Daily GK Updates - 22nd November, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Jitendra Singh to inaugurate ‘Destination North East’ Festival: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Dr Jitendra Singh will inaugurate the ‘Destination North East’ Festival in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh on 23rd November 2019. All 8 North East states will be present at the event along with their handicrafts, handloom, organic products and cultural troupes. During the festival, the visitors will have live experiences of the artisans and artists from the NE states working on their looms and crafts, performing their songs and dances in the open stage during the day.

2. Assam government releases the new Land Policy 2019 after 30 years: Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal released the new Land Policy 2019 prepared by Revenue and Disaster Management Department in Guwahati. The Land Policy was approved by Cabinet on 21st October and it has been prepared by the Revenue and Disaster Management Department after 30 years. It was last prepared in 1989. The state government has been putting a lot of emphasis in preparing the Land Policy to safeguard the interest of the indigenous people and the Policy would remove complications regarding land allotments and settlements.

Note: Assam Governor:  Jagdish Mukhi. Capital: Dispur.

3. Global Bio-India Summit begins in Delhi: Union Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan and Shri Dharmendra Pradhan jointly inaugurated the three-day Global Bio-India Summit 2019 begins in at Aerocity New Delhi. It will be one of the largest biotechnology stakeholder conglomerates held in India for the first time. It will bring academia, innovators, researchers, start-ups, medium and large companies together on the same platform. Over three thousand delegates from around 25 countries and over 15 states of India will participate in the mega event.

Note: The biotechnology sector is recognized as the key driver for contributing to India's USD 5 Trillion economy target by 2024.

4. Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurates Agro-Vision in Nagpur: Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has inaugurated an Agro-based Exhibition ‘Agro-Vision’ in Nagpur. Agro-Vision (11th edition) aims to cater to the requirements of farmers of Vidarbha region in terms of showcasing new technology in farming. It has been suggested for allied business so that farmers earn more and prosper in their initiatives. Agro-Vision exhibition comprises of National Agri-Exhibition Workshop for farmers and seminars. The concluding function will be graced Minister of State for Agriculture Kailash Chaudhari on 25th of November. Small entrepreneurs who are engaged in the production of Agricultural machinery and components will be displaying their products at the stalls.

5. I&B Minister Prakash Javadekar inaugurates Film Bazaar on IFFI 2019: The Film Bazaar, which is being organised by the National Film Development Corporation, was inaugurated by the Information and Broadcasting Minister on the sidelines of the golden jubilee edition of the International Film Festival of India. The Film Bazaar encourages creative and financial collaboration between the South Asian and International film communities. Over the years, films such as Lunch Box, Margarita With A Straw, Chauthi Koot, Qissa, Miss Lovely, Dum Lagake Haisha and Thithi have been through one or more programmes of the Bazaar.

6. Two lakh Gram Panchayats to be connected with internet, broadband by March 2020: The union Govt. has set a target to provide internet and broadband connectivity to two lakh Gram Panchayats by March 2020. According to Ravi Shankar Prasad (Electronics and Information Technology Minister), a total of over 1,28,000 Gram Panchayats has been made Service Ready till 7th November of this month. BharatNet project is being implemented in a phased manner to provide broadband and internet connectivity to all 2,50,000 Gram Panchayats in the country. As of now, Wi-Fi hotspots have been installed in around 45,000 Gram Panchayats and services are being provided in over 16,000 Gram Panchayats.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Mahinda Rajapaksa sworn in as new PM of Sri Lanka: Mahinda Rajapaksa has been sworn in as the new Prime minister of Sri Lanka. He was sworn in by President Gotabaya Rajapksa (his younger brother) after Ranil Wickremesinghe resigned from his post. Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa served as two-term President from 2005 to 2015 and was barred from contesting Presidential elections because of the two-term limit. As per the constitution, parliament cannot be dissolved till February unless two-thirds of members pass a resolution to this effect.

2. World Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Day: 21 November: The WHO (World Health Organization) and Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) organize World COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) Day on the third Wednesday of November every year. It was first launched in 1997 by WHO, GOLD and other institutes in the US. This year the day is marked to create awareness in the Theme: All Together to End COPD. COPD is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. It causes severe breathlessness and predisposes to exacerbations.

3. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella tops Fortune’s Businessperson of the Year 2019 list: Microsoft’s India-born Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella has occupied the top spot in Fortune’s Businessperson of the Year 2019 list. The list also includes Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga and Arista head Jayshree Ullal. Banga is ranked 8th, while Ullal comes in at the 18th spot in the list for which Fortune looked at 10 financial factors ranging from a total return to shareholders to return on capital. Both Banga and Ullal are of Indian-origin. Fortune’s annual Businessperson of the Year list features 20 business leaders “who tackled audacious goals, overcame impossible odds, found creative solutions”.

Fortune’s Businessperson of the Year 2019 List

Rank	Name
1	Satya Nadella (CEO, Microsoft)
2	Elizabeth Gaines (CEO, Fortescue Metals Group)
3	Brian Niccol (CEO, Chipotle Mexican Grill)
4	Margaret Keane (CEO, Synchrony Financial)
5	Bjorn Gulden (CEO, Puma)

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Elavenil Valarivan, Divyansh Panwar win gold medals at ISSF World Cup: Elavenil Valarivan and Divyansh Panwar clinching gold medals in their events to give the country its best ever single-day show in the ISSF World Cup Finals in Putian, China. The 20-year-old Elavenil claimed the top honours in the women’s 10 metres air rifle competition. Later, another teen sensation Divyansh finished on top in the men’s 10 metres air rifle competition. India is currently top of the table with 3 gold medals, followed by China 2 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. RBI supersedes DHFL board to initiate insolvency proceedings: The Reserve Bank of India superseded the board of debt-laden Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) as it intends to shortly initiate the process of resolution of the company under the insolvency and bankruptcy rules. The company is all set to become India’s first financier to land up in bankruptcy courts. The central bank superseded the board “owing to governance concerns and defaults by DHFL in meeting various payment obligations. R Subramaniakumar, ex-MD and CEO of Indian Overseas Bank has been appointed as the administrator.

In January, a web portal accused the DHFL promoters of committing financial frauds by creating shell companies. A total of 32 Indian and foreign banks lent Rs 97,000 crore to DHFL Group companies with many borrower companies having the same addresses, directors, and auditors.

Note: DHFL is the fourth-largest Indian housing finance company based on loans outstanding as of March. Headquarters of DHFL: Haryana; CEO of DHFL: Kapil Wadhawan.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. Swachh Survekshan Grameen Awards 2019: The Union Minister of the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers, conferred the Swachh Survekshan Grameen 2019 awards to top-ranked states, union territories, and districts in the various categories on the occasion of World Toilet Day at Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra, New Delhi. The top-ranked state: Tamil Nadu, and the top-ranked district: Peddapalli (Telangana), along with the state with the maximum citizen participation: Uttar Pradesh.

Note: Union Minister of the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers: D.V. Sadananda Gowda.

Overall Ranking

Sr. No.	Top 3 States		Sr. No.	Top 3 Districts
1	Tamil Nadu		1	Peddapalli, Telangana
2	Haryana		2	Faridabad, Haryana
3	Gujarat		3	Rewari, Haryana

2. Greta Thunberg & Divina Maloum awarded International Children’s Peace Prize 2019: Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg has been awarded the International Children’s Peace Prize 2019 for her work in the struggle against climate change which has resonated with schoolchildren across the world. Cameroonian peace activist Divina Maloum (15-years) also received the International Children's Peace Prize, awarded for her “peaceful struggle” against the Boko Haram jihadist group. It is given to a child who has made a significant contribution to advocating children’s rights and improving the situation of vulnerable children such as orphans, child labourers and children with HIV/AIDS.

Note: The International Children’s Peace Prize is given annually by the International children’s rights organization Kids Rights based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

DEFENCE

1. The NIA will host the first-ever counter-terrorism (CT) exercise: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will host the first-ever counter-terrorism (CT) exercise for the Quad countries in New Delhi. The Quad countries include the United States (US), India, Australia, and Japan. According to the NIA, the exercise is to assess and validate CT response mechanisms in the light of emerging terrorist threats. It also aims to provide opportunities to share the best practices and to explore areas for enhanced cooperation amongst participating countries.

Note: DG of NIA: Yogesh Chander Modi; Headquarters: New Delhi.