Current Affairs 8 July 2021

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 8 July 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.

Our Current Affairs July 2021 events will help you to get more marks in Banking, Insurance, SSC, Railways, UPSC, CLAT and all State Government Exams. Also, try our Latest Current Affairs Quiz and Monthly Current Affairs 2021 PDF which will be a pedestrian to crack your exams.

Read Current Affairs in CareersCloud APP, Course Name –  Learn Current Affairs – Free Course – Click Here to Download the APP

We are Hiring – Subject Matter Expert | CA Video Creator | Content Developers(Pondicherry)

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Central Government creates ‘Ministry of Co-operation’ to Strengthen Cooperative MovementThe Central Government has created a separate ‘Ministry of Co-operation (Sahkarita Mantralaya)’ to provide a separate administrative, legal and policy framework for strengthening the Co-operative Movement in India. The New Ministry has been carved out from the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture & Agriculture Welfare.

• The new process will help in realizing the government’s vision of ‘Sahakar se Samriddhi’ (prosperity from cooperation).
• The New Ministry will work to streamline processes for ‘Ease of doing businesses for cooperatives and enable development of Multi-State Co-operatives (MSCS).
• The announcement for creation of a separate Ministry for Co-operation was made by Union Minister of Finance, Nirmala Sitharaman during the Budget Session of 2021-22.

Legal Process
The New Ministry has been created through the creation of new rules under ‘Government of India (Allocation of Business) Three Hundred and Sixty Second Amendment Rules, 2021’ which amends the ‘Government of India (Allocation of Business Rules), 1961’.

• The President exercising his powers conferred by Clause (3) of Article 77 of the Constitution approved the amendment.
• The amendments were notified by the Cabinet Secretariat and will come into force at once.

About Cabinet Secretariat
Cabinet Secretary – Rajiv Gauba
>>Read Full News

Government brings Department of Public Enterprises under Finance MinistryPresident of India Ram Nath Kovind approved the ‘Government of India (Allocation of Business) Three Hundred and Sixty First Amendment Rules, 2021’, which brings the ‘Department of Public Enterprises (Lok Udyam Vibhag)’ which was part of the Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises under the Ministry of Finance.

• The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) will be the 6th Department in the Finance Ministry. It has been brought under the Finance Ministry to enable better coordination and better facilitate the Government’s Disinvestment programme.
• The ‘Government of India (Allocation of Business) Three Hundred and Sixty First Amendment Rules, 2021’ amends the ‘Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961’.
• The other 5 departments under the Finance Ministry are Economic Affairs, Revenue, Expenditure, Investment & Public Asset Management and Financial Services

Amendment 
‘’Ministry of Finance (Vitta Mantralaya), after the sub-heading (v) Department of Financial Services (Vittiya Sewayen Vibhag), following sub-heading shall be inserted, namely: – (vi) Department of Public Enterprises (Lok Udyam Vibhag)’

• The amendments were notified by the Cabinet Secretariat and will come into force at once.

About Ministry of Finance
Union Minister – Nirmala Sitharaman (Rajya Sabha MP – Karnataka)
Minister of State (MoS) – Anurag Singh Thakur (Lok Sabha MP – Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh)
>>Read Full News

India’s Coal Production decreases by 2% in FY 2021: Coal Ministry StatisticsAccording to the provisional statistics of 2020-21 released by the Ministry of Coal, India’s coal production dropped by 2.02% to 716.08 Million Tonnes (MT) in FY 2020-21 compared to 730.87 MT in FY 2019-20.
i.Chhattisgarh registered the highest coal production of 158.40 MT, followed by Odisha 154.150 MT, Madhya Pradesh 132.531 MT and Jharkhand 119.296 MT.
Out of 716.08 MT, 671.29 MT was non-coking coal and the remaining 44.78 MT was coking coal.

• Jharkhand was the top producer of coking coal with an output of 44.38 MT, which was 99.11% of total coking coal production of 44.787 MT.

ii.Out of 716.08 MT coal output, 685.95 MT was produced by the public sector while the remaining 30.13 MT was from the private sector.
Importance of Coal Industry
Coal is the backbone of India’s energy system, it contributes nearly 58% of India’s commercial primary energy supply and coal-based power contributes more than 70% of the power generated in India.

• Coal India Ltd alone accounts for 83.26% of coal production in India.

About Ministry of Coal
Union Minister –  Pralhad Joshi (Dharwad, Karnataka)

J&K tops in implementing NISHTHA programme

Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) has trained 80600 Elementary School Teachers through online mode using DIKSHA portal, leading it as India’s top performer under National Initiative for School Heads and Teachers Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) portal.
i.NISHTHA is theWorld’s largest teacher training program that was launched under Samagra Shiksha scheme in 2019-20. It aims to provide an Integrated Teacher Training Programme for improving the quality of school education.

Ministry of Tourism, Yatra sign MoU to strengthen India’s Hospitality & Tourism sector

The Ministry of Tourism signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Yatra, an Indian Travel Agency to strengthen the Hospitality & Tourism Industry of India.

• Objective –  To provide extensive visibility to accommodation units, which have self-certified themselves on SAATHI (System for Assessment, Awareness & Training for the Hospitality Industry) on the OTA (Online Travel Agency) platform.
• The signing event was organized under the arrangement between the Ministry of Tourism and Quality Council of India (QCI) for implementing measures for strengthening the Indian Hospitality & Tourism Industry.

i.The MoU emphasizes both parties to encourage Units to register on NIDHI (National Integrated Database of Hospitality Industry) and thereby on SAATHI to encourage local tourism Industry with appropriate safeguards for curbing spread of COVID-19.

• Both entities will take the necessary steps in identified areas to encourage and promote strategic and technical co-operation in the Hospitality & Tourism Industry.

ii.The main aim behind the signing of MoU is to gain insights, designing evidence based & targeted policy measures to promote safe, and sustainable tourism.
About Ministry of Tourism
MoS (I/C) – Prahalad Singh Patel
About Yatra
Co-Founder & CEO – Dhruv Shringi
Head Office – Gurugram, Haryana

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

8th BRICS Education Ministers meeting 2021 held virtually; Chaired by MoS Sanjay Dhotrei.On July 6, 2021, Minister of State (MoS) Sanjay Shamrao Dhotre, Ministry of Education (MoE), and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeiTy) virtually chaired 8th BRICS (Brazil​, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) Education Ministers 2021 meeting.
ii.Education Ministers from the five BRICS member states attended the meeting along with senior officials.
iii.The ministers signed a joint declaration to strengthen their academic and research collaboration in higher education and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
About BRICS:
Establishment– 2006
2021 Chair– India
Theme for India’s Chairship– ‘BRICS @ 15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus’
>>Read Full News

BANKING & FINANCE

NABARD Sanctioned Rs 2891.15 lakh to Goa under RIDF SchemeOn July 06, 2021, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned a loan worth Rs 2891.15 lakh under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) to the Government of Goa for the Construction of Phase II Building of Goa Dental College and Hospital in Bambolim, Goa.

• The construction of the sanctioned social infrastructure will be the State of the Art ‘Dental Hospital’ for dental treatment and for overall improvement in the health standards of the people in the state.f

About National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD):
NABARD was established on the recommendations of the B.Sivaraman Committee (by Act 61, 1981 of Parliament) to implement the NABARD Act 1981.
Establishment – 12 July 1982
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Chairman – Govinda Rajulu Chintala
>>Read Full News

FREO tie-up with HDBFS to Offer Lending Solutions FREO, India’s 1st credit-led Neobank, made a partnership with HDB Financial Services (HDBFS), a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC), to provide 2 credit products such as a ‘credit line’ and a ‘high-ticket personal loan’ for its customers across multiple cities in India.

• High ticket personal loans: Under the partnership, a high-ticket personal loan of up to Rs 10 lakh would be offered for the customer which could be used for their bigger expenses such as home renovation, buying a vehicle, trip, etc.
• Credit Line: The credit line, which is the flagship program of FREO, will enable consumers to get access to credit anywhere, anytime via a smartphone. The personalized amount approved under the credit line could be used by the customers at once.

About HDB Financial Services (HDBFS):
It is a subsidiary of HDFC Bank.
Establishment – 2007
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
MD & CEO – G. Ramesh
>>Read Full News

RBI Modified norms for Interest on Unclaimed Amount after TD MaturesThe Reserve Bank of India (RBI) modified the rules on applicable interest on unclaimed term deposits (TDs) after maturity in all commercial banks, small finance banks, local area banks, and cooperative banks.

• Now, unclaimed TDs will attract rates of interest applicable to savings accounts or the contracted interest on the matured deposit, whichever is lower.

What is TD?
It is an interest bearing deposit with the bank for a fixed period where deposits can be recurring, cumulative, annuity, reinvestment deposits and cash certificates.
Reason behind this Change:
Earlier, the rate of interest on unclaimed term deposits (TDs) was similar to savings accounts under which banks had to pay a higher interest. In order to overcome this, the modification has been made by the RBI.
Points to be noted:
i.As per RBI, when there is no transaction in the account for 10 years or more that deposit is classified as unclaimed.
ii.This unclaimed amount is transferred to RBI’s Depositor Education and Awareness (DEA) Fund. In the case after 10 years, if an authentic claim on the deposit is made, then RBI settles it from our own funds and claims it back from the DEA Fund.

Bajaj Allianz Tie-up with Bank of India for Distribution of Insurance ProductsBajaj Allianz General Insurance, private general insurers, and Bank of India have entered into a ‘corporate agency agreement’ for distribution of Bajaj Allianz General Insurance’s products through the Bank of India’s vast network across the country.

• Under the agreement, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance will offer a number of personal lines of products such as – motor insurance, health insurance, home insurance, travel insurance to the bank’s customers.
• It will also offer the commercial line of products such as – engineering insurance, marine insurance, etc.
• The agreement will enhance the distribution of Bajaj Allianz’s products to remote areas of the country.

About Bajaj Allianz General Insurance:
It is a joint venture between Bajaj Finserv Limited and Allianz SE, a German financial services company.
Establishment – 2001
Headquarters –  Pune, Maharashtra
MD & CEO – Tapan Singhel
About Bank of India:
Establishment – 1906
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
MD & CEO – Atanu Kumar Das
Tagline – Relationship Beyond Banking

Drip Capital Joins with SBM Bank India to Empower MSME ExportersDrip Capital, a fintech company, has collaborated with SBM Bank India to offer customised trade financing solutions to empower Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) exporters in India.

• Under the partnership, Drip Capital will provide collateral-free working capital to MSME exporters at competitive rates through its invoice discounting facility.
• Unlike traditional financial institutions, Drip Capital leverages data analytics and technology to underwrite its transactions, allowing it to provide a seamless financing experience to MSME businesses.
• Since its inception, Drip Capital has partnered with over 1,500 sellers and buyers of multiple local and international banks across 80 countries to offer its financing solutions to SMEs. Recently, it has financed over $1 billion in cross-border transactions.

Note – The MSME sector is one of the largest exporters in India.
About Drip Capital:
Headquarters – Palo Alto, California, US
Headquarters (India) – Mumbai, Maharashtra
CEO and Co-Founder – Pushkar Mukewar
About SBM Bank (India) Ltd:
i.It is the 1st bank to receive a universal banking license from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to set up and operate as a Scheduled Commercial Bank under Wholly Owned Subsidiary (WOS) mode offering banking services in India.
ii.1st December 2018, it became the 1st foreign bank in India to operate as a new Indian bank.
Establishment – 1994
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
MD & CEO – Sidharth Rath

Razorpay, Mastercard Launched Recurring Payment Interface – MandateHQOn July 06, 2021, Razorpay, a Payments solution provider, in partnership with Mastercard launched a recurring payment interface named ‘MandateHQ’, to support card-issuing banks that wish to enable recurring payments for its customers.

• MandateHQ is an API (Application Programming Interface)-based plug-n-play solution, which would reduce the go-live time of card-issuing banks.
• It will also help the banks to implement the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) new framework on automatic debit and recurring payments.
• It would also support the banks to send a 24-hour pre debit notification (mandated by RBI) via electronic e-mail, SMS, and WhatsApp.
• RBI’s Framework: In 2019, RBI has issued additional norms for Banks to be followed for processing of e-mandate under recurring payments such as Additional Factor Authentication (AFA), additional one-time password (OTP), Prior notifications, etc.

About Razorpay Software Private Limited:
Establishment – 2014
Headquarters – Bangalore, Karnataka
CEO – Harshil Mathur
>>Read Full News

RBI Launched 54th Round of Quarterly Survey on Manufacturing SectorOn July 06, 2021, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) launched the 54th round of quarterly ‘Order Books, Inventories and Capacity Utilization Survey’ (OBICUS) of the manufacturing sector. The reference period for the survey is Q1 FY22 (April – June 2021).

• OBICUS will provide important figures and input for monetary policy formulation.
• The information to be collected in the survey includes quantitative data on new orders received during the reference quarter, backlog of orders, pending orders, total inventories with a breakup between work-in-progress (WiP) and finished goods (FG), and raw material (RM) inventories, etc.
• The results related to the Q4 FY21 (January-March, 2021) quarter would be released by RBI in future. In the current quarter, RBI will approach the selected manufacturing companies.
• OBICUS – It is the survey conducted by RBI on the manufacturing sector on a quarterly basis since 2008. The survey findings will report the demand and capacity utilisation of manufacturing companies.

About Reserve Bank of India (RBI):
Establishment – 1 April 1935
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Governor – Shaktikanta Das
Deputy Governors –  Mahesh Kumar Jain, Michael Debabrata Patra, M. Rajeshwar Rao, T. Rabi Sankar

IOB Become the 2nd Most-valued Listed PSB; Surpassed PNB, BoB

Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) has become the 2nd most-valued listed Public Sector Bank (PSB) with a market capitalisation (market-cap) of over ~Rs 50,000 crore by surpassing its peers viz, Punjab National Bank (POB) (3rd) and Bank of Baroda (BOB)(4th).

• IOB’s net profit increased by 2 times to Rs 350 crore in Q4FY21 (January-March, 2021) when compared with its net profit of Rs 144 crore in Q4FY20.

• IOB and the Central Bank of India are expected to be privatised at the 1st phase of the government’s (govt) privatisation drive – a part of the govt’s broader divestment target of Rs 1.75 trillion for FY22.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

MCX signs MoU with European Energy Exchange on Electricity Derivative ProductsIn July 2021, the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) of India signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with European Energy Exchange AG (EEX) towards knowledge sharing and exchange of expertise on Electricity derivative products.
i.Both the companies will be involved in mutual training & education on various domains of electricity derivatives.
What are electricity derivative products?
Products that are linked with energy generation, including those of oil, natural gas, and wind for electricity production are categorised as Electricity derivative products.
About Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX):
India’s 1st listed exchange, that facilitates online trading of commodity derivatives transactions, to act as a platform for price discovery & risk management.
Established in 2003, it operates under the regulatory framework of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Managing Director & CEO – P.S. Reddy
About European Energy Exchange (EEX):
EEX is Europe’s leading energy exchange that develops, operates and connects secure, liquid and transparent markets for power and other energy products.
Established – 2002
Headquarters – Leipzig, Germany

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS        

Indian Economist Kaushik Basu Gets Humboldt Research Award for Economics for 2021Indian Economist Kaushik Basu has been honoured with the Humboldt Research Award for Economics for 2021 by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation based in Bonn, Germany.
Professor Dr Hans-Bernd Schäfer of Bucerius Law School, Hamburg, Germany nominated Kaushik Basu for this awad.
Kaushik Basu is set to use this award to do research on moral philosophy and game theory, and on law and economics.
About Humboldt Research Award:
i.The Humboldt Research Award is sponsored by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and annually it is presented to more than 100 recipients.
ii.The award recognises and honours scientists and economists from across the world for their work.
iii.The award carries prize money of 60000 euros. 
iv.The award also offers the recipient to carry out a research project at a scientific institute in Germany for a period of 6 to 12 months.
About Kaushik Basu:
i.Kaushik Basu is a Professor of Economics and Carl Marks Professor of International Studies at Cornell University.
ii.He has served as the Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) to the Government of India(2009 to 2012) and Chief Economist of the World Bank From (2012 to 2016).

• He was the 1st Indian to become the World Bank Chief Economist and 2nd from a developing country.

iii.He has served as the President of the International Economic Association(IEA) from 2017 to 2021.
iv.He was the founder and first Executive Director of the Centre for Development Economics.
Honours: The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 2008 for literature and education.
Papers:
i.He has authored numerous papers including, “Introduction: The State of Economics, the State of the World”, “Inequality, Growth, Poverty and Lunar Eclipses: Policy and Arithmetic” and “Individual Preferences and Democratic Processes: Two Theorems with Implications for Electoral Politics”.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS          

PVSLN Murty Appointed as the New Chairman & Managing Director of NEDFiPVSLN Murty was appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director(CMD) of North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Limited (NEDFi). He took charge as the new CMD on 1st July 2021 succeeding B. Paul Muktieh, who served as the CMD of NEDFi from 2010 to June 2021.
About PVSLN Murty:
i.Prior to his appointment as the CMD of NEDFi, PVSLN Murty served as the Chief Strategy Officer(CSO) at State Bank of India (SBI), based at the Corporate Office, Mumbai.
ii.He has served as the Chief General Manager (CGM) and CSO of the SBI.
iii.He has also served a the CGM and Regional Head of SBI during 2015-2018.
iv.He has served as a member of the Board of Directors of NEDFi from June 2016 to November 2018.
v.He has also served as a member of the Boards of the Indian Institute of Bank Management (IIBM), ATTF and other industrial corporates.
vi.He played a major role in bringing up the APONGHAR(housing loan scheme) for the employees of the Government of Assam in collaboration with the Govt of Assam.
About North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (NEDFi):
NEDFi is a Public Limited Company registered under the Companies Act 1956 on 9th August 1995.
CMD– PVSLN Murty
Headquarters– Guwahati, Assam

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

ICAI BOS: ICAI launched mobile application on CA Day i.e. July 1, 2021On the occasion of Chartered Accountants'(CA) Day i.e. on July 1, 2021, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) Board of Studies-BoS (Academics) launched a mobile application ‘ICAI BOS’ for students of foundation, intermediate and final CA course.

• It is a single platform to provide interactive learning and coaching facilities along with features of getting study material without internet connection, and ad-free learning while viewing lectures.

How will it be useful for CA students?
CA students can track announcement and push notifications, live coaching classes, all education contents, download faculty notes and assignments, attempt topic-wise MCQ (Multiple Choice Questions) based online tests, video recorded lectures as per his/her convenience at any point of time.

• This app will be extended for other students’ services and portals in the second phase.

About Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI):
It is a statutory body established by an Act of Parliament, viz. The Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 (Act No.XXXVIII of 1949)
President– CA. Nihar N Jambusaria
Headquarter– New Delhi

Giriraj Singh Launches ‘Matsya Setu’ for Aqua FarmersUnion Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Giriraj Singh launched an Online Course Mobile App ‘Matsya Setu’ to spread latest freshwater aquaculture technologies to aqua farmers of India.

• The app has been developed by ICAR-CIFA (Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture) with funding support from the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), Hyderabad.
• Objective – To educate the fish farmers in India about the latest freshwater aquaculture technologies.
• The app will spearhead the Technology-led Aquaculture Development in India.

Aquaculture in India
India is the 2nd largest country in aquaculture (which is topped by China) and ranks 3rd in fisheries production. It provides employment to around 14.5 million people and contributes to 1.07% of India’s total GDP.
About Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
Formed – May 2019
Union Minister – Giriraj Singh (Begusarai, Bihar)
Minister of State – Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan (Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh), Pratap Chandra Sarangi (Balasore, Odisha)
>>Read Full News

ENVIRONMENT

New Snake Species discovered in Mizoram, named after Local Warrior VanhnuailianaA Team of Researchers from Mizoram University discovered a new snake species ‘Stoliczkia vanhnuailianai’ near the villages of Aizawl, Capital of Mizoram, it has been named after Mizo’s Local Warrior Vanhnuailiana. The findings have been published in Zootaxa, a Scientific Journal.
Taxonomy
The snake belongs to the ‘Stoliczkia’ genus and is only the third Species of Stoliczkia from India. It is one of the most important discoveries of the century, because the last time its sister species Stoliczkia khasiensis was found was in 1904.

• Common Name – ‘Lushai hills dragon snake’ which means ‘snake with small scales’ in local Mizo language.
• The lead author of the research findings was Samuel Lalronunga, from the Systematics and Toxicology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, Mizoram University.

Characteristics
The snake is 50 cm in length, non-venomous, and has a dark brown shade with a few dorsal scale rows bright yellow in color. The head scales are uniformly dark brown and have bright pinkish sutures.
Who is Vanhnuailiana?
Vanhnuailiana was one of the most powerful chiefs of the Lushai Hills (now Mizoram) during the mid-1800s and led many successful campaigns against rival chiefs in the area.
About Mizoram University
Vice-Chancellor –  K. R. S. Sambasiva Rao
Location – Aizawl, Mizoram

SPORTS

Mumbai & Pune to host 2022’s AFC Women’s Asia Cup football tournamentAsian Football Confederation (AFC) has changed the host cities of 2022’s Women’s Asia Cup tournament from the previously selected Bhubaneswar & Ahmedabad to newer venues at Mumbai & Pune both from Maharashtra. This move was taken by AFC to minimise the travel time and maintain an optimum bio-secure bubble for the players.
i.The tournament set to take place from 20th January to 6th February, 2022 will be held at 3 Football Stadiums:

• Andheri Sports Complex – Mumbai
• D Y Patil Stadium – Navi Mumbai
• Chhatrapati Sports Complex – Pune

ii.The 4 spots for the finals were topped by India, Japan, Australia, China. While 28 other teams will compete for the remaining 8 spots.
Other AFC Tournaments:
i.Team Japan won the 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup which was held at Amman, Jordan
ii.Qatar won the 2019 AFC Asian Cup (Men’s) which was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE
iii.China will host 2023’s AFC Asian Cup
About Asian Football Confederation (AFC):
Founder – 1954
President – Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa (Bahrain)
Headquarters – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Harika Dronavalli becomes runner-up in Women’s Speed Chess Championship

Indian Grandmaster Harika Dronavalli finished 2nd with 15-13 points in the Women’s Speed Chess Championship finals after losing to China’s Hou Yifan, the current World No.1 player. The 2021 Women’s Speed Chess Championship is conducted in online mode by FIDE Chess.com
i.Arjuna Award winner Harika Dronavalli has previously won 3 Bronze Medals in Women’s World Chess Championship, on 2012, 2015 and 2017

Jabir 1st Indian Male to participate in 400m hurdles in Olympics; Maana Patel 1st ever Indian Female Swimmer at Olympics

Indian Navy’s athlete MP Jabir will be 1st Indian male athlete to participate in the 400m hurdles in Olympics when he competes at the Tokyo Olympics 2020. He qualified for the 400m hurdles event after clocking 49.78s to win Gold at the Inter-State Athletics Championships held at Patiala, Punjab.

• Jabir hails from Malappuram, Kerala and is currently ranked 34th in the World Athletics’ Road to Olympics rankings, where 40 athletes qualify.
• India’s PT Usha had competed in the 400m hurdles at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

Maana Patel 1st Indian Female Swimmer at Tokyo Olympics 2020
Maana Patel became the 1st Indian female ever to qualify for the Olympics. Maana Patel who hails from Ahmedabad, Gujarat will compete in the Women’s 100m backstroke event of Tokyo Olympics 2020.

• Along with 2 others, she is the 3rd swimmer to qualify for the Summer Olympics, the other two being Srihari Nataraja (100m Backstroke) and Sajan Prakash (Men’s 200m Butterfly).

OBITUARY

Bollywood Actor Dilip Kumar Passed Away at 98 Veteran Bollywood Actor and Padma Awardee Dilip Kumar, popularly known as the ‘Tragedy King of Bollywood’, passed away in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He was born as Mohammed Yusuf Khan in Peshawar, British India (now in Pakistan) on 11th December 1922.
About Dilip Kumar:
i.Dilip Kumar debuted as an Actor in the 1944 film “Jwar Bhata”.
ii.He has starred in more than 65 films which include films like Devdas(1955), Mughal-e-Azam(1960), Ganga Jamuna(1961), Ram Aur Shyam(1967), Naya Daur(1957), Madhumati(1958), Kranti(1981), Vidhaata(1982), Shakti(1982) and Mashaal(1984).
iii.He was the inaugural recipient of the Filmfare Best Actor Award (1954), He won the award for his film “Daag” (1953).
Honours:
i.The government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 1991 and Padma Vibhushan in 2015.
ii.The government of Pakistan honoured him with its highest civilian honour the “Nishan-e-Imtiaz” in 1998. He is the only Indian to be honoured with this.
iii.In 1994, He won the Dadasaheb Phalke award for his cinematic excellence.

Olympic Gold Medalist Keshav Datt passes awayOn 7th July 2021, Keshav Datt, member of 2-time Olympics Gold Medal winning Indian Hockey team passed away at the age of 95. He was part of the 1948 London Olympics Gold medal winning Indian Hockey team and later as Vice-Captain Indian team that won Gold in 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
i.He was born in Lahore in 1925 in undivided India.
ii.After representing Punjab, Bombay & Bengal in the National Championship, he became a Member of Indian National Team.
iii.He was also a member of Mohun Bagan Hockey team, which later on won 6 Calcutta League tournaments and 3 Beighton Cup.
iv.In 2019, Mohun Bagan conferred him with the Mohun Bagan Ratna award.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

Kaushik Basu Authored a New Book Titled “Policymaker’s Journal: From New Delhi to Washington, DC”Indian Economist and Padma Bhushan Kaushik Basu has authored a new book titled “Policymaker’s Journal: From New Delhi to Washington, D.C.”. The book features the journal records of his career of 7 years, during which he served as the Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) to the Indian Government and the Chief Economist at the World Bank in Washington D.C.,
The book is published by Simon & Schuster Publishers India Pvt Ltd.
About the book:
This book is a revised version of Kaushik Basu’s journal which also features his encounters with world leaders and influencers like Manmohan Singh, Narendra Modi, Barack Obama, Sheikh Hasina, Deepika Padukone among others.
Other Books by Kaushik Basu:
Kaushik Basu has authored more than 20 book which includes,

• An Economist in the Real World: The Art of Policymaking in India
• Prelude to Political Economy: A Study of the Social and Political Foundations of Economics
• Beyond the Invisible Hand: Groundwork for a New Economics

STATE NEWS

J&K LG Manoj Sinha rolled out LGSDF Fellowship for GraduatesThe Lieutenant Governor (LG) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Manoj Sinha launched a fellowship programme namely ‘Lieutenant Governor’s Sustainable Development Fellowship (LGSDF)’ for engineering, management and other graduates.

• It will be monitored by a three-member committee comprising IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Jammu’s Director (Current- Manoj Singh Gaur) and chief secretary and principal secretary to the LG.

Aim behind this Fellowship:
i.To provide opportunity for young professionals in supporting improvement in government programs and services by making them more efficient, transparent.
ii.To generate valuable insights for policymakers and implementing agencies.
iii.To remove gaps in policy implementation.
Features of LGSDF:
i.On an annual basis, 10 scholars and graduates from IIT-Jammu, IIM (Indian Institute of Management) Jammu, NIT (National Institute of Technology) Srinagar, and other national institutes will be selected with requisite work experience and have qualified GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering), MAT (Management Aptitude Test), NET (National Eligibility Test) examinations.
ii.As of now, the tenure of the fellowship is two years. This will be extended by three years.
iii.The rate of fellowship will be Rs 60,000 per month.
iv.The field travel and other incidentals will be reimbursed.
About Jammu & Kashmir:
Formation as Union Territory (UT)– After the repeal of Article 370 in August 2019, it became UT with effect from October 31, 2019. It is headed by lieutenant governor (LG), under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019.
Capitals– Jammu (Winter), Srinagar (Summer)

*******

Click Here View – AC Excluded News 2021

Current Affairs Today (AffairsCloud Today)