Thursday, 13 April 2017

Daily GK Updates - 13th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. PM ‘Narendra Modi’ becomes the most followed world leader on Instagram: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged as the most followed ‘world leader’ on photo-sharing app ‘Instagram’ with a whopping 6.9 million followers. He surpassed US President Donald Trump (6.3 million followers) and Pope Francis (3.7 million followers).

2. Justice Gita Mittal appointed as acting Chief justice of Delhi High Court: The senior-most judge of Delhi High Court Justice Gita Mittal has been appointed as the acting Chief justice of Delhi High Court.

3. 33 years to Operation Meghdoot: Operation Meghdoot was an Indian armed forces operation launched 33 years ago on 13 April 1984. It was an operation launched by Indian Armed Forces to capture the Siachen Glacier in Kashmir. The operation resulted in Indian troops gaining control of the entire Siachen glacier, giving India strategic advantage and also maintaining status quo.

4. Union Cabinet hikes MSP of raw jute by 300 per quintal: The union cabinet has approved hike of 300 per quintal in Minimum Support Price (MSP) for ‘raw jute’ by Rs. 300 (9.4 %) per quintal to Rs. 3,500 to boost farmer’s income. The decision will benefit the jute industry which supports the livelihood of 40 lakh farm families and provides direct employment to 3.7 lakh workers.

5. Union Power ministry launches URJA MITRA app: The Union Power ministry has launched ‘URJA MITRA’ app for empowering citizens by real-time information sharing on the power supply. The app is a first of its kind which provides a central platform, web-portal “urjamitra.com” as well as a mobile app for state power Distribution utilities.

6. Cabinet approves listing of 11 CPSEs: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved listing of 11 Central Public Sector Enterprises. The CCEA has also approved reservation of shares for the eligible employees of 11 CPSEs in accordance with the extant provisions of Sebi regulations.

7. IIPE to be set up at Vishakhapatnam: The government has approved setting up of Indian Institute of Petroleum and Energy at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh as Institute of National Importance through an Act of Parliament.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Kristin Davis appointed UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador: The UN Refugee Agency ‘UNHCR’ has appointed internationally acclaimed American actress and philanthropist “Kristin Davis” as its Goodwill Ambassador. UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) promotes the interests and welfare of refugees across the world.

2. UN chief Guterres names Achim Steiner as new administrator of UNDP: The United Nation chief ‘Antonio Guterres’ has named ‘Achim Steiner’ (Germany) as the new administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The UNDP seeks to reduce poverty, improve social development, and encourage women's empowerment.

3. Malala receives Canadian citizenship: Nobel Peace laureate Malala Yousafzai became the sixth person to receive honorary Canadian citizenship.

4. G20 Digital Ministerial Meet: The G20 Digital Ministerial Meeting was held in Dusseldorf, Germany. It concluded with adaptation of declaration on ‘Shaping Digitalisation for an Interconnected World’.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING & FINANCE:

1. Union Govt. sets up a panel to examine framework for Virtual Currencies: The circulation of Virtual Currencies which are also known as Digital and Crypto Currencies has been a cause of concern. The Committee will submit its report within three months.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

2. Amazon to launch its digital wallet: Amazon India has received a payments wallet license from the Reserve Bank of India. The US retailer is looking to allow users to shop on its platform, make offline payments, buy bus and rail tickets and pay for utilities through its digital wallet.

3. Nokia to partner with Airtel, BSNL: Nokia will partner with Airtel and BSNL for developing 5G networks in India. 5G is supposed to be the next level of evolution in wireless broadband technology, but at speeds which are much higher than the current 4G LTE networks.

BOOKS & AUTHORS:

4. Asha Parekh’s autobiography: Asha Parekh’s autobiography, The Hit Girl , was launched by Salman Khan in Mumbai on April 12. The autobiography is written with Khalid Mohamed.

Daily GK Updates - 12th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. PM releases LS Speaker’s book ‘Matoshree’: Prime Minister ‘Narendra Modi’ has released a book ‘Matoshree' authored by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan in New Delhi. The book 'Matoshree' covers the life and times of legendary ‘Devi Ahilyabai Holker’ who ruled the Holkar Empire spread over the Malwa region from 1767 to 1795.

2. National Geoscience Awards 2016: National Geoscience Awards, previously known as the National Mineral Awards, was instituted by the Ministry of Mines in 1966, to honour individuals and teams of scientists for their extraordinary work in fundamental, applied geosciences, mining and allied fields.

3. Jamini Roy’s 130th Birth Anniversary: Jamini Roy was an Indian painter.He was one of the most famous pupils of Abanindranath Tagore, whose artistic originality and contribution to the emergence of modern art in India remains unquestionable.

4. National Hindi Sevi Samman Awards announced: Director of the Central Hindi Institute, N.K. Pandey has announced the names of 26 writers from different categories for the prestigious ‘Hindi Sevi Samman Award 2015’. The ‘Hindi Sevi Samman Awards’ were instituted by Central Hindi Institute, Agra in 1989.

5. Kiren Rijiju inaugurates 2-day NDMP review workshop in Delhi: The workshop has been organized by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Discussions at this workshop will form a part of the deliberations at the upcoming National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (NPDRR).

6. India & Georgia signed a joint statement on free trade agreement: The Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia ‘GiorgiGakharia’ and the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry ‘Nirmala Sitharaman’ have signed a Joint Statement on the launching of the Joint Feasibility Study on the bilateral Free Trade Agreement. The purpose of establishing the Joint Feasibility Study Group is to provide an opportunity for more in-depth and systematic examination of potential Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

7. SCOPE Awards: The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presented the Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) Awards at the 8th Public Sector Day function held in New Delhi. The President said that celebrating this Day is an acknowledgement of the invaluable contribution made by our Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) since independence.

8. 1st time Ranking of Ports on Sanitation: For the first time ever, the twelve major ports under the Ministry of Shipping have been ranked on sanitation parameters. Haldia and Vizag ports bagged the first and second ranks respectively.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. 12th April: International Day of Human Space Flight: The United Nations (UN) celebrates the International Day of Human Space Flight on 12th April every year. The day remembers the first human space flight by ‘Yuri Gagarin’ on 12th April,1961.

It was proclaimed at the 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly on 7th April, 2011.

2. Egypt declares three-month state of emergency: President of Egypt 'Abdel Fattah el-Sisi' has announced a three-month state of emergency following attacks on two Coptic churches. The measure needs to be approved by the parliament before it is implemented.

3. 100 years of Mahatma Gandhi's Sabarmati Ashram Celebrated in London: The centenary of Mahatma Gandhi's ‘Sabarmati Ashram’ has been celebrated in London with the screening of a documentary to re-tell Gandhi's story. The documentary 'Sabarmati Ashram- The Home of Gandhi's Experiments with Truth was screened at the Nehru Centre.

4. Ambedkar Jayanti celebrations at UN: Ambedkar Jayanti celebrations at the UN will focus on the empowerment of the poor and the marginalised using information and communication technologies to achieve the UN’s sustainable development goals. The theme of the 126th Birth Anniversary of Ambedkar, at the UN reflects his vision of “equality, social justice and empowerment of the poor and the marginalised sections of the society”.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. India School team beat Malaysia to lift ‘Asian School Hockey Championship’: The Indian School team beat Malaysia (defending champion) 5-1 to lift the title at the fifth Asian School Hockey Championship at the Aishbagh Stadium, Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh).

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

2. NABARD to raise ₹7,000 crore: To give a fillip to affordable rural housing, the Nabard is planning to raise ₹7,000 crore, which in turn will be deployed with a Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) special purpose vehicle (SPV) that will undertake projects under the aegis of the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana–Gramin (PMAY-G). The PMAY-G aims to provide a pucca (permanent) house with basic amenities to all homeless by 2022.

HONOURS & AWARDS:

3. ICIJ wins Pulitzer for Panama Papers: The Pulitzer Prizes honoured International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) for its work on Panama Papers. The ICIJ spearheaded a team of over 300 reporters, spread across six continents, to expose the offshore tax havens used by high-profile individuals across the world

BOOKS & AUTHORS:

4. Book - ‘Hope in a challenged democracy’: ‘Hope in a challenged democracy’ An Indian narrative’ authored by Shri Ashwini Kumar. The volume is a collection of speeches and writings that have a wide sweep ranging from law and Constitution to democratic institutions, economic changes, and foreign relations.

Daily GK Updates - 11th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Union govt. releases nearly Rs. 23,500 crore to the states under ‘MGNREGS’: The ministry of Rural Development has released nearly 23,500 crores (includes all pending liabilities) to the states as the first tranche for this Financial Year, under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). The Government is laying considerable emphasis on Water Conservation and Water Management works under MGNREGS and a list of 2264 water-stressed Blocks in 324 districts of 21 states has been prepared.

2. Haryana Govt decides to increase the number of ‘Science Clubs’: The Haryana Government has decided to increase the number of ‘Science Clubs’ being operated in ‘Sanskriti Schools’ from 20 to 200 to scale up the interest of youth in science and technology. A new projector would be installed at the Department-run ‘Kalpana Chawla Memorial Planetarium’, Kurukshetra at a cost of about Rs. 1.5 crore to Rs. 2 crores.

3. ‘Nakshe’ portal launched to celebrate Survey of India’s 250 Anniversary: The Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences Harsh Vardhan has launched a new web portal called ‘nakshe’ to celebrate Survey of India’s 250 Anniversary in New Delhi. The portal ‘nakshe’ will offer Topographic maps for free download in a pdf format through ‘Aaadhar’ enabled user authentication process.

4. Assam govt. to electrify all villages in the state by 30^th June:The ‘Assam government’ will electrify all villages in the state by 30^thJune this year. The deadline to connect un-electrified villages in Assam under ‘Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojana’.

5. Kerala makes Malayalam mandatory in schools: The ‘Kerala Government’ has promulgated an Ordinance to make the teaching of ‘Malayalam language’ mandatory in all schools in the State. The usage of the official language‘Malayalam’ has been made compulsory in all government offices from 1^st May. This would be applicable to quasi-government institutions, public sector undertakings, autonomous institutions, and institutions in the cooperative sector.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. 10-year-old Indian boy wins go-karting tournament in Italy: Ruhaan Alva, a 10-year-old boy from Bengaluru won the Easykart Championship, a go-karting tournament, in Lonato, Italy, on Monday. Ruhaan finished first in the Easykart 60 category, for racers aged between nine and 13 years.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

2. Paytm Mall launches QR code feature: The Digital wallet company‘Paytm’ has launched of new feature QR code on its Paytm Mall application. This QR code will allow consumers to place online orders at the physical stores. The seller will be able to earn a percentage margin on each purchase that is made by scanning the Paytm QR code.

3. Flipkart acquires eBay India: India's largest online retailer Flipkart buys eBay's India business, and closing a USD 1.4 billion fund-raising round from Tencent, US-based e-commerce firm ‘eBay’ and software maker ‘Microsoft’. eBay Inc has put USD 500 million in Flipkart and sold its India business to the Flipkart.

HONOURS & AWARDS:

4. Colson Whitehead wins Pulitzer Prize for 'Underground Railroad': Colson Whitehead's novel ‘The Underground Railroad’ has won the ‘Pulitzer Prize’ for fiction.

5. British-Indian educationist named ‘Asian Businesswoman of the Year': Indian-origin educationist in the UK Asha Khemka (65-year) has been named the 'Asian Businesswoman of the Year' in an award ceremony in Birmingham (United Kingdom). Earlier, she was awarded one of Britain's highest civilian awards Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Khemka is the Principal and CEO of West Nottinghamshire College. She was honored for her efforts in the field of education and skills at the Asian Business Awards ceremony.

BOOKS & AUTHORS:

6. Venkaiah Naidu releases book 'Gandhi in Champaran': The Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting Venkaiah Naidu has released a book "Gandhi in Champaran" by DG Tendulkar printed by Publications Division. The book aims at relieving, recounting & retelling the experiences that have had a deep impact on Gandhi and how it had shaped the course of our nation’s history.

Daily GK Updates - 10th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. April 10: World Homoeopathy Day: The World Homoeopathy Day is observed every year on April 10 to pay tribute to Dr. Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann, founder and father of Homeopathy system of medicine. Observance of the day seeks to spread more knowledge about this form of medicine in the mainstream public health. This year it is 262nd birth anniversary of the founder of Homoeopathy. On this occasion, AYUSH Ministry, had organised International Convention on World Homoeopathy Day with theme “Enhancing Quality Research in Homoeopathy through scientific evidence and rich clinical experiences”.

2. Parliament passes Constitution (SCs) order (Amendment) Bill, 2017:Parliament has passed the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order (Amendment) Bill 2017 after it was passed by Rajya Sabha. It was already passed by Lok Sabha in March 2017. The Bill seeks to amends the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Pondicherry) Scheduled Castes Order, 1964.

3. Pakistan sentences alleged RAW agent Kulbhushan Jadhav to death:Pakistan’s Field General Court Martial has sentenced to death Indian national and alleged RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) agent Kulbhushan Jadhav (46) who was arrested last year on charges of spying. The death sentence was confirmed by army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa after the Field General Court Martial found him guilty of all the charges.

4. PM Narendra Modi inaugurates exhibition marking 100 years of Champaran Satyagraha: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated an exhibition titled “Swachhagraha – Bapu Ko Karyanjali – Ek Abhiyan, Ek Pradarshani” in New Delhi mark the 100 years (centenary year) of Champaran Satyagraha. The exhibition will showcase Champaran Satyagraha and it will connect essential principles of Satyagraha with Swachhagraha. It will also showcase the ground covered by the Swachh Bharat Mission in creating a mass movement towards a clean India.

5. 12th Indo-Mongolian Joint Military Exercise “Nomadic Elephant” held in Vairengte: The twelfth edition Indo-Mongolian Joint Military Exercise Nomadic Elephant 2017 has begun at Vairengte in Mizoram. Vairengte houses Indian Army’s elite Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School. The first joint Nomadic Elephant was held in 2004 and since then it is annually held. It seeks to promote military associations between India and Mongolia.

6. President Pranab Mukherjee picks winner of Lucky Grahak and Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojanas: President Pranab Mukherjee has picked up lucky winners from the 100th draw of lots under the digital payments promotion schemes Lucky Grahak Yojana and Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojana. Total the six winners were selected — three consumers and three merchants of Lucky Grahak Yojana and Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojana. The winners will be felicitated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 in Nagpur (Maharashtra) on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti.

7. Government launches “Bharat ke Veer” web portal and application: The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has launched web portal and mobile application named “Bharat ke Veer” to enable people to contribute towards family of martyrs from central paramilitary forces. It was launched by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on the occasion of Valour Day of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), observed on 9 April.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. First UK rail freight service to China to depart: The first rail freight service from United Kingdom to China departed from Essex. Earlier the first freight train in the opposite direction, from China to UK had arrived in London in January 2017. The train service was launched as part of China’s ambitious One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative that aims to revive the ancient Silk Road trading routes with the West dating back more than 2,000 years.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Mohun Bagan beats East Bengal 2-1 in Kolkata derby: Mohun Bagan beat East Bengal 2-1 in I-League on Sunday to register their first win over the team outside Kolkata in 17 years. Mohun Bagan is now within one point of leaders Aizawl FC with a game in hand. Sony Norde and Azharuddin Mallick scored for Mohun Bagan, while East Bengal's Willis Plaza was sent off for hitting a player.

2. Dav Whatmore takes charge of Kerala state team: World Cup-winning coach Dav Whatmore took charge as the head coach of Kerala's state cricket team on Saturday. Whatmore, who led Sri Lanka to their 1996 World Cup title, has coached four international teams.

Daily GK Updates - 9th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. PMO discusses ways to involve private real estate developers in 'Housing-for-all by 2022' programme: Prime Minister's Office discussed ways to involve private real estate developers in the government's ambitious 'Housing-for-All by 2022' programme at a meeting in New Delhi. The meeting called by the Prime Minister's Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra yesterday discussed how the benefits of the interest subsidy on affordable housing could reach the prospective home buyers at the earliest.

2. Modi, Hasina flag off trial run of India-Bangladesh train: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina on Saturday flagged off the trial run of a passenger train service between Kolkata and Bangladesh's Khulna. Named Maitree Express-2, it is the second passenger train between India and Bangladesh. Regular service between the Kolkata station and Khulna will commence in July.

3.Mega draw of Lucky Grahak Yojana & Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojana being held today at Rashtrapati Bhavan: President Pranab Mukherjee will today draw the lots for mega draw of the Lucky Grahak Yojana and the Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojana at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Three mega prizes for consumers worth 1 crore rupees, 50 lakh and 25 lakh rupees and three for merchants worth 50 lakh, 25 lakh and 12 lakh rupees would be announced, at the event through the 100th mega draw. These winners will be felicitated by the Prime Minister on 14th of April in Nagpur, on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti.

4. Australian PM to arrive in New Delhi on four-day visit: Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will arrive in New Delhi today on a four-day visit. This will be the first visit of Mr Turnbull to India. However, Mr Turnbull and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have had substantive meetings on the margins of the G-20 in Antalya in 2015 and in Hangzhou in 2016.

5. Mahavir Jayanti celebrated across the country today: Mahavir Jayanti, the birth anniversary of 24th and last Jain Tirthankar Bhagwan Mahavir is being celebrated across the country today. Mahavir Jayanti is considered to be one of the most auspicious events for Jain people and holds a lot of importance in their religious life.

6. 26 projects worth Rs. 2100 cr approved for Namami Gange project: The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has approved 26 projects worth Rs.2,154.28 crore under the Centre's 'Namami Gange' programme, aiming to reduce the river's pollution load. As part of the projects, the NMCG will set up sewage treatment plants and develop sewage network in four Ganga basin states, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, and Delhi.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 15 civilians killed in suspected US-led coalition airstrike near IS group's Syrian bastion Raqqa: At least 15 civilians, including four children, were killed in a suspected US-led coalition airstrike today near the Islamic State group's Syrian bastion Raqqa. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 17 people were injured in the strike on Heneyda. The Britain-based group said, the death toll could rise further because several of the injured were in serious conditions.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. India seal place in Davis Cup World Group Tennis Play-offs: India today sealed their place in the Davis Cup World Group Tennis Play-offs with Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji routing their rivals with clinical precision for an unassailable 3-0 lead against Uzbekistan. The World Group Play-offs will be held in September.

2. Rio Olympics marathon champion fails dope test: Kenya's Jemima Sumgong, who won the Rio Olympics women's marathon last year, has tested positive for a banned substance in an out-of-competition dope test conducted by the International Association of Athletics Federations.

BANKING & FINANCE:

3. UK bank to pay Rs. 795 crore as compensation to fraud victims: UK banking major Lloyds has announced that it is setting aside £100 million (Rs. 795 crore), to compensate customers who lost money in a fraud scandal. The lender said it will compensate for "economic losses, distress and inconvenience" to assist victims. This comes after some staff at HBOS, owned by Lloyds, were jailed for carrying out a loans scam.

4. RBI to allow banks to invest in REITs, InvITs: Banks will be allowed to invest in real estate investment trusts (REITs) and infrastructure investment trusts (InvITs), attracting more institutional investors to such assets and expanding the investment scope of banks. REIT/InvIT is a structured business trust model facilitating entrepreneurs and corporates to monetise their capital locked in assets through issue of units to investors at large. Just like a mutual fund scheme, investors can own units in a REIT and the rental income is shared among the investors.

5. Deadline for bank savings account holders to give PAN extended to June 30, 2017: The finance ministry has extended the time limit for providing Permanent Account Number (PAN) or Form No. 60 by bank account holders who have not given it at the time of account opening or later to June 30, 2017.

Daily GK Updates - 8th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 64th National Film Awards announced in New Delhi: Akshay Kumar was awarded as the Best actor for his movie, ‘Rustom’. ‘Neeraja’ was awarded as the Best Hindi Movie of 2016. ‘Dangal’ fame, Zaira Wasim bagged the award for Best Supporting Actress. ' ‘Pink’ was named as the ‘Best Movie on Social Issues’. Director, Priyadarshan was the head of the jury for the 64th National Awards.

National Film Awards were constituted in 1954 and are awarded yearly by Directorate of Film Festivals.

2. ‘Deendayal Rasoi Yojana’ to be launched by CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan: CM will launch this scheme in 49 districts of Madhya Pradesh. Under this scheme, people would be provided wholesome meal through canteens that would offer subsidised prices (wholesome meal below Rs. 5/-). The arrangement is expected to serve almost 2000 people on a regular basis.

3. Rajya Sabha clears bills for roll out of GST Bill: Rajya Sabha cleared four supporting bills to clear way for GST. These are -

(a) Central Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill

(b) Integrated GST Bill

(d) Union Territory GST Bill 2017

Lok Sabha has already passed these bills and they will be enacted after President’s approval. GST council will hold a meeting in May in Srinagar to decide how to fit various goods and services in different tax slabs.

4. North Koel Irrigation Project to be revived by Union Government: Union Government will revive 45 year old North Koel Irrigation Project in order to facilitate irrigation for almost 1 lakh hectare farmland in Palamu and Daltonganj regions of Jharkhand as well as some neighbouring districts of Bihar. The cost to revive the project is expected to be around Rs. 1622 crores. The announcement was made by Union Water Resources Minister, Uma Bharti.

5. India takes over operations of 1 unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant: Russian firm which is based in Moscow and also a subsidiary of ROSATOM State Atomic Energy Corporation, ASE group of Companies handed over the operations of first unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant to Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL). The warranty period and commercial operation of the power plant had started in December 2014. Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant is located in Tamil Nadu.

6. India, Bangladesh sign 22 agreements: India and Bangladesh have signed 22 agreements in various fields such as defence, nuclear cooperation, judicial sector, earth sciences, navigation, peaceful uses of outer space, to boost bilateral cooperation. These agreements were signed in presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in New Delhi after delegation level talks.

7. India ranks 40 in WEF’s 2017 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index: India was ranked 40th among the 136 economies across the world in 2017 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) released by the World Economic Forum (WEF). In this edition of index, India has jumped 12 places from earlier 52nd position in 2015. But it lagged behind its other Asian peers like Japan (4th) and China (13th).

8. Agriculture Ministry, ISRO to team up to Geo-Tag Agricultural Assets:The Union Agriculture Ministry has joined hands with the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), a wing of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for geo-tagging agricultural assets. In this regard, Agriculture Ministry under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna (RKVY) and NRSC have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

9. WTTC names India as the 7th largest Tourism Economy: As per the report of World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), India stands at 7th place as a tourism economy in terms of GDP. Travel and tourism sector recorded growth of Rs. 14.1 trillion (USD 208.9 billion) in 2016, which is 7th largest in the world in terms of size.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Malala Yousafzai set to become youngest UN Messenger of Peace:United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will appoint 19 years old Malala as the Messenger of Peace for UN. It is noteworthy that she is also the youngest recipient of Nobel Peace Prize.

2. New Constitution signed by Thailand King: Thailand King, Maha Vajiralongkorn signed a new constitution in Bangkok. This is Thailand’s 20th constitution since 1932. The new constitution is expected to pave way for Democracy while also giving the army a substantial role in politics.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. First NBA Basketball School opens in Mumbai: The National Basketball Association (NBA) has launched the first NBA Basketball School in Mumbai on Saturday. The school is part of NBA's initiative of a network of tuition-based basketball development programmes, open to international male and female players aged between 6 to 18. Additional NBA Basketball Schools will be launched in India and around the world in the coming months.

BANKING & FINANCE:

2. Asian Development Bank expects Indian Economy to grow to 7.4% in 2017-18: For financial year 2017-18, Asian Development Bank has projected India’s growth forecast at 7.4%. ADB expects the growth rate to improve to 7.6% in 2018.

India reflected a growth rate of 7.1% for 2016-17.

5. India ranks 9th in corruption in business: EMEIA Fraud Survey: According to EY Europe, Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA) Fraud Survey 2017, India ranks 9th among 41 surveyed countries in bribery and corrupt practices in businesses. India’s ranking has improved marginally from the survey findings in 2015 when India was at the 6th position. It has improved due to better regulatory scrutiny and emphasis on transparency and governance.