NATIONAL NEWS
Andhra CM launches ‘YSR Bima’ schemeChief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy launched the ‘YSR Bima’ scheme, under which the government will directly pay insurance amounts to families of the deceased to make the claim settlement easier.
- In order to support 1.32 lakh families through the YSR Bima scheme, the government allocated ₹750 crore for the year 2021-22. The government had spent ₹1,307 crore on YSR Bima in the last two years.
- Under the scheme, an insurance amount of ₹1 lakh would be paid if the beneficiary aged between 18 and 50 years dies naturally, and ₹5 lakh in respect of accidental death of the beneficiary aged between 18 and 70 years.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India's proven tech prowess presents massive opportunity for the country, and exuded confidence that this decade will be "India's techade".
- The prime minister made the remarks while interacting with beneficiaries of the Digital India programme on completion of six years of government's flagship initiative.
- The digital India initiative was launched with a vision to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. The programme was started on 1 July, 2015.
The construction work for units 5 and 6 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) commenced with the first concrete pouring into the foundation plate of the reactor building, the NPCIL said, marking an important milestone in ramping up the country''s nuclear power capacity.
- Russia''s Rosatom and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL), a public sector undertaking of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), are building six power reactors of 1,000-MW each at Kudankulam, about 625 kilometres from Chennai.
- On completion, the KKNPP will be the highest nuclear power generation park in the country.l'ts unit 1 and unit 2 are in operation while units 3 and 4 are under construction and currently have reached about 50 per cent progress.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar launched ‘Jan Sahayak Aapka Sahayak’ mobile app for Government to Citizen (G2C) and Business to Citizen (B2C) services. He also announced a scheme for providing ownership rights to Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) property holders.
- Addressing a press conference, the CM said that the app is a single platform for availing government services, emergency helplines and other services which included information on tenders and jobs, and payment of bills.
- The helplines included 112 for emergency calls, 100 for police, 108 for ambulances, 101 for fire, 104 for health, 1091 for women, 1098 for children and 1075 for Covid. One can file a complaint on CM Window or request for FIR or an RTI application through the app.
- For giving ownership rights to property holders, the CM launched ‘Mukhyamantri Shehri Nikay Swamitva Yojana’ portal. Those having houses, shops of the municipality on a lease or rent basis for the past 20 years can get ownership rights by registering on the portal.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
India joins OECD, G20 Inclusive Framework tax dealIndia has joined Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and G20 Inclusive Framework tax deal.
- Majority of the members of OECD and G20 countries adopted a high-level statement containing an outline of a consensus solution to address the tax challenges arising from the digitalisation of the economy.
- The proposed solution consists of two components- reallocation of additional share of profit to the market jurisdictions and minimum tax subject to tax rules.
The number of international migrant workers has risen globally to 169 million, an increase of three percent since 2017, as per a report by the International Labour Organisation. In 2017, the number of international migrant workers stood at 164 million which has risen by 5 million to 169 million in 2019.
- The 2019 estimate of the report indicates an increase of five million migrant workers from the 2017 estimate of 164 million migrant workers and an increase of 12.7 per cent from the 2013 estimate of 150 million migrant workers.
- Women constitute 41.5 per cent and men 58.5 per cent of migrant workers. The smaller share of women migrant workers is evident by their lower representation among international migrants (47.9 per cent) on one hand and their relatively lower labour market participation rate as compared to men (59.8 per cent vs. 77.5 per cent).
- "The Arab States, Asia and the Pacific each host about 24 million migrant workers, while Africa has 13.7 million migrant workers, representing 8.1 per cent of the total," as per the report.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently issued its first global report on artificial intelligence in healthcare and six guiding principles for its design and use.
- The report titled ‘Ethics and governance of artificial intelligence for health’ has been published after two years of consultations held by a panel of international experts appointed by WHO.
- According to the new WHO guidelines, AI promises to improve healthcare and medicine delivery, but only when ethics and human rights are put at the heart of its design, deployment and use.
- However, WHO’s new report cautions against overestimating the benefits of AI for health, especially when this occurs at the expense of core investments and strategies required to achieve universal health coverage.
The seventh edition of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), which was hosted by the French Navy at La Reunion in Italy, concluded. Admiral Karambir Singh, Chief of the Naval Staff, Indian Navy, participated virtually in the inaugural session of the three-day event.
- The Indian Ocean Naval Symposium consists of 23 permanent members and 9 observer members.
- During the Symposium, Subject Matter Expert (SME) presentations were made by the French Institute of International Relations - Observatoire du Climat, European Union, Indian Ocean Commission, IFC Singapore, RMIFC Madagascar and EU-led Critical Maritime Routes Indian Ocean (CRIMARIO).
- The Symposium also held panel discussions themed on the three IONS Working Groups viz., HADR, Maritime Security and Information Sharing & Interoperability. The Naval Maritime Foundation (NMF) also participated in the Panel Discussion on HADR.
An Indian Navy warship carried out a military exercise with a South Korean vessel in the East China Sea amid China's growing assertiveness in the region.
- Indian Navy's indigenous ASW Corvette INS Kiltan deployed in the Far East undertook Navy Partnership Exercise in East China Sea with Republic of Korea Navy Ship--ROKS Gyeongnam, a Daegu-class frigate.
- The Navy partnership exercise is aimed at enhancing interoperability and facilitating exchange of best practices with partner navies in the maritime domain.
BANKING & FINANCE
HDFC Bank launches ‘Salaam Dil Sey’ initiative to pay tribute to medicosHDFC Bank launched a SalaamDilSey initiative to show gratitude to doctors for their tireless service during the pandemic, to pay tribute to doctors across the country.
- SalaamDilSey encourages one and all to take a moment to acknowledge and celebrate the contribution of doctors and provides a platform to show their gratitude to doctors, who are bravely fighting the pandemic, at the risk of their own lives.
- As part of this initiative, the bank has created a web platform www.salaamdilsey.com wherein the general public can logon on to the microsite and share the thank you message for doctors which can be immediately shared via e-mail, social media, and WhatsApp
ICICI Bank announced the launch of the country’s most comprehensive banking solutions for medical doctors.
- Called ‘Salute Doctors’, it provides customized banking as well as value-added services for every doctor, beginning from a medical student to a senior medical consultant to an owner of a hospital or a clinic.
- This proposition is an extension of ‘ICICI STACK’ which was launched a year ago to offer all banking services digitally from one platform.
Banking technology provider Network People Services Technology (NPST) has availed a registration for the third-party application provider (TPAP) from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) for its TimePay solution.
- TPAPs are third-party providers that roll out a distinct Unified Payments Interface (UPI) handle for their customers.
- NPST aims to put the recently received registration to use by picking cooperative housing societies and merchants in lieu of giving them an application stack that will consist of accounting solutions, invoicing and also payment collections.
The World Bank announced the approval of a USD 500 million (about Rs 3,717.28 crore) financing package to assist India’s informal working class in overcoming the present epidemic distress.
- The loan will give states more flexibility to deal with the ongoing pandemic as well as potential climate and disaster shocks, according to a statement from the World Bank.
- The USD 500 million commitment will be funded in part by its concessionary lending arm, the International Development Association, and in part by a loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Indian Navy signs pact with Bharat Electronics Ltd to develop emerging technologiesThe Indian Navy inked a pact with premier DPSU Bharat Electronics Limited to develop emerging technologies related to artificial intelligence, quantum computing and robotics.
- The memorandum of understanding (MoU) provides for the setting up of a technology incubation forum to jointly work on developing new technologies.
- The Technology Incubation Forum (ITF) reflects the joint vision of the Indian Navy and Bharat Electronics Limited towards innovative and creative thinking and fostering the development of emerging technologies.
The Arun Jaitley National Institute of Financial Management (AJNIFM) and Microsoft have formed a strategic partnership to build an AI and emerging technologies Centre of Excellence.
- The collaboration seeks to explore role of cloud, AI and emerging technologies for transforming and shaping the future of public finance management in India.
- The centre will serve as a central body for research, AI scenario envisioning and tech led innovation. AJNIFM and Microsoft will jointly explore use cases of emerging technologies in finance and related areas across central and state ministries besides public sector enterprises.
ACQUISITIONS, & MERGERS
Adani Green's acquisition of entire stake in SB Energy approved by CCIThe Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the acquisition of SB Energy Holding Limited by Adani Green Energy Limited.Under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002, the CCI gave its nod to the acquisition of the entire stake in SB Energy.
- The transaction marks this largest acquisition in the renewable energy sector in India. It values SB Energy India at an enterprise valuation of around $3.5 billion.
- It is expected to help Adani Green achieve total renewable capacity of 24.3 GW.
SPORTS
Indian Wrestler Sumit Malik handed two-year banIndian wrestler Sumit Malik has been banned for two years by the United World Wrestling (UWW) after his B sample also returned positive for a prohibited stimulant.
- The 28-year-old has one week to decide if he would accept the sanction or challenge it. In a jolt to the Indian wrestlers’ campaign in the Tokyo Olympics, 125kg freestyle wrestler Malik had tested positive for the banned substance methylhexaneamine (MHA).
The experienced pair of Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza defeated the brand new combination of Ramakumar Ramanathan and Ankita Raina 6-2 7-6 (5) in the historic all-Indian mixed doubles first-round match at Wimbledon.
- It was the first time in open era that two Indian teams competed against each other at a Grand Slam tournament.
- The contest finally brought a Grand Slam debut for Ramkumar, who has made 21 attempts to qualify for the singles main draw of a tennis major.
AWARDS
Delhi students win Diana Award for work during the pandemicAn Indian-British boy has received the prestigious Diana Award for his contribution to the social sector during the coronavirus lockdown.
- Ishan Kapur, a 15-year-old student at Wellington College (UK) has been recognised for the highest accolade that a young person can receive for creating and sustaining a positive change.
- The young boy from Delhi works with the Sri Ramakrishna Ashram and helps a local school access uniforms for marginalised girls.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Grene Robotics develops India's First Autonomous Drone Defence Dome systemIn the backdrop of the Indian Air Force probing the use of drones in the recent Jammu airport explosion, Hyderabad-based technology R&D firm Grene Robotics has designed and developed India’s first indigenous drone defence dome called “Indrajaal”.
- The drone defence dome has the capability to autonomously protect an area of 1000-2000 sq km against the aerial threats by assessing and acting on aerial threats such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), loitering munitions, and Low-RCS targets.
- Indrajaal is capable of real-time situational awareness, can integrate with all current weapons suite and infrastructure, has a honeycombed cell structure seamlessly built over a combination of 9-10 technologies, provides 24x7x365 persistent and autonomous monitoring, tracking and action.
ENVIRONMENT
Rare black-bellied coral snake found in Uttarakhand for first time in historyBlack-bellied Coral snake has been discovered in forests of Uttarakhand for the first time in history, by a group of researchers.
- The snake belongs to the Elapidae family of Sinomicrurus genus, namely, S. nigriventer.
- The snake has six generations in India, which are mainly found in Himalayan region, Northeast, and one group in the South.
OBITUARIES
Former India Footballer Prasannan passes awayFormer international footballer M Prasannan passed away in Mumbai. He was 73.
- Prasannan played alongside greats of Indian football like Inder Singh and Doraiswamy Natraj and earned plaudits as a gifted midfielder. He represented Kerala, Maharashtra and Goa in Santosh Trophy.
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