DAILY GK BULLETS | JAN 17 & 18 | S W A G

1. French President declares economic emergency

• French President Francois Hollande has declared what he called “a state of economic emergency” and says it’s time to redefine France’s economic and social model.
• The first measures he proposed are relatively modest, and he said they would not “put into question” the 35-hour workweek. He did not seek to assume any new emergency powers.
• The measures included a loosening of some worker-friendly measures to encourage companies to hire, and new training for half a million workers.

2. Gayle smashes 12-ball fifty to equal world record

• Chris Gayle plundered Greg West for 27 runs in the first over and hit the last four deliveries for six.
• West Indies batsman Chris Gayle smashed fifty from 12 balls for the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League on Monday to match India's Yuvraj Singh's record for the fastest half-century in Twenty20 cricket.
• Left-hander Yuvraj achieved the feat against England in a group match at the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007 in South Africa, smashing fast bowler Stuart Broad for six sixes in one over.
• Opening batsman Gayle plundered 21-year-old Adelaide Strikers bowler Greg West, playing his second T20 match, for 27 runs in the first over and hit the last four deliveries for six.
• Head dismissed him five deliveries later for a 17-ball 56 with Gayle caught by wicketkeeper Tim Ludeman from a top edge.

3. Tata Motors appoints former Airbus official Guenter Butschek as CEO & MD

• The MD & CEO post of Tata Motors has been vacant since the demise of Karl Sym in January 2014.
• Tata Motors has appointed former top official of Airbus Guenter Butschek (55) as its Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director.
• Mr. Butschek will lead all operations of Tata Motors in India and in international markets including South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia and South Africa.
• He brings broad functional and general management skills, and wide international experience to his new role at Tata Motors. Mr. Butschek is expected to join the company by February 15.

4. China launches first online database on monks’ authenticity 

• For the first time, China on 18 Jan 2016 has launched an online system to check the “authenticity” of top Tibetan Buddhist monks, amid growing incidents of fraud involving religious leaders. 
• The first list of 870 verified Tibetan monks, also known as ‘Living Buddhas’, was published on the official website of the State Administration for Religious Affairs. 
• It is the first time information on the country’s religious leaders is accessible via the Internet. 
• The 7th Drukhang Living Buddha Drukhang Thubten Khedrup, vice-president of the Buddhist Association of China (BAC) launched the database.

5. Ola appoints Raghuvesh Sarup as chief marketing officer 

• Taxi booking app Ola has appointed Raghuvesh Sarup as its Chief Marketing Officer on 18 Jan 2016. 
• Sarup, with over 20 years of experience in marketing, sales and brand management across some of the world’s most respected brands like Microsoft, Nokia, Yum! Brands (Pizza Hut) and Procter & Gamble, was the Marketing Director at Microsoft.

6. NITI Aayog unites with IDFC 

• The National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog united with the IDFC Bank Ltd to conduct an enterprise survey of manufacturing firms on 17 January 2016. 
• The primary objective of this Survey is to assess the business regulatory environment in each State and Union Territories (UTs) and identify policy and regulatory hurdles faced by businesses in the States/UTs.

7. Chinese scientists develop new bio-artificial liver 

• Chinese scientists have developed a new bio-artificial liver that can help patients to survive from liver failure long enough for an organ transplant. 
• It has been developed by team of researchers from the Shanghai Institute for Biological Sciences and doctors from Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital. 
• The bio-artificial liver is based on human liver cells and has been designed to be attached outside a patient’s body.

8. IOC begins petrol production 

• Indian Oil Corporation’s latest refinery in Paradip, Odisha, the first in over a decade for the nation’s largest fuel major, started production of petrol from the Rs. 34,555-crore facility on 18 Jan 2016. 
• PM Modi will dedicate the 15 MMTPA Paradip Refinery, which will primarily be producing BS-IV fuels and serving the eastern and south-eastern markets apart from exports, to the nation on February 7.

9. US lifts nuclear sanctions on Iran 

• United States (US) has removed a wide range of nuclear sanctions against Iran after it has meet its commitments to roll back its nuclear programme. 
• These sanctions were lifted after International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that Iran has met its commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPA) or Vienna agreement with P5+1 countries signed in July 2015. 
• P5+1 countries include the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC) viz. USA, Russia, China, UK, France and non- permanent member Germany.

10. India elected to Board of Directors of China-backed AIIB 

• India, one of the founding members of the AIIB, has been elected to the board of directors of the China-sponsored Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank on 17 Jan 2016, which is expected to begin loan approvals before the end of this year. 
• Earlier, Dinesh Sharma, Additional Secretary of Ministry of Finance was elected to the 12-member board for which a secretballot was held on 16 Jan 2016. 
• It is the first Board of Directors of AIIB in which 57 nations are founding members including India. 
• It should be noted that Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is the designated governor of the AIIB from India.

11. Final SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 successfully launches Jason-3 

• The NASA’s SpaceX has launched an international ocean research mission on 17 Jan 2016 via its Falcon 9 rocket, the final F9 to fly in the v1.1 configuration, from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base in the USA. 
• The rocket carried the ocean monitoring satellite Jason-3 on board. 
• The satellite will examine the topography of the ocean floor to help study effects of climate change or human-induced changes on the ocean. 
• The third Jason satellite, Jason-3 joins a series of spacecraft launched under partnership between the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NASA, pan-European weather research organisation EUMETSAT and French space agency CNES. Jason-3 is a 510-kilogram (1,120 lb) spacecraft.

12. Delhi Acers beat Mumbai Rockets to clinch PBL 

• Delhi Acers on 17 January 2016 emerged victorious over Mumbai Rockets by 4-3 in the summit clash to clinch the Premier Badminton League (PBL) title. 
• The match was held at the Siri Fort Sports Complex in New Delhi. 
• Premier Badminton League is a franchise league, managed and commercially owned by the Badminton Association of India. 
• Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar is the brand ambassador of the league.

13. Anuradha Roy wins 2016 DSC Prize 

• Indian author Anuradha Roy on 16 January 2016 won the prestigious DSC Prize for South Asian Literature for her novel Sleeping on Jupiter at the Galle Literary Festival in Sri Lanka. 
• Roy was awarded the prize and a unique trophy by Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. 
• The DSC Prize for South Asian Literature is a literary prize awarded annually to writers of any ethnicity or nationality writing about South Asia with themes such as culture, politics, history or people.

14. Remote cardiac monitor wins Google tech contest 

• Cardiac Design Labs, a startup that has come up with an innovation to help cardiac patients in rural India access critical care through a wearable device, came out triumphant at a live contest hosted by tech firm Google at the Startup India event. 
• The Bengaluru-based firm combines communications and heart monitoring technology and is designed for use in rugged rural conditions . 
• The patient can be monitored from home. 
• The cardiologist will be able to remotely interact and diagnose the patient using his cell phone. 
• The firm has built MIRCaM, comprehensive suite that comprises of wearable sensors, doctor’s terminal, patient’s bedside and a mobile app.

15. Services, Railways win national basketball titles 

• Services and Railways won the men’s and women’s titles respectively at the 66th Senior National Basketball Championship on 16 Jan 2016. 
• Services defeated defending champions Uttarakhand 73-67 to emerge champions after a gap of nine years while the Railways women won 72-55 against Kerala.

16. Former Sikkim Governor Ventrapragada Rama Rao passes away 

• Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former Sikkim Governor Ventrapragada Rama Rao passed away on 17 January 2016 in Hyderabad after prolonged illness. 
• He was 80. He served as Governor of Sikkim from 2002 to 2007.

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