Daily GK Updates - 21st September, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Indira AwasYojana renamed after Prime Minister: The flagship rural housing scheme Indira AwasYojana (IAY), started by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, has been restructured and renamed as PradhanMantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), which will be launched next month.

2. Government merges Railway Budget with Union Budget: The Cabinet today approved the scrapping of the 92-year old practice of presenting a separate Railway Budget and merged it with the Union Budget.

3. Centre announces new list of 27 smart cities: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency Varanasi made it to the list of 27 Smart Cities that was announced. Vadodara, Agra, Nagpur, Ajmer, Amritsar, Gwalior, Thane and Thanjavur are some of the other cities that have been named.

4. Government approves 9 highway projects worth Rs 2600 crores: These projects include Rehabilitation and Up-gradation of Allahabad-Mirzapur section of NH-76 in Uttar Pradesh to 2-lane. The other highways approved are in the states of Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

5. Flipkart becomes 1^st e-commerce in India to cross 100 million customers: Flipkart has crossed the 100-million registered users mark, becoming the first e-commerce company in the country to hit the milestone.The Bengaluru-based company has doubled its user base over the last year.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Google rolls out travel app: Google Inc. has rolled out Google Trips, a new travel app that lets users plan each day of their trip and help them manage travel reservations.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. Bangladesh’s Junaid Ahmad appointed as new World Bank head in India: Junaid Ahmad has become the World Bank's Country Director for India, replacing OnnoRuhl who served a four-year term based out of the national capital.

SPORTS:

2. Ajay Shirke re-elected as BCCI Secretary.

3. Anup Kumar to lead India in Kabaddi World Cup.

4. Misbah-ul-Haq becomes first Pakistani to receive Test mace from ICC: Misbah-ul-Haq has received the prestigious ICC Test Championship mace for inspiring Pakistan to the top of the ICC Test Team Rankings.

AWARDS:

5. Shubha Mudgal to get ‘Lalit Arpan Samman’: Hindustani classical singer Shubha Mudgal will be honoured with the annual 'LalitArpanSamman' this year.Mudgal, a Padma Shri recipient, was born in Allahabad and is known for her singing in genres of Khayal, Thumri and Dadra.

OBITUARIES:

6. Oscar winning writer and director dies at the age of 71: Oscar-winning writer and film director Curtis Hanson has died at his home in Hollywood at the age of 71.He is known for his work in films like Kevin Spacey-starrer LA Confidential, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle and The River Wild.

Daily GK Updates - 20th September, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India successfully test fires surface to surface air missile: India has successfully test-fired its new, long-range surface-to-air missile jointly developed with Israel from a defence base off Odisha coast. The missile was launched from a mobile launcher at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur.

2. Punjabi version of PM Narendra Modi’s website launched: People can now visit the PM Modi's website in the Punjabi language at the URL www.pmindia.gov.in/pa.The website which was initially started in English and Hindi is now accessible in nine regional languages - Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Tamil, Telugu and Punjabi.

3. Param-Ishan supercomputer unveiled at IIT Guwahati: The high-performance “Param-Ishan” has computing speed of 250 teraFLOPS and capacity of 300 tera bites (TB).

4. Railways to launch YatriMitra for differently-abled: The Ministry of Railways has announced the launch of ‘YatriMitraSeva’, through Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to provide wheelchair-cum-porter services for the differently-abled, elderly and ailing passengers at major railway stations.

5. India’s GDP to grow by 8% over next few years: Standard & Poor's (S&P) Global Ratings has forecasted a "relatively high quality and steroid-free" GDP growth of 8% for India over the next few years.

6. Facebook appoints Anand Chandrasekaran in a strategic role for its Messenger app.

7. Jubilant Food Works CEO Ajay Kaul resigns.

8. BSE ties up with Twitter to provide live stock updates: Investors can now track BSE updates real-time on Twitter by following the official Bombay Stock Exchange account.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Vladimir Putin’s big win: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party won a huge victory in the country’s parliamentary election. Putin’s party had won 54% of the vote in elections for the Duma, the lower house of parliament.

2. First Indian music-dance festival starts in Australia: The 10-week long festival “Confluence: Festival of India” was inaugurated by Union Tourism and Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma in Sydney, Australia.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. Vijaya Bank rolls out three new apps: The new IT products, according to Kishore Sansi, Managing Director and CEO of Vijaya Bank, are: VPAYQWIK, Vijaya *99# and V-eConnect+.

2. ADB approves $631 million loan for Vizag-Chennai industrial corridor: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $ 631 million loan to develop the proposed Vishakhapatnam- Chennai industrial corridor, the first such along a coastline in India.

3. SS Mallikarjuna Rao appointed as the new Executive Director of Syndicate Bank.

SPORTS:

4. Deaf Shooter Priyesha Deshmukh wins bronze in World Championship: Investors can now track BSE updates real-time on Twitter by following the official Bombay Stock Exchange account.

Daily GK Updates - 19th September, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Alka Sirohi appointed as the Chairman of UPSC.

2. Charkhi Dadri is Haryana’s 22^nd district: Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today announced CharkhiDadri as 22nd district of Haryana.

3. ‘Selfie with toilet’ to boost Swachh Bharat in Ludhiana: To make the Swachh Bharat Mission successful and encourage people to use clean toilets, the Ludhiana district administration has started a ‘Selfie with my Shauchalya’ campaign.

4. Government to expand DBT to 147 schemes by next March: The Government plans to double the number of schemes under DBT to 147 by March and has launched pilots for paying subsidy on food, kerosene and fertiliser directly via bank accounts of beneficiaries.

5. Lt Gen Surinder Singh takes charge of Western Command.

6. Monika Kapil Mohta appointed Ambassador to Sweden.

7. Indian-origin South African is head of Global Blood Service: An Indian-origin South African has become the first person from the African continent to head a global organisation of medicine professionals working for the safety of blood transfusion worldwide.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Malaysian envoy releases translated book on Sai Baba: The Consul General of Malaysia in India EldeenHusaini Muhammad Hashim has released the translated version of 'SaiCharitraGranth', a book on the life of Sai Baba.The book is translated into Malay by a social outfit called 'I love Sai'.

2. 17^th NAM summit held at Venezuela: 17th NAM summit held in Venezuela and Vice President Hamid Ansari held talks with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on a host of issues of mutual interest.

3. World’s largest ship lift begins trial run in China: The trial operation of a world's largest permanent ship lift designed by Chinese and German engineers on China's Three Gorges Dam began.

4. Nobel laureate Aung San SuuKyi to get Humanitarian award: Myanmar leader Aung San SuuKyi has been honored as the 2016 humanitarian of the year by students and faculty at the Harvard Foundation. SuuKyi gained international prominence as the General Secretary of the newly formed National League for Democracy in Myanmar in 1990.

5. China and Russia conduct naval exercises Joint Sea-2016 to improve security:The Chinese and Russian navies have concluded Joint Sea-2016, eight days of naval exercises, in the South China Sea.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. Federal Bank launches Federal Skill Academy at Coimbatore: Federal Bank has launched its second FederalSkill Academy at Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu as part of its CSR initiatives.

SPORTS:

2. Rio Paralympics 2016 concluded: The 15th Rio 2016 Paralympic Games 2016 (7-18 September) is over now and this time, we have witnessed some of the world record-breaking performances by the athletes. The 2020 Summer Paralympics, the 16th edition of the international multi-sports event, will be held in Tokyo, Japan.

AWARDS:

3. Malayalam Critic M Leelavathi bags Mohanan Suvarna Mudra Award: Eminent Malayalam critic and academician Dr M Leelavathi has been chosen for the prestigious N Mohanan Suvarna Mudra Award 2016, instituted in memory of well-known short story writer N Mohanan.

4. West Bengal to confer Bangabi bhushan Award to LataMangeshkar.

5. Emmy Awards 2016: 68th Emmy Awards, television's biggest award ceremony, was held in Los Angeles on September 18. 'Game of Thrones' won the best Drama Series award. Tatiana Maslany won the best actress award for Orphan Black, Rami Malek won the best actor for Mr. Robot.

Daily GK Updates - 18th September, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Punjab National Bank appointed ViratKohli as its new brand ambassador: State-owned Punjab National Bank has roped in Indian test skipper ViratKohli as brand ambassador to improve its image which has taken a hit due to rising bad loans. 

2.  'Sunrise', Parched' scripts archived at Oscar library: The scripts of AdilHussain-starrers "Sunrise" and "Parched" have been archived at the library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

3. Guided missile destroyer 'Mormugao' launched in Mumbai: The vessel has been built by government-run Mazgaon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) and belongs to the Visakhapatnam class of ships being constructed under Project 15B.

4. World Bank will invest nearly 1,000 crore rupees in Assam:World Bank will invest nearly 1,000 crore rupees in Assam for the betterment of the inland waterways.

5.  Prabhu launches cleanliness drive at railway premises: Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on 17-Sep-2016 launched the 'SwachhtaSaptah' as part of the Swachh Rail Swachh Bharat Mission from New Delhi Railway Station. After launching the cleanliness drive Suresh Prabhu said In order to create massive awareness on sanitation and cleanliness at railway premises and make hygiene a habit amongst the travelling public. 

6. Odisha government to organise two-day national conference on labour: Odisha government, labour minister PrafullaMallick at a press meet on Saturday announced that the state government in association with International Labour Organisation (ILO) will organize a two-day long national conference on labour in the city from September 20. 

7. ISRO, Katrina, Juhi Chawla will get Priyadarshini Global Awards: Bengaluru-based Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Bollywood actors Katrina Kaif and JuhiChawla are among recipients of the Priyadarshini Global Awards 2016 which will be presented on September 19.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1.  China successfully launches Tiangong-2 space lab: China, launched its second experimental space station.The Tiangong 2 was carried into space from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on the edge of the Gobi Desert in northern China. 

OTHER UPDATES:

AWARDS:

1. Lord Narendra Babubhai Patel ,a 78-year-old Indian-origin British obstetrician and member of the UK Parliament was honored the 'Lifetime Achievement Award'during the Asian Achievers Awards for his work in the medical profession and public life in Britain over the years.

2. Abhishek Bachchan Holds a Guinness World Record: Jr. Bachchan holds the record for 'Most Public Appearances made by a Film Star in 12 Hours.' In fact, he beat Hollywood actor Will Smith who had made three public appearances in 2 hours during the promotions of his film I, Robot in 2004.

Daily GK Updates - 17th September, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. All India Launches Balochi Website, Mobile App: All India Radio (AIR) has been launched a website and mobile app for its Balochi service to reach people who speak this language across the globe.

2. India Signs MoU With Sri Lanka To Support Fishermen And Farmers: India and Sri Lanka Signed MoU to support livelihood of the fishing and farming communities by providing them equipment worth USD 2 million in the country’s southern Hambantota district.

3.Paytm to power IRCTC’s payment gateway:Mobile payment and commerce platform Paytm has tied up with the country’s largest rail ticketing platform IRCTC to enable digital payments for travellers. 

4. Telangana signs MoU to help Goa in IT development: The Telangana government has been signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Goa government to help the latter in information technology (IT) development.

5. HAL gets membership of APAQG with voting rights:Hindustan Aeronautics Limited on Friday has been conferred the prestigious membership of the Asia-Pacific Aerospace Quality Group (APAQG)under the category 'Full Member with voting rights'.

6. V K Sharma gets additional charge as LIC chairman:V K Sharma, who is currently one of the two managing directors at Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), has taken additional charge as Chairman, LIC of India. Sharma joined LIC in the year 1981 as a Direct Recruit Officer.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Former Italian president, prime minister and central bank governor Carlo Azeglio Ciampi has died at the age of 95.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma conferred with Arjuna Award: Sports Minister Vijay Goel conferred Arjuna Awards on cricketers Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane at a function in New Delhi.Sharma was given the award for 2015 and Rahane for 2016.

AWARDS:

2. Ujjivan Financial Services Ltd, a microfinance institution, has won the Platinum Award for Inclusive Insurance at the SKOCH Insurance Awards 2016.

OBITUARIES:

3. Legendary playwright Edward Albee, widely considered one of the greats of his generation, has died at the age of 88.

Daily GK Updates - 16th September, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Government notifies GST Council: The Government has formally notified the GST Council, which will decide on the tax rate, exempted goods under the new taxation regime.

2.Atul Kumar Goel takes charges as ED in UBI:Atul Kumar Goel, General Manager, Allahabad Bank, has taken charge as Executive Director in Union Bank of India. 

3. Uber partners NSDC, Maruti to skill 1 million by 2018: Transportation app Uber has launched a new initiative in partnership with Maruti Suzuki and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) for creating livelihood opportunities for one million people by 2018.

4. Ahmedabad to host African Development Bank meet next year: India will host the Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group in May next year.  To be held at Mahatma Gandhi Convention Centre, Ahmedabad on May 22-26.

5. Reliance Communication-Aircel merger approved: Reliance Communications (RCom) board has approved the company’s merger with Aircel, in one of the biggest deals in the telecom space in recent times. 

6. Two India-Born MIT Scientists Win Prestigious US Awards:Two Indo-American scientists from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have been conferred with prestigious awards for their path-breaking inventions.

7. Naropa Festival begins in Ladakh: The Naropa festival, which is held every 12 years, began today at the 17th century Hemis Monastery in Ladakh.

8. Indian-American physician to receive National Humanities Medal:Indian-American physician-author Abraham Verghese, whose work has emphasised empathy in medicine, has been selected for the prestigious 2015 National Humanities Medal, the White House has announced.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Nadia Murad named UN Goodwill Ambassador: Nadia Murad, a former ISIS captive, has been named the UN’s new Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. Atul Kumar Goel, General Manager, Allahabad Bank, has taken charge as Executive Director in Union Bank of India. 

AWARDS:

2. Vijaya Bank has bagged the second prize under Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar (Region C) for the year 2015-16. 

3. Dharwad-headquartered Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank has bagged four awards for inclusive insurance for 2016 from Skoch Group.

Daily GK Updates - 15th September, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Nawazuddin appointed brand ambassador of UP farmers' scheme: The Uttar Pradesh govt has appointed Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui as the brand ambassador of its flagship programme 'Samajwadi Kisan Beema Yojana'.

2. India Declares itself Free from Avian Influenza (H5N1): The Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers welfare has declared India free from Avian Influenza (H5N1) from 5th September, 2016.

3. Priyanka Chopra among world's 10 highest paid TV actresses: Forbes: Bollywood queen Priyanka Chopra is in the top 10 in Forbes magazine's annual list of best-paid television actresses.

4.Gionee signs MoU with Haryana govt for investment of Rs 500cr: Gionee mobile phones would now be manufactured in Haryana as the company today signed a MoU with the state government to set up its phone manufacturing hub with an initial investment of Rs 500 crore which, later on, would be increased to Rs 1,500 crore. 

5. Uttarakhand Governor releases book by author “Nagrath”: Uttarakhand Governor K K Paul has released a book titled 'Shanti ki Talaash mein Zindagi' written in Hindi by Haridwar-based author and journalist Radhika Nagrath. 

6. Narayana Murthy named Director of RCI, DRDO:BHVS Narayana Murthy, an expert in Avionics has been appointed as Director, Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO), Hyderabad.

7. Vice President Ansari to represent India at NAM Summit: Vice-President Hamid Ansari will be representing India at the upcoming 17th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to be held at Margarita Island in Venezuela from September 17-18.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Jim Yong Kim heads for second term as World Bank president:Kim, 56, has focused the World Bank on programs to reduce extreme poverty.
Kim's first term ends on June 30, 2017.

2. US sign 38 billion dollars deal with Israel:The United States has signed a 38 billion dollars deal with Israel to provide the country with military assistance over a 10-year period. 

3. Hiroshi Nakagawa takes over as Chairman of Isuzu Motors India: Japanese automobile maker Isuzu today announced top-level changes in its Indian operations with Hiroshi Nakagawa taking over as the Chairman of Isuzu Motors India (IMI) with immediate effect. 

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. Axis Bank, BHU team up for banking courses: Private sector Axis Bank has tied up with Banaras Hindu University (BHU) to offer specialised banking courses. 

SPORTS:

2. India Blue wins 2016-17 Duleep Trophy Tournament:GautamGambhir-led India Blue has won the inaugural day/night Duleep Trophy Cricket tournament held in Greater Noida.

3. India wins 6 medals on opening day of Track Asia Cup: Indian cyclists put up a commendable show on the opening day of the Track Asia Cup 2016, bagging 6 medals, including three gold and two silver and one bronze.

AWARDS:

4. Actor Ewan McGregor will receive the Britannia Humanitarian Award at the British Academy Britannia Awards in California next month.