January 04 – Current Affairs Quick Gyan

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the Quick Gyan (QG) Section of D2G. QG is just a glimpse of what happened today all over the world.

Only For Serious Candidates : We strongly recommend you to read the Current Affairs in detail. For your convenience, we have provided quick links under the updates. Make use of it.

                                             Always Keep Yourself Updated!!!

INDIAN AFFAIRS

1. BSNL to set up 40,000 Wi-Fi Hotspots in the country

Public sector telecom major BSNL is working on setting up 40,000 Wi-Fi Hotspots in the country to counter its inadequacy in providing 4G data services. According to BSNL CMD Anupam Shrivastava they are at present neither a 4G service provider, nor do they have the relevant spectrum to launch this service. But to deal with this challenge, we are working on a scheme to set up 40,000 Wi-Fi Hotspots in the country, as it (Wi-Fi Hotspot) is faster than 4G services. Under the scheme, 500 Wi-Fi Hotspots have been set up in the country, and the company plans to increase them to 2,500 in the current financial year.

Quick Link – BSNL turns with 40k in Wi Fi Hotspots

2. 8 dead, 100 injured as 6.8 earthquake hits Northeast India

A strong 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck northeast India early on January 4, sending panicked residents fleeing into the streets. The epicentre of the earthquake, which occurred at 4.37 am at a depth of 17 km below the ground, was at Tamenglong which is located 33 kilometers from Imphal in Manipur. Manipur government decided to close all schools for a week. Another aftershock of 3.4 magnitude felt at 2.30 pm.

Quick Link – Earthquake hits in Manipur

3. Nitin Gadkari announces road projects worth Rs 41,000 crore for Telangana

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on January 4 announced road projects worth Rs 41,000 crore for Telangana. The announcement also includes two Express Highways from the state capital Hyderabad to Bengaluru in Karnataka and Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh. The Union Road Transport and Highways Minister laid the foundation stone of 4-lane of Yadgir and Warangal section of NH-202 (new NH-163) of length 99 km costing Rs 1,424 crore.

Quick Link – Nitin Gadkari announces road projects for Telangana

4. Nasscom opposes Airtel Zero, Free Basics plans

The industry body Nasscom today opposed Airtel Zero and Free Basics type platforms which it feels violate net neutrality principles by differentiating internet access for certain types of services. We at Nasscom oppose any model where TSPs (Telecom service providers) have a say or discretion in choosing a content that is made available at favourable rates or speeds etc.

Quick Link – Nasscom opposes Airtel

5. Sachin Tendulkar named brand ambassador for diabetes awareness campaign

Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar would be the brand ambassador for ‘changing diabetes’ for Novo Nordisk, world’s leading diabetes care company, announced on January 4. This programme in India is to fight against the lifestyle disease. The announcement supports Novo Nordisk’s efforts focused on creating awareness about diabetes and its related complications.

Quick Link – Sachin is Brand ambassador for diabetes awarness

BANKING & FINANCE

6. IDBI Bank raises Rs 1,900 crore via Basel-III compliant bonds

Public sector lender IDBI Bank has raised Rs 1,900 crore through two separate Basel-III complaint tier-II bonds on private placement basis. The funds would help the bank to augment its capital adequacy ratio by about 55 basis points. This is in addition to Rs.1,000 crore raised on December 31, 2015 through the issue of similar bonds to Employees’Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) but with 15 years tenure from the date of deemed allotment.

Quick Link – IDBI raises Rs 1,900 crore through Basel-III

7. RBI imposes Rs 1 crore fine on State Bank of Travancore

Reserve Bank has imposed a penalty of Rs 1 crore on an SBI associate bank, State Bank of Travancore, for violation of some of its instructions.

This action is based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by the bank and its customers        -RBI said in a statement.

Quick Link – RBI imposes SBT

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

8. ARAI to collaborate with Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre

Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) has joined hands with the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) to develop a battery for passenger cars using technology. This will be useful to make batteries for space vehicles. According to ARAI, the association will develop and test batteries for use in electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles and then offer to transfer the technology to manufacturers for mass production to bring down the cost of these batteries significantly. The project envisages leveraging strengths of both ARAI and VSSC. The focus of the research will be to develop technology in EV / HEV applications for Indian automotive industry and facilitate promotion of green mobility platform, also promoting import substitution and the government’s mission of ‘Make in India’.

Quick Link – ARAI with Vikram Sarabhai Space centre

9. All IRNSS satellites to be in orbit by March: ISRO

Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) all the seven satellites of Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) are expected to be in the orbit by March 2016. IRNSS-1E is slated for launch on January 20 from the space port of Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. Earlier ISRO launched four satellites. Another satellite IRNSS-1E is on the launch pad. It is slated for launch on January 20.

Quick Link – All IRNSS hits on March 

MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

10. Paytm acquires Delhi-based company Shifu

Paytm, a mobile payment and commerce platform has acquired Shifu, a context-aware personal assistant application. Shifu mines the smartphone usage patterns of users and makes personalised and relevant recommendations to them. Through the acquisition, Paytm aims to leverage the tech infrastructure of Shifu to enrich the customer experience it offers to its users. The 20-member team behind Shifu has also come on board across various verticals at Paytm.

Quick Link – Paytm acquires Shifu

ART AND CULTURE

11. India, Myanmar craftsmanship collaborate at 30th Dastkari Haat

For the 30th edition of the annual festival which commenced on January 1, Dastkari Haat Samiti, supported by Ministry of External Affairs and the Embassy of India in Myanmar, has collaborated to exhibit traditional crafts like shell craft, basketry, mat weaving, handloom textile weaving, hyacinth grass weaving and jewellery from the neighbouring country.

Artisans from Myanmar and their Indian counterparts are participating in a Crafts and Skill Development Workshop where new product designs will be created besides, establishing “long term friendships.”

Quick Link – India and Myanmar craftsmanship at Dastkari Haat

APPOINTMENTS

12. Wipro names Abidali Neemuchwala as its new CEO

India’s third largest software exporter Wipro has named former TCS veteran and current chief operating officer Abidali Neemuchwala as its new chief executive, a move that was widely expected and reported earlier.

Current CEO TK Kurien, who completes five years as CEO later in January, will become executive vice chairman effective. Neemuchwala who has also been appointed as a board member will take over his new role on the same day.

Wipro said Kurien would continue to report to Premji and remain on the board till March 31, 2017

Quick Link – Abidali Neemucchwala, The CEO of Wipro


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