Daily GK Updates - 12th April, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Ahmedabad launches 6th edition of Heat Action Plan: Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation in partnership with civil society groups launched 6th edition of Heat Action Plan to protect city dwellers from scorching temperatures. The plan has an early warning system used during heat waves and a robust public education campaign about how to avoid harm from excessive heat. Ahmedabad was the first city to prepare and implement heat action plan.

2. Dedicated defence, aerospace SME fund set up: Department of Defence Production announced the creation of a dedicated defence and aerospace small and medium enterprises (SME) fund. This fund would help channelise investments into the two defence corridors announced by the Government in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. The fund is registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India where a minority stake could be taken by investors.

3. Tribal development centre QUEST to be set up in Maharashtra: The Maharashtra government has set up an institution known as Quality Evaluation for Sustainable Transformation centre (QUEST). QUEST will evaluate and quantify special development budget allocations and their impact on tribal development. The state has taken the initiative to bring greater accountability in spending and management of dedicated funds allocated for tribal welfare.

4. IIT-Delhi installs India’s first 5G Lab: IIT-Delhi has set up a radio lab with an array of antennas for “standardisation, research and manufacturing” of 5G equipment. A Massive MIMO radio laboratory has been set up at IIT Delhi. This will be the first such lab in India.

5. India ranks 130 in Index of Economic Freedom: India has jumped 13 places in the last one year to 130th spot in the latest annual Index of Economic Freedom released by the Heritage Foundation, a top American think-tank. As per the latest Index of Economic Freedom, China has jumped one spot and Pakistan is now at 131st position. In 2017, India with a score of 52.6 points was ranked at 143 among 180 countries.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. UAE approves issuance of Law on Equal Wages: In an effort to narrow the gender gap in the United Arab Emirates, the Cabinet has approved the issuance of the Law on Equal Wages and Salaries for Men and Women. The new law will provide women with equal opportunities as partners in the UAE’s development. In 2015, the UAE Council for Gender Balance was established and in September, the UAE launched the world’s first Gender Balance Guide.

2. India, Myanmar and Thailand trilateral highway: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) inked a pact for its maiden international project, part of the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway. NHAI has signed an agreement for upgradation of Yagyi – Kalewa section in Myanmar to Two-Lane with Earthen Shoulder. The project has been funded by Ministry of External Affairs.

OTHER UPDATES

SPORTS:

1. Kidambi Srikanth Becomes World No.1: Indian badminton star Kidambi Srikanth became world No. 1 in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings. Srikanth has moved to the top of the men’s singles rankings with 76895 points.

2. Silver medal for Tejaswini Sawant in shooting: Tejaswini Sawant has won silver medal in the finals of the women’s 50m rifle prone at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. This is the sixth CWG medal for Tejaswini, following two golds in 2006 and a pair of silvers and a bronze in 2010. Anjum Moudgil, the other Indian to reach the women’s 50m rifle prone finals, finished 16th.

3. Kohli and Mithali voted world’s best: Indian captains Virat Kohli and Mithali Raj were named as the leading men’s and women’s cricketers in the world respectively by Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack. Kohli won his award for the 2nd year in a row after again starring in all formats. Raj was acknowledged after a year in which she became the leading run-scorer in women’s One-Day Internationals during India’s run to the World Cup final.

BANKING / FINANCE:

1. RBI imposes Rs 3 crore fine on IDBI Bank: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a Rs 3 crore penalty on IDBI Bank for not following the central bank’s rules on classification of loans. IDBI bank did not adhere to RBI’s norms on Income Recognition and Asset Classification. RBI said that this action is based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance.

Daily GK Updates - 11th April, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. ‘Project Dhoop’ launched by FSSAI: Food safety regulator, FSSAI, launched an initiative Project Dhoop to encourage schools to shift their morning assembly to around noon-time to ensure maximum absorption of Vitamin D in students through natural sunlight. The move comes in the backdrop of rising incidence of Vitamin D deficiency in the country. The initiative urges schools to conduct their morning assembly between 11 am and 1 pm.

2. Government to install water ATMs in Haryana: The Haryana government has prepared Water ATM Policy to provide clean drinking water to people at public places in cities. Under this policy, public places such as bus-stands, railway stations, parks, bus stops, parking areas and markets would be identified. There would be a distance of 400 meters between two water ATMs which could be adjusted according to the convenience of people.

3. Balram Bhargava to be new ICMR chief: Balram Bhargava has been appointed the new Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research and Secretary of the Department of Health Research notification by the appointments committee of the cabinet. Balram Bhargava is currently a senior consultant cardiologist at the AIIMS and will carry out this role until 2021.

4. Rajesh Ranjan appointed DG CISF: Rajesh Ranjan, a 1984 batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, has been appointed as the Director General (DG) of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). He is at present Special Director General of the Border Security Force (BSF). The CISF provides security to various government installations including the airports of the country.

5. Rakesh Bharti Mittal new CII President: Bharti Enterprises Vice-Chairman Rakesh Bharti Mittal assumed the office of the President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for 2018-19. Uday Kotak, Founder and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank took over as President-Designate of CII for 2018-19. Vikram Kirloskar is the new Vice-President of CII for the current fiscal.

6. Rishad Premji appointed as NASSCOM Chairman: IT industry body NASSCOM had appointed Wipro Chief Strategy Officer and board member Rishad Premji as its Chairman for 2018-19. NASSCOM has appointed WNS Group CEO Keshav Murugesh as the Vice Chairman. NASSCOM is a trade association of Indian IT and Business Process Outsourcing industry.

7. Google marks birth anniversary of KL Saigal: Google is marking the 114th birth anniversary of actor – singer Kundan Lal Saigal with a doodle of the late maestro. Saigal was Bollywood’s first legitimate ‘superstar’, and appeared in 36 films made in three languages, and sang 185 songs in his 15 – plus – year career.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. First India-Nordic Summit in Stockholm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet leaders of Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark & Iceland for the first India-Nordic Summit in Stockholm on April 17. Narendra Modi will be the first Indian PM to visit Stockholm since 1988. The six leaders will exchange views on regional and global issues such as environment and climate, trade and investment and discuss areas of future cooperation.

2. China launches Yaogan-31 remote sensing satellites: China has launched the first group of China’s Yaogan-31 remote sensing satellites into space on 10th April The satellites were carried by a Long March-4C rocket. The mission also sent a micro nanotechnology experiment satellite into orbit. The satellites will be used for electromagnetic environment surveys and other technology tests.

OTHER UPDATES

SPORTS:

1. Shreyasi Singh wins the gold at Double Trap event: Shooter Shreyasi Singh won the gold medal in women’s double trap event at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast. The bronze medal went to Scotland.

2. Ankur Mittal grabs bronze in shooting at CWG:Shooter Ankur Mittal won a bronze medal in the men’s double trap finals at the ongoing 21st Commonwealth Games. Ankur won the silver medal in the World Championships in Moscow 2017 and he also won silver and gold medal in the ISSF World Cup.

3. 2018 Asia Cup moved out from India to UAE: The 2018 Asia Cup, that was earlier scheduled to be held in India, has now been moved out to the United Arab Emirates. The decision was taken following a meeting of the executive board of the Asian Cricket Council held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Daily GK Updates - 10th April, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. India’s first electric locomotive flagged off: Prime Minister flagged off the country’s first high-powered electric locomotive assembled in Madhepura in Bihar. This first locomotive is part of a joint venture of the railways with Alstom, signed in 2015 and the first major FDI project in the rail sector. India will join countries like Russia, China, Germany and Sweden that have 12,000 horsepower & above capacity electric locomotives.

2. Andhra Pradesh becomes the second state to get happiness department: The Andhra Pradesh government will soon constitute a Happiness Commission that will take up a series of programmes to promote “happiness” in the state. The commission, which will work under the department of planning, will be headed by Chief Minister. AP became the second state in the country to introduce an exclusive ministry for happiness in April 2017. Madhya Pradesh is the first state.

3. Goa govt to launch app-based taxi service: The Goa government has decided to launch its own app-based taxi service to some key tourist destinations in the coastal state. The state-run Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) invited the taxi operators to register with the new mobile application-based transport service.

4. Fast-track court to try drug cases in Manipur: Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh inaugurated a special court at Cheirap Court Complex in Imphal to try drug-related cases. The fast-track court will facilitate the speedy trial of offences relating to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.

5. DGAAD imposes anti-dumping duty on phosphorus pentoxide: Based on the recommendation of the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties, the revenue department has imposed an anti-dumping duty on import of Phosphorus Pentoxide from China. The duty has been imposed for five years. Phosphorus Pentoxide is used as a powerful desiccant and dehydrating agent and is a useful building block and reagent in the chemical industry.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. World Homoeopathy Day to be observed: A two-day scientific convention is being organised in New Delhi by Ministry of AYUSH on the occasion of World Homoeopathy Day, on 10-11th April 2018. World Homoeopathy Day is observed to commemorate the birth anniversary of the founder of Homoeopathy, Dr. Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann. The theme of this convention is “Innovate: Evolve; Progress: Exploring Science since 40 years”.

2. India-Nepal agree to develop inland waterways: India and Nepal recognised the untapped potential of inland waterways, in order to contribute towards the overall economic development of the region. Prime Minister of India and Nepal took the landmark decision to develop the inland waterways for the movement of cargo. The new initiative would enable cost-effective and efficient movement of cargo.

OTHER UPDATES

BANKING / FINANCE:

1. NABARD comes out with PCA for RRBs: NABARD has come out with a ‘Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) Framework’ for Regional Rural Banks (RRBs). The framework is aimed at enabling RRBs that fail to meet prudential requirements like capital adequacy to take self-corrective action. The PCA will be invoked if RRBs fail to meet the ‘capital to risk-weighted assets ratio’, assets (NPAs), and profitability (return on assets).

2. SBI launches UK subsidiary: The SBI has announced the launch of its UK subsidiary, SBI (UK) Limited, with an initial capital commitment of 225 million pounds from its parent entity. SBI became the first foreign bank in the UK to segregate its retail division from its wholesale business. SBI operates seven branches in London.

SPORTS:

1. Heena Sidhu won gold medal in 25m Pistol: Heena Sidhu won India’s 11th gold medal in pistol shooting at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast. Heena Sidhu has become the first Indian athlete to win two medals at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. India has so far won 20 medals, including eleven gold, four silver and five bronze.

2. Lionel Messi named UN Tourism ambassador: The UN World Tourism Organization has appointed FC Barcelona’s Argentine star Lionel Messi as an ambassador to promote responsible tourism. The UN body defines “responsible tourism” as tourism that “helps maximise the sector’s benefits”.

Daily GK Updates - 9th April, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Indian President awarded with the highest civilian honour of Equatorial Guinea:  President Ram Nath Kovind was conferred with the “Condecoracion”, the highest honour accorded to a non-citizen by the government of Equatorial Guinea. President Kovind was bestowed with the medal of the ‘Gran Colar de la Independencia’ by the President of Equatorial Guinea. The award was given for his contribution to the cause of development, security and world peace.

2. Patna tops in 4G connectivity – OpenSignal Report: Patna topped in 4G connectivity among 20 of India’s largest cities. It has emerged ahead of the cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi, said a report from OpenSignal, a wireless coverage mapping company.

3. PM Ujjwala Yojana inaugurated in Delhi: Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) scheme in Delhi on 7th April and distributed new LPG connections and cylinders to beneficiaries here. During the event, about 400 LPG connections were handed over to families belonging to below poverty line category. The PMUY was launched at Yamuna Sports Complex in the national capital.

4. Haryana Govt. to support TB patients: Haryana government has decided to provide special benefits, including nutritional support, to tuberculosis patients in an effort to eliminate the infectious disease by 2025. The government would provide nutritional support of Rs 500 per month during treatment to notified TB patients. Free services would be provided to TB patients in government hospitals of Haryana, including X-Ray.

5. Free chemotherapy in 10 Maharashtra districts: The Maharashtra state government will introduce free chemotherapy facility in 10 districts from June. This facility will be made available at district hospitals of Nagpur, Gadchiroli, Pune, Amravati, Jalgaon, Nashik, Wardha, Satara, Bhandara and Akola in the first phase. The initiative would help patients save in lodging and travelling expenses.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. India-Nepal petroleum products pipeline launched: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli launched the Rs 3.24 billion India-Nepal petroleum products pipeline from Motihari, Bihar to Amlekhgunj, Nepal on 7th April. This is the first international cross-country pipeline project in India. The Motihari-Amlekhgunj Pipeline project was approved by Indian Oil in September 2015.

2. Hungarian elections - PM Orban’s party wins: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling Fidesz-KDNP coalition won the general elections in Hungary on 8th April. Former radical Jobbik party came second with 20% of the vote, and MSZP-P (Socialist-Dialogue) third with 12.13%

OTHER UPDATES

DEFENCE:

1. UAE, Malaysia conclude military exercise, Desert Tiger: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Malaysia concluded “Desert Tiger 5” joint military exercise aimed at sharing expertise and enhancing joint military actions. The Desert Tiger series is an annual joint exercise between the two countries.

SPORTS:

1. Vettel wins Bahrain Grand Prix: Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel won Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix in his 200th race start. It was Vettel’s second win in as many races this season, the 49th of his career.

2. Mehuli Ghosh clinches silver medal in Shooting at CWG: Indian shooters Mehuli Ghosh and Apurvi Chandela bagged silver and bronze respectively in the Women’s 10m Air Rifle competition at Commonwealth Games 2018. Singapore bagged the gold medal.

With this feat, India now stands third on the points table with 17 medals in total, including seven in shooting alone.

3. Weightlifter Pardeep wins silver at CWG: Indian weightlifter Pardeep Singh won a silver medal in the sport at Gold Coast Commonwealth Games 2018. Last year, Pardeep had claimed a surprise gold medal in his first senior competition in the 105kg category.

4. Shooters bag gold, bronze for India: Indian shooters Jitu Rai and Om Prakash Mitharwal won gold and bronze medals respectively at Commonwealth Games 2018. In the men’s 10m air pistol event at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games 2018, Rai shot a total of 235.1 points, thus, registering a new Games record. Mitharwal bagged the silver medal after shooting a total of 214.3 points.

India has won five medals so far in shooting alone.

5. Manika Batra won gold medal in Table Tennis: Manika Batra inspired India to a historic gold medal with her stunning singles victories, as she defeated defending champions Singapore 3-1 to claim the gold medal in TT at Commonwealth Games 2018. This is India’s first ever gold at the multi-sport event.

Daily GK Updates - 8th April, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. India’s forex reserves at all time high: The country’s foreign exchange reserves hit a life-time high of 424.361 billion US dollar. Previously, the reserves had touched a record high of 421.914 billion dollar on February 9, 2018. Gold reserves remained unchanged at 21.614 billion US dollar.

2. Anushka Sharma wins Dadasaheb Excellence Award: Anushka Sharma will be awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Excellence Award 2018 for being a path-breaking producer. The actress has been appreciated for breaking new grounds as a film producer, along with her brother Karnesh Sharma. Three movies produced by Anushka, NH 10, Phillauri and Pari belonged to three different genres, thriller, romance and horror.

3. Tripura launches the state version of PMKVY: Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb has launched the state component of Pradhanmantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna (PMKVY) in Agartala. He has assured that the target to give training to more than 1 lakh 16,000 youths by 2020 will be achieved. Tripura is the first state in the country to implement pilot project for accreditation for skilled candidates.

4. Kerala to issue brain death certificate: Kerala has become the first state to adopt a standard operating procedure (SOP) for determining brain death cases. According to the SOP, a medical board comprising four doctors-at least one should be from the government service-will be authorised to declare a patient brain dead. To check any misuse, the SOP defines brain dead and state of coma in detail.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. UK’s first permanent Middle East military base: UK has opened its first permanent military base in the Middle East in more than 4 decades in the Persian Gulf country of Bahrain. The £40m UK Naval Support facility ‘Jufair’ at Mina Salman will be staffed by up to 500 soldiers, sailors and airmen. Both the countries hope that this base will increase military cooperation between the Royal Navy and its Bahraini counterpart.

2. Japan activated its 1st marine unit since WW2: Japan has activated its 1st marine unit since 2nd World War to counter invaders from occupying Japanese islands. The Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade is the latest component of a growing marine force that includes amphibious ships & assault vehicles. After WW2, a clause was written into Japan’s constitution which stated that armed forces with potential to wage war would not be maintained.

OTHER UPDATES

DEFENCE:

1. Indo-Korean joint exercise SAHYOG- HYEOBLYEOG: Indo-Korean joint anti-piracy, search & rescue exercise ‘SAHYOG- HYEOBLYEOG 2018’ was conducted off the Chennai coast. The joint exercise is a part of ongoing cooperative arrangements b/w the 2 coast guards for the past 12 years. The exercise aims to develop working level co-operation & enhance inter-operability in the fields of maritime search & rescue, anti-piracy operations.

SCIENCE / TECHNOLOGY:

1. NASA’s first flight to Sun: NASA’s Parker Solar Probe — humanity’s first mission to the Sun — is undergoing final preparations. The mission is scheduled for launch on July 31, 2018. Parker Solar will orbit directly through the solar atmosphere – the corona – closer to the surface than any human-made object has ever gone.

BANKING / FINANCE:

1. ICICI Bank becomes the first bank to live on SWIFT’s new payment service: ICICI Bank has become first Indian bank to go live on SWIFT’s Global Payment Innovation, an improved cross-border payments service. The service enables real-time payments tracking across correspondent banks & has a facility to track payments instructions across correspondent banks globally. The announcement of the service comes weeks after the discovery Rs 12,900-crore Nirav Modi scam at PNB

BUSINESS / ECONOMY:

1. CCI may be a trouble for Flipkart-Amazon merger: The possible coming together of online retailers Amazon and Flipkart is likely to face close scrutiny on competition issues.

Engaged in intense competition, home-grown Flipkart and Amazon India are leading players in the Indian online retail market place. The combined market share of the two parties, which is around 80 percent is most likely to  pose challenges to the deal.

Daily GK Updates - 7th April, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Two new languages discovered in India: A professor of the University of Hyderabad has discovered two new languages- ‘Walmiki and Malhar’. These languages are spoken in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Walmiki is spoken in Koraput of Odisha and on the bordering districts of Andhra Pradesh. The second language Malhar is spoken in a remote and isolated hamlet about 165 km away from Bhubaneswar.

2. ‘Quit Addiction’ helpline number on all tobacco products: All tobacco products will have a national toll-free number printed on them from September tto assist users to quit the addiction. The toll-free number will help in creating awareness among tobacco users and give them access to counselling services to effect behaviour change. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has notified new sets of health warnings for all tobacco product packs.

3. Govt. bans the import of “love hormone” oxytocin: The Union government banned imports of the hormone oxytocin to stop its misuse in the livestock industry. It causes hormonal imbalances and shortens the lives of milch animals. Oxytocin is released naturally in the human body and is often called as “love hormone”. The government has decided to rely on domestic production to satisfy requirements of the hormone.

4. Ganga Hariteema Yojana launched in UP: In Uttar Pradesh, “Ganga Hariteema Yojana” (Ganga Greenery Scheme) has been launched in 27 districts of the state located on the bank of river Ganga. The objectives of the schemes include enhancing green cover in the catchment areas of the river Ganga and to control the land erosion. Plantation will be carried out in one-kilometre areas from the banks of the river under the scheme.

5. “Uzhavan” App for farmers launched by TN government: Tamil Nadu government has launched the bi-lingual “Uzhavan” (farmer) app that will allow ryots to have access to nine types of services. The app can be used by farmers to get information on farm subsidies, book farm equipment and details about crop insurance. The app is available in Tamil and English language & includes information on the availability of seeds and fertilisers at stores.

6. “Gram Swaraj Abhiyan” on Ambedkar Jayanti: The Prime Minister has announced that on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti a “Gram Swaraj Abhiyan” would be organised starting from 14th April to 5th May 2018. This Abhiyan will reach out to poor households, spreading awareness about government welfare schemes and other initiatives. Universal coverage under 7 welfare programmes in 21058 villages has been contemplated under this Abhiyan.

7. Chhattisgarh awarded ‘State of the Year’ at IBL awards: Chhattisgarh bagged the ‘State of the Year’ Award under the ‘business leader” category as part of the India Business Leadership for the increase in business and services activities. Union Information Technology and Electronics Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad gave the award at India Business Leader Awards. Chhattisgarh has been ranked 4th in World Bank’s list of ‘Ease of Doing Business’.

8. First tulip garden in Jammu and Kashmir: Jammu got its first tulip garden at Sanasar in Ramban district of Jammu region. This is the first tulip garden of Jammu region and second after the tulip garden of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir. The garden has been set up on half an acre area of land adjacent to the Sanasar lake.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. World Health Day observed: The World Health Day is a global health awareness day celebrated every year on 7 April to mark the anniversary of the founding of World Health Organization. This year marks the 70th anniversary of World Health Day. The theme for this year was “Universal health coverage: everyone, everywhere” and the slogan is “Health for All”.

2. Sugar tax comes in UK to save children from tooth decay: Britain rolled out a sugar tax on soft drinks in an attempt to tackle obesity and tooth decay in children. All revenues raised through the tax will directly fund new sports facilities in schools as well as healthy breakfast clubs. The other countries which have introduced such similar taxes are Mexico, France and Norway.

OTHER UPDATES

DEFENCE:

1. IAF’s biggest combat exercise “Gagan Shakti” to be held: The Indian Air Force (IAF) is going to conduct its biggest ever combat exercise along Pakistan and China borders. The exercise – Gagan Shakti, 2018- will take place from April 10 to 23. For the first time, the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft Tejas will be taking part in the exercise and will perform both the offensive and defensive roles.

SCIENCE / TECHNOLOGY:

1. RH300 sounding rocket launched from Kerala: The RH300 sounding rocket, developed by Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre as part of a study to enrich available atmospheric data, was launched on 6th April from the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station in Kerala. This was the 21st launch of RH300 sounding rocket. The RH-300 MKII sounding rocket is utilised to study the Equatorial and lower ionosphere regions of the atmosphere.

BANKING / FINANCE:

1. FPI investment limit in Govt Securities hiked: The Reserve Bank of India, in consultation with the Government, hiked the foreign portfolio investors (FPI) investment limit in Central government securities (G-Sec). FPIs will now be allowed to invest up to 5.5% of outstanding stock of G-secs in 2018-19 and 6% of outstanding stock of securities in 2019-20. The central bank also set a 9% limit for FPI investment in corporate bonds.

SPORTS:

1. Paes becomes most successful doubles player: Leander Paes created a new world record by becoming the most successful doubles player in Davis Cup history after winning his 43rd match. Paes combined with Rohan Bopanna to create the new record.

He made his Davis Cup debut in 1990 alongside Zeeshan Ali. Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi weaved the longest unbeaten winning streak of 24 matches.

2. Sathish Sivalingam wins Gold medal at CWG 2018: Weightlifter Sathish Sivalingam won the gold medal by winning the men’s 77kg event at Commonwealth Games 2018. In the previous Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Sathish had won gold. Hence he became the first ever male Indian weightlifter to win gold in two different editions of the Commonwealth Games.

Daily GK Updates - 6th April, 2018

NATIONAL UPDATES

1. Delhi and Maharashtra top in the list of Hospitality Index by Airbnb: Global hospitality chain Airbnb announced that New Delhi and Maharashtra have been recognised as the most hospitable city and state respectively, according to its Hospitality Index. As per the index, the most hospitable states were Maharashtra, Goa, Delhi, Karnataka and Kerala. New Delhi led the charts as the most hospitable city in the country, followed closely by Jaipur, Cochin and Mumbai.

2. “Van Dhan Vikas Kendra” at Bijapur launched: The Ministry of Tribal Affairs has approved establishment of the first multipurpose “Van Dhan Vikas Kendra” on the pilot basis for establishment in Bijapur  District of Chhattisgarh. The Kendra will provide skill and capacity building training and setting up of primary processing facility. The Kendra will have processing facility for Tamarind brick making & Mahua flower storage facility.

3. Ministry of Coal launched UTTAM APP: Ministry of Coal launched ‘UTTAM App’ for Coal Quality Monitoring. UTTAM stands for – Unlocking Transparency by Third Party Assessment of Mined Coal (uttam.coalindia.in). The Ministry of Coal and Coal India Limited (CIL) developed UTTAM, aims to provide an App for all citizens and coal consumers to monitor the process of Third Party Sampling of coal across CIL subsidiaries.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

1. India, Azerbaijan sign two documents: India and Azerbaijan have inked two documents for the visa waiver for diplomatic, official and service passports holders and cooperation between diplomatic training institutes. The agreements were signed during the ongoing visit of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to that country. Mrs Swaraj is there to be part of 18th NAM Ministerial Conference in Baku.

OTHER UPDATES

BUSINESS / ECONOMY:

1. Sanjeev Nautiyal is the MD & CEO of SBI Life: SBI Life Insurance Company Limited appointed Sanjeev Nautiyal as its new MD and CEO. Sanjeev Nautiyal started his career with State Bank of India in 1985 as a probationary officer in bank’s Lucknow circle. In the immediately preceding assignment, he was the Chief General Manager of the bank’s Ahmedabad circle.

BANKING / FINANCE:

1. Monetary Policy Review: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 5th April kept the repo rate and reverse repo rate unchanged at 6 percent and 5.75 percent respectively. The real Gross Domestic Product growth in FY19 is seen at 7.4 percent as against 6.6 percent in FY18. The RBI revised CPI inflation projection for 2018-19 to 4.7-5.1% in the first half of the financial year and 4.4% in the second half.

2. RBI bars banks from crypto-currency related services: RBI directed all regulated entities including banks not to provide services to businesses dealing in virtual currencies like bitcoins, so as to protect consumers and check money laundering. The RBI asked entities, which are already into such services to stop providing this kind of services within three months. The RBI has directed all payment system operators to store all data within India.

3. RBI defers implementation of Indian Accounting Standards adoption by 1 year: The Reserve Bank of India has deferred the adoption of ‘Indian Accounting Standards’ (Ind AS) by banks, for a year, due to the unpreparedness of banks to migrate to the new accounting system. The earlier deadline for banks to switch to the Ind AS was from 1 April 2018. Ind-AS is a global accounting practice that lenders are mandated to adopt that may lead to initial credit losses.

4. RBI decides to set up Data Sciences Lab: Reserve Bank of India has decided to set up Data Sciences Lab to improve its forecasting, surveillance and early warning detection abilities which will aid policy formulation. RBI said the lab will comprise experts and budding analysts, who are trained in Computer Science, Data Analytics, Statistics, Economics, Econometrics and Finance. The unit will become operational by December 2018.

SPORTS:

1. Weightlifter Deepak Lather wins bronze medal at CWG: Indian weightlifter Deepak Lather won the bronze medal in the men’s 69 kg category on the Day 2 of the Commonwealth Games. Gareth Evans of Wales claimed gold medal while Sri Lanka’s Indika won the silver medal. India till now has four medals at the Gold Coast Games and all four have come from weightlifting.

2. Sanjita Chanu won gold medal at CWG 2018: Weightlifter Khumukcham Sanjita Chanu won India its second gold medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games by outshining in the women’s 53 kg category event. She set a new record in the game by lifting a total of 192 kgs which includes 84 kgs in a snatch and 108 kgs in clean and jerk.