Daily GK Updates - 9th October, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. AIIMS & Health ministry launches “eDantSeva”: The All India Institute of Medical Sciences in collaboration with the Union Health Ministry launched the 1st-ever website and mobile application on oral health awareness “eDantSeva“. The digital platform contains information about the National Oral Health Programme and a detailed list of all the dental facility and colleges, Information, Education and Communication (IEC) material. It also constitutes a unique feature called the ‘Symptom Checker’. The website also provides GPRS route and satellite images of the facility for easier access to the people. A Braille booklet and voice-over on oral health education for visually impaired was also released on the occasion.

2. India International Cooperative Trade Fair to be held in New Delhi: A three-day International Cooperative Trade Fair will be held in New Delhi from 11th to 13th October 2019.

The first-ever such fair is aimed at promoting cooperative to cooperative trade within India and abroad leading to enhanced rural and farm prosperity. According to Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomer, Representatives from over 150 cooperative societies and 35 countries including, Australia, Japan, China, Brazil, US, UK, Germany and Iran are going to participate in the fair. The event will offer a huge opportunity for the industry and business houses from India and abroad to build an alliance, business networking, product sourcing and interact with primary producers of a wide range of products and service providers.

3. India receives 1st Rafale fighter jet built for Indian Air Force: India has got the 1st Rafale fighter jet “RB-001” built for the Indian Air Force (IAF) in France. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh received the 1st Rafale combat jet aircraft at Production Unit of Dassault Aviation in France. However, the first batch of jets will arrive in India only in May 2020. Defence Minister also held the Annual Defence dialogue with his French counterpart Florence Parly. India had signed an agreement with France for the procurement of 36 Rafale jets at a cost of Rs. 59,000 crores.

Note: The Rafale is a twin-jet fighter aircraft able to operate from both an aircraft carrier and a shore base. It is described as a fully versatile aircraft which can carry out all combat aviation missions to achieve air superiority and air defence, close air support, in-depth strikes, reconnaissance, anti-ship strikes and nuclear deterrence.

4. Day Care Recreation Centre inaugurated in Leh: The 1st Government-sponsored and operated Day-Care cum Recreation Centre for senior citizens has been inaugurated in Leh. The day care Centre, co-sponsored by Government and the District Legal Service Authority will provide a raft of medical facilities including geriatric care, health consultations and check-ups, physiotherapy to the senior citizens. It would also provide legal service, the senior citizens would require on various legal issues. The premise would be a one stop-shop for entertainment, medical services and legal aid for the aged people of the Ladakh region.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India, Mexico agrees to work together on multilateral issues: The fifth round of Foreign Office Consultations between India and Mexico were held in New Delhi. The Indian side was led by Secretary (East) Vijay Thakur Singh and Mexican side was led by Deputy Minister of External Affairs of Mexico Julián Ventura Valero. The two sides reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral cooperation, including political, trade and economic cooperation. Both sides underscored the need to hold a regular dialogue in these areas through the established bilateral mechanisms.

2. WTO hosts first World Cotton Day celebrations in Geneva: The first-ever World Cotton Day (7 October) was hosted by the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva. This event stems from the application by the Cotton-4 countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali) to the United Nations General Assembly for its official recognition of a World Cotton Day, reflecting the importance of cotton as a global commodity. Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani is representing India in the five-day event of World Cotton Day. As one of the world’s largest producers and consumers of cotton, India supports the World Cotton Day as an opportunity to recognise the significance of cotton as a global commodity.

3. Antonio Costa re-elected as the PM of Portugal: Antonio Costa has been re-elected as the Prime Minister of Portugal after winning the general elections. Antonio Costa, the Socialist leader and incumbent prime minister, got the most votes in Portugal’s general election, leaving it poised to continue leading the government for another four years.

4. World Post Day: 9 October: United Nations celebrates World Post Day every year on 9 October. The purpose of World Post Day is to bring awareness to the Post’s role in the everyday lives of people and businesses, as well as its contribution to global social and economic development. The day marks the establishment of the Universal Postal Union in 1874 in the Swiss Capital, Bern. It was declared World Post Day by the UPU Congress held in Tokyo, Japan in 1969.

5. India ranks 68th on WEF’s Global Competitiveness Index: World Economic Forum has released the Global Competitiveness Index report. In total, there are 103 indicators distributed across the 12 pillars on which the performance of the countries was evaluated. As per the WEF’s released report, India has moved down 10 places to rank 68th on an annual global competitiveness index which was topped by Singapore. India is among the worst-performing BRICS nations along with Brazil which is ranked 71st this year. WEF stated that India ranks high in terms of macroeconomic stability and market size, while its financial sector is relatively deep and stable despite the high delinquency rate, which contributes to weakening the soundness of its banking system.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Simone Biles wins 15th world title: American artistic gymnast Simone Biles (22-years) has clinched a record-extending 15th World Gymnastics Championship title in Stuttgart, Germany. She collected her 21st medal at the championships to become the most decorated women's gymnast. Biles played a key role in a commanding performance by the USA, earning the most points in three of the four disciplines: the vault, balance beam and floor.

2. Surender Singh creates three world records at World Powerlifting C’ ship: India’s Surender Singh created three world records at the ongoing World Powerlifting Championship in Berlin, Germany. Surender bagged the gold medal in 110 kg category, Classic Raw and the Best Lifter Award in Classic Raw and Single Ply. Three-time World Champion Mukesh Singh went on to add another feather to his cap by winning yet another gold only to be known as 4-time World Champion.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. SBI lowers rates on non-repo-linked loans by 10 bps: State Bank of India (SBI) has announced a reduction in its marginal cost of fund-based lending (MCLR) rate by 10 basis points across all tenors (effective from 10th October 2019). This is the sixth time that the country’s largest lender has cut its MCLR or minimum lending rate in the current financial year. The rate reduction is not applicable to the repo-linked loans. With this reduction, the one-year MCLR, to which all the lending rates are linked to, is set at 8.05% as against 8.15% earlier. The cut in MCLR follows a 25-bps reduction in repo rate by the RBI last week.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

1. Infosys bags digital transformation services deal from Volvo: Infosys has been selected as the main supplier to deliver Volvo Cars’ digital transformation services for its enterprise digital commercial operations applications and products. Infosys will offer next generation application services leveraging its global delivery model (GDM), agile delivery, automation and other service optimisation levers to deliver effective service operations. Based on the Scale Agile Framework (SAFe), Infosys will enable transformation of application management and application development deliveries to a 100% agile operating model.

AWARDS & HONOURS

1. “Spirit Of Kerala” wins People’s Choice Award: Short film from Kerala “Spirit Of Kerala” has won the People’s Choice Award at the recently concluded My Rode Reel film competition. The film won the honour beating 1,680 entries. The short film is based on a boat race and directed by Arun Joseph. My Rode Reel film competition is touted as the ‘world’s largest short film competition’.

2. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2019: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2019. The prize will be awarded jointly to John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino. They have been nominated for the prize for the development of lithium-ion batteries. This lightweight, rechargeable and powerful battery is now used in everything from mobile phones to laptops and electric vehicles.