Daily GK Update : 6th May 2017

National Affairs

1. Maharajas’ Express to begin new circuits 'Southern Sojourn' & 'Southern Jewels'

• Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has decided to launch two new circuits (Southern Sojourn & Southern Jewels) of its flagship luxury train Maharajas' Express this year.
• The ‘Southern Sojourn’ will cover Goa, Hampi, Mysore, Ernakulam, Kumarakom and Trivandrum.
• The ‘Southern Jewel’ will cover Chettinad, Mahabalipuram, Mysore Hampi and Goa.
• The 23-coach Maharajas' Express has a capacity of 88 guests.

Note:

• As with the Maharaja Express, seven-night-eight-day trips and guests get onboard dining and excursions and events at each destination.
• Tariffs will ransom minor princelings Rs. 5,00,680 (plus taxes) gets you the entry-level deluxe cabin, Rs. 7,23,420 is the price of a junior suite and Rs. 10,09,330 is the bill for a suite.
• The Presidential suite will set you back Rs. 17,33,410.

2. Haryana govt. to offer meals at subsidized rates for workers

• The Haryana govt. has decided to open ‘canteens’ at subsidized rates to registered construction workers under the ‘Antyodaya Anna Yojana’ at 23 locations in the state.
• The mobile food vans will be started at the sites which have a large number of workers.
• The quality meals would be served in these canteens between 8 AM and 2 PM.

3. Madhya Pradesh assembly declares 'Narmada' living entity

• The Madhya Pradesh govt. has passed a resolution granting river Narmada (1312-km-long) the status of a living entity and committed itself to the protection of its legal rights.
• Earlier in its judgment, the Uttarakhand High Court had declared Ganga, Yamuna and their tributaries living entities with the status of a legal person.

Note:

• The Narmada (also called the Rewa) is a river in central India and the fifth longest river in the Indian subcontinent.
• It is also known as "Life Line of Madhya Pradesh" for its huge contribution to the state of Madhya Pradesh in many ways.

4. Odisha govt. increases the pension of freedom fighters

• The Odisha government has increased the pension of freedom fighters of the State.
• The pension of jailed freedom fighters will get 10 thousand rupees per month (earlier 6 thousand rupees).
• The freedom fighters who were not jailed and those who took part in the Goa Mukti Andolan will get pension benefit of 9 thousand rupees (earlier 5 thousand rupees).
• Now, the state Token pension amount has been increased from 4 thousand rupees to 8 thousand rupees.

Note:

• The state government had last increased the pension amount for freedom fighters in 2013.

5. 34 MoUs worth Rs 2 lakh crores signed at India Integrated Transport & Logistic Summit

• According to the union minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, 2 lakh crore rupee investment has been signed at three-day India Integrated Transport and Logistic Summit in New Delhi.
• Total 34 investment pacts committed and more than 15 pertain to setting up multi-modal logistics parks by state governments.
• Agreements for port connectivity and land ports were also inked.

6. Union govt. declares entire Assam as 'disturbed' area under AFSPA

• The union govt. has declared entire Assam (besides bordering areas of Meghalaya) as a disturbed area under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) for three more months.
• The violence perpetrated by insurgent groups like ULFA, NDFB, and others as the reason for enforcing AFSPA (effected from 3^rd May).
• AFSPA has been continuing in Assam since November 1990.

Note:

• Armed Forces (Special Powers) Acts (AFSPA) are acts of the Parliament of India that grant special powers to the Indian Armed Forces in what each act terms "disturbed areas".
• According to The Disturbed Areas (Special Courts) Act, 1976 once declared ‘disturbed’, the area has to maintain status quo for a minimum of 3 months.

National & International Appointment

7. Kerala govt reinstates TP Senkumar as police chief

• Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan has reinstated Senior IPS officer TP Senkumar as the police chief after Supreme Court order to restore his post.
• Senkumar was moved out of the office the day Vijayan assumed office in May last year.
• Senkumar is set to retire on 30th June.

8. Nepal's Supreme Court orders reinstatement of Chief Justice Sushila Karki

• Nepal's first woman Chief Justice ‘Sushila Karki’ has resumed office after the Supreme Court (SC) ordered her reinstatement and directed Parliament to put on hold the impeachment motion against her.
• The court issued the order saying that the impeachment move was against the spirit of the country's Constitution.
• Earlier, Justice Karki was suspended after an impeachment motion was registered in Parliament.

Banking & Finance 

9. RBI makes substantial changes in norms for dealing with stressed loans

• The Reserve bank of India (RBI) has made substantial changes in the norms for dealing with stressed loans and warned the banks they will be penalized for missing Non-Performing Assets (NPA) resolution timelines. 
• Any non-adherence to these instructions and timelines specified under the Framework shall attract monetary penalties on the concerned banks.
• Earlier, the union government has notified an ordinance empowering the Reserve Bank to issue directions to banks to initiate insolvency resolution process in case of a default under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

Sports

10. Lionel Messi's suspension lifted by FIFA

• The world soccer's ruling body FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) has lifted a four-match international suspension on Argentina forward Lionel Messi.
• Earlier, he was banned for insulting an assistant referee during a qualifier against Chile in March.
• The decision based on television images as the incident was missed by match officials.

Note:

• Lionel Messi (29-year) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team.

  "Thought of the Day"

“Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life.”

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