DAILY GK UPDATES 26TH MARCH 2016

DAILY GK UPDATES 26TH MARCH 2016

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Union Cabinet approved MoU between India and UAE to mobilise long term investment into National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF).

 

2. Union Government notified E-Waste Management Rules, 2016: The new set of rules will supersede the E-waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011 and will pave the way for more transparent and environment friendly management of e-waste across the country.

 

3. BHEL commissioned 600 MW Jaipur Thermal Power Plant in Adilabad district of Telangana.

 

4. Government to create 2.5 lakh dalitentrepreneurs under Stand Up India.  

 

5. 4th unit of NTPC-Bihar Government owned 195 MW plant synchronised: The 4th unit of 195-MW Muzaffarpur Thermal Power Station (MPTS) has been successfully synchronised with the national grid.

 

6. Mizoram and Japanese International Cooperative Agency (JICA) signed an agreement on Capacity Enhancement for Sustainable Agriculture and Irrigation Development.

 

7. Andhra Pradesh Government set to inaugurate country’s first lift irrigation project: It is set to inaugurate Pattiseema Lift Irrigation Project, described as the first river linking project in country, connecting Godavari with Krishna in this lower riparian state, as it has been completed in a record time of one year.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Iran signs oil contract with France’s Total: Iran signed a confidential oil agreement with France’s Total to develop the South Azadegan oil field shared by Iran and Iraq.

 

2. Pakistan and Iran agree to boost cooperation on security, trade: Both the countries have agreed to fight extremist and terrorist groups in their countries’ shared border.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. RBI issued revised Framework for Revival and Rehabilitation of MSMEs.

 

OBITUARIES:

2. American Actor Peter Brown died at the age of 80.

DAILY GK UPDATES 25TH MARCH 2016

DAILY GK UPDATES 25TH MARCH 2016

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Arvind Kejriwal named among world’s 50 greatest leaders by Fortune: The list was topped by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Kejriwal was ranked 42ndand is the only Indian included in the list.

 

2. Jaitley visiting Australia soon to woo investments: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will fly to Australia on March 28th on a four day visit to attract foreign investments in the infrastructure sector.

 

3. Himachal Pradesh and Mumbai to have electric buses: Department of Heavy industry has granted in-principle approval to Himachal Pradesh Road Transport Corporation and Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority to introduce zero emission retrofitted electric buses.

 

4. Tech Mahindra expands presence in France: The Information Technology services of Tech Mahindra have announced the launch of a development centre in Toulose, France to work on projects for existing partners and customers in the aerospace industry.  

 

5. ITC Ltd acquires Technico Agri Services Ltd, Australia for Rs 121 crore.

 

6. Hero Cycles acquires 60% stake in Sri Lanka’s BSH Ventures.

 

7. Paytm hires Alibaba’s former executive BhushanPatil as company’s new President.

 

8. ISRO established Gadanki Ionosphere Radar Interferometer (GIRI) near Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh.

 

9. Union Cabinet approved India’s accession to the Ashgabat Agreement: The Agreement is an international and transit corridor facilitating transportation of goods between Central Asia and the Persian Gulf.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. President Pranab Mukherjee greets Greece on Independence Day: President Pranab Mukherjee has extended his greetings and felicitations to the government and people of Greece on the eve of their Independence Day. He sent his greetings to the President of Greece, P Pavlopoulos.

 

2. Asia most exposed to disasters, Africa most vulnerable: A study revealed that countries and mega cities across Asia are highly exposed to natural hazards ranging from cyclones to earthquakes, but people in sub-Saharan Africa are more vulnerable.

 

3. Microsoft shuts Artificial Intelligence Robot-Tay:Microsoft, which launched artificial intelligence (AI) powered bot on Twitter for a playful chat with people, only to silence it within 24 hours as users started sharing racist and offensive comments with the bot.

 

4. International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and Transatlantic Slave Trade 2016 observed across the world on 25th March 2016: The theme for this year is Remember Slavery: Celebrating the Heritage and Culture of the African Diaspora and its roots.

 

5. US Navy Tug USS Conestoga wreck discovered after 95 years.

 

6. Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic sentenced to 40-year imprisonment for his involvement in the 1995 Srebrenica Genocide: The capital city of Serbia is Belgrade.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. RuPay to launch credit cards in September 2016: Its market share for debit cards has increased to 38%.

 

2. Lakshmi Vilas Bank ties up with National Bulk Handling Corporation (NBHC) for Collateral Management and Warehousing.

 

OBITUARIES:

3. Hollywood Comedian Garry Shandling died at the age of 66.

 

 

DAILY GK UPDATES 24TH MARCH 2016p

DAILY GK UPDATES 24TH MARCH 2016

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Union Cabinet approved Rs 9000 crore for Swachh Bharat Mission: The Government of India has approved a $1.5 billion (approximate Rs 9000 crore) to support Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) in Rural Areas.

 

2. AROGYA Fair to commence from March 26 in Goa: The four day fair will be organised by Ministry of AYUSH and Confederation of Indian Industry.

 

3. Indian Coast Guard vessel Arnvesh commissined: The Fast Patrol Vehicle (FPV), ICGS Arnvesh, of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) was commissioned in Visakhapatnam.

 

4. Bajaj Finance enters life care financing segment: Under the Rs 20,000-crore life care segment, it will finance expenses for stem cells storage units, cosmetics-based hair treatment, dental and eye care, IVF & maternity care, laproscopic cure for a dozen ailments, and elective medical/paramedical care for many other issues.  

 

5. Justice Permod Kohli appointed as Chairman of Central Administrative Tribunal.

 

6. South Indian Bank gets ISO 9001:2008 certifications.

 

7. Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare launched Longitudinal Ageing Study in India: It will survey more than 60000 elderly over 25 years plan. The survey will provide scientifically validated data on various issues of the elderly.

 

8. NGT fined Uttarakhand-based developer DHDPL 20 lakh rupees for construction on Ganga floodplain.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World Tuberculosis Day observed on 24th March 2016: The theme for this year is ‘Unite to End TB’.

 

2. 9th International Abilympics started at Bordeaux in France: Abilympics is coined from Olympics of Abilities of persons with Disabilities.

 

 

 

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Australia’s Shane Watson to retire from internationals after World Twenty20.

 

OBITUARIES:

2. Kadhaprasangam Maestro and Actor V D Rajappan passed away at the age of 70.

 

3. Football legend Johan Cryuff passed away at the age of 68.

DAILY GK UPDATES 23RD MARCH 2016

DAILY GK UPDATES 23RD MARCH 2016

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India and Bangladesh PM launch two bilateral projects: Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh commissioned international gateway of interest service in Agartala and supply of 100MW power to Bangladesh from Tripura.

 

2. Core banking facility available at 25K post offices by April: The Department of Posts will offer core banking solutions (CBS) to its customers at 25000 post offices by April, against 20,429 CBS-enabled branches.

 

3. 21 states to implement National Food Security Act by April 1: The National Food Security Act (NFSA) will be implemented in 10 more states from April 1 this year, taking the total number of states implementing NFSA to 21, Union Minister of Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan.

 

4. H L Dattu appointed to International Human Rights body: Justice H L Dattu, chairperson, National Human Rights Commission, India emerged as the unanimous choice to be appointed as a member of the International Coordinating Committee of NHRIs (ICC) Bureau in Geneva.  

 

5. India’s Defence Lab develops Thermal Imaging Radar to look through walls: The Through Barrier Imaging Radar, named ‘Divyachakshu’ (divine eye), has been developed by DRDO’s Electronic and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE) based in Bangalore and is going through development trials now.

 

6. Cabinet approves National Capital Goods Policy: The government believes implementation of the capital goods policy is critical and needed to give a boost to the sector and the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

 

7. Cabinet approves Udaan scheme till 2019-20: Udaan provides exposure to the youth of Jammu and Kashmir to the best of corporate India to the rich talent pool available in the state.

 

8. India, France sign MoU for construction of six nuclear reactors at Jaitapur.

 

9. ReNew Power inks pact with OPIC for $250-million debt facility: Sumant Sinha promoted ReNewPower Ventures signed an agreement to receive debt financing of up to $250 million from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, the US Government’s development finance institution.

 

10. Cabinet Okays MoU between India and Lithuania for Agriculture: The capital of Lithuania is Vilnius.

 

11. Airtel signs pact with American Tower Corporation for tower sale in Tanzania: The capital of Tanzania is Dodoma.

 

12. Union Government and Industry Association signed MoU for effective-redressal of consumer complaints.

 

13. Mukund Padmanabhan appointed as new editor of The Hindu.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World Poetry Day 2016 observed globally on 21stMarch 2016.

 

2. World Meteorological Day 2016 observed on 23rdMarch 2016 with theme Hotter, Drier Wetter. Face the future.

 

3. Nepal became Dialogue Partner of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

 

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka won BNP Paribas Open Men’s and Women’s title respectively.