Daily updates 14 December 2019

State News

1. Virtual Police Station inaugurated at Andhra University

• Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy inaugurated the Virtual Police Station at Andhra University. This is the first such facility in the State of Andhra Pradesh.
• The AU facility is seen as a pilot project and will later be replicated at other educational institutions. The initiative is expected to help bridge the gap between students and the police department
• The Virtual Police Station has been set up on the suggestion of Andhra University's Vice-Chancellor to make it easy for students to report their grievances.

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

• CM of Andhra Pradesh: YS Jaganmohan Reddy.
• Governor of Andhra Pradesh: Biswa Bhusan Harichandan.

Agreements

2. Maldives signs contract with JV of Indian companies for development of Addu

• Maldives government has signed a contract with a joint venture of Indian companies. The contract aims to prepare project report and the development of Addu, which is the second biggest city in the island nation.
• The contract was signed L & T engineering limited and Lea associates south asia for the Addu Road and Reclamation Project. The project includes land reclamation, construction of roads and storm water drainage system in Addu.
• This will upgrade existing infrastructure and mitigate the flood situation in Addu.
• Financing of the project will be done by EXIM bank of India through line of credit of USD 800 million.

Summit and Conferences

3. Defence Minister chairs Parliament's meeting of Consultative Committee

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh chaired a meeting of the Consultative Committee of Parliament for the Ministry of Defence in New Delhi.
• The subject of the meeting was Border Roads Organisation (BRO). During the meeting, BRO was appreciated for the in building border infrastructure and contributing to the improvement of lives of people residing in the border areas.

4. National Symposium of Heads of Police Training Institutions held in New Delhi

• The 37th National Symposium of Heads of Police Training Institutions held in New Delhi. It Symposium was organized by Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPR&D).
• The theme of the Symposium was ‘Optimal Utilization of Resources-Through Sharing and Networking’.
• A Directory of Indian Police Training Institutions (DIPTI) which has information on the resources of around 300 Police training institutions all over the country, was also released during the event.

Sports News

5. FIH unveils new world ranking system for 2020

• The International Hockey Federation unveiled a new world ranking system for 2020 in Lausanne, Switzerland. The new method will come into effect from the 1st January 2020.
• The new ranking will be match-based instead of tournament-based calculation.
• The new model is expected to remove the subjectivity surrounding continental weighing by creating a system which is fair to all. The outgoing world ranking system was in existence since 2003. It was originally devised to allocate teams into pools at tournaments.

6. Rohit Sharma becomes brand ambassador of La Liga in India

• The top tier of Spanish club football "La Liga" has announced cricketer Rohit Sharma as its brand ambassador in India.
• Rohit Sharma is the first non-footballer in the 90 year-old history of the league to have become a brand ambassador.
• The top tier of Spanish club football has been ramping up its fan base in India through a series of initiatives. These initiatives includes grassroot development programme like La Liga Football Schools and a digital broadcast deal with Facebook.

Obituaries

7. Veteran Telugu actor and writer Gollapudi Maruti Rao passes away

• Former Nandi Award winner and renowned Telugu actor and writer Gollapudi Maruti Rao passed away recently. He enthralled people with his writings and acting for several decades and also acted in around 250 films in about four decades.
• He was a multi-faceted personality as he was a journalist, playwright, writer, actor and television personality.
• Some of his memorable films as an actor include 'Intlo Ramayya, Veedhilo Krishnayya', 'Challenge', 'Samsaram oka Chadarangam', 'Aditya 369' and 'Leader'.

Miscellaneous

8. Amazon's Audible launches app "Audible Suno" in India

• Amazon’s audiobook company Audible has launched a new app "Audible Suno" in India. This app features original audio series which aims to expand Audible's reach in India's highly competitive digital entertainment and streaming space.
• The platform features hundreds of hours of Audible’s original audio series across a plethora of genres, steered by entertainers such as Amitabh Bachchan, Nawaazuddin Siddiqui, Anurag Kashyap, Tabu, Neena Gupta and Vir Das.

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

• CEO and Founder of Audible: Don Katz.

Daily updates 13 December 2019

National News

1. ISRO begins preparations for setting up 3rd rocket launchpad

• Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has begun preparatory works for setting up a 3rd rocket launchpad in the small coastal hamlet of Kulashekhrapattinam in the Thuthukudi district of Tamil Nadu.
• At present, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has two launch pads at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.
• The demand for additional launch pads has arisen as a result of the increase in the number of satellite launches from India, both for domestic and international customers.

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

• ISRO Director: K.Sivan; Headquarters: Bengaluru; Established: 1969.

2. National Tribal Dance Festival to be held in Raipur

• A National Tribal Dance Festival will be held in Chhattisgarh's capital Raipur from December 27 to 29. In the event, international folk artists from 23 states and six other countries are expected to take part and portray their respective tribal folk culture.
• Nearly 1,400 artists belonging to 151 art troupes from 23 states and guest artists from six countries including Sri Lanka, Belarus, Uganda and Bangladesh will participate in the three-day programme.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS SO 2019:

• CM of Chhattisgarh: Bhupesh Baghel; Governor of Chhattisgarh: Anusuiya Uikey.

International News

3. US, Mexico, Canada sign USMCA trade deal

• The representatives from the United States, Mexico and Canada inked a revamped version of their regional trade pact after months of negotiations.
• The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will now go to the countries' legislatures for final approval.
• The accord is meant to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a deal in place since 1994.

State News

4. Andhra Pradesh Cabinet approves Disha Bill 2019

• The Andhra Pradesh Cabinet approves the A.P. Disha Bill, 2019 (A.P. Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2019) paving the way for awarding the death penalty for the offences of rape and gang-rape and expediting the verdict in trials of such cases to 21 days.
• The Cabinet also gave its nod for introduction of the A.P. Special Court for Specified Offences against Women and Children Bill, 2019, for dealing with offences against women and children, including rape and gang-rape, acid attacks, stalking, voyeurism, sexual harassment and cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

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

• CM of Andhra Pradesh: YS Jaganmohan Reddy.
• Governor of Andhra Pradesh: Biswa Bhusan Harichandan.

Awards

5. Greta Thunberg named Time Person of the Year for 2019

• Sweden's Greta Thunberg has been named as Time magazine's Person of the Year for 2019.
• Greta Thunberg is the Swedish schoolgirl who inspired a global movement to fight climate change and became popular with the "#FridaysForFuture".
• She is the youngest person to be chosen by the magazine in a tradition that started in 1927.
• TIME is also expanding Person of the Year to reflect the full range of subjects that TIME covers.
• For the first time, TIME has chosen the most influential person in a range of fields

S.No.	Name	Profession	Category
1	Greta Thunberg	Climate activist	Person of the Year
2	Bob Iger	Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company	Businessperson of the Year
3	The Public Servants	Federal workers of the US	Guardians of the Year
4	United States women's national soccer team	Women’s Soccer	Athlete of the Year
5	Melissa Jefferson (Lizzo)	Singer	Entertainer of the Year

6. Rani Rampal, Saurabh Chaudhary Win Top Honours at FICCI India Sports Awards

• Indian women's hockey team captain Rani Rampal and ace pistol shooter Saurabh Chaudhary won the Sports Person of the Year awards at the FICCI India Sports Awards 2019.
• The FICCI India Sports Awards are an attempt by FICCI to acknowledge and recognise the contribution of sportspersons and various stakeholders who deliver excellent results throughout the year.
• Rani played a crucial role in India's qualification for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, scoring the winning goal in the two-legged qualifier against the US in November.
• Saurabh, on the other hand, is touted as India's biggest hope for a medal in shooting in Tokyo. He won gold at the 2018 Asian Games and has since won a number of individual and team honours at shooting World Cups.

7. Gurgaon-based startup won ‘Space Oscar’ award

• The Gurugram-based startup blue Sky Analytics has created an application called ‘Zuri’ that won the Copernicus Masters Award also called Space Oscars, under the Social Entrepreneurship category.
• The award was given by the Earth observation program managed by the European Commission (EU) in partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA).
• The application uses satellite data to provide improved monitoring, supply chain and pricing analysis as well as the allocation of crop waste to be used as raw materials in other industries.
• The application includes an AI (Artificial Intelligence)- based tool to measure and monitor farm fires and stubble burning across India, million tons of crops are being burnt in India on farms to clear the field for new crops every winter, as a result releasing massive amounts of greenhouse gases which have led to increased level of pollution in New Delhi and other parts of the country.

8. FICCI India Sports Award 2019

• The FICCI India Sports Awards 2019 has been awarded to Railway Sports Promotion Board under the category of Best Company Promoting Sports.
• Railway Sports Promotion Board has been awarded for its immense contribution in the field of providing sports eco-system within the organization for the budding sports athletes to nurture and expose themselves to their optimum limits and bring laurels to the nation.
• The FICCI India Sports Awards 2019, an attempt by FICCI to acknowledge and recognize the contribution of sportspersons and various stakeholders who deliver excellent results during the year.

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

• FICCI stands for Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.
• Headquarters of FICCI: New Delhi; FICCI established: 1927.

Agreements

9. Mongla and Chattogram declared as Ports of Call under the “Coastal Shipping Agreement'

• The Ministry of Shipping (MoS) announced that Mongla and Chattogram (Both in Bangladesh) have been declared as Ports of Call under “Coastal Shipping Agreement” between India & Bangladesh.
• The Port of Mongla is declared as Port of Call under PIWT&T (Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade ) and Chattogram port is not part of PIWT&T.
• An MoU (Memorandum of Understanding), agreement and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) on the use of Chattogram Port & Mongla Ports for goods movement between India and Bangladesh has been signed between both the nations.
• The Ports of Call in India are Kolkata (West Bengal), Haldia (West Bengal), Pandu, Karimganj (Assam), Silghat (Assam), Dhubri (Assam).

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

• Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Shipping: Mansukh L. Mandaviya.

Ranks and Reports

10. Nirmala Sitharaman 34th among world's 100 most powerful women: Forbes

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has been ranked 34th by Forbes in ‘The World's 100 Most Powerful Women’. HCL Corporation CEO and Executive Director Roshni Nadar Malhotra and Biocon Founder Kiran Mazumdar Shaw are two other Indians who also featured in the above list.
• The Forbes 2019 list of ‘The World's 100 Most Powerful Women’ has been topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, followed by President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde in the 2nd spot and Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, ranked 3rd. Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also featured on the list on the 29th position.

S.No.	Name	Country
1	Angela Merkel	Germany
2	Christine Lagarde	France
3	Nancy Pelosi	United States
4	Ursula von der Leyen	Belgium
5	Mary Barra	United States
6	Melinda Gates	United States
7	Abigail Johnson	United States
8	Ana Patricia Botín	Spain
9	Ginni Rometty	United States
10	Marillyn Hewson	United States
34	Nirmala Sitharaman	India
54	Roshni Nadar Malhotra	India
65	Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw	India
100	Greta Thunberg	Sweden

Schemes and Committees

11. Puducherry government unveils start-up policy

• The Puducherry government unveiled a start-up policy. The policy, launched by Minister for Industries M.O.H.F Shahjahan, aims to create a corpus fund of ₹10 crores to support the setting up of start-up incubators and to develop co-working spaces.
• The department plans to provide a grant of ₹3 lakh to projects recommended by incubators established by the government/private sector/academic institutions as a start-up grant.
• The committee of experts constituted by the government under the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Committee will approve of the projects and monitor their progress.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS SO 2019:

• Lt. Governors Puducherry: Dr Kiran Bedi.

Summits and Conferences

12. International Seminar on Climate Smart Farming Systems begins in New Delhi

• The  ‘International Seminar on Climate Smart Farming Systems’ for BIMSTEC countries began in New Delhi.
• The objective of this International Seminar is to have experience sharing to enable improvement of tropical smallholder farming systems for greater productivity and resilience to climate change through ecological approaches.
• Some of the success stories shall be shared as case studies for the benefit of the BIMSTEC countries.

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

• The BIMSTEC member states ‘Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan are among the countries dependent on the Bay of Bengal.
• The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).
• This sub-regional organisation came into being on June 6, 1997, through the Bangkok Declaration.

Daily updates 12 December 2019

National News

1. Department of Social Justice started a scheme

• Department of Social Justice and Empowerment has started the scheme of National award for outstanding service in the field of Prevention of Alcoholism and Drug abuse.
• The scheme is applicable to institutions and individuals working in the field of prevention of alcoholism and drug abuse.
• The national award will be presented to the awardees on the occasion of International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on 26th of June 2020.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS SO 2019:

• Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment: Thaawar Chand Gehlot.

2. Workshop on Bamboo cultivation to be held in Jammu

• In Jammu and Kashmir, a first of its kind workshop on Bamboo cultivation will be held on 19th and 20 of this month in Jammu.
• Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh will inaugurate the exhibition.
• The workshop will focus on the promotion of Bamboo cultivation in the potential Kandi areas of Jammu and its value addition as an economic activity and generate entrepreneurship and employment opportunities.

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

• Lieutenant (Lt) Governors of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K): Girish Chandra Murmu.

International News

3. World's First commercial electric plane takes flight in Canada

• The world's first fully-electric commercial aircraft took its inaugural test flight, taking off from the Canadian city of Vancouver and flying for 15 minutes.
• A 62-year-old six-passenger DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver seaplane re-fitted with a fully electric 750 horsepower motor was piloted by Greg McDougall, founder and chief executive of Harbour Air, a British Columbia-based charter airline that transport passengers between Vancouver.
• MagniX designed the motor and worked in partnership with Harbour Air which ferries thousands of people a year between Vancouver, Whistler ski resort and nearby islands.

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

• Canada Capital: Ottawa; Currency: Canadian dollar.
• Prime Minister of Canada: Justin Trudeau.

Awards

4. Priyanka Chopra honoured at Marrakech Film Festival

• Indian actress Priyanka Chopra was honoured at the Marrakech Film Festival held at the famous Jemaa el Fna square.
• Priyanka Chopra was honoured for her 20 years of work and contribution in cinema.
• Hollywood actor Robert Redford, Moroccan actress Mouna Fettou and filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier were among other people who were honoured at the festival.

5. Odisha wins ‘World Habitat Award’ for OLHM- Jaga Mission

• Odisha won the bronze in ‘World Habitat Award’ for Jaga Mission also called Odisha Liveable Habitat Mission (OLHM), a slum land titling project executed for the benefit of millions of urban-poor people living in slums.
• The award was given by the World Habitat, a UK (United Kingdom) based organization which gives the award annually to recognize innovative housing projects around the world.
• The Jaga is a society under Housing and Urban Development Department (HUDD), Government of Odisha.
• The OLHM-JAGA aims at transforming the slums into livable habitats and under which 52,682 urban poor families living in the slums have been granted land rights certificate.
• The mission works under the Odisha Land Rights to Slum Dwellers Act passed in September 2017.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS SO 2019:

• Capital of Odisha: Bhubaneswar; Governor of Odisha: Ganeshi Lal.
• Chief Minister (CM) of Odisha: Naveen Patnaik.

Agreements

6. Dell Technologies, UNESCO tie up to boost quality of education

• Dell Technologies announced a new partnership with UNESCO MGIEP (Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace) to enable school teachers to adopt technology in classrooms by using ICT tools.
• The information and communication technology (ICT) tools have been developed by Dell Aarambh and FramerSpace platform.
• The partnership would enable achieving the UN Sustainable Goal 4.7 towards education for building peaceful and sustainable societies and also UNESCO MGIEP in its mission of building social and emotional learning, innovative digital pedagogies and empowering youth.
• The training would focus on teaching the teachers the use of ICT and frontier technologies with the objective of achieving quality education, as outlined under Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SGD 4) by the member-states of the United Nations.

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

• UNESCO formation: 4 November 1946.
• UNESCO Headquarters: Paris, France.
• UNESCO Director-General: Audrey Azoulay.

Business

7. Xiaomi launches service "Mi Credit" in India for Android phones

• Xiaomi has formally launched its lending platform "Mi Credit" in India for Android phones.
• According to platform "Mi Credit" individuals can avail up to Rs 1 lakh loan.
• The company is planning to introduce more financial products in India.
• The company has been operating Mi Credit platform on a pilot basis.
• Xiaomi has roped in Aditya Birla Finance Ltd, Money View, EarlySalary, Zestmoney and CreditVidya as the current lending partners for Mi Credit service.
• Mi Credit app will come pre-loaded on all MIUI phones, and can be downloaded from Google Play Store.

Defence

8. International Seminar cum Exhibition on Naval weapon Systems : NAVARMS-19

• The 4th edition of International Seminar cum Exhibition on Naval Weapon Systems ‘NAVARMS-19’ begins in Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis, Development Enclave, New Delhi.
• The theme of the Exhibition is “Make in India - Fight Category: Opportunities and Imperatives”.
• NAVARMS is the only international seminar and exhibition on Naval Weapon Systems conducted in the country.
• It invites all the stakeholders in the life cycle management of Naval Weapons and provides a common platform to share their views and concerns.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS SO 2019:

• Chief of the Naval Staff: Karambir Singh.

Economy

9. ADB lowers India's GDP growth forecast to 5.1% in FY20

• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has lowered its forecast for India's economic growth in fiscal year 2019-20 to 5.1%.
• ADB has stated that the consumption was affected by slow job growth and rural distress was aggravated by poor harvest.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For LIC Assistant Mains:

• Asian Development Bank Headquarters: Manila, Philippines; President: Takehiko Nakao.

Summit and Conferences

10. Switzerland to be the country partner of BioAsia 2020

• Switzerland will be the country partner at the 17th edition of BioAsia2020 scheduled to be held from February 17-19, 2020 with the theme “Today For Tomorrow” in Hyderabad, Telangana.
• Switzerland is making innovations in the world of medical healthcare and that many pharmaceutical companies have emerged as the center of Switzerland.
• While the city of Hyderabad has become a hub in the field of health tech and will be introduced to the Switzerland Health Tech Ecosystem through the Bio Asia Summit.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS SO 2019:

• Capital of Switzerland: Bern; Currency of Switzerland: Swiss franc.

Sports News

11. GS Lakshmi to become 1st Woman Match Referee to officiate men’s ODI match

• Indian match referee GS Lakshmi is set to become the first woman match referee to officiate a men’s ODI match.
• She will oversee the third series of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2.
• The opening match of the competition will take place between the United Arab Emirates and the United States of America at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
• Earlier in May 2019, she also became the first woman to get appointed onto the ICC International Panel of Match Referees.
• Lakshmi has the experience of officiating in three women's ODI matches, 16 men's T20Is and seven women's T20Is.

Obituaries

12. Former US Federal Reserve chief Paul Volcker passes away

• The former US Federal Reserve chief Paul Volcker passed away. He was appointed as the chief of the US Federal Reserve in 1979.
• He was popularly known for fighting inflation by raising interest rates. He was a legendary figure in American finance.

Important Days

13. International Day of Neutrality: 12 December

• International Day of Neutrality is a United Nations observance held on December 12 each year.
• It was officially declared by a UN General Assembly resolution adopted in February 2017 and first observed on December 12 of the same year.
• In international law, a neutral country is a sovereign state that abstains from all participation in a war between other states and maintains an attitude of impartiality toward the belligerents.
• The belligerents, in their turn, recognize this abstention and impartiality.
• A permanently neutral power is bound to be neutral in all future wars.
• The rights and duties of a neutral country are defined in the Hague Convention of 1907.

14. International Universal Health Coverage Day: 12 December

• International Universal Health Coverage Day (UHC Day) is celebrated globally on 12 December.
• International Universal Health Coverage Day aims to raise awareness of the need for strong and resilient health systems and universal health coverage with multi-stakeholder partners.
• The theme for the 2019 UHC Day is "Keep the promise"
• In 2017 the United Nations proclaimed 12 December as International Universal Health Coverage Day by resolution 72/138.
• Each year on 12 December, UHC advocates raise their voices to share the stories of the millions of people still waiting for health, champion what we have achieved so far, call on leaders to make bigger and smarter investments in health, and encourage diverse groups to make commitments to help move the world closer to UHC by 2030.

Miscellaneous

15. ASI has identified 138 monuments as "Must See" monuments in country

• Archaeological Survey of India has identified 138 numbers of monuments as Must-See Monuments and information thereof is made available on “Must See” portal of Archaeological Survey of India.
• There are 38 World Heritage Sites in India, out of which 22 Cultural Sites including monuments/ buildings and caves are under the protection of Archaeological Survey of India.
• The ‘Must See’ list of ASI features first-class Indian monuments and archaeological sites including those that feature on UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization)World Heritage List.
• Such monuments and sites showcase exceptionality in terms of art and architecture, planning and design.

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

• Archaeological Survey of India founder: Alexander Cunningham.
• Archaeological Survey of IndiaFounded: 1871.
• Archaeological Survey of India Headquarters: New Delhi.

16. PUMA signs Sunil Chhetri as brand ambassador

• Indian men's football team captain Sunil Chhetri has signed a 3-year deal with PUMA.
• The Bengaluru FC skipper is currently the second-highest goal-scorer in international football after Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo.
• He is the most-capped Indian player and is also the all-time top goal scorer for the Indian team.
• He has been named as the AIFF Player of the Year six times.
• He was also conferred with the Arjuna award in 2011 and Padma Shri in 2019.

17. Pepsico appoints Salman Khan as Pepsi’s new brand ambassador

• PepsiCo has appointed actor Salman Khan as the new brand ambassador of its flagship Pepsi brand of carbonated beverage in India.
• Brand Pepsi will base its summer 2020 campaign on Salman Khan’s upcoming movie "Dabangg-3".
• PepsiCo India will launch a 360 degree campaign to leverage the new association.
• Salman Khan has also represented the Pepsico's product "Thums Up" three years ago.