GK Update 25 June 2016

1. Nagaland Governor launches women's helpline number '181'

i. Governor of Nagaland and Assam P B Acharya has launched women helpline number - 181 in the premises of District Hospital Dimapur in Nagaland and also inaugurated Sakhi, a one stop Centre, intended to support women affected by violence both in private and public spaces under one roof.
ii. Addressing the gathering, Acharya reminded society that women were marching ahead in every field. He also highlighted the multiple roles played by women as home makers, guardians of children and the hard work put in by them in every field. 

2.  Nokia appoints Sanjay Malik India head

i. Nokia has announced the appointment of Sanjay Malik as the head of Indian market, effective August 1. Malik is currently head of Network Implementation (NI) at Nokia Global Services and is credited with efficiently driving growth and delivering strong performance both in terms of revenue and operational efficiency.
ii. He joined Nokia in 2000, and takes over from Sandeep Girotra, who has been heading Indian market since 2011.
iii. Previously, he was heading Bharti GCBT (Global CBT), where he led the transformation of the business by enhancing customer satisfaction, market share and business results across India and Africa .

3. UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced resignation after Brexit vote

i. The Prime Minister of United Kingdom (UK) David Cameron announced his resignation hours after the Brexit vote that favoured leaving the European Union (EU). During the campaign, Cameron-led Conserve Party advocated for remaining with the EU.
ii. In the referendum that was held on 23 June 2016, 51.89 % of the voters preferred to leave the EU. Among the 46.5 million people who registered to vote, only 48.11 percent voted to remain in the grouping.
iii. Cameron will step down in October 2016 at the Conservative Party Conference to make way for a new Prime Minister to guide the UK in the new direction for the country.

4. Mahashangarh declared as the SARRC cultural capital for 2016-17

i. Mahasthangarh, the 3rd century BC archaeological site in Bogra, Bangladesh, has been declared as the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SARRC) cultural capital for the year 2016-17. 

ii. As an SARRC cultural capital, the historic place will host festivals on literature, films, foods and dances from October 2016 to September 2017. Besides, the year 2016-17 has also be declared the SAARC Year of Cultural Heritage.
iii. The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is an economic and political organization of eight countries in Southern Asia. In terms of population, its sphere of influence is the largest of any regional organization: almost 1.5 billion people, the combined population of its member states.

5. Colombia and FARC rebels sign historic ceasefire deal to end 50-year conflict 

i. The Colombian government and FARC guerrillas have declared the final day of one of the world’s oldest wars with the signing of a ceasefire agreement to end more than 50 years of bloodshed.
ii. The signing ceremony held at Havana was witnessed by Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, FARC chief Timoleón Timochenko Jiménez, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, Cuban president, Raúl Castro and Venezuela’s head of state, Nicolás Maduro.
iii. The announcement is seen as one of the last steps before a full peace deal is signed, which is expected within weeks via a referendum. The formal peace talks for the deal were started three years ago, in October 2012, in the Cuban capital.

6. ADB extends $500-million loan for river bridge in Bihar

i. ADB is multilateral lending agency based in Manila, Philippines, has approved a 500 million dollars loan to build a bridge across the Ganga River in Bihar. The loan funds will be used to build 9.8 km road bridge in Bihar on the Ganga River. On completion of the project it will be the India’s longest river bridge.
ii. The new river bridge will provide a vital transport link between the northern and southern parts of the state and neighbouring Nepal. It will make it easier for people to move between jobs and markets, particularly for poorer communities in the north of Bihar to the south of the river.
iii. The bridge is expected to benefit over nine million people as it is going to serve as an alternate route to the existing Ganga bridge, which has begun to deteriorate. The length and height of the bridge has been designed to minimize impacts on the river itself. 

7. Indian-origin lawyer to chair panel on human rights in South Sudan

i. South African Indian-origin lawyer Yasmin Sooka has been appointed to chairman of three member UN commission (committee) to monitor the human rights situation in South Sudan.
ii. The committee was constituted by the United Nations Human Right Council (UNHRC) resolution 31/20 which was adopted by consensus, the 47-member body. Other two members of the committee are Kenneth R. Scott (US) and Godfrey M. Musila (Kenya).
iii. The committee has been tasked to monitor human rights violations in South Sudan and make recommendations for the process of transitional justice, healing and reconciliation. The Commissioners will serve in their personal capacities and shall provide guidance to the South Sudan Government on transitional justice, accountability and reconciliation issues.
iv. The committee will have tenure of one year and shall present a comprehensive written report to the UNHRC at its 34th regular session in March 2017.

8. Neil O’Brien dies at 82

i. NEIL O’BRIEN, a leader of the Anglo-Indian community who is credited with pioneering quizzing in the country, passed away in Kolkata
ii. The 82-year-old former Lok Sabha MP and three-time nominated Anglo-Indian MLA in West Bengal Assembly.
iii. He conducted the first well-organized, formal quiz in 1967 at Christ the King Church Parish Hall in Calcutta. He has served the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) as its chairman from December 1993 till July 2011. CISCE is an all India examination body which conducts the ICSE and ISC Examinations. He served Oxford University Press, India as its managing director. Being the leader of the Anglo-Indian community, he was the president-in-chief of All-India Anglo-Indian Association.

9. Sri Lanka's parliament votes in favour of right to information bill

i. Sri Lankan Parliament has  unanimously passed the Right to Information (RTI) bill with amendments. The bill that seeks to restore transparency and good governance in the country was adopted without a vote in the Parliament after two days of debate.
ii.  A five-member Right to Information Commission will be formed to monitor and ensure compliance. The members who will have powers to hold inquiries and hear appeals will be appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the Constitutional Council. Subject to the provisions of section 5 of this Act, every citizen shall have a right of access to information which is in the possession, custody or control of a public authority.

10. Andhra Pradesh joins UDAY scheme

i. Andhra Pradesh became the 13th State to sign the agreement and formally join the Central scheme for reviving financially-stressed electricity distribution utilities, called the Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY).
ii. This move will help Andhra Pradesh’s electricity sector get a Rs. 4,400 crore benefit over the next three financial years.
iii. The Andhra Pradesh government will take on Rs. 11,000 crore of debt at its electricity distribution utilities, which would help them save Rs. 330 crore of interest cost a year.

11. BCCI to host mini IPL in September

i. The BCCI is set to introduce a new Twenty20 event, to be branded as mini IPL, outside India in September.
ii. According to BCCI president Anurag Thakur, In the month of September, the BCCI is willing to host a mini IPL or IPL overseas with all the eight teams participating. It will be a shorter format, not home and away matches but a lesser number of matches. In a two-week window we should be able to complete it.
iii. The BCCI move was on the cards with the scrapping of the Champions League T20 last year. The details of the shortened version of IPL are yet to be chalked out and possible venues are US and UAE, which has already hosted part of the IPL in 2014. The full-fledged IPL lasts about for almost two months. The ninth edition of the tournament was held in India from April 9 to May 29.

12. DRDO inks MoU with Kolkata’s JU to establish Rs.100 cr research centre at Jadavpur University

i. Heralding a new era of DRDO-Academia Partnership, Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Jadavpur University (JU), Kolkata to establish the Jagadish Chandra Bose Centre for Advanced Technology (JCBCAT).
ii. The 100 crore research centre at Jadavpur varsity aims to develop technologies related to cyber security and robotics for the defence forces.