General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - December 2016

Dec 2016

Jun 13, 2018

India to Get Six Apache Attack Helicopters

In a big boost for India's defensive capabilities, the US State Department approved the sale of six Boeing AH-64E Apache helicopters.

The Apache is manufactured by Boeing - a company that is now in partnership with TATA to manufacture the helicopters in India.

Apart from the attack helicopter, the US State Department also approved sale of four AN/APG-78 Fire Control Radars, 180 AGM-114L-3 Hellfire Longbow missiles, 90 AGM-114R-3 Hellfire II missiles, 200 Stinger Block I-92H missiles, Embedded GPS Inertial Navigation Systems, 30mm cannons, transponders, simulators, training equipment etc. The total cost of the deal is around $930 million.

Army Test-fires Smerch Rockets

In yet another boost to the Indian Army, the Smerch guided missile-cum-multi barrel rockets successfully hit targets around 90 kilometres away to clear the trial.

They are developed jointly by India and Russia. Two versions of the Smerch - 9MMF and 9.55K - were test-fired.

Government Launches 5000 Wi-Fi Choupals

The Union Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeITY) launched 5000 Wi-Fi Choupals in villages in partnership with common service centres (CSCs). It was jointly inaugurated by Union Electronics and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi.

The aim of Wi-Fi Choupals is to transform rural Internet connectivity through BharatNet. They focus on developing rural Wi-Fi infrastructure and to host suitable applications to provide various ICT services at an affordable cost. They will provide 60,000 WiFi hotspots in rural areas enabling people effective Internet access for their various digital processes. Wi-Fi Choupals are in addition to broadband connectivity provided to gram panchayats through optical fibre network under BharatNet.

BharatNet is Centre's rural internet connectivity programme which is implemented by Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL). It is world's largest rural broadband connectivity programme using Optical fibre.

Jun 12, 2018

India to host first BIMSTEC war games

India will host the first military exercise of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) group focussing on counter-terrorism in September. As part of this, a conclave of the Army chiefs of all seven member-states is being planned.

The aim of the exercise is to promote strategic alignment among the member-states and to share best practices in the area of counter-terrorism.

BIMSTEC was set up in 1997 and includes India, Bangladesh, Bhutan Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Kejriwal Asks for Statehood to Delhi

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that he'll make sure that every Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) vote goes to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) if the Centre grants statehood to Delhi before the 2019 General Elections.

He said that if before 2019 elections, Delhi is granted statehood, we'll make sure that each and every vote from Delhi goes in BJP's favour, we'll campaign for BJP. If BJP does not do so Delhi residents will put up boards saying 'BJP leave Delhi.

Jun 11, 2018

Sharad Kumar Appointed Vigilance Commissioner

Former NIA chief Sharad Kumar has been appointed vigilance commissioner in the probity watchdog CVC.

Kumar retired in September last year after heading the National Investigation Agency, an anti-terror probe organisation, for over four years.

He has been appointed vigilance commissioner in the Central Vigilance Commission for a term of four years or till he attains the age of 65.

Rise in India-ASEAN Naval Games

India is instituting a series of bilateral and multilateral naval exercises with Association of South East Asian Nation (ASEAN) countries as part of the increasing military-to-military cooperation. This is in addition to assisting the countries in capacity-building and sale of military hardware.

Later this month, the Navies of India and Indonesia will hold their first bilateral exercise in the Java Sea. India will stage a new trilateral exercise with Thailand and Singapore soon.

Jun 10, 2018

Joint Plan for Afghan Project

India and China agreed that they would jointly move forward in identifying a specific project in the area of capacity building in Afghanistan.

During the informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Wuhan in April, the two leaders had agreed to undertake a joint India-China economic project in Afghanistan.

India and Uzbekistan Review Bilateral Ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on the sidelines of the SCO Summit and the two leaders reviewed the full range of bilateral ties, especially ways to boost economic and cultural links.

Jun 09, 2018

J&K to get 2 New Border Battalions

Describing the border residents of Jammu and Kashmir as "a strategic asset," Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh announced the raising of two exclusive border battalions of the State police.

He also said that five battalions of the Indian Reserve Police and two women's battalions of the State police would be raised with 60% reservation for border residents.

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