EPFO in the 19th National Conference on e-governance
to be held in Nagpur on January 22.
Strong Earthquake strikes off Indonesia’s Talaud islands
A
strong earthquake struck off North Sulawesi province in central
Indonesia 12 January 2016.The U.S. Geological Survey said the magnitude
6.4 quake hit 233 kilometres (145 miles) southeast of Sarangani in the
Philippines, at a depth of 12.9 kilometres (8 miles).
Indian Foreign Secretary Jaishankar visit Colombo
Indian
Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar on 12 January 2016 arrived in Sri Lanka
to hold bilateral discussions with the island nation’s leadership.Mr.
Jaishankar is expected to meet Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil
Wickremesinghe and Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera among other
dignitaries, According to the report, during the course of his visit,
Mr. Jaishankar is expected to pave the way for the India-Sri Lanka Joint
Commission (ISLJC) meeting scheduled to be held in Colombo next
month.External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is likely to attend the
ISJLC meeting.