Daily Current Affairs Updates from 25 October 2013

Daily Current Affairs Updates from 25 October 2013

National

1) Group of Ministers (GoM), set up to look into the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, will submit its report to the Union Cabinet before the winter session of Parliament, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said.

2) Heavy rains disrupt normal life in AP: Heavy rains triggered by northeast monsoon and a low pressure area over Bay of Bengal lashed several parts of Andhra Pradesh for the fourth consecutive day today, prompting authorities to evacuate thousands of people from low-lying areas.

International

1) Twitter sets share price on company valuation of $11 bn:  Twitter announced the share price on Thursday of between $17 and $20 for its eagerly awaited initial public offering, which will see the microblogging company valued as high as $11.1 billion.

Sports

1) India Grand Prix can go ahead as planned: Apex Court-  Supreme Court gave the go-ahead on Friday to the Indian Grand Prix Formula One race set for this weekend, after refusing a bid to have the race delayed due to alleged unpaid taxes.

2) Vettel fastest in first practice of Indian Grand Prix: Defending champion Sebastian Vettel set the pace ahead of Sunday’s race by clocking the fastest time in the first practice session of the 2013 Indian Grand Prix at Buddh International Circuit today.

Knowledge Booster:

>> Who won the 2011 and 2012 Indian GP?- Sebastian Vettel

3) Sahara Force India decided to pay tribute to Sachin Tendulkar at Indian GP which is going to be held on 24 October 2013 (Suanday). 

Technology

1) Reliance Jio gets unified telecom licence: Reliance Jio Infocomm, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, on Friday announced that it has received a unified licence for all 22 service areas across the country and has become the first telecom operator to get a pan-India licence. The licence will allow Reliance Jio to offer all telecom services, including voice telephony.

2) YouTube to introduce paid music service: YouTube is to introduce a paid music service that will compete with Spotify, Pandora and iTunes Radio, The New York Times reported on Thursday.

Economy/Banking

1) India’s forex reserves up $1.88 billion: India’s foreign exchange (forex) reserves increased by $1.88 billion to $281.12 billion in the week ended October 18, aided by high growth in its foreign currency assets.

2) India to extend on arrival visa for 40 more nations soon: Decks are being cleared to make India a more tourist friendly destination by extending on arrival visa for 40 more countries, simplifying online visa and attracting senior citizen foreign visitors.

3) According to the China-based Hurun India Rich List, Ambani retained the top position for the second year even after a wealth decrease of 2 percent. Ambani is followed by London-based steel baron LN Mittal with assets of USD 15.9 billion. Mittal's wealth declined 6 percent from in 2012. Sun Pharmaceuticals' founder Dilip Shanghvi broke into the top three for the first time with a 66 percent surge in his wealth.