Daily Current Affairs: 5 May 2015

1) Akash missile inducted in to Indian Army:

--> The Army on 5 May 2015 inducted the first regiment of the indigenously-developed Akash surface-to-air missile system, capable of targeting a multitude of aerial threats up to a range of 25 km.

--> Akash has been developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation and is being built by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL).

--> It was originally planned as part of the five missiles under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme initiated in 1984.

--> Each regiment of Akash consists of six launchers with each launcher having three missiles.

2) Jonathan Trott retired from International Cricket:

--> England batsman Jonathan Trott has retired from international cricket with immediate effect after a disappointing tour of the West Indies.

--> Trott only returned to the England side last month following an extended break from the game due to a stress-related illness but scored a meagre 72 runs, including three ducks, at an average of just 12 in the three-test series against West Indies.

--> South African-born Trott played 52 tests, scoring 3,835 runs at an average of 44.08 after scoring a century on his debut in the 2009 Ashes series.

--> He also played 68 one-day internationals, scoring 2,819 runs at an average of 51.25.

3) Union Cabinet cleared 119th Constitutional Amendment Bill:

--> Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 May 2015 approved the 119th Constitutional Amendment Bill on Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) between India and Bangladesh.

--> Under the land boundary agreement, India and Bangladesh will exchange several enclaves which are under each other's adverse possession

--> The bill also includes the territories in Assam in addition to territories of West Bengal, Tripura and Meghalaya.

4) Microsoft India Launches Edu-Cloud:

--> Microsoft India on 5 May 2015 unveiled Edu-Cloud, a cloud computing-based offering, designed to offer digital learning and teaching in schools and higher educational institutions through virtual learning platforms in India.

--> Bhaskar Pramanik, Microsoft India Chairman, said Edu-Cloud is expected to benefit 1 million teachers and 6 million students in over 1,500 institutes over the next 18 months.

5) Stuart Bingham won World Snooker Championship:

--> Stuart Bingham completed an astonishing transition from journeyman to king of the Crucible as he brilliantly beat Shaun Murphy to take the Betfred World Championship.

6) Cow-urine refinery inaugurated at Jalore:

--> Rajasthan medical and health minister Rajendra Rathore inaugurated a cow-urine refinery at Jalore.

--> The refinery, set up at Pathmera Gaushala, will prepare cow-urine extract for use in the formulation of various products.

7) PAN made mandatory for Central excise registration:

--> Permanent Account Number (PAN) has been made mandatory for private firms seeking central excise registration.

--> The registration will now be given within two days of filing online applications, as per the new simplified rules formed by the Finance Ministry "to improve the ease in doing business in manufacturing".