GK Updates - 9 Jan | Banking Quiz

India ranks near bottom of nuclear material security index

India has been ranked below its two nuclear-armed neighbours – Pakistan and China – in the list of countries with a weak nuclear material security in the world, according to a US-based think-tank.

In the 2014 Nuclear Threat Initiative’s Nuclear Materials Security Index released yesterday, India has been ranked 23rd out of 25 countries with weapons-usable nuclear materials.

India received 41 out of 100 points, which is improvement by one point from the 2012 score.

For comparison, China received 64 points and has been ranked at 20th spot, while Pakistan with 46 points stands at 22nd place.

India and these countries are included in the list of 25 countries with one kilogram or more of these materials, which also includes all other nuclear-armed states.

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Delhi Govt launches anti-corruption helpline no. 011-27357169

Fulfilling its promise made soon after coming into power, the AAP government in Delhi on Wednesday launched a helpline number to deal with corruption and promised action within 24 hours of sting operation to expose graft.

Speaking to reporters at a news conference here, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said 011-27357169 is the anti-corruption helpline number which will work from 8am to 10pm.

"We will try to get a simpler four-digit number in the next few days", he said.

"People should understand that it is not a complaint number but a helpline number where people will be advised and explained by an anti-corruption department official on how to conduct a sting operation. After doing the sting, he should get back to the same adviser following which a trap will be laid to nab the accused," he said while assuring that action will be taken within 24 hours of the sting.

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RBI relaxes gold loan norms

The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday allowed Non-Banking Finance Companies to lend up to 75 per cent of the Loan-To-Value ratio of gold jewellery, up from 60 per cent, with immediate effect.

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Govt to retain policy of allowing 100% FDI in existing pharma firms

Government on Wednesday decided to retain the policy of allowing 100 per cent foreign investment in the existing pharma firms, brushing aside concerns about non-availability of affordable drugs in view of MNCs takeovers.

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) said however that as far as the contentious issue of non-compete clause is concerned, the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) will take a view on it on case-by-case basis.

“The government has reviewed the position in this regard and decided that the existing policy would continue with the condition that ‘non-compete’ clause would not be allowed except in special circumstances with the approval of the FIPB,” the DIPP said in a Press Note.

Faced with a rush of multinationals (MNCs) acquiring Indian pharma firms, the DIPP had earlier proposed stringent norms to tighten the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy for the sector.

It had said the continuous acquisition of Indian pharma companies will severely impact availability and affordability of generic medicines in the country, and asked for a reduction in the FDI cap to 49 per cent from 100 per cent in rare or critical pharma verticals. However, the Union Cabinet at its meeting dismissed the DIPP concerns.

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Indian-origin youths in forbes list of 'brightest young stars

Over 20 Indian-origin youths are among Forbes magazine's annual list of the world's " brightest young stars" under the age of 30 from diverse fields like finance, media, sports and education, described by the publication as "prodigies reinventing the world right now."

The Forbes third annual '30 Under 30' list comprises young achievers in 15 different fields and includes icons like pop singers Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift, founder and CEO of the short-form blogging platform Tumblr David Karp, tennis player Maria Sharapova and Pakistani girls' rights activist Malala Yousafzai.

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International space station operations extended to 2024: NASA

NASA announced today that the Obama administration has approved NASA’s request for an extension of operations for the International Space Station for an additional four years to 2024. This means work on board the orbiting laboratory will continue at least for another decade.

“I think this is a tremendous announcement for us here in the space station world,” said Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, speaking during a press briefing today, “ and also for all of human spaceflight and for our international partnership.”

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Former Mumbai cricketer Vishwanath Bondre passes away

Former Mumbai Ranji Trophy cricketer Vishwanath Ramachandra Bondre died here on Wednesday night. He was 77.

“I heard from Shivaji Park Gymkhana round 10 pm that he died of a heart attack,” informed Milind Rege, a former Mumbai captain who was his teammate for one year.

Vishu Bondre played 8 games for Mumbai as a lower order batsman and a medium fast bowler and formed a combination with former India fast bowler Ramakant Desai for his employers ACC, Shivaji Park Gymkhana and Mumbai (then Bombay).

With competition so intense for places in the eleven in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy team in the 1960s, Bondre could play in very few games between 1965-66, his first season, and 1969-70.

Bondre scored 138 runs with 36 against Baroda at Baroda in his debut season as his best and grabbed 16 wickets at 26.50 per wicket with a personal best of 6 for 116 against Gujarat at Surat in his final Ranji season.

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BS Yeddyurappa formally rejoins BJP

Nearly 14 months after severing links with the party, the former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa formally rejoined the Bharatiya Janata Party along with his supporters on Thursday, claiming that he was doing so to contribute his mite to bringing the BJP to power at the Centre at a time when the party was witnessing a “now-or-never opportunity” to return to power and end the “misrule” of the Congress.

Mr. Yeddyurappa, who took the party’s primary membership at the BJP State headquarters along with key aides such as Shobha Karandlaje in the presence of a large number of supporters, apologised to the people of the State for what he called the “mistake” of quitting the party that paved the way for the victory of the Congress in the Assembly polls.

Promising not to part ways with the BJP again, he called for working unitedly to defeat the Congress at the Centre and to bring back the BJP to power in the State. Asking the BJP and KJP leaders not to suspect each others’ intentions, he said, “how many seats we will win in the Lok Sabha polls from the State will depend on the measure of honesty with which we will work.

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Mumbai safest city to drive: Survey

Mumbai has emerged as the safest city to drive and is also voted as the city with most disciplined traffic, says a road safety survey on drivers conducted in key cities.

The survey conducted by an insurance company with a sample size of 987 has been conducted in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Kolkata among others.

"Mumbai has been voted as the safest city to drive and also emerged as one with the most disciplined traffic," Sanjay Datta, chief of underwriting and claims at ICICI Lombard, which conducted the survey told reporters today.

While Delhi has the best roads, Bangalore has been voted as having the best driving facilities in terms of roadside assistance.

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Election Commission aborts tie-up with Google over security concerns

The Election Commission on Thursday turned down the proposal of the U.S. based internet search engine Google to have an “electoral look up services for citizens” even as BJP Rajya Sabha MP Tarun Vijay made a forceful plea before the Commission to abort any such proposal.

“Google made a presentation to the Commission for electoral look up services for citizens to help in its efforts for better electoral information services. However, after due consideration, the Commission has decided not to pursue the proposal any further,” an EC press note said.

Mr. Vijay, who submitted a memorandum to Chief Election Commissioner V.S. Sampath and Election Commissioner H.S. Brahma, wanted them to reject the Google’s proposal as it would be against the interests of the nation and its security.

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Japan wants India's support on disputes with China

Engaged in a territorial dispute with China, Japan on Thursday sought to rope in India’s support over “the recent Chinese provocative actions” saying a message needs to be sent to it collectively that status quo cannot be changed by force.

Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said dialogue is the only way to resolve the row created by imposition of restrictions by China in the East China Sea and other areas.

“For both India and Japan, China is an important neighbouring country. Both countries have important economic linkages with China. However, after the recent Chinese provocative actions, entire international community will have to send a message to China,” he told PTI in an interview in New Delhi.

“Both Japan and India should ask for a dialogue with Chinese side and tell China not to change status quo by force. These issues should be solved through dialogue and following international rules,” the Minister said.

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Top TV journalist Ashutosh likely to join AAP

Television journalist Ashutosh joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday. The announcement was made by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and party leader Sanjay Singh at a press conference.

Mr.Ashutosh had resigned as the Managing Editor of IBN7 on Thursday fuelling speculation that he would join AAP. Answering a volley of questions on whether he was “opportunistic” as he was joining the party ahead of Lok Sabha election, he said, “If history has given us an opportunity, then why shouldn’t we take it?”

Responding to a question on whether he would contest elections, he said, “I have just joined the party and it is up to the party to decide. I will do what the party says and spread the message of the party.” He added that he had not joined the party just for contesting the election.

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Dhoni, Dhawan, Kohli nominated for ESPNCricinfo Awards

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli are the leading candidates for the 2013 ESPNCricinfo awards, nominations for which were announced on Thursday.

The annual ESPNCricinfo awards recognise the best performances in Tests and ODIs through the year and the Indian trio figured in both the Test batting performance of the year and ODI batting performance of the year nominations.

Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin made the grade in the Test bowling performance of the year, while Ravindra Jadeja was shortlisted for the ODI bowling performance of the year.

An independent jury will decide the winners in the four individual performance categories, while fan voting on ESPNcricinfo will determine the Best Debut of the Year award.

The winners will be announced later this year at a gala event in Mumbai.