Daily GK Updates - 2nd February, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World Bank approved $35 million to improve citizen access to public services in Madhya Pradesh: The Citizen Access to Responsive Services Project will improve access to selected public services for the people of Madhya Pradesh and particularly those belonging to deprived groups. 

2. Companies Law Committee submitted report recommending changes in the Companies Act, 2013: The committee was chaired by Tapan Ray Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs and consist of 8 members and one member convener.

3. Archana Ramsundram became 1^st woman to head paramilitary force: Tamil Nadu cadre IPS Officer Archana Ramsundram was appointed as the Director General of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) that guards India’s frontiers with Nepal and Bhutan.

4. Urban Ladder appointed Sanjay Gupta as Chief Marketing Officer.

5. Ashish Kumar Goel takes charge as General Manager, Eastern Railways: He is also the General Manager of South Eastern Raailways.

6. Saroj Kumar Jha appointed Senior Director for Fragility, Conflict and Violence Group at World Bank.

7. SC refers curative plea on Section 377 to five-judge bench: A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court will hear curative petitions of seeking re-examination of its verdict criminalising sexual activity between same sex consenting adults under section 377 of IPC.

8. India and Brunei sign MoUs on Defence, Health and Sports: The three MoUs were signed during the visit of Vice President of India Shri Hamid Ansari. The capital of Brunei is Bandar Seri Begawan.

9. Bajaj unveils bike with INS Vikrant metal: The 150-cc bike was named ‘V’ and it contains metal sourced from India’s first aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant which got decommissioned in 1997.

10. Himachal Pradesh to spend 15 crore rupees on Swachh Bharat Mission in Kinnaur.

11. Jai Kumar Garg appointed as MD and CEO of Corporation Bank.

12. S N Prasad assumes charge as Coal India Limited director.

13. PM Modi inaugurated the Global Ayurveda Fest at Kozhikode which is being held from 31^st January to 4^th February 2016.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Google’s Alphabet comes before Apple as world’s most valuable company: The shift occurred in Monday’s extended trading after Alphabet, Google’s new parent company, released fourth-quarter earnings report that highlighted the robust growth of the digital ad market.

2. WHO declared Public Health Emergency of international concern over Zika Virus outbreak.

3. UK granted licence to use gene editing techniques on human embryos: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) of United Kingdom granted licence to the Francis Crick Institute to use new gene editing techniques on human embryos.

4. Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra is set to join Hollywood A-listers to present at the upcoming 88^th Academy Awards.

5. World Wetlands Day observed 2^nd February 2016 with theme Wetlands for our Future-Sustainable Livelihoods.

6. TCS, Wipro, Infosys join Obama’s ‘computer science for all’ plan. 

7. Bangladesh cabinet approved draft of Citizenship Law, 2016 expanding scope for dual citizenship.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. RBI keeps key rates unchanged in the 6^th bi-monthly monetary policy: The repo rate or short term lending rates remains unchanged at 6.75% and the reverse repo rate at 7.75%. CRR is also unchanged at 4% while the MSF and Bank rate are kept at 7.5%.

SPORTS:

2. Rishabh Pant of India U-19 slams fastest fifty in just 18 balls to beat Nepal U-19 in the on-going U-19 World Cup.

OBITUARIES:

3. Noted Dravidian Ideologist Annamalai died at the age of 78.

Daily GK Updates - 1st February, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. TRAI recommends PPP Model to roll out rural broadband network ‘BharatNet’: Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has recommended a public private partnership model for rolling out government’s ambitious project BharatNet, which involves setting up of a broadband network in rural India. 

2. Government bans Zero Duty import of capital goods for power plants: The decision is aimed at encouraging manufacturing of power equipment and giving a push to domestic capital goods sector, with an aim to boost overall economy.

3. India and Afghanistan ink pact for Visa-free travel by diplomats.

4. Vietnam lifts ban on import of groundnut from India.

5. 30^th Surajkund International Crafts Mela started at Faridabad: Telangana was selected as the Theme State and will showcase its unique culture and rich heritage and about 300 artistes from the state will perform different folk arts. Chandigarh was the theme for the 29^th edition of the mela in 2015.

6. Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi appointed as India’s Envoy to Mexico.

7. Kamlesh Kumar Pandey appointed as Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities.

8. Metro Cash and Carry appoints former Walmart executive Arvind Mediratta as India MD.

9. Datta Padsalgikar appointed as the Commissioner of Police of Mumbai.

10. CBDT signed two bilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) with United Kingdom: This is a significant step towards providing a stable and predictable tax regime.

11. India and NASA to study Ladakh region under Spaceward Bound Programme: Under this programme, a team of scientists from NASA, the Mars Society Australia and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow will undertake an expedition to Ladakh in August 2016 to study the region’s topography and microbial life to the surroundings of Mars.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Cabinet of Somalia agree on Election Model outlined by Mogadishu Declaration 2015: The declaration which was adopted in December 2015, calls for election process in Somalia to establish a new, bicameral Federal Parliament in 2016, based on inclusivity and representation.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. SBI launches new home loan scheme ‘FlexiPay’ for working executives: Under the scheme, young working professionals will get higher amount than they are eligible for. The additional loan amount will help such professionals in acquiring better and spacious living spaces for themselves and their families.

SPORTS:

2. Virat Kohli replaces Aaron Finch as No. 1 batsman in T20 Internationals.

3. Kidambi Srikanth wom men’s singles title of Syed Modi International Badminton Championships 2016.

4. Virender Sehwag appointed as mentor for Kings XI Punjab for IPL season 9.

5. Aditya Mehta won 83^rd Senior National Snooker Championship.

6. Japanese city of Fukuoka to host 2021 World Aquatics Championships.

7. Brazilian driver Pietro Fittipaldi won 2015-16 MRF Challenge Formula 2000 held at Madras Motor Racing Track

AWARDS:

8. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar selected for K Veeramani Award for Social Justice.

9. Veteran Wildlife Filmmaker Naresh Bedi honoured with V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award.

10. Mahesh Joshi received the ‘Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Gaurav Award’ for his poetry.

OBITUARIES:

11. Famous British television and radio personality Terry Wogan died at the age of 77.

Daily GK Updates - 31st January, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. First revised estimates of macroeconomic indicators for 2014-15 released: The Central Statistics Office (CSO) of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released the first revised estimates of national income, consumption expenditure, savings and capital formation for 2014-15. 

2. Anti-Leprosy Day was observed across the country on 30 January 2016.

3. Three month long awareness campaign on Mission Indradhanush concludes: The three month long regional media campaign on Mission Indradhanush conducted by the Nagaland and Manipur Regional Office of the Directorate of Field Publicity (DFP), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India concluded.

4. California based free app builder Appy Pie launched in India: Appy Pie, the free app builder from California is now available to Indian users. Appy Pie’s app builder enables user to design a professional looking app without writing any code by selecting a theme from the gallery.

5. Gurgaon based start-up Pluss ties up with Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved for delivery of medicines and healthcare products.

6. Government of India ships ‘Made in India’ metro coaches to Australia.

7. ITC appoints Nirupama Rao as Additional Independent Director.

8. Akshay Kumar’s Airlift movie made tax free in Uttar Pradesh.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Cabinet of Somalia agree on Election Model outlined by Mogadishu Declaration 2015: The declaration which was adopted in December 2015, calls for election process in Somalia to establish a new, bicameral Federal Parliament in 2016, based on inclusivity and representation.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Novak Djokovic beat Rodger Federer to win Australian Open 2016.

2. India beat Australia in the last T20 by 7 wickets to win the series 3-0: India jumped to No.1 ranking in the T20s after getting this win.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS:

3. The book titled ‘Nathuram Godse-The Story of an Assassin’ authored by Anup Ashok Sardesai was released.

Daily GK Updates - 30th January, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Uttar Pradesh joins UDAY Scheme: It has become the fourth state to join the centre’s scheme to revive state electricity distribution utilities. 

2. Karnataka Vikas Grameen Bank sets up cell to monitor government schemes: The Dharwad headquartered Karnataka Gramin Vikas Bank has set up a separate cell for monitoring progress under all the government sponsored schemes.

3. Goa launches project tracking portal: Goa CM Laxmikant Parsekar launched Goa e-Suvidha Portal, an online project tracking mechanism to fast track projects.

4. KK Jalan in now MSME Sectretary.

5. Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba to take over as Western Naval Command Chief.

6. Blue Star appoints Vir S Advani as MD.

7. The Nation remembered Mahatma Gandhi on his 68^th death anniversary as it paid homage to the father of the nation on the occasion of Martyr’s Day, 30^th January 2016.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Cabinet of Somalia agree on Election Model outlined by Mogadishu Declaration 2015: The declaration which was adopted in December 2015, calls for election process in Somalia to establish a new, bicameral Federal Parliament in 2016, based on inclusivity and representation.

2. Prince Mahidol Award 2015 conferred in Bangkok: It was conferred upon Professor Morton Mower and Sir Michael Marmot for outstanding achievements in medicine and public health worldwide respectively. Mower, a citizen of USA, received the award in the category of medicine for invention of the Automatic Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator.

3. Leslie Berland appointed as the Chief Marketing Officer of Twitter Inc.

4. Indo-Canadian Sikh Amrik Singh Ahluwalia elected as the head of Canada’s Peel Police, the country’s third largest municipal police force.

5. Japan unveiled first stealth fighter aircraft X-2: The domestically built fighter aircraft seeks to augment defence capabilities of the country that is surrounded by China and Russia that already have radar-evading aircraft technology.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Germany’s Angelique Kerber stuns Serena Williams to win Australia Open.

OBITUARIES:

2. Former Army Chief Gen K V Krishna Rao passes away at the age of 92.

3. Noted Writer, Educationist Nayani Krishnakumari died at the age of 86.

Daily GK Updates - 29th January, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Union Government announced 1^st batch of 20 smart cities from 11 States and Delhi: The 20 smart cities were selected through the Smart City Challenge competition that saw the participation of 1.52 crore citizens from 97 cities and towns. Among the 20 cities and towns, 3 cities are from MP, two each from AP, Karnataka, TN, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan and one each from the remaining five made it to the winning list. 

2. Commemorative coins of Rs 150 and circulation coin of Rs 10 on Lala Lajpat Rai released.

3. $80 m loan from ADB to improve infrastructure in Agartala, Aizwal: The loan is the third tranche of $200 m financing facility under the North Eastern Region Capital Cities Development Investment Program.

4. Kerala to host global skill summit: Kerala will host a three-day ‘Nypunyam International Skill Summit and Skill Fiesta 2016’ next month with a view to bridging the gap between the job market requirement and the skill level of available workforce.

5. Gurdeep Singh appointed as the new CMD of NTPC Ltd.

6. Government lowers GDP growth rate to 7.2%: It has marginally revised downward the economic growth for 2014-15 to 7.2% from the earlier estimate of 7.3% after factoring in latest data on agriculture and industrial production.

7. Puducherry Lt Governor AK Singh launched MITRA app for women safety.

8. Madhya Pradesh to impose ban on polythene from January 2017.

9. JS Deepak appointed as the new Telecom Secretary.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Iran, Airbus signed deal to buy 118 Airbus planes: Iran and Airbus have signed two agreements covering new aircraft orders and a comprehensive civil aviation co-operation package. The agreement includes purchase of 118 new Airbus aircrafts.

2. Indo-Pak Agreement on Rail Link extended for three years: India and Pakistan have extended their agreement relating to rail communication by mutual consent through diplomatic channels for next three years.

3. China, Iran signed 17 agreements to broaden bilateral cooperation: The agreements cover various fields such as energy, industrial capacity, finance, investment, communication, culture, judiciary, science and technology, news media, customs, climate change and human resources.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Navneet Kaur and Santosh Kadale won gold in Senior National Rowing Championship held in Hyderbad in the women’s and men’s category respectively.

2. Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis won 2016 Australian Open Women’s Doubles title.

3. Graham Ford named Chief Coach of Sri Lanka cricket ahead of India Tour.

OBITUARIES:

4. Former minister and freedom fighter Maheshwar Baug died at the age of 85.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS:

5. The book titled ‘The Turbulent Years, Volume II of memoirs of President Pranab Mukherjee’ released.

Daily GK Updates - 28th January, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 150^th Birth anniversary of Lala Lajpat Rai celebrated: 150^th birth anniversary of great freedom fighter Lala Lajpat Rai, also known as Punjab Kesri was celebrated on 28^th January 2016 across the country. 

2. Union Government launched National Job Portal for Persons with Disabilities: The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment Thaawarchand Gehlot launched the National Level Job Portal ‘www.disbilityjobs.gov.in’ for PWDs.

3. Union Cabinet approves raising of 17 Indian Reserve Battalions: The Union Cabinet has approved proposal of raising of 17 Indian Reserve Battalions in Jammu and Kashmir and 4 Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected states.

4. CERT-In inks cyber security agreements with 3 nations: Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) has signed cyber security agreement with its counterparts in Malaysia, Singapore and Japan.

5. India overtakes Thailand as World’s largest rice exporter.

6. India successfully test fired Akash Missile at Chandipur: India test fired its indigenously built surface to air Akash missile from complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha.

7. IPS Officer Aparna Kumar became India’s first civil servant to scale Mount Vinson Massif, the highest peak in Antarctica.

8. CCEA approved hybrid annuity model for highway projects: The main objective of the approval is to revive highway projects in the country by making one more mode of delivery of highway projects. Under this model, the government will provide 40% of the project cost to the developer to start work while the remaining investment has to be made by the developer.

9. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar presented Rakshmantri Award for excellence for 2012-13 and 2013-14: Excellence in Performance: HAL, Best Performance in Exports: BEML, Best Performing Division of DPSUs: BEL(S&CS), Bengaluru.

10. Snow Leopard spotted for the first time in North Sikkim.

11. IRCTC restricts ticket booking to six per month.

12. Supreme Court appointed Justice Sanjay Mishra as UP Lokayukta.

13. AIF appointed MasterCard CEO Ajay Banga as co-chair.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust observed: It was observed on 27^th January 2016 across the world with the theme ‘Holocaust and Human Dignity’.

2. 1^st Ministerial Meeting of Arab-India Cooperation Forum held in Manama, capital city of Bahrain.

3. Intelsat 29e, the first of Intelsat EpicNG Satellites, launched into Orbit: The satellite was launched from French Guiana aboard an Ariane 5 vehicle. The high throughput platform should provide customers with superior connections at a lower cost.

4. Polygamy made mandatory in Eritrea: Eritrea’s Department of Religious Affairs issued a law that makes it mandatory for men of the nation to marry at least two women. Failing to adhere by the orders will lead to life imprisonment with hard labour.

5. UNICEF launched 2.8 billion US Dollar humanitarian appeal for children: It planned to increase the number of children in crisis who are given access to education from 4.9 million at the beginning of 2015 to 8.2 million in 2016.

6. 31 countries signed MCAA to boost transparency in international tax matters: 31 countries signed the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCAA) to boost transparency in the functioning of multinational enterprises (MNEs) by allowing automatic exchange of country-by-country reports by tax administrators.

7. Wildest Planet System comprising of lonely planet 2MASS J2126 and its distant star TYC9486-927-1 discovered.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Australian batsman David Warner won Allan Border Medal 2016.

2. Pakistan cricketer Imran Farhat retired from International cricket.

3. Adam Lewis headed Independent Review Panel set up to safeguard integrity in Tennis.

4. Olympic Gold medallist Matthew Mitcham retired from diving.

5. Ishika Shah won 12^th Sub-junior National Snooker championship title.

AWARDS:

6. India activist Henri Tiphagne selected for Amnesty International Human Rights Award 2016.

7. Rod Laver honoured with Companion of the order of Australia for his eminent service to tennis as a player, representative and mentor, at the national and international level.

OBITUARIES:

8. Former India basketball captain Ranbir Chopra died at the age of 86.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS:

9. The book titled ‘Midnight’s Furies: The Deadly Legacy of India’s Partition’ authored by Nisid Hajari won 2016 William E Colby Award.

Daily GK Updates - 27th January, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Chhattisgarh to invest Rs 60,000 crore on ‘Sampark Kranti’: Under the programme, the state would build roads, rail lines besides expansion of electrification and communication network in the areas that had not seen much development. 

2. Rajasthan signs MoU to join UDAY Scheme: It has become the third state to sign a MoU for joining the central government’s state electricity distribution utility revival scheme.

3. US-based Cognizant Technologies Solutions acquired KBACE Technologies.

4. First in Maharashtra: Nagpur Central Jail inmates get SBI ATM Cards: Around 140 inmates of the central prison here were given State Bank of India ATM Cards for use inside the premises, with plans to extend the service to all 800 prisoners of the facility.

5. TATA Trusts collaborates with MIT to improve learning at school: Tata Trusts collaborates with MIT and Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to improve learning at secondary school level.

6. SC and ST Amendment Act, 2015 came into force: The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2015 came into force. The act was made to ensure more stringent provisions for prevention of Atrocities against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

7. Union Government approved to set up solar energy panels over 10000 EWS houses in Tamil Nadu under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) (Urban).

8. Union Government and Chhattisgarh Government signed MoU on UDAY Scheme: Union Government and Chhattisgarh Government signed a MoU with Chhattisgarh State Power Distribution Company Ltd under the scheme Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana for operational and financial turnaround of the CSPDCL.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India and Armenia amend double taxation avoidance convention: It will enable the two countries to exchange information related to financial and banking transactions under the pact and help in preventing tax evasion.

2. International Customs Day observed across the world on 26^th January 2016.

3. Australia celebrated its National Day on 26^th January 2016.

4. Denmark parliament approved law on seizing valuables from Refugees: Danish Parliament, Folketing voted on a proposal to confiscate asylum seekers’ personal possessions in order to pay their upkeep.

5. Transparency International released Corruption Perceptions Index 2015: The index measured the perceived levels of public sector corruption in 168 countries and territories. Denmark stood first as it is the most corruption free country in the world while India was place 76^th.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. RBI shortlists five companies for Audit and Risk Monitoring Mechanism: The Reserve Bank plans to procure an Audit Management and Risk Monitoring System (AMRMS) for the central bank from five potential shortlisted solution providers, including PwC and Quadrant 4 Software Solutions.

SPORTS:

2. ICC released Test, ODI and T20 Rankings: India topped the list of Test Rankings while Australia topped the table of ODI Rankings ahead of India. T20 Ranking was topped by West Indies.

AWARDS:

3. Ashok Chakra awarded posthumously to Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami.

4. Cottalango Leon selected for 2016 Technical Achievement Award of Academy of Motion Picture.

5. Chennupati Jagadish, Jay Chandra and Sajeev Koshy conferred with Australia’s highest civilian award ‘Companion of Order of Australia’.