GK and Current Affairs Updates

NATIONAL:

Cabinet approved the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2019.

• The Union Cabinet approved amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016 through the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2019 on 17 July 2019. The approval will place a greater emphasis on more time-bound resolution and lays down voting rules of the financial creditors.

Amendments:

• The amendments include mandating a deadline for the completion of the resolution process within 330 days, including all litigation and judicial processes. Votes of all financial creditors covered under Section 21(6A) shall be cast in accordance with the decision approved by the highest voting share of financial creditors on present and voting basis. The voting should be more than 50%.

• Another amendment allows for creditors who voted against the majority to receive a minimum liquidation value. This decision would have retrospective effect in cases where the resolution plan has not yet been finalised or has been appealed against. According to the amendment Bill, the resolution plan will be binding on all the stakeholders, including governments, to whom a debt is owed.

INTERNATIONAL:

Palau became the 76th country to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA).

• Palau, an archipelago of more than 500 islands in Oceania, has become 76th signatory country to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA). The agreement was opened for signature during COP22 at Marrakech, Morocco on 15 November 2016.

ISA member countries:

Countries which have signed agreement until now include India, United Kingdom (UK), Japan, France, Australia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), amongst others.

About International Solar Alliance (ISA):

ISA is a group of 122 solar resource-rich nations. It was jointly launched by India and France on November 2015. It is headquartered at campus of National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) in Haryana, India.

The  organisation aims to deploy more than 1,000 gigawatts of solar energy and mobilise over $1,000 billion into solar power by 2030 as per United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

It is expected that the inclusion of United Nation members to ISA will put solar energy in global agenda with universal appeal for developing and deploying solar energy.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS:

GoAir names former Airbus executive Miranda Mills as COO.

• Wadia Group-run budget carrier GoAir on Wednesday said it has hired former Airbus executive Miranda Mills as the Chief Operating Officer (COO). She will be reporting to the airline's Managing Director Jeh Wadia. Before joining GoAir, Mills worked with British aircraft engine maker Rolls-Royce as Chief Digital Officer and Director (Transformation), of the company's civil aviation vertical.

SPORTS:

16-year-old shooter Anish wins gold at ISSF Junior World Cup.

• India's 16-year-old shooter Anish Bhanwala won gold at ISSF Junior World Cup in the men's 25m rapid fire pistol event in Germany on Wednesday. Anish, who won his first ISSF Junior World Cup gold in 2018, finished with 29 points in the final, defeating Russia's Egor Ismakov by six points. India, with eight golds, are currently leading the medal tally.

Indian secured the first spot in the medal tally of Commonwealth Weightlifting Championship.

• Indian team secured the first spot in the medal tally of Commonwealth Weightlifting Championship 2019 held at Samoa, a country in Oceania. 37 Indian players participated in the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championship in Apia, Samoa. It won 35 medals including 22 golds, 10 silvers and 3 bronze medals in the youth, junior, and senior categories.

India also broke a total of 22 records in all 3 age groups in World, Asian, Commonwealth and National level as well as set a new junior record at Commonwealth and National level.

Top wins of India:

Mirabai Chanu  won gold in women’s 49 kg with a total lift of 191 kg. She is gold medalist at 2018 Commonwealth Games and 2018 Khel Ratna awardee.

Jeremy Lalrinnunga  competing in 67 kg male event broke a youth world record with lift of 136 kg in snatch. This same lift also set new youth record at Asian,

Jhilli Dalabehera  won gold in women’s 45kg event. She set 6 records with a clean and jerk lift of 94 kg and total lift of 164 kg at Commonwealth (Senior and Junior) and Junior National level.

Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports:

Founded on: 1982 as Asian Games

Renamed in: 1985 as Department of Youth Affairs & Sports, became Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in 2000

Headquarters: New Delhi, India

Minister responsible: Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State (Independent Charge)

The Ministry administers the Department of youth affairs and Department of Sports in India.

NATIONAL:

The Lok Sabha passed the Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2019

• The Lok Sabha  passed the Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2019. The Bill aimed at establishing a Central University and Tribal University in Andhra Pradesh on July 12.

• The  government has allotted Rs.450 crore for the central university and Rs.420 crore for the central tribal university for offer research facilities in the fields of art, culture and technology to the tribal population.

Aim:

The Bill seeks to amend the Central Universities Act, 2009. It aims to Provide  higher educational and research facilities in tribal art, culture, and customs primarily to the tribal population of India. It also aims to provide quality of higher education and also promote avenues of higher education for the people of the state.The Tribal University provide research facilities in tribal art, culture and customs and advancement in technology to the tribal population of India.

First-ever Himalayan States Conclave to be hosted by Uttarakhand on July 28, 2019

• First-ever Himalayan States Conclave hosted by Uttarakhand on July 28, 2019

The main focus on sustainable development of the Indian Himalayan Region.

It will be held at Mussoorie.

• The event will discuss the common issues pertaining to states located in the Himalayan Region The main reasons are environmental protection, Himalayan culture and economic development.

• The administrators, specialists, the conclave host the Chief Ministers of the Himalayan states Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Mizoram and Nagaland.Rajiv Kumar, Vice President of Niti (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog, will also be a part of the conclave.The key points adopted at the Himalayan conclave will be presented as a draft to the Niti Aayog. This will help to frame policies for the region’s development.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY:

HDFC Bank, CSC launch credit card for village entrepreneurs and small traders

• HDFC Bank and Common Services Centres (CSCs) launched a co-branded ‘Small Business Money-Back Credit Card’ For small traders and village-level entrepreneurs (VLEs). The credit card is designed for VLEs and VLE-sourced customers.

• The users give easy access to credit for their day-to-day business expenses, according to a statement.The card launched by HDFC Bank MD Aditya Puri and CSC Chief Dinesh Kumar Tyagi. The personalized cards were handed out to a few women entrepreneurs.CSC as access points for delivery of various services and there are 3.6 lakh such centers operating across the country.

• Around ₹70,000 crore worth of business is transacted through the network of CSCs which apart from providing a platform for essential government and public utility services.It also delivers a range of social welfare schemes, financial services, education and skill development courses, health care, agriculture services and digital literacy.

• They entered into a pact in July 2018 .The bank offers various products and services in remote locations to VLEs enrolled with CSCs.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS:

Coca cola appoints Sarvita Sethi in M&A role

• Global beverages major Coco-Cola announced top-level changes in its India and southwest Asia unit. Sarvita Sethi is appointed as Vice president.

• M&A and New Ventures and Harsh Bhutani as Vice-president finance(CFO).

• About Sarvita Sethi

Sarvita Sethi become the first woman to head the company’s finances for the region, would now be vice-president, merger and acquisitions (M&A) and new ventures, for Coke’s India and Southwest Asia region.Her appointment in a newly created position is of significance.She is responsible for the firm’s crucial incubator, which involves conceptualising, developing and launching new products relevant to the market.

Biswa Bhusan Harichandan is appointed as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh on july 15

• Biswa Bhusan Harichandan is appointed as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh on july 15. Bhusan will take over from ESL Narasimhan, who has served as Governor for Andhra Pradesh since December2009.

BB Harichandran:

He is one of the leaders of the BJP in Odisha. A practising lawyer before coming into politics. Bhusan joined the Bharatiya Jana Sangha in 1971 and became its National Executive Member and its State General Secretary till the formation of Janata Party in 1977. He joined the BJP and was its President for Odisha from 1980 to 1988.

SPORTS:

India is to host the ISSF Combined World Cup from March 15-26, 2020

• India is to host the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Combined World Cup from March 15-26, 2020. The events will be held in New Delhi, India. ISSF finalised and approved the final dates of the events.

• The ISSF Combined World Cup includes events in rifle, pistol and shotgun. In 2020’s event of shooting, the World Cup provides golden platform to hit in Tokyo 2020 Olympics. India has hosted a World Cup in February 2019, which offered Olympic quota places for Tokyo.

• ISSF:

The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) was founded on 1907. It is headquartered atMunich, Germany. The President of ISSF is Vladimir Lisinis. It governs the Olympic Shooting events in rifle, pistol and shotgun disciplines, and of several non-Olympic Shooting sport events.

Vijayveer wins his 3rd gold at Junior Shooting World Cup

• Vijayveer Sidhutook his third gold medal of the ongoing ISSF Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany. He combined with Rajkanwar Singh Sandhu and Adarsh Singh to clinch the men's 25m pistol event. For Adarsh, it was his second gold of the competition.

• India maintained its top spot at the medal standings after day three with 7 gold 7 Silver and 2 Bronze in a total of 16 medals. China is second with 5 Gold 3 Silver and 5 bronze. 

• The day's second medal came in the men's 10m Air Rifle with the trio of Hriday Hazarika, Yash Vardhan and Paarth Makhija winning the team silver with a combined score of 1877.4.It was just 0.4 less than the gold-winning Chinese team's score.

NATIONAL:

Govt plans to set up 4,200 Ayush wellness centres in ongoing fiscal

• Ayush Minister Shripad Yesso Naik informed the Rajya Sabha that 2,500 new centres are planned to be opened within the first four months of the present government.

• The government also provided financial assistance to set up integrated Ayush hospitals in 85 districts across various states, and has plans to add more.

• The government is trying to modernise Ayush hospitals across the country and is increasing the number of doctors. It is also modernising postgraduate AYUSH medical colleges.

• The government provided around Rs 53,000 crore for Ministry of Health and Rs 1,686 crore for Ministry of Ayush for the last fiscal. Standing Committee asked to increase the budget for the Ministry of Ayush.Yadav asked the government to introduce NET like all-India entrance exam for tradition medical education.

INTERNATIONAL:

Alan Turing, who cracked Nazi code to win World War II, to appear on Bank of England note

• Mathematician Alan Turing, whose cracking of a Nazi code helped the Allies to win World War Two but who committed suicide after being convicted for homosexuality, will appear on the Bank of England’s new 50-pound banknote, the BoE said on Monday.

• Turing’s electro-mechanical machine, a forerunner of modern computers, unraveled the Enigma code used by Nazi Germany and helped give the Allies an advantage in the naval struggle for control of the Atlantic.

• His work at Bletchley Park, Britain’s wartime code-breaking centre, was credited with shortening the war and saving many thousands of lives.

• But he was stripped of his job and chemically castrated after being convicted of gross indecency in 1952 for having sex with a man. Homosexual sex was illegal in Britain until 1967.

World Bank planned to offer $250 million to

• World Bank would offer a credit of $250 million to the Kerala Government for the Resilient Kerala venture.

• The primary point is at improving the state's versatility against the effects of catastrophic events and environmental change in the wake of a year ago's floods.

• The World Bank as of late marked a $250 million credit consent to help Kerala upgrade its flexibility against catastrophic events and environmental change.Kerala

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY:

RBI imposed fine on SBI and Union Bank of India for violating certain regulatory guidelines

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed fine on State Bank of India (SBI) and Union Bank of India for violating certain regulatory guidelines.

Fine on SBI:

RBI fined Rs.7 crore as SBI did not comply with the directions issued by the RBI on Income Recognition and Asset Classification (IRAC) norms, code of conduct for opening and operating current accounts and reporting of data on Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC), and fraud risk management and classification and reporting of frauds.

• The central Bank held the reference to its financial position as on March 31, 2017 which revealed that the lender had violated those norms.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION:

FanMojo appointed Prithvi Shaw as its brand ambassador

• FanMojo has appointed Prithvi Shaw as its brand ambassador. FanMojo is a fantasy sports platform and it is owned by mobile tech company U2opia Global.

•  A lot of former as well as current cricketers including Kapil Dev, MS Dhoni, Virat Kholi and Murali Karthik have associated themselves with various Fantasy cricket league.

Prithvi Shaw:

Prithvi Pankaj Shaw is an Indian cricketer and former India national under-19 cricket team captain. His first international appearance was on 4 October 2018. He is the second-youngest Indian cricketer, after Tendulkar, to make a Test century and the youngest Indian to do so on Test debut.

SPORTS:

Sharath Kamal voted IOC Sportsperson of the Year

• Sharath Kamal voted the Sportsperson of the Year in the yearly Indian Oil Sports Conclave.

• Different chosen people were cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara, Grandmaster B Adhiban, hockey player Simranjeet Singh and table tennis player Manika Batra.

About Sharath Kamal:

 Sharath Kamal is an expert table tennis player from Tamil Nadu, India. He was among the five candidates for whom votes were surveyed by more than 60 first class sportspersons utilized with the oil major.

PV Sindhu to spearhead Indian campaign at Indonesia Open Badminton

• PV Sindhu won the Indian campaign at the Indonesia Open Badminton tournament beginning.The tournament took place at Jakarta.

• Sindhu will play her opening game against Japan's Aya Ohori tomorrow. Saina Nehwal will not take part in the tournament.Kidambi Srikanth is placed at 8th position.

 B. Sai Praneeth and HS Prannoy are other Indians seen in action in the Singles.

• Srikanth face Japan's Kenta Nishimoto, Praneeth take on Wong Wing Ki of Hong Kong. Prannoy meet second-seeded Chinese Shi Yuqi.Ashwini Ponnappa, N. Sikki Reddy, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty are among those will figure in the Doubles.

AGREEMENTS AND MOU'S:

Lok Sabha passes bill to strengthen anti-terror agency NIA.

• The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the National Investigation Agency (Amendment) Bill 2019

• The bill had been passed with 278 members voting in its favour and six against it

• It also seeks to strengthen the powers of NIA in cases involving explosives and the responsibility in cases of human trafficking will be given to the investigation agency.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS:

SP leader Neeraj Shekhar resigns as Rajya Sabha member.

• Samajwadi Party leader Neeraj Shekhar on Monday resigned as member of the Rajya Sabha and his resignation was accepted by Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu

• Shekhar, the son of former prime minister Chandra Shekhar, met Naidu and told him he is resigning voluntarily and not under any compulsion

• He had been a member of the Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh since November 26, 2014, and was due to retire on November 25, 2020

Kalraj Mishra appointed Himachal Pradesh Governor.

• Senior BJP leader Kalraj Mishra was Monday appointed as the Governor of Himachal Pradesh

• replacing Acharya Devvrat, who has been transferred and appointed as the Governor of Gujarat.

• the appointments of Mishra and Devvrat will come into effect from the dates they assume charge of their respective offices.

Former leader of opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar has been appointed as the deputy chief minister of Goa.

• Former leader of opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar has been appointed as the deputy chief minister of Goa. He sworn in as DCM on 15 July. He is among the four legislators inducted into the Goa cabinet.

The appointment came days after 10 Congress MLAs in Goa joined the BJP. Mr.Sawant reshuffled the Goa cabinet on 13 July. Three members of the ally, Deputy Chief Minister Vijai Sardesai, Water Resources Minister Vinod Palyekar, Rural Development Minister Jayesh Salgaonkar and Independent MLA and Revenue Minister Rohan Khaunte, were dropped to accommodate the new members to the cabinate. The monsoon session of the Goa state Assembly began on 15 July.

Chandrakant Kavlekar:

Kavlekar is also known as Chandrakant 'Babu' Kavlekar. He is an Indian Politician from the state of Goa. He is a four term member of the Goa Legislative Assembly. On 11 July 2019 he left Indian National Congress and joined Bharatiya Janata Party.

SPORTS:

England win World Cup for first time for hitting more boundaries.

• England  won the World Cup for the first time due to hitting more boundaries after tied scores in World Cup history's first-ever Super Over forced a boundary count-back. The match went into Super Over wherein both the teams scored 15 each after hitting 241 runs apiece in their respective 50 overs. England scored 26 boundaries while New Zealand hit 17.

Sprinter Hima Das wins 3rd international gold.

• Sprinter Hima Das bagged her third international gold in two weeks after winning the women’s 200m event at the Kladno Memorial Athletics Meet in Czech Republic. Das clocked 23.43 seconds to win the event. Muhammed Anas also won gold in the men’s 400m event after clocking 45.21 seconds to finish first.

AWARDS:

SRK to be awarded honorary doctorate at Indian Film Fest of Melbourne.

• Australian University La Trobe will award actor Shah Rukh Khan with an honorary doctorate at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne on August 9. It's the first Australian University to award Khan with an Honorary Doctor of Letters

Padma Shri awardee Raghu Ram receives FRCS of Thailand.

• Popular breast surgeon and Padma Shri awardee P.Raghu Ram bagged with Honorary Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS) of Thailand

The function held at the 44th annual congress of the Royal College in Pattaya

The theme of the function is  “ASEAN collaboration in value-based surgery”.

The highest recognition got by the Institute in recognition of  Raghu Ram’s bold vision coupled with an intense body of work

It paved towards significantly improving the delivery of breast healthcare in India. It helps in the recognition of his contribution in promoting the highest standards of surgical education in India through his association with the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and England.

It was conferred by professor Tanaphon Maipang, the President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Thailand.

Raghu Ram achieved the rare distinction conferred FRCS from six Royal Colleges include London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Ireland, and Thailand & from the American College of Surgeons.

In 1995, he qualified to become a surgeon and he had 24 years of experience.

He also created awareness about the importance of early detection of breast cancer.

About Thailand:

♦ Capital: Bangkok

♦ Prime Minister: Prayut Chan-o-cha

Kaushik Gangulys Bengali film Nagarkirtan bags 4 awards including Best Feature Film at SAARC film festival 2019.

• The 9th edition of the SAARC( South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) festival 2019 in Colombo, Srilanka.

Bengali filmmaker Kaushik Ganguly’s film ‘Nagarkirtan’ won four awards (Best Director’, ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Original Score’) including ‘Best Feature Film’ at the festival.

The Best Actor award bagged to Riddhi Sen.

The Two other Indian films have won awards at the fest.

‘Na Bole Wo Haram’ bagged the ‘Best Short Film’ award directed by Nitish Patankar, while ‘Walking With the Wind’ received the Special Jury award directed by Praveen Morchhale.

About SAARC:

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is an economic and geopolitical organization of eight countries.

They are primarily located in South Asia.

It is established on 8 December 1985.

Main Objectives: To promote and strengthen collective self-reliance among the countries of South Asia to contribute to developing mutual trust, understanding, and appreciation of one another’s a problem.

The member states include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

The Secretariat of the SAARC is in Kathmandu, Nepal

It is established on 16 January 1987.

AGREEMENTS AND MOU’s:

India, US agree to address mutual trade concerns.

• India and the United States have agreed to further grow their economic relationship and address mutual trade concerns.

A US delegation led by Assistant Trade Representative Christopher Wilson held bilateral talks with a team of Indian officials headed by Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce.

The two sides discussed the broad contours of bilateral trade and commercial ties and agreed to continue discussions for achieving mutually beneficial outcomes.

The meeting was aimed at providing a new impetus to bilateral trade and commercial ties. It was in line with the mandate given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump during their meeting at Osaka in Japan last month on the sidelines of the G-20 summit.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS:

BL Santosh appointed BJP’s national general secretary of organisation.

• BJP president Amit Shah Sunday elevated party’s joint general secretary (organisation) B L Santosh as its general secretary (organisation)

• Santosh, an RSS ‘pracharak’ with experience of electoral politics, especially in Karnataka.

• Santosh was the party’s general secretary (organisation) for eight years in Karnataka before he was made a national office bearer in charge of southern states in 2014.

SPORTS:

Williamson registers most runs by a captain in a World Cup edition.

• New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has set the record for most runs by a captain in World Cup history. The 28-year-old took his tally of runs in 2019 World Cup to 549 after opening his account against England in the final on Sunday, breaking the record set by Sri Lanka's Mahela Jayawardene, who aggregated 548 runs in 2007 World Cup.

Mexico wins CONCACAF Gold Cup final.

• Mexico defeated USA to claim their eighth CONCACAF Gold Cup title.

Jonathan Dos Santos scored the winning goal in 73rd min for Mexico in the thrilling final.

The teams met five previous times in the Gold Cup final, but this year’s edition held additional value:

The Americans had a chance to reestablish confidence in a program haunted by its failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

Mexico looked like the more dangerous team in the second half.

They finally broke through in the 73rd minutes.

Jonathan dos Santos scored off a back-heel pass from Raul Jimenez fountains of beer to fly upward in the pro-Mexico crowd.

The Americans created scoring opportunities early one of the positive trends through the tournament.

About CONCACAF

Founded    1963

Region    North America, Central America and the Caribbean(CONCACAF)

Number of teams    16

NATIONAL:

Meghalaya becomes first state to come up with water policy.

• Amid a drought scare in half of India, Meghalaya is all set to become the first state in the country to have a proper water policy.

• The objective of the policy is to recognize water resources as a common pool resource, to provide safe and hygienic water for drinking, domestic and sanitation and livelihood development to all residents of the state.

• It also aims at ensuring protection and conservation of catchment areas of all water sources to prevent degradation of the quantity and quality of water sources and promote principle of 3Rs – reduce, recycle and reuse, besides enhance resilience to disasters and the impacts of climate change.

• Among other things, the draft state water policy which seeks to protect and improve management of water resources while actively involving the community, also states that roof top rainwater harvesting will be made mandatory in all building constructions while traditional water harvesting structures, springs and water bodies will be revived and promoted through programs for repair, renovation and restoration

Chandrayaan 2 launch 2019: India’s first lunar landing mission set for blast off.

• India will launch Chandrayaan-2, the nation’s first lunar landing mission, just days before the 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s first steps on Moon on July 20, 1969.

• Chandrayaan-2 consists of an orbiter, a lander and a rover together referred to as “composite body”.

• 1. Chandrayaan-2 will be launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota on-board GSLV Mk-III on July 15, 2019.

• 2. Chandrayaan-2 will be injected into an Earth parking orbit. A series of manoeuvres will raise its orbit and put it on lunar transfer trajectory. On entering the Moon’s sphere of influence, thrusters will slow it down for lunar capture

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS:

State Bank of India MD Anshula Kant named MD and CFO of World Bank.

• State Bank of India Managing Director (MD) Anshula Kant has been appointed as the MD and Chief Financial Officer of the World Bank Group. Kant is a graduate in Economics Honours from Lady Shri Ram College for Women and holds a masters degree in economics from Delhi School of Economics. The 58-year-old joined SBI as a probationary officer in 1983.

Vikas Swarup appointed Secretary of Overseas Indian Affairs.

• India's current High Commissioner to Canada Vikas Swarup has been appointed as Secretary in the Consular, Passport, Visa and Overseas Indian Affairs division, with effect from August 1. The 1986-batch IFS officer takes over from Sanjiv Arora, who was appointed to the post earlier this year. Swarup is a former spokesperson of the External Affairs Ministry

SPORTS:

Sathiyan, Amalraj win India's 1st ever medal at Australian Open.

• Indian table tennis players G Sathiyan and Anthony Amalraj won India its first-ever medal at the World Tour Platinum Australian Open after claiming the bronze medal in the men's doubles competition on Friday. The duo was beaten 12-14, 9-11, 8-11 by the top-seeded Korean pair of Jeoung Youngsik and Lee Sangsu in the semifinals.

NATIONAL:

ICSI launches UDIN to improve corporate governance

• Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) rolled out an initiative in the form of a Unique Document Identification Number (UDIN)

• The main aim is to pursue a heightened sense of self-governance and strengthen the practicing side of company secretaries.

• UDIN will provide ease of maintaining a register of attestation and certification services. The ICSI functions under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

The second edition of India-Russia Strategic Economic Dialogue 2019 held in New Delhi

• The second India-Russia Strategic Economic Dialogue (IRSED) 2019 held

The function was held in New Delhi.

• Aim: The bilateral cooperation between the two countries.The various fields was chaired by Rajiv Kumar, Vice-Chairman of India’s think tank, National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, and Russia’s Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Timur Maksimov.

• The main areas of cooperation include Development of transport infrastructure and technologies Development of agriculture and agro-Processing sector Small and Medium business support Digital Transformation and Frontier Technologies Cooperation in Trade, Banking, Finance, and Industry Tourism & Connectivity.

INTERNATIONAL:

Airtel Africa has been listed as the third-largest stock on the bourse by market value

• Airtel Africa has been listed as the third-largest stock on the bourse by market value. On 9 June, Nigerian Stock Exchange reported that the Airtel Africa has a 1.36 trillion naira ($4.4 bn) flotation. Airtel Africa operates across 14 African countries.

• The listing comes after Airtel's main rival, South Africa’s MTN, listed its Nigerian unit in Lagos in May in a $6.5 billion float.  South Africa’s MTN is in the second-largest stock on the bourse by market value.

• The shares of Airtel Africa climbed 10% from their listing price of 363 naira after the float went live. The company, owned 68.3% by India’s Bharti Airtel, offered shares in its African unit via a London IPO and dual list in Nigeria.

AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS:

NASA awarded Imaging Xray polarimetry explorer (IXPE) mission to SpaceX

• NASAhas awarded a contract to SpaceX to launch NASA’s Imaging Xray polarimetry explorer (IXPE) mission,a groundbreaking astrophysics mission. The mission aims to uncover the mysteries behind black holes and neutron stars.

The cost estimated for the mission is $50.3 million. The mission plans to launch three space telescopes. These telescopes will be capable of analyzing the polarization of cosmic X-rays. The IXPE mission is expected to be launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in April 2021.

About IXPE:

The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) will get information regarding thepolarization state of light from astrophysical sources. This will provide insight into the X-ray production in objects such as neutron stars and pulsar wind nebulae, as well as stellar and supermassive black holes.

The launch mass of IXPE is 320 kilograms. IXPE will be launched over SpaceX FALCON 9 which is capable of launching 22,800 kilograms to low Earth orbit (LEO).There will also be excess payload capacity at launch.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION:

MN Rao appointed DG of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guard

• The central government appointed M Nageswar Rao, Additional Director of CBI as the Director General of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guard. He will continue to hold the post till superannuation in July 2020.

• He will replace former CBI Chief Alok Verma.The Supreme Court held Rao guilty of Contempt of Court for transferring the investigating officer heading the probe in Muzaffarpur shelter home case in violation of the orders of Apex Court.

NATIONAL:

Govt initiates proposal to establish first National Police University.

• Centre today said it has initiated a proposal to establish the first National Police University in the country.

It will be dedicated to imparting education in policing and internal security.

In a written reply in Lok Sabha the Minister of State for Home Affairs, G. Kishan Reddy said the university will conduct undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate academic programmes in specialized subjects.

He said Gujarat, Rajasthan and Jharkhand have set up dedicated universities for conducting courses in police services and internal security.

Prasar Bharati signs MoU with IIT Kanpur for research collaboration in newly emerging technologies.

• Prasar Bharati and Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur today signed a Memorandum of Understanding for research collaboration in newly emerging technologies and broadcasting-related areas in New Delhi.

• The move is likely to boost research activities in the broadcasting field. Chief Executive Officer of Prasar Bharati Shashi Shekhar Vempati and Director, IIT Kanpur Abhay Karandikar were present at this juncture.

• Direct to mobile broadcasting, Convergence of 5G, Artificial Intelligence Incubation Centre by Prasar Bharati and student internship for students of IIT, Kanpur at Prasar Bharati are among the main areas in the research collaboration.

• Speaking on the occasion, Mr Vempati said, this engagement with IIT, Kanpur on Research and Development and innovation are very important as it is the onus of the largest public broadcaster to actively look to the future, develop and shape the future with emerging technologies.

The MoU will be effective from today and remain in force for a period of five years. The institutes may extend the term in writing through mutual agreement.

AGREEMENTS AND MOU’S:

Homegrown VNL to build digital villages in Vietnam.

• VNL has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Vietnam, to provide solutions for advancing rural connectivity by creating Digital Villages in Vietnam’s underserved areas,” the Gurugram-based company in a statement said.

• The development comes on the back of India’s efforts to provide digital connectivity in CLMV countries namely Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.

The Indian companies are eying the Southeast Asia region for their business expansion with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government sharing strategic ties for developmental initiatives with the countries.

BANKS AND ECONOMICS:

Oriental Bank of Commerce bank cuts MCLR rate upto 10 bps.

• Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) has reduced the marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) by up to 10 basis points (bps) for various tenors. It is effective from 11 July 2019. MCLR for overnight has been reduced to 8.20% from 8.30% and one-month loan tenor has been reduced by 10 bps from 8.35% to 8.25%.

Similarly, MCLR has been decreased by 5 bps for:

1) three-month loan to 8.45%

2) six-month loan to 8.55%

3) one-year tenor loans to 8.65%.

Previosly, the MCLR for three-month, six-month and one-year tenor loans were at 8.50% , 8.60% and 8.70%, respectively.

RBI's announcement:

The move comes after the announcement of RBI's Governor Shaktikanta Das who said that RBI expects faster transmission of the three successive repo rate cuts totalling 75 basis points.

In June the RBI announced 25 bps repo rate cut in the Monetary Policy review. It is expected to reduce still, in the next meeting of the monetary policy committee which is scheduled for 5-9 August.

Other banks reduces MCLR:

The State Bank of India had lowered its MCLR by 5 basis points across all tenors on 9 July 2019.

In June RBI announced rate cut in Monetary Policy review. After the announcement, Bank of Maharashtra, Corporation Bank and IDBI Bank had reduced their MCLR by 5-10 bps in the month of May 2019.

MCLR:

MCLR is abbreviated as Marginal Cost of funds based Lending Rate

MCLR refers to the minimum interest rate of a bank below which it cannot lend, except in some cases allowed by the RBI. MCLR is the reference rate or an internal benchmark set by and for the bank.

Oriental Bank of Commerce:

Founded on: 19 February 1943

Headquarters: Gurugram, India

MD & CEO: Mukesh Kumar Jain

Total assets: ₹237,541.54 crore

The Bank has around 2700 branches and 2621 ATMs across India.  It is one of the promising public sector banks (PSBs) in India.

DAYS:

World Population Day 11 July.

• World Population Day, which seeks to focus attention on the urgency and importance of population issues, was established by the then-Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989, an outgrowth of the interest generated by the Day of Five Billion, which was observed on 11 July 1987.

• This year's World Population Day calls for global attention to the unfinished business of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development. Twenty-five years have passed since that landmark conference, where 179 governments recognized that reproductive health and gender equality are essential for achieving sustainable development.

• In November, UNFPA, together with the governments of Kenya and Denmark, will be convening a high-level conference in Nairobi to accelerate efforts to achieve these unmet goals. On World Population Day, advocates from around the world are calling on leaders, policymakers, grassroots organizers, institutions and others to help make reproductive health and rights a reality for all.

Why Do We Mark International Days?

• International days are occasions to educate the public on issues of concern, to mobilize political will and resources to address global problems, and to celebrate and reinforce achievements of humanity. The existence of international days predates the establishment of the United Nations, but the UN has embraced them as a powerful advocacy tool.

AWARDS:

Smith Nephew's NAVIO Honored at the Economic Times Best Healthcare Brands 2019.

• NAVIO, a robotics-assisted surgery system from Smith & Nephew, a Global medical technology provider, has recently been felicitated at the prestigious 'The Economic Times Best Healthcare Brands 2019' at a glittering ceremony held in the capital of India recently. This coveted and one of the most prestigious awards in India honors brands which have shown robust growth by high customer satisfaction in the healthcare sector. The recognition was based of an extensive research carried out by the Economic Times, the business publication of the Times of India Group.

• NAVIO surgical system has been designed to aid Indian surgeons with implant alignment, ligament balancing and bone preparations which are the key factors for patient satisfaction. While conventional knee replacement surgery is highly successful, incidences of improperly installed replacement parts are not uncommon. To improve outcomes, Indian surgeons are now using the NAVIO robotic-assisted total knee replacement surgery and it has shown to be extremely effective for partial and total knee replacement surgery and resulting in improved functional outcomes for the patient. NAVIO enables the surgeon to fix only the damaged part of the knee to absolute perfection, saving all the other normal structures of the joint.

SPORTS:

Commonwealth C'ships: Rakhi Halder, Davinder Kaur win gold medals on second day.

• Rakhi Halder and Davinder Kaur won a gold medal each in the senior women's section as Indian weightlifters continued their impressive show on the second day of the Commonwealth Championships in Apia Samoa today.

India also won five other gold medals in the junior and youth sections.

The Commonwealth Championships are being held simultaneously together for the youth, junior and senior categories.

Kaur lifted a total of 184kg  to win the women's 59kg gold while Halder clinched the yellow metal with a combined effort of 214kg  in the  64kg category.

On the first day yesterday, India had clinched 8 gold, 3 silver and 2 bronze medals. Former world champion Mirabai Chanu had clinched the gold in women's 49kg with a total lift of 191kg.

NATIONAL:

Shailesh Sadashiv Tinaikar resumed his office as the Force Commander of UNMISS

• Lieutenant General Shailesh Sadashiv Tinaikar has been newly appointed as the Force Commander of the UN mission in South Sudan. He assumed charge in Juba on July 6. The appointment was announced by the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in May.

• Tinaikar:

Tinaikar has a long and distinguished career with the Indian Army spanning over three decades. He graduated from the Indian Military Academy in 1983.  He did his Master of Philosophy (M Phil) in Defence and Strategic Studies from The University of Madras, India. He was awarded in December 2014.

He served in the United Nations Angola Verification Mission III from 1996 to 1997. He served in the United Nations Mission in Sudan from 2008 to 2009. He has served as the Additional Director General of Military Operations at Army Headquarters from 2017 to 2018.

He was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal and the Sena Medal for his Distinguished Service.  India is the second highest troop contributor to UNMISS, as of March 2019. India contributed with 2,337 troops deployed with the mission.

INTERNATIONAL:

Kyriakos Mitsotakis sworn in as the Prime Minister of Greece

• Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Greek conservative leader, sworn in as the Prime Minister of Greece. The election result gave New Democracy an outright majority with 158 seats in the 300-member Greek parliament. He is EU's most indebted member who promised to end a decade of economic crisis.

About Kyriakos:

Kyriakos Mitsotakis,  51 years old, is a Greek politician. He was previously the Leader of the Opposition from 2016 to 2019. He served as the Minister of Administrative Reform from 2013 to 2015. Mitsotakis in his campaign promised further reforms with a focus on fewer taxes, attracting investment and improving the job market.

Greece:

President: Prokopis Pavlopoulos

Prime Minister: Kyriakos Mitsotakis

Capital: Athens

Official language: Greek

Currency: Euro (€) (EUR)

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY:

LinkedIn chooses Ashutosh Gupta as country manager for India

• LinkedIn appointed Ashutosh Gupta as its new country manager for India effective

September 2, 2019. He will replace Mahesh NarayananHe was the country manager for India from January to June 2019.

• Gupta joined LinkedIn as the head of Marketing Solutions (LMS) business in 2013.He moved to Singapore to build LMS’ Online Sales Organisation (OSO) for the Asia Pacific(APAC) and China.He will report to Olivier Legrand, LinkedIn’s Managing Director(MD) for the APAC and he will continue to lead the LMS’s OSO.

• He is an alumnus of IIM-Lucknow and IIT (BHU), Varanasi worked in organizations like Google, Cognizant, and Infosys. The two decades of experience on the internet and IT and software services industriesMicrosoft-owned LinkedIn over 630 million users globally more than 57 million members in India.

AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS:

Gully Boy won NETPAC award in Bucheon film festival

• Film-maker Zoya Akhtar's directorial 'Gully Boy' won the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) Award at the 23rd Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFAN) in South Korea.

• NETPAC Jury Committee, comprised of NETPAC members and film professionals which features newer genres and varied stories of comedy, fantasy and drama

'Gully Boy', features actors Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt, is based on the lives of street rappers.

• The film performed well in the Indian and overseas market.

It will also be screened at the 2019 Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.

Akhtar recently made the Indian film industry proud by joining the list of new members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences that organizes the annual Oscar awards.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION:

Dravid appointed as the Head of Cricket at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru

• Former India captain Rahul Dravid has been appointed as the Head of Cricket at the National Cricket Academy (NCA)in Bengaluru. The appointment was announced and approved by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on 8 July. He is currently the vice-president of India Cements.

Roles and Duties:

Dravid will work closely with the National Head Coaches and Cricket Coaches for India Developmental teams which includes India A, India Under 19, India Under 23 teams, in the identification of key training and development objectives.

He will monitor progress against these objectives for the developmental teams. The role expects him to provide necessary inputs on the same to the Senior Men’s and Women’s Head Coaches.

SPORTS:

MS Dhoni became the only second Indian player to reach the 350-game mark in ODI

• MS Dhoni became the only second Indian player to reach the 350-game mark in One-Day International cricket (ODI). The first Indian to set the record was Sachin Tendulkar.

• MS.Dhoni:

He has been tagged as one of the best finishers in the sport. Dhoni led India from 2007 to 2017. Under Dhoni's captaincy won its second championship in the cricket world cup. He also led India to No. 1 position in the ICC Rankings.

• He is regarded as one of the greatest captains in the world of cricket. MS Dhoni is the only skipper to have won every major ICC tournament. The former Indian captain is also the first wicketkeeper to play in 350 ODI matches.

• He is also the first captain in the world to win three different ICC trophies. Dhoni also led India to a memorable 2013 Champions Trophy triumph in England.

In his more than 14-years of international career, Dhoni has played an integral part in many of India's famous victories.

NATIONAL:

Indian business man becomes first expat in Sharjah to get UAE’s permanent residency.

• UAE-based Indian business tycoon Lalu Samuel has become the first expat in Sharjah to get the gold card permanent residency.

• Unlike the long-term visa of 5-10 years for businessmen and talented individuals, the gold card gives permanent residency of the UAE to the holder.

• The Kingston Group chairman was handed over the gold residence card by Brigadier Arif Al Shamsi, Director-General of residency and foreigners affairs in Sharjah, the Gulf News reported Monday.

About Kingston Group:

• The Kingston Holdings owns one of the largest manufacturing companies in the Middle East that comprises several manufacturing units that process plastic and metal.

Odisha state government implemented the Centres Witness Protection Scheme 2018.

• The Odisha state government implemented the Centre’s Witness Protection Scheme 2018. Naveen Patnaik led Odisha govt. informed the Orissa High Court on 6 July. By this Odisha became the first State to implement the Scheme.

On December 5 2018, Supreme Court has directed all States and Union Territories to endorse the Central scheme on Witness Protection Scheme-2018. It said that the Witness Protection Scheme, 2018 shall be the 'law' under Article 141 and 142 of the Constitution, till the enactment of suitable parliamentary or state legislations on the subject.

Reason for implementation:

The move comes after an informant sought protection for his life and property as he was a witness in a murder case under Kodala police station area in Ganjam district in the Orissa HC. A Single Judge Bench of Justice Biswajit Mohanty directed the petitioner to approach the competent authority in the district concerned for protection under the scheme.

Categories of the Scheme:

Under the scheme, the state govt. included three categories of witnesses as per threat perception.

Category A: This category consists of those cases where threat extends to the life of witness or family members during an investigation, trial or thereafter.

Category B: Cases where the threat extends to safety, reputation or property of the witness or family members during the investigation or trial.

Category C: Cases where the threat is moderate and extends to harassment or intimidation of the witness or family members, reputation or property during investigation, trial or thereafter.

Provisions of the Scheme:

The scheme includes different features including protective measures that ensures that:

♦ protection and Change of identity

♦ the witness and the accused do not come face to face during probe

♦ relocation of witness

♦ confidentiality and preservation of records and recovery of expenses among others

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS:

Hero MotoCorp appoints Rajat Bhargava as head of EV business.

• India's largest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp on Tuesday appointed Rajat Bhargava as the head of its new 'Emerging Mobility' business unit. Hero created the unit to give an impetus to new mobility trends such as Electric Vehicles, the company said. Currently, Bhargava is the Head of Strategy & Performance Transformation and Global Business at the company.

SPORTS:

Vinesh Phogat won gold medal in the 53 kg category at the Grand Prix of Spain 2019.

• India’s top wrestler Vinesh Phogat won her first gold medal after shifting to 53kg category and Divya Kakran claimed the top honours in the 68kg category at the Grand Prix of Spain 2019 at Madrid, Spain. In the championship, India finished second with 130 points in team championship behind Russia which secured 165.

Vinesh defeated Dutch rival Jessica Blaszka at the finals. She is one of India’s medal hopefuls at the 2020 Tokyo Games. She won gold medal at the Jakarta Asian Games. Vinesh had competed in Asian Championship and won bronze. She played in Dan Kolov and won silver respectively in the 53kg category.

Brazil won the Copa America2019 title.

• Brazil won its first Copa America 2019 title since 2007. It defeated Peru and secured 3-1. The team already owns the fifth and ninth Copa América trophy.  The event was hosted by Brazil.

• Everton was named player of the final and also finished as one of the tournament's top scorers with three goals. Dani Alves, Brazil's right-back, was awarded the player of the tournament.

• The last time they won the Copa América was in 1989. Then it played against Uruguay at the Maracanã. Brazil's only other title since 2007 came in the 2013 Confederations Cup

Copa America 2019:

• The 2019 Copa América was the 46th edition of the Copa América, the international men's association football championship. It was founded in 1916.

• It was organized by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. It was held in Brazil and took place between 14 June to 7 July 2019 at 6 venues across the country.

• Uruguay is the Copa América's most successful nation with 15 titles.

Chanu wins gold at Commonwealth Senior Weightlifting C'ship.

• Former world champion Mirabai Chanu won a gold medal on the opening day of the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championship on Tuesday. The Indian contingent won 13 medals that included eight gold, three silver and two bronze medals in senior, junior and youth categories. Mirabai lifted a total of 191kg in the senior women's 49 kg event.