DAILY GK UPDATE 24TH OCTOBER

1.    Today is UN day

i. Today is the United Nations' Day.

ii. The day is celebrated to commemorate the launch of the UN Charter in 1945.

iii. The theme of this year is-‘Partnerships for Global Progress’. In his message, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said this is the time to reflect on what more the UN can do to realise the vision for a better world. 

iv. UN relief agencies also play an important role in assisting over 34 million refugees and others fleeing war, famine and persecution. v. The world body also provides food to approximately 90 million people in 75 countries.

2.    Bihar nurse to share stage with Malala at UN function

i. A Bihar woman health official is set to share stage with Malala Yousufzai.

ii. Martha Dodray, in her mid-40s, is an auxiliary nursing midwife posted at Kusheshwarsthan primary health centre in the state's Darbhanga district. She was selected by the United Nations Foundation (UNF) for her extraordinary work to eradicate polio.

iii. She said she walked several kilometres each day to reach remote and inaccessible villages to administer polio vaccine to hundreds of children, mostly belonging to poorest of the poor. 

iv. "Marha was recently selected as one of the best polio workers in India for her devotion and hard work in polio vaccination drive. v. Her name was recommended for the award ceremony in New York," Darbhanga civil surgeon UK Choudhary said. 

vi. Bihar has not reported a single case of polio in the last three years and has virtually remained polio free since August 2010. 

3.    RBI forms panel to implement new bill payment system

i. The Reserve Bank of India has constituted a GIRO Advisory Group (GAG) to implement a national Indian Bill Payment System so that households will be able to use bank accounts to pay school fees, utilities, medical bills and make remittances electronically.

ii. The terms of reference of GAG, which is headed by Prof. Umesh Bellur, Professor, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, include suggesting the nature of organisation to undertake the GIRO-based bill payments and framing guidelines for setting up and operating the GIRO-based bill payments.

iii. The group will also recommend the criteria (financial, governance, ownership, technical, operational, etc.) for the entity to seek authorisation for setting up bill payments system in the country under the Payment & Settlement System Act 2007.

iv. If GAG is of the opinion that a new organisation be created on the lines of entity like National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), then it will have to make recommendations, among others, on the nature of the organisation (whether Section 25 company or profit making entity, etc.); membership composition; capital structure & contributions by stakeholders.

4.    Austrade, YES Bank ink pact for knowledge sharing in food sector

i. The Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) and YES Bank on Wednesday entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to explore avenues for mutually beneficial knowledge sharing in food processing and agricultural sectors.

ii. The tie-up marked the start of a relationship in which Australia can offer to India some insights on how to expand food exports to Japan and Europe, said Nicola Watkinson, Minister Commercial and Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner-South Asia, Austrade.

iii. According to the MoU, Austrade and YES Bank have agreed to jointly organise workshops across India to create awareness about Australian capabilities in the food and agri-business sectors.

iv. Austrade will assist Australian companies in their expansion in India through identification of joint venture partners and investment opportunities in India.

v. Australia’s food exports are estimated at $30 billion each year and nearly 60 per cent of its exports are accounted for by agricultural products.

5.    Former Indian Bank Chairman sent to imprisonment

i. A CBI court here yesterday sentenced former Chairman and Managing Director of Indian Bank M Gopalakrishnan and four others to one year imprisonment for defrauding various branches of the bank to the tune of about Rs 6.5 crore.

ii. CBI Principal Sessions Judge S Malathi also ordered Gopalakrishnan, N Ramakrishnan, bank valuer, V Ravikumar of Arul Builders, K Sai Jagannathan of Incom Builders, and Businessman Varadarajulu to pay a fine ranging from Rs 15,000 to 40,000.

iii. Apart from sanctioning the loan without sufficient collateral security, Gopalakrishnan waived the loan amount of 64 lakhs to Arul Builders, 50 lakhs to Incom Builders and Rs.6.72 lakhs to Incom builders.

6.    Google tops world’s best multinational workplaces list

i. Internet giant Google has emerged as the world’s best multinational company to work for, followed by software developer SAS Institute and network storage provider NetApp in the second and third place, respectively.

ii. Software giant Microsoft was ranked fourth by human resources consultancy ‘Great Place to Work Institute’, which has compiled a list of 25 such companies.

iii. “The 25 companies on the 2013 World’s Best Multinational Workplaces list set a high standard for us all. Their outstanding achievement builds a better society by creating great workplaces,” it said.

iv. The list also includes Autodesk ranked at the 11th place, followed by Monsanto (12th), BBVA (13th), American Express (14th), Hilti (15th), Telefonica (16th), Accor (17th), Quintiles (18th), SC Johnson (19th), FedEx Express (20th), Atento (21st), Mars (22nd), McDonald’s (23rd), The Coca-Cola Company (24th) and Novartis (25th).

v. Others in the top 10 include W.L Gore & Associates, which was ranked 5th on the list, followed by personal and household goods maker Kimberly-Clark (6th), hospitality giant Marriott (7th), consumer goods firm Diageo (8th), National Instruments (9th) and IT company Cisco (10th).

7.    Manna Dey, the legendary singer died at 94

i. Manna Dey, the legendary singer died on 23 October 2013 in Bangalore hospital. He was 94 years old.

ii. He was treated for respiratory illness died of cardiac arrest. He is survived by his daughters Shuroma and Sumita.

iii. He was born in the year 1919. His original name was Prabodh Chandra Dey but he was nicknamed Manna 
iv.  He sang many songs in different languages like Malayalam, Kannada, Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali, Hindi, Assamese, Punjabi and Bhojpuri   

v. His popular tracks include Poocho Na Kaise Maine (Meri Surat Teri Aankhen), Ae Meri Zohra Jabeen (Waqt), Zindagi Kaisi Hai Paheli(Anand), Yeh Dosti (Sholay) and Ek Chatur Naar (Padosan) and Laga Chunari Mein Daag (Dil Hi Toh Hai) and'Yeh Raat Bheegi Bheegi' (Chori Chori). 

8.    Ranbir Kapoor new brand ambassador of Philips

i. Actor Ranbir Kapoor was Thursday named the brand ambassador for Philips, the country's leading lighting company.

ii. "Endorsing India's No 1 lighting brand Philips is a great opportunity and I am privileged to be associated with this power house of innovation. I am thrilled to be associated with Philips," Ranbir told reporters at the launch of new LED lighting solutions.

iii. In their new ad Philips revive the iconic song "Saara zamana haseeno ka Deewana", originally picturised on Amitabh Bachchan who sported an electric lightbulb suit in it. It now features Ranbir in a suit of LED lights.

iv. The "Barfi" star said: "I have tried to redo Amitjis 'Saara Zamaana song'. We have modernized the suit that was worn by him then. It was fun re-doing the song."

9.    SC awards Rs. 5.96 cr compensation in medical negligence case

i. The Supreme Court on Thursday awarded Rs 5.96 crore as compensation to be paid by Kolkata-based AMRI Hospital and three doctors to a US-based Indian-origin doctor for medical negligence which led to the death of his wife in 1998.

ii. A bench of justices S.J. Mukhopadhaya and V. Gopala Gowda asked the hospital and the three doctors to pay the amount within eight weeks to Kunal Saha, an Ohio-based AIDS researcher.

iii. The National Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission (NCDRC) in 2011 had awarded Rs. 1.73 crore to the doctor whose wife Anuradha Saha died in 1998 following faulty treatment administered at the hospital.

iv. The court said out of the total compensation amount, Dr. Balram Prasad and Dr. Sukumar Mukherjee will pay Rs. 10 lakh each and Dr. Baidyanath Halder will have to pay Rs. 5 lakh to Dr. Saha within eight weeks.

v. In 2009, though the apex court absolved the doctors and the hospitals of criminal liability for medical negligence, it had held them culpable of civil liabilities and referred Dr. Saha’s plea for compensation under provisions of the Consumer Protection Act to NCDRC, which, had in 2006 dismissed, the case.

10.  Sebi has disqualified Cals Refineries from issuing equity shares

i. Market regulator Sebi has disqualified Cals Refineries from issuing equity shares and any other security for a further eight years, as the company was found guilty in a case involving irregularities in issuance of Global Depository Receipts (GDRs).

ii. An interim prohibitory order was imposed on the company in 2011 and the company has already undergone restrictions for two years, while a final order was passed today imposing a ten-year ban on the company from issuance of any securities.The case is related to alleged market manipulation in trading of GDRs -- a financial instrument used to raise capital overseas -- of certain companies including Cals.

iii. However, Sebi noted that Cals had already undergone the prohibition imposed on it for a period of about two years following an interim order in 2011 by the market regulator in view of the GDR manipulation charges against the company.

iv. Sebi said the modus operandi adopted by Cals Refineries in conceiving the fraudulent arrangement of GDR issue to defraud investors and also facilitating the unjust enrichment of its promoter at the expense of investors has been fraught with mala fides at every stage of its execution.

11.  Carol Burnett Honoured With the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor

i. The US comedian Carol Burnett was on 20 October 2013 honoured with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.

ii. Three artists- Dame Julie Andrews, Tony Bennett and Tina Fey performed specifically in the honour of Carol Burnett at the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts.
iii. The variety shows of Carol Burnett started in 1960s. These shows ran continuously for 11 years and fetched around 30 million viewers in a week.

iv. Carol Burnett received her first break for the Ed Sullivan Show. Thereafter, she also acted on Broadway and appeared on The Garry Moore Show.

About the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor

i. The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor is the foremost award for humour in America

ii. It was first awarded in the year 1988 by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. 

iii. The award is named after the essayist and humorist Mark Twain, who belonged to the 19th century and was a renowned novelist as well. Mark Twain made significant contribution to American humour. 

iv. Every year, the prize is presented in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall in Washington DC. 
v. The recipients of the Twain Prize receive an 1884 bronze portrait bust of Mark Twain sculpted by Karl Gerhardt.

12.  Tendulkar only Indian in Wisden all time World test XI

i. India's retiring batsman Sachin Tendulkar has been named in the Wisden all-time World Test XI.

ii. Tendulkar was named at number four spot in the team announced to mark 150 years of the Cricketers' Almanac in London.

iii. The team captained by legendary Australian batsman Don Bradman has four Englishmen, three West Indians, two Australians, one Indian and a Pakistani.

iv. Tendulkar's contemporaries like Brian Lara, Ricky Ponting and Jaques Kallis could not make it to the team, nor other Indian greats like Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev.

v. The members of Wisden World XI are: Jack Hobbs (England), W G Grace (England), Don Bradman (Australia, captain), Sachin Tendulkar (India), Vivian Richards (West Indies), Garry Sobers (West Indies), Alan Knott (England), Wasim Akram (Pakistan), Shane Warne (Australia), Malcolm Marshall (West Indies), Sydney Barnes (England). 

vi. Tendulkar will retire from Test cricket after playing against the West Indies in his landmark 200th match in Mumbai next month. 

13.  Sports Ministry & Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce launch “Sports 2014”

i. The Sports Ministry and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) have launched 'India Sports 2014' at the 5th Global Sports Summit to promote sports among youth in the country.

ii. The event will be an umbrella programme, focusing on all aspects of sports and will bring the entire sports fraternity on one platform.

iii. The first edition will not only serve as a platform for the Indian sports industry to showcase their strength but will also act as a catalyst in promoting sports amongst the youth.

iv. The event will include an international exhibition on sports sector at the National Stadium, an international conference on sports sector, reverse buyer-seller meet by sports goods export promotion council, networking dinner and concurrent sports activities and tournaments.