Daily GK Updates - 2nd November, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. SC panel declares a public health emergency in Delhi-NCR: Supreme Court-mandated panel declared a public health emergency in the Delhi-NCR region and banned construction activity till November 5th.  As the pollution level in the region entered the "severe-plus" category, the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority also banned the bursting of crackers during the winter season. The Delhi government has ordered shutting of schools till November 5 in wake of the alarming level of pollution. According to the EPCA chairperson Bhure Lal, the air quality in Delhi-NCR deteriorated further 31st October night and is now at the severe-plus level.

Note: An AQI between 0-50 is considered 'good', 51-100 'satisfactory', 101-200 'moderate', 201-300 'poor', 301-400 'very poor' and 401-500 'severe'. Above 500 falls in the 'severe-plus emergency' category.

2. New Chief Justices appointed to Madras, Patna, Madhya Pradesh High Courts: The Government of India notified the appointment of new Chief Justices to the High Courts of Madras, Madhya Pradesh, and Patna. All three Chief Justices are expected to take charge of their respective offices by November 13.

Patna High Court's Chief Justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi has been appointed as the next Chief Justice of the Madras High Court. Meghalaya High Court's Chief Justice AK Mittal has been appointed the next Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. Tripura High Court's Chief Justice Sanjay Karol has been appointed the next Chief Justice of the Patna High Court, to fill the vacancy left behind in view of Chief Justice Sahi's transfer to Madras. Patna HC judge, Justice Rakesh Kumar was transferred to Andhra Pradesh HC and Punjab & Haryana HC judge Justice Amit Rawal was transferred to Kerala HC.

3. Telecom Regulatory fixes mobile call ring time at 30 seconds; 60 seconds for landline: Telecom Regulatory Authority of Indian (TRAI) fixed phone call ring time at 30 seconds on mobiles and 60 seconds for landline phones, in case the call is neither answered nor rejected by the subscriber. "The time duration of alert for an incoming voice call, which is neither answered nor rejected by the called party, shall be thirty seconds for Cellular Mobile Telephone Service and sixty seconds for Basic Telephone Service. Till now there was no such limit for calls within India. Telecom operators on their own were reducing incoming call ring time to attract reverse calls from the subscriber of other networks.

Note: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is a statutory body set up by the Government of India in 1997. Headquarters: New Delhi; Chairman: Sunil K. Gupta

4. V K Singh addresses 5th International Conference on Road Tech: The 5th edition of the International Conference on ROADTECH 2019 was held in New Delhi. It was organized by industry body ASSOCHAM India (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India). Union Minister of State for Road Transport V.K. Singh addressed the meeting. The main objective of the conference is to pool suggestions & solutions from all stakeholders and to cooperate between the road infrastructure stakeholders and the Government. During the conference, the minister highlighted that in the last five years great amount of works have been done in the field of infrastructure and in future much more will be done. He urged the industry body to find a unique way to monetize the road projects in an environment-friendly manner.

Note: The ASSOCHAM is India's premier apex chamber covers a membership of over 4 lakh companies and professionals across the country. It was established in 1920 with headquarter in New Delhi; Balkrishan Goenka is its President.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 5th Indo-German Inter-Governmental Consultations held in New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel co-chaired the 5th Indo-German Inter-Governmental Consultations to strengthen the "very close" relationship between the two countries. The two leaders also discuss bilateral issues including agriculture economic partnership, trade and investment. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is on a two-day visit to India. Merkel paid tributes to Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat. Angela Merkel will have delegation-level talks with an aim to strengthen bilateral and multilateral efforts to combat terrorism and extremism. The countries are also working on opportunities in E-mobility, smart cities, inland waterways, and environmental conservation.

Note: Germany Capital: Berlin; Currency: Euro; President: Frank-Walter Steinmeier

2. 2nd Assembly of International Solar Alliance (ISA) 2019 held in New Delhi: The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has hosted the second Assembly of International Solar Alliance (ISA) on 30 and 31 October 2019 New Delhi. The assembly was presided by Minister for New and Renewable Energy and Power, R.K. Singh. France’s Minister of State for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, Ms. Brune Poirson was the Co-President of the Assembly. On 30 October 2019, coordination and consultation meetings on different aspects of ISA programmes and initiatives were held and the Assembly met on 31 October 2019. 2 countries, Eritrea and Kitts & Nevis signed the ISA framework agreement taking the total number of signatories to 83. The Government of India has allotted 5 acres of land to the ISA in the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) campus, Gurugram and has released a sum of Rs. 160 crore

Note: The ISA is an Indian initiative that was launched by the Prime Minister of India and the President of France on 30 November 2015 at Paris, France on the side-lines of the COP-21.

3. Spain offered to host COP25 climate change summit after Chile's withdrawal: The Spanish government confirmed that it made its bid to host the United Nations Climate Change Conference or Conference of the Parties (COP25) climate summit 2019 in Madrid on the scheduled dates of 2-13 December 2019. The move comes after Chile withdrew its plans to host the summit due to deadly anti-government protests in Santiago. The COP25 was originally scheduled to be held in Brazil but after two months of the announcement as host nation, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro pulled out citing economic crisis. The COP25 summit is aimed to bring out details of the implementation of the Paris Agreement climate pact. The 25th annual Climate Change Conference will feature the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 25) to the UNFCCC and the meetings of the UNFCCC subsidiary bodies.

Note: The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP) aims to assess progress in dealing with climate change. The first UN Climate Change Conference COP-1 was held from 28 March to 7 April 1995 in Berlin, Germany.

Spain Capital: Madrid; Currency: Euro

Chile Capital: Santiago; Currency: Chilean peso

4. Pavan Kapoor appointed as Ambassador to UAE: Pavan Kapoor, a 1990 batch Indian Foreign Service officer took charge as the new Ambassador to UAE. He replaced Navdeep Singh Suri, who retired last month.During his diplomatic career, Pavan Kapoor has served in different capacities at the Indian Missions in Moscow, Kyiv, London, and Geneva. During his last posting, Mr. Kapoor served as the Ambassador to Israel. Pavan Kapoor was India's High Commissioner to Mozambique and the Kingdom of Swaziland from January 2014 to February 2016.

5. International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists: 2 November: The International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists is an UN-recognized day observed annually on 2 November. The day draws attention to the low global conviction rate for violent crimes against journalists and media workers, estimated at only one in every ten cases.This year’s International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, is focused on local journalists.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. MD and CEO of Dhanlaxmi Bank T Latha Resigns: Private sector lender Dhanlaxmi Bank managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO). T. Latha has resigned due to personal reasons. The resignation has been accepted by the board and the same has been intimated to the RBI. Ms Latha was appointed as MD and CEO of Dhanlaxmi Bank for three years.

Note: Dhanlaxmi Bank: Founded in1927; Headquarters: Thrissur, Kerala; Chairman: Mr. Sanjeev Krishnan

2. GeM Signs MoU With Indian Bank and Canara Bank For Payment Related Services: Government e-Marketplace (GeM) has signed MoU with Indian Bank and Canara Bank. The MoU will facilitate a cashless, paperless and transparent payment system on the portal and would create an efficient procurement system for government entities. Through this partnership, both the banks will be able to offer an array of services including transfer of funds through GeM Pool Accounts (GPA), advising of Performance Bank Guarantees (e-PBG), Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) and Payment Gateway to the registered users on the portal. GeM is also working with Banks, TReDs and SIDBI to provide bill discounting and financing of working capital where the cost of capital is linked to the performance and rating of a seller on GeM. This will help sellers in general and MSMEs, in particular, to access easy credit and do better business with the government.

Note: MD & CEO of Indian Bank: Padmaja Chunduru.

MD & CEO of Canara Bank: R A Sankara Narayanan.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. 28th Vyas Samman for 2018 conferred on Hindi Writer, Leeladhar Jagoori: The 28th Vyas Samman for the year 2018 was conferred on well-known Hindi writer Leeladhar Jagoori at a function in New Delhi. The prestigious award was presented to him by renowned author Govind Mishra. Mr Jagoori has been chosen for the prestigious award for his poetry collection- Jitne Log Utne Prem.

Note: The Vyas Samman started in 1991, is given by KK Birla Foundation in honour of Indian industrialist Krishna Kumar Birla for an outstanding literary work in Hindi authored by an Indian citizen published during the last 10 years. It carries an award money of four lakh rupees along with a citation and plaque.

OBITUARIES

1. Film producer Champak Jain passes away: Film producer Champak Jain passed away. He was one of the owners of Venus Records and Tapes which produced hit films like the 1994 blockbuster Main Khiladi Tu Anari starring Saif Ali Khan and Akshay Kumar.