Daily GK Updates - 4th November, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. AYUSH Minister Inaugurates National Research Institute of Unani Medicine for Skin Disorders: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH Shri Shripad Yesso Naik inaugurated National Research Institute of Unani Medicine for Skin Disorders (NRIUMSD) in Hyderabad. It is upgraded institutions from the Central Research Institute of Unani Medicine (CRIUM). On the occasion, Shri Naik praises the success of the CRIUM in the treatment of vitiligo and other chronic and stubborn diseases and said that it’s perhaps the only medical institution in the world that has treated more than 1.5 lakh patients of Vitiligo alone.

Note: Director-General, Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM): Asim Ali Khan.

2. Jharkhand assembly elections to be held in 5 phases: According to the Election Commission, Jharkhand assembly polls will be held in five phases between November 30 and December 20, and the counting of votes will take place on December 23. As per the Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, the polls to 81-member assembly will be held on November 30, December 7, 12, 16 and 20.

Note: Jharkhand Capital: Ranchi; Governor: Draupadi Murmu; Chief Minister: Raghubar Das

3. Siemens signs MoUs with NTPC, TERI on decarbonisation, energy transition: German multinational conglomerate company, Siemens Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NTPC Limited to identify, evaluate and set up reference use cases of hydrogen sector-coupling for various upstream and downstream applications. The collaboration is aimed at developing innovative technologies, solutions and techniques to reduce the dependence on Hydrocarbons in India. Siemens Limited has also inked a separate MoU with TERI for collaboration on technologies to support the energy transition in India including sector-coupling. Among the objectives of the MoU with TERI is realizing the research and technology development projects to enable energy transitions across the electricity, transport and industrial sectors.

Note: NTPC Chairman and Managing Director: Gurdeep Singh; Headquarters: New Delhi.

Siemens headquarters: Munich, Germany; MD and CEO: Sunil Mathur

Director of TERI is Ajay Mathur; Headquarters: New Delhi.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Germany to invest 1 bn euros green funds for urban mobility in India: German Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged to invest 1 billion euros over the next five years on environmentally-friendly urban mobility in India. Merkel, whose visit to the country coincided with one of the worst spells of air pollution in Delhi/NCR, also emphasized on the need to replace diesel-run public transport with electric vehicles. Germany would also put in 200 million euros to reform the bus sector in Tamil Nadu.

Note: Germany Capital: Berlin; Currency: Euro

2. Amit Shah to inaugurate SCO Joint Exercise on Urban Earthquake Search and Rescue (SCOJtEx) in New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah will inaugurate the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Joint Exercise on Urban Earthquake Search and Rescue (SCOJtEx) in New Delhi on November 04, 2019. The 4-day event will be attended by all eight SCO member countries – China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The purpose of the event if to test the region’s preparedness to activate intergovernmental interaction for immediate response

Note: Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Headquarters: Beijing, China.

3. Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurates Guru Nanak Chair at University of Birmingham: Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs has inaugurated a new Guru Nanak Chair by the support of Indian government, at the University of Birmingham to enable research around the teachings of the founder of the Sikh religion. He announced the new Chair to mark the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak, during his visit to Birmingham where he delivered an Annual Lecture on the Contemporary Relevance of Guru Nanak's Teachings.

Note: England Capital: London; Currency: Pound sterling

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Maisnam Meiraba clinches Korea Jr Open Title 2019: India’s Maisnam Meiraba Luwang clinched the boys’ singles U-19 title at the Woncheon Yonex Korea Junior Open Badminton International Challenge 2019 in Miryang, Korea. The top seed Maisnam from Manipur needed just 36 minutes to brush aside the challenge of 15th seed Lee Hak Joo of Korea in a 21-10 21-13 win. Meanwhile, the eighth seed, Sathish Kumar Karunakaran, who had bowed out to Luwang 16-21, 22-24 in the semi-final claimed bronze in the same category.

2. Pooja Gehlot wins silver in UWW Under-23 World Championships: Pooja Gehlot (53kg) in wrestling claimed India’s second silver medal after going down to Japan’s Haruna Okuno in the finals of the UWW Under-23 World Championships in Budapest. She lost 0-2 to Okuno in the summit clash. Ravinder (61kg), had won India’s first silver earlier this week.

3. Novak Djokovic won the Paris Masters 2019 title: Novak Djokovic of Serbia has won the fifth Paris Masters title for 2019 by defeating Canadian youngster Denis Shapovalov in the final. He secured 6-3 6-4 to win the title. Thus, he sealed his 34th Master’s title and fifth overall ATP victory of the year 2019.

4. Lakshya Sen wins SaarLorLux Open badminton tournament: India’s Lakshya Sen has won the SaarLorLux Open badminton tournament at Saarbrücken in Germany. He defeated Sen Weng Hong Yang of China. Lakshya, seeded eighth, needed 59 minutes to overcome Weng 17-21 21-18 21-16 in the summit clash for his third successive singles title of the season.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. Sumant Kathpalia appointed as new MD & CEO of IndusInd Bank: Sumant Kathpalia has been chosen as the new Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of IndusInd Bank. He will replace Romesh Sobti. Kathpalia is the head of consumer loans at the Hindujas-promoted lender and his name has been forwarded to the Reserve Bank for approval. Sobti, who has been at the helm for over a decade, will be retiring in March 2020 at age of 70. The 55-year-old Kathpalia has also been with the bank since 2008 and is credited with building a consumer loan portfolio from scratch, as part of a strategy to diversify the loan book adopted by the bank.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. Writer Anand selected for Ezhuthachan Puraskaram: Noted writer Anand has been selected for the 27th Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, the highest literary honour of the Kerala state government. This award is given by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award and the Government of Kerala. His one of the famous novel is Aalkoottam which portrays the unique crises that the nation had witnessed with a rare finesse. Born at Irinjalakuda in 1936, his real name is P. Satchidanandan. He served the nation as a planning director in the Central Water Commission in New Delhi. His Govardhante Yatrakal had won the Kendra Sahitya Akademi award, Veedum Thadavum and Jaina Manushyan Kerala Sahitya Akademi award and Marubhoomikal Undakunnath, Vayalar award.

Note: The Ezhuthachan Puraskaram comprises a cash prize of ₹5 lakh and a citation.

2. Documentary on Real Kashmir Football Club bags BAFTA & Scotland Awards: A documentary on Real Kashmir Football Club has bagged the prestigious British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) and Scotland Awards at a glittering ceremony in Glasgow, Scotland. The documentary narrates the journey of former Rangers ace David Robertson as the coach of Real Kashmir FC, which in its first season finished third in the I-League, which is currently India’s second-tier football league. The hour-long film won in the ‘Single Documentary’ category.

3. Indian-origin researcher wins award for work on batteries: An Indian origin researcher from the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney, Australia, Neeraj Sharma (35) has won the ‘Early Career Researcher of the Year Award-2019’ (Physical Sciences). The Award has been given by the Australian government for his work in lithium-ion batteries found in electronic devices, electric vehicles and the grid, as well as next-generation battery systems such as sodium-ion batteries that will leave a minimal environmental impact, and transition away from fossil fuels for energy generation and transportation. Neeraj Sharma who is a professor at University of South Wales (UNSW)’s School of Chemistry, Sydney is considered one of the global leaders in the use of neutron and X-ray scattering methods to study materials for next-generation lithium-ion batteries.

Note: Australia capital: Canberra; Currency: Australian Doller; Prime Minister: Scott Morrison

4. Madhuri Vijay’s first novel ‘The Far Field’ wins 2019 JCB prize for Literature: Novel “The Far Field” by US based-Indian author Madhuri Vijay’s has bagged the 2019 JCB prize for Literature.  It was her first novel. JCB prize for Literature is the most expensive Indian award for writing. It carries a cash prize of ₹25 lakh.