Daily GK Updates - 7th August, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Government appoints 2 members to CBDT : The government appointed two members, Aditya Vikram, IRS (IT) 1981 batch & Pramod Chandra Mody, IRS (IT) 1982 batch, as members in the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).Their names were cleared by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.CBDT is the apex policy-making body for income tax.

2. MoA signed for funding Irrigation Projects : A revised Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) has been signed amongst Government of India, NABARD and National Water Development Agency.The MoA was signed to fund the central share of 99 prioritized irrigation projects under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY).Under PMKSY, 99 ongoing irrigation projects were identified for completion in mission mode by December​ 2019.

 3.Thermal battery plant unveiled in Andhra : India became home to the world’s first-ever thermal battery plant, that was inaugurated in Andhra Pradesh on 6 August 2018.The thermal battery facility is owned by Bharat Energy Storage Technology Private Limited.Thermal batteries use thermal energy to operate, i.e., the energy created by temperature differences.

4. Govt extends e-visa facility to 165 countries : Seeking to promote tourism, the government has extended e-visa facility for citizens of 165 countries at 25 airports and five seaports.The government has launched the ‘Incredible India 2.0’ campaign, marking a shift from generic promotions to market-specific promotional plans.

A 24X7 toll free multi-lingual tourist helpline has also been put in place as part of the efforts.

 5. 3-judge SC Bench to hear Article 35A issue : Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra orally observed that the Supreme Court will consider whether Article 35A is violative of the basic structure of the Constitution.Article 35A gives special status to the State and people of Jammu and Kashmir.The basic structure is a collective term coined by a 13-judge Bench in the historic Keshavananda Bharati case.

6. Kannada writer Sumatheendra Nadig no more : Well-known Kannada poet and critic Sumatheendra R. Nadig passed away in Bengaluru on 7th August 2018.He was an important name in the modernist literary movement in Karnataka in the 60s and 70s.He also headed the National Book Trust.His important works include ‘Daampatya Geeta’ and ‘Panchabhoota’, collection of verses, besides critical works on Da.Ra. Bendre and Gopalakrishna Adiga.

7. NGT forms panel to monitor Ganga cleaning : The National Green Tribunal (NGT) constituted a committee for monitoring the rejuvenation project of Ganga from Haridwar to Unnao in Uttar Pradesh.The committee will be headed by a former Allahabad High Court judge.NGT has asked Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court to nominate a former judge who will head the committee.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1.U.S. sanctions against Iran back in effect : The first set of U.S. sanctions against Iran that had been eased under the landmark nuclear accord have gone back into effect.An executive order by President Donald Trump reimposed the sanctions on financial transactions that involve U.S. dollars.U.S sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sector and central bank are to be reimposed in early November 2018.

2. Lithium-rich giant star discovered : Chinese scientists have discovered the most lithium-rich giant star ever known.The star has a mass almost 1.5 times our sun.The star is in the direction of Ophiuchus, north side of the Galactic disk, with a distance of 4,500 light years to Earth.The findings were realised with the help of The Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) located in northern China.

OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1.Indra Nooyi will step down as CEO : Indra Krishnamurthy Nooyi will step down as the CEO of PepsiCo after 12 years in the position.Under her, PepsiCo began focussing on products that include fruits, vegetables,whole grains, nuts, and gave an emphasis on less sugar and fat.Ramon Laguarta will succeed Ms. Nooyi as CEO.Ms. Nooyi will step down as CEO on October 3, but will remain Chairman until early 2019.

DEFENCE:

1. Indo – Thailand Joint Exercise Maitree 2018 : Exercise Maitree is a joint military exercise between Indian Army and Royal Thai Army which started on 6 August and will end on 19 August 2018 in Thailand.It is a platoon level exercise which comprises of infantry component.The exercise will emphasize to hone the tactical and technical skills in joint counter insurgency and counter terrorist operations in rural and urban scenario.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY:

1. P is for Pie: Android’s latest version : Google launched the latest version of it’s Android operating system — Android Pie.Android Pie mostly focuses on behind-the-scenes improvements designed to make Android phones work faster while saving precious battery life.An over-the-air update to Android 9 will begin rolling out to Google’s Pixel phones.