Daily Current Affairs Updates: 16 August 2014

1) PM Narendra Modi inducts largest indigenously built INS Kolkata, says no country will dare to challenge India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 16 Aug 2014commissioned country’s largest indigenously built warship INS Kolkata. INS Kolkata, a part of the Kolkata Class destroyers of the Indian Navy, has been built at the Mumbai-based Mazgaon Docks, a defence Public Sector Unit. Terming military might as the biggest deterrent to war, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the defence forces will be modernised to ensure that “nobody casts an evil eye” on the nation. 

Defence Minister Arun Jaitley and Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral RK Dhowan were present at the ceremony held at the Naval dockyard. The warship, constructed by the Mazagon Dockyards Limited, has been designed by Navy’s design bureau. The 6,800 tonne warship is a technology demonstrator and will showcase a giant leap in shipbuilding technology in the country. The Prime Minister had dedicated India’s largest warship INS Vikramaditya to the nation in June in his first outing after taking charge.

2) Rajni Razdan takes over as new UPSC chief: Rajni Razdan on 16 August 2014 took over as new chairman of Union Public Service Commission, which conducts the prestigious civil services examination to select IAS, IFS and IPS officers among others. Razdan was administered the oath as UPSC chief by the outgoing chairperson D P Agrawal, whose tenure ended. Her new charge comes at a time when the Commission is facing a controversy due to the demand for change in the pattern of the examination from a section of aspirants. The UPSC is headed by a chairman and 10 members.

3) 26 killed as rains wreak havoc in U'khand : Twenty-six people were killed in rain-related incidents in Uttarakhand and six people died in Himachal Pradesh as heavy showers wreaked havoc in the hill states since Friday. The Chardham yatra came to a close on Saturday as massive landslides resulted in all routes leading to the four temples getting blocked.

4) BJP Chief Amit Shah announced his new team of party office bearer: BJP president Amit Shah constituted his new team, inducting former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa as Vice President and new RSS pointsman Ram Madhav as General Secretary. A week after his formal anointment as party President, Shah announced his new team of party office bearers that includes 11 Vice Presidents, eight General Secretaries and 14 Secretaries. The new team also includes 10 party Spokespersons, five of them are new.

5) PM laid foundation stone of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation for a multi-crore SEZ and port connectivity project in Navi Mumbai on 16 Aug 2014. The states will soon be allowed to form their own Export Promotion Councils, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said as he underscored the need for the Centre and tates to work in tandem to give a fresh thrust to exports. He also stressed upon the need for swift removal of obstacles stalling the Special Economic Zones (SEZs).

6) Finance Minister relaunched Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana: The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (VPBY) will benefit the vulnerable section of society with limited resources as it will provide monthly pension ranging from Rs 500/ to Rs 5,000/ per month to senior citizens of the country. The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley was speaking after re-launching the Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (VPBY) on the eve of the 68th Independence Day of the country.

Some key features of the scheme are:

* Available to citizens aged 60 years and above.

* Pension would be on immediate annuity basis in monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annual mode, varying, respectively, between Rs. 500 to 5000 (monthly), Rs. 1500 to 15,000 (quarterly), Rs. 3000 to Rs. 30,000 (half-yearly) and from Rs. 6,000 to Rs. 60,000 (annually), depending on the amount subscribed and the option exercised.

* The payout implies an assured return of 9% on monthly payment basis, which amounts to an annualized return of 9.38%.

* Loan (up to 75% of subscribed amount) can be availed after 3 years from the Date of Commencement. * On death, the full purchase price will be refunded to nominee.

* Exit/surrender would be allowed after 15 years or earlier in special circumstances like critical / terminal illness of self or spouse.

* Payment will be through ECS or NEFT.

7) Bypoll on Sept 13 to seats vacated by Modi, Mulayam: Bypolls to the Lok Sabha seats vacated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav will be held on September 13, the Election Commission on Saturday announced. Bypoll will also be held to Medak Lok Sabha seat vacated by TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao after he became the first Chief Minister of Telangana. While Modi had retained Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, he vacated Vadodra in Gujarat. Similarly, Yadav had vacated Mainpuri and retained Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh. While bypolls will be held on September 13, the countintg will be held on September 16.