Current Affairs – June 11, 2018

Home , 44th G7 summit, World Hindi Conference, World Hindi Secretariat

S.No Topic Page Number

1 Important Days 2

2 World News 3 - 4

3 National News 5 - 6

4 State News 7 - 8

5 Banking & Economy 9 - 10

6 Sports 11 - 12

7 Awards & Honours 13

8 Appointments & Resignation 14 - 15

9 Science & Technology 16 - 17

10 Obtiuaries 18

Important Days

Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla inaugurated the Green Mizoram Day 2018

 On 11th June 2018, Green Mizoram Day was observed throughout Mizoram.  On this day government employees, students and members of NGOs planted large number of trees.  Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla inaugurated the Green Mizoram Day 2018. The function was attended by cabinet ministers, legislators and senior government officials.  The trees were planted as a part of this event along the Chite River in Aizawl. The Green Mizoram Day is observed every year on 11th June since 1999.

World News

PM Narendra Modi leaves for Chinese city of Qingdao to attend Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit  On June 11, 2018, the 18th SCO summit concluded with the adoption of ‘Qingdao Declaration’.  The SCO Action plan for 2019 to 2020 was also signed. This is the first time India is participating as a full member of the Shanghai Co-operation Organization (SCO) .  SCO Summit 2018 to focus on security, terrorism, drug control  PM Modi calls for meaningful cooperation of SCO member countries towards security, economic development & connectivity in the region  On June 9, 2018, on the sidelines of the SCO summit India and China signed 2 agreements on Brahmaputra water data sharing and non-basmati rice export.  On June 9, 2018, India and China agreed on jointly undertaking an economic project in Afghanistan.

Mauritius to host 11th World Hindi Conference  On June 11, 2018, As part of the visit of the South African nations by the External Afffairs Minister Sushma Swaraj , she stopped by Port Louis to inspect the work on the 11th World Hindi Conference which will be hosted by Mauritius Government from August 18- 20 2018.  The Event is organized by the Indian External Affairs Ministry every 3 years.  This year the organizing authority is World Hindi Secretariat located in Mauritius .  The government has been suggested to support major Hindi scholars as this might be a public relations exercise before the 2019 general elections.  Special focus of this year’s event will be on Bollywood and the global reach of Hindi through movies.  The Conference will cover both the classical and modern elements of Hindi.  The 10th World Hindi Conference was held in Bhopal in September 2015.

44th G7 Summit Concludes in Canada  The 44th G7 summit was held on June 8–9, 2018, in La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada. This was the sixth time since 1981 that Canada has hosted the meetings.  The 44th G7 summit was the first summit for Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.  The 45th G7 summit will be held in Summer 2019 in Biarritz, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France.  The G7 is a group seven countries that is the largest advanced economies in the world. The countries include United States, United Kingdom Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan.

National News

Met dept to use flash flood guidance system for first time to forecast floods

 On June 11, 2018, The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) will be able to issue forecast on floods and guidance on the preventive measures to the disaster management agencies with the help of a new soil study data named: ‘Flash Flood Guidance System’.  IMD would launch this service by July 2018.  The soil study done from different soil types of different regions will also be accompanied by the rain forecast to ascertain how much water would be left behind after absorption into the ground.  The state and district-level farmers’ bodies and disaster management agencies will be given appropriate guidance for flood preparedness.  In plains like Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, where the soil is more absorbent, 10 to 20 cm of rainfall will not cause floods.  In hilly areas like Uttarakhand, where the soil is less absorbent, same amount of rainfall is enough to cause floods.  Presently, the Central Water Commission (CWC) gives out flood warnings.

IT Minister launches 5000 Wi-Fi Choupals, delivery of rail tickets through CSCs  On June 11, 2018, Union Minister for Electronics & IT and Law Justice, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad launched major services showcasing the impact and progress made by the Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) in promoting rural Wi-Fi network infrastructure. This was launched in a conference organized by CSC SPV.  5000 Wi-Fi choupals have been launched to provide Internet connectivity to the 2.5 lakh gram panchayats through optical fiber cable.  Mou between CSC and IRCTC has been signed for availability of railway services like booking railway tickets etc. through CSC centres.  IndusInd bank will provide CSR support CSC SPV for digital literacy of 3 lakh candidates through PMGDISHA.  2.90 lakh CSCs will be able to work as Business Correspondents (BCs).

 CSC will also be used for first line maintenance of Bharat Net in the country.

Eight States to implement ‘Ayushman Bharat’  Eight States and four Union Territories have signed MoUs with the Union Health Ministry to implement the government’s ambitious national health protection mission — Ayushman Bharat — which aims to provide a cover of Rs.5 lakh per family annually to 10 crore vulnerable families.  The eight States which signed the MoUs to implement the Ayushman Bharat: National Health Protection Mission include Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand. The Union Territory of Chandigarh is among the four UTs. Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Tamil Nadu would sign the agreement soon.

State News

CM releases special booklet on 80-years of Odisha Budget

 On June 11, 2018, The special booklet titled ’80-years of Odisha Budget – A Commemorative Volume’ was released by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.  Odisha’s annual budget was only Rs 1.77 crore for the year 1936-37 which has increased to Rs 1,20,028 crore in 2018-19.  Odisha is the first state in the country to bring out such a compilation.  The state government has come up with a separate agricultural budget in 2016 with focused attention on the agricultural sector.  In the year of 2000, the budget had only been Rs 14,000 crore.

Haryana to organise awareness campaign for farmers  From 20th June to 15th July 2018, Awareness programmes will be held at the village, block and district levels for farmers in Haryana.  These programmes will create awareness on the negative effects of stubble burning, its alternatives and several farmer welfare schemes.  Principal Secretary of Haryana Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department, Abhilaksh Likhi said that, the programmes will be supervised by senior officials.  Seminars will be conducted in all districts as part of the campaign. The deputy directors of departments have been directed to ensure maximum participation of the farmers.  Abhilaksh Likhi said that, farmers should be taught about modern agriculture techniques of the current time.  He said that the agriculture department had created a portal in which officers will upload the biodata of farmers from their respective districts. The portal will share information about progressive farmers.

ITC to Unveil Integrated Food Unit In Tamil Nadu Soon  The Hindu ITC may unveil the first phase of its integrated food manufacturing and logistics facility at Pudukottai in Tamil Nadu by the second quarter of 2018-19.

 Products such as biscuits, atta, and noodles would be manufactured at this plant.

Threat to Bannerghatta buffer zone  At least 73 eco-sensitive villages, of which 22 are ‘red list’ villages, have been left out of the buffer zone of the Bannerghatta National Park, which remains Bengaluru’s last big, urban forest.  ‘Red list’ comprises villages that are adjacent to the forest and are highly eco-sensitive.

Banking & Economy

RBI to raise $30-35 bn via NRI bonds to support rupee: Report  On June 11, 2018, on the backdrop of rising oil prices and shortfall in FPI inflows to the country the RBI is expected to raise $30-35 billion via NRI bonds to raise the rupee.  FPI has been slowed down amidst political volatility and with listing of Chinese forms in global benchmark indices.  China market could list a $100 billion in 2019 .  RBI would release a fourth tranche of NRI bonds  RBI will issue NRI bonds if the global oil prices persist at USD 70/bbl.  NRI bonds are forex deposits raised from non-resident Indians at attractive rates for 3-5 years, with some lock-in and an implicit RBI guarantee.  RBI is expected to follow an asymmetrical policy of buying forex when the USD weakens and defending Rs66/USD when it strengthens.  The rupee has been falling against the US dollar, the Indian currency is seen at Rs 69.75/USD by December. The rupee is currently hovering around Rs 67/USD.

Government may launch Rs 500 crore credit enhancement fund in July  On June 11, 2018, The government is likely to launch a Rs 500-crore credit enhancement fund next month to facilitate infrastructure investments by insurance and pension funds.  This will help in upgrading credit ratings of bonds issued by infrastructure companies and facilitate investment from investors like pension and insurance funds.  The initial corpus of the fund, to be sponsored by IIFCL (India Infrastructure Finance Company), will be Rs 500 crore, and it will operate as a non-banking finance company.  IIFCL will hold a 22.5 per cent stake in the NBFC, while the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has offered to pick up a 10 per cent stake, SBI, Bank of Baroda and LIC will also have stakes in the firm.

 World Bank had evinced interest to pump-in Rs 5,000 crore for the fund initially, but the government declined it.

IndusInd Bank gets RBI nod for setting up arm for BFIL merger  The RBI has allowed IndusInd Bank to incorporate a wholly-owned subsidiary for the amalgamation of micro-lender Bharat Financial Inclusion (BFIL) with the bank.  The bank and BFIL had earlier said that they had got approval from stock exchanges for their proposed merger, paving way to file the draft scheme of amalgamation. The bank had received RBI’s no-objection to the proposed merger in March.

Vodafone may invest Rs.8,000 cr. in Idea JV  British telecom major Vodafone plans to invest €1 billion or about Rs.8,000 crore in the proposed joint venture with Idea Cellular which is expected to be in place this month.  Vodafone will look at monetising its stake in Indus Towers if it requires to make additional investment in India in case the Aditya Birla Group decides to put in additional funds in the proposed merged entity, Vodafone Idea Limited.

Sports News

India beat Kenya to lift Intercontinental Cup football title

 On 10th June 2018, India won the Intercontinental Cup Football Tournament title at the Mumbai Football Arena. India beat Kenya 2-0 in the final. Indian captain Sunil Chhetri scored goals in the 8th and 29th minutes.  He has equalled Argentina’s Lionel Messi’s tally of 64 international goals. He has become the joint-second active international goal scorer after Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (81 goals).

Sunil Chhetri equals Messi’s record, joint second highest scorer among active players  On 10th June 2018, Indian football team captain Sunil Chhetri became the joint second highest international goal scorer among active players along with Argentine player Lionel Messi with his 64th goal for India in the match against Kenya in the Intercontinental Cup Football Tournament final in Mumbai.  Sunil Chhetri scored 2 goals for India in the match in the 8th minute and 29th minute. He is 33 years old.  This was his 102nd international match. He and Lionel Messi are behind Portuguese player Cristiano Ronaldo who has 81 goals from 150 matches.  Sunil Chhetri and Lionel Messi are now in joint 21st in the all-time list of goal scorers.  Sunil Chhetri is just one goal below former Chelsea and Ivory Coast player Didier Drogba (65 from 104 matches).  In terms of number of goals per match, Sunil Chhetri is better than Lionel Messi. Sunil Chhetri has scored 0.62 goals per match. Whereas Lionel Messi has scored 0.52 goals per match (64 goals from 124 matches).  Also, Sunil Chhetri has a better goal average than Cristiano (0.54 per match). He is also the second Indian to feature in 100 international matches after former captain Bhaichung Bhutia.

India suffered a three-wicket defeat against Bangladesh in the final of the women’s Asia Cup T20  Six-time defending champion India suffered a three-wicket defeat against Bangladesh in the final of the women’s Asia Cup T20 cricket tournament at the Kinrara Academy Oval.  Two needed off the final delivery and Bangladesh scamper for the second as a poor throw allows them to complete a historic win.

Archana Girish Kamath qualies for Youth Olympics  Table tennis player Archana Girish Kamath on Saturday qualified for the Youth Olympics in her last attempt, joining fellow Indian Manav Thakkar for the October event in Buenos Aires.  Archana, who jumped a few places in this month's ranking to be at No. 12 in the world.

Anu Kumar wins gold, Arpandeep bronze  For a youngster who has a personal best of 1:50.60s, Anu Kumar was more than three seconds slower in the biggest 800m race of his life.  That, however, did not matter as Anu won gold in the 18th Asian junior athletics championship.

Awards and Honours

President Xi Jinping confers upon Vladimir Putin ‘highest state honour of China’

 On 8th June 2018, Chinese President Xi Jinping presented China’s first friendship medal to Russian President Vladimir Putin, at a special event held at the Great Hall of People, China.  This Friendship medal has been claimed to be the highest state honour of China. Xi Jinping praised Vladimir Putin’s contributions to build a peaceful world.  In 2017, Vladimir Putin awarded Xi Jinping the Order of St Andrew for his remarkable service to Chinese and Russian people.  The Order of St Andrew was awarded to Xi Jinping during his visit to Moscow, Russia.  Vladimir Putin was on his 19th visit to China. He held talks with Xi Jinping and attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting at Qingdao.

Kamila Shamsie’s “Home Fire” wins 2018 Women’s Prize for Fiction

 Renowned British Pakistani author Kamila Shamsie’s book “Home Fire” has won the Women’s Prize for Fiction, 2018.  The book, was also in the race for last year’s Man Booker Prize, is a contemporary reimagination of Sophocles’ “Antigone”.

Appointments & Resignation

S Ramesh is appointed as Chairman of CBIC

 S Ramesh has been appointed as the Chairman of Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC).  The Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) has cleared the appointment of S Ramesh as the next Chairman of CBIC.  He has been a member of Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC). He will replace Mrs Vanaja N. Sarna, who will be retiring in the end of June 2018.

Arvind Saxena appointed acting UPSC chief  UPSC member Arvind Saxena has been appointed as the acting chairman of the commission from June 20, a government order said.  Saxena, a 1978-batch Indian Postal Service officer, will take over the charge from incumbent Vinay Mittal who completes his term at the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on June 19.

NIA Sharad Kumar appointed vigilance commissioner  Former NIA chief Sharad Kumar was on June 10 appointed vigilance commissioner in the probity watchdog CVC.  The 62-year-old Kumar, a 1979-batch IPS officer of the Haryana cadre, retired in September 2017 after heading the National Investigation Agency for over four years.

Actor Mohanlal is tipped to lead the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes  Actor Mohanlal is tipped to lead the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes when a new governing body will be elected at a meeting on June 24.  Edavela Babu will be the new general secretary. AMMA president Innocent had indicated his wish to step down from the post. It is learnt that as vice president of

AMMA, Mohanlal, being an acceptable candidate for all, will most likely be selected for the post.

Science & Technology

Centre launches ‘Rail MADAD’, ‘Menu on Rails’ mobile apps

 On 11th June 2018, the Ministry of Railways introduced two mobile applications ‘Rail MADAD’ and ‘Menu on Rails’ to improve the travelling experience.  The apps were launched by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State (MoS) Manoj Sinha at a press conference held to highlight the achievements of the Railway Ministry in the past four years.  Rail MADAD app will help travellers to register complaints. Menu on Rails app will offer the facility to order food.  Piyush Goyal said that, the theme for development this year is to enhance connectivity for the poor.  He said that, the focus has been on enhancing safety, avoiding rail accidents, installation of CCTV on all coaches and clearing backlogs.

ISRO’s scientists discover an ‘EPIC’ planet

 A team of researchers from the Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad, have discovered a planet named EPIC.  The planet is six times bigger than Earth. It revolves around a Sun-like star about 600 light years away. Both the planet and the star have been named as EPIC.  Now India has become one among the few countries that have discovered planets around stars.  Physical Research Laboratory’s parent organization is Indian Space Research Organization.  This discovery was made using a PRL-designed spectrograph, PARAS, to measure and confirm the mass of the new planet.  EPIC 211945201b (or K2-236b) is the name assigned to the planet by the discovery team. The team was headed by Abhijit Chakraborty of PRL.  The host star is named as EPIC 211945201 or K2-236. The spectrograph is indigenously designed and the first of its kind in India that can measure the mass of a planet going around a star.

Dhanush artillery gun clears final test

 India’s first indigenous, long-range artillery gun Dhanush has been successfully passed its final test at Pokhran, Rajasthan. It paves its way for induction into Indian Army.  Earlier the gun had passed tests under severe cold conditions in Sikkim and Leh and in hot and humid weather in Balasore, Odisha, Babina in Jhansi.

Obituaries

Senior journalist Xavier Rutsa Passed Away

 On 11th June 2018, Xavier Rutsa, a senior journalist, passed away due to heart attack, in Nagaland.  Xavier Rutsa was 42 years old. He was a senior journalist and was also involved with various social organizations, mainly sports bodies.  He died due to heat attack when returning home from a meeting of New Market Youth Organization Sports Committee.