Dear Aspirants,
The General Awareness Section plays an important role in scoring well above cut off marks in any competitive exam. The Banking Awareness and Static Awareness questions asked in the General Awareness Section are based on Current Affairs mainly. So you need to prepare well this section to score good marks. Here is the Daily GK Update to get you acquainted with the top events that made the headlines today!
The General Awareness Section plays an important role in scoring well above cut off marks in any competitive exam. The Banking Awareness and Static Awareness questions asked in the General Awareness Section are based on Current Affairs mainly. So you need to prepare well this section to score good marks. Here is the Daily GK Update to get you acquainted with the top events that made the headlines today!
National News
1. Cyclone ‘Fani’ Intensifies Over Bay of Bengal
i. Cyclonic storm ‘Fani’ is likely to hit Coastal Andhra Pradesh by April 30 as it intensified into a severe storm and trigger thunderstorms, gusty winds and moderate rains in coastal districts and some parts of Rayalaseema.
ii. Cyclone Fani currently lays over east Equatorial Indian Ocean (EIO) and adjoining the southeast Bay of Bengal.
2. Government Hikes Customs Duty On Wheat To 40%
i. The government has hiked the customs duty on wheat to 40% from 30% to curb imports and protect the domestic industry.
ii. The government wants to restrict overseas purchase so that domestic prices of wheat do not come under pressure as the country’s wheat output is expected to scale a record high.
3. IRDAI Forms Panel to Review Microinsurance Framework
i. Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has set up a 13 member committee under IRDAI Executive Director Suresh Mathur to review the regulatory framework on microinsurance & recommend measures to increase the demand for such products.
ii. The committee has been formed in the backdrop of a less-than-desired offtake of microinsurance products despite their inherent benefits.
Static/Current Takeaways Important For LIC AAO Mains 2019:
- IRDAI Chairman- Subhash Chandra Khuntia, Headquarters in- Hyderabad.
International News
4. Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un Hold 1st-Ever talks
i. Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un met face-to-face for the first time and vowed to seek closer ties.
ii. The meeting was held at Russia’s Pacific port city of Vladivostok. Efforts to ease tensions on the Korean peninsula and ways to boost economic ties were discussed.
iii. Six-party talks on North Korean de-nuclearization started back in 2003. The talks involve China, Japan, Russia, the US along with North Korea and South Korea.
Static/Current Takeaways Important For SBI Mains 2019:
- Russia Capital: Moscow, Currency: Russian ruble.
- North Korea Capital: Pyongyang, Currency: North Korean won.
5. UN, EU Sign Agreement To Strengthen Partnership in Counter-Terrorism Efforts
i. The United Nations and the European Union (EU) have signed a joint framework aimed at strengthening partnership in counter-terrorism efforts.
ii. The UN Office of Counter-Terrorism announced that the framework was enacted on the occasion of the second EU-UN high-level political dialogue on Counter-Terrorism that was held in New York.
Static/Current Takeaways Important For LIC AAO Mains 2019:
- UN Secretary-General: António Guterres of Portugal, Headquarters in: New York, United States, Established on: 24th October 1945.
6. China Hosted 2nd Belt And Road Forum In Beijing
i. The second edition of Belt and Road Forum (BRF) was held in Beijing, China in which 37 heads-of-state and 159 countries had participated along with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and International Monetary Chief (IMF) Christine Lagarde.
ii. The theme of this event was “Belt and Road Cooperation: Shaping a Brighter Shared Future”. The Belt and Road Forum is a part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Static/Current Takeaways Important for LIC AAO Exam:
- China Capital- Beijing, Currency– Renminbi.
7. 5th ABU Media Summit Held In Kathmandu
i. The 5th Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) Media Summit on Climate Action & Disaster Preparedness was held at Kathmandu, Nepal.
ii. The theme of the two-day summit was “Media Solutions for Sustainable Future: Saving Lives, Building Resilient Communities”.
Static/Current Takeaways Important For LIC AAO Mains 2019:
- Nepal Prime Minister- Khadga Prasad Oli, Currency- Rupee.
Banking News
8. Canara Bank, Canara HSBC OBC Life launch ‘Webassurance’
i. Canara Bank and its life insurance partner Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance launched ’Webassurance’ to enable its customers to purchase life insurance in a convenient and hassle-free way.
ii. This Life Insurance is jointly owned by Canara Bank (51%) and Oriental Bank of Commerce (23%) and HSBC Insurance Holdings (26%), the Asian insurance arm of HSBC.
Static/Current Takeaways Important for LIC AAO Exam:
- Canara Bank Chairman: Shri. T.N. Manoharan, Headquarters: Bangalore, MD & CEO R A Sankara Narayanan.
Awards
9. Jacques Kallis Receives Ikhamanga Award 2019
i. Ex-South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis has been honoured with the Order of Ikhamanga in the Silver Division.
ii. Kallis has been rewarded for his successful cricketing career. He played 166 Tests, 328 ODIs and 25 T20Is, returning 62 hundreds and 577 wickets.
Static/Current Takeaways Important for LIC AAO Exam:
- Order of Ikhamanga Grades: Gold (OIG)– for exceptional achievement, Silver (OIS)– for excellent achievement, Bronze (OIB)- for outstanding achievement.
- South Africa President: Cyril Ramaphosa, Currency: South African Rand.
Important Days
10. International Dance Day: 29th April
i. International Dance Day is observed globally on 29th of April.
ii. In 1982 the Dance Committee of ITI founded International Dance Day to be celebrated the birthday of Jean-Georges Noverre, creator of modern ballet.
Sports News
11. Dominic Thiem Wins Barcelona Open 2019
i. Dominic Thiem (Austria) won the Barcelona Open 2019 after defeating Daniil Medvedev (Russia). The Austrian became just the fourth player in the past 15 years to lift the title in Barcelona, joining Rafael Nadal, Kei Nishikori and Fernando Verdasco.
ii. Dominic Thiem is also the first Austrian winner at this event since Thomas Muster in 1996. Thiem now has 13 ATP Tour titles, nine of which have come on clay.
12. 2019 Badminton Asia Championships Concludes: Complete List of Winners
i. The 2019 Badminton Asia Championships, is a badminton tournament which took place at Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium in China and had a total purse of $400,000.
ii. The 2019 Badminton Asia Championships was the 39th edition of the Badminton Asia Championships.
Here is the complete list of winners of 2019 Badminton Asia Championships
13. ISSF Rifle/Pistol World Cup 2019 Concludes: India Finishes Top
i. India ended their campaign at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup with a total of four medals, three golds and a silver. China was on the second position with 5 medals including 2 gold. The event was held in Beijing, China.
ii. Divyansh Panwar and Anjum Moudgil had won the first medal for India at the Beijing ISSF World Cup after clinching gold in 10m Air Rifle Mixed event. Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Choudhary won the gold medal in 10m Air Pistol Mixed event.
14. Claire Polosak To Become First Female Umpire In Men’s ODI
i. Australia’s Claire Polosak will become the first female umpire to officiate in a men’s one-day international at the ICC World Cricket League Division Two match.
ii. The 31-year-old became the first woman to umpire an Australian men’s domestic fixture in October 2017. She will stand in the final between tournament hosts Namibia and Oman.
15. Petra Kvitova Wins Maiden Stuttgart’s Porsche Grand Prix 2019
i. World number three tennis player Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) beat Anett Kontaveit (Estonia) to win Stuttgart’s Porsche Grand Prix for her second title of the year.
ii. Kvitova is a two-time Wimbledon champion. The championship was held at Stuttgart, Germany.
16. F1 Racer Valtteri Bottas Wins Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2019
i. Mercedes’ Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas beat his English teammate Lewis Hamilton by 1.5 seconds to win Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
ii. With this, Mercedes became the first team to win the opening four races of an F1 season with one-two finishes.
17. 23rd Asian Athletics Championships Concludes: Bahrain Tops, India Finishes 4th
i. The 2019 Asian Athletics Championships was the 23rd edition of the Asian Athletics Championships. The 4-day event was held from at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar.
ii. Bahrain topped the medal tally with 11 Golds followed by China (9 Gold) and Japan (5 Gold). India clinched the 4th spot with 17 total medals including 3 Gold. PU Chitra won gold in Women’s 1,500 metres race.
Obituaries
18. Mark Medoff, An Acclaimed Author Passes Away
i. Mark Medoff, whose acclaimed play “Children of a Lesser God,” which won the Tony Award for best play in 1980 and was turned into a 1986 movie that won an Oscar for its female lead, Marlee Matlin, recently passed away at the age of 79.
Static/Current Takeaways Important For LIC AAO Mains 2019:
- Tony Award is given in recognition of excellence in live theatre.
19. Former Indian Footballer Pungam Kannan Passed Away
i. Former India footballer Pungam Kannan passes away at age 80 years. Kannan played 14 matches for India & was the former Mohun Bagan & East Bengal forward.
ii. He won Santosh Trophy for Bengal twice in a row (1971-73) and was the top-scorer. He was known as the ‘Pele of Asia’.
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