Daily GK Updates - 12th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. President presents Padma Awards to 56 eminent personalities: The names who were honoured with Padma Bhushan are Rajnikant, classical singer Dr Girija Devi, journalist RamojiRao. Singer Udit Narayan and tennis player SaniaMirza have been honoured with the Padma Bhushan. Actor Priyanka Chopra, writer DhirendraNathBezbaruah got the Padmashree.

2. PM to inaugurate 3^rd Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation in Delhi: In this conference, more than 700 tiger experts, scientists, managers, donors and other stakeholders are gathering to discuss issues related to tiger conservation.

3. Panama Papers: India to attend OECD meet in Paris: India will take part in a special meeting of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris on 13^th April to firm up cooperation between countries in the wake of the ‘Panama Papers leak’.

4. India and Maldives sign six agreements to boost ties: The agreements were signed in the fields of double taxation, exchange of information, defence cooperation, space research, tourism cooperation, conservation and restoration during the visit of Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.

5. Shan-e-Punjab Express becomes India’s first train fitted with CCTV cameras.

6. Tata starts U.K Steel sale: Tata Steel, the country’s largest steel producer, has signed an agreement to sell the loss-making 4.5 million tonne long-product Scunthorpe Steel Plant in Britain to UK-based investment firm Greybull Capital for a nominal consideration, with the latter taking assets and relevant liabilities.

7. Fairfax India to invest $300 million in Sanmar Chemicals.

8. BhartiAirtel first entity to get Payments Bank licence from RBI: It has partnered with Kotak Mahindra Bank for the licence through AMSL.

9. LAVA International announces MS Dhoni as its Brand Ambassador.

10. Varanasi Kathak dancer SoniChaurasiya breaks the Guinness World Record for longest dance performance by continuously dancing for 123 hours and 30 minutes.

11. ViratKohli named as Brand Ambassador of Premier Futsal Football League: Futsal is the newer and shorter five-a-side variant of Football.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. G7 Foreign Minister’s meet held in Hiroshima.

2. Ukraine PM ArseniyYatsenyuk to resign: Yatsenyuk’s government has been besieged by war, corruption and economic struggles. His cabinet survived a no-confidence vote in February, but two parties left the governing coalition in protest that the prime minister wasn’t ousted, a move that deprived the coalition of a majority in Parliament.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. Federal Bank and Phillip Capital tie-up announced at Singapore: The Indian bank major Federal Bank has entered into a strategic partnership with Phillip Capital (India) Pvt Ltd; a subsidiary of the Singapore headquartered Phillip Capital Group, for managing NRI Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS).

SPORTS:

2. Indian teams clinch Asian Kho-Kho Championship Title: Both Men’s and Women’s teams have won the category’s championship titles at the Asian Kho-Kho Championship held in Indore.

3. WTA Rankings: Serena Williams maintains top spot while Polish AgnieszkaRadwanska returned to the second place.

Daily GK Updates - 11th April. 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Centre recommends Rs 1304 crore for drought relief to UP: The centre has recommended 1304 crore rupees for drought relief to Uttar Pradesh under National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF).

2. Centre to issue universal ID-card for Differently-Abled People: Union Government is set to issue universal identity cards to the physically challenged with the objective of providing them easy access to various benefits being extended by the government.

3. BSNL testing Wi-Fi technology to connect 1 Lakh panchayats in a year: The state-run company in connection with Vihaan Networks has started testing the sustainability of Wi-Fi networks in three villages-Karenda, Phalsa and Bahadiri in Alwar district of Rajasthan.

4. India offers to invest $20 billion in Iran: India was also keen to set up a gas cracker unit and a liquefied petroleum gas extraction unit in Chahabar and ways of transporting gas to India from Iran including through a planned Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline were discussed during Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas DharmendraPradhan’s visit to Iran.

5. ‘Green UP-Clean UP’ programme; five crore trees to be planted in UP: The Uttar Pradesh Government has directed all the district magistrates for plantation of 5 crore trees at 6,500 sites in 24 hours on a date fixed in month of July under the programme.

6. PriyadarshiniChatterjee crowned FBB Femina Miss India World 2016.

7. Sachin Tendulkar named as the brand ambassador of ‘Skill India’ campaign.

8. Centre constitutes B BTandon Committee to monitor Government Advertisements.

9. Fire accident a Puttingal Temple in Kerala; at least 110 people died.

10. Jharkhand Government announced to reserve 2% employment for meritorious sportspersons.

11. Union Government exempted housing finance companies from XBRL (Extensible Business Reporting Language) filing.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. China successfully launched retrievable satellite: It has launched a retrievable scientific research satellite in a bid to aid scientists to study micro-gravity and space life science.

2. Pakistan successfully test fired anti-ship ‘Zarb’ missile: On this day the Roma from all over the world pay respect to the Roma victims during the World War II.

3. Investigative Journalist from Azerbaijan, Khadija Ismayilova chosen for 2016 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize.

4. UN-backed Yemen ceasefire came into force.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Danny Willet won US Masters Golf 2016 Championship held at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia.

2. Anthony Joshua won International Boxing Federation title for the year 2016 by defeating Charles Martin in the heavyweight category.

3. Lee Chong Wei has won Malaysian Open 2016 Men’s title.

4. Japan’s shuttlerKentoMomota axed from Rio Olympics over illegal gambling.

AWARDS:

5. Priyanka Chopra to be awarded with DadasahebPhalke Film Foundation Award 2016 in the best actress category 

OBITUARIES:

6. Former Member of Parliament from Mizoram C Silvera died at the age of 81.

Daily GK Updates - 10th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Justice (retd) PermodKohli took over as Chairman of Central Administrative Tribunal.

2. Union Government approved country’s first Metrino Pod Taxi project for Gurgaon: The pilot project will span a 13 km stretch from the Gurgaon-Delhi border to Badshapur Mod on Sohna Road and is estimated to cost 850 crore rupees.

3. SajibuCheiraoba celebrated with religious fervour in Manipur: The festival marks the New Year of the Meiteis (majority ethnic group) of Manipur.

4. Haryana Government appointed two-member inquiry panel to probe into Jat quota stir: The panel is headed by former J&K High Court Chief Justice S N Jha, to probe conspiracy behind violent incidents during Jat agitation.

5. ITC Limited renewed 40-year partnership with Starwood Hotels.

6. Mumbai to host BRICS Cities Conclave on April 14.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 400-year-old Shakespeare’s ‘First Folio’ found in Scotland: A copy of the first edition of the original ‘First Folio’ published in 1623 authored by William Shakespeare was found at the Mount Stuart House on the Isle of Bute, off the western coast of Scotland.

2. International Roma Day celebrated on April 8: On this day the Roma from all over the world pay respect to the Roma victims during the World War II.

3. World Bank Group adopted Climate Change Action Plan: The plan was designed to help countries meet their Paris COP21 pledges and manage increasing climate impacts. It sets target for 2020 in high-impact areas, including clean energy, green transport, climate-smart agriculture and urban resilience.

4. French lawmakers passed a bill banning paying for sex.

5. American aerospace company SpaceX successfully landed its Falcon 9 rocket on a floating drone ship for the first time.

6. Atom becomes UK’s first digital-only bank to start offering products.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. FIFI released Coca-Cola World Rankings 2016: Argentina topped the list pushing back Belgium to the second spot.

AWARDS:

2. Mother Teresa conferred with Founders Award posthumously in UK. 

BOOKS AND AUTHORS:

3. Book titled ‘A State in Denial-Pakistan’s Misguided and Dangerous Crusade’ authored by B G Verghese was released in New Delhi.

Daily GK Updates - 9th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India tops credit Suisse Emerging Consumers Scorecard 2016: Indian consumers remain optimistic, among nine nations surveyed by Credit Suisse, about their current and future finances and relatively lower inflation expectations. China and Saudi Arabia shared the second position.

2. Centre releases Rs 12.230 crore to states for MGNREGA.

3. Union HRD Minister SmritiZubinIrani launches ISBN Portal: She launched the portal for registration and allotment of International Standard Book Number (ISBN) at a function held in New Delhi.

4. Textile Minister ShriSantosh Kumar Gangwar inaugurates Apparel and Garment making unit in Agartala, Tripura.

5. Uma Bharti inaugurates 4^th Water Films Festival as a part of the India week celebrations in New Delhi.

6. Rajasthan becomes the first state in India to clear land title bill.

7. Airtel buys Aircel’s 4G spectrum in 8 circles for Rs 3500 crore: It has announced the acquisition of 20 MHz spectrum in eight circles from Aircel for Rs 3500 crore.

8. TausifMonif joined Lambda Therapeutic Research as its new President.

9. Lamborghini India appointed SharadAgarwal as its new head.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. $200 million pact inked to study TAPI Project: Shareholders of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) Pipeline Company Ltd signed an agreement to invest $200 million in studies and engineering for the $10 billion project to transport natural gas to energy-hungry countries like India.

2. Saudi Arabia and Egypt to build bridge across the Red sea: King Salman of Saudi Arabia has announced an agreement with Egyptian President Abdul-Fattah-al-Sisi to build a bridge over the Red Sea connecting the two countries.

3. Maharaj Ranjit Singh’s statue to be installed in France’s Saint-Tropez Town.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. Federal Bank and Phillip Capital tie-up announced at Singapore: The Indian bank major Federal Bank has entered into a strategic partnership with Phillip Capital (India) Pvt Ltd; a subsidiary of the Singapore headquartered Phillip Capital Group, for managing NRI Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS).

SPORTS:

2. Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd (KNPL) tied up with Gujarat Lions for IPL 2016.

AWARDS:

3. Mother Teresa conferred with Founders Award posthumously in UK.

Daily GK Updates - 8th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. North East ASEAN Business Summit inaugurated in Imphal: The first ever two day summit has been organised by Manipur Commerce and Industries Department (MCID) in collaboration with the Union Ministries of External Affairs and Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER), Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and Indian Chamber of Service Industries (ICSI).

2. Government inaugurates ‘Namma Toilet’ in Delhi under Swachh Bharat Mission: To promote the Swachh Bharat Mission, Union Urban Development Minister Venkiah Naidu inaugurated ‘Namma Toilet’ in the national capital Delhi.

3. Petroleum and Natural Gas Minster dedicates 36 new CNG stations in Delhi and NCR.

4. Asia’s 50 most powerful businesswoman list topped by Nita Ambani: Reliance Industries Director Nita Ambani and State Bank of India chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya have been ranked top two in Forbes’ ‘Asia 50 Power Businesswoman 2016’ list, which acknowledges the inroads women are making in the business world, despite gender inequalities.

5. CCEA approved Andrew Yule proposal to convert Bank of Baroda’s loan into equity.

6. Snapdeal launches donation program ‘Sunshine’: It has partnered with 9 NGO’s to launch Snapdeal Sunshine, a platform where users can make donations to causes under education, health, sports, woman empowerment, disaster relief and old age care.

7. Rudy launches Transnational Skill Standards aligned to UK: Union Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy launches Transnational Skill Standards benchmarked to the United Kingdom across 82 identified job roles, aiming to support international mobility of Indian workforce.

8. Debraj Pradhan appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Norway.

9. Tamil Nadu Cricket Association has appointed D Vasu as its new director for a period of two years.

10. GoJavas appointed Amitabh Coomar as its new CEO.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. HP unveils World’s Thinnest Laptop: The American multinational information technology company HP Inc (Hewlett Packard) has launched eight new personal products including the world’s thinnest laptop having 10.4 mm thickness. 

2. HashimThaci sworn in as new President of Kosovo: The capital city of Kosovo is Pristina.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. India men win Asia Nations Cup Chess Tournament by defeating Vietnam in the finals played at Abu Dhabi.

OBITUARIES:

2. Veteran Journalist Yogendra Bali died at the age of 85 years.

3. American country music legend Merle Haggard died on his 79^th birthday.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS:

4. Book titled ‘The Kiss of Life: How a superhero and my son defeated cancer’ co-authored by Bilal Siddiqi and EmraanHashmi launched by ArvindKejriwal.

Daily GK Updates - 7th April2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. PM Chairs meeting of CSIR Society: The PM was given an overview of the work done by CSIR in addressing national challenges, and its recognition as a major Indian innovator.

2. 3^rd phase of Mission Indradhanush begins today: It will cover 216 districts across several states including Bihar, Gujarat, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. Under the mission, children against seven vaccine preventable diseases will be vaccinated.

3. East Coast Railway (ECoR) becomes largest freight loading railway zone.

4. Bronze bust of Indian mathematician and astronomer Aryabhatta unveiled by HRD Minister Smriti Irani at the UNESCO HQ. 

5. NTPC suspends power generation from Faraka Plant in West Bengal owing to shortage of water.

6. Gujarat CM Anandiben Patel launches ‘Maa Annapurna Yojna’: It was launched under the National Food Security Act. Under the Maa Annapurna Yojna, 3.82 crore people of Gujarat will be benefited. Each of them will get rice at Rs 3 per kg and wheat at Rs 2 per kg.

7. Santosh Gangwar inaugurates 3 mega projects in Nagaland: The three projects included Apparel and Garment Making Centre in Dimapur, Muga P3 Basic Seed Station Kobulong in Mokokchung district and newly approved Integrated Eri Silk Development Project under North East Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS).

8. Future Group has acquired FabFurnish for an undisclosed amount.

9. Foundation stone for Haryana’s first Horticulture University laid in Karnal by Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Radha Mohan Singh.

10. ASCI upholds 51 complaints against misleading ads: The advertising industry watchdog’s Consumer Complaint Council (CCC) found the claims in various categories to be either misleading or false or not adequately/ scientifically substantiated and hence violating ASCI’s code.

11. CP Gurnani appointed as the Nasscom Chairman.

12. S Balaji Arunkumar appointed as the new Deputy Chairman of Kolkata Dock System under Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT).

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 7^th April celebrated as World Health Day across the world: The day aims to draw attention to important health issues facing the world each year. The theme for this year is ‘Halt the rise: beat diabetes’.

2. Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson named as new PM of Iceland.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. First bi-monthly monetary policy statement 2016-17 released: RBI has cut the Repo Rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 25 basis points to 6.5% in its first bi-monthly monetary policy review for the 2016-17 fiscal and kept the CRR unchanged at 4%.

SPORTS:

2. India men win Asia Nations Cup Chess Tournament by defeating Vietnam in the finals played at Abu Dhabi.

Daily GK Updates - 6th April. 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Madhukar Gupta Committee constituted to suggest ways to strengthen security along Indo-Pak border: It will also address the issue of gaps and vulnerability in border fencing along India-Pakistan border.

2. Odisha Government launches 100 Adarsha Vidyalayas: It has launched 100 Adarsha Vidyalayas and CBSE-affiliated English medium schools in 14 districts of the state.

3. Complete ban on Alcohol in Bihar imposed by CM Nitish Kumar.

4. Government to develop 25 regional airports: Arun Jaitley: Government is looking to develop 15 airstrips owned by the state governments and 10 that are with the Airports Authority of India (AAI). 

5. India signed $100 million draft export pact with IDB: India has signed a MoU with the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) for a possible $100 million line of credit to simplify the exports to IDB’s member countries.

6. BHEL commissions repositionable canal top solar plant at Bhimavaram in Andhra Pradesh.

7. Mumbai gets its first ever AC local train.

8. Memorial for Abdul Kalam to be opened at Dilli Haat: This memorial will include the notes, books, clothes and other personal belongings of the former President and will be opened to the public on July 27, Kalam’s Death Anniversary.

9. Indian scientists from the Institute of Advance Study in Science and Technology (IASST), Guwahati, Assam developed eco-friendly nanotechnology for water purification.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Researchers from the University of Georgia and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) developed the world’s smallest diode, the size of a single molecule.

2. Iceland PM S Gunnlaugsson resigned after Panama papers leak revelations: He resigned after the leaked Panama papers exposed offshore finance and tax evasions by him. The leaks were from Panama based Mossack Fonseca, the world’s 4^th biggest offshore law firm.

3. International Day of Sport for Development and Peace 2016 observed on 6^th April 2016 with theme ‘Let’s Play for Sustainable Development Goals’.

4. US Senate unanimously approves Defend Trade Secrets Bill: The bill empowers companies to sue in federal court if their commercial secrets are stolen.

5. Myanmar Parliament approved bill to grant PM-like role to Aung San Suu Kyi.

6. International Conference on Zero held in Paris: It was hosted by the permanent delegation of India to UNESCO along with Pierre and Marie Curie University.

7. China launched SJ-10 retrievable space science probe with an aim to help scientists in their study of microgravity and space life science.

8. Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released Trends in world military expenditure, 2015 report: As per the report, while USA remained as world’s biggest spender in 2015, India moved up one spot in the global rankings to reach the 6^th position in terms of military expenditure.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Mother Dairy partners with Delhi Daredevils as Principal sponsor.

OBITUARIES:

2. M H P Rao, the architect of Madras Atomic Power Station passed away at the age of 88.

3. Hollywood actress and screenwriter Barbara Turner died at the age of 79.