Daily GK Update 31st March, 2017

President inaugurated 'Namami Brahmaputra' festival in Assam

i. The biggest river festival of India, Namami Brahmaputra, begins in 21 districts of Assam.

ii. President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the festival on the banks of the river Brahmaputra, which is considered country's only male river.

iii. The main purpose of the 5-day festival (31st March to 4th April) is to give a boost to the investment and tourism prospect in the state.

India signs First Loan Agreement with New Development Bank

i. The Loan Agreement for New Development Bank (NDB) financing of US$ 350 Million for Development and Upgradation of Major District Roads Project in Madhya Pradesh was signed between Government of India and the New Development Bank (NDB).

ii. This is the First Loan Agreement for NDB assisted project in India. The objective of the Project is upgradation of major district roads (Approx. 1,500 km) in Madhya Pradesh to improve connectivity of the interior areas of the state with the national and state highway networks. The project implementation is 5 years.

Mental Healthcare Bill passed in Parliament

i. Parliament passed the Mental Healthcare Bill, 2016, which provides healthcare and services to the people with mental illness and also decriminalizes suicide.

ii. The bill was passed by Rajya Sabha in August 2016. The Mental Healthcare Bill secured approval in Lok Sabha too, recently. On the clauses decriminalizing suicide, the bill states that a person who attempts suicide should be presumed to have severe stress, and shall not be punished.

iii. Under the Mental Healthcare Bill, the punishment for flouting of provisions will attract up to six months in prison or Rs 10,000 fine or both.

RBI says payment systems to remain closed on April 1

i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said all payment systems will remain closed on April 1, in a change from its earlier directive asking banks to remain open on the first day of the next fiscal beginning April.

ii. Electronic fund transfers using payment channels like RTGS (Real-time gross settlement) and NEFT (National Electronic Funds Transfer) would remain closed on Saturday. However, debit card and credit card transactions would remain unaffected. 

Interest rates on small savings schemes cut by 0.1%

i. The returns on small savings schemes, including Public Provident Fund (PPF), National Savings Certificate (NSC) and Kisan Vikas Patra, will be lowered by 0.1 percent for the April-June quarter.

ii. Interest rates on all nine small savings schemes will be lower by 0.1%. Interest rates are reviewed quarterly.

iii. According to finance ministry notification, investments in the public provident fund (PPF) scheme will fetch lower annual rate of 7.9%, the same as a five-year National Savings Certificate.

Karnataka Bank, SBI Card launch co-branded credit card
i. Karnataka Bank and SBI Card have launched co-branded credit cards for the customers of Karnataka Bank.

ii. Through this alliance, Karnataka Bank and SBI Card will launch two variants of the co-branded credit card named ‘Karnataka Bank Platinum SBI Card’ and ‘Karnataka Bank SimplySAVE SBI Card’.

Sunaina Singh appointed as new Vice-Chancellor of Nalanda University

i. Sunaina Singh has been appointed as the new Vice-Chancellor of Nalanda University. She was Vice Chancellor of Hyderabad-based EFL University. She has replaced George Yeo.

ii. The University has received a total of 160 applications for the position and six people were called for interviews and three names were then sent to the Visitor. Singh’s name was on top.

El Salvador becomes first country in the world to ban metals mining

i. El Salvador, Central America’s smallest nation, has become the first country in the world to ban metals mining nationwide.

ii. The new law, supported by 70 lawmakers, bans all exploration, extraction, and processing of metals both in open pits and mines.

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson breaks Sunita Williams’ spacewalking record

i. American astronaut Peggy Whitson made history when she floated outside the International Space Station (ISS).

ii. She broke the record for the most spacewalks by a woman. Whitson at the age of 57, is making her eighth career spacewalk, surpassing the record of seven previously held by American Sunita Williams.
iii. Ms. Whitson earned a doctorate in biochemistry and served as the first female space station commander in 2008.

India's S V Sunil named player of the year for 2016 in Asian Hockey Awards

i. Indian forward player S V Sunil was named the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) Player of the Year for 2016.

ii. Drag-flick specialist Harmanpreet Singh was chosen as the Promising Player of the Year in the continental body’s annual awards.

Sachin Tendulkar launches own mobile app
i. Former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar launched his Android and iOS app called '100MB'. The app has been developed by Pune-based technology firm JetSynthesys.
ii. The app allows users access to their personal social media account within the app and access to exclusive information and interaction with Tendulkar.

Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows-

• The 5-day long Festival 'Namami Brahmaputra' begins in Assam
• Inaugurated by Indian President Pranab Mukherjee
• Prime Minister of Bhutan is Mr. Tshering Tobgay
• Brahmaputra River is country's only male river
• India signs First Loan Agreement of US$ 350 Million with New Development Bank for the first time
• The project implementation duration is 5 years
• The Government of Madhya Pradesh and MPRDC are the implementing agencies
• Judiciary capital of Madhya Pradesh is Jabalpur
• New Development Bank (NDB) is headquartered in Shanghai, China
• BRICS countries are members of NDB
• Parliament passed the Mental Healthcare Bill 2016
• punishment for flouting of provisions will attract up to six months in prison or Rs 10,000 fine or both
• The bill was passed by Rajya Sabha in August 2016 and now passed in Lok Sabha too.
• All payment systems will remain closed on April 1
• Electronic fund transfers using payment channels like RTGS and NEFT would remain closed on Saturday
• India signs First Loan Agreement of US$ 350 Million with New Development Bank for the first time
• The project implementation duration is 5 years
• The Government of Madhya Pradesh and MPRDC are the implementing agencies
• Judiciary capital of Madhya Pradesh is Jabalpur
• New Development Bank (NDB) is headquartered in Shanghai, China
• BRICS countries are members of NDB.
• Sunaina Singh appointed as the new Vice-Chancellor of Nalanda University
• She has replaced George Yeo
• Nalanda University is located in Nalanda District of Bihar
• It was established in 2014.
• El Salvador has become the first country in the world to ban metals mining
• El Salvador is Central America’s smallest nation
• Capital and largest city of El Salvador is San Salvador
• Salvador Sánchez Cerén is the president of El Salvador
• NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson breaks Sunita Williams’ spacewalking record
• She is making her eighth career spacewalk
• She was the first female space station commander in 2008
• S V Sunil named the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) Player of the Year for 2016
• Harmanpreet Singh was named as the Promising Player of the Year
• Karnataka Bank and SBI Card have launched co-branded credit cards for the customers of Karnataka Bank named ‘Karnataka Bank Platinum SBI Card’ and ‘Karnataka Bank SimplySAVE SBI Card’
• Polali Jayarama Bhat is CEO of Karnataka Bank and its Headquarter is in Mangalore
• Vijay Jasuja is CEO of SBI Card and its Headquarter is in Gurgaon.