DAILY GK 22 JAN 2020

DAILY GK 22 JAN 2020

1.    NIC TechConclave 2020’

ü Ravi Shankar Prasad has inaugurated a 2-day long 2^nd edition of ‘NIC TechConclave 2020’based on the theme “Technologies for NextGen Governance” held at New Delhi.

2.    Agricultural leasing policy

ü Uttarakhand has become the first state in India which has made a policy to lease agricultural land. After the approval of Rashtrapati Bhavan, the state government has issued the order.

ü Under this leasing policy, instead of giving land on a 30-year lease, the concerned farmer will get the rent for the land.

3.    Disabled aircraft recovery equipment

ü An agreement was signed by The Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) to acquire Disabled Aircraft Recovery Equipment (DARE) to enhance operational capabilities and to reduce downtime during runway emergencies.

4.    UAE has been declared ‘reciprocating territory’

ü The Central Government has declared the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to be a “reciprocating territory” under Section 44A of Civil Procedure Code (CPC), 1908. The order was issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice.

ü Section 44A provides the law on the subject of execution of decrees of Courts in India by foreign Courts and vice versa.

5.    NICL board approves its merger

ü The Board of National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) has approved its merger with Oriental Insurance Company Ltd (OICL) and United India Insurance Company Ltd (UIIC). The merger would help cut down costs and achieve economies of scale.

6.     ‘Champions of Change 2019’ Award

ü Hemant Soren was conferred with ‘Champions of Change Award-2019’ for social welfare (Aspirational Districts) by Former President Pranab Mukherjee at a function in New Delhi.The award is contributed to Hemant for his work in the Barhait and Dumka assembly constituencies in the state.

7.    Zomato acquires Uber Eats

ü Zomato, an Indian restaurant aggregator and food delivery startup has acquired Uber’s food delivery business in India, Uber Eats in an all-stocks deal valued at about $350 million (nearly Rs 2,485 crore).

8.    TSEC to use face recognition app in 2020

ü Telangana State Election Commission(TSEC) of the Indian state of Telangana, for the first time in India will use facial recognition in the Telangana Municipal polls to tackle the counter impersonation by the voters. This will be done on a pilot basis in selected 10 polling stations .

9.    World’s first living, self-healing robots

ü Scientists of University of Vermont and Tufts University have created the world’s first living and self-healing robots Xenobots, using stem cells from frogs. It is named after the African clawed frog, Xenopus laevis from which they take their stem cells.
 

10. 27th WTA Hobart International Trophy

ü Indian Tennis Player Sania Mirza and her Ukrainian partner Nadiia Kichenok have won the 2020 women’s doubles title of the 27th WTA (World Tennis Association) Hobart International Trophy held in Hobart, Australia.

11. RBI denies banning cryptocurrencies

ü RBI has confirmed that  not banning cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin in India during the latest supreme court hearing of the crypto case, which has restricted banks from dealing in bitcoin and crypto, due to concerns for terrorism financing.