18th March 2016

A.Punjab Government notifies swine flu under Epidemic Disease Act

1.Punjab Government has notified swine flu (H1N1) under the Epidemic Disease Act to prevent the spread of disease in the state. 

2.In the regard, Health and Family Welfare Department of state has issued notification based on recommendations of state advisory committee headed by Dr. D Behera. 

Key highlights of notification 

1.All government and private hospitals in state will have to inform the Health Department about a case of ILI (Influenza like Illness) having chronic diseases. 

2.Such medical cases should be treated as early as possible and proper guidelines of the government should be followed. 

3.All hospitals within state will have to keep suspected as well as confirmed cases (patients) of swine flu in isolation in order to contain the spread of the disease. 

4.It will be mandatory for all hospitals to inform the Health department in case a suspected or confirmed case of swine flu is reported. 

5.For all the patients infected by swine flu, treatment will be provided free of cost as recommended by the Government. 

B.India inks $35 million loan agreement with WB for MP project

1.India has signed loan agreement of 35 million dollars with the World Bank for Madhya Pradesh citizen access to responsive services project. 

2.The loan has been sanctioned by the World Bank’s concessionary lending arm International Development Association (IDA). 

Key facts 

1.The project size is 50 million dollars, of which 35 million dollar will be financed by the World Bank and the remaining amount will be funded out of State Budget. 

2.The objective of the project is to improve access and quality of public services in the state through implementation of the Public Service Delivery Guarantee Act, 2010. 

3.It is expected to deliver key results in terms of improving access to services and citizen outreach, performance management, simplification of government services and strengthening the capacity of implementing agencies. 

4.The duration of the project is 5 years.

C.Union Government launches FCI’s Depot Online System

1.Union Government has launched Depot Online System of state run Food Corporation of India (FCI) to bring transparency and minimise storage losses of foodgrains. 

2.It was launched by Union Food and public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan in New Delhi as part of Digital India initiative of Union Government. 

Key facts 

1.Depot Online System will help real time monitoring of FCI operations and enhance transparency and efficiency. 

2.The project is being implemented in the FCI owned 553 depots and subsequently FCI hired godowns will be also brought under the ambit of the project later. 

3.The system will bring automation of the entire process from entry and exit of foodgrains at FCI depots. 

4.It would eliminate usage of manual registers and would help in better monitoring and supervision as would reduce leakages and losses.

D.IMD deploys Drishti for providing real time visibility information to pilots

1.The India Meteorology Department (IMD) has deployed indigenously developed Drishti, an instrument that will provide real time visibility information to pilots. 

2.The instrument will help pilots in quick decision-making during critical landings and take-offs of aircraft particularly during foggy or rainy days. 

Key facts 

1.Drishti has been developed by the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), Bangalore . 

2.The system transfer the crucial visibility updates to the pilots in real time who can now use this information that will be updated every minute. 

3.Drishti is a transmissometer that takes in account the real time weather parameters like humidity, wind speed, temperature conditions, etc., along the runway in order to calculate the visibility distance offered at that particular runway. 

4.It is cost-effective mandatory system required at all airports as per International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and World Meteorological Organisation (WMO). 

5.Generally due to the poor visibility, the aircraft operations would often get disturbed that affects passenger traffic during winter and monsoon seasons especially in Northern India. 

E.Goa Government accords heritage spirit status to country liquor Feni

1.Goa government has classified Feni, country liquor as the heritage spirit of the state. 

2.In this regard, state government has opined not categorise it as country liquor as it is presently defined under the Goa Excise Duty Act, 1964. 

3.State government also has proposed to bring an amendment to the Act to change the status. 

Key facts 

1.Feni is a form of spirit produced exclusively in the coastal state of Goa. It is a distilled brew made from coconut or cashew fruits. 

2.It was accorded Geographical indication (GI) tag in 2000. It was the first liquor product in the country to obtain this status. 

3.It is synonymous with the state ethos and identity and is used in various cultural traditions, cuisines as well as known for its medicinal value also.

F.Former Mossad Director Meir Dagan passes away

1.Former Director of Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad Meir Dagan passed away due to liver cancer. He was 71. 

2.Dagan had served as Director General of the Mossad from 2002 until his retirement in 2011. 

3.He was widely credited for covertly disrupting Iran’s nuclear program. About Meir Dagan Born on 30 January 1945 in then Soviet Union (USSR) to parents who were Holocaust survivors who had moved to Israel after the founding of the state. 

4.He had started his military career in 1963 after he had joined Israel Defense Forces (IDF). 

5.He had played important role at various high-level positions in the Six-Day War, Yom Kippur War and 1982 Lebanon War. 

6.He retired from the army in 1995. He had served as a counterterrorism adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

G.SC allows pictures of CMs, Governors, Ministers in Government Advertisements

1.The Supreme Court has allowed publication of photographs of Governors, Chief Ministers and the Ministers of the department concerned in government advertisements. 

2.Ruling in this regard was given by a SC bench headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi on pleas by Union Government and states which had sought review of the Supreme Court judgement. 

3.This ruling of Supreme Court has modified its earlier 2015 order which only had permitted photographs of President, Prime Minister and Chief Justice of India (CJI) in the government advertisements. 

Background 
1.Supreme Court in its May 2015 order had issued Guidelines on Regulating Government Advertisements based on recommendations of Prof NR Madhava Menon Committee. 

2.These guidelines had barred publishing photographs of politicians even State Chief Ministers and bureaucrats. 

3.It also mandated that official advertisements should not carry the name of any political party, political symbol, logo or flag. 

H.British astronomers discover largest sample of 9 monster stars

1.British astronomers have discovered largest sample cluster of nine monster stars named as R136 using NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. 

2.The cluster  is the largest group of very massive stars ever identified. The research findings were published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 

Key facts 
1.The R136 cluster of monster stars have masses over 100 times and are 30 million times brighter than of our Sun in the star cluster located about 170,000 light-years away. 

2.It is located in the Tarantula Nebula within the Large Magellanic Cloud – a satellite galaxy of our own Milky Way. The young cluster hosts many extremely massive, hot and luminous stars whose energy is mostly radiated in the ultraviolet (UV). 

I.10th Asian Film Awards

1.The 10th edition of Asian film Awards, one of the Asia’s leading film awards was held in the Venetian Casino and Hotel in Macau, China. 

2.The Assassin has bagged 8 awards in different categories in the 2016 Asian film Awards. 

3.It is a 2015 martial arts film based on story of highly trained female assassin and is directed by Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-Hsien. 

List of winners 
Best Film: The Assassin. 

Best Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien (The Assassin) from Taiwan. 

Best Actor: Lee Byung-hun (The Inside Men). 

Best Actress: Shu Qi (The Assassin). 

Best Newcomer: Jessie Li (Port of Call). 

Best Supporting Actor: Tadanobu Asano (Journey to the Shore). 

Best Supporting Actress: Zhou Yun (The Assassin). 

Best Screenplay: Jia Zhangke (Mountains May Depart). 

Best Cinematography: Mark Lee Ping-bing (The Assassin). 

Best Production Design: Hwarng Wern-ying (The Assassin). 

Best Original Music: Lim Giong (The Assassin). 

Best Editing: Chu Ka-yat, William Chang Suk-ping, Liao Ching-sung, Wong Hoi, Philip Yung (Port of Call). 

 Lifetime Achievement Award: Yuen Wo-ping and Kirin Kiki 

About Asian Film Awards (AFA) 
1.It is one of Asia’s leading film awards that celebrate excellence in Asian cinema by bestowing annual awards to the many diverse talents and films of the region. 

2.Inaugurated in 2007. 

3.It was held in Hong Kong for seven years and the 8th moved to one of Asia’s fastest growing entertainment hubs, Macau.