Daily GK Updates - 15th January, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 69th Army Day being observed on 15th January 2017: 69th Army Day is being observed today (15th January 2017). The day marks the taking over of the Indian Army by the first Indian Commander-in-Chief, Field Marshal KM Cariappa, on January 15, 1948. He took over the reins of the Army from Lieutenant General Sir Francis Butcher, the last British Commander-in-Chief and became the first Commander-in-Chief of the independent India. 

2. Digital Dakiya scheme inaugurated in MP to encourage cashless transactions: In Madhya Pradesh Indore district witnessed inauguration of first of its kind scheme of the country. Digital Dakiya, which aims at encouraging cashless transactions. "Digital Dakiya or Digital Postman will visit different places to teach and encourage people about cashless transactions and its benefits. 

3.Two-day camel festival begins in Bikaner: The two-day annual camel festival has began with much fanfare in the presence of foreigners and domestic tourists. District Collector VedPrakash flagged off a procession from Junagarh which culminated at Karni Singh Stadium here in Bikaner, Rajasthan. It was followed by fun activities including camel safaris.

4. Rabi crops sowing crosses 616 lakh hactare:Rabi crops have been sown in around six crore 16 lakh hectares till date which is about 35 lakh hectares more than last year. Data released by the Agriculture Ministry, wheat has been sown in around three crore nine lakh hectare which is about 20 lakh hectare more than last year.

5. SEBI cuts broker fees by 25 pc to Rs 15 per transaction: Securities and Exchange Board of India, SEBI, has decided to lower broker fees by 25 per cent to 15 rupees per transaction of one crore rupees as part of calibration of various other fees collected by the regulator from different market intermediaries. The move is likely to reduce overall cost of transactions. 

6. Rajeev Singh to take charge as interim CEO of PrasarBharti: Rajeev Singh, Member (Finance) in PrasarBharati Board, will take charge as interim CEO of the public broadcaster after S C Panda retires in February.

7. NPCI declares Rs. 54.90 cr prize money for NITI Aayog’s lucky draw schemes: National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation for all retail payment systems in the country has declared Rs. 54.90 crore worth of prize money to over 3.42 lakh winners of NITI Aayog’s Lucky Draw Schemes for consumers and merchants.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. SpaceX resumes flights; launches Falcon 9 vehicle on California coast: A The American SpaceX Rocket Company has resumed flights, launching a Falcon 9 vehicle from the Vandenberg Air Force Base on the California coast. It is the first mission by the company since one of its vehicles exploded on the launch pad in September 2016. The return to operations sees SpaceX start to renew what was the original global handheld satellite phone network, run by Iridium. Lift-off took place at 9:54 AM local time.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1.Gujarat wins First Ranji Trophy title beating Mumbai by five wickets: Gujarat won their first ever Ranji Trophy title beating Mumbai by five wickets in the final at the Holkar stadium in Indore. Parthiv Patel’s 143 and MunpritJuneja’s 54 runs helped Gujrat to chase down the highest successful chase in the final at the historic Holkar stadium. 

2. Glam, glitter and glory mark 14th Mumbai Marathon: Tanzanian athlete Alphonce Felix Simbu (24) and Kenyan runner BornesKiturChepkirui (31), flew past all competition to bag the top spots in the men's and women's category respectively in the full marathon at the 14th Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM) in Mumbai on 15th January 2017.

AWARDS:

3. Filmfare Awards 2017: Dangal, Aamir Khan, Alia Bhatt Bag Top Honour This Year: At the glittering Filmfare awards last night (14th January 2017 night), "Dangal" swept away three of four major awards --  Best Film, Aamir Khan won Best Actor and NiteshTiwari won Best Director award while Alia Bhatt won the Filmfare Best Actor Award (Female) for her performance in "Udta Punjab".

4. 62nd Filmfare Awards 2017: ShatrughanSinha honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award

OBITUARIES:

5. Former Punjab Chief Minister Surjit Singh Barnala passes away, aged 91