Current Affairs Today – July 13 2016

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INDIAN AFFAIRS

Cabinet approves Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) with an outlay of Rs.12000 crore
In order to impart skilling to One Crore Indian population in the next four years, PM Narendra Modi unveiled Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) with an outlay of Rs.12000 crore. This scheme will impart new skills to 60 lakh people and also make certifications to 40 lakh people acquired under the Recognition of Prior Learning.
State Governments would be involved through a project based approach under the PMKVY 2016-20 with 25% of the total training targets as both physical and financial forms.
General guidance, supervision and job arrangements for the trained people will be made through
♦ Rozgar Melas (placement camps)
♦ Kaushal Shivirs (mobilization camps).
This training also focuses training standards for overseas employment in Europe, Gulf and other global hotspots.

Cabinet approves disinvestment of 15% in NBCC
i. Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by PM Narendra Modi, has approved the disinvestment of 15% paid up equity of National Buildings Construction Corporation Limited (NBCC) out of Government of India’s 90% shareholding that will make Rs.1,706 crore approximately to the Government.
ii. The disinvestment process would further broadbase NBCC’s shareholding and enhance the disinvestment receipts for making them available to the Government.
iii. The company has also been decided to allot additional shares to the eligible and willing employees at a discount of 5% to the Issue/discovered (lowest cut off) price of the OFS.
iv. NBCC is a wholly owned Union Government enterprise under the administrative control of the Union Ministry of Urban Development.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Karnataka Inks pack with Sanya City, China
i. A (MoU) has been signed between the Karnataka Region Economic and Trade Organization (KRETO) and Sanya People Municipal Government of China in order to nurture the trade between Sanya City and Karnataka.
ii. This pack permits for large and medium delegations from china to visit Karnataka and vice-versa.
iii. This pack also permits for Sanya city to be certified as an accredited destination for the delegations from Karnataka.
iv. From extensive coastlines to salubrious climate both the cities have a lot in common and not to mention enterprising populations of both these cities.
About Karnataka
♦ Capital – Bangalore
♦ CM – Siddaramaiah
♦ Governor – Vajubhai Vala

International Court denies China’s claim on South China Sea
i. The tribunal of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, The Hague (Netherland) refused China’s claims to historic and economic rights in the South China Sea as the country have no legal basis, and hinders China’s efforts to establish its control by force.
ii. There was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources within the sea areas falling within the ‘nine-dash line’.
iii. The South China Sea is a resource-rich strategic waterway through which more than $5 trillion of world trade is shipped every year.
iv. China didn’t take part in the tribunal, which it said had no jurisdiction on the case, and Chinese officials immediately said that Beijing won’t comply with the ruling, a position it had repeated for weeks.
v. The Philippines case is seen as a test of China’s commitment to a rules-based international order which the U.S. and its allies say has been undermined by Beijing’s recent military activities,including construction of seven fortified artificial islands in the South China Sea.

First Direct Bus Service between Pokhara-New Delhi launched
i. The maiden direct bus service between Pokhara (Nepal) and New Delhi (India) was launched following the signing of a Motor Vehicle Agreement (MVA) during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Nepal in 2014.
ii. The service between the cities was flagged off by Nepal Home Minister Shakti Bahadur Basnet and India’s ambassador to Nepal Ranjit Rae from Pokhara.
iii. The new bus service between Pokhara and New Delhi was proposed by the Uttar Pradesh State Road transport Corporation (UPSRTC) as per decision taken in MVA.

Agreement between BHEL, India and Bangladesh for power generation.
i. An agreement was signed with Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), India to build the 1,320MW coal-fired power plant at Rampal of Bagerhat, near the Sundarbans mangrove forest.
ii. Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company Pvt Limited signed the contract agreement for main plant EPC (turnkey) package with BHEL in Dhaka.
iii. Prime Minister’s Adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid, Indian Power Secretary Pradeep Pujari and Indian High Commissioner Harsh Vardhan Shringla witnessed the signing event.
iv. The estimated cost of the project is $1.49 billion. India promised that it would not create any adverse impact on the environment as two large and most experience entity of India are involved in this project. It will be completed on time maintaining international standards.
v. It is noted that a second grid interconnection from Agartala, India, to Comilla in Bangladesh was recently inaugurated jointly by the two Prime Ministers. The second grid interconnection from India, to Bangladesh – inaugurated jointly by the two Prime Ministers.
About Bangladesh:
♦ Capital – Dhaka
♦ PM – Sheikh Hasina.
♦ President – Abdul Hamid.

BANKING & FINANCE

IDFC acquires Micro Finance Institution Grama Vidiyal to extend its Rural Banking Services.
On a first of its kind of move, IDFC Bank Ltd is going to acquire a Tamil Nadu based microfinance institution (MFI) called Grama Vidiyal, A small unit financing scheme in rural villages of Tamil Nadu.
This Acquisition offers the bank access to 1.2 million households apart from adding 319 points of presence in seven states — Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Puducherry, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
The acquisition sum has not been exposed to the public yet. Hereafter, 30 years old Trichy based Grama vidiyal group will act as a Wholly Owned subsidiary of IDFC bank.
As per this acquisition the micro-finance unit is going to transfer its 3000 employees and micro finance assets worth 1502 crores to the IDFC bank.
About IDFC:
♦ Name – Infrastructure Development Finance Company, Headquarters – Chennai, India
♦ CEO – Vikram Limaye
♦ Establishment – 1997
♦ IDFC Bank Headquarters – Mumbai
♦ IDFC Bank CEO – Rajiv B Lall

SBI signs MoU with IIT Bombay for promoting Startups
i. State Bank of India (SBI), one of the leading public sector banks in India has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), (IIT) Bombay’s technology business incubator, in order to promote the innovation by startups in the financial sector.
ii. SBI and IIT will promote fintech (financial technology) start-ups that have products or applications to cater to the financial sector.
iii. These products can help SBI to explore opportunities to enhance the synergy for their banking services.
iv. This MoU will definitely help in mentoring startups. SBI now has a Rs 200 crore fund for startups and what better place than SINE at IIT Bombay to reach out to startups to use those funds.
About SBI:
♦ HQ – Mumbai,
♦ Chairman – Arundhathi Bhattacharya.

BUSINESS

European Major Airbus contracts with Mahindra Aerostructures.
i. A contract has been awarded to Mahindra Aero structures to make air frame parts for the AS565 MBe Panther by the renowned Airbus Helicopters.
ii. Airbus Helicopters and Mahindra Defence are in the process of forming a joint venture to target Indias military helicopter programmes such as the Naval Utility Helicopter, the Naval Multi-Role Helicopter and the Reconnaissance and Surveillance Helicopter.
iii. The contract positions Mahindra Aero structures as the first Indian company to receive a direct manufacturing contract from Airbus Helicopters as a tier 1 supplier.
iv. If Government of India selects the Panther, Airbus Helicopters will establish India as a global hub for Panther production in partnership with Mahindra.
v. Mahindra Aerospace and Defense led the Mahindra Group’s foray into utility aircraft and aerostructure manufacturing since 2008. Its utility aircraft business, based in Australia, currently produces Airvan 8.

HAL, Safran to set up MRO venture
i. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. and France’s Safran Helicopter Engines is set to jointly establish  a helicopter engines maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) centre to service Indian and foreign customers using Safran’s aero engines.
ii. The location of the centre is slated to be announced in the coming months and the companies did not disclose the investment or the equity stakes in the venture.
iii. Union government will provide MRO services for Safran TM333 and the co-developed Shakti engines that are used in helicopters built by HAL.

Cairn Energy slaps $ 5.6 billion claim on govt of India for loss of value.
i. British oil and gas major Cairn Energy limited has raised a $5.6 billion compensation demand from the Indian government for a breach in an investment treaty arising out of the retrospective tax demand of Rs. 29,047 crore.
ii. Cairn Energy paid $1.05 billion for the loss of value in its 9.8 per cent shareholding in its erstwhile subsidiary, Cairn India, following the tax demand and the subsequent freezing of the shares.
Cairn Energy
♦ CEO: Simon Thomson
♦ Founded: 1981
♦ Headquarters: Edinburgh, United Kingdom

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

FORBES Top Paid Celebrity List – SRK and AKSHAY KUMAR grab Top Spots.
International Business magazine, FORBES has released the list of Top Paid Celebrities across the globe. Indian entertainers Shah rukh khan and Akshay Kumar grabs their seats in this list.
The list is topped by the famous singer Taylor Swift with earnings of around 1160 crores.
Shah Rukh grabbed 86th spot with earnings of $33M and Akshay Kumar grabbed 94th spot with earnings of $31.5M.
Many sports personalities and entertainers also shot their best spots in the list, some of them as follows
♦ Cristiano Ronaldo ($88M) – Footballer
♦ Sebastian Vettel ($41M) – Car racer
♦ Roger Federer ($68M) – Tennis champ

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

Najma Heptullah and GM Siddeshwara resign; Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi given charge of Minority Affairs Ministry
i. Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptullah and Minister of State for Heavy Industries Gowdara Mallikarjunappa Siddeshwara has resigned from the Union council of ministers. Their resignations were accepted by the President Pranab Mukherjee.
ii. Minister of state Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has been allotted independent charge of ministry of minority affairs. While Babul Supriyo will fill the shoes of the ministry of heavy industries and public enterprises.
iii. Babul Supriyo has been released of the charge of minister of state in the ministry of urban development, and minister of state in the ministry of housing and urban poverty alleviation.

Theresa May Becomes Britain’s Second Female Prime Minister
i. Britain’s Home Secretary Theresa May will become the Britain’s new prime minister as incumbent Prime Minister David Cameron announced to resign after the Brexit vote. The UK officially has a new leader is the second woman in the country’s history to hold the top post.
ii. However she’ll be taking over at time of intense crisis: The Brexit referendum has thrown the UK into what one expert calls.
iii. Theresa will succeed Conservative party leader, David Cameron also becoming Britain’s first female prime minister since Margaret Thatcher was defeated in a party leadership challenge in 1990.
United Kingdom
♦ Capital: London
♦ Currency: Pound sterling

Indian-American Dr. Kinshuk named US university Dean
i. An Indian-American professor Dr. Kinshuk, who goes by single name has been named the dean of University of North Texas College of Information in the U.S.
ii. Prior to this appointment, he served as Director in the School of Computing and Information Systems. He has diverse set of academic experience in the field of science and technology
iii. He served as an Associate Dean at Athabasca University in Alberta, Canada, where he helped lead the Faculty of Science and Technology since 2010.
iv. Kinshuk has received his doctoral degree from De Montfort University in England and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from University of Rajasthan in India.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Newly discovered dwarf planet takes 700 years to orbit the sun
i. Astronomers has discovered a new dwarf planet dubbed 2015 RR245 in the icy realms of space beyond Neptune. The system is 120 times farther from the Sun than the Earth at its farthest orbital point.
ii. An international team of astronomers marked the tiny world using the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope as part of the Outer Solar System Origins Survey.
iii. The dwarf is likely to be around 700 kilometer in size, not more than five percent that of Earth’s. It has one of the biggest orbits for a dwarf planet, however, taking some 700 years to travel around the Sun.
iv. The icy worlds beyond Neptune trace how the giant planets formed and then moved out from the Sun.

ENVIRONMENT

Government permits SEZ units to import solid plastic waste
i. The Environment Ministry of the central government has allowed companies located in Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to import solid plastic waste.
ii. As per this pact now SEZ units can import plastic or mixed plastic waste prepared to a specification
iii. The government is conscious that the government will not permit imports of hazardous and other wastes from any country to India for disposal but will be allowed only for recycling, recovery, reuse and utilisation, including co-processing.
iv. Import of listed hazardous waste would be allowed to actual users with prior informed consent of the exporting country and that will require the permission of the Environment Ministry.
v. As per the ministerial notification The import of solid plastic waste at column II against Basel Number B3010 in Schedule VI, excluding post consumer wastes, is permitted to units in SEZs notified by the central government,” the ministry said in a notification.

SPORTS

Ashwin placed second in ICC Test rankings
i. In the latest ICC rankings Ravichandran Ashwin topped the all-rounders list besides being placed second in bowling. However India held the second position with third-placed Pakistan, while the Australia remains on top.
ii. In batting, Australia’s Steve Smith leads the field and he is followed by Kane Williamson of New Zealand and South Africa’s Hashim Amla.
iii. England, who recently defeated Sri Lanka in a three-Test home series, is only three points behind Pakistan.

Six more Indians qualify for Rio Olympics
i. Six more Indians qualified for the Rio Olympics making the total count of the qualifiers to the three digits figures. These are Renjith Maheswary, Anirban Lahiri, Dharambir Singh, Jinson Johnson, Shiv Shankar Prasad Chawrasia and Aditi Ashok.
ii. Notably Golf as game returned to the Olympics for the first time since 1904 St. Louis Games.

Indian Junior Men’s Team wins EurAsia Hockey Cup 2016
i. India’s Junior Men’s Hockey team has just clinched the EurAsia Cup 2016 after defeating Dynamo–Stroitel 3-2 in a close contest held at Yekaterinburg in Russia.
ii. The men in blue had gotten the better of the hosts by enforcing a 3-1 result in their favour in the tournament opener which they had dominated thoroughly before Dynamo could salvage a consolation goal in the dying minutes.
iii. In the game Simranjeet Singh doubled over the lead, before Vikramjit added a third eight minutes later.

Ritu Rani dropped, Sushila Chanu to lead India eves at Rio Olympics
i. Hockey India named Defender Sushila Chanu as the skipper in place of Ritu Rani who was dropped from the squad by the selectors due to poor form and attitude problems. Sushila’s colleague Deepika named as the vice-captain.
ii. Chanu will lead the 16-member Indian women’s hockey team at the forthcoming Olympic Games to be held at Rio de Janeiro.
iii. This will be the first time in 36 years that Indian women’s hockey team will be participating at the Olympic Games.
iv. Earlier Sushila, had captained the Indian team in Rani’s nonappearance during their tour of Australia this year. She also led the Indian junior women’s team to a bronze medal finish at the 2013 Junior World Cup in Möncheng ladbach, Germany.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

‘Ringside With Vijender’ by Rudraneil Sengupta,available online
i. The book named ‘Ringside With Vijender’, which was published online was in the news as Beijing Olympics bronze medallist pugilist Vijender Singh’s move to turn Pro featured in the book.
ii. The book authored by senior journalist Rudraneil Sengupta, the book, published by Juggernaut Books, deals with the boxer’s life post his transition to the brutal world of pro boxing.
iii. The Haryana-born turned professional will make his India debut in the WBO Asia Pacific super middleweight championship title bout against Australian Kerry Hope at the Thyagaraj Sports Complex in New Delhi.