International Affairs
Today (15th July) is World
Youth Skills Day.
This
is for the second time the world is celebrating this day.
This
day was first observed by the United Nations General Assembly on 15th July
2015.
Aim of this day :
To create awareness about the importance of investing in youth skills
development.
Theme of the year 2016
: Skills Development to Improve Youth Employment
French
President François Hollande today announced the
extension of a state of emergency in the country by another three months
following an attack in Nice, in
which a truck rammed into people, killing at least 84.
Note :
The emergency was imposed after the Paris attacks in November 2015.
European officials have finalised plans to create a Common Asylum System and Refugee Resettlement Scheme.
The
semi-standardised system could allow the legal resettlement of refugees, and
discourage country-hopping that saw refugees pass through European countries to
settle in Germany.
Over 150 Indians returned safely from South Sudan to Delhi as part of the
operation "Sankat Mochan".
The World Health
Organization (WHO) declared India
as Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus
free.
In
this regard, WHO presented certificates to the Union Health and Family Welfare
Minister J P Nadda.
Previously
in May 2016, WHO certified India yaws-free after a team of experts verified
interruption of disease transmission in the country.
Important Points to Note :
India is the first country under the 2012 WHO neglected
tropical diseases (NTD) roadmap to eliminate yaws.
National Affairs
Three months after Madhya
Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan spoke about forming a Happiness
Ministry, the state cabinet today cleared the proposal, finally calling it the Happiness Department.
A
first in India, the department
will craft policies to increase the level of happiness among citizens.
Note :
An initial sum of ₹3.80 crore has been allocated for setting up the department.
The Delhi government
has approved the fourth phase of
the Delhi Metro, which constitutes six proposed lines and is expected to
add 105 km to the metro network.
After
the phase's completion, the total length of the metro corridor will cross 450
km.
The
North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), an alliance of 10 political parties from the
northeast and BJP, was formally launched by BJP President Amit Shah
today.
The
alliance aims to politically eliminate Congress from the northeast.
The Mizoram
government today launched the New
Economic Development Policy to boost the state’s economy and livelihood
of the people.
Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla announced that ₹270 crore has been sanctioned for implementing the policy, which will
be executed from this financial year.
Note :
The policy will lead Mizoram from subsistence to market-based economy.
New
Delhi got
its first virtual 3D Zebra crossing
at Rajaji Marg today.
MOUs & Agreements
India
and
the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have
signed a 100 million dollars loan
agreement for irrigation projects, drainage system and water management
in Vennar sub-basin of Cauvery delta in Tamil
Nadu.
The
project seeks to improve water management and strengthen embankments of 6 major
irrigation water channels in Vennar system.
Cauvery river basin is a critical source of water for
agriculture in Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states.
The
vast majority of the delta’s population is engaged in farming and fishing.
New Appointments
Rakesh
Kumar Chaturvedi, a 1987 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh, was today
appointed as the new Chairperson of
the Central Board of Secondary
Education (CBSE).
KVR
Murthy
was appointed as the Chairman-cum-Managing
Director (CMD) of the Jute
Corporation of India Limited (JCIL).
Recent Committees in News
The Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) constituted a 13
Member inter regulatory Working
Group (WG) to study the entire
gamut of regulatory issues relating to Fin Tech (financial technology) and
Digital Banking in India.
It
will view the growing significance of Fin Tech innovations and their
interactions with the financial sector as well as the financial sector
entities.
It
has been asked to submit its report within six months from the date of its
first meeting.
Headed by
: Sudarshan Sen (Executive director of RBI).
Business & Economy
The government has received deposits of 3.1 tonnes of gold under the Gold Monetisation Scheme since its launch in November 2015.
Under
the scheme, banks are authorised to collect gold for up to 15 years to auction
it off or lend to jewellers, while paying depositors an interest of 2.5% per
annum.
The
Bank of England has kept its
interest rate unchanged at 0.5%,
a record low maintained since March 2009, amid market expectations of a rate
cut.
The central bank is due to publish its quarterly Inflation
Report on August 4, which will include fresh forecasts for growth and inflation
and its first full take on the UK referendum's economic implications.
In
an effort to improve customer service, RBI
today asked banks to exchange up
to 20 pieces of soiled currency notes with a maximum value of ₹5,000 over
the counter free of charge.
However,
if the number of notes to be exchanged is more than 20, banks can levy service
charge.
The
facility is available at designated bank branches.
The government today
extended the deadline for payment of tax and penalty under the Black Money Disclosure Scheme to 30th September 2017.
It
allowed declarants to make the payment in three instalments and set deadlines
for payment of the instalments.
Note :
The government extended the previous deadline of November 30 this year
following requests from various stakeholders.
The Supreme Court-constituted Special Investigation Team (SIT) on black money submitted its fifth
report to the apex court.
The
SIT in its fifth report recommended the following:
Cash
transactions :
It
has recommended ban on cash transactions above 3 lakh rupees in a day.
It
recommended enacting a law to declare such transactions as illegal and
punishable.
Cash
holding :
It
also suggested capping the cash holding of an industry or individual at 15 lakh
rupees.
In
case any person or industry required holding more cash, it may obtain necessary
permission from the Commissioner of Income Tax of the area.
The SIT was headed by
: M B Shah (retired justice)
Science & Technology
The Defence Research
and Development Organisation (DRDO) today successfully test-fired the
fully indigenous 155 mm x 52 calibre
Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System.
The
armament system, expected to be ready for user trial by 2017, has a firing
range of 40 km and features like high mobility, quick deployability, advanced
communication system, automatic command, and night firing capability.
Books & Authors
Former Reserve Bank of India governor D Subbarao's new book titled "Who Moved My
Interest Rates" has been released today.
The
book gives an account of the dilemmas Subbarao confronted while leading the Reserve
Bank through the extraordinary economic and political challenges India and
world faced from 2008 to 2013.
Awards & Honors
Actor Aziz Ansari has
become the first Indian-American actor
to receive a nomination for the 'Emmy
Award', an annual award to honour American television
personalities.
The
33-year-old actor received the nomination in the 'Lead actor in a comedy'
category for his series 'Master of None'.
Earlier,
British actors of Indian descent Ben Kingsley and Naveen Andrews have received
Emmy nominations.
Dwayne
"The Rock" Johnson has been officially declared the world's highest paid actor by Forbes in its 'Celebrity
100' list.
The
professional wrestler turned actor has had a total earning of $64.5 million
since he made his Hollywood debut with 'The Mummy Returns' 15 years ago.
He
has starred in seven films that have grossed more than $100 million.
Sports
Indian Boxer Vijender
Singh will take on Welsh-born Australian Kerry Hope in his maiden title bout for the vacant WBO Asia Pacific super middleweight belt
in New Delhi tomorrow.
Playing
in his first Test in England, Pakistan
captain Misbah-ul-Haq (42) became the oldest player to score a Test century since 1934, after hitting
a ton at Lord’s today.
England's Patsy Hendren is the oldest Test centurion after
having scored a century at the age of 45.
Misbah
is now also the oldest captain to score a Test century.
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