Daily GK Updates - 9th March, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Abhinandan Varthaman to get Bhagwan Mahavir Ahimsa Puraskar : Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman(piloting a Mig-21 Bison) will be the first recipient of the 'Bhagwan Mahavir Ahimsa Puraskar'. The award is instituted by the Akhil Bharatiya Digambar Jain Mahasamiti. on 27th February, Mr. Varthaman shot down a Pakistan Air Force F-16 with an R-73 air-to-air missile in a dogfight The award will be presented to Varthaman on 17th April 2019, carries a cash prize of Rs 2.51 lakh, a memento and a citation.

2.  Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan resigns : Governor of Mizoram Kummanam Rajasekharan has resigned from his post. President Ram Nath Kovind has accepted the resignation of Rajasekharan. Mr. Rajasekharan began his political career as an activist of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Sangh Parivar in the state of Kerala in 1970.

3.  India’s first oil museum to come up in Guwahati :  India’s first oil museum will come up in Guwahati, Assam. It will be named KB Malaviya National Oil Museum. KB Malaviya is called the father of India’s hydrocarbon industry. Assam was the first state where oil was discovered and produced for the first time in the country. All major oil and gas companies ONGC, OIL, HPCL, BPCL, EIL will jointly work for the museum.

4. MP: Ancient tribal language Gondi to be taught in tribal districts :  Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath has decided to include the ancient tribal language ‘Gondi‘, in tribal districts of the state. The State Government has decided to include Gondi in the primary education curriculum of the state's tribal-dominated districts.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Japanese architect Arata Isozaki wins the Pritzker Prize 2019 :  Japanese architect ‘Arata Isozaki’ has won the Pritzker Prize 2019. He is the 46th Pritzker laureate and the 8th Japanese architect to receive the honour. The Pritzker Prize (USD 100,000) is regarded as architecture's equivalent to the Nobel Prize. The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and the Palau Saint Jordi indoor sporting arena in Barcelona are among more than 100 of his major projects.

2.  India, Japan hold inaugural space dialogue : The inaugural India-Japan Space Dialogue was held in New Delhi. The dialogue brought together Ministries and agencies related to outer space in the two countries and provided an opportunity for information exchange on the respective space policies. Discussions were also held on bilateral cooperation between JAXA-ISRO, their space industries, global navigation satellite system, space situational awareness, space security and space-related norms.

3. Ausaf Sayeed appointed new Ambassador of India to Saudi Arabia :  Dr. Ausaf Sayeed (Indian Foreign Service officer -1989 batch) has been appointed as the ambassador of India to Saudi Arabia. He will succeed Ahmad Javed, who had been serving as envoy to Saudi Arabia (since December 2015). Currently, Dr. Ausaf Sayeed is the High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Seychelles.

4. UNDP appoints Padma Lakshmi as Goodwill Ambassador :  The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has appointed Indian-American television personality and food expert ‘Padma Lakshmi’ as Goodwill Ambassador. The newest Goodwill Ambassador, supporting the agency’s fight against inequality and discrimination around the world. Ms. Lakshmi has been a judge and host, as well as executive producer, of Bravo Television’s Emmy award-winning series Top Chef.

OTHER UPDATES:

DEFENCE:

1. Bilateral joint exercise between India, Oman to begin from 12th March :  The third edition of the bilateral joint exercise between India and Oman ‘Al Nagah 2019’ will begin from 12th March at Jabel Al Akhdar Mountains in Oman (end on 25th of March). It will continue till 25th of March. In the exercise, both the armies will exchange expertise and experience in tactics, weapon handling and firing. The objective of this exercise is to enhance interoperability in counter-terrorist operations in semi-urban mountainous terrain.