MARCH 16 CURRENT AFFAIRSBY UMMEA SALMA

Government proposed masks & hand sanitizers under Essential Commodities Act 1955

A/C to Essential Commodities (EC) Act, 1955 to declare 2 ply & 3 ply surgical masks, N95 masks & hand sanitizers as Essential Commodities up to 30th June, 2020

To ensure that these products are available in the market at the right price given the outbreak of coronavirus & also has a measure to manage it.

CRPF signs MoU with Aditya mehta foundation to train its specially-abled troops in areas of cyber security & AI

Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), India’s largest Central

Armed Police Force, has signed an (MoU) with Aditya Mehta

Foundation (AMF),a non-profit organization which aids people

with disabilities to pursue sports, to train its 189 CRPF personnel

who had lost their limbs in operations in areas of cyber security,

artificial intelligence (AI) and paralympic sports.

• About Aditya Mehta Foundation (AMF):Headquarters– Secunderabad, Telangana

About Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF):

Headquarters– New Delhi

Motto– Service and Loyalty

Preceding agency– Ministry of Home Affairs

Minister responsible– Amit Shah, Union Minister of Home Affairs

Phool Dei festival was celebrated in Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand Chief Minister (CM) Trivendra Singh Rawat celebrated the traditional harvest festival “Phool Dei”.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister (CM) Trivendra Singh Rawat celebrated the traditional harvest festival “Phool Dei”.

It is the harvest festival of Uttarakhand that is celebrated in the month of Chaitra (March- April) in the Hindu Calendar.

On this traditional festival young girls pluck the first flowers of the season to decorate their houses with flowers and the term ‘Dei’ refers to ceremonial pudding which is the key food in the festival that is made from jaggery, Whiteflour & curd, are offered to everyone.

Justice Bansi Lal Bhat got appointed as officiating chairperson of NCLAT for 3 months

✓Bansi Lal Bhat has been appointed as the officiating Chairperson of

the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) for a

period of 3 months with effect from March 15, 2020 or until a regular

Chairperson is appointed, whichever is earlier.

✓The first Chairperson of NCLAT, Justice SJ Mukhopadhaya has

retired on March 13,2020.

✓About National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT):

It adjudicates issues relating to Indian companies.

Headquarters– New Delhi

Act– Companies Act 2013.

Tiger Woods to be inducted into World Golf Hall of Fame in 2021

oTiger Woods will go into the World Golf Hall of Fame next year, as

voted on Wednesday by a selection committee that chose from 10

finalists.

oWoods, 44, is eligible for the 2021 induction after rules were changed

earlier this year to reduce the minimum age from 50 to 45.

oHe has 93 worldwide victories, completed a career Grand Slam three

times and accomplished the "Tiger Slam'' in 2000-01, when he won

four consecutive majors.

o His major titles rank second to Jack Nicklaus' record of 18.

GST on mobile phones hiked to 18%

Mobile phones are likely to get costlier, with the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on Saturday deciding to increase the rate on mobile phones and specific parts to 18% from the current 12%, from April 1.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the decision was taken not to increase the prices but to correct the inverted structure of duty on some products wherein the rate of tax paid on inputs purchased is more than the rate of tax on finished products on outward supplies

GST has also hiked to 18 % for fertilizers,manmade fabrics and garments

Excise duty on petrol, diesel hiked Rs. 3 per liter

✓The government on Friday announced an increase in

excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs. 3 per liter, the

steepest hike in eight years.

• However, the hike in excise duty will not impact retail fuel

prices.

• The move is aimed at increasing the government's profits

as the prices of petrol and diesel have decreased due to

reduced crude oil rates.

Bill Gates Exits Microsoft Board To Focus On Philanthropy Full-Time,

Ends An Era At The Company

❑ The co-founder and Technology Advisor Bill Gates stepped down from the board of directors to dedicate more time to his philanthropic efforts, including global health, development, education and his increasing work tackling climate change. He’ll continue to serve as Technology Advisor to CEO Satya Nadella and other executives.

❑His book, How To Avoid a Climate Disaster, is set to comes out this summer. A recent project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation developed an at-home test kit for residents of the Seattle area, the region in the U.S. hit hardest by the coronavirus. Microsoft is headquartered in nearby Redmond.

❑Gates founded Microsoft in 1975 with the late Paul Allen. Their first product was Altair BASIC. Its breakthrough was Windows, which became the world’s most-used desktop operating system

CONFIRMED COVID –19 CASES RISE TO 114

• FIRST COVID –19 CONFIRMED DEATH

IN KARNATAKA

• MORE CASES WERE SEEN IN

MAHARASHTRA NEARLY 33 CASES

• IN ALL OVER INDIA IN 14 STATES

COVID –19 HAS SPREAD

India offers $10 million to SAARC for fighting COVID-19

✓India on Sunday offered $10 million to set up a common voluntary emergency fund for the members of South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

✓Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with the leaders of SAARC nations on combating COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, via video conferencing in New Delhi on March 15, 2020.

✓Modi also offered rapid response medical teams, along with testing kits and other equipment for the SAARC members. "They will be on a standby, at your disposal if required," Modi said, adding that India could also provide online training capsules for medical emergency teams to raise the capacity of emergency staff.

ATK WIN RECORD 3 rd ISL TITLE , BEAT CHENNAIYIN 3-1 IN FINAL

❖A rampaging ATK claimed an unprecedented third Indian Super

League (ISL) title triumph with a 3-1 victory over arch-rival

Chennaiyin FC in a summit showdown that was played behind closed

doors in Margao on Saturday. Javier Hernandez (10th) and Edu

Garcia (48th) put ATK in the driving seat but Nerijus Valskis (69th)

reduced their advantage to set up a tense end to the contest.

Hernandez scored another in injury time (90+4th) to confirm a record

third title. The final was held without spectators owing to the COVID-

19 pandemic.