Current Affairs -

NATIONAL NEWS

Central government extended the Rs 1.6 Billion aid to Nepal for Rebuilding Earthquake-hit Houses

Financial aid of 1.6 billion Nepalese rupees to Nepal to help 50,000 people in Nuwakot and Gorkha districts rebuild their houses damaged in the devastating earthquake in 2015.
India’s ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri handed over the cheque to Finance Secretary of Nepal Rajan Khanal for the purpose of reconstruction work.
India granted Nepal a total of Rs 4.5 billion Nepalese rupees under the housing reconstruction projects.
India is partnering with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)

About Nepal

Capital: Kathmandu

Currency: Nepalese rupee

Prime minister: KP Sharma Oli

Scientists has discovered a new frog species in the Northeast

Scientists from Delhi University and Wildlife Institute of India in collaboration with researchers from Indonesia and the USA has discovered a new frog species in the Northeast.

Appearance:
The frog is reddish brown in colour. It has prominent dark streaks and ash grey mottling on the lateral sides. Web is absent on its feet.

Microhylid genus:
The frog has been named Micryletta aishani. It belongs to the Microhylid genus. The first known species of the genus was found in Sumatra, Indonesia. At present, the Microhylid genus has only four recognised species that are commonly known as paddy frogs.

ISRO unveiled plan to set up its own space station in seven years

ISRO unveiled plan to set up its own space station in seven years. ISRO is to set up a very small and a separate space station.
It will not be a part of the International Space Station (ISS). The project will be an extension of the Gaganyaan mission, which aims to send an Indian crew to space in 2022.
The weight of the space station will be around 20 tonnes. ISRO’s proposal will be sent to the government for approval by 2022 after the first Gaganyaan mission.
The mission is looking at 5-7 years to execute the programme. The cost of the proposed space station was not disclosed.

Centre reduced rate of contribution under ESI Act

Centre has reduced the employer’s and employee’s contribution under the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) Act. It will be effective from July 1. ESI Act gives insured workers medical benefits among other facilities.

Changes:

The Ministry of Labour and Employment has reduced the total contribution towards ESI from 6.5% of an employee’s wages to 4%. For the employer’s it reduced from 4.7% to 3.25% and the employee’s contribution lowered to 0.75% of wages from 1.75%.
The Ministry said there has been a substantial rise in the number of people being brought under the ESI scheme and the number of people who opted for it.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Education app to help students wishing to study in U.S.

EducationUSA launched an app in collaboration with the United States India Educational Foundation.
The app is available on both Android and iOS platforms for free. The US embassy launched a mobile application that gives comprehensive and latest information about studying in the United States.
The main aim is at students who may not be geographically centred in India
It helps students with information about studying in the country.

Modi, Xi agreed that the approach to the border issue should be constructive

Prmie Minister Modi met the Chinese President Xi Jinping on sidelines of theShanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit. In the meeting both the leaders agreed that the approach to the border issue should be constructive.
Mr. Xi suggested the need for regional cooperation and connectivity. After the Wuhan informal summit, both the countries has expanded their ties. Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor stands as the best example.
The discussion focused on cooperation and accepting differences because of which the relationship between China-India will become a more positive asset and positive energy for promoting the development of the two countries.

India Appreciates ‘Royal Pardon’ to 17 Indians by the Sultan of Oman

On the occasion of Eid ul Fitr, Oman’s Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said granted a royal pardon to 17 Indians serving various jail sentences in Oman.
Indian Embassy in Oman and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar appreciated the merciful gesture of Oman’s Sultan.

Oman:

Capital: Muscat
Currency: Omani rial
Sultan: Qaboos bin Said al Said

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Dell emerged as the most trusted brand in India in 2019: TRA

Dell emerged as the most trusted brand in India in 2019, according to the report of TRA Report 2019.
Around 31% Brand Trust Index (BTI) difference from Dell, an auto brand Jeep attained a dramatic entry in the second spot. LIC and Amazon ranked on third and fourth spots .
Apple and iPhone emerged as India’s fifth most trusted brand. Samsung at the sixth spot and it is top among mobile phones. LG’s televisions are the leader and occupied the 7th position in the list.
The eighth trusted brand rank is held by Aviva Life Insurance. Maruti Suzuki is at the ninth position and is followed by the State Bank of India at tenth place.
The study conducted across 16 Indian cities on 2,315 consumers aged between 21 and 50 years with a minimum annual income of ₹ 2.4 lakh. The categories with the maximum brands are food & beverages and fast moving consumer goods, contributing to 26.8% of the total brands in the listings.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES

PM Kisan Pension Scheme: Farmers’ contribution to be Rs 100 per month

Central government plans to launch a village-level campaign to enroll an additional one crore farmers in Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme over the next 100 days.
The scheme urged States to ensure wider coverage of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojna (PM-Kisan) and pension schemes Currently, there are about 6.92 crore KCC holders.
Around 14.5 crore operational landholdings farmers eligible for an agricultural loan of up to ₹1.6 lakh. Among the major States that have poor KCC penetration are: Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and West Bengal.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

Reckitt Names Pepsico’s Laxman Narasimhan as CEO

British consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser named PepsiCo executive Laxman Narasimhan to succeed Rakesh Kapoor as chief executive officer.
Narasimhan, PepsiCo’s global chief commercial officer, will join Reckitt as CEO-designate and be appointed to the board on July 16. He will become group CEO on September 1.

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

JNU to confer alumni award to Union Ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and S Jaishankar

Executive Council of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) planned to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar with the ‘Distinguished Alumni Award’ on the third convocation of the university. The function is to be held in the month of August.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman studied in the School of Social Sciences and the School of International Studies of the university for her MA and M Phil degrees respectively.
Minister of External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar studied in the School of International Studies where he completed his M Phil and Doctoral research with the specialisation in nuclear diplomacy.

Eight-year-old Indian girl honoured in UAE for Green efforts

Eight-year-old Indian expat student collected nearly 15,000 kg of paper waste.
Dubai is part of Emirates Environmental Group’s nationwide recycling campaign.
Ms. Tony was honored with Eco Champions of Recycling award for her efforts in keeping the environment clean by collecting paper waste.
Emirates Environmental Group (EEG) reduce the level of projected carbon emissions by at least 73,393 metric tonnes.
Eco-friendly drive three categories – corporations, academic institutions and individuals/families – and the materials that were collected included paper, plastic, glass, cans, mobiles, among other items.
She collected nearly 15,000 kg of paper waste in Gulf’s United Arab Emirate (UAE) as part of a nationwide recycling campaign. She campaigned around her residency area to collect paper, so that it can be recycled.

About United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Capital: Abu Dhabi
Currency: United Arab Emirates Dirhams

Actress Priyanka Chopra to be honoured with humanitarian award by UNICEF

Indian actress Priyanka Chopra with the Danny Kaye Humanitarian Award at the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)Snowflake Ball in the month of December.
The event will be held on December 3 in New York. She is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. She visited Ethiopia last month. She is known for her contribution to social causes. She will raise her voice for children’s education.

About UNICEF

Headquarters: New York, New York, United States
Head: Henrietta H. Fore
Founded: 11 December 1946, New York, New York, United States
Executive director: Henrietta H. Fore

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Study says every individual ingest 5g of microscopic plastic particles every week

Researchers said that the people could be ingesting 5g of microscopic plastic particles every week. Micro plastics are tiny plastics pieces ranging from 5 millimetres down to 100 nanometres in diameter.

Micro plastics in food:

Micro plastics enter our body through marine source, non-marine source and sometimes indoor dust.
The consumption happens mostly from tap and bottled water, nearly invisible bits of polymer were also found in canned fish, shellfish, beer and salt.

SPORTS NEWS

Indian team for Senior Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships announced

Gymnastics Federation of India announced the Indian team for the Senior Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships. It is to be held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia from June 19 to 22.
The four men and four women senior gymnasts selected for the prestigious tournament after Sports Authority of India (SAI) agreed to GFI’s proposal of holding open trials at IG Stadium.
Men team comprises Rakesh Kumar Patra (rings and parallel bars), Yogeshwar Singh (floor and vault), Debang Dey (pommel horse) and Arik Dey (horizontal bar).
Pranati Nayak (vault and beam), Shraddha Talekar (uneven bars), Pranati Das (beam) and Papiya Das (floor) are the women’s team players,.
The Championships will be International debut for Debang Dey in men’s category Papiya Das in women’s section category.
This competition also be extremely important exposure to the Gymnasts prior to the 2019 World Championships. It is the qualifying for the 2020 Olympics.

About Gymnastics in India

Ashish Kumar won the first-ever bronze medal in gymnastics.
Karmakar the Indian gymnast to qualify for a final stage at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Albinism Awareness Day 2019 is observed on 13 June

International Albinism Awareness Day (IAAD) is celebrated on June 13 every year. The day aims to celebrate the human rights of persons with albinism worldwide.

2019 Theme:
The theme for 2019 for the day is “Still Standing Strong”. The theme aims to recognize, celebrate and stand in solidarity with albinism patients around the globe. It is a call for solidarity.

World Blood Donor Day is observed on June 14

The day is celebrated to raise awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products and to thank blood donors.
The theme is – “Blood Donation and Universal Access to Safe Blood Transfusion”.
The main aim is to use as a component of achieving universal health coverage. The theme encourages more people all over the world to become blood donors and donate blood regularly.

OBITUARIES

Famous Poet, lyricist Pazhavila Ramesan passes away

Famous Poet and lyricist Pazhavila Ramesan passed away in Kerala. He was 83 years old.
He was a recipient of Kerala Sahithya Akademi Award and had also penned songs for films like Asamsakalode, Malooty, Uncle Bun, Vasudha and others.

NATIONAL NEWS

Bollywood Badshah to be guest of honor at Indian Film Festival Melbourne

Badshah of Bollywood Shahrukh khan to lead the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne as the chief guest to celebrate ‘courage’ as its central theme.
The Indian Film Festival Melbourne is back for its 10th edition in the cultural city. The IIFM along with the other festival guests and in the company of Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and festival director Mitu Bhowmick Lange.
This event has grown significantly over the past decade and with the extraordinary Shah Rukh Khan. Khan is looking forward to Melbourne to celebrate Indian cinema.
Several actors like Rani Mukerji, Vidya Balan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor have remained a part of the film festival.

India to impose retaliatory tariffs on 29 US goods

Ministry of Commerce has announced to impose retaliatory tariffs on US goods that will be effective from June 16 onwards. The retaliatory tariffs on 29 goods imported from the U.S. The Ministry initially decided to impose tariffs in 2018.
The decision is ahead of the meeting between Modi and Trump on the side lines of the G20 summit in Japan. The move made by the trade ministry was approved by the Ministry of External Affairs.
The tariffs will be applied on $220-290 million worth of goods that are imported from the US, and will have about the same impact as the tariffs imposed by Washington on India in 2018.
Ministry of Finance said that the Commerce ministry will release the official notification of the tariffs before 16 June.

Union Minister Harsh Vardhan condemns violence against doctors in Kolkata

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan condemned the reported incidence of violence against doctors in Kolkata. There are some necessary and important for the doctors to get a safe work environment in all states.
He will take up this matter with the Chief Minister so these kinds of incidents can be avoided. He also urged the doctors to observe and to take essential services to the people are not disrupted. He urged the patients and their caregivers to observe restraint.

About Harsha Vardhan
He is at Ministry of Science & Technology, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Ministry of Earth Sciences.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Turkey rejected USs ultimatum to back down on Russian missile deal

Turkey announced that it will not back down from its decision to buy Russian S-400 missile defence systems despite U.S.’s ultimatum. This has created tension between Ankara and Washington, the NATO allies.
The S-400s are not compatible with NATO’s defence systems. US said it would compromise its F-35s, which Turkey also plans to buy. Turkey has proposed that the allies form a working group to assess the impact of the S-400s, but has yet to receive a response from the United States.

Turkey:

President: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Vice President: Fuat Oktay
Capital: Ankara
Currency: Turkish lira

Chinese President Xi Jinping was conferred with Manas Order of the First Degree

Chinese President Xi Jinping was conferred with Manas Order of the First Degree, the highest national award in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. He was awarded during visit to Kyrgyzstan before the SCO summit.
President Xi said that the honour has fully demonstrated the relationship between both the countries and people. China plan to partner with Kyrgyzstan to deepen traditional friendship between the two countries and also towards pushing forward Kyrgyzstan-China comprehensive strategic partnership for new bilateral achievements.
Kyrgyzstan is hosting 19th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit starting 14 June 2019. SCO is a Eurasian political, economic and security alliance in which China plays an influential role.
The founding member of SCO includes China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. India and Pakistan were admitted to Beijing-based regional security grouping in 2017.

The 16th Asia Media Summit was successfully concluded on 13 June in Cambodia

The 16th Asia Media Summit was concluded on 13 June in Cambodia. The summit called for regulation-making to fight against fake news and cyber-crimes.
The theme of the summit was Media Digitalisation – Focusing on Developing Markets.

16th Asia Media Summit:

The summit was organised by Cambodian Ministry of Information and the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD).
Participants: Around 600 media representatives from 42 countries and regions participated in the two-day summit.

RANKING & INDEX

India ranks 141 in the 2019 Global Peace Index

Iceland topped the Global Peace Index 2019 rankings which was released by Institute for Economics & Peace. Since 2008, Iceland holds the most peaceful country in the world.
India ranked 141 among 163 countries. In 2018, India ranked at 136th among 163 countries. Afghanistan ranked as the least peaceful country in the world. Th has replaced Syria, which is now the second least peaceful.

Top/Bottom 5 countries:

The top five countries in the list are Iceland, New Zealand, Austria, Portugal, and Denmark.
The least 5 peaceful countries in the list are Iraq, Yemen, South Sudan, Syria and Afghanistan (ranked the least) remains the world’s least peaceful counties.

BANKING & FINANCE

SEBI introduced enhanced disclosure guidelines for credit rating agencies

The markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) introduced enhanced disclosure guidelines for credit rating agencies (CRA).
SEBI asked the rating companies to disclose the probability of default for the issuers they rate, troubled by the rater’s track record of detecting defaults or near-defaults.
Since the global financial crisis in 2008, the credibility of the rating agencies has been eroding because of the conflict of interest that arises from the fact that they are paid by the issuers to rate their securities and for their failure to downgrade troubled firms until they are on the verge of bankruptcy.
The recent Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd’s (IL&FS) liquidity crisis among non-bank lenders in India has focused attention again on credit rating agencies.

India’s FDI Inflows during the five fiscal years of the Modi Govt hit to $42 billions

India turned out to be the sub region’s largest recipient receiving foreign direct investments worth $42 billion in 2018. The investment in India billion with strong inflows in manufacturing, communication and financial services.
According to the report, FDI inflows have increased by 3.5% to $54 billion.
India attracted over 77% of the total foreign direct investments ultimately landed up to the South Asian region.
The growth in India in cross-border merger and acquisitions (M&As) reached $33 billion in 2018 from $23 billion a year ago. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka rose to a record level, to $3.6 billion and USD 1.6 billion, respectively, while Pakistan witnessed a 27% decline in investment to USD 2.4 billion, the report read.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Adani Group got its approval for the Carmichael coal mine project in Australia

Adani-led Adani Grouphas got its approvals from the Queensland state government, Australia for the Carmichael coal mine project in Australia.
The plan was approved by the central government in April, 2019. The project aims to ensure energy security for India and create more jobs for Australia.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

YSRs Tammineni Sitaram took charge as Speaker of Andhra Pradesh Assembly

The first session of the 15th Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly as the senior leader of YSR Congress Party Tammineni Sitaram unanimously elected as the Speaker of the Assembly.
Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy congratulated Tammineni appealed to protect the parliamentary democracy.
The 15th Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly’s first session preferred by the government with elected legislators being administered the oath of affirmation.
Protem Speaker S. Appala Naidu conducted the election for the appointment of the Speaker which was proposed by 30 MLAs of YSRCP.

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

Author Amitav Ghosh was conferred the 54th Jnanpith Award

Author Amitav Ghoshwas conferred the 54th Jnanpith Award. He was awarded for his contribution to the enrichment of Indian literature in English at a ceremony.
The award was presented by the former governor of West Bengal Gopalkrishna Gandhi in New Delhi on 13 June. Amitav Ghosh is the first English writer to get this prestigious Jnanpith Award.

Jnanpith Award:

The Jnanpith Award is an Indian literary award. It was instituted in 1961. The award was sponsored by Bharatiya Jnanpith, a literary research organization. It is presented annually by the Bharatiya Jnanpith to an author for their outstanding contribution towards literature.
The award is bestowed only on Indian writers who writes in Indian languages that are included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India and English, with no posthumous conferral.

Akshaya Patra was awarded the BBC World Service Global Champion Award

The Bengaluru-based NGO Akshaya Patra has been awarded the BBC World Service Global Champion Award for the programme. The award is presented at the BBC Food and Farming Awards in Bristol, London.
he award recognises a project or person who is changing the way the world produces, processes, consumes or thinks about food for the better.
Akshaya Patra was selected by an international panel of judges from nominations sent in by the World Service audience around the world. Other projects on the shortlist included UK charity WRAP, and Food 4 Education.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

NASAs OSIRIS REx spacecraft creates new record

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft entered its second orbital phase around asteroid Bennu, called Orbital B on June 12, 2019. It broke its own world record for the closest orbit of a planetary body.
In the Orbital B phase, the maneuver placed the spacecraft in an orbit 680 meters above the surface of asteroid Bennu. The previous record was set by OSIRIS-REx on 31 December, 2018, when the spacecraft flew 1.33 km above the asteroid’s surface during Orbital A phase.

OSIRIS-REx:
The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft was sent to study the asteroid Bennu and return a sample from its surface to Earth. The spacecraft is on a seven-year journey. The sample of a primitive asteroid will help the scientists understand the formation of the Solar System over 4.5 billion years ago.
Sample collection has been scheduled for summer of 2020. The spacecraft is expected to deliver the sample to Earth in September 2023.

SPORTS NEWS

United States claim biggest ever Women’s FIFA World Cup win

United States won the biggest-ever victory in FIFA Women’s World Cup .They defeated Thailand in Group-F match at Reims in France.
Alex Morgan scored five times prior to the three-time winners.Lindsey Horan, Megan Rapinoe, Mallory Pugh and Carli Lloyd were also on the score sheet as the US broke Germany’s record of an 11-nil win over Argentina in 2007.
USA lost just one international game since July 2017 won seven games in a row.They have scored 36 goals in the process in five matches.

Badminton star Lee Chong Wei retires after cancer battle

Cancer-hit badminton star Lee Chong Wei announced his retirement, ending a brilliant career in which he collected a swathe of honours but never won a world or Olympic title.
Lee was ranked first as a singles player for 199 consecutive weeks from 2008 to 2012, but lost six worlds and Olympic Finals

Attend Current Affairs Quiz for the Month of May – 2019 from the link that is provided below.