Daily GK Updates - 17th November, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. National Press Day observed: National Press Day, celebrated on 16th of November is symbolic of a free and responsible press in India. This was the day on which the Press Council of India started functioning as a moral watchdog.

2. Establishment of the National Anti-profiteering Authority approved: Cabinet has given its approval for the creation of the posts of Chairman and Technical Members of the National Anti-profiteering Authority (NAA) under GST. This paves the way for the immediate establishment of this apex body. The body will ensure that the benefits of the reduction in GST rates on goods or services are passed on to the ultimate consumers by way of a reduction in price.

3. Karnataka to install WiFi in panchayats to enable villages being tech-savvy: Karnataka unveiled an ambitious project to install Wi-Fi facility in all gram panchayats across the state. At Bengaluru Tech Summit 2017, Karnataka CM, Siddaramaiah stated that the objective of this project is to bridge the digital divide.

4. First WHO Conference on Ending TB held at Russia: India reaffirmed its commitment to eliminating TB by 2025 at 1st WHO Global Ministerial Conference on Ending TB in Sustainable Development Era’ at Moscow, Russia. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is also organizing a side event on ‘Ending TB: Our Promise to Our People’. The National Strategic Plan for TB elimination in India has 4 pillars, namely- “Detect, Treat, Build and Prevent”.

5. SAMPRITI exercise ends: Joint Indo-Bangladesh Training Exercise SAMPRITI 2017, which was being conducted in Mizoram culminated. It is the seventh such exercise in the SAMPRITI series. The exercise has been aimed to strengthen and broaden the aspects of interoperability and cooperation between the Indian and Bangladesh Armies.

6. India Disease Burden Initiative Report released: As per ‘India State-level Disease Burden Initiative Report’, child and maternal malnutrition were responsible for 15 % of the total disease burden in 2016 across India. Analysis of disease burden for each Indian state from 1990 to 2016 has been presented. It is jointly prepared by the ICMR, the Public Health Foundation of India and Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

7. ‘Saubhagya’ Web-Portal launched: Ministry of State (IC) for Power and New & Renewable Energy, launched the PM Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana – ‘Saubhagya’ Web Portal. The portal can be accessed at http://saubhagya.gov.in. The Saubhagya Dashboard is a platform for monitoring household electrification progress, which would disseminate information on Household Electrification Status.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Kevin Lillian becomes Miss International 2017: Indonesia’s Kevin Lilliana was crowned Miss International 2017 by the Philippines’ Kylie Verzosa at the Tokyo Dome City Hall in Japan. This is the first Miss International title for Indonesia.

2. Climate Change Performance Index 2018 released, India ranks 14^th: India has ranked 14th out of 56 nations and European Union on Climate Change Performance Index 2018 released by environmental organisation Germanwatch. This marks an improvement from its 20th rank in CCPI 2017. CCPI keeps track of countries’ efforts in combating climate change.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING & FINANCE:

1. Urjit Patel appointed to BIS Advisory Board: RBI Governor Urjit Patel was appointed to the Financial Stability Institute Advisory Board of the Bank of International Settlement. Bank of International Settlement is a global financial organisation owned by major central banks from across the world.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

1. BSE to set up the first in-house Block Chain Lab in Mumbai: BSE Institute Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of BSE Ltd. has signed an MoU with DLT Labs to set up India’s first state-of-the-art Block Chain Lab in Mumbai. The objective is to provide knowledge-driven, in-class education and training in the field of financial technology. Block Chain technology has multiple utility in various sectors including global supply chains and financial transactions.

2. Moody's upgrades India's credit rating to BAA 2: US-based Major credit rating agency Moody's has upgraded India's sovereign credit rating to 'BAA 2' from 'BAA 3'. The decision to upgrade the ratings is underpinned by Moody's expectation that continued progress on economic and institutional reforms will enhance India's high growth potential. In 2004, Moody's had upgraded India's rating to 'BAA 3', lowest investment grade just a notch above 'junk' status.

SPORTS:

1. Shagun Chowdhary crowned National Women's Trap champion: Shooter Shagun Chowdhary bagged a national champion crown at the 61st National Shooting Championship in New Delhi. She overcame the challenge Rajeshwari Kumari to prevail 41-38. Now, Shagun Chowdhary will be the first Indian woman trap shooterto win an Olympic berth. Madhya Pradesh won medals both in the senior and junior women's team events.

Daily GK Updates - 16th November, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Bio-toilets to be installed in all trains-Bonn Conference: Bio-toilets to be installed in all Indian Railways coaches has been advanced to December 2018. Indian railways also called for a need for increasing role of renewables in the railways to achieve net decarbonisation at an event organised in Bonn.

2. NGT directs Delhi govt. to seize 10-years old diesel taxis: National Green Tribunal (NGT) headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar has directed Delhi government to seize 10-year-old diesel taxis as they cause air pollution. According to the bench, large numbers of diesel taxis are operating in the national capital contrary to the judgment and directions of the Supreme Court.

3. Govt. to introduce BS-VI grade auto fuels in National Capital Territory (NCT) in 2018: The Petroleum Ministry, in consultation with Public Oil Marketing companies, has decided to ante-date the application of BS-VI grade auto fuels in National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi from 1st April 2018 (earlier 1st April 2020). This is part of government's concerted efforts to reduce vehicular emissions and improve fuel efficiency with an aim to reduce the carbon footprints and keep a healthy environment. India has followed the regulatory pathway for fuel quality and vehicle emissions standards termed as Bharat Stage (BS).

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Syria signs up Paris agreement on Climate Change: Syria has signed up to the Paris Agreement, leaving the United States as the only country to reject the global climate-rescue pact.War-torn Syria became the 169th of 196 countries that are members of the UN climate convention to take the legal step of ratification. After Nicaragua signed up in October 2017, Syria was the only country not to have adopted the pact.

2. Zimbabwe is under military control after army seizes power from Mugabe: According to the African Union (AU), Zimbabwean military's takeover of power of President Mr. Robert Mugabe seems like a coup. Last week, Emmerson Mnangagwa Vice-President was fired. Robert Mugabe has not yet been formally deposed as President.

3. US, Japan launch 10-day naval drill: The drill aims at increasing the defensive readiness and interoperability of Japanese and American forces. The exercise involves 14,000 US servicemen, the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and 3 US guided missile destroyers.

4. UK doubles visas for ‘exceptional talent’ before Brexit: The UK has doubled the number of visas available under Tier 1(Exceptional talent) route for individuals in technology, science, art and creative industries. The increase from 1000 to 2000 visas per year is intended to ensure that highly skilled people who can enhance the economy can work in the country.

                              

OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. Hui Ka Yen tops Forbes China Rich List for first time: He has a fortune of $42.5 billion. He is followed by Tencent’s Ma Huateng and Alibaba’s Jack Ma. Hui Ka Yen is the promoter of the Evergrande Group.

2. Mamta Suri - Newly Appointed Executive Director of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board: Mamta Suri has taken charge as the Executive Director, Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI). Before joining IBBI.  Dr. Suri was serving as Chief General Manager, Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India.

SPORTS:

1. Federer becomes top prize money earner in sports: World number 2 Roger Federer took his prize money Rs.720 cr after beating Alexander Zverev in ATP finals. He has won 95 career titles including a men’s record 19 Grand Slam titles.

2. Saina and Prannoy crash out of China Open: Saina lost to Akane Yamaguchi and Prannoy lost to Lee Cheuk Yiu in their respective pre-quarterfinals.PV Sindhu will face China’s Yue Han for a place in the quarters.

Daily GK Updates - 15th November, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. India’s first Tribal Entrepreneurship Summit held: India’s first Tribal Entrepreneurship Summit began in Dantewada, Chhattisgarh. The event has been organized by NITI Aayog in partnership with the government of US. The event is a part of 8th Global Entrepreneurship Summit being held in India. The summit has been organized mainly with the motive to inspire, nurture and promote the spirit of entrepreneurship in tribal youth.

2. NCERT conducts largest ever survey-NAS: National Achievement Survey (NAS), the largest ever assessment survey on a national level was conducted by NCERT. NAS was conducted for the Classes 3, 5 and 8 in government and government-aided schools. The survey is to ascertain learning level of students. The inferences drawn from the analytical reports will be used to design classroom interventions.

3. Jharkhand celebrates 17th statehood day: Jharkhand is a state in eastern India carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand state accounts for 40% of the mineral resources of India. The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, visited Jharkhand and paid tributes to freedom fighter Birsa Munda at his statue at Birsa Chowk, Ranchi.

4. International Lavi Fair begins in HP: Traditional International ‘Lavi fair’ was held from 11th -14th November 2017 in Rampur, Himachal Pradesh. Lavi Fair has been an important point of trade between India and Tibet for centuries. The fair is visited by tourist and traders from distant places. It provides a good opportunity for promotion and sale of woolens, dry fruits and other traditional crafts and products.

5. India’s first offshore desalination plant to be built: Scientists from NIOT will build India’s first offshore desalination plant about 40km from the Chennai coast. The capacity of the plant will be 10 million liters of water per day. The plant will operate on Low-Temperature Thermal Desalination (LTTD), a low cost and environment-friendly technology to get potable water.

6. West Bengal gets GI Tag for ‘Rosogolla’: The Geographical Indications (GI) Registry announced that West Bengal has been awarded the GI status for ‘Rosogolla’. The Geographical Indications (GI) Registry has said that the ‘Rosogolla’ originated in West Bengal and not Odisha. West Bengal and Odisha have been fighting a legal battle over the origin of the sweet meat ‘Rosogolla’ since June 2015.

7. Vijay Dimri appointed as the President of 36th IGC: Scientist Vijay Prasad Dimri was appointed as the President of the 36th International Geological Congress (IGC). It is a global platform for the advancement of earth science, to be held in New Delhi in 2020.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. Asgardia launched Asgardia-1 into space: The Space Kingdom of Asgardia (virtual nation) launched its first satellite ‘Asgardia-1’ into space from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The Asgardia – so-called ‘virtual nation’ is the project of Russian scientist and billionaire Igor Ashurbeyli. The Asgardia-1 satellite, which is about the size of a loaf of bread, contains half a terabyte of data

2. Borut Pahor of Slovenia’s wins second term as Prez: Slovenia’s President Borut Pahor wins Second Term in Runoff Election. He received nearly 53 percent of votes.

3. Saudi Arabia recognizes Yoga as a Sport: The Saudi Arabian government has approved the practice of yoga as a sports activity. This news came from a social media post of Nouf Marwaai, founder of the Arab Yoga Foundation in Saudi Arabia.

OTHER UPDATES

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

1. CRISIL, SIDBI tie up to launch CriSidEx: Rating firm Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited (CRISIL) and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) have signed a MoU to launch CriSidEx, a sentiment Index for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). This index will provide insights into employment, business environment, and foreign trade trends in the MSME sector.

SPORTS:

1. Sebastian Vettel wins Brazilian GP: Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel won the Brazilian Grand Prix, a Formula One championship race, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Valtteri Bottas started the race at the pole position. Vettel controlled the race after taking the lead from Valtteri Bottas. The Formula One world championship title had already been decided at the Mexican Grand Prix, two weeks earlier.

2. Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal retires from all forms of cricket: Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal announced his retirement from all forms of cricket two years after a remodeled bowling action that was deemed illegal twice by the autorities. Ajmal was once celebrated as the world’s number one bowler in one-day internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 cricket, and was almost as successful in Tests.

Daily GK Updates - 14th November, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Children’s Day observed across India: Children’s Day is celebrated on the 14th of November in India as a tribute to Jawaharlal Nehru, who was born on November 14, 1889. Jawaharlal Nehru, who was fondly called Chacha Nehru or Chachaji, was known for his love for children. Prior to 1964, India celebrated Children’s Day on 20 November, which was observed as the Universal Children’s Day by the United Nations.

2. India to get its first ‘Air Dispensary’: Northeast is all set to get India’s first-ever “Air Dispensary” based in a helicopter. The Union Ministry of Development of Northeast has already contributed Rs. 25 crore funding for this initiative.

3. 37th India International Trade Fair begins in New Delhi: 37th India International Trade Fair (IITF) has begun at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi. The 14-day annual event has been organised by the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO). This year the theme of the fair is “Startup India Standup India”. Vietnam is the Partner Country, while Kyrgyzstan is the Focus Country.  Jharkhand is participating as a Partner State in the event.

4. Indian Railways to launch Project Saksham: Railways will launch the country’s largest time-bound “upskilling” exercise for government employees to upgrade the skill sets of its 13 lakh-strong workforce with a single drive spanning 9 months. Project Saksham will start in January 2018 and go on until September 2018.

5. Bharat Net, Phase 2 launched: Central Government launched the Phase 2 of Bharat Net project to connect 1.5 lakh gram panchayats with high-speed broadband by March 2019. Bharat Net Project, formerly known as National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) was launched by Central Government in October 2011 with an aim to deploy high-speed optical fiber cables across rural areas of India.

6. India Youth Development Index: Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore released the India Youth Development Index and Report. The objective of constructing YDI 2017 is to track the trends in Youth Development across the States. The Index enables recognizing the high and low performing states, identifies the weak domains and informs the priority areas of intervention for youth development.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. World Diabetes Day 2017: World Diabetes Day is the world’s largest diabetes awareness campaign. It is celebrated every year on 14th November. The theme of World Diabetes Day 2017 is Women and diabetes – our right to a healthy future.

2. Founding Ceremony of International Solar Alliance held in Bonn: A Curtain Raiser Event for the Founding Ceremony of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) was held in Bonn, Germany. The ISA is a treaty-based alliance of 121 prospective solar-rich Member Nations situated fully or partially between the Tropics & aims at the development of solar energy globally.

3. 10th South Asia Economic Summit begins in Kathmandu: The 10th South Asia Economic Summit (SAES) has begun in Kathmandu, Nepal. The theme of the 3-day summit is “Deepening Economic Integration for Inclusive and Sustainable Development in South Asia”.

OTHER UPDATES

BANKING & FINANCE:

1. Asian Bankers Association summit to be held in Mumbai: For the first time, Mumbai is to host the 34th annual conference of the Asian Bankers Association on 16th and 17th November 2017. Summit will be hosted by State Bank. The theme for this year’s summit is ‘Asia’s turn to transform’.

SPORTS:

1. Pankaj Advani wins his 17th title at ISBF World Billiards Championships: Indian cueist Pankaj Advani has won his 17th world title at the IBSF World Billiards Championship 2017 in Doha, Qatar. Pankaj beat Mike Russell of England by 6-2 (0-155, 150-128, 92-151, 151-0, 151-6, 151-0, 150-58, 150-21) and won his 17th world title at the IBSF World Billiards Championship 2017.

2. Rafael Nadal receives ATP World No. 1 award: Tennis player Rafael Nadal was presented the ATP World Number 1 award on court, at the ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena, in London. Rafael Nadal replaced Andy Murray of Britain at Number 1 position on 21 August 2017.

Daily GK Updates - 13th November, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. India’s first Military Literature Festival to be held: India’s first Military Literature Festival (MLF) will be held in Chandigarh, between December7 and 9, 2017. It is a tribute to the armed forces, whose contributions to the nation remain etched in history as iconic events.

2. Child Rights Week to be observed: The Ministry of Women and Child Development will celebrate the Child Rights Week (Hausla 2017) from 16th to 20th November 2017. The commemoration of the festival “Hausla 2017” will provide an occasion to showcase the talents of children and to provide them with a space to express their dreams and aspiration.

3. Odisha, Bengal to hold joint exercise ‘Sagar Kavach’: The governments of Odisha and neighbouring West Bengal will soon organize a joint security exercise named as ‘Sagar Kavach’. It is to further tighten the existing coastal security mechanism along the 630 km long coastline. Sagar Kavach security exercise is a realistic drill to check the efficacy of the security parameters and preparedness of various security forces.

4. Cabinet approval for restructuring National Rural Drinking Water Programme: Cabinet has accorded its approval for continuation and restructuring of National Rural Drinking Water Programme. The scheme was launched to ensure good quality service delivery to the rural population. The restructuring will make the programme flexible and will enable the Ministry towards to reach the goal of increasing coverage of sustainable Piped Water Supply.

5. Award of President’s Standard & Colours: Mr. Ramnath Kovind will give the prestigious President’s standard to 223 Squadron and 117 Helicopter Unit during a ceremonial parade scheduled to be held at Air Force Station Adampur on 16th November 17. The Commanding Officer of 223 Squadron, Group and 117 Helicopter Unit will receive the President’s Standard. This honour is an acknowledgement of the meritorious service rendered by the selected units.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. World Pneumonia Day observed:  On 12th November 2017, World Pneumonia Day was observed all over the world. It was first observed in 2009 when over 100 organisations joined to form the Global Coalition against Child Pneumonia. It helps to highlight the severity of pneumonia and encourages more organisations to look at ways of fighting the disease.

2. APEC summit held in Vietnam: Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders’ Meeting was held on 10th and 11th November, 2017 in Da Nang, Vietnam. Theme of this meeting was ‘Creating New Dynamism, Fostering a Shared Future’. Leaders of 21 Pacific Rim countries attended this meeting. This was the first APEC meeting for several leaders.

3. Global Climate Risk Index released: India is the sixth most vulnerable country in the world in terms of facing extreme weather events, according to global climate risk index.

Haiti, Zimbabwe, Fiji, Sri Lanka and Vietnam are at top five positions in the fresh list of nations facing climate risk. The ranking was released here by ‘Germanwatch’, an independent Berlin-based development and environmental organisation.

OTHER UPDATES

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

1. Cartoon Network’s first amusement park to come up in Surat: Turner International India and Rajgreen Group are making Amaazia – India’s first Cartoon Network-branded amusement park, in Surat. Cartoon Network’s popular characters will be part of the amusement park. Amaazia will be divided into four major sections – a theme park branded by Cartoon Network, a water park, a family recreational hub and a service apartment and retail shopping area.

SPORTS:

1. Bharat Khandare to be the first India-born fighter in UFC: Bharat Khandare is all set to be the first Indian-born Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter in the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC). He was first approached by UFC three years back but the deal did not go through because of his prior commitments. Earlier this year Arjan Singh Bhullar became the first Indian to sign up in the UFC.

2. New Ombudsman of AIFF named: Supreme Court appointed former captain of the football team, Bhaskar Ganguly, as ombudsman of All India Football Federation. Ganguly had served as captain of the Indian team at the 1982 Asian Games.

Daily GK Updates - 12th November, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Home Ministry sets up two new divisions: Union Home Ministry has formed 2 new divisions to exclusively deal with emerging security challenges such as radicalisation & cyber crime. CTCR wing will focus on tracking & assessing online reach of global terrorist outfits & devising strategies to counter their propaganda. CIS division will monitor online crimes & threats including cyber fraud, hacking & suggest ways to minimise & fight them.

2. Varanasi is the most polluted city-Report: A report by the Central Pollution Control Board has found that the air quality of holy city Varanasi is most polluted among the 42 cities monitored recently. Varanasi’s Air Quality Index was at an alarming 491, followed by Gurugram at 480, and Delhi at 468. Stubble burning by farmers in Punjab & Haryana are speculated to have added to the factors causing pollution in northern belt of India.

3. First Nordic-Baltic youth film festival to begin at Delhi: The first Nordic-Baltic youth film festival will begin in Delhi on 13th November, showcasing a diverse mix of some of the most celebrated and Oscar nominated movies from the region. The festival will give the Indian audience an opportunity to connect with these countries and strengthen the cultural bond. The festival will open with Land of Mine from Denmark, an Oscar-nominated film.

4. Creation of National Testing Agency (NTA) approved: The Union Cabinet has approved the creation of a National Testing Agency (NTA) to conduct entrance examinations for higher educational institutions. Its creation will relieve CBSE which conducts exams like the NEET and AICTE of the burden of conducting entrance tests. The NTA will begin by conducting exams managed by the CBSE and gradually conduct other examinations too.

5. Second National Judicial Pay Commission approved: Union Cabinet chaired by PM Modi approved the appointment of  2nd National Judicial pay commission for subordinate judiciary. Commission will decide on a salary hike for almost 21,000 judges of the subordinate judiciary level. Commission is to be headed by retired Justice of Supreme Court, J.P.Venkatrama Reddi. R. Basant, a former judge of Kerala high court is also a member of the commission.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. UNESCO confirms Audrey Azoulay as its new chief: UNESCO’s member States have voted to confirm nomination of former French Culture Minister Audrey Azoulay as the body’s new leader. Her nomination was confirmed in Oct by members of the agency’s board, making her the organization’s 2nd woman director-general.

OTHER UPDATES

BUSINESS & ECONOMY:

1. Debjani to be the first woman President of NASSCOM: National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) has named Debjani Ghosh as its President-Designate, who will succeed R Chandrashekhar after completion of his tenure in March next year. She has been the Managing Director of Intel South Asia and will be the first woman President of NASSCOM.

2. Twitter doubles length of display name: Twitter has more than doubled its count for users’ display names from 20 to 50 characters. It comes days after the social media giant ended the iconic 140-character tweet limit.

BANKING & FINANCE:

1. Federal Bank gets RBI nod to open offices in Kuwait and Singapore: Federal Bank has obtained RBI approval to open representative offices at Kuwait and Singapore. With the opening of these offices, the Bank will be able to widen its services to NRI diaspora and also enhance the international visibility of the Bank.

SPORTS:

1. MS Dhoni launches his first global cricket academy in Dubai: Mahendra Singh Dhoni has inaugurated his first global cricket academy in the bustling metropolis of Dubai. The facility named the MS Dhoni Cricket Academy (MSDCA) will have coaches from India to train the wards.

Daily GK Updates - 11th November, 2017

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. 'India Disaster Response Summit': The Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has inaugurated the 'India Disaster Response Summit' in New Delhi. The summit focused on how best to leverage social media platforms to 'prepare, respond and recover' during and after a disaster. The summit has been organized jointly by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) & Facebook.

2. NITI Aayog releases proposal to develop electric vehicle charging infrastructure in Delhi: NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar has released a proposal to develop electric vehicle charging infrastructure in Delhi. The "quick pilot" project includes 55 locations with 135 charging stations. The proposal can be used to provide a structure for electric vehicle infrastructure rollout in the Gurgaon-Indira Gandhi International Airport-South Delhi-Noida corridor.  

3. Second official language of Telangana state - Urdu: Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao has declared Urdu as the state's second official language. According to CM Rao, every office in the state will have an Urdu speaking officer. Muslims form 12.7% of the state's total population.

4. Newly appointed DGP of Telangana State - M Mahender Reddy: M Mahender Reddy (Hyderabad Police Commissioner) has been appointed Director General of Police (DGP) of Telangana State. He succeeds Present DGP Anurag Sharma (who will superannuate today). M Mahender Reddy is a civil engineering graduate from the Regional Engineering College, Warangal, Mr Reddy got selected for IPS while pursuing his M.Tech. in IIT of Delhi. In India, the Director General of Police (DGP) is a three-star rank and the highest-ranking police officer in Indian States and Union Territories (UT).

5. Indian Government  to provide 100 foreign students full scholarship to study Ayurveda: Indian govt will provide 100 non-Indian students a full scholarship for study Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy (Ayush) in any of the public deemed universities across India. The initiative is to encourage and popularize the alternative system of medicine. Soon, the details of the application process and scholarship will be available with the Indian missions abroad. Minister for Ayush Sripad Naik is on a three-day visit to UAE to participate in the first-ever International Ayush Conference and Exhibition in Dubai. Ayurveda is a system of medicine with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. Globalized and modernized practices derived from Ayurveda traditions are a type of complementary or alternative medicine.

6. Home Ministry sets up two new divisions for radicalization & cybercrime: The Union Home Ministry has formed two new divisions Counter-Terrorism and Counter-Radicalisation (CTCR) and the Cyber and Information Security (CIS) to exclusively deal with emerging security challenges such as radicalization & cyber-crime. The two divisions also encompass merger of some of the Ministry’s existing divisions. The CTCR wing is the basically modified version of the Home Ministry’s internal security-II division to focus on tracking & assessing the online reach of global terrorist outfits and devising strategies to counter their propaganda. The CIS division will monitor online crimes and threats (cyber fraud, hacking) and also suggest ways to minimise and fight them.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. US & South Korea start joint naval exercises involving 3 US aircraft carriers: The United States and South Korea has started four-day joint naval exercises involving three US aircraft carriers in what military officials described as a clear warning to North Korea. Japan would also send its largest warship to join three U.S. aircraft carriers in exercises in waters near the Korean Peninsula.

2. UAE, Saudi & Kuwait have advised its citizens from traveling to Lebanon amidst rising regional tension between Riyadh & Tehran over Yemen and the Lebanon issue: Earlier, Lebanese prime minister Saad Al Hariri announced his sudden resignation while visiting the Saudi kingdom. Bahrain has already issued a similar advisory for its nationals.

OTHER UPDATES:

SCIENCE/TECHNOLOGY:

1. Earth observation satellite launched by Morocco: Morocco has successfully launched an earth observation satellite called “Mohammed VI-A” (1,110 kg) from French Guyana Space Centre. The ‘Mohammed VI-A satellite’ built for Morocco by Thales Alenia Space as prime contractor and Airbus as co-prime. It will be used for mapping and land surveying activities along with regional development and agricultural monitoring. The satellite has been launched by European consortium Arianespace's Vega rocket.

BUSINESS/ ECONOMY:

1. GST Council reduces tax on 178 items from 28 to 18%: After the Council's meeting in Guwahati, The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has reduced tax rate on products. Tax on 177 items have been reduced to 18% from 28% and only 50 items now remain in the highest tax slab of 28%. The Council has decided that food at all restaurants in the country, except those in starred hotels, will be taxed at 5% rather than 18%, without Input Tax Credit (ITC). The new rates will be effective from the 15th of this month.

2. IDFC Bank has entered into a “strategic alliance” with mobile wallet major MobiKwik to launch a co-branded virtual Visa prepaid card for customers of MobiKwik: This pre-paid card will now allow MobiKwik users to shop from Amazon or Flipkart where currently MobiKwik wallet use is not allowed. This Visa pre-paid card is the replica of the wallet and can be used anywhere. Within the MobiKwik App, a user will be able to generate a Visa pre-paid card. You can not only be able to pay where the MobiKwik wallet is accepted, but also all the locations where Visa cards are accepted.