2016-05-13

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Friends, here are the Major Current Affairs Highlights of April 2016. These one-liners cover all important International, National, Banking, Technology, Books & Authors, Sports affairs of March month (from 1st to 30th April 2016). We will try to provide the pdf version soon, but we advise you to write these on your own so that you wont forget them again. All the Best :)

April 2016 Current Affairs Highlights

“AnBot”, China’s first robot security guard has made its debut.

33 year-old C Devi is the first transgender person to contest in Tamil Nadu's assembly elections.

A Nanosatellite named PISAT, developed by 250 students of PES University in Bengaluru will soon be launched by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).

A street in Switzerland has been named after tennis star Roger Federer, which the 17-time Grand Slam champion inaugurated himself.

A Trilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed in Science and Technology among Sri Lanka, Japan and India.

According to a Finance Ministry report, India's total external debt stood at $480.2 billion at December-end.

According to data by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into India increased by 37% to $39.32 billion during 2015. Computer hardware and software sector attracted the highest FDI, followed by services, trading business, automobile industry and chemicals.


According to data released by the Controller General of Accounts, India's fiscal deficit in April-February stood at ₹5.73 lakh crore, 107.1% of the full-year target.

According to research firm IHS, India has become the world’s fourth-largest spender on defence, following a 13.1% increase in its 2016-17 defence budget.

Air India has announced the launch of non-stop flights to Vienna from New Delhi.

Ajay Lalcheta has been named the Captain of Oman’s national cricket team.

All tobacco products produced from April 1 will have 85% pictorial warnings on the packaging space.

Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu has formally inaugurated the state's new Secretariat at the Velagapudi village in the new capital Amaravati.

Argentina has returned to international markets after 15 years with a $16.5 billion dollar bond sale, after it defaulted on $100 billion worth US dollar debt in 2001.

As per a study published in The Lancet medical journal, over 640 million people in the world are obese.

Assam Rifles has inducted the first batch of 100 women personnel into the force.

At least 171 nations, including India, have signed the Paris climate agreement at the UN headquarters. The pact, negotiated last year, is aimed at reducing carbon emissions to combat global warming.

Australia has won the 25th edition of Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Tournament 2016 for record ninth time.

Australian medium-pacer Clint McKay has announced his retirement from international and Australis’a first-class cricket.

Bihar government has imposed a complete ban on foreign and local liquor across the state, joining the list of completely dry states like Gujarat and Nagaland.

Britain celebrated the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II on 21st April 2016.

British astronaut Tim Peake ran the 36th London Marathon from Space.

British royals, Prince William and Kate Middleton were on a 7 day visit to India from 10th April.

China and Pakistan have signed an agreement for the launch of a special satellite to monitor the development of the multi-billion dollars China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects.

China has successfully launched the Kunpeng-1B sounding rocket from a launch pad in Danzhou City in the southern Chinese Hainan Province.

China offered Sri Lanka 500 million Yuan (approximately ₹513 crore), to assist Sri Lanka in improving investment zones and speeding up the industrialisation process.

China’s mainland population reached 1.373 billion at the beginning of November, up 33.77 million since the last census was held in 2010.

Cuba has lifted a decade-old policy that prevented Cubans from entering or leaving the country by a cruise ship or commercial vessel.

Cyprian Kotut from Kenya has won the 40th edition of the 2016 Paris marathon in the men’s category.

Danny Willett became the first Briton to win the US Masters for 20 years when he took advantage of Jordan Spieth's capitulation on a sensational final day at Augusta.

DBS Bank, which is Singapore’s largest, unveiled Digibank, India’s first mobile-only bank, targeting five million retail customers.

Dearness Allowance (DA) for central government employees has been hiked to 125 per cent of basic pay, up by 6 percentage points, with effect from January 1, 2016.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar was on his first official visit to China.

Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar and United States Secretary of Defense Ash Carter in a joint statement said that the two countries have agreed "in principle" to share military logistics.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal announced that the 1,260 km of roads maintained by the Public Works Department (PWD) will be vacuum cleaned from 1st April as he launched the 'Greening Delhi' initiative.

Delhi government banned manufacture, storage, distribution and sale of Pan Masala, Gutkha and all forms of Chewable Tobacco for one year.

Delhi-based researcher Sudha Gopalakrishnan launched a free online encyclopedia on Indian culture called Sahapedia.

During the 2016 Rio Olympics, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to promote the ‘Make in India initiative’.

Egypt and Saudi Arabia have signed an agreement to set up a $16 billion investment fund during Saudi King Salman's four-day visit to Egypt.

Eight satellite-monitored 'laser walls' have been activated along the India-Pakistan International Border in Punjab, to guard areas where barbed wire fencing cannot be installed.

England’s snooker great Steve Davis (58) announced his retirement from the game after 38-year career.

Europe has become the world’s first region to wipe out Malaria, a mosquito-borne vetor disease with zero cases reported in the year 2015.

Evgenia Medvedeva, a 16-year-old figure skater from Russia, won the World Figure Skating Championship in Boston, US.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj was on a a two-nation three-day visit to Iran and Russia.

Former Pakistan cricket team captain, Inzamam-ul-Haq has been appointed as the Chairman of the senior selection committee of the Pakistan Cricket Board.

French President Francois Hollande has announced €100 million in aid for Lebanon over the next three years as it currently hosts over a million Syrian refugees.

Garima Chaudhary has won the gold medal at the 2016 Commonwealth Judo Championship finals in the 63 kg weight category.

Germany's Development Bank is going to provide loan of Rs. 3,750crore for Metro system in Nagpur city.

Government has reconstituted Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA) board. Ram Bahadur Rai, Senior Journalist has been appointed as Chairman of the Board.

Government has set-up a Sub Committee to interact with the trade and industry on the imposition of Central Excise Duty on jewellery. The Committee will be headed by : Ashok Lahiri (former Chief Economic Advisor)

Greece passed an Asylum amendment bill that is needed for the implementation of the European Union-Turkey migrant deal that will take effect soon.

Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel officially launched the state-wide implementation of National Food Security Act, which has been renamed as ‘Maa Annapurna Yojna (Scheme)’. Under this Maa Annapurna Yojna, 3.82 crore people of Gujarat will be benefited.

Haryana government has decided to rename its largest city Gurgaon to 'Gurugram'.

Heart of Asia (HoA) conference was held in New Delhi. Focus of the conference was to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan.

In a first in the country, Maharashtra Assembly has passed the Prohibition of Social Boycott Bill, penalising social boycott by extra-judicial bodies like caste panchayats and communities.

In a first, private lender DCB Bank has started an Aadhaar-based ATM facility wherein a customer can transact using the biometric details instead of the PIN.

In an effort to honour the West Indies T20I captain Darren Sammy, the main stadium of the St Lucia island has been renamed after him.

India and China agree to establish hot-line between their armed forces.

India and Mauritius inked an MoU to promote cooperation in traditional medicine and homeopathy.

India and Saudi Arabia have singed 5 agreements to boost the bilateral cooperation between the two nations.

India and South Korea signed a MoU for cooperation and mutual assistance in development of ports.

India and Sri Lanka have signed an MOU to supply 150 boats and fishing equipment to the fishermen of Mullaitivu.

India extended a Line of Credit (LoC) of 1 billion US dollars to Mongolia.

India has banned the import of milk and milk products from China after finding them substandard.

India has decided not to take Russia's support in Chandrayaan II project. India has decided not to take Russia's support in Chandrayaan II project.

India has decided to allow People belonging to minority communities of Pakistan, staying in India on a Long Term Visa,  to buy property, open bank accounts and get PAN and Aadhaar cards.

India has hosted Asia-Pacific Remote Sensing Symposium (APRSS) from April 4 to 7 to discuss applications of remote sensing technologies for disaster mitigation and bettering global climate change monitoring.

India has jumped three places to rank 133 out of 180 countries in the 2016 World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders.  Finland has ranked first for the sixth consecutive year, and is followed by Netherlands and Norway.

India has overtaken China as the world's top destination for Foreign Direct Investment by attracting greenfield capital investment worth $63 billion in 2015.

India has signed an MoU with the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) for a possible $100 million line of credit to facilitate exports to IDB's member countries.

India is expected to overtake the US as the second largest smartphone market by 2017.

India retained its position as the world's largest remittance recipient in 2015.

India was ranked Sixth among the World's largest manufacturing countries, up from its previously held 9th rank, according to a report by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

India will be hosting the 2018 Commonwealth Judo Championships in Jaipur, besides organising the Asian Cadet and Asian Junior Judo Championships in September in Kerala this year. This will be the first time that Commonwealth Judo Championships will be held in India.

India will play their first day-night Test against New Zealand later this year.

India’s indigenously developed surface-to-air Akash missile was test fired for second consecutive day from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur near Balasore in Odisha.

Indian artistic gymnast Dipa Karmakar has created history by becoming the first Indian woman gymnast to qualify for Olympics.

Indian conglomerate Adani Group was granted approval from Australia's Queensland state government for three mining leases, with a proposed investment of $7.7 billion, under the company's Carmichael project.

Indian cricketer Virat Kohli was announced as the brand ambassador of the upcoming Premier Futsal League.

Indian men have won the 2016 Asian Nations Cup Chess tournament by defeating Vietnam in the final round by 3-1 score played in Abu Dhabi.

Indian Naval Ships namely Veer and Nipat, served for the defence operations under illustrious 22nd Killer Squadron decommissioned from the Indian Navy.

Indian Railways has introduced ‘Indrail Pass’ aimed mainly at foreign visitors and NRIs to enable them to travel on any of its trains without any route restriction, within the validity of the pass.

Indian Railways will shortly be launching Phone Ticket Cancellation Service, wherein passengers will be able to cancel their reserved tickets booked through counters by dialing 139.

Information and Broadcasting Ministry has formed a 3 Member Committee to oversee the guidelines set for government advertisements by the Supreme Court are followed. This committee to be headed by : B BTandon (former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC))

ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar has said that the space agency will test its reusable launch vehicle "RLV-TD", in May.

Italian officials and financial institutions have formally agreed to set up a €5 billion fund, named Atlante, to help stressed banks unload bad loans and raise capital.

Japan-based conglomerate Seibu Railway is working to develop world's first virtually invisible train by 2018.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das launched the "Bhimrao Ambedkar Awas Yojana" for widows. Objective of this Scheme : To create equality and harmony in society, ensuring all round development.

Laureus World Sports Awards 2016 : Sportsman of the year - Novak Djokovic, Sportswoman of the year - Serena Williams.

Lee Chong Wei has won his 11th Malaysian Open title by defeating world number one Chen Long.

Leicester City's Riyad Mahrez has been named as the PFA Player of the Year for the 2015/16 season.

Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan has announced plans to set up a 'Department of Happiness' to infuse "positivity" into the lives of people.

Maharashtra contributed the highest (₹2.77 lakh crore) among India’s states and union territories to the total national direct tax collection of ₹6.96 lakh crore in 2014-15.

Mairaj Ahmad Khan has won the Silver medal in the skeet event at the ISSF Shooting World Cup in Rio de Janeiro.

Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom was on a two-day visit to India.

Maritime India Summit 2016, a maiden initiative of the Ministry of Shipping, was held recently in Mumbai.

Mercedes AMG Petronas driver Nico Rosberg won the Chinese Grand Prix.

Mercedes' Nico Rosberg has won the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Month long Simhastha Kumbh mela began in Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.

Mumbai based Mahindra & Mahindra has become the first Indian company to join EP100, a global energy campaign headed by The Climate Group, an international non-profit group that will work with the world’s most influential businesses in setting commitments to double their energy productivity.

Myanmar has banned all logging operations in the country's forests as part of its efforts to tackle deforestation.

Myanmar's (Burmese) Parliament has passed a bill that gives Aung San Suu Kyi a role similar to that of Prime Minister.

Nagaland’s capital Kohima was declared ‘smoke-free’.  Nagaland is the fourth in India to be declared "smoke-free", after Chandigarh, Kottayam and Sikkim.

NASA has successfully tested a 3D-printed rocket engine turbopump, with liquid methane as fuel, for its future Mars mission.

NASA has successfully installed the first ever expandable structure, Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, on the International Space Station (ISS).

Nepal's first woman President Bidhya Devi Bhandari will pay an official visit to India next month. This will be her first overseas trip after assuming charge.

New Zealand all-rounder Grant Elliott has announced his retirement from one-day international cricket.

North Korea has officially announced that it is blocking Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and some other South Korean and "sex and adult" websites.

Novak Djokovic won the Miami Open titile. This is his 28th ATP Masters title.

Nuclear capable undersea ballistic missile, code named K-4, was successfully test fired from an undisclosed location in the Bay of Bengal.

Odisha Government has launched Adarsh Vidyalaya (AV) project to provide modern schools facilities on the lines of Kendriya Vidyalayas in the underdeveloped rural areas of the state.

On the occasion of 125th birth anniversary of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched ‘Gram Uday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan’ (Village Self Governance Campaign), at his birthplace at Mhow, Madhya Pradesh, to strengthen Panchayati Raj in villages and ensure social harmony in villages.

One of India's largest hospital chains Fortis Healthcare has launched the first pasteurised human milk bank, “Amaara”, in Delhi and the National Capital Region.

Pakistan and China have launched production of a new variant of the JF-17B multi-role combat jet.

Pakistan has test fired anti-ship surface to sea “Zarb” missile from the coastal areas successfully.

Panama's President Juan Carlos Varela has announced that the country will adopt international tax reporting standards by 2018.

President Pranab Mukherjee was on a 5 day state visit to Papua New Guinea and New Zealand from 28th April to 2nd May.

Prevention of Blindness Week 2016 was observed from 1st of April to 7th of April 2016.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched an electronic trading platform, the National Agriculture Market (eNAM), for farmers to sell their produce.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the 'Stand Up India' scheme in Noida. Under this scheme, banks will give loans of up to Rs. 1 crore to SC/ST and women entrepreneurs.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on a 2-day visit to Saudi Arabia.

Rafael Nadal clinched his 9th Monte Carlo Masters title after defeating 29-year-old Frenchman Gaël Monfils in what was Nadal's 100th ATP World Tour final.

Rafael Nadal has won his 9th Barcelona Open title by beating Kei Nishikori.

Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu has flagged off India’s fastest train, the “semi-bullet” Gatimaan Express, from Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.

Riyad Mahrez (Algerian origin) became the first African footballer to win the Professional Footballers Association’s (PFA) Player of the Year award.

San Francisco has adopted a legislation mandating that employers offer new fathers full wages during their six-week paternity leave, making it the first such city in the United States.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt agreed to build a bridge over the Red Sea.

Saudi Arabia and the United States have imposed joint sanctions targeting the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Saudi Arabia has laid out a plan to create the world's largest sovereign wealth fund of $2 trillion to help reduce the kingdom's dependence on oil.

Scientists at NASA have proposed to deploy a robotic system, called Icy-moon Cryovolcano Explorer (ICE), to explore Saturn’s Europa and Enceladus moons for alien life.

Shaheen-5, the fifth such edition of a joint training exercise between China and Pakistan was held during 9th to 30th April 2016.

Shreya Iyer became the first Indian woman to compete in the two wheeler National Rally Championship.

South Pacific island nation Nauru has become the 189th member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

Spaceflight company Blue Origin has successfully launched and landed its reusable Shepard rocket for the third time, after it was successfully launched and landed once in November and then in January.

Sri Lanka's veteran left-arm spinner Rangana Herath has decided to retire from limited-overs cricket.

State Bank of India (SBI) has lowered its lending rate for home loans by 0.10 percentage points to 9.45% and 9.4% for women.

State-owned Punjab National Bank (PNB) has announced that it has become the largest mobiliser under the government's Gold Monetisation Scheme (GMS) launched in November last year.

Tajamul Islam, a 7-year-old girl from Kashmir's Bandipora district, is set to become the first Indian to participate in the World Kickboxing Championship.

The 11th edition of India-Mongolia joint military training Exercise ‘Nomadic Elephant – 2016’ was held at Mongolia.

The 14th meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Russian Federation, the Republic of India and the People's Republic of China was held in Moscow, Russian Federation. The Ministers decided to hold the next trilateral meeting in India.

The 153rd edition of the Wisden's list named Kane Williamson as Leading Cricketer in the World for 2015.

The 3rd phase of Union Health Ministry’s universal vaccination programme Mission Indradhanush began on 7th April 2016.

The 8th International Seminar on Wheat and Wheat Products is scheduled to be held in Panaji, Goa, on July 17-18.

The Andhra Pradesh Eastern Power Distribution Company Limited (APEPDCL) based at Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh has became the first e-Office electricity distribution company among all power utilities in India.

The ban on countrymade liquor in Bihar took effect from 1st April after the state's liquor law was amended recently.

The Bank of Japan has kept the interest rates on the current accounts held by financial institutions at the central bank unchanged at (-)0.1%.

The Border Security Force (BSF) has announced plans to unveil a 350-feet-high national flag, the tallest in the country, near the Attari-Wagah border by January 2017.

The BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) has approved its first package of loans worth 811 million dollars for 4 renewable energy projects in Brazil, China, South Africa and India.

The Cabinet of Saudi Arabia kingdom has approved the Vision 2030, a broad-based economic reform plan. The Vision charts out the roadmap for diversifying the Saudi economy in next 14 years and to ensure that Saudi Arabia can live without oil by 2020.

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has identified Mumbai as the noisiest city in the country, followed by Delhi, Chennai, and Bengaluru.

The Centre has amended the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act to expedite the process of dispensation of justice to victims of atrocities.

The Delhi government has passed a proposal to build a memorial for late President APJ Abdul Kalam at Dilli Haat, south Delhi.

The Department of Health and Family Welfare introduced a new polio vaccine, Inactivated Poliovirus Vaccine (IPV), in Chandigarh. It will replace the existing trivalent Oral Polio Vaccine (tOPV) which is being used for over three decades.

The district administration of Kerala's Kozhikode has launched 'Operation Sulaimani', wherein eateries serve meals to people in exchange for free coupons given by the authorities.

The European Union (EU) has announced that it is giving €38 million in cash aid to Caribbean country Haiti, which is currently combating drought and a migration crisis.

The first certified 18-rotor electric helicopter, called the Volocopter VC200, has completed its first manned test flight.

The first-ever North East-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Business Summit held at Imphal, Manipur with the focus on road connectivity, trade and tourism.

The government has amended its norms regarding the information displayed on packaged food item packets. As per the amendments, name of manufacturer/ packager/ importer, net quantity of product, manufacturing date, retail sale price and consumer care contacts would have to be displayed prominently in at least 40% of the packet area, effective from July.

The government has approved an interest rate of 8.7% on the Employee Provident Fund (EPF) for 2015-16 from 8.75% in 2014-15.

The government has banned the import of dogs for breeding or any other commercial activity, as per a recent notification by the Director General of Foreign Trade.

The Government has increased minimum wage for contract workers to ₹10,000 per month, "taking into consideration the Consumer Price Index and Dearness Allowance.

The government has made it mandatory for all mobile phones sold in India to have a panic button starting 2017.

The government has set up a Panel to prepare a blueprint for doubling farmers’ income by 2022. The panel will be headed by : Ashok Dalwai (Additional Secretary at the Agriculture Ministry).

The Gujarat government has announced to provide a pack of six sanitary napkins at the token rate of ₹1 to all girls between the ages of 10 and 19, under the 'Taruni Suvidha Programme'.

The Himachal Pradesh Assembly has passed a bill increasing the salaries and allowances of MLAs, CM, the state’s ministers, and the Speaker among others. With the hike, the MLAs salary and allowances rose to ₹2.10 lakh per month from ₹1.32 lakh.

The HRD Ministry has announced IIT Madras and IIM Bangalore as the best engineering and management institutes respectively in India.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) is introducing a Heat Index for the entire country starting this month.

The Indian Navy has recently announced that women officers completing seven years with the Navy will be eligible for permanent commission in the law, education and naval constructors branches.

The Indian space agency ISRO and US space agency NASA will join hands for the first time to launch a Satellite that will help study earthquake and its patterns. The satellite is called NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar).

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched navigation satellite IRNSS-1G successfully from Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota spaceport. The satellite has a 12-year life span and is seventh and last in the series of Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS).

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is going to build Exclusive Holiday homes for its jawans.

The International Bank Note Society has named New Zealand's $5 note as the Banknote of the Year 2015.

The International eGames Committee (IEGC) has announced that Brazil's Rio de Janeiro will host the first “E-Olympics”, an eGames tournament coinciding with the upcoming Rio Summer Olympics in August 2016.

The Karnataka government has prohibited taxi-hailing apps like Ola and Uber to apply peak-hour charges.

The Kerala HC has ordered a total ban on sound-making fireworks display at all religious places between sunset and sunrise, following the recent Kollam temple tragedy which killed 109 people.

The limit on the investment by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) in government securities, including those of the states, has been increased by Rs. 14,000 crore to Rs. 2 lakh crore, with effect from April 4.

The Lok Sabha passed the Regional Centre for Biotechnology Bill, 2016 to provide statutory status to the existing Regional Centre for Biotechnology in Faridabad, Haryana.

The Lucknow Metro will get a loan of €450 million (around ₹3,500 crore) from the European Investment Bank for its Phase-1A project.

The Malaysian government has introduced the Electronic Travel Authorization Visa (e-visa) for Indian tourists on a short visit to the country.

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has entered into a collaboration with German government for a special programme on 'Soil Protection and Rehabilitation for Food Security'.

The National Institute of Technology (NIT) Sikkim has secured a rare distinction of having a Supercomputer,  named 'Param Kanchenjunga', which is said to be the most powerful and fastest among all the 31 NITs.

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has launched “Unified Payments Interface (UPI)” to revolutionise mobile payment system in the country.

The National Summit on Family Planning was held in New Delhi. Theme :  New Choices, New Horizons.

The New Development Bank (NDB), formerly referred to as the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Development Bank, has sanctioned a $250 million loan for a renewable energy scheme in India.

The Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC) in Hyderabad, under the Department of Atomic Energy, has announced it has set a new world record with production of 1,503 tonnes of nuclear fuel in 2015-16.

The RBI cut the repo rate by 25 basis points to a five-year low of 6.5% in its bi-monthly monetary policy review.

The RBI has reduced the minimum tenure of the masala bonds issued by companies to three years from the previously stated five years.

The Rural Development Ministry has released ₹12,230 crore to the states towards the implementation of MGNREGA.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has ranked India 6th in its biggest military spenders list for 2015.

The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) has reserved seats for Transgenders under the Most Backward Class Category (MBC).

The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) has announced the launch of the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), which is scheduled to be held between August and September.

The Tirupati Balaji temple management has deposited 1,311 kg of gold with the Punjab National Bank under the three-year short term Gold Monetisation Scheme (GMS).

The Tourism Ministry has sanctioned ₹20 crore for promoting tourism in Varanasi.

The two-day G7 Foreign Ministers' Meeting was held at Hiroshima.

The Union Cabinet has given its ex-post facto approval for implementation of One Rank One Pension (OROP) retrospectively with effect from 1st July, 2014.

The Union cabinet has given its formal approval for adopting the Statute of the South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network (SAWEN). With this, India will become member of SAWEN, a regional inter-governmental body in combating wildlife crime in the region and beyond.

The Union Government has approved country’s first Metrino Pod project i.e. Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) network for Gurgaon, Haryana.

The Union government has merged the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan (RGKA) with the Khelo India scheme which is based on Gujarat's Khel Mahakumbh.

The Union Government has recently constituted 8-member inter-ministerial committee to prepare a blueprint for doubling farmers’ income by 2022. The committee will be headed by : Ashok Dalwai (Additional secretary at the Union Agriculture Ministry)

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has constituted High-Level committee to suggest ways to tighten security along India-Pakistan border. [The committee will be headed by : Madhukar Gupta (former Union Home Secretary)]

The Union Railway Ministry has decided to create a 1 lakh crore rupees safety fund named Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh to strengthen safety measures on the rail network to prevent accidents.

The United Nations for the first time observed the 125th birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar at its headquarters in New York.

The US Air Force has set a new world speed record for a vehicle aided by Magnetic Levitation (maglev).

The US Congress has formally invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address a joint session of the Congress on June 8, during his visit to the country.

The US Federal Reserve left their key interest rate unchanged at 0.25-0.50%.

The US investment bank downgraded private sector ICICI Bank and public sector Bank of Baroda (BoB) to so-called equal weight because of expectations that these banks will have to provide more money to cover for non-performing assets (NPAs) in the current and next fiscal year.

The US topped the Global Connectivity Index 2016. Singapore and Sweden were ranked second and third, respectively.

The Water Film Festival, a part of the India Water Week celebrations, was inaugurated by Uma Bharti (Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation) in New Delhi.

The world's largest wooden Charkha (spinning wheel) is going to be installed at Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi.

To strengthenand promote business ties with Australia, FICCI inked a MoU with AIBC.

UNICEF has created 'Sofia', a 3D animated child using 500 photos of real children from emergency-hit areas to raise awareness about children affected by conflicts across the world.

United States Secretary of State John Kerry has visited Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in Baghdad.

US Air Force (USAF) invites the Indian Air Force to take part in the Air Exercise, “Ex-Red Flag-16-1” which is scheduled from 28th April 2016 to 13th May 2016 at Eielson AFB Alaska.

US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter was on a Three-day visit to India.

US President Barack Obama was on a visit to Hanover, Germany. During this visit, he held talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, one of his closest allies.

US Secretary of State John Kerry has made a sudden visit to Afghanistan to show support for the Afghan government and its security forces.

Waqar Younis has stepped down from his position as head coach of Pakistan following the team's failure to qualify for the semi-finals of the 2016 ICC World T20.

West Indies won their second World T20 title after defeating England by four wickets.

World's first White Tiger Safari was inaugurated in Madhya Pradesh's Satna district by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

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