Daily GK Updates - 19th January, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. DigiDhanMelas:  Consumers, Merchants win prizes worth Rs 61 crore: Over three lakh 80 thousand consumers and twenty-one thousand merchants have won prize money worth around 61 crore rupees at 24 Digi-Dhan Melas across the country. This was disclosed by the Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in New Delhi Government’s efforts to give a boost to the digital payment systems and cashless economy have evoked good response from the people. People from different age groups, occupations and walks of life have taken part in a big way in the Lucky Grahak Yojana and Digi-Dhan Vyapar Yojana giving a fillip to digital transactions.

2. Cabinet approvals: 18^th January 2017:

a. Cabinet approves MoU between India and Serbia for cooperation in the field of Information Technology and Electronics.

b. Cabinet approves India’s Membership in the International Vaccine Institute (IVI), South Korea 

c. Cabinet approves MoU on cooperation on Youth matters between India and Russia 

d. Cabinet apprised of the MoU between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for cooperation in the field of outer space

e. Cabinet approves MoU between India and Vietnam In the field of cyber security

f. Cabinet approves Trade Agreement negotiations with Peru

g. Cabinet gives approval to the package for supporting Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) – Augmentation of Corpus of Credit Guarantee Trust Fund for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE)

h. Cabinet approves the Establishment of Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Jharkhand

i. Cabinet approves MOU between India and the United Arab Emirates for cooperation in the field of Small and Medium Enterprises and Innovation

j. Cabinet approves MOU between India and the United Arab Emirates for cooperation in the field of agriculture and allied sectors

k. Cabinet approves amendment in Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme

l. Cabinet approves MoU between India and the United Arab Emirates on Institutional Cooperation in Maritime Transport

m. Cabinet approves MoU between India and the United Arab Emirates on the Mutual Recognition of Certificates of Competency as per the provisions of the Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW, 78) and amendments thereof

n. Cabinet approves the exclusion of States from the investments of National Small Savings Fund

o. Cabinet approves MoU between India and the United Arab Emirates on Bilateral Cooperation in the Road Transport and Highways sector

p. Cabinet approves the introduction of the Repealing and Amending Bill, 2017 to repeal 105 Acts.

3. Bengaluru named most dynamic city in the world in WEF Report: India’s IT Hub, Bengaluru has been ranked at the top position in the 2017.Momentum Index released the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting being held in Davos. The index identifies the most dynamic cities of the world.From India six cities have find place in top 30 most dynamic cities.Besides Bengaluru other Indian cities in the list includes Hyderabad (5), Pune (13), Chennai (17), Delhi (23) and Mumbai (25).

4. Government clears 6 FDI proposals worth Rs 1186.5 crore: The government has cleared six foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals totalling ₹1186.5 crore. These include four from pharmaceutical companies including Sanofi-Synthelabo and Boehringer Ingelheim.

5. Only cash deposits can be declared under PMGKY: Undisclosed income in assets such as jewellery, stock or immovable property or in foreign bank accounts will not be accepted under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY). The Central Board of Direct Taxes on stated that only undisclosed income in domestic bank accounts, post offices or stashed elsewhere will be accepted under the scheme.

6. Cabinet clears proposals for listing 5 PSU general insurers: The five general insurance companies are the New India Assurance Company Ltd, United India Insurance Company Ltd, Oriental Insurance Company Ltd, National Insurance Company Ltd and General Insurance Company Ltd. The Centre's shareholding would be divested from 100% to 75% in one or more tranches over a period of time, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley told reporters after a Cabinet meeting.

7. President Mukherjee to inaugurate 28^th Dantan Gramin Mela in West Bengal: President Pranab Mukherjee is due to inaugurate the 28th Dantan Gramin Mela in West Midnapore district in West Bengal. He is on a 4-day visit to West Bengal. The fair will display the rural handicraft skills of the people of the region.

8. Anandam Scheme launched in MP to help poor: Aanandam scheme will help the poor people to get the daily needs like like jackets, sarees, blankets, utensils, school bags from the wealthy people. For this particular place is alloacted in each district to collect these items. The people who wishes to help others can visit website www.anandsansthanmp.in to become Anandak under Anandam Scheme Non-Government organisations, Government employees, cultural and business organisations can participate in this programme.

9.  Meghalaya’s Mawlynnong village becomes a role model for cleanliness: Mawlynnong village in Meghalaya has become a role model for other states in maintaining cleanliness known as Asia’s cleanest village. Mawlynnong has become tourists’ hotspot.The Secretary of the village committee stated that, all 90 families of the village constructed toilets in 1989.

10. West Bengal set to give Legal Protection to Hilsa fish: The West Bengal State Department of Fisheries has announced to protect the endangered Hisla Fish from getting extinct and thus has proposed to introduce law to arrest anyone found in illegal catching, buying or selling of Hilsa fish weighing less than 500 grams.

11. Bharti AXA General appoints Sanjeev Srinivasan as CEO, MD.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Scientists names 3 diseases that could cause next global health emergency: Scientists have named three relatively little-known diseases they think could cause the next global health emergency. A coalition of governments and charities has committed 460 million dollars to speed up vaccine development for Mers, Lassa fever and Nipah virus. They are asking funders at the World Economic Forum Davos for another 500 million dollars.

2. 30 more countries to join Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank: The Foreign Ministry spokesperson of China, Hua Chunying stated that thirty more countries have applied for joining the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) besides 57 founding members. It was officially established with 57 founding members and authorized capital of USD 100 billion.China is the largest shareholder of the bank having 26.6% voting shares. India is the second largest shareholder with 7.5% followed by Russia 5.93% and Germany with 4.5%.

3. NASA set to explore iron-rich Asteroid 16 Psyche: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has given its approval to explore an iron-rich asteroid 16 Psyche as a part of its mission to learn more about the history and composition of the celestial body.

4. World witnesses hottest year on record in 2016: The globally average temperature in 2016 was about 1.1 degree Celsius higher than the pre-industrial period, according to a consolidated analysis by the World Meteorological Organization.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. PNB, India Post Bank team up: Punjab National Bank and India Post Payments Bank have signed a memorandum of understanding, whereby PNB will provide technology platform for pilot launch of IPPB on receipt of regulatory nod from the Reserve Bank of India. IPPB has been incorporated under the Department of Posts with 100 per cent government equity.

2. ICICI Prudential acquires 8.41% stake in FinoPaytech for Rs 100 crore: ICICI Prudential Life Insurance has acquired 8.41 per cent stake in FinoPaytech Ltd (FPL) for a total consideration of Rs 100 crore. FPL provides technology-based solutions and services related to financial inclusion. Earlier this month, FPL was granted payment bank licence by the RBI.

SPORTS:

3. KapilDev inducted into Legends Club Hall of Fame: Cricket icon KapilDev was inducted into Legends Club ‘Hall of Fame’ at the Cricket Club of India on January 17, 2017.Former India player and Legends Club president MadhavApte presented Kapil with a citation.

4. Despite difficulties, Indian Women Boxers score 6 medals in Serbia: The 10-member team returned to the country early this morning with 6 medals after finishing third in the competition behind powerhouses Kazakhstan and Russia. Haryana-girl Neeraj (51kg), competing in his maiden international tournament, stood out with a gold medal, while Sarjubala Devi (48kg), Priyanka Chaudhary (60kg), Pooja (69kg) and SeemaPunia settled for silver medals. Veteran KavitaGoyat (75kg) was the lone bronze-medallist.

OBITUARIES:

5. C V Vishveshwara, Pioneer of Black Hole discovery passed away at the age of 78.

Daily GK Updates - 18th January, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 58^th India International Garment Fair to begin in New Delhi: The 58th edition of India International Garment Fair, IIGF begins in New Delhi. Organized by Apparel Export Promotion Council India, the event is one of the largest and most popular platforms in Asia, from which overseas garment buyers can source products and forge business relationships with India’s finest players in the apparel and fashion accessories domain. Textiles Minister Smriti Zubin Irani will inaugurate the three-day long fair.

2. Timothy Gonsalves Committee suggests 20% reservation for girl students in IITs: A committee formed by the IIT Joint Admission Board (JAB) has recently given its suggestion to create 20 percent reservation seats for the girl students in IITs out of the total number of seats available. The committee headed by professor Timothy Gonsalves recommended the supernumerary seats to address the issue falling number of female students entering the institute.

3. India and Mauritius sign MoU for cooperation in the field of Cooperatives: The MoU will enable the two countries to collaborate in this vital sector and can significantly benefit thousands of Mauritians. India offered to exchange its expertise and technology with Mauritius in agro industry, fisheries and dairy sector.

4. India ranks 60^th in Inclusive Development Index 2017: India has been ranked at 60th position among 79 developing economies with a score of only 3.38 in the Inclusive Development Index (IDI) of the World Economic Forum (WEF). WEF released its ‘Inclusive Growth and Development Report 2017’ on January 16, 2017 in Davos, Switzerland.

5. India ranked 78^th in global ‘Passport Index’: Indian passport has been ranked a lowly 78 in a global ranking of the world’s most powerful passports which was topped by Germany. Germany stands at the top with a visa-free score of 157, while Singapore overtakes South Korea and becomes the highest ranked Asian passport with a visa-free score of 156.

6. Manipur’s Karang is India’s first cashless island: Karang, a small lake island in Manipur, has become the country’s first cashless island. The Union ministry of electronics and information technology under its Digital India program announced Karang as the first cashless island in India.

7. Petroleum Conservation Campaign ‘Saksham 2017’ inaugurated in Nagaland: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MOP & NG) inaugurated one month long oil and gas conservation campaign Saksham-2017 at a function in Unity College.

8. Kolkata’s Sitalpati gets place in UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage: The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has registered Sitalpati or cool mat from the Cooch Behar district, West Bengal as an  Sitlapati intangible cultural heritage.

9.  BSNL launches mobile TV service Ditto TV: State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL)  announced mobile TV service ‘Ditto TV’ and limited fixed mobile telephony, an app that virtually turns mobiles into cordless phone working in sync with landlines within home premises.

10. Karnataka allows sale of white Kerosene in open market: The Karnataka government allowed to the sale of white kerosene in open market. State Food and Civil Supplies Minister UT Khader stated that the government has issued an order this effect.

11. N Chandrasekaran appointed as Tata Motors Chairman.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World’s lightest watch unveiled in Geneva: The world’s ultra-light high-performance mechanical watch RM 50-03 was inaugurated on January 16, 2017 at the 27th edition of the Salon International De La Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) in Geneva. The watch made up of Graphene composite has been developed by the University ofLightest Watch of the World made Using Graphene Launched Manchester, UK in collaboration with the watchmaking brand Richard Mille and McLaren F1. 

2. Antonio Tajani elected president of European Parliament: Antonio Tajani of the EPP Christian Democrat group has been elected president of the European Parliament.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. Yes Bank launches Business Accelerator Programme Yes Fintech:Private sector lender YES BANK in collaboration with T-Hub, Anthill and Lets Talk Payments launched a unique business accelerator program YES FINTECH to provide start-ups a platform for creating sustainable and market ready products as well as provide innovative banking solutions to the customers.

2. Yes Bank launches India’s 1^st Customisable Savings Account:YES Bank has launched a first of its kind unique Customizable Savings Account to enable the customers to design an account as per their convenience. Mumbai-based bank has become the first bank in India to launch such type of account that enables the customer to choose various features of a savings accounts that suits one’s own lifestyle.

SPORTS:

3. Tajikistan’s Amonatov wins Delhi International Chess Tournament: Farrukh Amonatov of Tajikistan won the 15th edition of the Delhi International Chess tournament after settling for a draw with Grandmaster Diptayan Ghosh in the 10th and final round.

OBITUARIES:

4. Renowned Actress Gita Sen passed away at the age of 86.

5. Former Chhattisgarh Minister Tarun Chatterjee passed away at the age of 68.

6. Eugene Cernan, the last human on moon passed away at the age of 82: The commander of Apollo 17 and the last man who walk on the moon, Astronaut EugeneCernan, the Last Human on the Moon Passed Away at 82Eugene Cernan has passed away in Washington D.C, USA.

Daily GK Updates - 17th January, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 25 children including 13 girls selected for National Bravery Awards: The coveted Bharat award has been conferred on 8-year-old Late Kumari Tarh Peju of Arunachal Pradesh, who sacrificed her life while saving two of her friends from drowning. The prestigious Geeta Chopra award has been conferred on 18 year old Tejasweeta Pradhan and 17-year-old Shivani Gond of West Bengal who showed immense courage fearlessly helping police and NGO in uncovering an international sex racket leading to the arrest of the mastermind in Delhi. The Sanjay Chopra award has been given to 15-year-old Sumit Mamgain of Uttarakhand who displayed outstanding bravery in fighting a leopard to save his cousin.

2. India signs financing agreement of $48 million with World Bank for Nagaland Health Project: About six lakh people will directly benefit from the Health Project with improvements in higher-level facilities as well as system-wide investments. The objective of the project is to improve health services in Nagaland. Communities in targeted locations will benefit from project activities at the community and health facility levels.

3. Mysuru Printing Press breaks record by printing highest number of currency notes in December 2016: The Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note MudranPvtLtd, a fully controlled subsidiary of RBI has set records in currency note printing.The RBI Note Mudran printing press in Mysuru printing highest number of currency notes in December 2016 breaking all its past record. It printed 10.9 million currency note in a day that even broke the world record made an American currency printing press of printing 8.7 million notes in a day.As per the data, 1350 million currency notes were printed in December 2016 in Mysuru which employess 650 workers who work for 12 hours in two shifts.

4. Market Regulator SEBI tightens Mergers and Acquisition norms among unlisted firms: The public shareholding of the resultant entity created by the merger of an unlisted and a listed company has to be more than 25%. The unlisted entity can only merge with those companies that are listed on exchanges such as the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and BSE.

5. IMF cuts India’s growth rate to 6.6% due to Demonetization: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has cut India's growth forecast for the current fiscal by one percentage point, citing demonetisation woes from 7.6% to 6.6%. It sees India ceding the tag of the world's fastest growing major economy to China in FY17.

6. Tamil Nadu: 170^th Sadguru Sri Thyagaraja Aaradhana Festival ends on 17^th January 2017: The Aaradhana festival which was inaugurated on 13th of this month was a treat to carnatic music lovers. Sadguru Thyagaraja is one of the great musical trinity alongwith Muthusamy Dikshitharand ShyamaSastrigal.

7. BHEL commissions 500 MW Thermal Unit in West Bengal: Government owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has commissioned new 500 MW Thermal Unit in West Bengal. This was the second 500 MW at Sagardighi Thermal Power Station (TPS) Phase II project in Murshidabad district of West Bengal.

8. IIMC to start post graduate course in Urdu journalism: Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu launching a post graduate course in Urdu journalism at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication in New Delhi.

9.  Kozhikode Corporation becomes 1^st Elderly-Friendly Corporation in Kerala: The Kozhikode Corporation state government has planned to setup Senior citizen’s club, Day care centres as a part of Vayomitram project for the welfare of the elder people in the state.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Pakistan Navy receives two ships from China to ensure Security along Gwadar Port: China has sold two naval ships to Pakistan to protect the strategic Gwadar port and trade routes under the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The ships named Hingol and Basol gets its name from nearby rivers in Pakistan.China will provide two more ships to Pakistan Navy named Dasht and Zhob after two districts in Balochistan.

OTHER UPDATES:

FINANCE/BANKING:

1. Future Group’s & SBI Card launch premium co-branded card: Future Group’s fashion and lifestyle departmental store Central joined with SBI Card launched a second co-branded credit card to offer benefits to consumers in the premium lifestyle and fashion space.

SPORTS:

2. Valtteri Bottas replaces Nico Roseberg at Mercedes and joins Lewis Hamilton: Valtteri Bottas has been confirmed as Lewis Hamilton's new team-mate for the forthcoming Formula One season after he was finally unveiled by Mercedes at their headquarters.

3. Sports Minister Vijay Goel inaugurates Khelo India competitions: The Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports Shri Vijay Goel inaugurated the Khelo India National level Competitions on various sports for Under-14 and Under-17 children in New Delhi.

AWARDS:

4. Kiran Doshi won The Hindu Prize 2016: Kiran Doshi won The Hindu Prize 2016 at the 7th edition of The Hindu Lit for Life festival 2017 held in Chennai from January 14-16, 2017. The festival was inaugurated by contemporary artist Gulamohammed Sheikh at Sir Mutha Kiran Doshi Conferred 'The Hindu Prize 2016' for Jinnah Often Came to Our House Venkatasubba Rao Concert Hall in Chennai.

OBITUARIES:

5. National Award winning film maker Deepak Roy passed away at the age of 67.

Daily GK Updates - 16th January, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Union Commerce Ministry launches SEZ India app: The Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MOCI) has launched a mobile application named “SEZ India” under its broader e-Governance initiative to help the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Units and Developers. It will help the SEZ Units and Developers to find information easily and track their transactions on Online System. It will also facilitate them to file all their transactions digitally through SEZ Online system and track the status on the go through the SEZ India mobile app.

2. SEBI tightens merger norms: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has tightened rules for mergers and amalgamations by Indian companies in a bid to safeguard the interests of the public shareholders. The market regulator amended rules in an effort to make listing process more transparent and ensure wider public holding, prevent mergers of large unlisted firms with small ones. The new rules will ensure that all classes of shareholders get an equitable treatment during mergers and acquisitions. It will also stop practice using route of merger to get an indirect listing for an unlisted company.

3. VK Singh on Bahrain visit: Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh visited Bahrain and held talks with senior ministers on issues related to labour.
There are nearly five million expatriate Indians in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. 

4. New Adoption Regulations come into force: The new Adoption Regulations have come into force from 16th Jan, 2017. The regulations, which have replaced the Adoption Guidelines, 2015, will further strengthen the adoption programme in the country by streamlining the process.The regulations framed by the Central Adoption Resource Authority as mandated under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 was notified on the 4th Jan, 2017.

5. Tamil Nadu Government launches mobile app Pinakin for Tourism: Tamil Nadu government has launched a mobile application Pinakin to provide information of famous tourist destinations in the state. The app will provide information on other major tourist destinations in Tamil Nadu. Initially, it will cover world heritage tourist sites like Thanjavur Big Temple, GangaikondaCholapuram, Mamallapuram and Darasuram and soon include other places in the state. The app will provide information in two languages Tamil and English, benefiting both domestic and international tourist.

6. BSF launches operation SardHawa at Rajasthan border: The Border Security Force (BSF) has launched operation SardHawa at the western international border of Rajasthan to check the instances of infilteration due to the dense fog in the area. The purpose of this 14 days operation (from 15 to 28 January, 2017) is to keep hawk’s eye on the international border and to motivate patrolling jawans. Under it jawans will patrol the border with advanced weapons in the police station areas near to the border.

7. Migratory bird census at Hirakud begins: Annual enumeration of migratory birds at Hirakud Dam began on 15th Jan, 2017.Thousands of winged guests from Caspian Sea, Baikal Lake, Mongolia, Central and South East Asia and Himalayan region flock to the reservoir every year from November and stay for four months till the end of February before flying back in the first week of March. 
Note: Last year, the census officials recorded 95,912 birds of 60 species.

8. India 60th in inclusive development index:India has been ranked 60th among 79 developing economies, below neighbouring China and Pakistan, in the inclusive development index, according to a WEF report. WEF’s ‘Inclusive Growth and Development Report 2017’, released today, said that most countries are missing important opportunities to raise economic growth and reduce inequality at the same time because the growth model and measurement tools that have guided policymakers for decades require significant readjustment.

                              INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Britain and UAE launch joint military exercises: Britain and the United Arab Emirates launched a joint military exercise - “Sea Dagger 2017”.
The exercise is aimed at training on the planning, implementation and management of joint military operations. 

2. Japan and Indonesia agree to deepen defence ties: Japan and Indonesia have reaffirmed their commitment to cooperate on maritime security and deepen defence ties as both nations feud with China over sea territory. Both island nations committed to give maritime cooperation the highest priority. It was announced Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Indonesian President Joko Widodo. Besides, Japan will actively encourage cooperation on maritime security and encourage the development of the remote islands of Indonesia.

3. Silicon identified as ‘missing element’ in Earth’s core:  Researchers have found out that “Silicon” (about 5 per cent) likely makes up a significant proportion of the Earth’s core after iron and nickel.The discovery could help us to better understand how our world formed.

4. Facebook to introduce fake news tools in Germany: Facebook to introduce new tools in Germany to help combat the spread of fabricated news stories. It would enable German users to flag potentially false stories.The stories will then be passed to third-party fact-checkers and if found to be unreliable, will be marked in users' news feeds as "disputed". 

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1. Four Indian women boxers in final of Nation’s Cup in Serbia: Indian women boxers continued to pack quite a punch as four of them, including former World Championships silver-medallist Sarjubala Devi (48kg), entered the finals of the 6th Nation’s Cup in Vrbas, Serbia where the country is now assured of six medals. Sarjubala, the reigning national champion, defeated local favourite Gayane Panyan to enter the summit clash.The others, who made the final cut are Priyanaka Chaudhary (60kg) and Pooja (69kg). SeemaPoonia is also through to the final without fighting a single bout so far as her category features only three boxers. Priyanka, on the other hand, got the better of Kazakhstan’s Rimma Volosenko, while Pooja also triumphed over a Kazakh rival in Valentina Khalzova.

Daily GK Updates - 15th January, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 69th Army Day being observed on 15th January 2017: 69th Army Day is being observed today (15th January 2017). The day marks the taking over of the Indian Army by the first Indian Commander-in-Chief, Field Marshal KM Cariappa, on January 15, 1948. He took over the reins of the Army from Lieutenant General Sir Francis Butcher, the last British Commander-in-Chief and became the first Commander-in-Chief of the independent India. 

2. Digital Dakiya scheme inaugurated in MP to encourage cashless transactions: In Madhya Pradesh Indore district witnessed inauguration of first of its kind scheme of the country. Digital Dakiya, which aims at encouraging cashless transactions. "Digital Dakiya or Digital Postman will visit different places to teach and encourage people about cashless transactions and its benefits. 

3.Two-day camel festival begins in Bikaner: The two-day annual camel festival has began with much fanfare in the presence of foreigners and domestic tourists. District Collector VedPrakash flagged off a procession from Junagarh which culminated at Karni Singh Stadium here in Bikaner, Rajasthan. It was followed by fun activities including camel safaris.

4. Rabi crops sowing crosses 616 lakh hactare:Rabi crops have been sown in around six crore 16 lakh hectares till date which is about 35 lakh hectares more than last year. Data released by the Agriculture Ministry, wheat has been sown in around three crore nine lakh hectare which is about 20 lakh hectare more than last year.

5. SEBI cuts broker fees by 25 pc to Rs 15 per transaction: Securities and Exchange Board of India, SEBI, has decided to lower broker fees by 25 per cent to 15 rupees per transaction of one crore rupees as part of calibration of various other fees collected by the regulator from different market intermediaries. The move is likely to reduce overall cost of transactions. 

6. Rajeev Singh to take charge as interim CEO of PrasarBharti: Rajeev Singh, Member (Finance) in PrasarBharati Board, will take charge as interim CEO of the public broadcaster after S C Panda retires in February.

7. NPCI declares Rs. 54.90 cr prize money for NITI Aayog’s lucky draw schemes: National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation for all retail payment systems in the country has declared Rs. 54.90 crore worth of prize money to over 3.42 lakh winners of NITI Aayog’s Lucky Draw Schemes for consumers and merchants.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. SpaceX resumes flights; launches Falcon 9 vehicle on California coast: A The American SpaceX Rocket Company has resumed flights, launching a Falcon 9 vehicle from the Vandenberg Air Force Base on the California coast. It is the first mission by the company since one of its vehicles exploded on the launch pad in September 2016. The return to operations sees SpaceX start to renew what was the original global handheld satellite phone network, run by Iridium. Lift-off took place at 9:54 AM local time.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS:

1.Gujarat wins First Ranji Trophy title beating Mumbai by five wickets: Gujarat won their first ever Ranji Trophy title beating Mumbai by five wickets in the final at the Holkar stadium in Indore. Parthiv Patel’s 143 and MunpritJuneja’s 54 runs helped Gujrat to chase down the highest successful chase in the final at the historic Holkar stadium. 

2. Glam, glitter and glory mark 14th Mumbai Marathon: Tanzanian athlete Alphonce Felix Simbu (24) and Kenyan runner BornesKiturChepkirui (31), flew past all competition to bag the top spots in the men's and women's category respectively in the full marathon at the 14th Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM) in Mumbai on 15th January 2017.

AWARDS:

3. Filmfare Awards 2017: Dangal, Aamir Khan, Alia Bhatt Bag Top Honour This Year: At the glittering Filmfare awards last night (14th January 2017 night), "Dangal" swept away three of four major awards --  Best Film, Aamir Khan won Best Actor and NiteshTiwari won Best Director award while Alia Bhatt won the Filmfare Best Actor Award (Female) for her performance in "Udta Punjab".

4. 62nd Filmfare Awards 2017: ShatrughanSinha honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award

OBITUARIES:

5. Former Punjab Chief Minister Surjit Singh Barnala passes away, aged 91