Daily Current Affairs Updates: 17 January 2015

1) Defence Minister handed over first indigenously-built Tejas to Air Force: More than three decades after the project was sanctioned, home-grown Light Combat Aircraft Tejas was handed over on 18 January 2015 to Indian Air Force by Defence Minister Manohar Parikkar marking a major milestone in the country's military aviation. The ceremony was held at Bengaluru, Karanataka. The entire project by DRDO and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), including the final induction in the Air Force and Navy, is estimated to cost over Rs 30,000 crore. Tejas is outcome of India’s LCA programme, which began in the 1983 to replace country’s aging MiG-21 fighters.

2) Biopic movie on Stephen Hawking ‘The Theory of Everything’ released in India: Film 'The Theory of Everything’, was released in Indian theatres by Universal Pictures India on 16 January 2015. This film is based on the life of Stephen Hawking, the iconic physicist, and is based on a book on him written by his ex-wife Jane Hawking. It features Hawking’s romance with Jane and his struggle to live with motor neuron disease. The film is one of the front-runners for the Oscar nominations.

3) President launched Pulse Polio Immunization Programme: President Pranab Mukherjee launched the Pulse Polio Immunization Programme by administering polio drops to children aged below five years at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on 17 January 2015, on the eve of National Immunization Day. Lauding the efforts of nearly 23 lakh volunteers and 1.5 lakh supervisors for eradicating polio from India, Health Minister J P Nadda said that there has been no case of wild polio since January 13, 2011.

4) 24 Children, including 8 girls selected for National Bravery Awards: Twenty four children, including eight girls, have been selected for National Bravery Awards for 2014. Four of the awards have been given posthumously. The children will receive their awards from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the 24th of January, and will also participate in the Republic Day parade.

5) CCEA nod to maintain higher buffer stock of foodgrains: To avoid shortage of foodgrains once all states implement the food law, government on 16 January 2015 approved raising buffer stock and strategic reserve limits of Food Corporation of India for both wheat and rice. The government had last changed the buffer norms in 2005.

6) Tribal Food Festival-2015 began: The first of its kind grand Tribal Food Festival-2015 got a kick start by Union Minister of Tribal Affairs Shri Jual Oram in New Delhi on 16 January 2015. This unique festival is organised by the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED) on behalf of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Govt. of India at Rajiv Gandhi Handicrafts Bhawan, New Delhi.

7) Ashok Srinivasan won The Hindu Prize 2014: Ashok Srinivasan won The Hindu Prize 2014 for his debut collection of 13 short stories, Book of Common Signs. The award was presented by the former Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court Justice Leila Seth.


8) Pankaj Advani won National Billiards title: Indian ace Pankaj Advani routed his PSPB colleague and ‘friend’ Dhruv Sitwala 5-0 in a flawless display of potting en route to his seventh Senior National Billiards Championship at the Bengal Rowing Club, in Kolkata on 17 January 2015.

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