Daily GK Potion – 8th December 2014

  1. ICICI Bank to hike ATM charges from Jan 1
    • ICICI Bank has announced a hike in its ATM charges for saving account holders from January 1 next year.
    • The number of free transactions in a month is fixed at five using own ATMs, while it has been capped at three for other banks’ machines.
    • After exceeding the free transaction limits, customers will have to pay Rs 20 per financial transaction excluding service tax and Rs 8.50 for every non-financial transaction.
  2. Warren Buffett became the world’s second-richest person
    • Berkshire Hathaway Inc’s Warren Buffett became the world’s second-richest person.
    • Buffett’s fortune is $73.7 billion, $300 million more than Mexico’s Carlos Slim.
  3. Armed Forces Flag Day observed on December 7th
  4. Lok Sabha clears Schools of Planning and Architecture Bill, 2014
    • Lok Sabha passed a bill for converting three Schools of Planning and Architecture into centres of excellence.
  5. Kumar Sangakkara completes 13,000 ODI runs
    • Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara on Wednesday became only the fourth batsman in history to surpass the 13,000-run mark in one-day internationals.
    • He took 386 matches to achieve this milestone.
    • He is behind Sachin Tendulkar(18,426 runs), Ricky Pointing(13,704 runs) and Sanath Jayasuriya(13,430 runs).
  6. Pakistan’s Hafeez suspended over illegal bowling action
    • All-rounder Mohammad Hafeez was suspended for an illegal bowling action, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said.
    • “The ICC confirmed that an independent analysis has found the bowling action of Pakistan’s Hafeez to be illegal and, as such, the off-spinner has been suspended from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect,” the ICC said.
  7. India defeated defending champions Pakistan to win the 4th Cricket World Cup for the Blind.
  8. India’s communication satellite GSAT-16 launched successfully
  9. Carnatic vocalist Nedanuri Krishnamurthy dies
    • Veteran carnatic vocalist Sangita Kalanidhi Nedanuri Krishnamurthy passed away. He was 87.
    • He was Principal of the Government Music & Dance Colleges in Vijayawada, Secunderabad and Visakhapatnam.
  10. Kotak Mahindra Bank launches savings bank account for customers of 55 years and above
    • Kotak Mahindra Bank launched Grand, a savings bank account tailored exclusively for customers of 55 years and above.
    • Grand has been designed keeping in mind their need for hassle-free banking, financial independence and personal attention.
    • It offers priority service and first aid card which provides essential customer information and emergency contacts details. It also offers queue privileges at the branch.
  11. Delhi government bans Uber cab service
    • International cab-booking service Uber was banned by Delhi government from running its transport operations in National capital.
    • The move came a day after one of its drivers was arrested for allegedly raping a 27-year-old woman executive amid growing outrage over the incident which renewed focus on safety measures for women.
    • The transport department has banned all activities related to providing of any transport service by www.uber.com with immediate effect. The department has also blacklisted the company from providing any transport service in the NCT of Delhi in future.