Daily GK Update : 24th August 2017

By Akanksha Jigyasu|Updated : August 24th, 2017

Appointments

1. Ashwani Lohani to take charge as the new Chairman of Railway Board.

  • Following the resignation of A. K. Mittal, Air India CMD, Ashwani Lohani has now been named as the new chairman of Railway Board.
  • Mittal had earlier resigned, owning moral responsibility for Utkal Express derailment.
  • Lohani, who is the Current Chairman and Managing Director of Air India has a degree in mechanical engineering and has also served as Delhi’s Divisional Railway Manager.

National Affairs

2. Closure of Bharat Wagon and Engineering Company (BWEL) approved by CCEA.

byjusexamprep

  • Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved the closure of central public sector enterprise under Railway Ministry, BWEL, which has been running in loss for quite some time now.
  • As per a statement released by CCEA, voluntary retirement scheme will be offered to the 626 employees of the organisation.
  • The government will also provide a one time grant of Rs. 151.18 crores for the severance package and also to clear company’s current liabilities.

3. Finance Ministry gives formal confirmation for printing Rs. 200/- notes.

byjusexamprep

  • A formal announcement for the launch of Rs. 200 notes was made by the Finance Ministry on Wednesday.
  • With this, RBI is expected to circulate the 200 rupees note shortly, in order to ease the shortage of currency in the country.

4. Supreme Court declares ‘Right to Privacy’, a fundamental right under the Constitution.

byjusexamprep

  • Right to privacy has now been declared a fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution by the Supreme Court.
  • A 9 judge bench delivered this unanimous verdict. It comprised of Justices Khehar, J Chelameswar, R K Agrawal, Sanjay K Kaul, R F Nariman, S A Bobde, D Y Chandrachud, A M Sapre and S Abdul Nazeer.

5. Grid connected rooftop solar project launched by Odisha Government.

byjusexamprep

  • The grid connected rooftop solar project was inaugurated by Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister of Odisha, in Bhubaneswar.
  • The project aims to promote renewable energy among the public.
  • Under this project, small solar plants can be installed on the rooftops of consumer houses and the solar energy generated during the daytime can be consumed by them.
  • www.rtodisha.gov.in’ web platform was also launched by the CM on this occasion, in order to facilitate the stakeholders, vendors and distribution companies.

6. Nandan Nilekani to return to Infosys as a Non- Executive Chairman.

byjusexamprep

  • Nilekani, who co-founded Infosys 36 years ago, is all set to return to the company as a Non- Executive Chairman.
  • Aadhaar’s architect, Nilekani has also served as the CEO f Infosys between March 2002 and April 2007.
  • The move comes after former MD & CEO of Infosys, Vishal Sikka resigned a few days ago.

7. Cabinet grants approval to rename SAMPADA Scheme.

byjusexamprep

  • CCEA has given the approval to rename SAMPADA scheme to Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana.
  • The new central food processing scheme aims to benefit approximately 20 lakh farmers and also generate 5.30 lakh jobs by 2020.
    Note: SAMPADA stands for Scheme for Agro-Marine Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters.

International Affairs

8. India Nepal MoU, related to drug trafficking approved by the Cabinet.

byjusexamprep

  • The Union cabinet has given its approval for MoU between India and Nepal, in order to resolve the problem of illicit trafficking of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursor chemicals.
  • This pact aims for information exchange for drug related matters of operational, technical or general nature.

9. Climate Smart Snow Leopard Plan launched by Nepal.

byjusexamprep

  • Nepal launched its first, ‘Climate Smart Snow Leopard Landscape Management Plan’, in order to safeguard this endangered species.
  • This conservation plan was announced ahead of Nepal’s International Snow Leopard Summit and Ecosystem Forum.

Sports

10. England Striker, Wayne Rooney announced retirement.

byjusexamprep

  • Rooney, the all time leading goal scorer of England has announced his retirement from international football.
  • Wayne Rooney, who was also the former captain of Manchester United, but later returned to Everton, has played 119 international matches and scored 53 times.

Thought of the Day

‘Don’t limit your challenges. Challenge your Limits!’

  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

GK Quiz (for previous day’s news only) Take the quiz below to find out how well-versed you are with current affairs. You can also go through the Daily GK Update: 23rd August 2017 before attempting the quiz.

Read Daily GK Update of  23rd August here.

To help you in your preparation, gradeup has launched IBPS PO Test Series for Prelims and Mains Exam. You can get IBPS PO 2017 Test Series here and attempt free mock tests now!

Download gradeup, the best daily gk update app now!

All the best for your exam.

Team gradeup.

Daily GK Update : 24th August 2017

Comments

write a comment

PO, Clerk, SO, Insurance

BankingIBPS POIBPS ClerkSBI POIBPS SOSBI ClerkRBIIDBI SOIBPS RRBLIC

Follow us for latest updates