GK Updates - 26 June | Banking Quiz

Mustafa Kamal appointed New ICC President

i. AHM Mustafa Kamal has become the first from Bangladesh to be president of International Cricket Council (ICC).

ii. He was elected as the 11th president of the governing body at the ICC annual conference in Australia’s Melbourne on Thursday. Bangladesh was given the status of a Test playing nation on the same day 14 year ago.

iii. “The people of Bangladesh love cricket. Cricket is their inspiration,” Mustafa Kamal said in an instant reaction. He expressed his gratitude to the people of Bangladesh for their support.

iv. Kamal who served as vice-president of ICC and president of Asian Cricket Council, said : “I am eagerly looking forward to working with the ICC board and management for 12 months,” he said.

N Srinivasan appointed as 1st ICC Chairman

I.BCCI President-in-exile N Srinivasan was today formally appointed the first Chairman of the ICC after its 52-member council approved a controversial revamp of the body’s administrative structure.

II.The full council approved the amendments to the ICC’s Memorandum and Articles of Association at the Annual Conference, here.

III.As was widely known before the conference, Srinivasan was elected the Chairman despite being barred by the Supreme Court of India from carrying out his duties as BCCI President due to ongoing investigations into the match-fixing allegations relating to the 2013 edition of the IPL.

IV.However, after the apex court refused to stop his nomination to the ICC position, the decks were cleared for his anointment to the newly-created post. The revamp will also hand major executive decision-making authority to the ‘Big Three’ of the game – India, Australia and England.

V.“It is an honour to be confirmed as the Chairman of the International Cricket Council. I will leave no stone unturned in trying to strengthen the pillars and foundations of our sport, both on and off the field,” Srinivasan said in a statement issued by the ICC.

HDFC Bank shareholders miss ‘Hanuman’ Deepak Parekh’s presence at AGM

I.HDFC Group Chairman Deepak Parekh was missed by the shareholders at HDFC Bank’s 20th Annual General Meeting in Mumbai on Tuesday.

II.“We did not see the Hanuman of HDFC today. Generally he comes for about 30 minutes at least…AGM comes once a year,” said one of the shareholders who took to the podium.

III.To this Aditya Puri, MD and CEO, replied that due to ill-health Parekh was unable to attend the AGM. The shareholder said he could understand considering that the “climate is bad” and conveyed his wishes for a speedy recovery.

A.K. Dubey appointed as Chairman of Coal India Limited

I.Additional secretary A.K. Dubey on 25 June 2014 was appointed as Chairman of Coal India Limited with immediate effect. He will serve his post as an additional charge till a full-time chairman is appointed.

II.He will serve as the Chairman for a period of three months until the new chairman of the state-owned company is duly appointed.

III.The post of Chairman was lying vacant since May-end 2014 when the then Chairman of CIL S Narsingh Rao resigned from the post.

Flipkart launches its 1st tablet Digiflip Pro XT712 at ₹9,999

I.E-commerce marketplace Flipkart has launched its very first tablet - Digiflip Pro XT712 - under its brand, Digiflip Pro. The tablet, available in black and white variants, is priced at ₹9,999.

II.The tablet also comes with shopping benefits worth over ₹5,000 and free eBooks worth over ₹2,000 from Flipkart.

III.The after-sales service for Digiflip Pro tablets will be handled through a network of more than 120 service centres across 100 cities. The tablet also comes with the usual Flipkart benefits like cash on delivery and a 30-day replacement policy.

IV.The XT712 comes with a 1280 x 800p HD resolution with IPS display. It is being shipped with a 1.3 GHz quad core Cortex A7 processor, and has dual SIM 3G calling features.

Indian-origin judge V K Rajah appointed as 8th Attorney-General of Singapore

I.Indian-origin judge V K Rajah on 25 June 2014 was appointed as 8th Attorney-General of Singapore. President of Singapore Tony Tan Keng Yam presided at the swearing-in of Justice V K Rajah.

II.He will succeed Steven Chong. Steven Chong will return to the Supreme Court.

III.VK Rajah was also appointed as a member of the Presidential Council for Minority Rights for a three-year term. 17-member council reports on matters, including Bills or other legislation.

Postal Life Insurance to begin online sale

I.Postal Life Insurance (PLI) and Rural Postal Life Insurance will soon provide facility to buy policies online.

II.PLI, which started operations in 1884, is now beginning its second phase of technology upgradation, Anjali Devasher, member, PLI, said at an award presentation ceremony here on Thursday.

III.As part of this, online viewing of policies and downloading facilities will be provided, she said.

IV.Postal Life Insurance now has 28 million policies, including 62 lakh rural policies.

Kim Jong-Un replaced Defence Minister of North Korea

I.Kim Jong-Un, the North Korean leader on 25 June 2014 replaced his defence minister Jang Jong-Nam. General Hyon Yong-Chol replaced Jang Jong-Nam as Minister of the People’s Armed Forces.

II.This was the latest in a series of senior military reshuffles since Kim came to power in late 2011. Kim Jong, who became the supreme leader of North Korea in 2011 after death of his father Kim Jong-II due to heart attack, has frequently replaced top military leaders in a bid to tighten his grip on the North’s 1.2 million-strong armed forces.

III.Defence Minister in North Korea is the main in charge of logistics and international exchanges. Policy-making is handled by the powerful National Defence Commisison and the party Central Military Commission.

Diya Systems bags FKCCI award

I.The Federation of Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) has awarded Diya Systems (Mangalore) Pvt Ltd, an IT/ITeS company, with export excellence award for 2014, according to a company press release.

II.It said that Diya Systems was awarded the ‘Best District Export Award’ in recognition of its services in the export segment.

III.The award and a citation were presented by Ananth Kumar, Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers, and RV Deshpande, Karnataka Minister of Higher Education and Tourism, in Bangalore recently, the release said.

Maharashtra State Cabinet approved reservation for Marathas and Muslims in the State

I.State Cabinet of Maharashtra on 26 June 2014 approved 16 percent reservation to Maratha community and 5 percent to Muslims in government jobs and educational institutions.

II.The reservation is applicable only for non-creamy layer of these communities and will be implemented immediately. This decision will not affect the existing 52 percent reservation in the State and with this the overall reservation has now increased to 73 percent.

III.Prithviraj Chavan, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra said that the reservation has been granted on the basis of backwardness of the community, but not on the lines of religion. The decision was taken on recommendations of Sachar Committee and Ragnath Mishra Commission on social, educational and economic backwardness of Muslims.

IV.Population of the two communities in the State has about 110 million people. Out of this Marathas population constitutes 32 percent and Muslims population constitutes 5 percent.

V.Andhra Pradesh was the first State to provide 4% reservation to Muslims in 2007 which was later quashed down by the respectable High Court terming it is unsustainable and violative of Article 14, 15(1) and 16 (2) of the Constitution.

Power Ministry invites bids for ₹12,500 cr of transmission lines

I.The Ministry of Power has invited bids for nine new transmission projects with an aggregate cost of ₹12,500 crore, as it seeks to fast-track the capacity building of inter-State transmission lines. The projects will be developed through the tariff-based competitive bidding process, which will invite participation from all bidders, including the private sector.

II.The nine projects will benefit States such as Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and others by setting up high capacity 765kV lines carrying up to 2,100 MW each from the construction of new 765/400 kV substations.

III.The new transmission lines will also reduce congestion in Haryana by strengthening the Northern Transmission system.

IV.“The projects will help evacuate power from central generating power stations such as the 660 MW Sipat of NTPC, the 1,600 MW Gadarwara as well as private sector generating stations such as the Sassan Ultra Mega Power Project with 1,320 MW,” a statement from the Power Ministry said.

V.“These projects were stuck in the approval process in the Government over the past several months,” the Power Ministry said. “The approval to go ahead with the implementation was granted immediately.”

VI.The largest of the nine projects is for a transmission system which will be associated with NTPC’s 1,600 MW Gadarwara project and would entail a cost of ₹4,885 crore in two parts. Strengthening of transmission lines of NTPC’s Sipat power stations would entail a cost of Rs. 2,473 crore.

Chung Hung Won retained as PM of S Korea

I.Chung Hung Won was retained as Prime Minster of South Korea on 25 June 2014. The President of South Korea, Park Geun-Hye announced the decision to retain the Chung Hung Won who had resigned over ferry disaster in April 2014.

II.Chung Hong-Won resigned as Prime Minister on 27 April 2014 taking the responsibility of government’s inability and untimely response to the ferry disaster. President Park accepted the resignation and asked him to remain in the job until new Prime Minister was found.

Implementation of Food Security Act extended by 3 months: Paswan

I.The deadline for implementation of the Food Security Act has been extended by three months, the Food Minister announced on Thursday.

II.The Act, which was passed in 2013, came into effect on July 5, 2013 and all States were given a year to implement the provisions of the Act. The deadline will come to an end on July 4. However, only five States have implemented the Food Security Act, passed by the previous UPA regime -- Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.

III.Six other States, including Delhi, Karnataka, MP and Bihar, are well on the verge of implementing the Act and have done so partially, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, said. The rest of the 20 States are still competely unprepared for implementing it.

Odisha government raised retirement age of employees to 60

I.State Government of Odisha on 26 June 2014 raised the retirement age of its employees from 58 to 60 years. The proposal in this regard was approved by the State Cabinet presided over by Naveen Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Odisha in Bhubaneswar.

II.This decision of the government will benefit about 5 lakh government employees of the State.

III.Earlier, the State government on 23 June 2014 also enhanced the retirement age of doctors who are engaged in government hospitals and in the three State run medical colleges to 62 years from existing 60.

IV.Apart from this, the government gave its nod to develop a full-fledged airport at Jharsuguda and soon will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Airports Authority of India in this regard. In the first phase, the State will hand over 118.75 acres land to the AAI for developing a full-fledged airport. The airport will be developed at an estimated cost 210 crore rupees in its first phase of which the State government will contribute 75 crore rupees.

RBI: Policy coordination needed to reduce global spillover effects

I.The Reserve Bank of India once again made a case for policy coordination to reduce the spillover effects of changes in the monetary policy stance in advanced economies (AEs) on emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs).

II.In its 9th Financial Stability Report, the central bank said with the eventual removal of policy accommodation in the AEs, better global policy coordination could reduce unexpected spillovers and improve trust which may be essential for future coordination.

III.RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan underscored the importance of global monetary policy coordination twice in the last two months – at the Brookings Institution in April and at a conference organised by the Bank of Japan (BoJ) in May.

IV.At the BoJ conference, Rajan suggested that central banks reinterpret their domestic mandate to take into account other country reactions over time, thus becoming more sensitive to spillovers.

V.In the Report, the RBI said that in the absence of global policy coordination, cooperation and global safety nets, EMDEs may have to resort to less than optimal policy options such as strong macro-prudential measures including capital controls and reserve accumulation.

“With their enormous clout, countries whose currencies serve as reserve assets can induce negative externalities on EMDEs through changes in their monetary policies,” it said.

Union Cabinet approved pact with China for setting up industrial park

I.The Union Cabinet on 25 June 2014 approved an in principle memorandum of understanding (MoU) between India and China for setting up industrial parks in the country.

II.The approval came during a Cabinet meet that was headed by Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India. But, the details of the agreement will be available after the agreement is signed.

III.This approval came at a time, when Hamid Ansari, the Vice-President of India will be on a five days visit to China to celebrate the 60th year of Panchsheel that formed the bedrock of India-China ties. He will be accompanied by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

ICICI Bank rolls out co-branded card with Delhi Metro

I.ICICI Bank has teamed up with Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to launch Unifare Card, which functions both as a smart card for the Delhi Metro users and a debit/credit card.

II.Rajiv Sabharwal, Executive Director, ICICI Bank, said the bank will be launching similar cards in other metro rail systems, such as those in Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. Incidentally, for the Bangalore Metro, Federal Bank has already launched such a system.

III.ICICI Bank’s Unifare Card will offer the benefits of a credit/debit card as well as the metro’s smart card discounts. But customers have to pay extra to get this card: ₹199 initially, and ₹20 every month. Also, after two years, they will be charged ₹199 a year, unless they spend ₹50,000 a year.

IV.Customers can top-up these cards at ICICI Bank kiosks put up at 54 stations of the Delhi Metro. But these cards cannot be topped up at the DMRC’s ticket facilities. Every time a metro user’s prepaid balance on the smart card dips below ₹100, the user can take the card to one of the 54 kiosks and load another pre-defined amount, with minimum amount being ₹200.

UST Global wins Golden Stevie Award

I.UST Global has won the Golden Stevie Award 2014 for ‘Human Resources Team of the Year’ at the 12th American Business Awards held in Chicago.

II.It was chosen by more than 240 executives worldwide who participated in the judging process this year.

III.The American Business Awards are the nation’s premier business awards programme, said Michael Gallagher, president and founder of the Stevie Awards.

IV.All organisations operating in the US are eligible to submit nominations – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small.

SpiceJet launches ‘SpiceFlex’ offer with add-on services

I.SpiceJet has launched “SpiceFlex” that offers multiple add-on services with benefits like complimentary meal, priority check-in, a choice to pre-assign preferred seats and waiver on change fees.

II.Guests choosing SpiceFlex would be able to save up to 50 per cent on the regular price of these add-on services if they were to buy them as individual add-ons.

III.Starting today, the airline is introducing a three-day limited period special offer wherein a guest can choose to upgrade to SpiceFlex at a further discounted price of just ₹749 extra (fee excluding base fare). This offer is applicable for bookings made between June 26 and June 29 for travel between June 26 and September 2014.

30% of Corporation Bank new branches are in un-banked rural areas: Chairman

I.Corporation Bank opened nearly 30 per cent of its new branches in un-banked areas during 2013-14, according to S R Bansal, Chairman and Managing Director of the bank.

II.Answering to the queries of the shareholders at the 17th annual general meeting of the bank in Mangalore on Thursday, he said that the bank has 2,021 branches in the country. Of them, 314 branches were opened during 2013-14.

III.The RBI has asked banks to open 25 per cent of new branches in un-banked areas. The Corporation Bank opened nearly 30 per cent of its branches in un-banked areas during 2013-14. Of the 314 branches, 111 are situated in un-banked areas, he said.

IV.The bank is planning to open another 500 branches during fiscal 2014-15. The total number of ATMs stood at 2,264 at the end of March 31 2014, Bansal added.

Gerdau Steel appoints Sridhar Krishnamoorthy as MD

I.Gerdau Steel India Ltd has appointed Sridhar Krishnamoorthy as Managing Director with immediate effect.

II.Prior to joining Gerdau, a global leader in steel, Sridhar was Vice-President Project Development with SENAAT, an Abu Dhabi-based industrial group, which also owns and operates Emirates Steel Industries in the UAE.

III.Mark Anthony Marcucci, Executive Director, Gerdau Special Steel said, “As Gerdau ramps up operations in India, his experience and capability will be important. Our vision is to be the leading special steel producer to meet India’s growing market needs in transportation, energy, distribution, and infrastructure.”

IV.Sridhar has a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from IIT Madras, a Masters in Energy Technology from the Asian Institute of Technology Thailand and an MBA from Monash University Australia. He also speaks Mandarin, Chinese and Russian and some Indian languages.

Coal India yet to sign fuel supply pacts for 4925 MW

I.Amid fuel supply issues, State-owned Coal India (CIL) has so far signed fuel supply pacts with power plants for a capacity of only 73,075 MW.

II.The coal and power ministries are now under one Minister — Piyush Goyal.

III.Out of 78,000 MW of capacity as on date, Coal India (CIL) has signed fuel supply agreements (FSAs) for a capacity of 73,075 MW, the Coal Ministry said in a document dated June 25.

IV.Pacts for the remaining 4925 MW could not be signed due to issues, including “extension of coal supplies beyond the period admissible under tapering linkage policy,” the Ministry said.

V.Tapering linkage is short-term linkage provided to consumers who have been allocated captive coal blocks but which could not be developed on time.

‘Role of company secretaries important in banking sector’

I.Company secretaries are playing an important role in all segments of industry, particularly in banking and financial services, according to RK Dubey, Chairman and Managing Director of Canara Bank.

II.Speaking at a seminar on ‘Capital market: The growth engine’, organised by the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI), in Mangalore on Wednesday, he said the government is finding it difficult to give more capital to banks because of the fiscal deficit.

III.Banks have been asked to raise capital from the market and there is greater thrust on disinvestment. In such a situation, the company secretaries are playing important role in the areas of banking and financial services, he said.

IV.Historically, a company secretary’s core competence has been in compliance and corporate governance. “They are now popularly known as governance professionals in capital markets, and more frequently called upon to guide the corporate board on various strategic, governance and compliance issues related to the capital markets,” Dubey said.

V.Dubey said the pursuit of the reform process requires a renewed focus on capital market reforms and a revisiting of the regulatory mechanism for the entire financial sector.

Hamid Ansari embarks on China visit

I.Vice-President Hamid Ansari today left on a five-day visit to China where he will hold bilateral discussions with his counterpart Li Yuanchao and attend events to mark the 60th anniversary of the Panchsheel agreement.

II.This is the first visit of an Indian leader to China after the Narendra Modi government took over last month. It is also Ansari’s first visit to China, and the first by an Indian Vice-President since 1994. Then Vice-President K.R Narayanan had visited China in 1994.

III.“We expect a substantive outcome based on the discussions between the two Vice-Presidents....India and China have maintained regular contacts at high level. This is part of our strategic communication with each other,” MEA spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin had told reporters here yesterday.

IV.A high-level delegation, which includes Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh, is travelling with the Vice-President.

V.Ansari is travelling to China to attend events to mark the 60th anniversary of Panchsheel at Beijing on June 28 and 29.

VI.Besides meeting his Chinese counterpart, the Vice-President will also meet Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. He will also call on President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People.

World Cup: Shaqiri takes Switzerland into last 16, Ecuador bow out

I.Riding Xherdan Shaqiri’s triple strike an inspired Switzerland eased past Honduras 3-0 to book their last 16 berth as Ecuador became the first Latin American side to bow out of this World Cup after playing a 0-0 draw with Group E toppers France yesterday.

II.Bayern Munich mid-fielder Shaqiri sent the Swiss in front with a cracking goal from just outside the area in the sixth minute.

III.The No.23 showed some great individual skill to beat a defender and then blast the ball past a helpless Honduras goalkeeper Noel Valladares into the top corner.

IV.Play slowed down a bit after Shaqiri’s stunning strike, though Honduras did try to build up possession in the mid-field.

V.But Shaqiri had other ideas as he scored again in the 31st minute to double Switzerland’s lead.

VI.Swiss striker Drmic Victor capitalised on a Victor Bernarndez’s mistake in the mid-field to pass it onto Shaqiri, who calmly tucked it in the lower corner.

VII.Shaqiri became the hattrick man in the 71st minute when he netted an assist from Drmic again to seal his team’s pre-quarterfinal entry.

Indian men's team ninth in latest word hockey rankings

I.Eight-time Olympic champions India find itself in a lowly ninth position among men’s teams in the recently-released FIH World Hockey Rankings.

II.The Indians, with 1458 rating points, occupy the ninth spot by virtue of their disappointing ninth place finish in the World Cup held at The Hague, Netherlands earlier this month.

III.Even though the Sardar Singh-led side defeated Asian champions South Korea 3-0 in the ninth-10th place play-off match in the World Cup, the Koreans (8th spot) are a rung ahead of India in the latest rankings with 1490 points.

IV.World champion Australia’s dominant 6-1 victory in the final of the quadrennial event keeps them in the top three of the men’s rankings for the 11th consecutive year.

V.The Netherlands, who finished runners-up in the World Cup, are in the second position while Argentina’s men’s team, who claimed third place in the World Cup after beating England 2-0, climb up four places to the seventh spot.

VI.Both Germany (3rd) and England (5th) have dropped one place. Belgium is in the fourth spot, while New Zealand is sixth.