Current Affairs – 7 July,2017 – No-detention policy to go from 2018

NATIONAL

No-detention policy to go from 2018:

    The government has decided to do away with the no-detention policy for students from the next academic session, Union Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey.

    The decision was taken following representation from most of the States as they said the standard of education had deteriorated because of the policy. Under the Right to Education Act, 2009, no child admitted to a school will be held back in any class or expelled till the completion of elementary education covering Classes 1 to 8.

Maharashtra govt expands ambit of loan waiver scheme:

    The Maharashtra government has expanded the ambit of its loan waiver scheme to include even those farmers who had taken loans after 2008.

    Earlier, the scheme, titled Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Sanman Yojana, covered only those farmers who have loan outstanding between April 1, 2012 and June 30, 2016.

    Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis made the announcement during his fortnightly programme ‘Mi Mukhyamantri Boltoy’.

Maharashtra

  • Capital: Mumbai
  • Chief Minister: Devendra Fadnavis
  • Governor: C. Vidyasagar Rao

Dr Mahesh Sharma participates in ‘Second Meeting of BRICS Culture Ministers’:

Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (Independent charge) for Culture and Tourism addressed the “Second Meeting of BRICS Culture Ministers” in Tianjin, China. India has signed bilateral cultural agreements and specific cultural exchange programmes with each of the BRICS countries.

Dr Sharma said that under Cultural Mapping of India Scheme, a web portal launched for collection of online data from artistes for cultural mapping, which will serve as an artist repository. A sub scheme as a National Mission on Cultural Mapping and Roadmap with a Financial Outlay of Rs 469.40 crore for 2017-2018, 2018-2019 & 2019-2020 has been approved under the umbrella of “Kala Sanskrit! Vikas Yojna“.

Garib Nawaz Skill Development Centres to set up in 100 districts of the country:

The Minister of State for Minority Affairs (Independent Charge) & Parliamentary Affairs, Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi announced that Garib Nawaz Skill Development Centres will be established in 100 districts of the country which will effectively ensure employment oriented skill development of youth belonging to Minority communities.

The Minority Affairs Minister also felicitated candidates, belonging to Minority communities, selected in the prestigious civil services examination who got financial assistance under “Nai Udaan” scheme.

India declares itself free from Bird Flu:

    India has declared itself free from Bird Flu (highly pathogenic Avian Influenza – H5N1 and H5N8) and notified it to the World Organisation for Animal Health. The move will help it resume export of poultry products to the countries which had banned trade in such items early this year.

IAAF partners with Odisha government for establishment of high performance academy:

The Odisha government signed an expression of intent (EOI) with the IAAF and the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) for establishment of a high performance academy inside the premises of Kalinga Stadium.

This was the first occasion when the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) partnered with any state government in the country for developing the academy for better training of athletes.

  • IAAF Headquarters: Monte Carlo, Monaco
  • President: Sebastian Coe

Fertiliser subsidy launch in 2018:

    The deadline for the national launch of direct benefit transfers for fertiliser subsidies has been set as January 1, 2018.

    Under DBT system, the subsidy will be provided after the actual sales of the fertilisers where the farmers’ name and Aadhaar based biometric details will be transferred to a central system. This will make rolling out of subsidies easier and will help in organising fertilisers required by the authentic farmers.

7th Pay Commission: Government Notifies Higher Allowances, HRA With Effect From July 1st  

    The government issued notification on higher allowances, including house rent allowance or HRA, under the 7th Pay Commission, on July 6 for its 4.8 million employees and 5.2 million pensioners.

    The higher allowances, as per the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission, were approved by the Union Cabinet on June 28 and come into effect from July 1, 2017.

India’s tough anti-hijacking law comes into force:

The 2016 Anti-Hijacking Act replaces a 1982-vintage law which states that hijackers could be tried for death penalty only in the event of death of hostages, such as flight crew, passengers and security personnel.

In the new 2016 law, the definition has been expanded to include death of “security personnel on board” or “ground support staff” as well. The new law would come into effect after its notification on July 5.

INTERNATIONAL

Indian, Israeli defence firms join hands:

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel, Indian and Israeli companies entered into agreements to bid jointly for defence contracts for the Indian military and locally build the systems under “Make in India”.

    Bharat Forge and Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) have signed an MoU to expand the joint venture that the companies are establishing as part of a February 2017 agreement meant to develop, build, market and manufacture selected air defence systems and light weight special purpose munitions. The new MoU covers the establishment of a maintenance centre for selected advanced air defence systems in Hyderabad in Telangana in India.

    He also visited the Indian cemetery in Haifa, Israel and paid homage to Indian soldiers whose bravery in 1918’s Battle of Haifa is the stuff of legend. As many as 44 Indian soldiers were killed protecting Haifa from the Ottoman Turks in World War I.

Israel

  • Currency: Israeli new shekel
  • Capital: Jerusalem

Italy passed the criminalising torture law:

    Italy’s parliament approved a long-awaited law criminalizing torture, but critics said it had been so heavily watered down that many abuses may still go unpunished.

    The bill, which says torture can by punished by up to 12 years in prison, was backed by the ruling Democratic Party (PD) and opposed by the center-right opposition which said it would make it harder for the police and military to do their job.

  • Italy Currency & Capital: Euro & Rome
  • Italy Prime Minister: Paolo Gentiloni

India is 4th largest investor into UK:

    India has slipped by one spot to become the fourth-largest foreign investor into the UK and US remains on the top, investing in 577 projects in the UK, with China (including Hong Kong) remaining in second place with 160 projects. France overtakes India to 3rd largest investor into UK.

Also, India shares the fourth spot with Australia and New Zealand which also set up 127 projects collectively.

UK

    • Capital & Currency: London & Pound Sterling
    • Prime Minister: Theresa May

BANKING & BUSINESS

EPFO’s buys via ETFs to cross Rs. 45,000 cr:

    The retirement fund body EPFO’s investment in stocks through exchange traded funds (ETFs) would cross the Rs. 45,000-crore mark by the end of this fiscal, said by the Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya.

India ranks 23rd among 165 nations in cyber security index:

    India is ranked a high 23rd out of 165 nations in a global index that measures the commitment of nations across the world to cyber security.

            The second Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) released by the UN telecommunications agency International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

The top 11 most committed countries to cyber security are Singapore, United States, Malaysia, Oman, Estonia, Mauritius, Australia, Georgia, France Canada and Russia.

Indus OS partners with YES Bank to launch OS-integrated UPI platform:

    Indus OS has partnered with YES Bank to launch OS-integrated UPI (Unified Payment Interface) payment platform in India. Users with Indus OS will be able to use this UPI payment platform on SMS/ messaging, dialler interface, and on third party apps like WhatsApp.

  • Yes Bank Headquarters & CEO: Mumbai & Rana Kapoor
  • Bank Tagline: Experience our Expertise

South Indian Bank partners with PFG Forex:

South Indian Bank has tied up with PFG Forex for remittance facility for the benefit of Indian expatriates from Australia. The new facility will leverage the bank to reach the Indian diaspora.

Under this arrangement, NRIs can enjoy cost-effective and fast remittance services using SIB’s Express facility. NRIs can visit the PFG Forex outlets across Australia for remittances to India.

  • South Indian Bank Headquarters & CEO:
  • Thrissur, Kerala 
  • V.G. Mathew

SREI Teams Up With Russian Development Bank to Create $200 Mn IT Fund:

Kolkata-headquartered SREI Infrastructure Finance has signed a MoU with Russia’s Vnesheconombank to create a $200 million IT and Innovation Fund.

This fund will enable SREI and Vnesheconombank to jointly explore investment opportunities in technology companies in Russia, India and other selected regions.

The MoU was signed last month at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in the presence of Prime-Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

  • Russia’s Vnesheconombank Chairman: Sergey  Nikolaevich  Gorkov

Siemens opens first digital factory in Thane:

Siemens opened its first digital factory in Kalwa, Thane. The factory is the first of its kind to be opened in India. It is also the third globally.

The German company hopes to use Mumbai’s digital factory as a showcase to sell a range of plant automation equipment and software to Indian manufacturing units.

RBI Mandates Customers should report fraud in 3 days to avoid losses:

 

    In a major step to protect customers from large financial losses on account of frauds, Reserve Bank of India has capped the customer liability at Rs 25,000 if they report unauthorised transactions within 7 working days.

    RBI said customers can’t be made liable at all if they notify the bank within 3 working days of the transaction. These rules will be applicable for third party breach where the deficiency lies neither with the bank nor with the customer but lies elsewhere in the system.

Canara, HSBC, Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance ties up with Dhanlaxmi Bank:

    Private life insurance company Canara, HSBC, Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance, has entered into an alliance with Dhanlaxmi Bank. All the life insurance products of Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance would be made available to customers of Dhanlaxmi Bank and would be sold by the licensed staff of the bank.

  • Dhanlaxmi Bank Headquarters : Thrissur
  • CEO:  G.Sreeram

RBI allows NBFCs to offer new pension scheme:

    The Reserve Bank of India has allowed systematically important Non Banking Finance Companies (NBFC) to sell and market the New Pension Scheme (NPS).

    NBFCs with asset size of Rs. 500 crore and above that have made a net profit in the preceding financial year be permitted to sell NPS to their clients after registration with the pension regulator.

Reserve Bank of India:

  • Headquarters: Mumbai
  • Governor: Urjit Patel

Bank Unions to observe July 19 as ‘Save public sector banks’ day:

    The United Forum of Bank Unions has decided to observe July 19, the 48th anniversary of nationalisation of major banks, as ‘Save public sector banks’ day.

    The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), comprising nine unions are AIBEA, AIBOC, NCBE, AIBOA, BEFI, INBEF, INBOC, NOBW and NOBO.

India among 5 countries using wastewater for irrigation:

    According to the study published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, India and four other countries such as China, Pakistan, Mexico and Iran account for the most cropland in the world irrigated by dirty wastewater, putting millions of lives at serious health risks.

    India comes after only four other countries (China, Pakistan, Mexico and Iran) in the list.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

Sanjiv Goenka renominated as IIT-Kharagpur:

 

    Sanjiv Goenka has been renominated as the Chairman of IIT Kharagpur’s Board of Governors. Goenka, also the chairman of RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, will be in this role for a period of three years.

Kewal Handa appointed as Non-executive chairman of Union Bank:

    Kewal Handa was today appointed as non-executive chairman of Union Bank of India for the period of 3 years. His appointment was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.

  • Union Bank of India Headquarters : Mumbai
  • CEO: Shri Rajkiran Rai G

Indian Ambassador to Peru appointed New York Consul General:

    India’s Ambassador to Peru Sandeep Chakravorty has been appointed as the head of the Indian consulate in New York.

    The 1996 Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer will replace Riva Ganguly Das as Consul General in one of the busiest Indian diplomatic missions overseas.

Peru

  • Currency: Sol
  • Capital: Lima

Government ethics director resigns:

    The government ethics director who prodded President Donald Trump’s administration over conflicts of interest is resigning to take a new job.

    Walter Shaub, director of the Office of Government Ethics, is joining the Campaign Legal Center, a nonprofit in Washington that mostly focuses on violations of campaign finance law.

USA

  • President of the United States: Donald Trump
  • Currency: United States Dollar
  • Capital: Washington, D.C.

AWARDS

Guruswamy Jayraman awarded Australia’s highest civilian award:

Guruswamy Jayraman, who migrated from Delhi to Australia in 1991, has been awarded Order of Australia for community work, the highest civilian award in Australia.

SPORTS

National aquatics: Karnataka crowned champion

    Rayna Saldanha, Srihari Nataraj ( under-17 boy’s category) adjudged best swimmers. Maharashtra topped the medals tally while Karnataka won the overall championship in the 44th Glenmark junior National aquatic championship, which concluded at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in pune.

    Maharashtra’s Rayna Saldanha was adjudged the best swimmer in the girls’ under-17 category. Compatriot Kenisha Gupta received the same honour in the uner-14 category.

Karnataka

  • Capital: Bengaluru
  • Chief Minister: Siddaramaiah
  • Governor: Vajubhai Vala

Manpreet won gold medal:

    Almost a year after her return, she broke the National record and, the shot putter from Patiala made her Asian Athletics Championships debut a memorable one by winning the country’s first gold medal.

    India’s Vikas Gowda wins bronze medal in men’s discus throw event and Govindan Laxmanan won gold in the 5000 metres at 22nd Asian Athletics Championship in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

India ranked 96th in FIFA World ranking:

    India has moved four places up to the 96th position in the FIFA World ranking which was second best ranking behind 94th rank in 1996.

Asian Athletics Championships: Indian decathlete Jagtar Singh hit by doping scandal

    India’s campaign in the Asian Athletics Championships here has been hit by a doping scandal with leading decathlete Jagtar Singh testing positive for a banned substance.

HISTORIC EVENTS OF THE DAY

July 7: World Chocolate Day

    World Chocolate Day, sometimes referred to as International Chocolate Day is an observance that occurs globally every year on July 7.

    Celebration of the day includes the consumption of chocolate. It has been stated that 7 July 2017 marks 467 years since chocolate was introduced to Europe.

Current Affairs Quiz – 7 July – 2017

 

 

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