Daily GK Updates - 22nd April, 2018

                 NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Punjab govt to set up ‘book banks’ : The Punjab government has decided to set up ‘book banks’ in different schools so that needy students do not have to buy books at the start of every academic year and also to prevent “wastage of paper”.The students would be asked to submit their old books which would be provided to needy children free of charge.It is a voluntary initiative and is not binding on any student.

2. Aamir Khan, Kapil Dev to get Award : Aamir Khan and Kapil Dev will receive the 75th Master Dinanath Mangeshkar Awards, at a ceremony on April 24.Khan will be honoured with the Vishesh Puraskar for Best Film ‘Dangal’, while Dev for his outstanding contribution to Indian Cricket.The event will be organised by Master Dinanath Smruti Pratishthan and Hridayesh Arts.

3. First-ever Indian Filmmaker in Madame Tussauds Collection : Karan Johar has become the first-ever Bollywood filmmaker to get a place at the famous Madame Tussauds. The process has begun in London and it will take about six months for the wax figurine to be ready. 

                                               INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Earth Day 2017: Earth Day is an annual :event celebrated on April 22. Worldwide, various events are held to demonstrate support for environmental protection.First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day events in more than 193 countries are now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network.Numerous communities celebrate Earth Week focussing on environmental issues. The 2018 campaign theme ‘End Plastic Pollution’ will provide the information and inspiration needed to fundamentally change human attitude and behavior about plastics.

2. Brahmos supersonic missile test fired: The Indian Navy successfully tested the supersonic BrahMos land-attack cruise missile from stealth frigate, Teg in the Bay of Bengal.The missile, which last month was tested with an extended range of 450-km from the earlier 290-km.The name BrahMos is a portmanteau formed from the names of two rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and the Moskva of Russia.

3. ISRO to launch South Asia Satellite: India plans to launch on May 5 the ‘South Asia Satellite’ that will benefit all the countries in the region, except Pakistan which is not a part of the project.It will be launched from Sriharikota.Sources said the satellite is designed for a mission life of more than 12 years.Each country would be responsible for content generation and its use.

4. NSCI Safety Awards – 2016: Minister of State (IC) for Labour & Employment Bandaru Dattatreya awarded NSCI Safety Awards 2016 to 70 Organisations at a function held in New Delhi.The Government framed the National Policy on Occupational Safety, Health and Environment in 2009.National Safety Council is a self-supporting non- profit autonomous society coming under the purview of Ministry of Labour and Employment

5. First India-Indonesia Energy Forum held:  The 1st India Indonesia Energy Forum was held in Jakarta, Indonesia.The Energy Forum was preceded by 2nd Joint Working Group (JWG) on Oil and Gas, 4th Joint Working Group on Coal and 1st Joint Working Group on New and Renewable Energy.India is third largest importer of coal from Indonesia. India’s imports of coal from Indonesia amounted to $3.5 billion in 2016.

                                      OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. Fino Paytech to digitalise rural banks : Fino Paytech will help NABARD to help the rural bank digitization drive in the states of Haryana, MP, Bihar, Gujarat and Maharashtra.It will provide over 5000 Aadhaar enabled micro ATMs financial inclusion gateway services to district central cooperative banks and Primary Agricultural Credit Societies across these states.NABARD deals with services related to agriculture.

2. Loan for India’s 1st waterway project: The World Bank has approved a loan of $375 million for the ambitious inland waterways project between Haldia in West Bengal and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.The 1390 km waterway project of the shipping ministry would enable commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1500-2000 deadweight tonnage (DWT).It was declared as a waterway in October 1986.

SPORTS:

1. The 2018 Indian Super Cup Football tournament : Bengaluru FC has won the first edition of Indian Super Cup Football tournament on April 20, 2018. In the final at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, they defeated Kolkata football giants East Bengal by a convincing margin of 4-1. The competition is sponsored by Hero MotoCorp and is officially known as the Hero Super Cup.

2. The 2018 Formula One Chinese Grand Prix tournament : Daniel Ricciardo, an Australian racing driver who is currently competing in Formula One for Red Bull Racing, has won the 2018 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix tournament at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai, China. The race was the third round of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship and marked the fifteenth time that the Chinese Grand Prix has been run as a round of the Formula One World Championship.

OBITUARIES  :

1. The noted dance music star  Tim Bergling passed away : Tim Bergling, who is one of the world’s biggest dance music stars, has passed away in Muscat, Oman on April 21, 2018. He is popularly known as DJ Avicii. He was a Swedish musician, DJ, remixer and record producer. His club anthems include Wake Me Up, Levels, and recently, Lonely Together with Rita Ora.