Daily GK Updates – 9th – 10th May 2015
1. ICICI Bank Chairman KV Kamath Appointed as President of BRICS Bank
i. Eminent banker K V Kamath was today appointed as head of the USD 50 billion New Development Bank being set up by the five emerging economies of BRICS grouping. 
ii. Kamath will have a five year term of the bank, which is likely to be operationalised within one year, Finance Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi said.
iii. Kamath is the Chairman of the India’s largest private sector bank ICICI.
iv. Leaders of the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) had last year reached an agreement to establish the New Development Bank, with its headquarters in Shanghai. As per the agreement, India got the right to nominate the first president.
v. Kamath has been named the first president of the NDB, Mehrishi said.
vi. The BRICS nations account for nearly USD 16 trillion in GDP and 40 per cent of the world’s population.
vii. The bank will start with an initial paid-in-capital of USD 50 billion with each BRICS country contributing USD 10 billion.
2. President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated Namaste Russia festival in Moscow
i. The President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 10 May 2015 inaugurated Namaste Russia festival in Moscow, Russia.
ii. It is intended to deepen engagement of Russians with contemporary and classical Indian culture by showcasing Indian Culture in Russia.
iii. As part of the festival, the Russian Ministry of Culture will support the initiatives of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) in sending Indian teachers of music and dance to regional centres in Russia from May 2015 to October 2015.
iv. Special emphasis will be on encouraging the participation of youth of both the countries in cultural exchanges.
v. The logo for the festival was designed by a young Russian from the Russian town of Krasnoyarsk, who succeeded in an open competition participated by both Indians and Russians.
3. Veteran actor Shashi Kapoor has been conferred with prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke Award 2014
i. Veteran actor and film producer Shashi Kapoor has been conferred with prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke Award 2014.
ii. The award was bestowed upon him by Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley at a special function held in Prithvi Theatre in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
iii. He is the 46th film personality to receive this honour and third member of his illustrious family after father Prithviraj Kapoor (1972- Posthumously) and elder brother Raj Kapoor (1987).
About Shashi Kapoor
Born as Balbir Raj Prithviraj Kapoor on March 18, 1938 in Kolkata, West Bengal.
Started acting in films as a child in late 1940s. Since then he has appeared in 160 movies altogether, 12 being in English and the rest in Hindi.
His Bollywood debut as a lead actor was in the film Dharmputra (1961).
His best known performances as child artist were in Aag (1948), Awaara (1951) and Sangram (1950).
He is also best-known for his performances in Hindi films like ‘Jab Jab Phool Khile’, ‘Deewar’ and ‘Kabhi Kabhie’.
American and British films: The Householder (1963), Shakespeare Wallah (1965), Bombay Talkie (1970), Heat and Dust (1982), The Deceivers (1988), Side Streets (1998) etc.
Apart from acting in movies, he also had worked as a film director, assistant director and film producer.
Awards and Honours: For his contribution to cinema, he has been conferred many awards including
National Film Award for Best actor for the film New Delhi Times (1986),
National Film Award Special Jury Award / Special Mention (Feature Film) for Muhafiz (1993)
National Film Award Best Feature Film in Hindi (as Producer) for Junoon (1979).
Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award (2010).
Padma Bhushan (2011).
4. Jayaram Jayalalitha cleared of corruption charges
i. An appeals court in southern India has acquitted powerful regional politician Jayaram Jayalalitha of corruption charges, clearing the way for her to return to public office.
ii. Supporters from Jayalalitha’s party cheered, set off fire crackers and danced in the streets of the Tamil Nadu state capital of Chennai, her hometown, after the Karnataka High Court in Bangalore delivered its verdict Monday.
iii. The 67-year-old Jayalalitha, a film star in her youth, said in a statement that the verdict showed she’d done nothing wrong, and that the case was “foisted (on me) by political enemies.”
iv. In throwing out the prosecution’s case, Justice C.R. Kumaraswamy said the prosecution had failed to prove Jayalalitha was guilty.
5. BrahMos Missile Test-Fired From Mobile Launcher, Hits Targets With Accuracy
i. India successfully test-fired an advanced version of the BrahMos land-attack cruise missile from the Car Nicobar Islands, the second such exercise since Friday.
ii. “The land-to-land configuration of BrahMos Block-III version was test launched from a Mobile Autonomous Launcher (MAL) for its full-range of290-km at 1330 hours,” defence sources said. Saturday’s test, the 48th test firing of the missile, met all flight parameters, including high-level manoeuvres.
iii. The supersonic cruise missile hit the designated land-based target with the desired accuracy. A similar test on Friday, too, was concluded sucessfully.
iv. The BrahMos missile has been jointly developed by India and Russia.The multi-mission missile, having a range of 290-km and a Mach 2.8 speed, is capable of being launched from land, sea, sub-sea and air against sea and land targets.
v. The air version of the BrahMos is being readied for flight trials soon on Indian Air Force’s Su-30 MKI strike fighter.
6. HDFC in world’s top 10 list of consumer finance firms
i. Mortgage lender HDFC has emerged the only Indian company among the world’s 10 biggest consumer financial services firms, after giants like American Express, Visa and Mastercard.
ii. HDFC is ranked 7th on the list, compiled by business magazine Forbes, where American Express is placed on the top followed by Capital One Financial, Visa, Discover Financial Services and Orix in the top-five. Mastercard is ranked sixth.
iii. HDFC is followed by CIT Group of the US at eighth position, Taiwan’s Hua Nan Financial at 9th and China’s Franshion Properties is at the 10th place. Others ranked lower include Samsung Card, Kaisa Group, Orient, Nelnet, Jabal Omar Development and KWG Property.
iv. The list is part of Forbes’ annual compilation of 2,000 biggest and most powerful companies globally, which includes a total of 56 companies from India across various sectors.
In the overall list, HDFC is ranked 485th, while Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries leads the pack of the Indian companies at 142nd overall position.
v. Among other sector-specific lists, there is no Indian entity on the list of biggest major banks topped by China’s ICBC. For the regional banks, China Construction Bank tops the chart, while India’s SBI is ranked 22nd, ICICI Bank is at 29th place and HDFC Bank is at 40th position.
7. Tata Communications ties up with China Telecom Global
i. Tata Communications today announced a video network partnership with China Telecom Global to enable and manage media content for customers in China and globally.
ii. The tie-up enables China Telecom Global to leverage its worldwide reach, along with Tata Communications’ Global Video Network to offer live sporting events in China, a company release said.
iii. The partnership will cater to a market opportunity of $2.57 billion, the release stated. The statement, however, did not quantify the benefits to Tata Communication.
iv. It recently launched a new media ecosystem that enables cloud-based management of content and supports global media distribution requirements, over-the-top content and mobility applications.
v. “This partnership with China Telecom Global is a step in that direction and marks the expansion of Tata Communications’ Global Video Network reach into China,” Brian Morris, Vice-President and GM global media and entertainment services, Tata Communications, said in a statement.
8. Liberia is free of Ebola, WHO declares
i. The UN health agency on Saturday declared Liberia Ebola-free, hailing the “monumental” achievement in the west African country where the virus has killed more than 4,700 people.
ii. “The outbreak of Ebola virus disease in Liberia is over,” theWorld Health Organization said in a statement, adding that 42 days had passed since the last confirmed case was buried.
iii. “Interruption of transmission is a monumental achievement for a country that reported the highest number of deaths in the largest, longest, and most complex outbreak since Ebola first emerged in 1976,” it said.
iv. “It is a tribute to the government and people of Liberia that determination to defeat Ebola never wavered, courage never faltered.”
v. At the same time, WHO warned that because Ebola outbreaks were continuing in neighbouring Guinea and Sierra Leone, there was a high risk that infected people could cross into Liberia.
9. KV Thomas renominated as Chairman of Public Accounts Committee
i. Outgoing chairman of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, senior Congress leader K V Thomas, has been renominated to the post for a second term.“K V Thomas has been renominated as PAC chairman till April, 2016,” a senior government official said.
ii. PAC is one of the most important finance committees along with the Committee on Estimates and the Committee on Public Undertakings.
iii. Since 1967, the post of the PAC Chairman has been held by a senior member of the main Opposition party. The key committee examines CAG reports after they are tabled in Parliament.
iv. The PAC, constituted every year, may consist of not more than 22 members — 15 from Lok Sabha and not more than seven members from Rajya Sabha. Members from Lok Sabha have to be elected to the panel while the representatives from Rajya Sabha are nominated. A minister cannot be a member.
10. Navneet Rajan Wasan appointed as DG of Police Research & Development Bureau
i. Senior IPS officer Navneet Rajan Wasan was on 7 May 2015 appointed as (DG) of Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D). He will serve the post till 30 November 2015, the date of his superannuation.
ii. The post of Director General (DG) of Bureau of Police Research and Development had been lying vacant since March 2015 following the retirement of Rajan Gupta.
iii. Presently, Wasan is working as Special Director General in the National Investigation Agency (NIA). He is a 1980-batch IPS officer of the Andhra Pradesh cadre.
iv. Indian Postal Service (IPoS) officer Sheuli Burman was appointed as the Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) in the Indian Telephone Industries (ITI), Bangalore. Burman will serve the office for an initial period of three years.
11. China becomes world’s top crude buyer despite economy stuttering
i. China overtook the United States as the world’s top importer of crude oil for the first time in April, and its purchases are expected to remain strong despite a slowing economy, with far-reaching consequences for global oil and commodities markets.
ii. The soaring imports came as a surprise as growth in the world’s second-largest economy was sputtering and its oil demand was expected to ease.
iii. However, low oil prices and China’s series of interest rate cuts — including one over the weekend — in a bid to stoke growth are factors boosting demand.
iv. China’s crude oil imports hit a record of almost 7.4 million barrels a day (bpd) last month, putting it ahead of the United States’ estimated imports of 7.2 million bpd for April, Reuters data show.
12. Maharashtra govt, SIDBI set up Rs. 200-cr fund for MSMEs
i. State-run SIDBI and the Maharashtra Government have set up a Rs. 200-crore venture capital fund with a view to providing easy financing options to micro, small and medium entrepreneurs (MSMEs), which traditionally face hurdles in formal sources of funding.
ii. “We have set up a separate fund, the Rs. 200-crore SIDBI Social Venture Fund, to enable MSMEs in the state easy access to financing. The aim is to invest in firms to create a social impact on the common man,” SIDBI (Small Industries Development Bank of India) Venture Capital Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Ananta Sarma told PTI.
iii. While the state has committed to contributing Rs. 75 crore towards the fund, the rest will be raised from banks and other financial institutions.
iv. “We will soon register the fund with the Securities and Exchange Board (SEBI), post which we will start raising funds,” he said, adding the fund will invest up to Rs. 25 crore in the MSMEs.
v. “The investment will be in the form of equity and we will have a share in the firm and also take risk along with the entrepreneur,” Sarma added.
13. Big development push for Chhattisgarh: MoUs worth Rs 24,000 cr signed during PM Narendra Modi’s visit
i. In a big push for infrastructure development in Chhattisgarh, MoUs worth Rs 24,000 crore were signed at Dantewada in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday.
ii. From railway lines to steel plants and pipelines, the MoUs are meant to enhance development of the state.
Here is a list of the MoUs that were signed:
MoU between Government of Chhattisgarh, NMDC, IRCON and SAIL for 140 km rail line between Rowghat and Jagdalpur. Estimated project cost: ..
MoU between Ministry of Steel, Government of Chhattisgarh, SAIL and NMDC for 3 million ton Ultra Mega Steel Plant with an investment of approximately Rs 18,000 crore.
MoU between Government of Chhattisgarh and NMDC for Slurry Pipeline and 2MTPA Pellet Plant at Nagarnar in Bastar District with an investment of Rs 4,000 crore.
MoU between Government of Chhattisgarh and SAIL for setting up 1MTPA Pellet Plant at Dalli-Rajh.
14. May 11: National Technology Day 2015
i. National Technology Day is a very special day for Indian Technology since 1999. It is so significant because India achieved a huge technologicaladvancement on the day.
ii. Every year, `National Technology Day’ is observed across India on May 11. This day glorifies the importance of science in day-to-day life and motivates students to adopt science as a career option.
iii. National Technology Day is being commemorated to celebrate the anniversary of first of the five tests of Operation Shakti (Pokhran-II) nuclear test which was held on 11 May 1998 in Pokhran, Rajasthan.
iv. Apart from Pokhran nuclear test, on this day first indigenous aircraft Hansa-3 was test flown at Bangalore and India also conducted successful test firing of the Trishul missile on the same day. Considering all these achievements 11 May was chosen to be commemorated as National Technology Day.
v. To commemorate this day, Technology Development Board (TDB) has instituted a National Award.This award is conferred on to various individuals and industries for their successful achievement in commercialization of Indigenous Technology.
15. PM inaugurated upgraded IISCO Steel Plant in Burnpur housing largest blast furnace plant of India
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 10 May 2015 inaugurated the upgraded IISCO Steel Plant (ISP) in Burnpur, West Bengal. The ISP houses the largest blast furnace of India.
ii. The ISP was modernised by the Union Government at a cost of 16000 crore rupees. After modernisation, the plant’s production capacity has increased from 0.85 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) to 2.9 mtpa.
iii. The revamped plant in Burnpur is spread across 953 acres. It is the fifth integrated steel plant of SAIL. Also, the new plant is equipped with the latest green technologies with zero emission.
iv. The revamped plant has already achieved some major milestones, both in production and quality, since 2014. It has started operating the continuous casting plant, and the first batch of 8-mm thermo-mechanical treatment (TMT) bars was produced in January 2015. The company’s reserves of iron ore are the largest in Asia.
v. The modernization will held India in attaining the target of producing 300 million tonnes of steel by 2025 to meet industry demand. Also, it will help SAIL in achieving the target of enhancing production capacity to 50 million tonnes by 2025.
vi. Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCO) was taken over by the Union Government in 1972 as part of a nationalisation drive and made a fully-owned subsidiary of SAIL in 1978. It was thereafter renamed ISP.
16. Andy Murray of Britain won the men’s singles title of Madrid Tennis Open
i. Andy Murray of Britain won the Madrid Open men’s singles title in the final matches held in Madrid, Spain.
ii. He beat Rafael Nadalof Spain 6-3, 6-2 to win his second Madrid Open title.
iii. With the present win, he has become the third player after Switzerland’s Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to win at both the venues of Madrid Open.
iv. Defending champion Nadal was aiming for a record fifth win in Madrid but Murray outclassed his Spanish opponent to lift his first Masters title on clay.
v. The Briton had never beaten Nadal in six previous meetings on the surface but won 6-3 6-2 to stun the home crowd.
17. Rosberg wins Spanish GP
i. Nico Rosberg has finally got the better of Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton this season, winning the Spanish Grand Prix.
ii. A crowd of 86,700 watched the race, with a total of 189,000 spectators attending the Catalunya circuit.
iii. McLaren’s misery continued as two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso retired just short of halfway with faulty brakes on the track.
18. Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic won the women’s singles title of Madrid Tennis Open
i. Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic won the Madrid Open women’s singles title in the final matches held in Madrid, Spain.
ii. She defeated Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia 6-1, 6-2 to secure the title for the second time. She won her maiden title in 2011.
iii. With the present win, she equals Serena Williams’ record of two titles in Madrid.
iv. At present, Kvitova is ranked World No. 4 in Women’s singles categories. The men’s single title was won by Andy Murray of Britain who defeated Rafael Nadal of Spain in the final.
19. Discus thrower Vikas Gowda won Gold at Jamaican International Invitation meet
i. Ace Indian discus thrower Vikas Gowda won Gold at Jamaican International Invitation meet. The meet was held in Kingston, Jamaica. He came up with an effort of 65.14m to win his event. Chad Wright of Jamaica was second with a throw of 61.84m while Jared Schuurmans of United States was third with an effort of 61.62m.
ii. Gowda, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion and Silver medal winnerof 2014 Asian Games, has thrown the discus over 65m three times in the last three weeks.
iii. The 31-year-old national record holder first came up with a throw of 65.25m at Chula Vista on 24 April 2015 to qualify for World Championships in Beijing in August 2015.
iv. The United States-based Indian is yet to qualify for next year’s Rio Olympics for which he need to cross the qualifying standard of 66m. His national record stands at 66.28m.
20. Rohan Bopanna, Florin Mergea won Men’s Doubles title of Madrid Tennis Open
i. Rohan Bopanna and Florin Mergea, the Indo-Romanian pair, won the men’s doubles title of the Madrid Tennis Open.
ii. In the summit clash played in Madrid, Spain, the duo defeated the Serbian-Polish pair of Nenand Zimonjic and Martin Matkowski 6-2, 6-7(5), 11-9.
iii. For Rohan Bopanna, this is the third title of the 2015 season having won the titles in Sydney and Dubai along with the Canadian partner Daniel Nestor.
iv. With the present win, the duo received 247560 euro pirze money along with their maiden title and earned 1000 ranking points each.
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