Daily GK Updates - 9th March, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Abhinandan Varthaman to get Bhagwan Mahavir Ahimsa Puraskar : Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman(piloting a Mig-21 Bison) will be the first recipient of the 'Bhagwan Mahavir Ahimsa Puraskar'. The award is instituted by the Akhil Bharatiya Digambar Jain Mahasamiti. on 27th February, Mr. Varthaman shot down a Pakistan Air Force F-16 with an R-73 air-to-air missile in a dogfight The award will be presented to Varthaman on 17th April 2019, carries a cash prize of Rs 2.51 lakh, a memento and a citation.

2.  Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan resigns : Governor of Mizoram Kummanam Rajasekharan has resigned from his post. President Ram Nath Kovind has accepted the resignation of Rajasekharan. Mr. Rajasekharan began his political career as an activist of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Sangh Parivar in the state of Kerala in 1970.

3.  India’s first oil museum to come up in Guwahati :  India’s first oil museum will come up in Guwahati, Assam. It will be named KB Malaviya National Oil Museum. KB Malaviya is called the father of India’s hydrocarbon industry. Assam was the first state where oil was discovered and produced for the first time in the country. All major oil and gas companies ONGC, OIL, HPCL, BPCL, EIL will jointly work for the museum.

4. MP: Ancient tribal language Gondi to be taught in tribal districts :  Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath has decided to include the ancient tribal language ‘Gondi‘, in tribal districts of the state. The State Government has decided to include Gondi in the primary education curriculum of the state's tribal-dominated districts.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Japanese architect Arata Isozaki wins the Pritzker Prize 2019 :  Japanese architect ‘Arata Isozaki’ has won the Pritzker Prize 2019. He is the 46th Pritzker laureate and the 8th Japanese architect to receive the honour. The Pritzker Prize (USD 100,000) is regarded as architecture's equivalent to the Nobel Prize. The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and the Palau Saint Jordi indoor sporting arena in Barcelona are among more than 100 of his major projects.

2.  India, Japan hold inaugural space dialogue : The inaugural India-Japan Space Dialogue was held in New Delhi. The dialogue brought together Ministries and agencies related to outer space in the two countries and provided an opportunity for information exchange on the respective space policies. Discussions were also held on bilateral cooperation between JAXA-ISRO, their space industries, global navigation satellite system, space situational awareness, space security and space-related norms.

3. Ausaf Sayeed appointed new Ambassador of India to Saudi Arabia :  Dr. Ausaf Sayeed (Indian Foreign Service officer -1989 batch) has been appointed as the ambassador of India to Saudi Arabia. He will succeed Ahmad Javed, who had been serving as envoy to Saudi Arabia (since December 2015). Currently, Dr. Ausaf Sayeed is the High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Seychelles.

4. UNDP appoints Padma Lakshmi as Goodwill Ambassador :  The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has appointed Indian-American television personality and food expert ‘Padma Lakshmi’ as Goodwill Ambassador. The newest Goodwill Ambassador, supporting the agency’s fight against inequality and discrimination around the world. Ms. Lakshmi has been a judge and host, as well as executive producer, of Bravo Television’s Emmy award-winning series Top Chef.

OTHER UPDATES:

DEFENCE:

1. Bilateral joint exercise between India, Oman to begin from 12th March :  The third edition of the bilateral joint exercise between India and Oman ‘Al Nagah 2019’ will begin from 12th March at Jabel Al Akhdar Mountains in Oman (end on 25th of March). It will continue till 25th of March. In the exercise, both the armies will exchange expertise and experience in tactics, weapon handling and firing. The objective of this exercise is to enhance interoperability in counter-terrorist operations in semi-urban mountainous terrain.

Daily GK Updates - 8th March, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Govt. to celebrate ‘Poshan Pakhwada’ from 8th to 22nd March 2019 across the Country : Poshan Pakhwada’ has been launched across the Country on International Women’s Day (8th March). The Minister for Women & Child Development has been celebrating the first anniversary of POSHAN Abhiyaan (from 8th-22nd March 2019).The Poshan Pakhwada will be celebrated on lines of ‘Poshan Maah’ held in the month of September 2018. During the Poshan Pakhwada, it is also planned to organise a workshop on Agri-Nutrition on 15th March 2019. The Ministry of Women & Child Development is the nodal ministry for coordinating activities during the month.

2. Ajit Kumar Mohanty appointed Bhabha Atomic Research Centre chief : Scientist Ajit Kumar Mohanty has been appointed Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), the country's premier multi-disciplinary nuclear research facility for a period of three years. He is at present Director, Physics Group in BARC and Director, Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics. The BARC is India's premier nuclear research facility based in Mumbai.

3. Hardeep S Puri launches e-Dharti App : Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Puri has launched ‘e-Dharti app’ and e-Dharti GeoPortal In ‘e-Dharti app’, all the three modules- Conversion, Substitution and Mutation related to properties have been made online. e-Dharti GeoPortal, through which the lessee of the property will be able to see the basic details of property along with map showing its location.The payment system in Land and Development Office, L&DO has also been completely digitized. This application will not only benefit public but the Government also in getting to know the actual status of its vacant properties, whether there is any encroachment on the property.

4. I&B Secretary Amit Khare releases Reference Annuals :  Information and Broadcasting Secretary Amit Khare has released Reference Annuals - India 2019 and Bharat 2019 at a function in New Delhi. The reference annuals are the flagship publication in English and Hindi brought out by Publications Division. These publications have been the source of information not only for youth but also for those who desire to know more details about Indian Economy, Agriculture, Science and Technology and developments in other fields.

5.  Cabinet approves investment for Kiru Hydro Electric Project in J&K :  The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved the investment sanction for construction of 624 Mega-watt Kiru Hydro Electric Project in Jammu and Kashmir.The CCEA also approved the investment for Khurja Super Thermal Power Plant (1320 Mega Watt) at Bulandshahar in Uttar Pradesh and Buxar thermal Power Project (1320 Mega Watt) in Bihar. The project will provide much-needed power to the northern grid. The CCEA has approved the construction of a 3rd railway line (155 kilometres length) between Narayangarh in West Bengal and Bhadrak in Odisha.

6. President Kovind presents Nari Shakti Puraskar 2019 : President Ram Nath Kovind presented the Nari Shakti Puraskar 2018 in New Delhi. Nari Shakti Puraskar is the highest civilian honour for women in India. This year, 44 awardees have been selected for these Puraskar. Ministry confers Nari Shakti Puraskar to women and institutions in recognition of their relentless service towards the cause of women empowerment and social welfare.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 1. International Women's Day being observed :  International Women's Day (IWD) is being celebrated every year on 8th March to highlight the achievements of women while calling for greater equality. It is a day when women are recognized for their achievementswithout regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political. The UN Women’s theme for 2019 is “Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change”. International Women's Day first emerged from the activities of labour movements at the turn of the twentieth century in North America and across Europe.

OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. Union Government announces new Rs 20 coin :  The union Government has announced a new Rs 20 coin, come in 12-edged polygon (dodecagon) shape.According to the Finance Ministry, the new Rs 20 coin will be made in copper (65%), zinc (15%) and nickel (20%) for the outer ring.While the inner ring (centre piece) will be 75% copper, 20% zinc and 5% nickel. It will be 27mm (milli meters) and weigh 8.54 grams. The Lion Capitol symbol of Ashoka Pillar with the legend “Satyamev Jayate” below it will be inscribed on its front side. The words “Bharat” in Hindi and “INDIA” in English will be there on the right and left-hand side of the symbol respectively.

2.  NGT slaps Rs 500 crore penalty on Volkswagen : The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has slapped a fine of Rs 500 crore on German global auto giant ‘Volkswagen’ for damaging the environment using “cheat device” in its diesel cars in India. A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goeldirected the German global auto giant to deposit the amount within two months. The tribunal enhanced the compensation amount of Rs. 171.34 crore, which was recommended by an NGT- appointed committee, as a means of “creating deterrence”.

BANKING/FINANCE:

1. World Bank to provide 250 Million USD for NRETP to boost Rural incomes in India : World Bank to provide 250 Million USD for the National Rural Economic Transformation Project (NRETP) to boost Rural incomes across 13 States in India.The loan will help women in rural households develop viable enterprises for farm and non-farm products.

Daily GK Updates - 7th March, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Indore awarded the cleanest city in Swachh Survekshan 2019 awards : Indore has been awarded India's cleanest city for the third straight year in the central government's cleanliness Swachh Survekshan 2019 (SS 2019) awards. The secon and third positions in the category were grabbed by Ambikapur (Chhattisgarh) and Mysore (Karnataka). The New Delhi Municipal Council area was given the 'Cleanest Small City' award, Gauchar (Uttarakhand) was adjudged the 'Best Ganga Town' in the central government survey. The 'Cleanest Big City' award has been bagged by Ahmedabad, while Raipur is the 'Fastest Moving Big City'. Ujjain has been the adjudged the 'Cleanest Medium City' and Mathura-Vrindavan bagged the tag of the 'Fastest Moving Medium Cities'. Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) has been declared as the cleanest capital. Swachh Survekshan 2019 covered all urban local bodies in the country, making it the largest such cleanliness survey in the world.

2. Uttarakhand CM Rawat lays foundation stone for Doon-Mussoorie ropeway project :  Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat laid the foundation stone for the Dehradun-Mussoorie ropeway project to boost the tourism of Mussoorie. The Doon-Mussoorie ropeway would be among the five longest ropeway projects of the world. The ropeway project (cost Rs. 300-crore rupees) is expected to be completed in three years. Once completed, it will shorten the one-hour zigzag drive to just 15 minutes from Purkul village the base camp at Dehradun to Mussoorie.

3. PM releases new series of coins for Divyang kids : Prime Minister Narendra Modi has released the new series of visually-impaired friendly circulation coins in the denomination of Rs 1, Rs 2, Rs 5, Rs 10 and Rs 20. Various new features have been incorporated in the new series of circulation coins to make it easy for the visually impaired to use them. The coins are characterised by the increasing size and weight from lower to higher denominations.

4. Notun Disha’ Initiated by Tripura Government : Tripura Education Minister Ratan Lal Nath has announced ‘Notun Disha’ for assessing the academic level of students in classes III-VIII and then improving their current level. Training will be provided by NGOs and educational institutions to 800 teachers. The duration of the project is 1 month. Rs. 28 crores have been allocated to the project.

5. IRDAI, NHA form working group to curb fraud in Ayushman Bharat scheme : The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India(IRDAI) and the National Health Authority (NHA) jointly formed a working group on the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY). The 10 members joint working group will be chaired by Dr Dinesh Arora (Deputy CEO of NHA).It will submit a report on how to detect and deter fraud through a common repository and capacity-building.

6. Janaushadhi Diwas is being celebrated across the country : Janaushadhi Diwas has been celebrated across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed five thousand Janaushadhi stores across the country through video-conferencing on the occasion. More than five thousand 50 Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana Kendras(PMBJP) are functional in 652 districts. The Janaushadhi Kendras are providing quality medicine at an affordable price.10 to 15 lakh beneficiaries are getting medicines from Janaushadhi stores every day.

                                   INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1.  Google launches 'Bolo' app to tutor children to read in Hindi, English :  Tech giant Google unveiled a new free app 'Bolo' that aims to help children in primary school learn to read in Hindi and English. The free app uses Google's speech recognition and text-to-speech technology. The app features an animated character 'Diya', who encourages children to read stories aloud and helps if the child is unable to pronounce a word. It also lauds the reader when she completes the reading.The users are a not asked for details like email ID and gender for logging into the app.

2. Mumbai airport tops in ‘over 40 m’ passenger category :  As per the Airport Council International (ACI) World, The GVK-led Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) has been awarded for the best airport by size and region in the ‘Over 40 Million’ passenger category. The award was in recognition of excellence in customer experience in the Asia-Pacific region. This is the highest possible reward for any airport operator covering more than half of the world's 8.3 billion passengers.The award ceremony will be held in Bali, Indonesia.

3. Malaysia joins the International Criminal Court : Malaysia has become the 124th member of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC is the world’s only permanent war crimes court and aims to prosecute the worst abuses when national courts are unable or unwilling. The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal that sits in The Hague in the Netherlands, establishment in 2002.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING/FINANCE:

1. United Bank, HDFC Life sign bancassurance deal : United Bank of India (UBI) has signed a bancassurance deal with private life insurer HDFC Life Insurance Company. United Bank’s customers will be able to take advantage of HDFC Life’s expertise in life insurance products, distribution and customer service. United Bank has a strong presence in rural and semi-urban areas, with over 2,000 branches and offices, while HDFC Life is India’s largest non-bank-promoted private life insurer.

SPORTS:

1. Manpreet Singh named the captain of Indian hockey team :  According to Hockey India, Manpreet Singh has been named as the Captain of the 18-member Indian hockey team to play in the upcoming 28th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. Surender Kumar will be the Vice-Captain of the team. India will start its campaign against Japan on the opening day itself (23rd March). Participating nations in the tournament are India, Malaysia(host), Canada, Korea, South Africa, Asian Games gold medallist Japan.

Daily GK Updates - 6th March. 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.ISRO launches 'Yuva Vigyani Karyakram' for school children : Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has launched Young Scientist Programme “Yuva Vigyani Karyakram”, for the School Children to be studying in the ninth standard. ISRO Scientists will impart basic knowledge on Space Technology, Space Science and Space Applications to the young ones with the intent of arousing their interest in the emerging areas of Space activities. Two weeks “Catch them young” residential training programme will be held during summer holidays to select 3 students from each State and Union Territory, covering CBSE, ICSE and State syllabus.

2. Maharashtra Cabinet clears 29-kilometre metro line for Thane : Maharashtra state cabinet chaired by Devendra Fadnavis approved the 29-kilometre metro line for Thane. It will feature 22 stations along a 29 kilometres route, connected to lines 4 and 5 of the Mumbai Metro. The project will take four years to be completed and will be built at a cost of nearly 13,095 crore rupees. The metro will start from the New Thane metro station in the old city area and will connect to Wadala-Kasarvadavli Metro at two places, namely the New Thane station and Dongripada. It will also have a link to the Thane-Bhiwandi- Kalyan Metro Line 5 at Majiwada junction.

3.  Karnataka launches ‘Jalamrutha’ scheme for water conservation : Karnataka chief minister ‘H D Kumaraswamy’ has initiated the ‘Jalamrutha’ initiative which is a water conservation scheme. The objective of the initiative to create awareness among the people of the state about the invaluable nature of water and the need to conserve it at any cost. The state of Karnataka has announced the year 2019 as ‘Jalavarsha (year of water)’.

4. Bhagwan Lal Sahni appointed Chairman of the National Commission for Backward Classes :  President Ram Nath Kovind has appointed Bhagwan Lal Sahni as the chairman of the newly constituted National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC). Kaushalendra Singh Patel, Sudha Yadav and Achary Talloju have been appointed as members of the commission. The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) was given constitutional status by Parliament in 2018, after repealing the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Kylie Jenner becomes a youngest self-made billionaire at 21 :  American reality television personality ‘Kylie Jenner’ (21-years) has been named the youngest-ever, self-made billionaire by Forbes magazine (move over Mark Zuckerberg).Facebook's Zuckerberg was 23 when he hit the big B mark. According to Forbes magazine, Jenner's Kylie Cosmetics is worth at least USD 900 million, and she owns it all. She has starred in the E! reality television series Keeping Up with the Kardashians since 2007 and is the founder and owner of cosmetic company Kylie Cosmetics.

OTHER UPDATES:

BUSINESS/ECONOMY:

1. TVS Motor Company wins Green Era Award for Sustainability :  TVS Motor Company has won the International Sustainability Award ‘Green Era Award for Sustainability’ (second time) in Lisbon, Portugal. The company also won the ‘Quality and Business Excellence Award’ in acknowledgement of its endeavour to create new benchmarks in product quality. TVS Motor Company bagged the award because of its sincere commitment towards being a responsible manufacturer. The awards are based on the conclusion of the research team of Otherways Management & Consulting, France.

2. Google getting rid of the ability to unlock mobile phones with Voice Match : The search-engine giant ‘Google’ is getting rid of the ability to unlock mobile phones with Voice Match and the 'Ok Google' command. Google has decided to limit this unlock feature to only launch the Assistant interface on the lock screen instead of unlocking the Android device based on voice match. A few devices have already lost the functionality with the Google app's 9.27. For users, this will mean a loss of functionality, but a significant gain in terms of security.

3. Govt fixes sugar sale quota for March : The Union government has fixed sugar sale quota for March month to each of the 524 mills in the country. Sugar mills can sell 24.5 lakh tonne of the sweetener in the open market in the current month. According to Ministry, mills can sell sugar at a minimum selling price of 31 rupees per kg (earlier 29 rupees per kg) to realise maximum revenue and clear cane price arrears of farmers.

SPORTS:

1.  Yonex All England Championships 2019 begins :The Yonex All England Championships 2019 begins at Arena Birmingham in England, organized by Badminton England and sanctioned by the BWF (6th to 10th March 2019). Only the top 32 in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings qualify for the tournament. Prakash Padukone became the first Indian to win the All England Open Badminton Championships. It has a total purse of USD 1,000,000.

Daily GK Updates - 5th March, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1.  Rajnath Singh inaugurates project BOLD-QIT in Dhubri, Assam :   Home Minister Rajnath Singh has inaugurated the project BOLD-QIT (Border Electronically Dominated QRT Interception Technique) under CIBMS (Comprehensive Integrated Border Management system) on India-Bangladesh border in Dhubri District of Assam. Border Security Force (BSF) is responsible for the safeguarding of 4,096 Km long International Border with Bangladesh. In January 2018, Information and Technology Wing of BSFundertook the project BOLD-QIT completed it in record time with thetechnical support of various manufacturers and suppliers.

2. PM Modi launches Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Mandhan Yojana in Gujarat :

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Mandhan Yojana at Gandhinagar in Gujarat. The national pension scheme for workers and labourers of the unorganised sector was announced in the Interim Budget in February this year. Under the scheme, a monthly pension of Rs. 3,000 per month is provided to workers in the unorganised sector over 60 years of age. The scheme will benefit 10 crore workers in the unorganised sector.

3. Coal minister Goyal dedicates 1,000 MW NTPL power project to the nation :  Coal Minister Piyush Goyal dedicated to the nation a 1,000-megawatt (MW) thermal power project of Neyveli Tamil Nadu Power Ltd (NTPL) and a 150-MW solar power projects of NLC India Ltd (NLCIL) in Tamil Nadu. The 1,000-MW coal-fired thermal power project of NTPL is a joint venture between NLCIL and TANGEDCO (equity participation of 89:11). NLC India Ltd has installed 591 MW of solar power and 51 MW of wind power plants in various parts of Tamil Nadu.

4.  IRCTC launches Its Own Digital Payment Gateway ‘IRCTC iPay’ : Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has launched its own digital payment aggregator called ‘IRCTC iPay’.IRCTC iPay will provide payment options like credit card, debit card, unified payment interface and international card. This will help reduce the gap between IRCTC and banks which will eventually lead to a substantial reduction in payment failures. The back-end support will be provided by Delhi based MMAD communications (IRCTC’s technology partner).

5. Haryana Govt. announces Mukhyamantri Parivar Samman Nidhi Scheme : Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has launched ‘Mukhyamantri Parivar Samman Nidhi’ scheme in Chandigarh. Farmers of the state who cultivate on land with areas up to 5 acres and the families with an income of less than Rs. 15,000 per month. The scheme would provide a sum of Rs. 6,000 yearly, each family must nominate a member who will be provided with this amount. The scheme involves two categories of beneficiaries-in the age group of (18 to 40 years) and (40 to 60 years).

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1.Vice President Venkaiah Naidu to embark on a two-nation tour :  Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu embarked on a two-nation tour to Paraguay and Costa Rica. The Vice President will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including KJ Alphons(Minister of State for Tourism), Members of Parliament and senior government officials This is the first high-level visit from India to two Latin American countries. Mr. Naidu will address the India-Paraguay business forum and interact with the Indian diaspora in Paraguay.

2. Pranay Kumar Verma appointed as India’s ambassador to Vietnam : Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has appointed Pranay Kumar Verma (Indian Foreign Services Officer-1994 cadre) as India’s Ambassador to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Currently, Mr. Verma working as the Joint Secretary at Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

3. Russia suspends participation in Intermediate-Range Nuclear treaty with US : Russian President Vladimir Putin has officially suspended the country's participation in a key Cold War-era nuclear arms-control treaty with the United States. Mr. Putin signed a decree regarding the suspension of Russia's participation in the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces, INF treaty between the USSR and the US in 1987. The move was taken following a violation of the United States of its obligations under the treaty. Earlier, Both Countries have accused one another of breaching the INF treaty.

4. DRDO Chairman wins Missile Systems Award :  DRDO Chairman ‘Satheesh Reddy’ has been chosen by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) as the co-winner of the 2019 Missile Systems Award. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has chosen ‘Satheesh Reddy’ (DRDO Chairman and Secretary of India’s Department of Defence R&D) as the co-winner of the 2019 Missile Systems Award. The other co-winner is Rondell J. Wilson who is a former Principal Engineering Fellow of Raytheon Missile Systems.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING/FINANCE:

1.  Indian Bank receives Best Bank Award from TN govt : Tamil Nadu government bestowed the Best Bank Award to the Indian Bank The award was based on the criteria that the bank met the needs of women’s self-help groups (SHGs).Chief Minister of the state K Palaniswami handed over the award to the executive director of the bank M K Bhattacharya in a function held in Salem.

OBITUARIES:

1. American actor Luke Perry passes away in California : American actor Luke Perry (52-years) passed away in California, U.S. He became a teen idol for playing Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210 from 1990 to 1995, and again from 1998 to 2000. From 2017 until his death, Perry starred as Frederick "Fred" Andrews, Archie's father, on the CW series Riverdale.

Daily GK Updates - 4th March, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. Piyush Goyal & Fadnavis launches the second phase of Monorail in Mumbai : Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal jointly inaugurated the second phase (11.28 kilometre) of Monorail in Mumbai, extended from Wadala to Jacob Circle. With this, the entire 19.54 kilometres route (first phase-8.26 kilometre) of the country being implemented by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), is now functional. The fare for the entire 17-station route has been fixed at Rs. 10, Rs. 20, RS. 30 and Rs. 40. According to Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, all the railway stations will be connected through skywalks and subways. Now, The Mumbai Monorail  became the sixth-largest monorail system in the world.

2. Mahashivratri being celebrated with traditional fervour across the country : ‘Mahashivratri’ festival is being celebrated across the country with religious fervor and gaiety. Maha Shivratri is the most auspicious festival of devotees of ‘Lord Shiva’.Thousands of devotees celebrate the festival by fasting and offering special prayers in the various temple.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1.World Hearing Day : World Hearing Day, on March 3rd, is a campaign held each year by Office of Prevention of Blindness and Deafness of the World Health Organization.Activities take place across the globe and an event is hosted at the World Health Organization on March 3rd. Theme :- ‘Check your Hearing’.

2.QS World Rankings : Manipal Academy of Higher Education has become only private University in India to be featured in the QS World rankings in the areas of Medicine and Pharmacy. Other three are AIIMS (Delhi), Jamia Hamdard (New Delhi) & Banaras Hindu University (Uttar Pradesh). QS World University Rankings is an annual publication of university rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING/FINANCE:

1.Ex-Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia appointed non-executive chairman of BoB :  Former Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia (1981-batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre) has been appointed as non-executive chairman of Bank of Baroda (BoB) for a period of three years. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved his appointment as the part-time non-official director as well as non-executive chairman on the board of Bank of Baroda.Earlier, Mr. Adhia served as the Finance Secretary.

SPORTS:

1. Roger Federer claims 100th ATP title of his career :  Swiss great Roger Federer (37-years) has claimed the 100th ATP title of his career with after beating Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 in the final of the Dubai Tennis Championships. Federer (20-time grand slam champion) is the second man, after American Jimmy Connors to claim 100 titles (record of 109). Tsitsipas saw the end of an eight-match winning streak as he arrived in the Gulf with the Marseille title from last weekend.

2. Shashank Shekhar wins 10 km race of Nepal's COAS Open Marathon :  Shashank Shekhar has won the 10-kilometre race of Nepal's Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Open Marathon and Run for Fun held in Kathmandu. Shekhar is the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Contingent at Embassy of India in Kathmandu. RD Murgan (from CISF) got third place.

OBITUARIES:

1.  Former Deputy Prime Minister of Nepal Bharat Mohan Adhikari passes away :Former Deputy Prime Minister of Nepal and Senior leader of ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP), Bharat Mohan Adhikari (83-years) passed away in Kathmandu. Mr Adhikari was very popular among the common people for introducing "Aafno Gaun Aafai Banau", development programme aimed at developing villages across the country by giving them the authority to select local projects on their own. The scheme was launched in 1995 when he was Finance Minister in the Manmohan Adhikari government.

Daily GK Updates - 3rd March, 2019

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. PM Modi inaugurates Ahmedabad Metro service  : Prime Minister Narendra Modi has partially inaugurated the first phase of the 6.5 km-long Ahmedabad Metro train service in Gujarat. PM Modi also laid the foundation stone of the 28.28 kilometres second phase of Ahmedabad Metro project and travel some distanceon the phase-I stretch. Total completion cost of Phase-II metro is estimated at Rs. 5,384.17 crores. Ahmedabad Metro is an under the construction mass-transit rail system for the cities of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar in Gujarat, India.

2.  PM Modi inaugurates ordnance factory in Amethi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated a factory to manufacture AK 203 rifles in Korwa area of Amethi. These Rifles will help the security forces to tackle terrorists and Naxals. The rifles will progressively replace the Army’s in-service INSAS and AK-47 rifles. Around 7.5 lakh units of the latest version of AK-47 will be manufactured in the new unit.

3. Maharashtra govt to appoint Lokpal in universities to resolve student grievances :  Maharashtra Government has appointed ‘Lokpal’ in all universities except agricultural universities to resolve student grievances. The appointment of the students' ombudsman would be made in the next two to three months. Maharashtra would be the first state in the country to have such a Lokpal for universities. The Lokpal will be a person related to the university and someone not below the rank of the retired district judge or a retired vice-chancellor.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. World Wildlife Day being observed : The World Wildlife Day has been observed across the world on 3rd March raise awareness of the world's wild fauna and flora.The theme of World Wildlife Day 2019 is “Life Below Water: For people and planet”.The day is celebrated and implemented by the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), in collaboration with other relevant United Nations organizations.

OTHER UPDATES:

BANKING/FINANCE:

1.AN Jha replaces Shaktikanta Das as 15th Finance Commission Member : Former Finance Secretary Ajay Narayan Jha (1982-batch IAS officer of Manipur cadre) has joined as a member of the 15th Finance Commission. Jha has been posted in place of Shaktikanta Das, resigned after being appointed the RBI Governor. Mr. Jha was retired as a Finance Secretary to the central government.

SPORTS:

1. CISF creates Guinness world record in a single-line bicycle parade :  The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has created a Guinness world record in a single line bicycle parade to mark the 50 years of the paramilitary force. Personnel of the central force rode a total of one thousand 327 bicycles non-stop with a uniform distance between bicycles in a single line at the Yamuna Expressway in Noida.The bicycle parade covered 3.2 km distance non-stop. Earlier, this record was held by Hubballi bicycle club of India which had one thousand 235 bicycles in a single chain.The CISF was raised in 1969 and has about one lakh 80 thousand personnel in its ranks.

2. Wrestler Bajrang Punia wins gold in Bulgaria : India's star wrestler Bajrang Punia has won a gold medal in 65-kilograms freestyle in Bulgaria. Punia overpowered Jordan Oliver of USA 12-3 in the final. This was Punia's 10th medal in as many international tournaments since the 2017 World Championships in Paris.Earlier, Pooja Dhanda claimed gold in women's 59 kg while Sarita Mor won a silver in the same weight category. In the men's freestyle events, Sandeep Tomar claimed silver in 61kg.

OBITUARIES:

1.Russian physicist and Nobel laureate Zhores Alferov passed away :  Russian physicist and Nobel Prize laureate Zhores Alferov (88-years) passed away. In 2000, Alferov received the Nobel Prize in Physics together with US scientists Jack Kilby and Herbert Kroemer, for developing semiconductor heterostructures used in high-speed-and optoelectronics. He was elected a corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1972, and a full member in 1979.