Weekly Current Affairs Capsule June 2018 3rd Week

Weekly Current Affairs Capsule June 2018 3rd Week

International

1. Mukesh Ambani tops Forbes' 2017 list of India's 100 richest tycoons

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani has topped Forbes annual list of Indias 100 richest tycoons of 2017, With a net worth of $38 billion, which is equal to the entire GDP of the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan.

• The richest newcomer in the list is Wadia Group of companies Chairman Nusli Wadia (No. 25, $5.6 billion).
• At $19 billion, the net worth of Wipro's Azim Premji - who jumped two places up over last year to become the second richest Indian on the list - is almost equal to Afghanistan's GDP.

2. Record-Breaking Astronaut Peggy Whitson Retires from NASA

Astronaut Peggy Whitson, who has spent more time in space than any other American, retired from NASA on June 15.

• Iowa native Whitson, 58, earned a doctorate in biochemistry from Rice University in 1985.
• She went to work at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston a year later, as a National Research Council Resident Research Associate. 

3. World Elder Abuse Awareness Day: 15 June

The 15th of June every year marks the United Nations internationally recognised day – World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.

• The day came about as a result of UN resolution 66/127.
• The day aims to focus global attention on the problem of physical, emotional, and financial abuse of elders.
• The theme for 2018 World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is “Moving from Awareness to Action through a Human Rights based approach”.

4. World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought: June 17

The World Day to Combat Desertification (WDCD) is being celebrated worldwide on 17th June.

• World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought is observed every year to promote public awareness of international efforts to combat desertification.
• Theme of WDCD 2018 is “Land has true value – invest in “.

5. NSG plenary meeting held in Jurmala, Latvia

The 28th Plenary Meeting of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) was held in Jurmala, Latvia On 14th and 15th June 2018.

• The NSG plenary meeting was chaired by Ambassador Jānis Zlamets of Latvia.
• The NSG reviewed the developments since the last meeting in Bern in 2017.  

6. International Decade for Action: Water for Sustainable Development 2018-2028

Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation and Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Shri Nitin Gadkari is scheduled to visit Republic of Tajikistan to represent India in the high-level Conference on “International Decade for Action: Water for Sustainable Development, 2018-2028” on 20-21 June 2018.

• United Nations and Government of Republic of Tajikistan are jointly organizing the Conference to discuss key water related issues of sustainable development goals adopted by UN member countries.
• Tajikistan is a strategic partner country in our extended neighbourhood.
• The country has a leading role in pioneering global water related issues.

7. India-Greece business forum meeting

On the occasion of the official visit of the President of the Republic of India to Athens, from June 18 – 19, 2018, a Business Forum the “Greece-India Business Forum” was organized on Tuesday the 19th of June, in Athens.

• This Forum was organized by The Embassy of India in Athens in collaboration with Enterprise Greece.

8. 7th OPEC international Seminar

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will host the 7th OPEC International Seminar at the Imperial Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria, on 20−21 June 2018.

• The theme of the Seminar is ‘Petroleum – cooperation for a sustainable future’.
• Seminar participants customarily include Ministers from OPEC Member Countries and other oil-producing and oil-consuming nations, as well as heads of intergovernmental organizations.

9. World Music Day: 21 June

World Music Day is an annual music celebration that takes place on 21 June.

• On Music Day the citizens of a city or country are allowed and urged to play music outside in their neighborhoods or in public spaces and parks.
• The first all-day musical celebration was originated by the France.

10. International Day of Yoga: 21 June

International Day of Yoga, or commonly and unofficially referred to as Yoga Day, is celebrated annually on 21 June since its inception in 2015.

• An international day for yoga was declared unanimously by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
• Yoga is a physical, mental and spiritual practice originated in India.
• The theme for Yoga Day 2018 is "Yoga for Peace."

11. US leaves the UN Human Rights Council

US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have announced the US was withdrawing from the UN Human Rights Council.

• In doing so, they claimed the council was a roadblock to genuine global human rights protection.

12. World Refugee Day: 20 June

World Refugee Day is observed every year by the people on 20th June in order to raise the public awareness about refugee’s situations throughout the world.

• World Refugee Day was declared on 20th of June by the United Nations General Assembly in the Resolution 55/76 on 4th of December in 2000.
• The Theme of World Refugee Day 2018 is: “Now more than ever, we need to stand #WithRefugees”

National

13. Prime Minister to Chair the 4th meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will chair the fourth meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog at Rashtrapati Bhawan on 17th June.

• The day-long meeting will be attended by Union Ministers, Chief Ministers from the States, Lieutenant Governors of Union Territories and senior officials from the Government of India.
• The Governing Council of NITI Aayog is the premier body tasked with evolving a shared vision of national development priorities, sectors and strategies with the active involvement of States in shaping the development narrative.
• The Governing Council reviews the work done during the previous year and deliberates upon the future developmental priorities.

14. India to host European Union Film Festival

Putting a spotlight on the latest European cinema, the European Union Film Festival (EUFF) will premiere in New Delhi on 18^th June, 2018 at the Siri Fort Auditorium.

• With a selection of 24 latest European films from 23 EU Member States, this years' film festival brings some unusual stories for the world cinema enthusiasts.
• The European Union Film Festival is organized by Directorate of Film Festivals, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India partnering with the Delegation of the European Union and embassies of EU Member States in various city film clubs.
• The festival will traverse through 11 cities in India including New Delhi, Chennai, Port Blair, Pune, Puducherry, Kolkata, Jaipur, Visakhapatnam, Thrissur, Hyderabad and Goa from 18^th June till 31^stAugust.
• Celebrating diversity, the EUFF will screen movies from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden.

15. Tourism Minister to attend Incredible India road shows in the United States

The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism, Shri K. J. Alphons will attend a series of ‘Incredible India road shows’ in the United States of America, from 18^th to 22^nd June 2018.

• The road shows will be held in several major cities of US including New York, Chicago & Houston.
• The Incredible India road shows will hold B2B interactions, presentations & press briefings by the Indian delegation.
• The key note addresses will be delivered by the Tourism Minister and Incredible India presentation will be made by Joint Secretary Ministry of Tourism Shri. Suman Billa, with an aim to project India as a ‘must visit’ tourist destination.
• The road shows will include Cultural performances also.
• The USA is one among the top three source countries in the percentage share of Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India.
• During April 2018, the USA was the second highest source country with 11.21% share of total FTAs.
• In addition, the Minister will also be attending the Federation of Malayalee Associations of Americas (FOMAA) Convention 2018 in Chicago on 22^nd June 2018.

16. Naval Women Mountaineers Summit Mount Deotibba

An all women Naval mountaineering team led by Lt Cdr Kokila Sajwan summited Mount Deotibba an 10 Jun 2018.

• The exp edition was flagged off by Vice Admiral AK Chawla, AVSM, NM, VSM, Chief Of Personnel on 28 May 18 from New Delhi laying foundation for a team, which would attempt to scale many more challenging peaks in the near future.
• Mount Deotibba provided excellent opportunity to the team in honing their mountaineering skills.
• Mt Deotibba is the second highest peak (6001M) in the Pir-Panjal range in Himachal Pradesh.

17. Dr Jitendra Singh chairs the Meeting of Consultative Committee for DoNER Ministry

The Union Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh reiterated the Government’s commitment to ensure fast-track development in the North east region. 

• Dr. Jitendra Singh said that the Government has taken major strides in the development of the North Eastern Region in last four years.

18. Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh discontinues ceremonial guard of honour

Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh has discontinued the ceremonial guard of honour accorded to his office, Raj Bhawan officials said.

• While a letter in this regard was sent by his office to the state government, the practice was discontinued during his recent visit to Jodhpur between June 9 and 11 when he did not take the guard of honour.
• Singh had expressed his desire to discontinue the ceremony for the Governor’s office in a letter to the Home Department on January 1.

Appointment

19. Foundation Stone of ‘Auxiliary Production Unit & Artificial Limbs Fitting Centre’ Laid

The Foundation of stone of “Auxiliary Production Unit and State-of-the-Art Artificial Limbs Fitting Centre” of Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO) under Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment was laid by Shri Manohar Lal, Chief Minister of Haryana and Shri Krishan Pal Gurjar, Minister of State for Social Justice & Empowerment at a function at village Nawada, Tigaon (Ballabhgarh), Faridabad, Haryana.

• There has been an ever increasing demand from the Divyangjan about the difficulty being faced by them in visiting Kanpur to avail facilities of evaluation, measurements and fitment of assistive devices.
• Diversification of rehabilitation and fitment of assistive devices services to other areas will facilitate Divyangjans to cover less a distance for acquiring these devices.

20. Findings of 160 cost-benefit analyses in Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan presented to NITI Aayog

NITI Aayog has been engaging with State Governments to evolve a shared vision of national development and strategies from time to time to share the best practices.

• In this context, India Consensus - a partnership between Tata Trusts and Copenhagen Consensus which has undertaken more than 160 cost-benefit analyses across all main policy areas in Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan presented their findings on 14^th June 2018 in NITI Aayog. 
• The presentation on evidence-based policy prioritisation model was chaired by Dr Rajiv Kumar, Vice-Chairman, NITI Aayog.
• It was attended by Chief Secretaries, Additional Chief Secretaries/Principal Secretaries/Secretaries dealing with the Planning Department of 32 States and Union Territories, Joint Secretaries from 14 Ministries, senior officers from NITI Aayog, eminent economists and researchers.
• Copenhagen Consensus President, Dr Bjorn Lomborg presented the policies and interventions which generate the most social, economic and environmental good for the States. 
• The focus of the presentation was on how this approach and method could be replicated across other States.

21. School Chale Hum Abhiyan 2018 launched in Bhopal

Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan inaugurated the ‘School Chale Hum Abhiyan 2018’ in Bhopal.

• The motive of this scheme is that no child should be deprived of schooling.
• Inaugurating the month long campaign on June 15, the minister encouraged students, teachers and parents to make it a success.

22. Telangana govt to set up Child Protection Units in all 31 districts

In an effort to implement child rights, the Telangana government will soon establish ‘District Child Protection Units (DCPU)’ in all 31 districts.

• Right now the 10 erstwhile districts have the District Child Protection Units (DCPU).
• Proposals were already sent to the government for constitution of child protection units and already they were sanctioned and now staff recruitment was underway.

23. Fourth Governing Council Meeting of NITI Aayog Concludes

The fourth meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog was held under the chairmanship of the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

• It was attended by 23 Chief Ministers and the Lieutenant Governor of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, apart from Union Ministers, who are ex-officio members and special invitees.
• At the end of the day-long deliberations, the Prime Minister highlighted the importance of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog as a platform to inspire cooperative federalism.

24. Ashwini Kumar Choubey releases 11th Common Review Mission (CRM) report

Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare released the 11thCommon Review Mission (CRM) report of the National Health Mission.

• Speaking at the function, Shri Choubey stated that India has registered a record 22% reduction in MMR since 2013, which is the highest percentage decline so far when compared to all the previous reductions in MMR as per the earlier rounds of SRS.
• “Maternal Mortality Ratio of India has declined from 167 in 2011-2013 to 130 in 2014-2016. It is because of the joint efforts of the Ministry and the States.

25. Grand Finale of the First Hardware edition of Smart India Hackathon 2018

The Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Shri Prakash Javadekar inaugurated the 5 day Grand Finale of Smart India Hackathon 2018 – Hardware edition through Video conferencing in New Delhi.

• Hardware edition is the first of its kind innovative initiative by Ministry of HRD to provide national platform to young technical minds of India to showcase their disruptive innovations and creative products which can bring out revolutionary changes in crucial sectors like agriculture, health, clean water, waste management, automotive, smart communication, and education.
• The Hardware edition is the sub-edition of SIH2018.
• The Grand Finale of the Hardware Hackathon will be a 5 days event and will take place simultaneously at 10 prestigious institutions (Nodal centers) across India.

26. The 3-day NATIONAL YOGA OLYMPIAD-2018

A 3-day National Yoga Olympiad was inaugurated at the National Council of Educational Research and Training in CIET in New Delhi by Mr. Eric Falt, Director and UNESCO Representative of the New Delhi Cluster Office for India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

• This is the third consecutive year of National Yoga Olympiad of NCERT and this year about 500 students from 26 States and 4 RIEs are participating in the Olympiad as compared to the participation of students from 25 States/UTs last year.
• In his welcome address, Professor Hrushikesh Senapaty, Director, NCERT brought to the attention that the Olympiad creates awareness about a scientific and holistic way of living and the purpose is to create positive attitude among all human beings and promote peaceful living in the society.

27. Col Rajyavardhan Rathore inaugurated European Union Film Festival

Minister of State (I/C) for Information & Broadcasting and Sports & Youth Affairs, Col Rajyavardhan Rathore inaugurated the European Union Film Festival.

• The opening ceremony was followed by the screening of Slovakian movie “Little Harbour”.
• With a selection of 24 latest European films from 23 EU Member States, this years' film festival brings some unusual stories for the world cinema enthusiasts.
• The European Union Film Festival is organized by Directorate of Film Festivals, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India partnering with the Delegation of the European Union and embassies of EU Member States in various city film clubs.

28. Workshop on Cyber Security Framework – 2018

A workshop on Cyber Security Framework for Department of Defence was organised by DDP, Ministry of Defence.

• The workshop was inaugurated by RakshaMantri Smt Nirmala Sitharaman.
• During her address, Smt Sitharaman stressed upon the fact that Defence sector is more prone to the cyber threats and hence it becomes important to safeguard our cyberspace with anticipation of possible attacks.

29. Mehbooba Mufti resigns as J&K CM

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has sent her resignation to Governor NN Vohra, after the BJP announced it was leaving the alliance with her Peoples Democratic Party.

• The BJP's decision to end the coalition leaves Mufti with just 28 out of Jammu and Kashmir's 87 elected seats.

30. Governor's rule in Jammu and Kashmir

A day after BJP pulled out of its alliance with PDP, the state of Jammu and kashmir has come under Governor's rule with immediate effect.

• The 81-year-old governor, NN Vohra will now be running the state for a fourth time since his appointment in 2008.

31. Union HRD Minister dedicates the National Digital Library of India to the Nation

The Union Human Resource Development Minister, Shri Prakash Javadekar launched the new digital initiative of HRD Ministry ‘National Digital Library of India’ on the occasion of National Reading Day in New Delhi.

• This National Digital Library of India (NDLI) is a project of the Ministry of Human Resource Development under the aegis of National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology (NMEICT).
• The objective of NDL is to make digital educational resources available to all citizens of the country to empower, inspire and encourage learning. National Digital Library of India is developed by IIT Kharagpur.
• NDL is the Single Window Platform that collects and collates metadata from premier learning institutions in India and abroad, as well as other relevant sources.
• It is a digital repository containing textbooks, articles, videos, audio books, lectures, simulations, fiction and all other kinds of learning media.

32. CEA Arvind Subramanian resigned

Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Arvind Subramanian has submitted his resignation and expressed his desire to return to the United States due to family commitments, Union Minister Arun Jaitley announced.

• Mr. Subramanian started his term as CEA on October 16, 2014 for a term of three years.
• On the completion of three years, he was asked to continue for a year more, which would have taken his term to October 2018.

33. 19th all India Conference of Directors of Finger Prints Bureaux

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Hansraj Gangaram Ahir will inaugurate the 19th all India Conference of Directors of Finger Prints Bureaux in Hyderabad.

• During the two-day conference, participants will deliberate on latest Automatic Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS).
• In the conference issues related to administration, standard operating procedures for uniform functioning of bureaus would also be deliberated.

34. Shillong gets selected as the 100th Smart City

Shillong, the capital city of Meghalaya has been selected as 100^th Smart City after evaluating the proposal submitted by it.

• Till now, 99 smart cities had been selected in four rounds of competition and with today’s announcement, selection of 100 cities has been completed under the Smart Cities Mission.
• Previously, 20 cities were selected in January 2016, 13 cities in May 2016, 27 cities in September 2016, 30 cities in June 2017 and 9 cities in January 2018. 
• With the selection of Shillong, the total proposed investment in the finally selected 100 cities under the Smart Cities Mission would be Rs.2,05,018 crores.

35. KVIC adopts Jagatpur village in Delhi for Swachhata Abhiyaan

The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has adopted Jagatpur village in Delhi for its Swachhata Abhiyaan.

• The sanitation drive by KVIC began with a plantation drive and ended with cleanliness drive along the bank of the Yamuna river.

36. RK Singh inaugurates solar plant at Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib

India is making rapid strides in the field of renewable energy and we will overshoot the target of 175 GW renewable energy by 2022.” said Shri R.K Singh, Minister of State(IC) for Power and New & Renewable Energy.

• He was speaking as the Chief Guest at the inauguration of 1500 kWP capacity solar plant developed by Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) at the Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib.
• Lauding this noble initiative by DSGMC, Shri Singh said that this would inspire other institutions to go green and become environment conscious.
• He said that 20 cities in India are ranked among the most polluted in the world and there is an urgent need to reduce fossil fuel use so that we leave a better world for our children.
• The Minister reiterated the Government’s commitment to bring electricity to every household by 31^stDecember, 2018.

37. 7th India Minerals and Metals forum inaugurated in New Delhi

7th India Minerals and Metals forum was inaugurated in New Delhi . The forum seeks to come up with solutions to leverage in the sector with the changing global scenario.

• The deliberations took cognizance on the need to consolidate small players for strengthening of overall health of the industry.

38. Punjab Government Launched Mobile App- ‘i-Hariyali’

To increase the state’s green cover, the Punjab government has launched ‘i-Hariyali’ app that lets users order free plant saplings.

• The ‘i-Hariyali’ app under ‘Mission Tandarust’ can be downloaded from the app store for free.
• The users can book a sapling of their choice, a maximum of 25 per person, from a nearby government nursery.

39. PM Modi inaugurates nature center in New York via video link

On the occasion of 4th International Day of Yoga, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a nature center. 

• PM Modi inaugurated the 'YO1 Nature Cure Center' in the Catskills area of New York through a video link. 

Business

40. Karnataka Bank launches ‘Deposit Only Card’

Karnataka Bank Ltd has launched ‘KBL-Deposit Only Card’ that enables hassle-free cash deposit transactions at the bank’s 24X7 e-lobby services.

• This card is specially meant for the bank’s current/overdraft customers.
• These customers can perform cash deposit transactions even with higher deposit limit at the bank’s bunch note acceptor (BNA) or cash recycler kiosks by using this card.
• The limit for the cash deposit a day is Rs 10 lakh.

41. 'SoftBank to invest up to $100 billion in Indian solar'

SoftBank Group has decided to invest $60-100 billion in solar power generation in India.

• SoftBank and the government are expected to reach a formal agreement soon after final arrangements are made.
• The company is expected to make the investment through a fund backed by Saudi Arabia's government.

42. U.S. pips India as top greenfield FDI destination

The U.S. has surpassed India to become the top destination for greenfield FDI investment in 2017, says a report.

• The number of greenfield FDI projects in India during the year fell sharply by 21% to 637, said the fDi Report 2018 compiled by FDI Intelligence.
• India had maintained the numero uno slot in greenfield FDI investment in 2015 and 2016.

43. Muthoot Fincorp Limited announced its partnership with NSDC

Muthoot Fincorp Limited has announced its partnership with National Skill Development Corporation to train over 10,000 youth over the next three years and make them job ready.

• With the partnership, Muthoot Fincorp claims to have become the first major private sector player to partner with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to launch the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY-2) programme.
• Under the scheme, Muthoot Fincorp targets to train over 10,000 people over the next three years and make them job ready.
• NSDC has approved a target of 3,000 candidates in the first year and 3,500 each in the subsequent two years.

44. NABARD to lend Rs 21,000 crore to MP in current fiscal

National Bank For Agriculture And Rural Development (NABARD) said that it would give Rs 21,000 crore to the Madhya Pradesh government in the current financial year.

• In the last three years, NABARD has given Rs 2,000 crore every year to the Madhya Pradesh government for works related to roads, bridges and irrigation among other things, An official Bansal said.

45. Government to team up with Google for flood forecasting

Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Shri Nitin Gadkari has expressed hope that collaboration with Google will help in effective flood management in India.

• Central Water Commission (CWC), India’s apex technical organization in the field of Water Resources, has entered into a Collaboration Agreement with Google.
• CWC would use state-of-the-art advances made by Google in the in the field of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and geo spatial mapping for effective management of water resources particularly in the field of flood forecasting and dissemination of flood related information to the masses widely using the dissemination platforms developed by Google.
• This initiative is likely to help crisis management agencies to deal extreme hydrological events   in a better manner.

46. BoB partners Accenture, IBM to drive growth through technology

Public sector lender Bank of Baroda has mandated IT majors IBM and Accenture to create an IT Centre of Excellence (ITCoE) and Analytics Centre of Excellence (ACoE) as part of the bank’s strategy to use technology to drive growth.

• The bank said in a statement that the twin centres are part of a comprehensive digital roadmap drawn up to enhance the quality of

Appointments

47. Indian-American Dhivya Suryadevara to become CFO of General Motors

An Indian-American woman, Dhivya Suryadevara has been named the Chief Finance Officer of the US’ largest automaker, General Motors.

• Ms. Suryadevara, currently the vice president of corporate finance, will succeed Chuck Stevens, the General Motor’s present CFO, on September 1.

48. Ivan Duque Wins Election to Become Colombia's President

Youthful rightwinger Ivan Duque won Colombia’s presidential election, promising “a new generation” of leadership for Columbia.

• With 98 per cent of the ballot counted, Mr Duque had 54 per cent of the vote.
• Mr Duque will be sworn in as the country’s new leader on August 7.

49. ICICI Bank Board appoints Mr. Sandeep Bakhshi as Wholetime Director

The Board of Directors of ICICI Bank Limited has decided to appoint Mr. Sandeep Bakhshi, as Wholetime Director & Chief Operating Officer designate, ICICI Bank.

• His appointment as COO will be for a period of five years, subject to regulatory approvals.
• He will take over as the COO from June 19, 2018, or on the date of regulatory and other approvals, whichever is later.

50. IRDAI Sets Up Panel To Review Norms For Marketing Firms

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has formed a 10 member panel to review norms related to insurance marketing firm (IMF) with an aim to increase insurance penetration in the country.

• The committee is headed by Suresh Mathur, Executive Director (insurance marketing firms), IRDAI, with nine more members.

51. Chief Ministers Subgroup Constituted for Agriculture and MGNREGS

Government has set up a Chief Ministers Subgroup to Coordinate Policy Approaches for Agriculture and MGNREGS.

• Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh as the Convener and CMs of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Sikkim along with the Member NITI Aayog, Shri Ramesh Chand are its members.
• The move comes in the backdrop of the vision of the Prime Minister towards Doubling Farmers’ Income by 2022 which requires a multi-dimensional and inclusive approach.

52. Sunil Mittal becomes honorary chairman of ICC

Sunil Bharti Mittal, the Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, will step down as the Chairman of International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) on June 21.

• He will be succeeded by Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever, as ICC Chairman.
• He will now function as the Honorary Chairman of the ICC commencing July 1.
• Ajay Banga, the President and CEO of MasterCard will be appointed as the ICC First Vice-Chair.

53. B V R Subramanyam appointed as Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary

B V R Subrahmanyam, a senior IAS officer of the Chhattisgarh cadre, was appointed as the chief secretary of Jammu and Kashmir.

• The 55-year-old bureaucrat, who hails from Andhra Pradesh, has been appointed in place of incumbent B B Vyas.

Awards

54. Oriental Bank of Commerce awarded for Atal Pension Yojana

Oriental Bank of Commerce has been awarded as the best public sector bank for Atal Pension Yojana for the year 2017-18.

• MoS for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla presented the awarded to Mukesh Kumar Jain, MD and CEO of the bank.

55. PM’s Award for Outstanding Contribution for Promotion and Development of Yoga

Shri Vishwas Mandalik, Nasik and The Yoga Institute, Mumbai are the recipients of the Prime Minister's Award for outstanding contribution for promotion and development of Yoga for the year 2018.

• The selection was done from among 186 nominations received under different categories.
• On the occasion of the 2nd International Day of Yoga celebrations at Chandigarh on 21st June, 2016, the Hon’ble Prime Minister had announced the institution of awards for the promotion and development of Yoga.
• The award for 2017 was won by Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute, Pune.

56. India Smart Cities Awards

Nine awards in three categories, i.e., Project Award, Innovative Idea Award and City Award have been announced under the India Smart Cities Awards, which was launched on June 25, 2017 by Hon’ble Housing and Urban Affairs Minister.

• The city award is being given to Surat for showing great momentum in implementation of projects especially in the categories of urban environment, transport and mobility and sustainable integrated development.
• The Innovative Idea award is being given to a project/idea particularly remarkable for its innovative, bottom-up and transformative approach towards achievement of sustainable integrated development. Joint winners in this category are Bhopal for their Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) and Ahmedabad for Safe and Secure Ahmedabad (SASA) Project.
• The Project awards are being given to most innovative and successful projects in seven categories that have been completed by April 1, 2018.

The Projects selected are

• PMC Care from Pune under ‘Governance’ category,
• Smart Place Making from Pune under ‘Built Environment’,
• Smart Class rooms from NDMC and Jabalpur, Smart Campus from Visakhapatnam, Lighthouse from Pune under ‘Social Aspects’ category,
• B Nest Incubation Centre from Bhopal and Conservation of Rajasthan School of Arts from Jaipur under ‘Culture and Economy’ category,
• Public Bike Sharing from Bhopal, Pune, Coimbatore and Waste to Energy Plant in Jabalpur under ‘Urban environment’ category,
• Integrated Transit Management System (TMS) from Ahmedabad and Surat under ‘Transport and Mobility’ category and
• Smart Water Management through SCADA from Ahmedabad under ‘Water and Sanitation’ category.

57. Anukreethy Vas From Tamil Nadu Crowned Femina Miss India 2018

Anukreethy Vas, a 19-year-old Tamil Nadu college student, has been crowned Femina Miss India 2018 in a grand ceremony in Mumbai.

• Anukreethy Vas, who was previously crowned fbb Colours Femina Miss Tamil Nadu, beat 30 contestants to bag the top honour.
• Meenakshi Chaudhary from Haryana was the first runner-up while Shreya Rao Kamavarapu from Andhra Pradesh secured the second runner-up position.

Sports

58. USA, Canada and Mexico to host 2026 FIFA World Cup

The World Cup is to return to North America for a fourth time after FIFA members voted to award the right to host the 2026 tournament to a joint bid from the United States, Canada and Mexico.

• The North American bid beat competition from Morocco, which was hoping to become just the second African country to host soccer's biggest international tournament.
• The "United" bid received 134 of the 203 votes cast at the FIFA Congress in Moscow, while Morocco polled 65.

59. Roger Federer wins Mercedes Cup

Roger Federer beat Milos Raonic to win the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, his first event for two and a half months.

• The Swiss had not played since the Miami Open in March, but the win in Germany gives him a 98th Tour title.
• Federer, 36, beat Canadian Raonic 6-4 7-6 (7-3) in the final.
• The 20-time Grand Slam champion had already secured his return to number one in the world rankings with victory over Nick Kyrgios in the semi-final.

60. England post record ODI total of 481/6

Alex Hales and Jonny Bairstow both hit hundreds as England broke the record for the highest score in a men's one-day international at Trent Bridge by scoring 481 for six against Australia.

• England surpassed their own previous all-time record men's ODI total of 444 for three, also set at Trent Bridge, against Pakistan in 2016.
• In reply, Australia could only manage to get 239/10.

Death

61. Veteran journalist Adiraju passes away 

Veteran journalist and author Adiraju Venkateswara Rao passed away after a brief illness.

• Popularly known as Adiraju, Mr. Venkateswara Rao was born in 1938 at Panditapuram village in Khammam district.
• In a career spanning over five-and-a-half decades, he worked for several Telugu and English dailies and news agencies including Andhra Jyothi, Udayam, Deccan Chronicle, Indian Express, Himachal Times and Hindustan Samachar at Hyderabad and Delhi.

Books

62. Gadkari Releases Nabard Publication on Water Productivity mapping of major Indian crops

Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Shipping, Road Transport & Highways Shri Nitin Gadkari released a book ‘Water productivity mapping of major Indian crops’ published by NABARD in a function at New Delhi.

• Addressing the gathering Shri Gadkari said that there is no scarcity of water in the country but we have to improve upon the planning and management of water resources.
• Our Ministry and Government is thinking about innovative ways for better management of water resources.
• Proposal for three projects at Tuticorin, Paradip and Kandla are under consideration where sea water can be desalinised and used for irrigation and other works.

63. Vice President receives the Book ‘Vedvigyan Alok’

The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has received the book "Vedvigyan Alok" (Maharishi Aitareya Mahidas Praneet - Aitareya Brahmina ki Vaigyanik Vyakhya) authored by Acharya Agnivarat Naishthik.