Current Affairs of 31 October 2015

1. Paul Ryan elected as 54th Speaker of US House of Representatives

Republican Paul Ryan was  elected as the 54th speaker of the US House of Representatives after fetching the votes of 236 members by the full House of Representatives. Only nine House Republicans voted against Ryan on the House floor. He succeeds John Boehner of Ohio.

Following his election, Ryan was sworn in as Speaker of the House. He took the oath on his own copy of the New American bible and kept the gavel he wielded as Chairman of the powerful tax writing committee. 

With this, Ryan, the nine-term congressman from Wisconsin, becomes the third Catholic in a row in the position, after John Boehner and Nancy Pelosi. He first worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative aide in 1992 and won his House seat in 1998 when he was 28.

2. Sanjeev Mohanty appointed as CEO and MD of Jabong

Former Benetton India MD Sanjeev Mohanty was appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) of fashion focused e-tailer Jabong with effect from December 2015.

With his appointment, for the first time the Indian e-commerce would witness a CEO from a traditional retailer heading an online venture in India. Mohanty served United Colors of Benetton Indian unit for 11 years, during which he made the Italian giant the largest international fashion brand in the country.

Under Mohanty’s leadership, United Colors of Benetton India was listed as one of the Top 50 firms to work for in the retail sector consecutively for three years from 2012 to 2014. He was the youngest business head ever when he took over as head of India business in November 2004. 

3. Shaktikanta Das nominated on RBI Central Board of Directors

Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das was  nominated as a Director to the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The nomination of Das is effective from 30 October 2015 and until further orders.

Shaktikanta Das is presently working as a Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs under the Union Ministry of Finance. Das is a 1980 batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre officer. 

4. National Unity Day observed across India

The National Unity Day was observed across India on 31 October 2015 to commemorate the birthday of Sardar Vallabhai Patel. On this occasion of 140th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, PM Narendra Modi flagged off Run for Unity at Rajpath in New Delhi.

Moreover, on this day, all ministries and departments of the government and all the state governments and administrators of all the Union Territories organise programmes including the Pledge-taking Ceremony, Run for Unity involving people from all sections of society.

The day was observed in various states as well. Meghalaya Governor V Shanmuganathan too flagged off the Run for Unity from State Central Library in Shillong where more than one thousand people including students took part in the run organized by Meghalaya’s East Khasi Hills District Administration.

5. No survivors in Russian airlines crash in Sinai
A Russian aircraft carrying more than 220 people crashed on Saturday in a remote mountainous region in the Sinai Peninsula more than 20 minutes after takeoff from a Red Sea resort popular with Russian tourists. Egyptian military and security officials say there are no survivors from the Russian passenger plane.