General Knowledge and Current Affairs Pack 2016-08-18 00:00

1. 
   
2. 12 institutional investors sign stewardship codes designed by TWSE 
3. 12 years of struggle gets Sakshi a medal in Olympics
4. 15 Thai tourist blasts suspects in military detention: junta
5. 17 August 2016 – Alarmed by preliminary findings on the 11 July attack on a hotel in Juba, South Sudan, in which one person was killed and several civilians were raped and beaten by men in uniform, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has decided to launch an independent special investigation to examine this and other incidents and evaluate the overall response by the UN mission there.
6. 17 August 2016 – The United Nations Security Council has strongly condemned the 13 August killing of at least 50 civilians in a village in the restive North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), by suspected members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).
7. 17 August 2016 – UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed Patricia Espinosa as the new Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in May this year. Ms. Espinosa recently spoke with the UN News Centre about her work and the challenges ahead. 
8. 17August &#150 Expressing deep regret at the failure of Indian and Pakistani authorities to grant the United Nations Human Rights Office (OHCHR) access to Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan-administered Kashmir respectively, the UN rights chief today voiced concern about recent allegations of serious violations and reiterated a request for access to the region.
9. 18,000 employees have been kicked off by Microsoft in July 2014
10. (2013) concerning the Central African Republic heard a briefing by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Sexual Violence in Conflict pursuant to paragraph&nbsp
11. (2013) concerning the Central African Republic held informal consultations to consider the midterm report of the Panel of Experts, submitted pursuant to paragraph&nbsp
12. 2016 Olympics: India at Rio, Day 12
13. 2016, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution&nbsp
14. 240 shots fired by Azeri troops towards Karabakh positions
15. 25th Anniversary of the USSR's Collapse: Perestroika in Pictures
16. 29 of resolution&nbsp
17. 2 boys picked up for planting bombs
18. 2 top local officials shot dead northern Vietnam
19. 300 youth from Jammu and Kashmir inducted in army
20. ‘38 p.c of accidents are occurring on the NH between Vizag and Vijayawada’
21. 3 Things the Olympics Teach Us About Planning for Retirement
22. 43 percent of British men and 35 percent of women aged 18-24, are ditching meals in favour of binge drinking, a phenomenon known as "drunkorexia," which researchers say is now prolific in the UK.
23. 4th Test: India eye win to retain top spot
24. 50 years into Adoor’s magical world
25. 5 golden benefits of waking up early
26. 60 units in Western UP surrender power connection
27. 7 Indian companies among top 200 carbon clean firms
28. 80,000 flee monstrous California wildfire
29. 82,000 told to flee as wildfire roars near LA, guts fam...
30. 90 per cent users ignore software security warnings: study
31. A 12-year-old Pakistani-American special needs student was forced by a school here to sign a false confession stating that he was part of ISIS and wanted to blow up the school fence, according to a USD 25 million lawsuit filed by his family.
32. A 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C SS "Goutte d'Eau" has won the inaugural The Peninsula Classics Best of the Best Award at Pebble Beach 2016.
33. A 21-year old man named Krishna Mohan committed suicide at his hostel on Wednesday morning at Secunderabad. The deceased left a suicide note, in which he did not blame anyone for his death, said the p...
34. A 300-year-old leather shoe was found in a wall at St. John's College, Cambridge that might have been used to ward off evil spirits. This was a very common practice from the 16th-19th century.
35. A 37-year-old goldsmith allegedly committed suicide by consuming cyanide-laced soft drink, while his two minor sons, who also drank it, are undergoing treatment in the Government Hospital here, police today said.
36. A 38-year-old man has been arrested and a juvenile apprehended for allegedly attempting to murder a property dealer. The police said the duo was inspired by Bollywood thriller
37. A 45-year-old man was seriously injured after his throat was slit by another person following a heated argument between them over cattle in Shamli district, police said today.
38. A 5.7 magnitude earthquake rattled popular tourist towns stretching across more than 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) of Australia's northeastern coastline today.
39. A 5.8 magnitude earthquake rattled Australia's central and north Queensland on Thursday, officials said.
40. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh said on Thursday that Pradeep Chauhan -- who has been accused by Union Minister V.K. Singh's wife of blackmail -- met him on Sunday and claimed that he has "evidence" against two union ministers of plotting ...
41. AAP's trade wing has warned of a strike in Delhi in case the decision to raise wages is not withdrawn.
42. A Bangladesh intelligence team has arrived in Kolkata to interrogate the suspected Islamic State (IS) operative Md. Maisuddin alias Musa who was remanded to the custody of the National Investigation A...
43. A Bin Laden-themed bar, located near the Olympic Village, became extremely popular during the 2016 Summer Games in Rio. The bar’s owner told Sputnik about the secrets of its great success.
44. About 500 may lose jobs as Ola ends rides at TaxiForSure
45. About 90 per cent of people ignore software security warnings because they pop up at inappropriate times, such as when users are watching a video, typing or uploading a file, a new study has found.
46. A Brazilian judge had ordered seizing the passports of Lochte and teammate James Feigen, who was still in Brazil, according to a media report.
47. A Brazilian judge issued a search and seizure warrant for swimmers Ryan Lochte and James Feigen after questioning their robbery claims. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh reports.
48. Absurd Creatures | The Bizarre Sea Spider Won’t Bite. We Promise.
49. ABU DHABI, 17th August, 2016 (WAM) -- Masdar, Abu Dhabi's future energy company, today announced that it has passed the halfway mark in its project to construct a 16.6 MW solar power plant network ...
50. ABVP steps up pressure on State government
51. Academy Award winner Kevin Spacey starrer "Nine Lives", will release in India on August 26 -- a week later than scheduled.
52. A car bomb at a police station in eastern Turkey killed at least three people and injured more than 50 others, the second such attack in the region in as many days, Turkish authorities said
53. ACB Conducts Raid at DCW Office to Probe Nepotism in Recruitment
54. ACB officials claimed that they had intimated DCW that they will be coming to collect certain documents regarding certain complaints
55. ACB officials claimed that they had intimated the DCW that they will be coming to collect certain documents regarding the complaints. pti file photo
56. ACB raids DCW office to probe 'nepotism and favouritism' in recruitment
57. ACB 'raids' Delhi Commission for Women office
58. Acclaimed actress Tannishtha Chatterjee says the Hindi film industry has always been open to dusky beauties. But she feels it's the society which is biased.
59. According to a most recent Census, India currently has a population of well over 600,000 people belonging to the transgender community.
60. According to an earlier plan, for every 10 shares held in Tree House, a shareholder would have received 53 shares of Zee Learn
61. According to data available with ministry of petroleum and natural gas, oil marketing companies have added only 36 million consumers in past two years
62. According to local ...
63. Accor Hotels and InterGlobe Hotels on Wednesday announced an investment of Rs.900 crore in their economy brand of hotels ‘ibis’. They had invested about Rs. 1,300 crore on the project so far. Announci...
64. AccorHotels and InterGlobe Hotels on Wednesday announced the opening of Ibis Hyderabad Hitec City, marking the debut of the economy brand in the city. InterGlobe Hotels, a venture between InterGlobe ...
65. “Acer chairman George Huang (黃少華) is to retire and chief executive officer Jason
66. Acer Inc’s (宏碁) Build Your Own Cloud (BYOC) chief architect Stan Shih (施振榮) plans to pass on his post to his son Maverick Shih (施宣輝) next year, the Chinese-language Next Magazine reported yesterday.
67. A Chetak helicopter carrying out routine practice made a 'precautionary landing' due to a technical problem at the Advanced Landing Ground near Uran in Navi Mumbai today.
68. A Chinese city has banned members of the ruling Communist Party from visiting clubs as it imposed a strict moral code on its officials in the sweeping anti-corruption campaign launched by President Xi Jinping which has netted thousands of officials ...
69. A condition called "leaky gut" syndrome could be responsible for some of the reported cases of stomach problem among competitors at the Rio Olympics, suggests a British gastro-intestinal expert.
70. Acquires more than 5% in Applewoods Estate
71. Actor Arfi Lamba with German producer Katharina Suckale takes indie films across countries
72. Actor Boman Irani is busy urging people to take a 'Smelfie Challenge' to rid their homes of odour, and now Bollywood choreographer-director Farah Khan has challenged her "Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi" co-star.
73. Actor Freddy Daruwala, who essayed a negative role in "Holiday - A Soldier Is Never Off Duty", is currently preparing "Commando 2" and says he believes in hard work and not in shortcuts.
74. Actor Hugh Grant is set to be honoured with a lifetime achievement award at the Zurich Film Festival in Switzerland in September.
75. Actor Pavan Malhotra, who is gearing up for the release of his forthcoming film "Missing on a Weekend", says that he is not playing a typical policeman in the upcoming investigative thriller and that his character has many shades to it.
76. Actor Srikanth turns producer with Nambiar releasing today
77. Actor Venkatesh's Telugu action-comedy "Babu Bangaram", has grossed Rs. 25 crore within first four days of its release in cinemas worldwide.
78. Actress Amy Adams is humanity's ambassador to an alien race in the first extended teaser for "Arrival".
79. Actress Ariel Winter has praised her actress Sofia Vergara for being a "curvy beautiful woman" and a "wonderful role model".
80. Actress-stand up comedian Amy Schumer sounded as if she has canceled her own show "Inside Amy Schumer," while addressing the controversy surrounding comments made by Kurt Metzger, one of the writers on her Comedy Central series.
81. Actress Taapsee Pannu says she is overwhelmed with the appreciation the trailer of her film "Pink" has received.
82. Actress turned politician saidriver is bound to become clean
83. A cyber laboratory was thrown open on Monday at the police commissioner's office and rural police headquarters near Kalwa naka to deal with online frauds and cheating cases.
84. A Cyprus court on Thursday refused to hear testimony from a Cambridge University professor in defense of an Egyptian hijacker fighting an extradition request by his country over fears that he could be tortured or killed.
85. A dance ballet presented important facets of Ramanujacharya’s life.
86. A day after 80 Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's (DMK) MLAs were suspended by Speaker P. Dhanapal, the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) ) has supported the decision, stating that they were creating ruckus and passing unnecessary ...
87. A day after a man was allegedly killed for transporting cow in Udupi, Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara on Thursday said the police is suspecting some sort of business dispute behind the murder."They are suspecting some sort of cattle trade, ...
88. A day after questions were raised on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement from the Red Fort that it took 70 years for Nagla Fatela to be electrified, the Power Ministry got into action validating ...
89. A day after seizing 200 kg of endangered sea cucumbers, protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, Marine Police of Coastal Security Group (CSG) seized 20 kg of the endangered ma...
90. A day after unheralded grappler Sakshi Malik opened India's medal count with a dramatic bronze-winning effort, shuttler P V Sindhu is all set to further showcase Indian women's capabilities at the Olympic Games here today.
91. A decision on the issue of six Congress legislators in Tripura joining the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will be announced on August 29, Assembly Speaker Ramendra Chandra Debnath said on Thursday.
92. A delegation of the Central Secretariat Stenographers' Service (CSSS) Association, called on the Union Minister
93. Adhia meets stakeholders, discusses concerns on GST
94. Admissions into the M.Sc. (Food Science and Technology) first year course offered by the Satavahana University in Karimnagar will be conducted on August 24 from 9 a.m. onwards at the office of Kakatiy...
95. A driverless bus will be ferrying passengers around Helsinki
96. Aetna warned it would cut Obamacare if Humana deal was blocked
97. A fall down the stairs, a car crash, a sports injury or an explosive blast can all cause traumatic brain injury (TBI). Patients often recover. But in the days or weeks following the hit, they can develop other serious, chronic conditions, such as depression and thinking and memory problems. Now scientists report a potential way to reduce these effects with a neuron-targeting nanoparticle, using an animal model of TBI.
98. A farmer was electrocuted after he came in contact with a high voltage electrical line in Dabal village under Mansurpur police station area, police said today.
99. A fast food seller, who hails from Bihar, has been arrested in Jajpur district for his alleged involvement in an inter-state fake currency racket, the police said today.
100. A few years ago, when The Hindu asked M.T. Vasudevan Nair about the scriptwriters of present-day Malayalam cinema, the only name he took was that of T.A. Razak.Razak had not read MT’s interview, but c...
101. Afghan forces proved capabilities in fight against the imposed war Ghani
102. Afghan forces turning Afghanistan into graveyard of terrorism Gen. Shaheem
103. Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani wishes citizens on Independence Day
104. Afghanistan, which was not part of British Empire, celebrates the day to commemorate the 1919 Treaty of Rawalpindi, which granted it independence
105. Afghan President wishes citizens on I-Day
106. A financially-distraught man in China has been caught while trying to sell his six-year-old daughter for USD 8,500 to raise money for his business.
107. A fire raging east of Los Angeles spread rapidly, posing a threat to more than 82,000 people and prompting the governor of California to declare a state of emergency.
108. A former CIA asset has become a U.S. headache in Libya
109. A former Congress MCD councillor and her husband have been acquitted by a special court of the alleged charge of demanding a bribe of over Rs 50,000 from a person to allow him construct a house here.
110. After beginning the Olympic tournament with two goalless draws, Brazil have won their past three matches by an aggregate of 12 goals
111. After decades of delay and inaction, the much-debated Hindu Marriage Bill 2016 that seeks to give a legal framework to the marriages in minority community, has finally been tabled in Pakistan's National Assembly.
112. After delaying the implementation of its ambitious health insurance scheme by a fortnight, Goa government expects to cover at least one lakh households under it by September 1.
113. After dismissing intelligence experts, Donald Trump heads in for his classified briefing
114. After ending India's agonising wait for an Olympic medal at the Rio Games..
115. After HC order, govt moves files to L-G for nod
116. After her arrival at the orbital outpost, Expedition 48 crewmembers began to offload the 1,790 kg (3,946 lb) of cargo in the pressurized module. They have since started to reload the vehicle with downmass that will be returned to Earth when Dragon splashes down in the Pacific later this month.
117. After impressing audiences and critics alike, Tamil socio-political drama "Joker" has won over superstar Rajinikanth, who has termed it a "brilliant film".
118. After its initial unqualified endorsement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s idea of India raising human rights violations in Balochistan to counter Pakistan’s constant raising of the Kashmir issue, t...
119. After lying low for more than a year, coconut oil market seems to be on the boil again, thanks to a firm export as well as Onam festival demand. Coconut oil prices started moving northwards touchi...
120. After Olympics, Krieger rejoins Washington Spirit for NWSL makeup match
121. After PM's electrification claim proved wrong, Modi govt deflects blame on UP govt now
122. After six years of pendency, the Supreme Court on Wednesday referred to a five-judge Constitution Bench the question whether disclosure of information about judicial appointments, transfers of Suprem...
123. After three years of research, scientists from the University of Chicago have found the cells that make fish fins could explain how our ancestors made the move from swimming to walking.
124. After working together in "Talladega Nights" and "Step Brothers", Will Ferrell and John C Reilly are re-teaming to play Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson in a comedy.
125. After years of war, Afghans wary to talk of mental health
126. A girl, a guy and a hair tie: The story of America’s Olympic steeplechase glory