Russia to Permanently Leave G8
- Russia has announced its intention to permanently walk away from the G8 group of industrialised nations as in March 2014, Russia was temporarily suspended from the G8 group.
- G8 consists of UK, US, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Canada, resulting in the group becoming G7 in its place.
War Correspondent Hollingworth Dies
- Clare Hollingworth,the veteran British war correspondent who broke the news of the Nazi invasion of Poland, has passed away.
- It was she who spotted German forces amassed on the Polish border while travelling from Poland to Germany in 1939 that triggered the outbreak of World War -II.
Former Iranian President Rafsanjani dies
- Iran’s ex-President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani who has been described as “a pillar of the Islamic revolution” has passed away due to heart attack.
- He was the dominant figure in the country’s politics since the 1980s and key figure in the foundation of the Islamic republic in 1979, and served as president from 1989 to 1997.
- Rafsanjani, who served two terms as Iran's president from 1989 to 1997, continued to be an influential figure in Iranian politics.
Norway become the first country in the world to turn-off its FM radio network
- Norway is set to become the first country in the world to turn off its FM radio network. This process will start with the northern town of Bodoe switching off its local network on 11 January 2017.
- By the end of the year, all FM broadcasts in Norway will have ended, replaced by Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) transmissions that generally offer better sound quality and because of the reason that the cost of FM was eight times higher than digital.
Mario Soares ‘Father of Democracy’ passed away
- Former Portuguese President and Prime Minister Mario Soares, regarded as a father of the country’s democracy, died in a Lisbon hospital at the age of 92 on 7 January 2017.
- Mario Soares played a key role after the 1974 Carnation Revolution, a military coup that put an end to 48 years of Salazar rule, led by dictator António de Oliveira Salazar.
- Mario Soares served as Portugal’s Prime Minister, twice, and then as President (1986-96).
- He then spearheaded the country’s entry into the European Union.
China Launches Longest Bullet Train
- China has launched its longest bullet train named “Shangri-la of the World” and has built more than 20,000 km of high-speed rail lines.
- It runs between Kunming, capital of southwest China’s Yunnan Province to Beijing.
- The train starts from Kunming on a 2,760-km trip to Beijing, which takes about 13 hours.
UAE govt seizes Dawood Ibrahim’s assets
- After National Security Adviser Ajit Doval reportedly pursued the matter with UAE and requested the officials to act and seize Dawood’s property, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government seized assets of Mumbai serial blast mastermind worth up to Rs 15,000 crore.
- .In one of the biggest crackdown on underworld don Dawood Ibrahim,
Pakistan approves Hindu marriage bill
- The much-awaited bill to regulate marriages of minority Hindus in Pakistan, the Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights unanimously approved the Hindu Marriages Bill on 2nd January 2017
- This move is seen as the closer to reality after a Senate committee approved the landmark draft legislation, nearly four months after it was passed by the National Assembly.
- The bill will enable the Hindu community members to get their marriages registered. It will become a law after it will be passed by the Senate, the upper house of the Parliament.
China started Train Freight service to London
- China has launched its first freight train to London over 12000 km away as part of efforts to improve trade.
- The train departed from Yiwu,Zhejiang Province & will pass through Kazakhstan,Russia,Belarus,Poland,Germany,Belgium & France before arriving in London. The journey will take 18 days.
- London is the 15th city in Europe added to China-Europe freight train services.
Finland to Pay Unemployed Basic Income
- Finland has become the first country in Europe to pay its unemployed citizens a basic monthly income after unemployment rate of Finland stood at 8.1 per cent in November 2016.
- It is the two-year trial with the 2,000 randomly picked citizens who receive unemployment benefits kicked off January 1.
- It will amounting to 560 euros (USD 587), in a social experiment hoped to reduce poverty & boost employment.
