Daily GK Updates - 26th October, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Tech, tariff concerns weigh on Jaitapur N-plant deal: Technological and financial concerns as well as differences over taking responsibility for the construction of the proposed 10,000-mw nuclear power plant at Jaitapur in Maharashtra are weighing down efforts to fast-track the general framework agreement ahead of French president Emmanuel Macron's visit in December.  Macron will be in Delhi on December 8 for a three-day visit, primarily to adopt the legal framework for International Solar Alliance, an international band of sunshine countries to promote solar energy. Efforts are on to get the deal with EDF, French state-controlled company that is Europe's largest operator of nuclear power plants, in the bag for Macron to carry back home.

2. 1.5 lakh children to participate in International Children Film Festival: As many as 295 films from 93 countries will be screened during the 'The Golden Elephant 2017' - the 20th International Children Film Festival India from November 8-14 in the city.  The film festival is being organized by the Children's Film Society India in association with the Telangana state government. The films were selected from a total of 1,408 entries received from 108 countries.  While the main festival venue is Prasads imax where movies will be screened for delegates from across the globe, the inauguration will take place at the Shilpa Kala Vedika, Madhapur. The closing ceremony will also be at the same place. 291 child delegates from across the world will participate in the film festival.

3. Major fire outside Bandra station in Mumbai, harbour line now working: Western Railway denies any impact on services due to fire incident near Behrampada adjacent to Bandra station in Mumbai. A major fire broke out at Behrampada adjacent to suburban Bandra station in Mumbai this afternoon, forcing the railway authorities to halt train services on the harbour line, a senior railway official said.  “All lines at Bandra working including Harbour lines. No effect on Railway lines & trains,” ANI quoted the Western Railway PRO as saying.

4. Drug-resistant tuberculosis cases on rise in India: A study found over 40% of 45,076 patients, in 75 selected studies for review, suspected for resistance to any first-line anti-TB drugs, tested positive in the last 20 years. India has witnessed an alarming increase in Drug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis (DR-TB) in the past two decades, a study published in Bio-Med Central (BMC) Public Health journal revealed. The study found that over 40% of 45,076 patients, in 75 selected studies for review, suspected for resistance to any first-line anti-TB drugs, tested positive in the last 20 years. Comparative analysis of the studies revealed a worsening trend in DR-TB between the two study decades. It was found to be 37.7% between 1995 and 2005 and 46.1% between 2006 and 2015. A systematic review of published studies reporting prevalence of DR-TB from biomedical databases (PubMed and IndMed) was conducted.

5. 2.5 million died due to pollution in India in 2015, says Lancet study: Report published in The Lancet journal said in 2015, pollution was the reason behind nine million deaths worldwide—or about one in six. Even as national capital Delhi reels under heightened air pollution levels following Diwali celebrations, a report has said that pollution led to 2.5 million deaths in India in 2015 –the highest in the world. India was closely followed by China, which saw 1.8 million deaths due to pollution during the year. The report, published in The Lancet journal, said that in 2015, pollution was the reason behind nine million deaths worldwide—or about one in six.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Inferno at Indonesia fireworks factory kills 47:  A fire broke out at a fireworks factory next to a residential area in Tangerang, on the outskirts of Jakarta. 47 people have been killed in the fire. Police say the toll could rise further.

2. Rohingya crisis: Rex Tillerson calls Myanmar army chief, urges him to end violence in Rakhine state: US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has urged Myanmar's army chief to help end the violence in Rakhine state that has forced hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to flee. In a phone call with Min Aung Hlaing yesterday, Tillerson expressed "concern about the continuing humanitarian crisis and reported atrocities in Rakhine", according to a statement by State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. India thrash USA 22-0 in Sultan of Johor Cup 2017: For India three players - Vishal Antil, Dilpreet Singh, Harmanjit Singh and Abhishek - scored a hat-trick each. Harmanjit top-scored for India with five goals. There were 10 different goalscorers from India.

BANKING/ FINANCE:

1. PNB Housing board approves $1 billion masala bond issuance: PNB Housing Finance board also approves the issuance of secured and unsecured non-convertible debentures aggregating up to an amount of Rs6,000 crore in tranches. PNB Housing Finance Ltd, a housing finance company sponsored by state-owned lender Punjab National Bank and backed by private equity investor Carlyle Group, Thursday said its board has approved raising up to $1 billion by selling masala bonds. Masala bonds are rupee-denominated bonds sold in offshore capital markets. PNB Housing Finance board also approved the issuance of secured and unsecured non-convertible debentures aggregating up to an amount of Rs6,000 crore in tranches. World Bank arm International Finance Corp. (IFC) was the first to issue masala bonds in November 2014. It raised Rs1,000 crore to fund Indian infrastructure projects.

2. Rs2.11 trillion bank recapitalisation plan sufficient to tackle NPAs: SBI report: After provisioning for bad loans, SBI believes there may still be around Rs1 trillion in the bank recapitalisation outlay available for handing out loans. The government’s Rs2.11 trillion bank recapitalisation plan is sufficient to tackle the bad loan problem and will also give a push to economic growth, says an SBI research report.Finance minister Arun Jaitley unveiled the Rs2.11 trillion bank recapitalisation plan, which includes issue of recapitalisation bonds worth Rs1.35 trillion while the rest will be raised through budgetary allowances and fundraising by the banks from the capital markets.

SCIENCE/TECHNOLOGY:

1. First Jurassic-era ‘fish lizard’ fossil found in India: Scientists say the Jurassic-era ichthyosaur or ‘fish lizard’ fossil — nearly 5.5 metre long and rare in Southern Hemisphere— was discovered from Kachchh area in Gujarat. In a first, a near- complete fossilised skeleton of a Jurassic ichthyosaur — large marine reptile which lived alongside dinosaurs — has been discovered in India, scientists said. Fossil records of ichthyosaurs, which means ‘fish lizards’ in Greek, have been found in North American and Europe previously. However, in the Southern Hemisphere, they have mostly been limited to South America and Australia.  Researchers including those from the University of Delhi and University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU) in Germany have found what they believe to be the first Jurassic ichthyosaur in India, from the Kachchh area in Gujarat.

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. Sensex, Nifty close record high; metal, oil and gas stocks rally: BSE Sensex closed higher by 104.63 points to 33,147.13, while the Nifty 50 rose 48.45 points to close at 10,343.80. Here are the latest updates from the markets. Sensex and Nifty extended their record-setting run for the second session and ended at fresh lifetime highs on Thursday on short-covering following derivatives expiry amid optimism over earnings. The BSE Sensex gained 104.63 points to end at 33,147.13, while the broader Nifty rose 48.45 points to finish at 10,343.80. Both the key indices had climbed to lifetime highs yesterday as well, buoyed by the government’s massive Rs9 trillion package to boost the economy.

2. Albert Einstein’s theory of happiness fetches $1.3 million : Albert Einstein’s musings, handwritten on a note and given as tips to a bellboy in a Tokyo hotel, shed light on one of the great modern minds. While Albert Einstein’s theory of happiness may be relative, it fetched $1.3 million at a Jerusalem auction on Tuesday. The Nobel-winning scientist’s musings, handwritten on a note, may not be as famous as his groundbreaking theory of relativity, but they still shed light on one of the great modern minds. Winner’s Auctions and Exhibitions said Einstein was travelling in Japan in 1922 when he was told he would be awarded the Nobel Prize in physics. In Tokyo, Einstein scribbled the note in German to a bellboy after he did not have cash to give him a tip.

3. SpaceX, Google top list of companies techies want to work for: SpaceX, Google, Shopify and Tesla are the most appealing companies for technology workers, according to a survey by online jobs marketplace Hired. Space Exploration Technologies Corp., Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Shopify Inc. and Tesla Inc. are the most appealing companies for technology workers, according to a survey by online jobs marketplace Hired. While big tech names topped the list, geographical breakdowns showed more diversity. Startups like SendGrid Inc., which does marketing email, had the highest ranking in Denver, while financial services like Capital One Financial Corp. topped scores in Washington. Online real estate database Redfin Corp., which went public this year, topped the list in Seattle. Notable companies excluded from the global top-ten were Amazon.com Inc., Uber Technologies Inc., and Airbnb Inc. Amazon did come in No. 3 in hometown Seattle, however, just ahead of Microsoft Corp.

4. Vodafone launches ‘SuperWeek plan’ with unlimited calls, 500 MB data at Rs69: Vodafone says the ‘SuperWeek plan’ will enable customers to make ‘unlimited local and STD calls to any network bundled with 500 MB data at just Rs69 for a week’. India’s second-largest telecom operator Vodafone on Thursday announced a short-duration plan that offers unlimited calling and 500 MB data at about Rs69 with 7 days of validity. The move comes at a time when the Indian telecom market — the second-largest in the world after China — is witnessing an intensifying competition among telecom operators which are trying to outdo each other with newer packs and attractive bundled offers to woo consumers. Vodafone, in a statement, said its ‘SuperWeek plan’ will enable customers to make “unlimited local and STD calls to any network bundled with 500 MB data at just Rs69 for a week”.

5. GST unleashed tsunami of tax terror, says Rahul Gandhi: Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government of ‘killing’ the economy by firing the ‘double tap’ of demonetisation and GST into its heart. Launching a fresh salvo at the ruling BJP, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government of “killing” the economy by firing the “double tap” of demonetisation and GST into its heart.