Current Affairs: 20 September 2016

Alka Sirohi appointed as new UPSC chairman

• The President Pranab Mukherjee has appointed Retd. IAS – officer of MP Cadre Smt. Alka Sirohi (UPSC-Member) as the chairman of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). 
• She will replace Deepak Gupta (65-year) who demits office on 20th September 2016. 
• Sirohi will be in office till the completion of her term as a member on January 3, 2017 (or till further orders).

United Russia party wins parliamentary election

• President Vladimir Putin’s ruling United Russia Party has won the parliamentary election with more than 54% of the votes. 
• According to the Central Election Commission Communist Party and Liberal Democratic Party with about 14 % each are in second and third place. 
• Yesterday,Elections to the State Duma were held in a split system, 225 members of parliament were elected by party tickets, while the other 225 were elected in one-seat constituencies. 

Angela Merkel’s party CDU losses in Berlin state elections

• Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party CDU (Christian Democratic Union of Germany) has lossed in Berlin state elections. 
• It has been ousted from the state governing coalition with the centre-left Social Democrats. 
• The anti-migrant party “Alternative for Germany” made gains and will enter the state parliament for the first time. 

First Indian music & dance festival starts in Sydney

• Union Tourism and Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma has inaugurated the 10-week first Indian music and dance festival in Sydney,Australia. 
• The festival, an initiative of Indian government supported by the Australian side, will run across seven cities including Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, Canberra and Adelaide.

HRD Minister inaugurates Super Computer PARAM-ISHAN at IIT Guwahati

• Union Human Resource Development minister Prakash Javadekar has inaugurated the super computer PARAM ISHAN at IIT Guwahati campus. 
• PARAM ISHAN is the fastest and most powerful computer in North East, Eastern and Southern region. 
• PARAM ISHAN has been jointly developed by IIT Guwahati and Centre for Development of Advanced Computing(C -DAC).

Malayalam critic M Leelavathi bags Mohanan Suvarna Mudra Award

• Noted Malayalam critic Dr. M Leelavathi has been chosen for the prestigious N Mohanan Suvarna Mudra Award 2016. 
• She has been selcted for her contributions to Malayalam language and literature. 
• The award was instituted in memory of well-known short story writer N Mohanan. 
• The honour comprises a gold medal of one sovereign.

Rio paralympic games end in Brazil

• The Rio 2016 Paralympic Games 2016 (15th) have ended in Rio with a colourful closing ceremony at Maracana Stadium in Brazilian City, Rio de Janeiro. 
• Brazilian officials handed over the flag to Tokyo for the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. 
• China dominated the Rio Paralympics games with 239 medals, followed by Britain, Ukraine and the United States. 
• India capped off a successful Paralympic Games campaign in Rio by procuring their best ever haul of four medals (two gold, one silver and a bronze medal).

Subhankar Pramanick wins gold at ISSF Junior World Cup

• Indian shooter Subhankar Pramanick has clinched the gold medal in 50-metre rifle prone event at the ISSF Junior World Cup for pistol, rifle and shotgun at Gabala in Azerbaijan. 
• He shot 205.5 overall to finish top of the podium. 
• Czech Republic’s Filip Nepejchal (205.2) followed in second position, while Romania’s Dragomir Iordache (185.1) was placed third. 
• A total of 279 junior athletes, representing 27 countries are battling it out in 18 events.

Davis Cup: Spain beat India 5-0

• Hosts India were routed by Spain 0-5 in the Davis Cup World Group Play-off tie. 
• In the last match, Ram kumar Ramanathan (India) lost to David Ferrer in straight sets 6-2, 6-2. 
• Earlier, in the first rubber match Marc Lopez defeated Sumit Nagal 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 giving Spain 4-0 lead. 
• Earlier, Saketh and Ramkumar had lost their opening Singles matches.