Daily GK Updates - 30th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Nagaland’s capital Kohima declared ‘smoke-free city’.

2. SIDBI signs MoU with SAARC Development Fund: Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and SAARC Development Fund (SDF) has signed a MoU for mutual cooperation and collaboration.

3. Government approves Rs 9005 crore investment for affordable housing for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) under the Prime Minister’s AwasYojana (PMAY) in three states viz. Maharashtra, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.

4. S K Bhagat appointed Director General of Railway Protection Force (RPF).

5. Blackberry launches BBM Money Transfer Service in India: The BlackBerry users can download the BBM Money app and transfer funds to one another through BlackBerry Messenger.

6. Former Bureaucrat andPolitician N K Singh selected for Japan’s highest civilian award for promoting economic, educational and cultural ties between India and Japan.

7. Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik launches 100 piped water supply projects: He dedicated to the people 100 piped water supply projects for rural areas and promised to make piped water provision in all gram panchayats by 2017.

8. Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal launched UJALA Scheme in Madhya Pradesh: UJALA stands for UnnatJyoti by Affordable LEDs for All.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. International Jazz Day observed across the world on 30^th April 2016: The Day is intended to raise awareness in the international community of the virtues of jazz as an educational tool, and a force for peace, unity, dialogue and enhanced cooperation among people.

2. Endangered Asiatic wild dogs spotted in China nature reserve.

 OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. NABARD partners with Germany for food security initiative: It entered into collaboration with the German government for a special programme on ‘Soil Protection and Rehabilitation for Food Security’.

SPORTS:

2. AbhinavBindra joins Salman Khan as India’s Goodwill Brand Ambassador for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

3. Tobago batsman Iraq Thomas made fastest ever century in cricket history of just 21 balls.

Daily GK Updates - 29th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. BSF to put tallest ‘Tiranga’ at Wagah border by January 2017: The flag at 350 feet is part of BSF’s expansion plans for the visitors’ gallery at the site of the iconic Retreat ceremony.

2. First time direct tax details published by CBDT: First time in the history, a total of 84 page data has been released and put in the public domain, as the Central Board of Direct Taxes has published direct tax data including income disclosed in tax returns by various categories of tax payers from 2000 to 2015.

3. Government plans to keep 1% of highways project cost for road safety: The government is committed to reducing the number of road accidents and fatalities by 50% in next two to three years.

4. India and Papua New Guinea sign four agreements in the fields of Agriculture, Health, Information Technology and Infrastructure.

5. Government approves BPCL’s Rs 3000 crore investment in Bharat Oman Refineries Ltd: The BORL is planning for capacity expansion in its refinery in Bina, Madhya Pradesh.

6. NITI Ayog launched urban management programme for capacity building of states and urban local bodies: The programme is designed by NITI Ayog, Temasek Foundation and Singapore Cooperation Enterprise (SCE) under the platform of the MoU signed between NITI Ayog and the Singapore Cooperation Enterprise (SCE).

7. ISRO’s 7^th navigational satellite IRNSS 1G launched: It was launched from the First Launch Pad of the SatishDhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, which is situated 90 kms from Chennai.

8. Indian Naval Ship Veer and Nipat decommissioned.

9. Rahuri Municipal Council of Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra has become the first municipal council to attain the status of integrated with digital locker for the issuance of all essential documents.

10. Election commission launches mobile app ‘e-voter’ for Kerala assembly polls.

11. Gujarat announces 10% quota for reservation in higher education and government jobs for economically backward members of all non-reserved castes, with annual income below Rs 6 lakh.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Mongolia confers highest civilian honour to two Indians: Mongolia has conferred its highest civilian honour ‘North Star’ to two Indian scholars-Lokesh Chandra and Mansura Haider for their contribution to Mongolian studies.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Former Sri Lankan cricketer SanathJaysuriya recalled as Sri Lanka’s cricket chief selector.

2. GarimaChaudhary wins gold at Commonwealth Judo Championship held in Port Elizabeth in South Africa.

AWARDS:

3. Swat Activist Tabassum Adnan wins 2016 Nelson Mandela Award.

OBITUARIES:

4. Kerala cartoonist V T Thomas passed away at the age of 86.

Daily GK Updates - 28th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. MoU signed between Railways and ISRO: The Railways has signed a MoU with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to develop an application for Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System.

2. New Naval detachment launched at Lakshadweep Androth Island: It will help Indian Navy to have better surveillance and reach in the Arabian Sea.

3. Cabinet nod to solar power plant of 200 MW at Jetsar in Rajasthan.

4. Cabinet approves MoU between India and Papua New Guinea on cooperation in the field of health area and medical science.

5. MoU between Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India and the Insurance Authority, UAE: The MoU provides for enhanced cooperation between the two authorities in the field of insurance supervision by providing a framework for co-operation such as channels of communication.

6. BSE inks pact with Korea Exchange to list Sensex-based derivatives: The agreement is expected to further the development of derivatives markets in India and South Korea. It will encourage the sharing of information, and foster new opportunities for the exchanges and their respective issuers.

7. Experian India has launched the fraud detection mechanism: The Global data services company, Experian, headquartered in Dublin, Ireland has launched its ‘Hunter Fraud Score’ in India, which is a new scoring mechanism. The mechanism will help to measure the probability of fraud in a credit application across banking and insurance industries.

8. Panel suggests fine or jail for celebrities in misleading ads: The panel will be headed by MP J C Divakar Reddy and it suggests that for first time offence the violator may be penalised with either a fine of Rs 10 lakh or imprisonment up to two years or both. For second time offence, a fine of Rs50 lakh and imprisonment of five years will be the penalty.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. New Zealand’s $5 bill named best banknote of the year: It has been named the banknote of the year for 2015 by the International Bank Note Society. The banknote incorporates some of the world’s most advanced security features and beautifully showcasing New Zealand’s history, culture and heritage.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. DBS Bank launches ‘mobile-only bank’ in India: The Singapore’s largest bank, DBS has unveiled the ‘mobile-only bank’ in India. The ‘digibank’ uses technologies, such as biometrics and artificial intelligence, to enable paperless, signature-less and branch less bank.

SPORTS:

2. Japan unveiled Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympics emblems: The logo features a circular Japanese Traditional checkered pattern. Below the design are the words ‘Tokyo 2020’ and under them the five interlocking Olympic rings.

3. ICC suspends the Cricket Association of Nepal due to a vacuum of cricket leadership in the country and also in view of government interference in the board.

4. Deepika Kumari equals world record of South Korea’s Ki Boe Bae in recurve event at Archery World Cup held in Shanghai.

AWARDS:

5. Sudarsan Pattnaik bags gold medal at 9^th Sand Sculpture Championship in Moscow, Russia.

OBITUARIES:

6. Kerala cartoonist V T Thomas passed away at the age of 86.

Daily GK Updates - 27th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. President embarks on two-nation tour to Papua New Guinea and New Zealand: This is the first ever state visit of an Indian President to these two countries. Symbolising the growing strategic and economic engagements with the Pacific Island countries, the President’s first stopover will be Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea.

2. Union Railway ministry to set up Rs 1 lakh crore Rashtriya Rail SanrakshaKosh: The Union Railway Ministry has decided to create a Rs 1 lakh crore safety fund named as Rashtriya Rail SanrakshaKosh (RRSK) to strengthen safety measures on the rail network to prevent accidents.

3. Government approved the policy for sharing competitive exam scores with private sector: The Government has approved the policy for public disclosure of scores and ranking of the students who appear for recruitment examinations conducted by various public recruitment agencies for the benefit of employers in the public and private sector seeking qualified candidates through a portal.

4. All new mobiles to have panic button from 2017: The Department of Telecommunication has notified that from next year, all mobile phone sold in India will come with a dedicated ‘Panic Button’ and will also have the Global Positioning System facility in it. These facilities can be used to send out a signal in case of distress.

5. Government to sell its 11.36% stake in NTPC in disinvestment exercise of the current year.

6. Operation Sulaimani to eradicate Poverty in Kozhikode district of Kerala: The operation is being implemented in association with the state Hotel and Restaurants Association. Following the implementation of the project, the needy will get food free of cost.

7. Union Tourism Ministry launched NOAPS Web Portal of National Monuments Authority: The portal was developed through the technology and expertise of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), who is in process of mapping of 3686 ASI protected monuments and sites.

8. ISUZU Motors India opens manufacturing facility in Andhra Pradesh.

9. PatanjaliAyurved, the FMCG venture promoted by Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev will invest over Rs 1,150 crore in 2017.

10. Bharat Petroleum gets green nod for Rs 694 crore LPG project in Haldia Dock Complex in West Bengal.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. China launches sounding rocket: China has launched a sounding rocket designed to conduct research, take measurements and scientific experiments in the country’s Hainan Province. Kunpeg-1B was launched from Danzhou city by the National Space Science Centre (NSSC).

2. Tibetan Government in exile re-elected LobsangSangey as the Prime Minister for the second consecutive term.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. RiyadMahrez became the first African football player to win Professional Footballers Association’s (FPA) Player of the year award for the 2015-16 season.

2. NanduNatekar became first non-cricketer to become a member of Cricket Club of India (CCI).

AWARDS:

3. IIT Kharagpur research scholar K Ashok Kumar wins International Award on Plant Nutrition: The award is given by the US-based International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI) and carries a cash prize of USD 2,000 and a recognition certificate.

OBITUARIES:

4. Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) founder Amanullah Khan passed away at the age of 82.

Daily GK Updates - 26th April, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Government hikes minimum wage for contract workers to Rs 10,000: The Minister of State for Labour and Employment BandaruDattatreya informed LokSabha that the wage hike has been done based on a Supreme Court verdict.

2. Over two lakh new Central Government jobs by 2017: The central government has projected in the budget estimates for 2016-17 an increase of about 2.18 lakh in the existing workforce of 33.05 lakh, as in 2015, by 2017.

3. Heart of Asia conference begins today in New Delhi: The conference aims to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan and speeding up its reconstruction with a focus on enhancing investment and connectivity to the country.

4. Government to provide Rs 1 lakh per month to Rio-bound athletes: Union Sports Ministry has decided to provide one lakh rupees per month as out of pocket allowance to the sports persons under the Target Olympic Podium (TOP) Scheme in their preparation for the Olympics and Paralympics Games at Rio de Janeiro. Till date 77 athletes have qualified for the Rio Olympics.

5. Union Government constituted Ashok Dalwai committee for doubling farmers’ income by 2022.

6. India-Mongolia Joint Military Exercise, Nomadic Elephant-2016 commenced: The 11^th Indo-Mongolia joint training exercise titled ‘Nomadic Elephant-2016’ commenced in Mongolia.

7. INS Karmuk Corvette participated in Indo-Thai Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT): Indian missile corvette, INS Karmuk along with a Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft participated in the 22^nd Indo-Thai Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) on 25^th April 2016 in the Andaman Sea.

8. India lays foundation for final phase of Housing Project in Central and Uva provinces of Sri Lanka.

9. Videocon D2H ties up with Vodafone m-pesa to allow its customer a simple, convenient and on-demand recharge facility using the proven m-pesa platform.

10. Hero Motocorp invests Rs 3000 crore in new Andhra Pradesh unit for annual capacity building of 1.8 million units.

  

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World Intellectual Property Day 2016 observed globally on 26^th April 2016: The theme for this year’s World Intellectual Property Day was ‘Digital Creativity-Culture Re imagined.

2. Top Gay rights activist Xulhaz Mannan murdered in Bangladesh.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Mohan Bagan’sJejeLalpekhlua named Football Players’ Association of India (FPAI) Player of the Year.

2. Rower DattuBhokanal qualified for the Rio Olympics after winning silver medal in the finals of men’s single sculls at the 2016 FISA Asian and Oceania Olympic Qualification Regatta at Chung-ju in South Korea.

OBITUARIES:

3. Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) founder Amanullah Khan passed away at the age of 82.