Daily updates 3 and 4 November 2019

National

1.AYUSH Minister Inaugurates (NRIUMSD)

• Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH inaugurated National Research Institute of Unani Medicine for Skin Disorders (NRIUMSD) upgraded from Central Research Institute of Unani Medicine (CRIUM) at Erragadda, Hyderabad.
• AYUSH Minister lauded the success of the CRIUM in the treatment of vitiligo and other chronic and stubborn diseases and it’s perhaps the only medical institution in the world which has treated more than 1.5 lakh patients of Vitiligo alone.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RBI Grade ‘B’ 2019:

• Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH: Shripad Yesso Naik.
• Director-General, Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM): Asim Ali Khan.

2. Govt releases maps of newly-created UTs of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh

• The Government of India released the maps of newly created union territories of Jammu-Kashmir and Ladakh and the map of India depicting these union territories.
• According to the Home Ministry, the new Union Territory of Ladakh consists of Kargil and Leh - two districts. The rest of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir is in the new Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
• The maps prepared by Survey General of India depicting the new UTs of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh, as created on October 31, 2019, along with the map of India.

Agreements

3. Siemens signs MoUs with NTPC, TERI on decarbonisation, energy transition

• Siemens Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with NTPC Limited to identify, evaluate and set up reference use cases of hydrogen sector-coupling for various upstream and downstream applications.
• The collaboration is aimed at developing innovative technologies, solutions and techniques to reduce the dependence on Hydrocarbons in India.
• Siemens Limited has also inked a separate MoU with TERI for collaboration on technologies to support the energy transition in India including sector-coupling.
• Among the objectives of the MoU with TERI is realizing the research and technology development projects to enable energy transitions across the electricity, transport and industrial sectors.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/SSC CGL:

• Chairman and Managing Director(MD) of NTPC: Gurdeep Singh.
• Headquarters of NTPC: New Delhi.
• Director of TERI: Ajay Mathur; Headquarters of TERI: New Delhi.

Awards

4. Writer Anand selected for 27th Ezhuthachan Puraskaram 2019

• Noted writer Anand has been selected for the 27th Ezhuthachan Puraskaram 2019.
• This award is given by Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award and the Government of Kerala.
• He was chosen for his overall contributions to Malayalam language and Literature. His real name is P.Satchidanandan uses the pseudonym, Anand.
• Anand retired as Planning director from the Central Water Commission in New Delhi. His native is Iringalakkuda, Thrissur at Kerala.
• His first novel was Alkkoottam. He is also a recipient of Vayalar Award and Yashpal Award.

5. Documentary on Real Kashmir Football Club bags BAFTA & Scotland Awards

• A documentary on Real Kashmir Football Club has bagged the prestigious British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) and Scotland Awards at a glittering ceremony in Glasgow, Scotland.
• The documentary narrates the journey of former Rangers ace David Robertson as the coach of Real Kashmir FC, which in its first season finished third in the I-League, which is currently India's second-tier football league.
• The hour-long film won in the 'Single Documentary' category.

6. Sudarsan Pattnaik selected for Italian Golden Sand Art Award

• International acclaimed Sand Artist Sudarsan Pattnaik who belongs to Odisha has been selected for the prestigious Italian Golden Sand Art Award 2019.
• He will be felicitated during the International Scorrana Sand Nativity festival in Italy which is to be held from November 13 to 18, 2019.
• He was honoured by the union government with the fourth highest civilian ‘Padma Shri’ award in 2014.

7. Neeraj sharma wins ‘Early career researcher of the year 2019’ award

• Indian-origin researcher Neeraj Sharma has been given the 'Early Career Researcher of the Year award' by the Australian government.
• This award is given for developing next-generation battery systems such as a sodium-ion battery that will leave a minimal environmental impact.
• He is a professor at the University of South Wales (UNSW)'s School of Chemistry.
• Neeraj Sharma, considered one of the global leaders in the use of neutron and X-ray scattering methods, is also exploring inherently safe solid-state batteries, energy-dense lithium-sulfur batteries, dual function solar batteries and methods for recycling.

Defence

8. India-Uzbekistan 1st-ever joint military exercise Dustlik-2019 begins

• The first-ever India-Uzbekistan joint military exercise Dustlik-2019 begin at Chirchiq Training Area near Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
• The exercise, which will be focused on counter-terrorism, will continue till November 13.
• During the exercise, an Indian Army contingent will train along with Uzbekistan Army.
• The exercise will enable the sharing of best practices and experiences between the Armed Forces of the two countries and will lead to greater operational effectiveness.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/SSC CGL:

• Capital of Uzbekistan: Tashkent; Currency of Uzbekistan: Uzbekistani Som.

Sports

9. Maisnam Meiraba clinches Korea Jr Open Title 2019

• India's Maisnam Meiraba Luwang clinched the boys' singles U-19 title at the Woncheon Yonex Korea Junior Open Badminton International Challenge 2019 in Miryang, Korea.
• The top seed Maisnam from Manipur needed just 36 minutes to brush aside the challenge of 15th seed Lee Hak Joo of Korea in a 21-10 21-13 win.
• Meanwhile, the eighth seed, Sathish Kumar Karunakaran, who had bowed out to Luwang 16-21, 22-24 in the semi-final claimed bronze in the same category.

10. Pooja Gehlot wins silver in UWW Under-23 World Championships

• Pooja Gehlot (53kg) in wrestling claimed India's second silver medal after going down to Japan's Haruna Okuno in the finals of the UWW Under-23 World Championships in Budapest.
• She lost 0-2 to Okuno in the summit clash. Ravinder (61kg), had won India's first silver earlier this week.

11. Novak Djokovic won the Paris Masters 2019 title

• Novak Djokovic won the Paris Masters 2019 title. He won the title for the fifth time.
• He sealed his 34th Master's title and fifth overall ATP victory of the year 2019.
• He defeated Canada's Denis Shapovalov. He secured 6-3 6-4 to win the title.

12. Lakshya Sen wins SaarLorLux Open badminton tournament

• India's Lakshya Sen has won the SaarLorLux Open badminton tournament at Saarbrücken in Germany.
• He defeated Sen Weng Hong Yang of China. Lakshya, seeded eighth, needed 59 minutes to overcome Weng 17-21 21-18 21-16 in the summit clash for his third successive singles title of the season.

13. South Africa wins Rugby World Cup 2019

• South Africa defeated England’s team by 32-12 scores in the final of the 9 edition of Rugby World Cup 2019 held at International Stadium, Yokohama, Japan.
• This was the 3 time the South African(SA) team reached the final of the World Cup and won the tournament.
• The SA team, which won the World Cup for the first time in 1995, also won the final in 2007.
• With this, the team also equalled New Zealand’s record of winning the World Cup three times.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RBI Grade ‘B’ 2019:

• President of South Africa: Cyril Ramaphosa.
• Capitals of South Africa: Cape Town, Pretoria, Bloemfontein.
• The rand is the official currency of South Africa.

Miscellaneous

14. Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurates Guru Nanak Chair at University of Birmingham

• Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs has inaugurated a new Guru Nanak Chair by the support of Indian government, at the University of Birmingham to enable research around the teachings of the founder of the Sikh religion.
• He announced the new Chair to mark the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RBI Grade ‘B’ 2019:

• Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs: Hardeep Singh Puri.