Daily GK Updates,Current Affairs 9th,10th,11th December 2016

Daily GK Updates,Current Affairs 9th,10th,11th December 2016

1. Virat Kohli Becomes First Indian Captain To Score Three Double Centuries

* Virat Kohli became the first Indian to score three double hundreds in a year, playing against England on 11th December 2016.

* His first-ever Test double century came against West Indies this year, followed by another against New Zealand.

* There are only three batsmen who had scored three double centuries and one batsman who has scored 4 double centuries in a single year.

2. India-UK Conference on Ease of Doing Business concluded

* The India-UK Conference on Ease of Doing Business concluded in New Delhi on 10 December 2016.

* This conference on Ease of Doing Business would act as an opportunity to enhance the strategic bilateral partnership between the two nations to the next level.

* The two-day conference was jointly inaugurated by Ramesh Abhishek, Secretary of Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Dominic Asquith, the British High Commissioner.

* This partnership on Ease of Doing Business of the two nations is important because it will play a role that the business environment plays in encouraging trade, investment, innovation and economic growth.

3. Japan launches Kounotori 6 cargo spaceship to ISS

* Japan has successfully launched a rocket carrying the unmanned cargo spaceship Kounotori 6 to deliver supplies for astronauts living in the International Space Station (ISS).

* The H-2B rocket carrying the spaceship lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Centre in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan.

* The spaceship, sixth of its kind, carries some 5.9 tonnes of supplies, including food, drinking water and other necessities, as well as some batteries and ultrasmall satellites.

4. 28th Edition of SIMCON 2016, chaired by I&B Minister, M. Venkaiah Naidu

* The 28th State Information Ministers Conference (SIMCON), 2016, was organised by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting from December 9 to December 10, 2016 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.

* I&B Minister Shri Venkaiah Naidu chaired SIMCON 2016ii. The two day conference was chaired by Minister for Information & Broadcasting, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu.

* The aim of the confrence is promote partnership among Centre and State, to discuss key issues in the films & broadcasting sector and new initiatives undertaken in the information domain.

5. Viola Desmond first Canadian woman on banknote

* A black civil rights leader who led a struggle against anti-black segregation and racism in Canada in the 1940s will be the first Canadian woman to figure on a banknote.

* Viola Desmond will appear on the Canadian $10 bill – replacing the nation’s first prime minister John A Macdonald who will be moved to a higher bill – when new banknotes go into circulation in 2018.

* Desmond, an icon of the human rights and freedoms movement in Canada, was selected from a list of five iconic Canadian women by Finance Minister Morneau, in accordance with the Bank of Canada Act.

6. L&T bags contract to convert Sardar Patel Stadium to world’s biggest cricket stadium

* Larsen & Turbo (L&T) has bagged a contract from the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) to make Sardar Patel Cricket Stadium of Gujarat the world’s biggest cricket stadium in terms of seating capacity.

* Sardar Patel Cricket Stadium is situated in Motera, Ahmadabad in Gujarat.

* After the renovation, it will take over the Melbourne Cricket Ground of Australia in terms of seating capacity. Melbourne Cricket Ground has a seating capacity of 100,024 people while the renovated Sardar Patel Stadium will have 1,10,000 seats as against 54,000 seats.

7. Rajendar Kumar Appointed New CBDT Member

* Senior Indian Revenue Service officer Rajendra Kumar has been appointed as the new Member of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the policy making body for the Income Tax Department.

* The orders for appointment of Kumar, a 1980-batch Indian Revenue Service officer, was issued by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.

* The Central Board of Direct Taxes is a statutory authority functioning under the Central Board of Revenue Act, 1963. The CBDT is headed by a chairman and can has six members. It is headquartered at New Delhi

8. Haritha Keralam Mission launched by Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan 

* Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has launched Haritha Keralam Mission in Thiruvananthapuram on December 8.

* Railway Minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu launched a website of National Rail Plan, 2030 (NRP-2030) on December 8, 2016 Rail Bhawan, New Delhi, to develop the Indian Railways in terms of service in travelling and freight across the country.

9. Two Banks of Abu Dhabi to Merge as the Biggest Bank in Gulf Nation

* Stockholders of the National Bank of Abu Dhabi and First Gulf Bank on December 7, 2016, approved to merge into the biggest bank of all Gulf Countries with an asset of $ 178 billion.

* After the merger the combined company will be named as NBAD.

* The FGB shareholders will receive 1.254 NBAD shares for each

10. Vistaar appoints ex-Sebi chief C B Bhave as non-executive Chairman

* Vistaar Financial Services, an MSME-focused financing firm, today said it has appointed former Sebi chief C B Bhave as non-executive Chairman and Independent Director.

* Prior to SEBI, he has worked as the Chairman and Managing Director of National Securities Depositories Ltd (NSDL).

11. Committee headed by Ratan P. Watal submitted its report to Finance Minster to boost Digital Payment

* The committee formed by Finance Ministry to boost Digital Payment system in India that was headed by Shri. Ratan P. Watal submitted its report to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on 09 December 2016.

* The committee has recommended to bridge the gaps between those are digitally active and those are not, by promoting competition, open access & interoperability in payments.

* The report also recommended including those group of citizens into the digital payment system who are not well versed with it so that they can use it for their benefit and reduce dependence on cash. Safeguarding of the digital security system should also be maintained.

12. Onir’s documentary on Down Syndrome wins international award

* Indian filmmaker Onir’s documentary, ‘Raising The Bar’ has won the ‘Award of Recognition’ at the ‘Hollywood International Independent Documentary Awards’.

* The documentary is about six Indian and Australian youth with Down Syndrome. “I have always celebrated human rights and diversity.

13. 21st International Film Festival of Kerala begins

* The 21st International Film Festival of Kerala began in Thiruvananthapuram on 09 December 2016.

* It opened with Navid Mahmoudi’s directorial debut ‘Raftan,’ which narrates the story of a couple attempting to migrate from Iran to Europe.

* The eight-day festival, hosted by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy on behalf of the Kerala Cultural Affairs Department, is set to showcase 184 films from 62 countries.

14. Civil Engineer Iqbal Sayed becomes first Indian to medal at Mr Olympia

* Mumbai’s Iqbal Sayed, who works as a civil engineer with Reliance Infrastructure and Mumbai Metro, became the first Indian to win a medal at the Mr Olympia event, after securing a silver medal in the event.

* Sayed beat participants from 20 countries to finish second in the Olympia Amateur Asia 2016’s Classic Bodybuilding category.

15. IDFC Bank appoints Veena Mankar as Non-Executive Chairperson

* The board of directors of IDFC Bank has approved the appointment of Veena Mankar as Non-Executive Chairperson, with effect from December 9, 2016, up to July 26, 2018.

* The appointment is subject to approval by the Reserve Bank of India.

* Anil Baijal stepped down from the board on December 8, 2016 at the end of his tenure from the shaft of Non-Executive Chairman. IDFC Bank Ltd.

16. Nana Akufo-Addo wins Ghana presidential election

* Ghana’s main opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo has won the country’s presidential election with an absolute majority.

* Private radio stations have projected a massive victory for Nana Akufo-Addo over President John Mahama.

17. Harry Potter tops Amazon’s best-selling books of 2016

* Amazon, which started as an online book retailer, has announced Harry Potter and the Cursed Child as the best-selling book of 2016.

* The playscript by JK Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, was also named this year’s ‘Most Wished For’ and ‘Most Gifted’ book.

18. India, Vietnam ink nuclear cooperation pact, three other agreements

* India and Vietnam have signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi is asserting that it will further strengthen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

* The two countries also signed three other agreements — to enhance aviation links, to jointly work in the area of energy efficiency and promotion of parliamentary cooperation.