Daily GK Updates - 8th November, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Venkaiah Naidu inaugurates 10th Asian Conference of Emergency Medicine: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurating 10th Asian Conference of Emergency Medicine in New Delhi. The aim of the conference is to develop programs and manuals to train citizens in emergency first aid procedures such as Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation as it will help in saving a life while waiting for emergency services. The Government of India has made it mandatory for all medical college hospitals to have full-fledged Emergency Departments by 2022 with an aim to improve trauma care.

Note: Emergency medicine is the medical speciality that endeavours to the diagnosis and treatment of the acutely ill and injured patients. Within Asia, EM was first recognized in Singapore in 1984, followed by the Philippines, Turkey, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Thailand and India.

2. DIN System of CBIC comes into existence from 8th November: The Documentation Identification Number (DIN) system of Central Board of Indirect Taxes (CBIC) will come into existence from 8th November. This path braking system in indirect tax administration has been created as per the direction of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The objective of the step is to bring transparency and accountability in the indirect tax administration through the widespread use of information technology.

Note: The DIN would be used for search authorisation, summons, arrest memo, inspection notices and letters issued in the course of any enquiry. DIN, would be treated as invalid and shall be non-est in law or deemed to be as if it has never been issued.

3. Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurates state of art railway station at Sultanpur Lodhi in Punjab: The Union Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurated the state-of-the-art new railway station along with a multimedia centre at Sultanpur Lodhi in Punjab. The railway station modelled on Sikh architecture has been engineered to facilitate pilgrims visiting the holy city. The Minister also released a book on the life and teachings of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji to commemorate Guru Sahab's 550th Prakash Purb.

4. Arvind Singh takes over as AAI chairman: Arvind Singh, a 1988-batch IAS officer of Maharashtra cadre, took charge as the chairman of the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The AAI, which comes under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, owns and manages more than 100 airports across the country. Prior to this appointment, Singh was the additional chief secretary (Energy) of Maharashtra government. He also worked as chairman and managing director of Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited and Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Limited.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 2nd ‘No money for terror conference 2019’ held in Australia: The 2nd ‘No Money for Terror’ 2019 conference going on in Melbourne, Australia. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, G.Kishan Reddy is leading a five-member delegation to the ‘No Money For Terror’ Ministerial Conference taking place in Melbourne, Australia. This conference is Organised by Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) of over 100 countries. This conference jointly called The Egmont Group, which was created to provide FIUs around the world a forum to exchange information confidentially to combat money-laundering, the financing of terrorism and other predicate offences. The first “No Money for Terror” conference was held in France in 2018. India would host the next ‘No Money for Terror’ Conference in 2020.

Note: Prime minister: Scott Morrison; Capital: Canberra; Currency: Australian dollar.

2. US announced an increase in H-1B work visa application fee by 10: According to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), The US has announced the increase of H-1B work visa application fee by 10 US Dollars as part of its revised selection process. The non-refundable fee will support the new electronic registration system to make the H-1B cap selection process more efficient. Petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions will first have to electronically register with the USCIS during a designated registration period. The electronic registration system is part of an agency-wide initiative to modernise the immigration system while deterring fraud.

Note: The H-1B program allows US companies to temporarily employ foreign workers in occupations that require the application of a body of highly specialised knowledge with bachelor's or a higher degree in the specific speciality, or its equivalent.

3. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan re-elected as President of UAE: The UAE's Supreme Council of the Union has re-elected His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan as its President for a fourth five-year term. Sheikh Khalifa became president on 3 November 2004, following the death of his father, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Note: The United Arab Emirates is a federation of seven emirates consisting of Abu Dhabi (which serves as the capital), Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm Al Quwain). Each emirate is governed by a ruler; together, they jointly form the Federal Supreme Council.

Capital of UAE: Abu Dhabi; Currency: United Arab Emirates dirham.

4. BBC’s announced 100 ‘Novels That Shaped Our World’ list: The British Broadcasting Corporation announced a list of ‘100 Novels That Shaped Our World’. A panel of leading writers, curators and critics compiled the list for the network. The list contains ten categories including identity, love, sex and romance, politics, power and protest, and class and society. The BBC’s novel list is to mark the 300th anniversary of the publication of Daniel Defoe’s novel ‘Robinson Crusoe’. Renowned Indian authors like R K Narayan (Swami and Friends), Arundhati Roy (The God of small things), Salman Rushdie (The Moor’s Last Sigh), Vikram Seth (A Suitable Boy) and S. Naipaul (A House for Mr Biswas) are among 100 writers who have featured on a list of the most inspiring novels chosen by a panel of experts and revealed by the BBC.

5. Dr. Vinaya Shetty appointed as IODA’s 1st Indian and Asian General Vice President: Dr Vinaya Shetty is the first Indian to be elected to the position of General Vice President (GVP), International Organisation Development Association (IODA) since its inception in 1986. She has helped in change and transformation of numerous organisations across industries in India and has been contributing to facilitating IODA’s efforts since 2009. In 2016, Vinaya became the first Indian woman entrepreneur finalist for the prestigious Empretech Women in Business Award by United Nations Conference Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Note: President of IODA: Michelle de Bruyn; Formed: 1986.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Rohit Sharma becomes 1st Indian male cricketer to play 100 T20I: Rohit Sharma (Stand-in skipper) became the first Indian man and second in world cricket to complete 100 T-20 Internationals. He reached the milestone when he led the team in the second match against Bangladesh at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium. Shoaib Malik with 111 games from Pakistan is the only player to have played more than 100 T20 Internationals. Rohit is currently the top-scorer in this format with 2452 runs with regular skipper Virat Kohli second in the list with an aggregate of 2450 runs. Rohit has scored the runs at a strike-rate of 136.67 with four hundred and 17 half-centuries.

2. Women’s boxing icon Nicola Adams announced retirement: Two-time Olympic boxing champion Nicola Adams (37 years) announced her retirement from the sport on medical advice due to the vulnerability of losing eyesight. She became the first-ever women’s Olympic boxing champion at London 2012 in the United Kingdom(UK), and also the first female boxer to become a double Olympic champion after winning a second gold medal at the Rio Olympics 2016, in Brazil.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. RBI imposes Rs 5 lakh fine on Oxigen Services: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on prepaid payment instrument Oxigen Services. The move was taken in exercise of powers vested under Section 30 of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007, for non-compliance of regulatory guidelines. The fine comes through a speaking order dated September 17, 2019. Oxigen Services facilitates payment processing and money transfer services.

2. Moody's lowers India's outlook to 'negative' from 'stable': Global rating agency Moody’s Investors Service ("Moody's") has lowered the outlook on the government of India's ratings to ‘negative’ from ‘stable’. It affirmed the Baa2 foreign-currency and local-currency long-term issuer ratings for India. Moody's also affirmed India's local-currency senior unsecured rating and another short-term local-currency rating. India’s economy grew only 5.0% year-on-year between April and June, its weakest pace since 2013

Note: Moody's Investors Service was established in 1909, headquarters in New York, USA.

3. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance launches ‘Farmitra’ mobile app for farmers: Bajaj Allianz General Insurance has launched a new mobile app called ‘Farmitra’ to help the farmers needs and address their worries. It also resolves with relevant information, which they can use in optimizing their farming practices. The app ‘Farmitra’ provides services for even those who are not customers of Bajaj Allianz. Besides crop insurance, the farmers can buy other covers from the private insurer and also obtain information like weather forecasts and market price of crops and locators for agriculture inputs. The application is currently implemented in 6 states, namely Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Haryana.

Note: Managing Director of Bajaj Allianz: Tapan Singhel; Headquartered: Pune, Maharashtra.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. Infosys Prize 2019 for science and research: The Infosys Prize for 2019 was announced on November 7 at the Infosys campus in Bengaluru. The award is given annually to honour outstanding achievements of contemporary researchers and scientists across six categories. Those are: Humanities: Manu V. Devadevan, Life Sciences: Manjula Reddy, Mathematical Sciences: Sidhartha Mishra, Physical Sciences: G. Mugesh, Social Sciences: Anand Pandian, Engineering and Computer Science: Sunita Sarawagi. The annual award includes a pure gold medal, a citation and a prize purse worth $100,000 or its equivalent in the Indian rupees.

2. West Bengal based writer Abhisek Sarkar wins an award at Dhaka Lit-fest: At the 9th edition of the Dhaka Literature festival, started with a galaxy of writers and book lovers thronging the venue ground at the Bangla Academy. West Bengal-based writer Abhishek Sarkar and Bangladeshi poet Rofiquzzaman Rony were given the Gemcon Young Literature Award and Gemcon Young Poetry Award. Abhishek and Rofiquzzaman won the awards for their manuscripts, “Nishiddho” and “Dhoashar Tamate Rong,” respectively. The special focus of this year’s lit-fest is on Indigenous Languages as the UNESCO has marked 2019 as the year of Indigenous Language Protection.

3. Gulab Kothari to be awarded Raja Ram Mohan Roy Award: Rajasthan Patrika group chairman Gulab Kothari has been chosen for the prestigious Raja Ram Mohan Roy Award, presented by the Press Council of India, for his outstanding contribution towards journalism. Sanjay Saini, Correspondent, Dainik Bhaskar, Mandi, and Raj Chengappa, Group Editorial Director, India Today, have been jointly named as winners of the award in the category of ‘Rural Journalism’. The award will be presented to Mr. Kothari on the National Press Day (16th November 2019).

Note: Press Council of India Formation: 1966; Headquarters: New Delhi.

4. TVS Motor Chairman Srinivasan conferred with Deming award: Venu Srinivasan (Chairman of TVS Motor Company and Sundaram Clayton) was conferred with the prestigious Deming Distinguished Service Award For Dissemination and Promotion Overseas. Srinivasan becomes the first industrialist from India to be bestowed this prestigious award for his contributions in the field of total quality management (TQM). The Deming Prize is the highest award for TQM in the world.

5. Nawazuddin Siddiqui to be honoured with Asian Film Talent Award at SIFF: Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui will be honoured by Lesley Ho Asian Film Talent Award at the Singapore International Film Festival (SIFF). He will be awarded for his Netflix's Emmy-nominated original series Sacred Games. Earlier, Nawazuddin Siddiqui was honoured by the Golden Dragon Award at the Cardiff International Film Festival for his excellence in cinema in the International market.

Note: The Lesley Ho Asian Film Talent Award is one of the most honourable awards on the global platform.