World Red Cross Day: 8th May
i. World Red Cross Day is observed on May 8 every year to commemorate the birth anniversary of Henry Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross as well as the founder of International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). ii. The theme for this year (2017) is “Less Known Red Cross Stories”
PM Modi addresses Indian heads of mission meet in New Delhi
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed an Indian heads of mission meet in New Delhi, which is brainstorming key foreign policy issues and challenges including India’s engagement with major powers as well as strain in ties with Pakistan and China. ii. The four-day conference, was formally inaugurated by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj.
Country's 1st bio refinery plant inaugurated in Pune
i. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highway Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the country's first bio-refinery plant which produces ethanol from the variety of biomass.
ii. The project is situated at Rahu in Pune district. Mr. Gadkari stated that Plant can produce one million litre of ethanol per annum by processing a variety of agro-residue like rice and wheat straw, cotton stalk, cane trash, corn cobs with superior product yields.
Odisha to introduce boat ambulances in four districts
i. Odisha will introduce boat ambulance service in four districts where people face difficulties in getting health service. ii. The boat ambulance service will be available in the districts of Koraput, Malkangiri, Kendrapara and Kalahandi where people face problems in availing 108 ambulance service due to intervening large water bodies in the form of rivers and dams disrupting road communication, stated by Health and Family Welfare secretary P K Meherda.
India organized festival in Egypt to mark Tagore’s birth anniversary
i. India has organized a cultural festival in Egypt to mark the 156th birth anniversary of the famous Indian poet, Rabindranath Tagore. ii. The Tagore festival is being organized by the Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture, the cultural wing of the Indian Embassy in Cairo which is conclude on May 12 with ‘Rituranga -Play of Seasons’ and will be performed by members of the Indian community at the Hanager Theatre.
iii. Rabindranath Tagore received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. He was the first non-European to win this prestigious award, in recognition for his collection of poems, ‘Gitanjali’.
Hinduja brothers top UK's rich list
i. The Hinduja brothers have topped the 2017 list of the richest 1,000 people in the UK with an estimated fortune of 16.2 billion pounds, a massive 3.2 billion pound hike in their fortunes over the previous year. ii. Besides brothers Srichand and Gopichand Hinduja there are over 40 Indian-origin super-rich in this year's (2017) list which also includes a record number of British billionaires with 14 new ones emerging over the last year.
3 Indian scientists elected fellows of Royal Society
i. Three Indian Scientist have been elected as the Fellows of The Royal Society, a premier scientific academy of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, for their “outstanding contributions to science“.ii. Krishna Chatterjee from Cambridge University has been recognised for his discoveries of genetic disorders of thyroid gland formation.
iii. Subhash Khot from New York University has been credited for throwing insight into unresolved problems in the field of computational complexity.
iv. Yadvinder Malhi from Oxford University is recognised for his works on understanding the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems and its response to the pressures of global change, including climate change, degradation and loss of large animals.
Prabhat Kamal bezboruah 1st non-IAS to head tea board
i. Renowned tea planter from Assam Prabhat Kamal Bezboruah has been named the new chairman of the Tea Board of India by replacing Shri Santosh Sarangi, stated by the Union government.ii. With this, Bezboruah becomes the first non-IAS and an industry insider to be at the helm of the Kolkata-headquartered Tea Board, the governing body of the industry.
Facebook Launches ‘Express Wi-Fi’ in India
i. Facebook has launched its 'Express Wi-Fi' commercially in India and the service is now available via 700 hotspots across four states of Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Meghalaya. ii. For the expansion of service, Facebook has announced a partnership with Bharti Airtel for setting up an additional 20,000 hotspots covering millions of Indians over the next few months
Emmanuel Macron elected as President of France
i. Pro-European centrist leader Emmanuel Macron has been elected as President of France. ii. Mr. Macron will also become the first President from outside the two traditional main parties since the modern republic’s foundation in 1958.
Sachin Tendulkar conferred with Fellowship Award in UK
i. India’s cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar plans to support charities and various initiatives to help the under-privileged people. ii. He has received the Fellowship Award at the 7th annual Asian Awards in UK. India’s playback singer Adnan Sami won the award for 'Outstanding achievement in Music'.
Saqib Majeed wins 2016 Wisden-MCC Cricket 'Photograph of the Year' award
i.Kashmir based freelance photographer Saqib Majeed has bagged prestigious 2016 Wisden-MCC (Melbourne Cricket Council) Cricket ‘Photograph of the Year’ for capturing a stunning image of boys playing cricket at the Nishat garden in the outskirts of Srinagar. ii. With this Saqib Majeed has become the first Kashmiri and second Asian after Atul Kamble to receive the prestigious award.
Justice Leila Seth: First Woman Chief Justice of a State High Court Passed Away
i. Leila Seth, the first woman judge of the Delhi high court and member of the Justice J. S. Verma committee that was set up to re-look at rape laws in India died of a cardiac arrest.Pakistani sitarist Ustad Raees Khan dies
i. Legendary sitar player Ustad Raees Khan Passed awayd. He was 77. ii. Ustad Raees was born in 1939 in Indore, India in a family of musicians. He belonged to the Mewati Gharana of Indian classical music.
Shiva thapa wins silver at Asian Boxing Championship
i. Indian boxer Shiva Thapa ended up with a silver medal in the 60-kg category at the Asian Boxing Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. ii. Thapa also became the first boxer from the country to win medals at three consecutive championships. He lost the final match to Elnur Abduraimov from Uzbekistan as he got injured at the beginning of the Match.
Great Britain wins Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament
i. Great Britain beat Australia 4-3 in a thrilling hockey final of the 26th edition of the Azlan Shah Cup at Ipoh, Malaysia. ii. This victory came to Great Britain in the Azlan Shah Cup after 23 years. Australia is the world champions and had won the Azlan Shah title nine times. Great Britain becomes the first team from the British Isles to win the Azlan Shah title since 1994.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update for Exams are as follows-
- Great Britain wins Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament.
- Great Britain beat Australia 4-3 in a thrilling hockey final.
- India outclassed New Zealand 4-0 to clinch a bronze medal.
- 26th edition of the Azlan Shah Cup was held at Ipoh, Malaysia.
- World Red Cross Day is observed on May 8 by International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
- The theme for this year (2017) is “Less Known Red Cross Stories”
- It is celebrated to commemorate the birth anniversary of Henry Dunant.
- Country's first bio-refinery plant inaugurated in Pune
- Union Minister for Road Transport and Highway is Nitin Gadkari.
- PM Modi addressed an Indian heads of mission meet in New Delhi
- It was inaugurated by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj
- India organized festival in Egypt to mark Tagore’s 156th birth anniversary
- The festival will conclude on May 12
- Shri Tagore received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913
- Cairo is the Capital of Egypt and its currency is Egyptian pound.
- Emmanuel Macron has been elected as President of France
- He becomes the youngest President of France
- Mr. Macron has succeeded François Hollande
- Three Indian Scientist have been elected as the Fellows of The Royal Society viz. Krishna Chatterjee, Subhash Khot, Yadvinder Malhi.
- Facebook has launched its 'Express Wi-Fi' in India
- Facebook has announced a partnership with Bharti Airtel for setting up an additional 20,000 hotspots
- Founder and CEO of Facebook is Mark Zuckerberg.
- Shiva Thapa wins silver medal at Asian Boxing Championship
- He also became the first boxer from the country to win medals at three consecutive championships.
- Asian Boxing Championship was held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan
- The capital of Uzbekistan is Tashkent and Currency is Uzbekistani som.
- Legendary sitar player Ustad Raees Khan died at 77
- Ustad Raees was born in 1939 in Indore, India.
- Odisha will introduce boat ambulance service
- The boat ambulance service will be available in the districts of Koraput, Malkangiri, Kendrapara and Kalahandi
- CM of Odisha is Naveen Patnaik and the governor is Dr. Senayangba Chubatoshi Jamir.
- Sachin Tendulkar has received the Fellowship Award at the 7th annual Asian Awards in UK
- Adnan Sami won the award for 'Outstanding achievement in Music'
- Prabhat Kamal Bezboruah has been named the new chairman of the Tea Board of India
- He has replaced Shri Santosh Sarangi
- Bezboruah becomes the first non-IAS to head tea board.
- Facebook has launched its 'Express Wi-Fi' in India
- Facebook has announced a partnership with Bharti Airtel for setting up an additional 20,000 hotspots
- Founder and CEO of Facebook is Mark Zuckerberg.
