GK and Current Affairs Updates

On 9 May 2016 The Union Government released a commemorative coin of hundred rupees and a circulation coin of ten rupees on Maharana Pratap. 
•    The coin was released as a part of 475th Birth Anniversary celebrations of Maharana Pratap.
•    The coin was released by Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture and Tourism Dr Mahesh Sharma in New Delhi.
•    Maharana Pratap was a brave warrior, successful organizer and ingenious strategist, who fearlessly fought the Mughals and protected his people until his death.
•    He was a ruler of Mewar, a region in north-western India in the present day state of Rajasthan.
•    His birth anniversary is celebrated every year on the 3rd day of the Jyestha Shukla phase.
•    He was the eldest son of Maharani Jaiwanta Bai and Udai Singh II, founder of Udaipur.
•    He belonged to the Sisodia clan of Rajputs.
•    Union Ministry of Culture has been celebrating the 475th Birth Anniversary of Maharana Pratap in association with the State Government of Rajasthan.

On 10 May 2016 Shashank Vyankatesh Manohar resigned as the President of BCCI.
•    He also stepped down as the BCCI representative in the International Cricket Council and the Asian Cricket Council .
•    He served as the president of the cricketing body from 25 September 2008 to 19 September 2011.
•    He is holding the office of the president of the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) who is one of the three full members in the state of Maharashtra.
•    He is also referred to as Mr. Clean and is also known for his spotless track record and integrity in cricketing circles.
•    Meanwhile in the Supreme Court, BCCI was questioned about their apprehensiveness to implement the Lodha Committee reforms.

On 11 May 2016 National Technology Day was celebrated across India. 
•    The function was headed by the President Pranab Mukherjee in Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.
•    The theme for celebrations of the Technology Day 2016 is Technology enablers of Startup India.
•    The day commemorates the anniversary of first of the five tests of Operation Shakti (Pokhran-II) nuclear test which was held on 11 May 1998 in Pokhran, Rajasthan.
•    National Technology Day is a very special day for Indian Technology since 1999. 
•    It is so significant because India achieved a huge technological advancement on the day. The first, indigenous aircraft “Hansa-3” was test flown at Bangalore on this day. 
•    India also performed successful test firing of the Trishul missile on the same day. India also executed three successful nuclear tests, carried out at Pokhran, in Rajasthan May 11.

On 11 May 2016 Indian Navy on decommissioned its fleet of iconic Sea Harriers. 
They were replaced with new generation MIG-29 K fighters in a ceremony on INS Hansa near Vasco.
The function was presided over by the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral RK Dhowan.
•    The de-inducted fighter aircrafts, the Naval Air Squadron 300 - INAS 300, were popularly known as 'white tigers'.
•    Designed and manufactured by British Aerospace, Sea Harrier is a naval Short-Vertical Take-Off and Landing Jet Fighter, used for both reconnaissance and strike.
•    The aircraft, developed by the British in the 1960s, was used by the British during the Falklands War, both Gulf Wars, and during the NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
•    The retired aircraft will be put on display in museums.
•    The newly inducted MIG 29 Ks will be operational from INS Vikramaditya aircraft carrier.
•    Presently 45 MIG 29k are being introduced

Yash Chopra, who shot most of his romantic dramas in the lush mountains of Switzerland, has been honoured with a special statue by the government.
•    The bronze statue of the Yash Chopra, which weighs about 250 kilos, was inaugurated on 11 May 2016 by his wife Pamela and daughter-in-law Rani Mukerjee.
•    Chopra, who opened a legacy of South Asian tourists flocking to Switzerland, loved to spend time in the country besides shooting his movies.
•    This statue is installed at the heart of Interlaken, inside the Kursaal area, near the Congress Centre which is a prime, popular spot with tourists.
•    Ministers and senior bureaucrats from the Swiss government attended the inauguration event that was organized by Interlaken Tourism and Jungfrau Railways.
•    The government of Interlaken awarded him the honorary title of “Ambassador of Interlaken” in 2011, 
•    Jungfrau Railways named a train after him — an honour shared only with the railway’s founder, Adolf Guyer.
•    The five-star Victoria Jungfrau Grand Hotel & Spa in Interlaken also named a suite after Yash Chopra.

Indian-American elementary teacher, Revathi Balakrishnan was honoured by US President Barack Obama at the White House.
 She was named as 2016 Texas Elementary Teacher of the Year.
She received the honour for her excellent work in the field of education at Patsy Sommer Elementary School in Texas.
•    She is from Chennai, Tamil Nadu who attributes her success in the field of education to her love of teaching.
•    She was a systems analyst with Liberty Mutual, 
•    She taught math classes in third through fifth grade at Sommer at Sommer Elementary for six years 
•    Then she used to teach at Forest North Elementary for three years.
•    She earned her economics degree from University of Madras.
•    It identifies exceptional teachers in the United States of America.
•    The honour recognizes their effective work in the classroom, engages them in a year of professional learning, amplifies their voices and empowers them to participate in policy discussions at the state and national levels.

Infosys Foundation has signed a pact with Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune, 
•    This is to support students from economically weaker section to pursue ‘high quality’ education.
•    The Memorandum of Understanding aims at providing opportunities for economically weaker students to pursue high quality science education and research through scholarships, fellowships and travel awards, Infosys said in a release.
•    It said as part of the MoU, the corpus fund of Rs. 5 crore named as ‘The Infosys Foundation Endowment Fund’, 
•    This fund will continue in perpetuity to benefit a minimum of 50 students annually.
•    The grant will be used towards the establishment of Infosys Foundation Scholarships which will be awarded to BS-MS students, Infosys Foundation Fellowships endowed to integrated PhD students and Infosys Foundation Travel Awards to PhD students who have excelled in their research work, the company added.
•    Grant is aimed at fulfilling the Foundation’s objective of creating equal opportunities for students from poorer background and advancing the quality of research done at Indian institutions.
•    The establishment of scholarships, fellowships and travel awards provides opportunities for students at different academic levels to gain from the grant, it said.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has cancelled the certificate of registration of the four non-banking financial companies (NBFCs). 
•    RBI has cancelled the certificate of registration in exercise of the powers conferred on it under Section 45-IA (6) of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
•    Company whose certificate of registration has been cancelled are 
•    Neelanjali Engineering Private Limited,
•    Novoflex Tradecom Private Limited '
•    Guide Investments and 
•    Trading Co. Pvt.
•    RBI commenced its operations on 1 April 1935 during the British Rule in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
•    The original share capital was divided into shares of 100 each fully paid, which were initially owned entirely by private shareholders.
•    Following India's independence on 15 August 1947, the RBI was nationalized on 1 January 1949.

Dr Manvendra K Singh, was awarded a grant of SGD 3 million by Singapore’s National Research Foundation (NRF).
•    He is a scientist from Uttar Pradesh's Gorakhpur city
•    He is among the seven young scientists from across the world to be endowed with the Singapore NRF fellowship.
•    The scientist has been awarded the fellowship to pursue research in the field of congenital and adult cardiovascular diseases.
•    He works as an assistant professor at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.
•    He is also an adjunct assistant professor at National Heart Research Institute Singapore 
•    He obtained his masters degree in Biotechnology from Madurai Kamaraj University.
•    After completing his masters, he joined MD/Ph.D program in Molecular Medicine at Hannover Medical School, Germany.
•    The National Research Foundation was set up on 1 January 2006.
•    It is a department within the Prime Minister's Office.
•    The NRF sets the national direction for research and development (R&D) by developing policies, plans and strategies for research, innovation and enterprise.

On 9 May 2016 Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti launched nine projects for rural sanitation initiatives in Jharkhand.
•    The initiatives were launched under Namami Gange Programme of the Ministry.
•    The main aim of these projects is to improve the health and quality of life of around 45000 households located in 78 villages of the Ganga River basin in Jharkhand 
•    The projects will cover the entire 83 kilometer stretch of Ganga in Jharkhand.
•    Promotion of safe, individual hygiene practices to ensure open defecation free status of all 78 villages along the river Ganga.
•    Promotion of cost-effective, appropriate local, low cost, easy to manage technologies to ensure improved access, sustained use and maintenance of infrastructure created for effective management of solid and liquid waste.
•    Strengthening of local institutions including panchayats, village level sanitation committees and self-help groups to effectively manage, enhance and maintain facilities established for improved sanitation in the villages and an integrated and a holistic livelihood approach.
•    78 units will be established in project villages for collection, storage and composting of degradable solid waste 
•    5460 households will be supported for adoption of composting 
•    1860 households will be supported for adoption of Bio gas plants 
•    Eight village level crematoriums and 32 bathing Ghats will be