DAILY GK UPDATES 3RD FEBRUARY 2016

DAILY GK UPDATES 3RD FEBRUARY 2016

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Invest Karnataka Meet 2016: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah urged the global investor community at ‘Invest Karnataka 2016’ to consider Karnataka as their partner for growth. He pointed out that Bengaluru is the only Indian city to be ranked amongst the 20 Start-up Eco-systems in the World.  

 

2. Vice President visits Thailand: Vice President Hamid Ansari reached Thailand on a three-day visit during which he will hold discussions on a range of issues with the country’s top leadership to boost bilateral ties.

 

3. Titli became first Indian film to win Best Foreign Film award by French Syndicate of Cinema Critics 2016 (FSCC).

 

4. Reliance Entertainment and film maker producer duo Neeraj Pandey and Shital Bhatia’s Friday Filworks join hands to form film production venture named Plan C Studios.

 

5. Haryana, Ontario ink pact for cooperation: Haryana and the province of Ontario in Canada inked pact for enhancing commercial and cultural ties.

 

6. ZTE Soft inks pact with Andhra Pradesh: Chinese Telecom Company ZTE has inked pact with the Andhra Pradesh government to work on smart city projects in the state.

 

7. H L Samariya given additional charge Central Provident Fund Commissioner (CPFC).

 

8. R S Reddy appointed as the new Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court.

 

9. R S Mann appointed as the Chairman of 6thPunjab Pay Commission.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon appointed Retd. Major General Jai Shanker Menon as the head of a key United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) stationed in Golan to maintain the ceasefire between Israeli and Syrian forces.

 

2. TCS rated world’s most powerful brand in IT Services as per Brand Finance’s 2016 annual report.

 

3. UK granted licence to use gene editing techniques on human embryos: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) of United Kingdom granted licence to the Francis Crick Institute to use new gene editing techniques on human embryos.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Kerala emerged as the winner of 61st National School Athletics championships held at Kozhikode, Kerala.

 

AWARDS:

2. Amitabh Bachchan conferred with Lifetime Achievement Award at the NDTV Indian of the Year Awards for his contribution to the Indian film industry.

OBITUARIES:

3. Former Deputy Governor S S Tarapore passed away at the age of 80.

 

4. Former Lok Sabha Speaker Balram Jakharpassed away at the age of 92.

 

5. Veteran Urdu writer Intizar Hussain died at the age of 92.

DAILY GK UPDATES 2ND FEBRUARY 2016

DAILY GK UPDATES 2ND FEBRUARY 2016

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World Bank approved $35 million to improve citizen access to public services in Madhya Pradesh: The Citizen Access to Responsive Services Project will improve access to selected public services for the people of Madhya Pradesh and particularly those belonging to deprived groups.  

 

2. Companies Law Committee submitted report recommending changes in the Companies Act, 2013: The committee was chaired by Tapan Ray Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs and consist of 8 members and one member convener.

 

3. Archana Ramsundram became 1st woman to head paramilitary force: Tamil Nadu cadre IPS Officer Archana Ramsundram was appointed as the Director General of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) that guards India’s frontiers with Nepal and Bhutan.

 

4. Urban Ladder appointed Sanjay Gupta as Chief Marketing Officer.

 

5. Ashish Kumar Goel takes charge as General Manager, Eastern Railways: He is also the General Manager of South Eastern Raailways.

 

6. Saroj Kumar Jha appointed Senior Director for Fragility, Conflict and Violence Group at World Bank.

 

7. SC refers curative plea on Section 377 to five-judge bench: A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court will hear curative petitions of seeking re-examination of its verdict criminalising sexual activity between same sex consenting adults under section 377 of IPC.

 

8. India and Brunei sign MoUs on Defence, Health and Sports: The three MoUs were signed during the visit of Vice President of India Shri Hamid Ansari. The capital of Brunei is Bandar Seri Begawan. 

 

9. Bajaj unveils bike with INS Vikrant metal: The 150-cc bike was named ‘V’ and it contains metal sourced from India’s first aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant which got decommissioned in 1997.

 

10. Himachal Pradesh to spend 15 crore rupees on Swachh Bharat Mission in Kinnaur.

 

11. Jai Kumar Garg appointed as MD and CEO of Corporation Bank.

 

12. S N Prasad assumes charge as Coal India Limited director.

 

13. PM Modi inaugurated the Global Ayurveda Fest at Kozhikode which is being held from 31st January to 4th February 2016.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Google’s Alphabet comes before Apple as world’s most valuable company: The shift occurred in Monday’s extended trading after Alphabet, Google’s new parent company, released fourth-quarter earnings report that highlighted the robust growth of the digital ad market.

 

2. WHO declared Public Health Emergency of international concern over Zika Virus outbreak.

 

3. UK granted licence to use gene editing techniques on human embryos: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) of United Kingdom granted licence to the Francis Crick Institute to use new gene editing techniques on human embryos.

 

4. Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra is set to join Hollywood A-listers to present at the upcoming 88thAcademy Awards.

 

5. World Wetlands Day observed 2nd February 2016 with theme Wetlands for our Future-Sustainable Livelihoods.

 

6. TCS, Wipro, Infosys join Obama’s ‘computer science for all’ plan.

 

7. Bangladesh cabinet approved draft of Citizenship Law, 2016 expanding scope for dual citizenship.

OTHER UPDATES:

 

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. RBI keeps key rates unchanged in the 6th bi-monthly monetary policy: The repo rate or short term lending rates remains unchanged at 6.75% and the reverse repo rate at 7.75%. CRR is also unchanged at 4% while the MSF and Bank rate are kept at 7.5%.

SPORTS:

2. Rishabh Pant of India U-19 slams fastest fifty in just 18 balls to beat Nepal U-19 in the on-going U-19 World Cup.

OBITUARIES:

3. Noted Dravidian Ideologist Annamalai died at the age of 78.

DAILY GK UPDATES 1ST FEB 2016

DAILY GK UPDATES 1ST FEB 2016

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. TRAI recommends PPP Model to roll out rural broadband network ‘BharatNet’: Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has recommended a public private partnership model for rolling out government’s ambitious project BharatNet, which involves setting up of a broadband network in rural India.  

 

2. Government bans Zero Duty import of capital goods for power plants: The decision is aimed at encouraging manufacturing of power equipment and giving a push to domestic capital goods sector, with an aim to boost overall economy.

 

3. India and Afghanistan ink pact for Visa-free travel by diplomats.

 

4. Vietnam lifts ban on import of groundnut from India.

 

5. 30th Surajkund International Crafts Mela started at Faridabad: Telangana was selected as the Theme State and will showcase its unique culture and rich heritage and about 300 artistes from the state will perform different folk arts. Chandigarh was the theme for the 29th edition of the mela in 2015.

 

6. Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi appointed as India’s Envoy to Mexico.

 

7. Kamlesh Kumar Pandey appointed as Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities.

 

8. Metro Cash and Carry appoints former Walmartexecutive Arvind Mediratta as India MD.

 

9. Datta Padsalgikar appointed as the Commissioner of Police of Mumbai.

 

10. CBDT signed two bilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) with United Kingdom: This is a significant step towards providing a stable and predictable tax regime.

 

11. India and NASA to study Ladakh region under Spaceward Bound Programme: Under this programme, a team of scientists from NASA, the Mars Society Australia and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow will undertake an expedition to Ladakh in August 2016 to study the region’s topography and microbial life to the surroundings of Mars.

 

 

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Cabinet of Somalia agree on Election Model outlined by Mogadishu Declaration 2015: The declaration which was adopted in December 2015, calls for election process in Somalia to establish a new, bicameral Federal Parliament in 2016, based on inclusivity and representation.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. SBI launches new home loan scheme ‘FlexiPay’ for working executives: Under the scheme, young working professionals will get higher amount than they are eligible for. The additional loan amount will help such professionals in acquiring better and spacious living spaces for themselves and their families.

 

SPORTS:

2. Virat Kohli replaces Aaron Finch as No. 1 batsman in T20 Internationals.

 

3. Kidambi Srikanth wom men’s singles title of Syed Modi International Badminton Championships 2016.

 

4. Virender Sehwag appointed as mentor for Kings XI Punjab for IPL season 9.

 

5. Aditya Mehta won 83rd Senior National Snooker Championship.

 

6. Japanese city of Fukuoka to host 2021 World Aquatics Championships.

 

7. Brazilian driver Pietro Fittipaldi won 2015-16 MRF Challenge Formula 2000 held at Madras Motor Racing Track

 

AWARDS:

8. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar selected for K Veeramani Award for Social Justice.

 

9. Veteran Wildlife Filmmaker Naresh Bedihonoured with V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award.

 

10. Mahesh Joshi received the ‘Chhatrapati ShivajiMaharaj Gaurav Award’ for his poetry.

 

OBITUARIES:

11. Famous British television and radio personality Terry Wogan died at the age of 77.