Daily GK Updates - 25th November, 2017

­NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Home Ministry conducts Multi-State Mega Mock Tsunami Exercise 2017: The Ministry of Home Affairs conducts a multi-State mega mock exercise on tsunami preparedness. The Ministry with the help of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services will conduct the exercise simultaneously in 31 coastal districts across four States (West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) and Union Territory (UT) Puducherry along with the entire East Coast.

2. President Kovind inaugurates International Gita Mahotsav at Kurukshetra: President Shri Ram Nath Kovind has inaugurated the International Gita Mahotsav at Kurukshetra in Haryana. The Mahotsav have various events including Gita Yagya, Gita path, an international seminar on Shri Mad Bhagwad Gita Sant Sammelan etc. Mauritius is participating in Mahotsav as partner country and Uttar Pradesh as partner state.

3. Indian Railways installs Asia’s largest interlocking system: Indian Railways has installed Asia’s largest Solid State Interlocking system in Kharagpur, which will enable station masters to set 800 different routes for trains in a matter of minutes. nterlocking is a railway signal apparatus that prevents conflicting movements of trains. The cutting-edge technology replaces the pre-1989 route relay system that only allowed operators to set 423 routes.

4. Bamboo not to be a ‘Tree’ anymore: President Ram Nath Kovind has promulgated an ordinance under Article 123 of Constitute to amend Indian Forest Act, 1927 to encourage bamboo plantation. The amendment to Section 2(7) of Indian Forest Act, 1927 will encourage bamboo plantation by farmers, which will contribute to doubling farmers’ income by 2022. India is the 2nd largest producer of bamboo after China.

5. DANX-2017 concluded: The Defence of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Exercise was conducted under the aegis of Andaman & Nicobar Command from 20-24 November. The main objective of the exercise was to practice & validate procedures and drills of all the Command forces aimed at defending Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The exercise is critical against the increased Chinese footprint in Indian Ocean Region.

6. New species of Gecko found: A new species of gecko was found in the Eastern Ghats in northern Andhra Pradesh. Named after eminent herpetologist Sushil Kumar Dutta from Odisha, Hemidactylus Sushilduttai or Dutta’s Mahendragiri gecko is the 32nd species of house geckos in India.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (IDEVAW): The International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (IDEVAW) is observed every year on November 25 is to raise public awareness on issues of violence against women and girls, including how men and boys can play a more active role in eliminating this violence. The theme of the campaign for 2017 is “Leave no one behind: end violence against women and girls.” This theme reinforces the UNiTE Campaign’s commitment to a world free from violence for all women and girls around the world.

2. 2018 as International Year of Millets: India has sent a proposal to the United Nations for declaring the year 2018 as ‘International Year of Millets’. The proposal, if agreed, will raise awareness about millets among consumers, policymakers, industry and R&D sector. Millet is a common term to categorize small-seeded grasses that are often termed nutri-cereals or dryland-cereals.

OTHER UPDATES

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. FDI up 17 pc to USD 25.35 bn during April-Sept this fiscal: Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country increased by 17% to USD 25.35 billion during April-September fiscal.  The bulk of the FDI came in from Singapore, Mauritius, the Netherlands, and Japan.

2. Jindal Global University ranked highest: O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) has been ranked among the Top 10 Private education Institutions in India in ‘QS University Rankings: BRICS 2018’. JGU became the YOUNGEST Indian University and also the FIRST and ONLY private university in Haryana to have been ranked in an international ranking.

3. Tamilnadu has the highest number of women entrepreneurs: As per a report by ‘Sheatwork’, a knowledge hub for women entrepreneurs, among all Indian States, Tamil Nadu has the highest number of women entrepreneurs followed by Kerala & West Bengal. Nearly 80% of women entrepreneurs in India are self-financing their businesses. Maximum number of women entrepreneurs have set up their businesses in education sector.

4. Film ‘Newton’ wins award: Actor Rajkummar Rao was adjudged the best actor at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards for his performance in Newton, which also won the best screenplay award. Newton was produced by Drishyam Films and directed by Amit V. Masurkar.

BANKING/FINANCE:

1. RBI relaxes 26% debt-equity conversion: The Reserve Bank has issued a notification which relaxed norms capping asset reconstruction companies shareholdings at 26% in the borrower firm under reconstruction. However, this relaxation is subject to the condition that the net-owned funds are maintained at Rs 100 crore on an ongoing basis. RBI has asked the boards of ARCs to frame a policy for converting debt into equity.

SPORTS:

1. Ritu Phogat clinches silver medal in Under-23 Senior World Wrestling Championship: Ritu Phogat has clinched the silver medal in Under-23 Senior World Wrestling Championship at Poland. She lost against wrestler Demirhan in the gold medal bout of women's 48-kilogram category.