Daily GK Update 12th May, 2017

PM Modi visits Sri Lanka 

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on the two-day visit to Sri Lanka which is a sign of “strong relationship” between the two countries and brings to the fore the shared heritage of Buddhism.
ii. During his two-day visit, he will participate in the International Vesak Day celebrations, the biggest festival of Buddhists, inaugurate a hospital built with Indian assistance and address the Indian-origin Tamil community, besides attending some other programs.

Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister launch e-Krishi Samvad 

i. Shri Radha Mohan Singh, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare launched e-Krishi Samvad an online interface at Krishi Bhawan in New Delhi.
ii. It is an internet-based interface and is a unique platform that will provide direct and effective solutions to the problems faced by farmers and stakeholders in the agriculture sector.

Nitin Gadkari launches NHAI's Masala Bond in UK

i. Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari launched the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) Masala Bond at the London Stock Exchange, UK. 
ii. The initially benchmarked issue of Rs. 1,500 crore was upsized to Rs. 3,000 crore at a price yielding 7.30 percent annually in view of the highly positive response from the investor market.
iii. The transaction marks the largest ever in the five-year issuance and the largest inaugural transaction in Masala Bond market. 

 India to replace Maitri station in Antarctica, expand research activity

i. India has decided to replace the Maitri research station in Antarctica with a new one in the next three to four years. 
ii. The country is also drafting laws to safeguard its interest in Antarctica and is poised to expand its research activity in the coldest continent with the special ice-cutting facility will be procured for the purpose.

SBI revises service charges; to charge ATM withdrawals at Rs. 25

i. State Bank of India (SBI) has announced another revision in service charges with effect from June 1, 2017. All cash withdrawals through ATM will now be charged at Rs. 25 per transaction. Only RuPay classic card will be issued for free.
ii. State Bank of India has clarified that the proposed hike in ATM withdrawal charges will be applicable only to customers of its mobile wallet State Bank Buddy.
Few major changes done by SBI are as follows-

1. Limit of four ATM withdrawals in a month only applies to the Basic Savings Banks deposit account.
2. All Normal Saving Bank accounts will continue to get eight free ATM transactions (5 SBI ATMs + 3 other bank ATMs) in Metros & 10 free transactions in Non-Metro (SBI ATM + 5 Other Bank ATMs) free apart from the bank transaction.
3. Anyone making upto Rs 1 lakh transfer on IMPS will be charged with Rs 5 per transaction plus service tax.
4. Between Rs 1 lakh – Rs 2 lakh and Rs 2 lakh – Rs 5 lakh, service charges are at Rs 15 and Rs 25 each plus service tax.
5. On Basic Savings Bank Deposit (BSBD) account, no charged will be levied for four withdrawals, more than that Rs 50 plus service tax will be charged at any SBI branch, while at any other bank Rs 20 plus tax.

LIC Housing Finance launches new home loan product

i. LIC Housing Finance launched a new product `Griha Siddhi' which will offer loans for construction, purchase of the house or flat and repairs or renovation to the existing properties.
ii. Under the new product, borrowers will be offered the interest rate of 8.40% up to Rs 25 lakh and for loans up to Rs 1 crore the interest rate will be 8.50% per annum. For women borrowers, the mortgage lender is offering a special interest rate of 8.35% for loans up to Rs 25 lakh.

 Justice Mukul Mudgal elected head of FIFA Governance Committee

i. Justice (Retd.) Mukul Mudgal was elected as head of International Federation of Association Football (FIFA’s) governance committee at the world football governing body’s 67th Congress in Bahrain’s capital city of Manama.



Bengaluru ranked 20th in world's most affordable tech city Index

i. Bengaluru has been named the world’s most affordable tech city in the new Savills Tech Cities Index 2017. The Indian technology hub is the most affordable out of 22 cities that were graded on different parameters.
ii. Overall, Bengaluru ranks 20th among tech cities in the world while Austin topped the list, followed by San Francisco and New York. But when it comes to the cost of living index, Bengaluru tops the charts with a weekly residential rent for tech employees and household.

Chanda Kochhar receives Woodrow Wilson Award 

i. ICICI Bank chief Chanda Kochhar has become the first Indian woman to be conferred with the prestigious Woodrow Wilson Award for Global Corporate Citizenship.
ii. She received the annual award which was instituted in 1998 by the prestigious Wilson Center to felicitate individuals whose actions and accomplishments either in their careers or through service.

Important Takeaways from above GK Update for Exams are as follows-

• President of Sri Lanka is Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister is Ranil Wickremesinghe.
• The capital of Sri Lanka is Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte. This is the administrative capital where most of the administrative institutions exist including Parliament of Sri Lanka.
• The 14th United Nations Day of Vesak is celebrated from 12th May to 14th May in Sri Lanka
• In 2017, United Nations International Day of Vesak will be hosted by Sri Lanka under the theme “Buddhist Teachings for Social Justice and Sustainable World Peace”
• Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare is Shri Radha Mohan Singh.
• The rupee-denominated offshore bonds are popularly known as Masala Bonds
• The instrument has been exempted from taxation for transfer among non-residents while a low rate of five percent would be applicable for investors till 2020
• Capital of UK is London and its currency is Pound Sterling
• Theresa May is the PM of UK.
• Dakshin Gangotri was the first Indian scientific research base station established in Antarctica during 1984
• Maitri is India’s second permanent research station in Antarctica. It was built in 1989.
• Chairman of LIC is Vijay Kumar Sharma
• Life Corporation of India was founded on 1 September 1956 and its headquarter is Mumbai.
• 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup will be hosted by India
• 2018 FIFA World Cup to be held in Russia
• FIFA president is Gianni Infantino.
• Bengaluru named as the Silicon valley of India
• Bengaluru also named as the Information Technology (IT) capital of India.
• CEO of ICICI Bank is Chanda Kochhar
• ICICI Bank headquarter is in Mumbai.

QUIZ-12

Q1. Panchayati Raj Diwas was celebrated recently (April 24) across India. Which of the following Gram Panchayat was the first to become open defecation free (ODF) in the country?

(a) Mander Gram Panchayat

(b) Akodara Gram Panchayat

(c) Kuther Gram Panchayat

(d) Gyanwath Gram Panchayat

(e) Shakul Gram Panchayat

Q2. Name the Bollywood film that has recently won the best film honor at the Hong Kong International Film Festival.

(a) Newton

(b) Mashaal

(c) Lunch Box

(d) Aligarh

(e) Bahubali

Q3. World Book and Copyright Day (WBCD) is observed globally on __________.

(a) 24 April

(b) 23 April

(c) 21 April

(d) 21 March

(e) 20 March

Q4. Name the player who has recently won the Men's Singles title of Monte Carlo Masters Tennis tournament 2017.

(a) Andy Murray

(b) Roger Federer

(c) Novak Djokovic

(d) Stan Wawrinka

(e) Rafael Nadal

Q5. Various Sports including Cricket and Sambo has been removed from the program list in order to remove the burden from the organizers of the 2018 Asian Games. The Asian Games 2018 will be held in _________.

(a) Jakarta

(b) Padang

(c) Palembang

(d) Both (a) and (c)

(e) Both (a) and b)

Q6. Name the player/s who is/are in the winners at the second Golf Industry Association (GIA) Awards 2017.

(a) SSP Chaurasia

(b) Aditi Ashok

(c) Ali Sher

(d) All of the above

(e) Only (a) and (b)

Q7. The National Health Mission (NHM) in which of the Indian state has launched a mobile-based application named 'Kilkari' to create awareness among pregnant women.

(a) Maharashtra

(b) Madhya Pradesh

(c) Haryana

(d) Uttar Pradesh

(e) Bihar

Q8. Name the Veteran actress who has received the lifetime achievement award at the 80th Bengal Film Journalists' Association (BFJA) awards 2017.

(a) Suchitra Sen

(b) Rituparna Sengupta

(c) Shahana Goswami

(d) Nandita Das

(e) Moushumi Chatterjee

Q9. China and Iran have signed the first agreement on the reconfiguration of Iran's Arak reactor. The deal was concluded between the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and a Chinese company at the official ceremony in which of the following cities?

(a) San Francisco

(b) Vienna

(c) Beijing

(d) Hong Kong

(e) Tehran

Q10. In a bid to expand the green cover, the Indian Railways has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with which of the following state government, under which trees will be planted on the land adjacent to the railway tracks in the state.

(a) Maharashtra

(b) Madhya Pradesh

(c) Himachal Pradesh

(d) Uttar Pradesh

(e) Rajasthan

Solutions

S1. Ans.(c)
Sol. Every year April 24 is being observed as National Panchayati Raj Diwas across India. This day marks the passing of the Constitution (73rd Amendment) Act, 1992 that came into force with effect from 24 April 1993. Kuther Gram Panchayat of Himachal Pradesh recieved the award for its best works. This Gram Panchayat was the first to become open defecation free (ODF) and was awarded sum of five lakh Rupees.

S2. Ans.(a)
Sol. Bollywood film "Newton" has won the best film honor at the Hong Kong International Film Festival. The lead actor of the film is Raj Kumar Rao. Amit Masurkar-directed "Newton", is a political satire. It had its world premiere at the 67th Berlin Film Festival where it won the International Federation of Art Cinemas (CICAE) award in its Forum segment.

S3. Ans.(b)
Sol. World Book and Copyright Day (WBCD) is being observed on 23rd April 2017. The day seeks to raise awareness about the importance of reading and promote publishing and the protection of copyright around the globe. It is a yearly event organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

S4. Ans.(e)
Sol. Rafael Nadal has won the Men's Singles title of Monte Carlo Masters Tennis tournament 2017. He defeated Albert Vinolas at a summit clash in Monaco. With this Rafael claimed a record 10th Monte Carlo Masters title.

S5. Ans.(d)
Sol. One of the sports to miss out from the programme list of the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang is cricket. Apart from cricket, skateboarding, sambo and surfing are among the other sports which have been removed from the programme in order to reduce the burden on Indonesian organizers. This measure was taken as a part of the series of changes aimed at reducing the total number of events from 493 to 431.

S6. Ans.(d)
Sol. SSP Chawrasia, Aditi Ashok and Ali Sher were among the winners at the second Golf Industry Association (GIA) Awards 2017. Aditi, who finished second in the Ladies European Tour (LET) order of merit in 2016 with the help of two victories, bagged Outstanding Achievement as a Player award. Chawrasia, who successfully defended his Indian Open title in 2017, bagged the Award for the Men's Player of the Year. Ali Sher, the Delhi Golf Club caddy-turned-pro-golfer, was feted for an Outstanding Playing Career. 

S7. Ans.(c)
Sol. The National Health Mission (NHM) in Haryana launched a mobile-based application named 'Kilkari' to create awareness among pregnant women, parents and health workers on the importance of ante and post natal care, institutional delivery, and immunization.

S8. Ans.(e)
Sol. Veteran actress Moushumi Chatterjee has received the lifetime achievement award, at the 80th Bengal Film Journalists' Association (BFJA) awards.

S9. Ans.(b)
Sol. China and Iran have signed the first agreement on the reconfiguration of Iran's Arak reactor. The deal was concluded between the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and a Chinese company at the official ceremony in the Austrian capital Vienna.

S10. Ans.(a)
Sol. In a bid to expand the green cover, the Maharashtra government recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Railways, under which trees will be planted on the land adjacent to the railway tracks in the state.