Daily GK Updates - 4th December, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Shri A. N. Jha appointed as Finance Secretary : The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) Chaired by PM Narendra Modi has appointed Ajay Narayan Jha (1982-batch IAS officer of Manipur Tripura cadre) as the new Finance Secretary of India.Mr Jha (59-years) will succeed current Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia.Jha has BA (Honours) and MA in history from St. Stephen's College at University of Delhi, a postgraduate degree in executive development from John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

2.  Navy Day is being celebrated today : The Indian Navy day is observed every year on 4th December to celebrate achievements and role of the naval force in the country.The Indian Navy is commanded by the President of India as Commander-in-Chief. It is the marine branch of the Indian Armed Forces.Sunil Lamba is the current Chief of the Naval Staff.

3. Nagaland becomes first north-eastern state to launch single emergency number ‘112’ : The Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has launched the single emergency number ‘112’ under the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) for the state of Nagaland.It will have a special women safety feature ‘SHOUT’ to get immediate assistance from police and volunteers.The launch coincided with the state’s formation day and the inaugural day of the 2018 edition of the Hornbill Festival.

4. The second meeting of NITI Forum for North East held in Guwahati : he second meeting of the newly constituted NITI Forum for North East held in Guwahati, Assam.It mainly focusses on issues pertaining to five critical sectors, namely tourism, bamboo, dairy, fisheries and tea.Besides, the members of the Forum, a number of experts from Government, Industry and Academia have also been invited to make the discussions more meaningful.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1.  Qatar to leave OPEC from January 2019 : According to Qatar's new energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, Qatar has decided to leave the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries(OPEC) from January 2019 (after nearly six decades) and focus more on the production of natural gas.Qatar has plans to increase its annual exports of liquified natural gas(LPG) from 77 million tons of gas per year to 110 million tons.Qatar is the world's largest exporter of LPG.

OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. Union Government puts imports of gold dore in the restricted category : Under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has put imports of gold dore in the restricted category.Now, the importer needs a license to import this commodity.It is a semi-pure alloy of gold and silver which is refined for further purification.It usually created at the site of a mine and then transported to a refinery for further purification.

BANKING/FINANCE:

1.World Bank unveils USD 200 bn in climate action investment for 2021-25 : The World Bank has unveiled 200 billion US Dollars in climate action investment for 2021 to 2025.The move coincides with a UN climate summit in Katowice.The move represents a significantly ramped up ambition to tackle climate change and sends an important signal to the wider global community to do the same.The breakdown of 200 billion dollars would comprise approximately 100 billion in direct finance from the World Bank.

2. The Centre and ADB sign 85 mn dollar loan to support Odisha skill development project :  The Union Govt. and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has signed a USD 85 million loan to improve skill development eco-system in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The project will help over 1.5 lakh people learn skills in priority sectors, including manufacturing, construction and services for formal employment.The Skill Centre will deliver eight training courses for 13 thousand students and provide training to five thousand teachers.

SPORTS:

1.Pawan Singh first Indian to be elected in ISSF's judge's committee : Pawan Singh (former coach of the Indian shooting team) has become the first Indian to be elected one of seven members of the Judges Committee of the International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF).The Judges Committee consists of a Chairman and seven members.Mr Singh also holds the post of the Joint Secretary General of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI).