Daily GK Update: 30th November 2015

1. Mahesh Gupta takes over as PHDCCI President

i. The PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) has a new President in Mahesh Gupta. Gupta, a seasoned entrepreneur, is currently Chairman of Kent RO Systems Ltd, which is a leading player in water purifier industry.

ii. He is a Mechanical Engineering Graduate from IIT Kanpur (1975) and Post Graduate in Petroleum Conservation from IIP, Dehradun. Gupta succeeds Alok Shriram who demited office as PHDCCI President on Friday.

iii. Kent RO Systems Ltd is an Indian healthcare products company, headquartered in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. It makes water purifiers, based on the process of Reverse Osmosis (RO) purification. Kent is a household brand with more than 40% market share in RO Water Purifiers.

iv. Gupta started his entrepreneurial journey in 1999 from scratch by inventing the country’s first dual technology water purifier.

2. Dubai bank Mashreq appoints new retail bank head

i. Nov 26 Mashreq, Dubai's third-biggest bank by assets, said on Thursday Subroto Som had been appointed head of its retail banking group.

ii. The former Standard Chartered banker takes over from Farhad Irani, who is leaving after almost five years at the helm to rejoin his family in Australia, Mashreq said in a statement.

iii. Som's last assignment with Standard Chartered was head of consumer banking for the ASEAN region, the statement said. (Reporting By Tom Arnold. Editing by Jane Merriman)

3. Saudi Arabia Women to Vote and Contest in Municipal Elections for the First time

i. For the first time, Saudi Arabia allowed women to vote and contest in municipal elections. As per a royal decree issued in 2011, the authorities on 29 November 2015 allowed 979 women to register and campaign for 284 municipal councils.

ii. They were out of the total 6917 registered candidates who obtained campaign permits from the authorities in the capital Riyadh.

iii. Earlier, Saudi Arabia held municipal elections in 2005 and 2011, but only men were allowed to take part.

iv. At present, women make up a quarter of the country's Shura Council (Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia), an unelected body appointed by the king that can propose laws but cannot pass them.

4. Three-day Mayyazhi Mahotsavam kicked off in Mahe, Puducherry

i. The Mayyazhi Mahotsavam (Fete de Mahe), a three-day cultural extravaganza, started on 29 November 2015 at Mahe, Puducherry. The festival is being organised jointly by the Department of Tourism and the Legislative Assembly Secretariat at Mahe, which is Puducherry’s exclave in Kerala. The festival will conclude on 1 December 2015.

ii. The Aayi Mandapam, the main venue, will witness the performance of artists of national and international acclaim. A parade of classical and folk-ritual art forms, including Kathakali, Mohiniyattam and Theyyam, are part of the fete.

iii. E. Valsaraj, long-serving Mahe MLA, will be felicitated on his completion of 25 years of distinguished service in the constituency. Valsaraj’s paintings will also be featured at an exhibition. There will be the performances by playback singers Chithra and Mano.

iv. Actress Remya Nambeesan will perform Lasyam, a type of dance. Artists camp, painting and photo exhibitions, seminar on Waste is Wealth and a debate will also be held.

5. Hyundai launches traffic safety campaign

i. The country's second largest passenger car manufacturer Hyundai Motor India (HMIL) on Monday launched its CSR initiative -- Safe Move-Traffic Safety Campaign -- in association with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

ii. The campaign constitutes four main pillars -- 'Safe move, green move, happy move and easy move' -- to promote best practices of road and traffic safety habits among children.

iii. The initiative will have both online and offline engagement channels.

iv. "It is our responsibility to apprise children about the importance of traffic safety for a better future. Children are the future of a nation and 'traffic safety campaign' is an effort to reach out to the children to educate them with best practices of the traffic safety," YK Koo, Managing Director, HMIL, said.

v. As Hyundai's corporate brand ambassador, actor Shah Rukh Khan will participate in this CSR initiative.

6. Interceptor boat ICGS C-422 commissioned into Indian Coast Guard service

i. Indian Coast Guard has commissioned interceptor boat ‘ICGS C-422’ into its fleet to further enhance its vigil along Pondicherry and South Tamil Nadu coast in the Bay of Bengal.

ii. It was commissioned in a traditional ceremony held at Karaikal port in Tamil Nadu by Puducherry Assembly Speaker V Sabapathy.

iii. ICGS C-422 is the 36th interceptor boat to be inducted into the Coast Guard service. The boat is capable of multiple tasks including interdiction, surveillance and search and rescue.

iv. It has been fitted with state-of-the-art communication, navigational equipment along with adequate fire power. Presently, Indian Coast Guard has two fast patrol vessels ICGS Rani Durgavati and ICGS Ameya along with two interceptor boats C-428 and C-415 stationed at Karaikal port.

7. Great Britain defeated Belgium to win 2015 Davis Cup tennis title

i. Great Britain on 29 November 2015 won the 2015 Davis Cup tennis title by defeating Belgium 3-1 at Ghent in Belgium. While Leon Smith was the captain of the winning team, Andy Murray played a crucial role in the victory as he beat Belgium's David Goffin to clinch the decisive point.

i. Murray beat Goffin by 6-3 7-5 6-3 to give Great Britain 3-1 lead in the best-of-five tie. With this win, Murray joined John McEnroe and Mats Wilander as the only men to have an 8-0 singles record in a Davis Cup year.

iii. For Great Britain, it was the first title since 1936 which was won by defeating Australia. Overall, it was the tenth title for the team in the competition’s 116-year history.

iv. It is the premier international team event in men's tennis and considered as the world cup of tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format.

v. It began in 1900 as a challenge between Great Britain and the United States. The women's equivalent of the Davis Cup is the Fed Cup. So far, Australia, the Czech Republic and the United States are the only countries to have held both Davis Cup and Fed Cup titles in the same year.

8. ICC suspended West Indies spinner Sunil Narine for illegal bowling action

i. International Cricket Council (ICC) on 29 November 2015 suspended West Indies off-spinner Sunil Narine from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect. The ICC took a decision after an independent assessment found his bowling action to be illegal.

ii. Thereafter, a test was performed on 17 November 2015 at the ICC's accredited testing centre in Loughborough University. The assessment revealed that all variations of his deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under the regulations.

iii. Narine's bowling action was reported after the third ODI match against Sri Lanka in Pallekele on 7 November 2015.

iv. In accordance with Article 6.1 of the regulations, Narine’s international suspension will also be recognised and enforced by all National Cricket Federations within domestic cricket events played in their own jurisdiction.

9. Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg won 2015 Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

i. Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg on 29 November 2015 won the 2015 Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix title at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, UAE. To win the title, the German driver defeated the defending champion and his team mate Lewis Hamilton of the UK.

ii. While Kimi Raikkonen of Finland representing Ferrari was at the third position, Force India drivers- Sergio Perez (Mexico) and Nico Hulkenberg (Germany) were at the fifth and seventh position respectively.

iii. For Rosberg, it was the sixth title in the 2015 season. In early 2015, prior to Abu Dhabi, he won the titles in Spain, Monaco, Austria, Mexico and Brazil. Overall, it was the 14th title in his career.

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was the season-ending championship in 2015. While the 2015 World Drivers’ Championship (WDC) was won by Lewis Hamilton with ten titles overall, Rosberg was declared the runner up.