Daily GK Update: 17th July 2019

Appointment

1. B B Harichandan & Anusaiya Uikey appointed Governors of AP and Chhattisgarh

• President Ramnath Kovind has appointed BJP senior leader Biswa Bhushan Harichandran (84-years) as Andhra Pradesh governor.
• He replaced ESL Narasimhan,serving as the governor of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
• Narasimhan was appointed as the governor of united Andhra Pradesh has continued as the governor of both the Telugu states after bifurcation.
• Earlier, Mr. Harichandran was elected to Odisha Assembly for the five times from Bhubaneshwar and Chilika.
• He also served as a former law minister in BJD-BJP government in Odisha in 2004.
• President Ram Nath Kovind has appointed Senior tribal BJP leader Anusuiya Uikey as Governor of Chhattisgarh.
• Anusuiya Uikey has replaced Anandiben Patel, who as Governor of Madhya Pradesh was also holding the charge of Chhattisgarh.
• An official release said the appointments will take effect from the dates they assume charge of their offices.

Source: India Today

2. European Commission elects first female president

• German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen (60-years) has been elected as the European Commission's first female president.
• Leyen's nomination was approved by 383 votes (required 374), at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France.
• There were 327 votes against her and 22 abstentions.
• Von der Leyen was nominated to become the first woman in Brussels' top job last month by the leaders of the bloc's 28 member states, to the annoyance of many MEPs.

Note:

• The President of the European Commission is the head of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union.
• The President of the Commission leads a cabinet of Commissioners, referred to as the college, collectively accountable to the European Parliament.

3. Christine Lagarde resigns as managing director of IMF 

• International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Christine Lagarde has resigned ahead of a decision on her nomination to become head of the European Central Bank (ECB).
• Her resignation has been accepted by the IMF Executive Board, which will come into effect from 12 September.
• If the European Council approves Ms Lagarde's ECB nomination, she will become the central bank's first-ever female leader, responsible for the Euro and the monetary policy of the eurozone.
• The former French cabinet minister has been heading the IMF since 2011.

Note:

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C.
• It consists of 189 countries working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.

Source: AIR News

 Important Days

4. 17 July: World Day for International Justice

• World Day for International Justice(or International Criminal Justice Day) is being observed globally on 17^th July every year to recognise the strengthening system of international justice.
• The day (17^th - July) was chosen because it is the anniversary of the adoption of the Rome Statute, the treaty that created the International Criminal Court.

Note: On 1 June 2010, at the Review Conference of the Rome Statute held in Kampala (Uganda), the Assembly of State Parties decided to celebrate 17 July as the Day of International Criminal Justice.

 Obituaries

4. Lt Gen Jacob (1971 war hero) passes away

• Lt Gen J F R Jacob (92-years) passed away after a prolonged illness.
• Lt Gen J F R Jacob (Retd) negotiated the surrender of Pakistani troops in Dhaka following the 1971 war and the liberation of Bangladesh.
• Jacob, then a Major General, served as the Chief of Staff of the Indian Army's Eastern Command during the war.
• Jacob joined the army at the age of 19 and also fought in World War II and the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965before he retired in 1978.
• Post-retirement, he also served as the Governor of the west Indian state of Goa and north Indian state of Punjab.

Source: The Times of India

Honours & Awards

6. The Sangeet Natak Akademi announces winners for 2018

• The 44 artists were selected from the field of Music, Dance, Theatre, Traditional, Folk, Tribal Music, Dance, Theatre, Puppetry and Overall contribution or scholarship in the Performing Arts for the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards for the year 2018.
• Zakhir Hussain (Tabla Maestro), Sonal Mansingh(dancer), Jatin Goswami (dancer and choreographer) and K Kalyanasundaram Pillai (Bharatnatyam exponent) have been selected in the Akademi Ratna category.
• Diwan Singh Bajeli and Puru Dadhich have been selected for the Akademi Award 2018 in the field of Overall Contribution/Scholarship in the Performing Arts.
• The artistes include, Mani Prasad (Hindustani Vocal), Tarun Bhattacharya (for Hindustani Instrumental – Santoor), Radha Sridhar (for Bharatanatyam), Akham Lakshmi Devi (for Manipuri), Rajiv Naik (for Playwriting) and Malini Awasthi (in Folk Music).

Note:

• The Sangeet Natak Akademi (since 1952) is an Autonomous Body under the Ministry of Culture.
• The honour of Akademi Fellow carries purse money of Rs.3,00,000 and Akademi Award carries Rs 1,00,000 besides a Tamrapatra and Angavastram.

Source: AIR News

7. Rohan Bopanna and Smriti Mandhana got Arjuna Award

• Sports and Youth Affairs Minister conferred Arjuna Awards to Rohan Bopanna (tennis player) and Smriti Mandhana (Women cricketer).
• Rohan Bopanna had won the Gold medal in tennis men’s double category in Asian Games 2018.
• Smriti Mandhana was the ICC women’s player of the year 2018.
• The award carries a cash prize of 500,000, a bronze statue of Arjuna and a scroll.
• The duo did not receive the Arjuna Awards during the Award ceremony held last year (25^th September 2018) in Rashtrapati Bhawan, as they were out of the country taking part in international tournaments.
• Scheme of Arjuna Awards provides the awardees who are not able to come to receive the award during the presentation ceremony may later receive the same from the Minister-in-charge for Youth Affairs and Sports.

Note:

• The Arjuna Awards (started in 1961) are given by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India to recognize outstanding achievement in sports.

Source: DD News

International Affairs

8. Indian entries bag six awards at SAARC Film Festival

• Indian entries bagged six awards including the Best Feature Film for the movie Nagarkirtan at the 9th SAARC Film Festival held in Colombo.
• The cast and crew of the Bengali film for which Kaushik Ganguly got Best Director Award.
• Riddhi Sen won the best actor award for the movie while Prabuddha Bannerjee bagged Best Original Score at the film Festival.

Source: AIR News

9. India-Uzbekistan hold meet on counter-terrorism

• The 8th meeting of India-Uzbekistan Joint Working Group on counter-terrorism was held in New Delhi.
• The Group discussed measures to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the sphere of counter-terrorism through information sharing, mutual capacity building and sharing of best practices.
• Cooperation in multilateral fora including UN, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure and EAG was also discussed.
• The Joint Working Group reviewed threats posed by terrorist groups worldwide and in their respective regions including cross border terrorism.
• The next meeting of the Joint Working Group will be held in Uzbekistan on a mutually convenient date.

Source: Economics Times

National Affairs

10. Maharashtra govt hikes compensation for kin of Jawans killed in the line of duty

• Maharashtra state cabinet headed by CM Devendra Fadnavis has decided to increase the compensation from 25 lakh to one crore rupees for families of security personnel hailing from the state who lay down their lives in the line of duty.
• A cabinet note stated that personnel wounded in a conflict will get monetary compensations ranging from 20 lakh to 60 lakh rupees each, depending on the severity of their injury.
• The state Cabinet also decided to raise the allowances for special teachers attached with the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan by 1500 rupees, taking it to 21,500 rupees.

11. India, Italy to set up a fast-track mechanism to facilitate investment

• India and Italy have decided to set up a fast track mechanism to facilitate investors and companies.
• The meeting was attended by Lorenzo Angeloni (Ambassador of Italy to India) and Ramesh Abhishek (Secretary, DIPP) in New Delhi.
• The fast-track system in Italy aims to identify and solve problems faced by Indian companies and investors.

Source: AIR news

12. Public awareness campaign launched to accelerate vector control measures

• A three-day public awareness campaign to accelerate vector control measures got underway in Delhi.
• The campaign aims to sensitize and mobilise the community on measures for prevention and control of Vector-Borne Diseaseslike Malaria, Dengue and Chikungunya.
• Today, Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan visited the Hauz Khas area, including schools and RWAs, and inspected domestic breeding of mosquitoes.
• According to Health Minister, this is for the first time that three governments-national, state and local bodies will converge in their efforts to mobilise the community for a public health activity.

Source: AIR News

Banking and Finance

13. The interest rate on GPF lowered to 7.9 per cent

• The Union government has lowered the interest rate on the General Provident Fund (GPF) by 10 basis points at the rate of 7.9% during 1^stJuly to 30th September 2019.
• This is at par with the Public Provident Fund (PPF), the small saving scheme with the longest maturity.
• All government employees who joined service on or before December 31, 2003, contribute to GPF.
• An officer/employee contributes 6 per cent of his/her basic salary with an equal contribution from the Government.

Note:

• GPF (General Provident Fund) is a savings scheme available to government employees.
• GPF is managed by the Department of Pension and Pensioner’s Welfare under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.
• EPF (Employees’ Provident Fund) is a savings scheme available to employees in companies with more than 20 workers, comes under the Ministry of Labour.
• PPF (Public Provident Fund) is available to everyone – whether employed, self-employed or unemployed.

Source: Business Line

Sports

14. 21st Commonwealth Table Tennis C'ship begins today

• Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lalopened the 21st edition ofCommonwealth Table Tennis Championship at the Jawaharlal Indoor Stadium in Cuttack.
• The event will witness the top players from Australia, Bangladesh, Cyprus, England, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Scotland, South Africa, Singapore and Wales.
• Ghana, Guyana and Pakistan pulled out of the 21st Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships.
• The tournament will conclude on Monday.

Source: AIR News

15. Vijayveer wins his 3rd gold at Junior Shooting World Cup

• Vijayveer Sidhu picked up his third gold medal of the ongoing ISSF Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany,combining with Rajkanwar Singh Sandhu and Adarsh Singh to clinch the men's 25m pistol event.
• For Adarsh, it was his second gold of the competition.
• India maintained its top spot at the medal standings after day three with 7 gold 7 Silver and 2 Bronze in a total of 16 medals won so far.
• China is second with 5 Gold 3 Silver and 5 bronze. 

Source: AIR News