Current Affairs Today May 25 2018

We are here for you to provide the important current affairs May 25 2018 which have unique updates of all daily events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, India Today, Indian Express, Business Standard, all Government official websites. Our complete current affairs helps you to get more marks in Banking, insurance, UPSC, SSC, CLAT, Railway and all other competitive Exams.

• Daily Current Affairs
• Try our Current Affairs Quiz 2018
• Read Our 2018 Current Affairs

Click here to try Current Affairs Quiz : May 25 2018

Click Here to Read Current Affairs May 2018

 INDIAN AFFAIRS

Prakash Javadekar launches Samagra Shiksha scheme for school education
On May 25,2018, The Union Minister of Human Resources and Development Mr. Prakash Javedekar launched the “ Samagra Shiksha “scheme .This scheme is targeted towards providing education from pre-school till class 12.
i. This scheme will consist of the three components considered earlier for school education . They are : Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA),Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and Teacher Traning .
ii. The budget has been enhanced for school education from Rs. 28000 crore from 2017-18 to Rs. 34000 crore from 2018-19. And it would be further increased to Rs. 41000 crore in 2019-2020………………………………….Click here to Read more

Visit of Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte to India (May 24-25, 2018)
On May 25,2018, Visit of Prime Minister of Netherlands to India concluded. Following are the agreements signed by the two countries.i. The PM of Netherlands Mark Rutte launches ‘Clean Air India ‘ initiative in New Delhi on May 25, 2018.
ii. Netherlands signed 51 agreements covering government and private sectors. It also joined the International Solar Alliance.
iii. Mumbai Headquartered e-logistics company Cogoport to establish world’s first digital freight passage with Netherlands as the gateway.This announcement was made on the ‘Smart and Sustainable port led development’ in Mumbai.
iv. PM of Netherlands inaugurated Indo-Dutch Ganga Forum in New Delhi.Session on “Innovative Financing Models for Indo-Dutch PPP Projects”were introduced.
v. An Indo-Dutch Startup Initiative has been launched called : ‘#StartUpLink’…………………………Click here to Read more

Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad inaugurated cloud enabled Data Centre at Bhubaneshwar
On May 25,2018 , The Union Minister for Electronics & IT and Law & Justice Shri. Ravi Shankar Prasad has inaugurated cloud enabled Data Centre at Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
i. Objective: This will provide 24*7 online services for e-Governance applications and its departments .
ii. The Data centre and cloud services are being offered by National Informatics Centre (NIC).
iii. This would provide on-demand access to Information and Communication Technology  (ICT )Infrastructure …………………………….Click Here to Read More

13th Inter-State Council Standing Committee under the chairmanship of Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh
On 25^th May 2018, the Standing Committee of the Inter-State Council (ISC) headed by the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh held a meeting in New DelhiMeeting of Standing Committee of the Inter-State Council (ISC):
i. Discussions were conducted on all 273 recommendations of the Punchhi Commission.
ii. This was the 13th meeting of the Standing Committee of the ISC. The meeting focused on volume VI & VII of the Punchhi Commission’s Report. They had 88 recommendations in total.
iii. The recommendations in Volume VI of the Punchhi Commission report are related to: Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure.
iv. The recommendations in Volume VII are related to: Socio-economic Development, Public Policy and Good Governance.
v. The recommendations finalized in the meeting of the Standing Committee will be placed before the Inter-State Council for decision.
Tag lines of some banks:
♦ Syndicate Bank – Faithful. Friendly
♦ UCO Bank – Honors Your Trust
♦ Union Bank of India – Good people to bank with

PM Modi lays foundation stone of several developmental projects in Jharkhand
On 25 May 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of several projects of the Government of India and Government of Jharkhand, at an event in Sindri, Jharkhand.
Developmental projects in Jharkhand:
i.The projects are listed below:
1.Revival of Sindri Fertilizer Project of Hindustan Urvarak and Rasayan Ltd.
2.Ranchi City Gas Distribution Project by GAIL
3.All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Deoghar
4.Development of Deoghar Airport
5.Patratu Super Thermal Power Project
ii. He witnessed the Exchange of MoUs for Jan Aushadhi Kendras. He paid homage to Bhagwan Birsa Munda.
iii. The total cost of the projects, for which foundation stones were laid is Rs. 27,000 crore.
Some Wildlife sanctuaries in Jharkhand:
♦ Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary
♦ Gautam Budha Wildlife Sanctuary
♦ Dalma Wildlife Sanctuary

Union Minister Smt Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurates Incubation Centre and Food Testing Laboratory at NIFTEM
On 25^th May 2018, Union Minister of Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurated an Incubation centre and Food Testing Laboratory at NIFTEM in Sonipat, Haryana.
Incubation Centre and Food Testing Laboratory at NIFTEM:
i. The facilities that were inaugurated at NIFTEM are as follows:
1.Pilot Plant for Ready-to-Eat and Traditional Food
2.Pilot Plant for Milk and Dairy Product
3.Pilot Plant for Fruits and Vegetable processing
4.Pilot Plant for Meat and Poultry Processing
5.NIFTEM Centre for Food Research and Analysis
ii. Harsimrat Kaur Badal said that the Ministry of Food Processing Industries will collaborate with various international laboratories so that the food products approved by laboratories at NIFTEM receive worldwide acceptability.
About National Institute of Food Entrepreneurship and Management (NIFTEM):
♦ Vice Chancellor – Dr. Chindi Vasudevappa
♦ Location – Sonepat, Haryana

Ministry of Culture organized Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav 2018 in Tehri, Uttarakhand from 25th to 27th May, 2018
On May 25,2018, Ministry of Culture organized the 9^th edition of Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav 2018 in Tehri, Uttarakhand from 25^th to 27^th May,2018. Uttarakhand’s Tehri Lake Festival will be a part of the event. IT consists of water sports organized by the Uttarakhand tourism each year. This initiative is under the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ .Objective of the 3 day event:
To present and promote rich cultural diversity and inter-linkages amongst different states to strengthen National participation.
Salient features about the Mahotsav:
i. It aims to preserve , popularize and promote the cultural heritage and diversity of all Indian states .
ii. The cultures of other states would be displayed through a food festival.
iii. This year the partner state for the festival of Uttarakhand is Karnataka. Special emphasis is given to the performances of the partner state.
iv. Performances of arts, folk dances, music, cuisines would be showcased from different states. Special local Tehri folk artists would join as well.
v. The North Zone Cultural Centre (NZCC) , Patialahas been given the responsibility to carry the execution of the festival.
About RSM:
♦ So far 8 RSM’s have been organized with : 2 in Delhi, 2 in Karnataka, 1 each in Varanasi, Gujrat , MP and North Eastern State Capitals.

Roll out of e-Way Bill system for intra-State movement of goods in the Maharashtra, Manipur and Union Territories (without legislature)
On 25^th May 2018, the e-Way Bill system for intra-State movement of goods was implemented for Maharashtra, Manipur and Union Territories (without legislature).
Roll out of e-Way Bill system for intra-State movement of goods:
i.On 25^th May 2018, the e-Way Bill system for intra-State movement of goods was implemented for:
Maharashtra, Manipur, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli Daman & Diu and Lakshadweep
ii. The e-Way Bill system for inter-State movement of goods was launched on 1st April 2018.
iii. By 25^th May 2018, 27 States / Union Territories will have implemented the e-Way Bill system for intra-State movement of goods.
Some important temples in India:
♦ Kedarnath Temple – Uttarakhand
♦ Siddhivinayak Temple – Maharashtra
♦ Somnath Temple – Gujarat

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

India among top 3 countries most targeted for phishing: Report
India has been listed as one of the top three target countries for Phishing and malware-based attacks as per the RSA Quarterly Fraud Report.India among top 3 countries most targeted for phishing:
i. The RSA Quarterly Fraud Report for the period from January 1 to March 31, 2018, says that phishing contributed for 48 per cent of total cyber-attacks.
ii. The report stated that Canada, the United States, India and Brazil were the countries highly targeted by phishing.
iii. Other major phishing-targeted countries are: Brazil (4^th), Netherlands (5th), Colombia (6th), Spain (7th), Mexico (8th), Germany (9th) and South Africa (10th)
iv. The report says that, in the first quarter, 55 % of transactions originated from the mobile channel and 65 % of fraud transactions used a mobile application or browser.
v. As per the report the top hosting countries list for such attacks had United States in the first place. It is followed by Russia (2^nd) and India (3^rd).
vi. The following countries are also featured in the list: Australia (4^th), Canada (5th), France (6th), Luxembourg (7th), Germany (8th), China (9th)
and Italy (10th)
Some of the important international airports:
♦ Tiruchirapalli International Airport – Tiruchirapalli, Tamil Nadu
♦ Rajiv Gandhi International Airport – Hyderabad, Telangana
♦ Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport – Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

BANKING & FINANCE

SIDBI to extend direct funding facility to village level entrepreneurs in CSCs
On 24^th May 2018, CSC SPV and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) signed an MoU to offer financial support to CSCs all over India.
SIDBI to extend direct funding facility to village level entrepreneurs in CSCs:
i. As per the MoU, SIDBI will offer financial support to the Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) of Common Services Centers, with minimum one year of operation, under the Direct Financing Window of SIDBI.
ii. Through Direct Financing Window, CSC SPV will approve the list of VLEs, within 25 km distance of SIDBI Branch Offices, who are in need of financial support.
iii. In order to receive the loan, the VLEs should submit their CSC project, with maximum project outlay of Rs. 3.50 lakh and term loan requirement under Rs. 2 lakh per project.
iv. This tie up will also improve financial viability of CSCs by providing additional services in their range of products.
About Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI):
♦ Chairman & Managing Director – Mohammad Mustafa
♦ Headquarters – Lucknow

Yes Bank empaneled as ‘Settlement Bank’ by National Stock Exchange  
On May 25,2018, India’s Largest stock exchange National Stock Echange (NSE) has given approval to Yes Bank to be empanelled as‘Settlement Bank’ for National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC).Yes Bank is already empanelled as a ‘Clearing Bank’ for BSE, NCDEX, MCX.Salient Features:
i. It will provide different services to the member viz. Settlement and Clearing, electronic fund transfer and ‘anywhere’ banking and free of cost fund transfer across all centres of NSE’s members.
ii. NSCCL will be coordinating with YES bank accounts for its risk management and settlement operations that it does on behalf of NSE.
Yes Bank:
♦ CEO:  Rana Kapoor.
♦ Tagline: Experience our Expertise.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

TCS becomes first company to achieve Rs 7 lakh crore m-cap milestone
On May 25, 2018, market valuation of Tata Consultancy Service (TCS) has risen past Rs. 7 lakh crore. It becomes the first company so far to  have achieved this goal.Key points :
i. The valuation is measured at Rs. 7,03,309 crore.
ii. In  April TCS became the first company to close trading session with over $100 billionmarket value.
iii. Following TCS are : Reliance Industries at Rs. 5, 83,908.87 crore, HDFC bank at Rs. 5,19,654.83 crore, HUL at Rs. 3,42,244.47 crore , ITC at Rs. 3,30,919.46 crore.
TCS:
♦ Chairperson: Natarajan Chandrasekharan
♦ Headquarters : Mumbai.

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

Trump awards Medal of Honor to Navy SEAL in Afghan assault
On 24^th May 2018, United States President Donald Trump awarded a Medal of Honor to retired Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Britt K. Slabinski, at the White House, United States.
Trump awards Medal of Honor to Navy SEAL in Afghan assault:
i. Britt K. Slabinski is a former member of the Navy’s SEAL Team Six. He was awarded for leading a rescue mission on a mountaintop in Afghanistan in 2002.
ii. He retired from the Navy in 2014 after completing more than 25 years of service.

Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve bags national biodiversity award
On 22^nd May 2018, Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve received the first prize for conserving the rare wildlife resources from the National Bio-diversity Authority, at Hyderabad.Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve – national biodiversity award:
i. Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve is a non-governmental organization. Since 2016, along with Forest Department, it has been protecting and conserving the 17 sq km area Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve.
ii. The Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve is adjacent to the Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary in West Kameng District of Arunachal Pradesh.
iii. The award was sponsored by the National Bio-diversity Authority. The award consisted of a citation, a memento and a cash prize of Rs one lakh.
iv. Indi Glow and Sange Norbu Phiang, the leaders of the organization received the award at the event.
About Eaglenest Wild life Sanctuary:
♦ Area – nearly 217 sq km
♦ Comprises – 545 species of birds and various species of plants and animals
♦ Bugun Lipcichla, a rare bird, is found only in this sanctuary

Nima Jangmu Sherpa scales 3 highest mountains in single season; sets world record
On 23^rd May 2018, Nima Jangmu Sherpa of Nepal made a world record by scaling three highest mountains in a single climbing season.
Nima Jangmu Sherpa scales 3 highest mountains in single season; sets world record:
i. Nima Jangmu Sherpa made her ascent on Mt Kanchenjunga, which is the third highest peak of the world.
ii. She is 28 years old. She has become the only woman in the world to climb three highest peaks in Nepal above 8,000 meters in one seasonwithin 25 days.
iii. She had scaled Mt Everest on 14^th May and Mt Lhotse on 29^th April 2018.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

CBDT chairman Sushil Chandra gets one-year extension
On 25^th May 2018, Sushil Chandra was given one-year extension as the chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) till May 2019.CBDT chairman Sushil Chandra gets one-year extension:
i. This is the second extension for Sushil Chandra after becoming the chairman of CBDT on 1^st November 2016.
ii. In 2017, he was given a one-year extension till 31^st May 2018. He is a 1980 batch officer of the Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax cadre).

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Vice Admiral GS Pabby, AVSM, VSM, Chief of Materiel commissioned IN LCU L54 into the Indian Navy today at Port Blair
On 25^th May 2018, Vice Admiral GS Pabby, AVSM, VSM, Chief of Materiel commissioned IN LCU L54 into the Indian Navy at Port Blair.
IN LCU L54 commissioned into the Indian Navy:
i. IN LCU L54 is the fourth Landing Craft Utility (LCU) Mk-IV class inducted into the Indian Navy.
ii. This ship was indigenously designed and built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata.
iii. LCU MK-IV ship is an amphibious ship. Its primary role is transportation and deployment of Main Battle Tanks, Armoured Vehicles, troops and equipment from ship to shore.
iv. These ships are based at the Andaman and Nicobar Command. They can be deployed for beaching operations, search and rescue, disaster relief operations, supply and replenishment and evacuation from distant islands etc.
v. The ship is commanded by Lieutenant Commander Munish Sethi. It has 5 officers, 41 sailors. Also it can carry 160 troops.
vi. The ship displaces 830 Tons. It can transport different types of combat equipment like the Main Battle Tank, T72 and other vehicles.
vii. It has advanced equipment and advanced systems like Integrated Bridge System (IBS) and Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS).
About Indian Navy:
♦ Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) – Admiral Sunil Lanba
♦ Headquarters – New Delhi

SPORTS

Steve Smith returns to cricket with Canadian T20 league
Steve Smith, the former Australia captain, who was banned due to ball tampering issue, will make a comeback through the inaugural Global T20 Canada event that starts on 28^th June 2018.Steve Smith returns to cricket with Canadian T20 league:
i. Steve Smith will play in the inaugural Global T20 Canada event. The tournament will see participation from six teams. It is organized by Cricket Canada.
ii. Steve Smith was suspended for 12 months in March 2018 as he was involved in the South African ball-tampering scandal. He is permitted to play domestic tournaments outside Australia by Cricket Australia.