DAILY GK UPDATE - 26th April ! 1. Microsoft acquires Nokias mobile phone business i. Microsoft has completed its purchase of Nokias mobile phone business for 5.44bn euros ($7.5bn; £4.5bn). ii. The deal between the two firms should have been completed earlier this year but it was delayed by a hold up in regulatory approvals. iii. Today we welcome the Nokia devices and services business to our family, said Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella. iv. The Finnish company will now focus on networks, mapping services and technology development and licences. v. Two Nokia plants will remain outside the deal - a manufacturing unit in Chennai, India, subject to an asset freeze by Indian tax authorities, and the Masan plant in South Korea, which it plans to shut down. vi. Former Nokia chief executive Stephen Elop has become executive vice president of the Microsoft devices group, in charge of Lumia smartphones and tablets, Nokia mobile phones, Xbox hardware, Microsoft Surface, and Perceptive Pixel (PPI) products. vii. The sale will see the end of production of mobile phones by Nokia. viii. Nokia, which had the tagline Connecting People, has been one of the most trusted brands in India, according to Nielsen consumer rankings. 2. President confers Padma awards i. President Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday presented Padma awards to 56 distinguished personalities including actor Paresh Rawal, ace tennis player Leander Paes and author Ruskin Bond. ii. Cricketer Yuvraj Singh, eminent writer Anita Desai and noted painter Sunil Das could not make it to the ceremony iii. The President presented one Padma Vibhushan, eleven Padma Bhushan and forty-four Padma Shri awards today at the ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Presidents Secretariat said. iv. Renowned yoga guru Bellur Krishnamachar Sundaraja Iyenger, who took the ancient Indian exercises to modern world making them a global phenomenon, was conferred the Padma Vibhushan which is the highest honour in the Padma awards. 3. RBI promotes three PCGMs to ED position i. The Reserve Bank of India has promoted NS Vishwanathan, US Paliwal and Chandan Sinha as Executive Directors. ii. Prior to their elevation, they were Principal Chief General Managers. As PCGM, Vishwanathan was heading the Department of Non-banking Supervision, US Paliwal (Human Resources Department) and Chandan Sinha (Department of Banking Operations and Development). iii. Following the new appointments, the central bank now has nine Executive Directors. Meanwhile, Friday was the last day in office for KC Chakrabarty as Deputy Governor. 4. Obama in first Malaysia visit by US leader since 1966 i. US President Barack Obama arrives on Saturday in Malaysia hoping to energize aloof ties with a Muslim-majority nation whose government is under the microscope for wide allegations of abuse of power and the loss of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. ii. After stops in Japan and South Korea, Obama becomes the first serving US President to visit Malaysia since Lyndon Johnson in 1966 as he tours Asia to fortify alliances amid concern over Chinas rise and push his troubled plans for a Pacific-wide trade pact. iii. US-Malaysian relations remain coloured by bickering during the 1981-2003 tenure of authoritarian leader Mahathir Mohamad, a harsh critic of US policies, though trade ties have remained solid. iv. Obama will tread a fine line between courting Najib and acknowledging the huge numbers in multi-cultural Malaysia who are fed up with the corruption-plagued coalition in power for 57 years. 5. Former Barcelona coach Vilanova dies at 45 i. Tito Vilanova, the coach who succeeded Pep Guardiola at Barcelona and won the Spanish league title in his only season in charge, died Friday following a long battle with throat cancer. He was 45. ii. Vilanova, who has battled a recurring tumour in a saliva gland, was admitted to a local hospital in Barcelona last week. He reportedly had emergency surgery on Thursday. iii. Barcelona star Lionel Messi said that is was a “moment of profound pain for Vilanova’s family, and also for Barcelona and its fans.” iv. Vilanova will also be remembered for his role in a brawl in the 2010 Spanish Super Cup won by Barcelona, when Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho poked him in the eye. v. Vilanova is survived by his wife, Montse Chaure, and two children. His son Adrian is currently in Barcelona’s youth academy. 6. Sindhu settles for bronze in Asian Championship i. India’s teen sensation P V Sindhu had to settle for a bronze medal after her gallant fight against top seed Shixian Wang of China ended in a narrow three-game defeat in the semifinals of the Asian Badminton Championship today. ii. The 18-year-old fought hard for one hour and 18 minutes before losing to the two-time reinging All England champion Shixian 21-15 20-22 12-21 in the women’s singles competition. iii. India ace Saina Nehwal had won the bronze in 2010 Asian Championship in New Delhi. 7. BCCI recommends Ravichandran Ashwin for Arjuna Award i. Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who won the Cricket Boards Polly Umrigar Trophy best player award in 2012-13 season, has been recommended by the BCCI for the Governments prestigious Arjuna Award this year. ii. The cricketer to get the Arjuna Award was Virat Kohli last year. A total of 46 cricketers, including women, have been conferred the sporting honour. iii. Ashwin, who is also a useful batsman, has taken 104 wickets in Tests, 106 in 79 ODIs and 25 wickets in the same number of T20 internationals 8. Akash test fired successfully Aakash Missile successfully trial i. India on Saturday successfully conducted two rounds of trials of its indigenously developed surface-to-air Akash missile as part of a user trial by the air force from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur near Balasore in Odisha. ii. Akash is a medium range surface-to-air anti-aircraft defence system developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) as part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme. iii. It has the capability to target aircraft up to 30 km away and is packed with a battery that can track and attack several targets simultaneously, they said. iv. With the capability to neutralise aerial targets like fighter jets, cruise missiles and air-to-surface missiles, defence experts compare Akash to the MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile system of USA.
Posted on: Sun, 27 Apr 2014 10:04:31 +0000
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