Daily GK Updates - 18th April, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES

 1. Guwahati fuel station to go cashless: In a major step towards Digital India, the petrol pump owners of Guwahati, the capital city of Assam and the gateway to the Northeast have decided to go cashless completely from 18 April until the on-going parliamentary elections are over. As per reports, the petrol pump owners have been facing a trouble over cash transaction after the enforcement of Model Code of conduct (MCC) for the Lok Sabha Elections.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

 1. Nepal and Sri Lanka Launches Its First Satellite From USA: Nepal successfully launched its first satellite ‘NepaliSat-1’ into space. The satellite developed by the Nepalese scientists was launched from Virginia in the United States. It is a low orbit satellite which will be in the 400-km distance from the Earth's surface. Sri Lanka's first satellite 'Raavana-1' was also launched into space, marking Sri Lanka's entry into the global space age. 

2. Saudi Arabia To Host G20 Summit In 2020: Saudi Arabia announced that it will be hosting the G20 summit in November 2020 in its capital Riyadh. This would be the first G20 summit in the Arab world. Last year's G20 meeting was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had represented the Kingdom. 

3. 3-member women team set out to summit Mt Everest: For the first time, a three-member team of women climbers from India, Nepal and China  set out to scale the world's highest peak, Mt Everest, to spread the message of women empowerment, world peace and friendship. The expedition, supported by the Visit Nepal Year 2020 campaign of the Nepal Tourism Board, was flagged off on 16 April 2019. The three women who will climb the 8848-metre Everest are Kalpana Dash from India, Kanchhi Maya Tamang from Nepal and Liyamu Ma from China

OTHER UPDATES

BANKING/BUSINESS NEWS

1. Bajaj Finserv launches industry first proposition to pay electricity bill on EMIs: Bajaj Finance Ltd. has launched the #BijliOnEMI campaign wherein customer buying air conditioners will also have the option to pay for their electricity bill on EMI. Customers buying air conditioners of Rs 20,000 and above will be eligible for an Instant Credit loan of Rs 5000. For those purchasing air conditioners above Rs 40,000 will receive Rs 7000 as an Instant Credit loan to their Wallet. This will assist the customer to pay the installations charges of the air-conditioner and their electricity bills on EMI.

2. CRISIL Board Gives Nod for Transfer of Ratings Business To New Subsidiary: CRISIL Ltd, a diversified global analytics company, will transfer its rating business to its proposed new wholly-owned subsidiary. The board of CRISIL gave the nod for the transfer, which is being done to comply with SEBI norms of 2018. Earlier, SEBI had modified its regulations for credit rating agencies and mandated the segregation of rating and non-ratings businesses of credit-rating agencies. 

2. ETMONEY Becomes India’s First Comprehensive Financial Services App to Integrate With UPI: ETMONEY India’s largest app for financial services has integrated with Unified Payment Interface (UPI) as a payment method. The reason for this is to double its monthly user base by the end of 2019. This integration will simplify the mutual fund payment for millions of ETMONEY users. ETMONEY is owned by Times Internet which is a part of the Times Group.

3. Mukesh Ambani among TIME's List Of 100 Most Influential People: The Time 100 Most Influential People 2019 list has been released, naming the world's most influential pioneers, leaders, titans, artists, and icons of the year. Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani and public-interest litigators Arundhati Katju and Menaka Guruswamy, who spearheaded a historic legal battle for LGBTQ rights in India, are the Indian names that appeared in the list.The famous names in the list include Indian-American comedian and TV host Hasan Minhaj, US President Donald Trump, Pope Francis, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Pakistan PM Imran Khan, and iconic golfer Tiger Woods.

4. Rakesh Suryakant Shah resigned as Adani CFO: Rakesh Suryakant Shah has tendered his resignation as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) with effect from 16 April 2019

APPOINTMENT

 1. Padmaja Alaganandan- new Chief People Officer PwC: PwC has appointed Padmaja Alaganandan as the firm’s new Chief People Officer -CPO. Padmaja takes over the role from Jagjit Singh who is moving on after a successful stint.

IMPORTANT DAYS

1. World Heritage Day: The 'World Heritage Day' is being observed across the globe on 18th April every year to celebrate cultural heritage and encourage people to conserve our rich past. The day aims to spread awareness of the importance of protecting and preserving various sites around the world that have achieved world heritage status. The theme of this year is ‘Rural Landscapes’.

SPORTS

 1. ICC partners with UNICEF: International Cricket Council (ICC) Cricket for Good partnership with UNICEF announced #OneDay4Children, a tournament-wide campaign focused on bringing the world of cricket together as one team to help build a better world for every child, at the World Cup. Former England batsman and #OneDay4Children ambassador Nasser Hussain along with all-rounder Chris Woakes launched the campaign.

2. FIFA Banned Former Football President: Former Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) president Jose Maria Marin has been banned for life from all football activities by FIFA. In 2018, Marin was sentenced to four years in prison for racketeering and corruption offences, becoming the first person to be imprisoned as the result of the US investigation into corruption at world football's governing body. He was found to have taken bribes in exchange for the media and marketing rights to various tournaments, including the Copa America.