Current Affairs 8 July 2022

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 8 July 2022, which have unique updates of Latest Current Affairs 2022 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

India’s 1st Floating LNG terminal at Jaigarh, Maharashtra to Operationalise in H2 2022The H2 2022 will see the operationalization of India’s first floating terminal for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) at Jaigarh in Maharashtra while the another floating terminal at Jafrabad in Gujarat will also begin operations in 2022. The information for the same was provided by International Gas Union (IGU) in its World LNG 2022 report.

• Both are Floating Storage and Regasification Units (FSRUs) which are cumulatively expected to add 11 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) of regasification capacity.

Key Points:
i.The FSRU at Jaigarh Port is led by H-Energy Gateway Private Limited while Jafrabad MTPA FSRU named Vasant 1 is led by Swan Energy ltd.

• The Hoegh Giant FSRU, with a storage capacity of 170,000 cubic metres and a regasification capacity of 6 MTPA, arrived at H-Energy’s Jaigarh terminal in Maharashtra in March 2022. It will deliver regasified LNG to the 56-kilometer-long Jaigarh-Dabhol LNG natural gas pipeline, connecting the LNG terminal to the national gas grid.

ii.At present, India has six operational import terminals. They are Dahej, Hazira, Mundra at Gujarat, Dabhol at Maharashtra, Kochi at Kerala,and Ennore at Tamilnadu.
iii.India saw a increase in its import capacity by more than 160% in the last decade.

• There was only 39.5 MTPA of regasification capacity by the end of 2020. With the operatinalization of above unites, India will have another 30 MTPA of capacity under construction as of April 2022.

iv.In FY21, India imported 33,031 million standard cubic metres (MSCM) of LNG worth USD 7.9 billion, while in FY22, the in-bound shipments stood at 30,776 MSCM worth USD 13.4 billion.
v.India is the world’s fourth-largest LNG importer, expected to expand its LNG import capacity by 40% in 2022. During April-May of FY23, it shipped 4,949 MSCM LNG worth USD 2.2 billion.

Parshottam Rupala Inaugurates First India Animal Health Summit & Awards 2022

On 6th July 2022 Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Parshottam Rupala,  inaugurated First India Animal Health Summit 2022 held at NASC Complex, New Delhi, Delhi for greater use of Ayurveda for ensuring better animal health.
Key Highlights:
i.The summit is to understand the significance of animal health towards the broader objective of India’s food and nutrition security, rural incomes and prosperity and overall economic development.

• There is a high demand in strengthening the cooperative movement in the livestock sector.

About India Animal Health Summit 2022:
i.The India Animal Health Summit 2022  was organised by the Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) and the Agriculture Today Group.
ii.It is a two-day event, where a range of panel discussions are conducted under topics related to Animal Health policy initiatives to Business environment & investment opportunities in the Animal Health sector.
iii.India Animal Health Awards 2022 – The Awards will be presented in different categories to individuals and organisations, for outstanding contributions in their respective fields.

• The awards function will be held on 7th July 2022 at the NASC Complex, New Delhi.

About Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA):
Chairman – M J Khan
Director General – Pravin Srivastava
Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

NTPC REL Collaborates with GACL To Establish India’s First Commercial-Scale Green Ammonia Project

On July 6, 2022, NTPC Renewable Energy Limited (NTPC REL), a wholly owned subsidiary of NTPC Limited(formerly known as National Thermal Power Corporation Limited), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited (GACL) to set up India’s first commercial-scale Green Ammonia and Green Methanol projects.

• The MoU was signed by Harshad R Patel, IAS, Managing Director, GACL and Mohit Bhargava, CEO, NTPC REL, at New Delhi in Delhi.

Backdrop
This major breakthrough in the field of RE has taken place in the wake of NTPC’s announcement of its green hydrogen initiatives and aim to construct India’s first pilot projects for synthesizing Green Methanol, setting up Green Hydrogen filling station, Green hydrogen blending into Piped Natural gas (PNG) and Green energy storage projects.
Significance of the MoU

i.The MoU envisions cooperation in the domains of Renewable Energy (RE), Green Methanol, and Green Ammonia, as well as mutually exploring the opportunities for the supply of 100 MW (megawatts) of RE -RTC (Round The Clock) power.

• It also involves the synthesis of 75 Temperature-Programmed Desorption (TPD) Green Methanol and 35 TPD Green Ammonia for captive use for the production of various chemicals by GACL at its Gujarat facilities of Vadodara and Dahej.

The Entities: NTPC REL & GACL
i. NTPC Limited is India’s largest power generator, with a total installed capacity of 69,134.20 MW, comprising 23 coal-based, 7 gas-based, 1 hydro-electric, and 19 RE

• Under joint venture (JV), NTPC has 9 coal-based, 4 gas-based, 8 hydro-electric, and 5 RE projects.
• NTPC has been in the forefront of developing RE capacity and is credited for offering India’s lowest-ever solar tariff.

ii.On October 7, 2020, NTPC REL was established to take up NTPC’sRE portfolio, which includes RE Parks and Projects, Green Hydrogen, Energy Storage Technologies, and Round the Clock (RTC) RE Power.
iii. Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited (GACL), a state-owned chemical manufacturing facility, was established in March 1973 in Gujarat.

• GACL is one of India’s leading producers of Caustic Soda, with over 1400 TPD capacity at their two complexes in Dahej and Vadodara in Gujarat.

iv.The subsidiary firm of GACL, GACL-NALCO Alkalies and Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. (GNAL), is building a 130 MW Thermal Power Plant (coal-based) and an 800 TPD Caustic Soda Plant at Dahej in Gujarat.

Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh announces setting up of Dr Rajendra Prasad Memorial Award in public administration

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (MoS) (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions Dr Jitendra Singh announced the setting up of Dr. Rajendra Prasad Memorial Award in public administration in the field of academic excellence, in memory of the first President of India, Rajendra Prasad.
i.On 5th July 2022, Dr. Jitendra Singh chaired a meeting of Executive Council of Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) in New Delhi. The institute has to have a futuristic vision for the next 25 years to attain the goals set by Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Deutsche Bahn Become World’s First Intermodal Partner of the Star Alliance

Deutsche Bahn (DB), Germany national railway company will be the world’s first intermodal partner of the Star Alliance from 1st August 2022 which allows customers and passengers of Star Alliance member airlines to connect the airline with rail, bus, ferry and other modes of transport.

• Germany is the first market and DB is the world’s first partner in the new Star Alliance programme.
•  Deutsche Bahn and Star Alliance make a significant contribution to reducing CO2 emissions in the transport sector.This partnership bring DB customers and passengers of Star Alliance member airlines will able to start or end their journey comfortably on the climate-friendly train.

Key points:
i.The new partnership between DB and Star Alliance builds on the Lufthansa Express Rail programme, where its customers can buy a combined ticket for train and flight in one booking step for more than 20 years.
ii.In future, 25 other member airlines of the Star Alliance will also be able to include DB’s environmentally friendly ICE trains with flight numbers in their booking systems.
Advantages:
i.Airline customers receive a combined ticket with just one booking process for the outward and return flight and the respective train journeys including seat reservation.

• Travellers receive their boarding passes for both the flight and the train journey during check-in.

ii.For all bookings of combined train-air travel via Lufthansa Express Rail or with the member airlines of the Star Alliance, customers can collect points or miles for the train journeys in the airlines’ respective frequent flyer programmes
iii.Business and first-class customers of Star Alliance member airlines receive additional benefits such as access to the DB lounges with an Lufthansa Express Rail ticket.
About Germany:
President – Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Capital – Berlin
Currency – Euro

BANKING & FINANCE

In a First, MoD Approves Private Sector Banks for Financial Services in Overseas Procurement

For the first time, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has entrusted 3 private sector banks—HDFC Bank Ltd., ICICI Bank, and Axis Bank Ltd.—to provide financial services such as Letter of Credit (LoC) and Direct Bank Transfer operations for overseas procurement.

• The authorization is in line with the Department of Financial Services, MoD, extending the allocation of government business to private sector banks.

Until now, the MoD had relied entirely on authorised Public Sector Banks (PSBs) to provide these services.
Key Points:
i.A Letter of Credit (LC) transaction of Rs 2000 crore may be granted to the selected banks concurrently for a year on both the capital and revenue sides (Rs. 666 Crore for each bank under both capital as well as revenue).

• A Letter of Credit (LC), or a “credit letter,” is a letter from a bank guaranteeing that a buyer’s payment to a seller will be received on time and in the exact amount.

ii.The performance of these banks will be monitored on a regular basis in order to take any necessary actions in future.
iii. The Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (PCDA), New Delhi (Delhi), on behalf of the MoD, recently signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with each of these three banks for the provision of financial services for overseas procurement.
iv.In terms of market valuation, HDFC Bank is the largest bank, followed by ICICI Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Axis Bank.

• HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and SBI are among the top ten most valuable firms on the BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange).

Fi Money Introduces ‘Ally Annexure’: A Queer Community Financial Inclusion Initiative

Fi Money, a neobank based in Bengaluru (Karnataka), has launched ‘Ally Annexure’, an initiative to empower LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) customers have better access to financial services. The initiative is currently in its initial stages.

• The ” Ally Annexure” initiative seeks to educate institutions about the need of being more receptive to the financial needs of LGBT customers.

It was launched in collaboration with Pride Circle, a diversity and inclusion firm and will be sponsored by Kochi (Kerala) – based Federal Bank, a banking partner of Fi Money.
Note: Neobanks are digital banks with no physical locations. These firms provide software, apps, and other technology to simplify mobile and internet banking.
Concerns of the Queer Community
i. The most frequently cited barriers to the accessibility of financial solutions by the queer community are going to the bank branch and in-person interactions with institutional staff.
ii.Although homosexuality in India was decriminalised by the Supreme Court of India in a landmark decision on September 6, 2018, by decriminalizing Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), currentlythere is no legal framework that permits queer people to access financial services without difficulty or discrimination.

• Lack of awareness and a biased structure in the financial services industry are considered to be the major cause for this problem.

The Ally Annexure: Solving for Financial Inclusion
i. Using the “Ally Annexure,” a manual, staff members can educate themselves about the needs, preferences, and issues that the LGBT community faces on a daily basis.
ii.The objective is to make this document into a uniform set of guidelines that banks and other financial institutions can use anywhere.

• The Ally Annexure and an overview of the initiative can be accessed at https://pride.fi.money/

About Fi Money 

• CEO of Fi Money – Sujith Narayanan

 Recently, Fi Money has launched multiple financial products through its neobanking app, including mutual funds and Fi Jump, a peer-to-peer investment product.

Salesforce: Announces USD 2 million Grant for education, workforce development in India; Ties up with HDFC

On 6th July 2022 Salesforce, Inc, a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) firm, announced USD 2 million (about Rs.15.85 crore) in grants to over 22 Non-Profit Organisations (NPO) across India.

• The grant would impact over 40,000 individuals across India and includes entities that are working towards child welfare, workforce development, and providing quality education for all.

Key Highlights:
i.Salesforce will partner with institutions such as Meghshala Trust, Inquilab Foundation, Learning Curve Foundation and others for giving quality education to children.

• Thus, students will have access to Hybrid learning spaces, Social Emotional Learning, STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) and early education.

ii.As a part of onetrillion.org, planting 43.5 million trees globally and one million trees in India by 2030 is another Salesforce initiative.
iii.Additionally, Salesforce also partners with organisations such as Katalyst, Navgurukul and Feminist Approach is equipping individuals with skills to help improve their employment opportunities.
HDFC Partners with Salesforce to reimagine the customer lifecycle
HDFC Limited, a mortgage lender has partnered with Salesforce for supporting growth priorities as HDFC wanted to build the next generation of integration backbone, to easily connect backend and frontend systems including Salesforce.
Key Points:
i.With the help of an innovative API-led integration approach and low code integration capabilities of Mulesoft, HDFC will innovate quickly around connecting systems and create new experiences.
ii.The central idea of providing Cloud-based solutions that are intuitive and customized will reimagine the customer lifestyle.
About Salesforce:
Globally, Salesforce has reached over half a billion dollars in all-time philanthropic giving (a total of USD 532 million) in grants since its founding and it also surpassed USD 100 million in annual donations for 2022.
CEO – Marc Benioff
Headquarters – San Francisco, California, United states (US)
CEO of Salesforce India – Arundhati Bhattacharya

SBI: Renews MoU with Indian Air Force for Defence Salary Package: Partners with Samunnati for Financing FPOs
On 6th July 2022 State Bank of India (SBI) renewed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Air Force (IAF) for the Defence Salary Package (DSP) scheme.
About DSP Scheme:
The DSP scheme offers various benefits and features such as complimentary personal accidental insurance, air accidental insurance, and additional cover in case of on-duty death to all serving and retired Air Force personnel and their families.

• It also includes Insurance cover for permanent total disability or partial disability.
• This partnership will enable Samunnati to scale up its outreach to FPOs with customised financial solutions at affordable interest rates, leveraging the vast resources available with SBI.

Enhanced benefits:
i.In case of death of the Air Force personnel, the family of the deceased can avail add-on covers for child education including the marriage of girl child and also the retired personnel will be eligible for complimentary personal accidental insurance, irrespective of their age.
ii.These enhanced benefits will be automatically extended to all the Air Force personnel who are covered under its DSP after renewal.
 SBI Partners with Samunnati to Finance FPOs
State Bank of India (SBI) has signed a non-financial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Samunnati, an agri finance company for financing farmer producer organisations (FPOs) with an initial outlay of Rs. 100 crore.

• This helps in mainstreaming FPOs as an asset class and increase the awareness of farmer-owned institutions in the banking sector.

Key Highlights:
i.In November 2020, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued guidelines for co-lending by scheduled commercial banks and non-banking financial companies (NBFCs).
ii.SBI is one of the 1st banks to participate in a co-lending programme aimed at mainstreaming FPOs as an asset class.
iii.Samunnati works with a network of over 3,000 farmer collectives with six million-plus members and solutions spanning agri finance, agri Commerce, and advisory services.

• This partnership will enable Samunnati to scale up its outreach to FPOs with customised financial solutions at affordable interest rates, leveraging the vast resources available with SBI.

About State Bank of India (SBI):
Chairman – Dinesh Kumar Khara
Establishment – 1st July 1955
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra

Bajaj Allianz launches QR Code-enabled services for customers 

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance, one of India’s leading private life insurers, has launched Industry-first QR Code Enabled Services to help the customers self-service their needs offering immediate closure of their requirements.
i. The QR-Code Enabled service is available across all 509 branches of Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance and provides a unique digital self-service feature to Customers access to 15 services on the phone. All the customer has to scan the QR Code available in the Bajaj Allianz Life’s branches and self-service their life insurance policy.
ii.The Pune based Bajaj Allianz Life which began operations in 2001 as a joint venture between Bajaj Finserve and the German financial services major Allianz, serves millions of customers through its 509 branches and over 96,000 agents.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

Cognizant bags multi-year contract from National Insurance Company Limited 

The US-based Information Technology (IT) company, Cognizant has been selected as a strategic technology provider by public sector general insurance company, National Insurance Company Limited (NICL), to accelerate and help manage its digital transformation.
i.NICL has awarded a multi-year contract to Cognizant to elevate its technology roadmap, help manage its centralised web-based core insurance solution consisting of multiple applications, underlying technology infrastructure and security, and provide consulting services, among others.
ii.Cognizant will also support NICL’s technology roadmap by leveraging digital technologies such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, automation, and microservices-based architecture. It will also help NICL improve customer experience.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION 

Union Ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia & Smriti Irani to hold Additional Ministerial Charges; 4 Personalities Nominated to Rajya Sabha

i.On July 6, 2022, the Union Minister Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCI) has been given the additional charge of the Ministry of Steel, while Union Minister Smriti Irani, Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD) will look after the Ministry of Minority Affairs (MoMA).
ii.This new appointments followed the acceptance of resignations of the Union Ministers Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, MoMA, and Ram Chandra Prasad Singh, Ministry of Steel from the Union Council of Ministers, by the President with immediate effect, under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution.
iii.Apart from above, Music maestro Ilaiyaraaja, sports icon Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha, acclaimed screenwriter Koduri Viswa Vijayendra Prasad and philanthropist and spiritual leader Veerendra Heggade were nominated to the Rajya Sabha. All these newcomers belongs to Southern States.

About Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCI):
Union Minister – Mr Jyotiraditya Scindia(Constituency – Rajya Sabha Madhya Pradesh); Minister of State (MoS) -Dr. Vijay Kumar Singh (Constituency – Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh)
About Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD):
Union Minister– Smriti Zubin Irani(Constituency- Amethi, Uttar Pradesh)
Minister of state-Dr. Munjpara Mahendrabhai (Constituency- Surendranagar, Gujarat)
>> Read Full News

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS       

Piramal Enterprises gets shareholders nod to demerge pharma business

Ajay Piramal-owned Piramal Enterprises Limited (PEL) has received shareholder’s approval to demerge its pharmaceuticals business, Piramal Pharma Limited (PPL) and simplify the corporate structure. The company has received 99 per cent of votes at the shareholders meeting held on 5th July 2022.
i.The demerger will divide the company into Two Entities: financial services and pharmaceuticals. The demerger follows the group’s acquisition of Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) for Rs 34,250 crore, which was completed in September 2021.
ii.In October 2021, PEL received board approval for a scheme of arrangement between the company, Piramal Pharma (PPL), Convergence Chemicals (CCPL), Hemmo Pharmaceuticals (HPPL), PHL Fininvest (PFPL) and their respective shareholders and creditors.
iii.According to the contours of the agreement, the pharmaceuticals business would be demerged from PEL and consolidated under Piramal Pharma.

ENVIRONMENT

India Includes 540 Species to its Faunal Database, 315 Taxa to its Flora in 2021

In 2021, India added 540 species to its faunal database that reaches to a total of 1,03,258 animal species in India and also 315 taxa has been added to the Indian flora, that reaches to a total of  55,048 floral species. Also, 13 new genera were also discovered.

• Out of the 540 faunal species, 406 are new discoveries and 134 new records to India.
• Among 1.03 lakh species of fauna globally, India contributes to 6.1% of faunal diversity in the world.
• India now consists of 298 species and 17 intraspecific taxa as new to Indian flora where, 204 taxa are new to science and 125 taxa are new distributional records from India.
• The details of new discoveries and new records of fauna and flora were published by Bhupendra Yadav, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, at the headquarters of the Zoological Survey of India ( ZSI) in Kolkata,West Bengal.

New discoveries:
i.Among the new species discovered is one species from mammals, 35 reptiles and 19 species of pisces.
ii.The new mammal species Crocidura narcondamica, a white-toothed shrew, was discovered from Narcondam Island of the Andaman and Nicobar group of islands and the reptile Boiga whitakeri, or Whitaker’s cat snake that was discovered from the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu is notable.
iii.The most number of new discoveries was from the faunal group Hymenoptera, an order of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants, in which 80 species, including one new genus, were discovered.
Highlights:
i.Around 43% novelties published in various national and international journals are of vascular plants and the remaining are non-vascular in nature which records 135 angiosperms, 4 pteridophytes, 9 bryophytes, 28 lichens, 98 fungi, 29 algae and 12 microbes.
ii.According to the Botanical Survey of India (BSI), regions such as the Western Ghats and the northeastern regions have contributed 28% of the total discoveries with Kerala covering most discoveries (51 taxa) followed by Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh.

• In 2021, The floral discoveries include wild relatives of many potential horticultural, agricultural, medicinal, and ornamental plants such as begonia, impatiens (Balsams), legumes, zingibers and orchids.

iii.Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), which celebrated its 107th foundation day on 1st July 2022, contributed to 68% of the animal discoveries in 2021.

About Zoological Survey of India (ZSI):
On 1st July 2022 ZSI observed its 107th foundation day
Director – Dhriti Banerjee
Establishment – 1st July 1916
Headquarters – Kolkata, West Bengal

SPORTS

Cricket – England Defeated India in the 5th Test Match (Rescheduled) of Pataudi Trophy and Tied the Series

England cricket team lead by Red Ball Captain – Ben Stokes has defeated the Indian cricket team led by Jasprit Bumrah in the 5th Test match (Rescheduled) and drawn the five-match series 2021/2022 (2-2) and the Pataudi Trophy was shared between two teams. The 5th test has been played from July 1 – July 5, 2022 in the Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham, England.

• The 5th test match has been postponed in 2021 due to the increase in Covid-19 cases.

Player of the Series and Player of the Match:
Player of the Series
Joe Root the number one-ranked Test batter was adjudged as the player of the series for his brilliant score 671 runs in the 5 match test series.
Player of the Match
Jonny Bairstow was adjudged as the player of the match for scoring 220 (106 & 114) runs in the 5th test.
Indian Cricket Team
The last time India won a Test series on English soil was in 2007, under Rahul Dravid’s captaincy.
Highlights of Past 4 tests – https://affairscloud.com/india-in-2-1-lead-in-test-series-against-england/

About Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI):
President – Sourav Ganguly
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Founded – December 1928
>> Read Full News

1st edition of Elorda Boxing Cup 2022 held in Kazakhstan; Gitika & Alfiya Pathan won Gold;  India Finish With 14 Medals

Indian women boxers, Reigning Youth World champions Alfiya Pathan (+81kg category) and Gitika (48kg category) won the gold medal at the inaugural (1st) edition of the Elorda Boxing Cup 2022 held in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan.

• Indian boxers(women) Kalaivani Srinivasan and Jamuna Boro have won the silver medal in 48 Kg and 54 Kg respectively.

India’s Medal Tally:
By winning two gold, two silver and 10 bronze medals (6 women and 4 men) for the country, the 33-member Indian delegation concluded a total grand tally of 14 medals. 
Bronze Medalists: 
Women: Jyoti Gulia (52kg); Sakshi (54kg); Sonia Lather (57kg); Neema (63kg); Lalita (70kg); and Babita Bisht (81kg). 
Men: Kuldeep Kumar (48kg); Ananta Chopade (54kg); Sachin (57kg); and Jugnoo (92kg). 
Highlights:
i.In the women’s 81-kilogram final, Alfiya Pathan defeated 2016 world champion Lazzat Kungeibayeva, by a 5-0 margin.  
ii.Gitika won by 4-1 over compatriot Kalaivani in an intense all-Indian women’s 48-kg final.

• Both Gitika and Alfiya also bagged prize money of USD 700 for their gold-winning debut at a senior international event
• The silver and bronze medallists were awarded USD 400 and USD 200 respectively.

Participants: 
The inaugural Elorda Boxing Cup 2022 witnessed the participation of boxers from Kazakhstan (hosts), Uzbekistan, India, China, Mongolia and Cuba.

OBITUARY

OPEC secretary-general Mohammad Barkindo Passed Away

The Secretary-General of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) , Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo passed away at the age of  63 years in Abuja, Nigeria.He was steering OPEC as the group entered into an agreement known as OPEC+.

• His term as Secretary General ends on 31 July 2022.

About Mohammad Barkindo:
i.Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo was born on 20 April 1959 in Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria. He was a Nigerian politician.
ii.He served as the Acting Secretary General of OPEC  in 2006 and also represented Nigeria in OPEC’s Economic Commission Board from 1993 to 2008.
He led the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) from 2009 to 2010.

• In 1991, he served as the head of Nigeria’s technical delegation to United Nation (UN)  climate negotiations.

iii.In 2016  he was appointed as the  Secretary General of OPEC. He was awarded a distinguished fellowship at the Atlantic Council and set to begin upon the completion of his term at OPEC on July 31 2022.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Kiswahili Language Day 2022 – July 7 

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) celebrated the first ever World Kiswahili Language Day on 7th July 2022. 
World Kiswahili Language Day will be annually observed across the globe on 7th July to recognise Kiswahili, one of the most widely spoken languages in Africa and the only African language within the Directorate of the Global Communications at the United Nations(UN).
The first ever World Kiswahili language day (2022) is celebrated under the theme: “Kiswahili for peace and prosperity”.
Background:
Resolution 41 C/61 adopted during the 41st session of the General Conference of UNESCO on 23rd November 2021, proclaimed the 7th July of every year as the World Kiswahili language Day.
>> Read Full News

STATE NEWS

Delhi Govt launches ‘Mission Kushal Karmi’ Programme to Upskill Construction Workers

On 6 July 2022, the Delhi government launched the ’Mission Kushal Karmi’, a 15-day programme to provide skill development training for construction workers registered with the Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board.

• The programme was launched by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.

Aim:
It aims to train 200,000 workers in a year under the programme and to provide industry-based skills training to boost their income.
Highlights:
i.The programme will be conducted by the Delhi Skill and Entrepreneurship University (DSEU) along with Simplex,  National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) and India Vision Foundation.

• It  will increase productivity by 40% and it is expected to improve the quality of products by 25% and reduce the wastage of materials by 50%.
• Under the programme, Delhi Skill and Entrepreneurship University (DSEU) and Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Board will train construction workers at construction sites.

ii.Skill development training will be provided to all construction workers registered with the Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board.

• The workers will be trained for 120 hours in their workplace-like environment.

iii.The government will also provide a sum of at least Rs.4,200 to each worker who takes the course to compensate for the loss of wages during the programme.

Benefits to Workers from Mission Kushal Karmi:
i.Improvement in income ranging upto Rs 8,000 per month after completion of training to construction workers.
ii.Improvement in domain skills and soft skills thereby making the worker more proficient and confident.
iii.Improvement in the understanding of standard safety norms thereby increasing the longevity of work and social security.
About Delhi:
Lieutenant Governor- Vinai Kumar Saxena
Heritage Site- Red Fort Complex
Zoological Park- National Zoological Park

Punjab govt. appoints Vijay Kumar Janjua as new Chief Secretary

The government of Punjab appointed Vijay Kumar Janjua as the new Chief Secretary (CS). He succeeded Anirudh Tewari.

• Anirudh Tewari is now appointed as Director General, Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration (MGSIPA) by replacing Jaspreet Talwar in  Chandigarh, Punjab.

Key points:
i.Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann allotted portfolios to the newly inducted several ministers and reshuffled the departments held by some others.
ii.Gaurav Yadav, Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the 1992 Punjab batch  was also appointed as  Punjab’s Director General of Police (DGP) on additional charge.
Vijay Kumar Janjua:
i.Vijay Kumar Janjua is an IAS (Indian Administrative Services) officer of 1989-batch. He  was serving as the Special Chief Secretary (Jails) and Special Chief Secretary (Elections) in Punjab.
ii.He has worked in various state departments including rural development, industries, labour, and animal husbandry.
Justice Alok Aradhe appointed acting CJ of K’taka HC
Justice Alok Aradhe was appointed  as the Acting Chief Justice(CJ) of the Karnataka High Court (HC) by following the retirement of Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi.
i.The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind administered the oath to  Justice Alok Aradhe, senior-most Judge of the Karnataka HC , to perform the duties of the office of the Chief Justice  with effect from 3rd July 2022.
Justice Alok Aradhe:
i.He was born on April 14, 1964 in Raipur, Chhattisgarh. He completed  his BSc and LLB and enrolled as an advocate on July 12, 1988.
ii.He was appointed acting Chief Justice of J&K(Jammu & Kashmir) high HC in 2018 and  also served as executive chairman of the J&K  State Legal Services Authority.

• In November 2018, he took oath as a judge of Karnataka  HC,following his transfer from J&K HC.

Sikkim, West Bengal sign Reciprocal Transport Agreement to Ease Travel for Tourists

Sikkim and West Bengal signed  a new Reciprocal Transport Agreement to boost the tourism industry after 15 years (2007). The agreement was signed between West Bengal transport minister Firhad Hakim and Sikkim tourism minister Sanjit Kharel.
Key points:
i.Under this agreement, ‘All-Bengal’ permits and ‘All-Sikkim’ permits  (except for restricted and protected areas) will be issued to facilitate vehicular movement along both states.

ii.The two governments also agreed to increase the number of vehicles operated between Siliguri and the popular tourist destinations in Sikkim.

• The practice of taking toll from each other’s vehicles was also struck down.
• The gross vehicle weight of vehicles plying under the Counter Signature Permits has been enhanced from 16,200 kilograms in the previous agreement to 18500 kilograms in the new agreement.

iii.Under the new agreement of 2022, all Counter Signature Permits will be issued from a single point office of the State Transport Authority in Siliguri (West Bengal).
iv.The gross vehicle weight of vehicles plying under the Counter Signature Permits has been enhanced from 16,200 kilograms in the previous agreement to 18500 kilograms in the new agreement.
About West Bengal :
Chief Minister – Mamata Banerjee
Wildlife sanctuaries – Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary , Haliday Island Wildlife Sanctuary

Russia signs pact for supplying tech for Kudankulam nuclear power plant

A unit of Russian nuclear major, Rosatom State Corporation has signed an agreement to supply thermocouples for four power units of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) in Tamil Nadu.
i.LUCH Scientific Production Association, which is a part of Science and Innovations, the R&D unit of Rosatom will provide the new sensors designed for thermal control of Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) process equipment, which will replace the old ones in the internal reactor control systems of the units 1 and 2 of KNPP.
ii.In total, the enterprise will supply 200 units of resistance thermocouples labelled TSPT 5963.

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