DAILY GK UPDATE 18TH OCTOBER

1.    India, Brazil to devise internet regulations

i. Brazil and India will work together to devise internet regulations in order to protect online privacy from snooping by other countries.

ii. The partnership was announced in Brazilian capital Brasilia on Tuesday, after a meeting between foreign ministers of Brazil and India, Luiz Alberto Figueiredo and Salman Khurshid. 

iii. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff condemned mass global surveillance as practiced by the US and its intelligence partners, during a speech in September at the UN General Assembly. 

iv. Rousseff called for multilateral internet governance that respects the principles of neutrality. Brazil has been aggressively targeted by US spying agencies, according to recent revelations based on documents leaked by former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden. 

v. While the US insists it intercepts digital communications to prevent terrorist attacks, Brazilian targets, such as the Mines and Energy Ministry and state oil giant Petrobras, indicate the US is also driven by economic motives. 

vi. Brazil and India have agreed to share information of internet security strategies. 

vii. India has one of the world’s most advanced information technology sectors. Brazilian technicians will visit India to learn more about Indian achievements in the field. 

2.    India and Hungary Signed MoU for Promotion of Traditional Systems of Medicine

i. India and Hungary signed the bilateral agreement for the promotion and development of traditional systems of medicine on 17 October 2013.

ii. The main objective of this MoU is to strengthen, promote and develop cooperation in the field of traditional systems of medicine between the two countries on the basis of equality and mutual benefits.

iii. The MoU encourages and promotes cooperation to enhance the use of traditional systems of medicine, exchange of regulatory information on operational licensing to practice traditional medicine. 

iv. The signing of MoU will give boost to bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the areas of traditional medicines which will open new vistas for exploring the potential of economic, commercial and tourism development in both the countries.

Note: It is important to note that India has already signed the agreements like these with other countries such as Malaysia and Trininad and Tobago and is in the process of signing agreements with Russia, Nepal, Srilanka, Serbia and Mexico.

3.    Prime Minister Released Book on Indian Painting by Prof. B.N. Goswami

i. The Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh on 18 October 2013 released a book on Indian painting written by Prof. B.N. Goswami in New Delhi.

ii. Prof. B.N. Goswami is a distinguished art historian, and a leading authority on Indian art and is Professor Emeritus of Art History at the Panjab University, Chandigarh. 

iii. His work covers a wide range Profile and is regarded, especially in the area of Pahari painting, as having influenced serious critical thinking.

iv. He received many honours including the Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship, the Rietberg Award from Switzerland for Outstanding Research in Art History, the Padma Shri (1998) and the Padma Bhushan (2008) from the President of India.

4.    RBI to issue 10 rupee notes with new governor Rajan’s signature

i. The Reserve Bank will shortly issue Rs 10 denomination banknotes with rupee symbol bearing the signature of new governor Raghuram Rajan.

ii. As per RBI notification, it will issue these bank notes incorporating rupee symbol on the obverse and reverse, without inset letter in both the numbering panels, in the Mahatma Gandhi Series-2005 bearing the signature of Rajan.

iii. RBI said that the year of printing - '2013', will be printed on the reverse of the banknote.

5.    Union Government Appointed G B Pradhan as the Chairperson of the CERC

i. Union Government of India appointed on 17 October 2013 Gireesh B. Pradhan, former Secretary of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, as the Chairperson of the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC).

ii. Gireesh B. Pradhan , a Maharashtra Cadre IAS officer of the 1977 batch,

iii. He retired from the post of Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in June 2013.

6.    Maya Angelou accepts Mailer Center award

i. The 85—year—old author, poet, dancer and actress was honored during a benefit gala at the New York Public Library, the annual gathering organized by the Mailer Center and writers colony.

ii.  Seated in a wheelchair, she was a vivid presence in dark glasses and a sparkling black dress as she marveled that a girl from a segregated Arkansas village could grow up to become a literary star.

iii. Angelou was introduced by her former editor at Random House, Robert Loomis, and she praised him for talking her into writing her breakthrough memoir, the million—selling “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.” The key was suggesting to her that the book might be too hard to write.

iv. Angelou, a longtime resident of North Carolina, will be back in Manhattan next month to collect an honorary National Book Award medal.

7.    Micromax’s new face is Hugh Jackman

i. New Delhi-based smartphone manufacturer Micromax has stepped outside Indian borders to rope in its brand ambassador.

ii. Academy Award winner Hugh Jackman, best-known for the movies Les Miserables, X-Men and Wolverine, will be associated with the Indian consumer electronics company, a Micromax statement said on Friday.

iii. Jackman will be seen endorsing the soon-to-be-launched Micromax smartphone called Canvas Turbo, which is part of the Canvas series of smartphones for Micromax.

iv. As we look to expand our footprint across the globe in various international markets, the association with Hugh Jackman is an ideal partnership for us to connect with audiences as he is a leading name in the entertainment industry in the world,” Chief Marketing Officer Shubhodip Pal  said.

8.    Manipur Defeated Haryana to Lift 54th Subroto Cup Football Tournament

i. Radha Madhav Sanskrit Vidhyalaya, Nambol, Bishnupur (Manipur) lifted the Girls' title of the 54th Subroto Cup football tournament on 17 October 2013. The final match was held at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi. 

ii. Manipur won against Government Senior Secondary School, Alakhpura, Bhiwani (Haryana) by six goals to four. It is the second time that the Manipur team lifted the Girls’ title of Subroto Cup football tournament. 

About the Subroto Cup Football Tournament

i. The Subroto Cup Football Tournament is primarily an inter-school football tournament in India, which is named after Indian Air Force Air Marshal Subroto Mukerjee.
ii. The tournament was started in the year 1960 and since then, it is conducted every year. 

iii. It is conducted by the Indian Air Force, with support from India's Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

9.  Sarojini Varadappan, the Renowned Social Worker Died at 92

i. Sarojini Varadappan, the renowned social worker died on 17 October 2013 in Chennai following a brief illness.

ii. She was 92 years old. Sarojini Varadappan was a daughter of the former Tamil Nadu chief minister M Bhakthavatsalam.

iii. She was the President of the Women India Association, an NGO working on women-related issues.

11.  PayUPaisa launches automated payment settlement solution

i. Online payment facility PayUPaisa today announced the launch of all-in-one payment settlement solution, which addresses problems of money settlement and helps marketplaces achieve higher efficiency by providing better control over fund disbursements mechanisms.

ii. As per RBI’s mandate, aggregators need to maintain a nodal bank account and settle payments to sellers within T+2 days, it said in a release.

iii. There is a significant operational cost attached to do this. PayUPaisa takes care of nodal account registration and other regulatory requirements for the sellers, helping marketplaces cut huge cost on seller on boarding, it added.

iv. PayUPaisa is part of PayU India, an online payment firm.

v. It serves businesses like Goibibo, Snapdeal, Bookmyshow, Jabong, Ferns n Petals, Zomato, Tradus, Micromax Mobiles, Groupon India among others.

10.  Pujara drops to 8th in ICC Test rankings

i. Cheteshwar Pujara was the highest-ranked Indian batsman despite dropping a rung to eighth while R Ashwin held on to his eighth position in the bowlers' chart of the ICC Test rankings issued on Friday.

ii. Pujara and Ashwin were the only Indians in the respective top-10s of batsmen and bowlers. Ashwin was also steady at third in the list of all-rounders. 

iii. South Africa's AB de Villiers has achieved a career-best second position in the rankings for Test batsmen, while a seven-wicket victory in the Abu Dhabi Test has guaranteed Pakistan a fourth position in the team rankings.