Friday, 7 April 2017

Daily GK Updates - 28th March, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Government launches Online Film Certification System: The Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry has launched the e-Cinepramaan, an online film certification system of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

2. India, Nepal renew petroleum supply agreement: India and Nepal have signed an agreement to renew supply of petroleum to Nepal for a period of five years i.e. till 2022. The renewed agreement, which was overseen by the Petroleum Ministers of both countries, was signed even as both sides pledged to build a new pipeline for LPG.

3. Government approves 101 cold chain projects to boost food processing sector: The Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries (FPI) has sanctioned 101 new integrated cold chain projects across the country. These projects will leverage a total investment of Rs. 3,100 crore for creation of modern infrastructure for the food processing sector.

4. Indian Navy de-inducts TU142M Long Range Maritime Patrol aircraft:The Indian Navy has de-inducted TU142M Long Range Maritime Patrol aircraft after 29 years of dedicated service to the nation and 30,000 hours of accident-free flying. The aircraft was formally de-inducted at a ceremony held at INS Rajali naval air station in Arakkonam, Tamil Nadu. Now its role will be taken on by the newly inducted Boeing P-8I aircraft.

5. Rana Kanwar Pal elected speaker of Punjab Assembly: Today, former Punjab Youth Congress President Rana Kanwar Pal Singh (59-year) has unanimously elected speaker of Punjab Assembly. Rana K P Singh is elected from the Anandpur Sahib constituency for the third time.

6. Union Petroleum Ministry launches MoPNG e-Seva: The Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan has launched MoPNG e-Seva. It is a dedicated grievances redressal platform on Social Media for all queries and grievances relating to Oil and Gas Sector. The grievances will be dealt on real-time basis.

7. Uttar Pradesh BPL households to get free power connection: In Uttar Pradesh, all below poverty line (BPL) households in the urban and rural areas of the state will get free power connection while those above poverty line (APL) will be given 100 % financing option with easy EMIs. The decisions were taken after a meeting between Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal and Uttar Pradesh Energy Minister Shrikant Sharma in New Delhi.

8. Odisha becomes the first state to bring banking to remote rural areas through SHG: Odisha has become the first Indian state to carry financial inclusion and extend banking services to unbanked areas through Self Help Groups(SHGs). The state government has signed an agreement with State Bank of India (SBI) to provide banking facilities to people in unbanked areas.

9. Anil Ambani gets a seat on Atlantic Council advisory board: Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani has been inducted into the international advisory board of The Atlantic Council. He joins News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch, former Spanish PM Jose Maria Aznar, Airbus CEO Thomas Enders among others, on the board. The Council is a foreign policy think tank.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. India beat Australia by 8 wickets to win Test series 2-1:Today, India beat Australia by eight wickets in the fourth and final cricket Test to claim the four-match series 2-1 at the HPCA stadium, Dharamsala. Player of the series: Ravindra Jadeja (India).

2. Satwiksairaj & Chirag won Vietnam Open International Challenger Badminton Doubles title: Indian pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have won the USD 20,000 ‘Vietnam Open International Challenger badminton title’ in Hanoi, Vietnam. They defeated the fifth-seeded Thai duo of Trawut Potieng and Nanthakam Yordphaisong.

BANKING & FINANCE:

3. Syndicate Bank opens 40 ‘Ananya’ branches: The ‘Syndicate Bank’ has digitally inaugurated 40 ‘Ananya’ transformed branches to enhance customer experience, improve sales focus, and improve digital transactions through a dedicated digit zone. ‘Project Ananya’ is a two-year large-scale transformation project undertaken by the bank to provide customers with ‘best in class’ services while improving and modernizing the whole bank.

4. ‘Karur Vysya Bank’ bags ‘best small bank’ award: The ‘Karur Vysya Bank’ (KVB) has been adjudged the ‘Best Small Bank for 2016’. The managing Director(MD) of ‘Karur Vysya Bank’ has received the award from Sudhir Munguntivar, Minister of Finance and Planning, Government of Maharashtra, at a function in Mumbai. This is the eighth award won by KVB in the current fiscal.

5. Vijaya Bank inks MoU with Piaggio Vehicles: Vijaya Bank entered into an MoU with Piaggio Vehicles for providing financial support for the purchase of vehicles under Small Road Transport Operators (SRTO) scheme in Bengaluru.

Daily GK Updates - 27th March, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Kerala transport minister resigns: Kerala transport minister A. K. Saseendran has announced his resignation after allegations of misconduct were raised against him. The minister made the decision following an audio clip hinting at alleged misconduct with a woman was aired by a TV channel.

2. Bengaluru gets India’s first vertical garden: The first vertical garden of India has been set up at the Hosur Road Electronics City Flyover in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The garden will help to control the pollution level of the city and also act as a sound proofing barrier. The vertical garden is an automatic drip irrigation system allowing the plants to get water on a daily basis.

3. BHEL commissions 250-MW eco-friendly unit in Gujarat: State-owned power equipment maker BHEL has commissioned a 250-MW eco-friendly unit using low-grade coal (lignite) as a primary fuel. The lignite-based thermal unit, based on circulating fluidised bed combustion (CFBC) technology, is the second such facility to be commissioned at Bhavnagar Energy Company’s (BECL) 2x250-MW thermal power project at Padva in Bhavnagar district of Gujarat.

4. Environment Ministry official to chair animal welfare board: The government has notified that Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), a statutory advisory body under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF) will now be permanently chaired by a senior MoEF official. This step came into effect due to the recently held Jallikattu Protest in Karnataka.

5. Conference on 'Make in India' held in Houston: A first-ever Houston India conference on 'Make in India' was held in Houston, the USA, for bringing together various constituencies that have an interest in doing business in India and discussing the latest developments. The theme of the Conference is 'Make in India -The Inside Story'.

6. GIC to be first PSU general insurer to launch IPO: General Insurance Corporation (GIC Re) is likely to be the first PSU insurer to tap the capital market as the Finance Ministry has started scouting for merchant bankers to manage its Initial Public Offering (IPO), yet not officially released.

7. Kolkata to host India's first ever FIFA U-17 World Cup final: Kolkata's iconic Salt Lake Stadium has been selected by FIFA to host the final of the Under-17 World Cup on October 28.

8. World's largest capstone discovered by archaeologists in Telangana: The archaeology department of Telangana has discovered the world's largest capstone after excavating an ancient human burial site in Siddipet district, Telangana. The capstone of the menhir burial reportedly weighs about 40 tonnes.

9. Uttarakhand Assembly introduces Lokayaukta Act: The crucial 2011 Lokayukta Bill has been introduced in Uttarakhand Assembly. Governor of State, KK Paul, said he has kept the issue of Lokayukhta on top priority. The new government will also revive the Transfer Act brought in 2011 by the erstwhile Khanduri government to curb corruption.

10. CCEA approved closing of CHBL and ICBL: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approvedclosure/winding up of CREDA HPCL Biofuel Ltd (CHBL) and IndianOil - Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy Development Agency (CREDA) Biofuels Limited (ICBL). Joint Ventures between CREDA HPCL Biofuel Ltd (CHBL) and IndianOil-CREDA Biofuels Limited (ICBL) were formed for carrying out energy crop (Jatropha) plantation and production of bio-diesel in 2008 and 2009 respectively.

11. Pawan Hans ties-up with HAL to train helicopter pilots: State-run Pawan Hans has joined hands with public sector chopper maker Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) to train helicopter pilots. Pawan Hans is a joint venture where state-owned ONGC holds 49 per cent.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World Theatre Day: 27th March: The World Theatre Day (WTD) is celebrated globally on 27th March. World Theatre Day was created in 1961 by an international non-governmental organization International Theatre Institute (ITI), France. ITI was founded in 1948 by UNESCO and the international theater community.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. India wins 73 medals in 2017 Special Olympics World Winter Games:India’s special athletes have won 73 medals (37 golds, 10 silver, and 26 bronze) in the 2017 Special Olympics World Winter Games held in Austria. This year’s edition witnessed 2,600 athletes from over 105 countries competing with each -other.

2. West Bengal win Santosh Trophy for the 32nd time: West Bengal has won the 71st edition of premier domestic football tournament ‘Santosh Trophy’ by defeating Goa 1-0 in the final at Bambolim, Goa.

3. Shaun Tait retires from all forms of cricket: Australian fast bowler 'Shaun Tait' retires from all forms of cricket. Tait represented his country in 3 Tests, 35 One-Day Internationals (ODI) and 21 Twenty20 Internationals during which he picked up 95 wickets. He made his Test debut against England at Trent Bridge in the 2005 Ashes and last played for Australia in January 2016.

BANKING & FINANCE

4. Karnataka Bank’s launched platinum card: Karnataka Bank has launched the ‘MoneyPlant RuPay International Platinum Debit Card’ to provide more privileges to its premium and HNI (high net worth individual) customers. The card can be used for domestic and international cash withdrawals and purchases.

HONOURS & AWARDS

5. Ravish Kumar awarded first Kuldip Nayar journalism award:Eminent TV journalist Ravish Kumar (Senior executive editor of NDTV India) has been awarded inaugural ‘Kuldip Nayar journalism award’ for his contribution to the field of journalism at the India International Centre, New Delhi. He conferred with an award plaque along with a cash amount of Rs. 1 lakh. The award was set up to honor those working in vernacular media.

Daily GK Updates - 26th March, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Aadhaar to be mandatory for driving licence: The Central government has asked all the states to make Aadhaar card a mandatory requirement in order to procure a driving licence in India. The rule will come into effect from October, 2017.

The move will ensure that there are no multiple driving licenses under one name.

2. Anupam Kher receives Kala Ratan Award from Vice President:Actor Anupam Kher was honoured with the Kala Ratan Award from Panjab University with the Vice President of India Mohammad Hamid Ansari giving away the award.

3. Indian Railways to install Wi-Fi kiosks at 500 remote stations for e-services: Railways will set up Wi-Fi hotspot kiosks at about 500 stations and help people access an array of online services, including various government schemes. Christened as Railwire Saathi, the Wi-Fi kiosks will function like a PCO for Digital India and enable people to use services like e-commerce, online banking and much

4. India becomes 3rd largest aviation market in domestic traffic: India has become the 3rd largest aviation market in terms of domestic passenger traffic, beating Japan.

According to aviation think-tank Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, India's domestic air passenger traffic stood at 100 million in 2016. It was behind only the US (719 million) and China (436 million).

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Harvard to launch world's biggest solar geo-engineering study: Harvard University scientists are set to launch the biggest solar geo-engineering study by sending aerosol injections 20 kilometres into the earth's stratosphere to act as a solar shield. The study will explore the possibility of solar shielding as a future solution to global warming. The $20 million project aims to simulate the atmospheric cooling effects of a volcanic eruption.

2. Bangladesh celebrates 46th Independence Day: On March 26th Bangladesh celebrates its Independence day. Bangladesh's President Md Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina placed wreaths at National Memorial in Savar paying respects to those who sacrificed their lives for the freedom.

3. Bali named the best global travel destination for 2017: TripAdvisor, the travel planning and booking website, has named Bali as the global winner of its 2017 Travelers' Choice Awards for destinations. London and Paris have bagged the second and the third spots respectively on TripAdvisor’s list of 10 best travel destinations around the world for this year.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Cheteshwar Pujara sets a record by scoring the most runs in a Test season (by an Indian): Pujara achieved the landmark for scoring the most runs in a Test season, surpassing the mark of 1269 by Gautam Gambhir which he achieved in the 2008/09 season. He has scored 1316 runs at an average of 65.8 in the season, the most ever by an Indian batsman in Tests. He needs 168 runs to break Ricky Ponting’s mark, who holds the record for the most runs ever by a batsman in a season, with 1483 runs at an average of 78.05.

2. India wins archery team gold at Asia Cup: India's (men's) archery team won a gold medal in the men's compound event at the 2017 Asia Cup Stage 2 in Bangkok on Saturday.

3. Ferrari's Vettel wins season opener at Australian Grand Prix: Ferrari's Formula One driver Sebastian Vettel began the Formula One season with a win at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday. Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas finished the race in the second and third places respectively.

BANKING

4. HDFC Bank's Aditya Puri named in world's 30 Best CEOs list: HDFC Bank's Managing Director Aditya Puri has featured on the list of world's 30 best CEOs, published by American financial magazine Barron's.