GK Update 11 June 2016

1. India, Japan, and the US begin Malabar Exercise near the South China Sea
i. India, Japan, and the US have kicked off the Malabar Exercise, near to  the South China Sea. It aims to achieve deeper military ties and greater interoperability amid rising tensions in the region. 
ii. The 8-day joint exercises will see in action over 100 aircraft and 22 naval ships including a nuclear submarine. The Indian Navy stated that their four ships namely- Satpura, Sahyadri, Shakti and Kirch are participating in the 20th edition of the naval exercise in consonance with India's 'Act East Policy' and growing ties among the three countries.  
iii. In addition, one nuclear-powered submarine, carrier wing aircraft, and long-range maritime patrol aircraft will also participate in the exercise. Last year, it was conducted in Chennai and included the participation of Japan.

2. AAI conferred national award for best performing central PSU for Green Energy initiatives
i. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been conferred the National Award for Best Performing Central PSU for Roof Top Solar Power initiatives at a glittering function at Vigyan Bhawan by Minister of State for Power, Coal and Renewable Energy, Piyush Goyal.
ii. It has installed 4.8 megawatt peak power (MWp) rooftop solar plants at 13 airports. Further, 4.9 MWp solar plants are expected to be installed at 14 other airports by December.
iii. The solar energy generation so far is 51 Lakhs units (Approx.) from the completed solar power plants at various airports.

3. Govt forms panel on PSU executives pay revision
i. The government of India has constituted a committee to make recommendations on pay scale revision of executives in PSUs. 
ii. The panel's suggestions will be submitted within six months of its constitution, and the government's decision on them will take effect from January 1, 2017. 
iii. The last pay revision for the executives came into effect in 2007.

4. Union Government Releases The Road Accidents In India 2015: Report
i. The Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has launched the report titled Road Accidents in India 2015. 
ii. According to the report, road accidents have emerged as a major public health problem in India where almost 5 lakh accidents occurred last year killing 146000 people. The report was compiled by the Transport Research Wing.
iii. The Mumbai city had the highest number of road accidents while Delhi had the highest number of deaths due to road accidents. 

5. Telangana to set up 12,500-acre Pharma City near Hyderabad
i. Mr. K. Chandrashekhar Rao, the Chief Minister of Telangana state has ordered to setting up a 'Pharma City' on 12,500 acres of land in Rangareddy and Mahbubnagar districts. 
ii. For this project, Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TSIIC) will send a detailed project proposal (DPR) to the government on modalities for implementation and execution of the project. The state already has been the drugs capital of the country with almost one-third of the total production in value terms.
iii. The proposed park will have components and other related activities with regard to antibiotics, fermentation products, synthetic drugs, large volume chemical synthesis, vitamins, nutraceuticals, herbal medicinal products, specialty chemicals, cosmetics among others.

6. Machilipatnam Town-Sanctioned For Development Under AMRUT Scheme
i. The Union Urban Development Ministry has sanctioned 37.5 crore rupees for development of Machilipatnam town under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme.
ii. According to, K. Ravindra, the minister of Andhra Pradesh Excise and BC Welfare, the funds under the scheme should be used for development of amusement parks and beautification of the town, apart from the development of cemeteries. 
iii. The AMRUT scheme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2015 with the focus of the urban renewal projects is to establish the infrastructure that could ensure adequate robust sewerage networks and water supply for urban transformation. 

7. FICCI to be national partner at 8th Vibrant Gujarat Summit
i. The summit, which will be organised by the Gujarat government's industrial promotion body, iNDEXTb during January 10-13, 2017, at Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar, will have the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) as its national partner.
ii. The core theme of the eighth edition of the biennial industrial extravaganza, Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2017, will be 'Connecting India to the World'.
iii. The focus of this summit is to go beyond Gujarat and make it an all-India focused event for the world at large with the central theme of ‘Connecting India to the World.

8. India Post launches logo and tagline design contest for IPPB on MyGov 
i. The Department of Posts has launched a logo and tagline design contest for the soon to be set up India Post Payments Bank on the MyGov website. 
ii. The Department of Post wants to connect with and involve the people of India in designing the DNA of the India Post Payments Bank. The present contest is the first step towards this ongoing engagement. 
iii. The contest is open to all Indian citizens, institutions, agencies and entities for a period of one month, until 9th July 2016. The best entry will be awarded Rs 50,000. A panel of eminent designers will help shortlist 20 best entries which will thereafter be put up for voting on the MyGov platform for the final selection of the winner. 

9. SBI, CaixaBank ink pact to fund Indo-Spanish joint ventures
i. State Bank of India (SBI) and Spain's CaixaBank have inked pact to provide loans to Indo-Spanish joint ventures and local enterprises. Both have signed the Mou to enhance business synergies. The banks also cooperate through an introduction of business opportunities and partnering on possible infrastructure funds. 
ii. The agreement was signed by CaixaBank's Executive Vice-President, International Banking, Victoria Matia and SBI's Chief General Manager Sujit Kumar Varma.
iii. Under this JV, the banks will collaborate in areas of mutual interest such as syndicated loan business, guarantee transactions, trade finance and export credit agency finance, infrastructure finance and networking services, among others. Besides, Both bank's clients will be able to use the vast combined network to expand their businesses abroad and through this agreement, both SBI and CaixaBank will gain direct access to their respective markets of operation. 

10. 'Sansad Ratna' awards conferred on 5 MPs
i. Four first time Lok Sabha MPs were among five Parliamentarians who were honoured with the 'Sansad Ratna' Awards by the Former RBI governor C Rangarajan, for their performance in Parliament. 
ii. The award was instituted by the Prime Point Foundation and emagazine PreSense, were given to five Lok Sabha MPs and one former Rajya Sabha member . 
iii. BJP's PP Chaudhary, Heena Vijaykumar Gavit, Shrirang Appa Barne, Raajeev Shankarrao Satav, Shivaji Adhalrao Patil and P Rajeev leader from Kerala have been honoured for their work.

11. V Vaithialingam elected unopposed as Speaker of Puducherry Assembly
i. Congress leader and former Chief Minister V Vaithialingam has elected as the Speaker of the legislative Assembly. 
ii. While, Pro-tem Speaker VP Shivakozhuthu was declared elected unopposed as the Deputy Speaker.
ii. The newly elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker were led to their respective seats by Chief Minister V Narayanasamy and leaders of other political parties. 

12. Ragesh Chandra Appointed Secretary To Puducherry CM
i. G Ragesh Chandra has been designated as Secretary to Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy.
ii. He has taken charge with an immediate effect.
iii. Mr. Chandra would hold additional charge of the departments and would continue  to subjects which already looked after by him.

13. Karnataka Bank former chairman MS Krishna Bhat passes away
i. The former Chairman of Karnataka Bank Mr. M.S. Krishna Bhat has passed away in Mangaluru. He was 78 years old. 
ii. He had joined the bank in 1970 and was elevated to the position of General Manager in 1989. He became the Chief General Manager of the bank in 1994 and took over as Chairman on July 12, 1995, for a period of two years, which was extended for another three years up to July 2000.
iii. He was known for his straightforwardness, foresight, and quick decision-taking capacity. 

14. Legendary Canadian ice hockey player Gordie Howe dies
i. Canada's hockey icon Gordie Howe has passed away after a lengthy illness. He was 88 years old. 
ii. He was commonly known as Mr. Hockey and is considered as one of the greatest ice hockey players of all time and an iron man in many respects both on and off the ice. 
iii. Howe was born in Floral, Saskatchewan, in March 1928 and spent most of his career with the Detroit Red Wings, winning the Stanley Cup four times. He was in the top 10 of scorers for 21 consecutive years and was named most valuable player six times before finally retiring in 1980. Howe was also named an NHL All Star 23 times and was inducted into the hockey Hall of Fame in 1972. He was the inaugural recipient of the NHL Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008.

15. Veteran journalist Inder Malhotra passes away
i. Veteran journalist Inder Malhotra has passed away in Delhi. He was 86 years old. 
ii. Mr. Malhotra, one of the most respected journalists of India, had worked with The Statesman and then The Times of India, in New Delhi. He began his career at the United Press of India which he joined immediately after graduating from the Punjab University. 
iii. He also wrote for The Guardian (1965-95). His publications include Indira Gandhi: A Personal & Political Biography (1989), Dynasties of India And Beyond (2003), and a fresh biography of Indira Gandhi (2006). He was working on a book on Indian Security: Past, Present and Future.