10th December 2014 Daily Current Affairs Updates

1) Time magazine declared 'Ebola fighters' as 2014 Person of the Year: Time magazine on 10 December 2014 named the medics who have treated patients struck with the killer Ebola virus as its "Person of the Year 2014", paying tribute to their courage and mercy. The year saw the Ebola outbreak turn into an epidemic in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, and there have been scattered cases in Nigeria, Mali, Spain, Germany and the United States. "Ebola is a war, and a warning. The global health system is nowhere close to strong enough to keep us safe from infectious disease," wrote Time editor Nancy Gibbs, announcing the prestigious annual title.

2) United Nations to declare June 21 as 'World Yoga Day': United Nations has decided to name June 21 as the World Yoga Day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urged the world community to celebrate Indian yoga at the international level during his visit to the United Nations in September this year. Its a huge decisive win for India. Around 170 nations supported Modi's proposal. In November, European Union president Herman Van Rompuy told Modi that the 28-member EU supported his idea for a Yoga Day at the UN. Modi had named Shripad Naik as the minister for Yoga and traditional medicines in the cabinet reshuffle in November.

3) Opposition corner govt over alleged religious conversion in Agra: Opposition BSP and Congress on 10 Dec 2014 sought to corner the government over the reported conversion of Muslims to Hinduism in Agra, saying changing religion by force and by allurement was illegal. The government, however, washed its hand-off the issue saying law and order is a state subject. Minister of state for parliamentary affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said FIR has been filed by the Uttar Pradesh government on the issue. 

4) Kailash Satyarthi, Malala Yousafzai received Nobel Peace Prize: Kailash Satyarthi of India and Malala Yousafzai from Pakistan on 10 December 2014 received the Nobel Peace Prize for 2014 for their pioneering work on promoting child rights in the subcontinent, as they made an impassioned plea to globalise compassion. “Satyarthi and Yousafzai are precisely the people whom Alfred Nobel in his will calls ‘champions of peace’,” chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Thorbjorn Jagland said in his speech before awarding them the prestigious prize in Oslo.

5) Government to decriminalise attempted suicide: The Government has decided to decriminalise ‘attempt to suicide’ by scrapping it from the Indian Penal Code. Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, prescribes one year imprisonment and a fine if a person is found guilty of attempting to commit suicide. Replying to an unstarred question in the Rajya Sabha on the government's initiative to repeal Section 309, Minister of State for Home Affairs Haribhai Parathbhai Chaudhary said the decision was taken after studying feedback from the States and the Union Territories.

6) Jammu and Kashmir recorded historic win over Mumbai in Ranji Trophy: Jammu and Kashmir continued their rapid rise in the domestic circuit, notching up a stunning four-wicket triumph over 40-time champions Mumbai with more than a session to spare in their Group A Ranji Trophy cricket opener at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.

7) India last among BRICS in Web index: India ranks behind China and other BRICS nations in a comprehensive index aimed at measuring the Internet’s contribution to social, economic and political progress. Though China is notorious for its great Internet firewall, the nation is far ahead of India when it comes to translating the power of the Internet into economic potential, says the Web Index released by the World Wide Web Foundation on 10 December 2014.

8) Sarita Devi finally received her Asian Games bronze medal: Boxer Sarita Devi on Wednesday finally received her Asian Games bronze medal which she had refused at the victory ceremony in Incheon under controversial circumstances with the Indian Olympic Association Secretary General Rajeev Mehta presenting it to her. Mehta presented the medal to the Manipuri boxer at the IOA Headquarters.

9) Mumbai Indians appointed Ricky Ponting as new head coach: Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has been chosen as the new head coach of Indian Premier League team Mumbai Indians, paving way for his first managerial post since he retired from international cricket in 2012. Former Indian captain Anil Kumble, chief mentor of Mumbai Indians, said that they are looking forward to Ricky's contribution.

10) Trial run of Guwahati-Shillong-Dhaka bus flagged off: The trial run of the Guwahati-Shillong-Dhaka passenger bus service was flagged off Wednesday (10 Dec 2014) from Assam`s main ciy of Guwahati. The trial run is expected to conclude in Bangladesh`s capital city Dhaka on Friday. A joint technical team, comprising representatives from India and Bangladesh, are part of the trial run, which will assess route conditions and various technical parameters.

11) Indian-American Richard Rahul Verma appointed US Ambassador to India: The United States senate confirmed, by a voice vote, the nomination of Richard Rahul Verma as the next US ambassador to India. Mr Verma, 46, is the first Indian-American to be the US ambassador to India and is expected to be sworn in shortly. He will arrive in New Delhi ahead of the India visit of US President Barack Obama who will be the chief guest on this year's Republic Day.

12) Cabinet cleared bill to increase FDI in insurance sector by 49 percent: The Cabinet has approved the official amendments to the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2008 and to its introduction in the Rajya Sabha. Earlier, the Select Committee on the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill had recommended a composite cap of 49 per cent on foreign investment in insurance. This will include all forms of FDI and foreign portfolio investments. At present, the foreign direct investment limit in the sector is 26 per cent.

13) Human Rights Day observed: Human Rights Day was observed globally on 10 December 2014.  The theme for the 2014 Human Rights Day is Human Rights 365. The theme was based on the idea that every day is Human Rights Day and everyone is entitled to basic human rights day.