Daily GK Updates - 4th November, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Shekhar Kapur to head jury and Anil Kapoor to be chief guest at IFFI 2015: Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor was selected to be the chief guest of the 46^th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) that will start in Goa from 20^th November. Film director Shekhar Kapur was selected to be the head of the jury.

2. Maharashtra approved APJ Abdul KalamAmrutYojna for pregnant and lactating women: The renamed scheme aims at providing at least one full hot cooked nutritious food to every pregnant lady and lactating mother.

3. Eight core industries of IIP grew by 3.2% in September 2015; fastest in 4 months: The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) announced that the eight core industries of Index of Industrial Production (IIP) grew by 3.2% in September 2015 as compared to 2.6 percent in September 2014.

4. Norway opened Consulate General in Mumbai after four decades: This office would extend its services to cover rest of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa and it will be headed by Norwegian diplomat Torbjorn Holthe.

5. Assam Government hiked daily minimum wages of workers in various sectors: The daily minimum wage of skilled workers has been hiked from 208 rupees to 350 rupees.The State Government also introduced a new segment of highly-skilled workers who will be eligible for a minimum daily wage of 450 rupees.

6. Rajasthan Government relaxed two-child policy for government employees: As per the decision, the state government employees, already having two children from previous marriage, will now be allowed to have a third child in case of a remarriage.

7. Dracula Ant discovered in Western Ghats region of Kerala.

8. Daughters cannot inherit ancestral property if father died before 2005: SC: The Supreme Court (SC) ruled that as per the provisions of the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005, a daughter’s right to ancestral property does not arise if the father died before September 2005, when the amendment came into force.

9. Justice M B Shah-headed SIT on Black Money submitted its third report: The SIT found that over 2600 persons are directors on more than 20 companies and at least 2 companies are operating from the same address at 345 places which indicate the violation of Companies Act, 2013.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. UNGA First Committee approved draft resolution to prevent placement of nuclear arms in outer space: The draft resolution titled ‘No first placement of weapons in outer space’ was approved by a recorded vote of 122 in favour with 47 absentions.

2. Michelle Payne became first female jockey to win Melbourne Cup: The Melbourne Cup is one of Australia’s most prestigious Thoroughbred horse races.

3. Hindi largest spoken Indian Language in US: Census Bureau of US: As per the American Community Survey data, Hindi has emerged as the largest Indian language spoken in the US with nearly 6.5 lakh people speaking it.

4. Civil communications satellite Chinasat 12 launched by China: The satellite will serve customers in a swath of the Asia-Pacific with television broadcasting, broadband multimedia and data transmission services.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. RBI fixes gold bonds issue price at Rs 2684 per gram: The Reserve Bank of India has fixed the public issue price at Rs 2684 per gram for sovereign gold bonds, for which applications will be accepted from November 5 to 20.

SPORTS:

2. Shoaib Malik announced retirement from Test Cricket: He will retire from Test Cricket after playing the third Test match against England at Sharjah, UAE.

3. 2015 Paragliding World Cup concluded: The 2015 Paragliding World Cup was held in Bir Village of Himachal Pradesh. It was for the first time India hosted a PWC and it is the biggest aero sport event held in India so far. Swiss Pilot Michael Kuffer topped the table in the men’s category while Yuki Sato of Japan topped the table in the women’s category. Ajay Kumar emerged as the best pilot from India at 31^st rank overall.

4. Shiva Thapa ranked World No. 2 in boxing: While Shiva got 1550 points overall, the top spot was occupied by Michael Conlan of Ireland with 2150 points.

OBITUARIES:

5. Collin Welland, the writer of Oscar winning ‘Chariots of Fire’, died at the age of 81.

6. Tollywood comedian KondavalasaLakshmanRao died at the age of 69.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS:

7. The book titled ‘Advantage India-from Challenge to Opportunity’ authored by former President APJ Abdul Kalam and Srijan Pal Singh has been released.

8. The book titled ‘Interlinking of Indian Rivers’ authored by Radha Kant Bharti released.

Daily GK Updates - 3rd November, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. ‘Project Loon’ in India: Google, government working on balloon internet project: Internet giant Google is working with the Government on a pilot project for providing Internet connectivity by using large balloons.

2. ICGS Arinjay commissioned in Kochi: The ship will be based at Okha under the administrative and operational control of the commander, coast guard region (north-west).

3. National Tribal Crafts Mela Aadishilp-2015 begins in New Delhi: The 11^th National Tribal Crafts MelaAadishilp has begun in New Delhi. It was inaugurated by Union Minister of Tribal Affairs JualOram. It is being organised by Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED).

4. Meghalaya HC asked Union Government to enforce AFSPA 1958 in Garo Hills region.

5. SC issued notice to Union Government over improper implementation of MGNERGA.

6. Odisha Government banned fishing to protect Olive Ridley turtles.

7. Captain Krishna Swaminathan took over command of aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.

8. International Indigenous Terra Madre 2015 started in Shillong: The theme of the event is ‘The future we want: Indigenous Perspective and Actions. The five day long unique event, which brings over a 100 tribes from 58 countries kicked off on 3 November.

9. RavikumarSreedharan appointed as MD of Unisys Corporation India.

10. Suresh N Patel appointed as MD and CEO of Andhra Bank.

11. India and Indonesia signed MoUs on Energy, Culture Exchange: The MoUs were signed to strengthen ties in energy and culture exchange area. The MoUs were signed in the presence of Vice President Hamid Ansari and his counterpart Jusuf Kala in Jakarata.

  

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 1^st International Film Festival for persons with disabilities to be held in Delhi: To recognise the spirit of the persons with disabilities, 1^st International film festival for the persons with disabilities will be held from 1 December to 3 December 2015.

2. Lionel Messi appointed Tata Motors’ global brand ambassador. 

3. Nepal, US armies launched Joint Military training Balance Nail 16-01: To strengthen bilateral defence tie, the special forces of the US and Nepalese armies launched a month long joint military training codenamed Balance Nail 16-01.

4. The Legatum Prosperity Index 2015 released: It was released by the Legatum Institute in London. The index offers insight into how prosperity is forming and changing across the world. Norway topped the Index. 

5. Security Officials in China launched Spy Hotline to report on foreign spies:The hotline targets foreign organisations and individuals who conduct espionage activities or instigate and sponsor others in conducting them.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. Deepak Singhal appointed as Executive Director of Reserve Bank of India.

SPORTS:

2. Mana Patel, Virdhawal won best swimmers’ award in 69^th Senior National Aquatic Championships: Mana Patel and VirdhawalKhade emerged as the best swimmers of the 69^th senior National Aquatic Championships 2015 that concluded in Rajkot.

AWARDS:

3. C-DOT’s GyanSetu bagged Recognition of Excellence award at ITU World Telecom Event, Budapest: The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) bagged the Recognition of Excellence award for GyanSetu at the International Telecom Union (ITU) World Telecom 2015 held at Budapest, Hungary. 

4. AIR programme on Child Labour bagged top prize at ABU Prizes: AIR’s programme on Child Labour bagged the 1^st prize under the Community Service Announcement category at the Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) Prizes 2015. The prize function was held at Ankara, Turkey. The Malayalam programme was named as NilkkamIvarkkoppam.

OBITUARIES:

5. Former West Bengal assembly speaker Hashim Abdul Halim died at the age of 80.

Daily GK Updates - 2nd November, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. BrahMos missile test-fired from Indian Navy’s stealth destroyer INS Kochi, hits target: Supersonic cruise missile BrahMos, with a strike range of over 290 kms, was test fired from the Navy’s newest stealth destroyer INS Kochi successfully hitting a decommissioned target ship in the Arabian Sea.

2. Punjab to set up bio-ethanol refinery: In what a major step towards tackling the menace of wheat and paddy straw burning in Punjab, the State Government signed a MoU for setting up a bio-ethanol refinery. The MoU was inked with a consortium of Beta Renewables, Novozymes and CVC India Infrastructure Pvt Ltd for an estimated project worth Rs 950 crore, during the Progressive Punjab Investor Summit, 2015.

3. Ex-cabinet Secretary to head panel on new education policy: Former Cabinet secretary T.S.R Subramanium has been appointed chairperson of a committee set up by the Human Resource Development Ministry to draft the new education policy.

4. A K Jha takes over as CMD, Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (a subsidiary of Coal India).

5. Reliance Communications to merge SistemaShyam Tele with itself: Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communications Ltd (R-Com) is merging the telecom business of SistemaShyam Teleservices Ltd (SSTL) that operates MTS brand with itself in an all-stock deal worth Rs 4,500 crore.

6. Air Marshal Virender Mohan Khanna took over as the Air Officer-in-charge Maintenance(AOM) of IAF.

7. NPPA capped prices of 18 drug formulations: The revision in respect to 18 formulations like anti-diabetic MetmorfinHCltablets was done under the Drug Prices Control Order (DPCO) 2013.

8. Facebook and BSNL partnered to set up 100 WiFi hotspots in rural India: During the partnership, Facebook will invest 5 crore rupees per annum for buying bandwidth from BSNL. The hotspots will be set up by BSNL selected vendor Quad Zen and Trimax.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Flight 7K9268 of Russian Airbus A321 crashed in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula: All the 224 people aboard are supposed to be killed in the deadly plane crash. 

2. China made sexual assault on men a crime: In this regard, an amendment to sexual assault laws was approved by the National People’s Congress, Country’s central legislature. As per the amendment, indecent assault on men or women now carries a minimum sentence of 5 years in prison.

3. Ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) won majority in Parliamentary elections of Turkey: The Party founded by President RecepTayyipErdogan secured 316 seats in the 550-member parliament and garnered 49.4% votes.

4. Punjabi selected as third language in Parliament of Canada.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. NicoRoseberg wins Mexican Grand Prix: Mercedes driver NicoRoseberg claimed victory at the Mexican Grand Prix ahead of teammate and newly-crowned world champion Lewis Hamilton.

2. New Zealand All Blacks run over Australia to win record third Rugby World Cup: New Zealand cemented their status as the greatest team in rugby history when the overwhelmed Australia 34-17 at Twickenham to become world champions for a record third time, and the first nation to retain the Webb Ellis Cup.

3. Sania-Hingis won Women’s Doubles title of Singapore Open: The tope seeded Indo-Swiss pair defeated 8^th seed Spanish team of GarbineMuguruza and Carla Suarez Navarro.

4. Rodger Federer won 2015 Swiss Indoors Men’s singles title by defeating Rafael Nadal: It was the 88^th title of his career. The final was played at Basel, Switzerland.

AWARDS:

5. Khel Ratna to be conferred posthumously on former footballer Late Ram Bahadur Chetri: The names of former footballer and Asian Games gold medallist late Ram Bahadur Chetri and renowned athletics coach Renu Kohli have been officially approved by the state sports ministry for the prestigious Khel Ratna (posthumous) and Devbhoomi Uttarakhand Dronacharya respectively.

OBITUARIES:

6. Hero Moto Corp’s Brijmohan Lall Munjal, doyen of India’s 2-wheeler industry, passes away at the age of 92.

7. Eminent Archaeologist V.N Misra passed away at the age of 80.

8. American actor, best known for TV series ‘Happy Days’ Al Molinaro passed away at the age of 96.

Daily GK Updates - 1st November, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Rashtriya Ekta Divas observed across the country: The Nation celebrated the birth anniversary of India’s first Deputy Prime Minister Sardar Vallabhai Patel as Rashtriya Ekta Divas on 31^st October 2015.

2. Indira Gandhi’s 31^st martyrdom anniversary: People across the country are remembered former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on her 31^st martyrdom anniversary on 31^st October 2015.

3. Centre to set up National Tribal Advisory Council: Central government has decided to set up National Tribal Advisory Council under chairmanship of the Prime Minister. National Tribal Advisory Council will be set up for monitoring of various tribal development programmes and schemes in the country.

4. Indian Air Force to commence Exercise- Livewire: The Indian Air Force is commencing its annual exercise, Exercise Livewire on 31^st October 2015.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Afghan local citizens launched an uprising against IS: In Afghanistan, six hundreds of local citizens in eastern Nangarhar province have launched an uprising against Islamic State, IS.

2. India recorded largest number of Tuberculosis cases: According to a report by the WHO India recorded the largest number of TB cases in the World in 2014.India, Indonesia and China had the largest number of cases at 23%, 10% respectively of the global total in 2014. 

3. India announces Concessional Credit to Africa: India announced a concessional credit of $10 billion to Africa in the next five years and grant assistance of $600 million at the 3^rd India Africa Forum Summit.

4. Pakistan loses UN Human Rights Council election: Pakistan failed to win a re-election to the top UN Human Rights body, garnering just 105 votes in the 193-member General Assembly. India is also a member of the council and its term will end in 2017.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. World Bank retains India’s growth forecast at 7.5% for 2015-16: The World Bank reports says that India, now the world’s fastest growing economy, is relatively well positioned to weather the global volatility and even set for a modest acceleration in growth in the years ahead.

Daily GK Updates - 31st October, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. National Unity Day observed across India: It was observed on 31 October 2015 to commemorate the birthday of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. On Sardar Patel’s 140^th birth anniversary, PM Modi flagged off Run for Unity at Rajpath in New Delhi.

2. Shaktikanta Das nominated on RBI Central Board of Directors.

3. Ministry of Civil Aviation released Revised Draft National Civil Aviation Policy: The policy aims at providing a favourable environment and a level playing field to various aviation sub-sectors, such as Airlines, Airports, and Cargo, Maintenance Repairs and Overhaul (MRO) services and so on.

4. Railways launches ‘Vikalp’ for waitlisted passengers to get confirmed birth: Railway is launching a new scheme under which waitlisted passengers can get confirmed accommodation in next alternative train it they opt for the option while booking their tickets online.

5. GSAT-15 to be launched on November 10 from French Guiana: ISRO’s latest communication satellite GSAT-15 is all set to be launched on November 10, 2015 from French Guiana on board Ariane 5. The satellite will provide C and Ku band telecommunications and navigation services to India.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. BRICS nations signed Moscow Declaration for supporting Multilateral Science Projects: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa signed Moscow Declaration for co-investment of resources for supporting multilateral Research and Development (R&D) Projects in mutually agreed areas.It was signed during the third meeting of the BRICS Ministers for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences.

2. Paul Ryan elected as 54^th Speaker of US House of Representatives.

3. European Parliament gave status of whistle-blower to former NSA contractor Edward Snowden: A resolution in this regard was approved by the parliament by 285 votes to 281.

OTHER UPDATES:

AWARDS:

1. Raif Badawi wins EU’s Sakharov Prize 2015: Saudi Blogger RaifBadawi has been selected for European Union’s prestigious Sakharov Prize for Human Rights for the year 2015.