Daily GK Update : 5-6th February 2017

National & International Appointment

1. Sasikala to be next Tamil Nadu chief minister

• Ruling AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) General Secretary VK Sasikala has been elected unanimously as the legislature party leader and expected to take over as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu on 9th of this month.
• She would be the third woman chief minister of the southern state after late Janaki Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa.
• Panneerselvam was appointed as the Chief Minister on the night of 5^th December within hours of the death of his predecessor J Jayalalithaa.

Note:

• Sasikala was born in 1957 to Vivekanandan and Krishnaveni, a family from Thiruthuraipoondi.
• Her wedding with Natarajan happened with the blessings and in front of DMK Chief M Karunanidhi.
• Her husband Natarajan was working as a Public Relations officer in Tamil Nadu government.

2. Anand Kumar Gupta appointed new Director of NTPC

• Anand Kumar Gupta (56-years) has been appointed as the new Director (Commercial) of National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (NTPC).
• He will be responsible for the activities relating to Commercial, International and Domestic Business development and Consultancy business of NTPC.
• NTPC's core business is generation and sale of electricity to state-owned power distribution companies and State Electricity Boards in India.

Note:

• NTPC Limited is an Indian PSU Public Sector Undertaking, engaged in the business of generation of electricity and allied activities.
• The headquarters of the company is situated at New Delhi.

National Affairs

3. I&B Minister to release annual book 'India-2017' & 'Bharat-2017'

• Today, the union minister of Information and Broadcasting Venkaiah Naidu has released the annual year book “India-2017” and “Bharat-2017” at a function in Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi.
• These books give comprehensive information about the country and various States/Union Territories including functioning of the Government and the economy, important for competitive exams.
• It also provides detailed information on various schemes and projects of Government.
• This yearbook published annually by media unit of Publications Division of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

4. Health Ministry launches Measles Rubella vaccination campaign

• The Health Ministry has launched Measles Rubella vaccination campaign in the country at a function in Bengaluru.
• The campaign against these two diseases will start from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Goa and Lakshadweep, covering nearly 6 crore children.
• The Minister urged parents, caregivers, community leaders, teachers, angan waadi workers and other frontline health workers to become the active part of this campaign.
• The Measles and Rubella (MR) campaign targets around 41 crore children across the country, the largest ever in any campaign.
• All children aged between 9 months and less than 15 years will be given a single shot of MR- vaccination.

Note:

• In 2015 measles killed an estimated around 49 thousand children under-5 years in the country.
• Rubella is generally a mild infection, but has serious consequences if infection occurs in pregnant women, causing congenital rubella syndrome.

5. HRD ministry to set up NTA to conduct exams for higher, secondary education

• The Union Human Resource Development Ministry will set up a National Testing Agency (NTA) department to conduct examinations for higher and secondary
• The decision has been taken keeping in view that the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has been conducting examinations in which around one million students appear every month.
• Initially, examinations like IIT, NIT and even university exams will be conducted by the NTA.
• The Human Resources Development Ministry will bring in a graded regulatory mechanism as part of key reforms in the University Grants Commission (UGC) to usher in greater transparency, freedom, and autonomy.
• The minister has announced that an open web-based platform 'SWAYAM' will be launched next month.
• The two thousand courses will be run for students across the country through SWAYAM.

6. Bureau of Civil Aviation Security suspends IndiGo's security training center license

• The apex aviation security agency Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has suspended the license of budget carrier IndiGo's aviation security training facility.
• The regulatory authority took the decision after several lapses were detected in the examination procedure that it was following.
• The training academy is run by IndiGo's parent company, InterGlobe Aviation.
• IndiGo will have to outsource the training programme, which will result in additional cost for the carrier. 

7. Vijay Goel lays foundation stone of 1st center of excellence for differently abled sportsmen

• The Union Minister for Sports Vijay Goel laid the foundation stone of the country's first centre of excellence for differently abled sportsmen at Gandhinagar(Gujarat).
• The center is proposed with an estimate of 50 crores rupees and will provide World class facilities such as indoor halls, dedicated tracks, and 100 bedded hostel.
• Para-athletes will also be trained for various international competitions including Paralympics.
• Around 50 differently-abled sportspersons between age group 8-12 will be imparted training in Athletics, Swimming and power lifting at the training centre.

Banking & Finance 

8. Penalty of equal amount for receiving cash over Rs. 3 lakh

• According to the Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia, the penalty for doing cash transaction will be steep and the receiver will have to pay an amount equivalent to the cash received.
• A steep penalty awaits those accepting cash in excess of 3 lakh rupees, beginning April 1, to settle any transaction.
• A ban on cash transaction of more than 3 lakh rupees has been proposed in the Budget for 2017-18.
• A person doing a transaction of 4 lakh rupees in cash, then the penalty will be 4 lakh rupees which will be levied on the receiver. He said, the government, will track all large cash transactions, and also curb the avenues of conspicuous consumption through cash.

Obituaries

9. Renowned Urdu author Bano Qudsia passes away

•  The Renowned Pakistani Urdu novelist and playwright Bano Qudsia (88-years) has passed away in Lahore.
• Her writings were popular both inside and outside the country.
• She was awarded Sitara-i-Imtiaz in 2003 and Hilal-i-Imtiaz in 2010.
• Her prominent writings include Aadhi Baat, Aatish-i-zer-i-paa, Aik Din, Amer Bail, Asay Pasay, Chahar Chaman, Chhotaa Sheher Baray Log, Footpath ki Ghaas, Hasil Ghaat and Hawa Kay Naam.

Note:

• She born in November 1928 in Ferozepur(India) and migrated to Pakistan after partition.
• Qudsia did her masters in Urdu Literature from Government College Lahore in 1951.

Science & Defence

10. world's smallest pacemaker unveiled

• The world's smallest pacemaker has been successfully implanted for the first time in a patient in the US.
• The pacemaker as big as a large vitamin capsule and provides the most advanced pacing technology.
• The pacemaker is for patients with bradycardia, a condition characterized by a slow heart rate, usually fewer than 60 beats per minute.

Note:

• Pacemakers are the most common way to treat bradycardia to help restore the heart's normal rhythm and relieve symptoms by sending electrical impulses to the heart to increase the heart rate. 

International Affairs 

11. Iran lifts ban on American wrestling team

•  Iran has lifted a ban on U.S. wrestlers after the discriminative restrictions on Iranian nationals traveling to the U.S. was suspended by a U.S. federal judge.
• They are allowing them to take part in the Freestyle World Cup later this month in the Iranian city of
• Iran initially refused to issue the visas, in retaliation for US President Donald Trump's immigration order.

 Sports 

12. Indian boys win team gold in Asian Junior Squash

• India defeated Malaysia 2-0 to win the gold medal in the boy's team event at the Asian Junior Squash championship in Hong Kong.
• India's no.1 player Velavan Senthilkumar defeated second seed Malaysia's Ong Sai Hun.
• Then Abhay Singh prevailed over Darren Rahul in hard-fought five games to lift the title for India.
• Indian boys had won the title for the second time,
• Earlier, in 2011 they defeated arch-rivals Pakistan in Colombo.

13.  Davis Cup: Ramkumar, Yuki power India to 4-1 win over New Zealand

• A lanky Ramkumar Ramanathan was fluent in his win over Finn Tearney while Yuki Bhambri struggled past Jose Statham as India completed an emphatic 4-1 victory over New Zealand in the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group I tie, in Pune.
• Ramkumar sealed the tie for the hosts by thumping Tearney 7-5, 6-1, 6-0 in the fourth rubber before Yuki won the dead fifth rubber against Statham 7-5, 3-6, 6-4.
• India now play second round tie at home in April against Uzbekistan

Thought of the Day

“If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.”

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