We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 30 & 31 May 2021, which have unique updates of Latest Current Affairs 2021 events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, PTI, Indian Express, Business Standard and all Government official websites.
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NATIONAL AFFAIRS
Education Ministry approves Monetary Assistance to Students under MDM Scheme
- Beneficiaries – Class 1-8 students who are studying in 11.20 Lakh Government and Government aided schools across India will be benefitted.
- Each Child will get approximately INR 100 under the One-time welfare measure.
- The INR 1200 Crore fund has been provided from the Cooking cost component of MDM Scheme.
- The assistance is aimed at safeguarding the nutritional levels of children and aid them in protecting their immunity during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDM)
i.The school meal programme was launched in 1995 as a Central sponsored scheme.
- It is implemented by the Ministry of Education & covered by the National Food Security Act, 2013.
- Under the scheme, Centre and State share cooking cost for daily meals in the ratio of 60:40 for non-North eastern states and UTs with legislatures except Jammu & Kashmir. For others it is split in the ratio of 90:10.
About Ministry of Education
Union Minister – Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ (Haridwar, Uttarakhand)
Minister of State – Dhotre Sanjay Shamrao (Akola, Maharashtra)
>>Read Full News
MHA Constituted Committee To Propose Separate Section on Hate Speech in IPC
- Purpose – At present there is no definition of what is ‘Hate Speech’ in IPC, The Committee for Reforms in Criminal Laws is attempting for the 1st time to define it.
- Several ‘hate speech’ cases are pending in courts across India, as there is no clear definition of it in the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
- The committee is set to report its report soon.
Committee for Reforms in Criminal Laws
i.It was constituted in May 2020 to undertake a review of criminal laws in India.
ii.Members of the committee
- Srikrishna Deva Rao (Chairperson)– Vice-Chancellor, National Law University (NLU), Delhi
- S. Bajpai (Member and convenor)- Registrar, NLU Delhi
- Balraj Chauhan (Member) – Vice-Chancellor, Dharmashastra NLU Jabalpur
- Mahesh Jethmalani (Member)- Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India
- P. Thareja (Member)- Former District and Sessions Judge, Delhi.
About Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA):
Union Minister – Amit Shah(Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat)
Minister of State – G. Kishan Reddy( Secunderabad, Telangana), Nityanand Rai(Ujiarpur, Bihar)
>>Read Full News
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
NATO conducts War Games ‘Steadfast Defender 21’
- Objective – to improve the ability of the Allied forces to move quickly across the Atlantic and Europe to protect each other, if need arises.
- Around 9,000 troops from more than 20 NATO Allies and partners will take part in the exercise.
- The Forces will be deployed across land and sea from North America to the Black Sea region and off the coast of Portugal. It includes NATO troops, warships, and several Fighter Aircrafts like the F-35.
Background
- The tensions between Russia & NATO member countries are increasing.
- In April 2020, Russia sent thousands of its troops to the Russia-Ukraine Border, which caused concern to the NATO members. Russian troops had annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
i.It is an Intergovernmental Military Alliance between 30 European and North American countries. It is based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April, 1949.
- The member countries agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by an external party.
About North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Secretary General – Jens Stoltenberg
Headquarters – Brussels, Belgium
>>Read Full News
BANKING & FINANCE
ZebPay Launched India’s First Crypto Based Lending Platform
- Under the ZebPay Lending Platform, the investors could deposit their Bitcoins/other coins and earn returns like the bank’s fixed deposits(FD).
- The platform will generate returns on users’ crypto investments based on their selected cryptos, their token and the time period for which it is loaded.
Key points:
i.Based on the term of deposits, users could generate returns of up to 3 percent on bitcoin, 7 percent on ether, 7 percent on dai and 12 percent on tether.
i.Under the platform, investors could lend their cryptos for an open term or a fixed term.
ii.Under open term, investors could lock in their crypto under their trading wallet along with the principal amount and their returns will be earned as applicable for the day.
iii.The fixed-term allows investors to lend their crypto for seven-day, 30-day, 60-day and 90-day periods (with different rates for each). In fixed-term, the tokens cannot be withdrawn before the end of the term.
About Cryptocurrency:
i.A cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency that is secured by cryptography, which works as a medium of exchange that uses cryptography.
ii.The first blockchain-based cryptocurrency launched was Bitcoin, it was launched in 2009 by a group ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’.
About ZebPay:
Establishment -2014
Headquarters (Global) – Singapore
Headquarters(India) – Ahmedabad, Gujarat
Corporate Office – Victoria, Australia
CEO – Rahul Pagidipati
Canara Bank Launched 3 Loan Schemes amidst COVID-19
About the 3 categories of loan:
i.Canara Chikitsa healthcare credit facility:
This scheme offers loans from over Rs 10 lakh to Rs 50 crore to registered hospitals, nursing homes, medical practitioners, diagnostic centres, pathology labs that are engaged in servicing healthcare infrastructure.
ii.Canara Jeevanrekha healthcare business loan:
Under this, the bank will offer loan up to Rs 2 crore at a concessional interest rate for manufacture and supply of healthcare products viz, medical oxygen and oxygen cylinders, and oxygen concentrators to registered hospitals and nursing homes or other manufacturers, and suppliers.
iii.Canara Suraksha personal loan scheme:
This scheme will provide loans from Rs 25,000 – Rs 5 lakh as immediate financial assistance for COVID-19 treatment.
About Canara Bank:
Establishment – July 1906
Headquarters – Bengaluru, Karnataka
MD & CEO – L.V.Prabhakar
Tagline – Together We Can
Syndicate Bank was amalgamated into Canara Bank on April 2020
>>Read Full News
UCO Bank Alloted Preferential Shares to Govt for Rs 2,600 crore Capital Infusion
- The bank’s board has approved a proposal to raise up to Rs 3,000 crore equity capital in 2021-22 through various means including preferential issue, follow on public offer or qualified institutional placement.
About Preferential Shares(PS):
i.PS are one of the special types of share capital having a fixed rate of dividend (Dividend – It is a share of profits and retained earnings that a company pays out to its shareholders)
ii.PS provide the shareholders with the special right to claim dividends during the company lifetime, and also with the option to claim repayment of capital, in case of the wind up of the company.
iii.As PS have elements of both equity shares and debt, they are also called – hybrid financing instruments, Preference stock, etc.
iv.Like debt carries a fixed interest rate, PS have fixed dividends attached to them with a fixed maturity date (Exception – irredeemable preference shares – do not have any fixed maturity).
About UCO Bank:
Establishment – 1943
Headquarters – Kolkata, West Bengal
MD & CEO – Atul Kumar Goel
RBI Imposed Rs 10 crore Penalty on HDFC Bank
On May 28, 2021, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 10 crore on HDFC Bank Limited for contravention of provisions of section 6(2) and section 8 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (the Act).
RBI imposed the penalty in the exercise of powers vested with the RBI under the provisions of Section 47A(1)(c) read with Section 46(4)(i) of the Act, after finding irregularities with the HDFC bank’s auto loan portfolio.
AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS
Dr D Nageshwar Reddy Becomes 1st Indian To Win 2021 Rudolf V Schindler Award
About Dr D Nageshwar Reddy:
i.Dr D Nageshwar Reddy won the Padma Shri award in 2002 and Padma Bhushan award in 2016.
ii.He is the Chairman and founder of Asian Institute of Gastroenterology (AIG), Hyderabad, the biggest gastroenterology hospital in the world.
iii.He is one of the first to promote endoscopy in India and has led the charge of educating numerous endoscopists all over the world.
iv.He has also won several awards including,
- The Master Endoscopist Award from ASGE in 2009
- ASGE International Leadership Award in 2011
- Fellow of American College of Gastroenterology in 2012.
Note:
The Rudolf V Schindler Award is named after Dr Schindler who is considered as “the father of gastroscopy”. It is the highest category award in the Crystal Awards of ASGE.
Valeria Luiselli won Dublin Literary Award 2021 for ‘Lost Children Archive’
- Lost Children Archive is the 5th novel of Valeria Luiselli and the 1st one to be written in English
About the Author:
i.Valeria Luiselli was born in Mexico City and her essay collections include Sidewalks, Faces in the Crowd, The Story of My Teeth, and Tell Me How It Ends: An Essay in Forty Questions.
ii.Awards:
- Faces in the Crowd – won the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction.
- The Story of My Teeth – won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Best Fiction in 2016.
- Received American Book Award in 2018.
About the novel:
The novel, Lost Children Archive was about the American policy of keeping children away from their parents at the Mexican-American border. The book also won the Rathbones Folio prize in 2020.
About the Award:
i.The International Dublin Literary Award was established in 1994, it is considered as one of the world’s wealthiest awards for literature with prize money of €100,000 (~ INR 89,27,300).
ii.The award is given to a novel written or translated into English. The nominations will be made by public libraries from across the world.
APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS
Group of Ministers set up to Evaluate GST Related to Casinos, Race course;Convened By Nitin Patel
Key points:
i.The GoM will submit the recommendation within 6 months to the GST Council, chaired by the Union Finance Minister and comprising state Finance Ministers for its consideration.
Terms of Reference for Committee of GoM:
i.The committee will evaluate the services provided by casinos, race courses, online gaming portals, and the taxability of certain transactions in a casino. It will include existing legal provisions and orders of Courts into evaluation.
ii.Suggestions regarding the requirement of any change on the legal provisions for better valuation of these services (casinos, race course and online gaming) will be provided by it.
About GST Council:
i.GST Council is an apex member committee to modify or to procure any law or regulation based on the context of GST in India.
ii.It was constituted on 15th September 2016 under Article 279A of the Constitution.
iii.The council is headed by the union finance minister (Current- Nirmala Sitharaman) and assisted by the finance minister of all the states of India.
>>Read Full News
Colonel Assimi Goïta named as the Transitional President of Mali
He ousted the transitional President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane in the 2nd military coup of Mali in 9 months.
About Assimi Goïta:
i.Assimi Goïta has been serving as the leader of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People, who overthrew Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta in the 2020 Military coup.
ii.Assimi Goïta became the Vice President of the transition in September 2020.
iii.He led the 2021 coup against Bah Ndaw and Moctar Ouane who failed to consult him about the cabinet reshuffle.
About Mali:
Transitional President– Assimi Goïta
Capital– Bamako
Currency– West African CFA Franc
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Bellatrix Aerospace Tests India’s 1st Privately built Hall-effect Thruster
- The tests were conducted at the Spacecraft Propulsion Research Laboratory (Asia’s largest privately funded lab) set up by Bellatrix at Society for Innovation and Development-Indian Institute of Science (SID-IISc), Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- The propulsion system is ideal for microsatellites weighing 50-500 Kg and can be scaled up for heavier satellites.
- The current model of the thruster uses Xenon as fuel. The Technology is a critical technology for the Space Taxi that Bellatrix Aerospace is developing.
Key Points
- Bellatrix Aerospace has also developed the World’s 1st commercial Microwave Plasma Thruster, which uses water as fuel. For this, the company has bagged an order from Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
- Bellatrix Aerospace is an IISc incubated startup established in 2015.
IAU approves 8 Features on Moon with Chinese names 
i.Chang’e-5 brought back fresh Lunar samples to Earth, which was previously bought 40-years back by the USA’s 1969 Apollo 11 Mission.
ii.The locations are named after China’s famous Astronomers, Scientists, Mathematicians, Cartographers, Mountains, and a Constellation.
About International Astronomical Union (IAU):
Mission – To promote & safeguard the science of astronomy in all its aspects, through international cooperation.
Founded – 1919
Headquarters – Paris, France
President – Ewine van Dishoeck
About China National Space Administration (CNSA):
Administrator – Zhang Kejian
Headquarter – Beijing, China
>>Read Full News
DG NCC Mobile Training App 2.0 Launched By Defence Secretary
Objective:
- To conduct countrywide online training to the NCC cadets.
- To provide easy access to training material and to assist in carrying out training during the pandemic.
About DG NCC App:
i.DG NCC Mobile Training App Version 2.0 will be bilingual (Hindi and English) with 130 training videos.
ii.It has new pages for ease of navigation on the app.
iii.Precis and Frequently Asked Questions in Hindi have also been added.
iv.Also a query option is added by which a cadet can post his/her question related to the training syllabus and the same will be answered by a panel of qualified instructors.
Note:
DG NCC Mobile App Version 1.0 for training was launched by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on August 27, 2020, in order to assist online cadet training.
Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) for uniforms will soon be made available to transfer uniform allowances directly to the bank accounts of the cadets.
World’s First Global, Satellite-Based Reef-Monitoring System Launched By Scientists
Scientists working with the Allen Coral Atlas,a research initiative developed by Arizona State University (ASU), the University of Queensland, the National Geographic Society, Planet, and Vulcan just launched the first global, satellite-based reef surveillance tool to monitor the coral bleaching issue.
- This tool can track global coral bleaching events in near-real-time and provide an overall view of trends and changes in coral reef health that can be used to inform conservation efforts and policy.
- It also provides critical information about which reefs are under stress and which ones appear to be more resilient to events like marine heat waves.
IIT Ropar & Monash University develop unique detector ‘FakeBuster’
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar, Punjab and Monash University, Australia have developed a unique detector called ‘FakeBuster’ using DeepFake detection technology to detect imposters attending a virtual conference without anybody’s knowledge.
- It helps to find out faces manipulated on social media to defame or make joke of someone.
OBITUARY
Former Denmark Prime Minister Poul Schlueter Passed Away
About Poul Schlueter:
i.Poul Schlueter was the longest-serving Danish prime minister for over a decade from 1982 to 1993, since World War II.
ii.In 1992,He stopped the European Union’s move toward closer cooperation when Danes rejected the Maastricht treaty.
iii.He was also elected to the European Parliament from 1994 to 1999.
Renowned Urdu Poet & Former Urdu Newsreader Of AIR, Tarannum Riyaz Passed Away
The former Urdu newsreader of All India Radio(AIR) and a renowned poet ,Dr. Tarannum Riyaz passed away in New Delhi.
- She was the recipient of the SAARC Literature Award in 2014.
- She was also the secretary of Poetry Club India and convener for the Urdu language with International Centre for Peace Studies New Delhi.
- Apart from this she has written short stories like ‘Shahr’ and ‘Hum to doobe hain sanam’.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
New Book Titled “Savarkar: A contested Legacy (1924-1966)” Authored by Vikram Sampath
The book is published by the Penguin Random House India.
About the book:
i.The book covers the life story of Veer Savarkar, one of the most contentious and iconoclastic political thinkers from 1924 to his death in 1966.
ii.The book features the research data of Vikram Sampath collected from the unaccessed documents from archives across India and the world & works in Marathi & other Indian languages
Note:
- The first volume titled “Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past”, released in 2019 covered the life of Veera Savarkar from his birth in 1883 to his conditional release from prison in 1924.
About Vikram Sampath:
i.Vikram Sampath has established the Archive of Indian Music, India’s first digital sound archive for vintage recordings.
ii.He is the founder-director of the Bangalore Literature Festival, Indic Thoughts Festival and the ZEE Group’s ARTH: A Culture Fest.
Awards:
Vikram Sampath received the Sahitya Akademi’s first Yuva Puraskar in English literature (2011) and ARSC Awards for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research in New York for his book “My Name Is Gauhar Jaan: The Life and Times of a Musician and Voice of the Veena”.
Note:
The book on Gauhar Jaan was adapted as a play titled “Gauhar” by Lillete Dubey and adapted as a Hindi Movie by Ashutosh Gowariker.
Other Books of Vikram Sampath:
- Splendours of Royal Mysore: the Untold Story of The Wodeyars
- Voice of the Veena- S. Balachander: A Biography
- Savarkar: Echoes From A Forgotten Past, 1883-1924
Ravi Shastri Authored A Book Titled ‘Stargazing: The Players In My Life’
About The Book:
i.The Book is about some 60 extraordinary talents that Ravi Shastri has met from across the world who have inspired him.
ii.It is co-authored by RaviShastri and sports journalist Ayaz Memon and illustrations are featured by Shiva Rao and it is expected to be out in 2021.
About the author:
Ravi Shastri is a former cricketer and commentator, and current head coach of the India men’s national cricket team.
IMPORTANT DAYS
International Day of UN Peacekeepers 2021 – May 29
- The theme of the International Day of UN Peacekeepers 2021 is “The road to a lasting peace: Leveraging the power of youth for peace and security.”
Background:
i.The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/57/129 in 2002 and proclaimed the 29th of May as the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers.
ii.The first International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers was observed on 29th May 2003.
>>Read Full News
World Digestive Health Day 2021 – May 29
- The WDHD is organised by WGO in partnership with the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity and Metabolic Disorders (IFSO).
- The theme of World Digestive Health Day 2021 is “Obesity: An Ongoing Pandemic”.
About World Gastroenterology Organisation (WGO):
President- Professor Naima Lahbabi-Amrani
Secretary-General– Professor Geoffrey Metz
Headquarters– Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States
>>Read Full News
International Everest Day 2021 – May 29
Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa became the first people to scale the world’s highest mountain.
Background:
i.In 2008, The Government of Nepal decided to celebrate the 29th May of every year as the International Everest Day.
ii.The first International Everest Day was observed on 29th May 2008, the year in which Edmund Hillary passed away.
>>Read Full News
STATE NEWS
PJTSAU signed MoU with Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Learning for AI-based Pest Management System
The MoU was virtually signed in the presence of Jayesh Ranjan Principal Secretary (IT), M. Raghunandan Rao, Secretary (Agriculture) and V. Praveen Rao, Vice-Chancellor of PJTSAU.
Objective:
To support the farmers with advanced information on the possible pink bollworm infestation in cotton fields which will help with the control and preventive measures.
Features of the MoU:
i.Under this MoU, the AI-based insect management system developed by the Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Learning will be used to identify the possibility of pink bollworm and other pest infestations on cotton in advance and share the data with farmers in the areas identified for the program and support the farmers with early control measures.
ii.The AI-based pest management system will be implemented to support the cotton farmers in 6 districts – Khammam, Adilabad, Karimnagar, Nalgonda, Mahabubnagar and Nagarkurnool districts.
Note:
During the 2020 Kharif season out of the 60.54 lakh acres in the state, Cotton was cultivated in around 20.88 lakh acres in these districts.
Additional info:
PJTSAU has also signed an agreement with the Barrisons Agro India Private Ltd and Evergree Energy Enterprises Private Ltd to work in areas like soil testing, agriculture inputs, market linkage, use of drones and others.
About Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU):
Vice-Chancellor– Dr. Praveen Rao Velchala
Location– Hyderabad, Telangana
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Current Affairs Today (AffairsCloud Today)
| S.no | Current Affairs 30 & 31 May 2021 |
|---|---|
| 1 | Education Ministry approves Monetary Assistance to Students under MDM Scheme |
| 2 | MHA constituted Committee proposes separate Section on Hate Speech in IPC |
| 3 | NATO conducts War Games ‘Steadfast Defender 21’ |
| 4 | ZebPay Launched India’s First Crypto Based Lending Platform |
| 5 | Canara Bank Came out with 3 Loan Schemes amidst COVID-19 |
| 6 | UCO Bank Alloted Preferential Shares to Govt for Rs 2,600 crore Capital Infusion |
| 7 | RBI Imposed Rs 10 crore Penalty on HDFC Bank |
| 8 | Dr D Nageshwar Reddy Becomes 1st Indian To Win Rudolf V Schindler Award |
| 9 | Valeria Luiselli won Dublin Literary Award 2021 for ‘Lost Children Archive’ |
| 10 | Group of Ministers set up to Evaluate GST Related to Casinos, Race course |
| 11 | Colonel Assimi Goïta named as the Transitional President of Mali |
| 12 | Bellatrix Aerospace Tests India’s 1st Privately built Hall-effect Thruster |
| 13 | IAU approves 8 Features on Moon with Chinese names |
| 14 | DG NCC Mobile Training App 2.0 Launched By Defence Secretary |
| 15 | World’s First Global, Satellite-Based Reef-Monitoring System Launched By Scientists |
| 16 | IIT Ropar & Monash University develop unique detector ‘FakeBuster’ |
| 17 | Former Denmark Prime Minister Poul Schlueter Passed Away |
| 18 | Renowned Urdu Poet & Former Urdu Newsreader Of AIR, Tarannum Riyaz Passed Away |
| 19 | New Book Titled “Savarkar: A contested Legacy (1924-1966)” Authored by Vikram Sampath |
| 20 | Ravi Shastri Authored A Book Titled ‘Stargazing: The Players In My Life’ |
| 21 | International Day of UN Peacekeepers 2021 – May 29 |
| 22 | World Digestive Health Day 2021 – May 29 |
| 23 | International Everest Day 2021 – May 29 |
| 24 | PJTSAU signed MoU with Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Learning for AI-based Pest Management System |
