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PM Modi announces scheme to skill Indian youth seeking jobs abroad

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the government will shortly launch the Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PKVY) which is aimed at skilling Indians seeking employment abroad. 
  • The prime minister was speaking at the 14th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention in Bengaluru.
  • The Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana is targeted at Indian youth seeking overseas employment.
  • PKVY will train and certify Indians, who are keen on overseas employment in select sectors, in line with international standards.
  • It will be implemented by the National Skill Development Corporation through its training partners and in consultation with the Ministry of External Affairs and the Skill Development Ministry

 

Sania Mirza wins Brisbane International title

  • Sania Mirza picked up her first title of the season, combining with American Bethanie Mattek-Sands to lift the Brisbane International women’s doubles title.
  • She ended up losing the World No.1 crown to her partner.
  • Sania Mirza held the No.1 ranking in doubles for 91 weeks
  • Her position was taken over by Mattek-Sands.

Olympic champion David Rudisha to be Mumbai Marathon Ambassador

  • Reigning Olympic and world 800m champion and world record holder, David Rudisha is the International Event Ambassador for the 14th Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon to be held on January 15
  • He retained his Olympic 800m title with an imperious display at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in August with a run of 1:42.15, the fastest time in the world.
  • He took the gold in London four years before in a world record 1:40.91.

EPFO makes Aadhaar mandatory for pensioners, members

  • Retirement fund body Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has made it mandatory for its about pensioners and subscribers to provide either Aadhaar or a proof that they have applied for it till month-end to remain a beneficiary of its social security schemes.
  • Since the government provides subsidy to an EPFO member, it has invoked Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act.
  • Section 7 of the Act provides that where government provides subsidy, benefit or service from Consolidated Fund of India, an individual can be asked to undergo authentication, or furnish proof of possession of Aadhaar number.
  • It also provides that where an individual to whom no Aadhaar number has been assigned, such individual can apply for enrollment.

Agra and Sikkim have bagged positions in New York Times’ top travel destinations list

  • Agra and Sikkim featured in New York Times’ list of ’52 Places to go to in 2017′.
  • While Agra has ranked third in the list, Sikkim has bagged the 17th position among the top travel destinations for this year.
  • Canada, on the other hand, has been declared the top travel destination of the year.

Indian teenagers win prestigious Travel Photographer Of The Year award 2016

  • Darpan Basak, 14 years of age, won the Young Travel Photographer Of The Year, and Ankit Kumar, 13, won the Young Travel Photographer (14 years old and under) in the Places and Experiences category.
  • Travel Photographer Of The Year award was founded by photographers Chris and Karen Coe in 2003.
  • It’s an annual award that receives entries from over 100 countries. It’s also an award that has some of the most beautiful picture you’ll ever see as its entries.

Kerala Ranks 8 in ’12 Destinations to Watch’ in 2017 by ABTA

  • Kerala figures at number eight in the “12 destinations to watch in 2017” by Britain’s largest and prominent travel and tours operators association.
  • The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) has ranked Kerala higher than premier destinations like the US, Sardinia (island of Italy), South Africa and Vietnam
  • The rankings consist of locations that are expected to capture traveller’s imaginations over the next year.

Velavan Senthilkumar wins British Junior Open Under-19 Squash title

  • Velavan Senthilkumar created history by winning the first-ever all-Indian Boys’ Under-19 final at the British Junior Open in Sheffield.
  • India also secured the bronze medal in this category after 9/16th seeded Adhitya Raghavan finished third.
  • In the 91-year history of this event, considered the world’s second most prestigious junior tournament after the World Championships, this was the first time two Indians faced off in a summit clash.

Visually Impaired Indian Will Participate in the Boston Marathon

  • Sagar Baheti, who has Stargardt’s disease, will be the first visually-impaired runner to participate in the upcoming 121st Boston Marathon on April 17.
  • He will be running to raise funds for the Massachusetts Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
  • “It will be great if our society could be more inclusive…of those who live with disabilities,” said Sagar

Qantas named world’s safest airline 4th year running

  • Australia’s flag carrier Qantas Airways Ltd’s fatality free record in the jet age means it is the world’s safest airline, for the fourth year running.
  • Ratings website AirlineRatings.com announced the carrier atop its Top 20 list, ahead of Cathy Pacific, Middle-eastern giant Etihad Airways, Singapore Airlines and local rival Virgin Australia.
  • Qantas was the leader in the Future Air Navigation System, the Flight Data Recorder, which was developed by Australia’s chief scientific body the CSIRO, to monitor plane and crew performance, as well as advances in automatic landings and precision approaches in mountainous regions.

Rohan Bopanna-Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan win Chennai Open doubles title

  • Rohan Bopanna and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan, playing only the second time together, notched up a memorable victory in a historic all-Indian doubles final, as they outplayed compatriots Divij Sharan and Purav Raja in the Chennai Open.
  • It is the first time that an Indian team has clinched the Chennai Open trophy since the legendary Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi took the title in 2011.

Aadhaar mandatory for MGNREGS work from April

  • From April 1, people living in rural areas need to have Aadhaar to work under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) that mandates 100 days work for a household annually.
  • People registered under the scheme will be required to give proof of possession of Aadhaar or undergo the enrolment process till March 31, 2017
  • Those who have applied for Aadhaar can show their enrolment slip or copy of application made to the authorities concerned for getting the 12-digit unique identification number which acts as a proof of identity and address anywhere in the country.

Novak Djokovic ends Andy Murray’s winning run to clinch Doha title

  • Novak Djokovic brought world No 1 Andy Murray’s 28-match winning streak to an end in Doha on Saturday to retain the Qatar Open title in a three-set thriller.
  • Serbian Djokovic won 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in a high-quality, action-packed match between the two best players in the world lasting almost three hours.
  • It is Djokovic’s 25th career victory over Murray and puts down an early-season marker against his great British rival, before the Australian Ope

Portuguese PM gifts Cristiano Ronaldo jersey to Narendra Modi

  • A jersey of Portugal’s famous football player Cristiano Ronaldo was gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by his Portuguese counterpart Antonio Costa after bilateral talks between them.
  • The red jersey bearing Ronaldo’s trademark ‘No.7’ was handed over to Modi by Costa
  • The jersey was personally signed by Ronaldo.

Russia removes LinkedIn from local App stores

  • Russia has directed Google and Apple to remove LinkedIn from the local Android and iOS App stores.
  • The directive comes weeks after a Russian court blocked the networking platform for disregarding a rule which requires companies to store Russian citizens’ data within the country’s borders.
  • Google and Android have complied with the order and the app is no longer available.