14 August 2015 Current Affair Updates | Daily GK Download

1. Sudhakar Shetty of Maharashtra was unanimously elected as the President of the Gymnastics Federation of India (GFI). He will have a four year term. He succeeds Jaspal Singh Kandhari. Shantikumar Singh has been appointed as general secretary, Gian Singh as treasurer and Riyaz Bhati as Vice President. Elections for the executive committee of Federation were attended by 35 members from 18 States and Units.

2. The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave its approval for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the India and Nepal for the construction of a petroleum products pipeline from Raxaul (India) to Amlekhgunj (Nepal). The MoU will promote bilateral cooperation in the oil and gas sector and secure long term supply of petroleum products to Nepal.

3. China and Pakistan signed 20 cooperation agreements, worth 10.35 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion), and issued the "Karamay Manifesto" on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a major project in China's proposed Belt and Road Initiatives. The two countries pledged to boost bilateral economic development through energy and power projects, and will also cooperate in education and health care.

4. FIFA has appointed François Carrard as the independent chairman of the 2016 FIFA Reform Committee. He was former Director General of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Carrard will head 11-member reform committee for bringing structural reforms in scandal-plagued FIFA.

5. South Korean steelmaker POSCO signed an agreement with a unit of India’s Uttam Galva Group to set up a steel plant with annual production of 3 million tons at an investment of nearly Rs. 20,000 crores in the western state of Maharashtra. Under the new proposed joint venture, POSCO and Shree Uttam Steel & Power Ltd., will build a plant in Satarda.

6. Grandmaster and former national champion Surya Shekhar Ganguly defeated Zhang Zhong of Singapore and secured the silver medal in the Asian Continental Chess Championship 2015 that concluded in Al Ain, UAE. Out of the six medals at stake, the Indians won three with S.P. Sethuraman winning the bronze in the open while S. Vijayalakshmi got the bronze in the women's section that was held simultaneously. UAE Grandmaster A.R. Salem Saleh won gold medal.

7. Larsen & Toubro has announced to appoint Sanjay Jalona as chief executive officer (CEO) and managing director (MD) of its wholly-owned subsidiary L&T Infotech. Prior to joining L&T Infotech, Jalona was with Infosys as executive vice president. During his 15 years at Infosys, he had held senior leadership positions across USA, Europe and India.

8. Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association (TEEMA) signed a pact with Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) for establishing Taiwan Electronic Manufacturing Cluster (TEMC) in Benguluru with an investment of $500 million. This manufacturing cluster will be established at 100-acre Devanahally IT park.

9. India has regained its top spot as Abu Dhabi's largest international source market as guest arrivals into the emirate in the first six months of the year reached more than 1.98 million. According to the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) India is at the top spot, seeing 1,27,312 Indian nationals arriving into the emirate. India is closely followed by the UK, China, Germany and the US as the largest overseas markets.

10. Om Prakash Munjal, Co-Chairman of Hero Cycles Ltd. and a leading industrialist, passed away in Ludhiana. He was 87.