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!!!

AWARDS AND HONORS

Fourteen Indians in top 100 Global Venture Capitalists

Fourteen Indian-origin investors find place in a list of top 100 global venture capitalists (VCs) compiled by CB Insights, a research firm that tracks VC and angel investments.

• The list, led by Peter Fanton of Benchmark Capital, was based on factors such as investor exits and consistency of investments, among others.
• The report evaluated the investors on the basis of their investments since 2008. Sameer Gandhi of Accel Partners at rank 25 was the top-ranked Indian venture capitalist. He was followed by Promod Haque of Norwest Venture Partners at rank 32.

Quick Link – List of top 100 global venture capitalists

BANKING AND FINANCE

SBI partners with Uber for instant vehicle financing

Public sector lender SBI has tied up with taxi-aggregator Uber to provide instant vehicle finance to ‘driver-partners’ on the latter’s platform. The scheme would encourage skilled drivers to overcome liquidity crunch and excess documentation requirements to become an entrepreneur.

• All loans will be covered under the government’s Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana Scheme, SBI said in a statement. SBI Managing Director Rajnish Kumar said the new facility would enable drivers to apply for loans at the Uber Partner Centre and get loans sanctioned in one day.

Quick Link – Driver-partners

HDFC Bank launches banking solution for startups

HDFC Bank Ltd has launched SmartUp, a dedicated banking solution for startups,  in association with Zone Startups India, a startup accelerator in Mumbai.

• SmartUp is tailored to meet all the requirements of a startup – offering banking and payment solutions, along with advisory and forex services.
• The move is done in a bid to create an ecosystem to nurture the spirit of innovation and enterprise in the startup space.
• SmartUp is a complete banking solution for startups. The key benefits of SmartUp current account include. Waiver of Average Monthly Balance for the first six months and extendable to 12 months. Salary Account for employees by waiving the minimum number of employees criterion

Quick Link – Startups

ICICI starts Contactless Mobile payments option

ICICI Bank has unveiled the country’s first contactless mobile payment solution to enable its credit and debit customers make in-store contactless payments by just waving their smartphones near an NFC-enabled merchant terminal.

• The mobile payment solution available in the Bank’s ‘Pockets’ app, provides improved convenience of ‘Touch & Pay’ as customers are no longer required to carry physical card or cash to pay in stores.
• ICICI Bank is the first financial institution in the country to leverage the Host Card Emulation (HCE) technology to bring forth this solution.

INDIAN AFFAIRS

LS passes Bill to include more communities in Schedule Caste

The bill to include certain communities in the list of Scheduled Castes (SC) in Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Kerala and West Bengal was passed by the Lok Sabha.

• The state governments of Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Kerala, Odisha and West Bengal have proposed certain modifications in the list of Scheduled Castes, “by way of inclusion of certain communities modification and removal of area restriction in respect of certain communities and exclusion of certain communities in case of Odisha”.
• The ministry said that in accordance with the provisions of article 341 of the Constitution, six Presidential Orders have been issued specifying SCs in respect of various States and union territories and these orders have been amended from time to time.
• Some members said if more castes are being added to the list of SC, then the reservation quota should also be increased from the present level.

Quick Link – LS Passes

Haryana New Secretariat Building gets first earthquake warning system in country

Haryana’s new secretariat in Chandigarh has become the only building in the country to have an early earthquake warning and security system (onsite). 

• The system is already being used in 26 countries around the world and can provide crucial seconds for evacuation in event of an earthquake. 
• Installed and demonstrated by a team from Terra Techcom Private Limited, New Delhi, and Secretary Electronics GmbH, Germany, who have collaborated with India for the project, the system uses a master and a submaster device which prevents false alarms and a six-horn siren at the terrace with a 6-km range. 
• The system works on the principle of primary and secondary waves of an earthquake. 

Quick Link – First earthquake warning system

Real Estate bill passed in Lok Sabha

The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha, five days after its passage by Rajya Sabha. The Bill seeks to protect the interest of the home buyers by enhancing transparency and fixing the accountability of developers, brokers and consumers.

• It would also ensure that customers are treated fairly by ensuring no arbitrary changes in project plans, full disclosure on apartment size and fairer penalty provisions.
• The bill defines carpet area as net usable area of an apartment which means now people will be charged only for the carpet area. This comes as a big relief to home buyers as developers today quote on super built up area also know as sellable area which takes into 30-40% area more than flat’s usable area.
• The Bill ensures the completion and delivery of flats as strict regulations are imposed on developers for any violations of the Appellate Tribunals or monetary penalties or both.

Quick Link – Real Estate bill passed

Govt imposes anti-dumping duty on plastic-processing imports

In a move designed to protect the domestic industry, the government imposed anti-dumping duty of up to 44.7 percent on import of plastic-processing machines from Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam for five years.

• The duty will be levied on imports of all kinds of plastic-processing or injection-moulding machines, also known as injection presses.
• The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) said the safeguard duty covers imports from the countries in question and has been imposed after the domestic industry took a beating from such dumping.
• Plastic-processing or injection-moulding machines are used for processing or moulding plastic materials. 

Quick Link – Anti-dumping duty

Rajya Sabha passes Sikh Gurdwaras Bill

A bill was introduced in Rajya Sabha which envisages to amend 91-year-old Sikh Gurdwaras Act to exclude Sahajdhari Sikhs from voting in the elections to Sikh religious bodies.

• The bill was introduced in Rajya Sabha which envisages to amend 91-year-old Sikh Gurdwaras Act to exclude Sahajdhari Sikhs from voting in elections to Sikh religious bodies.
• The Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925 was a piece of legislation in British India, which legally defined Sikh identity and brought Sikh gurdwaras (houses of worship) under the control of an elected body of orthodox Sikhs.
• The Bill was introduced in the House by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh. The Bill proposes to remove the exception given to Sahajdhari Sikhs in 1944 to vote in the elections to select the members of the Board and the Committees constituted under the Act.

Quick Link – Gurdwaras Bill

Railways starts E-ticketing for journalists

Journalists now need not go to counters for booking train tickets as the Indian Railways launched e-booking for scribes on concessional passes available to them.

• During the launch, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said “It was promised in the budget to provide e-booking facility to journalists and today we fulfilled it”. Journalists were earlier required to book ticket on concessional passes at PRS counters.
• In order to avail the benefit of the e-booking facility, journalists have to use their registered ID card number issued by Railways to book tickets. 

Quick Link – E-ticketing for journalists

Indian Railways under new Initiatives

a) Railways to install one lakh digital display screens at stations;

b) Railways launches new policy to ramp up freight volume and

c) Railways launches pilot study on accrual accounting system

Quick Link – RailTel

400 e-tailers team up with postal department for delivery

More than 400 e-commerce companies are leveraging the extensive reach of the Department of Posts (DoP) in an effort to deliver their consignments at every nook and corner of the country.

• The Department has tied up with more than 400 e-commerce agencies, including Flipkart, Amazon, YepMe, Snapdeal and the like for delivering e-commerce pre-paid as well as cash-on-delivery (COD) orders. DoP has a network of some 1.55 lakh post offices, of which 1.3 lakh are in rural areas.
• Of all, Amazon is the biggest partner in terms of business with India Posts. As per the note, DoP received Rs 1,150 crore from parcels under the COD category, which is expected to cross the Rs 1,500-crore mark by the end of the current fiscal.
• DoP is delivering 40,000 e-commerce parcels per day and the average value of parcels handled by India Post is Rs 5,000 for urban areas and Rs 3,000 for rural areas.

Quick Link – 400 e-tailers

FOREIGN RELATIONS

India and China exchange tariff cut offers

Plans to liberalise trade between India and China, the world’s two fastest-growing large economies, have gathered momentum with both sides exchanging offers on removal of a chunk of tariff lines on goods imports.

• Against India’s offer to remove 42.5% of tariff lines under the 16-country Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), China has expressed its willingness to abolish equivalent amount of tariff lines for India.
• Cotton fibre and yarn, copper and some organic chemicals are the major items that India has exported to China this fiscal, while its imports from China include electronic items, mechanical appliances, organic chemicals, fertiliser and iron and steel. Earlier, India used to export huge quantities of iron ore to China before curbs were placed on their mining.

Quick Link – Indo-China tariff

SPORTS

FIFA admits taking bribe for hosting World Cup

FIFA is seeking to claim “tens of millions of dollars” in bribe money seized by U.S. federal prosecutors. FIFA submitted a 22-page claim to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York that seeks a big share in restitution from more than $190 million already forfeited by soccer and marketing officials who pleaded guilty in the sprawling corruption case.

Quick Link – FIFA

Sania-Hingis crash out of Indian Wells Masters

Defending champions Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis crashed out of the Indian Wells Masters after suffering a shock straight sets defeat in the women’s doubles event at Indian Wells.

• The top-seeded Indo-Swiss pair suffered a 7-6(7), 6-4 defeat at the hands of American-Russian duo of Vania King and Alla Kudryavtseva in the second round contest that lasted one hour and 32 minutes. This was Mirza and Hingis’ first straight-sets loss since the summer of 2015.
• The Indo-Swiss pair’s 41-match winning streak came to a halt after they were beaten in the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open last month. Sania Mirza was born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India on 15 November 1986, to Imran Mirza, a builder, and his wife Naseema, who worked in a printing business.
• Mirza received an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters from the MGR Educational and Research Institute University in Chennai on 11 December 2008.

Quick Link – Sania-Hingis crash out

UN suspends Maria Sharapova as goodwill ambassador

The UN has suspended Maria Sharapova as a goodwill ambassador following the Russian tennis star’s admission that she tested positive for the banned substance meldonium at the Australian Open in January.

• The UN Development Programme, which works to eradicate poverty and inequality, has discontinued its nine-year relationship with Sharapova pending the outcome of the case. Much of her work with the UNDP had focused on efforts to help survivors of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
• Sponsors including Nike and Porsche have likewise cut ties with Sharapova.
• UN goodwill ambassadors are appointed on the basis that they are “persons of integrity” who “possess the personality and dignity required for such high-level representative capacity”.

Quick Link – UN suspends Maria Sharapova

OBITUARY

Shennai exponent Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan dies

Eminent Shehnai exponent Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan, one of the best-known players of the instrument after the legendary Bismillah Khan, passed away in Kolkata following prolonged illness.

• Suffering from kidney-related problems, he was hospitalised for the past few days. He was 77 and is survived by his five sons, five daughters and a number of grandchildren.
• Ustad Khan was felicitated with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for his contribution to Hindustani instrumental music.
• He hailed from a family of renowned Shehnai exponents from Benaras and was known for his innovative style and mastery over the classical and semi-classical and folk music repertoire.
• The musician had also played at the inauguration ceremony of Doordarshan in 1973. A top-graded artiste of All India Radio, Ustad Khan also used to teach in the ITC Sangeet Research Academy in Kolkata and was active before he got hospitalised.

Quick Link – Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan passes away

---

Thank you 🙂 🙂 🙂