Daily GK Update - 1st April 20151. Mustafa Kamal resigned from the post of President of International Cricket Councili. Mustafa Kamal on 1 April 2015 stepped down as the President of the International Cricket Council (ICC). He sent out the resignation letter to the ICC.ii. The Bangladeshi cricket administrator had succeeded Alan Isaac as the 11th President of the ICC in June 2014 for a period of two years.

iii. He has been associated with cricket for 30 years and served cricket in different capacities. In 2012, he was named as the Vice-President of the ICC for the term 2012-2014.

2. Commerce Ministry releases Foreign Trade Policyi. The commerce ministry announced its new Foreign Trade Policy for the period 2015-2020. 

ii. To address the infrastructural bottlenecks, complex procedures and manufacturing hurdles, the new trade policy announced two new schemes -- Merchandise Exports From India Scheme (MEIS) and Services Exports From India Scheme (SIES).iii. The new trade policy will boost exports, create jobs while supporting 'Make In India' and 'Digital India'… Will focus on defence, pharma, environment-friendly products and value-added exports.

3. Snapdeal acquires majority stake in RupeePower i. E-commerce marketplace Snapdeal has acquired a majority stake in digital financial distribution platform RupeePower for an undisclosed amount.

ii. Snapdeal’s entry into online financial services is a first for an e-commerce company in India. Following the deal, the SoftBank-backed Snapdeal will offer consumer loans through the RupeePower network. The online financial services market in India is estimated at Rs 4,500 crore.iii. The latest development is part of Snapdeal’s $1-billion acquisition spree. Founded in 2011, RupeePower has partnered 12 banks, including the State Bank of India, and non-banking financial companies.

4.  Kotak Mahindra-ING Vysya merger gets RBI approval i. The merger deal between Kotak Mahindra Bank and ING Vysya Bank has received the Reserve Bank's approval, which would create the country's fourth largest private sector lender. ii. The scheme of amalgamation (of Kotak Mahindra Bank and ING Vysya Bank) shall come into effect from April 1, 2015. Following the merger, all the tangible and intangible assets have been transferred to Kotak Mahindra Bank. 

iii. The Rs 15,000 crore merger deal between Kotak Mahindra and ING Vysya got the Competition Commission's approval in February. 

5. RBI penalises 16 Central Co-operative Banks (CCBs)

i. The Reserve Bank of India penalised 16 central cooperative banks with a fine of Rs 5 lakh each for non-adherence of the Know Your Customer and Anti-Money Laundering guidelines.ii. The lenders were issued show-cause notices and the action was taken after going through the responses.

iii. The penalties were imposed on these co-operative banks in exercise of powers vested in RBI under the provisions of Section 47(A) read with Section 46 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949

6. New Zealand cricketer Mills follows Vettori into retirementi. New Zealand pace bowler Kyle Mills announced his retirement from all cricket Wednesday, following Daniel Vettori in calling it quits after the World Cup final.ii. Mills was consistently ranked among the world's top 10 one-day bowlers throughout his illustrious 14-year career, and for a long time was ranked number one.iii.  Mills represented New Zealand in 170 ODIs and took 240 wickets to be the Black Caps' second highest wicket-taker in the shortened game behind Vettori, who took 297.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-1st-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDJW83iQ

Daily GK Update - 2nd April 20151. Odisha Government launches Aahar schemei. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched his government’s much-hyped subsidised Aahar scheme on the occasion of the State’s Foundation Day.ii. The scheme was launched in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Berhampur, Sambalpur and Rourkela in the first phase.

iii. The Chief Minister launched the scheme in two towns — first at the Capital Hospital premises in Bhubaneswar followed by Government Hospital in Rourkela.iv. Four Aahar outlets each have been opened in five towns where meal consisting of rice and Dalma is being provided at a subsidised rate with financial assistance from three State run corporations and Tata Steel.

2. Andhra Pradesh Cabinet approved Amaravathi as capital of the Statei. Andhra Pradesh Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu approved that Amaravathi will be the new capital city of the state. The capital will come up at Tullur in Vijayawada-Guntur region of the state.

ii. The name of Amaravathi as state capital was finalised in view of its historical, spiritual and mythological significance.

3. Indirect tax collection exceeds target by Rs 4,000 crore in FY15 

i. The collection of indirect taxes has surpassed the revised estimates by Rs 4,000 crore to reach Rs 5.46 lakh crore for the fiscal ended March 2015.ii. The total collection as on March 31 is Rs 5,46,479 crore, based on the provisional report as against revised estimates of Rs 5,42,325 crore for 2014-15The total collection as on March 31 is Rs 5,46,479 crore, based on the provisional report as against revised estimates of Rs 5,42,325 crore for 2014-15.

4. Muhammadu Buhari claims victory in Nigeria's presidential electionsi. Former military dictator Muhammadu Buhari has become Nigeria’s president elect after defeating Goodluck Jonathan in the first democratic change of power ever in Africa's most populous nation.ii. Mr Jonathan on Tuesday publicly conceded defeat, expressing his gratitude for the opportunity to lead the nation.

iii. Mr Jonathan's defeat is the first time in Nigeria’s brief democracy that a sitting president has not won a second term or handed power to a nominated successor.

5. Punjab Government launches Padho Punjab- Khedo Punjab Mission

i. Punjab Government has launched ‘Padho Punjab- Khedo Punjab Mission’ i.e. Learn Punjab- Play Punjab Mission.ii. It is a special mission launched to provide school students a separate period in the curriculum for playing along with studies.iii. The purpose of the mission is to encourage more youngsters towards sports to produce quality players for the country. This will also inculcate the sportsmanship spirit and competitiveness amongst them.

6. Union Government launches FAME-India scheme to boost electric, hybrid vehicle sales

i. Union Government on 1 April 2015 launched Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME) – India Scheme.ii. The scheme was launched as part of the National Mission for Electric Mobility to boost eco-friendly vehicles sales in the country.iii. It's main objective is to support the hybrid or electric vehicles market development and its manufacturing eco-system in the country in order to achieve self-sustenance in stipulated period.iv. The overall scheme is proposed to be implemented over a period next 6 years i.e. till 2020.

7. Gulshan Rai takes charge as India’s first cyber security chiefi. Gulshan Rai, the Director General of Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (Cert-In), will take over as India's first Cyber Security chief.ii. Rai, who also heads the eSecurity and Cyber Law division in the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, has been involved in various capacities regarding cyber security for over two decades. He is part of the Department of Electronics and IT.

iii. Rai's appointment comes at a time when cyber security assumes importance in the backdrop of growing network intrusions and hacking attempts on not just businesses but also on the government. 

8. Isro IRNSS-1D Launch Puts India a Step Closer to Own GPS-Like Systemi. India is set to operationalise its own navigational system with the succesful launch of IRNSS-1D, the fourth in the series of seven navigational satellites, onboard PSLV-C27 from Sriharikota.ii. The expendable rocket had a single but important luggage, the 1,425 kg IRNSS-1D.iii. The rocket blasted off from the second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, around 80 km from Chennai.

iv. The IRNSS will provide two types of services - standard positioning service and restricted service. The former is provided to all users and the latter is an encrypted service for authorised users.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-2nd-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDJyRvZj

Daily GK Update - 3rd April 20151. President gives nod to land ordinancei. The land acquisition ordinance, re-promulgated, a day before it is to lapse.ii. The government could not get converted into a legislation in Rajya Sabha due to stiff opposition from the other parties.iii. The fresh ordinance, which is the 11th by the Narendra Modi government, incorporates nine amendments that were part of the bill passed in Lok Sabha.

iv. To enable re-promulgation of the ordinance, the government last week got the Rajya Sabha prorogued. Under the Constitution at least one of the Houses has to be prorogued for Government to issue an ordinance.

2. Former world champion hurdler Liu Xiang to retire

i. China’s former Olympic champion hurdler Liu Xiang plans to announcement his retirement next week following years of nagging injuries. ii. The 31-year-old Liu became one of China’s best-known athletes by winning the 110-meter hurdles title at the 2004 Athens Olympics in a then-world record time.

iii. Liu missed previous two olympics outings due to similar problems.

3. Indian-origin nurse Subadhra Devi Rai named for 2015 International Achievement Awardi. Subadhra Devi Rai, a senior lecturer at the School of Health Sciences (Nursing) at Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP), has been named winner of the 2015 International Achievement Award by the International Council of Nurses' Florence Nightingale International Foundation (FNIF).ii. She was named for the award for her work in the healthcare sector of women and refugees and will receive the award on 21 June 2015 at a conference in Seoul.iii. With this 51-year-old Rai became the first Singaporean to get the prestigious biennial prize since its introduction in 1999.

4. India ranks 119 on 2015 FM Global Resilience Indexi. In recently released 2015 FM Global Resilience Index, India has been ranked a low 119 out of 130 countries.

ii. India despite having scope and global potential was ranked 119 compared to 112th rank in 2014 Global Resilience Index.iii. India is ranked 115 position on the economic parameter that takes into account GDP, political risk and oil intensity. This rank is same as in year 2014.iv. In the risk quality factor, India is ranked 109 for its quality of natural hazard and fire risk management. In this parameter, India has shown slight improvement from its 113th rank in 2014.

5. Vijay Kelkar resigns from Tata Chemicals' Boardi. Former Finance Commission chairman Vijay Kelkar has resigned from the company’s Board.

ii. Kelkar was appointed on the Board of Tata Group firm on May 30, 2012. He has also served as chairman of the National Stock Exchange and the 13th Finance Commission, besides being adviser to Finance Minister.iii. He is an Indian economist and academician who served as the Chairman of the Thirteenth Finance Commission constituted by the President of India. He also served as Advisor to the Union Ministry of Finance (2002–2004), and is known for his role in economic reforms in India.iv. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award, in January 2011.

6. Amitabh Bachchan honoured by Egypt's Academy of Artsi. Megastar Amitabh Bachchan feels “humbled and “honoured” to have received a honorary doctorate from the Egyptian Academy of Arts for his contribution to cinema.ii. He took to micro-blogging site Twitter to share the news.

iii.  This is the first time that the Academy of Arts has given a doctorate to an international actor.

7. Saina Nehwal reaches Malaysia Open semifinals

i. Newly crowned World No. 1 Saina Nehwal continued her rampaging run with a win over China's Sun Yu to reach the semifinals of the Malaysia Open Super Series Premier.ii. Saina defeated Yu 21-11, 18-21, 21-17 in 1 hour and 11 minutes to set up last four clash with world no. 2 Li Xuerui of China.

8. Brendon McCullum conferred with Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for 2014-15i. New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum has been awarded Sir Richard Hadlee medal, the country’s highest cricketing honour, for his inspirational leadership and exemplary batting at a glittering ceremony, in Auckalnd.ii. McCullum, 33, led the Kiwis to their first World Cup final where they did lose to Australia by seven wickets at a packed MCG on March 29 but won a million fans with their entertaining show throughout the 50-over showpiece event. iii. With 328 runs in nine matches at a strike rate of 188.50, McCullum led by example to be named captain of the ICC’s team of the tournament.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-3rd-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDK8anZ6

Daily GK Update - 5th April 2015

K.N. Tripathi sworn in as Governor of Mizorami. West Bengal and Bihar Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi took additional charge of Mizoram .ii. He was sworn in as 16th Governor of Mizoram on 4 April 2015. iii. Justice Michael Zothankhuma of the Gauhati High Court administered oath of office to him at Raj Bhavan in Aizawal. iv. Tripathi was given additional charge of Mizoram after Union Government had sacked then Governor Aziz Qureshi. 

Pedro Cateriano Bellido appointed as Prime Minister of Perui. Pedro Cateriano Bellido was appointed as Prime Minister of Peru by the President Ollanta Humala. ii. He will replace Ana Jara, who had lost a confidence vote and was sacked by Peruvian Congress amid allegations of corruption. 

About Pedro Cateriano Bellido a. Prior to this appointment, he was serving as Peru’s Defence Minister and was appointed in July 2012, Cateriano, by profession is a lawyer and is specialized in constitutional law. b. He was member of the Peruvian parliament from 1990 to 1992. Cateriano also had served as deputy justice minister from 2001 to 2002. He also teaches law at the University of Lima.

Malli Mastan Babu, India's ace mountaineer passes awayi. Malli Mastan Babu, one of India’s top mountaineers passed away. His dead body was recovered in the Andes Mountains between Argentina and Chile after  he went missing on 24th March, 2015 during an expedition to Cerro Tres Cruces Sur. ii. Babu was regarded as the fastest “7 summiteer” that is fastest mountaineer to climb summits in all seven continents from India. iii. In 2006, he had famously scaled 7 summits of the world in record 172 days. iv. He was the first Indian mountaineer to summit the tallest peak in Antarctica, Mt Vinson Massif. He was also the first person from Andhra Pradesh to scale the Mt Everest. v. Babu hails from Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh and was a 2000-2002 IIM Kolkata pass out. He also had a degree from IIT Kharagpur.

FM Global released Global Resilience Index 2015 Report

i. The Index offers powerful insights to help business executives target their investments towards more reliable returns and to protect their customers from unforeseen disruption.ii. Out of the 130 countries and regions assessed Norway topped the list in terms of business resilience and Venezuela came at last.iii. The Index used nine core drivers that are categorized into three factors namely Economic Productivity, Risk Quality, and Supply Chain to assess business resilience of the countries or regions surveyed.

India’s position in the Index India has been placed at the 119th position in the 2015 Index compared to 112th rank it secured in the 2014

Index. India is ranked at the 115th position in the Economic Productivity category that takes into account GDP per capita,

political risk and oil intensity. This rank is same as in the Index 2014.  In the Risk Quality factor, India is placed at the 109th position from 113th rank in 2014 which took into account

exposure to natural hazard, Quality of natural hazard risk management and Quality of fire risk management. In the Supply Chain category, which takes into account control of corruption, Infrastructure and local supplier

quality, India has improved its rank from 100th position in the year 2014 to 89th position. According to the report, despite India’s huge economic potential it is placed at the 119th position because one

third of its population is still living below the poverty line-–one of the highest incidences outside sub-Saharan Africa.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-5th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDKNUFrw

Daily GK Update - 6th April 20151. Delhi airport bags Golden Peacock National Quality Awardi. Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has bagged the prestigious Golden Peacock National Quality Award for the year 2015. ii. The award highlights the best in class quality process that we have been building up at DIAL over the years, which have brought significant results and many awards and accolades.iii. The award will be presented to DIAL by the UAE Minister for culture, youth and development Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan at a specially organized presentation ceremony to be held in Dubai on April 20. 

iv. Golden Peacock Awards were founded by the Institute of Directors, India in 1991 and are globally regarded as a benchmark of corporate excellence. v. The National Quality Award Scheme was instituted to encourage total quality improvements in both manufacturing and service organizations in India. 

2. India to host fifth meeting of SAARC health ministersi. Indian will host the fifth meeting of SAARC health ministers next week to deliberate on key issues including HIV/AIDS, prevention of communicable and non-communicable diseases and to strengthen collaborations amongst the nations.

ii. The meeting will deliberate on a road map for strengthening collaboration among SAARC countries on a number of issues and challenges faced by them.iii. The health ministers will also discuss adoption of the "Delhi Declaration" affirming their commitment to work together in identified areas and further strengthen health collaboration with agreed road map and timelines, in the meeting scheduled to take place on April 8.

3. Myntra to shut website from 1 May; to be available as a mobile app onlyi. After closing its mobile website last month, online fashion retailer Myntra is now moving to an app-only strategy by shutting down its desktop website.

ii. Myntra, which was acquired by Flipkart last year for a sum of Rs 2,000 crores claims that around 85 percent of all users come to the site via the app anyway, and that around 63 percent of all purchases happen on the app. iii. Myntra is on course to complete Rs 2,000 crore in sales or gross merchandise value (GMV) for the current financial year. 

NOTE: GMV refers to the overall revenue generated by online retailers through sale of goods on the online platforms.

4. Mumbai: Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar undocks first Scorpene submarine

i. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar launched the country's first indigenously-built Scorpene submarine at the Mazagaon Dockyard Ltd in Mumbai.ii. The Scorpene is part of the ambitious Project 75 of Indian Navy's submarine programme, undertaken with French collaboration, which will include six such vessels joining the fleet over the next few years.iii. The submarine is expected to be commissioned by September 2016.iv. Presently, Indian Navy has 14 conventional diesel-electric powered submarines which include 10 Russian Kilo Class and four German HDW class vessels.

5. MoU inked for construction of BR Ambedkar memorial at Indu Mills landi. A three party MoU was signed between Union Ministry of Textiles, Maharashtra government and National Textile Corporation for transfer of land for construction of the memorial for Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar memorial in Mumbai. ii. The MoU was signed in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union textile minister Santosh Gangwar in New Delhi.iii. The memorial will be constructed on the site where the last rites of architect of the Indian Constitution, Bharat Ratna Dr Ambedkar were performed after he had died on December 6, 1956.

6. PM Modi launches national air quality index

i. In a concerted effort to tackle the menace of air pollution, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched India's first Air Quality Index. The index will be operational in ten Indian cities to start with.ii. The air quality index will inform the public about the level of pollution in the air on a daily basis in real-time.

"Environment protection and development can go hand in hand," Prime Minister said while speaking on the launch event, in New Delhi's Vigyan Bhavan.

7. Miami Open 2015 - Winners

Men’s Singles Title  

World No. 1 and Serbian ace tennis player Novak Djokovic has won the 2015 Miami Open Men’s Singles Title. In the final match he defeated Britain’s Andy Murray.

Women’s singles Title   World No. 1 and American ace tennis player Serena Williams has won the 2015 Miami Open Women’s singles Title. In the final match she defeated Spain’s Carla Suárez Navarro.

Men’s doubles Title   American Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan pair has won the 2015 Miami Open Men’s doubles Title. In the final match they defeated Vasek Pospisil (Canada) and Jack Sock (US) pair.

Women’s doubles Title   India’s Sania Mirza and Switzerland’s Martina Hingis pair has won 2015 Miami Open Women’s doubles Title. In the final match they defeated Russian pair of Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-6th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDKVEAL2Daily GK Update - 7th April 20151. RBI keeps Key Rates unchangedi. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept the repo rate unchanged at 7.5% in its monetary policy review. Along market expectations, Raghuram Rajan also kept the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 4%. ii. Rajan kept policy rate unchanged awaiting clarity on impact of unseasonal rains on food inflation even as he wanted banks to pass on benefits of previous two rate cuts. 

iii. The RBI will await the transmission by banks of its front-loaded rate reductions in January and February into their lending rates. Transmission of policy rates to lending rates has not taken place so far despite weak credit off take and the front loading of two rate cuts, said RBI. 

2. Dena Bank inked MoU with Life Insurance Corporationi. Dena Bank on 6 April 2015 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India to provide insurance cover to all Aadhaar-linked savings account holders of the bank in the age group of 18 to 50 years. ii. The insurance cover will be provided under the Prime Minister’s Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJBY) scheme. The scheme will come into effect from 1 June 2015.

iii. The bank said that people who join the scheme before completing 50 years can continue to have the risk of life cover up to the age of 55 years.

3. World Health Day 2015 observed globally i. World Health Day (WHD) 2015 was observed globally on 7 April 2015. The theme for the year is "From farm to plate, make food safe."ii. The theme was selected by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to bring focus on growing global burden of food borne diseases and underscore the need for coordinated cross-border action across the entire food supply chain i.e. from farm to plate.iii. The day is celebrated every year since it was first celebrated in 1950 to mark the anniversary of the WHO formation in 1948. 

4. Yuvraj set to begin new innings as businessman with YouWeCan Venturesi. Cricketer Yuvraj Singh is set to start his new innings as businessman with YouWeCan Ventures, aiming to support young entrepreneurs by investing in startups across sectors.

ii. Yuvraj will put about INR 50 crore - mostly his own money - over a period of 3-5 years in the fund, YouWeCan Ventures. The fund is expected to raise around INR 300 crore from other investors during the period.iii. YouWeCan Ventures will mainly fund startups in sports products, healthcare, travel and tourism, services and fashion, e-commerce and hospitality. The plan is to offer seed capital ranging from INR 10 lakh to INR 25 lakh.

5. Indian origin UK School Boy Gets top Physics Prize on Einstein Model

i. An Indian origin school boy Pratap Singh, 15, in the UK has been chosen for a prestigious prize this year for the Institute of Physics (IOP) Prize, that carries 500 pounds sterling and a trip to a national physics-related activity.ii. Pratap Singh was given the award for carrying out a verifying experiment on the effect of Albert Einstein’s theory of special relativity. iii. He was presented the award at the Bing Bang Fair held at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) Birmingham

6. Steel Companies partnered with Union Ministry of Steel to set up Steel Research & Technology Missioni. Major Indian Steel Companies signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with Union Ministry of Steel for setting up of Steel Research and Technology Mission of India (SRTMI) in New Delhi.ii. The primary objective of SRTMI is to promote collaborative Research and Development (R&D) programmes between the ministry and steel industries in priority areas of national importance in the steel sector.iii. The participating steel companies in this initiative are Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), Tata Steel, JSW Steel of Jindal Group, Jindal Steel and Power Limited, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) and Metallurgical & Engineering Consultants (India) Limited (MECON).

7. Xiaomi to partner with Snapdeal and Amazon, no more exclusive to Flipkarti. Chinese phone maker Xiaomi ended its exclusive partnership with Flipkart and joined hands with new online partners Amazon and Snapdeal to sell its products in the country.

ii. Xiaomi's India head Manu Jain announced these new partnerships on Twitter and tweeted that customers can now purchase Mi products from Flipkart, Snapdeal, Amazon, The Mobile Stores and Airtel India stores.iii. The company has just completed five years of operations in the country. 

8. Dronavalli Harika wins bronze in World Women’s chess championshipi. Indian Grandmaster Dronavalli Harika won the bronze medal along with Swedish Grandmaster Pia Cramling by virtue of making it to the semi-finals of World Women's chess championship.ii. Harika lost to the eventual winner Mariya Muzychuk of Ukraine in the semi-finals.iii. Muzychuk bagged the title after defeating Russian Natalija Pogonina 2.5-1.5 in the four-game final. She had earlier defeated top seeded Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy in the quarters.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-7th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDKdlmr8

Daily GK Update - 8th April 20151. SBI, ICICI, HDFC Bank heed Raghuram Rajan's call, cut base rate

i. State Bank of India was the first off the block to impress the regulator by reducing its base rate, forcing private sector peers HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank to follow suit as they took heed of RBI governor Raghuram Rajan's stern message to ensure transmission of monetary policies. ii. State Bank of India lowered its base rate by a token 15 basis points — from 10% to 9.85%. HDFC Bank lowered its base rate by 15 bps to 9.85%, while ICICI Bank cut it by 25 bps to 9.75%, the lowest in the industry now. iii. SBI's new base rate is effective from April 10, while HDFC Bank's will come into effect from April 13. ICICI Bank said its existing floating rate customers will get the benefit of the new rate from April 10, while new borrowers will get it from July 1. iv. HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank have also reduced deposit rates by 25 bps for medium-term deposits of up to Rs 1 crore.

Base rate is the minimum rate at which a bank can lend. One basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point. 

2. Rs 20,000 cr MUDRA Bank launched by PM Narendra Modii. PM Narendra Modi launched the Rs 20,000 cr Micro Units Development Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank and said , “the aim of the bank is to fund the unfunded small entrepreneurs and to strengthen savings habit in the country”.ii. MUDRA Bank will provide credit of up to Rs 10 lakh to small entrepreneurs and act as a regulator for ‘Micro-Finance Institutions’ (MFIs).iii. The roles envisaged for MUDRA include laying down policy guidelines for micro enterprise financing business and registration of MFI entities as well as their accreditation and rating.iv. MUDRA is to be set up through a statutory enactment. It would be responsible for developing and refinancing through a Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana.v. MUDRA would also partner with state/regional level coordinators to provide finance to “Last Mile Financiers” of small/micro business enterprises.

3. Narendra Modi announces compensation for farmersi. Coming to the rescue of farmers hit by unseasonal rains and hailstorm, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced higher compensation for crop damage and eased criteria for them to avail government support.ii. Modi said criteria of 50 per cent crop damage for providing compensation to affected farmers has been reduced to 33 per cent which will help more farmers to get compensation for their crop loss.iii. Following Mr. Modi's footsteps the Reserve Bank has instructed banks to restructure loans of farmers whose crops have been damaged by the recent unseasonal rains and hailstorms.iv. In its first bi - monthly monetary policy on  7th April 2015, the RBI said that the adverse impact of unseasonal rains and hailstorms in March is still unfolding.

4. Snapdeal acquires FreeChargei. Online marketplace Snapdeal acquired India’s fastest growing mobile transaction platform FreeCharge. ii. With this acquisition, Snapdeal has become India’s largest mobile commerce firm with 40 million users and the largest mobile transactions base for any company. iii. Now Snapdeal can offer wide range of services and products including financial services, mobile recharge and utility payments to its growing user base.

5. Mayilsamy Annadurai appointed as Director of ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC)

i. Mayilsamy Annadurai is appointed as Director of ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC), Bengaluru.

ii. He took over as Director, ISAC from Dr SK Shivakumar who superannuated on 31 March 2015.iii. As the Director of ISAC he will oversee development of satellite technology and implementation of satellite systems for scientific, technological and application missions.iv. Before the present appointment he had been the Programme Director of Indian Remote Sensing Satellites (IRS) and Small Satellite Systems (SSS) at the ISAC since 2011.

6. Government raises stake in state-owned IFCI to 51% i. IFCI Ltd has now become a state- owned firm with the government increasing its stake in the infrastructure financing firm to 51.04 per cent. ii. Government has acquired IFCI's 6,00,00,000 Preference shares of Rs 10 each from certain scheduled commercial banks and has consequently increased its holding from 47.93 per cent to 51.04 per cent of the paid-up share capital. 

7. World Cup heartache fades as fresh IPL season startsi. The Indian Premier League (IPL), with its heady cocktail of cricket, money and glamour, begins its eighth edition on 8th April 2015. The T20 tournament brings together the superstars of the game in an epic festival of club cricket at its best.ii. The first and final match of IPL 2015 will both be played at the Eden Gardens. The title clash will take place on May 24.iii. Yuvraj Singh - bought by Delhi for Rs 16 crores - is the most expensive player in the tournament. His amount is 3.5 crores more than even that of Dhoni.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-8th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDKm7ygG\\

Daily GK Update - 9th April 20151. Moody's raises India outlook to 'positive', edges toward ratings upgradei. Global ratings agency Moody’s reaffirmed India’s rating at Baa3 but raised the rating outlook to ‘Positive’ from "Stable", a step closer to an upgrade of the credit rating, as it expects actions by policymakers to lift the country's economic growth.ii. According to Moody's the policymakers are establishing a framework that will allow the country's growth to continue to outperform that of its peers over the medium-term and improve India's macro-economic, infrastructure and institutional profile.

iii. Moody's not only expects India's economic strength to be enhanced over time, but also says that the recent measures taken by government will reduce some of India's sovereign credit constraints. 

2. PM Narendra Modi departs on a nine-day visit to three nations

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flies out today for his visit to France, Germany and Canada, in which he plans to take his "Make in India" push to Eurozone's two biggest economies.ii. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nine days abroad will be the longest overseas visit that he will be undertaking after becoming Prime Minister eleven months ago.iii. The focus of the visit is to shore up as much foreign direct investment (FDI) and technological expertise as he can for the BJP-led NDA Government's pet projects: Make in India, Smart Cities, Clean India, Skill Development, Defense, Energy Security, Railways, Roads and Ports Management.

3. RBI notifies hike in FDI cap in insurance sector to 49% i. The Reserve Bank notified government's decision to raise foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in the insurance sector to 49 per cent from the present 26 percent.ii. As per the notification, FDI up to 26 percent will be under automatic route and beyond 26 percent and up to 49 percent will be allowed with the approval of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

iii. The RBI notification is in tune with March 2015 decision of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) regarding operationalisation of increased FDI limit in the insurance sector.

4. President appoints Dr Nasim Zaidi as chief election commissioneri. President Pranab Mukherjee has appointed the senior-most Election Commissioner, Dr Nasim Zaidi, as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC).

ii. Zaidi will assume the charge of office of the chief election commissioner with effect from April 19, after the incumbent Harishankar Brahma will retire on April 18.iii. A 1976 batch IAS officer, Dr Zaidi has worked in the Civil Aviation Ministry for a long time.

5. China's Olympic hurdles gold medallist Liu Xiang retiresi. China's Olympic gold medal-winning hurdler Liu Xiang, one of the country's biggest sports stars, has retired.ii. The 31-year-old won the country's first Olympic men's athletics gold in the 110m hurdles in Athens in 2004 and added a world title in 2007.iii. He also held the world record in 2006 with a time of 12.88 seconds.

iv. Liu has been affected by an Achilles problem ever since it caused him to pull out of his first heat at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

6. Sumit Mazumder is the new president of CII

i. Sumit Mazumder, Chairman & Managing Director, TIL Limited, has been elected as the President of CII for the year 2015-16.  He succeeds Mr Ajay Shriram as the new President.ii. TIL is the manufacturer of India’s largest range of material handling equipment in technical collaboration with world leaders – Manitowoc Crane Group, USA; Hyster (a part of NACCO Materials Handling Group, USA) etc.iii. Mazumder is also the Executive Chairman of TIPL (Tractors India Pvt. Ltd.).  The company is a distributor for Caterpillar, USA, in India, Nepal and Bhutan for earthmoving, construction, mining equipment and power systems.

7.  Gopaldas Neeraj, Uday Pratap Singh conferred with Sahitya Shiromani Samman of Uttar Pradeshi. Uttar Pradesh Government conferred Sahitya Shiromani Samman on noted Hindi poet Gopaldas Neeraj and veteran Hindi litterateur Uday Pratap Singh. ii. Along with the award, the duo was given a cash prize of 21 lakh rupees. iii. Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Akhilesh Yadav conferred the award on Neeraj and Singh. Yadav also announced that Neeraj will be given Rashtra Ratn-Sitara-e Hind award for his lifelong service to Hindi literature.iv. Beside this, Yadav also unveiled the poetry book of Gopal Das Neeraj named Geetsri in Lucknow.

8.  Indian-origin Sim Bhullar makes NBA historyi. Gursimran 'Sim' Bhullar became the first player of Indian descent to play in the high-profile National Basketball Association (NBA) league as he made his debut for Sacramento Kings.ii. The 22-year-old came on with 16 seconds remaining in the Kings' 116-111 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Sleep Train Arena. iii. The 7-foot-5-inch Canada-born had signed a 10-day contract to join the Kings' roster.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-9th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDKqrR3tDaily GK Update - 10th April 20151. EPFO suspends Rs 1,000 minimum monthly pension schemei. Retirement fund body EPFO has suspended the Rs 1,000 minimum monthly pension scheme from this month, a decision which will hit about 32 lakh pensioners.ii. The scheme was launched with effect from September 2014, hiking the pension amount to a flat Rs 1,000 per month for those who were getting lower amount earlier.

iii. With the suspension of the scheme, the beneficiaries will get pension at earlier rates.iv. In a circular to its field offices, the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) said it has decided to suspend the scheme in the absence of any direction from the government to continue this benefit beyond March 31.v. According to the government notification issued on August 19 last year, the benefit of minimum pension was made effective from September 1 to March, 2015.

2. Seoul succeeds in WWF’s Earth Hour City Challenge 2015i. Seoul city, the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea was awarded the title of Global Earth hour Capital 2015 after it won the Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) of World Wildlife Fund (WWF). 

ii. The challenge saw the participation of 163 cities from 16 countries. The award ceremony was held in Seoul, South Korea.iii. The city of Balikpapan, Indonesia was recognized as the Most Loveable City for 2015 and Thane city was named as the National Earth Hour Capital 2015 of India.

3. IndusInd Bank to buy RBS India's bullion financing bizi. IndusInd Bank entered into an agreement to acquire Royal Bank of Scotland's Diamond & Jewellery Financing business in India and related deposit portfolio.ii. This is part of ABN AMRO Bank NV’s diamond & jewellery clients [unit] that is housed in Royal Bank of Scotland NV acting through its Mumbai branch in India.

iii. ABN AMRO was acquired by RBS in 2007. Until ownership of the loans transfer to IndusInd Bank, day-to-day management of the loan portfolio will remain with Royal Bank of Scotland NV. Employees within diamond and jewellery clients in India will also move to IndusInd Bank and will ensure seamless transition of the customer base.

4. Former Air Chief Marshal Hrushikesh Moolgaonkar passes awayi. Retired Air Chief Marshal Hrushikesh Moolgaonkar passed away in Pune, Maharashtra. He was 95.

ii. Hrushikesh Moolgaonkar had joined Indian Air Force (then Royal Indian Air Force) in November 1940 as the rank of an acting Pilot Officer. He was appointed Chief of Air Staff in February 1976. He had succeeded then Air Chief Marshal Om Prakash Mehra. iii. He had led the fly-past of IAF on Independence Day in August 15, 1947 and also on the Republic Day in January 26, 1951 when he was a Squadron Leader.

5. Arun Kumar Jha appointed CEO, KVICi. Arun Kumar Jha was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), Mumbai.ii. He has been appointed to the post of CEO (Joint Secretary level post) for the balance period of his overall five year tenure up to September 13, 2016iii. Jha, a 1985-batch officer of Indian Economics Service, is presently working as Director General, National Institute of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD) under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.

6. Marvelous Maven completes 1000 orbits around Mars

i. Nasa's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) probe - the first mission ever devoted to understanding the Martian upper atmosphere - has completed 1,000 orbits around the Red Planet, four-and-a-half months into its one-year primary mission.ii. Maven started its venture on November 18, 2013 and successfully entered the martian orbit on September 5, 2014. Since then its has been orbiting elliptically in the Mars’s upper atmosphere with 6,500 kilometers being the farthest point while 130 kilometers being the closest point to the Martian surface.iii. The prime objective of Maven is to observe the Mars atmosphere and give an insight into how the transition from moist and warm planet to dry and cold planet took place on Mars.

7. Nuclear-capable Dhanush missile successfully test-firedi. India on Thursday successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable Dhanush ballistic missile with a strike range of 350 km from a naval ship off the Odisha coast.ii. The surface-to-surface Dhanush, a naval variant of India's indigenously-developed Prithvi missile, was test fired from a ship in the Bay of Bengal off Odisha coast by the Strategic Force Command (SFC) of the defence force. iii. The single-stage, liquid-propelled Dhanush having 350 km range has already been inducted into the armed forces and is one of the five missiles developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-10th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDKzTRuGDaily GK Update - 11th April 20151. India to chair 9th IRENA meet in Abu Dhabii. India has been designated to chair the ninth meeting of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Council. The meeting is scheduled to be held in June in Abu Dhabi.ii. India is a founder Member of the IRENA. The body is an intergovernmental organisation that supports countries in their transition to a sustainable energy future.

iii. IRENA has two main governing structures. IRENA Assembly takes decisions at Macro level and gives policy guidance to IRENA.iv. IRENA Council which is the main governing body of the agency responsible for implementing various decisions of the assembly.

2. Apurvi Chandela wins Bronze in ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup

i. Commonwealth Games gold medal winning Indian shooter Apurvi Chandela today qualified for next year's Olympic Games after notching up the 10m air rifle bronze in the ongoing ISSF World Cup (Rifle/Pistol) in Changwon, Korea.ii. Apurvi shot a total of 185.6 in the finals, to finish behind Pejcic Snjezana of Croatia, who won gold, and Ivana Maksimovic of Serbia, who clinched the silver medal.iii. Pejcic eventually finished with a score of 209.1 to Ivana's 207.7 at the end of the gold medal match up. There were three Olympic quota places to be bagged in the event.

3. India's first IFSC becomes operational at GIFT City

i. India's first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City in Gandhinagar district of Gujarat became operational today and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley unveiled rules and regulations for this global financial hub. ii. Jaitley also attacked the previous UPA government for being "lethargic" in giving permission to the IFSC. iii. The regulations are aimed at creating a vibrant IFSC on the lines of those in Dubai and Singapore and check the flight of trading in rupee and Indian securities to such offshore financial hubs. 

4. April 11: National Safe Motherhood dayi. Every year on 11 April, National Safe Motherhood day is being observed across India.ii. Main Objective of the day is:

To create awareness on proper healthcare and maternity facilities to pregnant and lactating women. 

It also seeks to create awareness about the institutional delivery, reducing anemia among women and better pre and post natal health care are necessary for mothers. 

iii. It should be noted that safe motherhood also means to ensure that all women receive the care they need to be safe and healthy throughout pregnancy and childbirth.

5. Bharat Hari Singhania takes over as JK Organisation President 

i. Delhi-based JK Organisation has appointed Bharat Hari Singhania as its new president.ii. He succeeds Gaur Hari Singhania, who died in February.iii. Bharat Singhania has been with the organisation for more than five decades. He is the chairman of JK Paper, JK Lakshmi Cement and other group companies, apart from being on the board of JK Tyres and other companies and entities of the organisation.

6. NGT imposed ban on air pollution causing construction activities in National Capital Regioni. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on 10 April 2015 imposed ban on all construction activities in the National Capital Region (NCR) that do not follow the guidelines provided by the then Union Ministry of Environment and forest in 2010.

ii. The directive was delivered by a bench headed by Justice Swatanter Kumar, NGT chairman, in order to check growing menace of air pollution in the NCR.

7. Greenpeace India's license suspendedi. The Indian government announced it has "temporarily" suspended the registration of Greenpeace India under the foreign contributions law for "under-reporting" such funding it and conducting transaction of such funds without informing the authorities as required by the law.

ii. Along with the 180-day suspension, the ministry of home affairs froze all seven bank accounts of the organisation and served it a show-cause notice seeking explanation why its license should not be cancelled.

Read more:  http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-11th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDL2JxeN Daily GK Update - 12th April 20151. Jitu Rai wins bronze at ISSF World Cup

i. Ace Indian shooter Jitu Rai on 12 April 2015 won a bronze medal in the 10m air pistol event at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup in Changwon, South Korea. ii. Rai won the bronze medal after he scored 181.1 points in the final and had missed out for the gold medal shoot-out by 0.4 points. iii. Jitu Rai after winning won silver in the 50m Free Pistol event in 2014 at the World Championships in Granada, Spain had qualified for the 2016 Olympics.

2. 17 Agreements signed between India and France during PM Narendra Modi’s visiti. India and France on 11 April 2015 signed 17 agreements in various fields during Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s visit to France. ii. They were signed in presence of Indian PM and his counterpart French President Francois Hollande after they had held wide-ranging talks in Paris. 

Some of key agreements signed are   MoU between Larsen and Tubro and AREVA- It aims at improve the financial viability of the Jaitapur Nuclear

plant project by reducing cost by increasing localization. It will also enable France to transfer of technology to India for development of indigenous nuclear energy industry in India. 

Pre-engineering agreements (PEA) between NPCIL and Areva- It intends to bring clarity on all technical aspects of the plant. It will help all parties including AREVA, Alstom and NPCIL to fix their price and optimise all provisions for risks (still included at this stage) in the costs of the project. 

MoU between CNES and ISRO on Megha Tropiques satellite- It extends MoU for two more years of joint project for sharing and use of data from the satellite. The satellite was launched in October 2011 on board of Indian launch vehicle PSLV. 

MOU between ISRO, CNES and ONERA- It proposes cooperation in the areas of satellite remote sensing, satellite communications and satellite meteorology and others field. 

MoU between Union Sports Ministry and French Ministry of Sports- It envisages cooperation and exchange of experiences in the fields of sports medicine and institutional cooperation. 

Railway protocol between Union Railways Ministry and French National Railways (SNCF)- It seeks to establish cooperation between Indian and French Railways for semi-high speed rail and station renovation. 

Other agreements signed between both nations in the fields of economy, energy, culture, tourism, conservation, Ayurveda, skill development and science and technology. Note- NPCIL (Nuclear Power Corporation of India), CNES (French National Centre for Space Studies), ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation).

3. Asteroid 316201 named after Malala Yousafzaii. Asteroid 316201 was named as ‘316201 Malala’ after the youngest Nobel laureate and girls’ education campaigner Malala Yousafzai. ii. The asteroid was named after her by Amy Mainzer, astronomer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, United States under the International Astronomical Union rules. iii. In 2010, Mr. Mainzer had discovered the asteroid which was known as 316201. As a discoverer of the asteroid he had owned the rights to name it. iv. Asteroid 316201 Malala is located in the Main Belt between Mars and Jupiter. It orbits around the Sun every 5.5 years and is more-than 2 mile wide. 

4. Yuki Bhambri wins $15,000 ITF Futures tournament titlei. Yuki Bhambri on 11 April 2015 has won the 15,000 US Dollar ITF Futures tournament title. In the final he recorded a straight-set win over Dzmitry Zhyrmont of Belarus played at Karshi, Uzbekistan.ii. Bhambri defeated his rival with Bhambri with 6-2 6-4 score. This win has pocketed 27 ranking points on Bhambri which will take him to a rank between 215 and 220. It was also Yuki’s 10th ITF Futures singles title. iii. This win also has ensured Yuki’s entry into the French Open qualifying event which will be the Clay Court Grand Slam that will begin on the19 May 2015. 

About ITF Futures tournament title  ITF Futures tournament title is a series of professional tennis tournaments held around the world.  These tournaments are organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).  This title represents the lowest rung of the men’s professional tennis ladder.  These tournaments are incorporated into the ATP rankings which helps young professionals to progress on to the

ATP Challenger Tour and then in ATP World Tour.  

5. President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurates ‘Songs and Dances of the North East’ festivali. President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated first Songs and Dances of the North East, a cultural festival in New Delhi. ii. The day long festival was organized by Government of Meghalaya and sponsored by the North Eastern Council (NEC). iii. The purpose of festival is to showcase the culture of India’s northeast region and highlight the immense contribution made by the people of the region in nation building. iv. This festival will be held by rotation in different parts of the country as part of the series of events planned by NEC and Union Ministry of Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER).   v. All eight States of the northeast region will collaborate to host the festival in different parts of the country with an aim to attract investors and visitors to the region.

6. Bharat Hari Singhania became the president of JK Organizationi. Bharat Hari Singhania assumed the presidency of JK Organization. The company issued a formal statement on 9 April 2015 in this regard.ii. He succeeded Gaur Hari Singhania who died on 4 April 2015.iii. The JK Group is 125-year-old and has footprint in 100 countries. It has overseas manufacturing operations in Indonesia, Mexico, Romania, Belgium, Portugal and the UAE.

About Bharat Hari Singhania He is an industrialist with over forty-four years of experience in managing various industries including cement,

automotive tyres, paper, synthetics, audio magnetic tapes and high yielding hybrid seeds. He has been the Chairman of JK Lakshmi Cement Ltd., the holding company of Hansdeep Industries and Trading

Company Ltd., since May 2013.

He has been a Director of Bengal and Assam Company Ltd. since February 2009. He is also the chancellor of JK Lakshmipat University, Jaipur.

7. Arun Kumar Jha appointed as CEO of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC)

i. Arun Kumar Jha was appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC).ii. The decision in this regard was taken on 10 April 2015 by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) of the Union Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.iii. As the CEO of KVIC, he will oversee the day-to-day functioning of the commission and report about its activities to the Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).iv. Before this appointment, he had been working as the Director General of National Institute of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD) functioning under the Union Ministry of MSME.v. Jha is a 1985-batch Indian Economics Service (IES) officer.

About KVIC It is a statutory body established by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission Act, 1956. It functions under the aegis of Union Ministry of MSME.  It’s primary objective is to create self-reliance amongst the poor and build strong rural community spirit by

producing saleable articles and providing employment.

8. Lewis Hamilton wins Chinese Grand Prix of Formula Onei. Mercedes Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton from Britain on 12 April 2015 won Chinese Grand Prix of Formula One on the Shanghai International Circuit in China. This was his second win of the season and his fourth Chinese Grand Prix win. ii. It was also Lewis Hamilton’s overall 35th Grand Prix win. iii. In Chinese Grand Prix, Hamilton was followed by teammate Nico Rosberg at second place. 

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-12th-april-2014.html#ixzz3YDL883Ad

Daily GK Update - 13th April 20151. Modi inaugurates German industrial fair

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened on Sunday the Hanover Messe, the world’s largest industrial fair, alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel.ii. India is the partner country of this year's trade fair, which brings together about 6,500 exhibitors from 70 nations.

iii. Germany is India’s largest trading partner in Europe and total bilateral trade between the two countries was valued at 16.08 billion euro (17 billion dollars) in 2013. There are currently more than 1,600 Indo-German business collaborations and 600 Indo-German joint ventures in operation.

2. Larsen & Toubro inks MoU with AREVA

i. Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has announced signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with AREVA of France for co-operation to maximise localisation of the EPR nuclear power plant to be built at Jaitapur, Maharashtra.ii. This partnership will add new dimensions to the capabilities of India’s manufacturing sector in the nuclear business.iii. AREVA will transfer technology to utilise the forging capabilities of L&T Special Steels and Heavy Forgings (a joint venture with Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd.).

3. SBI Cuts home loan rate by another 10 bps for new buyersi. State Bank of India (SBI), has cut the interest rate for new home loans by another 10 bps, to 9.9 per cent.ii. In effect, the interest rate for new home loans will be reduced by 25 bps. For the existing ones, 15 bps is the reduction.iii. The move comes amid the RBI directive that an interest rate differential will not be allowed if customer profiles are similar.

4. Gujarat government launches industrial tourism to showcase development i. In a first of its kind initiative in the country, Gujarat government is promoting a tour package covering major industrial installations which have earned global acclaim for the state. ii. Some of the major attractions of this recently launched tour package include a visit to Tata Nano plant in Sanand, Pipavav port near Amreli, Alang ship breaking yard in Bhavnagar and Amul Dairy in Anand. iii. The package, called Industrial Tour of Gujarat, has been offered by city-based Akshar Travels Pvt Ltd, official partner of state-run tourism agency Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (TCGL), which is promoting the tour on its website.

5. German Nobel laureate Guenter Grass dies at age 87

i. Guenter Grass, the Nobel-winning German writer who gave voice to the generation that came of age during the horrors of the Nazi era has died. He was 87. ii. Grass was lauded by Germans for helping to revive their culture in the aftermath of World War II and helping to give voice and support to democratic discourse in the post war nation.iii. Grass made his literary reputation with “The Tin Drum,” published in 1959. It was followed by “Cat and Mouse” and “Dog Years,” which made up what is called the Danzig Trilogy after the town of his birth, now the Polish city of Gdansk.

6. Sania seals historic world no. 1 rank with Charleston titlei. Sania Mirza created history by becoming the first female tennis player from India to achieve the world number one rank in doubles.ii. Sania achieved her stupendous title win at the WTA Family Circle Cup with partner Martina Hingis.iii. The top-seeded Indo-Swiss pair defeated Casey Dellacqua and Darija Jurak 6-0 6-4 in just 57 minutes in the lop-sided final of the $731,000 clay court event.iv. Before Sania, only Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi had achieved the top rank when they dominated men’s doubles circuit in the last 90s.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-13th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLaR1m3Daily GK Update - 14th April 20151. Following consumer backlash, Flipkart pulls out of Airtel Zero

i. Following popular outrage against net neutrality violations to “internet apartheid”, e-retailer Flipkart pulled out of the controversial Airtel Zero preferential access platform.

ii. Flipkart was one of the partners in the Airtel Zero platform which allowed Airtel's subscribers to access select websites and services for “zero data charges”, as long as owners of these websites/services paid Airtel.iii. Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said a six-member panel has been constituted by the telecom department to submit its recommendations regarding the same by early next month.

2. FM transmission of Vividh Bharati launchedi. The popular ‘Vividh Bharati’ services of All India Radio (AIR) will now be available to listeners in and around Delhi on mobile handsets with the launch of FM transmission of the channel.ii. Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley, who launched the FM transmission, also delivered a message to the listeners of the channel, saying Vividh Bharati services would reach people within a range of 60-65 km with much clarity at all times in all weather conditions.

iii. Vividh Bharati offers a mix of film music, skits, short plays and interactive programmes. It is known to have the largest collection of film and non-film songs in the country.iv. Mobile applications of all channels that are livestreamed by AIR like Vividh Bharati, FM Gold, FM Rainbow, Urdu service and several regional channels, will also be made available.

3. India’s GDP growth rate to reach 8% by 2017: World Banki. The World Bank has predicted a GDP growth rate of 8 per cent for India by 2017 and said that a strong expansion in the country, coupled with favourable oil prices.

ii. In India, GDP growth is expected to accelerate to 7.5 per cent in fiscal year 2015/16. It could reach 8 per cent in FY 2017/18, on the back of significant acceleration of investment growth to 12 per cent during FY 2016-FY 2018.iii. The report shows that households in the region stand to gain from lower oil prices, both directly through lower energy spending and indirectly through faster growth.

4. FDI in services sector up 47 per cent during April-Januaryi. FDI inflows into services sector grew by about 47 per cent to $2.64 billion in April-January last fiscal.ii. Helped with the growth in FDI in important sector like services, overall foreign inflows in the country rose by 36 per cent to $25.52 billion during the ten months of 2014-15.iii. The other sectors where inflows have recorded growth are: telecom ($2.83 billion), automobile ($2.04 billion) and power ($612 million).iv. Government has raised the FDI cap in insurance sector to 49 per cent from 26 per cent. The policy was also relaxed in other sectors such as defence, railways and medical devices.

5. Retail inflation drops to 3-month low of 5.17% in March

i. Easing of food prices, mainly milk and vegetables, pulled down the March retail inflation to 3-month low of 5.17 per cent.ii. The retail inflation as measured by Consumer Price Index was 5.37 per cent in February, and 5.19 per cent in January.

iii. It was 8.25 per cent in March last year.iv. To calculate the CPI, price data are collected from selected towns by the field operations division of NSSO and from selected villages by the Department of Posts.

Haryana govt to give cabinet minister status to Baba Ramdevi. The BJP government in Haryana has decided to give the status of cabinet minister to yoga guru Ramdev, who was earlier made the state’s brand ambassador to promote yoga and ayurveda.

ii. The government’s decision was announced on Monday by education minister Ram Bilas Sharma, who said the state government would also honour Ramdev at a function at Indradhanush Auditorium in Panchkula on April 21.iii.  Recently, government announced to make yoga compulsory in all schools and equip all sports stadiums in every district with a yoga centre. Municipal bodies and Huda would construct yoga practice halls in their areas of jurisdiction. Special coaching of physical education teachers in yoga will be organised.

North Korean foreign minister Ri Su Yong to visit India i. North Korea’s top diplomat, Ri Su-yong, arrived in India on a rare visit where Delhi hosted the meet.ii. Ri became the first North Korean foreign minister to visit India in at least 25 years.iii. In New Delhi, Ri met with his counterpart, Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. According to reports, the two discussed North Korea’s nuclear weapons program and regional security issues, including the stability of the Korean peninsula.iv. In addition to Swaraj, Ri met with Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari. Ri’s trip to India comes ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to Seoul, South Korea, which is expected in May.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-14th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLd7tXMDaily GK Update - 15th April 20151. Wholesale prices contract 2.33% in Marchi. India's wholesale price index-based inflation (WPI) provisionally stood at -2.33 per cent for March, government data showed on Wednesday. This compares with -2.06 per cent for February and 6 per cent for the same period last year.ii. This is the fifth consecutive month of deflation in wholesale prices, a clear reflection of lower commodity prices.

iii. Earlier Consumer Price Index-based (CPI) inflation for March eased to 5.17 per cent, the lowest in three months.

2. Govt forms panel to review Official Secrets Acti. The government has formed an inter-ministerial committee headed by cabinet secretary to review the Official Secrets Act in context of demands to declassify files related to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's death or disappearance. ii. RAW, IB, Union home ministry and PMO officials will be part of the panel. iii. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had met Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's grandnephew, Surya Bose, in Berlin and promised to examine the request for declassification of all files related to events since his death or disappearance in Taiwan on August 18, 1945. 

3. Assamese Filmmaker Bidyut Chakraborty passes away

i. Renowned Assamese filmmaker and actor Bidyut Chakraborty breathed his last today in a private nursing home in Guwahati after brief illness.ii. In his film career he had directed several Assamese movies including Goon Goon Gaane Gaane, Dwaar and Raag-Biraag. His directorial film Rag-Birag is based on a novel written by Jnanpith award-winner Mamoni Raisom Goswami.iii. Apart from direction, Chakraborty acted in several Assamese movies and serials.

4. New visa scheme renamed “e-Tourist Visa”i. Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has renamed Tourist Visa on Arrival-Electronic Travel Authorization scheme (TVoA-ETA) to e-Tourist Visa with effect from 15 April 2015. ii. With this ambiguities faced by foreign tourists especially by scheme’s nomenclature VoA, presuming that they would be granted visa on arrival upon landing will be removed. 

iii. e-Tourist Visa Scheme is a pre-authorization of Visa to foreigners that being given prior to travel. TVoA-ETA was launched in November 2014. It had enabled Electronic Travel Authorization to 44 countries at nine airports across India.

5. Zomato acquires cloud-based data firm MaplePOSi. Online restaurant guide Zomato announced the acquisition of MaplePOS, a cloud-based point of sale product for restaurants developed by a group of techies from Delhi. 

ii. Gurgaon based Zomato has already renamed the MaplePOS product to 'Zomato Base' which will help the company and its restaurant partners to manage business into online orders and payments.iii. MaplePos, a sale product offers various features of restaurants such as inventory and menu management, and has in-built payment solution to accept debit and credit card payments.

6. Justice Meenakshi Madan Rai sworn in as first lady judge of Sikkim HCi. Meenakshi Madan Rai sworn in as the first lady judge of the Sikkim High Court. Her oath of the office was administered by the Governor Srinivas Patil at Ashirwad Hall at Raj Bhavan in Gangtok.ii. Rai is also the third High Court judge who hails from the small border state.iii. This appointment of Rai as the judge of the Sikkim High Court has helped the state to get its full strength of three judges after a gap of about one year.

7. Union Government forms task force to expedite work on inter-linking of riversi. Union Government on 14 April 2015 constituted a task force on interlinking of rivers in the country. ii. The Task Force will be chaired by former Secretary of Ministry of Water Resources B N Navalawala and comprises experts and senior officials. 

Terms of References of Task Force:

Consider alternative plans in case of infeasible links in the present National Perspective Plan (NPP) apart from examining the existing links which are laid out as per the NPP under both Himalayan and Peninsular components. 

Facilitate interlinking of intra-basin and intra-state Rivers, along with that of inter-state and inter-basin links. 

Suggest different means of funding mechanisms for the interlinking of rivers project.  Provide guidance norms of appraisal for individual projects in respect of economic viability,

environmental impacts, socio-economic and preparation of resettlement plans.  Device suitable mechanisms in order to bring speedy consensus among the states.  To implement the interlinking of Rivers, propose suitable organizational structure.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-15th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLg0R6IDaily GK Update - 16th April 20151. Indian Prime Minister Modi inks uranium deal, talks trade with Stephen Harper

i. Canada and India have signed with a series of agreements and promises that will send Canadian uranium to the South Asian nation, liberalize visas for Canadian travellers, “soon” ratify a long-awaited foreign investment deal and lay a road map to complete stalled trade talks.ii. Under an agreement signed between Modi had Harper, Cameco Corporation will supply 3,000 metric tonnes of uranium over five years to India for $254 million. 

iii. The two countries also decided to strengthen defence and security cooperation and decided to cooperate to stabilise the Asia Pacific region. Modi also announced Electronic Visa Authorisation for tourist visa for Canadian nationals. iv. Canada's Stephen Harper returns 900-year-old Khajuraho temple sculpture to PM Narendra Modi v. The sculpture, known as 'Parrot Lady', was handed over by Harper to Modi yesterday in accordance with 1970 UNESCO Convention. 

2. RBI allows differential interest rate on depositsi. The Reserve Bank of India said banks will have the discretion to offer differential interest rates based on whether the term deposits are with or without-premature-withdrawal-facility, subject to conditions.ii. All term deposits of individuals (held singly or jointly) of Rs. 15 lakh and below should, necessarily, have premature withdrawal facility.iii.  For all term deposits above Rs. 15 lakh banks can offer deposits without the option of premature withdrawal as well.

3. Agni-III missile test-fired successfully by SFC

i. India on Thursday successfully test-fired nuclear weapons-capable Agni-III ballistic missile from the Wheeler Island off Odisha coast. Although the missile has a strike range of more than 3,000 k.m.ii. it was tested for a lesser range, in today's mission.iii. Agni-III is one of the sophisticated and accurate missiles of its class and has already been inducted into armed forces.iv. It is capable of carrying a payload weighing 1.5 tonnes to a distance of more than 3,000 k.m.

4. Janata Parivar announces mergeri. Leaders of six Janata Parivar parties announced their decision to merge into one larger entity.  Mulayam Singh Yadav will the head new partyii. The new party will have a strength of 15 members in the Lok Sabha and 30 in the Rajya Sabha.

iii. With 30 MPs, the new party will be the third largest bloc behind the Congress (68) and the BJP (47) in the Rajya Sabha, where the Modi government continues to be in a minority. iv. In the Lok Sabha, the party will have 15 MPs, making it the eighth largest party in the House.

5. MoU to set power plant in Kazakhstan between BHEL and Russian firm INTMA inked i. Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), an engineering and manufacturing company announced that it has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Russian company named INTMA with an aim to set up a gas-based power project in Kazakhstan as well as further boost its presence in the CIS countries. ii. BHEL, currently executing 23 major projects in 16 countries has set its footprint in over 75 countries. iii. INTMA is one of the leading general Engineering Procurement and Construction contractors (EPC) in Russia and Kazakhstan.

6. Asia Cup 2016 to be played in T20 formati. Asia Cup 2016 is set to undergo a radical change and will be a Twenty20 competition instead of the 50-over game.ii. It would be revamped to include more Associate nations and to give some practice prior to the T 20 World Cup .iii. The tournament would then revert to a 50-over tournament in 2018 ahead of the 2019 World Cup in England and be played as a T20 competition again in 2020.

7. Sachin Tendulkar elected as member of Laureus Sports Academyi.  Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar was inducted as one of the five new members into the prestigious Laureus Sports Academy in a glittering annual award ceremony at the Shanghai Grand theatre.ii. Besides Tendulkar, retired Chinese professional basketball player Yao Ming, Kenyan long-distance runner Tegla Loroupe, Chinese gymnast Li Xiaopeng and former Chinese short track speed skater Yang Yang were the other athletes to be inducted into the Laureus academy.iii. Tendulkar, who made his ODI debut against Pakistan way back in 1989, retired from the format after the Asia Cup in 2013 after completing a century of international hundreds.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-16th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLilph7Daily GK Updates - 17th April 20151. Modi Xi among Time's most influential peoplei. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who entered office this year on the promise of reviving the country’s economy, is the winner of this year’s reader poll for TIME Person of the Year. ii. In the final tally, Modi received more than 16% of the almost 5 million votes cast.

iii. Readers from more than 225 countries in total participated, with U.S. votes leading the pack at 37%, followed by India at 17% and Russia at 12%.iv.  Mr. Modi was named by TIME among the 100 most influential people in the world in its annual list on Thursday, with U.S. President Barack Obama penning a flattering profile of him.

2. India to grow at 7.5 % in 2015: Moody’si. A week after it revised its outlook on India to ‘positive’ from ‘stable’, international credit rating major Moody’s pegged India’s growth at 7.5 percent for 2015.ii. Low inflation rate has enabled the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to cut interest rates by 50 basis points in early 2015 which has helped in easing pressure on the private sector.iii. Moody’s Analytics is of the view that “India’s state—owned companies are notoriously inefficient, with significant bureaucracy and endemic corruption.

3. Obama to honour Satya Nadella with 'Champion of Change' awardi. US President Barack Obama plans to honour Microsoft's Indian-origin CEO Satya Nadella with the 'Champions of Change' award for bringing about change within his company to support working families.

ii. Before being named CEO in February 2014, 47-year-old Nadella held leadership roles in both enterprise and consumer businesses across the company.iii.  the White House released a Middle Class Tax report highlighting his budget proposals to help those 44 million middle-class Americans.iv. The 'Champions of Change' programme was created as an opportunity for the White House to feature individuals doing extraordinary things to empower and inspire members of their communities.

4. RIL Reclaims Tag of Most Profitable Indian Firmi. Reliance Industries regained its status as the most profitable Indian company after posting an 8.5 per cent rise in consolidated net profit for the March quarter. ii. The operator of the world's biggest refining complex reported a net profit Rs 6,381 crore for the three months to March, 2015.

iii. RIL had lost its crown as India's most profitable firm to outsourcing giant TCS in the December quarter. 

iv. TCS, which announced its March quarter numbers on Thursday, reported a net profit of around Rs 5,900 crore (including one-time bonus for employees). 

5. UN Peace Envoy Jamal Benomar Resigns

i. United Nation (UN) peace envoy to Yemen, Jamal Benomar has resigned, after losing support from Gulf countries for his mission in the conflict-riven nation.ii. His resignation comes after UN Security Council adopted a resolution calling for the swift resumption of peace talks and an end to violence in Yemen.iii. The adopted resolution adopted calls on the Huthis to withdraw from Sanaa and all other areas they have seized.

6. Pakistan, Russia to hold first-ever joint military exercisesi. Pakistan and Russia have agreed to hold first-ever joint military exercises as part of their enhanced defence cooperation, in a sign of increasing bonhomie between the Cold War-era adversaries.ii. The agreement was reached during a meeting in Moscow between Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu.iii. Asif is on an official visit to Moscow to attend a regional security conference. He held talks with the Russian defence minister, during which the two ministers agreed to increase military cooperation in training and import of arms and equipment.

7. Mohan Kumar appointed as new Indian Ambassador to Francei. Senior diplomat Mohan Kumar, currently India's top envoy to Bahrain, has been appointed the next Ambassador to France to succeed Arun Kumar. 

ii. A 1981-batch IFS officer, Mohan Kumar is expected to take up his assignment shortly.iii. The official announcement for Mohan Kumar's appointment comes six days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to France.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-updates-17th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLnNykzDaily GK Update - 18th April 20151. PM Narendra Modi's visit to Canada generated business worth 1.6 billion dollarsi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Canada has generated business worth more than 1.6 billion Canadian dollars, according to official figures released by the Harper government in Toronto.ii. Sixteen commercial agreements and announcements were made by Canadian and Indian companies and organisations during Prime Minister Modi's visit.

iii. Harper and Modi welcomed the progress made on negotiating a Bilateral Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement and agreed to intensify discussions to finalise all outstanding issues.iv. agreement involving Saskatchewan-based Cameco will see the company supply India with over seven million pounds of uranium over the next five years.

2. Vishal Sikka appointed as University Advisory Professor at ECNU

i. The East China Normal University (ECNU), one of the prestigious universities in China, announced the appointment of Dr. Vishal Sikka, Chief Executive Officer of Infosys, as Advisory Professor.ii. Professor Shijun Tong, CCP Secretary of ECNU, formally conferred the Advisory Professorship to Mr Sikka.iii. East China Normal University, commonly referred to as ECNU, is a comprehensive research university in Shanghai, China. Established in 1951,it is the first national normal university of the People's Republic of China.

3. SEBI bars 129 entities, suspects money launderingi. Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) barred Mishka Finance and Trading and 128 other entities from the securities market.ii.  These entities are estimated to have shown fictitious capital gains to the tune of Rs.254 crore and just 29 of them made unlawful gains to the tune of Rs. 92 crore on an investment of just Rs. 2 crore.iii. SEBI has suspended trading in nearly 30 listed companies for such violations while action has been taken against more than 500 entities, including promoters and others, for tax evasion of over Rs.3,000 crore.

4. Two Indians named 2015 Yale World Fellows in USi. Two Indians are among 16 people named by Yale University as its 2015 World Fellows, the signature global leadership development initiative at the prestigious US institution.ii. Zeena Johar, SughaVazhvu Healthcare Founder and journalist and author Rahul Pandita are the Indians who are named by the university.

iii. Johar founded SughaVazhvu Healthcare (SVHC) and IKP Centre for Technologies in Public Health (ICTPH) to create a primary- care delivery network through rural clinics.iv. New Delhi-based Pandita has reported extensively about conflicts in Iraq and Sri Lanka and is known for his reportage on Maoist insurgency in central and eastern India, and on the turmoil in Kashmir.

5. World Heritage Day 2015 observed globallyi. World Heritage Day was observed across the world on 18 April 2013. The day is observed with an aim to create awareness among the people to conserve and protect the valuable assets and cultural heritage across the world.ii. The day marks the necessity of protecting the historical monuments and sites located in every part of the world by making collective efforts at international level.

iii. The first world Heritage Day was celebrated on 18 April 1982 by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) in Tunisia and was approved in 1983 by UNESCO.iv. The 2015 World Heritage Day also marked 50th anniversary of ICOMOS.

6. World Hemophilia Day 2015 observed globallyi. World Haemophilia Day was observed globally on 17 April 2015 with theme Building a family of support. The day provides an opportunity to talk to your extended family and friends, colleagues, and caregivers to raise awareness and increase support for those living with an inherited bleeding disorder.

ii. Hemophilia day was established in 1989 with the support of the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH).iii. The date of 17 April was chosen to honor Frank Schnabel the founder of WFH, whose birthday falls on the same date.

7. Hinduja brothers win Asian Business Leader of the year awardi. NRI industrialists Hinduja brothers – S P Hinduja and G P Hinduja – have won the Business Leader of the Year 2015 award at the prestigious 5th Asian Awards for their outstanding achievement in the field of business.ii. Receiving the award, Co-Chairman of the Hinduja Group G P Hinduja said this year his group has been winning one or

two award every month and “each award keep us going and put more responsibility on our shoulders to do better.” He received the award from Lord Karan Billimoria.iii. Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan also received an award for outstanding achievement in cinema while Sri Lankan cricketer Kumar Sangakkara, who scored four consecutive centuries in the recent World Cup, won an award for achievement in sports.iv. The Asian Awards honouring Asian Excellence is founded by businessman Paul Sagoo.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-18th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLqTbhw

Daily GK Update - 19th April 2015Maharashtra government sets up task forces on agriculture development and poverty alleviation

i. Maharashtra government on 18 April 2015 set up a task force on agriculture development and poverty alleviation to address the issues.ii. It will be 12-member panel for agriculture development and will be headed by the state’s additional chief secretary (Agriculture).iii. Task force for poverty alleviation - State government also has set up another task force for poverty alleviation. It will be headed by principal secretary (Social Justice Department).

BackgroundDuring the first meeting of National Institution for Transformation of India (NITI) Aayog held in February 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had suggested to all state governments to set up panels for agriculture development and poverty alleviation to address the issues.

Vankadarath Saritha, first woman bus driver of Delhi Transport Corporation

i. Vankadarath Saritha, a 30-year-old driver became first woman bus driver to be inducted in Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC).ii. DTC has currently posted her at Sarojini Nagar depot and will work in day-time duty at a route in the central part of the city, starting from 20 April 2015.iii. Saritha hails from Nalgonda district in Telengana. She had started her career as an autorickshaw driver and previously had worked as a bus driver in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. Prior to joining DTC, she was working as a taxi driver in Delhi.

iv. Delhi government’s this step will allay its concern regarding women’s security in the capital and also encourage women’s contribution to such sectors where they’re currently not participating.

RVNL Sings MoU with Private Sector Dighi Port Limited for Rail Connectivity i. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on 18 April 2015 between Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) and Dighi Port Limited.ii. The MoU will facilitate construction of 34 km of railway link between Roha and Dighi Port in Raigad district of Maharashtra. The project cost is estimated around Rs. 723 crore.iii. It was signed in the presence of Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai.iv. Dighi Port is the first non- major private sector seaport in Maharashtra located on the banks of Rajapuri Creek in Raigad district over 150 km from Mumbai.

Andhra Pradesh Government inks MoU with IISL Company to replace streetlights in 13 municipalities with LED lightsi. Andhra Pradesh Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the IISL Company to replace the existing streetlights in 13 municipalities with LED lights in the state.ii. MoU was signed by Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development P. Narayana and IISL’s representatives in Amaravati, the new capital state.iii. As per the agreement, IISL will maintain replace and maintain LED streetlights in the 13 municipalities for seven years.iv. The all existing streetlights in all the municipal corporations and municipalities will be changed to LED streetlights in a phased manner.v. By installing LED streetlights, state government aims to reduce the power consumption by 50 per cent.

International Paralympic Committee derecognises Paralympic Committee of India

i. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has suspended the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) for indefinite period.ii. IPC’s this move comes after PCI had provided shoddy treatment to athletes during the National Para-Athletics Championships held in Ghaziabad from March 20 to 22, 2015.iii. This is second time PCI has been suspended by PCI. With this suspension, Indian para-athletes will not be able to participate in any IPC-sanctioned competition, including 2016 Paralympic Games at Rio de Janeiro. In this regard, Union Sports Ministry also has issued a show cause notice to PCI.iv. This notice was issued based upon enquiry conducted by Sports Authority of India (SAI). SAI in its enquiry had reported that the sports venue did not have proper facilities to conduct National Championship and also lacked allied facilities required for differently abled athletes.

About Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) 

PCI was founded in 1992 as the Physically Handicapped Sports Federation of India.  It was recognized in November 2011, as National Sports Federation (NSF) for promotion of sports amongst the

physically challenged sportspersons in the country.  It is also responsible for selecting athletes to represent India at the Paralympic Games and other international

athletic meets.  

Ashish Jakhar from Haryana sets National Youth record in hammer throwi. Ashish Jakhar from Haryana on 17 April 2015 set a national youth record in boys’ hammer throw event and won gold medal in the 12th National Youth Athletics Championships held in Bambolim, Goa.ii. In this event, Ashish had hurled 5kg ball-and-chain at record distance of 72.04 metres in a second throw which made a national youth record. In his opening throw he had hurdled at a distance of 71.92 metres.iii. With this, he broke the previous national record of 70.35 metres which was set by Haryana’s Sukhdev Singh in 2009.

SC appoints CBI SP Vivek Priyadarshi as head of team probing IPL scandal i. Supreme Court has appointed Vivek Priyadarshi to head an investigating team to further probe the Indian Premier League (IPL) season 6 spot-fixing and betting scandals.ii. Decision in this regard was taken by a SC bench comprising Justices T S Thakur and F M I Kalifulla. The bench took this decision on the recommendation of a three member panel headed by former Chief Justice of India (CJI) RM Lodha which was appointed in January 2015.

Punjab government approves release of Gharials in Sutlej and Beas rivers to promote eco-tourism i. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on 17 April 2015 approved release of Gharials in Sutlej and Beas rives in the state to promote eco-tourism. Initially, 10 Gharials (last surviving species of the family Gavialidae) will be released in the Harike Wildlife Sanctuary as a part of ‘Gharial Recovery Action Plan’.ii. Decision in this regard was taken after recommendations of the State Board for Wildlife. Union Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) also had given permission for release of Gharials under Section 12 of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

About Gharial

The gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) is also known as the gavial. It is a fish-eating crocodile and belongs to one of the three crocodilian species found in the Indian Sub-Continent. 

It is listed in Schedule I of Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.  It is also listed as Critically Endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of

Endangered Species.  In historic times it was present in Indus River system, including Beas and Sutlej rivers, indicating healthy river

system.

Vijender Gupta appointed Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly 

i. Vijender Gupta was appointed the leader of opposition (LoP) in the Delhi assembly on 16 April 2015 with immediate effect. Delhi Assembly Speaker has recognized him as LOP as per Section 2 of the Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory ( NCT) of Delhi (Salary and Allowances) Act, 2001. ii. Gupta is one of three legislators of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has greatest numerical strength as opposition party in the legislative assembly.iii. Prior to this he was leader of the house of the party in opposition in the house.iv. In February 2015 Assembly election, BJP had won three seats which is less than one-tenth of the total strength of 70 of the Delhi assembly. While, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had won 67 seats.Gupta is a former BJP state president. In 2015 Assembly election he had won from Rohini constituency by defeating AAP candidate C.L. Gupta by around 5,000 votes.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-19th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLuDGcbDaily GK Updates - 20th April 2015Yechury is new CPI(M) chiefi. Rajya Sabha member Sitaram Yechury was elected the fifth general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).ii. To ensure a smooth transition by averting a vote, Mr. Pillai’s candidature was withdrawn paving the way for the unanimous election of the 91-member CC, after which Mr. Karat proposed Mr. Yechury for general secretary which was unanimously accepted. 

iii. Three party veterans — two former Chief Ministers, V.S. Achuthanandan from Kerala and Budhhadeb Bhattacharya from West Bengal, and Nirupam Sen have been dropped from the CC.

ICICI launches NFC-enabled payment service ‘Tap-n-Pay’i. ICICI Bank in collaboration with Tech Mahindra launched a payment service ‘Tap-n-Pay’ based on the near-field communications (NFC) technology, enabling customers make over-the-counter payments without using cash.ii. It can be used for merchant payments by merely tapping a NFC-enabled mobile phone or a tag on the counter.

iii. For making payments, the user will have to bring the NFC tag or the mobile phone near a device at the merchant’s facility and the amount will automatically get debited from the prepaid account.

Navy launches stealth destroyer INS Visakhapatnam

i. The Indian Navy launched ’Visakhapatnam’, the first of stealth destroyers under the P15-B project.ii. The warship is 163 metres in length and has a displacement of 7,300 tonnes.iii. The ship is the first of the four follow follow-up order of the Kolkata class warships.iv. The total cost of the project is little over Rs 29,600 crore.

BHEL commissions 250-MW thermal unit in Jamnagari. State-owned power equipment maker BHEL has commissioned a 250-mw coal-based thermal power plant in Gujarat.ii. The unit has been commissioned at the Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Ltd's (GSECL) Sikka thermal power station (TPS) by Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), on EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) basis, the company said in a regulatory filing today.iii. Sikka TPS is located near Jamnagar, an industrial town in Gujarat.iv. Two units of 120 mw each, supplied and executed earlier by BHEL are already in operation at Sikka. Another 250 mw unit, presently under execution at Sikka TPS, is also in an advanced stage of commissioning.

Kerala launches project to help people overcome substancei. The Kerala government on Sunday launched a major campaign "Subodham" to help people in the state overcome alcohol, drug and other substance abuse.ii. The project was launched by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Art of Living Foundation founder Sri Sri Ravishankar in the presence of religious leaders, representatives of student organisations and NGOs working against drug abuse.iii. "The state government aims to wipe out the menace of substance addiction from our society through 'Subodham'. If total alcohol prohibition could save the society, the state government is ready to forego the revenue from the sale of liquor that is around Rs 7,000 crore per annum," said Chandy.

Former Bengal U-19 captain Ankit Keshri succumbs to on-field injuryi. In another tragic on-field incident after Phillip Hughes' death last November, a promising Bengal batsman Ankit Keshri on passed away owing to an injury sustained during a Cricket Association of Bengal's senior one-day knock-out match.

ii. The 20-year-old, a talented right-hander, had captained the Bengal U-19 team in Cooch Behar Trophy and was in the 30-member India U-19 probables list for the 2014 Colts World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.iii. Keshri was not a part of the playing XI and was the 12th man of the side in the fateful match. He came to replace Railways Ranji all-rounder Arnab Nandi, who had taken a break.

Lewis Hamilton cruises to Bahrain GP win, Raikkonen secondi. Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton won the Bahrain Grand Prix for the second year in a row with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen back on the podium to deny Mercedes another one-two finish under the floodlights.ii. The Briton's flying pole-to-flag victory at the desert track was his third win in four races this season and 36th of his career.iii. He increased his lead over Rosberg in the standings to 27 points. The Briton now has 93 points to the German's 66.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-updates-20th-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDLxndU0

Daily GK Updates - 21st April 20151. Former Odisha Chief Minister J.B Patnaik passes awayi. Former Governor of Assam and three-time Chief Minister of Odisha Janaki Ballav Patnaik passed away in a private hospital at Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh.ii. He was born in Puri district on January 3, 1927. He was Chief Minister of Odisha from 1980 to 1989 and again from 1995 to 1999.

iii. He was also the Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly from 2004 to 2009.iv. Mr. Patnaik, who started his career as a journalist, was a Sanskrit scholar and wrote several books.

2. Egypt President Morsy jailed for 20 years

i. An Egyptian criminal court sentenced ousted President Mohammed Morsy to 20 years in prison over the killing of protesters in 2012.ii. The case stems from violence outside the presidential palace in December 2012. Morsy’s supporters attacked opposition protesters, sparking clashes that killed at least 10 people.iii. 12 Brotherhood leaders and supporters, including Mohammed el-Beltagy and Essam el-Erian, also were sentenced to 20 years in prison.

3. Sulekha.com raises Rs 175 crore from GIC, NVPi. Chennai-based local listing services provider Sulekha.com has raised Rs. 175 crore from the sovereign wealth fund of Singapore-GIC and Norwest Venture Partners.ii. The Chennai-based company has about 50 lakh businesses listed on its platform.

iii. Satya Prabhakar is the Founder and CEO of Sulekha.com.

4. Japan maglev train breaks world speed record again

i. A Japanese magnetic levitation train has broken its own world speed record, hitting 603km/h (374mph) in a test run near Mount Fuji.ii. The train beat the 590km/h speed it had set last week in another test.iii. Japan is known for its shinkansen that run on steel rails, but has been investing in maglev technology which it is hoping to sell overseas.iv. Central Japan Railway (JR Central), which owns the trains, wants to introduce the service between Tokyo and the central city of Nagoya by 2027.

5. China Readies $46 Billion for Pakistan Trade Routei. Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to unveil a $46 billion infrastructure spending plan in Pakistan that is a centerpiece of Beijing’s ambitions to open new trade and transport routes across Asia and challenge the U.S. as the dominant regional power.ii. The plan will be known as the China Pakistan Economic Corridor.iii. China sees a historic opportunity to redraw the geopolitical map by succeeding where the U.S. has largely failed.

iv. A cornerstone of the project will be to develop the Pakistani port of Gwadar, a warm-water port run by the Chinese on the doorstep of the Middle East.

6. E-Samiksha launched to monitor rail projects online i. With an aim of monitoring implementation of various ongoing projects including Rail Budget proposals, railways today launched E-Samiksha, an online monitoring mechanism.ii. Now each and every project implementation can be monitored on real-time basis, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said here after launching the system.iii. Designed by NIC, the software is currently being used by Cabinet Secretariat, PMO and other Ministries for monitoring progress implementation of various programmes and follow-up of meetings.

iv. Apart from budget-related projects, the E-Samiksha can also be used for monitoring the infrastructure target and board meeting follow-up. 

7. Bharatiya Mahila Bank inks MoUs with LIC, New India Assurancei. Bharatiya Mahila Bank Ltd has entered into MoUs with New India Assurance Company Ltd and Life Insurance Corporation of India to provide insurance cover to its accountholders.ii. The insurance covers are being provided under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Suraksha Bima Yojana and the Pradhan Mantri Jeevanjyoti Bima Yojana schemes respectively.iii. The insurance option is voluntary and comes at a premium of Rs. 12 for the PM Jan Suraksha Bima Yojana and Rs. 330 for the PM Jeevanjyoti Bima Yojana.iv. The age eligibility under the former is 18-70 years and under the latter 18-50 years. The enrolment period under the schemes will be from June 1, 2015, to August 31, 2015.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-updates-21st-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDM4Ct1C

Daily GK Updates - 22nd April 20151. Indira, Rajiv names dropped from two Hindi awardsi. The BJP-led NDA government has dropped the names of former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi from two awards for propagating Hindi.

ii. The ‘Indira Gandhi Rajbhasha Puraskar’ and ‘Rajiv Gandhi Rashtriya Gyan-Vigyan Maulik Pustak Lekhan Puraskar’, launched more than two decades ago, have given way for ‘Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar’ and ‘Rajbhasha Gaurav Puraskar’.iii. The two awards have been discontinued by the Union Home Ministry, which instead launched two new schemes for doing outstanding work for promoting the progressive use of official language.

2. H.L.Dattu to head NJACi. The six-member NJAC headed by the Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu will be constituted by the center.ii. National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) is a body responsible for the appointment and transfer of judges to the higher judiciary in India.

iii. The Commission is established by amending the Constitution of India through the ninety-ninth constitution amendment vide the Constitution (Ninety-Ninth Amendment) Act, 2014 passed by the Lok Sabha on 13 August 2014 and by the Rajya Sabha on 14 August 2014.

3. Sesa Sterlite renamed as Vedanta Ltd

i. Metals and mining conglomerate Sesa Sterlite has changed its name to Vedanta Ltd to better align with its international identity — Vedanta Resources.ii. Sesa Sterlite is a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Plc, UK.iii. The company produces and processes oil and gas, zinc, lead, silver, copper, iron ore, aluminium and commercial power and is present in India, South Africa, Namibia, Ireland, Australia, Liberia and Sri Lanka.iv. Cairn India, Hindustan Zinc Ltd and BALCO are the subsidiaries of the company.

4. International Mother Earth Day observed 

i. International Mother Earth Day was observed globally on 22 April 2015 with the theme It’s our turn to lead.ii. The theme highlights the need for change and seeks to inform the communities and leadership that action needs to be taken on climate by promoting a goal of environmental awareness through developing sustainable initiatives and galvanizing every human to pledge Acts of Green.iii. This is the 45th anniversary of the Earth’s Day, the year when the world leaders will pass a binding climate change treaty in Paris in December 2015.iv. The treaty will be adopted to make sure the future of Earth, our planet and the survival of life on it.

5. Tamil Nadu govt cancels plot allotted for Coca-Cola planti. The Tamil Nadu government on Monday cancelled allotment of land for Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd to set up a bottling unit in Perundurai, the State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu Limited (SIPCOT) complex in Erode district, amid growing protests by local residents over possible exploitation of groundwater.

ii.  The Tamil Nadu government took the decision to cancel the lease agreement, blaming the firm for "not complying with the terms".iii. It was on June 21, 2013, SIPCOT allotted the land first and after two amendments in the agreement, a lease deed was executed and registered finally by HCCBPL on January 23, 2014.

6. Kudermukh and Rajaji National Parks Declared as Tiger Reserves: Centrei. The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has accorded final approval to two national parks i.e. Kudermukh National Park in Karnataka and Rajaji National Park in Uttarkhand for being declared as tiger reserves.

ii. In accordance to this approval, Rajaji National Park is declared as India's 48th Tiger Reserve. With this notification, Uttarakhand got its second tiger reserve after the Corbett Tiger Reserve.iii. The notification was announced by Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat while releasing logo of the Rajaji Tiger Reserve.iv. The Rajaji National Park that came into existence in 1983 is spread across three districts of Uttarakhand namely Haridwar, Dehradun and Pauri Garhwal in an area over 820 square km.

7. Pakistan confers Nishan-e-Pakistan on Chinese president Xi Jinpingi. Pakistan conferred the Nishan-e-Pakistan, its top civilian award, on Chinese President Xi Jinping, lauding his "outstanding contribution in the promotion of the relationship between the two countries".ii. President Mamnoon Hussain conferred the award on 61-year-old Xi during a ceremony held at the President's House.iii. The ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, federal ministers, members of the National Assembly and Senate, the three service chief and the Chinese delegation.iv. The award was given for Xi's contribution in promoting China's relationship with Pakistan. Xi, also the General-Secretary of the ruling Communist party, was given a warm welcome on his arrival in the President's House in a traditional horse carriage.

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Daily GK Update - 23rd April 20151. Railway launches mobile app for paperless unreserved tickets i. Moving ahead in line with digital India, railways launched mobile application for paperless unreserved tickets. ii. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu introduced from here the mobile app for paperless unreserved ticketing for commuters in Egmore and Tambram suburban sections in Chennai under Southern Railway zone. 

iii. Developed by Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) "utsonmobile" - the paperless unreserved ticketing feature in mobile application aims to eliminate the need.iv. The application provides necessary on-screen alerts to guide the passenger during the booking process. 

2. Shah Rukh Khan honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Film Foundation Awardi. Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Film Foundation Award 2015 for his performance in the movie Happy New Year. The award ceremony was held in Mumbai.ii. Actor Rajkummar Rao won the prestigious award for his performance in the critically acclaimed film Citylights, which was released in 2014.

ii. Actress Huma Qureshi bagged an award for her memorable performance in the movie Dedh Ishiqya.iii. Bollywood actors Shreyas Talpade, Tiger Shroff, actress Jaya Prada, singer Udit Narayan and Pankaj Udhas were also felicitated with the award.

3. JBM Group enters solar power sector

i. Auto component-maker JBM Group announced its entry into the solar energy sector with plans to invest Rs 1,600 crore in the next three years. ii. The group plans to invest Rs 1,600 crore over three years and have a combined capacity of 300 MW under the newly formed entity - JBM Solar (P) Ltd, the company said in a statement. iii. JBM Solar plans to be an independent power producer (IPP) with focus on both, ground mounted and solar rooftop projects.

4. Union Cabinet approves lowering of age of Juveniles from 18 to 16 years for heinous crimesi. Union Cabinet has approved lowering of age of juveniles from eighteen to sixteen years for heinous crimes. Decision in this regard was taken by Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. ii. The cabinet also approved to introduce Amendment to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2014. This amendment will propose and add special provisions to tackle heinous offences like murder and rape committed by juveniles in the age group of 16-18 years. iii.  The proposed bill will amend the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000. The parent Act clearly defines and classifies offences as serious, petty and heinous and defines differentiated processes for each classified category.

iv. While the amendments in the bill adds provisions that in case a heinous crime committed by a person between 16 and 18 years, will be examined by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) to assess if the crime was committed as a child or as an adult.

5. World Bank established Pollution Management and Environmental Health program

i. World Bank established Pollution Management and Environmental Health (PHEM) program. The program was officially launched on Global Citizen 2015 Earth Day in Washington, D.C.ii. The 45 million US Dollar PMEH program will initially run from 2015 to 2020 and focus primarily on air quality management in countries facing rapid urbanization and strong needs for pollution abatement measures, but also tackle water and land pollution.iii. In particular, the program will focus on air quality management in five major urban areas in India, China, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa.

6. Djokovic wins Monte Carlo Mastersi. The top-ranked Serb won the first big clay-court tournament of the season with a 7—5, 4—6, 6—3 win over Tomas Berdych in the final of the Monte Carlo Masters.ii. Djokovic broke again for a 4—0 lead, but the eight-time Grand Slam champion failed to hold his serve in the next game.iii. Djokovic, became the first player in tennis history to win the first three Masters tournament of the year after completing the Indian Wells-Miami sweep this spring.

Read more: http://www.bankersadda.com/2015/04/daily-gk-update-23rd-april-2015.html#ixzz3YDMCbrM7