Today Current Affairs for Competitive Exams - Current Affairs 2019-2020 Online - Testbook

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Today Current Affairs for Competitive
       Exams - Current Affairs 2019-2020
                                      Online
If you are appearing for any Government Recruitment Exam, it is important that you are
familiar with the happenings around the world. Current Affairs is an important part of
your syllabus apart from English, Quantitative Aptitude or Logical Reasoning! Thus, we
bring you the Important General Awareness in PDF. Now, Banking, SSC and Insurance
aspirants can read the update containing all the Important Current Affairs 10th April
2019. You can also attempt yesterday's current affairs quiz:

                Current Affairs Quiz – 9th April 2019

Important Current Affairs 10th April 2019

   •   Muguruza claimed Monterrey Open Title
           o   Garbine Muguruza of Spain successfully claimed back-to-back Monterrey
               Open title 2019 as Victoria Azarenka succumbed to injury in the final.
           o   Asia Muhammad & Maria Sanchez claimed women's doubles title in
               Monterrey Open.
           o   The Monterrey Open is a professional women's tennis tournament played
               on outdoor hard courts.

       Source Link: https://www.indiatoday.in/sports/tennis/story/monterrey-open-
       final-garbine-muguruza-wins-victoria-azarenka-retires-1496699-2019-04-08

   •   Dogs can sniff out cancer with 97% accuracy
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o   Dogs can pick out blood samples from people with cancer with 97%
               accuracy, as per a study.
           o   Dogs have smell receptors 10,000 times more accurate than humans',
               making them highly sensitive to odours we can not perceive.
           o   For the study, the team used a form of clicker training to teach four
               beagles to distinguish between normal blood serum and samples from
               patients with malignant lung cancer.

       Source Link: https://www.news18.com/news/lifestyle/dogs-can-sniff-out-
       cancer-in-blood-with-97-accuracy-2095033.html

   •   Yutu travelled 170 m on Moon
           o   China's lunar rover Yutu-2 traveled 170.92 meters on the far side of the
               Moon, as per the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the
               China National Space Administration (CNSA).
           o   It has run a total of 163 meters during the previous three lunar daytime
               periods.
           o   During the third one, the rover conducted scientific examination over
               stones and tracks on the Moon.

       Source
       Link: https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d3d514d7a4d544f33457a6333566d54/index
       .html

   •   Black Hole photograph released
           o   The first ever photograph of a black hole was released on 10 April 2019.
           o   Scientists working in the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT)
               Collaboration presented their observations at 6:30 PM IST.

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o   Sagittarius A, a supermassive black hole site is 26,000 light years away,
               while the second is at the centre of the supergiant elliptical M87 galaxy in
               the Virgo constellation.

       Source Link: https://www.news18.com/news/tech/black-hole-photograph-to-be-
       released-by-event-horizon-at-630pm-today-2095741.html

   •   GlowRoad got $10 mn funding
           o   Social commerce platform GlowRoad has raised $10 million in a Series B
               funding round led by China’s CDH Investment.
           o   CDH Investment's other investments in India include Mayfair and Cashify,
               an online platform for selling used electronic products.
           o   GlowRoad was founded in 2017 by Sonal Verma, Kunal Sinha, Nitesh
               Pant, Shekhar Sahu, and Nilesh Padariya.

       Source Link: https://www.livemint.com/companies/start-ups/glowroad-gets-10-
       mn-funding-from-china-cdh-investment-others-1554844093066.html

   •   BSNL collected Rs 6500 crore revenue
           o   BSNL has collected a record revenue of ₹6,500 crore from enterprise
               segment, making it sufficiently funded, which will help in meeting its
               various requirement.
           o   BSNL has been ailing because of a high revenue-to-wage ratio as a large
               number of government employees were transferred by the telecom
               department to the telecom PSU.

       Source Link: https://www.livemint.com/companies/news/bsnl-collects-record-
       rs-6-500-cr-in-revenue-from-enterprise-division-1554813354411.html

   •   SC to pay $1.1 billion for violations
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o   Standard Chartered agreed to pay $1.1 billion to US and British authorities
               for illegal financial transactions.
           o   A former banker at the Dubai branch pleaded guilty in New York state
               court in connection with the conspiracy to violate sanctions.
           o   SC paid US authorities $667 million in 2012 for illegally moving millions
               of dollars through the US financial system.

       Source Link: https://www.livemint.com/news/world/standard-chartered-to-pay-
       1-1-billion-for-sanctions-violations-1554825852957.html

   •   Manish Mehan: New CEO Thyssenkrupp Elevators
           o   German steel giant ThyssenKrupp has appointed Manish Mehan as new
               Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ThyssenKrupp Elevators (India).
           o   Earlier, Mehan held the position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in
               ThyssenKrupp Elevator (India) for the last 12 years.

       Source Link: https://www.livemint.com/companies/news/manish-mehan-
       appointed-as-new-ceo-of-thyssenkrupp-elevators-1554817564424.html

   •   DEO Puducherry app launched
           o   The Elections Department of Puducherry has launched DEO Puducherry,
               an IT application.
           o   This will help voters with details of all polling stations in 25 Assembly
               constituencies in Puducherry district
           o   The new app was launched by Senior Superintendent of Police (Law and
               Order) Apoorva Gupta.
           o   The app features messages from the DEO, propaganda, law and order
               regulations.

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Source Link: http://www.uniindia.com/dec-to-launch-mobile-app-in-wake-of-
       elections/south/news/1555132.html

   •   India-Singapore joint exercise conducted
           o   Armed forces of India and Singapore kicked off a joint military exercise,
               ‘Bold Kurukshetra–2019’, in Jhansi’s Babina Cantonment on 8 April 2019.
           o   The 3-day exercise is aimed at bolstering cooperation against terrorism,
               developing defence technology and improving maritime security.
           o   India and Singapore entered into an official agreement in November 2017
               to strengthen defence ties.

       Source Link: https://swarajyamag.com/insta/bold-kurukshetra2019-india-and-
       singapore-kick-off-joint-military-exercise-in-jhansi

   •   PFS partnered with USICEF
           o   PFS joined hands with the US-India Clean Energy Finance (USICEF) to
               leverage funds for solar projects in India.
           o   It is an innovative facility which can contribute in achieving India's
               distributed energy target of 40 GW by 2022.
           o   PTC India Financial Services (PFS) has processed and sanctioned 3
               distributed solar power projects.

       Source
       Link: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/finance/pfs-
       partners-usicef-for-financing-solar-projects/articleshow/68763406.cms

   •   IIT Madras: No.1 in Atal and NIRF rankings

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o   IIT Madras has been ranked as the 'Best Educational Institution' in the
               country in the latest edition of National Institutional Rankings Framework
               (NIRF) 2019.
           o   It also emerged as the 'Top innovative Institution' in the country in the
               maiden edition of the Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation
               Achievements (ARIIA), bagging the Rank number 1 in Government
               Institutions category.

       Source Link: https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/news/story/iit-
       madras-bags-no-1-spot-on-nirf-and-atal-innovation-rankings-for-2019-1496921-
       2019-04-08

   •   London: 1st to implement pollu charge zone
           o   London became the first city in the world to implement a special Ultra Low
               Emission Zone that would charge an entry fee for older vehicles if they do
               not meet the emission standards.
           o   In an attempt to reduce air pollution and protect public health, the ULEZ
               will be operational for 24 hours and 7 days a week.
           o   A vehicle that does not meet the new emission standard will have to pay
               daily charge.

       Source Link: https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ani/london-
       becomes-first-city-to-implement-24x7-pollution-charge-zone-
       119040900089_1.html

   •   IIT Madras tied up with GE
           o   IIT Madras and General Electric (GE) have collaborated for establishing a
               ‘Cold Spray’ SMART (Surface Modification and Additive Research
               Technologies) Laboratory.

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o   This is the first of its kind High-Pressure Cold Spray (HPCS) facility that is
               being installed in any academic institute in India.
           o   IIT Madras will be developing advanced coatings meeting specifications of
               the aerospace standard.

       Source Link: https://news.franchiseindia.com/education/iit-madras-ge-tie-up-
       to-set-up-indias-1st-cold-spray-smart-lab.n18286

   •   K.M. Mani passed away
           o   Kerala Congress chairman K. M. Mani, the longest-serving legislator in the
               State’s history, passed away on 9 April 2019.
           o   He had represented the Pala Assembly constituency for 52 years since its
               formation in 1965.
           o   Till now, he has won all the 13 elections from the constituency. He had
               held the Finance portfolio for the longest period and presented 13 budgets.

       Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/km-mani-
       longest-serving-legislator-in-keralas-history-passes-away-at-
       86/article26782520.ece

   •   SBI cut interest rates on home loans
           o   The State Bank of India has re-priced home loans up to Rs 30 lakh by 10
               basis points.
           o   Accordingly, the interest rate on housing loans of such size will now be in
               the range of 8.6 to 8.9%.
           o   The bank has also lowered its lending rates by a nominal five basis points
               across all tenors.

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Source Link: http://www.newsonair.com/News?title=SBI-cuts-interest-rates-on-
       home-loans&id=362052

   •   Alphabet launched public drone service
           o   Wing, the drone delivery company owned by Google’s parent company
               Alphabet, is launching its first public drone delivery service in Canberra,
               Australia.
           o   Around 100 homes in the suburbs of Crace, Palmerston, and Franklin will
               initially have access to the service.
           o   Drones will not be allowed to fly over main roads, they will only be allowed
               to fly between 7 am and 8 pm from Monday to Friday.

       Source Link: https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/9/18301782/wing-drone-
       delivery-google-alphabet-canberra-australia-public-launch

   •   17th edition of WEF held
           o   The World Economic Forum in the Middle East and North Africa took
               place at Jordan’s Dead Sea on April 6 and 7, 2019.
           o   The forum assembled more than 1,000 government, business and civil
               society leaders from more than 50 countries.
           o   The forum was themed on three major visions: generating job
               opportunities, empowering Arab women and promoting the most
               intriguing startups.

       Source Link: https://www.egyptindependent.com/highlights-of-the-17th-edition-
       of-the-world-economic-forum/

   •   BSE, HDFC Bank signed MoU
           o   The BSE has signed a MoU with HDFC Bank with an objective to
               strengthen the BSE Startups platform.

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o   The MoU has been signed to spread more awareness on the benefits of
               listing of startups on this BSE startup platform.
           o   BSE had launched the startup platform on 22 December 2018 with an aim
               to encourage entrepreneurs to get listed and raise equity capital for their
               growth and expansion.

       Source Link: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/bse-
       hdfc-bank-tie-up-to-strengthen-startup-platform/articleshow/68776427.cms

   •   IMF forecasts dipped in global growth
           o   The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected that global growth
               will be 3.3% in 2019, down from 3.6% in 2018 and 4% in 2017.
           o   This lower projection is due to lower global expansion in the second half of
               2018 caused because of factors like U.S.-China trade tensions.
           o   India’s growth is projected to pick up (from 7.1% in 2018) to 7.3% in 2019
               and 7.5% in 2020

       Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-international/imf-
       forecasts-dip-in-global-growth-in-2019/article26787555.ece

   •   India's gold reserves increased
           o   India has marginally increased its gold holding in February while
               maintaining the tenth position among countries in terms of yellow metal
               reserves, as per the World Gold Council.
           o   India added 1.7 tonnes in February 2019 while most other countries,
               barring Russia and China, saw their reserves unchanged in the recent past.
           o   As per WGC, India had total gold reserves of 608.7 tonnes in February.

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Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-business/indias-gold-
        reserves-increase-marginally-in-february-wgc/article26787509.ece

    •   YouTube's largest growing market: India
               o   India has become YouTube’s largest and fastest growing market with 265
                   million Indians watching the video-sharing website every month.
               o   In the last one year, YouTube’s consumption on mobile has increased to
                   85%, with 60% of the watch time coming from outside the six largest
                   metros in India.
               o   YouTube has more than 1,200 Indian creators crossing the million
                   subscriber-milestone.

        Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-business/india-
        becomes-youtubes-largest-and-fastest-growing-market/article26787513.ece

    •   Tata arm acquired Usha Martin's business
               o   Tata Sponge Iron Ltd. (TSIL) announced the completion of its acquisition
                   of the steel business of Usha Martin Ltd.
               o   It completed the acquisition on April 9, 2019, which included UML’s steel
                   business undertaking along with captive power plants.
               o   UML’s steel business has a rich mix of carbon steel and alloy steel, catering
                   to the automotive sector as well as high-end wire-rod makers.

        Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-business/tata-arm-
        completes-acquisition-of-usha-martins-steel-business/article26787520.ece

    •   Appointments
               o   Karnam Sekar, CEO and MD of Dena Bank, will become the MD and CEO
                   of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) effective from July 1, 2019.

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o   After superannuation on June 30, 2020, he will join IOB as OSD and
                   whole time director.
               o   Vijaya Bank MD and CEO, R.A. Sankara Narayanan, has been named MD
                   and CEO of Canara Bank.

        Source Link: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-business/top-level-
        appointments-in-banks/article26787510.ece

    •   Elements can be solid and liquid at same time
               o   Scientists have discovered a new state of physical matter in which atoms
                   can exist as both solid and liquid simultaneously.
               o   Until now, the atoms in physical material existed typically in one of three
                   states – solid, liquid or gas.
               o   A team led by scientists from the University of Edinburgh used powerful
                   computer simulations to study the existence of the state – known as the
                   chain-melted state.

        Source Link: https://www.ed.ac.uk/news/2019/elements-can-be-solid-and-
        liquid-at-same-
        time?utm_campaign=fullarticle&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=inshorts

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