Current Affairs 26th January 2018

• Lifter Rakhi Halder of Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) has created a new national record in clean and jerk en route to a gold medal in the 63kg women's category in the 33rd Women Senior National Weightlifting Championships, in Mangaluru, Karnataka on January 24, 2018.
• The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisamy has received UNESCO Award of Merit. It has been awarded to the iconic Srirangam Ranganathaswamy temple in Tiruchirapalli. 
• The third edition of international spice conference will be held in Jaipur, Rajasthan. Arancha Gonzalvez, the Executive Director of International Trade Centre, Geneva, will inaugurate the conference. 
• The Yogi Adityanath government has decided to celebrate 'UP Diwas' on January 24. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by the chief minister Yogi Adityanath. The United Provinces unit was renamed as Uttar Pradesh on on January 24, 1950.
• National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) has partnered with DP World to create an investment platform for ports, terminals, transportation and logistics businesses in India. 
• As per latest PwC 21st CEO Survey 2018, the United States has acquired the top spot for global investment, followed by China, Germany, United Kingdom (UK), India and Japan.
• The government has announced four new schemes to promote young scientists and researchers in the country. The Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan announced the schemes. It includes Teacher Associateship for Research Excellence (TARE) Scheme, Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellowship, Distinguished Investigator Award, Augmenting Writing Skills for Articulating Research (AWSAR). 
• The External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj inaugurated the Bharat-ASEAN Maitri Park in the national capital, a day ahead of the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit. ASEAN Secretary General Le Luong Minh attended the event, held at the Tughlaq Crescent, in the heart of Lutyens' Delhi. The 'Bharat Asean Maitri Park' is developed by the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC).
• The Union Government announced 88,139 crore rupees capital infusion in 20 public sector banks, PSBs, during the current fiscal ending 31st March to boost lending and revive growth. IDBI Bank will get the most- Rs10,610 crore followed by State Bank of India 8,800 crore rupees. 
• India has moved up on a global index of talent competitiveness to the 81st position. Switzerland continues to top the list and it is followed by Singapore and the US.
• The GOI announced the Prime Minister's Shram Awards for the year 2016. It will be awarded to the 50 workers.The award was given by Ministry of Labour and Employment every year. These awards are given to the workers in the Public Sector Undertakings, Departmental Undertakings of the Central and the State Governments and Private Sector units. Shram Awards are given in four categories namely 'Shram Ratna Award', 'Shram Bhushan Award'( Rs. 1,00,000 cash prize), 'Shram Vir/Shram Virangana' ( Rs. 60,000 cash prize)and 'Shram Shree/Shram Devi Awards' ( Rs. 40,000 cash prize).
• The National Girl Child Day (NGCD) is celebrated every year on January 24 with an aim to raise awareness about sex ratio levels and promote the empowerment of girls. The programme was organised by the State Resource Centre for Women in collaboration with the Nagaland State Social Welfare Board (NSSWB) and the Entrepreneur Development and Integrated Training Institute (EDITI)
• As part of the 2018 Republic Day celebrations, cultural extravaganza Bharat Parv will organize by the Union Ministry of Tourism at the Red Fort in Delhi from January 26 to 31, 2018. The prime objective of the 3-day event is to generate a patriotic mood, promote the rich cultural diversity of the country and to ensure wider participation of the general public. 
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi honored 7 girls and 11 boys with the National Bravery Awards. Praising the resolve of the awardees. The children felicitated by him in the past hailed from "rural and simple background". The awardees include a 14-year-old Karnataka girl who died while trying to save two boys from drowning