Daily GK Update - 5th February 2016

1. CAMS launches Aadhaar-based eKYC for setting up MF account instantly

i. CAMS, the leading services solutions provider for fund houses, has launched Aadhaar-based eKYC (know your customer) using OTP (one-time password) authentication to make mutual fund (MF) account opening and transactions a paperless and presence less process through myCAMS at www.camsonline.com .

ii. CAMS, the transfer agency for most MFs, is also in the process of integrating the websites of AMCs (asset management companies) with eKYC module where it is the registrar.

iii. This is in line with market regulator SEBI's vision to ease the KYC process and facilitate MF online account opening and transactions, CAMS said.

iv. SEBI has recently enabled Aadhaar based e-KYC service offered by UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) for KYC verification on authorisation by the client using biometric or OTP (one-time password) authentication on a voluntary basis.

v. Investors, who wish to use their Aadhaar number and PAN for KYC compliance, can now complete KYC process in just three simple steps using Aadhaar-based eKYC and set up a MF account instantly without having to submit forms, documents and do in-person verification (IPV) either physically or virtually.Investors can voluntarily submit Aadhaar and mobile numbers for validation with Aadhaar/UIDAI database. On successful authentication through OTP, investors can complete KYC and start investing in MFs through myCAMS at www.camsonline.com. SEBI currently permits investment of Rs 50,000 in a financial year per MF for investors using Aadhaar-based eKYC using OTP based authentication.

2. SEBI forms task force to review risk management norms for commexes

i. Capital market regulator Sebi has set up a task force to review the risk management norms for national-level commodity bourses following the suspension of futures trading for castor seed on NCDEX.

ii. A source said that after recent developments witnessed in castor seed futures contracts, Sebi has established a task force to relook at the existing norms related to risk management, delivery mechanism, and other related issues. 

iii. The task force has been asked to submit the report in three weeks. Based on the report, the risk management norms for national-level commodity derivatives exchanges will be further tightened.

iv. Meanwhile, Sebi has sought explanation from the exchange for suspending futures trade in castor seeds.

v. Last year, Sebi laid down risk management norms for regional commodity bourses. At present, there are three national-level commodity derivative exchanges — MCX, NCDEX and NMCE — and six regional ones.

3. Centre to contribute Rs. 1 Lakh Crore for Karnataka Road

i. Central government will spend Rs 1 lakh crore for development of road infrastructure in Karnataka. In addition to this, Rs 200 crore will be spent on developing four light houses in the state in PPP mode.

ii. This was disclosed by Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari in Bengaluru. 

iii. He was speaking at the inaugural function of Invest Karnataka-2016, a three day global investors meet organised by the Karnataka government.

iv. “We have also decided to expand the capacity of New Mangaluru Port with an investment of Rs 10,000 crore,” he said.

v. He said, road projects worth 60 thousand crore rupees will be started in Karnataka before December this year and projects worth another 40 thousand crore will be taken up next year.

4. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley inaugurated the two-day India Investment Summit

i. This summit is aimed at attracting long-term foreign investors into the infrastructure sector.

ii. Opening the two-day India Investment Summit 2016, the minister highlighted opportunities the country presents to investors and sought investment in sectors like road, highways, oil&gas, urban infrastructure and railways.

iii. Mr. Jaitley have also unveiled the logo of National Infrastructure and Investment Fund (NIIF).

iv. Inviting foreign capital in sectors like roads, railways and energy, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today met sovereign wealth funds from Singapore and the UAE and pitched a stable policy regime and resilience of Indian economy amid a global slowdown

5. Reliance Infra to sell cement biz to Birla for 4800 Cr. Rs

i. Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) has signed a share purchase agreement with Birla Corporation, Reliance Infrastructure Ltd has agreed to sell its cement assets to Birla Corp. Ltd for Rs.4,800 crore.

ii. Birla Corporation will acquire the 100 per cent shareholding of RInfra in RCCPL.

iii. Anil Ambani’s Reliance Group has been trying to sell assets across its group companies to cut debt and expand its new defence business.

iv. Currently, Birla Corp has a capacity of 10 MTPA with units in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal and it would acquire Reliance Cement's units at Maihar, Madhya Pradesh. 

6. Finance Ministry gets a dedicated YouTube channel 

i. Finance Ministry now has an official YouTube Channel, which is expected to disseminate information about the official events.

ii. The Channel will feature videos on the major schemes, events, meetings, press conferences and other exclusive videos relating to the Ministry. 

iii. Although most of the activities are in public domain, yet to make it easier for the world outside to know about the same, this YouTube official channel of the Ministry would be a useful platform. 

iv. The youtube channel is launched by Arun Jaitley.

7. BSE Institute launches new accelerator for start-ups

i. In continuation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s startup India mission, BSE Institute Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of BSE Ltd, has launched a new accelerator for start-ups​.

ii. This accelerator​​ is set up by BSE Institute in collaboration with Ryerson Futures Inc (Toronto), the technical arm of Ryerson University from Ontario, Canada.​

iii. The accelerator will focus on scalable, technology start-ups (both enterprise and consumer)​. Besides, it will help recreate in India the successful model of the Digital Media Zone (DMZ) - Ryerson's flagship programme in Toronto which has been operational since 2010 ​and incubated over 150 start-ups.

iv. This has been set up as a technology based incubator under the National Science & Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB), Department of Science & Technology, Government of India.

8. B2B meet for SMEs begins in Kochi

i. Manufacturers in Kerala should come out with more value-added products if they want to compete in the global market, Minister for Public Works VK Ebrahim Kunju has said.

ii. Inaugurating the three-day Kerala Business-to-Business Meet 2016 at the CIAL Trade Fair & Exhibition Centre in Nedumbassery.

iii. The meet will provide the SMEs in Kerala greater exposure to businesses outside Kerala and even India, he said.

iv. ‘12% industrial growth’Unveiling the Buyer and Seller Directories on the occasion, the State Fisheries and Excise Minister K Babu said Kerala has witnessed around 

v. The government has been focussing on five key areas – manpower, raw materials, capital, favourable political climate and marketing – for the promotion of industrial growth in the State, he added. As many as 200 SMEs from Kerala and nearly 480 buyers from 21 countries and 18 States are participating in the meet.

9. Gurdeep Singh named Chairman and MD of NTPC

i. Gurdeep Singh has taken charge as the Chairman and Managing Director of NTPC. 

ii.Singh, who was earlier Managing Director of Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Ltd.

iii. He replaces Arup Roy Choudhury, who retired from the post on August 31, 2015. In the interim, AK Jha, Director (Technical) at NTPC was given additional charge as the Chairman and Managing Director. 

iv. Singh is a mechanical engineer and has 28 years of experience in the power generation sector, NTPC said in a statement. He started his career with NTPC before joining companies such as Powergen, CLP Power, IDFC, CESC and others.

10. Ananda Shankar to address India Conference in Harvard

i. Renowned dancer-choreographer and speaker Dr Ananda Shankar Jayant will address the high-profile India Conference at Harvard in USA this week. 

ii. Ananda is a Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee and a motivational speaker with a popular talk at TED. She is a career Indian Railway Services Officer.

iii. The city-based Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi exponent will talk on February 7 as part of the ‘Inspire’ series of the two-day conference at Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts. Padma Shri Ananda Shankar said, “I am humbled to be part of this exciting event.”

iv. The other speakers at the February 6-7 conference include Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, film personalities Kamal Haasan and Karan Johar, banker Chanda Kochhar, writer Shashi Tharoor, MP, and diplomat Nirupama Rao.

11. Meet on `Make in India' in Mangalore

i. The Mangaluru-based MSNM Besant Institute of Postgraduate Management Studies will conduct a conference on ‘Make in India’ on February 5.

ii. Narayan K, Director of the institute, said the objective of the conference is to understand the ground realities of the ‘Make in India’ programme. 

iii. Deepak Ishwarbhai Amin, Director, Central Board of State Bank of India, will inaugurate the conference and deliver the keynote address. 

iv. MD Mallya, former Chairman and Managing Director of Bank of Baroda, will deliver the valedictory address.

12. Dravid in ICC's Anti-Corruption Oversight Group

i. Batting great Rahul Dravid has been named in ICC’s newly appointed Anti-Corruption Oversight Group as part of the recommendation from its Integrity Working Party of  the parent body.

ii. The oversight group will include the chairman of the executive committee (under whose area of responsibility this function rests) and will also include former India captain Rahul Dravid, legal expert Louis Weston and independent anti-corruption advisor John Abbott, who was the Chairman of the Integrity Working Party. The Chairman of the Anti-Corruption Unit, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, and ICC Chief Executive, David Richardson, will also be ex-officio members of the group,” said the ICC in a statement.

iii. Dravid is currently coaching the Indian team in the ongoing U-19 World Cup, which is being held in Bangladesh.

Daily GK Update - 4th February 2016

1. World Bank Expert Mr. Iyer To Lead Swachh Bharat Mission

i. The government has appointed World Bank’s water and sanitation specialist, Parameshwaran Iyer, as the new Secretary of the Drinking Water and Sanitation Department.

ii. Ignoring the case of serving bureaucrats, Iyer, World Bank's Practice Manager for Water for the South Asian region , has been given the post by PM Narendra Modi for two years to steer the Swachh Bharat Mission.

iii. 56-year-old Iyer is a key architect of the framework of the $1,500 million proposed loan from World Bank for the Swach Bharat Mission which is pending Cabinet approval.

iv. Iyer's appointment is expected to create more synergy between the Swachh Bharat Mission and the objectives of the World Bank project . An IAS officer of the UP cadre, who launched Jal Suraj program here, Iyer took voluntary retirement in 2009 and joined the World Bank.

v. Before that, he worked with the UN World Food Programme (UNWFP) for nearly a decade till 2006 as a Senior Rural Water Sanitation specialist on foreign assignment. He was then served a show-cause notice by the Indian government to return and he quit in 2009. 

2. Aruna Sethi appointed as first women head of Indian Cost Accounting Service

i. Aruna Sethi, the Principal Adviser (Cost), on 1 February 2016 took over charge as the head of Indian Cost Accounts Service (ICoAS). With this appointment, she became the first woman to occupy the post.

ii. Prior to the present elevation, Aruna, a 1985 batch ICoAS officer, held important portfolios in Government of India including Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Defence etc.

iii. Indian Cost Accounts Service is one of the six organized accounting services of the Government of India. It is comparatively young accounting service constituted in 1978.

iv. The ICoAS Officers have the requisite skill by virtue of their professional background and experience gained in managing the multifarious and complex issues relating to financial and cost management matters.

v. Office of Chief Adviser Cost is one of the divisions functioning in the Department of Expenditure. It is a professional body staffed by qualified Cost/ Chartered Accountants.

vi. This Office is responsible for advising the Ministries and Government Undertakings on cost accounts matters and to undertake cost investigation work on their behalf.

3. India to participate in Cobra Gold 2016 military exercise in Thailand

i. The term Cobra Gold was in news on 3 February 2016 as India confirmed its participation in the annual amphibious military exercise in 2016. The decision in this regard was conveyed to Thailand, the host country, during Vice President Hamid Ansari’s visit to the country.

ii. It is the largest Asia-Pacific military exercise and held in Thailand every year. It is among the largest multinational military exercise in which the United States participates.

iii. As of 2014, Cobra Gold has three distinct activities, namely, the Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise (CALFEX), Command Post Exercise (CPX) and activity related to assisting the local Thai population.

iv. It was first held in 1982 to improve coordination between the armed forces of the USA and Thailand in both hostile military and humanitarian efforts. As of 2015, the exercise expanded to include 26 nations - Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and other South Asian and Pacific Ocean countries among others.

v. China was admitted to the exercise for the first time in 2015. The exercise was proven effective in improving coordinated military response to natural disasters, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2011 Tōhoku tsunami, and disaster relief provided to the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan struck in November 2013.

4. DJ Pandian appointed Vice President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank

i. Former chief secretary of Gujarat DJ Pandian was appointed vice-president and chief investment officer of the newly-created Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) on 3 February 2016.

ii. His appointment as vice-president and chief investment officer was approved by AIIB. The retired 1981-batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre had worked on deputation with the World Bank in Washington. He was also the MD of Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC).

iii. The Beijing-based 100 billion dollar multi-lateral lender, AIIB was set up in Beijing on 25 December 2015. It was established to boost lending for infrastructure projects such as energy, transportation, urban construction and logistics as well as education and healthcare.

iv. China had nominated its former finance minister Jin Liqun as the first president of AIIB.

v. The three largest shareholders of the bank are China (30.34 percent), India (8.52 percent) and Russia (6.66 percent). Their voting shares are calculated at 26.06 percent, 7.5 percent and 5.92 percent, respectively.

5. Manipuri documentary Phum-Shang won Golden Conch Award at MIFF 2016

i. Manipuri documentary film Phum-Shang on 3 February 2016 bagged the prestigious Golden Conch Award for the best documentary film at the 14th Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Animation and Short Films (MIFF 2016).

ii. The film is directed by Haobam Paban Kumar, an alumnus of the Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute, Kolkata. The 52-minute film critically examines the serious environmental problems faced by the Loktak lake, the largest freshwater lake in northeast India. The lake is characterised by its unique floating biomass, known as Phumdi, which is the primary source of livelihood for fishermen who live on huts built on the Phumdis.

iii. Paban Kumar was presented with the Golden Conch Award and a cash prize of 3 lakh rupees by the Governor of Maharashtra Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao and State Cultural Minister Vinod Tawde at a ceremony in Mumbai.

iv. Swiss film My Name Is Salt and an Indian film Placebo shared the Golden Conch Award for the best feature length documentary film.

My Name Is Salt is directed by Farida Pacha, It is a film about the journey of thousands of families to the Rann of Kutch to extract the whitest salt in the world. The film also won the award for best cinematography.

v. The story of Placebo revolves around the stress and pressure faced by medical students due to intense competition.

6. Dhirubhai Ambani Centre for Innovation and Research in Bangalore

i. Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani announced the establishment of Dhirubhai Ambani Centre for Innovation and Research in Aerospace at Whitefield in Bengaluru.

ii. According to Ambani, “The centre, the first-ever of its kind in the private sector in India, will be a world class facility for research, development and innovation in aerospace technology.” 

iii. The centre would also generate more than 1,500 highly skilled jobs and support government’s plan for indigenous design, development and manufacture of defence equipment.

7. BSE, IFC jointly develop corporate governance scorecard

i. BSE and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) have partnered to develop a corporate governance scorecard. The scorecard seeks to help companies assay their corporate governance performances against national or international-benchmarked practices.

ii Using the scorecard, companies can identify areas of further improvement and track progress over time. It can be used to make board processes more efficient, improve strategy, aid decision-making, and manage risks. Companies can better understand the way in which governance affects their operations.

iii. Improved governance frameworks result in development of efficient capital markets and increased access to capital enables new investments, improves economic growth, and creates jobs.

iv. The scorecard can be used by a wide range of stakeholders, including regulators, promoters, and investors. Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, BSE said, “The collaboration with IFC to develop the scorecard is a revolutionary step towards benchmarking companies in India. The scorecard will result in increased transparency and boost investor confidence.

v. IFC is implementing a South Asia Regional Corporate Governance Project with donor support from Japan’s Ministry of Finance. This five-year project provides advisory services to individual firms and partners with local institutions, such as the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs, to strengthen sector-level work on corporate governance.

8. Government To Infuse About Rs. 5000 Cr. In PSU Banks This Quarter

i. The government will infuse about Rs.5,000 crore capital in the public sector undertaking (PSU) banks in the current fiscal to strengthen their balancesheet. “As committed, banks will get fund infusion in the fourth quarter. Banks will get about Rs.5,000 crore,” financial services secretary Anjuly Chib Duggal said on the sidelines of an event.

ii. Funds would be infused after Parliament approves third Supplementary Demand for Grants in the upcoming Budget session. Last year, the Government announced a revamp plan 'Indradhanush' to infuse Rs70,000 crore in state-owned banks over four years, while they will have to raise a further Rs 1.1 lakh crore from the markets to meet their capital requirements in line with global risk norms Basel III.

iii. As per the blueprint, PSU banks will get Rs.25,000 crore this fiscal and also in the next fiscal. Besides, Rs.10,000 crore each would be infused in 2017-18 and 2018-19. Of the Rs.25,000 crore earmarked for 2015-16, the government has pumped in about Rs.20,088 crore in 13 public sector banks so far.

iv. The government had arrived at Rs 1.8 lakh crore capitalization needs for PSU banks assuming credit growth rate of 12 per cent for the current year and 12-15 per cent for the next three years depending on the size of the bank and their growth ability. Talking about various initiatives taken by the government to deepen the social security net, Duggal said banks are addressing last mile connectivity issues.

v. The department of financial services is having discussions with banks on a regular basis to sort out the issues as soon as possible, she said. Banks like State Bank of India and Andhra Bank are currently addressing issue of Internet connectivity in the 800 identified areas. Besides, steps are being taken to strengthen Internet connectivity in various parts so that direct benefit transfer is made seamless.

9. SBI, Thomas Cook team up for 'inflation-proof' holidays

i. State Bank of India has tied up with Thomas Cook to offer online customers a recurring deposit that helps them save toward an `inflation proof' holiday. Availing the holiday on maturity of the recurring deposit is optional as customers can choose either to travel or redeem their savings. For those who stay on, Thomas Cook will top up the last instalment to pay for their holiday.

ii. "Customers will be offered an inflation-proof holiday as they pay for a future holiday at today's prices while earning interest on the linked e-recurring deposit," SBI said in a statement. The holidays are all inclusive packages in the domestic and international circuit.

iii. According to Rajnish Kumar, md, SBI besides helping people save for vacations this scheme would compel them to plan ahead and avail of lower prices. "We find that people don't plan their holidays in advance and end up taking last minute loans to finance the same. Also, they could've have saved on the cost of the holiday had they booked early," he said.

iv. Madhavan Menon, chairman, Thomas Cook India, said that the tie up with SBI will enable Thomas Cook extend its reach to over 2.5 crore online customers of SBI. "The unbeatable advantage of paying for a future holiday at today's prices, ensures SBI's customers inflation-proof holiday while enjoying attractive interest rates, a zero exit clause and a free top up from Thomas Cook on the 13th month!" Mr Menon added.

10. Budget session to commence on Feb 23, Union Budget on Feb 29

i. The Budget Session of Parliament will commence on February 23 that will focus largely on the financial business of the government, which will present the General Budget on February 29.

ii. But there will be no curtailment of the session or the recess period on account of Assembly elections in five states due shortly. This was decided at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

iii. “The Budget Session of Parliament will commence on February 23. The Rail Budget will be presented on February 25, the pre-Budget Economic Survey on February 26 and the General Budget on February 29. “The first part of the Budget session will end on March 16 and the second part will be convened from April 25 to May 13,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu told presspersons after the meeting of the CCPA.

iv. He said there were suggestions for curtailing the recess period due to Assembly elections in five states but the government as well as political parties wanted a full session.

v. “In 2011, the then government had decided not to refer bills to Standing Committees in the Budget Session when states were going to polls and there were demands to curtail the session. “But the government today decided that bills will be referred to standing committees for examination during the recess period,” Naidu said.

11. It’s billion users for WHATSAPP

i. Mobile messaging app WhatsApp said it has crossed the one billion user milestone globally with the addition of 100 million users in last five months. “As of today, one billion people are using WhatsApp.

ii. That's nearly one in seven people on Earth who use WhatsApp each month to stay in touch with their loved ones, their friends and their family,” WhatsApp said in a blogpost.

iii. In February 2014, WhatsApp was acquired by social networking site Facebook, its biggest buyout till date, for a whopping $19 billion. In a post on Facebook, WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum said 42 billion messages were sent, 1.6 billion photos and 250 million videos shared everyday on the platform. 

12. Sarangi maestro Pandit Ram Narayan gets Bhimsen Joshi Award

i. Sarangi maestro Pandit Ram Narayan has been chosen for the prestigious Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi classical music award for 2015-2016, Maharashtras Cultural Affairs Minister Vinod Tawde announced on Wednesday.

ii. The annual award, instituted by the Maharashtra government, is given to individuals who have excelled in classical vocal or instrumental music, the minister said.

iii. Pandit Ram Narayan, 88, has been playing the sarangi since his childhood, and over the years acquired global acclaim for his music for which he was conferred Indias second higest civilian honour, Padma Vibhushan, in 2005. Pandit Ram Narayan popularized the bowed instrument sarangi as a solo concert instrument in Hindustani classical music and became the first internationally successful sarangi player.

iv. In 1944, All India Radio, Lahore, hired him as an accompanist for vocalists. He became a concert solo artist in 1956. He recorded solo albums and began to tour America and Europe in the 1960s.

Daily GK Update - 3rd February 2016

1. Invest Karnataka 2016

i. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today urged the global investor community at 'Invest Karnataka 2016' to consider Karnataka as their partner for growth.

ii. Citing the Global Startup Eco-system Ranking Report 2015, Siddaramaiah pointed out that Bengaluru is the only Indian city to be ranked amongst the 20 Startup Eco- systems in the World.

iii. At the 'Invest Karnataka 2016' meet, Siddarmaiah said, "Karnataka is being put on a high growth trajectory. Our focus is to ensure economic growth for each and every person in the State. Our goal is to make our state highly prosperous. Our government is working towards propelling Karnataka to contribute to India's growth in a significant way." 

iv. He claimed that ever since the Congress took over the office, Karnataka has received Foreign Direct Investment worth USD 5.2 Billion. "We rank as the state with the Second highest FDI in India. We have cleared more than 500 projects worth over USD 20 Billion".

v. He said,"Our goal is to make Karnataka the growth engine of India".

2. Vice President visit to Thailand

i. Vice President Hamid Ansari reached Thailand on a three-day visit during which he will hold discussions on a range of issues with the country's top leadership to boost bilateral ties.

ii. He was received at the airport by Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Prajin Juntong.

iii. Ansari will have a one-to-one meeting with Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who will also host a banquet in Ansari's honour.

iv. This is the first visit by an Indian Vice President to Thailand after a gap of 50 years.

v. Ansari, during his visit, will also have an audience with Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and deliver a speech at the Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok on 'From Look East to Act East: India's Partnership with Thailand and ASEAN' besides addressing the Indian community at a reception to be hosted by the Indian Ambassador to Thailand. He will return to Delhi on Friday.

3. Former Deputy Governer S.S.Tarapore passes away

i. S.S. Tarapore, former deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and a noted economist, passed away in Mumbai on Tuesday. Tarapore had been in hospital in Mumbai for the last few days, and breathed his last on Tuesday morning. He was 80.

ii. Tarapore joined the RBI in 1961 and retired in 1996 as deputy governor, having been involved in almost all aspects of monetary policy. 

iii. RBI governor Raghuram Rajan said in an e-mail statement: “Shri Tarapore was an extremely well regarded central banker, His contributions as a member on the two Narasimham Committees set the tone of first generation reforms in the financial sector.

iv. Tarapore was also known as an inflation hawk, chiding policymakers through his public comments and writings for being too lax on inflation control.

4. Titli became first Indian film to win Best First Foreign Film award by FSCC

i. Indian film-maker Kanu Behl directorial Titli on 1 February 2016 bagged the Best First Foreign Film Award conferred by the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics 2016 (FSCC).

ii. Titli has earlier won at various international film festivals at places like Bordeaux, Hawaii, New York, Turkey and Spain.

iii. The story of the movie revolves around Titli, the youngest member of a violent car-jacking brotherhood, who plots a desperate bid to escape the family business.

5. Former Loksabha Speaker Balram Jakhar Passes Away

i. Veteran Congress leader and former Lok Sabha Speaker Balram Jakhar passed away in New Delhi on Wednesday. He was 92.

ii. Jakhar served as Speaker of Lok Sabha from 1980 to 1989 during which he contributed to the establishment of Parliament Museum. He also served as Agriculture Minister in the Cabinet of former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao.

iii. Jakhar also served as Governor of Madhya Pradesh from 30 June, 2004 to 30 May, 2009

iv. Jakhar headed Business Advisory Committee, Rules Committee, General Purposes Committee, and Standing Committee of the Conference of Presiding Officers of Legislative Bodies in India.

v. he became General Secretary All India Congress Committee in 1990 and from 1992 he was member, Congress Working Committee.

6. Ban appoints Major General Menon as UNDOF head

i. Major General Jai Shanker Menon of the Indian Army, a veteran of peacekeeping operations, has been appointed as the head of a key United Nations force stationed in Golan to maintain the ceasefire between Israeli and Syrian forces.

ii. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has named Major General Menon as the Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF).

iii. He succeeds Nepal’s Lt Gen Purna Chandra Thapa, who will complete his assignment on February 7.

iv. Major General Menon has held a number of command positions in the Indian Army, including Commandant of Regimental Training Centre, Brigade Commander and Battalion Commander.

7. Jai Kumar Garg appointed as MD and CEO of Corporation Bank

i. The Union Government appointed Jai Kumar Garg as Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Corporation Bank for a period of three years.

ii. Garg took charge of the public sector bank on 1 February 2016, succeeding S R Bansal, who superannuated from services as CMD on 31 January 2016.

iii. Garg is a chartered accountant and also associate member of Indian Institute of Banking and Finance. Prior to his appointment at Corporation Bank, he worked as executive director in UCO Bank. 

8. TCS Rated World's Most Powerful Brand in IT Services: Report

i. India's top multinational IT company Tata Consultancy Services has been rated as the world's most powerful brand in Information Technology Services by a leading global brand valuation firm, the company said on Wednesday.

ii. Brand Finance's 2016 annual report evaluated thousands of the world's top brands to determine which are the most powerful and the most valuable. Scoring highly on a wide variety of measures such as familiarity, loyalty, staff satisfaction and corporate reputation, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) emerged as the IT services industry's most powerful brand with a score of 78.3 points - earning it an AA+ rating.

iii. "TCS' customer focus has been central to its recent success, but a closer look at our data shows strong and improving scores for brand investment and staff satisfaction too," said David Haigh, CEO, Brand Finance.

iv. "It has emerged as a dominant force in the IT services industry and is the strongest brand in the sector. Its brand power is indisputable," Haigh said. Across all industries, Disney was rated as the most powerful brand and Apple as the most valuable brand for 2016. According to the report, TCS is also the fastest growing brand within its industry over the last 6 years.

v. The company's overall brand value has increased from $2.34 billion in 2010 (when the first evaluation of the TCS brand was conducted) to $9.4 billion in 2016.

9. Reliance Entertainment, Neeraj Pandey join hands to form film production venture

i. Billionaire Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Entertainment today announced a joint venture with film-maker producer duo Neeraj Pandey and Shital Bhatia’s Friday Filworks for production of movies.

ii. Akshay Kumar starrer ‘Rustom’ will be the first movie under the banner, Plan C Studios. Plan C Studios will be an equal partnership joint venture between the two, the company said in a statement.

iii. Neeraj Pandey won acclaim with his very first film ‘A Wednesday’ in 2008, which went on to win the National Award. Subsequently, he directed ‘Special 26’ in 2013, and ‘Baby’ in 2015. Neeraj is currently on the floors with ‘MS Dhoni -The Untold Story’, one of the most anticipated films of the year.

iv. “We are delighted to partner with creative minds like Neeraj and Shital. This relationship is in line with our continuing strategy in the media and entertainment business, of partnering with like minded and successful individuals, while playing the role of supportive investors on our part,” Amitabh Jhunjhunwala, Group Managing Director, Reliance Group, said.

v. Commenting on the partnership, Neeraj Pandey said: “The partnership with Reliance Group is very significant and welcome, as it enables us to further raise the bar on our continued strategy of developing cutting edge commercial content. We like to keep pushing the envelope, and this partnership will greatly expand our vision.”

vi. Reliance Entertainment has produced, distributed and released more than 170 films in multiple Indian languages, including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Bengali. Internationally, it has partnered with iconic film producer and director Steven Spielberg.

10. Haryana, Ontario ink pact for cooperation
i. Haryana and the Province of Ontario in Canada today signed an MoU aimed at enhancing commercial and cultural ties.
ii. The MoU was signed by the Managing Director of Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd, Sudhir Rajpal, and Deputy Minister of Ontario Ministry of Citizenship, Immigration and International Trade, Helen Angus, in the presence of Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Premier of Ontario, Kathleen Wynne, and Premier of Prince Edward Island, Wade MacLauchlan.
iii. The two sides decided to designate nodal agencies for timely and effective communication on matters of common interest, an official said.
iv. Khattar said this was the first time that such nodal agencies have been designated. He said the Haryana government would organise ‘Happening Haryana Global Investors’ Summit-2016’ in Gurgaon on March 7 and 8 to attract investors to the State and extended an invitation to the Ontario Premier for the meet.
v. Khattar said the agreement inked by the two sides would help facilitate knowledge transfer in areas such as museum development and cultural preservation.

11. ZTE Soft inks pact with AP
i. Chinese technology company ZTE has inked a pact with the Andhra Pradesh government to work on smart city projects in the state. As a company associated with a number of smart city projects, the diversified telecom and technology major ZTE plans to engage itself with the state and work on the upcoming smart city projects in Andhra Pradesh.
ii. A memorandum of understanding was inked between GS Phani Kumar, Special Secretary, Information and Technology, Andhra Pradesh and ZTE Soft MD SH Prasoon Sharma in the presence of State IT and Information Minister Palle Ragunath Reddy, here, according to a statement.
iii. ZTE Soft has been engaged with more than 140 smart city projects globally and is keen to work on smart city projects in India. With the Narendra Modi government seeking to lay special thrust on development of smart cities, ZTE has already begun to engage itself with smart city initiatives in Gujarat and plans to expand its presence.
iv. Under the letter of intent inked by ZTE, it proposes to work with AP on not only smart cities, E-Pragathi project, Incubation Centre, smart technology projects among others which the State has initiated.
v. Two of AP cities –Visakhapatnam and Kakinada – have been chosen to be part of the smart city projects in the first phase announced recently.

12. Samariya given additional charge as CPFC
i. HL Samariya, a 1985 batch IAS officer from the Telangana cadre, has been given additional charge as Central Provident Fund Commissioner (CPFC), for three months or till the appointment of a regular incumbent or till further orders, a release said.
ii. Samariya is currently Additional Secretary in the Labour Ministry.The additional charge of Secretary, Department of Agriculture, has been given to Ashok Kumar Angurana, a 1980 J&K cadre officer.

13. Kerala emerges as winner of 61st National School Athletics championship

i. The National School Athletics championship began on January 29 and concluded yesterday, i.e on February 2. Kerala emerged as the overall winner for the 19th consecutive time. The national School Athletics championship was held at Olympian Rahman Stadium in Kozhikode, Kerala.

ii. According to newspaper reports, Kerala, the host of the championship got 306 points winning 39 gold, 29 silver and 17 bronze medals. On the other hand, Tamil Nadu stood at second position with 116 points winning 11 gold, 8 silver and 13 bronze medals.

iii. Maharashtra with 101 points obtained the third position. The venue of this event of Athletics is at the Olympian Abdurrahman Stadium in Medical College Ground at Kozhikode, Kerala.The School Games Federation of India hosted the 61st National Schools Athletics Championship 2016 (SGFI 2015-16) at Kozhikode (Calicut). As many as 3,000 athletes representing 36 teams are took part in the five-day meet.

iv. Ten of the Kerala athletes won meet records. Kerala could not overcome their 46 gold record score in 2009 this year as well. State Education Minister P K Abdu Rubb presented the prize at the concluding session. Kerala's Anumol Thampi won the Junior Girls section 3000m with a record breaking effort of 9:47.19 seco, eclipsing the meet mark of 10:00.03s by Ritu Dinakar of Uttar Pradesh in 2008 in Kolkata.

v. In the Junior Boys 3000m, P N Ajith (Ker) claimed the first spot finishing the race in 8:46.54s and Karthik Kumar (UP) came second with 8:47.69s. Vidya Bharathi's Shyam finished third with 8:49.37s.

Daily GK Update - 2nd February 2016

1. WHO declared Public Health Emergency of International Concern over Zika virus outbreak

i. World Health Organisation (WHO) on 1 February 2016 declared Public Health Emergency of International Concern over the explosive spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus, which is linked to birth defects in the Americas. 

ii. The UN health agency convened an emergency meeting of independent experts in Geneva to assess the outbreak of the virus. The meeting was convened after noting a suspicious link between Zika's arrival in Brazil in 2015 and a surge in the number of babies born with abnormally small heads.

iii. This was the first meeting of the Emergency Committee (EC) convened by the Director-General under the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR 2005).

iv. Zika virus (ZIKV) is a member of the virus family Flaviviridae and the genus Flavivirus, transmitted by daytime-active Aedes mosquitoes, such as A. aegypti. In case of humans, the virus cases mild illness known as Zika fever (Zika or Zika disease). It has been occurring since the 1950s within a narrow equatorial belt from Africa to Asia. 

v. In 2014, the virus spread eastward across the Pacific Ocean to French Polynesia, then to Easter Island and in 2015 to Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America, where the Zika outbreak has reached pandemic levels.

vi. Earlier in last week of January 2016, WHO estimated that there could be up to 4 million cases of Zika in Americas by 2017 but no recommendations didn’t issued travel restriction or trade.

2. Saroj Kumar Jha appointed Senior Director for Fragility, Conflict and Violence Group at World Bank

i. An Indian national Saroj Kumar Jha was in news as he was appointed as the Senior Director for the Fragility, Conflict and Violence Group at the World Bank on 1 February 2016.

ii. He was appointed to provide strategic leadership to address the challenge of fragility, conflict and violence, working across the Bank Group and in close collaboration with partnes.

iii. The WB President Jim Young Kim assigned him the new role. Earlier to this, he was the World Bank Regional Director for Central Asia based in Almaty, Kazakhstan since February 2012. He also worked as the World Bank's Global Manager for Disaster Risk Management Practice.

iv.  He is an Indian national and holds a dual degree in civil engineering and development economics from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur, India. He joined the World Bank in 2005 as a Senior Infrastructure Specialist in the Sustainable Development Network.

v. He had significant experience with the Government of India and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) as a senior executive in the field of public sector management, infrastructure financing, natural resources management, natural disaster prevention and environmental sustainability.

3. Himachal Pradesh to spend 15 crore rupees on Swachh Bharat Mission in Kinnaur

i. The Himachal Pradesh Government in the first week of February 2016 decided to spend 15 crore rupees on Swachh Bharat Mission in tribal district of Kinnaur.

ii. The funds will be utilized on capacity building and organizing of workshops for awareness. Under the Mission, target has been also fixed to involve all the schools, government institutions and villages.

iii. Under the Mission, the first instalment of four crore fifty lakh rupees has been received by the district authorities. Every single household will be given 12 thousand rupees for toilet construction for which survey was conducted in the year 2012.

iv. A special cleanliness drive will be launched under Swachh Bharat Mission with the help of Youth and Mahila Mandals in all the 65 Panchayats. Five Panchayats have been selected under Solid Waste Management where organic fertilizers will be made from the waste.

4. Archana Ramasundram became 1st woman to head paramilitary force

i. Tamil Nadu Cadre IPS officer Archana Ramasundram on 1 February 2016 was appointed as the Director General of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) that guards India's frontiers with Nepal and Bhutan.

ii. With this appointment, Ramasundram became the first woman to head a paramilitary force. 58-year-old Ramasundram is currently the Director of National Crime Records Bureau.

iii. An order issued by Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said that she has been appointed to the post till the date of her superannuation, that is, 30 September 2017.

iv. Besides, IPS officer K Durga Prasad was appointed as Director Generals of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). Another IPS officer K K Sharma will be new Chief of the Border Security Force (BSF). They will take over after the incumbent chiefs of these forces retire on 29 February 2016.

v. Paramilitary forces in India are Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force and Indo Tibetan Border Police.

5. Alphabet officially dethrones Apple as the world’s most valuable company

i. Alphabet, the company that owns Google, has overtaken rival Apple in Monday’s extended trading to become the highest valued company in the world. Alphabet now comes before Apple atop the list of the world’s most valuable companies.

ii. Operating income from its core businesses rose 23% in 2015. Investors liked what they saw and shares spiked 8% in after-hours trading. The Mountain View, Calif. firm generated $21.3 billion in revenue, beating Wall Street estimates of $20.8 billion. Earnings were $8.67 per share, beating estimates of $8.09 per share. The company attributed its strong revenue growth to search ads, YouTube and programmatic advertising.

iii. By changing its name and structure last year, Alphabet Chief Executive Officer Larry Page has put the focus on the company’s main web business while giving more insight into investments in new areas such as artificial intelligence, self-driving cars, health technology and fast Internet access. Even though Apple has also been building expertise in cars and AI, the secretive company has kept much of that under wraps.

iv. Google and Apple have worked to improve mobile computing, and their competition has seen Apple’s iOS smartphone operating system fight out against Google’s own Android for dominance since the latter emerged on the market in 2008 and became the system of choice for Samsung. The South Korean tech giant is in turn Apple’s major competitor in smartphone production, and the two are involved in litigation over patent infringement.

6. SBI FlexiPay Home Loan launched

i. tate Bank of India has launched its "SBI FlexiPay Home Loan" aimed at youngsters with a rising income. The loan allows takers the option of only paying the interest on the loan for the first years.

ii. Targeted at the salaried-class, the interest rate is currently 9.55% - with women applicants having to pay a lower interest of 9.50%. The loan also has an additional rider in that the candidates gets 20% extra of the loan amount they are eligible for. "Say the person is eligible for a Rs 1 crore loan, then under FlexiPay loan - he can avail of a loan amount of Rs 1.2 crore," he said.

iii. If the applicants wants to close the loan earlier than the time period of 25-30 years, then they can do so without incurring pre-payment charges.

7. Modi to open ayurveda meet at Kozhikode

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive at Kozhikode early this afternoon to open the 'vision conclave’ of the Global Ayurveda Fest.

ii. The ayurveda fest, being held from January 31 to February 4, is showcasing the ayurvedic tradition of healing, a major Kerala heritage, to the world. The show also aims to jack up export of ayurvedic products, especially to Europe.

iii. This is the first time Modi is visiting Kozhikode after taking over as Prime Minister. More than 1,000 police personnel are being deployed in Kozhikode to give a security cover to Modi.

8. S N Prasad assumes charge as CIL director

i. S N Prasad has taken over as Director (Marketing), Coal India Ltd, from February 1.

ii. According to a CIL release, Prasad has succeeded B K Saxena, who has retired.

iii. Prior to this elevation Prasad was General Manager (Sales & Marketing) in South Eastern Coalfields Ltd, the Bilaspur-based subsidiary of CIL.

9. Govt sets up two new tax committees to bring coherence in policies

i. The government has set up two new committees -- Tax Policy Research Unit and Tax Policy Council in order to bring coherence and streamline the direct and indirect tax policy and administration.

ii. Led by the Finance Minister, the Tax Policy Council would suggest broad policy measures for taxation based on inputs from the Tax Policy Research Unit (TPRU).

iii. These would include Ministers of State for Finance and Commerce and Industry, Deputy Chairman, NITI Aayog, Chief Economic Adviser, Finance Secretary as well as Secretaries to the Departments of Revenue, Economic Affairs, Commerce and Industrial Policy and Promotion.

iv. The Chairpersons of the Central Board of Direct Taxes and the Central Board of Excise and Customs will be special invitees. Meanwhile, the TPRU will be a multi-disciplinary body to examine and analyse any fiscal or tax policy referred by the CBDT and CBEC and also prepare and disseminate policy papers and background papers on various taxation issues.

v. “It will assist Tax Policy Council in policy decisions and also liaise with State commercial tax departments,” said the Finance Ministry. The TPRU will include officials from the CBDT and the CBEC as well as economists, statisticians, operational researchers and legal experts.

10. National Pension System has 1.15 crore subscribers now

i. The National Pension System now has 1.15 crore subscribers, each with an average ₹ 95,000 of assets under management. “The total assets under management are worth ₹1,09,140 crore while assets under management per subscriber is ₹95,000 on an average,” said the Finance Ministry on Tuesday, adding that the total corpus of the National Pension System (NPS) is ₹90, 327 crore.

ii. The scheme has 16,11,020 Central government employees as subscribers, amounting to 14.1 per cent of its total member base. They have a total corpus of ₹34,754 crore.

iii. Meanwhile, 28,59,094 State government employees are members of the NPS, amounting to quarter of it total subscribers and having a corpus of ₹45,486 crore. The NPS for private citizens has 5,76,993 subscribers --- 4,48,509 members from the corporate sector and 1,28,484 from the unorganised sector.

iv. The largest chunk of subscribers to the retirement saving scheme comes from NPS Lite, which has 44,63,637, constituting 39 per cent of the total membership. It has now been discontinued and replaced with the Atal Pension Yojana that has 19,48,811, subscribers or 17 per cent of the total members.

11. Rishabh Pant slams fastest fifty in huge India win

i. India Under-19 opener Rishabh Pant had the fastest recorded U-19 international century comfortably in his sights when he was dismissed for 78 off 24 balls, having blown Nepal Under-19 away in a small chase.

ii. Pant did break the record for the fastest recorded U-19 fifty though, getting there in 18 balls, one faster than the previous mark.

iii. He added 124 in 9.1 overs with his captain Ishan Kishan, who scored 52 off 40 balls. India eventually chased down Nepal's score of 169 with 179 balls to spare in Mirpur.

iv. His strike rate of 325 meant that had he scored 22 more runs in singles Pant would have still broken the record for the fastest u-19 hundred by seven deliveries.