11 April 2019 - Daily Current Affairs

1. Lok Sabha Election 2019: Phase 1 voting kicks off today

The phase 1 of the Lok Sabha Election 2019 begins from today.
The Lok Sabha Elections 2019 will be conducted across the country in seven phases, the first of which took place today on April 11.
The voting time for Phase 1 elections was from 7 AM to 6 PM.
A total of 18 states and two union territories voted in the first phase of Lok Sabha election, which begins the process of electing a new government.
In the first phase, citizens of 20 states voted for 91 out of the 543 seats.
In the second phase, 97 seats will go to polls. The third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh phases will witness citizens voting for 115, 71, 51, 59, 59 seats respectively.
In the first phase of the Lok Sabha Elections 2019 voting was done today in the following states - Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Sikkim, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Andaman and Lakshadweep.
Simultaneously voting also took place for single phase Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and for 28 of 147 seats in Odisha.

Source: Business today

Honours & Awards

2. India’s education technology startup bags global tech prize

India’s education technology startup ‘Dost Education’ has bagged a $25,000 tech prize along with two other winners from Tanzania and Egypt.

Dost Education

Dost was awarded for its ability to empower parents to take charge of their child’s early education by creating short, friendly audio content that is sent to them via their mobile phones.
The software, audio content, and tool kits of Dost Education makes it easy fun and addictive for parents to boost their child’s early development, so low-income families need no longer send their children to primary school behind and without a chance to catch up.

Note:

The Next Billion EdTech Prize 2019 run by UK-based Varkey Foundation.
It recognises the most innovative technology destined to have a radical impact on education in low income and emerging world countries.

Banking & Economy

3. India’s population grew at a 1.2 % average annual rate between 2010 and 2019: UN report

According to a report by the United Nations Population Fund, India’s population grew at an average annual rate of 1.2 per cent between 2010 and 2019 to 1.36 billion, more than double the annual growth rate of China.
India’s population in 2019 stood at 1.36 billion, growing from 942.2 million in 1994 and 541.5 million in 1969.
India’s population grew at an average annual rate of 1.2 per cent between 2010 and 2019, the UN sexual and reproductive health agency said in the State of World Population 2019 report.
In comparison, China’s population stood at 1.42 billion in 2019, growing from 1.23 billion in 1994 and 803.6 million in 1969.
China’s population grew at an average annual rate of 0.5 per cent between 2010 and 2019, the report said.
According to the report, in India, the total fertility rate per woman was 5.6 in 1969, dropping to 3.7 in 1994 and 2.3 in 2019.
India’s population composition in 2019, the report said 27 % of the country’s population was in the age bracket of 0-14 years and 10-24 years each, while 67 % of the country’s population was in the 15-64 age bracket.
Six per cent of the country’s population was of the age 65 and above.

Source: The Hindu

4. India's steel demand to grow by over 7% in FY19, FY20

As per the Indian Steel Association, India's steel demand is likely to grow by over 7 percent in 2019 and 2020, driven by sectors like construction, capital goods and railways.
"The Indian Steel Association has forecast India's steel demand to grow by 7.1 percent in the calendar year 2019 and by 7.2 percent in the calendar year 2020.
The World Steel Association had recently estimated steel demand in India to touch 103 million tonnes in 2019, against 96 million tonnes logged in 2018 and 110 million tonnes in 2020.

Source: The Hindu

5. RBI imposes Rs 1 lakh penalty on Lucknow-based co-op bank

The Reserve Bank Wednesday said it has imposed a penalty of Rs 1 lakh on UP Postal Primary Co-operative Bank, Lucknow for violation of norms regarding shifting of its branch.
The Rs 1 lakh penalty has been imposed on the co-operative bank "for violation of RBI Instructions/Guidelines for shifting of its branch without obtaining prior approval from RBI", the central bank said.

Source: PTI

6. Emirates Islamic becomes the world's first Islamic bank to launch banking via WhatsApp

Emirates Islamic has announced the launch of Chat Banking services for customers via WhatsApp, marking a global first in the Islamic banking sector.
The bank’s customers will now able to conduct daily banking activities via WhatsApp in a seamless and hassle-free manner.
The Chat Banking solution, supported by Infobip, further enhances Emirates Islamic’s suite of digital banking channels and allows customers to use features such as checking account balances and temporarily blocking or unblocking of an existing card.

Source: Zawya

7. Navratna Cool ropes in Varun Dhawan as the new face of the brand

Navratna, one of the power brands of Emami Limited has roped in Bollywood heart throb & actor Varun Dhawan to endorse Navratna Cool.
The popular actor, known for his massy youth appeal and versatility is going to add freshness to Navratna Cool as its new brand ambassador.
Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Govinda,Chiranjeevi, Shilpa Shetty and Jr NTR are also served as Brand Ambassadors of Navaratna Brand.
Harsha V Agarwal is the Director of Emami Limited.
The Navratna collection consists of Navratna Xtra Thanda Oil, Navratna Oil, Navratna Smart Cool, Navratna Cool and Navratna Almond Cool Oil.

Source: ET News

8. Govt. retains interest rate for General Provident Fund at 8%

The government has retained the interest rate for General Provident Fund (GPF), Contributory Provident Fund and other related schemes at 8 per cent for the first quarter of current financial year.
The interest rate on these funds was at 8 per cent in the January-March quarter of 2018-19 and government kept it unchanged for April to June for 2019-20.
The Department of Economic Affairs, in a notification, said the interest rate will be applicable on provident funds of central government employees, railways and defence forces.
Last month, the government had retained interest rates on small savings, including National Savings Certificate and PPF for the first quarter of current fiscal.

Source: DD News

Sports

9. Virat Kohli named Wisden's 'Leading Cricketer' for a third straight year

India captain Virat Kohli was on Wednesday named the Leading Cricketer in the World and featured in Wisden's Five Cricketers of the Year, by the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.
Kohli was also among Jos Buttler and Sam Curran to be listed in Wisden's Five Cricketers of the Year, a rare accolade which has been eluding him in his career until now.
The India skipper had a fantastic 2018 in which he racked up 2,735 international runs at 68.37 across all formats, more than 700 more than his nearest challenger, England's Joe Root.
Kohli scored a remarkable 11 centuries in 37 innings, seven of which came on India's tours of South Africa, England and Australia.

About Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack:

Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack (“The Bible of Cricket”) is a cricket reference book issued annually in the United Kingdom.
In 1998, an Australian edition of Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack and in 2012, Indian edition was launched.
English Cricketer John Wisden established the Book in 1864.Source: The Economic Times

Source: The Times of India

10. Smriti Mandhana named Wisden’s leading Women’s Cricketer of The Year

Team India opener Smriti Mandhana has been named as the Wisden Almanack’s ‘Leading Women’s Cricketer of the Year’.
The 22-year-old is currently the top-ranked player in women’s ODIs and third in T20Is.
In 2018, Mandhana scored 669 runs at an average of 66.90 in 12 ODIs and 622 runs at a strike-rate of 130.67 in 25 T20Is.

Source: The Hindustan Times

11. Chahar sets record for most dot balls in an innings

Chennai Super Kings' medium pacer Deepak Chahar has become the bowler with the most number of dot balls in an innings in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The underrated Chahar returned impressive figures of three for 20 from four overs against Kolkata Knight Riders, bowling a staggering 20 dot balls.
Chahar broke the record of 18 dot balls in an innings jointly held by Sunrisers Hyderabad spinner Rashid Khan and Kings XI Punjab medium pacer Ankit Rajpoot.

Source: UNI

Appointment

12. Vikram Nath appointed as first chief justice of new Andhra Pradesh HC

Senior judge of Allahabad high court, Justice Vikram Nath has been appointed as the first Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court.
A collegium of Supreme Court comprising Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and judges S A Bobde and N V Ramana recommended the name of Justice Nath as the chief justice of the AP High Court.
The new high court for Andhra Pradesh was created on January 1 this year, following the bifurcation of a combined high court for AP and Telangana, which had been operating from Hyderabad since June 2, 2014, when the two Telugu states got separated.

Note:

Fifty-six-year-old Justice Nath, who obtained a law degree in 1986, enrolled himself as a practising lawyer in Allahabad in March 1987.
He was appointed an additional judge of the Allahabad High Court in 2004 and was elevated to the post of a permanent judge in 2006.

13. Israeli PM Netanyahu wins record fifth term: Report

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has won the Israeli national election, securing a record fifth term in office.
With 97 percent of the votes counted, neither of the candidates' parties had captured a ruling majority, but Netanyahu was clearly in a strong position to form a coalition government with other right-wing factions that have backed him.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Mr Netanyahu for a victory in the polls.

Source: The Hindu

International Affairs

14. The death toll from devastating Cyclone Idai rises above 1,000

The death toll from a storm that crashed into southeast Africa last month has risen above 1,000, with more than 4,000 cases of cholera reported among survivors in Mozambique, the hardest-hit country.
The United Nations has described Cyclone Idai as "one of the deadliest storms on record in the southern hemisphere".
Zimbabwe on 10 April 2019, updated the number of dead to 344, while Mozambique has reported 602 deaths. In Malawi, 59 people died in heavy rains before the onset of Idai.

Sources: Al Jazeera