Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
1st April, 2017
Government launched two mobile apps- echallan and mParivahan i. The government has launched two mobile apps, echallan and mParivahan, that provide access to various services and information, and enable citizens to report any traffic violation or road accident. ii. 'eChallan' is an integrated enforcement solution to manage traffic violations. iii. 'mParivahan' is an empowering app for the citizen which provides access to various services, information and utilities related to the transport sector.
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak Visits India i. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak is on a 6-day visit to India. ii. This year marks the 60th anniversary of formal diplomatic relations. Malaysia‘s father of independence, Tunku Abdul Rahman, visited India in 1962. iii. India and Malaysia signed their strategic partnership in 2010. India has trained Malaysian pilots for the Russian SU-30 aircraft.
Japan commits 371 bn yen assistance for infra projects in India i. Japan has committed an 'Official Development Assistance' (ODA) of 371.345 billion yen (about Rs 21,590 crore) under 2016-2017 for various infrastructure projects, including the dedicated freight corridor, in India. ii. The notes in this regard were exchanged in New Delhi between S Selvakumar, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs and Kenji Hiramatsu, Ambassador of Japan to India.
Kanha tiger reserve becomes first in India get official mascot i. Kanha tiger reserve in Madhya Pradesh has become the first tiger reserve in India to officially introduce a mascot of its own. ii. The Mascot has been named 'Bhoorsingh the Barasingha' to present the hard ground swamp deer as the spirit of the reserve and spread awareness to save it from possible extinction. Barasingha or Swamp Deer is the State animal of Madhya Pradesh. 82nd Establishment Day of RBI- 01st April 2017 i. The Reserve Bank of India is the central bank of the country. The Reserve Bank of India was set up on the basis of the recommendations of the Hilton Young Commission. The Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 (II of 1934) provides the statutory basis for the functioning of the Bank, which commenced operations on April 1, 1935.
IIT-Madras signs MoU with Indian Army i. The Indian Army has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M). ii. The objective of the agreement is to identify and enhance the critical technological areas that can be enhanced in the armed forces.
Vanaja Sarna appointed as CBEC's new Chairman 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 1
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 i. Vanaja N. Sarna was appointed as the new chairman of Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC). ii. She has replaced Najib Shah after his retirement. Prior to becoming Member of the CBEC, she held the charge of Director General of Vigilance and Chief Vigilance Officer of the Department.
SBI gets new logo and enters in the league of top 50 Global Banks i. From April 1, the associate banks which will be merging with State Bank of India will sport the lender's signage and logo, with its iconic keyhole set against the background of inky blue. ii. On the design, ―SBI‖ legend will be seen in white colour and will be written in a new font called Effra. iii. As per the Reserve Bank of India, all branches of the associate banks will function as branches of SBI from April 1, 2017. iv. With The merger, State Bank of India will enter the league of Top 50 Global Banks with a balance sheet size of Rs. 41 trillion.
Axis Bank ties up with Wells Fargo for US remittances i. Axis Bank has tied up with Wells Fargo (the third largest American bank by assets) to offer real-time remittances from the Indian diaspora to their relatives back home. ii. Under the arrangement between the two banks, any member of the Indian diaspora with an account with the Wells Fargo will be able to transfer money to their relatives back home and there will be no transaction fee applicable to the money transfers from the USA. But the relative or the beneficiary in India will need to have an account with Axis Bank.
Kotak Mahindra Bank launches 8-11 app to double customer base i. Kotak Mahindra Bank has launched the '811 banking app' which is part of the lender's vision to double customer base in 18 months. ii. Customers will be able to open an account on the 811 banking app with zero balance. Only Aadhaar and PAN card would be required to open 811 account which would provide access to over 100 features on mobile. The account offers up to 6 percent interest rate on savings deposits.
Railway Minister released Book Titled 'Indian Railway- The weaving of a National Tapestry' i. Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu released the book titled 'Indian Railway- The weaving of a National Tapestry' jointly authored by Shri Bibek Debroy (Member, NITI Aayog) Shri Sanjay Chadha (Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce) & Ms. Vidya Krishnamurthi. ii. The theme of this book is the historical development of railways in India, organized into chapters dealing with different periods of development in chronological order. iii. In addition, Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhu also launched Hi-speed free Wi-Fi services for the visitors at National Rail Museum, New Delhi.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- Government launched two mobile apps named echallan and mParivahan Apps are available on Google Playstore
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
Prime Minister of Malaysia is Mr.Najib Razak Tunku Abdul Rahman is Malaysia‘s father of independence Capital of Malaysia is Kuala Lumpur and its Currency is Malaysian ringgit Japan has committed an 'Official Development Assistance' (ODA) of 371.345 billion yen Kenji Hiramatsu is the Ambassador of Japan to India Currency of Japan is Japanese yen and its Prime minister is Shinzō Abe Kanha tiger reserve in Madhya Pradesh becomes first in India get official mascot Name of the mascot is 'Bhoorsingh the Barasingha' Barasingha or Swamp Deer is the State animal of Madhya Pradesh RBI was set up on the basis of the recommendations of the Hilton Young Commission. Reserve Bank of India was established on 01st April 1935. Sir Osborne Smith was the first Governor of the Reserve Bank of India. Urjit Ravindra Patel is present and 24th Governor of RBI. The Reserve Bank of India was nationalized on 1st January 1949. C. D. Deshmukh was the first Indian governor of RBI. The headquarter of RBI is in Mumbai, Maharashtra. IIT-Madras has signed an MoU with the Indian Army The Chief of Army Staff (COAS) is General Bipin Rawat Vice Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS) is Lieutenant General Sarath Chand Director of IIT- M is Bhaskar Ramamurthy. Vanaja N. Sarna is now the new chairman of Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) She has replaced Najib Shah CBEC has been renamed as Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) under GST Regime Public Lender State Bank of India gets a new logo State Bank of India will enter in the league of Top 50 Global Banks with a balance sheet size of Rs. 41 trillion SBI will be written in a new font called Effra Chairman of SBI is Mrs. Arundhati Bhattacharya Axis Bank has tied up with Wells Fargo for US remittances Wells Fargo is the third largest American bank by assets Wells Fargo & Company WFC is a diversified, community-based financial services company WFC was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in San Francisco Axis Bank is Headquartered in Mumbai and its CEO is Shikha Sharma. Kotak Mahindra Bank launched the '811 banking app Headquarter of Kotak Mahindra Bank is in Mumbai and was founded in 2003 Uday Kotak is the executive vice-chairman and MD of Kotak Mahindra Bank Railway Minister released the book titled 'Indian Railway- The weaving of a National Tapestry' Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu is the Railway Minister of India He launched Hi-speed free Wi-Fi services for the visitors at National Rail Museum, New Delhi.
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
02nd April, 2017
Post merger, SBI begins operations as unified entity i. The State Bank of India, the country's largest lender has started functioning as unified entity from 01st April 2017 post merger of its five associate banks, besides Bharatiya Mahila Bank. The five associate banks merged with the SBI are State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur, State Bank of Hyderabad, State Bank of Mysore, State Bank of Patiala and State Bank of Travancore. With the merger, the SBI joins the league of top 50 banks globally in terms of assets. ii. The total customer base of the bank reaches 37 crore with a branch network of around 24,000 and nearly 59,000 ATMs across the country. The merged entity now has a deposit base of more than Rs 26 lakh-crore and advances level of Rs 18.50 lakh crore.
American singer & song writer Bob Dylan accepts Nobel literature award i. American singer and song writer Bob Dylan has finally accepted his Nobel Prize for literature, more than three months after the awards ceremony. The academy, which awards the coveted prize, ended prolonged speculation as to whether the 75-year-old troubadour would use a concert stopover in Stockholm to accept the gold medal and diploma awarded to him. ii. They were handed to Dylan at a "private ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden" attended by 12 academy members and Sara Danius, the academy's permanent secretary.
NDB invests $1.5 billion in 7 projects in 2 years of operation i. The BRICS-backed New Development Bank (NDB) has invested in seven projects totaling $1.5 billion in about two years of its operation. NDB began operations in July 2015. Seven projects have been done so far which aggregate around $1.5 billion. Six of them are in the renewable energy sector and one in transport financing. ii. The New Development Bank was created with an objective of financing infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries. The Bank seeks to complement the efforts of other multilateral development institutions. And, it also seeks to establish a network of global, regional and local partnerships with multilateral and national development banks as well as other institutions and market players.
Jepkosgei smashes three world records at Prague Half Marathon i. Kenya's Joyciline Jepkosgei has broken the world half marathon record as well as the 10km and 15km marks at the Prague Half Marathon on the way to winning the IAAF Gold Label Road Race in one hour, four minutes and 52 seconds.
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 ii. The 23-year-old, who was competing in just her fifth half marathon, clocked splits of 30:05 and 45:37 to improve the 10km and 15km world records. Defending champion Violah Jepchumba of Kenya finished second in 65:22, with Fancy Chemutai third.
World Autism Awareness Day: 02nd April 2017 i. The World Autism Awareness Day 2017 has been observed across the world on 2 April 2017. The 2017 theme for the day is "Toward Autonomy and Self-Determination". World Autism Awareness Day is an internationally recognised day, encouraging Member States of the United Nations to take measures to raise awareness about children with autism throughout the world. ii. Autism is a lifelong neurological condition that manifests during early childhood, irrespective of gender, race or socio-economic status. The term Autism Spectrum refers to a range of characteristics. Appropriate support, accommodation, and acceptance of this neurological variation allow those on the Spectrum to enjoy equal opportunity and full and effective participation in society.
Second annual meeting of BRICS New Development Bank held in New Delhi i. A new financial order built by the emerging BRICS economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. New Delhi is playing host to Second Annual Meeting of the New Development Bank (NDB) also known colloquially as BRICS bank. This is the first time the meet is happening in India. MOUs were signed between NDB and European Investment Bank (EIB), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) and International Investment Bank (IIB). ii. India has sought USD 2 billion loans for various projects from the NDB. India has also signed a 350 million dollar loan agreement with NDB for financing Development and Upgradation of Major District Roads in Madhya Pradesh. This is the First Loan Agreement for NDB assisted project in India. In the event Finance Minister Arun Jaitley stated that India has successfully implemented a number of reforms and Indian economy is expected to grow at 7.2 percent in 2017 and at the rate of 7.7 per cent in 2018.
PM Narendra Modi opens Asia's longest tunnel i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the 9.2 km long Chenani-Nashri all-weather road tunnel on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway. The road tunnel will reduce the travel time between the two state capitals of Jammu and Srinagar by approximately two hours. The two-lane Chenani-Nashri tunnel is Asia's longest bi-directional highway tunnel, which will cut the distance between Jammu and Srinagar to around 250 km from the current 350 km. ii. The world's sixth road tunnel has a transverse ventilation system enabled and controlled by ABB software. It also boasts features like Integrated Traffic Control System (ITCS), Video Surveillance System, FM Rebroadcast System, Entrance Detection Control System and Active Firefighting System. There are 124 closed-circuit TV cameras for
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 surveillance inside the tunnel. In case of a traffic violation, the control room will inform the traffic police deployed outside the tunnel, who will fine the violators on the spot. The new 9.2 kilometre Chenani-Nashri tunnel in Jammu & Kashmir, the longest highway tunnel in Asia, will feature a state-of-the-art ABB ventilation system to ensure that users have access to fresh air as they drive through it.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- State Bank of India was established on July 1, 1955. Five associates and the Bharatiya Mahila Bank became part of the State Bank of India. State bank of India is the country's largest lender. Chairperson of SBI is Mrs. Arundhati Bhattacharya. The headquarter of SBI is in Mumbai, Maharashtra. SBI joins the league of top 50 banks globally in terms of assets. The Nobel Prize in Literature 2016 was awarded to Bob Dylan Mr. Bob Dylan is American singer-songwriter. Stockholm is the capital city of Sweden. The Nobel Prize in Literature is awarded by the Swedish Academy. Rabindranath Tagore was the first Indian ever to receive a Nobel Prize. Rabindranath Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in recognition of his work Geetanjali, a collection of poems, in 1913. NDB has an initial authorized capital of US$ 100 billion. Mr. K.V. Kamath (India) is President of NDB. The headquarter of NDB is in Shanghai, China. The New Development Bank (NDB) floated by the BRICS nations. The BRICS nations - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Joyciline Jepkosgei has completed her fifth half marathon just in one hour, four minutes and 52 seconds. Joyciline Jepkosgei is from Kenya. Prague is the capital city of the Czech Republic. The World Autism Awareness Day observed on 02nd April. World Autism Awareness Day is an internationally recognized day. The 2017 theme for World Autism Awareness day is "Toward Autonomy and Self-Determination". World Autism Awareness day encouraging the Member States of the United Nations. Antonio Guterres is Secretary-General of United Nations (UN). New Delhi is playing host to Second Annual Meeting of the New Development Bank (NDB). AIIB stands for Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Arun Jaitley is Finance Minister of India. India has sought USD 2 billion loans for various projects from the NDB. The 9.2 km long road tunnel is built between Chenani in Udhampur District and Nashri in Ramban District of Jammu & Kashmir. It is also known as Patnitop Tunnel.
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
Chenani-Nashri Tunnel is the country's first and the world's sixth road tunnel with a Transverse Ventilation System. It is located at an altitude of 1,200 meters in the heart of the Himalayas. The 24.5-kilometer long Laerdal Tunnel in Norway is the longest road tunnel in the world. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the 9.2 km long Chenani-Nashri road tunnel.
03rd April, 2017
19th commonwealth forestry conference to begin in Uttarakhand today i. 19th Commonwealth Forestry Conference (CFC) 2017 will begin today at Forest Research Institute (FRI) in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. ii. Uttarakhand Governor Dr. K.K. Paul will inaugurate the 19th Commonwealth Forestry Conference at the FRI in Dehradun. iii. The 5-day conference is being organized on the theme „Forests for Prosperity and Posterity‟.
Union Textiles Minister launches PowerTex India Scheme i. The Government has launched PowerTex India, a comprehensive scheme for power loom sector development, simultaneously at over 45 locations in the country. ii. The Union Textiles Minister, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani Launched the scheme in Bhiwandi, Thane district, Maharashtra. The scheme will especially benefit small powerloom weavers. iii. The Minister and CMs interacted with various states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and others through video conference, as PowerTex India scheme was launched nationwide.
Madhya Pradesh CM launches 'MP e-nagarpalika' app i. The Madhya Pradesh government has launched an app named „MP e-nagarpalika‟ to provide various municipal services online. ii. The mobile app was launched by state Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. This app would offer 378 services like online payment of property tax, seeking building permission, birth/ marriage/death certificates etc. It will also register complaints related to garbage, water, streetlights etc. iii. Online payment gateway would be available on this app. This mobile app would encourage the cashless transaction.
Mizoram signs MoU to join in UDAY i. Mizoram has become the 27th State to join the Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY). ii. Mizoram signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) under the scheme on March 31 for operational improvement of the State‘s Power Distribution Department. iii. According to government estimates, the State will derive an overall net benefit of approximately Rs. 198 crore by opting to participate in UDAY, by way of cheaper funds, reduction in AT&C and transmission losses. iv. Kerala, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh have also recently joined the Centre‘s power distribution company debt relief scheme, Ujjwal Discom Assurance Yojna (UDAY). 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 7
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
India-Malaysia signs seven agreements i. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak is on a 6-day visit to India. Two countries sign seven agreements including air services agreement and MoUs in education and sports. ii. The pacts were signed after delegation-level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Malaysian Prime Minister Mohammed Najib Razak at Hyderabad House in New Delhi. This is Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak's third visit to India since 2009.
IISc ranked best educational institution by HRD Ministry i. Bengaluru's Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Delhi's Miranda House have made it to the top of respective categories in the country's official higher education rankings announced by the government. ii. Releasing the list in New Delhi, Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar stated that the government will provide more grants and funds for institutions faring better in rankings. TOP UNIVERSITIES 1. IISc, Bangalore 2. JNU, New Delhi 3. BHU, Varanasi TOP COLLEGES 1. Miranda House, Delhi 2. Loyola College, Chennai 3. Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi
Under GST regime, tax evasion over Rs 5 crore a non-bailable offense i. Tax evasion of over Rs 5 crore under the GST regime would be a non-bailable offense and the police would have the authority to make an arrest without a warrant. ii. The Central GST (CGST) Bill provides that if the offenses relating to taxable goods and/or services where the amount of tax evaded or the amount of input tax credit wrongly availed or the amount of refund wrongly taken exceeds Rs 5 crore, it shall be treated as cognizable and non-bailable.
Rajiv Kumar Chander appointed as India's Ambassador and permanent representative to the UN i. Rajiv Kumar Chander has been appointed as the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations Offices in Geneva. ii. Mr. Chander belongs to the Indian Foreign Services batch of 1983. He is currently the consul general of India in Vancouver since August 2015. He was the deputy permanent representative with the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations, Geneva, between 2006 and 2009.
Indira Banerjee appointed as new Chief Justice of Madras High Court i. Justice Indira Banerjee, a sitting judge of the Delhi High Court, has been appointed as the new Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 ii. She succeeded Sanjay Kishan Kaushal. With this, Justice Banerjee became the second woman to head the Madras High Court. Justice Kumari Bhatnagar was the first lady to head the Charted court in 1992.
Vipul takes charge as new Consul General of Dubai i. Diplomat Vipul, a 1998 batch Indian Foreign Service officer took up the charge as the new Consul General of Dubai. ii. Mr. Vipul has succeeded Anurag Bhushan. Before joining the Consulate at Dubai, he was working in the office of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. He had earlier served at India‘s diplomatic missions in Sri Lanka and Egypt.
Sindhu lifts India Open badminton title 2017 i. Olympic silver-medallist P.V. Sindhu has defeated Carolina Marin (Spain) in straight sets 21-19, 21-16 in 47 minutes at the India Open badminton championship 2017 in New Delhi. ii. This was the second Superseries title win for Sindhu. The Indian shuttler has shown character in the tournament and she entered the final after beaten Saina Nehwal and Sung ji-Hyun.
Roger Federer wins Miami Open 2017 i. Roger Federer (Switzerland) defeated Rafael Nadal (Spain) to win Miami Open 2017 Singles title. Miami Open 2017 was held in Florida, USA. ii. A fourth straight win over Nadal was his longest winning streak in their 13-year professional rivalry which makes Federer the oldest winner of the Miami Open. iii. The victory was Federer‘s 26th ATP Masters 1000 title, only Novak Djokovic with 30 and Rafael Nadal with 28 have won more titles than Federer. The other winners in Miami Open 2017 are as follows- 1. Women's Singles- Johanna Konta (United Kingdom) 2. Men's Doubles- Łukasz Kubot (Poland)/ Marcelo Melo (Brazil) 3. Women's Doubles- Gabriela Dabrowski (Canada) / Xu Yifan (China)
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows-
The 5-day long 19th Commonwealth Forestry Conference (CFC) begun in Dehradun, Uttarakhand The theme of conference is ‗Forests for Prosperity and Posterity‘ Dehradun is capital of Uttarakhand Governor of Uttarakhand is Dr. K.K. Paul and Trivendra Singh Rawat is newly elected Chief Minister of Uttarakhand The Government has launched PowerTex India scheme for power loom sector development The Union Textiles Minister, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani Launched the scheme in Maharashtra Madhya Pradesh government has launched an app named ‗MP e-nagarpalika‘ The app was launched by MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan The mobile app will encourage the cashless transaction
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
Full form of UDAY is Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana Mizoram has become the 27th State to join UDAY First state to join UDAY scheme was Andhra Pradesh UDAY was launched in November 2015 Kerala, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh have recently joined UDAY. Bengaluru's IISc and Delhi's Miranda House topped in University and College category, respectively The list was announced by Union Human Resource Development Minister, Prakash Javadekar Tax evasion over Rs 5 crore is a non-bailable offense under GST regime GST council is headed by Finance Minister of India Mr. Arun Jaitley The government has set a target date of July 1 for rollout of the GST The Central GST Bill, The Integrated GST Bill, The GST (Compensation to States) Bill, and The Union Territory GST Bill, 2017 were passed recently by the Parliament of India. Rajiv Kumar Chander has been appointed as the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations Offices in Geneva He is currently the consul general of India in Vancouver United Nations headquartered in New York City, USA. Justice Indira Banerjee has been appointed as the new Chief Justice of the Madras High Court She succeeded Sanjay Kishan Kaushal Justice Banerjee was the second woman to head the Madras High court and Justice Kumari Bhatnagar was the first lady to head the court in 1992. Mr. Vipul takes charge as new Consul General of Dubai He has replaced Anurag Bhushan Abu Dhabi is capital of the UAE and Sheikh Zayed is the prince of UAE P.V. Sindhu has lifts India Open badminton title 2017. The Final match of India Open badminton title 2017 held in New Delhi. Carolina Marin is a badminton player from Spain. This was the second Superseries title win for Sindhu. P.V. Sindhu has defeated Carolina Marin at the India Open badminton championship 2017. Roger Federer wins Miami Open 2017 Singles title Miami Open 2017 was held in Florida, USA Roger Federer defeated Rafael Nadal Johanna Konta from the UK won the Women's Singles title.
04th April, 2017
Government sets up National Board for Electric Mobility i. The Centre has constituted National Board of Electric Mobility (NBEM) to promote electric mobility and manufacturing of electric (& hybrid) vehicles and their components. ii. The Board will be chaired by the Shri Girish Shankar, Secretary of the Department of Heavy Industry. The NBEM will examine, formulate and propose short as well as long-term plans and contours of the mission program on electric 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 10
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 mobility and its objectives.
India, Malaysia tie up for skilling, entrepreneurship development i. The Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) has tied up with Pembangunan Sumber Manusia Berhad (PSMB), an arm of Human Resource Development Fund under Ministry of HRD, Malaysia. ii.The tie-up was done for skill development and providing assistance to the South-East Asian country in its target of ensuring 35 per cent skilled Malaysian workforce by 2020. iii. The first activity after signing the MoU would be to train close to 100 youth in entrepreneurship through classroom training, simulation exercises and field exposure.
First bio-gas bus in Kolkata with flat Rs1 fare i. Phoenix India Research and Development Group launched the first bio-gas fuelled bus in Kolkata keeping a flat fare of just Rs 1. ii. The company has tied-up with Ashok Leyland to manufacture the 54-seater bus at a cost of Rs 13 lakh approximately. The first bus will be flagged off on April 7, 2017 and will run between Ultadanga in the north and Garia in the south in Kolkata.
Malaysia agrees to set up technology park in Andhra Pradesh i. A Malaysian company MTN has agreed to help set up a technology park in Andhra Pradesh that‘s expected to attract private sector investment of $100 million in the first phase. ii. The Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board and MIGHT (Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology) Technology Nurturing Sdn. Bhd (MTN) have signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on building the park, which will cover 250 acres and focus on new technologies. iii. Phase 1 will be spread over 100 acres to produce biodegradable packaging for the food and electronics industries.
SBI cuts lending rates by 0.15% i. Ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy this week, the country's largest bank, State Bank of India has reduced its benchmark lending rate by 0.15%. ii. Base rate or the minimum lending rate of the bank has been reduced from 9.25% to 9.1%. The cut in SBI's base rate was effective from 1st April 2017.
Ola integrates with UPI to simplify payment options i. Cab aggregator Ola has integrated with Unified Payment Interface (UPI) to simplify digital payment options for its customers. ii. This integration will allow Ola customers to use their unique UPI IDs to pay for all their rides on the Ola platform. While making payments for the Ola rides, a customer will now have an option called „Pay by UPI‟ along with cash, debit/credit card and Ola Money wallet option.
FIFA bans former Guatemala FA president Brayan Jimenez for life
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 i. FIFA (International Federation of Association Football) banned Guatemala's former football chief Brayan Jimenez for life over corruption, bribery and other offences. ii. Jimenez was banned for life from all football-related activities at national and international level.
India ranks 3rd for third year in a row in WADA doping charts i. India has been ranked third for the third year in a row in a doping violation report published by World Anti- Doping Agency (WADA) for 2015 with 117 athletes from the country being punished after testing positive for banned substances. ii. India followed Russian Federation (176 athletes) and Italy (129 athletes) at the third spot in the doping violation chart released by the WADA.
WhatsApp mulls foray into digital payments with India launch i. WhatsApp move into digital payments in India, its biggest market that is home to 200 million of its billion plus global users, would replicate similar moves by messaging apps like Tencent Holdings Ltd's WeChat in China. ii. WhatsApp is working to launch person-to-person payments in India in the next six months.
Lenin Moreno to sworn in as the Ecuador President i. Ruling Party of Ecuador, Alianza PAIS candidate Lenin Moreno won the Ecuador‘s presidential election to sworn in as the Ecuador President. ii. He defeated conservative former banker Guillermo Lasso who demands a recount after three exit polls.
Noted scriptwriter Ajey Jhankar no more i. Ajey Jhankar, the noted author and filmmaker passed away. He served as a Director of MM Activ Sci-Tech Communications Pvt. Ltd from January 2000. ii. He was the writer of Marathi novel 'Sarkarnama'.
Renowned Hindustani classical vocalist Kishori Amonkar passes away i. Renowned Hindustani classical vocalist Kishori Amonkar passes away. She was 84. ii. She was from Jaipur Gharana and received the Padma Bhushan in 1987 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2002.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- Centre has constituted National Board of Electric Mobility (NBEM) NBEM full form is National Board of Electric Mobility India, Malaysia signed for seven MoUs Malaysia currency and capital is Malaysian ringgit and Kaula Lumpur. India's First Biogas Bus Service Launched in Kolkata Phoenix India Research and Development Group launched this service in Kolkata with a fare of Rs1. A Malaysian company MIGHT Technology Nurturing Sdn. Bhd (MTN) has agreed to help set up a technology park in Andhra Pradesh
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
Full form of MIGHT is Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology Malaysia‘s Prime Minister is Mr. Najib Razak and its capital is Kuala Lumpur State Bank of India has reduced its benchmark lending rate by 0.15% Headquarter of SBI in Mumbai Chairperson of SBI is Arundhati Bhattacharya SBI was founded in 1955 SBI earlier named as Imperial Bank of India which was founded in 1921 Ola tied up with UPI Ola headquarter is in Bengaluru and CEO is Bhavish Aggarwal UPI is a payment system launched by National Payments Corporation of India and regulated by Reserve Bank of India UPI is used to facilitates the fund transfer between two bank accounts on the mobile platform instantly. Full form of FIFA is International Federation of Association Football It has banned Guatemala's former football chief Brayan Jimenez for life Guatemala is a Country in Central America and its capital is Guatemala City Headquarter of FIFA is in Zurich, Switzerland and its President is Gianni Infantino India has been ranked third in a doping violation report published by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for 2015 The list was topped by Russia The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) was established in 1999 Headquarter of WADA is in Montreal, Canada. Classical vocalist Kishori Amonkar passes away She was awarded Padma Bhushan in 1987 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2002.
05th April, 2017
SASEC's Finance Ministers Meeting held in New Delhi i. Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley chaired the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Finance Ministers meeting in New Delhi. ii. It was attended by the seven Finance Ministers from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka and the Asian Development Bank as a supporting SASEC in this endeavor. iii. Myanmar has joined the SASEC program as its seventh member.
National conference on Communicating India to be organized i. A day-long national conference on Communicating India will be organized in New Delhi which will be inaugurated by Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore. ii. Telling the India's story to the world, Communicating via Journalism and Dialogue with Diaspora are three main themes which are outlined for the conference.
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Jhargram becomes 22nd Bengal district i. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee declared Jhargram as the 22nd district of West Bengal. ii. Jhargram has been formed by bifurcating West Midnapore, which has a population of more than 11.37 lakh. Mamta Banerjee announced a budget of Rs 200 crore for the development of Jhargram.
Rs 40,000 crore expressway project in northeast announced i. The first express highway project in the northeast region will be developed along the Brahmaputra river in Assam at an estimated investment of Rs 40,000 crore inaugurated by Union Road Minister Nitin Gadkari. ii. The agreement was signed by the Assam government, the National Highways Authority of India and the Inland Waterways of India.
BS-IV Grade Fuel launched by Central Government after BS-III ban i. Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State (I/C) for Petroleum and Natural Gas officially launched the low emission Bharat stage (BS)-IV Grade fuel in Bhubaneswar. ii. The launch was made on the special occasion of Utkal Diwas which is the foundation day of Odisha. iii. The launch was made in 12 cities of India. They were Varanasi, Vijayawada, Durgapur, Gorakhpur, Imphal, Bhopal, Ranchi, Madurai, Nagpur, Patna, Guwahati and Shillong.
ICICI, Axis Bank sell Rs 1800 crore Ballarpur loans to Edelweiss i. ICICI Bank and Axis Bank sold Rs.1,800 crore of loans to paper maker Ballarpur Industries Ltd to Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Company. ii. It is the first time that loans have been sold to an asset reconstruction firm. Axis Bank sold loans of Rs.1,200 crore and ICICI Bank sold loans of Rs.600 crore.
Geetha Johri- Gujarat's first woman Police Chief i. A 1982 batch Indian Police Service (IPS) Geetha Johri has been appointed as the first woman Director General of Police (DGP) of Gujarat. ii. She has replaced P P Pandey, who resigned recently. Johri is posted at the State Police Housing Corporation in Gandhinagar.
Amazon.in launches „Classroom‟ for new sellers i. To make on-boarding easy for new sellers, Amazon India has launched an initiative called 'Amazon Classroom', a virtual training program to help teach them the nuances of online selling. ii. The program focusses on areas such as order processing, adding products and managing returns that are required to operate a successful online business.
Gionee India ties up with RCB for IPL 10 i. Handset maker Gionee India announced its association with the ‗Royal Challengers Bangalore‘, as their presenting sponsors for the tenth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 ii. Gionee is already the principal sponsor of the Kolkata Franchise — ‗Kolkata Knight Riders‘. Gionee has become the first brand ever to sponsor front jerseys of two IPL teams in the same edition and will have its logo feature on the front jersey of both the teams. iii. The smartphone manufacturer had signed Captain Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador in November 2016.
Berhampur Thakurani Yatra festival begins in Odisha i. The famous Berhampur Thakurani Yatra, one of the biggest festivals of southern Odisha, has been celebrated with pomp and gaiety. ii. Nearly a month-long festival celebrates the journey of the deity Maa Budhi Thakurani.
WTO sets up panel to resolve steel dispute with India, Japan i. The WTO‘s dispute settlement set up a panel to resolve the dispute between Japan and India over imposition of safeguard import duty on iron and steel products. ii. Japan in December 2016 dragged India to the WTO against certain measures taken by New Delhi on imports of iron and steel products. iii. Japan, which is the second largest steel producer in the world, had alleged that duties imposed on steel imports by India violates WTO trade norms.
Indian Cricketer MS Dhoni named CEO of Gulf Oil for 1 day i. The former Indian cricket team skipper MS Dhoni became an acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Gulf Oil India just for a day. ii. He took charge of Gulf Oil India at the Mumbai head office. Mahendra Singh Dhoni was also named as the brand ambassador for Gulf Oil in the year 2011.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- National conference on Communicating India will be organized in New Delhi Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting is Rajyavardhan Rathore Geetha Johri has been appointed as the first woman DGP of Gujarat She has replaced P P Pandey Governor of Gujarat is Mr. Om Prakash Kohli and its Chief Minister is Mr. Vijay Rupani Nitin Gadkari announces Rs 40,000 crore expressway project in northeast Nitin Gadkari is the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Amazon.in launches ‗Classroom‘, a virtual training program for new sellers Jeff Bezos is CEO of Amazon Amazon is USA based company SASEC's Finance Ministers Meeting was held in New Delhi South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation is the full form of SASEC Myanmar has joined the SASEC program as its seventh member ICICI, Axis Bank sell Rs 1800 crore Ballarpur loans to Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Company ICICI bank headquarter is in Mumbai and CEO is Chanda Kochhar
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Axis Bank headquarter is in Mumbai and CEO is Shikha Sharma Ballarpur is a town and a municipal council in Chandrapur district in the state of Maharashtra, India Jhargram declared as the 22nd district of West Bengal CM of West Bengal is Mamta Banerjee Governor of West Bengal is Keshari Nath Tripathi Government officially launched the low emission Bharat stage (BS)-IV Grade fuel in Bhubaneswar, Odisha Minister of State (I/C) for Petroleum and Natural Gas is Dharmendra Pradhan.
06th April, 2017
Monetary policy review: RBI leaves repo rate unchanged The Reserve Bank of India has released the first Bi-monthly Monetary policy of the new financial year (2017-18). GDP growth has hiked to 7.4% from 6.7%. Rates in the newly released Monetary policy are as follows- Repo Rate under the Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) unchanged at 6.25%. The Reverse Repo Rate (RRR) under the Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) has been hiked to 6% from 5.75%. The Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate are at 6.50% decline from 6.75%. Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) remains unchanged at 4% and Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) also remains unchanged at 20.50%.
Cabinet approvals on 5th April 2017 The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the following agreements on 5th April.The list of agreements is given as follows- Cabinet Approves- 1. MoU between India and Australia on cooperation in the field of Health and Medicine 2. agreement on Audio Visual Co-Production between India and Bangladesh 3. MoU on Cooperation in the field of Mass Media between India and Bangladesh
PM to lay foundation stone of a multi-modal terminal on River Ganga in Jharkhand i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of a multi-modal terminal on River Ganga at Sahebganj in Jharkhand. ii. The state of the art terminal, to be constructed at an estimated cost of 280 crore rupees, is an important component of the development of the National Waterway-1 from Varanasi to Haldia.
International Day of Sport for Development and Peace: 06th April i. 6 April was declared as the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) by the UN General Assembly. ii. On the occasion of the 2017 International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP), the United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) launches the digital campaign #WePlayTogether to encourage organizations and individuals. 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 16
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Haryana government to provide Rs 21,000 to families for third girl child i. Haryana government has decided to provide a one-time grant of Rs 21,000 to all those families whose third girl child was born after August 24, 2015, under the 'Aapki Beti, Hamari Beti' scheme. ii. Under the scheme, the eligible families will receive the amount irrespective of their caste, creed, religion, income and number of sons.
Yogi Adityanath govt waives Rs 36,359-crore loan for UP farmers i. The BJP-led government in Uttar Pradesh decided to waive off crop loans of up to Rs 1 lakh of small and marginal farmers in the state. ii. About 92.5% of the state‘s farmers fall in the small and marginal categories. Besides, the cabinet also decided to write off Rs 5,630 crore in non-performing assets (NPAs) of 700,000 farmers.
Aditya Birla Group gets RBI licence to start payments bank i. Aditya Birla Idea Payments Bank Ltd becomes the seventh entity to receive a final licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to set up a payments bank. ii. Except Vodafone M-Pesa Ltd, all payment bank licence holders have received the final approval. iii. Among payment bank licence holders, two entities namely Airtel Payments Bank and India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) have started operations so far. While Airtel is offering 7.25% interest on its savings account, IPPB is offering three types of accounts where interest rates will vary from 4.5-5.5%.
IDBI Bank cuts deposit rates by up to 75 bps i. IDBI Bank has reduced interest rates, ranging from 50 to 75 basis points, on retail term deposits (RTD) with effect from April 5, 2017. ii. Following the rate cut, the highest interest rate that the bank now offers is 6.40% (earlier 6.90%) on deposits of one- two years maturity.
India, UK to set up 240 mn pound fund for green energy i. India and the UK decided to set up a 240 million pound fund to finance clean energy projects. ii. The Green Growth Equity Fund will be a sub-fund of NIIF. India had in 2015 set up the Rs 40,000 crore National Infrastructure and Investment Fund (NIIF) to finance greenfield as well as brownfield projects. iii. The fund will focus initial investments in India‘s rapidly growing energy and renewables market.
India‟s ranks 7th in world‟s largest tourism economy in terms of GDP i. India's travel and tourism sector ranks 7th in the world in terms of its total contribution to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), according to a new report of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), 2016. ii. The USA topped the list followed by China and Germany at the second and third positions, respectively.
ADB lends $175 m loan to Power Grid Corporation i. The Manila-headquartered Asian Development Bank (ADB) lends a $175 million loan to the Power Grid
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Corporation of India Ltd. ii. The project will improve the capacity and efficiency of interstate transmission networks, particularly in transmitting the electricity generated from the new solar parks to the national grid.
Raman Roy is new Nasscom chairman i.The National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) appointed Raman Roy (Managing Director of Quatrro Global Services) as its chairman for 2017-2018. ii. Rishad Premji (Chief Strategy Officer (CSO), Wipro Limited) has been appointed Vice Chairman. Raman Roy has replaced Mr. CP Gurnani.
FMCG highest paying industry in India: Randstad survey i. The Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry has emerged as the highest paying industry in India with an average annual cost to company (CTC) of Rs. 11.3 lakh across all levels and functions according to Randstad survey, 2017. ii. Randstad is a Dutch multinational human resource consulting firm headquartered in Diemen, Netherland. Randstad is the world's second-largest HR service provider.
India allows duty-free imports of 500,000 tonnes of raw sugar i. India, the world‘s biggest sugar consumer, will allow imports of 500,000 tonnes of duty-free raw sugar, as a drought has cut output below consumption levels for the first time in seven years. Duty-free imports would be allowed until 12 June, 2017.
NTPC appoints head for Kudgi project i. NTPC has appointed Sanjeev Kishore as Group General Manager at Kudgi Super thermal Power Project, Karnataka. Kishore joined the services of NTPC in 1984 and has served in various capacities of NTPC projects.
Japan Officially Recognises Bitcoin as Currency i. Bitcoin has finally gained the recognition of a mainstream currency along the lines of other fiat currencies. ii. The privilege follows the implementation of a new law in Japan which categorizes Bitcoin as a legal payment option within the country.
Virat Kohli crowned Wisden‟s „king of the willow‟ for 2016 i. India‘s Virat Kohli was named Wisden‟s Leading Cricketer in the World for 2016. ii. Kohli had also won the prestigious ‗Polly Umrigar award‘ presented to the ‗International Cricketer of the Year‘ at the BCCI Annual Awards. iii. Kohli was additionally declared Wisden India Almanack‘s Cricketer of the Year for the second time in its 2017 edition.
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Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- PM Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of a multi-modal terminal on River Ganga in Jharkhand National Waterways (NW-1) runs from Haldia (Sagar) to Allahabad across the Ganges, Bhagirathi and Hooghly river systems CM of Jharkhand is Raghubar Das Governor of Jharkhand is Draupadi Murmu ADB grants $175 m loan to Power Grid Corporation Takehiko Nakao is the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) ADB full form is Asian Development Bank Headquarter of ADB in Manila, Philippines National Association of Software and Services Companies is the full form of Nasscom Raman Roy is new chairman of Nasscom He has replaced Mr. CP Gurnani Rishad Premji has been appointed as Vice Chairman International Day of Sport for Development and Peace is observed on 6th April United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) launches the digital campaign #WePlayTogether Peter Thomson is the President of the United Nations General Assembly Aditya Birla Group gets RBI licence to start payments bank Airtel launched India's first payments bank A payments bank is like any other bank, but operating on a smaller scale without involving any credit risk. India stand's at the world‘s 7th largest tourism economy in terms of GDP WTTC full form is World Travel and Tourism Council WTTC 2016 list is topped by the USA. Haryana Govt grant Rs 21,000 to families for third girl child 'Aapki Beti, Hamari Beti' scheme was launched to insure the survival of newborn girl child along with proper health and promote education of girls in the state Haryana CM is Manohar Lal Khattar Governor of Haryana is Kaptan Singh Solanki. India and UK to set up 240 mn pound fund for green energy Full form of NIIF is National Infrastructure and Investment Fund Capital of the United Kingdom (UK) is London and its Prime Minister is Theresa May Currency of UK is Pound IDBI Bank reduced deposits rates by up to 75bps IDBI Bank headquarter is in Mumbai CEO of IDBI Bank is Kishor Kharat FMCG industry has emerged as the highest paying industry in India FMCG full form is Fast-moving consumer goods Randstad human resource consulting firm headquartered in Diemen, Netherland.
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07th April, 2017
64th National Film Awards i. The 64th National Film Awards were announced in which the Directorate of Film Festivals presents its annual National Film Awards to honor the best films of 2016 in the Indian cinema. ii. The awards ceremony will be held on 3 May 2017 in India.
World Health Day: 7 April i. World Health Day is celebrated on 7th of April every year to mark the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization. ii. The theme of 2017 World Health Day is 'Depression: Let's Talk'.
Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated 3-day National Children‟s Film Festival i. Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Urban Development M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated a three- day National Children‟s Film Festival in Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. ii. It is the largest film festival for children in the country giving the audience quality and wholesome entertainment. The aim of the film festival is to expose children to quality cinema and to introduce novel elements beyond films.
India & Israel sign defense deals worth over 2 billion dollars i. India and Israel signed a mega defense deals worth over 2 billion dollars for advanced surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems, to further tighten the bilateral strategic partnership ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Israel in July, 2017. ii. The SAM systems are designed to destroy hostile aircraft, missiles and drones at a range of 70-km. The major deal was for the joint project between the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) for the Barak-8 medium-range SAM systems for the Indian Army.
RBL Bank opens IFSC Banking Unit in GIFT City i. Ratnakar Bank limited (RBL) Bank announced the opening of its Indian Financial System Code (IFSC) Banking Unit (IBU) at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City). ii. The leading private sector bank had received an in-principle approval from RBI for setting up IBU in November 2016.
NEFT transfers to be faster as RBI cuts clearance time i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to slash clearance time for National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) in an attempt to enhance the efficiency of the electronic payment system and add to customer convenience. ii. The NEFT settlement cycle will be reduced from hourly batches to half hourly batches, the RBI stated in the first bi-monthly monetary policy for 2017-18. iii. 11 additional settlement batches will be introduced at 8.30 am onwards, taking the total number of half hourly 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 20
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 settlement batches during the day to 23. RBI also stated the starting batch at 8 am and closing batch at 7 pm shall remain the same and the return discipline will also remain the same as per the existing practice.
Bhimaraya Metri joins as Director of IIM Trichy i. Bhimaraya Metri has taken over as Director of Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Trichy (IIM Tiruchirappalli). ii. He succeeded Prafulla Agnihotri. Prior to joining IIM Trichy, Metri was the Dean at L&T Institute of Project Management, Vadodara.
India's first transgender police officer appointed in Tamil Nadu i. K Prithika Yashini, aged around 25 years, is the first transgender person to become a police official in India, appointed in Tamil Nadu. ii. After struggling with the social dogma and gender bias, she recently applied to become a police sub-inspector in Dharampuri, Tamil Nadu. A court in Chennai, Madras has now ruled in her favour.
Facebook launches digital assistant 'M' in US i. Facebook launched its digital assistant named 'M' for US users of its Messenger application, ramping up the social network's efforts in artificial intelligence. ii. For users of the messaging platform, M will pop up and suggest helpful actions in the chat window. 'M' uses artificial intelligence and suggests relevant actions to help manage conversations or help get things done.
Germany „1st NATO member‟ to launch cyber command i. Germany is the first North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) state to launch a 'self-contained' cyber command unit designed to shield IT and weapons systems from growing attacks. ii. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is one of the world‘s major international institutions. It is a political and military Alliance of 28 member countries from Europe and North America.
Ministry approves appointment of two foreign athletics coaches i. Sports Minister Mr. Vijay Goel has approved the appointment of two top foreign athletics coaches, one each in race walking and 400m race. Australian Dave Smith has been appointed as the coach in race walking. ii. The ministry also approved the appointment of American Galina P Bukharina as coach of national 400m and 400m relay teams. The appointments have been made keeping in mind the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. iii. The ministry has also approved the appointment of two masseurs- Dmitry Kislev and Elmira Kisleva both from Russia.
RCB, Nazara tie up to launch online cricket game i. Royal Challengers Bangalore and gaming entity Nazara Games have come together to launch a new mobile cricket game RCB Star Cricket. ii. This will also mark the first cricket franchise to have a game off the field and on the screen.
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P V Sindhu reaches career-best World No.2 ranking i. Rio Olympics silver medallist P V Sindhu jumped three places to achieve a career-best world number two ranking in the latest Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings. ii. The 21-year-old shuttler from Hyderabad became only the second Indian woman after Saina Nehwal to break into the top-five of the world rankings by earning 75759 points.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- World Health Day is celebrated globally on 7th of April The Theme of 2017 World Health Day is 'Depression: Let's Talk' World Health Day is celebrated to mark the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization Headquarter of WHO is in Geneva, Switzerland. Dr. Margaret Chan is the Director-General of WHO. RBI has decided to slash clearance time for NEFT National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) is a nation-wide payment system facilitating one-to-one funds transfer Under NEFT, the transactions are processed and settled in batches, hence are not real time. 3-day National Children‘s Film Festival inaugurated in Vishakhapatnam Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting and Urban Development is Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu AP capital is Amravati and CM is Nara Chandrababu Naidu Governor of AP is E.S.L Narasimhan PV Sindhu reaches career-best World Number 2 ranking PV Sindhu has recently bagged Indian open title, 2017 Tai Tzu Ying of China is at World Number 1 Ranking Sports Ministry approved the appointment of two foreign athletics coaches, Dave Smith (for race walking) and Galina P Bukharina (for national 400m and 400m relay teams) Mr. Vijay Goel is the Minister of State (I/C) of Youth Affairs and Sports 2020 Summer Olympics will be organized in Tokyo, Japan Bhimaraya Metri appointed as Director of IIM Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu IIM Trichy was founded in 2011 Bhimaraya Metri succeeds Prafulla Agnihotri RBL bank has opened it's IFSC banking unit in GIFT City RBL bank headquarter is in Maharashtra Slogan of RBL bank is 'apno ka bank' and it was founded in 1943 CEO of RBL bank is Vishwavir Ahuja
08th April, 2017
Ban on cash transactions of over Rs 2 lakh not applicable for bank, post office withdrawals i. Ban on cash transaction in excess of Rs 2 lakh will not be applicable to withdrawals from banks and post office savings accounts, the Income-Tax department announced. 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 22
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 ii. In a clarification on the newly inserted Section 269ST in the I-T Act, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) abort the restriction to withdrawal from banks and post offices. Restriction is also not applicable to any receipt by government, banking company, post office savings bank or co-operative bank respectively.
PM to launch digital exhibition on Champaran Satyagraha i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch a 'special digital exhibition' on the Champaran Satyagraha on 10th April 2017. It is a unique initiative to re-envision the theme of the movement undertaken by Mahatma Gandhi. ii. The exhibition will be titled as 'Bapu Ko Karyanjali' and will be launched at the National Archive in New Delhi. iii. This effort will dovetail into the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, and generate greater awareness towards cleanliness, in the run-up to the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi in 2019.
India extends $4.5 billion new line of credit to Bangladesh i. India and Bangladesh have signed 22 agreements in strategic sectors like defence and civil nuclear cooperation during Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to India. ii. In a joint statement after signing of agreements in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a new line of concessional credit of $4.5 billion for implementation of development projects in Bangladesh. iii. Apart from that, Mr. Modi also announced $500 million of credit for defence procurement in the country.
Centre kicks off programme on Cyber Physical Systems i. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) has initiated a Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) program. ii. CPS is an interdisciplinary field that deals with the deployment of computer-based systems that do things in the physical world such as, the self-driven cars produced by Google and Tesla. iii. It has been conceived as a Rs 3,000-crore exercise that would at first take root in some of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). An initial budget of Rs 100 crore has been earmarked for the project in the current financial year.
India ranks 40th in WEF‟s global travel & tourism ranking i. India has jumped 12 places to 40th rank globally in total 136 countries in Travel and Tourism Competitiveness report 2017 by World Economic Forum. ii. Spain is ranked at the top in the list. The traditional strong travel and tourism destinations, including Japan (4th), the United Kingdom (5th), the United States (6th), Australia (7th), Italy (8th), Canada (9th) and Switzerland (10th), have also made it to the top 10.
HDFC Bank UPI on Chillr app i. HDFC Bank announced its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) will also be available on Chillr, a multi-bank mobile payments app. ii. UPI is an instant payment system developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to enable faster money transfer between any two parties‘ bank accounts.
Canara Bank partners with BSNL i. Canara Bank, a public sector bank, has embarked upon an ambitious project of upgrading the bandwidth at all its
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 branches to 2 Mbps in partnership with BSNL. ii. The bandwidth upgradation of branches is in line with the bank‘s policy of promoting digital channels and will ensure faster service across the counters.
South Indian Bank, Flyworld Money in pact for remittances i. South Indian Bank has entered into an agreement with Flyworld Money Exchange to facilitate remittances by Indian expatriates in Australia. ii. Through this tie-up, NRIs in Australia could enjoy quick and cost-effective remittances to India using the SIB Express facility. With this agreement, SIB marks the first remittance arrangement with an exchange house in Australia.
NPCI disburses Rs. 245 cr in prize money under Niti Aayog's Lucky Draw scheme i. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation for all retail payment systems in the country, has disbursed over Rs. 245 crore worth of prize money to about 18 lakh winners under the NITI Aayog‟s Lucky Draw schemes for consumers and merchants which are Lucky Grahak Yojna (LGY) and Digi-Dhan Vyapar Yojna (DVY). ii. There are three mega prizes for consumers worth Rs. 1 crore, Rs. 50 lakh and Rs. 25 lakh. For merchants too there would be three mega prizes worth Rs. 50 lakh, Rs. 25 lakh and Rs. 12 lakh.
Malala to become youngest United Nations Messenger of Peace i. Malala Yousafzai, the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize has become the youngest United Nations Messenger of Peace. ii. The United Nations stated that the 19-year-old Pakistani education activist will be appointed by Secretary- General Antonio Guterres on April 10, 2017, and it will help to promote girl education around the world.
Boxer Shyam Kumar wins gold at Thailand International i. Indian boxer K Shyam Kumar won a gold medal in the 49- kilogram category at the Thailand International Tournament in Bangkok. ii. He clinched the medal without even stepping inside the ring for his summit clash as Olympic champion Hasanboy Dusmatov of Uzbekistan was unable to play the match due to his injury.
NBA launches first basketball school in India i. The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced the setting up of its first basketball school, a network of tuition-based basketball development programmes, in Mumbai. ii. The school, as part of a multi-year agreement announced with India On Track (IOT), is open to male and female players between ages 6-18.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- HDFC bank announced its UPI on Chillr, a multi-bank mobile payment app
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HDFC headquarter is in Mumbai and was founded in 1944 Managing Director of HDFC bank is Aditya Puri. Malala from Pakistan has become the youngest UN messenger of peace United Nations ninth Secretary-General is Antonio Guterres UN headquarter is in New York City, U.S.A UN was founded in 1945. Canara Bank partnered with BSNL to upgrade bandwidth at all branches Canara Bank Headquarter is in Bengaluru, Karnataka and it was founded in 1906 BSNL was founded in 2000 and its headquarter is in New Delhi Chairman of Canara Bank Shri. T.N. Manoharan The slogan of Canara Bank is 'Together we Can'. NPCI disbursed Rs. 245 crore in prize money under Niti Aayog's Lucky Draw scheme NPCI full form is National Payment Corporation of India NPCI headquarter is in Mumbai and was founded in 2008 NITI aayog Chairman is Shri Narendra Modi Full form of NITI is National Institute of Transforming India. India ranked 40th in WEF‘s global travel & tourism ranking Spain ranked at the top in the list India has jumped 12 places from the previous year ranking K Shyam Kumar won a gold medal at the Thailand International Tournament He won in the 49- kilogram category Bangkok is the capital of Thailand and its currency is Thai Baht Thailand International Tournament was held in Bangkok. Department of Science and Technology (DST) has initiated a Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) program Full form of CPS is Cyber-Physical System Full form of DST is Department of Science and Technology. India and Bangladesh have signed 22 agreements PM of Bangladesh is Sheikh Hasina Currency of Bangladesh is Bangladeshi Taka and its Capital is Dhaka. Narendra Modi will launch a 'special digital exhibition' on the Champaran Satyagraha on 10th April 2017 in New Delhi The exhibition will be titled as 'Bapu Ko Karyanjali' Champaran Satyagraha was started in Champaran district of Bihar in 1917 NBA launches India's first basketball school in Mumbai NBA full form is National Basketball Association NBA headquarter is in New York, United States of America Ban on cash transaction in excess of Rs 2 lakh will not be applicable to withdrawals from banks and post office savings accounts In the 2017-18 Budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had proposed to ban cash transaction of over Rs 3 lakh which was lowered to Rs 2 lakh.
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9-10th April, 2017 World Homeopathy Day: International Convention Organised in New Delhi i. Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH, Shripad Yesso Naik inaugurated the National Convention on World Homeopathy Day on 10 April 2017 at New Delhi. ii. The event was organized to commemorate the 262nd birth anniversary of the founder of Homeopathy, Dr. Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann, a German physician, who was a great scholar, linguist and acclaimed scientist. iii. The theme of the convention is "Enhancing Quality Research in Homeopathy through scientific evidence and rich clinical experiences".
26 projects worth Rs2100 cr approved for Namami Gange project i. The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has approved 26 projects worth Rs 2,154.28 crore under the Centre‘s „Namami Gange‟ programme, aiming to reduce the river‘s pollution load. ii. As part of the projects, the NMCG will set up sewage treatment plants (STPs) and develop sewage network in four Ganga basin states: Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Delhi. iii. It will create sewage treatment capacity of 188 million litres daily (MLD), setting up 13 new STPs in the states. The NMCG will rehabilitate three existing STPs of 596 MLD-capacity in Delhi, Haridwar (Uttarakhand) and Vrindavan (Uttar Pradesh).
India, Russia team up to promote innovation and R&D i. India has signed a joint declaration with Russia to promote innovation and the R&D ecosystem between the two countries. ii. 'The declaration was signed between the Department of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation on the sidelines of the Global R&D Summit 2017. iii. With this collaboration, there will be an effort to promote innovation and technology entrepreneurship through the development of long-term cooperation, co-innovation and direct contacts between Russian and Indian innovation clusters.
India, Australia sign 6 pacts i. India and Australia inked six pacts including one aimed at boosting counter terrorism cooperation after talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull. ii. The two leaders held comprehensive discussions on bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest and concern. The two sides inked a pact to boost counter-terrorism cooperation which was signed between the Ministry of Home Affairs and its counterpart Australian ministry.
Deendayal Rasoi Yojna launched in Madhya Pradesh i. Madhya Pradesh government kick-started its ambitious „Deendayal Rasoi Yojana‟ under which subsidised meals will be available at Rs 5 per plate to people, especially the economically disadvantaged sections of society. ii. The initiative is on the lines of state run Amma Canteens, started by the former chief minister J Jayalalithaa, which served subsidised food at low prices. Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan inaugurated the scheme at Gwalior. In the 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 26
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 first phase, the scheme would be inaugurated in 49 districts.
Rajnath Singh launches Akshay Kumar‟s portal „Bharat Ke Veer‟ i. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh launched the website and app named 'Bharat Ke Veer', to facilitate the monetary contribution to the kin of soldier personnel killed in action. ii. The Home Minister launched the website on the occasion of the 'Shaurya Diwas', which was organized to facilitate the CRPF with bravery awards and medals. This website is technically supported by National Informatics Centre (NIC) and powered by State Bank of India. iii. The amount so donated will be credited to the account of „Next of Kin‟ of those Central Armed Police Force/Central Para Military Force soldiers. Actor Akshay Kumar was the Guest of Honour during the function.
North India to get DNA bank for wildlife i. North India is all set to get its first Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) bank for wildlife in Bareilly. ii. It will help in research and also in bringing down poaching. At present, the Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species (LaCONES) in Hyderabad is the only such facility in the country.
Venkaiah Naidu launches 352 housing projects in 53 cities i. Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation M Venkaiah Naidu launched 352 projects in 53 cities in 17 States across the country with an investment of Rs 38,003-cr to build 2,03,851 affordable houses. ii. These housing projects would be implemented by the Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India (CREDAI) across the country in the first major private investment in affordable housing.
RBI allows banks to invest in REITs & InvITs i. The Reserve Bank of India has allowed banks to invest in Real Estate Investment Trust (REITs) and Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs), a move that will help revive the cash-starved infrastructure sector. ii. Banks are allowed to invest in equity-linked mutual funds, venture capital funds (VCFs) and equities to the extent of 20% of their Net Owned Fund (NOF).
Smita Sandhane appointed MD of Saraswat Bank i. Saraswat Bank, the largest lender in the co-operative space, has appointed Smita Sandhane as its Managing Director (MD) with effect from 01st April 2017. ii. She is the first woman chief of India's largest urban co-operative bank. Prior to her elevation, Sandhane was the Joint Managing Director of the bank. She has been with the bank since 1982. Sandhane has taken over from S.K. Banerji, who retired from the services of the bank on March 31, 2017.
Central Bank of India customer wins Rs 1 cr under Modi's cashless scheme i. A transaction of Rs 1,590 has bagged a Central Bank of India customer a lucky bounty of Rs 1 crore under the Modi government's promotional scheme to popularise digital payments. ii. In the consumer section, the first mega prize of Rs 1 crore went to a customer of Central Bank of India, while the
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 second prize of Rs 50 lakh went to a Bank of Baroda customer. A customer of Punjab National Bank is the winner of third prize of Rs 25 lakh under the Pradhan Mantri Lucky Grahak Yojana.
British-Indian educationist named „Asian Businesswoman of the Year' i. Indian-origin Asha Khemka was named 'Asian Businesswoman of the Year' at an event in Birmingham, England. ii. Khemka was also honoured with one of the UK‘s top civilian awards Dame, the female equivalent of knighthood in 2014 and has since won several accolades for her work in education in Nottingham.
Samsung India‟s R&D unit tops chart of IT patent applicants i. Samsung R&D Institute India filed the maximum number of patent applications in the IT sector in 2015-16, followed by home-grown TCS and Wipro according to Indian Patent Office survey. ii. In the scientific and research and development organizations category, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has topped the chart. Indian Patent Office comes under the Commerce and Industry Ministry.
Flipkart Buys eBay India i. India's largest e-commerce player Flipkart buys eBay's India business, and closing a $1.4 billion fund-raising round from Tencent, eBay and Microsoft. ii. In exchange for an equity stake in Flipkart, eBay has agreed to make a $500 million cash investment in and sell its eBay.in business to Flipkart.
12th Indo-Mongolian Joint Military Exercise Nomadic Elephant held in Vairengte i. The 12th edition Indo-Mongolian Joint Military Exercise Nomadic Elephant 2017 has begun at Vairengte in Mizoram. ii. Vairengte houses Indian Army‘s elite Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School. The first joint Nomadic Elephant was held in 2004 and since then it is annually held. It seeks to promote military associations between India and Mongolia.
ISRO And Agriculture Ministry Team Up To Geo-Tag Agricultural Assets i. The Agriculture Ministry joined hands with the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), a wing of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to geo-tag agricultural assets for their real-time monitoring and effective utilization. ii.The Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna (RKVY) of the Agriculture Ministry and NRSC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this regard.
Hamilton beats Vettel to win his fifth Chinese Grand Prix i. Mercedes' British Formula One racer Lewis Hamilton defeated Ferrari's four-time Formula One World Champion Sebastian Vettel to lift his fifth title at the Chinese Grand Prix.
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Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- Smita Sandhane has appointed as MD of Saraswat Bank. Smita Sandhane is the first woman chief of Saraswat Bank. Sandhane has taken over from S.K. Banerji. The Saraswat Bank is the largest Co-operative Bank in the country. Saraswat Bank inception in 1918. Saraswat Bank is based in Mumbai, Maharashtra NMCG has approved 26 projects worth Rs 2,154.28 crore under the Centre‘s ‗Namami Gange‘ programme. This amount will be spent in the states of UP, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Delhi. National Mission for Clean Ganga(NMCG) was registered as a society on 12th August 2011 under the Societies Registration Act 1860. National Ganga Council under the chairmanship of Hon‘ble Prime Minister of India. Empowered Task Force (ETF) on river Ganga under the chairmanship of Hon‘ble Union Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation. Uma Bharti is the cabinet minister for water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation. Lewis Hamilton has won his fifth title at the Chinese Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton is British formula One racer. Hamilton beat Vettel by 0.186 seconds for his second pole in two races. India and Russia signed a joint collaboration to promote innovation PM of Russia is Dmitry Medvedev and President is Vladimir Putin Currency of Russia is Russian ruble and Capital is Moscow India and Russia are the member countries of BRICS. Samsung R&D Institute of India has topped the chart of IT patent applicants TCS and Wipro are at the second and third position Samsung Headquarter is in Seoul, South Korea. Full form of AYUSH is The Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy World Homeopathy Day is observed on 10 April 2017 Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH is Shripad Yesso Naik The theme of the convention is "Enhancing Quality Research in Homeopathy through scientific evidence and rich clinical experiences". Rajnath Singh launched Akshay Kumar‘s portal ‗Bharat Ke Veer‘ Akshay Kumar was recently awarded as the Best Actor for Rustam in 64th National Awards 'Bharat Ke Veer' portal is a facility for the monetary contribution to the kin of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel killed in action. Venkaiah Naidu launches 352 housing projects in 53 cities Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation is M Venkaiah Naidu For the first time, a major private investment in affordable housing is done by CREDAI Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India is the full form of CREDAI.
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Asha Khemka was named 'Asian Businesswoman of the Year' 'Asian Businesswoman of the Year' event was held in Birmingham, England Asha Khemka was honoured for her efforts in the field of education and skills at the Asian Business Awards ceremony. RBI has allowed banks to invest in REITs & InvITs Real Estate Investment Trust is the full form of REITs Infrastructure Investment Trusts is the full form InvITs BP Kanungo has been recently appointed as the new Deputy Governor of RBI. First DNA Bank for Wild Animals in North India to Be Set Up in Bareilly DNA full form is Deoxyribonucleic acid MP govt started Rs 5 thali under ‗Deendayal Rasoi Yojana‘ CM of Madhya Pradesh is Shivraj Singh Chouhan and governor of MP is Om Prakash Kohli as additional charge In the first phase, the scheme would be inaugurated in 49 districts. Flipkart buys eBay India CEO of Flipkart is Kalyan Krishnamurthy Flipkart headoffice is in Bengaluru
11th April, 2017
PM Modi launched special digital exhibition marking 100 years Champaran Satyagraha i. The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi finally inaugurated an exhibition titled “Swachhagraha – Bapu Ko Karyanjali – Ek Abhiyan, Ek Pradarshani” in the New Delhi to mark the 100 years of Mahatma Gandhi‘s first experiment of Satyagraha in Champaran. ii. He also launched an ‗Online Interactive Quiz‘ at the event which is being organized by the National Archives of India.
Centre releases nearly Rs. 23,443 crore to States under MGNREGS i. Ministry of Rural Development has released nearly Rs. 23,443 crore to the States as the first tranche for this Financial Year, under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). ii. The Government is laying considerable emphasis on Water Conservation and Water Management works under MGNREGS.
Survey General of India Completes 250 Years i. The Survey General of India (SOI) completes 250 years. ii. The government launched 'Nakshe mapping portal' a dedicated website allowing the access to the public to download 3,000 maps prepared by the Survey of India (SOI) but made Aadhaar mandatory for the purpose. iii. Harsh Vardhan, minister of science and technology, stated that the motto behind making Aadhaar mandatory for using this service was to make it available only to Indians. 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 30
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President of India inaugurated first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit 2017 i. The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit 2017 on April 7, 2017, in New Delhi. ii. The slogan of the first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit was 'Unite for a Healthy Mind‟. In the Summit special emphasis was given to people suffering from the problem of Depression.
Shri Rajnath Singh chairs 11th Inter-State Council Standing Committee i. The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh chaired the 11th Standing Committee meeting of the Inter-State Council in New Delhi. ii. The Union Minister for Finance, Corporate Affairs and Defence Shri Arun Jaitley and various states Chief Minister attended the meeting for examining in detail various recommendations of Punchhi Commission. iii. The commission recommended that the person who is slated to be a Governor should not have participated in active politics at even local level for at least a couple of years before his appointment.
Malvika Sinha appointed RBI Executive Director i. The Reserve Bank has appointed Malvika Sinha as Executive Director following the appointment of B P Kanungo as Deputy Governor. ii. As Executive Director, she will look after foreign exchange department, department of government and bank accounts and internal debt management wing, RBI stated in a release.
Manappuram Finance to launch co-branded prepaid card with YES Bank i. Kerala-based NBFC Manappuram Finance will launch its own co-branded prepaid card in the tie-up with YES Bank to promote digital financial transactions. ii. The 'Manappuram YES Bank Prepaid Money Card' can be pre-loaded up to a maximum amount of Rs. 50,000 and then be used to withdraw money from all ATMs. As the card works on the popular MasterCard and RuPay networks, it can also be used for online transactions and at merchant establishments with PoS terminals.
Fino Paytech inks deal with ICICI group companies i. Fino Paytech, which just received the Reserve Bank of India's licence to launch a payments bank, has inked a deal with ICICI group companies to distribute insurance products and tied up with Exide Life insurance to sell products via its distribution channel. ii. Fino Payments Bank will sell life and general insurance products of ICICI Prudential and ICICI Lombard.
Ajit Kumar Srivastava, Shabri Bhattasali named new CBDT members i. Senior bureaucrats Ajit Kumar Srivastava and Shabri Bhattasali were appointed members of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the apex policy making body of the Income Tax department. ii. The CBDT functions under the Central Board of Revenue Act, 1963. CBDT has introduced the Electronic PAN (e- PAN) card for individuals and for 19,704 newly incorporated companies as it tied up with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA).
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Mukta Dutta Tomar appointed India's Ambassador to Germany i. Mukta Dutta Tomar has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Federal Republic of Germany. ii. She is presently Additional Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs. Earlier, Gurjit Singh was holding this post till in March 2017. Atu Zumvu becomes first Naga cop to receive „Shaurya Chakra‟ award i. For the first time since Nagaland officially gained recognition as a state, a state Police Officer Atu Zumvu has been awarded one of the nations' military honour, „Shaurya Chakra' award at a ceremony held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. ii. Nagaland attained statehood in 1963 and since then this is the first time a police officer from the state has been honored with this award.
Former Supreme Court judge Shiva Kirti Singh to head TDSAT i. The government has appointed retired Supreme Court judge Shiva Kirti Singh as the next chairman of the Telecom Disputes Settlement & Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) after replacing of Justice Aftab Alam who was retired in June 2016. ii. The appointment is for a period of three years from the date of assumption of office.
Kristin Davis appointed UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador i. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, announced the appointment of internationally acclaimed actress and philanthropist Kristin Davis as its Goodwill Ambassador. ii. UNHCR Goodwill Ambassadors are celebrity representatives of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) who use their talent and fame to advocate for refugees.
Carme Chacon, Spain's first female defence minister, dies i. Carme Chacon, the first female defense minister of Spain and a prominent socialist party leader, has died aged 46. ii. Before taking charge of the defense ministry, she had previously been the minister of housing and a national lawmaker.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- Supreme Court judge Shiva Kirti Singh appointed as next chairman of TDSAT Telecom Disputes Settlement & Appellate Tribunal is full form of TDSAT. Atu Zumvu becomes first Naga cop to receive ‗Shaurya Chakra‘ award Nagaland attained statehood in 1963 Shurhozelie Liezietsu is the newly appointed Chief Minister of Nagaland Mukta Dutta Tomar appointed India's Ambassador to Germany She has replaced Gurjit Singh Smt. Sushma Swaraj is the Union External Affairs Minister of India Rs. 23,443 crores released for MGNREGS for Mission Water Conservation
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Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme is the full form of MGNREGS. Minister of Rural Development is Narendra Singh Tomar. Narendra Modi inaugurated a 'special digital exhibition' on the Champaran Satyagraha on 10th April 2017 in New Delhi The exhibition will be titled as ―Swachhagraha – Bapu Ko Karyanjali – Ek Abhiyan, Ek Pradarshani‖ Champaran Satyagraha was started in Champaran district of Bihar in 1917. Shri Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit 2017 The slogan of the first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit was 'Unite for a Healthy Mind‘ World Health Day is celebrated globally on 7th of April The Theme of 2017 World Health Day is 'Depression: Let's Talk' Carme Chacon the first female defense minister of Spain dies at 46 Madrid is Capital of Spain and its currency is Euro Mariano Rajoy is the Prime Minister of Spain. Fino Paytech signed pact with ICICI group companies Fino Paytech, just received the Reserve Bank of India's licence to launch a payments bank Headquarter of ICICI bank is in Mumbai CEO of ICICI bank is Chanda Kochhar Ajit Kumar Srivastava and Shabri Bhattasali were appointed as new CBDT members Central Board of Direct Taxes is the full form of CBDT CBDT has introduced the Electronic PAN (e-PAN) card in collaboration with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. Survey General of India (SOI) completed 250 years The government launched 'Nakshe mapping portal' allowing the public the access to download 3,000 maps Shri Harsh Vardhan is the Cabinet minister of science and technology Manappuram Finance tied up with Yes Bank Head office of Manappuram Finance in Thrissur, Kerala Headquarter of Yes Bank in Mumbai NBFC full form is Non-Banking Financial Companies.
12th April, 2017
National Hindi Sevi Samman Awards announced i. Central Hindi Institute Director N.K. Pandey announced the names of writers from different categories for the prestigious Hindi Sevi Samman Awards. ii. The awardees will receive Rs 5 lakh each, a citation and a shawl from President Pranab Mukherjee at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan in May 2017. iii. The Ganesh Shankar Vidhyarthi Award for Hindi journalism will be awarded to Rahul Dev and Baldev Bhai Sharma
Govt sets up inter-ministerial panel to monitor UDAN 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 33
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 i. The government has set up an 'Inter-Ministerial Committee' to monitor the regional air connectivity scheme UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik) which seeks to make flying affordable by connecting unserved and under-served airports. ii. Chaired by Civil Aviation Secretary Shri Rajiv Nayan Choubey, the ‗Inter-Ministerial Monitoring-cum- Coordination Committee‘ would have representations from the ministries of finance, defence, home as well as petroleum and natural gas.
Government reduces number of centrally sponsored schemes to 28 i. The government has reduced the number of centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) to 28 umbrella schemes from 66. ii. Based on the recommendation of the sub-group of Chief Ministers on rationalisation of centrally sponsored schemes, the government of India has rationalised centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) effective from the financial year 2016-17.
India's first-ever micro-drama festival held in Delhi i. India's first ever micro-drama festival, named Thespis, was held recently in New Delhi. The longest play of the festival ran for not more than 10 minutes and the shortest one lasted for only 42 seconds. ii.The festival was organized by theater group 'Vriksh'. The inaugural play of the festival was titled 'Chamaeleonidae'.
ESAF Small Finance Bank launches social deposit scheme i. ESAF Small Finance Bank has launched a social deposit scheme called 'Hrudaya Deposit scheme' in Thrissur, Kerala. ii. The deposit scheme stands for a social cause through which ESAF Bank provides the customers an opportunity to be a part in social welfare projects. and CEO of ESAF Small Finance Bank. iii. An individual or a legal entity can join the Hrudaya Deposit Scheme with a minimum deposit amount of Rs 15 lakh and for a minimum period of two years.
Nokia partner with Airtel & BSNL to set up 5G internet speed in India i. Nokia and Airtel along with state-owned network BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd) have announced that they have partnered to set up 5G internet speed in India to introduce a fast internet ecosystem in the country. ii. An MOU has been signed between the companies. The aim of the partnerships is to upgrade the existing 4G network in India to make way for better 5G services in the country.
Malala Yousafzai, the youngest noble prize winner to address Canadian Parliament i. Malala Yousafzai, the Nobel Prize laureate, becomes the youngest noble prize winner to address Canadian parliament. ii. She has also officially received the honorary Canadian citizenship bestowed upon her in 2014 by Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau.
Colson Whitehead wins Pulitzer prize for 'The Underground Railroad'
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 i. The literary blockbuster novel 'The Underground Railroad' authored by Colson Whitehead, which depicts the journey of a young woman escaping from slavery via a fantastical train system has won the Pulitzer prize for fiction. ii. The Pulitzer prizes are considered as the most prestigious journalism and arts awards in the U.S.A.
PM releases book authored by LS Speaker Sumitra Mahajan i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a book 'Matoshree', authored by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan in New Delhi. ii. The book 'Matoshree' covers the life and times of legendary Devi Ahilyabai Holker who ruled the Holkar Empire spread over the Malwa region from 1767 to 1795.
First rail freight service to China departs UK i. The first rail freight service British goods from the UK to China has departed on its 17-day, 7,500-mile journey. ii. After going through the Channel Tunnel, the train will pass through seven other countries before arriving on 27 April, 2017. They are France, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- National Hindi Sevi Samman Awards announced by Central Hindi Institute Director N.K. Pandey The Ganesh Shankar Vidhyarthi Award awarded to Rahul Dev and Baldev Bhai Sharma The awardees will receive Rs 5 lakh each from President Pranab Mukherjee at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan in May 2017. Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a book 'Matoshree' The book is Authored by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan The book 'Matoshree' covers the life and times of legendary Devi Ahilyabai Holker Government has set up an inter-ministerial committee to monitor the regional air connectivity scheme UDAN UDAN full form is Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik Inter-Ministerial Monitoring-cum-Coordination Committee is chaired by Civil Aviation Secretary Shri Rajiv Nayan Choubey. Colson Whitehead has won the Pulitzer prize for fiction The Pulitzer prizes, considered the most prestigious journalism and arts awards in the U.S.A. ESAF's has launched new social deposit scheme named as 'Hrudaya Deposit' scheme Managing Director and CEO of ESAF Small Finance Bank is K. Paul Thomas Headquarter of ESAF Small Finance Bank is Thrissur, Kerala. Nokia partnered with Airtel & BSNL to set up 5G internet speed in India Gopal Vittal is the CEO of Bharti Airtel Shri Anupam Shrivastava is the CEO of BSNL. Malala Yousafzai becomes the first noble prize winner to address Canadian Parliament She has also officially received the honorary Canadian citizenship Justin Trudeau is the Prime Minister of Canada and its capital is Ottawa India's first-ever micro-drama festival held in New Delhi
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The micro-drama festival was named Thespis The festival was organised by theater group 'Vriksh' First rail freight service British goods from the UK to China has departed The train will pass through seven other countries which are France, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan.
13th April, 2017 Cabinet approves listing of 11 CPSEs on stock exchanges i. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has given its approval for the listing of 11 Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) on stock exchanges. ii. As approved, the listing of CPSEs will be through the public offer of shares up to 25 per cent of Government of India's shareholding. CPSEs are:- 1. Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) 2. IRCON International Limited 3. Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) Ltd. 4. Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) Ltd. 5. RITES Ltd. 6. Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) 7. Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) Ltd. 8. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDSL) 9. North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO) Ltd. 10. MSTC Ltd. 11. Mishra Dhatu Nigam Ltd. (MIDHANI)
Petrol, diesel prices to change every day from May 1 i. As per the announcement of government from May 1, 2017, petrol and diesel prices will change every day in sync with international rates. ii. State-owned fuel retailers Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) will launch a pilot for daily price revision in five select cities which are Puducherry, Vizag in Andhra Pradesh, Udaipur in Rajasthan, Jamshedpur in Jharkhand and Chandigarh from May 1, 2017 stated by Petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan
PM Modi becomes the most followed world leader on Instagram i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged as the most followed world leader on photo-sharing app Instagram with a whopping 6.9 million followers, surpassing US President Donald Trump. ii. Mr. Modi is also the most "effective world leader" on the platform. Trump, who occupies the second spot, has 6.3 million followers while Pope Francis is in third place with 3.7 million followers.
Government sets up a panel to examine framework for Virtual Currencies 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 36
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 i. The Government has set up an Inter-Disciplinary Committee to examine the existing framework with regard to Virtual Currencies. ii. The Committee will take stock of the present status of Virtual Currencies both in India and globally. It will also examine the existing global regulatory and legal structures governing these Currencies. iii. The Finance Ministry stated that the committee will suggest measures for dealing with such currencies including issues relating to consumer protection and money laundering. The Committee will be chaired by Special Secretary of Economic Affairs, Shri Dinesh Sharma.
India, Australia sign sports partnership i. India and Australia have started a partnership aimed at increasing cooperation in sports, in the presence of visiting Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and batting legend Sachin Tendulkar. ii. The partnership will advance India-Australia cooperation in four areas athlete and coach training and development, sports science, sports governance and integrity, and grassroots participation. iii. Sports Minister Vijay Goel has launched a major grassroots programme named 'Khelo India' for developing a sporting culture at grass-root level.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu relaunches „Adarana Scheme' i. Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N. Chandrababu Naidu announced the re-launch of 'Adarana scheme' for improving traditional occupations. ii. It is for the uplift and all-round development of people belonging to the Backward Classes stated by CM Naidu.
Pink patrol, security app for women in Bengaluru i. A fleet of pink patrol vehicles to attend to the distress calls from women and an exclusive police mobile phone distress application have been introduced in Bengaluru as part of an effort to improve the safety and security of women in the city. ii. The pink patrol cars called the 'Pink Hoysalas' and the Suraksha mobile phone app were unveiled by Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. The app has been developed by the Bengaluru city police IT team and can be downloaded on Android and iOS phones.
Bank accounts to be blocked if not self-certified by April 30, 2017 i. As part of Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) compliance, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has asked the banks/financial institutions to link their accounts with Aadhaar number and self- certification from customers by April 30, 2017, to avoid closure of accounts. ii. It is clearly directed the banks to obtain a self-certification for the accounts opened between July 1, 2014 to August 31, 2015.
World Bank approves $375-mn loan for India‟s first waterway project i. The World Bank has approved a $375 million loan to India‘s first inland water transport fairway National Waterway 1 (NW1) project on a 1,360 km stretch of the Ganga river between Varanasi and the seaport of Haldia for
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 bringing thousands of jobs in cargo logistics and transportation.
Amazon receives RBI approval for e-wallet i. Amazon India has received the RBI‟s approval for an e-wallet 'Amazon Pay', which the e-tailer had applied for early last year. ii. The licence has been issued to Amazon Online Distribution Services on March 22, 2017 and is valid for five years.
Karnataka Bank gets new MD and CEO i. Mahabaleshwara Mavinakudige Subrahmanya has been appointed as the new MD and CEO of Karnataka Bank Ltd. ii. He succeeds Polali Jayarama Bhat, who voluntarily stepped down 15 months ahead of his three-year term as MD and CEO. iii. Mr. P J Bhat is the new part-time non-executive chairman of Karnataka Bank
Haldia Port Tops the List in the First Ever Ranking of Ports on Sanitation Parameters i. Haldia Port in West Bengal has topped the List in the First-Ever Ranking of Ports on Sanitation Parameters. ii. The survey was done on the twelve major ports under the Ministry of Shipping. The exercise was undertaken during the „Swachhta Pakhwada‟ observed from the 16th to 31st of March 2017
UN chief Guterres names Achim Steiner as new administrator of UNDP i. United Nation (UN) chief Antonio Guterres has named a German Achim Steiner, as the new administrator of the UN Development Programme (UNDP). ii. Headquartered in New York City, the UNDP seeks to reduce poverty, improve social development and encourage women's empowerment.
Tata Motors arm launches Made-in-India robot i. TAL Manufacturing Solutions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Motors has launched a Made-in-India robot catering primarily to micro, small and medium industries. ii. The indigenously built robot TAL Brabo is available in two variants of payloads of 2 kg and 10 kg, priced at ₹5 lakh and ₹7 lakh, respectively. iii. This is the first robot conceptualized and designed in India.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- Amazon India has received the RBI‘s approval for an e-wallet named 'Amazon Pay' RBI 24th governor is Urjit Patel and its headquarter is in Mumbai Amazon CEO is Jeff Bezos and Headquarter is in United States. World Bank has approved a $375 million loan to National Waterway (NW1) The NW 1 project is to create a water transport fairway on a 1,360-km stretch of the Ganga river between Varanasi and Haldia
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Haldia Port is situated in West Bengal World Bank CEO is Kristalina Georgieva and its Headquarter is in Washington, D.C., U.S.A World Bank was founded in 1944. Bank accounts be blocked if not linked with Aadhaar number and self-certification by April 30, 2017 Customers whose account opened between July1, 2014 to August 31, 2015 have to submit their self- certication by April 30, 2017. The pink patrol cars called the 'Pink Hoysalas' and the Suraksha mobile phone app were launched by Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru N. Chandrababu Naidu announced the re-launch of ‗Adarana‘ scheme The scheme is for improving traditional occupations for people belonging to backward class. Petrol and Diesel prices will change every day from May 1, 2017 Dharmendra Pradhan is the Petroleum Minister Five cities selected which are Puducherry, Vishakapatnam, Udaipur, Jamshedpur and Chandigarh. Haldia Port in West Bengal has topped the List in the First-Ever Ranking of Ports on Sanitation Parameters The exercise was undertaken during the ‗Swachhta Pakhwada‘ Minister of Shipping is Sh. Nitin Gadkari Haldia and Vizag ports bagged the first and second ranks respectively ‗Swachh Bharat Abhiyan‘ was launched by Hon‘ble Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi on 2nd October 2014. Mahabaleshwara Mavinakudige Subrahmanya is the new MD and CEO of Karnataka Bank Ltd He succeeded Polali Jayarama Bhat Mr. P J Bhat is the new part-time non-executive chairman of Karnataka Bank India and Australia have started a sports partnership Sports Minister Vijay Goel has launched a major grassroots programme named 'Khelo India' Malcolm Turnbull is the Prime Minister of Australia Government sets up a committee to examine framework for Virtual Currencies The committee will be chaired by Special Secretary of Economic Affairs, Shri Dinesh Sharma. CCEA has given its approval for the listing of 11 CPSEs on stock exchanges. CPSEs stands for Central Public Sector Enterprises. CCEA stands for Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs UN chief named Achim Steiner to head UNDP Antonio Guterres is the chief of United Nation United Nation Headquarter is in New York, U.S.A and was founded in 1945 PM Modi emerged as the most followed world leader on Instagram PM Modi followed by US President Donald Trump and Pope Francis at the second and third position.
14th April, 2017 127th birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar: 14 April i. Nation remembers Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar on his 127th birth anniversary today i.e 14 April 2017. ii. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, chief architect of the Constitution of India, was born on 14th April 1891 at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh, which is now known as Dr. Ambedkar Nagar. He was also the first law minister of India. 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 39
Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 iii. Prime Minister Modi launched several crucial initiatives to further the digital payments revolution in India on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti in Nagpur. These projects include the launch of BHIM Aadhaar platform for merchants, cash back and referral bonus schemes for BHIM and declaring about 75 townships going less-cash.
France, India ink pact to upgrade Railways i. The French Minister of State for Transport Alain Vidalies signed an agreement with Indian Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu for collaboration in railway areas such as high-speed and semi-high speed rail, modernisation of current operations and infrastructure, station renovation and operations, suburban trains and safety systems.
Women can retain maiden names in passports, PM announced i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that women are free to retain their maiden names in their passports now after the marriage. ii. Stating that he wanted women to be at the centre of the developmental schemes as the government is working in different ways to empower them through various schemes like Mudra and Ujjwala.
Haryana launched Operation Durga to ensure women Safety i. Similar to that of Uttar Pradesh‘s ‗Anti-Romeo Squad‘, the Haryana government has launched „Operation Durga‟ to ensure women safety in the state. ii. Under this operation, the 'Flying Squad' is patrolling those areas where anti-social elements are committing crimes against women. The team is formed by Chief Minister of Haryana Mr. Manohar Lal Khattar.
Jharkhand police initiates Tare Zameen Par programme for underprivileged kids i. Jharkhand Police has initiated 'Tare Zameen Par programme' to enlighten children in Naxal-affected areas in the Palamau district of Jharkhand. ii. This programme is aimed to restore confidence in the state police force and to encourage children to lead happy lives. iii. As a part of the programme, the state police appealed the locals to donate bags, shoes, books and clothes to improve the basic amenities of the children in the Naxal-affected areas.
Bank Boards Bureau evolves 'GRAF' for PSBs i. The Bank Boards Bureau (BBB) has evolved a Governance, Reward and Accountability Framework (GRAF) for public sector banks to ensure that they have the ability to compete successfully with private sector banks, small finance and payments banks, foreign banks and non-banking finance companies. ii. The framework is guided by the latest global benchmarking on governance practices provided by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervisions guidelines on corporate governance principles for banks released in July 2015.
Postal department, SBI join hands to promote cashless transactions i. Department of Posts has joined hands with State Bank of India to promote 'SBI buddy e-wallet' and Point of
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Sale (POS) machines for cashless transactions at post office counters while booking speed post and registered post items. ii. Higher officials have dedicated SBI buddy e-wallet and SBI POS machines at Chandigarh General Post Office for the general public.
I-T CPC in Bengaluru gets new unique pin code for taxpayers benefit i. Taxpayers wanting to send their paper Income Tax Return (ITR) acknowledgment forms or documents related to refunds and others to the I-T department's CPC in Bengaluru can now send it to a unique pin code '560500'. ii. The Department of Post has allotted the pin code to the Central Processing Centre (CPC) to ensure that letters and emails sent by taxpayers and assessees are not lost and reach the centre without delay.
IRDAI launches web portal for insurers i. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has launched a web portal for insurers that will allow them to register and sell policies online. ii. The portal 'isnp.irda.gov.in' is also open to intermediaries in the insurance business.
Grasim gets RBI approval to hike FII limit i. The Reserve Bank has allowed Aditya Birla Group firm Grasim Industries to raise the foreign shareholding to 49% from the existing limit of 30%. ii. RBI has notified that foreign institutional Investors/foreign portfolio investors can now invest the paid-up capital of Grasim Industries Ltd under the Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS).
Dr. (Ms.) Mukulita Vijayawargiya takes charge as Whole Time Member of IBBI i. Dr. (Ms.) Mukulita Vijayawargiya took charge as Whole Time Member of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) in New Delhi. ii. He will look after the fields like Administrative Law Wing, Information Technology, Limited Insolvency Examination, National Insolvency Examination, Finance Accounts and Communication.
Himachal Pradesh bags Krishi Karman Award 2015-16 i. The Union Ministry of Agriculture has selected Himachal Pradesh for the Krishi Karman Award 2015-16 for the commendable increase in food grains production. ii. Himachal Pradesh is being selected for this award for the third time. The award would carry a trophy, citation and cash prize. The state was also conferred the Krishi Karman Award for 2011-12 for the increase in wheat production and in 2014-15 for increasing food grains production.
Indian wins top prize at UN challenge for open source tool i. An Indian software engineer Abdulqadir Rashik has won the top prize at a global challenge for an open-source tool that enables users to interactively view UN General Assembly resolutions and gain a deeper understanding of the voting patterns of member states. ii. He also won the 'Unite Ideas UNGAViz Textual Analysis and Visualisation Challenge' for his Global Policy.
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Cisco launched 5th global and 1st in India cyber range lab in Gurugram i. US-based tech giant Cisco launched its fifth global cyber range lab in Gurugram, Haryana with an aim to train Indian firms and government agencies on real-world cyber attacks. ii. This is the first cyber range lab in India. The facility was inaugurated by National Cyber Security Coordinator Gulshan Rai.
Pranab Mukherjee released book on Draupadi by Veerappa Moily i. A book on Draupadi named 'the Flaming Tresses of Draupadi' written by senior Congress leader M Veerappa Moily was released by President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi. ii. The book is an English translation by D A Shankar of Moily‘s original work in Kannada.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows- Nation remembers BR Ambedkar on his 127th birth anniversary i.e. 14 April 2017 He was born on 14th April 1891 at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh, which is now known as Dr. Ambedkar Nagar He was also the first law minister of India Unified Payment Interface (UPI) based app BHIM was launched by PM Modi which has been named after Bhim Rao Ambedkar. Pranab Mukherjee released the book named 'the Flaming Tresses of Draupadi' authored by M Veerappa Moily The book was translated into English by D A Shankar Moily is best known for his book Shree Ramayana Mahanveshanam, which received the Moortidevi Award of the Bharatiya Jnanpith. Haryana govt launched Operation Durga to ensure women Safety Haryana CM is Mr. Manohar Lal Khattar Governor of Haryana is Kaptan Singh Solanki. Cisco launched its fifth global cyber range lab in Gurugram, Haryana The facility was inaugurated by National Cyber Security Coordinator Gulshan Rai Cisco was formed in 1984 and it is headquartered in California, USA Chuck Robbins is the current CEO of Cisco India and France inked pact to upgrade Railways France PM is Bernard Cazeneuve The capital of France is Paris and its Currency is Euro French Minister of State for Transport is Alain Vidalies. Himachal Pradesh bags Krishi Karman Award for 2015-16 The total food grains production has increased from 14.94 lakh tonne to 16.34 lakh tonne in Himachal Pradesh Radha Ram Mohan Singh is the Union Agriculture and farmer welfare Minister of India The Capital of Himachal Pradesh is Shimla and its Chief Minister is Mr. Virbhadra Singh Postal department and SBI joined hands to promote cashless transactions in India SBI buddy e-wallet and SBI POS machines at Chandigarh General Post Office has been dedicated to the general public
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Smt. Arundhati Bhattacharya is the Chairperson of Mumbai Headquartered State Bank of India Tare Zameen Par programme launched in Jharkhand CM of Jharkhand is Raghubar Das Governor of Jharkhand is Draupadi Murmu. Tare Zameen Par programme launched in Jharkhand CM of Jharkhand is Raghubar Das Governor of Jharkhand is Draupadi Murmu. BBB has evolved a Governance, Reward and Accountability Framework (GRAF) for public sector banks Banks Board Bureau is an autonomous body of Union Government of India tasked to improve the governance of Public Sector Banks. IRDAI has launched a web portal 'isnp.irda.gov.in' for insurers that will allow them to register and sell policies online. Full form of IRDAI is Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India IRDAI Chairman is T.S Vijayan and its headquarter is in Hyderabad. Dr. (Ms.) Mukulita Vijayawargiya took charge as Whole Time Member of IBBI The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) was established on October 1, 2016, in accordance with the provisions of The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.
15th April, 2017 PM launches GNFC‟s cashless/less cash township model across 12 States i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched in Nagpur, a cashless/less cash township model, developed by Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers and Chemicals Ltd (GNFC), across 81 townships in 12 States. ii. These townships will deliver 2.5 lakh cashless transactions per day, translating into 9 crore cashless transactions in a year. iii. GNFC‟s township at Bharuch in Gujarat became India‟s first cashless township after demonetization.
Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana tops target for 2016-17 i. Loans extended under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) during 2016-17 have crossed the target of Rs 1,80,000 crore for 2016-17. ii. The Union Budget has announced a target of Rs. 2.44 lakh crore for Mudra Loans during 2017-18. There would be a special focus within the Mudra Scheme on convergence with other government schemes, deepening connect with borrowers and meeting credit requirements of trainees completing skilling course
UP govt, Centre sign MoU for 'Power for All' scheme i. Uttar Pradesh government and the Centre have signed an MoU for the 'Power for All' scheme in the state. ii. The aim of this scheme is to ensure 24-hour quality power supply in the state by October 2018 and electric connection to every house and agriculture field by 2019. iii. The project will cost above rupees 40 thousand crore out of which 20 thousand crore will be spent till 2018. 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 43
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RBI issues new framework for bad loans i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued a new set of enabling provisions titled 'Revised Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework' to resolve the problem of banks mounting non-performing assets (NPAs), or bad loans. ii. The new set of provisions, effective from April 1, 2017 override the existing PCA framework and are based on the financials of each bank as of March 2017. iii. Under the revised framework, if a bank crosses the third level of risk threshold (where a bank‘s common equity tier I capital falls below the threshold of 3.625 per cent by 3.125 per cent, or more) it will either be amalgamated or merged, or taken over by another entity.
Income Tax department launches 'Operation Clean Money-II' i. The Income Tax department has launched the second phase of the „Operation Clean Money‟ to investigate over 60,000 individuals with an aim to detect black money generation post demonetisation. ii. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the policy-making body of the income tax department has detected the flow of black money into the banks amounting to over Rs 9,334 crore between November 9, 2016 and February 28, 2017.
PM Modi inaugurates new units in Koradi thermal power station i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated 1980 MW of the Koradi super-critical thermal power project of state- run Mahagenco near Nagpur in Maharashtra to the nation. ii. The 1,980 MW capacity includes three units of 660 MW each. The plant currently has one unit of 200 MW, two units of 210 MW each and with the addition of the three units of 660 MW each, its total capacity has increased to 2,600 MW.
Nepal, China hold first ever military exercise i. Nepal and China will hold the first-ever joint military exercise named „Sagarmatha Friendship-2017‟ from 17 April 2017 with a special focus on combating terror and disaster management. ii. Sagarmatha is the Nepali name of Mount Everest, the world‘s highest peak, that is bordering between Nepal and China.
Former J&K Governor Girish Saxena dies i. Former Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Girish Chandra Saxena has passed away at the age of 90. ii. Saxena was an Indian Police Service officer of the 1950 batch from the Uttar Pradesh cadre. iii. He served two terms as the governor of Jammu and Kashmir. He also served as the head of Research and Analysis Wing from 1983 to 1986.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows UP and Centre have signed an MoU for the 'Power for All' scheme in the state CM of Uttar Pradesh is Yogi Adityanath Governor of UP is Shri Ram Naik
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PM Narendra Modi launched in Nagpur a cashless/less cash township model Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers and Chemicals Ltd is full form of GNFC GNFC‘s township at Bharuch in Gujarat became India‘s first cashless township Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana tops target for 2016-17, loans cross target of Rs 1.8 lakh crore Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) was launched on 8th April 2015 by PM Narendra Modi IT department has launched 'Operation Clean Money-II' Operation Clean Money is launched with an aim to detect black money The first phase of ‗Operation Clean Money‘ was launched on January 31, 2017 The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is the policy-making body of the income tax department RBI issued new framework for bad loans named as 'Revised Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework' The head office of RBI is in Mumbai and was formed in 1 April 1935 Urjit Patel is the 24th governor of RBI B P Kanungo is the newly appointed Deputy governor of RBI. Nepal and China will hold the first-ever joint military exercise named ‗Sagarmatha Friendship-2017‘ Sagarmatha is the Nepali name of Mount Everest, the world‘s highest peak Nepal capital is Kathmandu and currency is Nepalese Rupee China capital is Beijing and currency is Renminbi/Yuan. PM Modi inaugurated new units of 1980 MW in Koradi thermal power station Koradi is located near Nagpur, Maharashtra CM of Maharashtra is Devendra Fadnavis and Governor is C. Vidyasagar Rao. Former J&K governor Girish Chandra Saxena has passed away He served two terms as the governor of Jammu and Kashmir He also as an advisor to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
16-17th April, 2017 PM Modi on 2-day visit to Gujarat- Day 1 Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on the 2-Day visit to Gujarat. He launched various projects and schemes during his visit on the first day. The two main actions of the day one were- 1. Inauguration of the Kiran Multi-Speciality Hospital and Diamond Manufacturing Unit in Surat 2. Inauguration of Cattle Feed Plant and launch of irrigation and water supply schemes at Bajipura, Gujarat- PM inaugurated the SUMUL (the Surat District Cooperative Milk Producers Union Limited) cattle feed plant at Bajipura in southern Gujarat. He also laid the Foundation Stone for three Lift Irrigation Schemes and inaugurated the Drinking Water Supply Scheme for Vyara Town and Jesinhpur-Dolvan Groups of Tapi district.
Nepal President to arrive in India on five-day visit i. Nepalese President Bidya Devi Bhandari is arriving in New Delhi on a five-day visit to India. ii. This will be Bhandari's first foreign trip after assuming the office in October 2015, following the promulgation of the new Constitution in Nepal. A high-level delegation comprising several ministers and MPs accompanying her.
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Manipur CM launched DARPAN web applications to check corruption i. Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh launched two web applications to check corruption and keep track of government activities. ii. The two web applications were Anti-Corruption Cell and Digital Application for Review by Public And Nation (DARPAN). The two web applications would monitor all government funded projects and ensure transparency and accountability.
Maharashtra, the first state to stage special drive for transgenders to register as voters i. Maharashtra has become the first state to launch a special awareness drive to ensure that transgenders in the state register as voters in greater numbers. ii. The state branch of the Election Commission of India (ECI) launched the drive on April 15, celebrated as Third Gender Day. According to ECI officials, despite the approximate population of third genders in Maharashtra being pegged at more than 10 lakh, only about 1,700 are registered voters.
Finance Ministry approves 8.65% interest rate on EPF i. The Finance Ministry have permitted the Labour Ministry to go ahead with 8.65% rate of interest on Employees‟ Provident Fund (EPF) for 2016-17, which will benefit over four crores EPFO members.
Prakash Javadekar launched RUSA Portal, Mobile App i. Human Resource and Development Minister Prakash Javadekar launched the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) portal and mobile app in New Delhi. ii. The portal is one-stop for States‘ Higher Education Plans, the decision of the States‘ Higher Education Councils and details of the resources. The mobile application will ensure that all projects under RUSA are tracked for 24x7.
Bhopal to have India's first privately run railway station i. For the first time in Indian Railway history Habibganj station in Bhopal has been handed over to the private firm to be operated by it. ii. The station building will be developed in line with airport terminals. However, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu clarified that trains at the station will still be run by the Railways.
Over 50 Indians in Forbes‟ under 30 list of super achievers i. Over 50 Indians, including gymnast Dipa Karmakar, Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik and actress Alia Bhatt, are among Forbes‟ list of super achievers from Asia under the age of 30 who are ―pushing boundaries of innovation―. ii. The second Forbes „30 Under 30‟ Asia list 2017 features 300 impressive young entrepreneurs 30 in 10 categories, including entertainment, finance and venture capital, retail, social entrepreneurs and enterprise technology, under the age of 30 years.
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 iii. The youngest Indians on the list are brothers Sanjay, 15, and Shravan Kumaran, 17, who founded GoDimensions, a mobile app developer five years ago.
India‟s economy will grow by 7.2% in 2017-18, predicts World Bank i. India‘s gross domestic product is expected to spike to 7.2% in the 2017-18 financial year from 6.8% the previous fiscal, according to a new World Bank report titled “Globalization Backlash”. ii. The international agency forecast that India‘s economic growth will rise gradually to 7.7% in 2019-‘20, underpinned by a recovery in private investments.
Hanchinal receives M.S. Swaminathan Award i. The sixth prestigious M.S. Swaminathan Award for contribution in the field of agriculture given to R.R. Hanchinal, Chairperson of Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights Authority, the government of India. ii. He received the award for his contributions and sustained support to the areas of crop improvement for hot and very hot dry environments, seed production technology and intellectual protection rights in plant varieties.
Indian engineer Trupti Jain wins „Cartier Women‟s Initiative award‟ i. An Indian environmental engineer Trupti Jain has won 2017 prestigious „Cartier Women‟s Initiative Award‟ for providing women working on farms with water management solutions and protecting small farmers against droughts and flash flood. ii. She, was one among the six winners chosen for the Asia-Pacific laureate from a pool of nearly 1,900 applicants from over 120 countries and were selected by an independent international jury.
BRICS envoys on Middle East meet in India i. Special Envoys of five BRICS member states who specialises on West Asian Affairs held a quiet meeting in Vishakhapatnam to assess current situation in the volatile region after use of chemical weapons in Syria and US retaliatory strike on the Syrian air base. ii. This was the first meeting of the BRICS special envoys on the Middle East held in India and gained significance following growing instability in West Asia and North Africa.
Google launches Areo app i. Google has launched a new food delivery and home services aggregator called Areo for the Indian market. The app is available as a free download on the Google Play store and is currently operational in Bengaluru and Mumbai.
World's oldest person Emma Morano dies aged 117 i. Emma Morano, an Italian woman believed to have been the oldest person alive and the last survivor of the 19th century died at the age of 117. Morano, born on November 29, 1899, died at her home in Verbania, northern Italy.
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Arjun Gaind launches his book on Punjab i. Author Arjun Gaind launched his latest book, 'Punjab: Building the Land Of Five Rivers' in Mumbai. A panel discussion was organised on the occasion at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya in which Punjab‘s history, heritage, culture and growth were discussed.
Sai Praneeth wins Singapore open Badminton i. Sai Praneeth has won the title match of Men's singles at Singapore Open Badminton beating his compatriot Kidambi Srikanth. ii. This was the first time that two Indians featured in a men‘s singles Superseries final and India became only the fourth country to have both players in a Super series final. The other three are China, Denmark and Indonesia.
Pankaj Advani won his sixth Asian Billiards title i. Sixteen-time world champion Pankaj Advani has won his sixth Asian Billiards title and seventh overall Asian championship. ii. The ace cueist defeated his compatriot Sourav Kothari 6-3 in an entertaining final of the Asian Billiards Championship in Chandigarh.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows PM Modi is on 2-day visit to Gujarat Inaugurated the Kiran Multi-Speciality Hospital and Diamond Manufacturing Unit in Surat Inaugurated SUMUL, Cattle Feed Plant and launched irrigation and water supply schemes at Bajipura, Gujarat R.R. Hanchinal accloaded by M.S. Swaminathan Award He received the award for his contributions and sustained support to the areas of crop improvement The award is in a name of M S Swaminathan, who was an Indian geneticist and international administrator. Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh launched two web applications Anti-Corruption Cell and DARPAN to check corruption and keep track of government activities Digital Application for Review by Public And Nation is the full form of DARPAN Maharashtra becomes the first state to launch a special drive for transgenders to register as voters CM of Maharashtra is Devendra Fadnavis and governor of Maharashtra is C Vidyasagar Rao. Trupti Jain has won 2017 'Cartier Women‘s Initiative Award' The Cartier Awards are an international business competition that aims to encourage women entrepreneurs to solve contemporary global challenges. Habibganj station in Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) has been handed over to a private firm to be operated by it Railway Minister of India is Suresh Prabhu Over 50 Indians in Forbes‘ under 30 list of super achievers in Asia including gymnast Dipa Karmakar, Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik and actress Alia Bhatt India has 53 achievers on the list, second only to China which has 76 honorees
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The youngest Indians on the list are brothers Sanjay, 15, and Shravan Kumaran, 17, who founded GoDimensions, a mobile app developer five years ago B. C. Forbes is the founder of Forbes Finance Ministry approved 8.65% interest rate on EPF Employees Provident Fund Organization is full form of EPFO Arun Jaitley is the Finance Minister of India Central Provident Fund Commissioner (CPFO) of EPFO is D.R. V.P. Joy EPFO head office is in New Delhi. India‘s economy will grow by 7.2% in 2017-18, predicts World Bank The World Bank report titled ―Globalization Backlash‖ The president of the World Bank is Jim Yong Kim and it is headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States. Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari is arriving in India (New Delhi) on a five-day visit Kathmandu is the capital of Nepal and currency is Nepalese Rupee Prime Minister of Nepal is Pushpa Kamal Dahal. Human Resource and Development Minister Prakash Javadekar launched the RUSA portal RUSA full form is Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan Sai Praneeth has won the title match of Men's singles at Singapore Open Badminton. Sai Praneeth has defeated his compatriot Kidambi Srikanth. Praneeth is a male Indian badminton player. World's oldest person Emma Morano dies aged 117. Emma Morano was an Italian woman. Morano was born on November 29, 1899. Pankaj Advani won his sixth Asian Billiards title. At the tender age of 18, Pankaj won his first World Title in 2003. He is the only person in the history of the game to have won both the billiards and snooker IBSF World Titles as well as the World Professional Billiards Championship. His excellence in the sport has also earned him the highest sporting honor - Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in 2006. Pankaj Advani Born in Pune on 24 July 1985. Advani won his sixth Asian Billiards title and seventh overall Asian championship.
18th April, 2017 The International Day for Monuments and Sites: 18th April i. Every year on 18 April, ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) celebrates the International Day for Monuments and Sites (also called as World Heritage day). ii. The theme for 2017 is “Cultural Heritage & Sustainable Tourism".
Suresh Prabhu Launched 'Vistadome' Coaches
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 i. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu launched India's First Train With Glass Ceiling, LED Lights And Rotable Seats in 'Vistadome' Coaches. ii. He has flagged off the train with Vistadome coaches between Visakhapatnam and Araku through video conferencing from Rail Sadan in Bhubaneswar. iii. He Inaugurated the Life Line Express at Sindhudurg, Maharashtra of Konkan Railway.
PM Modi inaugurated Link-II of SAUNI project in Botad, Gujarat i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated phase-I of the Link-II pipeline canal of the ambitious Saurashtra Narmada Avtaran Irrigation (SAUNI) Yojana in Botad district of Gujarat. ii. This will be the second milestone in the Rs 12,000 crore project to pump Narmada water in 115 dams of arid Saurashtra region after the PM dedicated to public phase-I of the Link-I canal in August 2016. President inaugurates Kempegowda festival in New Delhi i. President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the Kempegowda Festival in New Delhi. ii. The festival is organized by the Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Foundation.
BHEL commissions 2 units at Maharashtra thermal power project i. Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) has successfully commissioned two units of 270 MW at RattanIndia Nasik Power Ltd's, Maharashtra. ii. With the commissioning of these units, BHEL has commissioned eight sets for RattanIndia in Maharashtra in which 3 sets at Nasik and 5 sets at Amravati.
BEML bags Hindustan PSU award i. Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) a defence public sector has received the Hindustan PSU Award under the category ‗Fastest Growing Organisation – Miniratna‘. ii. Umesh Chandra, Executive Director, received the award on behalf of the company. The award was presented by Nitin Gadkari a Union Minister of State for Road Transport.
PNB launches three new products on foundation day i. On the occasion of its Foundation Day, Punjab National Bank (PNB) has launched three new products for its customers. ii. The three new products are automated electronic toll collection to facilitate hassle-free toll payment/ collection, a credit card mobile App and a scheme for financing a grid connected Roof Solar Power Project.
SBI surpasses ONGC to become most valued PSU stock State Bank of India (SBI) surpassed oil exploration major Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) to become most valued public sector undertaking (PSU) stock in terms of market capitalization (m-cap) in intra-day trade. SBI with m- cap of Rs 239,808 crore was ahead of ONGC having m-cap of Rs 236,003 crore, BSE data showed.
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ISRO, BHEL tie-up for lithium-ion batteries i. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) to help develop low-cost lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles.
Philippine President Duterte wins TIME 100 Reader Poll i. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has won Time magazine's readers' poll of the 100 most influential people in the world. ii. Rodrigo also known as Digong, is a Filipino politician and jurist who is the 16th and current President of the Philippines.
Gayatri Pullela wins twin crown at Pembangunan Jaya Raya Junior Grand Prix i. National Badminton coach Pullela Gopichand's daughter Gayatri Pullela has bagged both the singles and doubles crown at the Pembangunan Jaya Raya Junior Grand Prix in Jakarta. ii. Gayatri eked out a hard-fought win over her doubles partner Samiya Farooqui to win the girls U-15 singles title. iii. She later teamed up with Samiya to clinch the U-15 doubles title with a straight-game 21-17, 21-15 win over Indonesian pair of Kelly Larissa and Shelandry Vyola.
Sebastian Vettel wins Bahrain Grand Prix 2017 i. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) won the Bahrain Grand Prix 2017 by defeating Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes). ii. It was Sebastian's 3rd victory in Bahrain and 44th of his career. Sebastian Vettel belongs to Germany.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows SBI surpass ONGC to become most valued PSU SBI headquarter is in Mumbai and it was founded in 1955 ONGC headquarter is in Uttarakhand and it was formed in 1956 SBI slogan is The Banker to Every Indian SBI chairman is Arundhati Bhattacharya ONGC chairman is Dinesh K Sarraf BHEL and ISRO tie-up for lithium-ion batteries Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd is a full form of BHEL Indian Space Research Organization is a full form of ISRO BHEL headquarter is in New Delhi and was founded in 1964 CEO of BHEL is Atul Sobti ISRO was founded in 1969 and its Headquarter is in Bengaluru ISRO founder is Vikram Sarabhai and CEO is Aluru Seelin Kiran Kumar Gayatri Pullela wins twin crown at Pembangunan Jaya Raya Junior Grand Prix in Jakarta Samiya Farooqui was her doubles partner Gayatri Pullela is the daughter of National Badminton coach Pullela Gopichand BHEL has successfully commissioned two units of 270 MW at Maharashtra
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Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd is a full form of BHEL BHEL headquarter is in New Delhi and was founded in 1964 CEO of BHEL is Atul Sobti. 16th Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has won Time magazine's readers' poll of the 100 most influential people in the world PM Modi had been named among the probable contenders for the annual list of the most influential people in the world. Philippine Capital is Manila and Currency is Philippine Peso Sebastian Vettel wins Bahrain Grand Prix 2017 He defeated Lewis Hamilton Sebastian Vettel belongs to Germany Bahrain is an Arabian country with its capital in Manama. India's First Train With Glass Ceiling, LED Lights And Rotable Seats in 'Vistadome' Coaches has been launched by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu The train is running between Visakhapatnam and Araku Inaugurated the Life Line Express at Sindhudurg, Maharashtra. The International Day for Monuments and Sites is celebrated on 18th April The day is celebrated by ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) The theme for 2017 is ―Cultural Heritage & Sustainable Tourism‖ Punjab National Bank (PNB) has launched three new products for its customers viz. automated electronic toll collection, a credit card mobile App, a Roof Solar Power Project. PNB CEO is Usha Ananthasubramanian PNB Headquarter is in New Delhi and was founded on 12th April 1895. PM Modi inaugurated phase-I of the Link-II pipeline canal of SAUNI Yojana Saurashtra Narmada Avtaran Irrigation is full form of SAUNI
19th April, 2017
UP Govt Renames Gorakhpur and Agra Airports i. The UP government changed the name of Gorakhpur and Agra Airports as well as the name of the department of welfare of the differently abled. ii. The Gorakhpur Airforce Station has been renamed as Mahayogi Goraknath Airport after the founder of the Nath monastic movement. iii. The Agra Airport will be renamed after Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay airport. The Department of Disabled Welfare will now be known as 'Divyang Jan Vikas Empowerment'.
Rajasthan State govt, HPCL sign agreement for Rs 43,129 cr Barmer refinery i. In Rajasthan, the state government and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) signed an agreement for the Rs 43,129 crore Barmer refinery.
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 ii. The Barmer refinery will be the first in the country to produce BS-6 standard fuel. The state government will have 26% stake in the project while rest will be held by HPCL.
Navy‟s missile destroyer dedicated to Chennai i. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami dedicated the Indian Navy‘s indigenously designed „P15A Guided Missile Destroyer‟, INS Chennai to the city Chennai. ii. INS Chennai is commanded by captain C. R. Praveen Nair and has 45 officers. The ship was commissioned by ex- Defence Minister Manohar Parikkar in 2016. It is one of the most potent warships to have been constructed in India.
India jumps to 8th place on Global FDI Confidence Index i. India has jumped one spot to 8th rank in the 2017 A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index. ii. USA has topped A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index for the fifth year in a row. The top 5 countries in A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index 2017 are: 1. USA 2. Germany 3. China 4. UK 5. Canada
RBI opened the Office of the Banking Ombudsman at Chhattisgarh and Jammu & Kashmir i. The Reserve Bank of India has set up two new Offices of the Banking Ombudsman for the State of Jammu and Kashmir (in Jammu) and Chhattisgarh (in Raipur). ii. The Office of the Banking Ombudsman at Reserve Bank of India, Jammu and Chhattisgarh will have the jurisdiction over the entire State of Jammu and Kashmir and Chhattisgarh which, hitherto was under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Banking Ombudsman, New Delhi-I and Bhopal, respectively.
RBI signed MoU with the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan i. The Reserve Bank of India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on “Supervisory Cooperation and Exchange of Supervisory Information” with the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan. ii. The MoU was signed by Mr. Phajo Dorjee, Deputy Governor on behalf of Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan and Mr. S S Mundra, Deputy Governor on behalf of Reserve Bank of India.
SEBI launched revamped website with user-friendly features i. SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) launched its revamped website having several user-friendly features and compatible with all desktop and mobile devices. ii. The website now also allows visitors to share web pages on their social media network. The new website is compliant with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines for making web content more accessible to differently abled people and also conforms to the guidelines for Indian government websites.
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ICICI Bank data centre becomes country's first IGBC Platinum rated project i. The ICICI Bank Data Centre in Hyderabad has achieved the distinction of becoming the country's first Platinum rated project under IGBC (Indian Green Building Council) Green Data Centre Rating System. ii. Prem C Jain, Chairman, IGBC presented IGBC plaque to Chanda Kochhar, MD & CEO, ICICI Bank at a programme organized on recently in Hyderabad. iii. IGBC Green Data Centre Rating System would facilitate in providing tremendous tangible and intangible benefits. Tangible benefits include 20 to 25 percent reduction in Power Usage Effectiveness, 25 to 30 percent reduction in water consumption. Intangible benefits include enhanced air quality, excellent daylighting, health, and well-being of the staff operating such facility.
Vinay Shah, appointed as new MD & CEO of LIC Housing Finance i. Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has appointed Vinay Shah as the new Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Director of its mortgage loan arm and listed entity LIC Housing Finance. ii. He comes in place of Sunita Sharma after Government had elevated her to Managing Director of LIC.
Former AP minister Devineni Rajashekhar passes away i. Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader and former Andhra Pradesh minister Devineni Rajashekhar had died due to cardiac arrest in Hyderabad. ii. He was made the Education Minister in NTR Cabinet in 1994. He was elected to AP assembly from Kankipadu in 1983 and retained the seat in 1985, 1989, and 1994.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows: The Gorakhpur Airforce Station has been renamed as Mahayogi Goraknath Airport Agra Airport has been renamed as Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay airport The Department of Disabled Welfare will now be known as 'Divyang Jan Vikas Empowerment' Rajasthan State govt and HPCL have signed an agreement for Rs 43,129 crore Barmer refinery The Barmer refinery will be the first in the country to produce BS-6 standard fuel Chief Minister of Rajasthan is Mrs. Vasundhara Raje Union Minister of state for petroleum and natural gas is Shree Dharmendra Pradhan Indigenously designed ‗P15A Guided Missile Destroyer‘, INS Chennai was dedicated to the city Chennai Tamil Nadu Chief Minister is Mr. Edappadi K. Palaniswami Sunil Lanba is the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) India ranked 8th in the 2017 A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index The USA topped the list Among the emerging economies, India and China were the top two performers RBI opened the Office of the Banking Ombudsman at Chhattisgarh and Jammu & Kashmir J&K till now was under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Banking Ombudsman, New Delhi-I Chhattisgarh till now was under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Banking Ombudsman, Bhopal RBI is headquartered in Mumbai and its Governor is Mr. Urjit Patel.
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RBI signed MoU with the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan The MoU was signed on Supervisory Cooperation and Exchange of Supervisory Information Prime minister of Bhutan is Tshering Tobgay and its capital is Thimpu SEBI launched revamped website with user-friendly features Securities and Exchange Board of India is full form of SEBI Shri Ajay Tyagi Chairman is the Chairman of SEBI and its Headquarter is in Mumbai ICICI Bank data center becomes country's first IGBC Platinum rated project Chanda Kochhar is the MD & CEO of ICICI Bank Headquarter of ICICI bank is in Mumbai The event was organized in Hyderabad Vinay Shah has been appointed as the new MD & CEO of LIC Housing Finance He has replaced Smt. Sunita Sharma Smt. Sunita Sharma had been elevated to Managing Director of LIC Shri. Vijay Kumar Sharma is the Chairman of LIC and it is Headquartered in Mumbai Former AP minister Devineni Rajashekhar passed away in Hyderabad He was made the Education Minister in NTR Cabinet in 1994 N. Chandrababu Naidu is the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh
20th April, 2017 Madhya Pradesh government, DMRC inked pact to supply power from Rewa project i. Madhya Pradesh government has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to supply 24 per cent of electricity generated from the Rewa ultra mega solar project to be set up in the state. ii. The rest of the power will be supplied to the state.
World economy to grow at 3.5 per cent in 2017: IMF i. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected a marginally higher than expected growth for the world economy at 3.5 per cent in 2017. ii. IMF projected the world economy to grow at a pace of 3.5 percent in 2017, up from 3.1 percent in 2016, and 3.6 per cent in 2018.
China to host BRICS Film Festival in June, 2017 i. The 2017 BRICS Film Festival will be held in Chengdu, southwest China‘s Sichuan Province from June 23 to 27, 2017. ii. There will be 30 films from BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) screened during the festival. iii. The first BRICS Film Festival was held in New Delhi, India, in September 2016.
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First Made in India industrial robot- BRABO i. TAL Manufacturing Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors has launched India‘s first industrial- articulated robot and it goes by the name ―BRABO‖. ii. The robot is indigenously developed for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in India. This is the first time that an industrial robot has been conceptualized, designed and manufactured in India.
RBI caps bank exposure to REITs, InvITs at 10% i. The RBI permitted banks to invest up to 10% of the unit capital of a Real Estate Investment Trust (REITs) or Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs). ii. The banks‘ exposure to REITs/InvITs will be within the overall ceiling of 20% of the net worth permitted for direct investments in shares, convertible bonds/ debentures, units of equity-oriented mutual funds and Venture Capital Funds (VCFs).
'One Part Woman' wins Sahitya Akademi Award for translation of Mathorubhagan i. The English translation of writer Perumal Murugan‟s novel Mathorubhagan (One Part Woman) has won the Sahitya Akademi‘s award for translation in English 2016. ii. The translation was done by Aniruddhan Vasudevan and the book was published by Penguin.
Sagar Baheti, the first visually impaired Indian runner to complete Boston Marathon i. Bangalore-based Sagar Baheti has become the first visually impaired Indian runner to complete the historic Boston Marathon, the world's oldest and the hardest marathon to qualify for. ii. Baheti completed the approximately 42.16 km distance in just over four hours.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows: Madhya Pradesh government and DMRC inked pact to supply power (24% of Electricity) from Rewa project Shri Rajiv Gauba is the Chairman of DMRC Shivraj Singh Chouhan is the CM of MP and its Governor is Om Prakash Kohli (Additional charge) IMF has projected world economy to grow at 3.5% in 2017 Projection in 2016 was 3.1% Created in 1945, the IMF is governed by and accountable to the 189 countries Managing Director of IMF is Christine Lagarde Maurice Obstfeld, economic counselor and director of IMF Research Department released the projection officially. BRICS Film Festival 2017 will be held in China BRICS countries includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa
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The first BRICS Film Festival was held in New Delhi, India BRICS summit will be held in September 2017 in China‘s Xiamen city TAL Manufacturing Solutions is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors BRABO is the first Made in India industrial robot The robot is indigenously developed for MSME in India The RBI permitted banks to invest up to 10% of the unit capital of an REITs or InvITs RBI is headquartered in Mumbai and its Governor is Mr. Urjit Patel RBI has recently allowed banks to invest in REITs & InvITs The English translation of writer Perumal Murugan‘s novel Mathorubhagan won the Sahitya Akademi‘s award for translation in English The cash prize for the award is Rs 50,000 Sagar Baheti becomes the first visually impaired Indian runner to complete Boston Marathon He completed the approximately 42.16 km distance in just over four hours Boston is a City in Massachusetts
21st April, 2017 11th Civil Services Day function held in New Delhi i. The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurated the two-day 11th Civil Services Day program (20-21 April) in New Delhi. ii. Civil Services Day is celebrated in India every year on 21st April. The function was organized by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions.
Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh inaugurated 'India Steel 2017' in Mumbai i. The 3rd edition of International Conference and Exhibition on Steel Industry 'India Steel 2017' was held at Mumbai Exhibition center in Mumbai from 19th-21st April 2017. ii. It was inaugurated by Union Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh. First of its Kind exhibition-cum- conference was organized by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCO) along with Union Ministry of Steel.
Narendra Modi, Paytm‟s Vijay Shekhar Sharma in Time‟s „most influential people‟ list i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma were the only two Indians to make it to an annual list of „100 most influential people in the world‟ 2017, released by the Time magazine. ii. The list features pioneers, artists, titans, leaders and icons from around the world honored for ―the power of their inventions, the scale of their ambitions, the genius of their solutions to problems that no one before them could solve.‖
Tata Power inks pact for electricity distribution in Ajmer i. Tata Power has signed an agreement with Ajmer Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd (AVVNL) for electricity distribution in Ajmer for 20 years. ii. Tata Power has formed a Special Purpose Company (SPC), TP Ajmer Distribution Ltd. The SPC will be
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 operating and maintaining the distribution network in the Ajmer city and would also be responsible for managing the billing and collections.
Sri Lanka to host the 14th Edition of United Nations International Day of Vesak 2017 i. The 14th Edition of United Nations International Day of Vesak 2017 will be hosted by Sri Lanka from 12-14 May 2017. ii. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the chief guest for UN Vesak Day. He will inaugurate UN Vesak Day in Colombo on May 12, 2017. iii. Vesak Day is regarded by all Buddhist traditions as the anniversary of the birth of the Buddha. iv. The theme of this edition is „Buddhist teachings for social justice and sustainable world peace‟.
Italian mayor wins UNESCO Peace Prize i. The United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO) has awarded its Peace Prize to Giuseppina Nicolini, the mayor of the Italian island of Lampedusa, for her commitment to saving the lives of migrants and refugees, media reported.
Reliance Industries Ltd. become most-valued Indian company i. The Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) regained its status as India‟s most valued firm by market capitalization. ii. RIL overtook Tata Group‘s crown jewel TCS. TCS had replaced RIL as the most valued firm more than four years ago.
Mongolia launched its first satellite Mongol Sat-I i. Mongolia launched its first satellite named Mongol Sat-I, part of its efforts to make use of new technology to diversify its resource-dependent economy. ii. It is 1227 Megahertz satellite. The satellite was launched in partnership with Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS). The Satellite helps with space research, map making and preparing for natural disaster.
Video gaming to be featured at 2022 Asian Games i. Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) has announced Video gaming as full sports at the 2022 Asian Games which is scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China from 10-25 September 2022. ii. OCA has entered into the collaboration with Alisports, a unit of China's Alibaba Group. iii. It will also be a demonstration sport at the 2018 Asian Games in Palembang, Indonesia.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows:
Civil Services Day is celebrated in India every year on 21st April Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurated the two-day 11th Civil Services Day program in New Delhi First such function was held in Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi on 21 April 2006
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3rd edition of International Conference and Exhibition on Steel Industry 'India Steel 2017' was held in Mumbai It was inaugurated by Union Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh It was organized by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCO) Narendra Modi and Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma were the only two Indians listed in ‗100 most influential people in the world‘ 2017, by the Time magazine The profile of Modi was written by author Pankaj Mishra The profile of Vijay Shekhar Sharma was written by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani Tata Power has signed an agreement for electricity distribution in Ajmer for 20 years Tata Power has formed a Special Purpose Company (SPC), TP Ajmer Distribution Ltd Anil Kumar Sardana is the CEO of Tata Power Sri Lanka will host the 14th Edition of United Nations International Day of Vesak 2017 Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the chief guest for UN Vesak Day The theme of this edition is ‗Buddhist teachings for social justice and sustainable world peace‘ Vesak Day is also known as Buddha Poornima. The UNESCO has awarded its Peace Prize to Giuseppina Nicolini The United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO) was founded on 16 November 1945 UNESCO has 195 Members and eight Associate Members IRINA BOKOVA is the Director-General of UNESCO UNESCO is Headquartered in Paris, France Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) become most-valued Indian company It has replaced Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) RIL is led by Mukesh Ambani Mongolia has launched its first satellite named Mongol Sat-I The satellite was launched in partnership with Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) Capital of Mongolia is Ulaanbaatar and its currency is Mongolian togrog Video gaming is full sports at the 2022 Asian Games 2022 Asian Games will be held in Hangzhou, China from 10-25 September The first Asian games was held in 1951 in New Delhi 2018 Asian games will be held in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia
22nd April, 2017 World Earth Day being observed today i. The World Earth Day is being observed all over the world on 22 April with the message to protect the environment. ii. The campaign theme for 2017 is 'Environmental and Climate Literacy'. The first Earth Day celebrations took place in 1970.
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Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launches Probono Services, Legal Aid Schemes, Nyaya Mitra i. Minister of Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad inaugurated three welfare initiatives of the Department of Justice. The services launched are- 1. Pro-bono legal services- Through the Pro bono legal services, lawyers who want to provide legal services free of cost can register themselves on a web-based platform. 2. Tele-law service- It aims to connect marginalized communities with lawyers through video conferencing facilities, to be set up at Common Service Centres (CSCs). 3. Nyaya Mitra Project- It aims to reduce pendency in lower courts, with a special focus on cases which are more than ten years old.
1st „India Indonesia Energy Forum‟ held in Jakarta i. Union Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy and Mines, Shri Piyush Goyal and Indonesia's Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Mr. Ignasius Jonan met for the 1st „India Indonesia Energy Forum‟, held in Jakarta, Indonesia. ii. The Energy Forum was preceded by 2nd Joint Working Group (JWG) on Oil and Gas, 4th Joint Working Group on Coal and 1st Joint Working Group on New and Renewable Energy. The reports of three Joint Working Groups were presented to two Ministers during the Energy Forum.
GIC Re- first insurance company to sets up base in GIFT City, Gujarat i. General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re) has become the first re-insurer to open an office at India‘s first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City).
China successfully launched first cargo spacecraft i. China successfully launched its first unmanned cargo spacecraft named Tianzhou 1. ii. It is programmed to conduct scientific experiments after reaching the now-crewless Tiangong 2, China's second space station. China aims to build up the permanent space station by 2022. iii. China becomes the 3rd country after US and Russia to Master the techniques of refueling in Space. RBI signs MoU with the Bank of Guyana i. The Reserve Bank of India signed an MoU)on “Supervisory Cooperation and Exchange of Supervisory Information” with Bank of Guyana. ii. Earlier, RBI has signed 40 such MoUs, one Letter for Supervisory Co-operation and one Statement of Co-operation.
AU Financiers converts to small finance bank i. AU Financiers India, a non-banking finance company (NBFC), has converted itself into a small finance bank by the name AU Small Finance Bank. ii. As an NBFC, AU had a network of 300 branches spread across 10 States namely Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Goa.
NDMA conducted first mock exercise on forest fire in Uttarakhand
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017 i. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) conducted its first-ever mock exercise on forest fire in Uttarakhand to help improve the preparedness and response mechanism in the event of a forest fire. ii. The mock exercise was conducted on the principle of Incident Response System (IRS).
India, South Korea sign MoU for Defence Industry i. India and South Korea have signed an Inter-governmental MoU for Defence Industry cooperation between their shipbuilding yards. ii. The Indian side was represented by Secretary of Defence Production A K Gupta and South Korea was represented by his counterpart Chang Miyung Jin, in New Delhi. India has nominated Hindustan Shipyard at Vishakhapatnam whereas South Korea is yet to nominate its shipyard. GNFC wins Golden Peacock Award i. The Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd (GNFC) won the prestigious Golden Peacock Award 2017 in the category of Innovative Product/Service for pioneering a cashless township transformation model. ii. The Golden Peacock Awards were established by the Institute of Directors (IOD) in India in 1991. iii. Rajiv Kumar Gupta, the managing director of the GNFC, was given the award at a ceremony at the 27th World Congress at the Dubai Global Convention.
Veteran Journalist Nora Chopra passes away i. Veteran Journalist Nora Chopra passed away at 64 due to multi-organ failure. ii. A senior journalist and columnist, Smt. Chopra was widely admired and respected for her journalistic skills.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows
World Earth Day is observed globally on 22 April The campaign theme for 2017 is 'Environmental and Climate Literacy' The first Earth Day celebrations took place in 1970. Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad is Minister of Law and Justice He launched 3 welfare initiatives viz. Pro-bono legal services, Tele-law service and Nyaya Mitra project 1st ‗India Indonesia Energy Forum‘ held in Jakarta Jakarta is the capital of Indonesia Currency of Indonesia is Indonesian rupiah GIC Re becomes the first insurance company to sets up base in GIFT City, Gujarat GIC Re is wholly owned by the government and was designated as the national reinsurer in 2001 Mrs. Alice G Vaidyan is the Chairman-cum-Managing Director of GIC Re It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. China launched its first unmanned cargo spacecraft named Tianzhou 1 China becomes the 3rd country after US and Russia to Master the techniques of refueling in Space Capital of China is Beijing, its Currency is Renminbi and its President Xi Jinping RBI signs MoU with the Bank of Guyana The MoU was signed on Supervisory Cooperation and Exchange of Supervisory Information
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Dr. Gobind N. Ganga is the Governor of Bank of Guyana Guyana Country in South America with its capital in Georgetown AU Financiers India converted itself into a small finance bank New Name is AU Small Finance Bank Mr. Mannil Venugopalan is the Chairman of Board of AU small financial Bank National Disaster Management Authority conducted its first-ever mock exercise on forest fire in Uttarakhand Mock exercise was conducted on the principle of Incident Response System (IRS) India and South Korea signed an MoU for Defence Industry cooperation The agreement was signed in New Delhi Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Hanwa Techwin of South Korea signed a contract to manufacture the K9 Vajra- T tracked self-propelled artillery guns for the Indian Army GNFC won the Golden Peacock Award 2017 Justice Dr. Arijit Pasayat was the Chairman of Jury Rajiv Kumar Gupta is the managing director of the GNFC Full form of GNFC is Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd
23rd and 24th April,
National Panchayati Raj Diwas being observed today i. 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. ii. The Kuther Gram Panchayat of Himachal Pradesh will get the award for its best works. This Gram Panchayat was the first to become open defecation free (ODF).
World Book & Copyright Day being observed today i. 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. ii. The event is organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). iii. Conakry, the capital of Guinea has been designated World Book Capital 2017. Haryana launches mobile app 'Kilkari' to create awareness among pregnant women i. 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. ii. From the second trimester of pregnancy, till the child is one-year-old, the application will deliver 72 times appropriate audio messages to registered mobile numbers on pregnancy, child and childbirth care every week.
Maharashtra govt signs MoU with Railways to expand green cover i. 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.
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Unique IAS Academy – Current Affairs April 2017
China, Iran sign first agreement on reconfiguration of Arak reactor i. China and Iran have signed the first agreement on the reconfiguration of Iran's Arak reactor. ii. 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.
Moushumi Chatterjee gets BFJA lifetime achievement award i. Veteran actress Moushumi Chatterjee has received the lifetime achievement award, at the 80th Bengal Film Journalists' Association (BFJA) awards. ii. The BFJA, the oldest association of film scribes in the country was founded in 1937. Bengali film actor Prosenjit Chatterjee was given the best actor award for his role in "Sankhachil", while Rituparna Sengupta was given the best actress crown for her role in "Rajkahini" along with Paoli Dam for "Natoker Moto" (2015).
'Newton' wins best film honor at Hong Kong International Film Festival i. 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. ii. 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.
Aditi Ashok, SSP Chawrasia win Golf Industry Awards i. SSP Chawrasia and Aditi Ashok 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 bagged Outstanding Achievement as a Player award. ii. Chawrasia, who successfully defended his Indian Open title in 2017, bagged the Award for the Men's Player of the Year. iii. Ali Sher, the Delhi Golf Club caddy-turned-pro-golfer, was feted for an Outstanding Playing Career. Ali Sher won the Indian Open back in 1991 and was honored with an Arjuna Award in the same year.
Cricket removed from 2018 Asian Games programme i. One of the sports to miss out from the programme list of the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang is cricket. ii. 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 organisers. iii. This measure was taken as a part of the series of changes aimed at reducing the total number of events from 493 to 431.
Monte Carlo Masters: Nadal wins Men's Singles; Bopanna and Cuevas lift men's doubles i. 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. ii. Earlier, India's Rohan Bopanna and his Uruguayan partner Pablo Cuevas lifted the men's doubles crown at the
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Monte Carlo Masters after win over Spain's Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez in Monaco.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update are as follows
National Panchayati Raj Diwas is observed on 24 April Nationally Kuther Gram Panchayat of Himachal PradeshGram Panchayat was the first to become open defecation free (ODF) This day marks the passing of the Constitution (73rd Amendment) Act, 1992 23 April is a symbolic date for world literature. World Book and Copyright Day (WBCD) is being observed every year on 23rd April. World Book and Copyright Day is organized by the UNESCO. UNESCO stands for- United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Irina Bokova is Director-General of UNESCO. World Book Capital for 2017: Conakry, Guinea. UNESCO Headquarters is in Paris, France. The Constitution of UNESCO, signed on 16 November 1945, came into force on 4 November 1946. National Health Mission (NHM) in Haryana launched a mobile-based application named 'Kilkari' Manohar Lal Khattar is the CM of Haryana Kaptan Singh Solanki is the governor of Haryana Maharashtra govt signed an MoU with Railways to expand green cover C. Vidyasagar Rao is the governor of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis is the CM of Maharashtra China and Iran signed the first agreement on reconfiguration of Arak reactor The agreement was signed officially in Vienna, the Capital City of Austria President of Iran is Hussan Rouhani and its currency is Iranian Rial. Xi Jinping is President of China and its currency is Renminbi Moushumi Chatterjee receives BFJA lifetime achievement award 2017 Prosenjit Chatterjee was given the best actor award for "Sankhachil" Rituparna Sengupta was given the best actress crown for her role in "Rajkahini". "Newton" has won the best film honor at the Hong Kong International Film Festival Amit Masurkar is the director of movie "Newton" It also won the International Federation of Art Cinemas (CICAE) award at the 67th Berlin Film Festival. Aditi Ashok, SSP Chawrasia and Ali Sher won Golf Industry Awards 2017 Ali Sher was honored with Arjuna Award in 1991 Cricket removed from 2018 Asian Games programme Director General of Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) is Husain Al-Musallam The total number of events has been reduced from 493 to 431 The 2018 Asian Games will be held in Jakarta and Palembang It is 18th edition of Asian Games Nadal wins Men's Singles title at Monte Carlo Masters Tennis tournament 2017
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India's Rohan Bopanna and Uruguayan Pablo Cuevas lifted the men's doubles crown The tournament was held in Monaco Rafael Nadal defeated Albert Vinolas
26th April, 2017
World Intellectual Property Day – 26 April i. Every April 26, World Intellectual Property Day is celebrated to learn about the role that intellectual property rights (patents, trademarks, industrial designs, copyright) play in encouraging innovation and creativity. ii. WIP Day is organized by World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). It is a self-funding agency of the United Nations, with 189 member states.
Northeast India's largest IT hub opens in Tripura i. Northeast India's largest Information Technology (IT) hub was inaugurated at Agartala to boost employment and e-governance besides to export software technology. ii. The Hub was set up at a cost of Rs. 50 crore. The Chief Minister of Tripura, Manik Sarkar inaugurated the IT hub. It is the sixth hub in the Northeast region.
India and Sri Lanka sign MoU on economic co-operation i. India and Sri Lanka have signed an MoU on economic co-operation. ii. The agreement was exchanged in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Sri Lankan PM Ranil Wickremesinghe in New Delhi.
Belgium, first to open honorary consulate in GIFT City, Gujarat i. Belgium has become the first country to open an honorary consulate office in Gujarat International Finance Tec- City (GIFT City). ii. Besides the Belgian Embassy in New Delhi, two Consulates-General in Mumbai and Chennai, and an honorary consulate in Kolkata, Belgium has expanded its diplomatic representation in India with this new office in Gandhinagar. iii. Hari Sankaran was nominated as Honorary Consul of the Kingdom of Belgium to the state of Gujarat.
India, Armenia sign 3 agreements i. India and Armenia have signed three agreements after Vice President Hamid Ansari held a bilateral meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan in Yerevan, Armenia. ii. The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on peaceful uses of outer space, another MoU on cooperation in youth matters and a program of cultural cooperation for the years 2017-2020. The two countries are celebrating the 25th anniversary of their diplomatic ties.
Yes Bank ties up with Paisabazaar.com i. Private sector lender Yes Bank announced the alliance with Paisabazaar.com under which the bank will offer 0422 4204182,9884267599 1st Street Gandhipuram Coimbatore Page 65
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conditionally approved loans to the latter‘s existing customers. ii. As part of the partnership, the bank will help Paisabazaar.com through its advanced analytics and data mining capabilities to offer customers of the financial marketplace with customized and conditionally approved offers across retail lending products.
White House names Randolph Ailes as new Director of Secret Service i. The White House has named a retired Marine major general Randolph Ailes as the new Director of the Secret Service. Ailes was in the Marine Corps for 35 years. ii. Ailes is replacing Joseph Clancy, who retired from the agency.
Youngest Indian chancellor bags Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Foundation award i. The youngest chancellor of any university in the nation, Dileep K Nair has bagged Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Foundation award for excellent performance in the field of education in Trivendurum, Kerala. ii. The 38-year-old academician is currently the Chancellor of the North East Frontier Technical University (NEFTU) in Arunachal Pradesh.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update for Exams are as follows-
Director General of WIPO is Francis Gurry
World Intellectual Property Day is observed on 26 April
World Intellectual Property Organization is the full form of WIPO
It is a self-funding agency of the United Nations
Northeast India's largest Information Technology (IT) hub was opened at Agartala
Agartala is the Capital of Tripura
The Hub was set up at a cost of Rs. 50 crore
It is the sixth hub in the Northeast region
Manik Sarkar is the CM of Tripura.
India and Sri Lanka sign MoU on economic co-operation
PM of Sri Lanka is Ranil Wickremesinghe
Administrative Capital of Sri Lanka is Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte
Belgium has become the first country to open an honorary consulate office in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City)
Ajay Pandey is the Managing Director and Group CEO of GIFT City
Hari Sankaran nominated as Honorary Consul of the Kingdom of Belgium to the state of Gujarat
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Charles Michel is the PM of Belgium
The capital of Belgium is Brussels.
India and Armenia have signed three agreements
Vice President Hamid Ansari is on visit to Armenia
Yerevan is the Capital of Armenia and its currency is Armenian dram
President of Armenia is Serzh Sargsyan and Prime Minister is Karen Karapetyan
Yes Bank ties up with Paisabazaar.com
Mr. Rana Kapoor is the Founder, Managing Director & CEO of Yes Bank
Yes Bank is Headquartered in Mumbai
White House named Randolph Ailes as new Director of Secret Service
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the President of the United States
Randolph Ailes has replaced Joseph Clancy
Donald Trump is the 45th President of USA
Youngest Indian chancellor Dileep K Nair has bagged Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Foundation award
Mr. Nair is the Chancellor of the North East Frontier Technical University (NEFTU) in Arunachal Pradesh.
27th April, 2017
India to host 18th World Road Meeting
i. India is set to host the 18th World Road Meeting (WRM 2017) on November 13, 2017 according to the International Road Federation (IRF). ii. The WRM is the biggest global platform for road engineers, safety and transport experts and companies engaged in road safety products. iii. The theme of this year's edition is 'Safe Roads and Smart Mobility: The Engines of Economic Growth'. The WRM is held every four years.
e-SOT and e-PRAN card launched for Atal Pension Yojana subscribers
i. With a view to digitally empower the Atal Pension Yojana (APY) subscribers and improve the quality of service, the facility of online viewing of the statement of the transaction (e-SOT) and also the e- Permanent
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Retirement Account Number (e-PRAN card) have been launched. ii. More than 45 lacs APY subscribers will be benefitted with this initiative.
Centre Takes 10 New Swachh Iconic Places under Swachh Bharat Mission Phase II
i. Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation under Swachh Bharat Mission, was held recently at Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine, in Jammu & Kashmir. ii. On this occasion, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar announced 10 new Iconic places to be taken under the Phase II of Swachh Iconic Places initiative. These ten new iconic places which are to be brought to a higher standard of swachhta and visitors‘ amenities are-
1. Gangotri
2. Yamunotri
3. Mahakaleshwar Temple, Ujjain
4. Char Minar, Hyderabad
5. Church and Convent of St. Francis of Assissi, Goa
6. Adi Shankaracharya‘s abode Kaladi in Ernakulam
7. Gomateshwar in Shravanbelgola
8. Baijnath Dham, Devghar
9. Gaya Tirth in Bihar and 10. Somnath temple in Gujarat.
India successfully test-fires Agni-III ballistic missile
i. India successfully carried out a fresh user trial of 3,000-kilometer range Agni-III ballistic missile from Abdul Kalam Island off Odisha coast. ii. The Strategic Forces Command with logistics support from Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) carried out the test from launch pad No. 4 of the Integrated Test Range.
Nita Ambani made member of IOC‟s Olympic Channel Commission
i. India‘s first woman International Olympic Committee member Nita Ambani has made it to two important commissions of the global sports governing body, including the prestigious Olympic channel. ii. Besides the Olympic Channel, Ms. Ambani has also been made a member of Olympic education Commission as IOC announced the composition of 26 commissions for 2017. iii. Ms. Ambani has replaced International Paralympic Committee President Philip Craven. She will serve the position till she turns 70.
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NASA launches super balloon from New Zealand
i. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) successfully launched its football-stadium-sized, heavy-lift Super Pressure Balloon (SPB) from Wanaka, New Zealand. ii. The mission is designed to run 100 or more days floating at 110,000 feet (33.5 km) about the globe in the southern hemisphere's mid-latitude band.The balloon is designed by NASA to detect ultra-high energy cosmic particles from beyond the galaxy as they penetrate the earth's atmosphere.
Srishti Kaur crowned Miss Teen Universe 2017
i. Srishti Kaur was crowned Miss Teen Universe 2017 after beating 25 contestants from around the world at the annual beauty pageant. ii. The event was held in Managua, the capital of Central American country Nicaragua. She also won the prize for best national costume. iii. Samantha Pierre from Canada and Ary Trava from Mexico were the runners-up in the event. The pageant is organized by the Miss Universe organization for teens aged 15 to 19. It takes place once in a year.
YES BANK awarded Golden Peacock Award 2017
i. India‘s fifth largest private sector Bank, the YES BANK has won the prestigious ‗Golden Peacock Innovative Product/Service Award 2017‟ (in Financial sector Banking). ii. It received the prize for its innovative mobile technology product, SIMsePAY at the Dubai Global Convention 2017.
Veteran Actor Vinod Khanna passes away at 70
i. Veteran actor Vinod Khanna passed away in Mumbai. He was an active politician, and Member of Parliament from Gurdaspur, Punjab. ii. The actor debuted in 1968 with 'Man Ka Meet'. He received the Filmfare award in the best supporting actor category for Haath Ki Safaai (1974), and in 1999 he received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update for Exams are as follows-
India will host the 18th World Road Meeting on November 13, 2017
K.K. Kapila is the chairman of International Road Federation
The theme of 2017 edition is 'Safe Roads and Smart Mobility: The Engines of Economic Growth'
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The WRM is held every four years.
e-SOT and e-PRAN card launched for Atal Pension Yojana subscribers
Statement of the transaction is the full form of SOT
Permanent Retirement Account Number is the full form of PRAN
Atal Pension Yojana (APY) was launched by the PM Modi on 09th May 2015.
The 2nd quarterly review meeting on the Swachh Iconic Places (SIP) was held recently at Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine, in Katra, Jammu and Kashmir
10 new Iconic places to be taken under the Phase II of Swachh Iconic Places initiative announced.
India successfully test-fires Agni-III ballistic missile from Abdul Kalam Island from Odisha Coast
It was developed with the support of DRDO
It was inducted into the armed forces in June 2011
Nita Ambani made member of IOC‘s Olympic Channel Commission
She will serve the position till she turns 70.
She has replaced International Paralympic Committee President Philip Craven
NASA launched heavy-lift Super Pressure Balloon (SPB) from Wanaka, New Zealand
The balloon is designed by NASA to detect ultra-high energy cosmic particles
Acting Administrator of NASA is Robert M. Lightfoot Jr.
NASA was established in 1958 and is Headquartered in Washington D.C., USA.
Srishti Kaur crowned Miss Teen Universe 2017
She is from Noida
Samantha Pierre from Canada and Ary Trava from Mexico were the runners-up
This event takes place annually
The event was held in Managua, the capital of Central American country Nicaragua.
YES BANK has won the ‗Golden Peacock Innovative Product/Service Award 2017‘
Mr. Rana Kapoor is the Founder, Managing Director & CEO of Yes Bank
Yes Bank is Headquartered in Mumbai
It received the prize for its innovative mobile technology product, SIMsePAY.
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Veteran Actor Vinod Khanna passes away
He was Member of Parliament from Gurdaspur, Punjab
Awarded Filmfare award in the best supporting actor category for Haath Ki Safaai.
28th April, 2017
India and Cyprus sign 4 agreements
i. India and Cyprus have signed four agreements after delegation-level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades at Hyderabad House in New Delhi. ii. The areas in which the MoUs have been exchanged are Air Services, Agriculture, Merchant Shipping and Culture Education.
Bhubaneswar becomes 1st Indian city to win Pierre L‟enfant Awards-2017
i. Odisha‘s capital city, Bhubaneswar has become, the first Indian city that has won Pierre L‘enfant Planning Excellence and Achievement Awards-2017. ii. This award is instituted by the American Planning Association. Smart City Bhubaneswar received this award for good and advanced town planning and engaging its residents in the planning process.
AIIMS becomes India's first public hospital for eye tumors
i. The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is India's first public hospital to start plaque brachytherapy facility for the treatment of eye tumors. ii. The facility is a form of local radiation delivered to the eye through a radioactive device which is attached to the eye for a temporary period of time. The move will benefit children suffering from retinoblastoma, which is a form of eye cancer, and adults suffering from ocular melanoma.
Haryana's Ballabhgarh renamed as Balramgarh
i. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced the renaming of Ballabgarh town in Faridabad as Balramgarh. ii. Situated around 30 km from Delhi on National Highway-2, Ballabgarh is a town and a tehsil (sub-division). iii. The princely State was founded by Balram Singh in 1739.
ISRO Develops "Solar Calculator" Android App
i. An android App 'Solar Calculator' for the computation of solar energy potential has been developed by Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO, Ahmedabad at the behest of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Govt.
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of India. ii. It is a very useful tool for installation of PV solar panels for tapping solar energy. ii. The App provides monthly/yearly solar potential (in kWh/m2) and minimum/maximum temperature at any location.
Indian cultural center in Egypt holds seminar to deepen ties
i. Indian cultural center in Egypt, serving as India's window to reach out to Egyptians, has organized a seminar aimed at maintaining and strengthening bilateral relations. ii. Organized by the Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture (MACIC), the seminar titled as 'Cultural Festivals - Bridge between India and Egypt' was part MACIC's monthly seminar series involving youth, academicians, culture lovers, civil society to discuss the issue of bilateral interest.
T Krishnakumar is Coca-Cola India‟s new chief
i. Beverage major Coca-Cola Company announced key leadership changes for its India & South West Asia business and Hindustan Coca-Cola Bottling (HCCB) operations. ii. T Krishnakumar has been appointed as the president of India and South West Asia Business Unit. He has replaced Venkatesh Kini.
India wins 6 medals in 2nd leg of Asian Grand Prix Atheletics Meet
i. India won six medals in the second leg of the Asian Grand Prix Athletics Meet in Jiaxing, China. This included the gold medal bagged by Neena Varakil in women‘s long jump. ii. World junior record holder javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra took the silver. Neeraj also qualified for the IAAF World Championships to be held in London in August, 2017.
Oscar-Winning Director Jonathan Demme passes away
i. American Director Jonathan Demme, the Oscar-winning director behind classics like The Silence of the Lambs and Philadelphia, died in New York. ii. He was 73 years old. The cause was esophageal cancer and complications from heart disease.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update for Exams are as follows-
India and Cyprus have signed four agreements
President of Cyprus is Mr. Nicos Anastasiades
The capital of Cyprus is Nicosia and its currency is Euro.
Bhubaneswar becomes 1st Indian city to win Pierre L‘enfant Awards-2017
The award is instituted by the American Planning Association
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Shri Naveen Patnaik is the Chief Minister of Odisha
AIIMS becomes India's first public hospital for eye tumors
This move will benefit children suffering from retinoblastoma
Haryana's Ballabhgarh is renamed as Balramgarh
The State was founded by Balram Singh in 1739
Manohar Lal Khattar is Chief Minister of Haryana
Kaptan Singh Solanki is the Governor of Haryana
Indian cultural center in Egypt holds seminar to deepen ties
The title of seminar was 'Cultural Festivals - Bridge between India and Egypt'
The capital of Egypt is Cairo and PM is Sherif Ismail.
T Krishnakumar appointed as Coca-Cola India‘s new chief
He has replaced Venkatesh Kini.
Headquarter of Coca-Cola company is in Georgia, United States.
India won six medals in the second leg of the Asian Grand Prix Athletics Meet in Jiaxing, China
Gold medal was bagged by Neena Varakil in women‘s long jump
Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra took the silver
He also qualified for the IAAF World Championships.
Oscar-Winning Director Jonathan Demme Dies at 73
The Silence of the Lambs, released in 1991 was his most famous work
29th & 30 th April, 2017
Govt launches Test & Treat policy for HIV patients
i. Union Health Minister JP Nadda has launched the Test and Treat policy for providing treatment to patients suffering from Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Launching the policy at a function in New Delhi, Mr. Nadda stated, under it, the government will provide Anti- Retroviral Therapy (ART) treatment to the patients free of cost. It is a centrally sponsored scheme and people suffering from HIV will benefit from it. Under the scheme, a person detected HIV positive will be provided ART treatment.
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India's 1st book village to come up in Maharashtra
i. A village in Maharashtra famous for its strawberries is soon going offer more - rare Marathi books and magazines. From May 4, Bhilar will become India‘s first ‗book village‘ where tourists and locals can come and read books, magazines, newspapers stacked at 25 premises. Near the popular the British-era hill station of Mahabaleshwar, Bhilar already attracts a large number of tourists, who come to taste the locally produced strawberries.
ii. Bhilar, which has a population of about 10,000, and nearby areas produce around 100 tons of strawberry every year, earning them Rs 50 crore. And 90% of the village‘s population is involved in strawberry farming.
Kerala organizes first ever transgender athletic meet
i. Kerala has organized the country's first transgender one-day athletic meet at Thiruvananthapuram in which 132 participants from 12 districts participated. Kerala Sports Minister A. C. Moideen has inaugurated the event at the Central Stadium. Member of Parliament A Sampath and Member Legislative Assembly V S Sivakumar were also present during the inaugural function.
ii. The non-playing members of the transgender community along with participants joined in the march past. One hundred thirty-two participants from 12 districts participated in the meet. There was no participant from Idukki and Pathanamthitta districts. Six events were held in the competition- 100 meters, 200 meters, and 400 meters running; 100x 4 relay race, high jump and shot put.
Indian Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik wins gold medal in Moscow competition
i. Internationally renowned sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik from Odisha won the jury prize gold medal at the 10th Moscow Sand art Championship.
ii. The competition was held between 22nd and 28th April at Kolomenskoye, Moscow in Russia. The theme for the competition was "The world around us". Pattnaik was the Indian representative in the competition, where twenty-five sculptors from different countries participated.
Jehan Daruvala becomes 1st Indian to take pole in FIA F3 European Championship
i. Jehan Daruvala, in his rookie season at the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, is already making waves. The 18-year-old product of Force India Academy, became the first Indian to take pole in the F3 European series, securing the top spot on the starting grid for Race 1 of the second round of the championship in Monza, Italy. However, he was unable to translate that into a race victory, and finished the hard-fought race in second place, behind his Carlin Racing teammate Lando Norris of the UK.
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ii. Daruvala took pole during the qualifying session for Race 1 at the famed Monza Grand Prix circuit in thrilling fashion. The Carlin Racing driver was on his hot lap when curtains fell on the qualifying session with British racer Callum Illot (Prema Powerteam) in the lead.
Important Takeaways from above GK Update for Exams are as follows-
Union Health Minister JP Nadda has launched the Test and Treat policy.
HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
JP Nadda is present Union Health Minister of India.
India's 1st book village to come up in Maharashtra.
Bhilar, Maharashtra will become India‘s first ‗book village‘.
Devendra Fadnavis is present Chief Minister of Maharashtra.
Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao is present Governor of Maharashtra.
Kerala has organized the country's first transgender one-day athletic meet at Thiruvananthapuram.
Pinarayi Vijayan is present Chief Minister of Kerala.
The chief organizer of the event was Pavel Menikov.
The Indian ambassador to Russia is Pankaj Saran.
Sudarsan Pattnaik has won the jury prize gold medal at the 10th Moscow Sand art Championship.
Sudarsan Pattnaik is from Odisha.
Jehan Daruvala becomes 1st Indian to take pole in FIA F3 European Championship.
Jehan Daruvala is an Indian racing driver.
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