BRILLIANCE COLLEGE - THRISSUR

CURRENT AFFAIRS – MAY – 2017

Current Affairs 1 May 2017

PM Modi releases stamp on Ramanujacharya‘s 1,000th birth anniversary

Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a commemorative stamp on the 1,000th birth anniversary of Saint

Ramanujacharya

Ganga Cleanliness Pledge Day to be observed on May 2

The National Mission for Clean Ganga will observe ‗Ganga Cleanliness Pledge Day‘ on May 2 at various

places in the river‘s basin states to spread awareness and ensure public participation in the programme.

Arunachal CM releases documentary film ―Kaani‖

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu has released a documentary film titled ―Kaani: A Film on

Opium‖.

The documentary has been produced by Longding District administration as an initiative to

create awareness on Drugs and its destructive effects.

Assam gets its first Shatabdi Express

Assam has got its first Shatabdi Express. The new Shatabdi Express train will run between Dibrugarh and

Guwahati.

Maha CM Fadnavis inaugurates automatic weather station in Vidarbha

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated the State‘s first automatic weather station at

Dongargaon in Vidarbha region.

Mumbai, Chennai among top 20 tourist destinations in Asia Pacific

Mumbai and Chennai have been named among the top 20 tourist destinations in the Asia Pacific (APAC)

region in a report.

Overall, Bangkok remains the most visited in the list of 171 destinations across 22 countries in the

APAC region.

Chennai ranked 14 with 5.2 million international overnight arrivals, while Mumbai stood 15 with 4.9

million arrivals.

Gul Panag becomes first Indian woman to drive Formula E racing car

Actor Gul Panag‘s has become the first Indian woman to drive Formula E racing car in Barcelona, Spain.

She, reportedly, drove the M4Electro at the Circuit de Calafat in Catalonia, Spain, which is a Mahindra

fourth generation Formula E race car.

Joshna Chinappa becomes first Indian to win Asian Squash title

Joshna Chinappa has scripted history by becoming the first Indian to clinch the Asian Squash title with a

thrilling win over compatriot Dipika Pallikal Karthik in the women‘s final.

Pankaj Advani wins silver at Asian Snooker Championship

Indian cueist Pankaj Advani won silver at the Asian Snooker Championship, losing the final to China‘s Lv

Haotian in Doha.

Nadal wins Barcelona Open

Spanish star Rafael Nadal defeated Dominic Thiem of Austria in straight sets to win his 10th title at the

Barcelona Open tennis tournament.

Mercedes‘ Valtteri Bottas wins F1 Russian GP

Finland‘s Mercedes team driver Valtteri Bottas won his first Formula One victory after he finished first at the

Russian Grand Prix, the fourth race of the 2017 F1 season.

SpaceX launches spy satellite for US

SpaceX has launched a spy satellite named NROL-76 for the US Department of Defence.

China‘s first home-built amphibious aircraft finishes glide test

China‘s first amphibious aircraft AG600, stated to be the largest in the world, has successfully conducted

its first glide test in the Chinese city of Zhuhai as it braced for its maiden flight.

China, Europe planning to build ‗moon village‘

China and Europe are planning to build the first-ever ―moon village‖ that could serve as a launching pad for

deep space missions such as one to Mars, or even as a spot for space tourism and lunar mining.

Exhibition of Global Mobile Internet Conference held in Beijing

The 2017 Global Mobile Internet Conference held in Beijing. It featured speakers from technology giants such

as Alibaba, Baidu, Huawei and Tencent. The event is hosted annually in Beijing and Silicon Valley, California.

Current Affairs 2nd May 2017

UN: India expected to achieve 7.1% growth this year

The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific or ESCAP has launched its annual flagship

report ‗The Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2017‘

According to the report, India is expected to achieve 7.1 % growth this year as re-monetisation restores

consumption, and infrastructure spending increases.

ICICI to make 600 villages digitally-enabled in 2017

The ICICI Group has made 100 villages digitally-enabled in 2017 and has announced its plans to transform 500

more by the year-end.

FinMomenta launches P2P lending platform ‗Tachyloans‘

Singapore based Fintech startup FinMomenta has launched ‗Tachyloans‘, the first-of-its-kind integrated

digital lending platform in India for individuals as well as businesses.

Government releases Rs714 Cr to K‘taka govt for implementing various schemes

Union Minister of Urban Development and Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation M Venkaiah Naidu has

released 714 crore rupees to the Government of Karnataka for implementing Smart City Mission, AMRUT,

Swachch Bharat Mission and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

Centre sanctions Rs 588 cr as drought relief for Rajasthan

The Centre has sanctioned 588 crore rupees as drought relief for Rajasthan. The assistance was approved from

the National Disaster Relief Fund.

HRD Minister launches Vidya-Veerta Abhiyan

Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar has launched a nationwide Vidya-Veerta

Abhiyan to encourage Universities to display portraits of Param Veer Chakra decorated soldiers. The idea

of this Abhiyan is to instill sense of patriotism and nationalism among students.

He said: The universities and colleges across the country will build Wall of Heroes. The wall will have

portraits of 21 Param Veer Chakra recipients that will inspire students and encourage patriotism.

Shri BandaruDattatreya Launches ―One IP- Two Dispensaries‖ and ―Aadhaar Based Online Claim

Submission‖ Schemes

Minister of State (I/C) for Labour and Employment, Shri BandaruDattatreya launched two schemes ―One IP-

Two Dispensaries‖ and ―Aadhaar based Online Claim Submission‖ on the occasion of International Labour

Day today.

Under One IP- Two Dispensaries scheme, ESIC has given an option to an Insured Person (IP) to choose

two dispensaries, one for self and another for family through an employer.

Under Aadhaar based Online Claim Submission scheme all EPF Members who have activated their

UAN and seeded their KYC (Aadhaar) with EPFO will be able to apply for PF final settlement (form19),

Pension withdrawal benefit (Form10-C) and PF part withdrawal (Form31) from the their UAN Interface

directly.

Department of Telecom (DoT) Launches web portal Tarang Sanchar

The Minister of Communications Shri Manoj Sinha has launched Tarang Sanchar, a web portal for

Information sharing on Mobile Towers and EMF Emission Compliances.

India‘s 2nd tallest national flag hoisted in Kolhapur

Marking the formation day of Maharashtra, CM Devendra Fadnavis hoisted India‘s second tallest national flag

in Kolhapur at 303 feet.

Notably, India‘s tallest flag pole, at 360 feet, is installed at the Attari-Wagah border in Punjab.

Chhattisgarh auctions India‘s most expensive limestone block

Chhattisgarh successfully auctioned its third limestone block, Kesla-II

Kesla-II block is situated in the Tilda Tehsil of Raipur district and covers over 357 Ha in area with an

average grade of 43 percent CaO.

Chhattisgarh had also earned the distinction of conducting the first ever successful non-coal mineral

auction in India in February, 2016 with the auction of Karhi Chandi limestone block.

It is also the first and only state in India to successfully auction a Gold mine.

Madhya Pradesh switches to January-December fiscal pattern

Madhya Pradesh government has decided to part ways with the conventional April-March financial year pattern

to adopt the January-December period as the new fiscal. With this it became the first state to break away

from the age-old tradition.

The change will come into effect from the next year, as the state government intends to complete all

budgetary proceedings for this year by the close of 2017.

Adityanath govt decides to celebrate Jan 24 as ‗UP Diwas‘

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has decided to celebrate January 24 as ‗UP Diwas‘ (UP Day).

Notably, the United Provinces unit was renamed as Uttar Pradesh on January 24, 1950.

Odisha‘s Sualgiri, Swalgiri communities notified as Scheduled Castes

Odisha‘s Sualgiri and Swalgiri communities have been notified as Scheduled Castes following President

Pranab Mukherjee‘s assent to a new law.

Chandrababu Naidu bags US-India Business Council award

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has been selected for the ‗Transformative Chief Minister

Award‘ in recognition for his role in advancing the US-India partnership at the state level. The award by the

US-India Business Council (USIBC) would be presented to Naidu during the USIBC West Coast Summit in the

Silicon Valley on May 8.

Shobana Kamineni is new Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) president

Indian Army test fires advanced BrahMos cruise missile

The Indian Army has successfully test fired the advanced version of the BrahMos land attack cruise missile in

the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

BrahMos Block-III is a joint Russian-Indian project, which is based on Russian P-800 Oniks missile.

Soumyajit Ghosh wins singles & doubles gold at Chile Open

Ghosh became the third Indian to win a men‘s singles title at an ITTF Challenge Series or ITTF World Tour

tournament.

He defeated compatriot Anthony Amalraj in the men‘s singles final to clinch the title. Also he combined

with Amalraj earlier to win the men‘s doubles title.

Sunil Chhetri bags ‗Hero of the League‘ award

Bengaluru FC captain Sunil Chhetri, who smashed seven goals in the recently-concluded edition of the I-

League, has clinched the most coveted ‗Hero of the League‘ award.

Dubai becomes the first city in the world to get its own Microsoft font

Dubai has become the first city in the world to get its own Microsoft font. The font, now available to more than

100 million users of Microsoft Office 365 around the world, is the first font to be created by a city and named

after it.

The font, available in three styles as ‗Dubai‘, ‗Dubai Medium‘ and ‗Dubai Light‘, can be in italics,

underlined and bold.

Daily Current Affairs 3rd May 2017

Chinese-led AIIB loans $160 mn for Indian power project

The China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will give a loan of $160 million for a power

project in India where 300 million people have no access to electricity yet.

The project, co-financed with the World Bank, is part of the Indian government‘s 24×7 Power for All

programme and will strengthen the power transmission and distribution system in Andhra Pradesh.

The bank expects the Andhra Pradesh-24×7 Power for All project to be the first of many that AIIB invests

in India

Village Financial Services gets award

Village Financial Services, a Kolkata-based NBFC – MFI has bagged MSME Banking Excellence Awards

2016. Village Financial Services won the award under the category ‗Best NBFC-MFI for Promotional

Schemes‘.

ADB pegs India‘s growth at 7.4% for 2017-18

According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Indian economy will grow 7.4 per cent this fiscal and

7.6 per cent in the next as the bankruptcy and GST laws will help create a more business-friendly

environment.

$ 770 bn black money entered India in 2005-2014: Report

US-based think tank Global Financial Integrity (GFI) reported that an estimated $ 770 billion in black money

entered India during 2005-2014.

Titled Illicit Financial Flows to and from Developing Countries: 2005-2014, the report is the first

global study to place equal emphasis on illicit outflows and inflows.

Centre sanctions Rs 200 crore for J&K primary teachers

Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar has announced that the Centre has

sanctioned Rs 200 crore for paying pending salaries of primary teachers in Jammu and Kashmir.

Cabinet approves MoU on urea manufacturing plant in Malaysia

The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its ex-post facto approval to signing

of MoU with Malaysia on development of a urea and ammonia manufacturing plant in the southeast Asian

country.

Cabinet approves for MoU between DSSC, Wellington and DSCSC, Dhaka

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave ex-post facto approval to the

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), Wellington and

Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC), Mirpur, Dhaka on cooperation concerning military

education in the field of strategic and operational studies.

The MoU also enhances public accountability by way of exchange of information and technology between

India and Bangladesh.

Centre to set up Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra at Rajghat

The government will set up Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra under Swachh Bharat Mission at Gandhi Smriti and

Darshan Samiti (GSDS), Rajghat, to mark the centenary year of the Champaran Satyagraha.

It will be set up by the Ministry for Drinking Water and Sanitation.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism has also developed an ‗e-guide‘ (audio-visual) app e3.eguide.net.in

to create awareness for tourists visiting the National Museum in Delhi.

Cabinet approves New Central Sector Scheme – SAMPADA for agro-marine processing

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has given its approval for re-structuring the schemes of

the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) under new central Scheme for Agro-Marine Processing

and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters (SAMPADA) for the period 2016-20 coterminous with the 14th

Finance Commission cycle.

SAMPADA is allocated a total of Rs. 6,000 crore. The objective of SAMPADA is to supplement

agriculture, modernize processing and decrease agri-waste.

Centre advances target of providing electricity to all from 2022 to 2018

Power Minister Piyush Goyal has announced that the government has decided to achieve the goal by December

next year. The earlier target for providing electricity to all is advanced to year 2018 from 2022

Andhra to ink sister state agreements with California, Iowa, Illinois

Andhra Pradesh will sign ‗sister state‘ agreements with states of California, Iowa and Illinois during Chief

Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu‘s visit to US to receive 2017 US-India Business Council‘s ―Transformative

Chief Minister Award.‖

Cabinet approves Vijayawada Airport as international airport

The Union Cabinet gave its approval for the declaration of Vijayawada Airport as international airport, as per

the provisions of Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.

The declaration of Vijayawada Airport as an international airport has been taken up keeping in view the

passenger traffic growth, demands from airlines and the Andhra Pradesh Government.

Reliance, SAP launch ‗SARAL GST‘ solution for taxpayers

Reliance Corporate IT Park (RCITPL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with enterprise

application software major SAP SE to launch ‗SARAL GST solution for taxpayers.

According to the subsidiary of Reliance Industries, the new offering will enable taxpayers to be GST

compliant and smoothly access the government‘s GST System, once GST is rolled out from July 1, 2017.

International Permaculture conference to be held in Hyderabad in November 2017

World Telugu Conference to be held in Hyderabad next month (June 2017)

Shabana Azmi starrer The Black Prince awarded at film fest in Houston

Hollywood film The Black Prince, featuring singer-poet Satinder Sartaaj and veteran actress Shabana Azmi,

has been awarded the Special Jury Remi Award at the 50th annual Worldfest-Houston International Film

Festival.

Rabindra Bharati to honour Amol Palekar with D Litt

Veteran actor-filmmaker Amol Palekar will be conferred an honorary D Litt along with eminent Bengali singer

Nirmala Mishra and author Sirshendu Mukhopadhyay by Rabindra Bharati University.

UN marks first World Tuna Day with calls to conserve it

The United Nations marked the first World Tuna Day on 2nd May 2017 with calls to conserve one of the

globe‘s most popular fish to be caught and eaten.

World‘s first quantum computing machine made in China

Chinese scientists have successfully built the world‘s first quantum computing machine that is 24,000 times

faster than its international counterparts and may dwarf the processing power of existing supercomputers.

Daily Current Affairs 4th May 2017

CII predicts 7.5-8% growth of Indian economy

Industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has predicted that India‘s economic growth rate for 2017-

18 will range between 7.5 and 8 per cent.

Fitch affirms India‘s sovereign rating at ‗BBB-‗

Global rating agency Fitch Ratings has affirmed India‘s long-term foreign- and local-currency rating at

‗BBB-‗.

Also Fitch forecasts India‘s real GDP growth to accelerate to 7.7 per cent in FY17 and FY18, from 7.1 per

cent in FY16.

Nitin Gadkari inaugurates The Highway Saga, SRISHTI exhibitions

Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has inaugurated two exhibitions namely ‗The

Highway Saga: Past Present and Future‘ and ‗Safe Road and Inter-State Highways Transforming India

(SRISHTI)‘ at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.

Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu releases set of books titled ‗Swachh Jungle ki kahani – Dadi ki Zubani‘

Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, Minister for Information & Broadcasting has released a set of books titled ‗Swachh

Jungle ki kahani – Dadi ki Zubani‘ published by Publications Division. The books are aimed at sensitizing

and creating awareness amongst children and provide a fillip to the Prime Minister‘s Swachh Bharat Abhiyan

which has become a Jan Andolan across the nation. The set of four books is written by renowned

children‘s author Dr. Madhu Pant. Books are published in 15 Indian languages.

Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu flags off Ahmedabad-Chennai Humsafar express

Western Railways‘ first Humsafar Express between Ahmedabad and Chennai was flagged off by Railway

Minister Suresh Prabhu.

First humsafar Express was flagged in the country in December 2016 between Gorakhpur and Anand

Vihar

Indore emerges as the Cleanest City of India

Madhya Pradesh‘s Indore has emerged as the India‘s Cleanest City in the Swachh Survekshan-2017 conducted

in 434 cities and town.

Bhopal, Visakhapatnam, Surat, Mysuru, Tiruchirapally, New Delhi Municipal Council, Navi Mumbai,

Vadodara and Chandigarh are among the Top 10 clean cities in that order.

Gonda (UP) is ranked last in 434 cities.

Faridabad in Haryana has improved its rank from 379 in 2014 to 88 this year and has been awarded for

being the ‗Fastest Mover‘ among cities with a population of above one million.

J&K to get world‘s highest railway bridge across Chenab river

In around two years from now, the world‘s highest railway bridge that is expected to be 35 metres taller than

the Eiffel Tower will be built across the Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir.

Uttar Pradesh deploys ambulances for cows

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has flagged off an exclusive ambulance service

for cows, complete with veterinarians and assistants.

The Gauvansh Chikitsa mobile van service will transport ill or injured cows to gau shalas or to a

veterinary facility.

India successfully test fires Agni-II Ballistic Missile

The Agni-ll Ballistic Missile has bee successfully test fired from A.P.J Abdul Kalam island of Dhamara in

Odisha. The nuclear weapon is capable of a full strike range of 2,000 km.

The A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Azad Island was previously known as Wheelers Island.

India soar to 100th in FIFA rankings, highest in 21 years

India‘s National Football Team entered the top 100 of the FIFA national team rankings for the first time in 21

years after getting placed at the 100th spot in the latest FIFA rankings released today.

India‘s football team last entered FIFA‘s top 100 in February 1996, when they were ranked at the all-time

high ranking of 94.

Mark Selby of England beats John Higgins to win world snooker championship held in England

Lion actor Sunny Pawar chosen for Rising Star Award in the UK

Child actor Sunny Pawar, best known for his performance in the Oscar-nominated film Lion, has been chosen

for the Rising Star Award in London

Facebook launches Express WiFi in India

Facebook has launched Express WiFi service that offers Internet facility through public hotspots to users in

rural parts of India.

The social network has partnered with telecom operator Bharti Airtel that plans to bring an additional

20,000 hotspots online, starting in the next few months

China to Launch its Own Encyclopaedia as a Rival to Wikipedia

China has planned to launch its own online encyclopaedia next year rivalling Wikipedia and Britain‘s

Encyclopaedia Britannica. The main objective of this project is to guide public thought.

Daily Current Affairs 5th May 2017

RBI announces rate of interest on Floating Rate Bonds, 2024

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced that the rate of interest on the Floating Rate Bonds, 2024

(FRB 2024) applicable for the half year May 7 to November6 has been fixed at 6.30 percent per annum.

Centre notifies new Banking Regulation Act

The government has notified the ordinance to amend the Banking Regulation Act, empowering the Reserve

Bank of India (RBI) and banks to initiate bankruptcy proceedings against chronic defaulters.

The RBI and the government had also asked banks to impose a strict ban on any new loans to willful

defaulters.

IBBI constitutes Technical Committee to lay down Technical Standards

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has constituted a Technical Committee in accordance

with Regulation 14 of the IBBI (Information Utilities) Regulations, 2017.

The Chairperson of the committee is Dr. R. B. Barman (Chairman of National Statistical Commission)

The Committee shall give its recommendation for laying down Technical Standards for the performance

of core services like the Application Programming Interface, standard terms of service, registration of

users, unique identifier for each record and each user, etc.

Government demotes 2 top chief executives of Punjab National Bank and Bank of India

In a strong signal to state-run banks top executives to shape up or ship out, the government demoted two top

chief executives – Usha Ananthasubramaniam of Punjab National Bank and Bank of India‘s Melwyn Rego.

While Ananthasubramaniam has been transferred to a small lender Allahabad Bank, Rego has been shunted out

to Syndicate Bank

Sunil Mehta, executive director of Corporation Bank would be the new CEO of Punjab National Bank

while D B Mohapatra, executive director of Canara Bank would be appointed as CEO of Bank of India.

UN owes India $55 mn for peacekeeping operations

The UN owes India $55 million for its participation in peacekeeping operations, which is more than the annual

mandatory dues paid by New Delhi in 2016 to the world body.

eVIN Project of Health Ministry becomes global best practise in immunisation

India‘s eVIN (electronic vaccine intelligence network) project has got the attention of five countries.

Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Nepal and Thailand are mulling to replicate India‘s immunisation project.

eVIN is an indigenously developed technology system in India that digitizes vaccine stocks and monitors

the temperature of the cold chain through a smartphone application.

Madhya Pradesh Assembly declares Narmada living entity

The Madhya Pradesh government has passed a resolution granting river Narmada the status of a living

entity and committed itself to the protection of its legal rights.

Notable, a month ago, the Uttarakhand High Court had declared Ganga, Yamuna and their tributaries

living entities with the status of a legal person.

India‘s first private sector small arms manufacturing plant inaugurated in Madhya Pradesh

India‘s first private sector small arms manufacturing plant has been inaugurated in Malanpur, MP which will

supply world class weapons to the armed forces in sync with the country‘s defence indigenisation

programme.

The plant is a joint venture between India‘s Punj Lloyd and Israel Weapon Systems.

Mumbai‘s ‗ladies special‘ train turns 25

The world‘s first ―ladies special‖ suburban train today completed 25 years and the Western Railway (WR),

which started the service, termed it as a ―milestone‖ in its long journey.

The WR started the maiden train exclusively for women commuters on May 5, 1992. It was first such train

service in the world.

Andhra Pradesh‘s Banganapalle mango gets GI tag

The Banganapalle mango has got a Geographical Indication (GI) tag, making Andhra Pradesh the proprietor of

the variety know for its sweetness.

A GI tag indicates that the product comes from a specific region.

Banganapalle mangoes have been grown for over 100 years in the state. It also known as Beneshan,

Baneshan, Benishan, Chappatai and Safeda.

ISRO launches GSAT-9 South Asia satellite

ISRO has successfully launched the South Asia Satellite, intended to serve ―economic and developmental

priorities‖ of South Asian nations, using its heavy rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-

F09).

In 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tasked the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to develop

a satellite for use by the Saarc countries.

Six of India‘s neighbours including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Srilanka and the Maldives

are participating in the space-based regional communication project.

The satellite was initially known as the Saarc satellite. But with Pakistan deciding to keep out, it is

called the South Asia Satellite.

The intended operational life of the satellite is more than 12 years and it costs around Rs. 235 crore.

The GSAT-9 is a Geostationary Communication Satellite and data from it will be shared with the other

five countries.

The next satellite with electric power will be the GSAT-20 slated for launch in 2018.

ISRO unveils solar hybrid electric car made of desi resources

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has recently demonstrated a solar hybrid electric car,

designed and developed using in-house resources, at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in

Thiruvanathanapuram.

Gangtok is northeast‘s cleanest city

Nine cities from eight northeastern states have found place in Swachh Survekshan-2017, with Sikkim‘s capital

Gangtok emerging as the region‘s cleanest city.

First International Young Author award to be held in Dubai

In an attempt to encourage young and budding authors, ‗The Write Scene‘, an online portal to nurture the

young talent will be organising the first International Young Author Awards 2017 in Dubai in October, 2017.

Captain Chand Roop passes away

Dronacharya award winning wrestling coach Captain Chand Roop has passed away.

Daily Current Affairs 6th May 2017

Sushma Swaraj inaugurates 8th conference of head of missions in Delhi

Key foreign policy issues including India‘s engagement with major powers as well as strain in ties with

Pakistan and China were being discussed in the meeting.

The theme of this year‘s Conference is ―Effective Diplomacy, Excellent Delivery.‖

Shri Nitin Gadkari inaugurates India Integrated Transport and Logistics Summit in New Delhi

Thirty-four MoUs, amounting to about 2 lakh crores rupees, were signed at the India Integrated Transport and

Logistics Summit that concluded in New Delhi

Jharkhand announces Jan-Dec FY

After Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand has decided to become the second state in the country to reschedule its

financial year from January to December.

The new fiscal year for Jharkhand would commence from January 1, 2018 and end on December 31,

2018.

In 2017, Jharkhand was the first state to table its budget in January.

Maharashtra government ties up with WHO for eradication of Rubella

Maharashtra government has tied up with World Health Organisation (WHO) for eradication of Rubella

measles and will start vaccination drive from March 2018. Children aged between 9 months to 15 years, will be

vaccinated for Rubella under this campaign across the state. The infection is carried by Rubella virus.

Haryana govt to offer meals at subsidised rates for workers

Haryana government has decided to open canteens offering meals at subsidised rates to registered construction

workers under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, at 23 locations in the state.

Chhattisgarh govt, UN, IIIT sign agreement for setting up innovation lab

Chhattisgarh government, United Nations and Indian Institute of Information Technology -IIIT have signed a

tripartite agreement for setting up an innovation lab.

Through this, the efforts will be taken to develop smart villages and give imputes to the digital India

campaign.

West Bengal only state to not take part in Swachh Survekshan

West Bengal is the only state which did not take part in the government‘s Swachh Survekshan Survey 2017, the

results of which were announced recently.

The state CM Mamata Banerjee had opted out of the mission, claiming her government cannot ‗burden‘

the people with additional taxes on water and other civic amenities.

Punjab govt makes Aadhar cards mandatory for all financial assistance schemes

Punjab government has made Aadhaar Cards mandatory in place of Ration Cards for all Financial Assistance

scheme besides introducing new forms to get the benefit of old age pensions.

Assam declared as ‗disturbed‘ area; AFSPA imposed for 3 more months

The Centre has declared the entire Assam as a ―disturbed‖ area under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act

— the AFSPA — for three more months with effect from May 3, citing various violent activities by insurgent

groups ULFA, NDFB and others.

Kashmiri boy bags 2016 Wisden-MCC Cricket ‗Photograph of the Year‘ award

Srinagar based Saqib Majeed, a freelance photographer has won the prestigious 2016 Wisden-MCC

(Melbourne Cricket Council) Cricket Photograph of the Year for a stunning image, which captured boys

playing cricket in the outskirts of the city, clicked by him.

Sachin Tendulkar receives Asian Awards Fellowship

Indian cricket star Sachin Tendulkar has been honoured with the Fellowship award at The Asian Awards in

London.

Great Britain wins Sultan Azlan Shah Cup beating Australia; India finishes third

Great Britain beat Australia in the hockey final of the 26th edition of the Azlan Shah Cup at Ipoh, Malaysia.

This victory came to Great Britain in the Azlan Shah Cup after 23 years.

Leila Seth, first woman judge of Delhi high court, dies at 86

Daily Current Affairs 7th May 2017

RBI, banks to draw up list of top 40 defaulters

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the banks concerned will sit and draw up a list of about 40 top defaulters

for resolving the issue of mounting non-performing assets (NPAs) after the central bank has been empowered

by the ordinance promulgated

RBI has been empowered to direct banks to initiate insolvency process and set up committees in

relation to Joint Lenders‘ Forum (JLF).

Govt to set up 100 training institutes to skill drivers

An agreement has been signed between the road transport and the skill development ministries to set up

100 driver training institutes in order to meet the rising demand for certified commercial drivers in the

automotive, construction and logistics sectors.

India to hold festival in Egypt to mark Rabindranath Tagore‘s birth anniversary

India will organise a cultural festival in Egypt to mark the 156th birth anniversary of the famous Indian

poet, Rabindranath Tagore.

India ranks 3rd globally in startup incubators, accelerators

India has been ranked 3rd globally in number of startup incubators and accelerators after China and the US,

according to a Nasscom report.

Hinduja brothers stay on top of UK rich list

The Hinduja brothers – Srichand and Gopichand – have retained their top spot in the annual compilation by the

Sunday Times of the United Kingdom‘s rich set, which said the fortunes of the super-rich increase by what it

called a ‗Brexit boom‘.

‗Lion‘ actor Sunny Pawar named Rising Star at Asian Awards

Child actor Sunny Pawar, who featured in the Oscar-nominated film ‗Lion‘, has been named the ‗Rising Star‘

at the 7th Annual Asian Awards.

Baahubali 2 becomes first Indian movie to earn Rs 1,000 crore

SS Rajamouli-directed movie ‗Baahubali 2: The Conclusion‘ has become the first ever Indian movie to

achieve Rs 1,000 crore earnings milestone.

Hockey Him crowned champions of 7th Junior Women‘s Hockey C‘ship

Hockey Him (Himachal) thrashed Hockey Mizoram 5-0 to become champions of the 7th Junior National

Hockey Championship 2017 (Women)

Jwala Gutta to take a break from badminton, contemplating retirement

India‘s most decorated doubles badminton player Jwala Gutta will take a sabbatical from the game. Sabbatical

is a period of paid leave granted.

Pakistani sitar maestro Ustad Raees Khan passed away

Daily Current Affairs 8th May 2017

Andhra inks accord with Iowa for cooperation in agriculture

Andhra Pradesh has signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) with the US state of Iowa to promote

research and development in the fields of science, agriculture and life sciences.

Every house to get smart ID in Haryana

In Haryana, the detailed data of every resident will be collected under a special mission, and every house would

be allotted a smart house ID. Work on gathering the data would commence on June 15, and would be

completed by the Independence Day.

Himachal‘s mega hydro project to be commissioned this month (May 2017)

The 100 MW Sainj Hydroelectric Project being constructed by Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation

Limited (HPPCL) in Kullu district would be commissioned partially in may 2017.

Odisha to introduce boat ambulances in four districts

Odisha will introduce boat ambulance service in four districts where people face difficulties in getting health

service.

The boat ambulance service will be available in the districts of Koraput, Malkangiri, Kendrapara and

Kalahandi where people face problems in availing 108 ambulance service due to intervening large water

bodies in the form of rivers and dams disrupting road communication.

Oracle to help Jharkhand become startup hub

In a bid to improve citizen services, increase employment and encourage startup investments in the state, the

Jharkhand government and tech major Oracle have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

Oracle will offer its support to the state through its portfolio of technology solutions — including Oracle

Cloud — which are already empowering governments globally.

India‘s First Bio Refinery Plant inaugurated in Pune

Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari has inaugurated India‘s First

Integrated Bio‐refinery for Renewable Fuels & Chemicals for producing ethanol from a variety of biomass.

The plant is situated at Rahu in Pune district of Maharashtra.

DIPP, WIPO to set up innovation support centres

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) and World Intellectual Property Organisation

(WIPO) have signed an agreement to establish Technology and Innovation Support Centres (TISC) that would

help innovators in developing countries exploit their potential.

Award for outstanding achievement in Cinema posthumously conferred on Om Puri

In the 7th annual Asian Awards in UK, Indian Actor Om Puri who died earlier this year has been posthumously

conferred the award for outstanding achievement.

Also, India‘s playback singer Adnan Sami won the award for outstanding achievement in Music.

India‘s first ever boxing league to be held in New Delhi

Super Boxing League (SBL) will be held in New Delhi from July 7 to August 12, 2017.

The league is being organised by British businessman Bill Dosanjh, also the founder and promoter of

successful Super Fight League and professional boxing sensation & two-time world champion boxer,

Amir Khan.

Olive Ridley to be mascot of Asian Athletics

The logo and mascot of the Asian Athletics Championships scheduled to be held at Kalinga Stadium in

Bhubaneswar from July 6 to 9 has been released.

The sea turtle, Olive Ridley has been declared as the mascot of the Championship, besides the logo

depicts an athlete crossing the finishing line with historical tourist attractions of Odisha.

Vikram Malhotra wins 5th PSA title

India‘s Squash player Vikram Malhotra won his fifth PSA title after beating Egypt‘s Youssef Ibrahim in the

final of the Abu Dhabi Open.

India unanimously elected to head UN-Habitat, the United Nations‘ Human Settlements Programme

India has been unanimously elected as the President of the UN-Habitat, an organ of the United Nations‘

Organisation (UNO) that promotes socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements across the

world, after 10 years.

Men-only island set for UNESCO World Heritage status

A Japanese island Okinoshima in south-western Japan where women are not allowed to set foot has been

recommended for listing as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The island only allows men to visit for religious reasons.

Emmanuel Macron elected next French President

Emmanuel Macron will become France‘s youngest leader since Napoleon

World Red Cross Day: 8th May

World Red Cross Day is observed on May 8 every year to commemorate the birth anniversary of Henry

Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross as well as the founder of International Committee of the Red Cross

(ICRC).

The theme for year 2017: ―Less Known Red Cross Stories‖

Daily Current Affairs 9th May 2017

India‘s growth to rebound to 7.2% in 2017-18: IMF

According to International Monetary Fund (IMF) India‘s growth is expected to rebound to 7.2 per cent in 2017-

18 and further to 7.7 per cent in 2018-19 after the ―temporary disruptions‖ caused as a result of demonetisation.

It also announced that Growth for 2016-17 is expected to decelerate to 6.8 per cent

Asia will continue to lead global growth: IMF

The IMF has announced that the Asia-Pacific region will continue to lead global growth.

According to IMF the growth is expected at 5.5 per cent for 2017 and 5.4 per cent for 2018, which are

above the 5.3 per cent registered last year, the agency said during the presentation of its annual

report, ‗Preparing for Choppy Seas‘.

RBI restricts loss making IDBI Bank from hiring, opening branches

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has initiated ‗prompt corrective action‘ on IDBI Bank which will restrict

bank from hiring, opening branches and giving big ticket loans

The bank had suffered historic loss of Rs 2,255 crore in the December quarter 2016 as it had to make huge

provisions for bad loans.

The ‗prompt corrective action‘ is triggered when a bank‘s bad loan is above 6%

IDBI Bank‘s gross NPA had crossed 15% in quarter ending December 2016 and according to a report by

rating company Icra

IDBI Bank is the first bank against which the revised PCA has been invoked. The central Bank is likely to

do the same in the case of Dena Bank.

Cashkaro.com ties up with YES Bank to launch card-linked offers

Private sector bank Yes Bank has announced its tie-up with Cashkaro to launch India‘s first Card Linked Offers

(CLO) cash-back proposition. Yes Bank cardholders simply need to use their Yes Bank debit card to pay at

these offline stores/websites.

Chola in pact with HUDCO

Murugappa Group company Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company Ltd has inked a ―strategic

partnership‖ with Housing and Urban Development Corporation Ltd (HUDCO) to offer loans for customers

under the Credit Link subsidy scheme.

Edelweiss Tokio launches India‘s first insurance that can be bought at PoS

Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance has recently launched PoS Saral Nivesh — the first product to be approved by

the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India‘s (IRDAI) guidelines on point of sale-life

insurance products.

PoS Saral Nivesh is a non-linked, non-participating endowment life insurance plan which offers both

protection and saving.

Sebi allows subscription to MF schemes through e-wallets

Securities markets regulator Sebi has permitted subscription to mutual fund (MF) schemes through e-wallets.

According to Sebi‘s guidelines, investors can invest up to Rs 50,000 per MF per financial year through e-

wallets.

India, Indonesia start 29th coordinated naval patrol

The 29th series of India-Indonesia coordinated patrol or CORPAT has been commenced with an opening

ceremony under the Andaman and Nicobar Command. The ships will be at Andaman and Nicobar till May 12.

The closing ceremony of Corpat is scheduled at Belawan, Indonesia from May 22 to 25.

India to launch Rs 10,000-crore Deep Ocean Mission

India has planned to launch a Rs 10,000-crore Deep Ocean Mission in December to carry out research to

harness ocean resources in a ―responsible manner‖.

Cisco to work with Andhra to make small business easy

Cisco Systems, a world leader in IT and networking, will work with Andhra Pradesh to make starting a small

business easy.

Panagariya to head task force to measure job creation

The centre has announced that NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Arvind Panagriya will head a task force to assess

the extent of employment creation at different points of time, based on ―credible data‖.

The task force will recommend solutions which can be implemented in a time-bound manner.

Ola ties-up with Airtel to roll out integrated digital offerings to customers

As part of the partnership, Ola will integrate Airtel Payments bank to its app and Airtel will integrate Ola‘s

mobile wallet Ola Money as a payment solution on Airtel website and MyAirtel app for mobile recharges and

bill payments.

Adil Hussain‘s ―Mukti Bhawan‖ Wins The Best Film Award At The New York Indian Film Festival

The film, directed by Shubhashish Bhutiani and featuring Adil Husain and Lalit Behl, revolves around an

interesting relationship between a father and son after the former decides to die in the Hindu holy city of

Varanasi and his son is forced to join his journey.

Jhulan Goswami becomes world‘s highest wicket-taker in ODIs

Indian women‘s team fast bowler Jhulan Goswami has become the highest wicket-taker in history of ODIs.

NBA inaugurates academy in India

In a promising step for Indian basketball, the National Basketball Association (NBA) has inaugurated its first

ever academy in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

This is latest of the several steps that the NBA — the governing body of the game in US — has taken to

promote the game in India over the past few years.

Emma Watson bags first ever ‗genderless‘ award

Hollywood actor Emma Watson made history by winning the first-ever Genderless Acting Award for the Best

Actor category at the MTV Movie and TV Awards.

Daily Current Affairs 10th May 2017

RBI extends BBPS deadline by seven months

The Reserve Bank has extended the last date for companies undertaking billing business under the Bharat Bill

Payment System (BBPS) by seven months to December 31, 2017.

The extension applies to those companies wanting to become an agent of an authorised Bharat Bill

Payment Operating Unit (BBPOU) or also exit the business of bill payments.

Government asks NGOs to open bank accounts in core banking format

The Home Ministry has asked nearly six thousand NGOs to open their accounts in banks having core banking

facilities

The Ministry wants that all NGOs registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation

Act mandatorily have their accounts in either Nationalised Banks or in a few private banks which have

core banking facilities.

PM Modi launches digitised system for apex court to go paperless

Initiating the digital era in the Indian judiciary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the Integrated

Case Management Information System (ICMIS) to help the apex court go paperless.

ICMIS helps with digital filing of the cases called e-filing and enables litigants to easily access the

information online.

It will help usher transparency, reduce manipulation and help the litigant know about the progress of the

case on a real time basis

Rajnath Singh coins an acronym to wipe out left-wing terror

Presiding over a review meeting of the states affected by Left-Wing Extremism (LWE). Union Home Minister

Rajnath Singh announced a new strategy against the Maoists—SAMADHAN.

The Minister explained the acronym as S-smart leadership, A-aggressive strategy, M-motivation and

training, A-actionable intelligence, D-dashboard-based KPIs (key performance indicators) and KRAs (key

result areas), H-harnessing technology, A-action plan for each theatre and N-no access to financing.

Railways to acquire EOTT system to run trains without guards

The Indian Railways will float global tenders worth over Rs 100 crore for acquiring sophisticated equipment to

run 1000 trains without guards

The End of Train Telemetry (EoTT) equipment is used to establish communication between the

locomotive driver and the last wagon of the train to ensure that the train is running with all

coaches/wagons as a complete unit.

Indians 6th biggest pvt spenders on health among low-middle income nations

Indians were the sixth biggest out-of-pocket health spenders in the low-middle income group of 50 nations in

2014, according to an IndiaSpend analysis of two recent studies by The Lancet, a British medical journal.

India to replace Maitri station in Antarctica

India has decided to replace the Maitri research station in Antarctica with a new one in the next three to four

years.

The government is drafting laws to safeguard India‘s interest in the cold continent, currently governed by

international laws.

Sanjay Mitra to be next Defence Secretary

Road and Transport Secretary Sanjay Mitra has been named as next Defence Secretary. He will succeed G.

Mohan Kumar whose tenure ends coming May 24.

Calcutta HC‘s Justice Karnan gets 6 months in jail for contempt

The Supreme Court sentenced a high court judge to six months in prison on charges of contempt a first for a

serving judicial officer in what has been an unprecedented face-off in the upper judiciary over alleged

corruption.

Konkona Sen bags Best Director and Best Actress awards at New York Indian Film Festival

Konkona Sen Sharma has been named the Best Actress for the film ‗Lipstick Under My Burkha‘ at the 17th

edition of the New York Indian Film Festival.

She also received the Best Director award for her directorial debut, ‗A Death in the Gunj‘.

Notably, ‗Lipstick Under My Burkha‘ was the opening film at the film festival.

Two minesweepers decommissioned by Indian Navy

Two minesweepers of Indian Navy, INS Karwar and INS Kakinada, have been decommissioned at the Naval

Dockyard in Mumbai.

INS Karwar (M67), was the first of the ‗Natya‘ class minesweepers acquired from the erstwhile USSR.

Commissioned in the Indian Navy on July 14, 1986 at Riga, (now in Latvia), the ship operated from

Vishakhapatnam till 2013 after which she was based at Mumbai.

INS Kakinada (M70), was the second of the class and also commissioned at Riga on December 23, 1986.

India‘s INS Tarkash marks ‗UK India Year of Culture‘

Indian Navy‘s stealth frigate INS Tarkash had its week-long stay in the UK where it shared exchanges on naval

operations, including disaster management, anti-terrorism and anti-piracy with the Royal Navy to promote

cooperation.

Kingfisher named official Lager Partner for Champions Trophy

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the appointment of Kingfisher as their official Lager

Partner for the Champions Trophy to be held in England and Wales from June 1 to June 18.

French professional footballer N‘Golo Kante named Football Writers‘ Footballer of the Year

Apple tops $800 bn market cap for first time

Apple Inc has become the first US company to top the $800 billion mark in market capitalization slightly more

than two years after it crossed the $700 billion thresholds.

Moon Jae-in sworn in as new South Korean President

Former human rights lawyer Moon Jae-in has been swore as new President of South Korea.

World Migratory Bird Day: 10th May

The World Migratory Bird Day is observed every year across World on 10 May.

The theme of WMBD 2017 is ―Their Future is Our Future – A Healthy Planet for Migratory Birds

and People‖.

Daily Current Affairs 11th May 2017

DIPAM launches online investor facilitation platform

Keen on creating more awareness about the forthcoming disinvestment issues, the Finance Ministry has set up

an Investor Facilitation Platform that will provide information about stocks of public sector units.

Set up by the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), the platform will be an

interactive forum for all stakeholders, including investors, investment banks, law firms, public sector units

and administrative ministries that are involved in stake sales.

I-T department launches new facility to link Aadhaar with PAN

The users can now link their Aadhaar card with the PAN from the Income Tax Department‘s website, giving

the exact details of the name printed on both the cards.

Taxpayers can go to http://www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in and click on the link on the left pane —

Link Aadhaar — provide PAN, Aadhaar number and enter exactly the name as given in Aadhaar card

(avoid spelling mistakes) and submit.

Rajnath Singh inaugurated two mobile applications ―MHA Grievances Redressal App‖ & ―BSFMyApp‖

The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has launched the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) Mobile

Application for grievance redressal of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) personnel. He also

launched BSFMyApp. All the Paramilitary Force jawans and BSF personnel will be able to raise their

problems on BSFMyApp.

Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister launch e-Krishi Samvad, an online interface

e-Krishi Samvad is internet-based interface and is a unique platform that will provide direct and effective

solutions to the problems faced by farmers and stakeholders in the agriculture sector.

Bengaluru ranked world‘s most affordable tech city

As per Savills Tech Cities 2017 rankings, Bengaluru has been adjudged as the most affordable city having the

lowest cost of living out of 22 tech cities across the world.

Ahmedabad to host biggest ever International Yoga Day event on June 21

Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev announced that Ahmedabad (Gujarat) will host biggest ever International Yoga Day

event on the 21st of June this year

Chanda Kochhar gets Woodrow Wilson Award for Global Corporate Citizenship

ICICI Bank CEO and Managing Director Chanda Kochhar has become the first Indian woman to receive

the Woodrow Wilson Award for Global Corporate Citizenship, earlier awarded to the likes of former President

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and Infosys co-founder N.R. Narayana Murthy.

India, Australia Bilateral Naval Exercise Next Month

India and Australia will hold their second bilateral naval exercise AUSINDEX in June off the coast of Western

Australia.

The first-ever such exercise, called AUSINDEX, was held in September, 2015 in the Bay of Bengal.

Minnis emerges as Bahamas‘ next PM in general elections

Hubert Minnis has emerged as the Bahamas‘ next prime minister in general elections.

National Technology Day: 11 May 2017

Every year, `National Technology Day‘ is celebrated across India on May 11; being commemorated to

memorise the anniversary of Shakti, the Pokhran nuclear test held on 11 May 1998.

Daily Current Affairs 12th May 2017

Now RBI puts restriction on Uco Bank‘s business, asks board to take corrective action

Reserve Bank of India has put restriction on Uco Bank‘s lending and branch expansion plans as the state-run

lender made net losses for the two successive fiscal amid severe stress on asset quality.

There would be check on management compensation and directors‘ fees as well as the sector regulator has

invoked prompt corrective action (PCA) for the bank, aiming to bring it back on recovery path.

Uco has become the second lender to face business restrictions after IDBI Bank after RBI revised its PCA

framework last month.

Vijaya Bank plans nationwide rollout of debt swap scheme for farmers

Vijaya Bank is trying to bail out debt-trapped small farmers from the clutches of money lenders by bringing

them within its fold through its ‗Debt Swap Scheme‘.

Launched about a year ago, this scheme, which has been rolled out in Karnataka‘s Mandya district, is now

being extended across the country

NHAI Masala Bond Launched at London Stock Exchange

The Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Shri. Nitin Gadkari has launched the NHAI

Masala Bond issue at the London Stock Exchange, through which they (bonds) hope to raise up to Rs 5,000

crore (the RBI limit) to help fund investment in key transport infrastructure.

Highways Ministry signs pact with London transport body

A memorandum of understanding has been signed between Transport For London (TFL) and the Ministry of

Road Transport and Highway through which India is set to draw on the lessons from London‘s strong public

transport system — where over 1.3 billion journeys take place every year.

Election Commission of India Launches National Contact Centre

The Election Commission of India has launched National Contact Centre with a toll-free No. 1800111950.

Now any citizen from any part of the country can call on the toll-free in English or Hindi with any query

or complaint at any time of the day. Callers can enquire on subjects such as elections, voting dates, EPIC,

electoral roll, online registration etc. and lodge a complaint by simply dialing in to the toll free no.

Telangana first state with logo for hearing impaired drivers

Telangana has become the first state to introduce a logo for vehicles driven by persons with hearing

impairment.

It was designed by a Hyderabad-based man, who is also the first person to obtain a driving license in the

‗hearing impaired‘ category.

The Centre had earlier allowed the grant of licenses to hearing impaired persons if they passed regular

driving tests.

Hyderabad gets its first ‗recycled‘ bus stop made out of plastic bottles

In a first of its kind initiative, a colony in Hyderabad has got its own ―recycled‖ bus stop, made entirely out of

plastic bottles.

The bus shelter was built under the ‗Recycle India‘ initiative by ‗Bamboo House India‘, a Hyderabad-

based company that builds houses out of bamboo.

Under the initiative, the company already recycles scrap like tyres and drums, to make seats and benches.

India test-fires ‗Spyder‘ surface-to-air missile from Odisha test range

India has test fired a surface-to-air missile ‗Spyder‘ from a test range in Odisha as part of missile launch

practice of a series of tests of the short-range quick reaction

Spyder (Surface-to-air PYthon and DERby) is an acquired missile system from Israel which is a short-

range, quick reaction surface-to-air missile to neutralise enemy targets up to a distance of 15 km and at

heights between 20-and-9,000 metres, the official added.

ISRO to open research centre in Hyderabad

ISRO Chairman A.S.Kiran Kumar announced that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set to

open an exclusive research centre in Hyderabad for start-ups, academicians and entrepreneurs.

Big B appointed WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Hepatitis

Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan has been appointed by the World Health Organisation as its Goodwill

Ambassador for Hepatitis in South-East Asia Region to spread awareness about the disease.

This is the first formal association between WHO and Bachchan, who served as UNICEF Goodwill

Ambassador for Polio in India.

Justice Mudgal Elected Head of FIFA Governance Committee

Mukul Mudgal has been elected as head of FIFA‘s governance committee at the world football governing

body‘s 67th Congress in Bahrain‘s capital city of Manama.

VVS Laxman named an Honorary Life Member of MCC

Legendary batsman VVS Laxman was named an Honorary Life Member of the Marylebone Cricket Club, as he

became the fourth Indian to do so. Laxman joins fellow Indian icons Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and

Sourav Ganguly on the prestigious list of MCC Honorary Life Members.

India-Pacific islands conference to be held in Fiji

The External Affairs Ministry will host the ‗India-Pacific Islands Sustainable Development Conference in

Suva, Fiji, on May 25-26.

The conference would be held under the framework of the Forum for India Pacific Islands Cooperation

(Fipic) with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) as the key knowledge partner.

The first Fipic summit was held at the level of Heads of Government in November 2014 in Suva, Fiji, and

the second one in August 2015 in Jaipur, India.

International Nurses Day: May 12, 2017

International Nurses Day is celebrated every year on 12th of May to mark the birth anniversary of Florence

Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.

The theme of 2017 International Nurses Day (IND) is ―Nursing: A voice to lead – Achieving the

Sustainable Development Goals‖.

Daily Current Affairs 13th May 2017

RBI sanctions enhanced credit limit for Punjab for foodgrain procurement

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has sanctioned more cash credit limit (CCL) for Punjab to a total of Rs

20,683 crore.

The RBI has also directed the state government to ensure that all its food credit accounts are always

backed by fully paid stock value as per norms.

Disha Microfin gets final nod from RBI for setting up small finance bank

Disha Microfin, a part of inclusion platform Fincare, has received final licence from the Reserve Bank of India

to set up a small finance bank.

The small finance bank will be called Fincare Small Finance Bank and will commence operations in

July.

Shri J P Nadda launches Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) under Universal Immunization

Programme (UIP)

Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare JP Nadda has launched the vaccine for pneumonia and

meningitis.

He launched the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PVC) under the Universal Immunisation Programme

that protects a child against severe forms of pneumococcal disease.

Currently, the vaccine is being rolled out to approximately 21 lakh children in Himachal Pradesh and parts

of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in the first phase

Nagpur to get India‘s first electric radio cabs

Arunachal Pradesh govt launches Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Swavalamban Yojana for local entrepreneurs

Arunachal Pradesh Government has launched Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Swavalamban Yojana for local

entrepreneurs to boost tourism and promote Agri and allied sectors. Under the scheme, entrepreneurs are

offered bank loan ranging from 10 lakh to one crore rupees with 30 per cent subsidy.

Saturday to be ‗no bag day‘ at UP government schools

The state government has decided that qll primary and secondary students (class 1-12) studying in schools

recognised by Uttar Pradesh government will not bring school bags on Saturdays

Wrestler Bajrang wins gold at Asian Championship

Bajranj Punia has won the first gold medal for India at the Asian Wrestling Championship by defeating Lee

Seungchul of South Korea in the final of the men‘s 65 kg division.

Sarita Devi took silver in the women‘s 58 kilogram category.

Sakshi Malik won Silver in 60kg category.

Vinesh Phogat won silver in freestyle 55kg finals.

INS Darshak completes hydrographic surveys in Sri Lanka

The Indian Navy‘s Hydrographic Survey ship INS Darshak was on a two-month deployment to Sri Lanka. It

has now successfully completed the surveys of Weligama Bay and the southern coast of Sri Lanka.

19th Session of India-Italy Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation held in Rome

India to boycott China‘s BRF

India is likely to boycott China‘s Belt and Road Forum, BRF, beginning in Beijing from 14th

May in view of

sovereignty concerns related to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, CPEC.

Palestine President Abbas to undertake 4 day visit of India

President of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas will be on a four day State visit to India from 14th

May.

US Approves 75 Million Dollars Chemical Protective Gear For Indian Soldiers

The US has approved 75 million US dollars high-tech chemical protective clothing for the Indian armed forces

that will protect soldiers against biological and chemical warfare.

India had made a request for these special clothing as part of its military modernisation programme.

WHO declares outbreak in DR Congo

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo

after the Congolese health ministry had notified the WHO of a ―lab-confirmed case‖ of Ebola.

Himachal Pradesh cabinet minister Karan Singh passes away

Himachal Pradesh cooperation and ayurveda minister Karan Singh passed away recently.

Daily Current Affairs 14 May 2017

India jumps 73 spots to 26 rank in World Bank‘s power list

India has climbed up to the twenty-sixth position in World Bank‘s electricity accessibility ranking in the

current year from 99th spot in 2014

Aadhaar not a must for PAN, ITR in Assam, J&K and Meghalaya

The revenue department has exempted residents of Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya, and citizens

above 80 years from mandatory quoting of Aadhaar to obtain PAN cards and file tax returns.

Note: Aadhaar has been made mandatory for applying for PAN with effect from July 1, 2017.

While Aadhaar is issued by the UIDAI to a resident of India, PAN is a ten-digit alphanumeric number

issued in the form of a laminated card by the IT department to any person, firm or entity.

Kerala tops, Bihar last in public affairs index

Two South Indian States – Kerala and Tamil Nadu have secured first and second rankings for the second year

in a row in public affairs index (PAI) in governance in States.

Bihar (18th), Jharkhand (17th), Odisha (16th) and Assam (15th) are at the bottom of the table in PAI, a

latest survey of think-tank Public Affairs Centre (PAC), Bengaluru, has revealed.

UP govt forms ‗Maa‘ committees to check mid-day meal quality

Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has decided to form ‗Maa‘ committees to keep an eye on mid-

day meals served to students in state-run primary schools. It will be a committee of six mothers, from all

sections of society, whose students are studying in that school.

Amul to sponsor New Zealand cricket team for Champions trophy

Indian dairy cooperative Amul will sponsor the New Zealand cricket team for the upcoming Champions

Trophy in England.

Amul had earlier sponsored Netherlands in the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

‗Adiyogi bust‘ declared world‘s largest by Guinness Book of World Records

The 112 feet tall bust of ‗Adiyogi‘ Lord Shiva at the Isha Yoga Foundation in Tamil Nadu has been declared

the world‘s largest bust by the Guinness Book of World Records.

Hackers attack computers in 99 countries including India

A massive ransomware Cyber Attack dubbed WannaCry targeted computers in 99 countries including India.

Russia was the worst hit country, witnessing over 70% of the affected computers, while India was

third on the list.

Ramudri Someshwara Rao wins gold at 2017 World Para Athletics Grand Prix

Ramudri Someswara Rao has won a gold medal in men‘s 200m T44 event at the 2017 World Para Athletics

Grand Prix in China.

Lewis Hamilton wins Spanish Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes has won the Spanish Grand Prix defeating Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari who

finished in second place.

World Fair Trade Day: 13 May 2017

World Fair Trade Day is observed on the second Saturday of May every year.

Theme of World Fair Trade Day 2017 : ‗Human Chains for Fair Trade and the Planet‘

International Mothers‘ Day: 14 May 2017

Mother‘s Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May every year.

Theme of Mother‘s Day 2017 : ―Every Mother knows‖

Daily Current Affairs 15 May 2017

HDFC Life inks distribution tie-up with Catholic Syrian Bank

HDFC Life has entered into a bancassurance tie-up with Catholic Syrian Bank to distribute its individual life

insurance products to the private lender‘s customers.

Economy to grow at 7.4% in FY18, says FICCI survey

In the Economic Outlook Survey brought out by industry body Ficci, it is announced that India‘s economy is

set to grow by a robust 7.4 per cent in the current fiscal.

The industry and services sector are also expected to grow by 6.9 per cent and 8.4 per cent respectively in

2017-18.

Telangana hosted first Videsh Sampark

Telangana hosted the first outreach program of the Ministry of External Affairs ‗Videsh Sampark‘ to engage

the State governments in creating awareness about various programmes of the Ministry.

Also, Telangana has become the first state in the country where the pilot ‗e-Sanad‘ project for online

attestation of documents, was rolled out.

Pawan Kumar Chamling conferred with first BS Shekhawat award by President

Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling has been conferred with the first Bhairon Singh Shekhawat

Lifetime Achievement Honour in Public Service by President Pranab Mukherjee.

ISKCON‘s Govardhan Eco Village wins Smart Village Award

Govardhan Eco Village, set up by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in adjoining

Thane district, has won an award for being a sustainable project in rural Maharashtra.

The award, ―Smart Village,‖ has been instituted by the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO),

which also gives awards in various other categories.

Mumbai named as the world‘s busiest single-runway airport

The GVK group-run Mumbai airport has become the world‘s busiest amongst the single-runway facilities by

handling 837 flights a day or one in 65 seconds on an average in fiscal 2017, taking over London‘s Gatwick

airport that had 757 flights a day.

IIT Kharagpur collaborates with British Geological Survey to turn Varanasi into smart city

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur has collaborated with the British Geological Survey to turn

Varanasi into a smart city. Three dimensional geological modelling of the geology under Varanasi will be

prepared to help improve the building of new transport and service infrastructure.

NASA, ISRO team up to inspect ‗oldest civilisation‘ site in Haryana

Teams of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States and the Indian

Space Research Organisation (ISRO) would inspect the excavation being carried out at an archaeological site in

Haryana‘s Fatehabad district to verify claims of it being the oldest civilisation in the world.

NASA and ISRO inspection is likely to be done in October this year, 2017.

The Haryana government is considering to establish international-level museums at Kunal and

Rakhigarhi.

Arjun Maini becomes first Indian driver to win a GP3 race

Jenzer Motorsports‘ Indian driver Arjun Maini, who is supported by JK Racing and TVS, created history as he

became the first Indian to win a race in the GP3 Series with a dominant victory.

Rafael Nadal wins fifth Madrid Crown

Rafael Nadal beat Dominic Thiem to win his fifth Madrid Open title held in Spain

Former Puducherry Chief Minister S Ramaswamy passed away

Macron names Edouard Philippe as French PM

Newly sworn-in French President Emmanuel Macron has named Edouard Philippe, the 46-year-old Mayor of

Le Havre city, as his Prime Minister.

International Day of Families: May 15, 2017

The 2017 International Day of Families is observed across the world on 15 May every year.

Theme of International Day of Family 2017 is ―Families, education and well-being‖.

Daily Current Affairs 16 May 2017

PM Modi launches river conservation project in Madhya Pradesh to ensure pollution-free Narmada

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the Narmada Seva Mission for the conservation of the crucial

river, which is a lifeline of Madhya Pradesh.

The project is a road-map for steps to be taken for the conservation of the Narmada River in the state.

The Prime Minister released a road map for the conservation of Narmada, to ensure it is pollution free.

The programme marks the conclusion of ‗Namami Devi Narmade Sewa Yatra‘, which was launched on 11

December 2016 by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan at Amarkantak.

Govt launches ‗Operation Clean Money‘ website to bring illegal wealth on books

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has launched the ‗Operation Clean Money‘ portal that aims ―to create a tax-

compliant society‖.

The portal will identify those who have made deposits or purchases not in line with the declared income.

It will also enable transparent Tax Administration by sharing status reports, including an explanation of

verification issues, and thematic analysis reports

India ranked 2nd in EY renewable energy attractiveness index

India has overtaken the US to become the second-most attractive country after China for renewable energy

investment, according to a report by UK accountancy firm EY.

This is primarily due to a combination of strong government support and increasingly attractive

economics, EY said in a statement.

India‘s first ornamental fish tech park to come up in Chennai

India‘s first ornamental fish tech park, Aquatic Rainbow Technology Park (ARTP), an ultra-modern

facility exclusively for breeding ornamental fish, is being developed by Fisheries College and Research

Institute in Ponneri (Tamil Nadu) with Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) as part of

the steering committee for the project.

It will become operational in the next three months.

West Bengal makes Bengali mandatory in schools

In a major decision that may have far reaching political and social implications, the West Bengal government

has made Bengali compulsory in all schools, including private English medium schools of the State.

Mswipe, PayU tie-up for digital payments in India

Mswipe has announced its partnership with India‘s leading internet payment service provider PayU to enable

digital payments, expansion of workforce and network across 550+ cities.

IIT-Hyderabad professor bags INSA Young Scientist award

Aravind Kumar Rengan, a professor at Indian Institute of Technology – Hyderabad has been awarded the

prestigious Indian National Science Academy (INSA) award in the Young Scientist category for 2017.

Since 1974, INSA annually presents the Young Scientist Award to distinguish young scientists who have

made notable research contributions in science and technology.

Indian Teen From Tamil Nadu Develops The World‘s Smallest Satellite For NASA

An 18-year-old boy from Tamil Nadu has created the world‘s smallest satellite, naming it ‗KalamSat‘.

Developed by Riftah Sharook, who hails from Tamil Nadu‘s Pallapatti town, KalamSat weighs only 64

grams and is named after former President APJ Abdul Kalam

World Heritage-listed island most polluted place on Earth

The study published by Tasmania‘s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) said the beaches of

the World Heritage-listed Henderson Island (a remote island in the South Pacific) contained 37.7 million

pieces of debris, making the island most polluted place on Earth

India‘s ‗Ujala‘ to light up homes in United Kingdom

Nearly a century after importing equipment from Britain for setting up its first thermal power station at Husain

Sagar in Andhra Pradesh, India has now launched the process to export ‗Ujala‘ — Hindi for light — to the

United Kingdom with affordable ‗Made in India‘ LED bulbs.

Ramit Tandon wins maiden PSA title

US-based Indian squash player Ramit Tandon has won his maiden professional title with a convincing win

over compatriot Kush Kumar in the SYS Open.

India women set new ODI world record

India have set a new international cricket record after their women‘s side smashed the highest-over opening

partnership in a one-day international.

Openers Deepti Sharma and Poonam Raut put on 320, the largest first-wicket stand in ODI history –

men‘s or women‘s – with both batters crashing their maiden 50-over centuries to fire India to a huge win

over Ireland

Daily Current Affairs 17 May 2017

India Ratings downgrades IDBI Bank

India Ratings and Research has downgraded State-run IDBI Bank to AA from AA+ and gave a negative

outlook due to challenges arising out of stressed assets and weak capital position.

Paytm Payments Bank to launch next week, names Renu Satti as the new CEO

India‘s leading digital wallet player Paytm has received the final licence from the Reserve Bank of India for

its payments bank entity.

With this, the road is now clear for the Noida-based payments player to kickstart its much-awaited

payments bank operations next week.

Paytm has also announced that its longtime executive and vice president Renu Satti will be the CEO of

the payments bank.

UN revises downward India‘s GDP growth to 7.3% for 2017

The UN World Economic Situation and Prospects as of mid- 2017 report, launched by United Nations,

said India is projected to achieve a 7.3% growth in 2017, a downward revision from the 7.7% forecast for

the year made when the report was launched in January.

However, it predicted an increased 7.9% GDP growth next year as it cautioned that stressed balance

sheets in the banking sectors will prevent strong investment rebound in the near term.

Cabinet approves defence college faculty exchange with Bangladesh

The Union cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave an ex-post facto approval to the agreement,

signed between the National Defence College, New Delhi and the National Defence College, Dhaka,

Bangladesh.

The agreement establishes the framework for enhanced cooperation in the field of military education

concerning strategic and operational studies.

NITI Aayog holds first ‗Samavesh‘ meeting

The NITI Aayog held the first meeting of the National Steering Group and other knowledge partners in New

Delhi.

The meeting aimed at bringing together 32 premier educational and policy research institutions to catalyse

the development process to enhance institutional capacity development and a field level interface with the

community for New India 2022.

The meeting was held under the co-chairmanship of Amitabh Kant, CEO and Ratan Watal, Principal

Adviser, NITI Aayog.

‗Orange alert‘ across Odisha as temperature crosses 46 degree Celsius

India Meteorology Department (IMD) issued orange alert – a warning for severe heat wave, across the state for

two days.

The temperature was recorded above 45 degree Celsius.

Vishakhapatnam adjudged cleanest railway station

Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh has been adjudged as the cleanest railway station in category

A1 followed by Secunderabad in Telangana and Jammu Tawi.

Also Beas in Punjab has been declared the cleanest railway stations in A category.

The Darbhanga railway station in Bihar was the dirtiest among the most busy stations.

This was revealed by Third Party Audit Report on Station Cleanliness released by Railway Ministry

IIEST creates India‘s first smart grid project

The Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST) has successfully created the country‘s first

smart grid project, which will generate power from renewable sources of energy.

IIEST is a national engineering and research institution located at Shibpur, Howrah district, West

Bengal.

Mukesh Ambani top Forbes‘ list of Global Game Changers

Forbes magazine has named Reliance Industries (RIL) Chairman Mukesh Ambani as the topmost among

its ―Global Game Changers‖ who are transforming their industries and changing the lives of billions around

the world.

Ambani features at the top of the Forbes‘ second annual Global Game Changers‘ list of 25 ―intrepid

business leaders unsatisfied with the status quo‖ who are ―transforming their industries and changing

the lives of billions of people around the globe.‖

Anshu Jamsenpa becomes first Indian woman to climb Mt. Everest four times

Arunachal Pradesh mountaineer Anshu Jamsenpa recently scripted history by becoming the first Indian

woman to scale Mount Everest for the fourth time.

Earlier, Jamsenpa had scaled the Mount Everest twice within 10 days in May 2011 before again climbing

the highest peak on May 18 in 2013.

With her previous expeditions, she already held the record of being the only woman in the world to

climb the top of the world‘s tallest peak twice in a single season.

Andhra Pradesh Amends Act to appoint PV Sindhu as Group-1 officer

Certain provisions in the Andhra Pradesh (Regulation of Appointments to Public Services and Rationalization

of Staff Pattern and Pay Structure) Act, 1994, prevented the appointment of the badminton player as any

recruitment in public service should only be through the AP Public Service Commission, selection committee

or employment exchange.

To give effect to the Cabinet resolution, the Andhra Pradesh Legislature has passed a Bill to

appoint Olympics silver medallist P V Sindhu as a Group-1 officer in the government, by amending the

State Public Services Act.

Harikrishna posts first win in Moscow FIDE Grand Prix

Indian Grandmaster Pentala Harikrishna registered his first win at the Moscow FIDE Grand Prix after

getting the better of English GM Michael Adams in Moscow.

World Hypertension Day 2017: 17 May

Every year, 17 May is dedicated to World Hypertension Day (WHD).

The theme of 2017 World Hypertension Day: ―Know Your Numbers‖ with a goal of increasing high

blood pressure (BP) awareness in all populations around the world.

World Telecommunication and Information Society Day 2017: 17 May 2017

The World Telecommunication and Information Society Day was observed on 17th of May 2017.

Theme of 2017 World Telecommunication and Information Society Day: ―Big Data for Big Impact‖.

Daily Current Affairs 18 May 2017

25% of new bank branches to be opened in rural areas: RBI

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has mandated that 25 per cent of the total number of ‗banking outlets‘

opened during a financial year should be located in unbanked rural centres.

The RBI mandated this in its notification — ―Rationalisation of Branch Authorisation Policy-

Revision of Guidelines‖

PM Modi to inaugurate annual meeting of African Development Bank on May 23

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank on 23rd

of this month.

The meeting will be held from 22nd to 26th May at Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

The core theme of the event is ―Transforming Agriculture for wealth creation in Africa‖.

Harsh Vardhan gets additional charge of Environment Ministry

Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan has been given additional charge of the Environment

Ministry following the death of Union Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave.

Harsh Vardhan is also minister for Earth Sciences.

Dr. Manmohan Singh presents Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace to ISRO

The Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2014 has been presented to the Indian

Space Research Organisation (ISRO) by Dr. Manmohan Singh.

Bilateral exercise SIMBEX-17 between Indian Navy, Republic of Singapore Navy commences

The 24th bilateral exercise SIMBEX-17 between Indian Navy (IN) and Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) has

commenced in South China Sea.

SIMBEX is an acronym1 for ―Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercises‖.

BSNL Signs MoU With Facebook, MobiKwik, And Disney Land India

Delhi-based Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), an Indian state-owned telecommunications company has

reportedly signed agreements with Facebook, Mobikwik, and Disneyland India to commemorate World

Telecommunication and Information Society Day, which is celebrated worldwide on May 17.

Ola together with Google launches ‗Pogressive Web App‘

Cab aggregator Ola has announced the launch of its ―Progressive Web App‖ (PWA), a lightweight data

friendly mobile website that offers users, especially in smaller towns and cities, an app-like experience on

smartphones.

EU fines Facebook over misleading WhatsApp data

The European Union (EU) has announced it will fine Facebook 110 million euros ($122 million) for providing

incorrect or misleading information in connection with the 2014 purchase of mobile messaging service

WhatsApp.

Veteran actress Reema Lagoo dies at 59

Veteran film, stage and television actress Reema Lagoo died following a cardiac arrest

Environment Minister Anil Dave dies at 61

Union Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave has passed away.

International Museum Day: 18 May

The theme for 2017: ―Museums and contested histories: Saying the unspeakable in museums‖.

Daily Current Affairs 19 May 2017

PM Narendra Modi to inaugurate India‘s longest river bridge in Assam on May 26

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate India‘s longest river bridge ‗Dhola-Sadiya bridge‘ in Assam on

May 26.

It is 3.55 km longer than the Bandra-Worli sea link in Mumbai, making it the longest bridge in India.

India to become TB free by 2025: Nadda

While representing India in the 29th board meeting of ‗Stop TB‘ programme coordination committee in Berlin,

Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare J.P. Nadda declared that the government would eradicate

Tuberculosis (TB) by 2025.

He also said that it is aimed that the world will be TB free by 2030. But under the leadership of Prime

Minister Narendra Modi, we have set a target to eradicate TB completely by 2025 in India.

India ranks 154th out of 195 countries on healthcare index

At the bottom, India came at 154th position in the ranking of healthcare quality in 195 countries, as per the new

Global Burden of Disease study published in the medical journal Lancet.

Haryana launches e-textbook portal for school students

Haryana government has launched e-textbook portal for school students. Students can now download school

books instantly from the e-textbook portal of the Haryana School Education Boar.

As of now, 26 textbooks of classes IX to XII have been uploaded on the portal and these can be easily

converted into audio files.

Forested area in Chhattisgarh named after Anil Dave

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Dr. Raman Singh has announced that a 41 hectare forested land in the Durg

region of the state would be named after late Union Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave.

NGT bans open defecation, dumping of waste on Yamuna floodplains

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has banned open defecation and dumping of waste on the floodplains of

the Yamuna river and announced an environment compensation of Rs. 5,000 for those violating the diktat.

Wildlife activists Purnima Barman & Sanjay Gubbi Won The Prestigious ‗Green Oscars‘ Award

Sanjay Gubbi of Karnataka and Purnima Barman of Assam are among six global winners of the award

shortlisted from 166 entries. Each of the winners received 35,000 pounds (USD 45,374) prize money in project

funding over one year.

Indian-origin steel tycoon bags prestigious ‗CEO of the Year‘ award in UK

Britain‘s Indian-origin steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta has bagged a top global award ‗CEO of the Year‘ award for

his successful acquisitions and his drive to transform the steel industry in the UK, India and beyond.

Tata Group is India‘s most valuable brand: Brand Finance

Tata Group is the most valuable brand in India at an estimated $13.1 billion.

Tata Group is followed by Airtel at the second place and LIC at the third, according to a Brand Finance

report that lists India‘s 100 most valuable brands

Reliance Jio gets TM Forum‘s ‗Digital Service Innovator of the Year Award‘

Reliance Jio has received TM Forum‘s ‗Digital Service Innovator of the Year Award‘ 2017.

TM Forum is the industry association driving digital business transformation of the communications

industry.

Reliance Jio got this award by acquiring 90 million customers in four months.

Laxman wins All India Open Rapid FIDE Rating chess meet

Grand Master R.R. Laxman of Integral Coach Factory has won the All India Open Rapid FIDE Rating

Chess Tournament.

David Letterman wins Mark Twain Prize for American humour

David Letterman has been named the next recipient of the Mark Twain Prize for American humour, the

award granted annually by the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Start up India Summit to be held in Dubai

CGI Dubai and Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi in partnership with iSPIRIT, a nonprofit think tank and

supported by TiE, Dubai will host a two day ―Start up India Summit‖ in UAE on 23rd and 24th of May

2017.

This is the first such ―Start Up Summit‖ being held in the UAE. The aim is to provide a shared platform

for the Start up eco system in both India and UAE for greater collaboration, exchange ideas, interact with

academia, investors and industry and have access to funding from the venture capitalist in the UAE.

Daily Current Affairs 20 May 2017

PM Modi‘ released book written by MS Swaminathan

Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, has released a two-part book series on the eminent agricultural scientist

Dr. M.S. Swaminathan. The series is titled – M.S. Swaminathan: The Quest for a world without hunger.

Chitale Committee recommends several measures for Desiltation of Ganga

Committee headed by Madhav Chitale on Desiltation of Ganga has recommended a slew of measures

which include study of reach wise sediment transport processes along with establishing annual sediment

budgets to guide de-silting activities, Preparation of annual reports (Sand registry) describing the previous de-

silting/ dredging activity, etc.

India ranked 24th international tourist arrivals

The rank of India in international tourist arrivals (ITA) in both 2014 and 2015 in the latest UNWTO‘s World

Tourism Barometer, as of March 2017, is 24th as against the previous ranks of 41st and 40th in 2014 and 2015,

respectively, as per a press release issued by the Ministry of Tourism.

Deveshwar, Soumitra Chatterjee conferred Bengal‘s highest civilian award

Thespian Soumitra Chatterjee and India‘s longest serving boss Y.C. Deveshwar have been conferred with the

Banga Samman, West Bengal‘s highest civilian award, by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The Banga Samman awards were instituted in 2011, after Banerjee came to power. Celebrated artistes,

singers, sportspersons, filmmakers, intellectuals have been honoured with these awards in the past.

Indian wins top intel science award in US

Indian Prashant Ranganathan has won the world‘s largest pre-college science competition in the US in the

environmental engineering category for his project on biodegradation of pesticides.

Indian men‘s team wins Compound gold in World Cup archery

The Indian men‘s compound team has won gold on the penultimate day of the archery World Cup stage 1

championship in Shanghai, China.

India were represented by Abhishek Verma, Chinna Raju Srither and Amanjeet Singh.

Joint HADR Exercise commences at Naval Station Karwar

The Annual Joint Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Exercise began on 18 May 2017 at

Naval Station Karwar, Karnataka.

Named as ‗Karavali Karunya‘, the exercise is being conducted by Indian Navy‘s Western Naval

Command.

Karavali Karunya means ‗assistance to the coast of Karnataka‘.

Rouhani re-elected as Iran‘s 12th President with thumping majority

Hassan Rouhani has been re-elected as Iran‘s 12th President with a thumping majority.

World Metrology Day: 20 May

World Metrology Day is observed annually on 20 May.

Theme of 2017 World Metrology Day: ―Measurements for transport‖.

Daily Current Affairs 21 May 2017

DBS Bank India expands bancassurance partnerships

DBS Bank India has expanded its bancassurance partnerships with two new partners in Tata AIA Life and

Birla Sun Life in addition to Aviva India Life.

With this move, Singapore-heaquartered DBS Bank has become the first bank in India to adopt a new

open architecture model with three life insurers on a single platform

FDI inflows hit new high of $43 billion in FY17

The official data shows that India has recorded the highest foreign direct investments in a year in 2016-17 at

$43 billion, although the year-on-year growth rate slipped to 9% from 29% in the previous year and 27% in

2014-15.

Anshu Jamsenpa is first woman to scale Mt Everest twice in 5 days

Arunachal Pradesh mountaineer Anshu Jamsenpa has become the world‘s first woman to scale Mt Everest

twice in five days.

2 Indian Peacekeepers, Killed In The Line Of Duty, To Be Honored With UN Medal

Rifleman Brijesh Thapa who served with the UN Organisation Stabilization Mission in the Democratic

Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and Private Ravi Kumar who was deployed with the UN Interim Force

in Lebanon (UNIFIL) will be honoured with the Dag Hammarskjold Medal on the International Day of UN

Peacekeepers to be observed on May 24.

In tribute to APJ Abdul Kalam, NASA names new species after him

In great news for India, scientists at NASA have named a new organism discovered by them after the much-

loved APJ Abdul Kalam.

Till date, the new organism – a form of a bacteria – has been found only on the International Space Station

(ISS) and has not been found on earth!

The bacterium is named Solibacillus kalamii, after Dr Abdul Kalam and genus name is Solibacillus

which is a spore forming bacteria.

Bengaluru FC beat Mohun Bagan to lift Federation Cup

Bengaluru FC has won this year‘s Federation Cup by beating Mohun Bagan.

The Federation Cup, also known as Hero Federation Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout

style club football tournament in India that started in 1977.

Vinales wins French motorcycle Grand Prix

Spanish Movistar Yamaha rider Maverick Viñales has won the French motorcycle Grand Prix beating

Frenchman Johann Zarco.

Anti-Terrorism Day: 21 May 2017

The Anti-terrorism Day is celebrated annually in the country to commemorate the death anniversary of the

former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on 21st May.

Daily Current Affairs 22nd May, 2017

Karnataka Bank, LIC ink pact

Karnataka Bank Ltd has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Life Insurance

Corporation (LIC) of India for selling life insurance products of LIC.

HDFC Life launches AI-based insurance email bot ‗SPOK‘

HDFC Life has announced the launch of an artificial intelligence-based application that can automatically read,

understand, categorise, prioritise and respond to customer emails sent to the private insurer.

It said that ‗SPOK‘, an insurance email bot, can read customer queries within milliseconds and respond to them.

Radha Mohan Singh assigned additional charge of Food Ministry

Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Radha Mohan Singh has been given the additional charge of

Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.

He shall be assigned the additional charge of the Ministry during the period of indisposition of Ram Vilas Paswan,

who is presently undergoing treatment abroad.

High-speed Mumbai-Goa Tejas Express flagged off

The country‘s first high-speed Tejas Express between Mumbai and Karmali in Goa, boasting of Wi-Fi,

LCD screens, and automatic doors, has been flagged off by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu.

The train — with a speed of 130 km per hour — is capable of clocking a maximum of 200 kmph.

The train will undertake its eight-and-half-hour journey five days a week between Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus

railway station in Mumbai and Karmali in Goa, a distance of 530 km.

M.P. govt bans sand mining in Narmada

The Madhya Pradesh government has imposed a ban on sand mining on the Narmada riverbed and formed

a committee of experts headed by Cabinet Minister Rajendra Shukla to suggest measures to prevent

ecological damage to the river, considered as the lifeline of the state.

India surpasses Japan as second largest stainless steel producer

Overtaking Japan, India emerged as the second largest stainless steel producer in the world after China,

according to data released by the International Stainless Steel Forum (ISSF).

Cochin Port Trust bags two awards

Cochin Port Trust has received two Best Performance Awards from Ministry of Shipping for the highest

growth in operating surplus and also for achieving third highest growth in cargo traffic among the major ports

in the year 2016-17.

Jacqueline Fernandez wins humanitarian award for her philanthropic work in India

Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez has been awarded the International Humanitarian Award for her

work in India and worldwide at the second annual Asian Voice Charity Awards held in London.

India win all 10 gold in South Asian Junior TT

India has won all 10 gold medals on offer in the South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championships at Mount

Lavinia, near Colombo.

In addition, they also claimed four silver medals for a total of 14 medals from the regional championships.

Mumbai Indians beat Rising Pune Supergiant to win IPL 2017

Mumbai Indians have lifted the Indian Premier League trophy for the third time, as they recorded a

scintillating win against Rising Pune Supergiant in the title clash at Hyderabad.

Alexander Zverev won Italian Open

Germany‘s Alexander Zverev has won Italian Open‘s Men‘s Singles title beating World No. 2 Novak

Djokovic.

Rajnath launches Yearbook written by Home Secretary

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has launched the ―India 2017‖ Yearbook, a compilation of current

affairs for the aspirants preparing for civil services and other competitive examination, written by Home

Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi.

Real ‗Airlift‘ hero Matthunny Mathews dies in Kuwait

Prominent Indian businessman in Kuwait, Matthunny Mathews aka Toyota Sunny, who was instrumental in the

safe evacuation of stranded Indians during the Iraqi invasion in 1990, passed away in Kuwait.

He was known as one of the heroes who made possible the largest civilian evacuation in known history. And the main

inspiration behind the 2016 Bollywood historical drama Airlift.

International Day for Biodiversity: 22 May

The theme for 2017 International Biodiversity Day: ―Biodiversitay and Sustainable Tourism‖.

Daily Current Affairs 23 May 2017

SBI introduces cashless drive through toll plazas

State Bank of India (SBI) has launched a cashless drive through toll plaza product for its customers.

The product, christened SBI Fastag, is a card that works on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

technology.

Bank of Baroda, IFFCO roll out co-branded debit card for farmers

Bank of Baroda (BOB) and IFFCO have rolled out their first set of co-branded debit cards for farmers as part of

a novel initiative to push digitalisation and cashless economy.

Both the organisations had in February this year entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in

this regard.

Karnataka Bank pact with HDFC Asset Mgmt

Karnataka Bank Ltd has entered into a distribution agreement to sell the mutual fund products of HDFC Capital

Asset Management Ltd (HDFCAML).

Federal Bank launches new trading platform

Federal Bank, in association with Geojit, has launched a new trading platform called ―Selfie‖ for

customers.

Designed and managed by Geojit, the trading platform will give its users absolute control over their

investments with timely research inputs to make sound investment decisions.

Paytm launches Payments Bank, facilitates cashback on deposits

Digital payment aggregator Paytm has unveiled the Paytm Payments Bank, a first-of-its-kind bank that will

offer cashbacks on deposits. Customers will also be entitled to zero charges on all online transactions and no

minimum balance requirement.

Paytm was the first Indian company to bet big on its zero cost QR Code-based payment solution that

has today become synonymous with digital payments in India.

The company is aiming to replicate this success in the banking sector and further drive cashless

transactions with the Paytm Payments Bank.

Mobile app launched for monitoring coal movement

Coal Minister Piyush Goyal has launched the Saral Eindhan Vitaran Application (SEVA) dashboard. The

mobile app and the online dashboard monitor the movement of coal from mines allocated to the power sector.

India Ranks Third Highest Globally In Internal Displacement Numbers: Report

According to a report released by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre and the Norwegian Refugee

Council, nearly 2.4 million people in India were internally displaced due to conflict, violence and disasters in

2016, the third highest number globally.

China is number 1 on list followed by the Philippines.

UP makes Aadhaar mandatory for taking board exams from 2018

The Uttar Pradesh government has made Aadhaar Card mandatory for students taking board exams in 2018.

The move, aimed at curbing fraudulent admissions, is applicable for all government, government-aided

and self-finance schools affiliated to the UP state board.

Young Indian cartoonist wins top conservation award

Avid bird watcher, Rohan Chakravarty, a wildlife and environment cartoonist from India, has won this year‘s

International President‘s Award for his efforts to change attitudes towards nature.

The award is the top accolade given by WWF to recognise leadership in young conservationists who are

under the age of 30 from around the world. The award ceremony was held recently in Manado, Indonesia.

Blitz chess championship: Vaishali claims gold

India‘s R. Vaishali won the women‘s title with eight points from nine rounds in the Asian continental Blitz

chess championship in Chengdu, China.

Four African nations join International Solar Alliance

Four African nations Djibouti, Cote d‘Ivoire, Somalia and Ghana have joined Indian Prime Minister

Narendra Modi-initiated International Solar Alliance (ISA) whereas another African country Comoros is

expected to join soon.

Prime Minister Modi and former French President Francois Hollande jointly laid the foundation stone of

the International Solar Alliance (ISA) Headquarters and inaugurated the interim Secretariat of the ISA in

National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Gurugram on January 25, last year.

Israel Aerospace Industries gets $630 million Indian Navy contract

State-owned Israel Aerospace Industries has announced that it has won an additional, $630 million contract to

supply air and defence missile systems for four ships of the Indian Navy.

India‘s ‗All I Want‘ wins at short film fest in Cannes

―All I Want‖, an Indian film directed by Venika Mitra, has won at Beyond Borders Diversity of Cannes Short

Film Showcase — an event independent of the ongoing 70th Cannes Film Festival.

The story of ―All I Want‖ talks about a purposeful, single minded and unwavering pursuit of a street

urchin Ratan to buy one mango.

World Health Assembly kicks off in Geneva

The 70th World Health Assembly (WHA), the main decision-making body of the World Health Organization

(WHO), opened at Geneva-based UN headquarters.

Petroleum Minister co chairs India OPEC Institutional Dialogue at Vienna

The Minister of State (I/C) for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan is on a visit to Vienna,

Austria to co-chair the 2nd India-OPEC Institutional Dialogue at the OPEC headquarters

Controversial godman Chandraswami dead

Born Nemi Chand Jain, Controversial godman Chandraswami, allegedly involved in the assassination of former

PM Rajiv Gandhi has passed away.

Daily Current Affairs 24th May, 2017

Daily Current Affairs 24 May 2017

RBI to reconstitute oversight committee to deal with bad loans

The RBI has decided to reconstitute the oversight committee, OC, with more members after the government

armed it with additional powers to resolve bad loans with banks that have crossed Rs 8 lakh crore.

Cabinet approves setting up of new AIIMS in Assam

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for the establishment of new AIIMS at Kamrup (North Guwahati

Revenue circle) in Assam.

Cabinet approves abolition of Foreign Investment Promotion Board

In a bid to further ease doing business in India, the Union cabinet has abolished the over 25-year-old Foreign

Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) that vetted foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals.

The FIPB is the inter-ministerial body — or a single window clearance mechanism for applications on foreign direct

investment (FDI) in India in sectors under the government approval route.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley had announced the proposal to scrap Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) in

Union Budget 2017.

The FIPB was initially set up under the Prime Minister‘s Office following the economic liberalisation in the early

1990s.

It shifted under the DIPP in 1996, and then in 2003 to the department of economic affairs in the finance ministry.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs will continue to clear FDI proposals above Rs 5,000 crore.

Cabinet approves MoU between Spain and India on cooperation in the field of Organ Transplant

Services

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the signing of a

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the National Transplant Organization, Ministry of Health,

Social Services and Equality, Spain and the Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and

Family Welfare, India on cooperation in the field of Organ Transplant Services.

Cabinet approves Indo-German cooperation in alternative medicine

The Union Cabinet has approved the Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) between Germany and India regarding

their cooperation in the sector of alternative medicine.

Swachh Bharat App Launched in National Museum

―Swachh Bharat App‖ has been launched in National Museum in Delhi under Ministry of Culture by the

Minister of State (I/C) for Culture & Tourism Dr. Mahesh Sharma.

The main focus of this Swachh Bharat App‖ is to basically involve people actively to become part of Swachh Bharat

Abhiyan (Clean India Movement).

‗e-Sanad‘ launched for digital attestation of documents

The government has announced a service to digitise the process of attestation of documents for those going

abroad, so that they are spared the trouble of visiting government offices for the purpose.

‗e-Sanad‘ — an initiative of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), in association with two other ministries — will

initially be hosting school leaving certificates with the help of Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). In

subsequent phases, the portal will also host documents from central universities.

‗Parinaam Manjusha‘, the CBSE repository of documents like mark-sheets and migrations certificates, has been

integrated with e-Sanad for this purpose.

Aviva Life Insurance Bags ‗Product of the Year 2017‘

Aviva Heart Care has been voted as Product of the Year 2017, for product innovation in the insurance category.

Product of the Year is awarded to the winners selected through a consumer research conducted by Neilsens across the

country to identify innovation through a 100 percent face to face consumer voting via an in-depth survey.

Aviva Heart Care, ‗2 Hearts, 1 Plan‘ – is a unique joint coverage policy for couples

India-Africa partnership in International Solar Alliance

An India-Africa partnership in the International Solar Alliance (ISA) has been launched by Power Minister

Piyush Goyal, who said India is keen to share the latest technology in renewable energy to bring electricity to

the remotest corners of Africa.

The partnership was launched at a session on ―Africa-India Cooperation on Powering Africa — Strengthening ISA

and Africa-India Renewable Energy Partnerships‖ organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) as part of

the annual meeting here of the African Development Bank (AfDB).

India, Japan JV to set up LNG import terminal in Sri Lanka

India and Japan will join hands to set up a USD 250 million LNG import terminal in Sri Lanka, the first

collaboration between the two to counter China‘s growing influence in the Island nation.

Japan to build war museum in Manipur

Japan is going to build a war museum at the hillock at Maiba Lokpa in Bishnupur district, Manipur, where

a Japanese camp was located during World War II.

During World War II, nearly 70,000 Japanese soldiers had died in Imphal and Kohima

BSNL, Inmarsat opens satellite phone gateway

The state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Inmarsat have officially opened a new Indian GSPS

gateway to enable the government and the private sector customers to access satellite phone services through

Inmarsat‘s fourth generation constellation.

International Mobile Satellite Organization (INMARSAT) (headquartered in London, United Kingdom) was set up

under aegis of United Nations in 1979 and India was one of the founding members.

Shuttler Sindhu elected to BWF Athletes‘ Commission

Rio Olympics silver medallist P.V. Sindhu has became the second Indian after her compatriot Saina Nehwal to

be inducted in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Athletes‘ Commission.

Ashwin wins International Cricketer of the Year award

India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has won the coveted International Cricketer of the Year award at the

CEAT Cricket Rating (CCR) International awards 2017.

Batsman Shubhman Gill won the Young player of the year award for his superb performance during the India-

England Under-19 ODI series, played in Mumbai.

Former Ethiopia minister elected as new WHO chief

Former Health Minister and Foreign Minister of Ethiopia Tedros Adhanom has been elected as new Director-

General of the World Health Organization (WHO).

He will succeed outgoing Margaret Chan.

Nepal PM Prachanda resigns

Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‗Prachanda‘ has announced his resignation.

The move paves the way for Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba to become the next Prime Minister ,

as part of an agreement.

Saudi King presents Trump with top civilian honour

Saudi Arabia‘s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud presented Donald Trump with the kingdom‘s top civilian

honour, as the US President began a trip to Riyadh aimed at strengthening security and economic ties.

Ethiopia to host 29th AU Summit

The 29th African Union (AU) summit will held at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from July 3 to 4.

The summit will examine several issues, including peace and security on the African continent and in particular the

focus will be on crisis-ridden countries like Somalia and Libya.

Sir Roger Moore, James Bond actor, dies aged 89

Actor Sir Roger Moore, best known for playing James Bond, has died aged 89.

He played the famous spy in seven Bond films including Live and Let Die and A View to a Kill.

Daily Current Affairs 25th May, 2017

RBI allows co-operative banks to issue mobile wallets

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed co-operative banks, who are permitted to install ATMs and

issue debit cards, to also issue prepaid payment instruments PPIs like mobile wallets.

RBI has laid down strict norms and conditions to be followed by co-operative banks before permitting them to issue

wallets for utility bill payments and other activities up to a limit of Rs 10,000.

SBI launches national hackathon ‗Code For Banks‘

State Bank of India (SBI) has launched a national hackathon for developers, start-ups and students to come up

with innovative ideas and solutions for the banking sector.

The hackathon, named ‗Code For Bank‘, will focus on the business value driven by technologies like predictive

analytics, fin-tech/blockchain, digital payments, IOT, artificial intelligence, machine learning, BOTS and robotic

process automation.

HDFC among top 10 consumer financial services companies globally

Mortgage lender HDFC Ltd is the only Indian company to be named among the top 10 consumer financial

services companies in the world, with American Express claiming the first position.

With profits of $1.6 billion and sales of $8.1 billion HDFC was ranked seventh on the Forbes Global List 2017 in

the consumer financial services sector — same as last year.

As many as 58 Indian companies appeared in the overall Forbes Global 2000 list.

Govt. to set up state cancer institutes costing Rs. 100 crore

The government has approved a scheme for enhancing Tertiary Care Cancer facilities in the country under the

National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke

(NPCDCS) initiative to grant financial assistance to 20 State Cancer Institute‘s and 50 Tertiary Cancer Care

Centers in different parts of the country.

Mauritius PM to visit India

Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth will arrive in New Delhi on 26th

May 2017 on a three-day state

visit to India.

Maharashtra CM launched Samwad Sabha to reach out to farmers

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has launched a ‗Shivar Samwad Sabha‘ to reach out to

farmers in the state and address their issues.

The four-day initiative is being launched amid the rising resentment among farmers across the state over delay in

procurement of tur this year.

India‘s first underwater rail tunnel completed ahead of schedule

India‘s first underwater tunnel, which was built under the Hooghly river for establishing a metro link

in Kolkata, has been completed before the deadline.

Mumbai, Kota among world‘s most crowded cities

Two Indian cities – Mumbai and Kota – have been named among the world‘s most crowded in the list by the

World Economic Forum (WEF).

With a population density of 44,500 people per square kilometre, Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, is the most

crowded city on the planet, followed by India‘s financial capital Mumbai, home to 31,700 people per square

kilometre at the second place.

Kota in Rajasthan with 12,100 people per square kilometre was ranked seventh.

Sanjay Mitra appointed new Defence Secretary

An officer of the 1982 batch of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Sanjay Mitra has taken over as

Defence Secretary from G. Mohan Kumar.

Google‘s Rajan Anandan is now IAMAI Chairman

Rajan Anandan, Vice-President, South East Asia and India, Google, is elected as the new Chairman of Internet

and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI).

Anandan takes over from Kunal Shah, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer, FreeCharge.

New Book on Virat Kohli‘s Winning Formula Revealed by Abhirup Bhattacharya

A new book ―Winning like Virat: Think & Succeed like Kohli‖ by Abhirup Bhattacharya, unravels the

secrets of the cricketer‘s consistent form, while attempting to decode his philosophy towards life.

HCL to host Asian Junior Tennis Championship 2017

HCL will host Asian Junior Tennis Championship 2017 (to be held at Pune), the most reputed tennis

championship in the Asian circuit for the under 18 category in association with the Maharashtra State Lawn

tennis Association from May 29.

ISRO and NASA collaborates to develop world‘s most expensive earth imaging satellite

In a latest collaborative project, ISRO and NASA are jointly working on the NASA-ISRO Synthetic

Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission to co-develop and launch a dual frequency synthetic aperture radar

satellite. This earth monitoring satellite is scheduled to be launched in 2021.

Socialist Lenin Moreno sworn in as Ecuador president

Sweden beat Canada to win ice hockey world title

3rd RCEP Inter-sessional Ministerial Meeting

3rd Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Inter-sessional Ministerial Meeting held at Hanoi,

Vietnam.

Indian delegation to this meeting was led by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

World‘s smallest nation ratifies Solar Alliance Pact

The world‘s smallest republic, the tiny island nation of Nauru — has become the sixth country to ratify the

International Solar Alliance (ISA) Framework pact initiated by the Indian and French governments at the

climate change summit held at Paris in 2015.

Recently, five more African nations — Comoros, Cote d‘Ivoire, Somalia, Ghana and Djibouti — have committed to

sign the Solar Alliance pact during the ongoing meeting of the African Development bank in India.

Taiwan‘s top court rules in favour of same-sex marriage

Taiwan‘s top judges have ruled in favour of gay marriage, paving the way for it to become the first place in

Asia to legalise same-sex unions.

Dubai recruits world‘s first robot police officer

The Dubai police have officially inducted the world‘s first operational robot police officer into the

force. The ‗robocop‘ robot is capable of speaking six languages and people can use its built-in tablet device to

access various police services.

Daily Current Affairs 26 May 2017

Moody‘s downgrades IDBI Bank

Moody‘s Investors Service has downgraded IDBI Bank‘s local and foreign currency bank deposit ratings

to Ba2 from Baa3.

India‘s longest bridge brings Assam closer to Arunachal Pradesh

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, has inaugurated India‘s longest bridge – the 9.15 km long Dhola-

Sadiya bridge over the River Brahmaputra, in Assam.

The bridge will ensure 24X7 connectivity between upper Assam and Eastern part of Arunachal Pradesh.

The bridge has been constructed across the Rivers Brahmaputra and Lohit and connects Dhola with

Sadiya in upper Assam‘s Tinsukia district.

Also PM Modi has announced that the bridge will be named after renowned singer Bhupen Hazarika, the

son of Brahmaputra and Assam‘s voice.

Centre bans sale of cows for slaughter at animal markets, restricts cattle trade

The government has banned the sale of cows and buffaloes for slaughter through animal markets, rules that will

hurt millions of poor farmers and squeeze supplies to the country‘s meat industry.

E-clinics for J&K farmers

The J&K government has launched an e-clinics service for farmers with the aim to double farmers‘ income by

2022.

UP Government launches JE vaccination drive in 38 districts of UP

Appealing to all the public representatives and common people to cooperate with the Government in keeping

their area clean, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Aditynath has launched the Japanese Encephalitis (JE)

vaccination drive, with an aim to eradicate the disease in 38 districts of the State.

Paradip Port gets Shipping Ministry award

The Paradip Port Trust has been awarded by the Union Shipping Ministry for witnessing the second highest

growth in traffic for FY17.

President receives book on PM Modi‘s ‗Mann Ki Baat‘

President Pranab Mukherjee has received the first copy of two books ‗Mann Ki Baat-A Social Revolution on

Radio‘ and ‗Marching with a Billion-Analysing Narendra Modi‘s Government at Mid term‘ at Rashtrapati

Bhavan in New Delhi.

The book Mann Ki Baat: A Social Revolution on Radio by Rajesh Jain is a compilation of Prime Minister

Modi‘s addresses to the nation on All India Radio every month under the programme Mann Ki Baat.

Anurag Tripathy Appointed as Secretary of CBSE

Senior bureaucrat Anurag Tripathy was today appointed as the secretary of the Central Board of Secondary

Education (CBSE).

India retains world‘s highest FDI recipient crown: Report

India retained its numero uno position as the world‘s top most greenfield FDI investment destination for the

second consecutive year, attracting USD 62.3 billion in 2016, according to the fDi Report 2017 compiled by

fDi Intelligence, a division of The Financial Times Ltd.

Also, China has overtaken the US to become the second biggest country for FDI by capital investment.

Indo-Thailand Siam Bharat 17: HADR concluded

Indo-Thailand Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Table Top Exercise 2017 between the

Indian Air Force and Royal Thailand Air Force (RTAF) has concluded at Chiang Mai, Thailand.

It was scheduled from 22 May to 26 May 17.

RIL leads 58 Indian firms in Forbes Global 2000 latest list

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL) is the highest ranked Indian firm in Forbes magazine‘s ‗Global

2000‘ list this year

Reliance Industries is followed by State Bank of India, the country‘s largest lender, ranked 244 this year

(149 last year), and state-run oil explorer ONGC ranked 246 (220 last year).

Nato to join US-led anti-Islamic State coalition

The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) will formally join the United States-led coalition against the

Islamic State extremist group.

Daily Current Affairs 27 May 2017

Centre amends definition of a start-up

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), which is the nodal body for Start-up India, has

amended the definition of a start-up.

As per the new definition an entity will be considered as a Start-Up if its turn over is less than Rs 25

crore and has not completed seven years from the date of its incorporation/registration.

Also the new definition has increased the time period from 5 years to 7 years taking into the

consideration the long gestation period involved in establishing start-ups.

Startup India initiative was unveiled in January 2016 to build a strong eco-system for nurturing

innovation and to help start-ups to drive economic growth and generate large scale employment

opportunities.

India, Mauritius to step up vigil against threats in Indian Ocean

India and Mauritius have agreed to cooperate in stepping up vigil against conventional and non-conventional

threats in the Indian Ocean.

India also agreed to provide a Line of Credit of USD 500 million to Mauritius for various projects.

WHO confirms first three cases of Zika Virus in India

India has detected three Zika-affected patients — all from Ahmedabad in Gujarat, says a World Health

Organisation (WHO) report.

Earlier, all the three cases had been confirmed by the Union Health Ministry‘s labratories — first in

January 2016, then in November 2016 and the last one in January 2017.

The cases were brought to the knowledge of the WHO by the Health Ministry on May 15, 2017.

The virus is transmitted to people through a bite of an infected mosquito called Aedes Aegypti, which also

transmits dengue and chikungunya.

Haryana announces pension scheme for journalists

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has announced a slew of incentives for journalists, including a Rs

10,000 monthly pension scheme, for those who are above 60 years and have completed 20 years in the

profession.

He also announced a life insurance cover of Rs 10 lakh and a cashless mediclaim policy of Rs 500,000.

Naseemuddin Siddiqui forms new political party

Expelled Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Naseemuddin Siddiqui has formed his new political party –

Rashtriya Bahaman Morcha

Tapan Ray to be next Economic Affair Secretary

Corporate affairs secretary Tapan Ray will take up the additional charge of the post of Secretary of

Department of Economic Affairs.

He will replace Shaktikanta Das whose tenure was extended by government by 3 months.

Taj Mahal only Indian monument to figure in top 10 global landmarks

Taj Mahal, the magnificent monument of love, has made it to the top 10 landmarks in the world by

securing 5th position in the list. With this, it is the only Indian monument to figure in the world‘s top 10

Travellers‘ Choice awards for Landmarks.

Angkor Wat in Siem Reap (Cambodia) topped the list followed by Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

Center in Abu Dhabi (UAE), Mezquita Cathedral de Cordoba in Cordoba (Spain) and St Peter‘s Basilica

in Vatican City (Italy).

However, according to the Asia list, Taj Mahal was at 2 spot after Angkor Wat.

2017 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit held in Belgium

The 28th edition of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit held in Brussels, Belgium.

The top agenda of the meeting was terrorism.

The 2018 NATO summit will be held in Istanbul, Turkey.

UN risk reduction forum opens in Mexico

The 2017 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction is being held in Cancun, Mexico.

It will mark the first opportunity for the international community to review global progress on the

implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, which was adopted in Japan in

2015.

Nepal‘s Kami Rita becomes third person to scale Mt. Everest 21 times

Nepal‘s Kami Rita became the third person to scale Mount Everest 21 times after he reached the summit of

the world‘s tallest mountain, Nepal‘s Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation confirmed.

Apa Sherpa is the first person and Phurba Tashi Sherpa, the second to do the same. Both are also from

Nepal.

KPS Gill passed away

One of India‘s most celebrated cops and Former Punjab DGP KPS Gill passed away at the age of 82 after

suffering a cardiac arrest.

Daily Current Affairs 28 May 2017

Banks write off Rs 2.2 lakh crore in five years, said to be highest ever

All scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) wrote off Rs 2,25,180 crore cumulatively in the five-year period

ended March 2016, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in an RTI reply filed by Times of India.

SCBs represent all public sector banks, private sector banks, foreign banks, regional rural banks and some

co-operative banks.

Writing off of non-performing assets (NPAs) is a regular exercise conducted by banks to clean up their

balance sheets.

In each of these five years, loans written off showed an increasing trend — at an average addition of over

Rs 12,000 crore each year.

Govt selects 5 bankers to manage stake sale in IOC

The government has selected five merchant bankers to manage its 3 per cent stake sale in Indian Oil

Corporation, IOC, which could fetch about 6,000 crore rupees to the exchequer.

The bankers are – Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Deutsche Equities, SBI Capital Markets and ICICI

Securities.

Defence Minister inaugurates Rs 1,300 crore Aeronautical Test Range in Karnataka

Defence minister Arun Jaitley has inaugurated country‘s first of its kind Aeronautical Test Range (ATR), at

Chitradurga district in Karnataka. The ATR is equipped with a mega multi-agency complex for integrating and

testing various Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAV).

Dailong village in Manipur declared Biodiversity Heritage Site

The Manipur government has declared Dailong village of Tamenglong district as a Biodiversity Heritage

Site of the state.

INS Ganga decommissioned

Indian Navy frigate INS Ganga is placed in non-operational category from 28th

May 2017, followed by

decommissioning, after 32 years of service.

INS Ganga is a Godavari-class guided-missile frigate of the Indian Navy and was built in Mumbai by

Mazagon Dock Limited. INS Ganga was commissioned on December 30, 1985.

IOC overtakes ONGC to become India‘s most profitable PSU

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has overtaken Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) to become India‘s most

profitable state-owned company.

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries retained the crown of being India‘s most profitable

company for the third year in a row in financial year 2016-17.

Pune city police receive FICCI Smart Policing Award 2017

The Pune city police have received the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI)

Smart Police Award for the year 2017.

Delhi taxi drivers launch ‗Sewa Cab‘ to take on Ola, Uber

Delhi‘s taxi drivers have launched their own taxi app called ‗Sewa Cab‘ to take on Uber and Ola.

South Korea Defeat China to Win 2017 Sudirman Cup

Former Mumbai cricketer Kiran Ashar passed away

American Musical legend Gregg Allman passed away

Daily Current Affairs 29 May 2017

World Bank pegs India‘s GDP growth at 7.2% in FY18

The World Bank has pegged India‘s GDP growth at 6.8 per cent in 2016-17 and 7.2 per cent in 2017-18 in its

India Development Update

However, growth is projected to gradually increase to 7.7 per cent in 2019-2020.

India‘s tourism growth reaches 15.4 %: Mahesh Sharma

Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism Mahesh Sharma has said India‘s tourism growth has reached

15.4% when the global tourism growth was only 4.6%.

EC decides to launch special drive from June 1st

Election Commission has decided to launch a special drive from 1st of next month for registration of eligible

electors and removing the discrepancies in the rolls.

In tune with the theme of – No voters to be left behind- the Commission will utilize the period of

continuous updation for maximization of enrollment of young electors particularly in 18-19 age group by

launching a special drive in all States. The campaign will continue till 31st July this year.

Vadodara sets a new World Record

Vadodara has entered the Guinness Book of World Records for most people sweeping a single venue.

5,058 people came together to sweep the venue – a bridge connecting Akota with Dandia bazaar, spread

over a kilometre.

Vadodara was ranked the tenth cleanest city in the country under the Swachh Survekshan conducted by

the Centre earlier this month. The event was organised to celebrate that achievement.

Priyanka Chopra to be honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award

Priyanka Chopra is all set to receive the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award in a new category that

has been introduced by the jury – the ‗International Acclaimed Actress Award‘. She will be the first

recipient of this award.

Priyanka‘s mother Madhu Chopra too will be honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Award in the Best Film

category for her maiden production, ‗Ventilator‘.

Satyabrata Rout gets Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar

Satyabrata Rout, a professor from the Department of Theatre Arts, S N School of Arts and Communication,

University of Hyderabad (UoH) has been awarded Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar for the year 2016.

The Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar (Akademi Award) is an award given by the Sangeet Natak

Akademi, India‘s National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama.

ISRO set to launch monster rocket into space

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set to launch its most powerful launch vehicle,

Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mark III into space.

ISRO will be launching the GSLV Mark III, earlier named Launch Vehicle Mark (LVM)-3, a heavy

launch capability launcher, on June 5, 2017 from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

Fencer Bhavani Devi Becomes First Indian To Win Gold In International Event

Fencer C A Bhavani Devi who hails from Chennai has become the first Indian to clinch gold medal in the sabre

event of the Turnoi Satellite Fencing Championship at Reykjavik, Iceland.

Sebastian Vettel wins Monaco Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel beat his Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen to win the Monaco Grand Prix.

Former Bengal cricketer Tapan Banerjee passed away

International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers: 29 May

The International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers is observed every year on 29 May.

The theme for the 2017 International Day of UN Peacekeepers: ―Investing in Peace around the World.‖

Daily Current Affairs 30 May 2017

RBI to issue Re. one denomination currency notes

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced the introduction of currency notes in one rupee denomination,

printed by the Government of India.

These currency notes are legal tender as provided in the Coinage Act 2011.

It will contain words ‗Bharat Sarkar‘ in Devnagri above the words ‗Government of India‘ with bilingual

signature of Shaktikanta Das, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and with the replica of the new rupee one

coin with the rupee symbol of 2017 issued with Satyamev Jayate in Devnagri and capital insert letter ‗L‘

in numbering panel.

Exim Bank extends $500 m LoC to SBM (Mauritius) Infra

Export-Import Bank of India (Exim India) has extended a $500 million line-of-credit (LoC) to SBM

(Mauritius) Infrastructure Company Ltd.

Centre launches national campaign ‗Darwaza-Band‘ against open defection

The Centre has launched an aggressive new campaign titled ‗Darwaza Band‘ to promote toilet use and

freedom from open defecation across the country‘s villages.

The ‗Darwaza Band‘ campaign has been supported by the World Bank and is being rolled out

countrywide immediately after the launch.

It is designed to encourage behaviour change in men who have toilets but are not using them.

India ranks 120th among 131 nations in women workforce, says World Bank report

In its India Development Report, the World Bank said the country had one of the lowest female participation

in the workforce , ranking 120th among 131 countries.

India to have its own GPS system from 2018

Come next year, India will be having its own GPS system. ‗NavIC‘ will be operational early 2018.

NavIC or ‗Navigation with Indian Constellation‘ the name given by PM Narendra Modi after the

launch of IRNSS-1G, is designed to provide accurate position information to users within the country.

Plastic bags below 50 microns banned in Goa

Plastic bags below 50 microns will be banned from July in Goa and it has been also announced that those

selling it will be fined.

Amul, ISRO ink MoU for fodder acreage estimation using space tech

Amul and ISRO, have announced a tie-up for the benefit of dairy farmers by signing an MoU envisaging fodder

acreage assessment using satellite technology.

The main objective of this MoU is identification/discrimination between food crops and fodder crops and

identifying suitable areas of current fallows and cultivable wastelands at the village level.

Dr Sunil Kothari to be awarded the Akademi Ratna

Dr Sunil Kothari, who was the first one to complete PhD from M S University‘s Department of Dance, has

been selected for the Akademi Ratna award by the Sangeet Natak Akademi.

It is the highest Indian recognition given to an artist.

Lake Pichola awarded as Best Natural Attraction in India

HolidayIQ has awarded Lake Pichola in Udaipur, Rajasthan as the best natural attraction in India.

The award was given as part of the Tourism Award Ceremony.

Lionel Messi wins fourth Golden Shoe, ties record with Cristiano Ronaldo

Barcelona striker Lionel Messi has won the European Golden Shoe for a record equalling fourth

time having scored 37 goals this season in the Spanish league.

Kabul to host international conference on peace

Afghanistan will hold an international conference on peace, security and reconciliation on June 6, which

will be attended by nearly 20 countries in the wake of the increased violence unleashed by the Taliban in its

annual spring offensive.

Along with neighbours, the US, India, Saudi Arabia, Japan, UK, Russia, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Germany,

France and China have been invited to the conference.

‗Judy‘ Malware hits 3.65 crore of Android users

A malware which is named as ‗Judy‘ has attacked more than 3.65 crores of Android users through the simple

fashion and cooking game apps on the Google Play Store, as per the security company of Check Point.

Film director Dasari Narayana Rao passed away

Well-known Telugu film director and former Union Minister of State for Coal Dasari Narayana Rao has

passed away.

He holds the Guinness Book of Records for directing 125 films in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi.

CURRENT AFFAIRS MAY 31, 2017

NATIONAL

AMITABH BACHCHAN LED TOILET USAGE CAMPAIGN:

For promotion of toilet usage across the country‘s villages, the Ministry of Drinking Water and

Sanitation has come out with an aggressive new campaign called ―Darwaza Band‖. The campaign has been

supported by the World Bank and is being rolled out countrywide immediately after the launch.

Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation:Narendra Singh Tomar.

Chief Minister of Maharashtra: Devendra Fadnavis.

GADKARI LAYS FOUNDATION OF RS 1,117 CR PROJECTS AT JNPT:

To boost port infrastructure, Shipping Minister Nitin laid foundation stone of eight connectivity projects worth

Rs 1,117.03 crore at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT).

These projects will enhance connectivity of the hinterland to the port. Port connectivity is among the four

pillars of the Ministry of Shipping‘s flagship Sagarmala programme.

Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister: Nitin Gadkari

Constituency: Nagpur, Maharashtra

GOA BANS THIN PLASTIC BAGS TO TACKLE GARBAGE:

The Goa government has decided to ban buying and selling of plastic bags below 50 microns from July, to

tackle the garbage and litter menace in public places.

The law will be implemented starting with fine of Rs. 500 and then the fine will be subsequently raised to Rs.

5,000 depending upon the success.

―NAVIC‖, INDIA‘S VERY OWN GPS SUBSTITUTE WILL BE OPERATIONAL FROM 2018:

The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) with an operational name of NavIC is currently

being tested for its accuracy and is most likely to be available in the market for public use early 2018.

NavIC stands for NAVigation with Indian Constellation. The System will cover the entire country, Indian

Ocean and its surroundings.

AMUL INKS MOU WITH ISRO:

Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) has signed an agreement with Indian Space

Research Organisation (ISRO) for fodder acreage assessment using satellite observation and space

technology. GCMMF markets its products under the brand name of Amul.

TAJ MAHAL ONLY INDIAN MONUMENT TO FIGURE IN TOP 10 GLOBAL LANDMARKS:

Taj Mahal has made it to the top 10 landmarks in the world by securing fifth position in the list. According

to the Asia list, Taj Mahal was at No. 2 spot after Angkor Wat.

Angkor Wat in Siem Reap (Cambodia) topped the list followed by Sheikh Zayed Grand

Mosque Center(2nd

) in Abu Dhabi (UAE), Mezquita Cathedral de Cordoba in Cordoba (3rd

) in Spain

and St Peter‘s Basilica (4th

) in Vatican City (Italy).

MAHARASHTRA LAUNCHED SAMWAD SABHA SCHEME:

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis launched a ‗Shivar Samwad Sabha‘ to reach out to farmers

in the state and address their issues. The 4-day initiative is being launched amid the rising resentment among

farmers across the state over delay in procurement of tur this year.

FIRST SCORPENE SUBMARINE INS KALVARI TO BE COMMISSIONED BY JULY:

Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba said that first of the six Scorpene submarines being built in India under

technology transfer is likely to join the Navy by end of July.

Six Scorpene submarines are being built under Project-75 by Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) with

technology transfer from France.

UP CM YOGI ADITYANATH LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO ERADICATE JAPANESE

ENCEPHALITIS:

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath launched a campaign to eradicate Japanese Encephalitis (JE)

immunisation drive in 38 districts in the state.

It was first launched from Kushinagar district. He also launched a toll free number to get or provide any

information about encephalitis. The number is 18001805544.

INTERNATIONAL

INDIA-KAZAKHSTAN PACT ON PRISONERS:

A treaty signed by India and Kazakhstan for transfer of each other‘s sentenced prisoners has come into effect

on May 26th

with the ratification of the agreement by both the countries.

Union home minister: Rajnath singh

Constituency: Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh

INDIA-AUSTRALIA PACT TRANSFER OF PRISONERS COMES INTO EFFECT:

An India-Australia pact for transfer of each other‘s sentenced prisoners has come into effect on May

26th

with the ratification of the treaty by both the countries.

The pact was signed by India and Australia on November 18, 2014 and the agreement was ratified by India

on December 16, 2015 and by Australia on November 21, 2016.

CABINET APPROVED JDI BETWEEN GERMANY AND INDIA:

Cabinet has approved the Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI)

between Germany and India regarding cooperation in the sector of alternative medicine.

The signing of the joint declaration will enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the areas

of traditional and alternative medicine. It enhanced employment opportunities in the AYUSH sector.

FIRST WOMEN‘S TV CHANNEL LAUNCHED IN AFGHANISTAN:

Women in Afghanistan now have their own television channel. Zan – or Women‘s – TV began airing this

month, with a staff of all female presenters and producers.

NATO SUMMIT 2017 IN BRUSSELS:

The 28th

edition of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit has started in Brussels, Belgium.

The top agenda of the meeting was terrorism. The Main aim is to fight against Islamist terrorism.

The 2018 NATO summit will be held in Istanbul, Turkey.

U.S SUCCESSFULLY TESTS ICBM DEFENCE SYSTEM FOR FIRST TIME:

The U.S Missile Defense Agency said it was the first live-fire test against a simulated ICBM (Intercontinental

ballistic missile) for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD), managed by Boeing Co (BA.N).

The U.S. military fired an ICBM-type missile from the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands toward the

waters just south of Alaska. It then fired a missile to intercept it from Vandenberg Air Force

Base in California.

Banking & Business

RBI TO INTRODUCE NEW RE 1 CURRENCY NOTE:

The new one rupee currency note will have an overall colour scheme of pink and green, in combination with

other under The Coinage Act, 2011.Secretary, Ministry of Finance: Shaktikanta Das

Features:

The new Re 1 note will be 7 by 8.3 cm and in a pink and green colour theme. Its previous avatar was of

an indigo colour.

The note will have ‗Bharat Sarkar‘ on its masthead, with ‗Government of India‘ printed below that. All other

currencies have ‗Bharatiya Reserve Bank‘ and ‗Reserve Bank of India‘ printed on them.

The one-rupee note has always been issued by the central government while all the other denominations are

issued by the RBI.

The watermarks of the Re 1 note will include the Ashoka Pillar, the hidden numeral ―1‖ and the hidden

word ―Bharat (in Hindi)‖.

The note will also feature a replica of the one rupee coin and an image of the ‗Sagar Samrat‘ oil exploration rig.

INDIAN BANKS‘ BAD LOANS MAY RISE TO 15% BY MARCH 2018: S&P

Indian banks‘ stressed assets are likely to increase to 15% of total loans by March 2018 even as their

regulatory capital requirements will continue to rise till 2019, S&P Global Ratings.

S&P Global Ratings

President & CEO: Douglas L Peterson

Headquarters: New York

INDIA RETAINS WORLD‘S HIGHEST FDI RECIPIENT CROWN:

In a ―fDi Report 2017‖ compiled by fDi intelligence said that India retained its No.1 position of being

the world‘s top most Greenfield FDI investment destination for the second consecutive year.

Report Highlights:

India attracted USD 62.3 billion in 2016.

India has remained ahead of China and the US as far as FDI inflows were concerned in the last year.

FDI by capital investment saw an increase of 2% to USD 62.3 billion in 809 projects during 2016 in India.

AWARDS

PRIYANKA CHOPRA TO RECEIVE DADASAHEB PHALKE ACADEMY AWARD:

Actress Priyanka Chopra will be conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award for being

an international icon.

INDIAN PEACEKEEPERS BRIJESH THAPA AND RAVI KUMAR HONOURED WITH UN

MEDAL:

Rifleman Brijesh Thapa who served with the UN Organisation Stabilization Mission in the Democratic

Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and Private Ravi Kumar who was deployed with the UN Interim

Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) will be honoured with the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal on the International Day

of UN Peacekeepers to be observed on May 29.

APPOINTMENTS

BANKS BOARD BUREAU GETS 2 MORE MEMBERS:

The government has expanded the Banks Board Bureau (BBB) by adding two more members.

Former Allahabad Bank chairperson and managing director Shubhalaxmi Panse and private equity

player Pradip Shah have been inducted into the board as independent members.

Banks Board Bureau (BBB) head: Vinod Rai

The Bureau started functioning from April 01, 2016 as an autonomous recommendatory body.

KERALA BJP LEADER GEORGE KURIAN APPOINTED VICE-CHAIRPERSON OF NATIONAL

COMMISSION FOR MINORITIES:

Kerala Bharatiya Janata Party leader George Kurian has been appointed Vice-Chairperson of the National

Commission for Minorities or NCM.

Union Minister of State for Minority Affairs: Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi

AIR MARSHAL PN PRADHAN TAKES CHARGE AS DEPUTY CHIEF OF INTEGRATED

DEFENCE STAFF:

Air Marshal PN Pradhan has been appointed as the Deputy Chief of Integrated Defence Staff

(Operations).

Integrated Defence Staff was created in 2001 following the recommendation of GoM which was set up after

the Kargil war to review India‘s defence management.

ANURAG TRIPATHY APPOINTED AS SECRETARY OF CBSE:

Senior bureaucrat Anurag Tripathy was appointed as the secretary of the Central Board of Secondary

Education (CBSE).

He has been appointed to the post for a period of five years by Department of Personnel and

Training (DoPT).

SPORTS

KOHLI ONLY INDIAN IN TOP 10 OF ICC ODI RANKINGS:

India captain Virat Kohli is the only cricketer from the country to feature in the top 10 of the ICC Players

Rankings for ODIs as he managed to hold on to his third spot in the batsman‘s chart.

LIONEL MESSI WINS FOURTH GOLDEN SHOE AWARD:

Barcelona and Argentina striker Lionel Messi won the European Golden Shoe for a record fourth time

for finishing as the top goal scorer in the season across all European first division leagues. He drew level

with Real Madrid‘s Cristiano Ronaldo with the fourth honour.

N‘GOLO KANTE NAMED ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE YEAR:

Chelsea midfielder and Frenchman N‘Golo Kante was named Player of the Year by the English Premier

League.

He has already been named Player of the Year by the Football Writers Association and the Professional

Footballers Association.

HISTORIC EVENTS OF THE DAY

MAY 31: WORLD NO TOBACCO DAY:

Every year, on 31st May, World Health Organisation (WHO) asked to celebrate World No Tobacco

Day (WNTD) highlights the health and additional risks associated with tobacco use, and advocating for

effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption.

The theme of 2017 is ―Tobacco – a threat to development‖.

OBITUARY

EX-MINISTER & FILM DIRECTOR DASARI NARAYANA RAO DEAD:

Film director and former Union Minister of State for Coal Dasari Narayana Rao is no more.

FORMER GREEK PM CONSTANTINE MITSOTAKIS PASSES AWAY:

Former Greek Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis, one of Greece‘s most prominent veteran politicians

died at the age of 98. Mitsotakis served as prime minister between 1990 and 1993.