Daily GK Updates - 15th November, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to be the chief guest at Republic Day 2020: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day Parade 2020. Regarding this, he has formally accepted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s invitation on the sidelines of the 11th BRICS Summit 2019. Both leaders agreed that on this occasion, the two countries can comprehensively enhance our strategic partnership. On 26th January 2020, India will celebrate its 71st Republic Day. First Republic Day of India was celebrated in 1950.

Note: The year 2018 was historic when leaders from the 10 ASEAN nations – Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Brunei – were the chief guests at Republic Day celebration. In 2019, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was in attendance as the chief guest. He was the second South African president, after Nelson Mandela, to attend the grand event as its chief guest.

Capital of Brazil: Brasilia; Currency: Brazilian real.

2. Nitin Gadkari Inaugurates Khadi Pavilion at I.I.T.F: Union Minister of MSME and Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the Khadi Pavilion at the India International Trade Fair (IITF) in New Delhi. The Pavilion entrance has been themed upon Sabarmati Ashram, with melodious Shehnai celebrating the ‘spirit of Indianness’. A wide range of products which includes food, handicrafts, leather, textiles and hosiery, readymade garments, wooden toys, cosmetics and herbal products offering a discount of up to 20% are being displayed in the Khadi Pavilion at IITF 2019.

Note: Chairman of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission: Vinai Kumar Saxena.

3. Andhra Pradesh government launches ‘Nadu-Nedu’ scheme: Andhra Pradesh government has launched the ‘Nadu-Nedu’ programme. The programme aims to introduce English medium from classes 1 to 6 in state-run schools. The scheme will be implemented in 15,715 schools in the first phase. It will cover all schools in three years’ time with a budget of Rs 12,000 crores. The decision to switch over to the English medium in government schools has been taken to uplift the marginalised section of society.

Note: CM of Andhra Pradesh: YS Jaganmohan Reddy; Governor: Biswa Bhusan Harichandan.

4. The 6th World Congress on Rural and Agricultural Finance was held in New Delhi: The 6th World Congress on Rural and Agricultural Finance (WCRAF) was held in New Delhi from November 12-13, 2019. The congress was inaugurated by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. It was jointly hosted by the Asia-Pacific Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (APRACA), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. This 6th version of the congress was attended by 300 delegates across the globe who engaged in interactive discussions to unleash the potential role of rural and agricultural finance. The theme of the event was “Rural and Agricultural Finance: Critical Input to achieve Inclusive and Sustainable Development”.

Note: The World Congress is held at regular intervals of the 3-year period. The first Congress was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2005. It aims at bringing together stakeholders of rural and agricultural finance all over the world. The Congress is an opportunity to strengthen business relations and to promote products and services.

NABARD: Established in: 1982; Chairman: Dr. Harsh Kumar Bhanwala; Headquarter: Mumbai

5. Mihir Shah committee to draft a new National Water Policy: The Union Water Resources Ministry has set up a Committee to draft a new National Water Policy (NWP). The Committee will be chaired by Mihir Shah, formerly a member of the Planning Commission of India. The committee has 10 principal members, including Shashi Shekhar, a former secretary of Water Resources, and A.B. Pandya, former chairman of the Central Ground Water Board. The committee is expected to produce a report within six months. In September, Union Water Resources Minister Gajendra Shekhawat said that the Centre was planning to update the NWP and make key changes in water governance structure and regulatory framework.

Note: The NWP currently in force was drafted in 2012 and is the third such policy since 1987.

6. New signal fish discovered off Kerala coast: The new signal fish was found in Lakshadweep sea off Kerala coast, which is the home for unusual species like fish with a unique color. The name of the species is “Pteropsaron Indicum”, was collected by trawlers at a depth of 70 meters during a marine biodiversity survey. Scientists from the University of Kerala and the Ocean Science Foundation, United State of America (USA) have described the discovery of the new species of signal fish, was the first one of the genus recorded in Indian waters.

7. Nilam Sawhney appointed as Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary: Senior IAS officer Nilam Sawhney has been appointed as the Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh. She has become the first woman Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh. She belongs to the 1984 batch of the IAS and from AP Cadre. She will replace Neerabh Kumar who is holding the additional charge as the Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh.

Note: CM of Andhra Pradesh: YS Jaganmohan Reddy; Governor: Biswa Bhusan Harichandan.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India gets USD 43 million from Green Climate Fund to boost climate resilience: India kicked-off a USD 43 million project to boost climate resilience in three coastal states in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The project is funded by the Green Climate Fund, established within the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to assist developing countries. The six-year project will build climate-resilient livelihoods for 1.7 million people in three states viz Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha.

Note: The Green Climate Fund: Green Climate Fund was established within the framework of the UNFCCC. It was formed in 2010. The headquarters of Green Climate Fund is in Incheon, South Korea. It is supported by a Secretariat and governed by a board of 24 members. The main objective of the Green Climate Fund is to support programmes, projects, policies, and other activities to develop country Parties using thematic funding windows. The current executive director is Yannick Glemarec.

2. Bangladesh tops business bribery risk in South Asia: Bangladesh has topped the business bribery risk in South Asia according to the Trace Bribery Matrix. Bangladesh has the highest business bribery risk among South Asian courtiers according to the annual ranking for 200 countries. Bangladesh has been placed at 178th position among 200 countries in terms of business bribery risk. The five countries with the lowest bribery risk in the world are New Zealand, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. The countries with the highest risk are Venezuela, Yemen, North Korea, South Sudan and Somalia.

Note: TRACE is a US-based organisation which provides ranking to various countries in terms of the risk of bribery companies face in doing business in those countries. The Trace Bribery Matrix evaluates the countries under 4 parameters i.e. business interaction with the government, anti-bribery deterrence, transparency and civil society oversight.

3. Mangala Mani becomes the first Indian Woman Scientist to live in Antarctica for 403 Days: Mangala Mani from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), is the first woman scientist to spend 403 days in Antarctica. She has forged history with this achievement. She was part of an expedition team that went to Bharati – India’s research station in Antarctica – in November 2016. She was the only woman in the 23-member-team that went to the freezing continent this time.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. India set to host World Kabaddi cup 2019 in Punjab: The 2019 World Kabaddi Cup will take place from December 1 to 9 and will be organised by the Punjab government in Punjab. This year’s tournament will be dedicated to the 550th birth anniversary of Sikh guru, Guru Nanak Dev Ji. The inauguration of the event will be held on December 1 at Guru Nanak Stadium, Sultanpur Lodhi and four matches are scheduled for the opening day. Nine teams -- India, USA, Australia, England, Sri Lanka, Kenya, New Zealand, Pakistan, and Canada -- are expected to take part in the tournament.

Note: Punjab CM: Amarinder Singh; Governor: VP Singh Badnore.

2. FIFA names Arsene Wenger as global football development chief: Veteran coach Arsene Wenger has been named FIFA’s Chief of global football development. The former Arsenal and Monaco coach would be responsible for the growth of the game for both men and women around the world and would also be the leading authority on technical matters, including potential changes to the sport’s laws. Wenger made the English Club Arsenal one of the strongest football clubs in Europe, winning three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups and taking his team to the 2006 Champions League final. He also won the French league in 1987 with Monaco, adding the French Cup four years later before departing for Japan in 1995.

Note: President of FIFA: Gianni Infantino; Founded: 21 May 1904; Headquarters: Zürich, Switzerland.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

1. Moody's cuts India's GDP growth forecast to 5.6 per cent for 2019: Moody's Investors Service slashed India's economic growth forecast to 5.6 per cent for FY 2019. Moody’s says that government measures do not address the widespread weakness in consumption demand. Moody's had on October 10 slashed India's economic growth forecast for 2019-20 fiscal to 5.8 per cent from an earlier estimate of 6.2 per cent. Last week, it downgraded India's outlook to negative from stable.

Note: Moody’s Headquarters- New York, United States (US); Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Raymond Whitehead McDaniel.

AWARDS AND HONOUR

1. Ravi Prakash awarded with the BRICS Young Innovator Prize: An Indian Ph.D. Scholar, Ravi Prakash has won the USD 25,000 BRICS-Young Innovator Prize for inventing an affordable indigenous milk chilling unit for smaller and marginal rural dairy farmers. Prakash, Ph.D. scholar of ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Bangalore, was a part of a 21-member delegation sent to Brazil by the Department of Science and Technology for the 4th BRICS-Young Scientist Forum (YSF), 2019. The theme for 4th BRICS-YSF was “Cybersecurity and Bio-economy” it highlights the important strategy of science, technology and innovation as the key drivers of youth entrepreneurship and leadership. The technology can be used for chilling milk from the point of production by bringing down the temperature of raw milk from 37C to 7C within 30 minutes using nano-fluid based phase change materials.

Note: The BRICS Young Innovator Prize aims to recognize and reward the research, development and innovation projects in the science and technology sector of the BRICS countries. It is in special recognition of young talented entrepreneurs and researchers, whose outstanding innovations will make a profound impact on the socio-economic environment and conditions of life in BRICS societies.

BRICS is the acronym of the five major emerging economies -- Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. This year's event is being held in Brasilia from November 13-14 under the theme BRICS: Economic Growth for an Innovative Future.

2. Robert De Niro to be conferred with SAG Life Achievement award: Hollywood veteran and double Oscar winner Robert De Niro will receive the SAG-AFTRA’s highest tribute: the SAG Life Achievement Award for career achievement and humanitarian accomplishment, at the 26th edition of the ceremony 2019. The SAG Life Achievement Award is given annually to an actor who fosters the “finest ideals of the acting profession”.

DEFENCE

1. India-U.S. tri-services exercise Tiger Triumph begins: The India-U.S. tri-services amphibious exercise “Tiger Triumph” has begun in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Tiger Triumph will go on for 9 days off the Visakhapatnam and Kakinada coasts. The training events will enhance U.S.-India military-to-military relations and hone individual and small-unit skills in humanitarian assistance and disaster response. This kind of training is expected to build the capacity of both the U.S. and Indian participants as well as improving their ability to operate together. More than 500 U.S. Marines and sailors and about 1,200 Indian soldiers, sailors and airmen are participating in the exercise.

2. Karabi Gogoi selected as Assistant Naval Attache in Moscow Embassy: The Indian Navy has selected Lt. Commander Karabi Gogoi as assistant naval attache at the Moscow Embassy. She will be the first woman Assistant Naval Attache and second woman defence personnel to be appointed for a diplomatic assignment in Russia. Currently posted as a naval engineer at the Karwar base of the Navy, the officer is also learning Russian and is expected to take up her new assignment in Moscow next month. In September, Wing Commander Anjali Singh became India's first female military diplomat to be posted in any of the Indian missions abroad.

OBITUARIES

1. Renowned mathematician Vashishtha Narayan Singh passes away: Renowned mathematician Vashishtha Narayan Singh passed away. The 77-year old had been suffering from Schizophrenia for 40 years. Born in 1942, Vashishth Narayan Singh was famous for his extraordinary skills of calculation. Narayan Singh was said to have challenged Einstein’s theory of relativity. Narayan went to the University of California in 1965 and completed his Ph.D. on cycle vector space theory in 1969. He had taught at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur and the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata. It is believed that before the launch of the Apollo mission when multiple computers went off at the same time, Narayan's calculations in his brains were the same as the computers when they came back up.