Daily updates 4 October 2019

National

1. Nationwide ‘Paryatan Parv 2019’ to promote tourism kicks off

• The nationwide Paryatan Parv, 2019 kicked off to promote tourism in the country.
• The aim is to propagate the message of Dekho Apna Desh to encourage people to visit tourist destinations of the country and also spread the message of Tourism for All.
• This year's event is dedicated to 150th birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

2. PM of India & Mauritius jointly inaugurated projects in Mauritius

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mauritius PM Pravind Jugnauth jointly inaugurated 2 landmark projects in Mauritius via video conference.
• The 2 projects includes the phase-1 of the Metro Express and a new ENT Hospital. The Indian Government has granted $275 million for the Metro Express project and a grant of $14 million for the new Hospital Project.
• The grant was awarded as a special economic package for assisting five high-priority projects, which include the Metro Express project and a new ENT hospital.

3. Tourism Ministry launches App "Audio Odigos" for 12 sites of India

• Tourism Ministry has launched the Audio Guide facility "Audio Odigos" for 12 sites of India (including Iconic Sites) on the occasion of "Paryatan Parv 2019".
• An MoU for Gol Gumbad, Delhi with Government of Delhi and Resbird Technologies was also exchanged for the development of Tourism Amenities.
• Audio guide odigo offers Government of India verified content, with visuals & voice over support. With Audio Odigos, tourists will now enjoy a more enriching experience and take back historical insights of the Indian culture and heritage.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB PO Mains:

• Minister of State (I/C) of Tourism Ministery: Prahalad Singh Patel.

4. IRCTC to compensate passengers on delay of Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express

• Passengers of IRCTC's Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express will be compensated in case of delays, the Railway subsidiary, announcing a first of its kind offer from any national carrier.
• An amount of Rs 100 will be paid in case the delay is for over an hour and Rs 250 for delays of over two hours.
• This latest offer is in addition to the Rs 25 lakh free insurance that will be given to passengers of the train.
• This travel insurance also includes coverage of Rs 1 lakh against household theft and robbery during travel period of the passengers, again a first for those travelling onboard trains.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• Railway Minister: Piyush Goyal.

5. India's first private train Lucknow-Delhi Tejas Express flagged off

• Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath flagged off country's first private train Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express started its maiden journey from Lucknow.
• It will be the first train of Indian Railways that will be entirely run by Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). The new Tejas Express will cover the distance between Delhi and Lucknow in six hours fifteen minutes.
• All passengers travelling by Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express will be provided free insurance of up to ₹25 lakh by IRCTC.

State News

6. Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik launches ‘Mo Sarkar’ initiative

• Chief Minister of Odisha Naveen Patnaik rolled out ‘Mo Sarkar’ programme which finds its roots in the Gandhian philosophy of giving people their voice in daily governance.
• The objective of ‘Mo Sarkar’ is to improve governance by collecting feedback on behaviour and professionalism displayed by the Government officers.
• "Mo Sarkar’ programme has been launched in 21 district headquarters hospitals and medical colleges at Cuttack, Sambalpur and Berhampur.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• Odisha CM: Naveen Patnaik; Governor: Ganeshi Lal.

7. Uttarakhand CM launches awareness campaign ‘Urjagiri’ to stop power theft

• Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Trivendra Singh Rawat launched an awareness campaign "Urjagiri" which aims at stopping power theft and saving.
• The Chief Minister emphasised on the need to speed up the process for wider awareness to avoid power loss in Uttarakhand.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB Main 2019:

• Capital of Uttarakhand: Dehradun; Governor: Baby Rani Maurya.

Appointments

8. Tata Communications names Amur Lakshminarayanan as its MD and CEO

• Digital infrastructure provider, Tata Communications has named Amur S Lakshminarayanan as Managing Director and Group Chief Executive Officer designate of the company.
• He comes with 35 years of experience in a broad range of leadership roles across industries and regions across the world.
• Prior to this appointment, Lakshminarayanan was President and CEO of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) Japan, Ltd.
• He also worked in the company as Global Head of Telecom, Media and Information Services, HiTech and Utilities, and Head of TCS UK (United Kingdom) and Europe.

9. Amrit Lugun appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Greece

• The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India was appointed Amrit Lugun as the next Ambassador of India to Greece. He is an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) Officer of the 1989 batch. He will replace Shamma Jain.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• Capital of Greece: Athens; Currency of Greece: Euro.

10. Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to Niue

• The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India notified that Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi was appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to Niue, with residence in Wellington, New Zealand.
• He is an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) Officer of the 1991 batch presently working as a High Commissioner of India to New Zealand. He will replace Sanjiv Kohli.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB Main 2019:

• Capital of Niue: Alofi; Currency: Niue dollar, New Zealand dollar.

11. Sushil Chandra appointed as MD & CEO of Oil India Limited

• Oil India Limited has appointed Sushil Chandra Mishra as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company. He will replace Utpal Bora.
• Sushil Chandra Mishra started his professional journey as an executive trainee with OIL in 1984 and developed deep expertise in commercial matters.
• He also played a key role in framing and implementing procurement policies and procedures for inventory management, vendor development, framework agreement and its related strategies.

Banking

12. RBI reduces repo rate by 25 basis points in 4th Bi-monthly Monetary Policy

• In its 4th Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Committee meeting, the Reserve Bank of India has reduced the policy repo rate by 25 basis points (bps).
• The MPC has also decided to maintain the accommodative stance of monetary policy. The main decisions taken in the 4th Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Committee meeting are:
• The repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) was reduced from 5.40% to 5.15%.
• The reverse repo rate under the LAF stands revised to 4.90%.
• The marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate is revised to 5.40%.
• RBI has also reduced the real GDP growth for 2019-20 from 6.9% to 6.1%.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For SBI Clerk Mains:

• Governor of RBI: Shaktikant Das; Headquarters: Mumbai; Founded: 1 April 1935, Kolkata.

Awards

13. Ben Stokes named PCA player of the year

• England all-rounder Ben Stokes has been voted Professional Cricketers' Association player of the year at the Professional Cricketers' Association awards.
• All-rounder Stokes played a starring role in England's maiden World Cup win before repeating his heroics to help salvage an Ashes draw with Australia.
• Tom Banton of Somerset picked up the PCA young player of the year, while England bowler Sophie Ecclestone collected the women's player of the summer award.
• The 50th NatWest PCA Awards were held at the Roundhouse in Camden. The event, organised by the PCA in conjunction with the England and Wales Cricket Board.

14. Kyrgyz lawyer AzizbekAshurov wins 2019 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award

• Human rights lawyer from Kyrgyzstan Azizbek Ashurov was awarded the 2019 UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) prestigious Nansen Award.
• Ashurov will receive the award comprising of a commemorative medal and a cash prize of USD 150,000 prize money at a ceremony in Geneva on October 7, 2019.
• The UNHCR hailed Azizbek Ashurov for helping Kyrgyzstan become the world's first country to end statelessness, working through his organisation Ferghana Valley Lawyers Without Borders (FVLWB).
• He and his organisation have helped more than 10,000 people gain Kyrgyz nationality after they became stateless following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• UNHCR Founded: 14 December 1950; Headquarters of UNHCR: Geneva, Switzerland.

Sports

15. Abdul Quadir Khan Wins Silver Medal in Asian Body Building & Physique Sports Championship 2019

• Maj Abdul Quadir Khan of the Corps of Signals has won the Silver medal at the 53rd Asian Body Building and Physique Sports Championship held at Batam, Indonesia.
• His accomplishment in the sport has brought glory to the Indian Army and Corps of Signals.

Obituaries

16. Padma Shri awardee HL Trivedi passes away

• Renowned kidney transplant surgeon and Padma Shri recipient Dr H L Trivedi passed away.
• He was as an expert in handling kidney transplant surgeries and was awarded Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, in 2015 for his contribution to the society as a nephrologist.
• He also established dialysis centre network in district hospitals across Gujarat with the help of the state government.

Miscellaneous

17. Govt launches portal for monitoring coal supply to power plants

• Power Minister RK Singh and Coal, Mines and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi have jointly launched PRAKASH - Power Rail Koyla Availability through Supply Harmony- portal in New Delhi.
• The portal aims at bringing better coordination for coal supplies among all stakeholders.
• This is an important step in ensuring adequate availability and optimum utilization of coal at thermal power plants.
• The portal is designed to help in mapping and monitoring the entire coal supply chain for power plants.

18. NBCC sign MoU with the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports

• National Buildings Construction Corporation(NBCC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to provide project management consultancy for the development of National Sports University at Imphal, Manipur.
• NBCC has bagged a Rs 400-crore contract to develop National Sports University.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB Main 2019:

• Chief Minister of Manipur: N. Biren Singh; Governor of Manipur: Padmanabha Balkrishna Acharya.