Daily GK Updates - 16th October, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. CBIC launches programme to strengthen Make in India: Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs has launched a revamped and streamlined programme to attract investments into India and strengthen Make in India through manufacture and other operations under the bond scheme, of Customs Act, 1962. The Section enables conduct of manufacture and other operations in a customs bonded warehouse. The scheme has been modernized with clear and transparent procedures, simplified compliance requirements ICT-based documentation and account keeping, by the issue of Manufacture and Other Operations in Warehouse Regulations 2019.

2. Govt launches Food Safety Mitra Scheme: Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan launched Food Safety Mitra Scheme, Eat Right Jacket and Eat Right Jhola. Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has introduced the scheme of Food Safety Mitra (FSM) through which it plans to engage motivated individuals with the food safety ecosystem at ground level. A Food Safety Mitra Scheme is an individual professional certified by FSSAI who assists in compliances related to FSS Act, Rules & Regulations with three avatars- Digital Mitra, Trainer Mitra and Hygiene Mitra depending upon their respective roles and responsibilities. During the event, the Minister also launched Eat Right Jhola which is a reusable, washable and bio-degradable bag. Eat Right Smart Jacket has been introduced to giving an identity to FSSAI staff to ensure transparent inspection. It’s embedded with an RFID tag and QR code.

3. Indian Railways to become net zero carbon emitter by 2030: Indian Railways (IR) has announced that it will become a net-zero carbon emitter by 2030. The move will be a part of India’s strategy to combat climate change. The announcement was made by railways and commerce minister Piyush Goyal at the India Energy Forum by CERAWEEK in New Delhi. India is the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases after the US and China, and is among countries most vulnerable to climate change.

4. 41st DRDO Directors Conference in New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated the 41st DRDO Directors Conference in New Delhi. Chiefs of the three forces & DRDO Chairman G Satheesh Reddy were also present on the occasion. The discussion included efforts taken by DRDO to ensure technological advancement of the Indian forces to safeguard the country. It was suggested that DRDO can play a significant role in becoming a catalyst in the absorption of technology.

Note: DRDO was formed in 1958; It is headquartered in New Delhi.

5. Govt. to set up 14 World Skills India Training Centres across 9 cities: According to Mahendra Nath Pandey (Union Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Minister), Govt. is planning to set up 14 Authorized World Skills India Training Centres across 9 cities in the country for media and entertainment sector. The new institutes will be set up for advanced skill training of candidates in the media and entertainment sector and to further develop skilling eco-system for training candidates for the international market. Nine Cities are Chennai, Trivandrum, Chandigarh, New Delhi, Indore, Pune, Mumbai, Shillong and Hyderabad. The centres will offer (9 to 36 months duration) certification courses on 3D digital game, graphic design technology, and print media technology.

6. J&K govt to set up 50 PCOs in each district of Kashmir division: Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) government will set-up 50 Public Call Offices (PCOs) in each district of Kashmir Division soon in order to provide free of cost calling facilities to the general public. According to Baseer Ahmad Khan (Divisional Commissioner Kashmir), locations and other modalities have been finalized. General Public will avail calling facilities in these PCOs free of cost.

7. J.P.S. Chawla takes over as the Controller General of Accounts (CGA):  Government of India has appointed Shri J. P. S. Chawla (Indian Civil Accounts Service Officer-1985 batch) as the new Controller General of Accounts (CGA), Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure. He will replace Girraj Prasad Gupta. Shri J. P. S. Chawla has been officiating as CGA with effect from 1st September 2019. Earlier, Mr. Chawla served as Principal Chief Controller of Accounts, Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) where he was instrumental in the finalisation of the accounting procedure and operationalisation of GST Network (GSTN) before the national rollout of GST.

Note: CGA works under the Ministry of Finance, Government of India; Controller General of Accounts headquarters: New Delhi.

8. Anoop Kumar Mendiratta appointed as new Law Secretary: Anoop Kumar Mendiratta has been appointed as the new Law Secretary (Secretary, Legal Affairs) in the Union Law Ministry. He is presently the District and Sessions Judge, North-East District, Karkardooma Courts, Delhi. He will serve in the position till 30 March 2023, or until he attains the age of 60.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. UP Culture Dept to organise training & performance programme of KHON Ramlila: The Culture Department of Uttar Pradesh government is going to organise the country’s first training and performance programme of world-famous KHON Ramlila, a masked form of Ramlila art of Thailand in collaboration with the Thai government. KHON Ramlila of Thailand is included in the list of UNESCO’s Intangible cultural heritage and it’s a form of masked dance depicting the scenes of Ramlila. It has no dialogues and background voices narrate the whole story of Ramayana. KHON Ramlila’s performance is also a visual delight famous for its beautiful attire and golden masks.

Note: Thailand Capital: Bangkok; Currency: Baht.

2. India ranked 102 in Global Hunger Index 2019: The 2019 Global Hunger Index (GHI) indicates that the level of hunger and undernutrition worldwide falls into the serious category. India ranks 102nd out of 117 qualifying countries, with a score of 30.3, on the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2019 report released by Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). India is ranked below many neighbouring countries, including China (25th spot), Nepal (73th), Myanmar (69th), Sri Lanka (66th), Bangladesh (88th) and Pakistan (94th). Seventeen countries, including Belarus, Ukraine, Turkey, Cuba and Kuwait, shared the top rank with GHI scores less than 5. There were only four countries in the alarming hunger category are Madagascar, Chad, Yemen and the Central African Republic in the extremely alarming hunger category. The report warned that climate change was causing alarming levels of hunger and making it more difficult to feed people in the world’s most vulnerable regions.

Note: The Global Hunger Index is a peer-reviewed annual report, jointly published by Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe, designed to comprehensively measure and track hunger at the global, regional, and country levels. The aim of the GHI is to trigger action to reduce hunger around the world.

3. Kishan Dan Dewal concurrently accredited as the next Ambassador of India to Georgia: Kishan Dan Dewal (IFS officer of 2003 batch), has been concurrently accredited as the next Ambassador of India to Georgia. He will replace Yogeshwar Sangwan. Dewal is presently serving as Ambassador of India to the Republic of Armenia.

Note: President of Georgia: Salome Zurabishvili; Prime Minister: Giorgi Gakharia; Capital: Tbilisi; Currency: Georgian lari.

4. World Food Day: 16 October: World Food Day is celebrated every year around the world on 16 October in honor of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in 1945. The theme of World Food Day 2019 is “Our Actions Are Our Future. Healthy Diets for A #ZeroHunger World". This day generates awareness globally for those who suffer from hunger and to ensure the need for food security and nutritious diets for all. The main focus of this day is that food is a basic and fundamental human right.

Note: Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) is a specialised agency of the United Nations that works towards defeating hunger via international efforts. The objective of ‘FAO’ to achieve food security for all and to make sure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active healthy lives. It has 194 member states and it works in over 130 countries in the whole world. FAO headquarters: Rome, Italy.

5. Abhijit Banerjee & Esther Duflo’s new book to release in November: Nobel 2019 Laureates Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo have penned a book together titled 'Good Economics for Hard Times – Better Answers to our Biggest Problems'. The book talks about the pressing issues of our times and tries to find solutions to these questions. The book is published by Juggernaut and set to release on November 2019.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Sourav Ganguly set to be new BCCI President: Former Indian cricket Captain Saurabh Ganguly (47-years) unanimously nominated as the new President of the Board of control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Jay Shah (son of Union Home Minister Amit Shah) has been unanimously selected as Secretary and Arun Dhumal (younger brother of MoS Finance Anurag Thakur) as Treasurer. All these candidates are expected to be elected unopposed at the Board's Annual General Meeting to be held on 23rd October 2019. Currently, CK Khanna is the acting president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Saurabh Ganguly (President, Cricket Association of Bengal) was the chairman of the BCCI technical committee and has been a media personality for many years.

Note: Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Headquarter: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.

2. Zimbabwe, Nepal readmitted as ICC members: The International Cricket Council has readmitted Zimbabwe (suspended from July 2019) and Nepal (from 2016) as ICC members in a meeting held in Dubai. Zimbabwe Cricket had been suspended from membership of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with immediate effect in July this year. In 2016, Nepal had been banned for “governmental interference”. Now, Zimbabwe will be able to take up their place in the ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup in January and the ICC Super League later in 2020.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. IMF cuts World and India growth rates: The World Bank-International Monetary Fund (IMF) annual meetings kicked off on a somber note, with the IMF downgrading global growth in 2019 to 3%, the slowest since the global financial crisis. India’s growth projections have also been downgraded to 6.1% and 7.0% in 2019 and 2020 respectively, down by 1.2 percentage points and 0.5 percentage points relative to April projections, owing to weaker than expected domestic demand. India’s growth rate in the April-June quarter had hit 5%, the lowest in six years, as per government data. Consumption, investment and exports were down. The IMF projected the U.S. would grow at 2.4% and 2.1% in 2019 and 2020 respectively. For China, growth was projected to grow at 6.1% and 5.8% in 2019 and 2020.

Note: MD of IMF: Kristalina Georgieva, Headquarters: Washington DC, USA.

AWARDS & HONOURS

1. India wins four 2019 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation: UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation 2019 has been announced at a ceremony in Penang, Malaysia. Indian bagged four awards in three categories. Renewal of Tai Kwun Centre for Heritage and Arts in Hong Kong received the Award of Excellence, which is the highest award among all categories.

A complete list of winners:

Sr. No.	Award of Distinction	New Design in Heritage Contexts	Honourable Mention	Award of Merit
1	Vikram Sarabhai Library, IIM (Ahmedabad) India	Dry Pit Latrine in Jiaxian Ancient Jujube Garden (Shaanxi) China	Flora Fountain (Mumbai) India	Our Lady of Glory Church (Mumbai) India
2	Keyuan Garden (Suzhou) China	Joan Sutherland Theatre Passageway and Lift (Sydney Opera House) Australia	Westpac Long Gallery (Sydney) Australia	Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue (Mumbai) India
3	Nelson School of Music, (Nelson) New Zealand	The Mills (Hong Kong SAR) China	The 5s Classroom (Kew) Australia	Tseto Goenpa (Paro) Bhutan
4			Liddell Bros. Packing Plant (Wuhan) China	Guyue Bridge (Zhejiang) China
5				Lyttelton Timeball Station (Christchurch) New Zealand

Note: UNESCO President: Audrey Azoulay; Founded: 16 November 1945; Headquarters: Paris, France.

2. HCL’s Shiv Nadar tops EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2019: Shiv Nadar (HCL founder and chairman) has achieved the top rank in the EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2019. Mr Nadar made the highest contribution of Rs 826 crore (between April 2018 and March 2019) towards philanthropic causes. Azim Premji (Wipro) has been ranked second with total donations worth Rs 453 crore during the qualifying period. Mukesh Ambani (Chairman, Reliance Industries) came third with a total contribution of Rs 402 crore.

Note: The list has been compiled by the EdelGive Foundation and Hurun Research Institute. It ranks individuals from India who donated Rs 5 crore and above between April 1, 2018, and March 31, 2019, towards philanthropic contributions.