Wednesday, 19 April 2017

Daily GK Updates - 17th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu flags-off first-ever train with glass roof coaches on Visakhapatnam-Araku route through video conferencing from Bhubaneswar: The aim is to provide a delightful travelling experience of the picturesque Araku valley. It is a 40-seat coach with a cost of Rs. 3.38 crore.

2. The Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) will launch its own portal and mobile app in New Delhi: The portal will act as a one-stop for States’ Higher Education Plans, decision of the States’ Higher Education Councils and details of the resources under this scheme. The gallery of the portal will provide a rich repository of the projects initiated under RUSA.

3. Supreme Court raps Sahara group over failure to deposit money, orders auction of Aamby Valley: The supreme Court Compelled to take strict action following the Sahara group’s non-submission of over Rs 5,000 crore, the Supreme Court on Monday directed the sale of the group’s luxurious AambyValley at Lonavala and appointed Bombay High Court’s official liquidator for selling the property.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Nepal President to arrive in Delhi on five-day visit: Nepalese President Bidya Devi Bhandari has arrived in New Delhi on a five-day visit to India. This will be Bhandari's first foreign trip after assuming the office in October 2015.

2. China to launch first cargo spacecraft for space lab: China’s first cargo spacecraft Tianzhou-1 is to be launched into space between April 20 and 24 to dock with the orbiting experimental space station. The cargo spacecraft was transferred with a Long March-7 Y2 carrier rocket from the testing centre to the launch zone in Wenchang, southern China’s Hainan Province.

3. Philippine President wins Time Magazine's Most Influential Person poll:Philippine President ‘Rodrigo Duterte’ has won Time magazine's readers' poll of the 100 most influential people in the world. US Sen. Bernie Sanders and Russian President Vladimir Putin won the reader poll in 2016 and 2015, respectively.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. B Sai Praneeth clinches 2017 Singapore Open Super Series: Indian badminton player ‘B Sai Praneeth’(24-year) has won men’s single title, beating ‘Kidambi Srikanth’ (the world No 29) 17-21, 21-17, 21-12 in the 2017 Singapore Open Badminton tournament.

2. Gayatri Pullela wins twin crowns in Jakarta: National Badminton coach Pullela Gopichand's daughter Gayatri Pullela has bagged both the singles and doubles crown at the Pembangunan Jaya Raya Junior Grand Prix in Jakarta.

3. Sebastian Vettel wins 2017 Bahrain Grand Prix: Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel has won the 2017 Bahrain Grand Prix, beating his Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton.

OBITUARIES:

4. Internet Pioneer 'Robert Taylor' Passes Away: Pioneer of Modern Computing and the Internet'Robert Taylor' (85-year) has passed away at his home in Woodside, California, USA. Rob Taylor was instrumental in creating the internet and the modern personal computer. Taylor's team also developed the networking technology Ethernet and a what-you-see-is-what-you-get word processing program called Bravo that would become the basis for Microsoft Word.

Daily GK Updates - 16th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Sale of whiteners, thinners to minors banned in Delhi: Juvenile Justice Board on Saturday ordered the Delhi government to issue a notification to ban the sale of whiteners, thinners and vulcanised solutions to children below the age of 18 years to check drug abuse. The board further asked the government to assign one de-addiction centre per district, observing that the existing centres in the national capital region are overcrowded.

2. Union Government launches Aadhaar Seeding Application: Bandaru Dattatreya, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment launched Aadhaar Seeding Application. The Application aims efficient service delivery and widening the reach of Employees Provident Fund (EPF) benefits. The Application was launched at the 217th special meeting of the Central Board of Employees Provident Fund (CBEPF/EPFO) in New Delhi.

3. Cab safety measures for women included in new Taxi Policy Guidelines:The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development has recommended the safety measures concerning safety of women commuters availing of cab services. These measures have been recommended by the Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, WCD Minister, to the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and Shipping (MoRTH). The Union WCD Minister has launched a hashtag, #HelpMeWCD, where any woman or child facing harassment/ violence can directly report their cases by tweeting.

4. MoU between NSFDC & Development Commissioner (Handlooms) signed: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation (NSFDC) and the Development Commissioner (Handlooms) in New Delhi. The MoU was signed between the NSFDC under the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and Development and Commissioner (Handlooms) under the Union Ministry of Textiles.The objective of this MoU is to help Scheduled Caste weavers and their families by promoting the production and marketing of high value, quality handlooms products at Block level Cluster in various States like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Odisha.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. US successfully tests new nuclear gravity bomb: The US National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has announced that it along with the US Air Force successfully field-tested a modernised gravity nuclear bomb B61-12 on March 14 at the Tonopah Test Range in Nevada. The test was intended to evaluate the weapon's "non-nuclear functions" and the aircraft's capability to deliver the weapon, NNSA said.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING, FINANCE & ECONOMY:

1. Mukulita Vijayawargiya takes charge as Whole Time Member of IBBI:Mukulita Vijayawargiya took charge as Whole Time Member of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) in New Delhi. Vijayawargiya will look after Administrative Law Wing of IBBI. She will also look after Information Technology, Limited Insolvency Examination, National Insolvency Examination, Finance and Accounts and Communication.

2. RBI issues new framework for bad loans: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued a new set of enabling provisions titled ‘Revised Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework’ to resolve the problem of banks mounting non-performing assets (NPAs), or bad loans. Under the revised framework, if a bank crosses the third level of risk threshold (where a bank’s common equity tier I capital falls below the threshold of 3.625 per cent by 3.125 per cent, or more) it will either be amalgamated or merged, or taken over by another entity.

3. Department of Post and SBI tie-up: They have tied up to promote SBI buddy e-wallet and POS machines through Post Office counters.

OBITUARIES:

4. Pioneering HIV/AIDS researcher Mark Wainberg passes away: Mark A. Wainberg was a Canadian HIV/AIDS researcher and HIV/AIDS activist. He was the Director of the McGill University AIDS Centre at the Montreal Jewish General Hospital and Professor of Medicine and of Microbiology at McGill University.

Daily GK Updates - 15th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. UP govt. & Centre sign MoU for 'Power for All' scheme: The Uttar Pradesh (UP) government and the union govt. have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the 'Power for All' scheme in the state to ensure that consumers get quality electricity at an affordable price. The aim of this scheme is to ensure 24-hour quality power supply in the state by October 2018 and electric connection to every house and agriculture field by 2019.

2. Chandrababu Naidu launches CM Connect app: The Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N. Chandrababu Naidu has launched a new mobile app 'CM at Velagapudi. The app runs on Microsoft’s Kaizala platform. The app will be useful in receiving feedback from the public directly on any given issue.

3. Haryana launched Operation Durga to ensure women Safety:The Haryana government has launched ‘Operation Durga’ to ensure women safety in the state. ‘Operation Durga’ has been launched so that ‘flying squads’ patrol those areas where such anti-social elements committed crimes against women.

Flying Squad will visit public places such as schools, colleges, bus stands and railway stations and caught persons indulging in crime activities against women like eve-teasing, stalking, harassment and other such activities.

4. Jharkhand police initiates Tare Zameen Par program for underprivileged kids: The Jharkhand Police has initiated ‘Tare Zameen Par program’ to enlighten children in Naxal-affected areas in the Palamau district, Jharkhand. This program is aimed to restore confidence in the state police force and to encourage children to lead happy lives.

5. ISRO to share technology for manufacturing of Lithium-ion batteries for production of electric vehicles: The government has directed the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to share battery technology for mass production of Lithium-Ion batteries for electric vehicles. The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre under ISRO has developed indigenous technology to manufacture high-power batteries for use in two- and three-wheelers and their feasibility tests conducted by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) was found to be successful.

6. PM launches cashless/less cash township models across 12 states: Prime Minister has launched 81 cashless/less cash townships across 12 states in Nagpur. The model of cashless/less cash township was developed by Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers and Chemicals Ltd (GNFC) under the auspices of National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. GNFC’s township at Bharuch (Gujarat) had become India’s first 100% cashless township after demonetization.

7. Himachal Pradesh bags ‘Krishi Karman Award 2015-16’: The Union Ministry of Agriculture has selected Himachal Pradesh for the ‘Krishi Karman Award 2015-16’ for the commendable increase in food grains production.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Fully-airconditioned Dhaka-Kolkata Maitree Express inaugurated:The Railways Minister of Bangladesh Mazibul Hoque and Indian High Commissioner Harsh Vardhan Shringla inaugurated a fully-airconditioned Dhaka-Kolkata Maitree Express train in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

2. India-Australia sports partnership launched: India and Australia on Wednesday started a partnership aimed at increasing cooperation in sports. It will advance India–Australia cooperation in four areas – athlete and coach training and development, sport science, sport governance and integrity, and grassroot participation.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Pankaj Advani beats Sourav Kothari to win Asian Billiards Championship title: The ace cueist ‘Pankaj Advani’ (31-year) has won his sixth Asian Billiards title and seventh overall Asian championship. He defeated compatriot Sourav Kothari 6-3 to clinch the Asian Billiards Championship title in Chandigarh.

BANKING, FINANCE & ECONOMY:

2. India's exports jumps 27.6% in March: According to Commerce and Industry Ministry, India's exports grew by 27.6% to 29.23 billion dollars in March this year as compared to same period in last year. It grew on account of the robust performance by sectors like petroleum, textiles, engineering goods and gems and jewellery. Exports witnessed a growth of 4.71% at 274.64 billion dollars against 262.3 billion in 2015-16.

3. IRDAI launches web portal for insurers: The IRDAI (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India) has launched a web portal 'isnp.irda.gov.in' for insurers that will allow them to register and sell policies online. The portal also open to intermediaries in the insurance business.

4. Forex reserves down USD 956.4 mn to USD 368.998 bn:According to the Reserve Bank said(RBI), India's foreign exchange reserves declined by USD 956.4 million to USD 368.998 billion for the week ended April 7 due to fall in foreign currency assets. Also, the Special Drawing Rights with the International Monetary Fund were down by USD 3.1 million to USD 1.443 billion.

Daily GK Updates - 14th April, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Prime Minister launches BHIM-Aadhaar platform: Prime Minister has launched BHIM-Aadhaar platform from Nagpur. BHIM-Aadhaar platform is the merchant interface of the BHIM App that has been launched for making digital payments using the Aadhaar platform. BHIM App was launched in December 2016 to provide a one-stop solution for all digital payments. The newly launched BHIM-Aadhaar platform will help people to pay digitally using their biometric data like thumb imprint on a merchant’s biometric enabled device like a smart phone or a biometric reader.

2. 127th Birth Anniversary of Dr.Bhimrao Ambedkar celebrated: 127th birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna Dr. B.R.Ambedkar was celebrated at the Parliament House complex. The President, Vice President and Prime Minister paid floral tributes to the statue of Ambedkar present in the Parliament House Lawns. The celebrations were organized by Dr. Ambedkar Foundation, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.

3. ASCI issues guidelines for celebrities endorsing products: The advertising industry watchdog Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has come up with a set of guidelines for celebrities endorsing products. The guidelines have been developed to protect consumer interest while encouraging celebrities and advertisers to refrain from endorsing misleading advertisements.

4. Income Tax Department launches Operation Clean Money-II: The Income Tax department has launched the second phase of the ‘Operation Clean Money’ to investigate over 60,000 individuals with an aim to detect black money generation post demonetisation. The first phase of ‘Operation Clean Money’ was launched on January 31, 2017. In the first phase, the department went through e-verification of large cash deposits into the banks after the demonetisation and had sent online queries and investigated around 17.92 lakh persons.

5. Biggest conventional bomb in India is known as 'SPICE': The biggest conventional bomb that India has is called the 'Smart Precise Impact and Cost Effective' or SPICE bomb, which is under the command of the Indian Air Force. It is manufactured by Israeli firm Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Ltd. The 2,000-pound bomb is a precision-guided bomb that can be carried on French-origin Mirage 2000 fighter jets.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Nepal and China to conduct Sagarmatha Friendship-2017: Nepal and China is all set to hold their first ever joint military exercise named ‘Sagarmatha Friendship-2017’ from April 17 to April 26. The 10 day long joint exercise will focus on combating terror and disaster management. This is the first time it is holding a joint exercise with China.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. PV Sindhu slips to 5th rank after 1st round exit in Malaysia: Shuttler PV Sindhu slipped three places to fifth rank in the latest Badminton World Federation rankings, following her first-round exit at the Malaysia Open last week. Sindhu had touched a career-best second rank last week after registering a victory at the India Open. Meanwhile, Saina Nehwal remained at ninth place despite her first-round exit in the same tournament.

BANKING, FINANCE & ECONOMY:

2. Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana crosses loan targets: Loans disbursed under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) have crossed its target of Rs 1.8 lakh crore in the financial year 2016-17. In this year’s budget, Rs 2.44 lakh crore has been set as a target for Mudra loans for the financial year 2017-18.

3. Service tax to move up from 15% to 18% under GST, says Adhia: Services sector could attract a higher tax rate of 18% from the current 15% under GST, thus making services “slightly” more expensive, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said.