GK Updates - 9 May | Banking Quiz

Forbes 11th annual Global 2000 list released

i.Forbes 11th annual Global 2000 list was released on 7 May 2014. The Forbes Global 2000 is a comprehensive list of the world’s largest, most powerful public companies, which was measured by revenues, profits, assets and market value.

ii.The top three biggest public companies and five of the top 10 are from China and added 25 firms to the list. The top 5 companies in the list are

1. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), China – Banking

2. China Construction Bank, China – Banking

3. Agricultural Bank of China, China – Banking

4. JPMorgan Chase, United States – Banking

5. Berkshire Hathaway, United States – Conglomerate

iii.Technology giant Apple (15) followed by financial giant Citigroup (16), energy corporation Chevron on rank 18 and Facebook (561).

iv.Banks and diversified financials dominate the list (476 firms), the next three biggest industries by membership are oil & gas (125 firms), insurance (114 firms) and utilities (100 firms) provided their contributions through their outsize revenue and massive assets.

NTPC on Forbes list of world’s largest and most powerful public companies

i.NTPC, the nation's No. 1 power producer, has been ranked among the top 500 on the Forbes 'Global 2000' list of the world's largest and most powerful public companies.
ii.According to an NTPCBSE 2.38 % statement, the company is 424 on the latest list that ranked the companies based on revenues, profits, assets and market value.

Indian scientist develops new technique to thwart cyberattacks

i.An IIT-Delhi alumnus has won a USD 20,000 prize for developing a new technique that protects against cyberattacks.

ii.Sanjam Garg, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi has created tools that enable the first secure solution to the problem of making computer programme code 'unintelligible' while preserving its functionality.

First solar 'sibling' discovered

i.Scientists have identified the first "sibling" of the Sun - a massive star almost certainly born from the same cloud of gas and dust as our own star.

ii.The solar sibling called HD 162826 is a star 15 per cent more massive than the Sun, located 110 light-years away in the constellation Hercules.

iii.The finding by researchers led by Ivan Ramirez of The University of Texas at Austin will help astronomers find other solar siblings, which could lead to an understanding of ..

Pakistan test-fired Hataf-III Ghaznavi missile

i.Pakistan on 8 May 2014 successfully test-fired Hataf-III Ghaznavi missile during war exercises of Army’s Strategic Force Command. Hataf-III Ghaznavi missile is a short range surface-to-surface Ballistic Missile and is capable of carrying nuclear and conventional weapons up to 290 kilometers.

ii.The field training exercise was performed with an aim to test the operational readiness of a Strategic Missile Group besides up gradation of various capabilities of Weapon Systems.

DGCA issued Guidelines to Operators for Real Time Tracking of Aircrafts

i.Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on 7 May 2014 issued guidelines to operastors for Real Time Tracking of Aircrafts.

ii.The new rule is applicable for both the passenger and cargo aircraft. DGCA has made it mandatory for all its planes to be tracked from departure to arrival.

iii.Guidelines were released to set standards in view of the difficulties faced in search and rescue operations after an aircraft goes missing or meets with an accident.

My Years with Rajiv and Sonia written by R.D. Pradhan

i.A book My Years with Rajiv and Sonia written by R.D.Pradhan released on 27 March 2014. R.D.Pradhan has penned his work experiences with Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi in his book.

ii.Pradhan who was associated with Rajiv after Indira Gandhi’s assassination shares how Rajiv had tackled crucial situations like terrorism and the separatist movement in the Punjab and festering insurgency in Mizoram. He also narrates his associations with Sonia Gandhi and her career. He shreds light on how the Sonia emerged as a formidable force to reckon with.

Karnataka overtakes Tamil Nadu in income-tax collections

i.Karnataka has pushed Tamil Nadu to the fourth slot in income-tax collections for the year ended March 2014. The first two slots are occupied by Mumbai and New Delhi regions.

ii.Tamil Nadu, including Puducherry region, ended the year with collections of Rs.42,500 crore, marking an increase of 14 per cent over the corresponding period last year. This is the first time that collections have crossed the Rs.40,000 crore-mark and this excludes tax refund of Rs.4,500 crore. Last year, Tamil Nadu region failed to achieve its budget target collection of Rs.40,528 crore, and ended the year at Rs.37,271 crore.

Mega FDI deal figures at CCEA meet

i.Union Finance Minister P. Chidamabram and Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma “informally” brought up for discussion the KKR Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposal at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Thursday.

ii.The ministers succeeded in persuading Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to allow the proposal to be taken up in the agenda of the next CCEA. The FDI proposal is tipped to be the largest private equity deal in the Indian healthcare sector.

iii.The Foreign Investment Promotion Board had earlier recommended that the CCEA consider and approve the deal. FDI proposals in excess of Rs 1,200 crore require CCEA approval.

GDP growth can reach 6.5% in 2014-15 with reforms: CII

i.India can achieve GDP growth rate of well over 6% provided that systemic reforms are carried out quickly by the new government, said Ajay S Shriram, the new president of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

ii.In the period of 2004-08 the GDP was at an average growing at the level of 9%, thereafter for next 2 years the average growth fell down to 7% and in the last few years it has lowered further. One of the important issues which the lower economic growth brings to the forefront is of job creation and with no economic growth it will be a greater challenge

Waqar Younis appointed as head coach of Pakistan cricket team

i.Waqar Younis, the former fast bowler of Pakistan on 6 May 2014 was appointed as the national coach of the national cricket team of Pakistan for a period of two years. His name was finally formalised by the Pakistan Cricket Board after his name was declared a week ago by Najam Sethi, the Chairman of the Board.

ii.His name was selected by a committee constituted by PCB that met in Lahore. The committee included

• Intikhab Alam - Director Domestic Cricket Operations

• Haroon Rashid - Director Game Development

• Moin Khan – the Chief selector