Daily GK Updates - 18th March, 2020

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Innovate for Accessible India campaign launched to empower PwD: Microsoft India and NASSCOM Foundation have jointly launched Innovate for Accessible India campaign to empower people with disabilities with the help of technology and tools to provide better integration into society and access to equal opportunities. The campaign has been launched in partnership with Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, National Research and Education Network, and Department of Science and Technology.

Note: Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft: Satya Nadella; Microsoft Founded: April 4, 1975; Headquarters: Washington, United States.

Chairman of NASSCOM: Keshav Murugesh; President: Debjani Ghosh.

2. Ravinder singh Dhillon becomes new CMD of PFC: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cleared the appointment of Ravinder Singh Dhillon as Chairman and Managing Director of Power Finance Corporation (PFC). Currently, He is serving as a Director (Projects, Public Grievance) in Power Finance Corporation (PFC) Limited. Power Finance Corporation Ltd is an Indian financial institution, Established in 1986.

Note: Headquarters of Power Finance Corporation: New Delhi.

3.’Break the Chain’ campaign launched by Kerala govt to combat coronavirus: The Kerala government has launched a mass hand washing campaign named ‘break the chain’ to combat coronavirus. The campaign aims to educate people about the importance of public and personal hygiene.

Note: Chief Minister of Kerala: Pinarayi Vijayan; Governor of Kerala: Arif Mohammed Khan; Capital of Kerala: Thiruvananthapuram.

4. INST develops starch-based ‘hemostat’ material: A starch-based ‘hemostat’ material has been developed by the Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST). The material concentrates the natural clotting factors in blood that are critical for stopping the blood flow. This is done by physically absorbing the excess fluid. The early-stage development of the starch-based ‘hemostat’ material has been published in the journal Materialia.

Note: Director of Institute of Nano Science and Technology: Amitava Patra.

 

5. Ordnance Factories’ Day: 18th March: The Ordnance Factories’ Day is being observed on the 18th of March every year. OFB is the 37th largest defence equipment manufacturer in the world, 2nd largest in Asia, and the largest in India. OFB is referred to as the “Fourth Arm of Defence” and the “Force Behind the Armed Forces” of India. The production of India’s oldest Ordnance Factory, which is at Cossipore of Kolkata, was started in 18th of March, 1802. The day is celebrated by displaying the rifles, guns, artillery, ammunition..etc in exhibitions all over India. The celebrations start with a parade and the exhibition will also display the photographs of various mountaineering expeditions.

Note: Director-General & & Chairman of Ordnance Factories: Hari Mohan; Headquarters of Ordnance Factory Board: Kolkata, West Bengal.

6. World’s first commercial flying car PAL-V to be built in Gujarat: World’s first commercial flying car named ‘PAL-V Liberty’ will be developed in Gujarat, India. PAL-V stands for Personal Air-Land Vehicle. The PAL-V Liberty is a combination of a car and an autogiro, or gyroplane. The PAL-V flying car can run at a speed of 160 kilometres on road and can fly at a speed of 180 km.

Note: Chief Minister of Gujarat: Vijay Rupani; Governor of Gujarat: Acharya Dev Vrat.

7. Rs 20,466.94 crores of loans sanctioned under Stand Up India Scheme: Rs 20,466.94 crores of loans have been sanctioned under Stand Up India Scheme to over 91,000 accounts up to 10.03.2020 since the inception of the Scheme.  The Scheme facilitates bank loans between Rs. 10 lakh and Rs. 1 crore to at least one Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe borrower and at least one woman borrower, per bank branch of Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs)., for setting up greenfield enterprises in the manufacturing, services or the trading sectors.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Phase-I clinical Human trial of coronavirus vaccine begins in US: The United State has commenced the phase one of the clinical Human trial of an investigational vaccine designed to protect against the coronavirus disease which has claimed the lives of over 7,000 people globally. The trial has been started at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) in Seattle.

Note: COVID-19 cases were first identified in December 2019 in China’s Wuhan in Hubei province. As of March 15, the WHO has reported 153,517 cases of COVID-19 and 5,735 deaths worldwide.

2. Global Recycling Day: 18th March: Global Recycling Day is observed globally on 18th March every year. This day was first observed on March 18, 2018, by the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) and celebrated globally every year to raise awareness of the importance of recycling. The Global Recycling Foundation announces “Recycling Heroes” as the theme for third Global Recycling Day. The main aim of the day is to turn ‘waste’ into a valuable resource.

3. Priyanka Chopra collaborates with WHO to spread awareness over COVID-19: Actress Priyanka Chopra (37-year) urged followers to rely on authentic sources of information about coronavirus and arranged an Instagram live with top personnel of the World Health Organization (WHO) to raise awareness about the pandemic. Priyanka documented her videos on Instagram stories where she expressed the importance of only relying on authentic information about the highly contagious disease. Priyanka and her husband Nick Jonas are on day 8 of self-isolation.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. French Open delayed due to coronavirus pandemic: The French Open tennis tournament has been postponed by the French Tennis Federation due to the coronavirus pandemic. The 2020 edition of Roland Garros (French Open tennis tournament) will now held in the month of September-October 2020.

2. ATK FC wins record 3rd Indian Super League title: ATK FC (Football Club) defeated Chennaiyin FC by a score of 3-1 in the final match to win the ISL (Indian Super League) trophy. Javier Hernandez and Edu Garcia were the goal scorers for ATK FC in the final match. ATK (Atlético de Kolkata) is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The final was held without spectators owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Note: The Indian Super League is a football league in India, under licence from the All India Football Federation (AIFF). It is one of the two co-existing premier football leagues in India along with I-League.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. India’s growth forecast lowered to 5.2% by S&P for FY 2020: S&P Global Ratings has reduced India’s economic growth forecast from 5.7% to 5.2% for financial year 2020. Along with S&P, Moody’s has also lowered growth projections for India for financial year 2020 to 5.3%, while Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has lowered growth projections to 5.1% for FY 2020.

2. Paytm Payments Bank to now issue Visa debit cards: Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) has partnered with Visa to issue Visa debit cards. With this, Paytm will issue over 10 million new digital debit cards in FY 2020-2021 to its customers. PPBL will issue Visa virtual debit cards to its customers and facilitate them to transact at all merchants accepting payments through cards. It will also enable its customers to make international transactions using their Visa debit cards.

 Note: MD & CEO of Paytm Payments Bank Ltd: Satish Kumar Gupta.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

1. Bajaj Auto reappoints Rajiv Bajaj as its MD & CEO: Rajiv Bajaj has been reappointed as MD & CEO of Bajaj Auto for a period of five years with effect from April 1, 2020. The 5-years tenure of Rajiv Bajaj as the MD & CEO of Bajaj Auto was going to expire on March 31, 2020. Gita Piramal has been appointed as the independent director of Bajaj Auto. Bajaj Auto Limited is an Indian global two-wheeler company and three-wheeler manufacturing company based in Pune, Maharashtra.

Note: Chairman of Bajaj Auto: Rahul Bajaj.

OBITUARIES

1. Marathi actor Jairam Kulkarni passes away: Noted Marathi Actor Jairam Kulkarani (88-years) passed away due to old-age related ailments. He had acted in more than 150 films, including ‘Chal Re Laxya Mumbaila’, ‘Ashi Hi Banwabanwi’, ‘Thartharat’, ‘Rangat Sangat’. Kulkarni had worked in Akashwani in Pune where he came into contact with personalities from the fields of literature, theatre and film.

2. Veteran journalist Patil Puttappa passes away: Veteran journalist and former Rajya Sabha member Patil Puttappa (99-years) passed away due to age-related ailments in Karnataka. He was also the first president of the Kannada Watchdog Committee and was also the founder-president of the Border Advisory Committee. Fondly referred to as "PaPu", Puttappa was the founder-editor of weekly "Prapancha" and also edited "Navayuga".