Daily GK Updates - 29th January, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Vijay Keshav Gokhale takes charge as Foreign Secretary: Seasoned diplomat Vijay Keshav Gokhale (1981-batch Indian Foreign Service officer) took charge as the foreign secretary. He succeeded S Jaishankar. Currently, Mr. Gokhale is serving as the Secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs. He had played a key role in negotiations to resolve the Doklam standoff between Indian and Chinese armies last year. He has also served as India's top envoy to Germany and worked in Indian missions in Hong Kong, Hanoi and in New York.

2. There is not a single Aadhar data breach in 7 years: Ajay Bhushan Pandey, UIDAI CEO, said that there hasn’t been a single incident of Aadhar data breach or data theft in seven years, during a live Q&A session on Twitter. He also added that the best technologies from different companies have been used for data protection.

3. Beating Retreat ceremony held at Vijay Chowk, New Delhi: Today, Beating Retreat ceremony held at the historic Vijay Chowk (the victory square) in New Delhi. This year, 18 Military Bands, 15 Pipes and Drums Bands from Regimental Centres and Battalions are participating in the ceremony. The only western tune will be 'Abide by Me'. The 'Beating Retreat' ceremony is held here every year on 29th January, marking the culmination of the four-day-long Republic Day celebrations. The ceremony traces its origins to the early 1950s when Major Roberts of the Indian Army developed the unique ceremony of display by the massed bands.

4. Himachal CM launches 'Shakti' app for Women's Safety: The Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister ‘Jai Ram Thakur’ has launched the ‘Shakti’ app for women’s safety in the state. The app was developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) of the HP government, available in both Hindi & English languages with a panic button. The objective of the app to the helpline is to fight crimes against women in the state without internet connectivity. Mr. Thakur also launched the ‘GUDDIYA’ helpline number 1515 and the ‘Hoshiyar Singh’ helpline number 1090. The ‘Hoshiyar Singh’ helpline would be monitored by the CM’s office and the government would use information gathered on this helpline to come down heavily on the drug, forest and mining mafias.

5. AAI will invest Rs. 1,232 crore to construct new integrated international terminal in Guwahati: According to the Civil Aviation Minister P Ashok Gajapathy Raju, the Airports Authority of India will invest 1,232 crore rupees to construct a new integrated international terminal in Guwahati. The new terminal building is expected to be complete by 2021. The proposed new integrated terminal building will be spread across 90,000 square meters with world-class facilities and have the capacity to handle 3,100 passengers during peak hour.

6. Republic Day - Maharashtra tableau wins 1st prize: According to the Ministry of Defence, the tableau on the coronation ceremony of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (presented by Maharashtra) has been awarded the first prize at the Republic Day parade this year in New Delhi. The tableau was created by well-known art director Nitin Desai and his team. The coronation ceremony was enacted on the tableau by 10 artists. The state also emerged the winner in the cultural category and the inter-state dance competition held as part of the parade. This year, 100-odd government agencies took part in the Republic Day parade preparations that will see the presence of 10 heads of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders. The theme of the tableau was ‘Khelo India’.

7. Finland's President Sauli Niinisto declares his re-election for new six-year term: Finland's moderate President Sauli Niinisto has declared his re-election for a new six-year term after securing a comfortable lead in the early results from the recent election. With about 86% of votes counted, Niinisto had won 62.1%, compared with 13.1% for closest rival Pekka Haavisto.

8. An Informal WTO Ministerial Gathering would be held in New Delhi: India announced that it will host an informal WTO Ministerial Gathering in March 2018. The meeting would be held in New Delhi on March 19-20. Trade ministers from various countries like Japan, Australia and Switzerland met for an Informal WTO ministerial gathering in Davos, Switzerland.

9. Usha Ananthasubramanian becomes 1st Woman IBA Chief: MD & CEO of Allahabad Bank ‘Usha Ananthasubramanian’ has been elected as the chairman (first woman) of Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) for the year 2017-18 by its Managing Committee. Chairman of State Bank of India Rajnish Kumar has been elected Deputy Chairman of IBA. IBA Chairman’s position fell vacant following the superannuation of Jatinder Bir Singh.

10. Proud moment as Kumbh Mela is given UNESCO Culture Heritage tag: President Ram Nath Kovind said that Kumbh Mela being recognized by UNESCO as the ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’ is a matter of pride for India. UNESCO also designated Ahmedabad as ‘Heritage City’ and Chennai was included in the list of ‘Creative Cities’ by UNESCO.

11. Foreign operators are showing interest in 49% Air India stake - Civil Aviation Minister: Gajapathi Raju, Civil Aviation Minister, said that a foreign operator has shown interest in buying 49% stake in Air India. Recently, the government allowed 49% FDI in Air India with prior government approval.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Trump says he would be tougher in Brexit talks than Theresa May: Criticising UK PM Theresa May regarding negotiating Brexit with the EU, Donald Trump said that he would take a “tougher” approach to the talks. He also said that EU is going to be a big upset.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Roger Federer won in men’s single in Australian Open 2018: Roger Federer won in the men’s single while Caroline Wozniacki won in the women’s single in Australian Open 2018. Caroline Wozniacki became the first Danish player to win a Grand Slam singles title.

2. Pakistan becomes world number 1 in T20I side: After beating New Zealand in the third and final T20I, Pakistan became top-ranked T20 side in international cricket. New Zealand is on second position while India is on the third.

3. Tai Tzu Ying Of Taiwan wins Indonesian Masters: Taiwan’s Tai Tzu Ying (world no.1) has defeated Saina Nehwal (India) in the finals of the Indonesia Masters in Jakarta. Tai Tzu Ying defeated Saina Nehwal 9-21, 13-21. Now, Tai Tzu has defeated Saina Nehwal nine times in their last 10 meetings.

4. Leander Paes wins his 25th ATP Challenger level doubles title: Indo-American pair tennis star Leander Paes (India) and James Cerretani have won his 25th ATP Challenger level doubles title. They defeated the duo of Denis Kudla and Treat Huey in straight sets 6-4, 7-5 in the 150,000 US Dollar hardcourt tournament.

5. India win the third Test Cricket against South Africa by 63 runs: India has won the third and final cricket Test against South Africa by 63 runs after bundling out the hosts for 177 in their second innings at Johannesburg. Chasing 241, South Africa were placed comfortably at 124 for two at one stage but their innings folded for 177 following a dramatic collapse. South Africa won the 3-match series 2-1.

6. Virat Kohli moved past Brian Lara in all-time Test rating points list: With 912 points, Virat Kohli moved from 31st position to 26th position surpassing Brian Lara, Kevin Pietersen, Hashim Amla and Michael Clarke. Don Bradman is on top of the list with 961 points while Steve Smith is second with 947 points.

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. There is 50% increase in indirect tax payers post GST: According to preliminary analysis quoted by the Economic Survey 2017-18, there has been a 50% increase in the number of indirect taxpayers after the introduction of GST. The survey further revealed that Maharashtra, UP, TN and Gujarat are the sates with the most GST registrants.

2. India’s GDP growth to be 7-7.5% in 2018-19:  Economic Survey 2017-18, tabled by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in the Parliament, predicts India’s GDP growth at 7-7.5% in 2018-19. The survey added that retail inflation during 2017-18 averaged to the lowest in the last 6 years at 3.3%.

3. Intel warned Chinese firms about security flaws within its processor chips: The Wall Street Journal reported that Intel warned some customers, including several Chinese firms about security flaws within its processor chips before informing the US government.  An Intel spokesperson said the company wasn’t able to tell everyone because the news was made public earlier than expected.

BANKING/FINANCE:

1. Stressed loans of India declined for the first time since 2015:  At the end of September quarter last year, India’s banks’ stressed loans declined for the first time since 2015. Stressed loans shrink from record peak to Rs. 9.46 lakh crore. Stressed loans represent 12.2% of the total loans.

AWARDS/HONOURS:

1. ‘24K Magic’, Bruno Mars’ album - the winner of 7 Grammy awards: The album ‘24K Magic’ by Bruno Mars won seven awards including the Album of the Year and Best R&B Album at the 60th Grammy Awards this year. His single ‘That’s What I Like’ was named Song of the Year.