NATIONAL NEWS
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
MicrosoftInternetExplorer4
19 New Ministers In PM Modi's Government
Nineteen new Ministers of State (MoS) were inducted in the Union Council of Ministers in a major expansion. These new ministers were administered oath of office and secrecy by President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan. This was the second expansion of the NDA government led by PM Narendra Modi. Of the 19 new ministers, 17 are from the BJP, one each from Apna Dal and RPI. Besides, induction of these new ministers, Minister of State (MoS) Environment, Forests and Climate Change with independent charge, Prakash Javdekar was elevated to the Cabinet rank.
The Ministers of State are
(1) Faggan Singh Kulaste – A prominent tribal leader and Member of Parliament from Barbati in Madhya Pradesh.
(2) Surendrajeet Singh Ahluwalia – He is Member of Parliament from Darjeeling.
(3) Ramesh Chandappa Jigjinagi - a Dalit leader and Lok Sabha MP (five times) from Bijapur, Karnataka.
(4) Vijay Goel – He is a BJP leader from Delhi and was elected to Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan.
(5) Ramdas Athawale – He is the chief of Republican Party of India (Athawale) is a seasoned Dalit leader and a vocal Ambedkarite. He is the lone Rajya Sabha member.
(6) Rajen Gohain – He is a BJP MP (4th term in Lok Sabha) from Nawgong Assam.
(7) Anil Madhav Dave – He is a Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh and is an environmentalist. He has written several books on the subject.
(8) Parshottam Rupala – He is a Rajya Sabha MP from Gujarat and this is his second term as a Rajya Sabha member.
(9) MJ Akbar - Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh.
(10) Arjun Ram Meghwal – He is a Lok Sabha MP from Bikaner, Rajasthan.
(11) Jaswant Sinh Bhabhor – He is a tribal leader and a Member of the Parliament from Dahod constituency in Gujarat.
(12) Dr Mahendra Nath Pandey – He is a BJP Lok Sabha MP from Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh.
(13) Ajay Tamta - He is also a Dalit leader from the hill state of Uttarakhand. He is a Lok Sabha member from the Almora constituency.
(14) Krishna Raj – She is a Dalit leader from UP's Rohilkhand region and a Lok Sabha member from UP's Shahjahanpur.
(15) Mansukh Mandaviya – A native of Bhavnagar in Gujarat and a prominent leader from the Patel community is a Rajya Sabha MP from Gujarat.
(16) Anupriya Singh Patel – She is the daughter of the late Sone Lal Patel, a Kurmi leader with significant influence in Uttar Pradesh. She is a Lok Sabha MP from Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh.
(17) C R Chaudhary – He holds a degree from the University of Birmingham and carries an expertise in the field of rural development. He is a BJP MP from Nagaur, Rajasthan.
(18) P P Chaudhary - He Lok sabha MP from Pali, Rajasthan and belongs the OBC Seervi caste. He is a recipient of the Sansad Ratna award twice in his stint at the Lok sabha. He also heads Seervi Mahasabha.
(19) Dr Subhash Bhamre – he is an oncologist and a practicing doctor. He is BJP Lok Sabha MP from Dhule, Maharashtra.
Koliwad Elected Karnataka Assembly Speaker
Senior Congress MLA K B Koliwad has been unanimously elected as the 20th Speaker of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. Koliwad, a five-time MLA from Ranebennur constituency, had served as Minister in the past. Koliwad succeeds Kagodu Thimmappa, who has been inducted into the Ministry as Revenue Minister by Chief Minister Siddaramaih in the recent cabinet.
JNPT Becomes First Indian Port to Implement Logistics Data Tagging of Containers
The Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT) at Nhava Sheva in Raigad District of Maharashtra has become the first port in India to implement logistics data bank tagging system of containers. The first of its kind system has been launched as part of ‘Ease of Doing Business’ initiatives implemented at JNPT Port. It focuses on document, time and cost reduction for the benefit of trade.
India’s first Commercial Court & Disputes Resolution Centre inaugurated in Chattisgarh
India’s first commercial dispute resolution centre and commercial court was inaugurated on 2 July 2016 at Naya Raipur, Chhattisgarh by Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Dr. Raman and Justice Madan B. Lokur of the Supreme Court of India. The Court will help in improving the judicial system through ultra-modern facilities available at the court which will facilitate the investors in their commercial dealings. Some facilities available for litigants through the new system include video-conferencing, E-Court, E-Library, E-Filing and E-Summons. The court also consists of arbitration centre and a mediation centre.
Bombay HC to be Mumbai HC Soon
The High Courts of Madras, Bombay and possibly Calcutta are set to shed the old names of their cities and adopt the new ones – Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata respectively. The Union Cabinet has approved a law ministry proposal for changing the names of the high courts in these cities. The names will be changed through an Act of Parliament – The High Courts (Alteration of Names) Bill, 2016 which will facilitate the changing of the names of Bombay High Court as Mumbai High Court, Madras High Court as Chennai High Court and Calcutta High Court as Kolkata High Court.
INTERNATIONAL
Saudi Arabia elected as ICC's 39th Associate Member
Saudi Arabia has been unanimously elected as the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) 39th Associate Member during its full council meeting in Edinburgh. Saudi Cricket Centre (SCC) has been an Affiliate Member of the ICC since 2003 and, as per a 2014 census, boasts of 4,350 cricketers and 80 dedicated cricket facilities. The SCC’s application for Associate Membership had been pre-approved by the ICC development committee during its October 2015 meeting, which was followed by a full application and an ICC inspection in March 2016.
NASA’s Juno Spacecraft Successfully Begins Orbit of Jupiter
(1) NASA’s Juno spacecraft has successfully entered into the orbit of Jupiter on 4th July 2016 and started orbiting solar system’s most massive planet.
(2) The spacecraft was launched by NASA as part of its New Frontiers program in 2011 to study Jupiter’s composition, gravity field, magnetic field, and polar magnetosphere.
(3) The unmanned spacecraft has been named after the Roman goddess Juno, the wife of Jupiter who is considered as the god of the sky in ancient Greco-Roman mythology.
(4) Juno is the first mission designed by NASA to see beneath Jupiter’s clouds. It has travelled 2.7 billion kilometres since its launch to reach Jupiter.
(5) It will orbit Jupiter from pole to pole, 5,000 kilometres above planet’s cloud tops. It will sample Jupiter’s charged particles and magnetic fields for the first time to study its composition beneath the sky.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
CCEA allows Axis Bank to raise foreign shareholding to 74%
(1) Government today permitted Axis Bank to raise foreign shareholding to 74 per cent, entailing investment of around Rs 13,000 crore.
(2) Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi cleared the proposal of Axis Bank for increasing foreign shareholding limit from existing 62 per cent to 74 per cent.
(3) The proposal would lead to foreign investment of about Rs 12,973 crore. At present, private banks have a total foreign limit of 74 per cent, of which FII limit is 49 per cent.
(4) Earlier this year, inter-ministerial panel FIPB headed by Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das recommended the Axis Bank's proposal to the CCEA as the capital inflow was over Rs 5,000 crore.
(5) The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) can clear proposals worth up to Rs 5,000 crore.
SBI Cards launches ELITE
(1) SBI Cards and Payment Services (SBI Card), the third largest card issuer, on Tuesday launched a premium credit card by the name ELITE.
(2) Launched on the MasterCard World platform, the SBI Card ELITE has bundled several privileges and benefits for the high networth individuals--premium category customers.
(3) Enabled with Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, SBI Card ELITE allows customers a contactless payment experience, adding more speed and suave to their wallets.
TCS partners with Royal College of Physicians of Ireland
(1) Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is partnering with the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland to deploy iON cloud solutions to create an online community of doctors.
(2) The new tool called The Physician Network is a resource based on the TCS iON Digital Learning Platform to enable virtual 'common-interest communities' and facilitate best practice knowledge-sharing.
(3) TCS iON is a strategic unit of Tata Consultancy Services focused on manufacturing industries, educational institutions and exam boards. They provide technology by means of a unique IT-as-a-service model, offering end-to-end business solutions for the sector.
APPOINTMENT & RESIGN
RBI appoints Sudarshan Sen as Executive Director
Sudarshan Sen has been appointed as the Executive Director of RBI in place of N S Vishwanathan, who has been elevated as Deputy Governor at the central bank. He will look after Department of Banking Regulation, Department of Co-operative Bank Regulation and Department of Non-Banking Regulation. Earlier, he was in charge of the Department of Banking Regulation. He also served as the Regional Director of Ahmedabad office of the Reserve Bank of India.
Madhav Dhekane takes over as Director of IISU
Noted scientist M V Dhekane has assumed the office of Director, ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU), Department of Space, at Vattiyoorkavu. Dhekane, who is the seventh director of IISU, is a B-Tech graduate in electrical engineering and M-tech (Systems and Control) from Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai. He had joined Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in 1983 and has wide experience and expertise in the launch vehicle control and guidance design, onboard software development and mission design and analysis.
OBITUARY
Veteran Communist Leader Romesh Chandra Passed Away
Veteran communist leader and former World Peace Council president Romesh Chandra has passed away in Mumbai. He was 94 years old. Chandra had taken part in freedom struggle as a student leader and later joined CPI and went on to become its national executive. Mr. Chandra was a recipient of Lenin Peace Award and had also worked as the editor of CPI's central organ New Age. Chandra, who joined the World Peace Council headquarters in Helsinki (Now in Greece) as its president and played a role during cold war era. He had also addressed United Nations' General Assembly as peace body's leader many a times, the highest number of times as an Indian.
Noel Neill, first actor to play Lois Lane in Superman, dies
American actor Noel Neill, the first actor to play the role Lois Lane on the Adventures of Superman television series died on 3 July 2016. She was 95. Lois Lane is a fictional character who is an award-winning journalist and the primary love interest of Superman.
SPORTS
India to host world’s first MMA League
India will be hosting the world’s first Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Super Fight League from August 26 to October 1 this year. Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Mumbai, Haryana, Bangalore, Punjab, Pune and Goa are the eight teams to be featured in this franchise-based league. Each team will constitute nine Indian fighters and three international ones. The championship will have an equal stage for women as a total of 96 fighters will be involved in both men and women combined.Renowned British boxer Amir Khan, who is the chairman of the league, said he wished to bring the spice of MMA to India. A total of 72 bouts will be played in the league stage which will be followed by two semi-finals, third place and the final bout. The league will be a platform for Indian MMA players like Anup Kumar, CJ Singh, Amit Roy, Dhruv Chaudhary to showcase their skills.
IWAS World Games: Niranjan Wins 8 Medals
Bengaluru para swimmer Niranjan Mukundan has won eight medals, including three golds, at the recently-concluded IWAS (International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports) U-23 World Games in Prague, Czech Republic. Niranjan, who is born with a medical condition called Spina Bifida and clubbed feet and competes in the S-8 category, won gold medals in 200m freestyle, 50m butterfly and 50m breaststroke, silver in 100m fly and 50m freestyle, as also bronze in 100m freestyle, 100m breaststroke and 100m backstroke events. GoSports Foundation is supporting Niranjan through the Para Champions Programme.
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu becomes first Indian footballer to play in Europa League
Born on 3 February 1992 in Mohali, Punjab, Gurpreet presently plays as a goalkeeper for Norwegian Tippeligaen football club Stabaek and also represents Indian national team. He achieved this feat after was named in Norwegian club Stabaek FC’s squad for qualifying match against Connah’s Quay Nomads FC in Europa League. He is the fifth Indian football player to play in Europe at professional level after Mohammed Salim, Baichung Bhutia, Sunil Chhetri and Subrata Pal.
B Sai Praneeth wins 2016 Canada Open Grand Prix Badminton title
Ace Indian shuttler B Sai Praneeth (World no 33) has won the 2016 Canada Open Grand Prix Badminton title in the men’s singles category. In the final match played at Calgary, Praneeth defeated Lee Hyun II of South Korea by 21-12, 21-10 score.
Lists & Indexes
Logistic Performance Index ‘16 released by World Bank, India ranked 35
(1) World Bank on 1 July 2016 released the Logistics Performance Index 2016 titled ‘Connecting to compete: 2016: Trade Logistics in the Global Economy.’
(2) The 2016 Logistics Performance Index (LPI) allows for comparisons across 160 countries.
(3) The 2016 LPI is an interactive benchmarking tool created to help countries identify the challenges and opportunities they face in their performance on trade logistics and what they can do to improve their performance. India’s ranking jumped from 54 in 2014 to 35 in 2016.
(4) India is ahead of comparatively advanced economies like Portugal and New Zealand.
(5) In 2016, India’s international supply chain efficiency was at 75 percent of top-ranked Germany.
(6) This is an improvement over the 66% efficiency when compared to the leader (again Germany) in 2014.
Regards!
Team BM