DAILY GK UPDATE - 12th July

PM Narendra Modi set to leave for Brazil to participate in VIth BRICS Summit

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to participate in VIth BRICS Summit in Fortaleza and Brasilia, Brazil from 14 to 16th of July.

ii. He will embark upon his important journey on 13th of July. This will be his first multi-lateral meeting with the heads of BRICS countries, the growing world economies such as Brazil, China, Russia and South Africa.
iii. PM is also scheduled to have important bilateral meetings with President of China, Mr Xi Jinping on 14th July. On the same day, Shri Narendra Modi will have bilateral dialogues with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

iv. In summary, BRICS opens for its five members a space for dialogue, the identification of convergences and consultation regarding various topics, and expands contacts and cooperation in specific sectors.

v. India is the second biggest economy on Purchase Power Parity parameter in the group after China. With its huge population and resources, in terms of skilled manpower and sizeable young generation, India is one of the fastest growing economies of the world.
vi. In such a case, India is all set to play a vital role in BRICS organization as well as on the world platform under the zeal and vigour of new government led by Shri Narendra Modi.

2.    Air India is now part of Star Alliance

i. Air India on Friday formally became a member of Star Alliance, a conglomeration of 26 overseas airlines.

ii.“This is an important day for us. We have said for many years that we needed a strong home carrier in the Indian market and by welcoming Air India to our Star Alliance family, we have achieved this goal,”said Star Alliance Chief Executive Mark Schwab.

iii. Rohit Nandan, Air India Chairman and Managing Director, said: “Air India is proud to be a member of this prestigious airline Alliance. From today, we open up a completely different world for our passengers, who can now travel to over 1,300 destinations right across the network and enjoy world-class service, better connectivity and seamless travel.”

iv. The biggest growth will come from Air India's home market, which till now was served by 13 Star Alliance members flying to 10 destinations.

3.    World Bank to give $153 mn loan for Odisha project

i. India has inked a loan agreement with World Bank for an assistance of $153 million (about Rs 920 crore) for the Odisha Disaster Recovery Project.

ii. “The Loan Agreements for World Bank (International Development Association (IDA) assistance of $153 million for Odisha Disaster Recovery Project were signed here on Friday between the Government of India and the World Bank,” an official statement said.

iii. The objective of the project is to restore and improve housing and public services in targeted communities of Odisha, and increase the capacity of the state entities to respond promptly and effectively to an eligible crisis of emergency, the statement said.

iv. Direct beneficiaries of the project include population of the coastal areas in Ganjam, Puri and Khordha affected by the cyclone that will be part of the housing reconstruction programme, it added.

v. In addition, the total population of Berhampur, around 350,000, will benefit either directly or indirectly from the improvements expected to result from the master plans.

vi. The Project will be implemented over a period of five years. The Government of Odisha is the implementing agency of the project, the statement said

4.    World Cup champions to get $35 mn from FIFA

i. The World Cup title not only carries immense prestige, but a massive paycheck as well on Sunday.

ii. The winning federation, either Germany or Argentina, will receive $35 million from the ruling body FIFA, and the losers $25 million, FIFA said on Friday.

iii. There is also a financial incentive in the match for third place between hosts Brazil and the Netherlands on Saturday, with $22 million for third place and $20 million for the fourth.

iv. Overall FIFA is dishing out $358 million to the 32 teams who competed at the June 12-July 13 tournament.

5.   North East can become world's largest organic producer: VK Singh

i. The Northeast has the potential to become the largest producer of organic foods in the world, Union minister Vijay Kumar Singh said on Saturday.

ii. VK Singh, the Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region said, "Potential in North East is very high as it is already an organic hub by default."
iii. "However, farmers here do not know what organic is. If we work on it, NE can become the largest producer of organic foods in the world," Singh told the National Cold Chain Summit by ICC in Guwahati.
iv. "Food processing and cold chain storage are of utmost importance to NE," Singh said, adding that 40 per cent of food in the country was wasted due to lack of storage facilities.

He emphasised on the need to establish cold chain storage facilities, which would be beneficial to both farmers and consumers.

6.   Satish Upadhyay formally takes charge as Delhi BJP chief

i. Newly -appointed Delhi BJP President Satish Upadhyay, who formally took charge of the post on Saturday said the people of Delhi have shown faith in BJP and party workers should make all efforts to serve them.

ii. Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, who was appointed as the state party chief just before the Lok Sabha elections, handed over the charge of Delhi unit to Upadhyay at a function organised at Delhi BJP office in New Delhi.
iii. Addressing BJP leaders and workers, Upadhyay said, "The people of Delhi have rejected both Aam Aadmi Party and Congress and shown faith in BJP. We should continue to make efforts to serve Delhiites."

7.   IIP grows to 19-month high of 4.7% in May

i.Showing signs of recovery, industrial production grew at 19-month high of 4.7 percent in May due to improved performance of manufacturing, mining and power sectors and higher output of capital goods.

ii. The output, as measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), had contracted by 2.5 percent in the same month of last year.
iii. IIP data for April remained unchanged at 3.4 percent after revision of the provisional estimates released last month, according to the information released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) on Friday.
iv. The IIP's previous high was recorded in October 2012 at 8.4 percent. During the April-May period of the current fiscal, the IIP recorded a growth of 4 percent, as against contraction of 0.5 percent in the first two months of 2013-14.
v. Manufacturing, which constitutes over 75 percent of the index, grew 4.8 percent in May, compared to decline in output by 3.2 percent a year ago.
vi. For April-May, the sector recorded a growth of 3.7 percent, compared to a contraction of 0.7 percent in the year-ago period.

8.   Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry Virendra Kataria removed

i. President Pranab Mukherjee has removed Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, Virendra Kataria from his post.

ii.Lt. General (Retd.) Ajay Kumar Singh, Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands will have additional charge of Puducherry.

9.   Indian Navy to get first indigenous anti-submarine warfare ship INS Kamorta today

i. The Indian Navy will formally receive the first fully ingeniously built anti-submarine warfare (ASW), INS Kamorta, at Visakhapatnam on Saturday.

ii. The naval warship will be handed over to the Indian Navy by Kolkata-based Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd. (GRSE) after a brief ceremony today.

iii. The first of the four such ships, INS Kamorta will be the first to integrate rocket launcher for anti-submarine warfare.

iv. INS Kamorta is the first ever warship built in the country with around 90 per cent of indigenous content including special grade high-tensile (DMR249A) steel produced by Steel Authority of India