Daily GK Updates – 27th April 2015
1. BCCI nominates Rohit Sharma for Arjuna award
i. Indian batsman Rohit Sharma on Monday expressed delight about the BCCI’s decision to recommend his name for 
the government’s prestigious Arjuna Award and said that he felt “honoured“.
ii. BCCI took the decision to put forth Roihit’s name to the government for the Arjuna Award at its working committee meeting in Kolkata on Sunday.
iii. The 27-year-old Mumbaikar scored a brilliant 264 against Sri Lanka last season — the highest score by anyone in the world in ODI cricket — at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
iv. He is the only batsman to have scored two ODI double hundreds — his first one coming against Australia in 2013.
2. YES Bank opens first overseas office in Abu Dhabi
i. YES Bank, India’s fifth largest private sector bank, on Monday announced its international foray by opening its first overseas representative office in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
ii. The bank has opened its door to NRI population residing in the UAE with this new representative office. “It will provide services for unique investment needs of the Indian diaspora in the Gulf city through its flagship Global Indian Banking programme,” YES Bank said in a statement.
iii. The office will facilitate services such as NRE/NRO savings account and fixed deposits, foreign currency fixed deposit (FCNR), portfolio investment scheme (PIS) to transact in the Indian secondary market and YES First wealth management programme.
iv. The bank is keen to expand in some of the key international financial markets to serve the large sections of NRI population, the bank statement added.
3. Bharatiya Mahila Bank won the Asian Banker Achievement Award 2015
i. Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB) Ltd won the Asian Banker Achievement Award 2015.
ii. It was awarded for Technology Implementation in the category of Best Outsourcing Project (New Bank).
iii. The award was received by Usha Ananthasubramanian, the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of BMB at a function held in Hong Kong during the Asian Banker Summit 2015.
Awards in other category and winners:
• The Best ATM and Kiosks Project: Cathay United Bank & NCR System, Taiwan
• The Best Branch Automation Project: Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong), Avaya Hong Kong and GRG Banking Solutions
• The Best Cloud Based Project: Philippine Business Bank and IBM
• The Best Core Banking Implementation Project for Mid-Sized Bank: ING Vysya and FIS
• The Best Core Banking Implementation Project for Emerging Bank: Kanbawza (KBZ) Bank and Oracle Financial Services Software Limited
• The Best Corporate Payment Project: Axis Bank and Arteria Technologies
• The Best CRM Project: IndusInd Bank and Talisma Corporationt
• The Best Data & Analytics Project: KB Kookmin Bank and IBM Korea
• The Best Financial Supply Chain Project: China Merchants Bank
• The Best HR System Project: Axis Bank, Cognizant Technology Services, Mobitrail and Tejora Technologies
• The Best Lending Platform Implementation Project: Cathay United Bank and IBM Taiwan
• The Best Mobile Banking Project: China Merchants Bank
• The Best Multi-Channel Project: Bank of China (Hong Kong) and Avaya Hong Kong
• The Best Outsourcing Project (Existing Bank): Bank of Queensland and Hewlett-Packard
• The Best outsourcing project (New Bank): Bharatiya Mahila Bank and FIS
• The Best Retail Payment Project: Hong Leong Bank and Silverlake Mobility EcoSystem
• The Best Smart Branch Project: ANZ and GTSO New Zealand
• The Best Social Media Engagement Project: DBS and NCS
• The Best Treasury Management System Project: Bank of Communications, Misys and KMerit Technology (Suzhou)
• The Outstanding Technology Implementation Project: DBS and Infosys
• The Technology Leadership Achievement Award for the Year: Amit Sethi, Chief Information Officer, Axis Bank
• The Asian Banker Vendor Satisfaction Survey Gold Award: Infosys
4. Government to amend Child Labour Prohibition Act;new norms may allow below 14 to work in select setups
i. In a controversial labour reform, the government plans to push through an amendment to the Child Labour Prohibition Act in the current session of Parliament, which will allow children below the age of 14 to work in select family enterprises if it doesn’t hamper their education.
ii. The bill will retain the proposal of a complete ban on child labour in any organisation, big or small, as proposed by the previous government, a senior labour ministry official told ET.
iii. A draft provision in the Child Labour Prohibition Act says the prohibition will not apply if children are helping the family in fields, forests and home-based work after school hours or during vacations, or while attending technical institutions.
iv. Children between 14 and 18 years will not be allowed to work in hazardous industries. According to the labour ministry official, this provision is in conformity with the ILO convention and is therefore likely to sail through even in the Rajya Sabha where the government is in minority.
5. Sangeeta Bhatia, Indian-origin scientist at MIT, won the 2015 Heinz Award
i. Sangeeta Bhatia, an Indian-origin scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), won the prestigious 2015 Heinz Award in the Technology, the Economy, and Employment category. This was the 20th Heinz Award which is given annually since 1993.
ii. Bhatia who developed artificial human microlivers for drug testing was awarded for her work in tissue engineering and disease detection.
iii. Micro liver is a miniature model organ that makes it possible to test drug reactions efficiently and predictively, and could eventually lead to an artificial human liver.
iv. Her team pioneered the fabrication of artificial human microlivers, which are being used by many biopharmaceutical companies to test the toxicity of drug candidates.
6. Wladimir Klitschko defeated Bryant Jennings to defend heavyweight title of Boxing
i. Wladimir Klitschko of Ukraine successfully defended his world heavyweight boxing title for the 18th time in a row. At Madison Square Garden in New York, Klitschko defeated his American challenger Bryant Jennings with a lopsided 12-round unanimous point decision.
ii. Two judges saw it 116-111 for Klitschko, while the third made it 118-109 for the champion. The 39-year-old Klitschko has not lost since he was stopped in the fifth round by Lamon Brewster in a WBO title fight on 10 April 2004 in Las Vegas.
iii. This was first fight for Klitschko since knocking out previously unbeaten Kubrat Pulev in November 2014. It was also his first bout outside Europe since he took the WBO title from Sultan Ibragimov on 23 February 2008 at Madison Square Garden.
7. Cap Gemini to Buy Igate for $4 Billion to Take On Accenture
i. Cap Gemini SA agreed to acquire Igate Corp. for about $4 billion, giving Europe’s largest provider of computer services access to more financial customers as it expands in the growing U.S. market for information technology consulting.
ii. Igate investors will receive $48 in cash per share, or 4.7 percent more than the stock’s April 24 close in New York, the companies said Monday.
iii. Cap Gemini, which is financing the purchase with a mixture of cash, debt and new stock, will add contracts with clients including Royal Bank of Canada and General Electric Co. to boost its annual revenue to 12.5 billion euros ($13.5 billion).
iv. Cap Gemini rose 7.9 percent to 84.54 euros in Paris, the stock’s highest closing price in 13 years. Igate gained 3.3 percent to close at $47.36 in New York, reaching a 15-year high.
v. The deal marks a new chapter in the history of Cap Gemini, a competitor to Accenture Plc and International Business Machines Corp., and one of the five biggest computer-services providers in the late 1980s. It is the largest acquisition for the French firm since it bought Ernst & Young’s consulting business 15 years ago for about $10.5 billion.
8. MAT tax claims under DTAA to be settled in 30 days
i. Central Board of Direct Taxes will settle all minimum alternate tax (MAT) matters of FIIs coming under the ambit of Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements within a month of filing of claims.
ii. The move is aimed at quickly resolving the controversial tax issue facing foreign portfolio investors.
iii. The Income Tax Department has sent notices in 68 cases to FIIs for payment of dues totalling Rs 602.83 crore towards Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT).
iv. Central Board of Direct Taxes said several FIIs, which have received income from transactions in securities, claim such income as exempt from tax under the DTAAs signed between India and their countries of residence.
9. Pashupatinath temple unharmed in Nepal quake
i. The famous 5th century Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu survived the massive 7.9 magnitude earthquake that flattened several World Heritages like iconic Dharhara tower and Darbar Square in Nepal.
ii. The Pashupatinath Temple is safe, we have checked the shrine many times and it has developed no cracks,” a devotee at the temple said.
iii. The temple, one of the seven monument groups in UNESCO’s designation of Kathmandu Valley as a cultural heritage site, is the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu datingback to 400 AD.
iv. The sacred Hindu temple is dedicated to Pashupatinath (Lord Shiva) and is located on the banks of the Bagmati River.
v. It suffered minor cracks on its boundary wall when the quake jolted Nepal, killing over 3,600 people.
10. CJI refuses participation to choose NJAC
i. Chief Justice of India H L Dattu has refused to participate in a three-member panel for selecting two eminent persons in the six-member National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC).
ii. The five-judge constitution bench, headed by Justice J S Khehar, which is hearing the issue of constitutional validity of the new law on appointment of judges to higher judiciary, was told by Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi that Dattu has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he would not participate in the meeting of the panel till the matter is decided by the apex court.
iii. The three-member panel comprises Chief Justice of India, Prime Minister and the Leader of Opposition, who are authorised to select and appoint two eminent persons in the six-member NJAC for appointment of judges to higher judiciary.
11. DK Police launch helplines for women, children and elderly
i. The Dakshina Kannada District Police on Monday launched the services of helplines for women, children and senior citizens (1091, 1090 and 1098) in its jurisdiction.
ii. Speaking to presspersons after the launch, Superintendent of Police S.D. Sharanappa said 1098 is linked to missing child bureau too.
iii. The help lines have been launched in coordination with several government departments and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), he said.
iv. While volunteers of NGOs would attend to calls between 10 am and 5.30 pm every day, department personnel would attend to calls during the rest of the period.
v. The help lines thus would be functional round-the-clock throughout the year.
12. Muthoot Group ties up with Wiki Tech for US-India payment corridor
i. The Muthoot Group has announced a partnership with Wiki Technologies Inc of the US to open a US-India payment corridor by leveraging the power of the WikiPay platform.
Under the partnership, the group will initially market the WikiPay platform to its 22,000 employees and subsequently to its 6 million customers in India.
ii. Through the platform, people residing in the US can use the WikiPay online platform to send payments to friends and family to any bank account in India and more than 8,000 cash pick-up locations across the country.
iii. The association with WikiTechnologies will expand Muthoot Group’s reach in the US, while allowing Wiki Technologies to leverage the international money transfer licence of the group’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Royal Exchange USA Inc, for transactions to India, K.R. Bijimon, CGM, The Muthoot Group, said.
iv. According to Ted DeFeudis, Co-founder and President, Wiki Technologies, this agreement is an important step in the evolution of Wiki Technologies into a company focused on serving the needs of enterprise level organisations.
13. DIPP notifies 49 per cent FDI in pension sector
i. The government has raised the limit of foreign direct investment in pension sector to 49 per cent in line with the FDI cap in the insurance sector.
ii. In pursuance of the enactment of Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority Act, iv. 2013, government has decided to permit FDI in the pension sector.
iii. The FDI cap in the sector has been hiked to 49 per cent and that includes foreign investment in the forms of FPI, FII, QFI, FVCI, NRI and DR.
iv. All investments in the pension sector, however, will have to abide by the pension sector regulator PFRDA.
14. Sudan’s al-Bashir re-elected with 94 % of vote
i. Sudan’s Election Commission says President Omar al-Bashir has won re-election with 94 per cent of the vote, extending his 25-year rule despite war crimes charges and multiple insurgencies.
ii. The Election Commission puts turnout at 46.4 per cent and denies widespread reports of low participation.
iii. Al-Bashir, who took power in a bloodless Islamist coup in 1989, is the only sitting head of state facing genocide charges at the International Criminal Court. The charges stem from the conflict in Darfur.
15. Supreme Court strikes down Bhavani Singh’s appointment
i. The Supreme Court on Monday struck down the appointment of Special Public Prosecutor Bhavani Singh and declared that the interference of the Tamil Nadu government in his appointment was a manifestation of the government’s “anxiety” about the future.
ii. The court held that Karnataka is the sole prosecuting agency in the pending appeals filed by the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, and three others against their conviction in the Rs. 66 crore disproportionate assets case.
iii. A three-judge Bench, led by Justice Dipak Misra, directed the Karnataka government to file its written submissions by April 28 in the Karnataka High Court where the appeals are pending.
iv. The Bench further directed the High Court judge to take no heed of the arguments made by Mr. Singh.
16. Waive farm loans, open farmers’ bank: Opposition
i. Government should waive farm loans and open exclusive banks for farmers on lines of the women’s bank, to help tide over the agrarian crisis facing the country, Opposition parties demanded in Rajya Sabha on Friday.
ii. A JD(U) member also wanted the two major parties — BJP and Congress, to join hands to implement the recommendations of the M S Swaminathan Committee to provide much-needed succour to farmers, if they can do so on allowing FDI in insurance and corporate globalisation.
iii. Crop insurance, he said, should be a responsibility of the Centre and state governments and Food Corporation of India (FCI) should procure all foodgrain, irrespective of quality, brought by farmers.
iv. K C Tyagi (JD-U) said Gajender’s suicide was “a sacrifice for the cause of farmers of the entire nation” and held various ministries responsible for their current plight.
17. South Korea’s prime minister steps down over bribery scandal
i. South Korea’s president has accepted the resignation of her prime minister on account of a bribery scandal.
ii. Prime Minster Lee Wan Koo offered to quit last week, two months after taking the country’s second highest post.
iii. He was at the heart of a corruption scandal involving a dead businessman and other high-profile figures
iv. Businessman Sung Wan-jong said before committing suicide this month that he gave 30 million won ($27,390) to Lee in 2013. Lee has denied the allegation.
v. President Park Geun-hye’s office said on Monday she accepted Lee’s resignation but gave no further details.
18. South Asia has world’s most skewed gender wage gap: UN report
i. South Asia has the world’s most skewed gender wage gap and is among the few regions where the gender labour force participation gap is both large and growing, a new report from UN Women has found.
ii. Globally, only half of women participate in the labour force, compared to three quarters of men; in India only a third of women are in the labour force. “In developing regions, up to 95 per cent of women’s employment is informal, in jobs that are unprotected by labour laws and lack social protection,” the report says.
iii. Simultaneously, women shoulder the bulk of the burden of unpaid care work; in India, for instance, women do nearly six hours of unpaid care and housework every day as compared to half an hour for men, UN Women found.
iv. While on average globally, women are paid 24 percent less than men, the gaps for women with children are even wider.
v. In South Asia, the gender pay gap is 35 per cent for women with children compared to 14 per cent for those without.
19. Magnus Carlsen wins again Gashimov Memorial
i. World Champion Norwegian Magnus Carlsen won the 2nd Shamkir Chess International Tournament in Azerbaijan’s region of Shamkir, held in commemoration of Azerbaijan’s late grand-master Vugar Gashimov on April 16-26.
ii. It’s the second triumph of the reigning World Champion in Shamkir. The Norwegian GM also took first place at the first Shamkir Chess 2014, winning the €100,000 money prize.
The 25-year-old champion took victory with 7/9, a point clear of Viswanathan Anand.
iii. Carlsen defeated Azerbaijani Rauf Mammadov in the final round. He secured a significant advantage out of the opening but admitted he didn’t make the best out of his chances.
iv. He noted that the position didn’t offer the White much opportunity, that is until Mammadov blundered with 34…Qe5, allowing Carlsen a win with 35.Qf7 (Rd7 was also powerful).
20. Shamini qualifies for main draw at World TT Championships
i. India enjoyed a profitable opening day as Shamini Kumaresan qualified for the main draw of the women’s singles event at the World Table Tennis Championships here on Monday.
ii. Shamini qualified by topping her group which included Gillian Edwards of Scotland and Nino Neridee of Venezuela.
iii. She defeated Gillian Edwards 11—7, 9—11, 11—3, 13—11, 8—11, 11—8. She then scored a 11—7, 11—3, 8—11, 11—3, 7—11, 11—8 win over Nino Neridee.
iv. The other two women players Mouma Das and Manika Batra are already in the main draw based on the world ranking.
21. World Chess: India loses to Georgia
i. India went down 1.5-2.5 to Georgia in the seventh round of the women’s world team chess championship at Chengdu, China, on Sunday.
ii. India has six points and is placed sixth.
iii. Georgia is top of the table with 13 points, followed by Russia (11), China (nine) and Ukraine (eight),with two rounds remaining.
iv. Padmini Rout’s loss to Meri Arabidze, rated 72 points below, proved costly for India. Koneru Humpy, Dronavalli Harika and Soumya Swaminathan drew their games with Bela Khotenashvili, Lela Javakhishvili and Melia Salome.
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