Daily GK Updates – 18th March 2015
1. Microsoft launches cloud programme for Indian enterprises
i. Microsoft India has launched Cloud Accelerator Programme that will act as a catalyst to accelerate the adoption of 
cloud services.
ii. This will help organisations to plan local cloud roadmap and to increase compliance with local regulations.
iii. Announcing this at the two-day Microsoft Azure Conference here on Wednesday, Microsoft India chairman Bhaskar Pramanik said the programme is specially designed to help Indian customers start and their cloud roadmap.
iv. The company also launched cloud decision framework for governments and state agencies.
2. Benjamin Netanyahu hopes to form new Israeli government ‘in 2-3 weeks’
i. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud Party scored a resounding victory in the country’s
election, a stunning turnaround after a tight race that had put his lengthy rule in jeopardy.
ii. With nearly all the votes counted, Likud appeared to have earned 30 out of parliament’s 120 seats and was in a 
position to be able to build a coalition government with its right-wing and religious allies with relative ease.
iii. The election was widely seen as a referendum on Netanyahu, who has governed the country for the past six years.
iv. Recent opinion polls indicated he was in trouble, giving chief rival Isaac Herzog of the opposition Zionist Union a slight lead. Exit polls showed the two sides deadlocked but once the actual results came pouring in early Wednesday, Likud soared forward. Zionist Union wound up with just 24 seats.
3. RBI likely to lose power to regulate government bonds
i. India plans to strip its central bank of authority to regulate government bonds but leave it in charge of other money market instruments, setting the stage for a confrontation with Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram 
Rajan.
ii. The move by Arun Jaitley’s finance ministry is part of an overhaul intended to expand bond markets by attracting retail investors and improve the transmission of monetary policy, three government sources told Reuters.
iii. What would be the biggest regulatory shakeup in a generation is expected to overshadow policy meetings this Sunday in New Delhi, which will be attended by Jaitley, Rajan and India’s stock market regulator, whose powers stand to be enhanced.
4. Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman Takes Charge as New Chief of Pakistan Air Force
i. Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman took command of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) in Islamabad today.
ii. The PAF said in a statement that outgoing air chief Tahir Rafique Butt handed over the “command sword” to Mr Aman and also decorated him with the rank of Air Chief Marshal.
iii. Aman was designated as new Chief of the Air Staff by President Mamnoon Hussain yesterday. Speaking on the occasion, the outgoing air chief Mr Butt said that the last three years were full of operational challenges.
iv. He said local built JF-17 Block-II aircraft had already been inducted to fully realise its potential as a modern platform. He also added that there was growing harmony in all the three services.
5. Govt foregoes Rs 28,000 cr revenue to boost exports from SEZs
i. The government has foregone Rs. 27,956 crore revenues during the last three financial years to boost exports from special economic zones (SEZs), Parliament was informed today.
ii. The tax foregone – customs duty and central excise duty including rebate – under the SEZ scheme was Rs.10,440 crore in 2013-14.
iii. It was Rs. 9,363 crore in 2012-13 and Rs. 8,153 crore in 2011-12, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.
iv. As per the SEZ Act and the rules, SEZ units and developers are eligible for customs, central excise and service tax exemption on procurement of raw materials for manufacture of finished goods meant for exports as also duty free procurement of capital goods.
v. The minister also informed that the government has provided incentives under – Vishesh Krishi and Gram Udyog Yojna, Focus Product Scheme, Focus Market Scheme and Served from India Scheme – to boost overall exports.
6. Citibank appoints Niraj Parekh as cluster finance officer for Indian subcontinen
i. American bank Citi today said it has appointed Niraj Parekh as the head of finance for its operations in India, Sri Lankaand Bangladesh. Parekh, the India Subcontinent Cluster Financial Officer, replaces Abhijit Sen, who has retired from service, Citi said in a statement.
ii. He will be reporting to its country head for India, Pramit Jhaveri, and also Mark Hart, the Regional Chief Financial Officer for Asia-Pacific. Parekh will be overseeing business planning and strategy, financial planning and policies, balance sheet management, financial controls and reporting and tax matters.
iii. After joining the bank as a management associate in the US in 2000, Parekh has held several roles in Singapore and New York, including as head of corporate mergers and acquisitions in Asia, and was working as the head of financial planning and analysis for India.
7. Insurance Bill Passed in Rajya Sabha With Support From Congress, Other Opposition Parties
i. Parliament tonight approved the NDA government’s first major economic reform measure as the long-pending bill providing for raising foreign investment cap in insurance was passed by Rajya Sabhaafter main Opposition Congress and some other parties came on board.
ii. The controversial Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015, which replaced an ordinance promulgated in December last year, was passed by voice vote after walkout by Trinamool Congress and DMK.
iii. The smooth sailing of the bill in the Upper House, where the ruling NDA is in a minority, was possible with the help of Opposition parties like Congress, AIADMK, the Nationalist Congress Party and Biju Janata Dal besides allies Shiv Sena and Akali Dal.
iv. The bill was introduced this evening after a heated debate and adjournments over technicalities as a similar legislation was pending in the House.
8. WEF names Smriti Irani as Young Global Leader from India
i. Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani was today named Young Global Leader from India by the World Economic Forum (WEF), which said she “rose from sweeping floors in a fast food restaurant to become a top politician in India”.
ii. Others who have been named Young Global Leader (YGL) in the past include British Prime Minister David Cameron, Alibaba Group chief Jack Ma, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, Google chief Larry Page, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
iii. In the list of 187 YGLs for 2015 from across the world, Irani is accompanied by 10 other Indians, including Gaurav Gogoi, an MP and son of Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.
iv. very year, the WEF releases a list of outstanding young leaders, aged below 40 years, from around the world “for their professional accomplishments, commitment to society and potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world”.
9. BJP MLA Kavinder Gupta elected as Speaker of 12th Legislative Assembly of J&K
i. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Kavinder Gupta on 18 March 2015 was elected as the speaker of 12th Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir.
ii. Gupta is a BJP MLA from Gandhinagar constituency of Jammu region and he replaces the Pro-tem Speaker Muhammad Shafi of the National Conference party.
iii. The motion for election of speaker of the house was moved by State Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Basharat Bukari and seconded by Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Kumar Singh of BJP.
iv. Gupta is the first time MLA and had defeated senior Congress leader Raman Bhalla in the state polls in December 2014. Earlier he has served as Mayor of Jammu city.
10. Union Government appointed VK Mathur, Girija Shankar as Chairmen of Allahabad, Chennai bench of DRAT
i. Union Ministry of Finance on 17 March 2015 appointed Chairmen for the Allahabad and Chennai bench of Debts Recovery Appellate Tribunal (DRAT).
ii. VK Mathur was appointed as the Chairman of Allahabad bench of DRAT while Girija Shankar was appointed as Chairman of Chennai bench of DRAT.
iii. The appointment was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC). The appointment was done for a period of five years or till they attain the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
iv. The Government of India in 2000 constituted 33 Debts Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) and 5 Debts Recovery Appellate Tribunals (DARTs) across the country to help financial institutions recover their bad debts quickly and efficiently. The five DRATs are located at Allahabad, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.
11. Cricket World Cup 2015: South Africa ease into semi-finals
i. South Africa cruised into the World Cup semi-finals with a one-sided thrashing of a sorry Sri Lanka in Sydney.
ii. Off-spinner JP Duminy took a hat-trick and leg-spinner Imran Tahir 4-26 as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 133.
iii. The Proteas then eased to their target for the loss of only one wicket in 18 overs, with Quinton de Kock making an unbeaten 78.
iv. They go on to a last-four meeting with New Zealand or West Indies in Auckland on Tuesday.
v. South Africa’s first knockout victory in 23 years of playing World Cup cricket takes them to a first semi-final since a famous defeat by Australia in 1999.
12. Sangakkara, Jayawardene bid adieu to ODI cricket
i. Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara might not have got a fairytale ending to their final ODI match of their glorious careers but the veterans smiled through the disappointment as they fondly recounted their respective journeys.
ii. The duo had already called time on their respective ODI careers before the 50-over showpiece event and it all ended on a bitterly disappointing note as Sri Lanka bowed out with a nine-wicket loss to South Africa in the quarterfinal in Sydney.
iii. Sangakkara, who came into this game with record four consecutive ODI hundreds, scored a valiant 45 but saw an abject surrender from all the other Lankan batsmen as the innings folded for 133 in 37.2 overs.
iv. The stylish left-hander stitched a 65-run third wicket stand with Lahiru Thirimanne to pose a fightback after the openers departed but South African spinners Imran Tahir and Jean-Paul Duminy were too hot to handle after sharing seven wickets between them.
v. The 37-year-old Sangakkara, who has scored 14,234 runs in 404 ODIs, was the ninth wicket to fall in the Sri Lankan innings after the batsman stood witness to no-show by the formidable Lankan batting order.
13. Lewis Hamilton of Britain won Australian Grand Prix of Formula One
i. Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain on 15 March 2015 won the 2015 Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia. Only 11 cars were able to take the chequered flag.
ii. This was the first Australian Grand Prix win for Lewis Hamilton since 2008 and overall it was his 34th Grand Prix.
iii. Hamilton, who led the race from start to finish, was followed by teammate Nico Rosberg (second place), Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari), Felipe Massa (Williams).
Results of the Australian Grand Prix
Ranking
Player
Team
1
Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes
2
Nico Rosberg
Mercedes
3
Sebastian Vettel
Ferrari
4
Felipe Massa
Williams
5
Felipe Nasr
Sauber
6
Daniel Ricciardo
Red Bull
7
Nico Hulkenberg
Force India
8
Marcus Ericsson
Sauber
9
Carlos Sainz
Toro Rosso
10
Sergio Perez
Force India
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