WELCOME TO CSS TIMES DAY BY DAY CURRENT AFFAIRS, YOUR BEST SOURCE FOR UP-TO-DATE AND DAILY TOP CURRENT AFFAIRS 2021 FOR PREPARATION OF CSS, PMS, BANKING, NTS, RAILWAYS AND ALL COMPETITIVE EXAMS. “DAY TO DAY CURRENT AFFAIRS” BASICALLY IS TOP 10 NEWS SUMMARY ON CURRENT HAPPENINGS OF NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL IMPORTANCE FOR ALL EXAMINATIONS
January 12, 2021: National / International Current Affairs
1. PM launches first Digital Payment System ‘Raast’
• Prime Minister Imran Khan said January 11, 2021 that his government’s ‘Digital Pakistan’ initiative will help the country to fully utilise its potential by shifting from cash economy to digital.
• Addressing the launching ceremony of Pakistan’s first instant Digital Payment System ‘Raast’, the Prime Minister said the newly-launched digital system will also enable secure, efficient and transparent financial transactions, besides giving boost to formal economy, financial inclusion of women, and eradicate poverty from the country.
• “It (Raast) is a major step towards fully utilising country’s potential and it will transform the country’s cash economy to digital,” he said while congratulating the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for introducing the digital payment system and for engaging overseas Pakistanis
2. Turkish FM coming on three-day visit today
• Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is reaching here on January 11, 2021 on a three-day official visit.
• During his visit from Jan 12 to 14, Mr Cavusoglu will hold bilateral talks with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and call on Prime Minister Imran Khan and President Arif Alvi.
• `The two foreign ministers will review the entire gamut of bilateral relations and exchange views on regional and international issues,` the Foreign Office said.
• `Foreign Minister Cavusoglu`s visit to Pakistan is part of regular high-level exchanges between the two countries.
3. Tax e-payment facility launched
• The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on January 11, 2021 said that it has introduced e-payment facility for all federal and provincial taxes as part of reforms and moderanisation drive in the tax machinery.
• Traders can also electronically pay all import duties and taxes through the Customs computerised system WeBOC at ports and border stations across Pakistan.
4. Biden taps career diplomat William Burns as CIA chief
• US President-elect Joe Biden on January 11, 2021 announced William Burns as his pick to lead the Central Intelligence Agency, tapping a retired veteran diplomat who helped lead secret talks with Iran.
• Burns spent over three decades in the US foreign service, including a stint as ambassador to Russia from 2005-2008, and high-ranking jobs in the State Department
5. US to designate Houthi group as terrorists; UN slams move
• The outgoing US administration is to designate Yemen`s Houthi movement as a foreign terrorist organisation, a move that diplomats and aid groups say will cast a shadow over peace talks and efforts to combat the world`s largest humanitarian crisis.
• A leader of the Iranian-aligned group, which has been battling a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen since 2015 in a war widely seen as a proxy conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia, said it reserved the right to respond.
6. Indian soldier charged with killing three unarmed Kashmiris for reward
• An army officer shot dead three unarmed civilians in held Kashmir to claim a cash reward for killing rebels, police investigators say.
• Captain Bhoopendra Singh who was charged with murder and conspiracy in late December over the July killing of the three labourers staged a gun battle hoping to be rewarded with two million rupees ($27,200), according to part of a police charge sheet seen by this news agency on January 11, 2021
7. First flight from Qatar lands in Saudi Arabia
• Qatar-Saudi flights resumed on January 11, 2021 as the neighbours normalise ties under a landmark agreement that ended a bitter three-year rift and allows families to reunite.
• Saudi Arabia and its allies the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt in June 2017 slapped a blockade on Qatar that included closing airspace to the country over claims it backed Islamist groups and was too close to Iran charges Doha has always denied
8. New law allows Oman to get first crown prince
• Oman`s sultan announced on January 11, 2021 a constitutional shakeup that includes the appointment of a crown prince for the first time and new rules on how parliament will work, state media said.
• A new basic law issued by Sultan Haitham bin Tariq alSaid also emphasises the role of the Gulf Arab state in guaranteeing more rights and freedoms for citizens including equality between men and women, state news agency ONA said.
9. Planetary scientists found bands on brown dwarf closest to Earth
• A University of Arizona-led research team has found bands and stripes on the brown dwarf closest to Earth, hinting at the processes churning the brown dwarf’s atmosphere from within.
• Brown dwarfs are mysterious celestial objects that are not quite stars and not quite planets. They are about the size of Jupiter but typically dozens of times more massive. Still, they are less massive than the smallest stars, so their cores do not have enough pressure to fuse atoms the way stars do.
• They are hot when they form and gradually cool, glowing faintly and dimming slowly throughout their lives, making them hard to find
10. Ex-Australia cricketer McDonald passes away
• Former Australia Test batsman Colin McDonald has passed away at the age of 92.
• McDonald played 47 Test matches across two decades and is regarded among the finest opening batsmen the country ever produced.
• McDonald made his Test debut alongside Richie Benaud and George Thoms against the West Indies at the Gabba in 1952, top-scoring in Australia`s first innings and scoring a half-century in the second
Check our daily updated ‘s Complete Day by Day Current Affairs Notes
January 2021:
[catlist name=”January 2021″]
December 2020:
[catlist name=”December 2020″]
November 2020:
[catlist name=”November 2020″]
October 2020:
[catlist name=”October 2020″]
September 2020:
[catlist name=”September 2020″]
August 2020:
[catlist name=”August 2020″]
Leave a Reply