Daily GK Updates - 27th January, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.  Bharat Parv begins at Red Fort in Delhi : Director General of Ministry of Tourism Shri Satyajeet Rajan has inaugurated the six-day cultural extravaganza Bharat Parv (4th edition) at Red Fort in Delhi, As part of the Republic Day 2019 celebrations. The objective of the event is to generate a patriotic mood, promote the rich cultural diversity of the country and to ensure wider participation of the general public. The Bharat Parvis also hosting Theme State Pavilions where each State showcases its strength along with its tourism products.

2. Ministry of Defence launched ‘RDP INDIA 2019′ app : Ministry of Defence has launched a mobile app ‘RDP India 2019’ with the intent of making available the highlights of the Republic Day event (Parade on Rajpath) New Delhi.It is a new initiative in sync with the Digital India campaign of the Government.It also includes details of the tableaux presented by different States and Ministries, children cultural performances, fly past and names of recipients of Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2019.

3.  'Roshni’ to help visually impaired identify notes : The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar has developed an Android app ‘Roshni’ that would help the Visually Impaired to recognise currency notes in Chandigarh.The Roshni app can recognise both old and new notes and gives audio information as to which note you are holding in your hands.There are about 80 lakh visually impaired people in the country, who will benefit from the initiative.

4.  PM Modi lays foundation stone for AIIMS Madurai in Tamil Nadu : Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for All India Institutes of Medical Sciences, (AIIMS) at Madurai in Tamil Nadu.He also inaugurated the super speciality blocks of Madurai's Rajaji Medical College and Thanjavur and Tirunelveli Medical Colleges through video conferencing.Mr Modi also dedicated a dozen Post Office Pass Port Seva Kendras to the nation.In Kerala, Mr Modi unveiled a plaque to dedicate to the nation an integrated refinery expansion complex of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited and laid the foundation stone for a petrochemical complex in Kochi.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1.  Brazil Dam collapse: Death toll rises to 58 with 305 people missing : According to Brazil’s Minas Gerais state civil defence agencyspokesman, the death toll from a burst tailing dam at an iron ore mine has risen to 58 people with 305 people still missing.Hundreds of people are still missing, and the extent of damage is still being calculated, especially in the mining town of Brumadinho.Rescue teams resumed their search for hundreds of people still missing.Earlier, the dam collapsed in Minas Gerais' Brumadinho municipality, triggering heavy mud floods.

2. Nari Shakti is Oxford Dictionary’s Hindi Word of the year 2018 : The Oxford Dictionaries has announced ‘Nari Shakti’ (women empowerment) as the Hindi Word of the Year 2018.The word was selected by the Oxford Dictionaries (India) with help of a panel of language experts.Nari Shakti (derived from Sanskrit), broken down, the word ‘nari’ means women and ‘shakti’ means power.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

 1. Novak Djokovic wins Australian Open 2019 men's title : Serbian professional tennis player Novak Djokovic (world No.1) defeated Rafael Nadal to win his 7th Australian Open Men's Singles title at Melbourne.He defeated Nadal 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 in a largely one-sided match.The 2019 Australian Open (107th edition) was a Grand Slam tennis tournament that took place at Melbourne Park (Australia) from 14thto 27th January 2019.

2. Naomi Osaka wins Australian Open Grand Slam Singles title 2019 : Japan's Naomi Osaka has won her maiden Australian Open Grand Slam Singles title 2019 at Melbourne, Australia.In the Final, Osaka defeated Czech Petra Kvitova, 7-6, 5-7, 6-4 to become the first Asian player to achieve the world number one ranking. Now, Osaka has become the youngest number one since Caroline Wozniacki in 2010.

3. Saina Nehwal wins first Indonesia Masters women’s title : Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal (India) has won the Indonesia Masters women’s singles title after Carolina Marin (Spain) limped out of the final due to a leg injury. Marin was leading 10-4 in the first game when she developed an injury in the knee. Anders Antonsen (Denmark) has won his first ever Indonesia Masters after defeating world number one Kento Momota (Japan) to claim the 2019 Indonesia Masters title.