IPCI Info

10 June

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10 Jun

International News Affairs

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi today joined several global leaders at the inauguration of Kazakhstan’s Astana World EXPO 2017 which showcases vital innovation and technological prowess of the resource-rich central Asian country.
    • Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates airline and Group, and UAE Minister of State Sultan Bin Ahmad Al Jaber opened the UAE’s pavilion at the Astana Expo 2017.
    • What is Astana Expo 2017 ?
    • This is an International Exposition (large international exhibition designed to showcase achievements of nations) being held at Astana (Kazakhstan) today.
    • Subtitle : “Solutions for Tackling Humankind’s Greatest Challenge.”
    • Theme of this expo : “Future Energy”
    • Aim : To create a global debate between countries,  nongovernmental organizations, companies and the general public on the crucial question: “how do we ensure safe and sustainable access to energy for all while reducing CO2 emissions ?”
    • Note : India is among over 100 countries which are presenting their pavilions at the expo which is expected to be visited by millions of visitors over the next three months.
  • Canada has introduced a bill that will decriminalise practising witchcraft and challenging people to duels.
    • The nation is set to decriminalise 20 criminal offences, including telling fortunes and publishing crime comics.

National News Affairs

  • The Union Minister for Finance, Defence and Corporate Affairs, Arun Jaitley will chair the 16th Meeting of the GST Council scheduled to be held tomorrow (11th June, 2017) at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.
    • The one day Meeting will also be attended among others by the Finance Ministers of different States and UTs (having elected assembly) being the members of the GST Council.
    • Important Note : This meeting will be important in the sense that the GST Law is going to be rolled-out with effect from 1st July, 2017.
  • Government has awarded a Rs 1,600-crore contract for constructing 109-km road connecting Paletwa river terminal to Zorinpui in Mizoram border as a part of the$484-million Kaladan multi-modal transport (KMTT) projects in Myanmar which will offer connectivity to Mizoram.
  • A week after announcing that combat roles for women would be open soon, Army chief General Bipin Rawat today said, “Firstly, we will start with women as military police jawans, will take next step after success.”
    • The Indian Army had kept combat roles off limit for women until now reportedly due to operational concerns and logistical issues.
  • NITI Aayog has launched SATH‘Sustainable Action for Transforming Human capital’ with the State Governments for furthering the agenda of cooperative federalism.
    • NITI Aayog under the SATH initiative plans to identify and build three future ‘role model’ states for health systems.
    • After identification of three states, NITI Aayog will work in close collaboration with the state machinery of these three states.
    • Note : SATH program will be implemented by NITI Aayog along with McKinsey & Company and IPE Global consortium.

New Appointments

  • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approved the appointment of Vikram Limaye as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO) of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) today subject to his resignation from India’s cricketing body.
    • The conditional approval has come four months after the exchange selected Limaye for the job following Chitra Ramkrishna’s sudden exit.
  • Preet Kaur Gill has become the first Sikh to be elected to the British Parliament’s House of Commons.
  • Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi has become the first turban-wearing Sikh to be elected to the House of Commons.
    • Note : In a first, the House of Commons will have a record 12 Indian-origin MPs, which will be two more than the present record of 10 (five each from Labour and Conservative).

Banking, Business & Economic Affairs

  • India’s forex reserves surged by $2.404 billion to reach life-time high of $381.167 billion in the week to June 2 on account of rise in foreign currency assets, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced today.
    • In the previous week, the reserves had declined by $547 million to $378.763 billion.
    • Foreign currency assets (FCAs), a major component of overall reserves, increased by $2.748 billion to $357.290 billion in the reporting week, RBI said.
  • The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)today declared that Aadhaar will be a “must” for filing of Income Tax Returns or for obtaining a new PAN from July 1.

Current Sports Affairs

  • The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has officially included mixed gender relay racing and 3-on-3 men’s and women’s basketball as Olympic events for the Tokyo Games to be held in 2020.
    • The committee has added a total of 15 events, including mixed gender relays in swimming, track and triathlon, mixed team events in archery and judo, and mixed doubles in table tennis.