Daily Current Affairs- 23- 24 July 2016

Dear Readers, we are providing Today's important current affairs of Competitive Exams specially for Bank and SSC.


1. Kerala Tourism wins Gold at PATA Awards
1. Kerala Tourism won two Gold Gongs at the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Awards.Kerala Tourism bagged the award in recognition of its trend setting marketing initiatives, which have given a boost to the state's profile as a must-visit destination.
2. The awards were in the categories of Travel Advertisement Broadcast Media and E-Newsletter, which were grabbed by the successful Visit Kerala television commercial campaign and the popular Kerala Tourism E-Newsletter, respectively.
3. The awards will be presented at the PATA Gold Awards Luncheon and Presentation on 9 September 2016 in Jakarta, Indonesia.In 2015, Kerala Tourism was also awarded PATA Gold in the Heritage and Culture category for Muziris Heritage Project.


2. Facebook's Aquila Internet drone completes first test flight
1. Facebook Inc announced the successful completion of test flight of a solar-powered drone named Aquila.
2. The social media giant believes that Aquila will help to extend Internet connectivity to every corner of the planet.The company ultimately hopes to have a fleet of Aquilas that can fly for at least three months at a time at 60000 feet and communicate with each other to deliver internet access.

3. Key highlights of Aquila
• Aquila is a lightweight, high-altitude aircraft.
• It flew at a few thousand feet for 96 minutes in Yuma, Arizona.
• It has a wingspan wider than a Boeing 737.


3. Virat Kohli becomes first Indian captain to score double century outside India
1. India test team captain Virat Kohli on 22 July 2016 became the first Indian captain to score a double century outside India.Kohli scored 200 runs against West Indies on day two of the first Test at the Sir Vivian Richards stadium in North Sound.
2. With his double century, Kohli entered the list of visiting captains with highest scores in West Indies. The list includes name like Sir Leonard Hutton, Steve Waugh, Andrew Strauss and Ricky Ponting.


4. Ganesh Singh appointed Head of Joint Parliamentary Committee for Land Acquisition Bill
1. BJP Lok Sabha member Ganesh Singh was appointed the new Chairperson of the Joint Committee of Parliament examining the Land Acquisition Bill.
2. Singh replaced S S Ahluwalia, who became Minister of the State for Parliamentary Affairs in reshuffle of the council of ministers on 5 July 2016.After the appointment, Singh will have to move a resolution in the Lok Sabha seeking the seventh extension of the term of the panel.


5. Annual electronic music festival Tomorrowland begins in Belgium
1. One of the biggest electronic music festivals Tomorrowland began in Boom, Belgium.
2. The year 2016 also marks Tomorrowland 10th edition.More than 350000 tickets for the festival were sold out in an hour of their opening in February 2016.


6. Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival 2016 begins in Guwahati

1. The fourth edition of the Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival commenced in Guwahati, Assam.
2. The festival pays homage to the rich culture of northeast India and is dedicated to the film fraternity of the region.
Six short films and six full-length films from northeast states like Manipur, Assam, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh will be presented at the three-day fest.
3. The festival is organised by Tattva Creations.The aim of the Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival is to bridge the gap by bringing engaging storytellers from within and outside the region under one roof.


7. Kanyakumari — first woman violinist to get Sangita Kalanidhi award
1. A. Kanyakumari, an outstanding and versatile violinist, will get the Sangita Kalanidhi award of the Music Academy this year.
2. Ms. Kanyakumar was the first woman violinist to get the award in the history of the Music Academy and she will preside over the over the 90th annual conference of the Academy to be held between December 15, 2016 and January 1, 2017. The award will be conferred on her at the Sadas on January 1, 2017.


8. Neeraj fetches first-ever gold with World record
1. Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra broke the junior World record on way to the gold in the IAAF World under-20 athletics championship at Bydgoszcz, Poland
2. His 86.48m effort brought India’s first World record and the country’s first-ever gold in any World athletics championships.
3. Two Indian women discus throwers, Seema Antil (bronze, 2002) and Navjeet Kaur Dhillon (bronze, 2014) had won medals in the World junior championship earlier. Long jumper Anju Bobby George is the only Indian to have won a medal in the senior World championship, with a bronze in 2003.
4. The 18-year-old Neeraj, who had won the South Asian Games gold in Guwahati early this year with a personal best 82.23m which made him the world’s best junior thrower this season, had been struggling in recent meets and could win just a silver at last month’s junior Asian championship in Vietnam.


9. Kerala Government launches first ever Water Metro project in the country
1. Kerala Government has launched Kochi Water Metro project, the first ever Water Metro project in the country. It was launched by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at Kochi. The project aims to provide water connectivity to people living between islands in the Kochi agglomeration area and the city.
2. Kochi Water Metro project is an integrated water transport project developed as feeder service to the Kochi Metro Rail. It will become operational in two years. The project will implemented by the Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL). It will be built at an estimated cost of seven hundred and forty seven crores Rupees.


10. Singer Bapi Lahiri honoured with Mahanayak award by West Bengal Government
1. Renowned Music Director and singer Bapi Lahiri was honoured with Mahanayak award by the West Bengal Government. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee conferred the Mahanayak Samman upon Bapi Lahiri on the occasion of 36th death anniversary of Uttam Kumar. 
2. In addition, Bengali films “Bela sheshe” and “Shankhachil” were jointly awarded as the best Bengali films of the year. Besides, critically-acclaimed filmmaker Goutam Ghose and director-actor Kaushik Ganguly were also honoured with the award for best director. Paran Bandyopadhyay and Jishu Sengupta were also bestowed with best actor (male) award and Sohini Sarkar received the best actor (female) award.


11. Madhav Chitale committee constituted to prepare guidelines for desiltation of River Ganga
1. The Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation has constituted a committee to prepare guidelines for desiltation of Ganga River. The four member committee will be headed by Madhav Chitale (Expert Member of NGRBA). The tenure of the committee would be for a period of three months.


12. Legendary modern artist S H Raza passes away
1. Legendary modern Indian artist Syed Haider Raza passed away in New Delhi following a prolonged illness. He was 94. He was best known for popularising Indian concepts of art and iconography globally and was also building a towering legacy of modern art.


13. India ranks 110th on Sustainable Development index
1. India has been ranked a low 110th out of 149 countries on Sustainable Development index (SDI). The SDI assesses countries where they stand with regard to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) also their progress and ensuring accountability.
2. Sweden (1st), Denmark (2nd), Norway (3rd), Finland (4th), Switzerland (5th), Germany (6th), Austria (7th), Netherlands (8th), Iceland (9th) and United Kingdom (10th).
Dear Readers, we are providing Today's important current affairs of Competitive Exams specially for Bank and SSC.


1. Kerala Tourism wins Gold at PATA Awards
1. Kerala Tourism won two Gold Gongs at the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Awards.Kerala Tourism bagged the award in recognition of its trend setting marketing initiatives, which have given a boost to the state's profile as a must-visit destination.
2. The awards were in the categories of Travel Advertisement Broadcast Media and E-Newsletter, which were grabbed by the successful Visit Kerala television commercial campaign and the popular Kerala Tourism E-Newsletter, respectively.
3. The awards will be presented at the PATA Gold Awards Luncheon and Presentation on 9 September 2016 in Jakarta, Indonesia.In 2015, Kerala Tourism was also awarded PATA Gold in the Heritage and Culture category for Muziris Heritage Project.


2. Facebook's Aquila Internet drone completes first test flight
1. Facebook Inc announced the successful completion of test flight of a solar-powered drone named Aquila.
2. The social media giant believes that Aquila will help to extend Internet connectivity to every corner of the planet.The company ultimately hopes to have a fleet of Aquilas that can fly for at least three months at a time at 60000 feet and communicate with each other to deliver internet access.

3. Key highlights of Aquila
• Aquila is a lightweight, high-altitude aircraft.
• It flew at a few thousand feet for 96 minutes in Yuma, Arizona.
• It has a wingspan wider than a Boeing 737.


3. Virat Kohli becomes first Indian captain to score double century outside India
1. India test team captain Virat Kohli on 22 July 2016 became the first Indian captain to score a double century outside India.Kohli scored 200 runs against West Indies on day two of the first Test at the Sir Vivian Richards stadium in North Sound.
2. With his double century, Kohli entered the list of visiting captains with highest scores in West Indies. The list includes name like Sir Leonard Hutton, Steve Waugh, Andrew Strauss and Ricky Ponting.


4. Ganesh Singh appointed Head of Joint Parliamentary Committee for Land Acquisition Bill
1. BJP Lok Sabha member Ganesh Singh was appointed the new Chairperson of the Joint Committee of Parliament examining the Land Acquisition Bill.
2. Singh replaced S S Ahluwalia, who became Minister of the State for Parliamentary Affairs in reshuffle of the council of ministers on 5 July 2016.After the appointment, Singh will have to move a resolution in the Lok Sabha seeking the seventh extension of the term of the panel.


5. Annual electronic music festival Tomorrowland begins in Belgium
1. One of the biggest electronic music festivals Tomorrowland began in Boom, Belgium.
2. The year 2016 also marks Tomorrowland 10th edition.More than 350000 tickets for the festival were sold out in an hour of their opening in February 2016.


6. Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival 2016 begins in Guwahati

1. The fourth edition of the Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival commenced in Guwahati, Assam.
2. The festival pays homage to the rich culture of northeast India and is dedicated to the film fraternity of the region.
Six short films and six full-length films from northeast states like Manipur, Assam, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh will be presented at the three-day fest.
3. The festival is organised by Tattva Creations.The aim of the Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival is to bridge the gap by bringing engaging storytellers from within and outside the region under one roof.


7. Kanyakumari — first woman violinist to get Sangita Kalanidhi award
1. A. Kanyakumari, an outstanding and versatile violinist, will get the Sangita Kalanidhi award of the Music Academy this year.
2. Ms. Kanyakumar was the first woman violinist to get the award in the history of the Music Academy and she will preside over the over the 90th annual conference of the Academy to be held between December 15, 2016 and January 1, 2017. The award will be conferred on her at the Sadas on January 1, 2017.


8. Neeraj fetches first-ever gold with World record
1. Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra broke the junior World record on way to the gold in the IAAF World under-20 athletics championship at Bydgoszcz, Poland
2. His 86.48m effort brought India’s first World record and the country’s first-ever gold in any World athletics championships.
3. Two Indian women discus throwers, Seema Antil (bronze, 2002) and Navjeet Kaur Dhillon (bronze, 2014) had won medals in the World junior championship earlier. Long jumper Anju Bobby George is the only Indian to have won a medal in the senior World championship, with a bronze in 2003.
4. The 18-year-old Neeraj, who had won the South Asian Games gold in Guwahati early this year with a personal best 82.23m which made him the world’s best junior thrower this season, had been struggling in recent meets and could win just a silver at last month’s junior Asian championship in Vietnam.


9. Kerala Government launches first ever Water Metro project in the country
1. Kerala Government has launched Kochi Water Metro project, the first ever Water Metro project in the country. It was launched by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at Kochi. The project aims to provide water connectivity to people living between islands in the Kochi agglomeration area and the city.
2. Kochi Water Metro project is an integrated water transport project developed as feeder service to the Kochi Metro Rail. It will become operational in two years. The project will implemented by the Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL). It will be built at an estimated cost of seven hundred and forty seven crores Rupees.


10. Singer Bapi Lahiri honoured with Mahanayak award by West Bengal Government
1. Renowned Music Director and singer Bapi Lahiri was honoured with Mahanayak award by the West Bengal Government. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee conferred the Mahanayak Samman upon Bapi Lahiri on the occasion of 36th death anniversary of Uttam Kumar. 
2. In addition, Bengali films “Bela sheshe” and “Shankhachil” were jointly awarded as the best Bengali films of the year. Besides, critically-acclaimed filmmaker Goutam Ghose and director-actor Kaushik Ganguly were also honoured with the award for best director. Paran Bandyopadhyay and Jishu Sengupta were also bestowed with best actor (male) award and Sohini Sarkar received the best actor (female) award.


11. Madhav Chitale committee constituted to prepare guidelines for desiltation of River Ganga
1. The Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation has constituted a committee to prepare guidelines for desiltation of Ganga River. The four member committee will be headed by Madhav Chitale (Expert Member of NGRBA). The tenure of the committee would be for a period of three months.


12. Legendary modern artist S H Raza passes away
1. Legendary modern Indian artist Syed Haider Raza passed away in New Delhi following a prolonged illness. He was 94. He was best known for popularising Indian concepts of art and iconography globally and was also building a towering legacy of modern art.


13. India ranks 110th on Sustainable Development index
1. India has been ranked a low 110th out of 149 countries on Sustainable Development index (SDI). The SDI assesses countries where they stand with regard to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) also their progress and ensuring accountability.
2. Sweden (1st), Denmark (2nd), Norway (3rd), Finland (4th), Switzerland (5th), Germany (6th), Austria (7th), Netherlands (8th), Iceland (9th) and United Kingdom (10th).