Daily GK Updates - 19th December, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Piyush Goyal to launch GARV-II app to ensure power access to all: To ensure transparency in the implementation of rural electrification programme, the Power Ministry will launch a new app, GARV-II, to provide real-time data of all six lakh villages of the country.

2. PM Modi to unveil Vibrant Gujarat summit in January 2017: About 25-30 global CEOs and the heads of the multi-national corporations will throng to Gujarat on January 10, 2017 for the 8th edition of biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit (VGGS) 2017. 

3. Manipur Chief Minister inaugurates two new districts amid Naga protests: Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh has inaugurated two new districts Pherzawl and Noney. 

4.Swasthya Raksha Programme launched by AYUSH Ministry: The Union AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) Ministry has launched ‘SwasthyaRaksha Programme’ to promote health and health education in villages.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Puerto Rico's Stephanie Del Valle crowned Miss World 2016: Puerto Rico's 19-year-old Stephanie Del Valle has been crowned as the Miss World 2016 at an event held in Maryland, US. 

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. YES Bank, Ola ties up to provide cash at your doorstep:YES Bank, India’s fifth largest private sector bank has partnered with Ola, one of the popular mobile apps for transportation, to provide cash-on-demand at customer’s doorstep. 

SPORTS:

2. India beat Belgium 2-1 to win the hockey junior World Cup: India beat Belgium 2-1 to win the hockey junior World Cup in Lucknow on 18th December 2016. This is India’s second world title.

OBITUARIES:

3. Former Planning Commission member Saumitra Chaudhuri passed away:Former Planning Commission member Saumitra Chaudhuri passed away in Sir Ganga Ram hospital on 18th December. 

Daily GK Updates - 18th December, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Lt Gen BipinRawat to be next Indian Army chief; B.S Dhanoa to be IAF chief: The Vice Chief of Army Staff, Lt General BipinRawat will be the new Chief of Army Staff, while Air Marshal BS Dhanoa, the next Chief of Air Staff. They will take charge in the afternoon of 31st of this month.

2. India, Tajikistan decides to strengthen cooperation to address issue of terrorism; Sign four agreements:India and Tajikistan have signed four agreements in areas including on double taxation avoidance, money laundering and counter-terrorism. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon witnessed the exchange of MoUs in New Delhi following delegation level talks.

3. Rajiv Jain named next Director of IB, AK Dhasmana to head RAW: Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain was appointed as the new chief of Intelligence Bureau (IB) while Anil Dhasmana will head external intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). Both the officers will have a tenure of two years. Jain, who is at present serving as the Special Director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after the incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year tenure on December 31, 2016.

4. First Cyber-crime police station opens in Shimla: In Himachal Pradesh, the first Cyber Crime Police Station has been opened at state police headquarter in Shimla. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh inaugurated this Police Station through video conferencing from his office.

5. Odisha Govt sets target for construction of 1000 km concrete road: Odisha government has decided to construct more 2,000 kilometre of cement concrete roads under the Gopabandhu Gramin Yojana in rural areas by March 2017. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik issued this direction while chairing a review meeting on the progress of concrete road construction works in rural areas at the State Secretariat in Bhubaneswar. 

6.Himachal Pradesh becomes sixth in India to attain 100% Aadhaar saturation:The Himachal Pradesh has achieved 100 percent Aadhar saturation on the basis of population of year 2015. With this, Himachal Pradesh has become the sixth State/UT in the Country. 

7. Priyanka Chopra beats DiCaprio, JLaw on IMDb’s most popular celebs list:Here’s another achievement in Priyanka Chopra’s kitty. She has now made it up to the list of IMDb’s most popular celebrities’ list. Standing at number 55, Priyanka is ahead of Hollywood’s big names like Jennifer Aniston, Emma Watson, and Leonardo Di Caprio, Johnny Depp, Scarlett Johansson and others.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1.State Bank MobiCash Mobile Wallet launched: Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, ArunJaitley and Minister of State for Communications (Independent charge) and Minster of State for Railways Manoj Sinha has jointly launched State Bank MobiCash Mobile Wallet, a product by SBI and BSNL. 

2.RBI lowers charges on debit card payments to promote digital transactions:In order to incentivise greater adoption of digital payment methods, the Reserve Bank has announced special measures to be adopted between 1st January 2017 and 31st March 2017. 

SPORTS:

3.Vijender Singh retains WBO-Asia Pacific Super title: Indian boxing star Vijender Singh knocked out former world Francis Cheka to retain WBO-Asia Pacific Super Middleweight title. Vijender took less than 10 minutes to beat Tanzanian boxer to defend his title at the packed Thyagraj Stadium in New Delhi last night. 

4. Paris opens 'world's largest non-permanent indoor ice rink: A 2,700-square-meter skating space, which is being considered the world's largest non-permanent indoor ice rink, recently opened at the Grand Palais in Paris. Over 100 workers constructed the ice rink, which will remain open until January 2. The rink was inaugurated by a show featuring skating stunts and acrobatics as part of the 'Grand Palais des Glaces' festival.

Daily GK Updates - 17th December, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Rajasthan launches Amma canteen-type meal scheme: Rajasthan government has launched a subsidised meal scheme ‘Annapurna Rasoi'.  As per the scheme, the poor and the needy will get breakfast for Rs 5 and lunch or dinner for Rs 8.

2.PIFF to be held from Jan 12: The 15th Pune International Film Festival will be held from January 12 to 19. Around 250 films in different categories will be screened at the festival, which is collaboration between Maharashtra government and Pune Film Foundation. 

3. City corporation to receive Digital India Silver Award: The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation in Tamil Nadu has been selected for Digital India Award instituted by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. 

4. Nalco, NTPC ink MoU to set up power plant in Odisha: The National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) and NTPC Limited have signed a MoU to set up a 2400 MW power plant at Gajmara in Dhenkanal district of Odisha and supply captive power for expansion plans of Nalco at Angul and also Greenfield project at Kamakhyanagar in Dhenkanal district.

5. The Dharwad-headquartered Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank has bagged two awards for inclusive insurance from Skoch Group for 2016.

6. Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill passed in Lok Sabha:The Lok Sabha has passed the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2016 in LokSabha on 16 December 2016, which replaces the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act 1995. 

7. BHEL bags Rs 200-cr railway order for traction converters: The state-owned BHEL has bagged a major order from Indian Railways for the supply of IGBT-based traction converters.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. India's foreign exchange reserves down by USD 887.2 mn to USD 362.987 bn:India's foreign exchange reserves declined by 887.2 million dollars to 362.987 billion dollars in the week ended 9th December. 

AWARDS:

2. BEML Ltd, a defence public sector undertaking, has been conferred with CEPM Fellowship Award-2016. 

Daily GK Updates - 16th December, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Nation pays tribute to bravehearts of 1971 Indo-Pak war on Vijay Diwas : The nation is paying tributes to the bravehearts on  16 December 2016, who laid down their lives during 1971 India-Pakistan war on the occasion of Vijay Diwas which is observed on 16 December of every year.

2. Indian-American woman elected as Mayor of Californian city: For the first time, an Indian-American woman has been elected as the new Mayor of the key Californian city of Cupertino, globally known for its Apple headquarters. 

3. MukeshAmbani featured among World's Most Powerful People: Reliance Industries Chairman MukeshAmbani has been ranked 38 on the World's Most Powerful People list for 2016 by Forbes. 

4. Seventh Edition of bilateral Exercise ‘EKUVERIN’ commences in Maldives: The Seventh edition of Exercise EKUVERIN will be held from 15 to 28 Dec 2016 at Kadhdhoo, Laamu Atoll, Maldives. The aim of the exercise is to conduct military training with emphasis on amphibious & counter-insurgency counter-terrorism operations with a view to enhancing interoperability between the two armies.

5.India tops Asia in innovation chart: The ‘Silicon Valley’ of the east, Bengaluru, which is 5th largest hub at the global level, saw most of the innovations in 2016 including the opening of 3 new centres between March and October 2016, apart from setting up of startup accelerator by Apple.

6. ICFA presents 'Global Agriculture Leadership Award 2016' to Ratan Tata:Indian Council of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) has presented 'Global Agriculture Leadership Award 2016' to Tata Sons interim Chairman Ratan Tata in Mumbai on 15th December 2016. 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Pakistan successfully test-fires cruise missile: Pakistan has successfully test-fired an enhanced version of an indigenously-designed cruise missile that can hit targets at 700km with all kinds of warheads, bringing many Indian cities within its range.

2. 5th Edition of India-Arab partnership conference held in Muscat, Oman:The Conference was organised in collaboration with the Oman Foreign Ministry, Arab League Secretariat, the Ministry of External Affairs in India, the General Union of Chambers of Commerce and Industry in the Arab Countries (GUCCIAC) and Federation of the Arab Business (FAB)

3. Nigeria's Amina Mohammed confirmed as new UN deputy Secretary­General: New United Nations (UN) Secretary ­General Antonio Guterres has announced Nigeria’s Environment minister, Amina Mohammed as his Deputy Secretary ­General (DSG) on 15th December 2016. 

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Smriti Mandhana named in ICC Women’s Team of the Year: India batswoman SmritiMandhana has been named in the ICC Women’s Team of the Year 2016, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced.

Daily GK Updates - 15th December, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.PM Modi9th most powerful person: Forbes: Prime Minister NarendraModi has ranked 9th on the Forbes list of 74 of the World's Most Powerful People.

2. Gujarat-born 1970s activist on BBC’s power women list: A Gujarat-born activist who led a campaign against low pay for women workers at a UK factory in the 1970s has made it the BBC’s most influential women of the past 70 years list released on 15th December.

3. Paytm launches ‘Each one, teach one’ to increase digital inclusion: Paytm has announced a program to increase the digital inclusion in the country where in it is calling upon consumers and merchants across India to teach others on how to use Paytm to pay and accept money.

4. Now you can listen 'Mahabharata' on AIR from Dec 19: 'Mahabharata', B R Chopra's famed tele-serial, is set to be broadcast in its radio avatar on the All India Radio (AIR) from December 19.

5. Govt announces Lucky Graahak Yojana from Christmas: The Government has announced to launch a 'Lucky Graahak Yojana' and 'DigiDhan Yojana' to encourage digital payments.Schemes will begin from 25th Dec till April 14, 2017. 7,000 weekly awards and a maximum award of Rs 50,000 each for merchants will be awarded under DigiDhan Vyapari Yojna.

6. Union Cabinet approves agreement between India and Tajikistan for avoidance of double taxation:Union Cabinet on 14 December 2016 approved the protocol for amending the agreement between India and Tajikistan for the avoidance of double taxation. Moreover, the agreement also aims at the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income.

7. India to contribute $500,000 to UN emergency response fund: India will contribute $500,000 to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) for the year 2016-17 announced by Indian diplomat Anjani Kumar a counsellor at India’s UN Mission at the pledging session held at UN.

8. VG Kannan appointed CEO of Indian Banks’ Association: V G Kannan has taken charge as Chief Executive of the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) on 14th December 2016. He succeeds M V Tanksale who demitted office as Chief Executive on August 9, 2016 after being at the helm for three years. 

9. A ban was imposed by the National Green Tribunal on December 14, 2016 on the procurement, sale and use of glass powder coated ‘manja’ and other dangerous strings for flying kites.

10. ‘Courts of India – Past to Present’ by Supreme Court of India – Bar & Bench:The book titled ‘Courts of India – Past to Present’ released by the Supreme Court of India.

11. e-Tourist visa extended to citizens of 161 countries:The Government of India informed that it has extended the e-Tourist Visa facility to citizens of 161 countries.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 'Brexit' and 'get your freak on' added to Oxford Dictionary: 'Brexit' and 'Grexit' (hypothetical withdrawal of Greece from the EU) are among the 1,500 new words and phrases added to the Oxford English Dictionary this week. 'Get your freak on' (sexual activity, especially unconventional) and 'glam-ma' (glamorous grandmother) have also been added. 'Bomb', a surfing term for large wave, and 'Bama', popularised by Beyoncé in Formation, are among the additions.

2.Rio Gets UNESCO World Heritage Status: The  Marvelous City or Rio de Janeiro officially has entered into the UN’s list of world heritage sites while UNESCO status was announced in 2012 in recognition of its soaring granite cliffs, urban rainforest and beaches.

3. Sochi, Russia won’t host 2017 Bobsleigh and Skeleton World Championships: The International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) has announced that Russia will not host the 2017 Bobsleigh and Skeleton World Championships. 

4.Qatar abolishes controversial 'kafala' labour system: Labour Minister of Qatar, Issa bin Saad al-Jafali al-Nuaimi on December 13, 2016, formally announced the end of its controversial “kafala” system, which was the biggest ever labour reform in Qatar.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:                                 

1. November WPI inflation at 3.15%: he Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation for November 2016 came in at a five-month low of 3.15 %, lower than 3.39 % in the October month.

OBITUARIES:

2. Bewitched, Titanic actor Bernard Fox dies at 89:Bernard Fox died of heart failure at Valley Presbyterian Hospital in Van Nuys, California on 14th December. He is best known for his roles on the ABC series Bewitched and James Cameron's Oscar-winning picture Titanic. Fox also made appearances in several British films and TV shows.

Daily GK Updates - 14th December, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Indo-Russian Bilateral Naval Exercise Indra Navy-2016: The 9th edition of Indra Navy exercise between Indian Navy and Russian Navy began on 14 December 2016 in the Bay of Bengal. This annual bilateral maritime exercise will continue till 21 December 2016. The main aim of this exercise is to enhance the interoperability between the two navies and develop the common understanding of maritime security operations.

2. Cyrus Mistry removed as Director from Tata Consultancy Services.

3. Kerala CM PinarayiVijayan inaugurated 3^rd edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale: Kerala’s Chief Minister PinarayiVijayan has inaugurated the third edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB) at an inaugural event in Parade Ground, Fort Kochi on 13 December 2016. Titled ‘Forming in the pupil of an eye’, the three-month long festival will witness participation from 97 artists from thirty-one countries across the world.

4. SushmaSwaraj and VineetNayar in FP’s Global Thinker 2016 list: External Affairs Minister SushmaSwaraj and philanthropist couple Anupama and VineetNayar are among the Indians who have been named in the Global Thinkers of 2016 List compiled by the Foreign Policy magazine. Swaraj was named in the 'Decision-makers' category along with the Democratic nominee for US President Hillary Clinton, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US Attorney General Loretta Lynch among others.

5. Gujarat to have Wagah-like border viewing point: The ever-popular ‘border viewing point’ of the Wagah border will soon be recreated in Gujarat’s Banaskantha district. The announcement was made by the state’s Chief Minister Vijay Rupani at the inaugural event of the annual ‘Rann-Utsav’ at Dhordo in the Rann of Kutch on 13 December 2016.

6. Google’s PulkitTrivedi joins Facebook India as new Industry Director.

7. India signs Grant Agreement with IBRD for additional financing of MSME’s Project: India has signed a Grant Agreement of USD 5.19 million with International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) for Additional Financing for Financing Energy Efficiency at MSMEs Project- Programmatic Framework for Energy Efficiency on 13 December 2016.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Malaysia enthrones new King Sultan Muhammad V: Malaysia has installed its 15th king, Sultan Muhammad V, in a ceremony marked by honour guards and Islamic prayers in the national palace in Kuala Lumpur.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Andy Murray and Angelique Kerber named ITF Players of the year: Briton Andy Murray and Germany's Angelique Kerber were named ITF World Champions on 13th December 2016. Murray won Wimbledon in July and retained his crown in Rio de Janeiro in August. Kerber won the Australian and U.S. Open titles as well as an Olympic silver medal in Rio.

2. PV Sindhu wins Most Improved Player Award: Rio Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu has won the Badminton World Federation (BWF) 2016 Most Improved Player of the Year award at the Players’ in Dubai. Pusarla Venkata Sindhu is an Indian professional badminton player. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, she became the first Indian woman to win an Olympic silver medal.

AWARDS:

3. Madonna’s biopic voted as best unproduced spirit of 2016: A biopic of Madonna titled Blond Ambition has been named the most admired unproduced film script currently in the Hollywood system. ii. Written by Elyse Hollander, Blond Ambition has topped the newly published Black List, which invites film executives to vote on their favourite scripts that will not have started shooting before the end of 2016.

OBITUARIES:

4. Walter Swinburn: Legendary jockey and Shergar Derby winner dead at 55: Walter Swinburn, one of the most renowned jockeys of his generation and rider of the Shergar, passed away on 12 December 2016 following a prolonged illness.ii. He was 55. He was famously known for winning the Epsom Derby horse race three times in his career as a jockey.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS:

5. Ravindra Kumar, first IAS Officer to scale Mt Everest pens motivational book: The book titled "Many Everest" An Inspiring Journey of Transforming Dream into Reality’ is penned by Ravindra Kumar.

Daily GK Updates - 13th December, 2016

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India and Indonesia sign three agreements: India and Indonesia have signed three agreements following delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister NarendraModi and visiting Indonesian President Joko Widodo on 12th December. President Widodo was on a two-day visit to India from 12 December to 13 December 2016. Agreements are: MoU on Youth and Sports Cooperation, MoU on Standardization Cooperation between the Bureau of Indian Standards and the National Standardization Agency of Indonesia, Joint Communiqué on the Voluntary International Cooperation to Combat Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) Fishing and to promote Sustainable Fisheries Governance between the Union Government and the Government of Indonesia.

2. Nitin Gadkari lays foundation stones for Rs 1152 crore projects in Manipur: Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping laid the foundation stones for 17 road projects on 11 December 2016 during two functions held at Jiribam and Imphal.

3. Punjab Government launches country’s 1^st amphibious bus project: The Punjab government has launched country's first amphibious bus project at the Harike wetland near Amritsar. The project has cost the state government over Rs 11 crore.

4. Indian-origin VivekRamaswamy and Apoorva Mehta included in Forbes’s under 40 rich list: Two Indian-origin men have figured in Forbes magazine's second annual list of wealthiest entrepreneurs under the age of 40 which is topped by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. VivekRamaswamy, a successful biotech entrepreneur has been ranked 24th on 'America's Richest Entrepreneurs Under 40 2016' list with a net worth of 600 million dollars and Apoorva Mehta stands at 31st spot with a 360 million dollars net worth.

5. Cyrus Mistry removed as director of Tata Industries: Cyrus Mistry has been removed as director of Tata industries. Mistry, who was earlier removed from the post of chairman of Tata Industries, was removed as director after an Extraordinary General Meeting.

6. Rajeev Gandhi International Airport achieves carbon neutral status.

7. ISRO signs deal for first privately built satellite: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has signed an agreement with a consortium of six companies to deliver India's first industry-built satellite by late 2017. The agreement was signed between M Annadurai, Director of ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) and the consortium lead Alpha Design Technologies P Ltd. ISAC assembles India's satellites for communication, remote sensing and navigation. It is for the first time that ISRO outsourced the construction of entire satellite.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Antonio Guterres sworn in as UN Secretary-General: Antonio Guterres, a former Portuguese Prime Minister, was sworn in as the ninth UN Secretary-General on 12th December 2016, succeeding Ban Ki-moon as the chief of the 71-year old world body.

2. EU, Cuba sign first agreement on political cooperation: The EU has signed a deal with Cuba on political dialogue and cooperation, with Cuba being the only Latin American country to lack such an agreement earlier. This comes after EU repealed its 1996 policy which stated that Cuba must improve its human rights conditions before normalisation talks with EU. The deal covers issues like trade, human rights and immigration.

3. Lt General Naveed Mukhtar appointed new ISI Chief.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. ADB cuts India’s growth forecast to 7% post demonetization: The Asian Development Bank on Tuesday lowered India's growth forecast for this year from 7.4 % to 7 % due to a slight slowdown in the economy following the central government's demonetisation move. The Manila-headquartered ADB's review said the shortage of cash after the demonetization of Rs 1,000 and 500 notes were one of the reasons for the decline in India's economic growth in 2016.

SPORTS:

2. Pankaj Advani beats Peter Gilchrist in final to win his 11^th World Billiards Championships.

3. Cristiano Ronaldo voted best footballer in the world for 4^th time.