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Important Current Affairs 13th June 2020

National

NHAI goes completely digital

• The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has gone completely digital. It is the first organisation of the construction sector that has been transformed into online portal completely through the Data Lake and Project Management Software.

• The entire NHAI work will now be carried out online amid the C-19 .The online portal will help the NHAI employees in continuing their work without any physical contact.

Madhya Pradesh becomes the top wheat procurer; pumps Rs 25,000 crores to boost farmers

• MP becomes India’s largest wheat procurer in the year 20-21 surpassing Punjab. Rs 25,000 crore introduced to boost farmers.MP also produced the most wheat about 30 million tonnes this year.

Coimbatore becomes Koyampuththoor as TN changes English names of 1,018 places

• The Tamil Nadu government has issued a notification as per the recommendation of an experts committee for changing the names of 1,018 places, including of many important places, in accordance with how they are exactly pronounced in Tamil.

• For instance Coimbatore will be called Koyampuththoor and Ambattur has been re-christened as Ambaththoor. Vellore will be known as Veeloor.

Awards

Indian-American Dr. Rattan Lal awarded with World Food Prize 2020

• Indian-American Dr. Rattan Lal has been awarded with the 2020 World Food Prize for developing a soil centric approach for increasing food production while conserving natural resources and mitigating the climate change.

• Lal has been helping over 500 million small farmers through measures such as improved management, less soil degradation and recycling of nutrients.He will receive USD 250,000 as prize money.

• Lal serves as Distinguished University Professor of Soil Science and founding Director of the Carbon Management and Sequestration Center at The Ohio State University (OSU).

Obituary

Veteran Urdu poet Gulzar Dehlvi passes away

• Veteran Urdu poet, Anand Mohan Zutshi Gulzar Dehlvi passed away. He was the editor of ‘Science ki Duniya’, the only science magazine published in Urdu by the government, which was launched in 1975.

• He is also credited with setting up Urdu schools across India. He was also associated with the freedom movement since the ’30s, when he was in school.

Ranking

FIFA’s latest ranking: India retains 108th slot

• India football team retained its 108th spot in the latest FIFA rankings. While Belgium ranked first and world champion France is in 2nd place and Brazil is at 3rd spot.

• In the wake of the C-19 , the qualifier tournaments have been postponed for the FIFA World Cup and other major games at the international level.

Days

International Albinism Awareness Day 2020

• International Albinism Awareness Day is celebrated worldwide on June 13, 2020. The day aims at creating awareness and acknowledging the multiple forms of discrimination that people with albinism face worldwide.

• Albinism is non-contagious, genetically inherited, rare difference present at birth. This condition results in a lack of pigmentation in skin, hair, and eyes causing vulnerability to the sun and bright light.

• This year’s International Albinism Awareness Day theme is ‘Made to Shine’. The theme has been chosen to celebrate the achievements and successes of people with albinism worldwide.

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Important Current Affairs 12th June 2020

National

Population of Asiatic Lions in Gujarat’s Gir Forests increase by 28.87 percent in five years to 674

• The population of Asiatic Lions in the Gir forest region of Gujarat has witnessed a massive jump of 28.87 percent in the last five years, from 523 in 2015 to 674 in 2020.

• The state forest department conducted an exclusive population estimation exercise called Poonam Avalokan (full-moon night estimation exercise), on the night of June 5 and 6 when there was full moon.

• The population of 674 comprises of 161 males, 260 females, 116 sub-adult lions and 137 cubs. It is the highest growth rate recorded so far.

“Panchvati Yojna” launched in Himachal Pradesh

• Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur has launched “Panchvati Yojana” for the senior citizens of rural areas of the state. Under the “Panchvati Yojana”, state government of Himachal Pradesh will set up parks and gardens in every development block with all the necessary amenities.

• State government is eying to develop 100 such parks in the state in the current financial year.

International

Apple becomes first US company to hit $1.5 trillion market cap

• On 10 June 2020, US based tech-giant Apple Inc’s market capitalization surpassed $1.5 trillion, making it the first U.S. company to reach that mark.

• Market capitalization is the share price multiplied by the number of outstanding shares of the company’s stock, yielding the company’s overall stock market value.

• At a current price of around $352 per share and with roughly 4.3 billion shares outstanding, Apple’s market capitalization is now at around $1.53 trillion.

Banking and Economy

RBI releases Framework for sale of Loan Exposure and Securitization of Standard Assets

The Reserve Bank of India recently released draft framework for “Sale of Loan Exposures” and “Securitization of Standard Assets”.

The guidelines issued are applicable to Scheduled Commercial Banks. This includes All India Financial Institutions such as EXIM Bank, NABARD, Non-Banking Financial Companies.

The Guidelines has proposed Two Capital Measurement approach. This includes Securitisation External Ratings based approach and Securitisation Standardised Approach.

Fitch Ratings Projects Indian economy to grow at 9.5% in FY22

• Fitch Ratings has forecast India’s GDP growth rate of 9.5 percent in the fiscal year 2021-22.

• Earlier, Fitch Ratings had forecast a 5 percent contraction in the GDP in the ongoing financial year 2020-21.

• Further, it estimates that India’s GDP growth is likely to return to higher levels than ‘BBB’ category peers after the global crises.

OECD Projects India’s GDP at -7.3% for FY21 if  strikes again

• The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in its OECD Economic Outlook, has projected India’s economy to contract 7.3 percent in the current fiscal year 2020-21 if there is a second wave of the  () later this year.

• However, OECD expects the economy to contract 3.7 percent during the year 2020 if there is no second wave. Further, for the fiscal year 2021-22, GDP is estimated at 8.1 percent in case of a second wave and at 7.9 percent in other case, i.eno second wave.

Acquisitions and Mergers

Empays partners with Mastercard to enable contactless ATM withdrawals

• Cloud-based payment solutions provider, Empays Payment Systems India has partnered with Mastercard to launch contactless ATM solution in India due to virus.

• Under the partnership, Mastercard will help Empays to launch ‘Cardless ATM powered by Mastercard.

Obituary

Former member of Planning Commission, A. Vaidyanathan passes away

• The former member of the Planning Commission, A. Vaidyanathan passed away. He was a member of the perspective planning division of the Planning Commission from 1962 to 1972.

• He was also a professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies and Centre for Development Studies.

Days

World Day Against Child Labour

• The World Day Against Child Labour is held every year on June 12 to raise awareness and activism to prevent child labour.

• The theme for 2020 is “C-19 – Protect children from child labour now, more than ever”.

• It is an International Labour Organization (ILO)-sanctioned holiday first launched in 2002, and is intended to foster the worldwide movement against child labour in any of its forms.

World Accreditation Day (WAD)

• The World Accreditation Day (WAD) is celebrated every year on 9 June to promote the role of accreditation in trade & economy.

• The theme for WAD 2020 is “Accreditation: Improving Food Safety”.

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Important Current Affairs 8th June 2020

National

India Loses 750 Tigers in Last Eight Years: NTCA Survey

• The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has shared the data related to details of tiger deaths during the eight year period between 2012 and 2019.According to the official data of NTCA, as many as 750 tigers died in the country in the last eight years due to poaching and other causes.

• Of these total tiger mortalities, 369 were due to natural causes, 168 due to poaching, 70 deaths are under scrutiny and 42 due to unnatural reasons, including accident or conflicts events and 101 seizures.

• The data showed that Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of 526 tigers in the country. However, Madhya Pradesh reported the highest tiger deaths during this eight year period at 173, of which, 38 were due to poaching, 94 natural deaths, 19 under scrutiny, six due to the unnatural causes and 16 seizures.

International

Russia declares state of emergency after massive fuel spill in Arctic Circle

• Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a state of emergency on June 4, 2020 after a massive fuel spill in the Arctic Circle. At least 20,000 tonnes of diesel leaked from a power plant in Norilsk last week and spilled into the Ambarnaya River in Siberia, making it turn red.

• Russia has imposed a state of emergency in the region, as emergency workers and maritime clean-up specialists are putting in intensive efforts to clean up the fuel spill.

• The major diesel spill reportedly took place on May 29, 2020 after a fuel tank at a power plant ruptured in the Siberian city of Norilsk. The city is located above the Arctic Circle in north-central Russia.

Summits and Mou’s

MoU between ISRO and ARIES for cooperation in Space Situational Awareness, Astrophysics

• On 4th June 2020, for the cooperation in the Field of Space Situational Awareness(SSA) and Astrophysic, The Indian Space Research Organization(ISRO), Bengaluru signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Aryabhatta Research institute of Observational Science(ARIES).

• R. Umamaheswaran, Scientific Secretary of ISRO from ISRO headquarters and Prof. Dipankar Banerjee, Director of ARIES from ARIES headquarters signed the MoU on the virtual platform.

Awards

Hyderabad airport wins ACI Asia-Pacific Green Airports Platinum Recognition 2020

• The Airports Council International (ACI) Asia-Pacific announced the results of the ACI Asia-Pacific Green Airports Recognition 2020 on 5 June 2020.

• The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA), Hyderabad has received the Platinum award in the 15-35 Million Passengers Per Annum (MPPA) category for its water management practices.

Obituary

Kannada actor Chiranjeevi Sarja passes away

• Kannada actor Chiranjeevi Sarja passed away. He had made his debut with the movie ‘Vayuputra. He has featured in films such as Samhaara, Aadyaa, Khaki, Sinnga, Amma I Love You, Prema Baraha, Dandam Dashagunam and Varadhanayaka among others.

• He was last seen in the Kannada action-drama Shivarjuna.

Days

World Oceans Day

• World Oceans Day is marked annually on the 8 June to celebrate the role of the oceans in our everyday life and inspiring action to protect the ocean and sustainably use marine resources.

• The theme of UN World Oceans Day 2020 is “Innovation for a Sustainable Ocean.”

• World Oceans Day was officially recognised by the United Nations in 2008.

World Brain Tumour Day

• World Tumour Day is observed on June 8 every year to spread awareness about this deadly disease, ensure its early diagnosis, as well as as pay tribute to brain tumour patients and their families.

• The day was first initiated by the German Brain Tumour Association (GBTA) in 2000.

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Important Current Affairs 7th June 2020

National

CSIR and Atal Innovation Mission sign a Letter of Intent to foster Innovation in India

• This partnership will support world class start-ups through CSIR Incubators under AIM initiatives and jointly work on new models of innovation, including setting up of CSIR Innovation Parks.

• It also stimulates innovation and research in the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) industry by CSIR in collaboration with ARISE, an initiative of AIM.

Banking and Economy

HDFC Bank launches ‘Summer Treats’ to meet post  needs of customers

• India’s largest private sector lender HDFC Bank has launched ‘Summer Treats’, to offers a range of products to help meet the changing needs of merchants as well as salaried and self-employed customers.

• As C-19 have changed consumer lifestyles and demands such as work from home and school from home, there have been an increased demand for phones, tablets, computers and related accessories. Similarly, demand for safe digital payments and private transport is also rising as well as the need for business finance has also increased.

• Summer Treats fulfills all such needs by providing a host of exciting offers. The key offers include:

 Exclusive discount for iPhone SE launch, no cost EMI and no down payment for large appliances,

 Discounts and cash back on select brands,

 50% extra reward points on online spends using Credit Cards,

 Exclusive offers on the bank’s lending products and

 Extra rewards on online spends via Debit Card Credit Card or Payzapp.

Awards

India’s Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw named EY World Entrepreneur of the Year 2020

• Indian billionaire entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has been named as the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year 2020 (WEOY).

• She has been emerged as the winner from among a distinguished list of 46 Entrepreneur of the Year (EOY) country award winners from 41 countries and territories.

• Mazumdar-Shaw is the first woman entrepreneur from India and the third Indian to win the title in the award’s 20-year history.

• UdayKotak of Kotak Mahindra Bank (2014) and N R Narayana Murthy, co-founder of Infosys Ltd, (2005) are the other winners from India.

Obituary

Former Governor and Delhi Police Chief VedMarwah passes away at 87

• Ved Marwah who had served as the former Governor of Mizoram, Manipur and Jharkhand has passed away. He was 87.

• Marwah had also served as the Delhi Police Commissioner.He had also penned a book ‘Uncivil Wars: Pathology of Terrorism in India’.

Sports

2022 Women’s Asian Cup will held in India

• India has been awarded the hosting rights of the 2022 Women’s Asian Cup by the Asian Football Confederation. The tournament will held in India for the second time since 1979.

• As hosts, India will get an automatic qualification to the tournament.The tournament has been expanded from the previous slots of eight teams to 12 teams.

Days

World Food Safety Day 2020

• The second World Food Safety Day (WFSD) is observed on 7 June 2020.  The aim of the day is to raise awareness about different foodborne risks and the measures of how to prevent it.

•  According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), this year theme is ‘Food safety, everyone’s businesses.

• The campaigns will also spread awareness that how food safety is very much important and related to different other important factors of life such as human health, economic growth, and many others.

UN Russian Language Day

• The UN Russian Language Day is observed annually on 06 June. It is one of the six official languages used by the United Nations throughout the Organization.

• The day was established by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2010.

• 6 June is chosen as UN Russian Language Day as it coincides with the birthday of Aleksandr Pushkin, a Russian poet who is considered the father of modern Russian language.

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Important Current Affairs 6th June 2020

National

India to donate USD 15 million for Global Vaccine Alliance

• India has pledged to make donation of USD 15 million for GAVI - Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation. The donation was made during the virtual Global Vaccine Summit that was hosted by United Kingdom (UK).

• Prime Minister Modi attended the meeting and mentioned that the huge demand for the vaccine in India will make it cheaper.

Ayush Ministry launches 'My Life, My Yoga' international competition

• The Ministry of Ayush launched the My Life, My Yoga international video-blogging competition on June 5, 2020. The competition invites participation from people across the globe.

• The participants have been asked to post a 3-minute video on their social media accounts by tagging the Ministry of Ayush to participate in the competition.

• The participants can also use the hashtag “My Life, My Yoga” in the comment section on the social media platforms while sharing their video blogs. The winners will be awarded Rs 1 lakh cash prize.

Important Cabinet Approvals

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi held meeting. Following are the major approvals given during the meet:

• Renaming of Kolkata Port as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port. The Kolkata Port is the first Major Port as well as the only riverine port of the country.

• Re-establish Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H) as Subordinate Office under Ministry of AYUSH by merging into it Pharmacopoeia Laboratory for Indian Medicine (PLIM) and Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia Laboratory (HPL)- the two central laboratories established at Ghaziabad since 1975.

• Setting up of an “Empowered Group of Secretaries (EGoS) and Project Development Cells (PDCs) in Ministries/Departments of Government of India for attracting investments in India”. This new mechanism will reinforce India’s vision of becoming a US$ 5 trillion economy by 2024-25.

• Signing the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the Republic of India and the Royal Government of Bhutan on Cooperation in the areas of Environment.

Banking and Economy

RBI creates Payment Infrastructure Development Fund

• The Reserve Bank of India created Payment Infrastructure Development Fund of Rs 500 crores. The apex bank has made an initial contribution of Rs 250 crores towards the funds. The rest of the fund is to come through the card issuing banks.

• The fund has been created to increase point of sale infrastructure and other digital payment infrastructure in the country.

• The funds are being allocated in line with the measures proposed in the vision document on payment and settlement systems in India 2019-21.

• The funds are to be governed through an advisory council. However, the funds will be administered and managed by RBI.

IndusInd Bank Launches India’s First Mobile-based current account opening facility

• IndusInd is the first bank in India to introduce this assisted mobile application based facility which will enable the Bank to open current accounts for self-employed individuals and businesses digitally, in just a few hours.

• The IndusInd app uses multiple ‘Application Programme Interface’ (APIs) and enables secured validation of KYC documents from authorised government platforms such as the Goods and Service Tax (GST), Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL), Import Export Code (IEC) and Aadhaar.

Axis Bank MasterCard and World line launches ‘Soft POS’, first financial payments service

• Axis Bank Ltd, Mastercard India & World line India partnered to launch a digital point-of-sale(POS) solution ‘Soft POS’, the 1st financial payments service in India to transform everyday smartphones into merchant POS terminals.

• Soft POS provides a cost-effective card acceptance solution for all micro-merchants and SMEs in India by eliminating the need to invest in a POS device. The app allows banks to have complete visibility of a merchant’s transactions, which makes it easier for small merchants to get business loans.

• It helps offline merchants and Kirana stores accept payments using their smartphones.Merchants can accept contactless payments directly by their own Android smartphones, this functionality is called “Tap on Phone” which means a cardholder can tap his/her contactless card on the merchant Smartphone with NFC functionality and so encourages social distancing.

• The solution enables merchants to accept payments through various digital form factors which include Bharat QR, sending payment links to customers and accepting Near Field Communication(NFC) based technology payments to boost contactless payments in the country.

Acquisitions and Mergers

Jio-Mubadala deal for 1.85% Stake in Jio Platforms

• Abu Dhabi-based firm, Mubadala Investment Company has recently invested into Reliance Jio Platforms to acquire 1.85 percent stake in the company. Under this deal, Mubadala will be investing Rs 9,093.60 crore into Jio Platforms., the telecom branch of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL).

• The Jio-Mubadala deal awaits regulatory and customary approvals. It is the sixth such deal in last 1.5 months. The other five deals were carried out with Facebook, Silver Lake, General Atlantic, Vista Equity Partners and KKR.

Appointments and Resignations

Brajendra Navnit becomes India’s new ambassador to WTO

• India has appointed Brajendra Navnit as India’s new ambassador to the World Trade Organization (WTO). He is a 1999 batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre. He will be posted at the Permanent Mission of India (PMI) to the WTO in Geneva.

• Navnit, who recently completed his tenure as Joint Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office. He replaces JS Deepak at the PMI, whose two-year extended term ended on May 31.

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Important Current Affairs 4th June 2020

National

Government launches Electronics Manufacturing Scheme 2.0 (Outlay- Rs 50,000 Crore)

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has launched the Electronics Manufacturing Scheme 2.0 with an outlay of Rs. 50,000 crore (approximately USD 7 billion). It includes three sub-schemes.

• The PLI (Production Linked Incentive)Scheme shall extend an incentive of 4% to 6% on incremental sales (over base year) of goods manufactured in India and covered under the target segments, to eligible companies, for a period of five years subsequent to the base year.

• Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS) andThe SPECS(Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors)shall provide financial incentive of 25% on capital expenditure for the identified list of electronic goods, i.e., electronic components, semiconductor/ display fabrication units, Assembly, Test, Marking and Packaging (ATMP) units, specialized sub-assemblies and capital goods for manufacture of aforesaid goods.

• The EMC 2.0 (Modified Electronics Manufacturing Clusters) shall provide support for creation of world class infrastructure along with common facilities and amenities, including Ready Built Factory (RBF) sheds / Plug and Play facilities for attracting major global electronics manufacturers, along with their supply chains.

International

US President Trump invites PM Modi for G7 meet

• US President Donald Trump has invited PM Narendra Modi for the G7 meeting during telephonic conversation held between both the leaders on June 2, 2020.

• PM Modi and President Trump discussed the issue of C-19 , G-7 meeting, Indo-China border and others. The G7 meeting has been rescheduled to September 2020.

India to be re-elected as non-permanent member of UNSC

• India to be soon re-elected as a UNSC non-permanent member. The United Nations Security Council will hold its elections in June 2020 and India is highly expected to win the elections from the Asia Pacific seat.

• India is the sole contender from this region and its name was proposed by all the Asia Pacific member countries.

Banking and Economy

Facebook to acquire 9.9% stake in Jio Platforms via Jaadhu Holdings

• Facebook will acquire this stake in Jio Platforms via a new entity named Jaadhu Holdings LLC. According to a submission made to the Competition Commission of India, Jaadhu Holdings, LLC is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Facebook, Inc.

• Jaadhu is a newly incorporated company formed in March 2020 under the laws of the State of Delaware, US. Jaadhu is not engaged in any business in India or anywhere in the world.

Obituary

NBA Hall Of Famer Wes Unseld Passes Away At 74

• NBA legend Wes Unseld, one of the greatest American professional basketball player,  has passed away at the age of 74.

• Unseld is universally considered as the greatest player in league’s history.

• He led his franchise ‘Washington Wizards’ (the then Baltimore Bullets) to the NBA Championship in 1978.

Appointments and Resignations

Gaitri Kumar appointed India’s next High Commissioner to UK

• Gaitri Kumar has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom.

• She is presently serving as the Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Belgium, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the European Union.

Ex Google CFO Patrick Pichette Appointed as new Chairman of Twitter’s Board

• Twitter Inc has appointed Patrick Pichette, a former chief financial officer (CFO) at Google, as the new chairman of the company’s board.

• It is the first time in Twitter’s history that an outsider will preside over the group. Pichette will replace Omid Kordestani.

Sibi George appointed India’s next Ambassador to Kuwait

• Sibi George has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the State of Kuwait.

• He was presently serving as the Ambassador of India to Switzerland.

V N Datt takes over as C&MD, National Fertilizers Limited

•  Virendra Nath Datt has taken over as the Chairman and Managing Director of National Fertilizers Limited (NFL). Datt has been serving as the Director (Marketing) of the Company since October 2018.

•  As Director (Marketing) at NFL, Datt is credited with sustained growth in fertilizer sale of the company from 43 Lakh MT in 2017-18 to 57 Lakh MT in 2019-20.

Raveesh Kumar becomes new Ambassador of India to Finland

• Raveesh Kumar has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Finland. He is presently serving as the Joint Secretary in the Ministry.

• He is an IFS officer of 1995 batch.

Days

International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression

• International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression is observed globally on 4th June every year. This day affirms the UN’s commitment to guard the rights of children.

•  This day is to acknowledge the pain suffered by children throughout the planet who are the victims of physical, mental and emotional abuse. The main aim of celebrating today is to spread the notice about the pain and sufferings faced by the victims as children.

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Important Current Affairs 1st June 2020

National

Ravi Shankar Prasad launches India’s National AI Portal www.ai.gov.in

• The Union Minister for Electronics and IT, Law and Justice and Communications Ravi Shankar Prasad launched India’s national Artificial Intelligence Portal called www.ai.gov.in, on 30 May 2020, to mark the the first anniversary of the second tenure of the government

• The portal has been jointly developed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and IT Industry. It will be jointly run by National e-Governance Division of Ministry of Electronics and IT and NASSCOM from the IT industry.

• The minister also launched a National Program for the youth, “Responsible AI for Youth”, to give the young students of our country a platform and empower them with appropriate new age tech mind-set, relevant AI skill-sets and access to required AI tool-sets to make them digitally ready for the future.

Banking and Economy

Yes Bank acquires 24.19% stake in Dish TV via pledged shares

• Private sector lender YES Bank has acquired 24.19 percent stake in Dish TV India Ltd, making it the second-largest shareholder in the direct-to-home (DTH) company.

• Yes Bank Ltd has acquired the stakes by invoking pledges against 44.53 equity shares kept as collateral with the private lender for a loan.

Science and Technology

Astronomers confirm the existence of Earth Size Planet at Proxima Centauri

• The researchers found that the Earth-like planet Proxima b is 1.17 times the mass of the Earth which is smaller than the older estimate of 1.3 times. The planet orbits its star in just 11.2 days.

• With the use of state-of-the-art astronomical instruments, it has been informed that Earth-like planet has been orbiting the closest star to our solar system, Proxima Centauri.

NASA Astronauts enters International Space Station in SpaceX’s Crew Dragon

• The SpaceX astronaut mission completed its first journey as the astronauts in the Crew Dragon Capsule entered the International Space Station (ISS) on May 31. Elon Musk’s SpaceX company built the Dragon module that lifted from Florida spaceport on May 30, 2020.

• The spacecraft successfully docked with the orbiting laboratory at 10.16 am ET. Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley then disembarked Crew Dragon and joined the three crew currently onboard the International Space Station which was launched in 1998 and inhabited in 2000.

Obituary

Wajid Khan of Sajid-Wajid Music Composer Duo passes away

• Singer & music composer Wajid Khan passed away. The singer was renowned for his partnership with his brother Sajid and the duo was known as Sajid-Wajid.

• They made their Bollywood debut in 1998 with movie Pyaar Kiya Toh Darna Kya and went on to work in various films such as Garv, TereNaam, Tumko Na Bhool Payenge, Partner and various others.

Sports

Rohit Sharma nominated for Rajiv Gandhi KhelRatna Award 2020

• Rohit Sharma has been nominated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award 2020. Among other nominations, the BCCI nominated Shikhar Dhawan, Deepti Sharma and Ishant Sharma for Arjuna Awards.

• The Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports had sought invitations for the awards from the board. The period of consideration for the nominations is from January 1, 2016- December 31, 2019.

Appointments and Resignations

Power Finance Corporation board Appoints R S Dhillon as CMD

• State-run Power Finance Corporation (PFC) has appointed Ravinder Singh Dhillon as the new Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the company.

• He will succeed incumbent CMD Rajeev Sharma, who is attaining superannuation on May 31, 2020.

• Dhillon’s appointment will be with effect from 01 June 2020, till the date of his superannuation (May 31, 2023) or until further orders.

Arun Singhal Appointed CEO of Food Regulator FSSAI

• Senior bureaucrat Arun Singhal has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of India’s apex food regulator Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). He will succeed GSG Ayyangar.

• The FSSAI comes under the purview of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. It is responsible for setting up standards for the food industry and regulate the manufacturing, storage, distribution, sale, and import of foods.

Anita Kotwani becomes Chief Executive Officer of Carat India

• Anita Kotwani has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of Carat India, a media agency owned by Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN).

• She was earlier serving as the senior vice president, new business and client lead, for The Walt Disney business at Mindshare India.

Days

Global Day of Parents

• The United Nations has proclaimed to observe June 1 ever year as the Global Day of Parents to appreciate all parents in all parts of the world for their selfless commitment to children and their lifelong sacrifice towards nurturing this relationship.

• The theme for Global Day of Parents 2020 is “Appreciate all parents throughout the world”.

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Important Current Affairs 30th May 2020

National

India’s GDP growth slows to 11-year low of 4.2%

• India’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 4.2 per cent in 2019-20 as compared to 6.1 per cent expansion in 2018-19, the slowest growth in GDP in 11 years. The earlier estimate by various arms of the government was 5 per cent growth in ‘19-20.

• The government imposed  on March 25. However, slowing down of business activities across the world in January-March impacted the Indian economy.

• The Reserve Bank had pegged the GDP growth for 2019-20 at 5 per cent as projected by the NSO in its first and second advance estimates released earlier this year in January and February respectively.

Foundation Stone for Missile Park ‘Agneeprastha’ Laid at INS Kalinga, Visakhapatnam

• The foundation stone for setting up a Missile Park named ‘Agneeprastha’ was laid at INS Kalinga, Naval base in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, by Commodore Rajesh Debnath, Commanding Officer Eastern Naval Command (ENC), on 28 May 2020.

• Once completed, the Missile Park will be dedicated to all the officers, sailors and support staff of the INS Kalinga, who have served in this premier naval base of the ENC since its establishment in 1981..

• ‘AGNEEPRASTHA’ will have glimpses of Missile History of INS Kalinga since 1981 till date.A 2 megawatt solar photovoltaic plant was also commissioned at INS Kalinga by Vice Admiral Atul Kumar Jain.

Boycott Chinese products, apps, including TikTok: Sonam Wangchuk

• Educator and innovator Sonam Wangchuk has created a buzz online after his message to boycott Chinese goods went going viral amid the escalating tension at LAC in Ladakh. In an appeal, he urged the countrymen to snub products made in China and uninstall Chinese apps.

• Wangchuk, who inspired Phunsukh Wangdu’s character essayed by Aamir Khan in the film 3 Idiots, recently released a YouTube video titled ‘China Ko Jawaab Sena Degi Bullet Se, Naagrik Dengey Wallet Se‘, explaining how people can help the country in this situation.

International

US President Trump regulates social media platforms under Section 230

• US President Donald Trump recently signed an order to regulate the social media platforms under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA). The move is aimed at defending free speech in the states.

• The order came after Twitter labeled Trump's tweets as misleading. Section 230 is the Internet legislation of the US that paved the way of social media giants like Google, Facebook and Twitter.

Trump says US terminating relationship with World Health Organisation

• Accusing the World Health Organisation (WHO) of being “totally controlled” by China, US President Donald Trump late Friday announced the country will permanently “terminate” its relationship with the organisation and will redirect funds from the WHO to other organisations.

• The Trump administration had on Wednesday taken the significant step of saying it could no longer certify Hong Kong’s autonomy from China, which was promised before the British handed the city back in 1997.

Obituary

Ajit Jogi, the First Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Passes Away

• Ajit Jogi, who served as the first Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, has passed away. He was 74. Ajit Jogi had served as the first CM of the state from November 2000 to November 2003.

• He parted ways with the Congress in 2016 and went on to form the Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J).Before taking over as the CM, Ajit Jogi served as a Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) from Madhya Pradesh.

Renowned Astrologer Bejan Daruwala passes away

• Renowned astrologer Bejan Daruwala passed away on May 29, 2020 in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He was 88.

• Bejan Daruwalla was a world renowned Indian astrologer, who also served as an English professor in Ahmedabad. He was known to be an ardent follower of Lord Ganesha.

• His astrological techniques combined palmistry, western astrology, astrology, tarot reading, the Kabalah and I-Ching.

Appointments and Resignations

NDB elects Brazil’s Marcos Troyjo as its new President

• Marcos Troyjo has been elected as the new president of the New Development Bank (NDB). He is a former deputy economy minister of Brazil and will replace India’s KV Kamath as a president of the multilateral financial institution.

• The Finance Ministry released a statement mentioning that the elections for the post were held in a special meeting of the bank’s board of governors on May 27. The statement also mentioned that India’s Anil Kishora will be the bank’s vice-president and Chief Risk Officer.

Aiman Ezzat becomes new CEO of Capgemini Group

• Aiman Ezzat has become the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of French technology major Capgemini Group.

• He has replaced the presently serving Paul Hermelin who will continue to serve as the Chairman of the Board.

• The appointment of Aiman Ezzat was made at the close of the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders.

Leo Puri to become Chairman of JP Morgan South Asia and South East Asia

• Leo Puri has been announced to become the new Chairman of JP Morgan South Asia and South East Asia. He will replace Kalpana Morparia who will be serving as the chairman until the 1st Quarter of 2021.

• Leo Puri has earlier served as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of UTI Mutual Fund.

Wipro appoints Thierry Delaporte as its new CEO & MD

• Thierry Delaporte has been appointed by the IT major Wipro as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD). He will replace Abidali Neemuch wala as the new CEO and MD of Wipro.

• Abidali Neemuchwala will relinquish his position as CEO and MD on 1st June 2020.

Days

International Everest Day

• International Everest Day is observed on 29 May every year.

• It was on this day in 1953 that Nepalese Tenzing Norgay and New Zealand’s Edmund Hillary had climbed the Mt. Everest, becoming the first humans to achieve the feat.

• The International Everest Day is held since 2008, when the legendary climber Hillary passed away.

World Digestive Health Day

• The American College of Gastroenterology is honored to join the World Gastroenterology Organisation in observing World Digestive Health Day on Friday, May 29, 2020.

• On World Digestive Health Day, ACG joins WGO in its objective to raise global awareness of the gut microbiome.

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Important Current Affairs 21st May 2020

National

Union HRD Ministry launches new mobile app “National Test Abhyas”

• The Ministry of Human Resources Development has launched a new mobile application called “National Test Abhyas”. The application was developed by the National Testing Agency.

• The application is powered by Artificial Intelligence and therefore the students will get instant results after taking the tests. The main aim of the application is to help students during the closure of educational institutions.

Cabinet approval proposal to launch Special Liquidity Scheme for NBFCs & HFCs

• Union Cabinet given approval to the proposal of the Ministry of Finance to launch a new Special Liquidity Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies, NBFCs and Housing Finance Companies, HFCs to improve liquidity position of the NBFCs or HFCs.

• The direct financial implication for the Government is five crore rupees, which may be the equity contribution to the Special Purpose Vehicle, SPV.

Banking and Economy

NABARD issues Rs. 20,500 crore to RRBs & co-operative banks

• The NABARD, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, has issued funds amounting Rs. 20,500 crore for the RRBs (regional rural banks) and co-operative banks for helping the farmers.

• The funding was provided under Rs. 25,000 crore refinance facility that was provided by the Reserve Bank of India to NABARD.

RBI reiterates usage of digital modes for banking transactions

•  The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on May 20, 2020 reiterated the usage of digital modes for banking transactions.

•  The RBI stated that the use of digital payment modes has become more important with the ongoing nationwide.

•  The central bank stated that digital payment modes make it easier for people to do banking transactions while being safe at home and at any hour of the day.

Appointments and Resignations

Dilip Oommen is new President of Indian Steel Association

• Indian Steel Association (ISA) has appointed Dilip Oommen as its new President. He is presently the CEO of Arcelor Mittal Nippon Steel India. He was unanimously appointed as President for the next two years.

• He will replace Tata Steel CEO TV Narendran, who stepped down as President on May 1. Oommen is a veteran of the steel industry with more than 37 years of experience and an alumnus of Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT-K).

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan to assume charge as Chairman of Executive Board of WHO

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan will on May 22, 2020 take charge as the Chairman of the Executive Board of World Health Organization (WHO), succeeding incumbent Japan’s Dr. Hiroki Nakatani, who is the current Chairman of the 34-member board.

Days

International Tea Day

• International Tea Day is observed globally May 21 on the recommendation of India. The purpose of International Tea Day is to try to improve the condition of tea producers and tea workers.

• Tea producing countries make a lot of profit but the condition of the labourers working in the tea plantations is very bad. Therefore, the purpose of International Tea Day is to encourage the status of tea workers, workers’ rights, daily wages, social security, employment security, and health.

World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development

• World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development is observed globally on 21 May every year. The purpose of the day is to deepen the understanding of the values of cultural diversity and to advance the following goals of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions:

a) Achieve a balanced flow of cultural goods and services and increase the mobility of artists and cultural professionals

b) Integrate culture in sustainable development frameworks

c) Promote human rights and fundamental freedoms

d) support sustainable systems of governance for culture.

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Important Current Affairs 16th May 2020

National

Finance Minister announced third Tranche of Rs.20 lakh Economic Package

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the third Tranche of Rs.20 lakh Economic Package on 15 May in New Delhi. On 12 May, Prime Minister Modi announced an Economic relief Package of Rs.20 lakh crore with an aim of making it “AtmaNirbhar” or self-reliant.

Highlights:

• GoI is to create a facilitative legal framework to enable farmers to engage with processors, aggregators, large retailers, exporters in a fair and transparent manner.

• Centre will formulate a law to provide adequate choices to the farmers to sell produce at an attractive price, barrier-free interstate trade, and framework for e-trading of agricultural produce. GoI will implement a Rs.500 crore scheme of infrastructure development related to integrated beekeeping development centres, collection, marketing & storage centres, post-harvest, and value addition facilities. It is expected to lead to an increase in income of 2 lakh bee-keepers.

• The National Medicinal Plants Board will bring an 800-hectare area by developing a corridor of medicinal plants along the banks of river Ganga.

• Centre allocated Rs.4000 crore for the promotion of herbal cultivation. Under this, 10,00,000 hectares will be covered in the next 2 years.

• Government has decided to amend the Essential Commodities Act. It will enable better price realization for farmers and attract investments that will lead to deregulation of prices for cereals, edible oils, oilseeds, pulses, onions, and potatoes.

• Centre also announced the Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund of Rs.15,000crore to support investment in dairy processing.

• Centre announced Rs.4,000crore for promotion of herbal cultivation to bring 10 lakh hectares of land under herbal growing in the next 2 years.

• A total outlay of Rs.13,343crore has been allocated for the National Animal Disease Control Programme for Foot and Mouth Disease and Brucellosis. Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana for the development of marine and inland fisheries will be given Rs.20,000crore. It is expected to generate job opportunities for 55 lakh people.

• All  related deadline extensions relating to fisheries activities which are aimed to help marine and coastal farmers will be undertaken.

• Government is to introduce a Rs.10,000crores scheme for the formalization of Micro Food Enterprises (MFE).

• Government aims to create an Rs.1 lakh croreAgri-Infrastructure Fund for farm gate infrastructure for Indian farmers.

• As an additional step for agriculture during the , Centre has announced an amount more than Rs.74,300crores for Minimum Support Price purchases and Rs.18,700 crore for Kisan fund transfer.

Himachal Chief Minister inaugurates e-udyan portal

• Himachal CM inaugurated the e-udyan portal and IHSMS application developed under World Bank funded Himachal Pradesh Horticulture Development Project for providing services of Department of Horticulture.

• The Management Information System (Integrated Horticulture Sector Management System) has been developed for all G2C services of the Horticulture Department through this portal.

Tribal Affairs Minister launches 'GOAL' programme

• Tribal Affairs Minister ArjunMunda launched the “GOAL" - Going Online As Leaders - programme during a webinar in New Delhi on May 15, 2020.

• The programme is designed to provide mentorship to tribal youth through digital mode.

• The programme aims to act as a catalyst to explore hidden talents of the tribal youth, which will help in their personal development as well as contribute to all-round upliftment of their society.

Banking and Economy

World Bank approves $1 billion social protection package for India

• The World Bank has announced $1 billion social protection package for India. This package will be linked to the programmes launched by the Government of India. Hence, it will support India’s efforts at providing social assistance to the poor and vulnerable households.

• The social protection package for India would be funded in two tranches in the following manner:

 First tranche will be made available as an immediate allocation of $750 million for fiscal year 2020.

 Second tranche would be remaining $250 million that would be made available for fiscal year 2021.

Federal Bank tie-up with MoneyGram for direct-to-bank deposits service

• Federal Bank Limited tie-up with MoneyGram Payment System to offer a cost-effective direct-to-bank account credit option for customers in India.

• This tie-up will help the non-resident Indians with access to modern, low cost, fast, easy and reliable ways for transferring money to India.

• Federal Bank has a 15% share of the country’s remittance market and expects that the tie-up with MoneyGram will give the business a further boost.

Ranking

International tourism to decline 60-80% in 2020

• According to the latest data of the United Nations World Tourism Organization(UNWTO) the international tourism could decline by 60-80% in 2020 when compared with 2019.

• Figures which will result in loss of USD 910 billion to USD 1.2 trillion and places millions of livelihoods at risk and threatens to curtail the progress made in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs).

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