exambazaar current affairs jun 2019

www.exambazaar.com/current-affairs

CURRENT AFFAIRS JUNE2019 23-06 TO 29-06 2019

Important Current Affairs for IAS, SSC, Bank, RRB and Other

Government Exams

WITH SYNOPSIS

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https://www.exambazaar.com/current-affairs

Current Affairs Digest Jun 2019


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APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS

23 Jun Trump nominates army veteran Mark Esper as new defence secretary

25 Jun Viral Acharya quits as RBI Deputy Governor six months before end of his term

27 Jun Amitabh Kant gets two year extension as NITI Aayog CEO

27 Jun Arvind Kumar appointed new IB chief, Samant Kumar Goel to head RAW

28 Jun Canara Bank GM Sarada Kumar Hota appointed as National Housing Bank MD

28 Jun Tata Steel Europe says Henrik Adam to replace Hans Fischer as CEO

29 Jun Jony Ive, designer of iPod, Macbook and iPhone quits Apple after 3 decades

29 Jun Ram Vilas Paswan elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha from Bihar

AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

23 Jun Sports Pankaj Advani wins Asian Snooker Championship to complete career grand slam

24 Jun Sports Lewis Hamilton wins French Grand Prix in Mercedes one-two

24 Jun Sports Roger Federer crushes David Goffin for 10th Halle title

24 Jun Sports Ashleigh Barty moves to No.1 ranking in women's tennis

25 Jun

Science,

Technology,

Environment

Two conservationists from Palakkad win INTACH Awards

26 JunRegional and

StateMysuru station first in South Western Railway to get ISO certificate




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1. National

GOVERNMENT POLICIES & SCHEMES

24 Jun NSIC signs MoU with Commom Service Centres– eGovernance Services India for enhancing new

offerings for the MSME sector

The National Small Industries Corporation signed an MoU with Common Service Centres (CSC) e-

Governance Services India in New Delhi today, for enhancing new offerings for the MSME sector by

synergizing each others' competence.

POINTS TO NOTE

MoU will have special focus on providing services to village level entrepreneurs (VLEs) and would to lead to

exponential growth of Village Entrepreneurs in the country.

The MoU will also enable CSCs to utilize plethora of NSIC offerings through the NSIC portal www.msmemart.com.

25 Jun Government approves Motor Bill; steep penalties for traffic offences proposed

The Bill proposes ₹10,000 fine for not providing way to emergency vehicles, ₹10,000 for driving

despite disqualification and ₹10,000 for drunk driving.

POINTS TO NOTE

The Bill, which was pending for approval in the Rajya Sabha, lapsed after

the term of the 16th Lok Sabha ended.In the area of road safety, stricter provisions have been proposed for offences such as juvenile driving, driving without

licence, rash driving, drunk driving, over-speeding and overloading.

Aggregators violating driving licences will be fined up to ₹1 lakh, as per the provisions in the Bill.

The proposals are based on the recommendations of Transport Ministers from 18 States, which were vetted by the

Standing Committee of Parliament.

The Bill includes penalties in the range of ₹1,000 to ₹2,000 for over-speeding.








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25 Jun National Workshop on Experience Sharing under Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission

The Union Minister of Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare Shri

Narendra Singh Tomar today inaugurated a one day workshop on experience sharing under Shyama

Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission (SPMRM) along with Minister of State for Rural Development Sadhvi

Niranjan Jyoti, Member of Parliament, Robertganj Shri Pakaudi Lal Kol and Secretary, Rural

Development Shri Amarjeet Sinha.

POINTS TO NOTE

Apart from infrastructural development through the mission, the participants informed that it has also helped in

increasing the income of the population through economic activity generation initiatives like Agro – processing,

bakery industries, garments manufacturing, e-rickshaw services, agri-equipment bank.

SPMRM aims to provide well planned basic amenities along with economic development activities. The mission has an

objective for comprehensive development of 300 clusters out of which Integrated Cluster Action Plans for 279 clusters

have been approved.

Total investment in these 279 clusters is estimated at Rs. 26,258 Crores of which Rs. 5,150 crore has already been spent

which includes Rs.800 crore from Critical Gap Funding and the remaining from convergence.

26 Jun Self Defence Training for Girls in Schools under Samagra Shiksha

Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Human Resource Development has

launched Integrated Scheme for School Education i.e. Samagra Shiksha effective from 2018-19. Self

Defence training for girls is an activity under Samagra Shiksha.

POINTS TO NOTE

Keeping in view, the rising number of crimes against girls and women in the country and to ensure safety and security

of girls, Self Defence training is imparted to girls of class VI to XII belonging to Government Schools.

Funds for this purpose are provided for three months @ Rs. 3000/- per school per month for inculcating self-defence

skills including life skill for self-protection and self-development among the girls.

Self-Defence training is also being given in Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs) which are residential schools

meant for girls of class VI to XII and belonging to disadvantaged groups.










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28 Jun Renuka Singh to Launch ‘Go Tribal Campaign’ by Tribes India on 29 July

TRIFED is an organization under Ministry of Tribal Affairs and is engaged in marketing development

of tribal products including tribal art and craft under the brand name “TRIBES INDIA”.

POINTS TO NOTE

The event will cover the following :

1. “Go Tribals Campaign by Tribes India” will be launched under which a number of innovative activities have been

planned to be undertaken to promote use of tribal handicrafts, handicrafts and natural products.

2. Global Launch of “Tribes India” through Amazon Global Selling, under which Tribes India and Amazon Global

Marketing will launch TRIBES India products globally through Amazon.com. With this collaboration, tribal products

shall be available in the US and will help establish export market with tribal products.

3. Collaboration of Tribes India with Central Silk Board for development, promotion, marketing of tribal silk products

and empowerment of tribal weavers.

4. TRIFED joins the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi by introducing Khadi Kurtas and Jackets to

its products range in association with “I Am Khadi” foundation.










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2. International

OTHERS

23 Jun Pakistan failed to complete its action plan on terror financing, says FATF

In June last year, the FATF placed Pakistan on the grey list of countries whose domestic laws are

considered weak to tackle the challenges of money laundering and terrorism financing.

POINTS TO NOTE

The Paris-based global body is working to curb terrorism financing and money laundering and has asked Pakistan to

reassess the operation of banned terrorist outfits in the country.

The FATF "strongly" urges Pakistan to swiftly complete its action plan by October 2019 when the last set of action plan

items are set to expire.

The FATF said Pakistan had taken steps towards improving its AML/CFT (anti-money laundering/combating the

financial terrorism) regime, including the recent development of its terror funding risk assessment addendum.

The FATF asked Pakistan to demonstrate terror funding prosecutions result in effective, proportionate and dissuasive

sanctions and enhancing the capacity and support for prosecutors and the judiciary.

23 Jun Trump nominates army veteran Mark Esper as new defence secretary

The US Senate needs to confirm his nomination before Esper can be sworn in as the Defence

Secretary.

POINTS TO NOTE

The nomination of Esper, who is currently serving as the Secretary of the Army and previously served as a Vice

President for Government Relations at the Raytheon Company, comes days after Patrick Shanahan withdrew his

nomination from the top pentagon position.

His first and most pressing task will be overseeing an expanding presence in the Middle East as tensions with Iran rise

and it appears the President and key members of his national security team are at odds over how to respond to

Tehran.










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23 Jun Sri Lanka extends emergency in surprise move

The emergency can be declared and invoked for a month at a time, and the Sri Lankan parliament

must ratify it within 10 days.

POINTS TO NOTE

The tough laws, granting sweeping powers to police and security forces to arrest and detain suspects, were due to

expire on Saturday.

Just over 100 people, including 10 women, are in custody in connection with April's Easter Sunday suicide attacks

against three churches and three luxury hotels in Colombo.

The continuation of the emergency came as police announced criminal investigations against several top officers,

including the Inspector-General, for negligence and lapses ahead of the bombings.

23 Jun US blacklists 5 Chinese tech firms including huawei and sugon

The five blacklisted organizations placed on the so-called Entity List includes supercomputer maker

Sugon, which is heavily dependent on U.S. suppliers.

POINTS TO NOTE

The other four are the Wuxi Jiangnan Institute of Computing Technology and three Sugon affiliates.

The blacklist effectively bars U.S. firms from selling technology to the Chinese organizations without government

approval. Last month, Commerce last month added telecommunications giant Huawei to it, heightening tensions with

Beijing.

23 Jun Nepalese nationals must have visa to enter India via Pakistan, China

There are 4 million Nepalese working and studying in India, according to the Nepal foreign ministry.

POINTS TO NOTE

Similarly, Nepalese nationals travelling to Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and

Lebanon, are required to acquire No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the respective Nepalese Embassies.

To get the NOC, a traveller is required to submit an application to the respective embassy along with relevant

documents, including employment permit.










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24 Jun Saudi launches residency scheme to boost revenue

The scheme will allow expats to do business without a Saudi sponsor, buy property and sponsor visas

for relatives.

POINTS TO NOTE

The scheme offers a permanent residency for 800,000 riyals ($213,000) and a one-year renewable residency costing

100,000 riyals ($27,000), according to the online portal for registrations.

Analysts say the programme will largely benefit wealthy Arabs who have lived in Saudi Arabia for years without

permanent residency or MNCs seeking to do long-term business .

The move appears to be aimed at boosting non-oil revenue as the kingdom seeks to diversify its economy.

26 Jun NASA Curiosity rover detects high levels of methane on Mars

It is exciting because microbial life is an important source of methane on Earth, but methane can also

be created through interactions between rocks and water.

POINTS TO NOTE

The finding came from the rover's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) tunable laser spectrometer.

Curiosity does not have instruments that can definitively say what the source of the methane is, or even if it is coming

from a local source within Gale Crater or elsewhere on the planet.

The Curiosity team has detected methane many times over the course of the mission.

They have also noted sudden spikes of methane, but the science team knows very little about how long these

transient plumes last or why they are different from the seasonal patterns.

26 Jun SpaceX launches Falcon heavy rocket with 24 experimental satellites

The craft blasted off to cheers from onlookers at 2:30 a.m. (0630 GMT) after a three-hour delay from

the original launch time late on 24th June.

POINTS TO NOTE

The boosters separated safely as the craft began its six-hour mission to deploy the satellites.

The two-side booster rockets returned safely to Earth, landing on adjacent Air Force landing pads, but the rocket’s

center booster missed its mark, crashing in the Atlantic ocean.

The mission, dubbed Space Test Program 2 (STP-2), is the third for the Falcon Heavy rocket, which SpaceX describes as

the most powerful launch system in the world.










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28 Jun Britain adopts 2050 net zero fossil fuel emissions target

Energy and Clean Growth Minister Chris Skidmore signed the order paper enacting the legislation

after it passed both houses of parliament without a vote earlier this week.

POINTS TO NOTE

The deadline is more ambitious than Britain's previous policy of cutting emissions by 80 percent over the same period.

It could cost more than 1.0 trillion Pound (USD 1.3 trillion, 1.1 trillion euros) to cut the 2050 target to net zero.

The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) added the deadline would require the rapid rollout of new policies such as

making all new cars and vans electric by 2035 and quadrupling low-carbon electricity production.

The CCC said there would be a greater than 50-percent chance of limiting the average global temperature rise to 1.5

degrees Celsius, the "safe" limit identified by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, if Britain's move

was replicated across the world.











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28 Jun Indian-American led NGO launches mobile app to locate disabled-friendly buildings in India

A mobile app to find accessible places (for persons with disabilities) is very important in a country like

India, said the NGO.

POINTS TO NOTE

The NGO, Voice of Specially Abled People (VOSAP), announced the launch of mobile app during the United Nations

Conference of State Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities or COSP12, early this week.

During the presentation of the app at the COSP12 conference, the NGO said that it empowers volunteers to be

"change makers", creating demand for accessibility.

Representatives of countries at the UN conference learnt about the app and potential adoption for their citizens with

disabilities.

The US-based NGO has over 8,000 registered volunteers across the world and it plans to expand the concept to other

parts of the world after India.










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3. Regional and State


28 Jun India signs a loan agreement of US$ 250 Million with the World Bank to develop Rajasthan’s roads

The Government of India, Government of Rajasthan and the World Bank today signed a US$ 250

Million Loan Agreement for the Rajasthan State Highways Development Program II Project to build

the State's capacity to better manage its highways and improve traffic flows on selected highways in

State of Rajasthan.

POINTS TO NOTE

The World Bank-supported Project will support the construction, upgradation, improvement and maintenance of 766

kms of state highways and major district roads.

It will also will help build an online project management system and a smartphone application to handle contract

management, data reporting, quality control, etc.

29 Jun Kerala on the verge of grave financial crisis

The Centre has pushed the State government to the brink of a grave financial crisis by effecting a

₹6,000-crore cut in its annual borrowing limit for the current financial year.

POINTS TO NOTE

The decision that is applicable only to Kerala would put the funds-starved government in dire straits and could have a

serious bearing on its routine functions. The State has been facing a resource crunch following a steep fall in revenue

collection and soaring expenditure.

The decision is being construed as a deft political move of the National Democratic Alliance, especially the Bharatiya

Janata Party, to put the Left Democratic Front in the dock ahead of a string of Assembly byelections due soon and the

local body elections scheduled in a year.










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29 Jun Amit Shah moves resolution in Lok Sabha to extend President’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir for 6

months

The Home Minister said since the State assembly has been dissolved and the Election Commission of

India has decided to hold fresh elections in Jammu and Kashmir later this year, it is essential that the

President’s Rule be extended for another six months with effect from July 3, 2019

POINTS TO NOTE

The Lok Sabha also cleared the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2019, to replace an ordinance

issued by the previous government.

With this, people living along the International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir will get the benefit of reservation in

direct recruitment, promotion and admission to professional courses on a par with those living along the Actual Line

of Control (ALoC).

MOU'S / AGREEMENTS

26 Jun World Bank to provide $31.58 million loan for financial systems management project in Uttarakhand

The loan will improve state's ability to manage its financial systems and lead to better utilisation of

development resources.

POINTS TO NOTE

The project will support the state government's initiative to build and modernise technical and financial management

capabilities of its local bodies and state-owned enterprises.

It will help the people of Uttarakhand access more and better quality public services, the project components will

improve capacity in the areas of cash and debt management, planning and budgeting, appraisal and monitoring of

high value projects and public audit.

The project will support measures to improve transparency of budget and procurement information. Using GIS

mapping technologies, it will also strengthen the state's revenue management systems, including that of urban local

bodies.

OTHERS










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26 Jun Mysuru station first in South Western Railway to get ISO certificate

The Railway Board had identified 37 major stations across the country to be developed as ‘Eco Smart’

stations and Mysuru railway station was one of them.

POINTS TO NOTE

This consists of 3 ISO certificates namely ISO:9001 Quality Management System, ISO:14001 Environment Management

System.

Mysuru Railway station has become the first Railway station over South Western Railway and second in India to

receive the IMS certification.

A robust grievance redressal mechanism and a station active website will be the other parameters which will soon be

put in place.

29 Jun University of Berkeley to adopt 100 villages in Meghalaya

The U.S.-based university plans to start a concept of smart villages and address the issue of urban

migration due to environmental issues.

POINTS TO NOTE

There is also a special emphasis on restoration of land in more than 400 villages of the State and added that the

government has linked all livelihood programmes to natural resources and are encouraging people to protect these

natural resources.

At the 2019 Dialogue at Caux, global thought leaders and practitioners will explore how community and individual

actions can reverse degradation leading to peace and stability.










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4. Business and Economy


27 Jun Centre to scrutinise companies that haven't filed online KYC details

The government expected another 1.5 lakh companies to complete filing the KYC forms within the

next month.

POINTS TO NOTE

ACTIVE form requires companies to upload a photograph of the external facade of

their registered office with a board displaying the company name, corporate

identity number, address of the entity, email, geographical location and phone

number.The official said that almost 7 lakh companies out of the 11.5 lakh registered in the country had completed the filings.

28 Jun Rajya Sabha passes bill to amend Special Economic Zones law

The Rajya Sabha on June 27 cleared the Special Economic Zones (Amendment) Bill, 2019, that seeks

to allow trusts to set up units in special economic zones, a day after the Lok Sabha passed the

measure. The Bill will replace the Special Economic Zones (Amendment) Ordinance, 2019,

promulgated in March.

POINTS TO NOTE

The Opposition parties had criticised the government for issuing the ordinance, which allowed trusts to open units in

the SEZs, just days before the general election was announced.

The total investment proposed by these trusts comes to ₹8,000 crore. The government expected $3 billion, or ₹20,000

crore, in investments










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29 Jun Power Ministry plans mass rollout of smart meters to revive utilities

The federal power ministry has begun discussions with manufacturers on supplying the meters,

which improve efficiency by monitoring and transmitting power use data.

POINTS TO NOTE

The federal government is mulling providing subsidies to partially cover the costs, one of the officials said. Preliminary

estimates by the government put the cost for the meters at about 2,000 rupees ($29) apiece.

That’s partly based on an expectation that prices would be lower than a smaller government tender for 5 million smart

meters in 2017 at 2,503 rupees.

29 Jun West Bengal launches free crop insurance scheme for farmers

The crop insurance scheme would be free of cost for the farmers since the government will pay the

full premium.

POINTS TO NOTE

The scheme called BSB is applicable for farmers in 15 districts - Darjeeling, Kalimpong,

Purba Bardhaman, Paschim Bardhaman, Purba Medinipur, Malda, Hooghly,

Nadia, Murshidabad, Cooch Behar, Birbhum, Purulia, Dakshin Dinajpur, North

24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas.All farmers taking loans (granted or applied for) and even those not taking loans can avail of the insurance. The

insurance will be paid in four stages - for any losses suffered during planting, during cultivation, during the period

post-cutting when crops are lying in the field, and for adverse weather situations. The amount will be decided by the

state government and will be calculated per hectare.

MOU'S / AGREEMENTS










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23 Jun India to have a National Electricity Discom, NTPC-Power Grid sign MoU

Move could also usher another round of power distribution reforms such as separation of content

and carriage business.

POINTS TO NOTE

This includes the separation of content and carriage businesses in power distribution, The infrastructure builder for

power supply and the supplier to consumers would be two separate companies.

This would bring more competition in the power distribution sector with more than one power supplier. These

measures have been suggested in the latest amendments to the Electricity Act, 2003, which is yet to be tabled in

Parliament.

26 Jun Dhanuka plan for Orchid gets NCLT nod

The Chennai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved the ₹610 crore

resolution plan submitted by Dhanuka Laboratories for city-based debt-ridden Orchid Pharma.

POINTS TO NOTE

Accord indicated that it was ready to revise its proposal to ₹615 crore, given an opportunity. With the NCLT clearing

the decks for Dhanuka, creditors are expected to get ₹1,116 crore, including resolution plan value of ₹610 crore, cash

in the balance sheet (around ₹330 crore) and fixed deposit money with SBI (₹184 crore).

It may be noted that U.S.-based Ingen Capital LLP quoted ₹1,490 crore in the first attempt of the insolvency process.

The plan, however, came a cropper when the U.S. firm failed to make the committed upfront payment. Ingen Capital’s

resolution plan was approved by the NCLT on September 17, 2018.

27 Jun Reliance Infra bags Rs 7,000-cr Versova-Bandra Sea Link project in Mumbai

Versova-Bandra Sea Link would cut down commute time of Mumbaikars from over 90 minutes to 10

minutes.

POINTS TO NOTE

It is a marquee project with a length of 17.17 km, which is three times the length of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link of 5.6

km. Reliance industries fully geared to deliver the project in 60 months from the

appointed date of June 24, 2019 as per the contract.

Reliance infrastructure had reported a net loss of Rs 3,301 crore for the quarter ended

March 31 on a consolidated basis. The company had recorded a profit of Rs

133.66 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year.On an annual basis, it had incurred a loss of Rs 2,426.82 crore for 2018-19. It had reported a profit of Rs 1,255.50 crore

in 2017-18.










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27 Jun TCS wins deal to digitise daily operations of India's aviation regulator

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has won a mandate from India’s civil aviation regulator Directorate

General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to digitize its daily operations.

POINTS TO NOTE

The aviation regulator had called for the purpose in 2018. The project envisages online service delivery, automation of

systems, processes at the back-end and implementation of required IT infrastructure and service delivery framework.

For TCS, it is another prestigious government project that it has won after server system for passport services, rural

system for employment program MNREGA, India Post and GST service portal for multiple state governments.

OTHERS

24 Jun Daimler to recall 60,000 Mercedes-Benz GLK 220s in Germany over emissions

Daimler must recall 60,000 Mercedes diesel cars in Germany after regulators found that they were

fitted with software aimed at distorting emissions tests.

POINTS TO NOTE

Volkswagen admitted in 2015 to cheating U.S. emissions tests, the scandal has spread to other carmakers.

Daimler has ordered the recall of 3 million vehicles to fix excess emissions coming

from their diesel engines.Germany's Bild am Sonntag, which first reported the recall on Saturday, had reported in April that the German auto

regulator was looking into suspicious software in the Mercedes-Benz GLK 220 CDI cars

produced between 2012 and 2015, after tests showed they only meet emissions

limits when a certain function is activated.

25 Jun Viral Acharya quits as RBI Deputy Governor six months before end of his term

Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor Viral Acharya has resigned from his position six months

before the end of his term. His move comes a little more than six months after the resignation of Urjit

Patel as the bank’s Governor.

POINTS TO NOTE

In October last, Mr. Acharya created a controversy by strongly alluding to the encroachment on autonomy of the

central bank by the government. One of the tension points he highlighted was the treatment of the RBI reserves.

The RBI now has three Deputy Governors left — N.S. Vishwanathan, B.P. Kanungo and M.K. Jain.










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25 Jun Flipkart's Binny Bansal sells Rs 531 cr-worth stake to Walmart

The latest sell-off, however, is not Binny Bansal's first monetisation of his equity holding in 12-year-

old Flipkart.

POINTS TO NOTE

Though the other co-founder Sachin Bansal exited Flipkart when Walmart bought controlling stake

(77 per cent) in it for a whopping $16 billion on May 9, 2018, Binny stayed on to

lead its management team.Binny Bansal's holding has reduced 0.33 per cent to 3.52 per cent from 3.85 per cent after the current sale proceedings.

26 Jun L and T set to control Mindtree, increases stake to 51%

In March, Mindtree ditched a plan to buy back shares in a bid to counter L&T's hostile takeover

approach.

POINTS TO NOTE

L&T's hostile bid to acquire a controlling stake in Mindtree is the first in India's software services industry and is rare in

India's corporate sector, where unsolicited suitors are usually deterred by founders with large shareholding.

The Mumbai-based construction giant increased its stake in Mindtree to 51 per cent, the channel

reported, adding L and T got over 21 per cent stake through open offer so far.

In March, L and T bought a fifth of Mindtree from coffee baron V G Siddhartha and

companies related to him for Rs 32.69 billion ($474.73 million) and said it

planned to raise its stake to 66 per cent.

28 Jun Nitin Gadkari to Inaugurate International Convention in New Delhi to Mark International Msme Day

The Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises is organizing an international conventionon the

theme “Indian MSMEs, Global Aspirations” in New Delhi to observe the International MSME Day

tomorrow.

POINTS TO NOTE

The Convention has been shaped as a platform for finding business and trade partners and enabling intensive

business discussion, with a specific focus on interaction between international entrepreneurs and selected small and

medium entrepreneurs from India.

The Ministry had organized the first International SME Conventionin April last year, where 160 SMEs from 39 countries

participated in the three-day event and issues of international best practices on SME development and cooperation,

global business opportunities for SMEs, problems faced by women entrepreneurs were discussed.










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28 Jun India beats U.S. at WTO in renewable energy case

In September 2016, India dragged the U.S. to WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism over America’s

domestic content requirements and subsidies provided by eight states in the renewable energy

sector.

POINTS TO NOTE

The panel concluded in its ruling that the measures of the US are inconsistent with certain provisions of the General

Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the World Trade Organisation (WTO) said in a statement on June 27. It said the

U.S. has nullified or impaired benefits accruing to India under that agreement. GATT aims to promote trade by

reducing or eliminating trade barriers like customs duties.

The ruling stated that 10 measures implemented by the U.S. pertaining to renewable energy sector are inconsistent

with its obligations under GATT 1994.










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5. Banking Awareness


25 Jun L and T wins more than Rs 7,000 crore order for building power plant in Bihar

The new project will help improve L&T's capacity utilisation, but the company's orders from the

private sector continue to remain muted.

POINTS TO NOTE

SJVN Thermal is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SJVN, a joint venture of the central and Himachal Pradesh governments.

The exact value of the order is unknown as the company has stopped disclosing the value of its order wins.

L and T said the scope of work includes design, engineering, manufacture, procurement, supply, construction,

erection, testing and commissioning the project on turnkey basis.

27 Jun I-T department to share details of assets, accounts of loan defaulters with banks: CBDT

Central Board of Direct Taxes, that frames policy for the I-T department, has issued an order in this

context to all its field offices.

POINTS TO NOTE

Decision to share details to banks comes in the backdrop of borrowers not disclosing complete assets to lenders to

safeguard them being party of any recovery proceedings.

The move is aimed at preventing promoters from siphoning off assets that are not disclosed to banks and comes close

on the heels of the income tax department and goods and services tax authorities

deciding to share details about taxpayers and defaulters with each other.










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29 Jun All coins, 50 paise and above, are legal tender: RBI

In a statement, the RBI said that it has introduced coins of new designs reflecting various themes —

economic, social and cultural from time to time. As coins remain in circulation, coins of different

designs and shapes circulate at the same time.

POINTS TO NOTE

The central bank has also said that all bank branches have been instructed to accept coins and the central bank will

act against concerned banks for non compliance.

The RBI has come out with a statement following reports that there are doubts in some quarters, regarding the

genuineness of such coins, which has resulted in reluctance on the part of some traders, shopkeepers and members of

the public to accept coins. This has hit free use and circulation of coins in certain pockets of the country.

29 Jun Small savings schemes interest rates lowered by government

The government has reduced the interest rates on small savings schemes such as the Senior Citizen

Savings Scheme, Public Provident Fund, Kisan Vikas Patra and the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana,

according to a notification issued on Friday.

POINTS TO NOTE

The rate for the Kisan Vikas Patra scheme has been modified to 7.6% which will mature in 113 months,

compared with the earlier 7.7% which matured in 112 months. The rate for one, two, and three-year time deposits has

been reduced to 6.9% from 7%, compounded quarterly. The rate for five-year time deposits has been reduced to 7.7%

from 7.8%.

The Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana would now fetch an interest rate of 8.4% compared with 8.5% earlier.

OTHERS








https://www.thehindu.com/



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24 Jun NCLT Mumbai bench has initiated insolvency proceedings against debt-ridden Jet Airways

Jet Airways owes more than Rs 8,000 crore to banks, and thousands of crores more in arrears to

vendors, lessors and employees.

POINTS TO NOTE

Upon initiation of CIRP, the powers of the Board of Directors of the company have been suspended and shall be

exercised by the Interim Resolution Professional.

The airline formally stopped flying on April 17 and banks voted for bankruptcy on June 17.

The bench also instructed the resolution professional to file fortnightly progress report and submit the first such

report on July 5 when it will begin to hear the matter again.

27 Jun ED attaches assets worth over ₹9,000 crore in Sterling Biotech PMLA case

A provisional order of attachment was issued by the Enforecement Directorate under the Prevention

of Money Laundering Act.

POINTS TO NOTE

Among the attached properties are four Nigeria-based oil rigs and an oil field, several ships registered in Panama, an

aircraft registered in the United States and a residential flat in London.

The oil rigs and oil field are in the name of Sterling Energy Exploration Private Co. Limited (SEEPCO), Nigeria. The ships

are held in the name of Atlantic Blue Water Services. Aircraft 200 Gulfstream is in the name of SAIB LLC, all these

companies are controlled by SBL.

Last year, the ED had attached assets worth ₹4,730 crore in the case.

28 Jun Canara Bank GM Sarada Kumar Hota appointed as National Housing Bank MD

The appointment comes 9 months after Sriram Kalyanaraman's forced resignation amid allegations

of irregularities and misconduct against him.

POINTS TO NOTE

In absence of a regular managing director, Dakshita Das, additional secretary in the finance ministry, was holding

additional charge of NHB.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of Hota as the managing director

(MD) of the housing finance regulator for a period of three years.

Prior to this, he served as the managing director of Can Fin Homes, a subsidiary of Canara Bank.










23



6. Science, Technology and Environment


28 Jun Implementation of Law preventing Domestic Violence

The Central Government issues advisories and provides financial assistance and other support of

spreading awareness about this law.

POINTS TO NOTE

As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data which is available up to 2016, a total number of 426 cases in

2014, 461 cases in 2015 and 437 cases in 2016 were registered under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence

Act, 2005.

For effectively creating mass awareness about this law, innovative approaches such as spreading of social/ informative

messages through LPG gas bills in regional languages, television and radio spots, use of creatives for IRCTC and

displays at airport, in metro and on access cards have been undertaken as part of the media campaign by this

Ministry.

OTHERS

25 Jun Two conservationists from Palakkad win INTACH Awards

Aa rice farmer who revived the heirloom Navara rice and an autorickshaw driver who plants trees

daily – has won this year’s prestigious Anirudh Bhargava-INTACH Environmental Award.

POINTS TO NOTE

Rice genome conservator Narayanan Unny from Chittur, Palakkad, won the first place in an all-India competition for

restoring the financial sustainability of rice farming, and particularly of Navara rice, which is used in Ayurveda because

of it medicinal properties.

The second prize was jointly shared by auto-driver Shyam Kumar from Thenkurissi, Palakkad, and Sarang Yadwadkar

from Pune, who has been campaigning against encroachments in rivers. Mr. Shyam Kumar said he had planted 23,000

trees on roadsides over the years.

He carries saplings in his vehicle and plants them for six months, then spends the warm months watering them or

persuading people to care for them. He has 50 bird baths in his house that attract 39 types of birds and has helped

several schools plant trees and set up bird baths.










24



29 Jun Sea levels along Indian coast rose by 1.3 mm/yr during last 40-50 years

Rising sea levels can exacerbate the impacts of coastal hazards such as storm surge, tsunami,

coastal floods, high waves and erosion in the low-lying areas in addition to causing gradual loss of

land to the sea.

POINTS TO NOTE

Choubey was standing-in for Earth Sciences Minister Harsh Vardhan who is in

Japan to attend the G20 Summit.Some parts of the Indian coastline have been facing erosion and river mouths are experiencing deltaic subsidence.










25



7. Defence

23 Jun China, Turkey, Malaysia bail out Pakistan at FATF meet

The FATF charter mandates support of at least three member states to avoid the blacklisting of a

state.

POINTS TO NOTE

Pakistan has been on the global money laundering and terror financing watchdog FATF’s

‘greylist’ since June 2018 after it was placed in the list of terrorist financing and

money laundering risks following a thorough assessment by the Asia Pacific

Group (APG) of the country’s security mechanism and its financial systems. India, the co-chair of the joint group of FATF and the Asia Pacific Group (APG) along with other global powers, has

been pushing for blacklisting of Islamabad as the country has failed to meet international standards in combating

financial crimes and terror financing

Pakistan has not been able to implement the action plan, which was assigned to it by the APG and FATF, deadline of

which ended in January 2019, but was given breather of sorts till May 2019.

25 Jun IAF turns Gwalior Air Base into 'war theatre', reenacts milestones

The 'Missing Man' formation is an aerial salute accorded to honour the fallen comrades-in-arms.

Commemorating 20 years of the Kargil War, the IAF Monday turned the Gwalior airbase virtually into

a theatre of conflict with a dramatic reenactment of some milestones of the 1999 operation.

POINTS TO NOTE

In a symbolic recreation of the Tiger Hill attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Drass-Kargil area, the air force used the Mirage

2000 aircraft and explosives were blown up on a 'model hill' to recreate the crucial events of the war.

The IAF has planned several activities at the air base to commemorate the 20 years of the war and the symbolic

recreation of the Tiger Hill attack was one of them.

Five Mirage 2000, two MiG 21s and one Sukoi 30 MKI were on static display at the base.










26



28 Jun Nuclear-capable missile Prithvi II successfully test-fired

Prithvi-II was also successfully test-fired at night on February 21, 2018 from the ITR at Chandipur.

POINTS TO NOTE

The missile is capable of carrying 500/100 kg of warheads and is powered by liquid propulsion twin engines. The state-

of-the-art missile uses an advanced inertial guidance system with a maneuvering trajectory to hit its target.

The missile was randomly chosen from the production stock and the entire

launch activity was carried out by the SFC of the Army and monitored by the

scientists of the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) as part of

a training exercise.

29 Jun IAF to get upgraded Dornier in July

The air force is set to receive the first of its upgraded Dornier aircraft with an advanced glass cockpit

and new avionics next month after a series of hiccups delayed the project by over a year.

POINTS TO NOTE

The programme came back on track in December with HAL selecting a Genesys (US company) and Reliance Infra

combine for a 300 crore contract to upgrade the aircraft. The project involves upgrading a total of 37 aircraft for the

defence forces.

Competitors for the upgrade included Elbit and SGD engineering from Israel, Ruag aerospace from

Switzerland and SA Airworks from India.










27



8. Sports

23 Jun Provisional ban for Sanjeevini Jadhav

Eight months after her name first cropped up for doping, runner gets suspension from the Athletics

integrity unit.

POINTS TO NOTE

Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), the independent management authority for IAAF’s integrity programmes, announced on

their website on Friday that long-distance runner Sanjeevani Jadhav was now under provisional suspension after

testing positive for Probenecid, a masking agent.

Jadhav had recently been in the news for winning a 10,000m bronze medal at the Asian Athletics Championships in

Doha in April.

She had clocked her personal best at the event. Incidentally, even Gomathi Marimuthu, the gold medallist in the 800m

at the same event, also clocked her personal best and she too was banned for testing positive for an anabolic-

androgenic steroid.

23 Jun Pankaj Advani wins Asian Snooker Championship to complete career grand slam

Having already accomplished it in billiards, Advani had this elusive 15-red Asian Snooker title missing

from his silverware collection.

POINTS TO NOTE

Advani conquered the ACBS Asian Snooker events - 6-red (short format) and 15-red (long format) - along with the IBSF

World Championships in both formats too.

Advani defeated Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon 6-3 in the final to become the only one to win the Asian and World

championships in all formats.










28



24 Jun Lewis Hamilton wins French Grand Prix in Mercedes one-two

Lewis Hamilton extended his championship lead and continued his relentless run of success when he

scorched to an emphatic victory ahead of Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas at the French Grand

Prix.

POINTS TO NOTE

The five-times world champion now has 79 career wins, 12 short of Michael Schumacher’s all-time record with 13 races

remaining this season.

He has 187 points to Bottas’s 151. Mercedes have won all eight races this year as well as the last two of 2018.

Max Verstappen was fourth for Red Bull while Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel moved up from seventh on the grid to fifth

and gained an extra point after pitting on the penultimate lap for fresh tyres to set the fastest lap.

24 Jun Roger Federer crushes David Goffin for 10th Halle title

Federer, 37, beat Goffin 7-6 (7/2), 6-1 to secure his 102nd career singles title and remain unbeaten

on grass so far this season.

POINTS TO NOTE

Rafael Nadal moved to within just two titles of Federer's record with his 12th French Open triumph earlier this month,

while world number one Novak Djokovic is just five short with 15 career majors.

Federer endured a rough ride in the early rounds in Halle, battling to hard-fought, three-set victories over Jo-Wilfried

Tsonga and Roberto Bautista Agut.

24 Jun Ashleigh Barty moves to No.1 ranking in women's tennis

The 23-year-old French Open champion emulates Yvonne Goolagong-Cawley, who held it for a

fortnight in 1976.

POINTS TO NOTE

Barty displaces Japan's Naomi Osaka as women's world number one.

Barty showed little sign of the arm injury the same one she had going into the French Open which saw her pull out of

the doubles on Saturday where coincidentally she was partnering Goerges.

Barty saved two break points early in the first set but she made no mistake when she was offered the opportunity

Goerges putting a backhand wide to give the Australian a 4-2 lead.










29



25 Jun 2026 Winter Olympics will be staged in Milan/Cortina d'Ampezzo

Italy has twice previously hosted the Winter Olympics -- in 1956 in Cortina d'Ampezzo and 2006 in

Turin. The 2026 Winter Olympics will be staged at the Italian venue of Milan/Cortina d'Ampezzo after

beating off a bid from Stockholm.

POINTS TO NOTE

The Games will run from February 6-22 in 2026.

Sweden has only hosted the Summer Olympics, in 1912 in Stockholm.

IOC members gave the Italian bid the nod by 47 votes to 34.

Salvini estimated that the Games will generate five billion euros ($5.69 billion) and create 20,000 jobs.

On the road to the 2026 decision, bids from Calgary, Graz in Austria, Japan's Sapporo and Sion in Switzerland fell by

the wayside, mainly because of concerns over the cost or a lack of popular support.

A bid by the Turkish ski resort of Erzurum was ruled out by the IOC in October 2018.










30



9. People

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS

27 Jun Amitabh Kant gets two year extension as NITI Aayog CEO

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved an extension of Kant's tenure till June 30,

2019, the order issued by the personnel ministry said.

POINTS TO NOTE

Kant, a 1980 batch IAS officer from the Kerala cadre, was appointed CEO of Niti Aayog on February 17, 2016, after his

superannuation as secretary in the then Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).

Kant was initially given a fixed two-year term which was later extended till June 30, 2019.

27 Jun Arvind Kumar appointed new IB chief, Samant Kumar Goel to head RAW

Kumar will take the reins of the internal intelligence agency from Rajiv Jain, while Goel will succeed

Anil K Dhasmana.

POINTS TO NOTE

Kumar is considered an expert on Kashmir, with specialisation in counter-terrorism and is said to have been closely

involved in tackling Left-wing extremism at the IB. He also holds charge as the special director of Kashmir in the

intelligence agency. Kumar will replace Rajiv Jain as IB chief, who completed his tenure of two and half years. Head of all police

organisations, an IB director enjoys a fixed tenure of two years.

Jain, who had completed his two-year tenure in December, was given six months extension because of the general

elections.










31



28 Jun Tata Steel Europe says Henrik Adam to replace Hans Fischer as CEO

Hans Fischer to retire as CEO. Leadership changes come after Tata Steel's plans of a joint venture

with Thyssenkrupp collapsed.

POINTS TO NOTE

Adam joined Tata Steel Europe in 2011 as chief commercial officer, helping it to

transform into a customer-centric organisation, the company said. Before

joining Tata Steel, he held a wide range of roles at Thyssenkrupp. Tata Steel told stock exchanges Fischer will continue to be on the board of TSE as a non-executive director and he will

advise Narendran till September 30, 2019 to ensure a smooth transition of leadership

29 Jun Jony Ive, designer of iPod, Macbook and iPhone quits Apple after 3 decades

British-born Ive joined Apple in 1992 and designed the iPod, iPhone, iPad and Macbook as well as the

iOS software system for Apple devices.

POINTS TO NOTE

Ive will pursue personal projects but also continue to work closely on a range of projects with Apple.

Ive was a key collaborator of the late Steve Jobs at Apple when the company's fortunes were revived with the

development of the iPod and later the IPhone.

In Walter Isaacson's biography, Jobs praised Ive as being his partner in dreaming up devices.

29 Jun Ram Vilas Paswan elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha from Bihar

The certificate of election was given to him in presence of a host of senior NDA leaders including

Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi.

POINTS TO NOTE

The Lok Janshakti Party chief has been elected to the Upper House in a by-poll necessitated by the resignation of his

cabinet colleague Ravi Shankar Prasad who got elected to the Lok sabha from the

Patna Sahib seat in the general elections.This is the second time that Paswan, who began his political career as a Sanyukt Socialist Party MLA in the 1960s, has

been elected to the Rajya Sabha.

OTHERS










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29 Jun Narendra Modi to begin second innings of 'Mann ki baat' from 30th June

On February 24, days before the Lok Sabha elections were announced, he had suspended his

monthly broadcast for March and April.

POINTS TO NOTE

Confident of his return, Modi had said he will be back with the programme on the last

Sunday of May.

The BJP-led NDA returned to power with a massive mandate and Modi was sworn in as the prime

minister on May 30. In his first term, Modi had addressed the nation on 53 occasions

through his monthly broadcast after coming to power in 2014.










33



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