Current Affairs updates from 15 September 2013

Current Affairs updates from 15 September 2013

Days

1) Engineer's day is celebrated today (15th September) across the country. This day is celebrated in the honor of "Sir Dr. Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya" who was born on the same day in 1860.

2) President of India Pranab Mukherjee and Kerala CM Oommen Chandy today greeted Malayalees all over the world wishing them a prosperous and peaceful Onam festival. Onam is the harvest/state festival of Kerala. The Onam will be celebrated by Keralites tomorrow. 

National

1) Land Acquisition Bill would be notified by early next year after framing of rules, Union Minister Jairam Ramesh said.

2) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav visited Muzaffarnagar to meet victims of communal clashes.

3) Pakistan violated ceasefire in Mendhar sector along LoC

4) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called a meeting of the National Integration Council (NIC) on September 23. The meeting comes in the wake of the recent communal violence in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar in which almost 50 people have died.

5) Government has notified the landmark Food Security legislation, giving a legal right on highly subsidized foodgrains to 67 percent of the country's population. The Lok Sabha had passed the Bill on August 26, while the Rajya Sabha gave its nod on September 2. President Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the Bill last week. "...it (the Act) shall be deemed to have come into force on July 5, 2013," the Gazette notification said.

6) Taking note of some of its staffers wearing clothes “that did not bring any repute”, the Karnataka Government has prescribed a “decent” dress code for them — pant and shirt or ‘pyjama/kurta’ for men and saree or ’churidar’ for women.

Technology & Achievements

1) India conducted a second test flight of its indigenously developed nuclear-capable 'Agni-V' long-range ballistic missile, which has a strike range of more than 5000 km, from the Wheeler Island off Odisha coast. Unlike other missiles of indigenously built Agni series, the latest one 'AGNI-V' is the most advanced version having some new technologies incorporated with it in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine.

2) Japan to be nuclear free as last reactor switched off.  Move will leave the world's third largest economy without atomic energy for the second time since the Fukushima crisis erupted in March 2011.

Awards

1) Miss India 2012 finalist Purva Rana was crowned Vice-Queen at the Miss United Continent 2013 held in Guayaquil, Ecuador. International

1) United Nations has formally accepted Syria's application to join the chemical weapons convention.

2) Salustiano "Shorty" Sanchez, recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's oldest man, died in New York state.

Sports

1)  Andy Murray secured Britain's return to the Davis Cup World Group after a five-year absence when he defeated Croatia's Ivan Dodig.

2) ShikharDhawan to lead SunrisersHyderabad in upcoming ChampionsLeague Twenty20.