Anna Burns Wins 2018 Man Booker Prize For Her Novel ‘Milkman’

Northern Irish author Anna Burns has won the 2018 Man Booker Prize for her novel ‘Milkman’, which is her third full-length novel. The book is about an 18-year-old girl, known as “middle sister”, who is sexually harassed by an older paramilitary figure, called the “milkman”. Anna Burns has become the first Northern Irish author to win the Man Booker prize. 

Source- The Guardian

Static/Current Takeaways From Above News For IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018:
  • The Man Booker Prize for Fiction (formerly known as the Booker–McConnell Prize and commonly known simply as the Booker Prize) is a literary prize awarded each year for the best original novel written in the English language and published in the UK.

H M Pernal Gets Vishwa Konkani Book Award

‘Beeg Ani Beegath’, a collection of short stories in Konkani by the well-known writer, journalist, and critic H M Pernal bagged the prestigious ‘Vimala V Pai Vishwa’ Konkani best book award for the year 2018. H M Pernal is the pen name of Henry M Mendonca, a native of Pernal in Udupi district, who currently lives in Mangaluru.
Konkani poet Sharathchandra Shenoy from Kochi won the Vishwa Konkani best poetry award for his book ‘Idam Na Mama,‘ while Vishwanath M Shet from Uttara Kannada bagged the Vishwa Konkani lifetime achievement award. Each award carries a purse of Rs one lakh each, a certificate, memento and shawl.
Source- Business Standard

6th Meeting of UAE-India High-Level Joint Task Force Held in Mumbai

The sixth meeting of the UAE – India High Level Joint Task Force on Investments (‘the Joint Task Force’) was held in Mumbai to review the progress being made in addressing the agreed actions of the previous meeting held in Abu Dhabi in January 2018 and to elaborate  a number of new key issues of mutual importance.
The two sides noted the positive outcomes achieved by the Joint Task Force to date and agreed upon the need to further explore ways to facilitate investment in key Indian and UAE sectors with the potential for economic growth. 

Source- Press Information Bureau (PIB)

Static/Current Takeaways From Above News For IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018:
  • UAE Capital: Abu Dhabi, Currency: UAE Dirham.

International Day For The Eradication of Poverty: 17 October

The United Nations’ (UN) International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is observed on October 17 each year since 1993. It promotes people’s awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution worldwide, particularly in developing countries. 
The theme for International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 2018 is “Coming together with those furthest behind to build an inclusive world of universal respect for human rights and dignity”. 
Source- The United Nations

India And Tanzania Sign 2 MoUs


India and Tanzania signed two MoUs in presence of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Tanzanian Foreign Minister Dr. Augustine Mahiga. The MoUs are between Foreign Service Institute of India and Centre for Foreign Relation, Tanzania and National Research Development Corporation and Tanzania Industrial Research and Development Corporation. 
The agreements were signed following India-Tanzania 9th Session of Joint Commission on Economic, Technical and  Scientific Cooperation in New Delhi. 

Source- News On AIR

Static/Current Takeaways From Above News For IBPS PO Mains Exam 2018:
  • Tanzania Capital: Dodoma, Currency: Tanzanian shilling

Youth Olympic Games 2018: Suraj Panwar Wins India’s 1st Athletics Medal

Suraj Panwar won India’s first medal in athletics at the Youth Olympic Games 2018 after claiming the silver medal in the men’s 5000m race walk event Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The 17-year-old’s silver was India’s third overall medal in athletics in the history of the Youth Olympic Games. Panwar had finished second in the first stage in 20.23.30s, behind Patin Oscar of Ecuador.

Source- The Times-Now

GPF Interest Rate Hiked To 8% For October-December Quarter

The government has increased the rate of interest for General Provident Fund (GPF) and other related schemes by 0.4% points to 8% for the October-December quarter. 
The rate is in line with that for Public Provident Fund (PPF). The interest rate on GPF was 7.6% for the July-September quarter of 2018-19. 
Source- ANI News

Government Laid Foundation Stone for Prime Ministers’ Museum In New Delhi

Minister of state for culture, Mahesh Sharma and Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri jointly laid the foundation stone for proposed Museum on Prime Ministers of India at Teen Murti Estate, New Delhi. 
The new museum will incorporate the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) at the Teen Murti Estate, the official residence of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The Museum will be constructed at a cost of Rs. 271 crore. 

Source- The Livemint



Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Approves Renaming of Allahabad to Prayagraj


Uttar Pradesh Cabinet led by CM Yogi Adityanath has approved the proposal to rename Allahabad, which will be called Prayagraj with immediate effect. 
Uttar Pradesh Health Minister Sidharth Nath Singh informed the media regarding the decision. The new name derives from a place in the city called Prayag, where three rivers flowing across the state meet. 
Source- The Economic Times