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Saturday, April 27, 2019

Daily GK Updates - 27th April, 2019


NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Red Alert for Tamil Nadu as Cyclone Fani may land on 30th April: Meteorological department in Chennai issues a warning that a low-pressure system south of the ‘Bay of Bengal’ would turn into a cyclonic storm which has been named ‘Fani’. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a ‘red alert’ in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry for 30th April and 1st May 2019. A 'yellow alert' has been issued for Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur and Malappuram on 29th April 2019.

2. ICMR Launches Malaria Elimination Research Alliance: The Indian Council of Medical Research has launched the ‘Malaria Elimination Research Alliance (MERA) India which is a conglomeration of partners working on malaria control in order to eliminate the disease from India by 2030. The National Vector Borne Diseases Control Program (NVBDCP) of India has also developed a comprehensive framework to achieve the target of “Malaria free India by 2030”.

3. Indian Army Inks MoU with NHPC to Build Tunnels on China, Pakistan Borders: Indian Army signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) Limited, to build four underground tunnels along China and Pakistan borders for storage of ammunition and other war-related equipment. Three tunnels will be built along the Chinese border and one tunnel will be built along the Pakistan border. The tunnel can store 175-200 metric tonnes of ammunition and the cost of this pilot project is around Rs 15 crore.

4. CPWD Constitutes 8-member Committee To Chart Out Design Policy: The Central Works Public Department (CPWD) has constituted an expert committee to formulate a design policy for building construction and infrastructure development.  The committee has been set up under the chairmanship of CPWD's Additional Director General M K Sharma. The move is aimed at reviving building construction and infrastructure development at all levels in the CPWD which comes under the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry.The committee has been asked to submit its report to Director General Prabhakar Singh within 30 days.


INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Sri Lanka suspends visa on arrival programme after serial blasts: According to Sri Lankan tourism ministry, Sri Lankan Govt. suspended plans to grant visa on arrival to citizens of 39 countries after the recent bombings in which 359 people were killed. Sri Lankan government did not want the facility to be misused as investigations found foreign links to the attacks on Easter. Last month, Sri Lanka had announced the plan to allow visa-free entry to tourists from 39 countries, including European Union members, Australia and the United States, during the low season from 1st May (not include China and India).

2. UAE based Etihad Airways becomes the first major airline to operate the plastic-free flight: UAE based flag carrier ’Etihad Airways’ has become the first major airline in the Gulf region to operate a flight without any single-use plastics on board. The objective is to raise awareness about pollution on Earth. The first flight named ‘EY484’ (without use of plastics) landed in Brisbane, Australia. Etihad Airways has pledged to reduce single-use plastic usage by 80% across the entire organization by the end of 2022.

3. NASA's InSight detects first likely 'quake' on Mars:  US space agency NASA's robotic Mars InSight lander has recorded a likely marsquake for the first time ever.  This is the first recorded trembling that appears to have come from inside the planet, as opposed to being caused by forces above the surface, such as wind. Scientists still are examining the data to determine the exact cause of the signal.

4. World Veterinary Day: 27 April: The World Veterinary Day 2019 is observed on 27th April. It is an opportunity to celebrate the contributions of veterinarians to the health of animals and society. The theme for the day is the “Value of Vaccination”. The day is initiated by the World Veterinary Association.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Jhulan Goswami wins CSJS award for best sportsperson of 2018: Former captain of India national women’s cricket team ‘Jhulan Goswami’ awarded the “Sportsperson of the Year” at the Calcutta Sports Journalists’ club (CSJC) in Kolkata, West Bengal. Sukumar Samajpati (former India winger) and Sambaran Banerjee (Bengal’s Ranji Trophy winning captain) honoured ‘Lifetime Achievement’ awards.

 2. India bags one gold, two silver medals at Asian Boxing Championship: India bagged one gold and two silver medals at the Asian Boxing Championships in Bangkok. Boxer Amit Panghal picked up his second successive gold medal of the year in the 52-kilogram category. Panghal defeated Korea's Kim Inkyu Korea. National champion Deepak Singh and Kavinder Singh Bisht in 56 kg category signed off with silver medals after close losses.  Deepak lost to Mirzahmedov of Uzbekistan while Bisht was also defeated by an Uzbek.

3. Pankaj Advani wins inaugural Asian Snooker Tour title: India's Pankaj Advani defeated Ehsan Heydari Nezhad of Iran 6-4 to claim the inaugural Asian Snooker Tour title. The Indian had earlier defeated Aung Phyo of Myanmar in the semifinal. Advani had earlier won the second leg of the Tour in China.

4. ISSF World Cup: Abhishek Verma Wins Gold In 10m Air Pistol: Abhishek Verma won the 10m air pistol gold medal at the ISSF World Cup at Beijing, China. He clinched the top spot with a total score of 242.7.  Russia's Artem Chernousov took silver. His brilliant performance in the Shooting World Cup Final also secured a fifth Olympic quota for India.

5.  Asian Boxing Championships: India Wins 13 Medals: India won 13 medals, including 2 gold, 4 silver, and 7 bronze at the Asian Boxing Championships in Bangkok. Boxers Pooja Rani and Amit Panghal gave India 2 gold medals.  While the men won 1 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze, the women bagged 1 gold, 1 silver, and 4 bronze medals.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. Siddhartha Mohanty takes over as COO of LIC Housing Finance: LIC Housing Finance appointed Siddhartha Mohanty as its chief operating officer. Prior to taking over as the position, he was executive director with LIC of India. Mohanty started his career as a direct recruit officer with LIC of India in 1985 and has risen through the ranks to this senior position.

2. Aegon Life Insurance has collaborated with MobiKwik to launch a smart digital insurance product: Digital financial services company ‘Mobikwik’ collaborated with Aegon Life Insurance (pioneer of digital insurance in India) to launch a Rs 20 smart digital insurance product. The main objective for this initiative is to improve the insurance penetration in India (currently at 3.7%) that is to drive financial inclusion for the masses. The company has created 3 variants of the amount assured between Rs. 1 lakh, Rs.1.5 lakh and Rs. 2 lakhs at no extra cost. The insurance product launched is termed as the Aegon Life Group Term Plus Plan.

3. Bimal Jalan panel on RBI's capital size to submit the report by June: A high-level panel led by former RBI governor Bimal Jalan, set up to decide the appropriate capital reserves that the central bank should maintain, is likely to submit its report by June. The six-member Jalan panel was appointed on December 26, 2018, to review the Economic Capital Framework for the RBI. The committee was to submit its report in 90 days from the first day of its meeting, which was held on January 8. The panel has got an extension beyond its three-month term.

4. RBI Introduces ₹ 20 Banknote In Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series: The Reserve Bank of India will shortly issue ₹ 20 denomination banknotes in the Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series, bearing the signature of Shri Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India. The new denomination has the motif of Ellora Caves on the reverse, depicting the country's cultural heritage. The base colour of the note is Greenish Yellow. The dimension of the banknote will be 63 mm x 129 mm.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

1. Microsoft Becomes World’s Third Company To Be Worth $1 Trillion: Microsoft has reached a valuation of one trillion dollars for the first time after posting an increase in profits. It makes the software giant only the third publicly-traded company in history to reach the threshold after Apple and Amazon passed it in 2018. Microsoft’s current valuation also means that it has again taken over Apple as the world’s most valuable company.

HONOURS AND AWARDS

1. Pakistan’s ‘Dawn’ journalist Cyril Almeida named IPI’s World Press Freedom Hero: The International Press Institute has declared Cyril Almeida (Dawn editor and columnist in Pakistan) the recipient of its 71st  World Press Freedom Hero award. The institute lauded Almeida for his ‘tenacious coverage of the Pakistani state’s patronage of militant groups’. The awards will be presented in a ceremony in Geneva, Switzerland on 5th June 2019. Almeida is a Rhodes scholar with a law degree from Oxford University.

2. Salim, Helen and Bhandarkar get Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2019: The prestigious Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2019 was awarded to Madhur Bhandarkar (National Award-winning filmmaker), Salim Khan (scriptwriter) and Helen (dancing diva). This year, the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award for music and art has been given to classical dancer Sucheta Bhide-Chapekar. Anandmayee Puraskar was given to Pandit Suresh Talwalkar of Taalyogi Ashram. The event was organized by Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan charitable trust, Pune.

3. Rana Dasgupta Wins 2019 Tagore Literary Prize: The second edition of Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize was awarded to author Rana Dasgupta for his 2010 novel “Solo“, a tale of estrangement and the ultimate failure of material existence. The Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize for social achievement was awarded to Yohei Sasakawa, for “his incredible efforts to uproot leprosy and great contribution to world peace”.

OBITUARIES

1. Mark Medoff, the writer of 'Children of a Lesser God' passes away: Mark Medoff (79-years) passed away in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Medoff wrote 30 plays and is best known for the groundbreaking Children of a Lesser God, the story of a young deaf woman and her love affair with her speech teacher.

2. Terry Rawlings, British Film Editor Passes Away:  Terry Rawlings, a British film and sound editor has passed away. He was an Oscar nominee for his work on Best Picture winner “Chariots of Fire”. He was born in 1933.  The 5-time BAFTA nominee also received a career achievement award from the American Cinema Editors society in 2006.

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