Daily GK Updates - 11th March, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Union Government makes passport mandatory for bank loans of Rs. 50 crore and above: The government has made providing passport details mandatory for taking loans of 50 crore rupees and above to ensure a swift action in case of fraud and prevent fraudsters from fleeing the country. The Passport details will help banks to take timely action and inform the relevant authorities to prevent fraudsters from fleeing the country.  Last week, the Cabinet has approved the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill to impound and sell assets of escapees with a view to quickly recover dues.  The proposed law will also apply to defaulters who have an outstanding of Rs 100 crore or more and have escaped from the country.  Several big defaulters like Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi, Vijay Mallya and Jatin Mehta have fled the country putting the recovery mechanism in quandary.

2. GST e-way bill must from April 1: Goods and Services Tax Council has mandated the use of electronic way (e-way) bills from April to track inter-state movement of goods. From April 1, transporters of goods worth over Rs 50,000 will have to generate e-way bills. For intra-State movement, the e-way bill will be rolled out in a phased manner beginning April 15, and will cover all the States by June 1.

3. Telangana launches India’s first state-led incubator for women:The government of Telangana launched Women Entrepreneurship Hub (WE-Hub), India's first state-led incubator for women entrepreneurs. The incubator will help women entrepreneurs establish their own enterprises by providing services including seed funding, mentoring, and business guidance. Deepthi Ravula is heading the incubator as its Chief Executive Officer.

4. Amol Palekar receives ‘Godavari Gaurav’ award: Noted actor Amol Palekar has been honoured with the ‘Godavari Gaurav’ award. Palekar known for his performance in films like Gol Maal, Choti Si Baat, Chitchor among others, was presented with the award, which has been instituted by ‘Kusumagraj Prathishthan’. The award was given by noted Marathi writer Madhu Mangesh Karnik, who is the chairperson of the Prathishthan.

5. Delhi and Mumbai Airport win top awards: Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) and Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) have beaten 1,952 other airports from 176 countries to tie at number one for world’s best airports, as per Airports Council International (ACI) ASQ 2017 rankings. The Airport Service Quality Awards 2017 was announced by the Airports Council International (ACI), which conferred the ranking on the basis of a worldwide programme in which passengers were surveyed across airports for their feedback on 34 key performance indicators.

6. Wings India 2018 inaugurated: Telangana IT and Industries Minister K T Rama Rao inaugurated the biennial event on Civil Aviation and Aerospace titled 'Wings India 2018' at the Begumpet Airport. The four-day event was Jointly organized by the Civil Aviation Ministry, Airports Authority of India and the Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

7. Karnataka becomes second state to unveil its own State flag: The Karnataka government unveiled the State flag (nada dhwaja ) for the state. If approved by the Centre, Karnataka will be the second State to have a flag after Jammu and Kashmir. The yellow-white-red flag has the State emblem at the center. The proposal will be now sent to the Union Home Ministry for approval since a State has no powers to announce its own flag. 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. Xi Jinping to become China’s leader-for-life: China’s President Xi Jinping is all set to become China’s leader-for-life as the country’s parliament prepares to amend Constitution to remove 2 term limit for the president. He is currently in his 2nd five-year term & due to retire in 2023 under the current 2 term system. Xi is regarded as the most powerful leader of China after Mao as he held the posts of head of CPC, military & Presidency.

2. ISA, AfDB, ADB, AIIB, NDB and GCF sign Joint Financial Partnership Declaration: The International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the Green climate fund (GCF), and the New Development Bank (NDB) signed Joint Financial partnership Declarations in New Delhi. The International Energy Agency (IEA) also signed a Joint partnership Declaration with the ISA. The objective of the agreements is to deepen their cooperation in support of Renewable Energy. ISA is working for deployment of over 1000 GW of solar energy and mobilizing more than US$ 1000 billion into solar energy by the year 2030.

OTHER UPDATES

DEFENCE:

1. Multi-nation naval exercise ‘MILES-18’ held: The first-ever multi-nation naval exercise at sea, MILES-18, has begun at the Andaman sea. The exercise aims to hone search and rescue procedures, maritime interdiction operations, core operational skills and exercise a variety of maritime security scenarios. 11 naval ships of 8 countries and nine Indian ships will be participating in this three-day exercise.

2. Multilateral Air Force exercise ‘Samvedna’: A Multilateral Air Force exercise, ‘Samvedna’, will be held from March 12 to 17, 2018. The exercise is spearheaded by Indian Air Force and will be conducted by Southern Air Command. It is the first composite HADR Air exercise in the South Asian region. Air Forces of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, UAE and Myanmar have already committed resources and personnel for the exercise.

3. CISF to offer consultancy to 5-star hotels: CISF has decided to offer security consultancy to 5-star hotels so that they can be prepared to deal with 26/11 type terror attacks. Central paramilitary force which is celebrating its 49th raising day has already prepared a blueprint in this regard. It soon plans to write to hotels proposing to render services of its special unit and experts and provide specific consultancy on security issues.

BUSINESS / ECONOMY:

1. Fastest growing IT services brand in 2018: Tata Consultancy Services has been named as the fastest growing IT services brand in the world in an assessment done by leading brand valuation firm, Brand Finance. According to the report, TCS has a total brand value of USD 10.391 billion. Over past 2 years, TCS has strengthened its portfolio of global brand sponsorships by forging new partnerships in UK, Sweden, India, Japan & Australia.

2. PayTM money receives approval of SEBI: Financial services platform Paytm announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Paytm Money, received approval of market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to become a registered investment advisor. The nod from Sebi will allow the company to roll out investment and wealth management products to consumers across the country.

SPORTS:

1. Australia lifted Sultan Azlan Shah Cup: World champions Australia has lifted the coveted Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey title by outplaying England 2-1 in the finals. Australia has now won the prestigious tournament for the 10th time. England had to settle with the silver medal while Argentina claimed the bronze medal. India finished a disappointed fifth in the six-nation tournament.

2. Akhil Sheoran won gold in shooting: Akhil Sheoran clinched the gold medal in men’s 50m rifle 3-position after he shot 455.6 in the final to pip Austria’s Bernhard Pickl in second place with 452. Sheoran, thus, became the fourth young Indian shooter to win a medal on ISSF World Cup debut. This was India’s fourth gold medal at this World Cup and they sit at the top of the medals with a total of nine medals.