Daily GK Updates - 20th December, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. ADB & India signs $490 Million loan to upgrade roads of Madhya Pradesh: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India has signed a $490 million loan. The loan is signed for public-private partnership (PPP) project through the hybrid-annuity model (HAM) to upgrade about 1,600 km of state highways and major district roads in the state of Madhya Pradesh. An additional $286 million investment will be mobilised through private sector participation under the PPP modality. The upgradation of these roads under the project will improve rural and peri-urban connectivity in the state and improve access to markets and better services.

Note: Asian Development Bank Headquarters: Manila, Philippines, President: Takehiko Nakao.

2. 'OCTOPUS' inducted into Andhra CM's security cover: The security cover of Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has been strengthened with the induction of OCTOPUS (Organisation for Counter-Terrorist Operations), replacing the Greyhounds commandos. The Organisation for Counter-Terrorist Operations (OCTOPUS) is an elite force for counter-terror in the state. A team of 32 members divided into five teams would be part of the security.

3. Phase-III of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana launched: Narendra Singh Tomar (Rural Development Minister) has launched Phase-III of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana in New Delhi to further enhance the connectivity of villages with hospitals, schools and agricultural markets. The Phase-III of PMGSY aims at consolidation of 1 lakh 25 thousand Kilometers through Routes and Major Rural Links that connect habitations to Gramin Agricultural Markets, Higher Secondary Schools and Hospitals with an estimated cost of 80 thousand 250 crore rupees for the period 2019-20 to 2024-25. The Central Share will be 53 thousand 800 crore rupees. The funding pattern for the scheme will be 60:40 between Centre and the States (for North East & Himalayan State 90:10).

4. Thawarchand Gehlot launches Braille version of ‘Exam Warriors’: Social Justice and Empowerment Minister released the Braille version of the book “Exam Warriors” written by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. The braille version in English and Hindi has been printed by Rajasthan Netraheen Kalyan Sangh in Jaipur. The book contains a detailed-design of the animated picture and various yoga asanas which will let students imagine the pictorial graphics with ease. The book will surely benefit visually-impaired students who face mental stress during examinations. It will boost the confidence level of these students and help them get success in various competitive exams.

Note: Social Justice and Empowerment Minister: Thawarchand Gehlot.

5. IPS officer Atul Karwal appointed as Director of National Police Academy: The Union Government appointed a senior Gujarat Cadre IPS officer Atul Karwal, as Director of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy in Hyderabad. He is a 1988 batch IPS officer, is currently posted as Additional Director General of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Afghanistan becomes 1st country to recognize Indian Pharmacopoeia: The Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP) has been recognised formally by the National Department of Regulation of Medicines and Health Products of the Ministry of Public Health of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. With this Afghanistan has become the 1st country to recognize IP pursuant to the efforts of Department of Commerce and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Note: IP is an officially recognized book of standards as per the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules 1945 thereunder. It specifies the standards of drugs manufactured and marketed in India in terms of their identity, purity and strength. To ensure the quality of medicinal products, the legal and scientific standards are provided by Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) in the form of Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP).

2. Donald Trump becomes 3rd US President to be impeached: Donald Trump has become the third US President in history to be impeached by the House of Representatives. The impeachment will led to setting up a trial in the Senate that will decide whether Trump will remain in office or not. The House voted the President on two charges: one that he abused his power and other that he had obstructed Congress. The issue will now pass to the US Senate, which will hold a trial on whether to convict and remove Mr Trump from the office next month. Only two previous presidents have been impeached in the US history. The House in 1998 impeached President Bill Clinton while President Andrew Johnson was impeached in 1868. Although, no President in the 243-year history of the United States has been removed from office by impeachment.

3. Portugal announces Gandhi Citizenship Education Prize: Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced the setting up of a Gandhi Citizenship Education Prize. Portugal will be launching a Gandhi Citizenship Education Prize, each year inspired by his different thoughts and quotes. The first edition of this prize will be dedicated to animal welfare as Mahatma Gandhi said that the greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.

Note: Portugal Capital: Lisbon; Portugal Currency: Euro.

4. International Human Solidarity Day: 20 December: The United Nation (UN) International Human Solidarity Day is annually held on 20th December to celebrate unity in diversity. The Day aims to raise public awareness of the importance of solidarity and encourages debate on the ways to promote solidarity for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals including poverty eradication. The United Nations General Assembly established the World Solidarity Fund on 20th December 2002 as a trust fund of the United Nations Development Programme.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Zeena Khitta wins women's national 10m Air Rifle: Zeena Khitta (from Himachal Pradesh) beat Mehuli Ghosh and Apurvi Chandela to become the national champion in the women's 10m Air Rifle event at the ongoing 63rd National Shooting Championship in Bhopal. Mehuli had to settle for the silver while Apurvi won the bronze. Among the teams, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and West Bengal won two gold medals each.

2. Cummins joins KKR for Rs 15.50 crore, becomes most expensive foreign buy: Australian Pat Cummins becomes the most expensive overseas player signing in IPL history. Kolkata Knight Riders pick up the top-ranked Test bowler for a whopping Rs 15.50 crore. Glenn Maxwell earned himself a big payday as well, the hard-hitting batsmen signed by Kings XI Punjab for Rs. 10.75 crore after a tussle with Delhi Capitals. Chris Morris hit the 10-crore rupee mark with Royal Challengers Bangalore outlasting both Punjab and Mumbai Indians to secure the services of the South African all-rounder. Robin-Uthappa picked up by Rajasthan Royals for Rs. 3 crores in the IPL Auction.

3. Indian men’s football team ranked 108th in latest FIFA rankings: The Indian men’s football team remained static at 108th spot in the year-ending FIFA rankings. India lost 11 places throughout the year. With 1187 total points, India is placed at 19th spot among Asian countries headed by Japan 28th. Belgium ended on top for the second successive year and France remained in second place ahead of Brazil. In the Asian rankings, Japan (28th) is followed by Iran (33), Korea (40), Australia (42) and continental champions Qatar (55).

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

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

1. Infosys launches blockchain powered distributed applications: Infosys has announced the launch of three blockchain-powered distributed applications. The applications will be dedicated for government services, insurance, and supply chain management domains. The applications are equipped with predictive return on investment (ROI) analytics for business investments that can be tailored to meet numerous industry-specific needs.

Note: Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Infosys: Salil Parekh; Headquarters: Bengaluru.

2. Apple, Amazon & Google partners for ‘Connected Home over IP’: “Amazon.com Inc”, “Apple Inc” and Alphabet Inc’s “Google” have announced a partnership to lay the groundwork for better compatibility among their smart home products. Zigbee Alliance, whose members include IKEA and NXP Semiconductors among others, will also contribute to the project, titled ‘Connected Home over IP’. The partnership aims to make it easier for device manufacturers to build products that are compatible with smart home and voice services such as Alexa, Siri and Google Assistant.

AWARDS AND HONOURS

1. Sahitya Akademi award 2019 released: Sahitya Akademi announced its annual Sahitya Akademi Awards in 23 languages. Seven books of poetry, four of the novel, six of short stories, three of essays and one each of non-fiction, autobiography and biography have won the Sahitya Akademi Awards 2019. This time, the awards for the Nepali language will be announced later.

The Award in the form of a casket containing an engraved copper-plaque, a shawl and an amount of Rs. 1,00,000/- towards cash content will be presented to the authors of these books at a special function to be held on 25 February 2020 at New Delhi during the Festival of Letters organized by Sahitya Akademi.

The complete list of winners in a different language and genre categories is given in the table below.

Sr. No	Language	Title and Genre	Name of the Author
1	Assamese	Chanakya (Novel)	Joysree Goswami Mahanta
2	Bengali	Ghumer Darja Thele (Essays)	Chinmoy Guha
3	Bodo	Akhai Athumniphrai (Poetry)	Phukan Ch. Basumatary
4	Dogri	Bandralta Darpan (Essays)	Om Sharma Jandriari
5	English	An Era of Darkness (Non-Fiction)	Shashi  Tharoor
6	Gujarati	Mojma Revu Re (Essays)	Ratilal Borisagar
7	Hindi	Chheelate  Hue Apne Ko (Poetry)	Nand  Kishore Acharya
8	Kannada	Kudi Esaru (Autobiography)	Vijaya
9	Kashmiri	Akh Yaad Akh Qayamat (Short Stories)	Abdul AhadHajini
10	Konkani	The Words (Poetry)	Nilba A Khandekar
11	Maithili	Jingik Oriaon Kariat (Poetry)	Kumar Manish Arvind
12	Malayalam	Achan Piranna Veedu (Poetry)	V Madhusoodanan Nair
13	Manipuri	EiAmadi Adungeigi Eethat (Novel)	L Birmangol Singh (Beryl Thanga)
14	Marathi	Kadachit Ajoonahi(Poetry)	Anuradha Patil
15	Odia	Bhaswati (Short Stories)	Tarun Kanti Mishra
16	Punjabi	Antheen (Short Stories)	Kirpal Kazak
17	Rajasthani	BareekBaat (Short Stories)	Ramswaroop Kisan
18	Sanskrit	Prajnachakshusham   (Poetry)	Penna   Madhusudan
19	Santali	Sisirkali (Short Stories)	Kali Charan Hembram
20	Sindhi	Jeejal (Short Stories)	Ishwar Moorjani
21	Tamil	Sool (Novel)	Cho Dharman
22	Telugu	Septabhoomi (Novel)	Bandi Narayana Swamy
23	Urdu	Sawaneh-E-Sir   Syed: Ek Bazadeed (Biography)	Shafey Kidwai

DEFENCE

1. Upgraded version of Pinaka Rocket successfully test-fired off Odisha coast: An upgraded version of the indigenously developed Pinaka-guided rocket system with enhanced strike range and guidance system was successfully test-fired from the DRDO’s Proof and Experimental Establishment firing test range off Odisha coast. The system has a maximum range of 40 km for Mark-I and 75 km for Mark-II and can fire a salvo of 12 HE rockets in 44 seconds. It is mounted on a Tatra truck for mobility. Pinaka is an indigenous multi-barrel rocket launch (MBRL) system, which has been developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for the Indian Army. The weapon system is equipped with state-of-the-art guidance kit comprising of an advanced navigation and control system.

Note: DRDO Chairman: G Satheesh Reddy, Established: 1958, Headquarters: New Delhi.

OBITUARIES

1. Writer and critic LS Sheshagiri Rao passes away: Kannada writer and critic L.S. Sheshagiri Rao passed away. His first work was Idu Jeevana, an anthology of short stories was released in 1948. He is best known for his book “Hosagannada Sahitya Charitre”. He was best known for his critical works and an English-Kannada dictionary that he compiled. Proficient in Kannada and English, many of his works were bridges between the two languages.