NATIONAL NEWS
1.Indian Coast Guard Ship C-441 Launch:-
The Chief Secretary of Kerala Mr. Tom Hozy inaugurated the new vessel of the Indian Coast Guard at Wihingam Harbor on Wednesday under the aegis of the Regional Commander, Western Region, Inspector General Vijay D. Chaphekar, Regional Commander, Western Region. Senior officers of Army, Navy, Air Force, BSF, Police, Airport Authority, Central and State Authority and NCC were present during the ceremony.During this ceremony, the Random Parade of Band and Coast Guard was organized. Indian Coast Guard ship C-441 is capable of doing various tasks like coastal surveillance, prevention, sea exploration and rescue and support of distressed boats and ships and it will increase the capacity of exploration and rescue work in Kerala. Amit K., Command Assistant Commandant of the vessel Chaudhary and its crew consists of 13 members, who specialize in different fields.
2.Israel to name a new town in Golan after Trump:-
Israel would name a new place in the Golan Heights after U.S. President Donald Trump.It will be named as an expression of gratitude for his recognition of its claim of sovereignty over the strategic plateau.Israel captured the Golan from Syria in a 1967 war and annexed it, in a move not recognized internationally.The United States broke with other world powers last month when Trump signed a decree recognizing Israeli sovereignty there.
3.Etihad becomes first major airline to operate plastic-free:-
UAE’s carrier Etihad Airways has become the first airline in the Gulf region to operate a flight without any single-use plastics on board.,This was concluded in a bid to raise awareness about pollution on Earth Day (April 22).It is a part of Etihad’s pledge to reduce single-use plastic usage by 80 per cent not just in-flight, but across the entire organisation by the end of 2022.
4.Real life ‘Padman’ makes it to Fortune’s World Leaders List:-
India’s original “Padman” Arunachalam Muruganantham has been featured on Fortune magazine’s list of world’s 100 greatest leaders.He became famous for producing low-cost sanitary napkins.He ranks 45th in the list and is featured along with stalwarts from various walks of life such as Bill and Melinda Gates, Jacinda Ardern, and Robert Mueller.Bill Gates topped the chart due to the massive charity work they have done.
5.Lack of one percent in the water level of 91 major reservoirs of the country:- 
During the week ending April 25 , 2019, there were 42.52 BCM water storage in 91 major reservoirs of the country . It is 26 percent of total storage capacity of these reservoirs . Water collection was at 27 percent level in the week ending April 18 , 2019 . In the week ending April 25 , 2019 , this collection is 114 % of the total storage of the same period of last year and104 % of the average storage of the last ten years .
The total storage capacity of these 91 reservoirs is 161.993 BCM , which is approximately 63 % of the country’s estimated total water storage capacity of257.812 BCM . Of these 91 reservoirs, there are 37 reservoirs which have hydroelectric power with installed capacity of more than 60 MW.
Area wise storage position : –
nthern regionor
In the northern region, there are Himachal Pradesh , Punjab and Rajasthan. There are six reservoirs with total storage capacity of 18.01 BCM in this area, which are under the supervision of Central Water Commission (CWC). The total storage available in these reservoirs is 17.09 BCM , which is the total storage capacity of these reservoirs 51 percent. The storage position of these reservoirs was 20 % during the same period last year . The average storage of last ten years was 27 percent of the total storage capacity of these reservoirs during this period . Thus, storage is better in the current year compared to the same period of last year and it is better than average storage during the same ten years of last ten years.
Eastern area
In eastern region, Jharkhand , Odisha , West Bengal and Tripura come. There are 15 reservoirs having total storage capacity of 18.83 BCM in this area , which are under the supervision of CWC The total storage available in these reservoirs is 6.56 BCM , which is the total storage capacity of these reservoirs35 percent. The storage position of these reservoirs was 36 % during the same period last year . The average storage of last ten years was 33 % of the total storage capacity of these reservoirs during this period . Thus, storage in the current year is less compared to the same period of last year , But it is better than average storage during the same ten years of the last ten years.
Western area
In western region Gujarat and Maharashtra come. There are 27 reservoirs with total storage capacity of 31.26 BCM in this area , which are under the supervision of CWC. The total storage available in these reservoirs is 5.67 BCM , which is the total storage capacity of these reservoirs 18 percent. The storage position of these reservoirs was 24 % during the same period last year . The average storage of last ten years was 28 % of total storage capacity of these reservoirs during this period . Thus, storage in the current year is less compared to the same period of last year and it is less than the average storage during the same ten years of last ten years.
Middle area
In Madhya Pradesh , Uttar Pradesh , Uttarakhand , Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh come. There are 12 reservoirs having total storage capacity of42.30 BCM in this area , which are under the supervision of CWC. These reservoirs total available storage 12.51 bcm , which is the total storage capacity of these reservoirs 30 percent. The storage position of these reservoirs was 28 % during the same period last year . The average storage of last ten years was 28 % of total storage capacity of these reservoirs during this period . Thus, storage is better in the current year compared to the same period of last year and it is better than average storage during the same ten years of last ten years.
Southern region
In the southern region, Andhra Pradesh , Telangana AP and TG (two joint projects in both states) , Karnataka , Kerala and Tamil Nadu come in. There are 31 reservoirs having total storage capacity of 51.59 BCM in this area , which are under the supervision of CWC. The total storage available in these reservoirs is 8.63 BCM , which is the total storage capacity of these reservoirs17 percent. The storage position of these reservoirs was 15 % during the same period last year . Average storage of last ten years during the same period, the total storage capacity of these reservoirs is 18Was the percentage. Thus, storage in the current year is better than the collection during the same period of last year , but it is less than the average storage during the same ten years of last ten years.
States which have better water storage compared to the same period of last year, include Himachal Pradesh , Punjab , Odisha , Gujarat , Uttarakhand , Madhya Pradesh , Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. In which state water storage is at the same level compared to the same period of last year , AP and TG (two joint projects in both states) , Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are included. States which have less water storage in comparison to the same period of last year, include Rajasthan , Jharkhand , West Bengal , Tripura , Maharashtra ,Uttar Pradesh , Chhattisgarh and Kerala.
6.PM Modi to file nominations from Varanasi :-
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will file his nominations from Varanasi constituency on Friday.Mr Modi is seeking the second term from Varanasi where polling will be held in the 7th and final phase of Lok Sabha elections on May 19.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
7.Former US Vice President launches 2020 presidential campaign:-
Former US Vice President Joe Biden formally joined the crowded Democratic presidential contest today, betting on his working-class appeal and ties to Barack Obama’s Presidency. He made this announcement in a video posted on Twitter. Biden, a 76-year-old lifelong politician has unmatched international and legislative experience, and he is among the best-known faces in U.S. politics.
The Republican Party wasted no time seeking to undercut Biden’s record, releasing a video yesterday questioning economic growth under Obama and Biden.
8.World’s first malaria vaccine launched in Africa:-
The world’s first malaria vaccine has been rolled out in Malawi to protect 360,000 children under two in Malawi, Kenya and Ghana in Sub-Saharan Africa from the mosquito-borne disease that causes 435,000 people global deaths each year.The vaccine prevents four in 10 cases of malaria in children who received four doses over a four-year period, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).
9.UN, EU sign joint framework to strengthen partnership in counter-terrorism efforts:-
The United Nations and the European Union (EU) have signed a joint framework aimed at strengthening partnership in counter-terrorism efforts.The framework was enacted on the occasion of the second EU-UN high-level political dialogue on Counter-Terrorism that was held in New York.The UN-EU initiative will focus on terrorism and violent extremism prevention in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, as well as support victims of terrorism offenders.
European Union Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium
Member states: 28 states
SPORTS NEWS
10.Shooting: India bag two gold at ISSF World Cup:-
In Shooting, India opened its medal account with gold each in 10 metres Air Rifle Mixed Team and 10 metres Air Pistol Mixed team events on the third day of ISSF World Cup in Beijing Young shooters Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Chaudhary took the top spot in the 10 metres Air Pistol Mixed Team event after Anjum Moudgil and Divyansh Singh Panwar opened the country’s gold account in the 10 metres Air Rifle Mixed Team event.
Bhaker and Chaudhary outshot Jiang Ranxin and Pang Wei of China 16-6 in the final, which was held in the new format wherein top two teams battled for the gold medal. Earlier in the day, Moudgil and Panwar had to fight tooth and nail to beat another Chinese pair of Liu Ruxuan and Yang Haoran 17-15 in the 10 metres Air Rifle Mixed Team final.
11.Asian Athletics Championship concluded:-
India bagged four medals, including a Gold, on the final day of the Asian Athletics Championships at Doha.PU Chitra successfully defended her Women’s 1,500 metres Gold she had won in 2017.
India ended at the fourth spot in the medals tally with 3 Gold, 7 Silver and 7 Bronze.Bahrain topped the table with 11 Gold, 7 Silver and 4 Bronze.China was second with 10 Gold, 13 Silver and 7 Bronze.India had won 29 medals – 12 Gold, 5 Silver and 12 Bronze in the last edition in Bhubaneswar in 2017, topping the medal tally for the first time.
BUSINESS NEWS
12.RBI first APAC central bank to begin interest rate easing cycle: Fitch:-
The Reserve Bank of India is the first central bank in the Asia-Pacific region to begin an explicit interest rate easing cycle buoyed by benign food inflation and easier global financial condition, Fitch Ratings said.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), headed by RBI Govenor Shaktikanta Das, cut rates in February and April, citing prospects of benign inflation. In the four months of 2019, the RBI has cut policy interest rates twice by 0.25 per cent each to one-year low of 6 per cent. Fitch has also estimated India to grow at 6.8% in current fiscal and 7.1% in the next year.
13.Kotak Bank launches debit card-based e-mandate on NPCI’s API platform:-
Kotak Mahindra Bank has announced the launch of an industry-first debit card-based authentication solution on NPCI’s eMandate API platform.Kotak becomes the first Destination Bank to go live with Net Banking and Debit Card-based e-mandate authentication.It will enable its customers to create electronic mandates (similar to the erstwhile eNACH with Aadhaar + OTP) via both the Debit Card and Net Banking channels.
- BuyUcoin Introduces First Indian Platform for Wholesale Cryptocurrency Trading:-
BuyUcoin, which is the second oldest Cryptocurrency Exchange in India, has announced the launch of a new and unique platform for wholesale cryptocurrency trading which allows its users to trade on a large scale with low price fluctuations. The platform currently works on free trading model i.e. charges zero fee on any trade.This wholesale platform also known as OTC (Over-the-counter) Desk allows users to trade on a large scale with low price fluctuations.
