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Sunday, January 3, 2016

Daily GK Updates - 2nd January, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Union Government constituted Shyam Benegal Committee to revamp Censor Board: The recommendations of this committee will provide a holistic framework and enable those tasked with the work of certification of films to discharge their responsibilities keeping in view this framework. 

2. Javed Ahmed appointed as the Director General of Police of Uttar Pradesh.

3. NABARD, NRSC sign MoU for web-based monitoring of watershed projects: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) for web-based monitoring of watershed projects. The web-based monitoring of Indo-German Watershed Development (IGWDP) projects will happen in three states of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Telangana.

4. Government offloads 1.12 lakh tonnes of seized pulses in retail market: Prices of key pulses, especially Tur and Urad shot up during few last months due to fall in domestic output by two million tonnes in 2014-15 crop year because of deficit monsoon. Now the government has offloaded over on lakh and 12 thousand tonnes of seized pulses in the retail market to improve availability and tame prices.

5. Government issues draft guidelines for kidney donation: The Government of India has issued draft guidelines for allocating criteria for kidney donation from deceased source. The move is aimed at easing rules and procedures to encourage organ donation in the country. The draft guidelines have been posted on the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) website.

6. Lucknow gets Rs 5000-crore ring road as New Year gift: The proposal is aimed at easing traffic congestion. It was one of the promises made by Rajnath Singh in his campaigns during the Lok Sabha elections 2014.

7. Direct transfer of kerosene subsidy in 26 districts from April 1: After the success of paying subsidy to LPG users in their bank accounts, government will from April 1 roll out a similar programme for kerosene, where the users will buy the cooking fuel at the market rate and get the subsidy money directly in their bank account.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Copyright of Adolf Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’ expires: For the first time in 70 years, Adolf Hitler’s Nazi manifesto Mein Kampf is to be available to buy in Germany. Reprinting the anti-Semitic book was banned after WW2 by Bavaria’s regional government, which held the copyright. The copyright has now expired and Munich’s Institute of Contemporary History is to publish a new edition.
2. Rupee among best of Asian currencies in 2015: Rupee turned out to be one of the best performers in 2015 among all Asian and BRICS currencies, excluding Yen.  

OTHER UPDATES:
FINANCE/BANKING:
1. Reserve Bank of India asked banks to open branches in villages with a population of more than 5000: The banking regulator has asked banks to submit a roadmap on how many branches they will be opening by 31st March 2017.

SPORTS:
2. Mithali Raj won the BCCI’s Women Cricketer of the Year Award 2015.

OBITUARIES:
3. Grammy-winning singer Natalie Cole passed away due to heart failure at the age of 65.

Friday, January 1, 2016

Daily GK Updates - 1st January, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Ambitious Odd-even scheme of Delhi Government started off in New Delhi: The ambitious odd-even scheme of Delhi Government, a first such intervention in the country to combat spiralling air pollution, got off to a decent start on New Year with volume of cars on the city roads coming down significantly amid deployment of thousands of policemen and moderately augmented public transport. 

2. D K Hota to be the new CMD of defence PSU BEML Ltd.

3. DAVA project of Department of Commerce won 2015 e-ASIA Award: Drug Authentication and Verification Application Project won the 2015 e-ASIA Award under Trade Facilitation category. The award was announced by Asia Pacific Council for Trade Facilitation and Electronics Business (AFACT) in Tehran, Iran.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Iran’s leading banks will soon open branches in India: Iran’s leading banks will open branches in India to energise commercial ties between New Delhi and Tehran. The decision was amongst a slew of commercial measures taken by the India-Iran Joint Commission that met for the first time.

2. Pakistan’s singer Adnan Sami gets Indian Citizenship: The Union Home Ministry cleared the proposal to grant Adnan Sami the citizenship of India. Mr. Sami, who has been staying in India since 2011, will now have to fill a citizenship form at the Home Ministry’s office in Delhi and pay Rs 13,700.

3. India-origin Software Engineer wins UK award: An Indian-origin software engineer named Nandagopal Lakshminarayanan has won a prestigious award in the UK for creating an innovative electronic smart key system which enables the creation and management of keys and locks that cannot be copied or picked. 
OTHER UPDATES:
FINANCE/BANKING:
1. Reserve Bank of India asked banks to open branches in villages with a population of more than 5000: The banking regulator has asked banks to submit a roadmap on how many branches they will be opening by 31st March 2017.

SPORTS:
2. Magnus Carlsen won the Qatar Masters Open chess tournament.

AWARDS:
3. Vocalist Sanjay Subrahmanyam conferred with 2015 Sangita Kalanidhi award.
OBITUARIES:

4. Ian Murdock, founder of Debian Linux, passed away at the age of 42.

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Daily GK Updates - 31st December, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Union Cabinet approved Raptor MoU for conservation of migratory birds of prey: The Union cabinet has given its approval to sign Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) on the conservation of migratory birds of prey in Africa and Eurasia. This MoU is also called as the ‘Raptor MoU’ under the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS). With signing it, India will become the 54th signatory to the MoU. 

2. Union cabinet gives nod for India-Australia Civil Nuclear Cooperation: The Union cabinet chaired by PM Modi approved the India-Australia Civil Nuclear Cooperation deal that came into force on Nov 13, 2015. The deal along with the administrative arrangement for implementing the accord will bolster India’s energy security by supporting the expansion of nuclear power in the country.

3. Union Government approves constitution of 69 bridges on Trilateral Highway in Myanmar: It has approved the construction of 69 bridges including Approach Roads on the Tamu-Kyigone-Kalewa (TKK) road section of the Trilateral Highway in Myanmar.

4. Union Government unveils National Biotechnology Development Strategy 2015-2020: It was unveiled by the Union Science and Technology Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan in New Delhi to establish India as a world class bio-manufacturing hub.

5. Dr Gyanendra D Bandgaiyan appointed as the Director General of National Centre for Good Governance.

6. Union Cabinet approved MoU between India and Jordan for promoting cooperation in IT and Electronics: Its objective is to develop and strengthen industrial, technological and commercial cooperation between the two countries in Information Technology and Electronics (IT&E) sector. It also tries to implement institutional and capacity building cooperation programme aimed at fostering partnerships between the two countries.

7. Andhra Pradesh Government decided to hike wages of Anganwadi workers: The wages of Anganwadi workers will be increased from 4200 rupees to 7000 rupees and the wages of Anganwadi helpers will be hiked to 4500 rupees.

8. Airtel acquires 100 percent stake in Augere Wireless.


INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Japan and South Korea reached Agreement on Issue of Comfort Women: The agreement was reached after a meeting between Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs of South Korea in Seoul. It aims to resolve a decades-old dispute over Korean women who were used as sex slaves by Japanese soldiers during World War II.
2. World Bank offers $50 million loan for minority education: The Government of India and the World Bank signed a $50 million credit for the ‘Nai Manzil: The Education and Skills Training for Minorities Project’ to help young people from minority communities complete education and gain from market-driven training programmes with the aim of improving their employment outcome.
OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:
1. Sweden’s Bjorn Isberg named as Tournament Director of 2016 Hockey India League.

2. Lakshmi Ratan Shukla announced retirement from all forms of Cricket: He played for Bengal in the Ranji format and for the Kolkata Night Riders in the IPL.

3. Viral Kohli named BCCI Cricketer of the Year.

4. Ravichandran Ashwin named ICC’s No.1 test bowler, first Indian since Bishan Singh Bedi’s feat in 1973.

AWARDS:
5. Indian-origin Cancer Researcher Harpal Singh Kumar knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for being ‘hugely influential’ in his work on prevention and treatment of cancer.
OBITUARIES:
6. Former New Castle United goalkeeper Pavel Srnicek died at the age of 47: The Czech Republic footballer suffered cardiac arrest.

7. Singapore’s Indian-origin Blind Champion of Disabled Ron Chandran-Dudley dies at the age of 81.



Daily GK Updates - 30th December, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Sand Artist Sudarshan Pattnaik’s Santa Claus sculpture featured in Limca Book of Records: Pattnaik claimed that he had created 45 feet high sand Santa Claus at Puri beach on 24th December 2015, which was recognised as the largest sand Santa Claus as of today by the Limca Book of World Records. 

2. Cabinet clears formation of JVs between Indian Railways and states: The cabinet approved the formation of joint venture companies with various state governments to mobilise resources for undertaking rail infrastructure projects. The initial paid up capital of the Ministry of Railways will be limited to Rs. 50 crore for each state. The joint venture companies would be formed with equity participation from the Ministry of Railways and the state governments concerned.

3. Online virtual science lab for school students: Students, who have opted for the Science stream at the high school level, but have no access to physical labs now have the option to perform experiments in a virtual science-lab. Thanks to the educational technology initiative-‘Online Labs’-developed by Amrita CREATE (Centre of Research in Advanced Technologies for Education) in association with CDAC (Centre for Development of Advance Computing).

4. Indian Navy successfully test fires Barak-8 long range missile from INS Kolkata: Surface to Air missile having a range of nearly 70 km was test fired from INS Kolkata, paving the way for installation of the system, developed jointly by India and Israel, on board country’s frontline warships.

5. HAL ties up with Russian firm Rostech to build 200 Kamov helicopters: Under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, Russian firm Rostech State Corporation has tied up with India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to manufacture 200 Kamov 226T light helicopters. The new fleet of Kamovs will replace the ageing Cheetah and Chetak helicopters.

6. BHEL commissioned Prayagraj power project in Uttar Pradesh: State run Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited commissioned a 660 MW unit of Prayagraj Super Thermal Power Project at Bara in Allahabad district of UP.

7. SpiceJet launched travel solutions platform SpiceVacations.com: The platform offers customised travel packages to customers who can avail various services while planning their holiday, at no added cost.

8. CCEA approved Amended Technology Up-gradation Fund Scheme for textiles: The new scheme will give a boost to ‘Make in India’ in the textiles sector. It is expected to attract investment to the tune of one lakh crore rupees and create over 30 lakh jobs.

9. Satyavati Berera became first woman Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the Big Four accounting firm in India.

10. Madhu S Nair assumes charge as CMD of Cochin Shipyard.

11. Jetha Bharwad elected as first Vice-Chairman of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation: The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests and Climate Change notified norms of emission standards for coal-based thermal power plants in India. Beginning 2017, thermal plants across India will have to cut particulate matter emissions by as much as 40% and reduce their water consumption by nearly one-third.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Giorgi Kvirikashvili elected as the Prime Minister of Georgia: He will succeed PM Irakli Garibashvili, who resigned recently.
2. Guinea free of Ebola, WHO announced: Guinea was declared Ebola free by the World Health Organisation two years after the virus’ deadliest-ever outbreak began in the country, killing more than 11000 people in the West African region.

OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS:
1. Rakhi Haldar, Kavita Devi bagged gold at National Weightlifting Championships: Haldar lifted 94 kg in the snatch and 119 kg in clean and jerk to come up with a total lift of 213 kg in Women’s 69 kg to grab the gold medal. In Women’s 75 kg category, Devi lifted 95 kg in snatch and 122 kg in clean and jerk for a total of 217 kg to win the top medal.

AWARDS:
2. Noted Gujarati writer Raghuveer Chaudhary selected for the 51st Jnanpith award.

OBITUARIES:
3. Ian Fraser Lemmy Kilmister, founding member of British heavy metal band Motorhead died at the age of 70.

4. Veteran Singer Subir Sen passed away at the age of 81.

5. Iconic Marathi poet Mangesh Keshav Padgaonkar passed away at the age of 86.


Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Daily GK Updates - 29th December, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Union Government links LPG subsidy to income: Union Government has decided to link LPG subsidy to income of consumers in order to ensure that the subsidy benefits go to the targeted group. Henceforth, the LPG subsidy will not be available to LPG consumers if the consumer or his/her spouse has taxable income of more than ten lakh rupees. 

2. Ministry of Women and Child Development launches e-office: Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) has introduced e-office, an initiative which will help provide efficient services to the people by digitizing more than 12000 files. It was launched by WCD minister Maneka Gandhi. Various modules of this e-office are Knowledge Management System, File Management System, Leave Management System and Tour Management System.

3. 18th India-Iran Joint Commission meeting held in New Delhi: The session was co-chaired by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Ali Tayebnia, Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance of Iran. There were discussion about progress in trade and economic cooperation, possibilities in cooperation in railways. India stressed that connectivity afforded by Indian participation in Chahabar Port will facilitate linking Afghanistan and Central Asia with India.

4. Reports of Vijay Kelkar Committee on Revisiting & Revitalizing PPP Model released: The 9-member committee was headed by Former Finance Secretary Vijay Kelkar. The committee recognised the PPP Model in infrastructure as a valuable instrument to speed up infrastructure development in India.

5. Amitabh Kant got additional charge of CEO of NITI Ayog: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet gave Amitabh Kant the additional responsibility of being CEO of NITI Ayog. Kant will replace incumbent Sindhushree Khullar who is set to retire on 31st December 2015.

6. Bharat Petroleum commissioned Crude Distillation unit in Mumbai: It commissioned a new 6-million tonne Crude Distillation Unit at its Mumbai refinery, which will take the capacity of its oldest facility to 12 million tonne per annum.

7. Civil Aviation Ministry gave clearance for four Greenfield airports: The three airports will be located in Andhra Pradesh and one international airport at Dholera, Gujarat.





INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. China launched Gaofen-4 dual use geostationary satellite: It successfully launched Gaofen-4 Earth observation satellite towards a geostationary orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre. Launched as a part of the China High-resolution Earth Observation System (CHEOS), Gaofen-4 can see an oil tanker on the sea with a huge CMOS camera.

2. Guinea free of Ebola, WHO announced: Guinea was declared Ebola free by the World Health Organisation two years after the virus’ deadliest-ever outbreak began in the country, killing more than 11000 people in the West African region.

OTHER UPDATES:
FINANCE/BANKING:
1. Reserve Bank of India released report of Deepak Mohanty Committee on Medium-term Path on Financial Inclusion: The 14-member committee headed by RBI Executive Director Deepak Mohanty with an objective of working out a medium-term measurable action plan for financial inclusion.

2. HDFC Bank cuts lending rate by 0.05%.

SPORTS:
3. Gujarat clinched maiden Vijay Hazare trophy by defeating Delhi by 139 runs in the final played M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru: This was the 14th season of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

OBITUARIES:
4. Oscar winning cinematographer Haskell Wexler passed away in California (US) at the age of 93: He had penned the script for the first Star Trek episode, The Man Trap.


5. Former Army Chief O P Malhotra died at the age of 93.

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Daily GK Updates - 28th December, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Reliance Jio launched 4G telecom services: Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd (RJIL) or Reliance Jio launched 4G telecom service. The service was launched at the Reliance Corporate Park in Navi Mumbai to mark the birth anniversary of Dhirubhai Ambani, founder of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). 

2. AP Government signed MoU with Microsoft India on technology initiatives: Government of Andhra Pradesh signed a MoU with Microsoft India on a range of technology initiatives. The MoU was signed after a meeting between Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella in Hyderabad.

3. Indigenously developed Air-to-Air missile Astra successfully test fired: Indigenously developed Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile, Astra was successfully test fired. The test was conducted by the Indian Air Force off the coast of Odisha near the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Balasore.

4. Make in India Week to start form February 13: Taking a cue from the biennial investor congregation Vibrant Gujarat Summit-held every alternate year in Gujarat, the Central Government is organising ‘Make in India Week’ in Mumbai during February 13-18, 2016. The week-long event, being organised by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry, will have investors meet for the manufacturing sector under Make in India.

5. Karan Adani appointed as the new CEO of Adani Ports and SEZ (APSEZ).

6. Wicked Ride launches utility bike rental service: Wicked Ride, a start-up founded in 2014 by Vivekanand H.R, Anil G and Varun Agni, has launched its brand ‘Apna Ride’ for utility bike rentals, targeted primarily at budget conscious bike enthusiasts. The service will be available at Bengaluru, Mysore and Jaipur and bookings can be done through www.apnaride.com.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. China amended One Couple, One Child Policy: China’s National People’s Congress Standing Committee, country’s top law making body, gave its approval to amending One Couple, One Child Policy. The amended policy, which will come into force on January 1, 2016, will lift the restrictions on couples from having only one child.

2. China adopted Anti-terrorism Bill, 2015; first counter terrorism law in history: China’s National People’s Congress Standing Committee, country’s top legislation approved Anti-Terrorism Bill, 2015 to address terrorism at home and help maintain world security.

OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS:
1. Pakistan spinner Yasir Shah banned by ICC after being tested positive for banned substance.

2. Shiva Keshavan clinched silver at Asian Luge Championships: He grabbed a silver medal in the 18th edition of the Asian Luge Championships held in Nagano, Japan.

AWARDS:
3. CRI Pumps bags export quality excellence award: Pump manufacturing major CRI Pumps has bagged ‘Export Quality Excellence’ award for the 11th time in a row. The Joint Managing Director of CRI Pumps G Selvaraj, received the EEPC award.

4. Globe Soccer Awards 2015 conferred: The Globe Soccer presented the sixth edition of the Globe Soccer Awards 2015 to the winners at a ceremony held in Dubai, UAE. Best Player of the Year: Lionel Messi, Best Club of the Year: F C Barcelona etc.

OBITUARIES:

5. Renowned Science fiction writer George Clayton Johnson died at the age of 86: He had penned the script for the first Star Trek episode, The Man Trap.

Monday, December 28, 2015

Daily GK Updates - 27th December, 2015

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Action plan for ‘Start up India’ to be unveiled on January 16: Seeking to boost entrepreneurship at the grass root level, PM Modi said that the action plan for ‘Start up India’ will be unveiled on January 16th, 2016. 

2. Indian Oil Corporation tops in 2015 Fortune 500 companies in India list: State run Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has emerged as the country’s biggest company in terms of annual revenue as per an annual list of 2015 Fortune 500 companies in India. IOC was followed by Mukesh Ambani led private sector Reliance Industries

3. Tech Mahindra launches contactless wallet MoboMoney: IT Major Tech Mahindra has launched first of its kind ‘Tap N Pay’ contactless digital payment wallet MoboMoney for the Indian masses. MoboMoney has been billed as India’s first commercial Near Field Communication (NFC) ecosystem rollout that would allow consumers to convert cash into e-cash for making payments.

4. Union Government brings 376 drugs under the NLEM: The Union Government has added 106 drugs including that of HIV/AIDS, Cancer and Hepatitis C to the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM).

5. Union Government announced 4 new IT-based initiatives for citizen-centric health services: The initiatives include three applications, namely Kilkari, Mobile Academy and M-cessation and a dedicated toll free number 1800-11-6666 which will provide round the clock counselling and treatment support services for TB patients.


INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Seychelles Government allows India to build Naval Base on its Assumption Island: Seychelles Government allowed India to build Naval Base on the Assumption Island in the Indian Ocean region (IOR) as a joint project between both countries. India’s first Naval Base project has acquired significance following China acquiring its first African naval base in Djibouti (near Horn of Africa).

OTHER UPDATES:

OBITUARIES:

1. Former Chief Justice of Karnataka and Kerala High Courts Justice V S Malimath died at the age of 86.