Daily GK Updates - 30th August, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Hercules training centre at Hindon Air Force Station: Mahindra Defence Systems in association with Lockheed Martin has opened the C-130J Super Hercules simulator training center at Hindon Air Force station. It will train air crew who operate the C-130J special operations aircraft acquired from Lockheed Martin.

2. No interview in UP Government jobs for Group B, C, and D categories: Uttar Pradesh Govt has decided to end the process of holding interview for selection of candidates for the govt jobs in all the non-gazetted posts of Group B, C, and D categories. This new rule will not be binding on the ongoing recruitment for Class II officers.

3. GST collections cross Rs. 92000 crore mark: India’s maiden GST collections hit Rs 92,283 crore in July, surpassing the target. The tax mobilisation so far is from 64.4% of the 59.57 lakh taxpayers registered with the new Goods and Services Tax and the number is likely to go up.

4. Atal Pension Yojana surges ahead with 62 lakhs enrollments: Atal Pension Yojana has surged ahead with 62 lakh enrolments till date after launch of the scheme. Atal Pension Yojana is a government-backed pension scheme in India targeted at the unorganized sector. It was formally launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 9thMay, 2017.

5. PM inaugurates “hanging bridge” over the river Chambal: The bridge, 1.4 km in length, is constructed at a cost of Rs 278 crore at Kota. The bridge will benefit the residents of Hadouti region of Rajasthan. The much-awaited 'hanging bridge' will help ease traffic congestion in Kota city and reduce travel time, officials said.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Annual five-day Hajj pilgrimage begins today in Saudi Arabia: The Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims, and a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by all adult Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey and can support their family during their absence. It is one of the five pillars of Islam, alongside Shahadah, Salat, Zakat, and Sawm. Around one lakh 70 thousand pilgrims from India are performing Hajj this year.

2. BRICS Innovative Competitiveness Report 2017: According to the BRICS Innovative Competitiveness Report 2017 report, India’s innovation growth rate would see a significant rise and could surpass that of China in the next decade, China ranks first in terms of national comprehensive innovation competitiveness in 2016, followed by Russia, South Africa, Brazil, and India.

OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

1. YouTube changes its logo: Google-owned YouTube has refreshed its iconic logo, Unlike minor tweaks, this is the biggest change the YouTube logo has received over the years. The logo will now work better “across a variety of devices, even on smallest of screens”.

2. Uber to offer free insurance: Global ride-hailing firm Uber Technologies will give free insurance to its 450,000 driver partners in India. For this insurance programme Uber has tied up with ICICI Lombard, it will provide cover ranging from Rs. 5 lakhs in case of death to Rs. 50,000 rupees for outpatient treatment.

3. Paytm rebrands Postcard service: Paytm has rebranded its Postcard feature as Lifafa following its feud with India Post. This comes soon after India Post (government-operated postal system) sent a notice to Paytm that it had the sole right to use the word ‘postcard’ under the IPO Act. Lifafa is a digital version of gifting money on festive occasions.

BANKING & FINANCE:

4. RBI report says 99% of demonetized notes back: RBI has revealed in its annual report that Rs 15.28 lakh crore or 99% of the Rs 15.44-lakh-crore scrapped currency notes, had come back to central bank after the government called for demonetization. About 89 million units of the demonetized Rs 1,000 notes worth Rs 8,900 cr have not come back into the system.

5. CHOICE launches ‘PoS’ product: Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance Company (CHOICE) has come up with a ‘Point-of-Sale’ product targeted at the mass-market segment. The product  ‘PoS – Easy Bima Plan’ is the first PoS product for the company and is a pure term insurance plan.

6. Solar energy services company Freyr Energy ties up with Axis Bank: It will offer term loans for solar rooftop installations in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Axis Bank will offer term loans ranging from Rs. 5 lakh to Rs. 50 lakh for tenures up to five years.