Weekly Current Affairs: 3o June - 8 July

Weekly Current Affairs: 3o June - 8 July

Important Days

June 29: National Statistics Day

 It is celebrated to mark the birth anniversary of Prof. Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis, a renowned and eminent statistician.

1 July: National Doctors Day

 This day is celebrated in the memory of Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy in order to pay honour to the entire medical profession.

July 2: World Sports Journalists Day

 It was established by the International Sports Press Association (AIPS) in 1994 to mark the 70th anniversary of its foundation.

4 July: Independence Day of United States

 It is the anniversary of the publication of the declaration of independence from Great Britain in 1776.

7 July: Global Forgiveness Day

 It is a day to forgive, and a day to be forgiven! It was created in 1994 by the Christian Embassy of Christ's Ambassadors.

National Events

New Oil and Gas Block Licensing Policy

Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced a new oil and gas block licensing policy that is expected to open up 2.8 million square kilometres of sedimentary basins to exploration and production activities. The OALP, a part of the government’s Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP), gives exploration companies the option to select the exploration blocks on their own, without having to wait for the formal bid round from the Government.

Web Application For Legal Aid

The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) launched a Web Application for free Legal Services to prisoners, and the Legal Services Management System developed through the NIC.

COMMIT

Dr Jitendra Singh launched a new training programme Comprehensive Online Modified Modules on Induction Training (COMMIT) for State Government officials. The objective of this training programme is to improve the public service delivery mechanism and provide citizen centric administration through capacity building of officials who interact with the citizens on day-to-day basis.

31st Anniversary of Mizo Peace Accord

The 31st anniversary of the signing of the historic Mizo peace accord between the Union government and the erstwhile underground Mizo National Front (MNF) was celebrated in Mizoram.

Aji Dam Inaugurated

Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the arrival of Narmada river waters in the city’s main water reservoir Aji dam, solving its perennial water woes. The Narmada water reaching the dam will resolve the water woes of the people of this city in Saurashtra region which has been facing perennial water shortage due to deficient rains.

PACS and RuPay Computerised

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated computerisation of PACS and launched RuPay Kisan Credit cards in the state. Odisha is the first state to implement an integrated Core Banking Solution Project covering all three tiers of short-term cooperative credit structure - state cooperative bank, district central cooperative banks and 2,708 primary agriculture cooperative societies.

TransStadia Inaugurated

Indian Prime Narendra Modi formally inaugurated TransStadia in Ahmedabad, Gujarat earlier today. The multi-purpose sports complex also hosts a 20-000 seater state-of-the-art football stadium, the first of its kind in the state.

Vikrikar Bhawan Renamed

 'Vikrikar Bhavan' the headquarters of Maharashtra government's erstwhile Sales Tax department, was renamed as 'GST Bhavan" as the new tax regime rolled out.

Innovate in India Program

 The first ever Industry-Academia mission to accelerate biopharmaceutical development in India will be formally launched by the Cabinet Minister for Science and Technology, Earth Sciences, Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Dr. Harsh Vardhan  The program named Innovate in India (i3) will witness an investment of USD 250 million with USD 125 million as a loan from world Bank and is anticipated to be a game changer for the Indian Biopharmaceutical industry

Free Education for Transgender

 The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) announced exemption of fees for its transgender students of all programmes.

Textiles India 2017  

 Narendra Modi inaugurated Textiles India 2017, Indias first ever mega textiles trade fair, being held at Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

 Textiles India 2017 gives a fillip to Honourable Prime Ministers dream of Make in India.

Separate Agri-Budget of Telangana

 Telangana would have a separate budget for agriculture from the next year.  Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao decided to substantially enhance funds for the agriculture sector and present a separate agriculture budget

Six Crore Sampling Planted in MP

 With an aim to create a Guinness World Record, the Madhya Pradesh government carried out a drive to plant six crore saplings in 12-hours along the banks of river Narmada.

 The plantation drive that started from 7 am continued till 7 pm along the banks of the river covering 24 districts of the state.

Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missile

 India successfully test-fires quick reaction surface-to-air missile at Odisha's Chandipur test range  The indigenously developed Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air (QRSAM) short-range missile, which has a capability of engaging multiple targets, was successfully test-fired from a test range along the Odisha coast

G-Ride in Kerala

 Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan launched G-Ride, a digital ride sharing platform designed and deployed for the IT industry by the Group of Technology Companies (GTech), the industry body of IT companies in the state.

TERI, Second Best Think Tank

 The Energy Resources Institute (TERI) has been ranked as the second best climate think tank in the world.  The rankings were released by the the International Center for Climate Governance, which focuses on the design of climate policy and related governance issues.  Established in 1974, it was formerly known as Tata Energy and Resource Institute.

No Excise on Tobacco

 The finance ministry has removed additional excise duty on tobacco, pan masala and cigarettes with effect from July 1, following the GST implementation.

 The revenue department also "rescinded" the central excise notification dated February 27, 2010, which deals with excise duty rate on unmanufactured tobacco and chewing tobacco.

Kakrahia Village Adopted by PM

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi will adopt Kakrahia, a village known for its wrestlers and wrestling arenas, under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana  This will be the third village to be adopted by the Prime Minister in his Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi.

MERIT App Launched

 Union Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy and Mines, Shri Piyush Goyal launched here today the 'MERIT app (Merit Order Despatch of Electricity for Rejuvenation of Income and Transparency)' and the e-bidding portal for providing e-Bidding solution to States to select Independent Power Producers (IPPs) for procurement of power by transferring their domestic coal under the scheme of flexibility in utilization of domestic coal.

White Tiger Spotted

 A rare ‘white tiger’ with a pale skin color has been spotted for the first time in the Nilgiris by a wildlife photographer, arousing interest among conservationists and forest officials on whether it is a true genetic mutant.  Photographer Nilanjan Ray from Bengaluru spotted the cat at an undisclosed location on a recent trip to the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.

Elevate 100 Scheme For Startups

The Karnataka government has launched the ‘Elevate 100’ scheme to identify and nurture innovative start-ups. The aim is to identify 100 most innovative start-ups in the state to elevate them to the next level of success

7 Pacts Signed between India & Israel

India and Israel signed seven agreements to increase cooperation in key sectors like space, agriculture and water conservation after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held in-depth talks with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu.

India Declared Bird-Flu Free

 India has declared itself free from Bird Flu (highly pathogenic Avian Influenza - H5N1 and H5N8) and notified it to the World Organisation for Animal Health.

High Performance Academy in Bhubaneswar

The Odisha government signed an Expression of Intent (EOI) with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) and Athletics Federation of India (AFI) to establish a High Performance Academy in Bhubaneswar.

Kanyashree Utsav of Bengal

July 25 will mark the celebration of Kanyashree Utsav The day will witness representatives from all corners of the state coming together to congratulate accomplished Kanyashrees, who will be felicitated by the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee herself.

Jigyasa Program Launched

Jigyasa, a student- scientist connect programme was officially launched in the national capital Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), has joined hands with Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) to implement this programme.

New Anti-Hijacking Law

The country's new anti-hijacking law, which prescribes capital punishment in the event of death of "any person", has come into force following a government notification. The 2016 Anti-Hijacking Actreplaces a 1982-vintage law, according to which hijackers could be tried only in the event of death of hostages, such as flight crew, passengers and security personnel.

MRP; Sole Price Decider

From January 1, 2018, the price of a packaged good would no longer depend on where you bought it — be it a local kirana store, a mall, a five-star hotel or an airport. The Consumer Affairs Ministry has amended the rules that govern packaged commodities to this effect. As per the amended Legal Metrology rules for packaged commodities, the retail sale price shall be the maximum retail price (MRP) inclusive of all taxes, with the provision to round off the price to the nearest rupee or 50 paise.

International Events

Malabar Naval Exercise

The Malabar naval exercise involving Indian, American and Japanese navies will kick start on July 10 in the Bay of Bengal, amid China's growing military assertiveness in the disputed South China Sea. A sizeable number of aircraft, naval ships and nuclear submarines of the navies of the three countries will be part of the annual exercise, considered a major war game in the region.

Global Treaty to Ban Nuclear Weapon

A global treaty banning nuclear weapons was adopted at the United Nations despite opposition from nuclear powers Britain, France and the United States which said it disregards the reality of dealing with international security threats such as North Korea. The treaty was adopted by a vote of 122 in favor with one country — NATO member The Netherlands — voting against, while Singapore abstained.

Global Index of Cybersecurity

India is ranked a high 23rd out of 165 nations in a global index that measures the commitment of nations across the world to cybersecurity. The second Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI), released by the UN telecommunications agency International Telecommunication Union (ITU), said only about half of all countries have a cybersecurity strategy or are in the process of developing one and urged more countries to consider national policies to protect against cybercrime.

City of Hebron Declared Endangered Heritage Site

 UNESCO declared the Old City of Hebron an endangered world heritage site, sparking outrage from Israel in a new spat at the international body

India has contributed USD 100,000 to a UN fund

India has contributed USD 100,000 to a UN fund to help developing countries actively participate in the discussion of tax issues, becoming the first country to make the contribution The UN Trust Fund for International Cooperation in Tax Matters (the UN Tax Fund) received its first financial voluntary contribution from India, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs Office for Financing for Development Office announced.

Theresa May Elected PM Again

British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative minority government secured lawmakers' backing for its legislative plans by a narrow margin but only after making a sudden concession on abortion funding to stave off defeat.

Myanmar Joint Trade Committee (JTC) Meeting

The 6th India – Myanmar Joint Trade Committee (JTC) Meeting co-chaired by Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of Commerce & Industry from India and Dr. Than Myint, Union Commerce Minister from Myanmar was held at New Delhi.

German Legalise Same-Sex Marriage

The lower house of the German Parliament voted to legalize same-sex marriage after a brisk but emotional debate The historic decision came with a swiftness rare in Germany’s usually staid politics, just fivedays after Chancellor Angela Merkel unexpectedly relaxed her party’s opposition to same-sex marriage and allowed lawmakers to vote on the issue according to their consciences.

Liuzhou Forest City of China

After China’s Nanjing city became the first Asian city to be getting a vertical forest (by 2018), China is building a forest city – Liuzhou Forest City – which will boast urban settlements and vertical forests. And, this will help curb pollution by leaps and bounds.

China's First Female Leader

Carrie Lam was sworn in as Hong Kong’s chief executive, becoming its first female leader and the fourth person to hold the top government post since China regained control of the former British colony in 1997.

Syrian Currency With Face of President Bashar Assad

A new 2,000 Syrian Lira ($3.9) bank note with the face of President Bashar Assad goes into circulation The notes are the first time Syria will depict President Bashar Assad on its currency since he took office 17 years ago.

Ebola Ended in Congo

 World Health Organization (WHO) declared the end of the most recent outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

India and Thailand Military Exercise

 A 14-day joint military training exercise between India and Thailand started in Himachal Pradesh

 The joint exercise of the Indian Army with the Royal Thailand Army commenced at Bakloh in Chamba district

ADB Granted $220 Million for Rajsthan

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a $220 million loan agreement meant to improve connectivity, transport efficiency, and safety on the State highways of Rajasthan.

The MODI Flower

A new fast-growing Israeli flower was today named after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a special gesture to mark the first visit of an Indian premier to the Jewish nation.

Israeli Crysanthumun flower will now be called “MODI”

4 Largest Investors in UK

India has slipped by one spot to become the fourth-largest foreign investor into the UK, according to the official figures

The US remains on the top, investing in 577 projects in the UK, with China (including Hong Kong) remaining in second place with 160 projects. India set up 127 new projects in Britain last year and safeguarded 7,645 existing jobs as a result and created 3,999 new jobs in 2016-17

Sports

Kidambi in Top 10

India’s ace shuttler Kidambi Srikanth broke back into the top-10 at eighth in the latest world rankings

The 24-year-old from Guntur, who clinched successive titles at Indonesian Open and Australian Open, now has 58,583 points in his kitty.

Dhoni Sets World Record of Sixes

Dhoni became the fifth batsman in international cricket to reach the elite 200 six hitting club. The list is topped by Pakistan's Shahid Afridi with 351 sixes, while Sri Lanka's hard-hitting opener Sanath Jayasuriya is placed second with 270 career sixes to his name.

Gernmany Clinched 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup

 Germany battled their way to the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup title, beating Chile 1-0 in a tight final in Russia.

Asian Athletics Championships 2017

India’s Manpreet Kaur claimed the gold medal in the women’s shot put, while defending champion Vikas Gowda failed to retain his title in the men’s discus throw event on the opening day of the Asian Athletics Championships 2017

Aegon Championship 2017

Novak Djokovic has won the Aegon Championship in Eastbourne by beating Gael Monfils in Saturday's final. The world No 2's preparation for Wimbledon concluded with a 6-3 6-4 victory at Devonshire Park - just his second title of 2017 so far. Ulster Senior Ladies Football Final

 Geraldine McLaughlin hit 2-6 as Donegal clinched a 4-11 to 0-15 win over Monaghan in the Ulster Senior Ladies Football Final at Clones.

FIA Formula 3 European Championship

 Jehan Daruvala became the first Indian driver to win in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship claiming victory in Race 3 at the Nuremberg circuit.

India Clinched Cricket World Cup

 India's women's cricket team defeated Sri Lanka by 16 runs to claim its 4th straight win in the ICC Women's World Cup 2017.

Asian Team Snooker Championship

India's leading cueist Pankaj Advani teamed up with Laxman Rawat to demolish Pakistan in the final of the Asian Team Snooker Championship Advani drew first blood by putting on a sterling performance against Mohammad Bilal.

Banking & Finance

KBL Image Debit Card

City based private sector bank - Karnataka Bank, in its pursuit to transform customer satisfaction into customer delight, has unveiled yet another novel card variant 'KBL-image debit card. It is intended to enable bank's debit cardholders to customize/personalize debit card with image of their choice.

Next Tranche of Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB)

The government will launch the next tranche of sovereign gold bond (SGB) scheme, the first in 2017-18, on July 10. The bonds will be sold through banks, Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited (SHCIL), designated post offices and recognised stock exchanges namely the NSE and BSE

PNb Maestro Cards To be Blocked

 Punjab National Bank (PNB) Maestro debit cards holders will face a card blockage if they fail to replace it with a more secure EMV chip based card by the end of this month.

FINO Operationalise its Payment Bank

FINO Payments Bank has commenced operations as a payments bank with effect from June 30, according to the Reserve Bank of India.

FINO PayTech Ltd, Navi Mumbai, was one of the 11 applicants which were issued in-principle approval for setting up a payments bank.

NMCE Merged With ICEX

National Multi-Commodity Exchange (NMCE), India’s first demutualized multi-commodities exchange, will merge with Indian Commodity Exchange (ICEX)

The proposed merger will create India’s third largest commodities exchange, offering a range of contracts including bullion, oil, rubber and other agri-commodities.

No Restriction on Cash Dealing With Credit Card

 Restrictions on cash dealings of Rs. 2 lakh or more will not apply to credit card bill payments, business correspondents appointed by banks and issuers of prepaid instrument.

 The Finance Act 2017 banned cash transaction of Rs. 2 lakh or above with effect April 1, 2017. However, some exceptions were made.

South Indian Bank Ties Up With PFG

South Indian Bank has tied up with PFG Forex for remittance facility for the benefit of Indian expatriates from Australia. The new facility will leverage the bank to reach the Indian diaspora. Under this arrangement, NRIs can enjoy cost-effective and fast remittance services using SIB's Express facility.

Awards & Achievements

PV Sindhu Bags Sportsperson of the Year Award

 India's renowned sports media brand, Sports Illustrated (SI) India Magazine concluded the sixth edition of ‘Maruti Suzuki Sportsperson of the Year’ Charity Gala Awards Read Complete List Here

eVIN Wins GSMA Asia Mobile Award

Indigenously developed mobile application for digitising vaccine logistics, eVIN, has won the prestigious GSMA Asia Mobile Award 2017 (AMO) for outstanding contribution to the UN’s sustainable development goals in Asia.

Green Building

 SIERRA ODC has been recognised as the world’s second highest ranking Green Building, with a score of 103 out of 110 under LEED certification.

The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2017

The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2017 has selected Lipstick Under My Burkha as its opening film for 2017. Though this film has won critical acclaim at various festivals across the globe, back home it has turned out to be the most controversial films of the year even before its theatrical release.

Mensa IQ test Topped by Indian-American

The India-origin teenager from UK has successfully secured the top possible score of 162 on a Mensa IQ test, two points higher than Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. Mensa is believed to be the largest and oldest high IQ society in the world. Membership is open to anyone who can demonstrate an IQ in the top 2 per cent of the population, measured by a recognised or approved IQ testing process.

US Department of State Award

An IPS officer from Telangana has won an award from the US Department of State for his fight against human trafficking in India. Mahesh Muralidhar Bhagwat, currently Rachakonda Police Commissioner, has been conferred with the 2017 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report Heroes Award by the US state department.

Indian of the year Award

Writer Preeti Shenoy was honoured with the Indian of the Year award Shenoy, who is one of India’s top five highest selling women authors, was awarded on Friday by Brands Academy, one of the most reputed branding companies in India to recognise the achievements of personalities who have contributed towards building up the reputation of the country.

Order of Australia

Guruswamy Jayraman, a 69-year-old Glenwood resident who migrated from Delhi to Australia in 1991, has been awarded Order of Australia for community work, the highest civilian award in Australia.

Appointment

Head of the Indian Consulate

India’s Ambassador to Peru Sandeep Chakravorty has been appointed as the head of the Indian consulate in New York. The 1996 Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer will replace Riva Ganguly Das as Consul General in one of the busiest Indian diplomatic missions overseas

National Disaster Response Force Chief

Himachal Pradesh director general of police (DGP) Sanjay Kumar has been appointed as the new chief of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). The Union home ministry on Monday issued an order appointing Kumar, a 1985-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, to the top NDRF post.

Attorney General of India

 Senior lawyer and constitutional expert KK Venugopal has been appointed as the next Attorney General of India.

India's ambassador to Greece

 Senior diplomat Shamma Jain was appointed as India's ambassador to Greece.

Chief Election Commissioner

 The Narendra Modi govt appointed Election Commissioner Achal Kumar Jyoti as Chief Election Commissioner. Achal Kumar Jyoti will take charge of the office on July 6.

Chief of ITBP

Senior IPS officer R K Pachnanda took charge as the chief of the Indo-China border guarding force ITBP Mr Pachnanda, a 1983-batch police officer of the West Bengal cadre, was handed over the baton of the about 90,000-personnel strong, mountain warfare-trained force by outgoing Director General Krishna Chaudhary.

Non-Executive Chairman of UBI

 Kewal Handa was today appointed as non-executive chairman of Union Bank of India.

Chairman of the Board of Governors

 RP Sanjiv Goenka Group Chairman, Sanjiv Goenka, has been selected as the Chairman of the Board of Governors at IIT-Kharagpur. He will be Chairman for three years.

Tata Global Beverages Chairman

Tata Global Beverages has appointed Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran as chairman of its Board with immediate effect. Chandrasekaran also chairs the Boards of several group operating companies, including Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Tata Power, Indian Hotels and Tata Consultancy Services, of which he was CEO from 2009-17.

President of MFIN

Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), the premier industry association and Self-Regulatory Organization (SRO) for the microfinance industry in India has announced Rakesh Dubey, CEO of SV Creditline Pvt Ltd. as its new President of the Board.

Ambassador of India to Indonesia

 Mr. Pradeep Kumar Rawat, presently Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Indonesia.

Science & Technology

X-Plane

NASA has achieved a significant milestone in developing a quieter supersonic passenger jet that can safely travel over land. It's Called X-Plane The US space agency completed the preliminary design review (PDR) of its Quiet Supersonic Transport (QueSST) aircraft design.

Rocket With Colourful Cloud

 NASA deployed a rocket early morning that created colorful clouds out of vapor in the Earth's upper atmosphere over the East Coast.

Completed at 4:25 a.m. from the Wallops location on Chincoteague Island, NASA successfully launched its Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket — after 11 recent unsuccessful attempts.

World's Sharpest Laser

Scientists have developed the world's sharpest laser wit a record-breaking precision that can help make optical atomic clocks more precise as well as test Einstein's theory of relativity. Theoretically, laser light has only one colour, frequency or wavelength. In reality, however, there is always a certain linewidth.

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