NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. PM
extends “Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Anna Yojana” till November 2020: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi has addressed the nation. This is the Prime Minister’s 6th
address to the people of India since the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic in
the country. India will enter into the Unlock 2 phase from 1st July onwards,
the guidelines for which have been released by the Ministry of Home Affairs on
29 June 2020 itself. Important
Announcements by the Prime Minister:
(1) Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Anna
Yojana will be extended till the end of November, an extension to cost over Rs
90 thousand crores. Over 80 cr people to get free food grain till Diwali and
Chhath pooja.
(2) Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 20
crore accounts have received 31,000 crores in their Jan Dhan Accounts.
(3) PM urges the citizens to take the
pledge of Vocal for Local and work for the betterment of the society and
country at large.
(4) One Nation One Ration Card will be
implemented on whole India. This will especially benefit those people who leave
their native-place, native-state to find work in some other state.
2.
Government of India bans 59 Chinese apps: The Ministry of Electronics &
Information Technology has announced that “Government of India Bans 59 Chinese
mobile apps”, which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India,
defence of India, the security of the state and public order”. The Ministry of
Information Technology, invoking its power under section 69A of the Information
Technology Act read with the relevant provisions of the Information Technology
(Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking of Access of Information by Public)
Rules 2009 and in view of the emergent nature of threats has decided to block
59 apps. Some of the apps are: TikTok,
Shareit, UC Browser, Helo, Likee, Club Factory, Beutry Plus, WeChat, Weibo,
Xender, ES File Explorer, etc.
Note: Union Minister of Electronics and IT:
Ravi Shankar Prasad.
Union Minister of State in the Ministry of
Electronics and IT: Dhotre Sanjay Shamrao.
3.
India’s first lichen park developed in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand: India’s first
lichen park has been established in Kumaon’s Munsiyari village of Pithoragarh
district in Uttarakhand, by the state forest department, to protect, conserve
and cultivate lichen, which are the best bioindicators of the pollution levels.
The park is spread across an area of 1.5 acres, with over 80 species of lichens
collected from across the Himalayan state. Lichens are found in the Himalayas
at a height of about 5000 metres, and are important species as they are the
natural indicator of pollution levels in an area. If pollution levels increase
in a certain area, the lichen species decline there. . The project aims to
study the distribution of different lichen species, their habitat, their
morphological and physiological aspects, surveying and literature review, the establishment
of species, current threats to their habitat including anthropological and
climatic factors, and coming up with suitable conservation strategies and
protection strategies. These Jurassic-era lichen species are used in food,
perfumes, dyes and traditional medicines.
Note: Chief Minister of Uttarakhand:
Trivendra Singh Rawat; Governor: Baby Rani Maurya.
4.
Maharashtra launches world’s largest plasma therapy trial ‘Project Platina’: Maharashtra Chief
Minister Uddhav Thackeray virtually launched world’s largest convalescent
plasma therapy trial project ‘Project Platina’ on 29 June 2020, for treating
critical COVID-19 patients. The state government has approved Rs 16.65 crore
for the project from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. 21 centres have been
picked for the trial, including 17 medical colleges under the department of
medical education and drugs, the government of Maharashtra and four BMC medical
colleges in Mumbai. Under the project, critical patients will receive two doses
of 200 ml of plasma recovered from COVID-19 patients. The treatment will be
provided free of cost to all coronavirus patients under the trial project.
Plasma is the liquid part of the blood which have antibodies to the
coronavirus, thereby fight the infection and helping critically-ill patients to
recover.
Note: Chief Minister of Maharashtra: Uddhav
Thackeray; Governor: Bhagat Singh Koshyari.
5.
Madhya Pradesh to Launch Door-To-Door “Kill Corona” Drive From July 1: The Madhya Pradesh
government has announced to launch 15-day long ‘Kill Corona’ campaign in the
state from 1st July 2020 to control the spread of coronavirus in the state.
Under the campaign, a door-to-door survey will be conducted and tests would
also be done on citizens for other diseases. Around 2.5 lakh tests will be
carried out and 15,000 to 20,000 samples would be collected daily.
Note: Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh:
Shivraj Singh Chouhan; Governor: Lalji Tandon; Capital: Bhopal
6.
India’s first Plasma Bank to be set up in Delhi to treat COVID-19 patients: The Delhi
government is all set to establish India’s first plasma bank in the national
capital to fight the novel coronavirus. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal
has announced that the plasma bank will be set up at the Institute of Liver and
Biliary Sciences in south Delhi’s Vasant Kunj. It will serve the purpose of
coordination between plasma donors and recipients. The Minister has also
requested those who have recovered from the infection to donate plasma to help
other patients. The plasma bank will start its operation by 2nd July 2020.
Note: Governor of Delhi: Anil Baijal
7.
India-China border row: Govt grants emergency funds to armed forces for war
preparedness: Amid
the ongoing border tensions with China, the government has granted emergency
funds to armed forces for war preparedness. The government has granted big
financial power to the defence forces under which they can buy any weapon
system under Rs 500 crore. The three services have been granted the financial
powers by the Narendra Modi government to buy weapon systems under emergency
requirement procedure. Now they can buy any in inventory or new weapon upto Rs
500 for each project under these powers.
8.
DCGI approves human clinical trials of COVAXIN: Drug Controller
General of India (DCGI) has given approval to ‘COVAXIN’ for human clinical
trials. It is the 1st potential COVID-19 Vaccine developed in India. It is
developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech, in association with Indian Council
for Medical Research (ICMR). It is an inactivated vaccine which is created from
a strain of the infectious SARS-CoV-2 virus. It has shown good results in the
pre-clinical studies with effective immune responses.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
Lazarus Chakwera Takes Charge as the new President of Malawi: Malawi’s opposition
leader Lazarus Chakwera has been sworn in as the 6th President of the country
on 28 June 2020, after being declared as the winner of the southern African
country’s historic presidential election. The 65-year-old, leader of the Malawi
Congress Party- MCP, defeated the incumbent President Peter Mutharika with
58.57% of votes. Peter Mutharika, 79, of the Democratic Progressive Party,
secured 39.4% of the total votes. Lazarus Chakwera will have five-year term as
Malawi president after historic win.
Note: Malawi Capital: Lilongwe; Currency:
Malawian Kwacha
2.
India & Bhutan inks JV Agreement for 600 MW Kholongchhu hydroelectric
project: India
and Bhutan have signed a concession agreement, on 29 June 2020, for the
construction of 600 MW Kholongchhu hydroelectric project (KHEL), in Bhutan’s
less developed eastern region of Trashiyangtse. KHEL will be the first joint
venture project under an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) signed in 2014. The
joint venture partners of the project are Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited
(SJVNL) from India and Bhutan’s Druk Green Power Corporation Limited (DGPC).
The project will be constructed as a 50:50 joint venture, and not as a
government-to-government agreement. Kholongchu is expected to be completed in
the second half of 2025 and generate about 2568.88 million units annually. Once
the project is commissioned, the JV partners will run it for 30 years, called
the concession period, after which the full ownership will transfer to the
Bhutan government.
Note: Capital of Bhutan: Thimphu; Prime
minister of Bhutan: Lotay Tshering; The currency of Bhutan: Bhutanese ngultrum.
3.
International Day of Parliamentarism: 30th June: The United Nations
International Day of Parliamentarism is held on June 30 to celebrate parliaments
and the ways in which parliamentary systems of government improve the
day-to-day lives of people the world over. It was first observed in 2018 as
adopted by UN General Assembly. The 2020 event is the third edition of the
celebration. The day marks the anniversary of the Geneva-based
Inter-Parliamentary Union, the global organization of parliaments, that was
established on June 30, 1889.
Note: Inter-Parliamentary Union
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland; Inter-Parliamentary Union President:
Gabriela Cuevas Barron; Inter-Parliamentary Union Founded: 1889;
Inter-Parliamentary Union Secretary-General: Martin Chungong.
4.
International Asteroid Day: 30th June: The International Asteroid Day, also known
as Asteroid Day is a United Nations proclaimed day observed globally on June 30
ever year to raise awareness about asteroids and what can be done to protect
the Earth, its families, communities, and future generations from a
catastrophic event. The event marks the anniversary of the Siberian Tunguska
event that took place on June 30, 1908, and was the most harmful known
asteroid-related event on Earth in recent history. The first International
Asteroid Day was held in 2015.
Note: United Nations Office for Outer Space
Affairs (UNOOSA) Director: Simonetta Di Pippo.
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1.
German former professional footballer Mario Gomez announces retirement: Former Germany
footballer Mario Gomez has announced his retirement from the sport on 28 June
2020. The 34 year old has represented the Germany national team over a period
of 11 years between 2007 and 2018. He played as a striker and has scored 31
goals in 78 appearances for the national team. He is considered as one of the
best German forwards of his time.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1.
Government launches 7.15% Floating Rate Saving Bonds: The government has
announced the launch of Floating Rate Savings Bonds, 2020 (Taxable) with an
interest rate of 7.15 per cent. The bonds will be available for subscription
from July 1, 2020 onwards. As per the
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) press release, the interest rate on these bonds
will be reset every six months, the first reset being on January 01, 2021.
There is no option to pay interest on cumulative basis i.e. interest will be
payable in every six months instead of having an option to receive it at
maturity.
2.
YES Bank launches full service digital savings account: India-based Yes
Bank has launched a full service digital savings account with video KYC
facility as part of its strategy to build up a transformed digital bank. The
digital savings account includes virtual Debit Card that can be used for online
transactions, fund transfers and shopping. This new initiative will eliminate
the need for the branch visit, physical documentation or any in-person
interaction while ensuring physical distancing for customers.
BUSINESS AND ECONOMY
1.
Indian economy expected to contract 5% in FY21: S&P Ratings: The GDP growth of
India is expected to contract by 5 percent in the fiscal year 2020-21,
according to latest forecast by S&P Global Ratings. The growth is expected
to rebound in 2021-22 at 8.5%. Summary:
2.
Instamojo launches InstaCash to solve the liquidity challenge for MSMEs: Instamojo, has
launched ‘InstaCash’ to enable merchants to gain access to working capital.
Merchants can avail loans for upto Rs 1 lakh, for a period of 7–14 days.
Instamojo will transfer the amount to the customer once the request has been
placed. The company has also introduced mojoPlus which enables merchants to
earn points on transactions and redeem it to avail discounts on Instamojo fees.
Note: Instamojo is one of the top rated
payment gateway & eCommerce platform in India.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1.
Beyonce Honored with Humanitarian Award at BET Awards 2020: The 20th edition of
the annual BET Awards 2020 took place with a series of virtual performances on
28 June 2020. The renowned American Popstar Beyonce was honored with the 2020
Humanitarian Award during the event. Beyonce, 38, was honoured for her
longstanding philanthropic work with her BeyGOOD Foundation, including her
recent COVID-19 relief efforts such as #IDIDMYPART, a mobile testing
initiative. The award was presented by the former First Lady Michelle Obama.
Note: The BET Awards is an American award
show that was established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network
to celebrate African Americans and other American minorities in music, acting,
sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year.
OBITUARIES
1.
Kannada novelist Geetha Nagabhushan passes away: Kannada novelist
Geetha Nagabhushan (78 years) passes away at Kalaburagi, Karnataka. She was the
1st woman Kannada literature writer who was awarded with Kendra Sahitya Akademi
and Nadoja award. Her works shows resistance to patriarchy and gender
stereotypes. She wrote 27 novels, 50 short stories, 12 plays and 2 poetry
collections. Works: Thavare Huvu, Baduku (novel), Jwalantha and Jogini (play).
She was the President of 76th Karnataka Sahitya Academy.
No comments:
Post a Comment