Daily GK Updates - 9th March, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. President gives Nari Shakti Puraskar: On the occasion of International Women’s Day, President Ram Nath Kovind conferred Nari Shakti Puraskars to 30 eminent women and  9 distinguished Institutions in recognition of their service towards society and women’s empowerment. Women and Organisations from fields of science, sport, art, etc have been awarded. The awardees were finalised by the Ministry of Woman and Child Development.

2. Prakriti to be 1st ITBP Woman Combat Officer: Prakriti has been inducted as the first direct-entry combat officer in the border guarding force, ITBP. She has a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and is right now based in an ITBP unit in Uttarakhand’s Pithoragarh. The ITBP is the last of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) to induct women officers in combat roles after the government first allowed it to enroll them in 2016.

3. Women Transforming India Awards 2018: The nominations for the Women Transforming India Awards were opened during the launch of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) at NITI Aayog. The theme of the Awards for the year 2018 is ‘Women and Entrepreneurship’. NITI’s flagship event, which it has organised in partnership with United Nations, will also have the collaboration of DICE Districts.

4. Diu becomes the first UT to run 100% on solar power: Diu has become the first and only Union Territory to be fully solar energy efficient. Diu has made expeditious progress in the field of solar power generation as it has become the first UT in the country where more than 100% of the energy requirement is met by solar power. Diu generates a total of 13 megawatts of electricity from solar power generating facilities daily.

5. Passive euthanasia gets legal sanction: The Supreme Court of India allowed passive euthanasia after citing that persons have right to die with dignity. The SC also allowed an individual to draft a living will specifying that they not be put on life support if they slip into an incurable coma in the future. In a ‘living will’, a person can make a statement in advance that their life should not be prolonged by putting ventilator.

6. Government launches ‘SUVIDHA’: The government announced the launch of ‘Suvidha’, the 100% Oxo-biodegradable Sanitary Napkin, under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP). SUVIDHA napkins would be physically available at all Janaushadhi Kendras in the country by May 28, 2018 – World Menstrual Hygiene Day. It would ensure ‘Swachhta, Swasthya and Suvidha’ for the underprivileged Women of India.

7. ‘WINGS INDIA 2018’ Event: The four-day biennial event ‘WINGS INDIA 2018′, jointly organized by Ministry of Civil Aviation and Airport Authority of India and FICCI took off in Hyderabad. WINGS INDIA 2018 is a platform for interactions, forging alliances, investments and air connectivity between the States and the global aviation players & stakeholders. The theme of the event is ‘India-Global Aviation Hub’.

8. Mumbai gets 47th rank in wealth index and 16th amongst the costliest global cities: Mumbai ranks 47 on the “city wealth index” of 314 global cities in the Knight Frank Wealth Report 2018. The “city wealth index” is drawn from four major indicators — wealth, investments, lifestyle and future. Mumbai ranked 16th among the top 20 costliest global cities.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. EIB to invest in clean energy projects in India: European Investment Bank (EIB) will be signing a new loan for large and small clean energy projects all over India. The EIB is the world’s biggest financier of climate action and clean energy projects. In 2017 the EIB invested EUR 19.6bn in climate action projects. The EIB signed a partnership with the International Solar Alliance aimed at supporting the initiative.

2. Hinglish to be taught in UK: UK's Portsmouth College has offered to teach its students 'Hinglish', a mix of Hindi and English languages, becoming the country's first educational institution to do so. The course is being introduced partly due to India's growing economic importance and to prepare British students who may take up jobs in India or in Indian companies based in the UK.

OTHER UPDATES

SCIENCE / TECHNOLOGY:

1. Planctopirus hydrilla, new antibiotic, discovered by scientists: A novel species of a bacterium that produces antibiotic has been discovered by a professor at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) and his researchers. The newly discovered bacterium, Planctopirus hydrilla, may provide a solution to the problem of diseases becoming resistant to a majority of known drugs. The new bacteria would also clean up ammonia waste, a growing environmental concern.

SPORTS:

1. Dharun breaks national record in hurdles: Ayyasamy Dharun broke the men’s 400m hurdles national record and in the process grabbed a Commonwealth Games ticket on the concluding day of the 22nd Federation Cup National Senior Championships. Dharun erased Joseph G Abraham’s over 10-year-old earlier national record of 49.94 made in August 2007 in Osaka.

2. Commonwealth Point of Light award: Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II recognised Srishti Bakshi from India as the 26th  Commonwealth Point of Light in honour of her exceptional service to empowering women in India. Srishti is the founder of the CrossBow Miles movement. Srishti leads workshops for women in rural communities on digital and financial literacy, leadership and health.

3. Virat Kohli named first Brand Ambassador for Uber India: Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli has been named cab-hailing startup Uber’s first Brand Ambassador in India. Kohli will also be involved in a series of marketing and customer experience initiatives.

4. ISSF World Cup 2018- Anjum Moudgil Wins Silver: Indian shooter Anjum Moudgil clinched a silver medal in the women’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions event at the ongoing ISSF World Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico. It was Anjum’s first World Cup medal. Former junior world champion China’s Ruijiao Pei won the Gold Medal in that event. India thus remained on top of the medals tally with eight medals, while China is in second with two gold, two silver, one bronze.