Daily GK Updates - 24th October, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Union Cabinet approves merger of BSNL and MTNL: The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the merger of loss-making telecom firms BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited) and MTNL (Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited)  as part of a revival package. The revival package includes raising sovereign bonds, monetising assets and voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) for employees. The revival package for BSNL and MTNL includes raising of Rs 15,000 crore sovereign bonds and monetising Rs 38,000 crore of assets in next 4 years. Under the package, 4G spectrum worth Rs 20,000 crore will be administratively allotted to the two firms.

Note: Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) is a state-owned telecommunications service provider in the metro cities of Mumbai and New Delhi in India and in the island nation of Mauritius in Africa. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited is an Indian state-owned telecommunications company headquartered in New Delhi.

2. Deepika Padukone, PV Sindhu named as ambassadors for ‘Bharat Ki Laxmi’ initiative: Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone and Indian badminton player PV Sindhu were named the ambassadors for Bharat Ki Laxmi. It is an initiative by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. The aim of this initiative is to celebrate the contribution & accomplishments of women of the nation for the public good. The hashtag for the initiative is #BharatKiLaxmi.

3. A new book entitled “Ten Studies in Kashmir: History and Politics” released: An Indian historian, educationist and Padma Shri recipient, Kashi Nath Pandit’s new book entitled “Ten Studies in Kashmir: History and Politics”, published by Academic Foundation. A new book looks at the riveting history of Jammu and Kashmir from the time of its political and geographic consolidation to the abrogation of the state’s special status. The book, which comes after the scrapping of Article 370 provisions in August, will shed light on the happenings from 1947 till the revocation of the special status of the state.

4. ITBP celebrated its 58th Raising Day: Indo-Tibetan Border Police celebrated its 58th Raising Day on 24th October 2019. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy took the salute of the Raising Day Parade ITBP’s Headquarters in Greater Noida. The Parade comprised of all Frontier Contingents of the Force including women, Commando, Skiing, mountaineering and paratroopers’ contingents besides the dog squad & mounted columns. The parade showcased valour and courage of various contingents.

Note: Indo-Tibetan Border Police was raised on 24 October, 1962 in the wake of Chinese aggression on Indo-China border.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Kais Saied sworn in as new president of Tunisia: Kais Saied (61-years) has been sworn in as Tunisia's new President. He succeeds Beji Caid Essebsi , who died in office on July 2019. Saied won just over 72% of the votes, with about 27% of ballots cast for his media-mogul opponent Nabil Karoui.

Note: Tunisia is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east; Capital: Tunis ; Currency: Tunisian dinar

2. President Kovind lays foundation stone for Sri Sathya Sai Sanathana Samskruti Project in Japan: President Ram Nath Kovind laid the foundation stone for Sri Sathya Sai Sanathana Samskruti Project at Sai no Sato, Kakegawa, Japan. Sai no Sato will be developed as a temple on the lines of Akshardham and Swaminarayan Temple to promote Indian traditional culture.  Earlier, President Kovind also attended a banquet hosted in his honour by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan.

3. India set to sign agreement on Kartarpur corridor with Pakistan: India and Pakistan will sign a pact to operationalize the Kartarpur corridor.  The pact would be signed by the officials of both the countries at Zero point at Dera Baba Nanak. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the corridor in November this year.

Note: The corridor will connect ‘Dera Baba Nanak’ (in Gurdaspur district-India) to the ‘Gurdwara Darbar Sahib’ (in Kartarpur in Narowal district of Pakistan). The Kartarpur Gurudwara (Darbar Sahib Kartarpur) is situated on the banks of river ‘Ravi’, considered to be the first gurdwara ever built.

4. Amazon’s male white bellbird is the world’s loudest bird:The male white bellbird is the world’s loudest bird which hits 125.4 decibels. This study was published in the journal Current Biology. This was recorded by Biologist Jeff Podos at Brazil in the mountains of the northern Amazon. The call by the bird is made as part of their mating rituals and it’s mating call is about three times louder than screaming phias. The screaming phias (Lipaugus vociferans), also an Amazonian species, previously held the record of being the world’s loudest bird.

5. World Development Information Day: 24 October: The United Nations observes World Development Information Day on 24 October every year. The General Assembly in 1972 established World Development Information Day to draw the attention of the world to development problems and the need to strengthen international cooperation to solve them. The General Assembly decided that the date for the Day should coincide with United Nations Day i.e. 24 October.

6. United Nations Day: 24 October: 24th October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948. UN Day marks the anniversary of the entry into force in 1945 of the UN Charter. The United Nations was founded in 1945 to support collective action to realize peace, development and human rights for all. United Nations will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations in 2020 with inclusive global conversation on the role of global cooperation in building the future we want. The UN75 initiative seeks to spark dialogue and action on how we can build a better world despite the many challenges we face.

Note: In 1971, the United Nations General Assembly had declared 24th October as the United Nations Day by adopting Resolution 2782.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Praveen Kumar wins gold in Wushu World Championship: Praveen Kumar has become the 1st Indian man to win a gold medal at the Wushu World Championships. He defeated Philippines’ Russel Diaz by 2-1 in the men’s sanda event in the 48kg category of the 15th World Wushu Championships held in Shanghai. Among other Indians, Poonam in women’s 75kg category and Sanathoi Devi in women’s 52kg category secured silver medals while Vikrant Baliyan bagged the bronze in the men’s 60kg category. India finished third overall in the championship in event with a gold, two silvers and a bronze.

Note: Wushu is a Chinese martial art which combines full-contact kickboxing, including close-range punches and kicks, with wrestling, takedowns, throws, sweeps and kicks catch.

2. Abhishek Nayar retires from all forms of cricket: Veteran Mumbai all-rounder Abhishek Nayar has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. He represented India in 3 One Day Internationals but his record as a First Class player is more promising. He played 103 first-class games, most of them for Mumbai, and scored 5749 runs with 13 centuries and 32 fifties while taking 173 wickets in a career spanning a decade and a half. He also played 99 List-A games in which he amassed 2145 runs and picked 79 wickets.

3. Rohit Sharma becomes 3rd Indian batsman to reach top 10 in all formats: The 'Hitman' Rohit Sharma has become the third Indian batsman to reach the top 10 in all three formats (Test, ODIs & T20). The 'Hitman' has held a career-high ranking of second in ODIs in February 2018 and seventh in T20 in November 2018. Rohit's player of the series effort of 529 runs helped him make huge strides from 44th place before the series. He remains the third-best Indian batsman in terms of Test rankings after Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. Vreedhi Financial Services receives an NBFC licence from RBI: Vreedhi Financial Services (VFS) has secured a non-banking finance company licence from the Reserve Bank of India. The objective of the licence is to provide credit and other services to micro-enterprises operating in tier two-three cities and small towns. The company will create a digital lending model by the next financial year. It will address the gap between the addressable and viable credit in the micro-enterprises space which is $123 billion as per the study conducted by the International Finance Corporation (IFC).

Note: Governor of RBI: Shaktikanta Das; Headquarters: Mumbai.

2. GeM and Federal Bank sign MoU for payment related services: The Government e-Marketplace (GeM) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Federal Bank to offer a number of services including transfer of funds through GeM Pool Accounts (GPA), advising of Performance Bank Guarantees (e-PBG) and Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) to the registered users on the portal. The MoU will facilitate a cashless, paperless and transparent payment system on the portal and would create an efficient procurement system for government entities.

Note: MD & CEO of Federal Bank: Shyam Srinivasan; Tagline: Your Perfect Banking Partner; Headquarters: Kochi, Kerala.

3. Vijaya Bank Museum inaugurated in Bengaluru: The Vijaya Bank Heritage Museum has been inaugurated at the headquarters of the erstwhile Vijaya Bank i.e. Bengaluru. The museum has a rare collection of photos through which the growth of the bank is showcased. The memories of the erstwhile Vijaya Bank can now be refreshed at a museum dedicated to its history. Vijaya Bank was one of the premier nationalised banks in the country. The erstwhile Vijaya Bank, along with the erstwhile Dena Bank, was amalgamated with Bank of Baroda on April 1, 2019.

4. World Bank Report: India takes Huge Strides in improving Ease of Doing Business: As per the World Bank’s latest Doing Business Report 2020 (DBR), India has recorded 63rd rank (rank of 77 in 2019) among 190 countries assessed by the World Bank. India's leap of 14 ranks in the Ease of Doing Business ranking is significant considering that there has been continuous improvement since 2015. India has improved its rank in seven out of 10 indicators and has moved closer to international best practices (Distance to Frontier score). Significant improvements have been registered in ‘Resolving Insolvency’, 'Dealing with Construction Permits', ‘Registering Property’, ‘Trading across Boards’ and ‘Paying Taxes’ indicators.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. Mohun Bagan confers life membership to Abhijit Banerjee: The Mohun Bagan Athletic Club has conferred life membership to Nobel laureate Abhijit Banerjee. The club handed him the First Day Cover of 1911 and the maroon green jersey with his name written on it. He was also given a book on the history of the club. In 1911, Mohun Bagan became the first Indian club to win the Indian Football Association (IFA) Shield beating the East Yorkshire Regiment of the British Army in the final.

2. Panchayati Raj Minister confers National Panchayat Awards 2019: Minister of Panchayati Raj Narendra Singh Tomar conferred the national Panchayat Awards, 2019 at a function in New Delhi. 246 Awards were given to awardee Panchayats and States in various categories for their best performance at different levels, including the delivery of services. 195 awards were conferred under Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Sashaktikaran Puraskar category, 20 Gram Panchayats in Nanaji Deshmukh Rashtriya Gaurav Gram Sabha Puraskar category and 3 Gram Panchayats in Gram Panchayat Development Plan Award category. 22 Gram Panchayats were awarded in Child-Friendly Gram Panchayats Award and six states were awarded under e-Panchayat Puraskar category.

Ministry of Panchayati Raj has been incentivizing the best performing Panchayats as recommended by the State Governments since 2011-12. According to Narendra Singh Tomar, in 14th Finance Commission, over two lakh crore rupees have been allocated to Gram Panchayats as against 65,000 crore rupees given under 13th Finance Commission. The Minister also launched the ‘Gram Manchitra’ app which is a Geo-Spatial based decision support system for panchayats.

DEFENCE

1. Indian Army to conduct 2019 “Sindhu Sudarshan” exercise 2019 in Rajasthan deserts: The Indian Army (IA) is to conduct exercise codenamed “Sindhu Sudarshan” for the year 2019 in the deserts of Rajasthan from November 29 to December 4, 2019. The aim of this exercise is to evaluate the capability of the defence services in an integrated air-land battle. In the Sindhu Sudarshan exercise, operational efficiency of the Strike Corps fighting in the desert terrain will be assessed and the Indian Air Force (IAF) will provide support in terms of destruction of targets and airlifting troops. The exercise showcasing a high degree of synergy between the Army and Air Force will be reviewed by Lieutenant General SK Saini.

Note: Chief of the Army Staff: General Bipin Rawat; Air Chief Marshal: Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria.

OBITUARIES

1. Belgian Paralympian Marieke vervoort ends life through euthanasia at 40: Marieke Vervoort, Belgian Paralympic athlete has ended her life at the age of 40 through euthanasia (the practice of intentionally ending a life to relieve pain and suffering). She was suffering from a muscle disease that caused her constant pain, paralysis in her legs. She was diagnosed with the disease at the age of 14, after which she made her life in the sport and took part in basketball, swimming and triathlon in a wheelchair. She won gold in the 100 meters and silver in the 200 meters at the 2012 London Games, while at the Rio Games 2016 she managed to win silver in the 400 meters and bronze in the 100 meters. She signed euthanasia documents in 2008, to allow a doctor to end her life.