1st –7th November 2017

Banking & Financial Awareness

1. According to the World Bank’s released report, 'Doing Business 2018: Reforming to Create Jobs', India ranked ____100th
spot.
Note:
➢ The Doing Business Report assesses covers 10 indicators which span the lifecycle of a business.
➢ India is the only country in South Asia and BRICS economies to feature among most improved economies of the DB
Report this year.
2. Recently, the bank has slashed benchmark lending rate by 0.05% across maturities____ State Bank of India (SBI).
Note:
➢ The reduction in the marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR) came after a gap of almost 10 months.
➢ The MCLR for one year has come down to 7.95% from 8%.
➢ The MCLR on overnight borrowings has been reduced to 7.70% from 7.75%, while the lending rate for three-year
tenure has been cut from 8.15% to 8.10%.
3. India's first voice-based international remittance service to enable non-resident Indians (NRIs) to send money to any bank
in India___ ICICI Bank.
4. Govt extends the last date for filing of GSTR-2 to ____30th Nov.
Note:
➢ GSTR-2 or purchase returns have to be matched with GSTR-1 which is the sales return.
➢ The Finance Ministry has also extended the date of filing of GSTR-3 for July to 11th December.
5. The bank unveiled a BHIM YES PAY by fully integrating the application with all the India Stack APIs and NPCI Products
___YES bank.
Note:
➢ Now, BHIM YES PAY supports e-KYC, UPI, IMPS, RuPay, BBPS and BharatQR making customers’ as well as
retailers’ digital journey smooth.
➢ YES BANK has over 5.5 lakh registered users on BHIM YES PAY and more than 2 lakh users have already availed
either UPI or Virtual Card Services to carry out P2P payments and online shopping.
6. The price of the new series of Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs) has been fixed per gram at ___ 2,934 rupees.
Note:
➢ The union govt. has decided to offer a discount of 50 rupees per gram to investors applying online and making
payments digitally.
➢ SGBs are government securities denominated in grams of gold, substitutes for holding physical gold.
7. The Payments bank will become operational in all 650 districts of the country by April 2018__ India Post Payments Bank
(IPPB).
Note:
➢ These banks will be linked to 1.55 lakh rural post offices and carry out banking services.
➢ The two such banks are already operational in Ranchi and Raipur.
8. The State Bank of India (SBI) has announced to reduce the interest rates on home and automobile loans by ___five basis
points (bps).
Note:
➢ SBI’s home loan rates will be 8.30% for the loan (up to Rs 30 lakh).
➢ Car loan amount ranges from 8.70% to 9.20% compared to an earlier range of 8.75% to 9.25%.
9. The cash sales of agricultural produce by a cultivator to a trader for less than 2 lakh rupees will not attract tax under the
_____ Income Tax Act.
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 Note:
➢ The cultivator and the trader will also not have to provide their Permanent Account Number or furnish Form 60.
➢ The clarification came following representations from stakeholders about applicability of income tax provision to
cash sale of farm produce by farmers to traders.
10. The Govt. of India (GoI) and Patanjali has been signed memorandum of understanding (MoU) at the 2017 World Food
India___ Rs. 10,000 Crore.
Note:
➢ The MoU has been signed between the Acharya Balkrishna (Managing Director of Patanjali) and Harsimrat Kaur
Badal (Union Minister of Food Processing in the Government of India).

Obituaries

1. Former Lok Sabha Member and architect passed away in Hyderabad__ Baddam Narasimha Reddy.
Note:
➢ Baddam Narsimha Reddy represented Miryalaguda Constituency thrice.
2. Janata Dal (Secular) member of Karnataka Legislative Assembly (MLA) passed away after a prolonged illness
___Chikkamadu.
Note:
➢ He was elected from Hunsur assembly segment in Mysuru district first time and then H D Kote in the same district
in 2013 from Janata Dal (S).
3. A Saudi prince was killed when a helicopter with several officials on board crashed near the kingdom's southern border
with war-torn Yemen___ Mansour bin Moqren.
Note:
➢ Prince Mansour was the son of Prince Muqrin bin Abdulaziz, a former intelligence service director and a one-time
crown prince of the kingdom.
New Appointments

1. The new Secretary (Security) in Cabinet Secretariat ____ SK Sinha.

2. The senior BJP MP will head the parliamentary standing committee on defense ___ Major General (Retd.) B C
Khanduri.
Note:
➢ The committee will examine the operational preparedness of armed forces and review accidents involving
strategic defence assets.
➢ It will also assess the procurement policy relating to defence equipment.
3. The union govt. has constituted a ministerial panel headed by the union minister to oversee merger proposals of state-
owned banks___ Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
Note:
➢ The other members of the panel are Railway & Coal Minister Piyush Goyal and Defence Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman.
➢ The move to create large banks aims at meeting the credit needs of the growing Indian economy and building
capacity in the PSB space to raise resources without dependence on the state exchequer.
4. India's High Commissioner to Pakistan ___ Ajay Bisaria.
Note:
➢ He will succeed Gautam Bambawale (posted to China last month).
➢ Currently, Mr. Bisaria is India's Ambassador to Poland.
5. Who has been nominated as the next US Ambassador to India____ Kenneth Juster.
Note:
➢ He would replace Richard Verma, who resigned from the post with the swearing in of Donald Trump as the 45th
President of the United States.
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 ➢ Juster had played a key role in the landmark Indo-US civil nuclear deal.
6. Who has been designated as the new Finance Secretary ____ Hasmukh Adhia.
Note:
➢ The Finance Secretary is the Permanent Secretary-level civil servant, who plays a leadership role in the
bureaucracy of the Finance Ministry, Government of India.
➢ The vacancy was caused following the superannuation of Ashok Lavasa.
7. Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe fired Vice President ____ Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Note:
➢ Mugabe's move came after high drama between Mnangagwa and Grace after which Mugabe appeared to finally
back his wife in the succession race.
➢ In 2014, Mnangagwa was appointed vice president, taking over from Joice Mujuru.

Honour & Awards

1. Veteran actress has been honored with 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award by PHD Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (PHDCCI) for her contribution in the field of cinema___ Sharmila Tagore.
Note:
➢ She had debuted in movies with legendary director Satyajit Ray’s Bengali film Apur Sansar (1959).
➢ Filmmaker-poet Muzaffar Ali was conferred with Special Award for his outstanding contribution to promote
and arts, fine art and literature.
2. According to Forbes’ real-time billionaire’s list, who has become the Asia’s richest person ____Mukesh Ambani.
Note:
➢ Ambani, whose total estimated wealth is USD 42.1 billion (boost of USD 466 million) courtesy 1.22% rise in shares of
Reliance Industries to Rs 952.30.
➢ Businessman Hui Ka Yan, whose total estimated wealth went down by USD 1.28 billion to USD 40.6 billion.

3. Noted Malayalam Poet and literary critic has been selected for this year's Ezhuthachan Puraskaram ___K Satchidanandan.
Note:
➢ He has been selected for his contributions to Malayalam literature and poetry.
➢ Ezhuthachan Puraskaram is the Kerala government's highest literary honour, carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and
a citation.
4. The union ministry of Housing and urban affairs has awarded the Municipal Corporation(SMC) with the ‘Best City Bus
Service Award’ ___ Surat Municipal Corporation(SMC).
Note:
➢ Mysuru’s Public Bicycle Sharing has won the ‘Best Non-Motorised Transport’ Award.
➢ Kochi has been chosen for the ‘Best Urban Transport Initiative’ award for completing its Metro Rail Project in a
quick time.
➢ Chittor has been chosen for the ‘Commendable Initiative Award’.
5. Hindi Litterateur will get the Jnanpith Award for 2017 for her path breaking contribution to Indian literature__ Krishna
Sobati.
Note:
➢ She is known for experimenting with new writing style and creating bold and daring characters in her stories.
➢ The Jnanpith Award is an Indian literary award presented annually by the Bharatiya Jnanpith to an author for their
'outstanding contribution towards literature'.
6. The temple of Tamil Nadu has won the UNESCO Asia Pacific Award of Merit 2017 for cultural heritage conservation___ Sri
Ranganathaswamy temple.
Note:
➢ Sri Ranganathaswamy temple considered the foremost of the 108 divyadesams, is situated on an islet between the
Cauvery and the Coleroon rivers.
➢ It has seven prakaras and 21 towers, including the majestic 236-feet-high rajagopuram.
7. Who will host the Nobel Prize Event in Feb 2018____ Goa.
Note:

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 ➢ The event will be jointly organized by Department of Bio-Technology, Union Ministry of Science and Technology in
collaboration with Department of Science and Technology and Nobel Media AB, Sweden.
8. Veteran actor has been felicitated with the prestigious Vishnudas Bhave award for his contribution to theatre___ Mohan
Joshi.
Note:
➢ Joshi was honoured at a ceremony held in Sangli on the eve of Marathi Rangbhumi Din.
➢ The award has been conferred in memory of the founder of Marathi theatre Vishnudas Bhave.
➢ The award includes a cash of Rs 25,000, a trophy and a citation.

Important News – India

1. India’s first black buck conservation reserve at ____Allahabad.

Note:
➢ The Uttar Pradesh state cabinet has decided to make India's first conservation reserve for blackbuck at the Meja
forest division near Allahabad.
➢ The wildlife conservation reserve will come up on over 126 hectares in Meja forest division undulating and arid
terrain.
➢ Indian Blackbuck is an antelope and is the only living species of the genus Antilope.
2. The 36th edition of Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) 2017 Kicks Off at the ____Expo Centre Sharjah.
Note:
➢ The theme of this year’s SIBF is ‘A World inside My Book’.
➢ This year’s book fair will see the participation of 1,650 publishing houses from 60 countries.
➢ Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) is the most prestigious in the Arab world and home to the most
exciting literary event in the region.
3. 150 - years old train running on Bhagalpur-Kiul section has been withdrawn from service___ Shramik train (coolie
train).
➢ The ‘coolie train’ was in service between Jamalpur in Munger district and Sultanganj in Bhagalpur district and also
from Jamalpur to Kajra in Munger district.
➢ On 8th February,1862, the two ‘Shramik’ trains were rolled out for the convenience of railway employees working
at Asia-fame diesel locomotive factory in Jamalpur.
4. The state is hosting the inaugural India-US Ocean Dialogue aimed at promoting sustainable development of the Blue
Economy____ Goa.
Note:
➢ The dialogue is being hosted by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs at the Council of Scientific and Industrial
ResearchNational Institute of Oceanography (CSIR-NIO).
5. President Shri Ram Nath Kovind has inaugurated the 21st World Congress of Mental Health in ___New Delhi.
Note:
➢ The World Congress of Mental Health is taking place in India for the first time.
➢ The World Congress is being organized by the World Federation for Mental Health in partnership with Caring
Foundation and other institutions.
6. The Union Govt. has approved reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBC) students in NTSE Stage-II conducted by
____NCERT.
Note:
➢ This reservation will be in addition to reservations for SC, ST & Physically Handicapped (PH) category students as
per Central Government norms.
➢ The OBC quota will be effective from 2019 and enhanced from 1000 students to 2000.
➢ The rates of scholarship have been increased to Rs 1250 (Class XI & XII) and Rs 2000 (UGs/PGs).
7. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the mega food event ‘World Food India 2017’ in ____New Delhi.
Note:

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 ➢ This international mega food event will strengthen India’s position as a global food factory and is a positive step
towards making the country food secure.
➢ Around two thousand participants from 30 countries, nearly 50 global CEOs and representatives of all state are
participating in the event.
8. All cars sold or manufactured on or after 1st December will have to be rolled out with ____ “FASTags” (electronic toll
collection product).
Note:
➢ FASTags work mainly through radio-frequency identification (RFID) strips pasted on windscreens for contact-less
passage in toll plazas on national highways.
➢ RFID strips will now have to be pasted on vehicles by manufacturers or dealers if the vehicles have already left the
factories.
9. Indo-Kazakhstan joint exercise Prabal Dostyk 2017 begins in ____Himachal Pradesh.
Note:
➢ A joint training exercise between Indian Army and the Kazakhstan Army “PRABAL DOSTYK – 2017” commenced
with the opening ceremony at Bakloh, Himachal Pradesh.
➢ The training contingents comprise of platoon strength from the 11th Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army and a
similar strength of the Kazakhstan Army.
10. Indigenously developed light weight bomb has been successfully tested from Indian Air Force aircraft at Integrated Test
Range in Chandipur, Odisha___ Glide Bomb.
Note:
➢ The Bomb- SAAW (Smart Anti Airfield Weapon) released from the aircraft and guided through precision
navigation system, reached the targets with high accuracies.
➢ A total of three tests with different release conditions and ranges were conducted and all were successful.
11. Extension to the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) to submit its report on Cauvery water sharing dispute between
Karnataka and Tamil Nadu___ six-month.
Note:
➢ On 2nd June 1990, The CWDT was constituted under section 4 of the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956
for the adjudication of the water dispute.
➢ On 5thFebruary 2007, the tribunal had asked Karnataka to release 192 thousand million cubic feet water to lower
riparian Tamil Nadu every year from June to January.
12. The Union Minister Mahesh Sharma has inaugurated the three days North-East Festival, in ___ New Delhi.
Note:
➢ The festival, will see performances by artistes like rapper Borkung Hrangkhawl, heavy metal bands Pulse Pandits,
Girish & Chronicles (GATC) and Traffic Jam.
13. The union HRD Ministry Prakash Javadekar has inaugurated the two-day National Workshop on School Education in
____New Delhi.
Note:
➢ It will bring together key stakeholders from various NGOs, private sector and individuals to deliberate on key
themes in the education sector.
➢ The workshop will focus on the five themes of Digital Education, Physical Education, Value Education, Life Skills
Education and Experiential Learning
14. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has commissioned a new Instrument Landing System (ILS) for a runway at the
____Chennai airport .
Note:
➢ The ILS provides the necessary guidance to the pilots while they approach for landing at the runway.
➢ The new ILS commissioned for runway 07 will facilitate smooth landing of the aircraft at the Chennai airport even
during rain, low clouds, smog etc and provide an improved guidance to the aircraft.
15. The Indian & Bangladeshi army are taking part in the 7th edition of joint training exercise in Meghalaya and Mizoram
_____SAMPRITI.
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 Note:
➢ Th exercise will be conducted at India's Jungle Warfare School at Vairengte in Mizoram and at the Joint Training
Node at Umroi in Meghalaya
➢ The objective of the exercise is to conduct counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations in peace-keeping
activities in the United Nations (UN).

Important Day

1. Today, the birth anniversary (548th) of 1st Sikh Guru is being celebrated across the country___ Nanak Dev jee.
Note:
➢ It was on this day, Guru Jee was born at Rai Bhoi di Talwandi (Nankana Sahib) in Pakistan.
➢ Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikh religion and the first of the ten Sikh Gurus.
➢ His words are registered in the form of 974 poetic hymns in the holy text of Sikhism.
2. The World Tsunami Awareness Day (WTAD) has been observed across the world on___ 5th November.
Note:
➢ The theme 'Reduce the Number of Affected People'.
➢ On 5th November 2016, the first World Tsunami Awareness Day was observed across the world.

States News

1. The state govt. has announced the lifetime monthly pension of Rs 10,000 for 'Hindi Satyagrahis' of the state___ Haryana.
Note:
➢ It would be providing enhanced financial assistance to World War-II veterans and their widows (from Rs 4,500 to
Rs 10,000).
➢ Earlier, the state govt. has identified 194 'Satyagrahis' who were imprisoned during the 'Hindi Satyagraha'
launched by the Punjab Arya Pratinidhi Sabha in 1957 to promote the language.
2. According to the Child development NGO Plan India released index, the sate ranked top in Gender Vulnerability Index
(GVI)___Goa.
Note:
➢ The index, which provides a state-wise ranking, has been calculated by analyzing four issues pertinent to the
situation of girls — child safety/protection, poverty, health, and education.
➢ Bihar ranked the lowest at 30, with Delhi faring only slightly better at 29 and Uttar Pradesh at 28.
3. The state govt. has decided to follow its reservation policy while engaging professionals and other employees through
outsourcing agencies ___Bihar government.
Note:
➢ New policy will make private outsourcing agencies recruit manpower based on the reservation policy of the state
government if they want to work with the state agencies.
➢ 50% of the government jobs are reserved for the Scheduled Cast(SC), Scheduled tribe (ST), other backward classes
(OBC) and differently abled candidates in Bihar.
➢ There is also a provision of 35% horizontal quota for women in all reserved categories.
4. The Geographical Indication Registry (GIR) has given Geographical Indication (GI) tag traditional Etikoppaka toys from
____ Andhra Pradesh.
Note:
➢ These traditional toys are made by artisans in Etikoppaka village in Visakhapatnam district.
➢ The Geographical Indication (GI) is name or sign used on certain products which correspond to specific
geographical location or origin.
5. The Jammu and Kashmir government began functioning in Jammu after shifting from Srinagar, the summer capital of the
state, as part of the pre-Independence practice of _____darbar move.
Note:
➢ The Civil Secretariat and other 'darbar move' offices function in Srinagar for six months of summer and in Jammu
for the remaining six months of the year.
➢ In 1872, the practice of 'darbar move' was started by Maharaja Gulab Singh to escape the summer heat of Jammu
and the biting winters of Srinagar.

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6. The Punjab govt. has started a ‘Mass Construction Campaign’ for constructing toilet in every household at ___Dabanwal
village.
Note:
➢ He also flagged off 90 promotional teams who will create awareness among the people to make their area free
from open defecation.

Important News – World

1. The country has signed a USD 300 million agreement with the United Nations (UN) aimed to reduce the production of
cocaine __ Colombia.
Note:
➢ This agreement is opportunity to turn the tide against Colombia's coca cultivation and help farmers embrace
alternative development.
➢ This initiative will provide compensation to farmers if they revert to producing safer crops like coffee and cacao.
2. The word of the year by Collins dictionary due to its widespread use around the world___ Fake news.
Note:
➢ According to the Collins Dictionary’s lexicographers (U.K.-based), the use of ‘fake news’ registered a 365% rise in
the last 12 months.
➢ 'Fake news' takes over from Brexit which was named the definitive word last year after the June 2016 referendum
in favour of the U.K.’s exit from the EU.
3. International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) has released papers and reveals the offshore activities of some
of the world’s most powerful people and companies ___The Paradise Papers.
Note:
➢ The Paradise paper is a global investigation that reveals the offshore activities of some of the world’s most
powerful people and companies.
➢ Among 180 countries represented in the data, India ranks 19th in terms of number of names.
➢ A total of 714 Indian names figure in the leaked data.
4. A new round of UN climate change talks in___ Bonn, Germany.
Note:
➢ More than 190 countries and territories will take part in the UN Framework Convention on Climate
Change(COP23).
➢ They will also discuss how to report their reduction goals and updated efforts to fulfil them.
➢ The conference will end on 17th November.
5. Lebanese Prime Minister announces resigned from his post___ Saad al-Hariri.
Note:
➢ In late 2016, Mr Hariri was appointed Prime Minister and headed a 30-member national unity cabinet that
included the Shiite militant Hezbollah.
➢ In 2005, former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri (father of Saad al-Hariri) was assassinated.
6. Walmart India launched India's first Fulfilment center in ___Mumbai.
Note:
➢ The US-based retail chain giant Walmart India has opened its first Fulfilment Center (FC) in Mumbai.
➢ With this, Walmart India brings a wide range of quality merchandise, local assortment, unique shopping options,
door-step delivery and convenient payment solutions to its members in Mumbai.
7. Countries will conduct the 2018 tiger census in close coordination in their respective territories at the same time___ India,
Nepal & Bangladesh.
Note:
➢ The census will be held under the supervision of NTCA and the Wildlife Institute of India.
➢ The first phase of tiger census will be completed by December end, second phase by January 2018 and the final
phase will go on from February to October next year.
8. Who has launched the two BeiDou-3 satellites into space though a single carrier rocket ___ China.
Note:
➢ The two newly-launched satellites represent the third phase of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System.
➢ China will become the third country in the world after the US and Russia to operate its own navigation system.
➢ It began to serve China in 2000 and the Asia-Pacific region at the end of 2012.
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 Sports News

1. Who has won the 10-meter air pistol gold medal at the Commonwealth Shooting Championships in Brisbane __
Heena Sidhu.
Note:
➢ This was Sidhu's second successive international gold after she along with Jitu Rai, claimed the top position
in the 10-meter air pistol mixed team event in the ISSF World Cup Finals in Delhi.
➢ Deepak Kumar won a bronze medal in the 10-meter air rifle event.
2. The Olympic flame arrived in the country to begin its journey towards the 2018 Pyeongchang Games___ South Korea.
Note:
➢ The torch relay will cover 2,018 kilometres through nine provinces, eight major cities, and more than 150 counties
& districts before it winds up at its destination in Pyeongchang.
➢ The Games kick off on 9th February 2018 and will feature approximately 3,000 athletes from 95 NOCs.
3. India ended the Commonwealth Shooting Championships with a rich haul of ___20 medals.
Note:
➢ The Indian squad won a total of gold (6), silver (7) and bronze (7) medals during the competition.
4. Olympic bronze-medallist has won a silver medal in the men's 50m rifle prone event of the Commonwealth Shooting
Championships___ Gagan Narang.
Note:
➢ Dane Sampson of Australia won the gold and Swapnil Suresh Kusale (India) bagged the bronze in the same event,
➢ India's Suraj Singh won the bronze in women's 25m pistol final, while the gold and silver went to host country's L
Yaumleuskay and E Galiabovitch respectively.
5. Indian shooter has won the gold medal in the 50m pistol event at the Commonwealth Shooting Championships at Gold
Coast in Australia___ Prakash Nanjappa.
Note:
➢ Amanpreet the Silver and Jitu settled for bronze medals.
6. India's ace shuttler has achieved career-best World Number 2 ranking in the latest BWF ranking ___ Kidambi Srikanth.
Note:
➢ Now, Srikanth has 73,403 points, 4527 points away from World Champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark, who heads
the ranking list.
➢ Srikanth has reached in five finals and cliched four titles (Indonesia and Australia and Denmark and France) this
year so far.
7. FIFA has provisionally suspended Peruvian Football striker for 30 days after failing a doping test____ Paolo Guerrero.
Note:
➢ Guerrero tested positive on 5th October after the World Cup qualifying match against Argentina.
➢ Doping is the taking of banned substances or using prohibited methods to enhance or maintain sporting
performance.
8. The hockey team has won the women's Asia Cup 2017 title at Kakamigahara city in Japan___ Indian.
Note:
➢ Team Indian beat China 5-4 (in Penalty shoot-out), at full time both teams were level One-One.
➢ Now, the ‘Team India’ has secured a berth for itself at the 2018 Hockey World Cup.
9. Indian golfer has clinched his first Asian Tour title in India at the Delhi Golf Club in New Delhi __Shiv Kapur.
Note:
➢ He bagged the Panasonic Open by three strokes after bringing home a card of four-under 68 in the fourth and final
round.
➢ Earlier, Kapur had won the Yeangder Heritage in April and finished second at the Thailand Open this season.

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