Daily GK Updates - 24th August, 2015

DAILY GK UPDATES - 24TH AUGUST, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:

   I.     Indian Air Force MiG-21 Bison Aircraft crashed in Budgam in Jammu & Kashmir, Pilot ejected safely: The single seater MiG-21 aircraft had taken off from Srinagar airfield and was on a routine training sortie.

II.      Delhi Jal Board (DJB) commissioned 1^st ever Hydro-power plant at Chilla: The power plant set up at Chilla area of east Delhi will be run through Hydraulic turbine propelled by treated effluents coming out of a sewage treatment plant.

III.    Amol Palekar appointed as chairman of India’s Oscar jury: Veteran Actor-director AmolPalekar has been appointed as chairman of India’s Oscar jury which will select the country’s official entry in best foreign film category of the 88^th Academy Awards.

IV.    DRDO ties up with Ramdev to market supplements, food products: India’s premier defence research organisation DRDO has now roped yoga guru Ramdev’sPatanjali Ayurveda Limited to manufacture and market in the country and abroad some herbal supplements and food products developed by it.

V.    20,000 railway coaches to have CCTV cameras with Rs 700 crore Nirbhaya Fund: To strengthen security on trains, Indian Railways is expediting the process of installing CCTV surveillance cameras in 20,000 coaches at a cost of Rs 700 crore which will be delivered from Nirbhaya Fund.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

  I.       Palmyra’s temple of Baal Shamin destroyed by ISIS militants: Baal Shamin was one of the two supreme gods of pre-Islamic Palmyra in ancient Syria. Palmyra is also known as the Pearl of Desert and Tadmur.

II.    UNFCCC, MSSRF to work for conservation of coastal resources of Andhra Pradesh: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Chennai based M S Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) agreed to work together for the conservation of coastal resources in Andhra Pradesh.

III.    Finally, Women in Saudi Arabia allowed to vote: For the 1^st time in the history of Saudi Arabia, women have finally been allowed to participate in elections and cast their vote.

IV.    Pakistan cancels Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference amid row over not inviting J&K Assembly speaker: The meet to be held in September was cancelled as India had threatened to boycott the meet if Pakistan did not extend invite to J&K Assembly speaker. The meet will now be held in New York in the month of October.

V.        US top medical body American College of Cardiology has collaborated with Apollo Hospitals to expand medical education in India by providing new opportunities to cardiovascular physicians to improve their skills.

VI.       Jennifer Lawrence, the 25-year old ‘Hunger Games’ actress is the world’s highest paid actress according to a new ranking published by Forbes.

VII.    Oil sinks below $40 for the 1^st time since 2009: Crude crumbled below $40 a barrel for the first time since March 2009. The latest crash in oil prices in another sign that the world still has more oil than it knows what to do with it at a time when uncertainty on global growth reigns supreme.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

  I.     Bandhan Bank started operations as Scheduled Commercial Bank: The Banking services were inaugurated by Finance Minister ArunJaitley in Kolkata. With this Bandhan Financial Services became the first micro finance company in the country to start operations as a full-fledged commercial bank. Chandra ShekharGhosh is the CEO and MD of Bandhan Bank.

SPORTS:

II.        England won Ashes Series 3-2: In the fifth and the final match of the series, Australia defeated England by an innings and 46 runs at Ovals. But England had already clinched the series with victories in three of the first four games. Chris Rogers of Australia and Joe Root of England jointly shared the Man of the Series Award. Also, two legendary batsmen of Australia Michael Clarke and Chris Rogers retired from International Cricket with the end of this Ashes Series. Steve Smith was name the new captain for Australia.

III.      India beat Sri Lanka by 278 runs in the 2^nd test match of the Cricbuzz Cup: K L Rahul of India was adjudged Man of the Match for his outstanding ton in the first innings. With this match, Sri Lankan cricket legend Kumar Sangakkara retired from all forms of International Cricket.

IV.      Golfer Aditi Ashok became first Indian to win the Ladies British Amateur Golf Championship:17 year old Aditi is not only the 1^st Indian to take the title, but also the youngest-ever winner of the tournament.

V.     British Lewis Hamilton eases to Belgian GP win ahead of team-mate Nico Roseberg: Lewis Hamilton beat Mercedes team-mate Nico Roseberg to take a dominant win at the Belgian Grand Prix held at Spa to extend his championship lead.

VI.      Serena William won Cincinnati Masters Women single’s title for the second time: World no. 1 Serena defeated world no. 3 Simona Halep of Romania to achieve the feat.

VII.    Roger Federer won Cincinnati Masters Men single’s title for record seventh time: He defeated Novak Djokovic of Serbia to win the tournament.

VIII.   Usain Bolt of Jamaica won 100m title at 2015 World Championship of Athletics in Beijing.

IX.    Pro Kabaddi League 2015 Finals: U Mumba crowned champions after thrilling win over Bengaluru Bulls.

AWARDS:

  XI.    Syrian woman Journalist ZainaErhaim wins 2015 Peter Mackler Award: She has won the prestigious award for Courageous and Ethical Journalism.