Daily GK Updates - 21st April, 2019

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Asian Tea Alliance Launched In China: To boost tea trade, cultural and technical exchanges as well as the global promotion of tea, the Asian Tea Alliance (ATA), a union of five tea-growing and consuming countries, was launched in Guizhou, China. The members of the alliance are the Indian Tea Association, China Tea Marketing Association, Indonesian Tea Marketing Association, Sri LankaTea Board and Japan Tea Association.

2. 290 dead in Sri Lanka bomb blasts: A series of 8 devastating bomb blasts ripped high end hotels and churches holding Easter services in Sri Lanka on 21 April 2019. The blast killed 290 people, including dozen of foreigners and injured 500. At least two of them involved suicide bombers.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. Reliance Retail Became India’s First Retail Company To Cross The Rs.1 Lakh Crore Annual Revenue: Reliance retail has become the first Indian retail company to clock more than Rs 1 lakh crore in annual revenues. The retail venture of Reliance Industries reported an income of Rs 1,30,556 crore for 2018-19, 89% more than the previous year’s Rs 69,198 crore.

AWARDS

1. Sunil Kumar Gautam Bestowed With ‘Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant Award’: Sunil Kumar Gautam, Special Commissioner of Police (Operations) was honoured with ‘Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant Award‘ for his book titled ‘Samvidhan Kavya‘. He was awarded by the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) under the Ministry of Home Affairs.  

2. National award for KAU IPR Cell: The Intellectual Property Rights Cell (IPR Cell) of Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) has been selected for the National Intellectual Property Award 2019. The award, comprising a prize money of ₹1 lakh, citation and memento, will be presented at a function to be held in New Delhi on World IP Day on April 26. The award constituted by the Indian Intellectual Property Office under the Union Ministry of Industry and Commerce is conferred on persons and organisations working in the field of patents, trademarks, and Geographical Indications.

3. Sree Sreenath Inducted Into Cleveland International Hall of Fame: Indian-American scientist and social activist Sree Sreenath has been inducted into the prestigious Cleveland International Hall of fame for his contribution in applications in systems biology, global issues, and sustainable development. He is currently serving as Director of Case GEMNI(Graduate Engineering & Management National and International) Programme at Case Western Reserve University.

4. India Ranks 17th In Global Startup Ecosystem: India was ranked 17th position among 100 countries in Startup Ecosystem Ranking for 2019 released by StartupBlink. It was ranked 37th spot last year. It takes into consideration startup ecosystems of 1,000 cities and 100 countries for the ranking. China was ranked 27th. Bangalore, New Delhi and Mumbai were the top cities in the Indian startup ecosystem. Top three countries are: 1st: United States, 2nd: United Kingdom, 3rd: Canada.

IMPORTANT DAYS

1. 21 April: World Creativity and Innovation Day: The World Creativity and Innovation Day (WCID) has been celebrated on 21st April to raise awareness of the role of creativity and innovation in problem-solving and by extension, in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. On this day the world is invited to embrace the idea that innovation is essential for harnessing the economic potential of nations. The Day is a part of the United Nations resolution entitled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.”

2. 21 April: Civil Services Day not being observed due to general elections: The civil services day is not being observed due to the general elections. The civil services day is celebrated on 21st April every year when bureaucrats rededicate themselves to public service, and awards for excellence in public administration are also conferred. It was on this day that Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, addressed the first batch of civil servants in Independent India at the Metcalf House where he referred to civil servants as the 'steel frame of India'.

SPORTS

1. 'Services' lifts their sixth Santosh Trophy Football: 'Services' has won the 73rd edition of premier domestic football tournament ‘Santosh Trophy’ by defeating Punjab 1-0 in the final at Ludhiana, Punjab. In the second half, Services scored the lone goal and held on till the final whistle. Santosh Trophy is an annual Indian football tournament started in 1941. The trophy is named after the late Maharaja Sir Manmatha Nath Roy Chowdhary of Santosh (now in Bangladesh). It is knock-out competition contested by the regional state associations and government institutions under the All India Football Federation (AIFF).

2. Hardik & Rahul fined 20 lakh rupees each by BCCI ombudsman: India cricketers Hardik Pandya & K.L. Rahul were fined 20 lakh rupees each by the BCCI ombudsman Justice D.K. Jain for their sexist comments on a popular TV chat show. Justice Jain wrote that no further action will be taken against Pandyaand Rahul.

3. Fognini beats Dusan Lajovic to win the 2019 Monte Carlo Masters: Italian Tennis Player Fabio Fognini has won the 2019 Monte-Carlo Masters. He defeated Dusan Lajovic (Serbia) 6−3, 6−4. Croatia’s Nikola Mektic & Franko Skugor has won the 2019 Monte-Carlo doubles title, defeating Robin Haase & Wesley Koolhof in the final, 6–7, 7–6, [11–9].

4. Bajrang regains top spot in world wrestling rankings: India's Bajrang Punia has regained the world number one spot in the men's 65-kilogram freestyle category rankings. Punia secured 58 points ahead of Akhmed Chakaev of Russia. The rankings were released by United World Wrestling.

OBITUARIES

1. Eminent Bengali Folk Singer Amar Paul Passes Away: Eminent Bengali folk singer Amar Paul passed away following a cardiac arrest. He was 97. Paul lent his voice in a number of films. He has penned several books on folk songs of Bengal and received accolades from various academies around the world.

2. Lorraine Warren, A Paranormal Investigator Passes Away: One of the most well known paranormal investigator, Lorraine Warren passed away at the age of 92. She investigated haunted houses and other manifestation of paranormal activities throughout her life with her late husband Ed. Warren. Famous horror movies like ‘Amityville Horror’ and ‘Conjuring’ were inspired by her work.