Daily GK Update 22nd March, 2017

World water day observed globally

i. World Water Day is held annually on 22 March as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.

ii. In 2017, the theme for World Water Day is 'Wastewater'.

Rs 2 lakh is the cash transaction limit, Aadhaar mandatory for I-T returns

i. The Rs 3-lakh limit proposed for cash payments in the Budget for 2017-18 will be brought down to Rs 2 lakh as part of an unprecedented 40 amendments to the Finance Bill. 

ii. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced the amendments in the lower House. This is aimed at tightening the noose on those dealing in cash. 

iii. Most other amendments are making Aadhaar mandatory for filing tax returns, applying for permanent account numbers (PAN) and allowing payments by only non-cash modes such as cheques, bank drafts or electronic transfers for electoral trusts are also aimed at curbing black money.

                                                       

RBI proposes to fix upper limit in PPIs at Rs 1 Lakh

i. The RBI proposed to fix the upper limit for Pre-paid Payment Instruments (PPIs) at Rs 1 lakh in view of growing usage of PPIs for a purchase of goods and services.

ii. The central bank has sought comments on draft circular on Master Directions on Issuance and Operation of Pre-paid Payment Instruments (PPIs) in India till March 31, 2017.

iii. As per the draft, the amount in a PPI should not exceed Rs 1 lakh at any point of time if the customer provides full KYC and Rs 20,000 if the customer provides minimum KYC details to the PPI issuing entity.

Assam Government approves recommendation of 7th Pay Commission

i. The Assam state cabinet has decided to implement the recommendation of the Seventh Pay Commission.

ii. The implementation will make state exchequer bear an additional burden of over Rs. 3000 Crore in the next financial year and the proposed pay structure would come into effect from 1 April 2016.

Second India-UAE conference on globalization to be held in Dubai

i. The second India-UAE conference on globalization held at Dubai with an aim to promote cooperation between the two countries, organized by All India Management Association (AIMA).

ii. Health care innovation will be among the subjects discussed during the conference themed as ‘Resetting Globalisation: Collaborating in a Fast Changing World'.

Russia’s VTB bank to shut India office

i. Russian bank VTB has decided to close its only office in New Delhi, India to cut costs but will continue to work in India.

ii. The decision to shut the branch in India was taken as part of a strategy of VTB Group aimed at optimizing costs and will continue to work on the Indian market expanding its cooperation with local partners. 

 Madhabi Puri Buch appointed as SEBI whole time member

i. The government has announced Madhabi Puri Buch as new whole time member of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for the period of three years.

ii. She is currently serving in the New Development Bank, Shanghai.

ABB India bags award for restoring 1,035 MW Sharavathi plant in Karnataka

i. ABB India has restored and modernized the critical 1,035 MW Sharavathi hydropower plant in Karnataka that accounts for 25% of Karnataka Power Corporation’s generation.

ii. For restoring the crucial power infrastructure, the ABB has bagged 'the India Smart Grid Foundation (ISGF) innovation award'.

ISRO commissions two major facilities at VSSC 

i. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) commissioned two major facilities a Hypersonic Wind Tunnel and Shock Tunnel at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre at Thiruvananthapuram. 

ii. Commissioning of such facilities would provide adequate data for design and development of current and future space transportation systems in the country.

Majuli all set to become India’s 1st carbon neutral district

i. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal launched initiatives to develop Majuli, world biggest river island, as India’s first carbon neutral district and as a biodiversity heritage- yet not officially released.

ii. He launched “Forests are Lives” campaign to celebrate the importance of Assam’s rich forest and biodiversity.

Shri Upendra Tripathy Appointed as Full Time Interim Director General of ISA

i. Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy and Mines and Ms. Ségolène Royal, Minister for Environment, Energy and Marine Affairs Government of France jointly decided to appoint Mr. Upendra Tripathy, as the Interim Director General (IDG) of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) on a full time basis.

ii. Mr. Upendra Tripathy was the Former Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.

ICMR head named to UN group on antimicrobial resistance

i. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Director Soumya Swaminathan has been named to a high-level group set up by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to provide expertise on and coordinate the global fight against antimicrobial resistance.

4 Indian cities among cheapest globally: EIU

i. Four Indian cities are among the cheapest to live in globally, while Singapore (last in the list) has been ranked as the most expensive for the fourth consecutive year, according to a 'Worldwide Cost of Living 2017' report by Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

ii. Bengaluru (3rd place), Chennai (6th), Mumbai (7th) and New Delhi (10th) have been ranked by EIU among the 10 cheapest cities in the world.

iii. Almaty has been ranked as the cheapest city in the world. 

 Major Rohit Suri awarded Kirti Chakra

i. Major Rohit Suri, from the Parachute Regiment who led the army team that carried out a surgical strike in PoK last year, was presented the second highest peacetime gallantry award Kirti Chakra by President Pranab Mukherjee.

ii. Corporal Gursevak Singh of Indian Air Force was posthumously conferred the Shaurya Chakra for putting up a valiant fight against terrorists who had attacked the frontline Pathankot air base.

K T Irfan Wins Bronze in Asian Racewalking Championships

i. India’s national record holder in men’s 20km race walk, K T Irfan has won bronze at the Asian Race Walking Championships in Nomi, Japan. 

QUIZ-22

Q1. Who has won the men’s singles title of the 2017 Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament in Lucknow recently?
Answer: Sameer Verma

Q2. In which Indian cities, Cab-hailing firm Uber has launched two-wheeler aggregation service UberMOTO recently?
Answer: Hyderabad

Q3. The Supreme Court has appointed a four-member committee to run the affairs of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) which will be led by-
Answer: Vinod Rai

Q4. Name the person, who has been appointed as the president of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) recently?
Answer: Dushyant Chautala

Q5. Union Health Secretary C.K. Mishra has recently launched a kit that will provide information on adolescent related issues such as puberty and mental health, among others. What is the name of that kit?
Answer: Saathiya Resource Kits

Q6. Which countries has become the first country in the world to divest coal, oil and gas investments from Ireland Strategic Investment Fund?
Answer: Ireland

Q7. Start-up firm E-paathsala has launched an integrated accreditation and ERP technology solution for the colleges and universities to enable them better manage their multiple accreditation standards in an easy, efficient and fast manner and bridge the gap identified for specific accreditations. E-paathsala is based in-
Answer: Bengaluru

Q8. Which countries has introduced a legislation by making it mandatory to raise the minimum salary of the H-1B visa holders to more than double at USD 1,30,000 from the previous USD 60,000? 
Answer: USA

Q9. NABARD has hailed the increased focus on irrigation and dairy sectors in the Budget which has hiked the corpus of long-term irrigation fund by another Rs 20,000 crore, taking the total fund size to how much amount?
Answer: Rs 40,000 crore

Q10. Name the Operation, which has been launched by Income Tax Department to verify the cash deposited in the banks during November 09th to December 30th 2016?
Answer: Operation Clean Money

Q11. Which Bank has tied up with Earthport Plc, a cross-border payment network, to enable faster outbound cross-border payments for its customers through Earthport’s state-of-the-art global payments network?
Answer: Axis Bank

Q12. According to a new study conducted by scientists in collaboration with the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), two new groups of wheat rust have been identified that posed threat to wheat produced in Africa, Asia and Europe in 2016. Where is the headquartered of FAO?
Answer: Rome, Italy

Q13. In an effort to strengthen the bilateral relations between India and UAE, the Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) Samudra Pavak made a goodwill visit at the Mina Al Rashid Port from February 04th to 07th, 2017. Mina Al Rashid Port is located at-
Answer: Dubai

Q14. Which banks has partnered with insurance company Cigna TTK Health to market the insurer’s products in the bank’s branches across the entire country?
Answer: Bank of Maharashtra

Q15. Name the Island, in which the Railway Ministry has decided to develop the first ever railway line?
Answer: Andaman and Nicobar

Daily GK Update 21st March, 2017

Daily GK Update 21st March, 2017

International Day of Forests: 21 March

i. March 21 is the United Nations’ (UN) International Day of Forests, which promotes the importance of forests and trees in our lives. 

ii. The 2017 theme is 'Forests and energy'.

Click here to Read more

Bharatiya Mahila Bank to be merged with SBI

i. New-Delhi headquartered The Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB) will be merged with the country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI).

ii. The move will ensure that banking services are provided to more women at a faster pace, given the advantage of the large network of SBI.

Branches of SBBJ, SBH, SBM, SBP and SBT to operate as branches of SBI from April 1, 2017

i. All branches of State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur (SBBJ), State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH), State Bank of Mysore (SBM), State Bank of Patiala (SBP) and State Bank of Travancore (SBT) will function as branches of State Bank of India from April 1, 2017.

ii. The Customers, including depositors of all the five Banks will be treated as customers of State Bank of India with effect from April 1, 2017.

Click here to read

India home to 101 billionaires, Mukesh Ambani tops the list: Forbes

i. India is home to world’s fourth highest number of billionaires with Reliance Industries chief Mukesh Ambani (33rd position globally) leading the club of more than 100 super rich Indians.

ii. The list has been topped by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates for the fourth year in a row. 

Uttarakhand HC accords human status to Ganga, Yamuna

i. The Uttarakhand High Court has given the status of "living human entities" to the Ganga and Yamuna. 

ii. The Director of Namami Gange project for cleaning and rejuvenating the river, the Chief Secretary and the Advocate General of Uttarakhand will act as the "legal parents" of the holy rivers and work as the human face to protect, conserve and preserve them and their tributaries.

India's first sign language dictionary to come up soon

i. The government is all set to come up with the country's first-of-its-kind dictionary which aims to bring uniformity in sign languages used by hearing and speech impaired people across the nation.

ii. The Indian Sign Language (ISL) dictionary is being developed by the Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC). The dictionary is being developed in both print and video format.

Solar Energy Scheme for Small Powerloom Units

i. The Government has approved a new scheme to provide financial assistance or capital subsidy to small powerloom units, for installation of Solar Photo Voltaic (SPV) plant, in order to alleviate the problem of power cut and shortages faced by decentralized powerloom units in India.

ii. Under the Solar Energy Scheme, the plants have two options:

On-Grid Solar Power Plant where power cut/shortage is negligible and power tariff is high.

Off-Grid Solar Power Plant in areas where there is power shortage & on-grid power is not continuously available.

ICICI Bank launches new app for rural customers 

i. ICICI Bank, India’s largest private sector bank by consolidated assets has announced the launch of a mobile banking app 'Mera iMobile' for rural customers.

ii. This app will allow them to access banking services as well as information on agri-services.

India ranks 122nd in World Happiness Report

i. India ranked 122nd out of 155 countries in the recently released World Happiness Report, 2017.

ii. India is behind Pakistan (80th) and Nepal (99th) in the global list of the happiest countries. The top three happiest countries in the list are- Norway, Denmark and Iceland.

ICRISAT, ICAR join hands for crop improvement

i. Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) would work together on crop improvement and agronomy programmes for grain legumes and dryland cereals.

ii. ICAR and ICRISAT, recently signed an agreement in New Delhi, in which climate-smart crops, smart food and digitalisation of breeding database were identified as some of the core areas of research.

IIT-Madras inks pact with Tanstia-FNF Service

i. IIT-Madras and small scale industry body Tanstia-FNF Service Centre have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for technology transfer of water treatment analysis kits designed to treat drinking water mainly in rural areas.

ii. The research at IIT-Madras for developing the filter and the kit was funded by International Development Research Centre, Canada.

NBCC to execute social housing project in Mauritius

i. National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC), a Navratna construction major under the Ministry of Urban Development will execute a US $ 20 million (Rs.130 crore) social housing project in Mauritius.

ii. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this regard was signed between NBCC and Mauritius.

Canadian wins $1m Global Teacher Prize

i. A Canadian school teacher Maggie MacDonnell was awarded the annual Global Teacher Prize and won a $1-million prize during a ceremony in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Five Indians in WEF’s 100 Young Global Leaders list

i. Five Indians have made it to the World Economic Forum's list of 100 Young Global Leaders under 40 years of age.

ii. These include Paytm Founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Blippar app's Founder Ambarish Mitra, journalist in Fortune India Hindol Sengupta, Swaniti Initiative's Rwitwika Bhattacharya and The Tamara Coorg hospitality's Shruti Shibulal. All the people in the list are entitled to a five-year leadership journey.

2017 healthiest country index

i. Bloomberg released it's 2017 World Health Index. Italy has been named the healthiest country by the index followed by Iceland and Switzerland at the top second and third position respectively.

ii. The list graded 163 countries based on variables such as life expectancy, causes of death and health risks such as high blood pressure, malnutrition, the availability of clean water and tobacco use.

Tamil Nadu wins Vijay Hazare Trophy

i. In Cricket, Tamil Nadu has won the domestic 50-over competition, the Vijay Hazare Trophy, for the fifth time.

ii. In the Final played at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in New Delhi, Tamil Nadu defeated Bengal. Dinesh Karthik was named man of the match.

Cheteshwar Pujara becomes first Indian to face 500 balls in Test innings

i. Cheteshwar Pujara has become the first Indian to face 500-plus balls in an innings, going past the mark against Australia.

ii. He broke past Rahul Dravid's record of 495 balls, which were the most faced by an Indian in one Test innings.

BCCI’s new constitution ousts Mumbai Cricket Association as full member

i. Mumbai, 41-time Ranji Trophy champions, will no longer be considered a Full Member association in accordance with the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) new constitution. 

ii. The new constitution stipulates that only 30 associations will function as controlling bodies for domestic cricket in their respective states by the Justice Lodha Committee.  

iii. Maharashtra and Gujarat cricket associations were included in the list of Full Members which means that the cricket associations of Mumbai, Vidarbha, Saurashtra and Baroda previously functioning as Full Members will now be considered Associate Members henceforth.

QUIZ-21

QUIZ-21

Q1. The Hindustan Motors has sold the iconic Ambassador car brand to which of the following automakers for Rs 80 cr?
Answer: Peugeot

Q2. IIP was 0.4% lower in December 2016 from the same period a year ago, data released on 10th February 2017 has showed. What is meaning of "P" in IIP?
Answer: Production

Q3. Which Indian city, IT giant Oracle Corporation will set up its biggest development centre outside its US headquarters with an investment of about Rs 2,500 crore?
Answer: Bengaluru

Q4. The government has stated that it would make 5.58 lakh ration shops Aadhaar-enabled by-
Answer: 30th June 2017

Q5. Union Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers and Parliamentary Affairs ______________ has inaugurated and presided over the orientation programme for the district conveners of National Yuva Cooperative Society (NYCS).
Answer: Ananth kumar

Q6. Which country has won T20 Blind World Cup in M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru?
Answer: India

Q7. Reliance Defence signs warship repair pact with US Navy recently. Who is the working CEO of Reliance Defence and Engineering?
Answer: H.S. Malhi

Q8. Adele sweeps 59th Grammy Award 2017 and wins top 3 categories. 59th Grammy Award 2017 was held in ____________.
Answer: Los Angeles, The USA

Q9. In  British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) 2017, 'La La Land' takes 5 trophies, Dev Patel wins for 'Lion'. It was _____________ edition of BAFTA. 
Answer: 70th

Q10. Frank Walter Steinmeier elected as president of Germany, recently. He was former ____________ of Germany.
Answer: Foreign Minister

Q11. The first portion of the railways' long-awaited Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) will become operational by March 2018 between Ateli  and__________.
Answer: Phulera

Q12. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has organized a two day seminar on Bondedlabor from today. The seminar will cover various aspects related to the prevalence of bonded labor and challenges in its elimination, relief and rehabilitation of the rescued bonded laborers. Who is the working Chairperson of NHRC?
Answer: Justice H.L. Dattu

Q13. In the United States, National Security Adviser ______________ has resigned over his contacts with Russia, recently. He was alleged to have discussed US sanctions with the Russian Ambassador before President Donald Trump took office.
Answer: Michael Flynn

Q14. The first ever ITTF World Tour event in India have begun recently at the Thyagaraj Sports Complex in New Delhi. This event in India Open also happens to be the biggest ever ITTF event in terms of prize money. What is the prize money of this event?
Answer: 1.5 lakh US dollar

Q15. NITI Aayog is preparing a model contract farming law, which would connect farmers to the food processing industry.  A model law on contract farming will be prepared and circulated among the states for adoption soon. Who is Chairperson NITI ayog?
Answer: Shri NarendraModi

Daily GK Update 20th March, 2017

Daily GK Update 20th March, 2017

Finance Minister finalized capital infusion for 10 PSU banks

i. Coming in support of weak and non-performing Public Sector Banks (PSBs), the Finance Ministry has chalked out a turnaround-linked Rs 8,586-crore capital infusion plan for 10 PSBs.

ii. The Top five capital gaining banks are IDBI Bank (Rs 1,900 crore), Bank of India (Rs 1,500 crore), UCO Bank ( Rs 1,150 crore), Andhra Bank and Indian Overseas Bank with Rs (1,100 crore) each.

3 Day International Buddhist Conference in Bihar

i. The three days 'International Buddhist Conference' organized by Ministry of Culture and Nava Nalanda Mahavira Deemed University in Rajgir, Bihar.

ii. The two highlights of the inaugural session- first, the release of the reprint of the Pali Tripitaka in Devanagari script by the Dalai lama and second highlight was the announcement of the opening of the department of the Buddhist science for the first time in Asia.

Harsh Vardhan to inaugurate 5th foundation day function of BIRAC

i. Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan will inaugurate the 5th foundation day function of the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) in New Delhi.

ii. The discussion will focus on the impact the Biotech Ecosystem is making on the Indian economy and the opportunities which exist for the Indian Biotech Sector as a global player.

Amazon India brings out ‘A-Z GST Guide’ program

i. E-commerce major Amazon India has come out with a new program for sellers to get insights and help related to the goods and services tax (GST), called the ‘A-Z GST Guide’.

ii. The programme in its pilot phase has already trained over 5,000 sellers on the Amazon platform. The portal provides resources in the form of tutorials, blogs, and free online training sessions.

Idea Cellular board approves merger with Vodafone India

i. The boards of Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Group have approved a merger between Idea Cellular and Vodafone India Ltd.

ii. Vodafone India will own 45.1 percent stake in the merged entity. Promoters of Idea will hold 26 percent stake in the company and the remaining will be held by the public.

World Bank announces 57 billion US dollar for sub-Saharan Africa

i. World Bank has announced 57 billion US dollar financing for sub-Saharan Africa over the next three fiscal years (2017-2019).

ii. Of that total, 45 billion dollars will come from the International Development Association (IDA), 8 billion dollars from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and USD 4 billion dollars will come from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).

Government swaps chief executives of IDBI Bank, Indian Bank

i. The Centre has swapped the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of state-owned Indian Bank and IDBI Bank.

ii. Mahesh Kumar Jain, who was Managing Director & CEO at Indian Bank, has been appointed as Managing Director & CEO of IDBI Bank.

iii. Kishore Piraji Kharat, who was appointed as IDBI Bank CEO, has now been appointed as Managing Director and CEO of Indian Bank.

ONGC signs pact to buy out GSPC’s KG block stake

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has signed definitive agreements to buy out debt-ridden Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation’s (GSPC) entire 80% stake in KG-basin natural gas block for $1.2 billion.

Snapdeal appoints Jason Kothari as CEO of FreeCharge

i. E-commerce firm Snapdeal announced the appointment of Jason Kothari as the Chief Executive Officer of its digital payment platform FreeCharge.

ii. In addition to taking on the role of CEO, Jason will continue his key leadership role as Chief Strategy and Investment Officer at Snapdeal.

Kumar Mangalam Birla named Chairman of Vodafone-Idea merged entity

i. British telecom major Vodafone and Aditya Birla group-run Idea Cellular announced the merger of their operations and Mr. Kumar Mangalam Birla has been appointed as the Chairman of Vodafone-Idea merged entity.

Indian-American Computer Scientist Anshumali Wins NSF’s CAREER Award

i. An Indian-American computer scientist, Anshumali Shrivastava, was honored with the National Science Foundation’s prestigious CAREER Award for his research on redesigning current machine-learning processes.

Former Odisha MP Pyarimohan Mohapatra passes away

i. Former Rajya Sabha member Pyarimohan Mohapatra passed away in Mumbai after a prolonged illness. He was 77.

ii. Mohapatra was the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister when Biju Patnaik occupied the top post.

Meteorologist Dev Raj Sikka passes away

i. Dev Raj Sikka, former director of the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune died of a cardiac arrest.  He was 85 years old.

ii. He was the first to propose a link between the El Nino phenomenon and the Indian monsoon.

Shahid Afridi appointed as ambassador of Blind Cricket World Cup

i. Former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has been appointed as the ambassador for the fifth edition of the Blind Cricket World Cup 2018.

ii. The announcement was made by the Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC). Blind Cricket World Cup will be hosted by PBCC in the United Arab Emirates(UAE) and Pakistan in January 2018.

Roger Federer claims fifth Indian Wells Masters title

i. World famous tennis player Roger Federer (Switzerland) claimed his fifth BNP PARIBAS OPEN, ATP Indian Wells Masters title after defeating Stan Wawrinka in California, USA.

ii. Federer joined Novak Djokovic as the only men to win five Indian Wells titles, adding to those he won in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2012.