Current Affairs Today 10th June 2020-Download in PDF

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Current Affairs Today – 10th June 2020

NEWS AT A GLANCE

  1. The World Accreditation Day is celebrated globally on 9th June every year to highlight and promote the role of accreditation in trade & economy.
  2. HDFC Bank has cut its marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) by 5 basis points (bps) across tenors. The rate cut is effective from Monday.
  3. Flipkart-owned digital payments platform PhonePe along with ICICI Lombard, the non-life insurance company launched ‘first of its kind’ travel insurance, domestic multi-trip insurance to provide a stress-free travel experience to customers by covering risks associated with all modes of travel within the country (road, rail and air within the country) from the time a customer leaves home, till the time of return.
  4. S&P Global Ratings has released its report on emerging markets titled “Financial Conditions Reflect Optimism, Lockdown Fatigue Emerges“.
  5. After a contraction in the current financial year, India’s economy is forecast to bounce back with a sharp growth rate of 9.5 per cent next year provided it avoids further deterioration in financial sector health, Fitch Ratings said.
  6. Traders’ body CAIT launched a campaign to boycott Chinese goods with an aim to reduce India’s imports of products manufactured in the country by USD 13 billion by December 2021.
  7. Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari today announced further extension of the validity date of motor vehicle documents till September this year due to COVID-19 situation in the country.
  8. Centre approved Karnataka State government’s Annual Action Plan for implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission.
  9. West Bengal government has received a loan amount of Rs 1950 crore from the World Bank.
  10. The Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts hosted a four day virtual fair for around 200 Indian Exporters.
  11. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has released the Annual Report 2019-20.
  12. The National Statistical Office recently released the Periodic Labour force Survey.
  13. The Bloomberg Billionaires Index is a daily ranking of the world’s richest people.
  14. India’s financial capital Mumbai has emerged as the most expensive city in the country for expatriates in terms of cost of living, according to Mercer’s ‘2020 Cost of Living Survey’ released on 9 June 2020.
  15. National Council Of Educational Research And Training (NCERT) has digitally signed an MoU with Rotary India Humanity Foundation under the guidance and support of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).
  16. With a view to give thrust to the Skill India initiative, National Fertilizers Limited, NFL, a Central Public Sector Enterprise Under Department Of Fertilizers, has started tying up with Industrial Training Institutes located near to its plants to train youth in various trades and to enhance the chances of their employability in heavy and process industry.
  17. National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has partnered with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to provide its training partners access to the TCS iON Digital Glass Room.
  18. Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Limited (IL&FS) has completed the sale of its 50% stake in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City).
  19. A Manila, Philippines based foundation that gives out Ramon Magsaysay Award announced that the awards are being cancelled due to COVID-19.
  20. HCL Technologies, a leading global technology company, has received a 2020 Rising Star Award from Pegasystems Inc., the software company empowering digital transformation at the world’s leading enterprises.
  21. President Ram Nath Kovind has appointed senior Kashmiri lawyer Javed Iqbal Wani as a Judge of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.
  22. Google Cloud has appointed Anil Valluri as Senior Director for Google Cloud in India.
  23. Toy manufacturer Funskool India announced the elevation of R Jeswant as its Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.
  24. Warship builder Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE) delivered the ‘ICGS Kanaklata Barua’ on 9 June.
  25. The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) and the Ministry of Sports have collaborated to produce a series of special films to promote 10 indigenous sports of India.
  26. Athletics Integrity Unit(AIU) has banned Gomathi Marimuthu for 4-years after testing positive for banned substances.
  27. Indian Institute of Technology Mandi researchers claims to have developed a technology for making high-efficiency masks using waste pet bottles.
  28. CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (IIIM) Jammu received IND approval from the New Drugs Division of Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) for a potent anti-cancer, New Chemical Entity (NCE) effective against pancreatic cancer.
  29. Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)- Guwahati has developed an application called “Flyzy” for consistent and contactless air travel during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  30. In Tamil Nadu, the DMK MLA J. Anbazhagan died of COVID-19 disease this morning.
  31. The President of the Republic of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza has passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest.
  32. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has mandated a strip of green colour for BS-VI vehicles of any fuel type.

NEWS IN DETAILS

IMPORTANT DAYS AND THEMES

World Accreditation Day 2020 celebrated on 9th June

  • The World Accreditation Day is celebrated globally on 9th June every year to highlight and promote the role of accreditation in trade & economy.
  • The International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) decided the theme for WAD 2020 as “Accreditation: Improving Food Safety”.
  • The two accreditation boards of the Quality Council of India (QCI) namely National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) and National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB) celebrated the World Accreditation Day 2020 by organising a webinar focussing on “Regulator’s perspective on food safety” and “Industry’s Perspective on food safety”.

Extra Shots:

IAF: The International Accreditation Forum, Inc. is the world association of Conformity Assessment Accreditation bodies and other bodies interested in conformity assessment in the fields of management systems, products, services, personnel and other similar programs of conformity assessment.

  • Founded: 28 January 1993

BANKING & FINANCE

HDFC Bank cuts MCLR by 5 bps

  • HDFC Bank has cut its marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) by 5 basis points (bps) across tenors. The rate cut is effective from Monday.
  • Its overnight MCLR stands reduced to 7.30 per cent, while one-month MCLR is 7.35 per cent.
  • One-year MCLR, to which many of the consumer loans are tied, will now be 7.65 per cent, while three-year MCLR has been set at 7.85 per cent.
  • The move comes amid similar steps taken by the peers after two rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in order to help the economic growth rise in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • The RBI has cut its key rates by 115 bps since March. Banks review their MCLR every month.

PhonePe along with ICICI Lombard launches ‘first of its kind’ domestic trip travel insurance

  • Flipkart-owned digital payments platform PhonePe along with ICICI Lombard, the non-life insurance company launched ‘first of its kind’ travel insurance, domestic multi-trip insurance to provide a stress-free travel experience to customers by covering risks associated with all modes of travel within the country (road, rail and air within the country) from the time a customer leaves home, till the time of return.
  • The cost of the insurance is Rs 499/year.It provides 365-day protection & covers all modes of transport.
  • The policy provides affordable annual insurance cover for unlimited trips.
  • This solution eliminates the need to insure each trip separately and will benefit both business and leisure travelers unlike other traditional travel insurance products.
  • It meets the customers’ needs who want to purchase domestic travel insurance every time they book a ticket or cab.
  • The service is only for PhonePe users, who can purchase the policy under the “My Money” section on the PhonePe app.
  • The policy purchase process takes around 2 minutes and customers will be issued their policy documents instantly on the PhonePe app.

Extra Shots:

PhonePe:

  • Headquarter: Bengaluru, Karnataka
  • CEO: Sameer Nigam

ICICI Lombard:

  • Headquarter: Mumbai, Maharashtra
  • MD & CEO: Bhargav Dasgupta

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

S&P Ratings projects Indian economy to shrink 5% in FY21

  • S&P Global Ratings has released its report on emerging markets titled “Financial Conditions Reflect Optimism, Lockdown Fatigue Emerges“.
  • In this reported, the rating agency forecasted Indian economy to shrink by 5% in fiscal year 2020-21.
  • The report stated that the fiscal stimulus worth 1.2% of GDP is not sufficient to provide significant growth support.
  • The S&P Global Ratings also expects India’s growth to rebound to 8.5% in the fiscal year 2021-22.
  • It has also projected India’s growth to be 6.5% in the fiscal year 2022-23.

Extra Shots:

S&P Global Ratings:

  • Headquarters: New York, New York, United States
  • Parent organization: S&P Global
  • Founder: Henry Varnum Poor
  • Founded: 1860

Indian economy to grow at 9.5 per cent in next fiscal: Fitch Ratings

  • After a contraction in the current financial year, India’s economy is forecast to bounce back with a sharp growth rate of 9.5 per cent next year provided it avoids further deterioration in financial sector health, Fitch Ratings said.
  • Fitch Ratings forecast a 5 per cent contraction in the GDP in the ongoing financial year.
  • After the global crisis, India’s GDP growth is likely to return to higher levels than ‘BBB’ category peers, provided it avoids further deterioration in financial sector health as a result of the pandemic

Extra Shots:

Fitch:

  • Headquarters: New York, New York, United States
  • CEO: Paul Taylor
  • Founder: John Knowles Fitch
  • Founded: 1914, New York, New York, United States

Traders’ body CAIT launches campaign to boycott Chinese goods

  • Traders’ body CAIT launched a campaign to boycott Chinese goods with an aim to reduce India’s imports of products manufactured in the country by USD 13 billion by December 2021.
  • The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has prepared a list of 3,000 items which are currently imported from China and easily replaceable by Indian manufactured goods.
  • The campaign titled ‘Indian Goods – Our Pride’ aims to achieve reduction in imports of Chinese manufactured goods by Rs 1 lakh crore (about USD 13 billion) by December 2021.
  • There are four types of imports from China to India — finished goods, raw materials, spare parts and technology products.
  • In the first phase, the traders’ body has decided to boycott imports of finished goods from China
  • India’s imports from China stand at about USD 70 billion at present.

Extra Shots:

CAIT:

  • Chairman: Mahender Shah
  • President: B. C. Bhartia
  • Secretary General: Praveen Khandelwal

China (Capital/Currency): Beijing/Renminbi

  • President: Xi Jinping
  • Official Language: Mandarin

NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS

Govt extends validity date of motor vehicle documents till Sept. 2020 due to COVID-19

  • Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari today announced further extension of the validity date of motor vehicle documents till September this year due to COVID-19 situation in the country.
  • Ministry has issued an advisory to all States and Union Territories in this regard.
  • State and Union Territories have also been requested to consider provisions available under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 for considering relaxation in requirement of permit, fees and taxes for renewal to provide relief in the present situation.

STATE CURRENT AFFAIRS

Karnataka to provide tap connections to all rural households under Jal Jeevan Mission by 2022-23

  • Centre approved Karnataka State government’s Annual Action Plan for implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission.
  • The state govt submitted the plan to the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
  • The move comes as the Ministry of Jal Shakti is working with the States to prepare a roadmap to implement the Prime Minister’s flagship programme Jal Jeevan Mission.
  • The mission aims to provide 55 litres of potable water per person per day to every rural household of the country by 2024.

Highlights:

  • GoI has approved a fund of Rs.1,189.40 Crore for the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in Karnataka in 2020-21. This amount is a considerable increase from Rs.546.06 crore in 2019-20. Karnataka state is planning to provide tap connections to 100% household coverage by 2022-23.
  • Out of 89 lakh rural households in Karnataka, 24.50 lakh households have been provided with Functional Household Tap Connections (FHTCs).
  • In the year 2019-20, only 22,127 tap connections were provided in the state.
  • Currently, the State is planning for 100% coverage of 1 district, 5 blocks, and 8,157 villages during 2020-21.
  • It aims to enable 23.57 lakh households with tap water connections by the year 2020-21.
  • Karnataka state will provide 23.57 lakh tap connections by way of retrofitting and augmentation of 3,139 existing piped water supply systems during 2020.
  • Karnataka State will focus on universal coverage of quality-affected habitations, water-scarce areas, SC/ ST dominated villages, and villages under Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana.

Extra Shots:

Karnataka:

  • Capital: Bengaluru
  • Chief Minister: B. S. Yediyurappa
  • Governor: Vajubhai Vala
  • National Park: Anshi NP, Bandipur NP, Bannerghatta NP, Kudremukh NP, Rajiv Gandhi (Nagarahole) NP.

World Bank lends Rs 1950 crore loans to West Bengal

  • West Bengal government has received a loan amount of Rs 1950 crore from the World Bank.
  • The loan amount has been lend to the West Bengal Government to tackle COVID-19 situation and developmental work in the state.
  • Out of the total amount of Rs 1950 crore, West Bengal Government will spend Rs. 850 crore on various Social-Welfare schemes while the remaining Rs 1,100 crore will be spent to create Industrial infrastructures.

Extra Shots:

World Bank:

  • Headquarters: Washington D.C., United States (US).
  • Motto: Working for a World Free of Poverty.
  • President: David Malpass.

 West Bengal:

  • Capital: Kolkata
  • Governor: Jagdeep Dhankhar
  • Chief Minister: Mamata Banerjee
  • National Parks: Buxa NP, Gorumara NP, Neora Valley NP, Singalila NP, Sunderban NP, Jaldapara NP.

SUMMITS AND CONFERENCES

First virtual Trade Fair of India

  • The Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts hosted a four day virtual fair for around 200 Indian Exporters.
  • The exporters were mainly from the industries of fashion jewelry and accessories.
  • The four-day fair that was conducted online focused on markets such as Europe and United States.
  • The fair generated business opportunities of Rs 153 crores.
  • Every seller was provided with a virtual stall.
  • As an overseas buyer clicks on a stall, he will be directed to the photographs and videos of the product of the seller.
  • If the buyer is interested, he will be provided with the links of immediate interaction through Zoom or Skype.
  • If he places the order, he will be delivered through courier services.
  • Usually the sellers had to spend around Rs 1.5 lakhs to Rs 2 lakhs to install a physical stall.
  • This time, their expenses was just Rs 10,000 to showcase their products in a virtual stall. This helped several small exporters to participate in the in the virtual fair.

RANKS AND INDICES

Annual Report of Environment Ministry

  • The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has released the Annual Report 2019-20.
  • The report says that around 11,467 hectares of forest lands have been diverted in 22 states in 2019.
  • The diversion has been made under Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.
  • The diversion was made for 932 non-forestry projects.
  • Of all the diversions made, one-third was for Odisha based projects.
  • They were around 14 in number and 4,514 hectares of land was diverted. Odisha was followed by Telangana where the diversion was made for 11 projects diverting 2,055 hectares of land.
  • The maximum number of projects were in Haryana.
  • However, the land diversion was comparatively less, 519 hectares.
  • The report says that there was no conservation of forest villages in the year 2019.
  • The forest villages were those that were set up by the Britishers to procure resources such as timber. Even today there are 2,500 forest villages in the country.

Extra Shots:

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is an Indian government ministry. The ministry portfolio is currently held by Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

  • Founded: 1985
  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • Annual budget: 2,675.42 crores INR (US$390 million, 2018-19 est.)
  • Jurisdiction: India
  • Officeholders: Babul Supriyo (Minister of State), Prakash Javadekar (Minister)
  • Awards: National Film Award for Best Promotional Film

Periodic Labour Force Survey: Decline in Self-Employed households

  • The National Statistical Office recently released the Periodic Labour force Survey.
  • According to the survey, the percentage of self-employed households in rural India declined from 52.2% to 51.7% in the year 2019.
  • The Survey says that in Urban India the self-employed households declined from 32.4% to 31.8%.
  • The decline in rural India is mainly because of the falling dependence on agriculture.
  • The self-employed households that depend on agriculture has has declined from 37.8% to 36.6%.

Key Findings

  • The Survey says that in urban India, people running small shops have folded up and become labourers.
  • In rural India, the non-agricultural labourers grew from 12.9% to 13.4%.In Urban India, the regular wage earners grew by 1.4%.

Amazon’s Jeff Bezos Richest Man in the World; Ambani at 12th Position: Bloomberg Billionaires Index

  • The Bloomberg Billionaires Index is a daily ranking of the world’s richest people.
  • The latest ranking was released on 9 June 2020.
  • Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has emerged as the richest person in the world with a total net worth of $150 billion after he added almost $35 billion to his net worth so far this year.
  • Bill Gates is the second richest person having total net worth of $115 billion
  • Bernard Arnault ($94.7 billion), Mark Zuckerberg (87.9 billion) and Warren Buffett (79.4 billion), makes up the top five.
  • India’s Mukesh Ambani is the 12th richest person in the world.
  • The total net worth of Ambani is 57.2 billion.

Mercer’s ‘2020 Cost of Living Survey

  • India’s financial capital Mumbai has emerged as the most expensive city in the country for expatriates in terms of cost of living, according to Mercer’s ‘2020 Cost of Living Survey’ released on 9 June 2020.
  • Globally, Mumbai is the 60th most expensive city for expatriates, while it ranks 19th in Asia.
  • Mumbai is followed by New Delhi (101 globally) and Chennai (143 globally) as the most expensive city.
  • Meanwhile, Bengaluru (171) and Kolkata (185) are the least expensive Indian cities in the rankings.
  • Global Ranking: Overall, the list is topped by Hong Kong as the most expensive city in the world for expatriates in terms of cost of living.
  • Ashgabat (Turkmenistan), Tokyo (Japan) and Zurich (Switzerland) and Singapore are the top 5 cities in the ranking.
  • On the other hand, Tunis in Tunisia, Windhoek (Namibia), Tashkent (Uzbekistan), Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) and Karachi (Pakistan) are the least expensive cities in the world.

AGREEMENTS AND MOU SIGNED

NCERT & Rotary India signs MoU to telecast e-content

  • National Council Of Educational Research And Training (NCERT) has digitally signed an MoU with Rotary India Humanity Foundation under the guidance and support of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).
  • The MoU has been signed for e-learning content telecast for class I to XII over all NCERT TV channels.
  • This partnership aims to make e-learning more constructive and will ensure that e-learning reaches children across the nation with NCERT approved content.
  • According to the MoU, Rotary International will provide the e-content in Hindi language to NCERT for classes I to XII for all subjects under Vidya Daan 2.0.
  • It will also provide the Teacher Training (including professional development) content.

The details of the tie-up is as follows:

NCERT TV Tie-up: The telecast of curriculum modules for classes 1-12 would take place through twelve national Television channels of NCERT.

DIKSHA App tie-up: The e-Learning modules would also be made available on GOI’s national mobile app “DIKSHA”.

Extra Shots:

NCERT:

  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • Director: Hrushikesh Senapaty
  • Founder: Government of India
  • Founded: 1961
  • President: Ramesh Pokhriyal
  • Subsidiary: Central Institute of Educational Technology NCERT

NFL inks MoU with ITI Nangal for training of youth in 12 trades for employment

  • With a view to give thrust to the Skill India initiative, National Fertilizers Limited, NFL, a Central Public Sector Enterprise Under Department Of Fertilizers, has started tying up with Industrial Training Institutes located near to its plants to train youth in various trades and to enhance the chances of their employability in heavy and process industry.
  • The Nangal plant of the company in Punjab has signed an MoU with ITI, Nangal to train youth in 12 trades.
  • The students will be skilled under Dual System of Training Scheme under which they will learn theoretical skills in the institute and on-the-job training in NFL Nangal plant.
  • The MoU was exchanged between Deputy General Manager (HR), NFL Nangal unit Renu R P Singh and Principal of ITI Nangal Lalit Mohan.
  • With the signing of this MoU with ITI, NFL becomes first CPSE to take this initiative in the state of Punjab.
  • The company plans to explore more such options in future to give impetus to Skill India by training more youth from institutes.

Extra Shots:

NFL:

  • Headquarters: Noida
  • Owner: Government of India
  • Founder: Government of India
  • Subsidiary: Urvarak Videsh Ltd

NSDC partners with TCS to promote skill development

  • National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has partnered with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to provide its training partners access to the TCS iON Digital Glass Room.
  • The digital platform will enable NSDC in moving classroom vocational skills training to online mode for millions of students across the country.
  • Over 500 training partners of NSDC network across the country will be able to access the TCS iON Digital Glass Room.
  • The students and the trainers will be able to share posts, vote, like, and can chat with each other, ensuring a seamless education.

Significance:

  • The new partnership between NSDC and TCS will help in strengthening NSDC’s online aggregation platform eSkill India.
  • Through this, NSDC enables e-learning among skill seekers as well as contributes towards strengthening the Skill India Mission.
  • NSDC’s network of over 500 training partners can access the TCS iON Digital Glass Room.
  • It will help in the transition to the virtual teaching and learning environment and will also be able to continue their skilling programmes at the time of lockdown and thereafter.

Extra Shots:

NSDC:

  • CEO: Manish Kumar
  • Headquarters location: New Delhi
  • Founded: 2008
  • Type of business: Non-profit organization

TCS:

  • CEO: Rajesh Gopinathan (21 Feb 2017–)
  • Founded: 1 April 1968
  • Headquarters: Mumbai
  • Founders: Faquir Chand Kohli, Tata Sons, J. R. D. Tata

ACQUISITION & MERGER

IL&FS sells 50% stake in GIFT city to Gujarat government

  • Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Limited (IL&FS) has completed the sale of its 50% stake in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City).
  • These stakes were bought by the Gujarat Urban Development Company Ltd (GUDCL), on behalf of the Gujarat government, at an amount of Rs 32.71 crore.
  • The stake sale took place after the approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
  • IL&FS has received Rs 32.71 crore as equity value for shares. Selling of stakes to Gujarat government has helped the IL&FS group in reducing its debt by Rs 1,230 crore.
  • Its current outstanding debt is around Rs 94,000 crore.
  • Gujarat International Finance Tec-City Company Ltd (GIFTCL) is active in the business of real estate development.

NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL  AWARDS

Asia’s Nobel Prize-Ramon Magsaysay Awards cancelled

  • A Manila, Philippines based foundation that gives out Ramon Magsaysay Award announced that the awards are being cancelled due to COVID-19.
  • The Ramon Magsaysay Award has been cancelled thrice in 6 decades.
  • The awards were cancelled for the first time in 1970 due to financial crisis.
  • It was cancelled again in 1990 due to disastrous earthquake.
  • The award has been named after a popular Philippine president that died in a plane crash in 1957.

HCL wins Pega Partner Rising Star Award for driving large scale digital transformation and implementation services

  • HCL Technologies, a leading global technology company, has received a 2020 Rising Star Award from Pegasystems Inc., the software company empowering digital transformation at the world’s leading enterprises.
  • The Rising Star Award recognizes HCL’s thought leadership and trusted advisor role in driving large scale digital transformation and implementation services.
  • Together, HCL and Pega have invested in training, certifications, new client opportunities, and project implementations.

Extra Shots:

HCL:

  • CEO: C Vijayakumar
  • Founded: 11 August 1976
  • Headquarters: Noida
  • Subsidiaries: HCL Infosystems, BigFix Inc, Geometric Limited, MORE
  • Founders: Shiv Nadar, Arjun Malhotra
  • Parent organization: HCL Enterprise

APPOINTMENT IN NEWS

Lawyer Javed Iqbal Wani appointed J&K High Court Judge

  • President Ram Nath Kovind has appointed senior Kashmiri lawyer Javed Iqbal Wani as a Judge of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.
  • He also served as additional advocate general of Jammu and Kashmir High Court for nearly 11 months in 2019.
  • Wani’s appointment was recommended on January 22 by the Supreme Court Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India S A Bobde.
  • With his appointment, the strength of the HC will increase to 13 against the total strength of 17.
  • This is for the first time after 2013 that a Kashmiri has been elevated as a judge of the High Court from Bar quota.
  • The last such appointment was made in 2013 when Justice Ali Muhammad Magrey was appointed as judge of the High Court.

Extra Shots:

Jammu & Kashmir:

  • Capitals- Jammu (Winter), Srinagar (Summer)
  • Lt Governor- Girish Chandra Murmu
  • National Parks: City Forest (Salim Ali) National Park, Dachigam National Park, Hemis National Park, Kishtwar National Park
  • Wildlife Sanctuaries: Baltal-Thajwas WLS, Changthang Cold Desert WLS, Gulmarg WLS, Jasrota WLS, Karakoram (Nubra Shyok) WLS etc

Anil Valluri appointed as senior director for Google Cloud India

  • Google Cloud has appointed Anil Valluri as Senior Director for Google Cloud in India.
  • Valluri has over 30 years of experience in sales and marketing in the hi-tech industry.
  • He has also headed several technology transitions in India for customers across banking, telecommunications, public sector and manufacturing.
  • Before joining Google Cloud, Valluri was the President of India & SAARC operations at NetApp.
  • Before joining Google Cloud, Valluri was the President of India & SAARC operations at NetApp.

Extra Shots:

Google Cloud Platform, offered by Google, is a suite of cloud computing services that runs on the same infrastructure that Google uses internally for its end-user products, such as Google Search, Gmail and YouTube.

  • Launched: April 7, 2008; 12 years ago
  • Written in: Java, C++, Python, Go, Ruby

R Jeswant is CEO of Funskool India

  • Toy manufacturer Funskool India announced the elevation of R Jeswant as its Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.
  • Jeswant was holding the responsibility of senior vice- president (sales and marketing) prior to taking over the new role.
  • Jeswant succeeds John Baby, who was responsible for boosting exports by setting up the company’s third manufacturing unit at Ranipet in Tamil Nadu.

Extra Shots:

Funskool India

  • Founded: 1986
  • Parent organizations: Hasbro, MRF

DEFENCE CURRENT AFFAIRS

GRSE delivered ICGS Kanaklata Barua to Indian Coast Guard

  • Warship builder Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE) delivered the ‘ICGS Kanaklata Barua’ on 9 June.
  • It is the fifth and final ship in the series of Fast Patrol Vessels (FPV) for the Indian Coast Guard (ICG).
  • Also, it is the 105th vessel delivered by the Defence PSU shipyard based on the banks of the river Hooghly.

Highlights:

  • The fast patrol vessels have been entirely designed by GRSEs Central Design Office.
  • The FPVs achieve speeds exceeding 34 knots with an endurance of more than 1,500 nautical miles.
  • These ships are fuel-efficient and powerful platforms.
  • They are designed and developed in a way that they are well suited for operations like patrolling, anti-poaching and rescue, and anti-smuggling.
  • The ship is fitted with a 40/60 mm gun as the main armament, these ships have improved habitability features with fully air-conditioned modular accommodation for 35 personnel.
  • Previously, GRSE had made deliveries of FPVs ICGS Priyadarshini, ICGS Annie Besant, and ICGS Amrit Kaur in this series to ICG.
  • The fourth ship in the FPV series is earmarked for export delivery to the Seychelles Coast Guard. It will be delivered shortly after completing the related formalities.

SPORT CURRENT AFFAIRS

MHRD, Sports Ministry launch special films to promote indigenous sports of India

  • The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) and the Ministry of Sports have collaborated to produce a series of special films to promote 10 indigenous sports of India.
  • For implementation, the Department of School Education and Literacy under MHRD has partnered with the Ministry of Sports flagship programme ‘Fit India’ under the ‘Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat’ initiative.

Highlights:

  • The series is aimed to raise awareness about the indigenous games and the culture and heritage of the states to which they belong.
  • The 10 sports that will be covered in the series are:

Kho-kho, Gatka, Kalaripayttu, Mallakhamb, Thang-Ta, Sqay, Kabaddi, Roll Ball, Tug of War, Shooting Ball.

  • The indigenous sports of India will also cover a mix of very old sports, like, Kalaripayattu, and some recent Roll Ball which has gained a lot of popularity and is now played in at least 50 countries.
  • The 10 episodes can be watched from June 8 to June 19, Monday to Friday, at 11 am, on the Fit India YouTube page and MHRD digital platforms.
  • Under the initiative, there are scholarships for athletes of these games and there is a growing interest among youngsters to pursue these sports.

Extra Shots:

The Ministry of Human Resource Development, formerly Ministry of Education, is responsible for the development of human resources in India.

  • Ministry executives: R. Subrahmanyam, (IAS Officer); Rina Ray, (IAS Officer)
  • Founded: 26 September 1985
  • Officeholder: Ramesh Pokhriyal (Union Minister)
  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • Jurisdiction: India
  • Departments: Department of Higher Education, Department of School Education and Literacy

Gomathi Marimuthu gets four-year doping ban by AIU

  • Athletics Integrity Unit(AIU) has banned Gomathi Marimuthu for 4-years after testing positive for banned substances.
  • The Athlete violated ADR Articles 2.1 and 2.2, in that she had used a Prohibited Substance and that a metabolite of that prohibited substance was found to be present in her urine Samples. Her ban starts from 17th May 2019 to 16th May 2023.
  • All of Gomathi’s competition results between March 18 and May 17, 2019, stand annulled.
  • The Tamil Nadu athlete’s medals, titles, ranking points and prize and appearance money are to be forfeited as well.
  • The Gold Medal she bagged in the 2019 Asian Championship that was held in Doha, Qatar with the timing of 2 minutes and 2.70 seconds has been stripped by the Athletics Integrity Unit(AIU) when the B sample of Gomathi returned positive.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

IIT Mandi researchers develop make high efficiency masks from waste plastic bottles

  • Indian Institute of Technology Mandi researchers claims to have developed a technology for making high-efficiency masks using waste pet bottles.
  • The researchers have filed a patent for the waste plastic bottles derived filter membrane technology based on electrospinning.

Highlights:

  • The waste plastic bottles were used to develop a single thin layer of the nano-nonwoven membrane.
  • It provides desirable particle filtration efficiency which is equal to the N95 respirator and a medical mask.
  • The waste plastic bottles are dissolved using a combination of solvents and extruded nanofibres from the solution.
  • The masks that are made out of the waste plastic bottles have more breathability than commercially available masks.
  • This ultrafine fibres in the mask will allow less resistance in airflow due to a unique phenomenon called ‘slip flow’ which improves breathability.
  • It can also be washed and reused up to 30 times.

CSIR-IIIM received IND approval for anti-cancer drug clinical trial

  • CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (IIIM) Jammu received IND approval from the New Drugs Division of Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) for a potent anti-cancer, New Chemical Entity (NCE) effective against pancreatic cancer.
  • The approval comes after the successful completion of preclinical development and the Investigational New Drug (IND) submission.

Highlights:

  • The proposed clinical trial will pave the way for CSIR-IIIM to conduct the clinical trial of the important drug candidate IIIM-290 in pancreatic cancer patients.
  • It is also aimed to assess the safety, tolerability, and exposure of the compound in humans along with the early efficacy indicators in pancreatic cancer patients.
  • The drug IIIM-290 was discovered and developed at the natural-products driven drug discovery program of CSIR-IIIM.
  • The drug candidate IIIM-290 showed excellent pharmacokinetics, oral bioavailability and potent anticancer activity in a number of animal xenograft models, with the best activity against the pancreatic cancer model.

WEBPORTALS & APPS IN NEWS

IIT-Guwahati students develop “Flyzy” mobile app

  • Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)- Guwahati has developed an application called “Flyzy” for consistent and contactless air travel during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • The point of the versatile application Flyzy, created according to International Air Transport Association (IATA) rules, is to give contactless loading up, remembering the simpler stuff drop, reasonable stopping, better shopping experience and giving important updates during the entire excursion.
  • The application will direct them all together and furnish them with a simple comprehension and usage of a few air terminal capacities.

OBITUARY

Tamil Nadu: DMK MLA J. Anbazhagan died of COVID-19 disease

  • In Tamil Nadu, the DMK MLA J. Anbazhagan died of COVID-19 disease this morning.
  • He was 62.
  • He represented the Chepauk Assembly Constituency in Chennai.

Burundi’s Incumbent President Pierre Nkurunziza Passes Away of cardiac arrest at 55

  • The President of the Republic of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza has passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest.
  • He was 55.
  • After being in power for 15 years, Mr Nkurunziza was due to step down in August.

MISCELLANEOUS

MoRTH mandates distinct colour band for BS-IV vehicles

  • Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has mandated a strip of green colour for BS-VI vehicles of any fuel type.
  • Centre has previously mandate BS-VI emission standards with effect from 1 April 2020.

Highlights:

  • Centre has mandated colour band for number plate sticker for BS-6 four-wheel vehicles.
  • Green strip of 1cm thickness for BS-VI vehicles for the sticker of registration details being stuck on windshields of BS-VI four-wheeler vehicles.
  • Until now, the petrol or Compressed natural gas (CNG) type vehicles had a light blue colour sticker and a diesel vehicle had an orange colour.
  • These stickers will now have a green strip of 1 cm on top for BS-VI, as mandated.
  • The BS-VI emission standards provided in the country for stricter and cleaner emission norms and are at par with the emission standards being followed across the world.

Extra Shots:

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is a ministry of the Government of India, that is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules, regulations and laws relating to road transport, transport research and in also to increase the mobility and efficiency of the road transport system in India.