Daily Current Affairs Updates: 16 March 2015

1) IMF chief Christine Lagarde started India visit:

--> Christine Lagarde, the chief of the International Monetary Fund began her 2-day trip to India on 16 March 2015 during which she is likely to meet the country's top leadership including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

--> Christine Lagarde has lauded the Narendra Modi government's 'Make in India' campaign and called the country a "bright spot" on a cloudy global horizon, saying India has the potential to double the size of its economy by 2019 compared to 2009.

--> Lagarde, the first women to head IMF, said that the budget for 2015-16 was a step in the right direction but added that while increasing public spending in infrastructure was a critical thing more needed to be done to pull in additional private investment.

2) Aadhar not mandatory for availing govt benefits: Supreme Court

--> Supreme Court on 16 March 2015 reiterated its stand that Aadhar cards will not be mandatory for availing government benefits including subsidies.

--> The top court asked the Centre to follow its 2013 order on the issue.

--> The apex court had in October 2013 refused to make Aadhar card compulsory for availing social benefits, turning down Centre's request on the issue. 

3) India's new hockey coach Paul van Ass took charge:

--> Paul van Ass took charge as chief coach of the Indian men’s hockey team on 16 March 2015.

--> Van Ass, known for his outspoken and controversial nature, had replaced Australian Terry Walsh under whom India won the Incheon Asian Games to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

--> Van Ass had been handed a contract till the 2018 World Cup by his new employer, the Sports Authority of India.

--> Prior to this he was the coach of Netherlands.

4) Wipro appointed Neemuchwala as group president, COO:

--> Wipro has appointed TCS veteran Abid Ali Neemuchwala as group president and chief operating office.

--> This appointment will be effective from 1 April 2015.

--> Neemuchwala in his new role will head Wipro’s service lines of global infrastructure services, business application services, business process services and advanced technology solutions.

--> Prior to this appointment, Ali Neemuchwala was heading BPO arm of India’s largest software services firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).

5) Haryana assembly passed bill banning Cow Slaughter:

--> Haryana Assembly on 16 MArch 2015 unanimously passed a bill under which cow slaughter and the sale of beef have been banned in the state.

--> The new law will also promote conservation and development of indigenous breeds of cows and establish institutions to keep, maintain and take care of the infirm, injured, stray and uneconomic cows.

--> As per the Haryana 'Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan' Bill, 2015, which was passed with two amendments, a person found guilty of cow slaughter can get rigorous imprisonment not less than three years, which may extend upto 10 years along with a fine ranging from Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 1 lakh.

6) Veteran singer Bombay S Kamal passed away:

--> Veteran singer and music composer Bombay S. Kamal, an active presence in the field of music for the past six decades, passed away in Thiruvananthapuram on 16 March 2015.

--> In past six decades, he had active presence in the field of music especially in Malayalam film music.

--> Mr. Kamal, who was born in Mumbai, had been singing the songs of Mohammed Rafi from the age of seven, after a meeting with veteran Ustad Moin Khan introduced him to his first strains of music.

--> He settled in Kerala after an acquaintance with iconic composer M.S. Baburaj.

7) Ashu Suyash to took over as Crisil CEO in place of Roopa Kudva:

--> Ashu Suyash on 16 March 2015 quit as chief executive of L&T Investment Management Ltd to head ratings agency Crisil Ltd, marking the exit of the only woman to head an asset management company in Asia’s third-biggest economy.

--> Suyash takes over from Roopa Kudva as the managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) of Crisil with effect from 1 June, Crisil said.

--> CRISIL full form: Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited

8) China displaced Germany as world's third largest arms exporter:

--> China has raced ahead of Germany to become the world's third largest arms exporter as per Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report. 

--> SIPRI in its report claimed that exports of arms from China grew 143% between 2010 and 2014.