DAILY GENERAL KNOWLEDGE -- MAY 2016 -- 101 TO 150

101. Gujarat Government accords minority status to Jain community

i. Gujarat Government has granted minority status to the Jain community after issuing a resolution for same. This will be benefiting the poor among Jain community as they will be eligible for many scholarships and welfare schemes.

ii. The previous UPA Government at the Centre had conferred the minority status on the Jain community at the national level in January 2014. Jains were the 6th community to have minority status after Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis. 

iii. Under the Constitution, religious and linguistic minorities enjoy special rights. The minority status helps to give constitutional safeguards to minority communities and make them eligible for welfare programmes of the Union Minority Affairs Ministry.

102. Infosys Foundation signs pact with IISER

i. Infosys Foundation, philanthropic arm of the IT major, has signed a pact with Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune, to support students from economically weaker section to pursue ‘high quality’ education.

ii. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aims at providing opportunities for economically weaker students to pursue high quality science education and research through scholarships, fellowships and travel awards. 

iii. As part of the MoU, the corpus fund of Rs. 5 crore named as ‘The Infosys Foundation Endowment Fund’, will continue in perpetuity to benefit a minimum of 50 students annually. Infosys said the grant is aimed at fulfilling the Foundation’s objective of creating equal opportunities for students from poorer background and advancing the quality of research done at Indian institutions.

103. SMS-based Vehicle Monitoring Service of Nagaland bags award

i. The SMS-based Vehicle Monitoring System of Nagaland police has conferred with the National Award for Smart Policing instituted by Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). 

ii. The SMS-based Vehicle Monitoring System was conceived by the Nagaland Police Department and executed by Ben Imchen, a post-graduate from IIT Delhi. 

iii. The project was launched in April last year and provides an easy platform for policemen and citizens to report vehicle theft and alert the various field formations of police across the state by sending one SMS.The award for the Best Practice in the category of Road Safety and Traffic Management was presented to Nagaland Police by Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary at a function in New Delhi.

104. Jaguar Land Rover partners firm to build phones

i. England automative brand Jaguar Land Rover ltd and a subsidiary of Indian automaker Tata Motors, has tied up with UK-based Bullitt Group to develop mobile devices and a range of accessories under its brand. 

ii. The smartphones and accessories will be launched in early 2017.

iii. As per the Bullitt Group, the firm will partner with Land Rover to define and develop a groundbreaking portfolio of mobile devices and peripherals which will take the brand into a new and exciting commercial terrain.

105. Saraswat Bank donates Rs 1 cr relief for drought in Maharashtra

i. The Country's largest urban co-operative bank, Saraswat bank has announced the donation of rs. 1 crore for drought relief in Maharastra. 

ii. The drought relief in Maharastra is caused by the two deficient years of the monsoon rainfalls and now has been a major problem resulting into shortage of water availability across the country including Maharashtra.

iii. The Vice Chairman of Bank, Mr. Gautam E Thakur, has handed over the cheque of Rs 50,00,000 to Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis and another cheque of Rs 50,00,000 to Nana Patekar, Founder of NAAM Foundation handed over by the director of Kishore Rangnekar.

106. South Indian Bank announces tie-up with National Australia Bank

i. Kerala based South Indian Bank has announced a tie-up with National Australian Bank (NAB) for online inward remittances from Australia at a competitive rate. 

ii. As per Bank, the agreement enable faster, hassle-free remittances through internet at the best exchange rates. With this, National Australian Bank will be the main banking correspondent of South Indian Bank in Australia. 

iii. As per this deal, the exchange rate is decided by the South Indian Bank and the NRI customers in Australia would get the best possible rates. Besides, the remitted money can be either converted into Indian rupee or maintained in Australian dollar.

107. UN launches Multi-Partner Trust Fund for Zika virus response

i. United Nations (UN) has announced the establishment of the UN Zika Response Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MPTF) to finance critical unfunded priorities in the response to the Zika outbreak. 

ii. The fund was launched by the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at the UN Headquarters in New York, United States.

iii. The Fund aims to provide a rapid, flexible and accountable platform to support a coordinated response from the UN system and partners. It will directly support the Zika Strategic Response Framework developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) in consultation with UN agencies. This fund will help donors to contribute to a central point and an Advisory Committee will direct funds to the highest-priority activities in the affected countries.

108.SpaceX successfully launches Japanese JCSAT-14 Satellite

i. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket on has been successfully placed Sky Perfect JSat’s JCSat-14 commercial telecommunications satellite into transfer orbit, with the rocket’s first stage landing gracefully on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. 

ii. JCSat-14 manufacturer SSL of Palo Alto, California, confirmed that the satellite was healthy in geostationary transfer orbit and sending signals. SSL declined to confirm whether the final launch mass had changed from previous estimates of around 4,700 kilograms.

iii. It was the second consecutive drone-ship touchdown by the rocket’s first stage and was accomplished despite what SpaceX officials had said were particularly challenging conditions due to the velocity necessary for the launch. The previous successful drone-ship landing, performed in April, was done following a launch of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule into low Earth orbit.

109. Airport Show opens in Dubai

i. An Airport Show has opened in Dubai with participation of more than 300 companies from 55 countries including India, that will showcase a diverse portfolio of technologies and solutions in the aviation sector. 

ii. This is the 16th edition of the Airport Show and premier airport event for the Middle East, North Africa and Indian subcontinent region. 

iii. The show has recorded a 30 per cent growth in participants for the Business Connect programme with an all-time high participation of 154 buyers. This year's show will see buyers from - Algeria, Armenia, Bahrain, Botswana, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Zimbabwe and the host country, UAE. 

110. Sadiq Khan Elected First Muslim Mayor Of London 

i. Sadiq Khan, a member of the Labour Party and human rights lawyer of Pakistani descent has been sworn in as London's new mayor by comfortably outrunning of his nearest rival.

ii. Khan also set a record by winning 1.1 million votes. With a 45 % election turnout, he finished with a margin of 13.6 percentage points over Zac Goldsmith of the Conservative Party. 

iii. His victory also marks the return of Labour Party rule in the British capital after eight years of Conservatives in power.

111. Veteran leader Chennamaneni Rajeswara Rao passes away

i. Veteran freedom fighter and former Sircilla MLA Chennamaneni Rajeshwara Rao has passed away at a private hospital in Hyderabad following prolonged illness. He was 93 year old.

ii. Rao hailed from Marpaka village of Vemulawada mandal in Karimnagar district and participated in Telangana's armed struggle against the Nizam. 

iii. He started his political career as a communist and was elected as a CPI legislator from Sircilla assembly constituency in Karimnagar in 1967, 1978, 1985 and 1994 assembly elections. Subsequently, he quit the party and represented TDP from Sircilla seat till 2004 before he took retirement from active politics. 

112. Novak Djokovic wins 2016 Mutua Madrid Open

i. Number one player, Novac Djokovic has defeated Andy Murray 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 to conquer the Mutua Madrid Open title in Madrid, Spain.

ii. It was Djokovic’s fifth win in the last 6 ATP 1000 competitions. With the win, he also reached a record 29 Masters 1000 titles.

iii. Mutua Madrid Open title was Djokovic’s second title on the Caja Mágica clay. He claimed the game in two hours and six minutes.

113. Parliament Passes Anti-Hijacking Bill, 2016

i. Parliament has passed the Anti-Hijacking Bill, 2016 to widen ambit of law dealing with this anti-hijacking crime. The Bill was first passed in the Rajya Sabha and later in the Lok Sabha in May 2016. 

ii. Now the Bill will go for Presidential assent as per Article 111 of Indian Constitution. 

iii. The Bill defines hijacking as seizing control of an aircraft in service, unlawfully and intentionally, by coercion, technological means or by exercising force or any other form of intimidation. It covers several acts within the definition of hijacking. It includes (i) attempt and abetment of hijacking (ii) organizing or directing others to commit hijacking and (iii) making a credible threat to commit hijacking. 

114. President of India to attend the National Technology Day celebration tomorrow 

i. The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee will attend the National Technology Day (May 11, 2016) Celebrations at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi tomorrow.

ii. The National Technology Day is being celebrated every year on May 11 by the Ministry of Science & Technology to commemorate achievements of Innovation and Technology in the country. 

iii. This year’s theme for celebrations of the Technology Day is ‘Technology enablers of Startup India’.

115. Ministry of Environment & Forests launches web-based application on Integrated Waste Management System

i. The Ministry of Environment and Forests has launched a web-based application on Integrated Waste Management System (IWMS). The system’s web address is www.iwms.nic.in.

ii. The government launched the system for better management of waste. The user-friendly application is capable of tracking the movement of hazardous waste.

iii. Objectives of the Integrated Waste Management System- To enhance transparency in the working of the Ministry and other Centre/State level regulatory bodies. And to reduce the time taken for processing applications, seeking various types of permissions under the recently notified waste management regulations.  

116. Indian Army conducts ‘Chakravyuh-II’ training exercise in Rajasthan

i. Indian Army had conducted major military training exercise ‘2016 Chakravyuh-II’ in Suratgarh, Rajasthan. 

ii. Purpose behind this exercise is to Validate battle readiness and operational effectiveness of the Pivot Formation and Rapid Division of Indian Army along with all its affiliated components. 

iii. The Chakravyuh-II exercise involved rapid mobilisation and execution of battle plans in conjunction with the Indian Air Force (IAF). It envisaged mechanised manoeuvres in the entire spectra of new generation weapons, systems and platforms in the rapid urbanisation and development areas along the border. 

117. Rural Sanitation Initiatives for Ganga Rejuvenation launched in Jharkhand

i. The Union Government has launched nine projects initiatives for rural sanitation initiatives for conservation of river Ganga in Jharkhand. 

ii. It was launched by Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti under Namami Gange Programme in Sahibganj, Jharkhand. 

iii. Under this programme, villages located on the entire 83 Km. stretch of Ganga River in Jharkhand will be covered to improve the health and quality of life. It will be carried out under the overall guidance of the Ministry with the support from UN Development Programme (UNDP), community organizations and NGOs. The programme initiatives will contribute to improved, sustainable liquid and solid waste management in the identified 78 villages along the Ganga River. 

118. RBI to issue rs. 1000 banknotes with inset letter 'R'

i. As per the Reserve Bank Of India it will shortly issue rupees 1,000 denomination bank notes in the Mahatma Gandhi Series of 2005 with the insert letter of 'R' in both the number panels.

ii. The banknotes will also obverse all the other security features, including ascending size of numerals, bleed lines and enlarged identification mark as well as the signature of Dr. Raghuram G. Rajan, Governor, Reserve Bank of India. These banknotes will also have the year of printing '2016' printed on the reverse.

iii. All the banknotes in the denomination of rs. 1000 issued by the Reserve Bank in the past, including rs. 1000 denomination banknotes with ascending size of numerals in the number panels but without bleed lines and enlarged identification mark, will continue to be legal tender.

119. 100% FDI through Automatic Route permitted in Asset Reconstruction Companies

i. The Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) under Union Ministry of Commerce & Industry has allowed 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in asset reconstruction companies (ARCs) under the automatic route.

ii. Till now, foreign investment was automatic only up to 49 per cent, beyond that government approval was needed. But now its 100 %, However, some conditions have been set, including the stipulation that the total shareholding of individual foreign institutional investors/foreign portfolio investors must be below 10 per cent of the total paid-up capital.

iii. FII/FPIs have also been permitted to invest up to 100 % of each tranche in security receipts issued by ARCs, subject to RBI directions/guidelines. Now as per the DIPP, the investment limit of a sponsor in the shareholding of an ARC will be governed by the provision of the Sarfaesi law, as amended from time to time.

120. RBI releases "Draft Guidelines for 'on tap' Licensing of Universal Banks in the Private Sector"

i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released the 'draft guidelines for 'on tap' Licensing of Universal Banks in the Private Sector'. 

ii. But the final guidelines will be issued and the process of inviting applications for setting up of new universal banks in the private sector will be initiated after receiving feedback, comments and suggestions on draft guidelines from banks, non-banking financial institutions, industrial houses, other institutions and the public at latest by 30 June 2016.

iii. Present guidelines include:

(i) Resident individuals and professionals having 10 years of experience in banking and finance as eligible persons to promote universal banks,

(ii) large industrial/business houses are excluded as eligible entities but permitted to invest in the banks to the extent of less than 10 per cent, 

(iii) Non-Operative Financial Holding Company (NOFHC) has now been made non-mandatory in case of promoters being individuals or standalone promoting/converting entities who/which do not have other group entities,

(iv) The NOFHC is now required to be owned by the promoter/promoter group to the extent of at least 51 % of the total paid-up equity capital of the NOFHC, instead being wholly owned by the promoter group,

(v) Existing specialised activities have been permitted to be continued from a separate entity proposed to be held under the NOFHC subject to prior approval from the Reserve Bank and subject to it being ensured that similar activities are not conducted through the bank as well.

121. Google launches free WiFi at 5 railway stations

i. Multinational company Google has announced the launch of its free high-speed public WiFi service at Ujjain, Jaipur, Patna, Guwahati and Allahabad railway stations. The service is now available in 15 stations across India. 

ii. This is in continuation with its project to provide high-speed public WiFi service at 100 Railway stations across India by end of the year.

iii. The Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu will inaugurate the service at these stations soon. Google stated that it has been deploying the service over the extensive fibre network of Indian Railway’s arm Railtel which provides Internet services as RailWire. 

122. Knowlarity acquires customer engagement platform Smartwards

i. Asia’s leading cloud telephony company, Knowlarity Communications has announced the acquisition of Delhi-based Smartwards, a customer engagement platform that simplifies loyalty for local businesses and their customers. 

ii. As part of the move, Shantanu Mathur and Dhanraj Singh Bisht - the co-founders of Smartwards, will lead the India operations for Knowlarity.

iii. The deal will see Knowlarity integrating the Smartwards product and technology into its own product ecosystem to provide enterprise software solutions to small & medium businesses. 

123. Mahesh Sharma released a Commemorative coin on Maharana Pratap

i. As a part of 475th Birth Anniversary celebrations of Maharana Pratap Union Minister for Culture and Tourism Dr. Mahesh Sharma has released a Commemorative coin of Rs. 100 and a Circulation coin of Rs. 10 in New Delhi. 

ii. Maharana Pratap was a brave warrior, successful organizer and ingenious strategist. He fearlessly fought with the Mughals and protected his people until his death.

iii. Ministry of Culture has been celebrating the 475th Birth Anniversary of Maharana Pratap during 2015-16 in association with the State Government of Rajasthan. The Government of India and the State Government of Rajasthan have also decided to create a multi-purpose indoor stadium at Khel Gaon, Udaipur in his memory. For this purpose, Ministry of Culture has agreed to give a sum of Rs. 9.50 crore to the State Government.

124. BAFTA TV awards 2016 has been announced

i. The British Academy Television Awards have presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television 

Arts (BAFTA). They have been awarded annually since 1955. This year's British Academy Television Awards, hosted by Graham Norton. 

ii. List of Winners :- Drama series - WINNER – Wolf Hall (BBC2), Entertainment programme  - WINNER – Strictly Come Dancing (BBC1), International - WINNER – Transparent (Amazon Prime), Single drama - WINNER – Don’t Take My Baby (BBC3), Leading actress - WINNER – Suranne Jones – Doctor Foster (BBC1) and Leading actor - WINNER – Mark Rylance – Wolf Hall (BBC2) etc. 

iii. The Special Award in Honour of Alan Clarke - Presented to Lenny Henry, Britain’s best-loved comedians and writers, in recognition of his outstanding creative contribution to television during a career for 40 years.

125. Shashank Manohar quits as BCCI President

i. Shashank Manohar has stepped down from as BCCI president. The Nagpur bigwig had taken over the role last year after the position was left vacant following the death of Jagmohan Dalmiya.

ii. Manohar, lawyer by profession, is currently the chairman of International Cricket Council. Manohar only took the board's top position last October and his term was one of the shortest terms ever served by a president. Manohar predecessor Jagmohan Dalmiya's reign lasted only six months — from March to September 2015 — until he passed away.

iii. While Manohar is BCCI's nominated chairman in ICC, the executive board of the global body has passed a rule that ICC's chairman should be of independent nature and can't act in dual role keeping his position as his country's cricketing chief.

126. Sanjay Kaul is the new Country Head for Apple India

i. The Cupertino technology giant, Apple, has elevated Sanjay Kaul as the country manager for Apple India. Although there has been no official communication from the company, Kaul's LinkedIn has been updated with the same.

ii. A Canadian citizen, Kaul has been associated with Apple since Novmeber 2011 and has been taking care of the Apple's iPhone business. From heading  iPhone business to Director, Telecom, he has now taken over the role of Country head from Manish Dhir, who had quit the company in January this year.

iii. Before joining Apple, Kaul was associated with BlackBerry (earlier Research In Motion) in the capacity of Director - Channel sales for India for over two years where he revived Airtel BlackBerry business to achieve three digit percentage growth in net subscriber additions in 12 months. 

127. Mrugank Paranjape took charge as MD and CEO of Multi Commodity Exchange

i. Mrugank Paranjape took charge as managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), country’s largest commodity exchange. 

ii. He will have tenure of 3 years. His appointment fills the vacancy of the post which was vacant for past two years. 

iii. Prior to this, Mrugank Paranjape was working with Deutsche Bank for 14 years as Asia Pacific Head of Trust & Securities Services/Cash Management for Financial Institutions. 

128. US actor William Schallert has passed away

i. US actor William Schallert, who parlayed an everyman face into hundreds of television and film roles, most notably as the father in the 1960s TV situation comedy 'The Patty Duke Show' has passed away. He was 93 year old.

ii. Born on July 6, 1922 in Los Angeles, Schallert was the son of a journalist. He appeared in shows spanning the history of television, did hundreds of voice overs and served as President of the Screen Actors Guild from 1979 to 1981. 

iii. Schallert is best remembered for his role as Martin Lane, the father in The Patty Duke Show, which aired from 1963 to 1966.

129. Indian scientist bags SGD 3 mn grant from Singapore's NRF

i. An Indian scientist from Uttar Pradesh's Gorakhpur city has been awarded a grant of SGD 3 million (about Rs 14.7 crore) by National Research Foundation to research in congenital and adult cardiovascular diseases. 

ii. The NRF, a department within the Prime Minister's Office, Singapore is responsible for developing strategies, policies and plans for research, innovation and enterprise. 

iii. Dr Manvendra K Singh, who is working as an assistant professor in the cardiovascular and metabolic disorders programme at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, said he that is among the seven young scientists from across the world to be endowed with the Singapore NRF fellowship to carry out cutting-edge research this year. He has been awarded the fellowship to pursue research in the field of congenital and adult cardiovascular diseases.

130. Indian boxers won 4 medals at 7th Asian Youth Championship

i. Indian boxers on 9 May 2016 won four medals at the 7th Asian Youth Championships held in Pavlodar, Kazakhstan. 

ii. India finished at third in the overall standings with three silver and a bronze medal in the tournament.

iii. The Indian boxers who won silver medals are National champion Ankush Dahiya (60kg), Ashish Kulhirya (64kg) and Reyal Puri (81kg). Manjeet Singh (+91kg) won the solitary bronze. Kazakhstan topped the medal tally with 6 gold, 1 silver and 3 bronze medals followed by Uzbekistan at second position with 3 gold, 3 silver and 3 bronze medals. The tournament featured more than 150 boxers from 23 countries.

131. 11th May : National Technology Day

i. Every year, National Technology Day is observed across India on May 11 to mark Indian technological advancement. This year the theme is Technology enablers of Startup India.

ii. The day has been declared National Technology Day by the Indian Government in order to commemorate the history of India's technological capability and expertise. 

iii. This day glorifies the importance of science in day to day life and to celebrate the anniversary of first of the five tests of Operation Shakti (Pokhran-II) nuclear test which was held on 11 May 1998 in Pokhran, Rajasthan. Apart from Pokhran nuclear test, on this day first indigenous aircraft Hansa-3 was test flown at Bangalore and India also conducted successful test firing of the Trishul missile on the same day. Considering all these achievements 11 May was chosen to be commemorated as National Technology Day.

132. RBI cancels licence of 4 NBFCs and  7 other surrender licence  

i. The Reserve Bank Of India (RBI) has cancelled the certificate of registration of the four Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and seven other Maharashtra-based non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) have surrendered their registration certificates.

ii. RBI cancelled their certificates in exercise of the powers conferred on it under Section 45-IA (6) of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. The NBFCs whose certificate of registration were cancelled include :- Kolkata based - M/s Neelanjali Engineering Private Limited, Kolkata based - M/s Novoflex Tradecom Private Limited, Mumbai based - M/s Guide Investments and Trading Co. Pvt. Ltd and Pune based - M/s Enol Ventures Private Limited.

iii. Apart from this, seven Maharashtra-based Non Banking Financial Institutions have surrendered their registration certificates following which they won't be allowed to transact their financial business. 

133. Indian Navy decommissions fighter planes Sea Harriers

i. Indian Navy has decommissioned its fleet of iconic Sea Harriers. 

ii. The Naval Air Squadron 300 - I N A S 300, popularly known as 'white tigers', de-inducted these fighter aircrafts and replaced them with new generation Mig 29 K fighters in a touching ceremony on INS Hansa near Vasco. 

iii. Wing Commander Shikhu Raj, a Sea Harrier Pilot himself and the commander of the squadron handed over the command of the squadron to Captain KHV Singh in an historic ceremony and bid adieu to the Sea Harriers. The function was presided over by the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R. K. Dhowan. 

134. Indian Navy launches underwater vigil system in Visakhapatnam

i. Indian Navy has launched the state-of-the-art Harbour Defence Systems, viz., Integrated Underwater Harbour Defence and Surveillance System (IUHDSS) and Mine Warfare Data Centre (MWDC) which would enhance the Navy’s surveillance capability and response to security threats at the Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam. 

ii. Vice Admiral HCS Bisht, AVSM Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command inaugurated the two systems.

iii. The IUHDSS is a multi-sensor system capable of detecting, identifying, tracking and generating warnings for all types of surface and underwater threats to Visakhapatnam harbour. 

135. Harish Rawat set to return as Uttarakhand CM

i. Congress leader Harish Rawat is all set to be reinstated as the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, over six weeks after he was ousted by the Centre, with the Supreme Court, putting its stamp of approval on the floor test in the Assembly.

ii. Rawat gets 33 votes out of 61 in the floor test. No irregularities were found in the voting. 

iii. However, 9 MLAs could not vote due to their disqualification. 

136. Government constitutes Sanjay Mitra committee to prepare policy framework for taxi operators

i. The Union Government has constituted a three member committee to prepare a policy framework for taxi and other transport operators. 

ii. The committee will be headed by Sanjay Mitra, Secretary of Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways. Its other two members are Joint Secretary, Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways and Delhi Transport Commissioner as its members. 

iii. The committee was constituted after taxi and other transport operators had appraised the situation emerging from Supreme Court’s order and directions of Environment Pollution Control Authority of banning diesel taxis in the National Capital Region (NCR). It will look into these issues and come up with appropriate recommendations to address the same in a time bound manner. 

137. US-India Defence Cooperation Act introduced in Senate

i. The US-India Defence Technology and Partnership Act was introduced in the Senate by Senators Mark Warner and John Cornyn - co-chairs of the Senate India Caucus. 

ii. If this act is passed, it will elevate the status of the Indo - US defence relationship on par with that of America's closest allies like NATO and Israel.

iii. The legislation has been sent to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for necessary action. The act urges the US government to enhance India's military capabilities in the context of combined military planning and promote co-production and co-development opportunities.

138. India signs revised tax treaty with Mauritius

i. India and Mauritius has signed the protocol for amendment of a two-decade-old Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) between the two countries. 

ii. After this India will get taxation rights on capital gains arising from sale of shares acquired on or after 1st April, 2017 in Indian companies. Earlier in 1983, India had signed a DTAA with the Mauritius and now an amendment to DTAC was signed in a bid to ensure that firms in Mauritius that invest in India are not just 'shell' companies who could earlier avoid paying capital gains tax in India.

iii. With the signing of this agreement amendment the Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (DTAC) with Mauritius, sale of shares of an Indian resident company will be taxed at 50 per cent of the applicable rate between 1st April 2017, to March 31, 2019. Full capital gains tax will apply from April 1, 2019 onwards. 

139. India to develop regional connectivity projects worth $5 billion in South Asia

i. India is planning to develop regional connectivity projects worth $5 billion in South Asia. 

ii. The projects include road corridors connecting India with Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan through West Bengal and India-Myanmar through Manipur.

iii. As per Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, India is also assisting the countries with power projects. In the South Asia Sub-regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) 2025 workshop, he also stated that India is also planning to establish Integrated Customs Ports (ICPs) and improved Land Customs Stations (LCS) at key border points with Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan to ease the movement of goods and people within the sub-region. 

140. MP Tourism wins Lonely Planet’s Best Indian Destination for Wildlife Award

i. The Madhya Pradesh Tourism (MPT) won the Lonely Planet Group’s Best Indian Destination for Wildlife Award. 

ii. The award was handed over to MPT at a function in Mumbai by actress Amy Jackson. On behalf of MPT Chairman, the award was received by his Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Vinod Kumar Amar. 

iii. Madhya Pradesh located in Central India has 25 wild life sanctuaries including 9 National Parks. Among them Bandhavgarh, Kanha and Pench are ideal habitat for tigers. 

141. Karnataka Bank launches 'cash back' campaign

i. Karnataka Bank has launched ‘cash back’ campaign for its VISA debit cardholders.

ii. A press release by the bank said that the campaign will be in force for a month from May 10 to June 10. Those cardholders, who have done a minimum five swiping at point-of-sale (POS) terminals or five online transactions with a minimum value of rs. 200 each, will qualify under this campaign. 

iii. More than 3,200 top spenders -both in terms of value and volume of transactions -will get cash back aggregating rs. 10 lakh. P Jayarama Bhat, Managing Director of the bank, launched the campaign in Mangaluru.

142. Amazon launches its online video service

i. E commerce company, Amazon has launched its online video service, called Amazon Video Direct. 

ii. This facility will facilitate the users by allowing to post clips on its website and earn through advertising, royalties and other sources. 

iii. The service will make the content available to rent, own or view for free with ads. This move puts the company in direct competition with Google-owned YouTube. Under this service, the users who make the videos available on web will be paid based on their performance out of a $1m pot under a system similar to the way Amazon pays some self-publishing ebook writers.

143. Quickr acquires beauty services provider Salosa

i. Cross-category classifieds business Quikr has acquired Salosa, an on-demand in-home beauty services provider, for an undisclosed amount. 

ii. The move comes even as the company plans to invest rs. 250 crore over 12 months in its home services vertical, QuikrServices, in line with its verticals-focused strategy.

iii. Salosa, which has been a QuikrServices partner from January, will further strengthen its beauty services offerings with stylists who have undergone a rigorous process of quality and background checks along with training, said the company.

144. N K Singh gets Japan's second highest national award

i. A Bureaucrat, who turned as politician N.K. Singh has honoured with Japan’s second highest national decoration for his contribution in strengthening Indo-Japan ties in the field of trade and investment over the last few decades. 

ii. The award has been conferred by Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe at a ceremony in the Imperial Palace.

iii. The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star award given to Mr. Singh’s role in boosting Indo-Japan economic ties, particularly in promoting Japanese investments into India over many years. Total 91 eminent personalities, including eight foreign recipients have been conferred with the award.

145. Bangladesh hangs Jamaat-e-Islami chief Nizami for war crimes

i. Bangladesh government have hanged the fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami chief Motiur Rahman Nizami for war crimes committed during the country's 1971 Liberation War. 

ii. He was 73 year old and hanged at Dhaka Central Jail. 

iii. He was the senior most Islamist to be executed in Bangladesh for war crimes during the liberation war against Pakistan. His final appeal against his death sentence was rejected by the apex court on May 5. He was in jail since 2010.

146. Rodrigo Duterte wins 2016 Philippines Presidential Election

i. Anti-crime candidate and mayor of Davao City, Rodrigo Duterte has won the 2016 presidential election of the Philippines by a landslide victory. 

ii. He will become the 16th President-elect of Philippines. He was followed by Mar Roxas 23% (9.27 million) votes and his closest rival Grace Poe with 22% (8.6 million) votes. 

iii. He is a lawyer by profession and later entered into the politics. He became vice-mayor of Davao in 1986 and mayor in 1988. He is among the longest-serving mayors in the Philippines and has been mayor of Davao City for seven terms, totalling more than 22 years. 

147. Sania-Hingis continue to lead Women's Doubles rankings

i. In Tennis, Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis continue to lead the latest Women's Doubles rankings released . 

ii. Sania and Hingis, who have won 13 titles together including 4 this year, maintained their joint position with 12,045 points each.

iii. American Serena Williams continued to top the Singles rankings, with Angelique Kerber rising to second and Agnieszka Radwanska dropping to third. In Men's Singles rankings, Swiss Roger Federer replaced Andy Murray from the 2nd spot after the Briton failed to defend his Madrid Masters title on Sunday. Novak Djokovic is still at the top. 

148. Bankruptcy bill passed in Rajya Sabha

i. The Rajya Sabha has passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016, which had already been passed by the Lok Sabha last week. 

ii. The Code seeks to consolidate and amend the laws relating to reorganization and insolvency resolution in a time bound manner. 

iii. The bill also proposes setting up of an Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board, and Insolvency and Bankruptcy Fund.

149. President of India presents National Florence Nightingale Awards

i. Shri Pranab Mukherjee, the president of India today presented the National Florence Nightingale Awards to 35 nursing personnel at function in Rashtrapati Bhavan on the occasion of International Nurses Day.

ii. The National Florence Nightingale Awards are given by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as a mark of recognition for the meritorious services rendered by the nurses and nursing professionals in the country.

iii. The Award carries a cash award of 50 thousand rupees, a certificate, a citation and a medal. The International Nurses Day is celebrated all over the world on May 12 every year to commemorate Florence Nightingale’s birthday.

150. Rwanda hosts 26th World Economic Forum on Africa

i. Rwanda is hosting the 26th World Economic Forum on Africa (WEF) in its capital Kigali from 11 to 13th May. Promoting innovation is being high on the agenda. 

ii. The theme of this 26th World Economic Forum on Africa is - Connecting Africa's Resources through Digital Transformation. The event is focusing, among other things, on how to diversify economies, tackle inequality and strengthen collaborations among countries.

iii. The goal of the World Economic Forum is to promote public-private partnership and particular emphasis is on how technology can promote online entrepreneurs, enable cross-border data exchange and tackle barriers to trade.

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