competition booster english 2016
TRANSCRIPT
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Eco/Banking/RBI
ECONOMY
June 1 : Finance Ministry expects GDP growth to
improve to 8% in 2016-17
June 1 : According to Government sources it has
achieved the scal decit target of 3.9 per
cent of GDP in 2015-16.
Furthermore revenue decit during the last
scal was 2.5 per cent of GDP.
June 1 : Nomura has marked down, India's GDP
growth forecast marginally to 7.7 per cent
for the 2016-17, from 7.8 per cent earlier,
saying there is still no sign of an export or
private capital expenditure turnaround.
June 2 : India's growth rate is expected to hover near
7.5% this year as well as next even as many
emerging market economies continue to lose
momentum.
The outlook was released a day after data
shared by the statistics ofce showed
that India grew at 7.6% in 2015-16 and
economists expect it to grow 7.9% in FY17.
June 3 : State-run rm BSNL announced partnership with
Hitachi Payment Services for facilitating round-the-clock phone bill payment through ATMs.
BSNL customers will be able to pay their
bills through these ATMs.
June 3 : BSE, Asia's oldest Stock Exchange, has
received the Reserve Bank approval to start
an online bidding platform for Sovereign
Gold Bond scheme.
The bond is issued by RBI on behalf of
government and investors can apply for the
bonds at the price as offered by RBI.
June 6 : Nestle and Alibaba announced plans toupgrade their partnership.The world's
largest food retailer will launch its biggest
e-commerce campaign ever with its diverse
products, spanning 30 brands from coffee
to baby formula, being sold on Alibaba's
expansive e-commerce platforms such as
T-mall.
June 7 : In a major boost to its diplomatic push for
NSG membership, India managed to win
crucial support of Switzerland ahead of a key
meeting of the 48-nation bloc even as the two
countries agreed to step up cooperation in
unearthing black money stashed by Indians
in Swiss banks.
June 7 : Government of India and Asian Development
Bank have signed a $120 Million loan
agreement to Modernize Irrigation andImprove Water Management in Odisha.
June 10 : Ola Money, the wallet payment of cab
aggregator Ola, has partnered with online
marketplaces eBay, Yep Me and Askme
Bazaar, to allow customers to pay through
its digital payment service.
June 11 : 179.9% Growth in Tourists Arrival on
E-Tourist Visa in May 2016 over the Same
Period in 2015
USA Continues to Occupy Top Slot followed
by UK and China Amongst the CountriesAvailing E-Tourist Visa Facility during May
2016.
June 13 : Recovery in the Indian economy is likely to
continue and the GDP growth is expected
to be higher at 7.8 percent in the current
nancial year, although it will be "uneven",
propped largely by "strong consumption"
and public expenditure, says a DBS report.
June 13 : The government expects the economy to
grow by 7-7.75 per cent in the current scal.
June 14 : Technology giant Microsoft will acquireLinkedIn for $196 per share in an all-cash
deal valued at $26.2 billion, inclusive of
LinkedIns net cash.
June 14 : Dell and Shiv Nadar University have signed
an agreement to collaborate and drive
research .
June 14 : Wholesale Price-based Ination was 0.79%
in May, vegetable prices have risen.
June 17 : Max Life, Max Financial Services have
agreed to merge with HDFC Life. Max Life
will merge with HDFC Life insurance, thecompanies said in statements to exchanges.
June 17 : Canadian smartphone maker BlackBerry
announced its partnership with HCL
Info systems to expand the channel and
distribution network for BlackBerry
enterprise software products and services in
India
June 20 : Government has announced a series of
big changes in the FDI norms for single
brand retail, civil aviation, airports,
pharmaceuticals and animal husbandry.
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The government has allowed 100 percent
in aviation policy for scheduled carriers. 49
percent FDI has been permitted under the
automatic route.
June 21 : SDMC inks pact with SECI for 20 MWsolar power project .Aiming to generate
solar power through rooftops of buildings
and spare land under South Delhi Municipal
Corporation, the civic body inked an MoU
with Solar Energy Corporation of India
(SECI).
June 21 : To improve ties with Myanmar, the Inland
Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has
entered into an agreement with India Ports
Global Private (IPGPL)for a Rs 476-crore
project to facilitate connectivity and trade.
June 21 : India's economic growth is expected to be
at 7.6% in 2016-17, followed by a modest
acceleration to 7.7% in 2017-18 and 7.8% in
2018-19," as per World Bank said in its India
Development Update-Financing Double
Digit Growth report, which is published
twice a year.
June 22 : IT services provider Tech Mahindra stated
that, it has acquired the BIO Agency (BIO).
It is a UK-based agency that offers digital
services to global clients and engages with
their customers. Tech Mahindra acquired theBritish rm for 45 million pounds (Rs 445
crore).
June 22 : Country's largest software services rm Tata
Consultancy Services (TCS) has partnered
with four colleges (Swami Vivekanand
University, St. Xaviars College of Science &
Art etc.) to offer courses in Big Data as it
looks to strengthen the pool of workforce in
the digital technology space in India.
June 23 : To encourage saving in pension scheme,
retirement fund body will provide 8.16 percent higher pension to all those subscribers
opting for deferring the benet till the age of
60 years.
The Employees' Provident Fund Organization
has also allowed to contribute in the scheme
till the age of 60 years.
June 28 : Tata group's e-commerce venture
TataCLiQ.com is going to be partnered
with 12 international brands, including New
Look, Oasis, Lipsy London, Phase Eight,
Hawes & Curtis, to sell on its platform.
June 30 : Technology giant Cisco announced its new
LaunchPad initiative under which it will
partner with developers and enterprises in
India to co-develop smart solutions.
BANKINGJune 2 : The Union Cabinet approved a proposal by
the department of posts for entry into the
banking sector by launching the India Post
Payments Bank, a development that would
help the central government in its initiative
of 100% nancial inclusion.
June 7 : YES Bank has projected Indias GDP to cross
8.1% in FY17 on the back of visible pickup
in consumption demand like cement, oil,
electricity along with stronger than anticipated
fourth quarter, FY16 corporate earnings.
June 9 : The World Bank has lowered its forecast for
the global growth in 2016 to 2.4 per cent,
saying that the world economy is facing
stronger headwinds which is 0.5 percentage
point lower than the banks forecast in
January.
June 11 : Realty portal Magic bricks has partnered
with State Bank of India (SBI) to organise
an online home-buying festival. The three-
week long online festival will kick start from
June 10-30, 2016.
June 14 : DCB Bank has launched a card-less and
PIN-less ATM in Bengaluru. The ATM
accepts Aadhaar number and Aadhaar
ngerprint (biometric) instead of ATM /
debit card and PIN to dispense cash from the
bank account.
June 15 : Cabinet has approved merger of 5 associate
banks with SBI.
June 16 : State Bank of India has created a dedicated
Rs. 200 crore fund for start ups. In order to
fund start-ups in the nancial technology (n
tech) space, country's largest lender SBI hasset up a Rs 200 crore fund.
June 20 : State-run bank SBI has been named in a 'Hall
of Shame' list of 158 banking and nancial
institutions globally that have invested
billions of dollars in companies making
cluster bombs.
June 22 : Nikesh Arora abruptly departed Soft Bank
Group Corp., two years after he was wooed
from Google Inc. and had emerged as the
heir apparent at the Japanese internet and
telecommunications giant.
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June 23 : Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC)
Chairman S K Roy (pictured) has written to the
government to relieve him of his duties from
June 29 this year. Roy, who took charge as
chairman of the countrys largest insurer on the
same date in 2013, had a ve-year term.
RBI
June 3 : The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has set
in motion the process of establishing an IT
(information technology) subsidiary.
June 7 : The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has kept
key interest rate unchanged at a ve-year low
of 6.50% in its bi-monthly policy review.
The cash reserve ratio (CRR), or the share of
deposits banks must keep with the RBI, was
unchanged at 4% .
June 7 : India's real economy , as measured by the
Gross Value Added (GVA), is likely to
expand by 7.6 per cent in 2016-17 due to
improvement in farm and industry sectors,
said an RBI-sponsored survey of professional
forecasters.
June 11 : Reserve Bank has cancelled registration of
three NBFCs including Escorts Finance and
Express Trading & Securities.
June 14 : In a bid to further strengthen the lenders
ability to deal with stressed assets and put
real assets back on track, the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) has unveiled yet another scheme
Scheme for Sustainable Structuring of
Stressed Assets (S4A) for reworking the
nancial structure of big corporate entities
facing genuine difculties.
June 28 : With an aim to curb price hike and
maintaining price stability, while keepingin mind the objective of growth, the
Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, has been
amended by the Finance Act, 2016. For the
amendment a committee will be formed with
name MPC( Monetary Policy Committee).
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Naonal & State News of
the Month
June 1 : Central Government has decided to enhancesuperannuation age of all doctors in Central
Health Service to 65 years with effect 31st
May 2016. This decision will benet about 4
thousand doctors.
June 2 : The Ministry of Home Affairs has taken a
decision to include short term yoga programmes
in Tourist Visa and e-Tourist Visa.
June 2 : India unveiled a blueprint to tackle national
disasters through its rst ever National
Disaster Management Plan (NDMP). The
plan, released by Prime Minister NarendraModi, aims to make the country disaster
resilient and reduce loss of lives and assets
during calamities.
June 3 : India has joined the Hague Code of Conduct
(HCoC) against Ballistic Missile Proliferation
by notifying the HCoC Central Contact in
Vienna through diplomatic channels.
June 4: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
Signed Between Ministry of Railways
and Govt. of Haryana for setting up of JV
Company. In presence of Union Ministerof Railways, Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu and
Chief Minister of Haryana Manohar
Lal Khattar, a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) for Formation of
Joint Venture Company for Development
of Railway Infrastructure in the State was
signed on 3rd June, 2016.
June 6 : Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu agged off
IRCTCs Tiger Express from Safdarjung
station. A semi-luxury tourist train, Tiger
Express is launched to spread awareness
among people regarding tiger conservation.
June 6 : The 19th Plenary Session of the Contact Group
on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS)
took place in Mahe, Seychelles during 31 May
3 June 2016. India was chosen to co-chair
the important Working Group on Improving
Maritime Situational Awareness (MSA) in the
Region through consensus.
June 7 : In line with the governments Digital
India campaign, computer technology giant
Dell has announced the launch of Aarambh
a pan-India initiative aimed at spearheading
the use of personal computer (PC) for
education.
June 8 : Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (IC) for
Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy
launched Surya Mitra mobile App atNational Workshop on Rooftop Solar Power.
The GPS based mobile app is developed by
National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE)
which is an autonomous institution of Ministry
of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE).
June 10 : Jharkhand was adjudged 'top performing
state' under the Digital India Programme.
Besides Jharkhand, Goa, Maharashtra, Mizoram,
Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh also got
awards as top performing states.
June 10 : Nitish Kumar-led Bihar is followed by
Telangana and Jharkhand on a ranking being
done on real-time basis by the Department
of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP)
on business reforms and action plans.In the
last year's nal rankings, Bihar was at 21st
position.
June 10 : Union home minister and Lucknow MP
Rajnath Singh inaugurated the Wi-Fi
service at the Charbagh railway station in
Lucknow.
June 11 : Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu dedicates
six railway facilities in Bihar. Railway
Minister Suresh Prabhu inaugurated six rail
facilities in Bihar including agging off the
weekly Motihari-Anand Vihar Champaran
Satyagrah Express.
June 16 : Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu launched
a series of initiative, including agging-off
of rst time-tabled container train service
named Cargo Express from Domestic
Container Terminal, Okhla (Delhi) to
Whiteeld (Bengaluru).
June 17 : Union Minister for Human Resource
Development, Smriti Zubin Irani has
dedicated 'Vidyanjali'- a school volunteer
programme to the nation.
The programme will be piloted across 21
states which committed to do so in the
conference of state ministers of Education
held on February 8.
June 18 : The Finance Ministry said non-resident
indians (NRIs) can now open National
Pension System (NPS) accounts online if
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they have Aadhaar Card or PAN card.
Most of the Indians going to the gulf and
some other countries go for employment and
return to India after having worked abroad
for a certain period.
June 18 : Government has decided in principle to
allow export of missile systems to 'certain'
countries who have friendly relationship
with India.
June 18 : In connection with the celebration of
International Day of Yoga 2016 a Yog
Geet (Song) was released by the Minister
of State (IC) for AYUSH, Shripad Naik at
New Delhi. This song is of 3 minutes and 15
seconds in Hindi language.
June 18 : The Union Minister for Power, Coal and
Renewable Energy, Piyush Goyal has said
that all the states have resolved to provide
24x7 power for all by March 2019 or earlier
in their respective states.
June 21 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced
two yoga awards - one international and
another national - to be given away on the
occasion of International Yoga Day.
Modi declares this announcement when he
was addressing 30,000 yoga enthusiasts at
the Capitol Complex here on the event of the
second International Yoga Day.
June 21 : Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management
Committee (DSGMC), along with India
Post, launched a postal cover featuring
Sikh general Baba Banda Singh Bahadur, to
commemorate his 300th death anniversary.
June 21 : Nagpur City and China's Jinan city have
become sister cities for exchange of
ideas and technology. Nagpur Municipal
Corporation (NMC) and Jinan, Municipal
People's Republic of China, entered into an
agreement to develop sister city relationship
between the two cities.
June 23 : A state-of-the-art centre to conduct research
on medical benets of yoga, was inaugurated
at the AIIMS as part of the government's
emphasis on yoga and traditional systems of
medicine.
June 23 : Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu agged off
a new train service between Danapur and
Saharsa in Bihar through video-conferencing.
Besides agging off the Danapur-Saharsa
Janhit Express, Prabhu also announced the
extension of three train services in Bihar and
Jharkhand.
June 23 : India is offering Commonwealth citizensfully funded training courses across a range
of areas, including rural development, IT,
telecommunications and renewable energy,
in association with the Commonwealth
Secretariat. The courses are sponsored by the
Indian government and delivered by Indian
institutions through the Indian Technical and
Economic (ITEC) programme.
June 25 : All states, barring Uttar Pradesh, along with
seven Union territories have signed 24x7
'Power for All' (PFA) documents, which
aims to provide round- the-clock affordable
electricity.
June 29 : The Union Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare
Minister, Radha Mohan Singh launched Crop
Manager for Rice-based Systems (CMRS)
a web based App for better crop and Nutrient
management, released for Bihar farmers.
June 29 : Recommendations of the 7th Pay
Commission got the Cabinet nod, which
will benet over one crore government
employees and pensioners. The pay panel,in November last year, had recommended
a 14.27 per cent hike in basic pay at junior
levels, the lowest in 70 years.
June 29 : The National Mineral Exploration Policy
(NMEP) got the Cabinet approval, paving
the way for auction of 100 prospective
mineral blocks.
June 30 : Naval Science and Technological Laboratory
(NSTL), a premier laboratory of DRDO,
(indigenously) built heavyweight anti-
submarine torpedo Varunastra has beensuccessfully inducted in the navy, making
India one of the eight countries to have the
capability to design and build such a system.
June 30 : The last ship in the series of four Water Jet
Fast Attack Crafts (WJFAC) being built for
the Indian Navy by defence PSU Garden
Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd
(GRSE) was launched.
It is named Tarasa, after an island in the
Andaman and Nicobar archipelago.
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June 2 : An arrangement between the authorized
governmental agencies of the Government ofIndia and United States of America (USA) for
exchange of terrorist screening information
was signed in New Delhi.
June 3 : In an effort to increase mutual cooperation,
India and Tunisia signed two MoUs on
promotion of handicrafts , IT, communication
and digital economy.
June 4 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi and
Afghanistan President Dr. Ashraf Ghani
jointly inaugurated the Afghan-India
Friendship Dam (Salma Dam) in Herat
province in Western Afghanistan.
June 4 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming
visit to the American capital will highlighted
the deepening of the US-India relationship. It
It was PM Modi's fourth visit to America.
June 4 : The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi visited
Afghanistan, State of Qatar, Switzerland,
United States of America and Mexico from
June 4, 2016 to June 8, 2016.
June 6 : India and Qatar have signed an agreement to
forge cooperation in skill development and
facilitate mobility of workers from India to
the gulf nation.
June 7 : Singapores prestigious Institute of Technical
Education will help set up vocational skill
centres across India to train youths to full
the requirements of skilled manpower in
select industries.
June 9 : Days after it got Switzerland's backing, India
gained support from Mexico, as well, for
its bid to become a member of the Nuclear
Suppliers Group (NSG).
June 9 : India and Nepal decided to enhance mutual
cooperation in matters of disaster responsemanagement and effective preparedness
against them.
A 15-member Nepalese delegation met the
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF)
here and discussed issues related to sharing
and cooperation in these subjects.
June 9 : Narendra Modi became the sixth Indian
Prime Minister to address the joint session
of the US Congress. Before this Jawaharlal
Nehru, Rajiv Gandhi, P V Narasimha Rao,
Atal Behari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh
have addressed US Congress.
June 14 : Israel won an election to chair the UnitedNations' legal committee, the rst time thatit will head one of the world body's six
permanent committees since joining the
U.N. in 1949.
June 14 : Ghana seeks civil nuclear cooperation withIndia .Putting the agenda of deepening tieswith the African countries on a fast-track,India and Ghana signed three bilateralagreements to strengthen co-operation in
varied elds.
June 14 : India and the UK clinched two new keyagreements on solar energy and nanotechnology as part of their wider scienceand technology cooperation.
June 14 : India and Switzerland said a team wouldsoon visit the Alpine nation to expedite
pending information requests on Indianswith Swiss bank accounts, while anautomatic exchange of details would beginin 2018.
June 17 : India and Thailand have inked twoagreements in the eld of culture andeducation.
June 18 : Jamia Millia Islamia has signed amemorandum of understanding (MoU)with Tehran's National Institute of GeneticEngineering and Biotechnology (NIGEB)for academic cooperation.
June 18 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi and LankanPresident Maithripala Sirisena inauguratednewly-renovated Duraiappah Stadium inJaffna .
June 18 : The Commerce & Industry MinisterSmt. Nirmala Sitharaman and Mr. JooHyunghwan, the Minister of Trade,Industry & Energy, Government of theRepublic of Korea, launched Korea Plus, aspecial initiative to promote and facilitateKorean Investments in India.
June 20 : Ganges-Danube Cultural Festival of
India in Hungary was inaugurated byDr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State forCulture & Tourism (I/C) and Civil Aviationat Vigado Theatre in Budapest, Hungary.
June 20 : Rome has elected populist Virginia Raggi asits rst female mayor in a signicant electoralreverse for Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
June 23 : The Cabinet approved the signing of aprotocol amending an agreement betweenIndia and Belgium for avoidance of double
taxation and prevention of scal evasion
with respect to taxes on income.
Internaonal News of
the Month
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June 24 : The World Bank announced a partnership
with Indian Council of Arbitration (ICA) to
aid dispute resolution, if any, for speedier
disposal of infrastructure projects in India.
June 25 : Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia andTajikistan will get the rst set of loans
totalling $509 million from Chinas
sponsored Asian Infrastructure Investment
Bank (AIIB) in which India is a founding
member.
June 25 : Asian Development Bank (ADB) stated that,
it has approved a $500 million loan to build a
bridge across the Ganga in Bihar.The project
is expected to be completed by December,
2020.
June 25 : India and Switzerland signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) toestablish formal cooperation in the elds of
skills development, vocational, professional
education and training.
June 27 : India joined the Missile Technology Control
Regime (MTCR) as a full time member, three
days after it failed to get NSG membership
due to stiff opposition from China and a few
other countries.
June 29 : The 193 members of the United Nations
General Assembly elected Sweden, Bolivia,
Ethiopia and Kazakhstan to serve on the
world bodys Security Council for a period
of two years, starting from 1st January 2017.
June 30 : The second BRICS Youth Summit will
begin Guwahati from July 1 with the city
leaving no stone unturned to mesmerise
the international delegates. The three-day
summit with the theme 'Youth as bridge
for intra-BRICS exchanges' will focus on
enhanced people-to-people contacts of
BRICS members - Brazil, Russia, India,
China and South Africa.
June 30 : Sending a message of unity post-Brexit, Italy
and the Netherlands have agreed to share a
two-year term on the UN Security Council
for a non-permanent seat after ve rounds
of balloting failed to break a deadlock in the
General Assembly.
The 193 membered UN General Assembly
elected Sweden, Bolivia, Ethiopia andKazakhstan to serve on the world body's
Security Council for a period of two years,
starting from January 1, 2017.
June 30 : The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime
Minister Narendra Modi has approved the
signing of a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) between India and Tanzania for
bilateral cooperation in water resources
management and development.
The areas of enhanced cooperation include
techniques in water harvesting, surface and
groundwater management and developmentand aquifer recharge.
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S K Sharma : Eminent scientist S K Sharma took charge
as the Chairman and Managing Director(CMD) of Nuclear Power Corporation
of India Limited (NPCIL).
Nishi Singh, Gopal Mukherjee :
Senior bureaucrats Nishi Singh and
Gopal Mukherjee were appointed as
members in Central Board of Direct
Taxes (CBDT), the apex direct taxes
body.
Rahul Johri : BCCI president Anurag Thakur
welcomed former media professional
Rahul Johri who has joined the cricket
board as its rst ever chief executive
ofcer (CEO).
Navin Agarwal :
Senior IPS ofcer Navin Agarwal
appointed chief of National Anti-Doping
Agency (NADA), working for dope-
free sports. Agarwal is a 1986 batch IPS
ofcer of Jammu and Kashmir cadre.
Prabhas Jha : Prabhas Kumar Jha assumed the ofce of
Secretary in the Ministry of Parliamentary
Affairs.
V Narayanasamy :
Senior Congress leader and former Union
Minister V Narayanasamy sworn in as
the tenth Chief Minister of Puducherry.
Ashok Ganapathy :
Bharti Airtel announced the appointment
of Ashok Ganapathy as Director Airtel
Business with effect from July 1. He will
report to Gopal Vittal, Chief Executive
Ofcer and Managing Director (India &
South Asia), Bharti Airtel.
Manish Kumar :Manish Kumar will be joining NSDC as
Managing Director and Chief Executive
Ofcer (CEO) and Jayant Krishna will
take up the new role of the Executive
Director and Chief Operating Ofcer
(COO) effective July 1, 2016.
Umang Bedi : Facebook India has appointed Umang
Bedi as managing director. He will
take over from Kirthiga Reddy, who
will be returning to the US to take on a
new role at the companys Menlo Park
headquarters.
Naresh Goyal :Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal
has been re-elected to IATA's Board
of Governors. Goyal is the only
representative from India on this board.
Per Lodin : UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moonhas appointed Swedish Major General
Per Lodin, a logistics expert, to head the
UN Military Observer Group in India
and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) that monitors
the situation in Kashmir. India does not
recognize the UNMOGIP's mandate.
Peter Thomson :
Peter Thomson of Fiji has been elected
as president of the next session of the UN
General Assembly, which will choose
the successor to Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon.Suresh Chandra :
Senior legal service ofcer Suresh
Chandra is appointed as the
Law Secretary.
Chandra, an ofcer of Indian Legal
Service was Additional Secretary in the
department.
Sunil Mittal : Sunil Bharti Mittal, Bharti Enterprises'
founder and chairman, has been elected
as the Chairman of the International
Chamber of Commerce (ICC), takingover from Terry McGraw, Chairman
Emeritus of S&P Global.
Kamala Shirin Lakhdhir :
US President Barack Obama has
nominated an Indian-origin diplomat
Kamala Shirin Lakhdhir, as the next
American ambassador to Malaysia.
Anil Kumble : Anil Kumble has been named head
coach of the Indian team for the next
12 months.He will take charge at the
squads preparatory camp ahead of the
upcoming tour of the West Indies nextmonth.
N Srinivasan : Former BCCI chief N Srinivasan has
been re-elected President of the Tamil
Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA)
during the state body's Annual General
Meeting.
Sujoy Bose : The nance ministry stated that Sujoy
Bose has been appointed as the chief
executive ofcer (CEO) of National
Investment and Infrastructure Fund
(NIIF) Ltd.
Appointments of the
Month
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Bose at present is director at
Infrastructure and Natural Resources,
International Finance Corporation (IFC).
Rose Gottemoeller :
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization(NATO) appointed Rose Gottemoeller as
deputy head of the US-led alliance.
She will be the rst woman to hold this
post.
N S Vishwanathan :
A government formed panel,
Appointments Committee of the Cabinet
(ACC) has selected, N S Vishwanathan as
a Reserve Bank of India deputy governor,
replacing incumbent H R Khan. N S
Vishwanathan was executive director in
RBI before his new appointment.
Nand Kishore :
Senior bureaucrat Nand Kishore was
appointed as Deputy Comptroller and
Auditor General (CAG). Kishore, a 1981
batch ofcer of Indian Audit and AccountService, is presently Additional Deputy
Comptroller and Auditor General.
Rodrigo Duterte :
Rodrigo "Rody" Duterte from Davao
City took his oath as the 16th president
of the Philippines at Malacaan Palace
in Manila.
Duterte took his oath after former
President Benigno Aquino III was given
departure honors at the Palace grounds.
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13th National Award for Excellence :
V.O. Chidambaranar Port has bagged
National Award for Excellence in Cost
Management for the year 2015 from The
Institute of Cost Accountants of India under
the category of Public Service Sector- Small.
Miss USA 2016 Award :
Deshauna Barber, a 26-year-old ,an Army
Reserve ofcer and IT analyst from the
District of Columbia has been crowned Miss
USA 2016 after mounting a strong defense
of women in combat roles in the military.
Regius Professorship in Manufacturing Award :
Eminent Indian-origin professor Lord
Kumar Bhattacharyya has been awarded
the prestigious Regius Professorship in
Manufacturing by Queen Elizabeth II for his
outstanding contribution in manufacturing.
International Dublin Literary Award :
Indian-American author Akhil Sharma won
the prestigious 100,000-euro International
Dublin Literary Award, the world's richest
award for a single novel, for his second
novel 'Family Life'.
Order of Friendship Honour :
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
has been honored with Russia's Order of
Friendship.
American Cinematheque Award :
Director Ridley Scott will be honored with
the 30th American Cinematheque award
during the organizations annual benet gala
October 14 at the Beverly Hilton.
Indian of the Year award :
National award-winning actor Kangana
Ranaut, ace Director SS Rajamouli and
Bollywood sensation Ranveer Singh got
the creme de la creme at the CNN-News18
'Indian of the Year' 2015 awards for their
contribution to the world of cinema.
US award for diabetes research :
Bariatric surgeon Shashank S Shah has
been honoured with the American Diabetes
Association's 'Vivian Fonseca Scholar'
Award 2016 for his contribution in the eld
of gastric bypass surgery for diabetes.
Highest Civilian Award of Ivory Coast :
President Pranab Mukherjee was awarded
the highest civilian award of Ivory Coast,
the National Grand Crois. The award was
conferred on him during his two days visitto the West African country.
LeEco partners with Bollywood IIFA awards 2016 :
Chinese internet and technology
conglomerate LeEco has signed up as the
ofcial sponsor of the 17th International
Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards 2016
that was held in Madrid, Spain, from June
23 to 26.LeEco is now working with Eros
Now, Yupp TV and Hungama in India.
2016 PEN Pinter Prize :
Margaret Atwood is awarded with 2016PEN Pinter Prize celebrating her political
activism, describing herself as a stand-
in for the thousands of people around the
world who speak and act against [human
rights] abuses.
63rd Filmfare Awards southern edition :
Mahesh Babu won the Best Actor for Telugu
drama "Srimanthudu", while Nayanthara
bagged the Best Actress trophy for her
performance in Tamil action-comedy "Naanum
Rowdydhaan" for the year 2015 at the star-
studded 63rd Filmfare Awards southern edition.
Rajarshi Shahu award :
Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad
Pawar has been selected for the prestigious
Rajarshi Shahu Puraskar 2016.
UK's digital archive on war hero :
Britain has launched a new digital archive
telling the inspiring stories of war heroes,
including six Indians, as part of the UK
governments centenary celebrations to
mark World War I.
Global Meteorological Award :
A Chinese scientist Zeng Qingcun, a Chinese
Academy of Sciences (CAS) member,
has won the International Meteorological
Organisation Prize, the world's top prize for
meteorological work bestowed by the World
Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
UN honour for Corporate Sustainability Initiativ :
An Indian social entrepreneur has been
named among 10 "champions and pioneers"
by UN Chief Ban Ki-moon under the
world's largest corporate sustainability
Awards of the Month
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initiative that calls on companies to align
with universal principles of human rights,
environment and anti-corruption.
2016 BET Awards :
It was Beyonce who kicked off the star-studded 2016 BET awards, got the award of
'Video of the Year' for her video 'Formation'
also get awards in other categories too.
The star-studded award ceremony was held
at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
Great Immigrants Award :
Indian-origin Google CEO Sunder Pichai
and three other Indian-Americans are amongthe 42 US nationals honoured with this
years prestigious Great Immigrants: The
Pride of America award.
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Eulogies of the Month
Prabir Mukherjee :
Former chief curator of the Cricket
Association of Bengal (CAB) Prabir
Mukherjee, who was known for his no-
nonsense steadfast approach, died at a city
hospital after a prolonged illness in Kolkata.
Razzak Khan :
Actor Razzak Khan, who is popularly
known for his role of Manikchand in Shah
Rukh Khan starrer Baadshah, passed away.
The list of his popular lms include Hello
Brother, Joru Ka Ghulam and Kyaa Kool
Hain Hum and many more.
Muhammad Ali :
Muhammad Ali, the former world
heavyweight boxing champion and one of
sport's most inuential individuals, has died
aged 74.
K.K. Katyal :
The Hindu's former Delhi Chief of Bureau
and veteran journalist K.K. Katyal passedaway in a Delhi hospital after a brief illness.
Mr. Katyal was 88.
Gordie Howe :
Canada's hockey icon Gordie Howe has died
after a lengthy illness, his family conrmed.
He was 88 years old.Nicknamed as "Mr.
Hockey", Howe is considered one of the
greatest ice hockey players of all time and
an ironman in many respects both on and off
the ice.
Achyut Lahkar :
Veteran theatre personality Achyut Lahkar
died at the age of 85 at his residence in
Barpeta district, leaving a pall of gloom in
the theatre world.
Mudrarakshas :
Famous Hindi novelist and critique
Mudrarakshas died of old age related
causes. He was 82. Born on June 21, 1933
in Lucknow, Mudrarakshas' original name
was Subhash Chandra, who wrote novels
and other forms of Hindi prose besides
producing literature for children with his penname.
Ann Morgan Guilbert :
The Nanny star Ann Morgan Guilbert
lost her battle with cancer at the age of
87.Guilbert was best known for her ve-
season run on classic sitcom Dick Van
Dyke Show.
Manimala Devi :
Noted theatre personality and popular
yesteryear Odia lm actress Manimala Devipassed away.She was 90.
John Ashe
John Ashe, a former United Nations General
Assembly president accused by U.S.
prosecutors of taking $1.3 million in bribes
from Chinese businessmen, has died at age
61.
Neil O'Brien :
Neil O'Brien, former MP of the Lok Sabha
and erstwhile member of West Bengal
Assembly is dead at the age of 82 years . He
was survived by his wife and three sons.
Austin Clarke :
Austin Clarke, the award-winning
Barbadian-born author who wrote about the
immigrant experience and being black in
Canada, has died at age 81.
Clarke won the prestigious Scotiabank Giller
Prize and the Commonwealth Writers Prize
for his 2002 novel "The Polished Hoe."
K G Subramanyan :
Legendary artist K G Subramanyan,
credited with being one of the pioneers
of Indian modern art, passed away in
Vadodara at the age of 92.
Kishore has published over 40 books of
the late artist, fondly referred to as 'Mani
Da'.
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June 1 : Indian two wheeler manufacturer Hero Moto
Corp Ltd has extended its Title Sponsorshipof the popular Caribbean Premier League
(CPL) for another three years. With this
extension, the mega cricketing event will
continue to be called the 'Hero Caribbean
Premier League' until the 2018 season.
June 1 : Nuwan Kulasekara, the 33-year old Sri
Lanka seamer, has announced his retirement
from Test cricket.Kulasekara played his last
Test in June 2014 at Lord's, where Sri Lanka
clung on to a nail-biting draw.
June 1 : England paceman James Anderson has toppedthe ICC Player Rankings for Test Bowlers for
the rst time in his career after bowling his
side to a nine-wicket victory over Sri Lanka
in the second Test.
June 1 : Retired Chinese tennis star Li Na has been
named the 60th member of the Laureus
World Sports Academy.
June 2 : Country's leading broadcaster
Star India announced that it has bagged
exclusive broadcasting rights for the next
ve French Open from 2017 to 2021.
June 2 : A consortium of investors, including
Telugu lm stars Chiranjeevi and Akkineni
Nagarjuna, joined cricket legend Sachin
Tendulkar as co-owners of Indian Super
League franchise, Kerala Blasters.
The consortium has purchased stake in
Blasters Sports Pvt Ltd, the owners of Kerala
Blasters Football Club.
June 2 : Virat Kohli, is in irresistible form in
Twenty20 cricket and being the captain of
the Indian Test team, has found himself in
the top ten of the global sports fame list puttogether by ESPN. Kohli was at No. 8 in the
ESPN World Fame 100 rankings.
June 2 : India, who beat Laos 1-0 in Vientiane in
a play-off match of the 2019 Asian Cup
Qualiers are one place behind Myanmar
among the Asian countries at 29th place.
Iran and Korea are the two highest ranked
teams in Asia, at 39th and 50th respectively.
June 6 : Novak Djokovic captured his rst French
Open for the 12th time, becoming just the
third man in history to hold all four Grand
Slam titles at the same time. Djokovic, 29,
also put himself halfway to the calendar
Grand Slam, last achieved by Laver 47 years
ago.
Victory also allowed Djokovic to stretch hiswinning record over 29-year-old Murray to
24-10 overall and 8-2 in Grand Slams.
June 6 : The Capital city of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow
will host this year's FIH Junior Men's
Hockey World. Cup. The countries that will
participate in the Junior World Cup, include
hosts India, Argentina, Autralia, Austria,
Belgium, Canada, Egypt, England, Pakistan,
Germany, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, New
Zealand, South Africa and Spain.
The competition would be aired live in 100
countries of the world.
June 6 : Veteran Malaysian shuttler Lee Chong Wei
and Chinese Taipei's rising star Tai Tzu Ying
won the men's singles and women's singles
titles respectively in the Indonesia Open
Superseries.
June 6 : Indian tennis star Rohan Bopanna ofcially
returned to top-10 in the ATP ranking
doubles chart, securing a direct entry into
the mens doubles event of the Rio Olympic
Games.
June 7 : Serena Williams may have lost in the nalof the French Open, but she has claimed
the top spot in terms of being the world's
highest paid female athlete.According
to Forbes magazine, Williams has beaten out
fellow tennis player Maria Sharapova for the
number one spot.
June 7 : India's two-wheeler manufacturing major
Hero Moto Corp Ltd will be the title sponsor
of the men's Hockey Champions Trophy
2016 which will be held in London from
June 10-17.
June 8 : CONMEBOL president Alejandro
Dominguez has let slip that Brazil will host
the Copa America in 2019.
June 9 : Germany and Arsenal's star midelder
Mesut Ozil was announced as Laureus Sport
for Good Ambassador.In 2013, Ozil signed
for Arsenal, where he currently plays and
regularly tops the assist charts.
June 9 : Maria Sharapova has been suspended for two
years by the International Tennis Federation
for testing positive for meldonium at the
Australian Open.
Sports News of the
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June 10 : Tamil Nadu teenager the 17-year-old and
International Master N R Visakh created
history by becoming the rst Indian to clinch
the Mumbai Mayor's International Open
Chess Tournament.
June 11 : Olympic champion shooter Abhinav Bindra
was chosen as the agbearer of the Indian
contingent at the Rio Games going to be
held from 5th of August, 2016.
June 13 : The Indian men's 4x400m relay team created
a new national record, clocking 3:02.17 at
the International Sprint and Relay Teams
Cup and have broken the 18 year old record.
They bettered the previous record of 3:02.62
set at the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok.
June 13 : Lewis Hamilton has closed to Nico Rosberg's
world championship lead after beating
Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel to victory in a tense
Canadian Grand Prix.
June 14 : Former Liverpool star 35-year-old John Arne
Riise, who also played for Delhi Dynamos
FC, has announced his retirement from
professional football.
June 15 : Limited overs skipper Mahendra Singh
Dhoni became the rst Indian wicket keeper
and fourth in the world to complete 350
dismissals in One-Day International (ODI)
cricket. Playing in his 278th match, Dhonihas taken 261 catches and effected 89
stumpings.
June 16 : Indian-origin British boxer Sanjeev Singh
Sahota has been roped in to ght in one of
the six supporting contests during Vijender
Singh's WBO Asia title bout against
Australian Kerry Hope on July 16.
June17 : Commander Ashutosh Pednekar of
Indian Navy made sports history when he
became the rst Indian to participate and
win International tournaments in sport of
Racketlon.
June 18 : India were pipped by reigning world
champions Australia 1-3 via penalty shootout
to settle for their maiden silver medal in the
Hockey Champions Trophy,after 36 years.
However, it was Indias best performance
in the history of the tournament. Indias
previous best performance in the Champions
Trophy was a bronze medal in 1982.
June 20 : Mercedes' German driver Nico Rosberg won
the European Grand Prix at the Baku City
Circuit here, tightening his hold on the top
spot in the Formula One drivers' standings.
June 20 : The 31-year-old, American golfer Dustin
Johnson has ended his long wait for a major
championship by winning the 116th US
Open on a dramatic day at Oakmont CountryClub.
June 22 : Striker Lionel Messi became Argentina's all-
time top goalscorer with 55 goals, surpassing
Gabriel Batistuta's record of 54 goals in 78
games.
June 25 : A 10th place nish in 50m pistol qualication
was compensated by a silver in the 10m
air pistol by Jitu Rai as the Indian secured
a podium nish at the ISSF World Cup in
Baku, Azerbaijan.
This was Jitu's sixth World Cup medal
overall.
June 27 : Ace footballer Lionel Messi announced
retirement from International Football after
Argentina's loss in Copa America nal.
June 27 : Argentina claimed a record seventh
Champions Trophy title after beating
reigning World and Olympic champions the
Netherlands by 2-1 in the women's nal at
the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre in
London.
In the bronze medal game, USA battled to
a shootout victory over Australia, giving theteam a rst Champions Trophy medal since
wining bronze at the 1995 event in Mar del
Plata, Argentina.
June 27 : Anju Bobby George and Pullela Gopichand
were named as the members of Khelo
India. Khelo India is a national programme
launched by the Union Government for the
development of sports in the country.
June 27 : Holders Chile stunned Argentina to win the
Copa America Centenario in a penalty shoot-
out as Lionel Messi's title curse struck again.
It was a carbon copy of 2015 Copa America
nal, also won by Chile on penalties after a
goal less draw.
June 28 : Brazil has been chosen to host The Copa
America 2019, the world's oldest competition
among national soccer teams.
Brazil last hosted the tournament in 1989.
This will be the fth time that the Copa
America is played in Brazil, which hosted
the event in 1919, 1922, 1949 and 1989.
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Science News of the
MonthJune 1 : NASAs Solar Dynamics Observatory has
spotted a giant dark area on the upper half of
the Sun known as a coronal hole.
June 7 :The new research, conducted by leading
scientists at the University of Shefeld in
the UK, has revealed how branched DNA
molecules are removed from the iconic
double-helical structure, a process which
scientists have been looking to unlock for
over 20 years.
June 13 :China launched a satellite to support its
global navigation and positioning network on
June 12.It is the 23rd satellite in the BeiDouNavigation Satellite System (BDS), which is
being developed as an alternative to US GPS.
June 22 :The Indian Space Research Organisation
set a new record of launching 20 satellites,
including India's Cartosat-2 series and those
the US, Germany, Canada and Indonesia
Setting a record in its space programme.
June 23 :China has launched its rst dark sky reserve
in the Tibet autonomous region's NgariPrefecture.The reserve covers an area of
2,500 square kilometers and aims to limit
light pollution by stepping up protection
of dark-sky resources for education and
tourism development.
June 29 :China launched its second Shijian-16 series
satellite.The satellite was carried by a Long
March-4B rocket and took off at 11:21 am
from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in
Northwest China.It was the 231st by a Long
March rocket.The rst Shijian-16 satellite
was launched in October 2013.
June 30 : India successfully test red a new surface-
to-air ,medium range missile (MR-SAM)
developed jointly with Israel, from a
defence base off Odisha coast.
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Miscellaneous News of theMonth
June 1 : According to the report by New World Wealth,India has been ranked seventh in the list of top
10 wealthiest countries in the world, which was
topped by the United States with total individual
wealth of $48,700 billion.
June 2 : Two Indian-origin women have been featured
in the Forbes' annual list of America's 60
wealthiest and most successful self-made
women entrepreneurs who have "crashed
ceilings through invention and innovation".
June 3 : The book, The Unseen Indira Gandhi
Through Her Physicians Eyes, written by Dr
K P Mathur, who was Indiras physician, wasreleased.
June 6 : Pegging India's 'black economy' at over Rs
30 lakh crore or about 20 per cent of total
GDP, a new study said it has been contracting
gradually over the years but still remains
bigger than the overall economic size of
countries like Thailand and Argentina.
June 6 : India has jumped 13 positions from last
year to rank second among 30 developing
countries this year on ease of doing business
& China topped according to a study of
A T Kearney 2016 GRDI (Global Retail
Development Index).
June 6 : Actress Dia Mirza has been named the
ambassador for Swachh Bharat's youth
based Swachh Saathi (student internship)
programme. Dia is a youth icon and has been
an active campaigner for Swachh Bharat.
June 7 : Guwahati, Assam became the rst city in the
country to have its own city animal with the
Kamrup metropolitan district administration
declaring the Gangetic River dolphin as its mascot.
June 7 : The coast guards of India and SouthKorea conducted a joint exercise 'Sshyog-
Hyeoblyeog-2016' in Bay of Bengal off
Chennai from June 8 to 11.
June 8 : Fashion designer and AIDS activist Kenneth
Cole was named an international goodwill
ambassador by the head of the U.N.s AIDS-
ghting organization.
June 8 : Arundhati Bhattacharya , the rst woman
chairperson of the nation's largest bank SBI,
has been ranked among the top ve most
powerful women in nance by the Forbes
magazine. She is also ranked 25th in Forbes'
list of 'The World's 100 Most Powerful
Women', which features top female
leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, scientists,
philanthropists and CEOs.
June 9 : India has surpassed Japan to become theworld's third-largest oil consumer, with its
oil demand galloping 8.1 per cent in 2015,
according to BP Statistical Review of World
Energy released .
June 9 : India was ranked at 141st place on a Global
Peace Index -- making it less peaceful
than countries like Burundi, Serbia and
Burkina Faso -- with violence taking a US
$680-billion toll on its economy in 2015.
June 9 : A 30-year old Indian entrepreneur Umesh
Sachdev has been named by Time magazine
to its 2016 list of "10 millennials who arechanging the world" for building a phone
which can help people to interact and access
critical services by communicating in their
native languages.
June 11 : India, Japan and the US completed their
annual naval war exercise named Malabar
Exercise near South China Sea. The 8-day
joint exercises saw in action over 100
aircraft and 22 naval ships including a
nuclear submarine.
June 14 : The Stockholm International Peace Research
Institute (SIPRI) launched its annual nuclear
forces data, which highlighted the current
trends and developments in world nuclear
arsenals.
June 14 : Two more Indian Institutes of
Technology (IITs) broke into the top-50
in the latest Quacquarelli Symonds (QS)
University Rankings Asia 2016.Among
Indian universities featuring in the top-50
list in the QS University Rankings Asia, IIT
Bombay and IIT Madras joined the likes of
Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore
(33), IIT Bombay (35) and IIT Delhi (36).
June 15 : With occupancy cost of $149.71 (Rs 10,030)
per sq ft, New Delhis Central Business
District (CBD) of Connaught Place was
ranked as the seventh most expensive
prime ofce market in the world.
June 16 : Anne Hathaway has been named as a global
goodwill ambassador for UN Women,
following in the footsteps of Emma
Watson and Nicole Kidman. The Oscar-
winning actress will be working with the
organisation to advance gender equality.
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June 17 : Just Dial, UTI Asset Management
Company and IRCTC are among the rms
that have made it to the Fortune Next 500 list
of Indian companies, which has been topped
by Dynamatic Technologies.
June 17 : India's commercial-hub Mumbai has been
rated as the least expensive on the basis cost
of living in the Asia Pacic (APAC) region,
according to a visual analytics app.
Qlik has developed a new Qlik APAC cost
of living app for consumers that allows
them to quickly and easily compare the
cost of living across eight key cities in Asia
Pacic (APAC) - Mumbai, Hong Kong,
Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore,
Sydney and Tokyo.
June 18 : India's rst women ghter pilots - BhawanaKanth, Avani Chatuvedi and Mohana Singh -
were commissioned in the Indian Air Force.
June 20 : A record 65.3 million people were uprooted
worldwide last year, many of them eeing
wars only to face walls, tougher laws and
xenophobia as they reach borders, the United
Nations refugee agency.
June 21 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced
two yoga awards - one international and
another national - to be given away on the
occasion of International Yoga Day.
June 21 : A well known yoga centre established by
an Indian and his Chinese wife has been
selected by China's prestigious Peking
University to conduct research in the ancient
Indian exercise form.
An MoU in this regard has been signed with
the varsity, said Mohan Singh Bhandari who
established 'Yogi Yoga' centre in 2003.
June 21 : A new Chinese computer system that can
make 93 quadrillions calculations per second
has claimed the top spot on the list of the
world's most powerful supercomputers.
The computer called Sunway Taihu Light
developed by the National Research Centre
of Parallel Computer Engineering and
Technology (NRCPC) is built entirely using
processors designed and made in China.
June 24 : Delhi, at the 22nd spot, become the only
Indian city to feature in tech giant Dell's
2016 Women Entrepreneur Cities Index (WECities) that looks at a city's ability to attract
and foster growth of women-owned rms.
June 24 : Star Sports Pro Kabaddi has witnessed some
thrilling edge of the seat action hosting a
new and modern avatar of the Indian Sport
Kabaddi. While previous seasons of Star
Sports Pro Kabaddi enthralled the audience
across segments, making it the second most
viewed sport in the country, a large chunk of
these fans comprised of celebrities.
June 28 : India was ranked low at 105th positionglobally on a worldwide Human Capital
Index, which measures countries ability
to nurture, develop and deploy talent for
economic growth and was topped by Finland.
This index released by Geneva-based World
Economic Forum (WEF).
June 29 : India has jumped 19 places in the latest
World Bank ranking in the global logistics
performance, reecting the improvement in
movement of goods inside the country thus
facilitating better trade.
The World Bank in its latest once-in-two-year
Logistics Performance Index (LPI) stated
that India is now ranked 35th as against the
54th spot it occupied in the previous 2014
report.
June 29 : The Prime Minister Narendra Modi released
a book titled The Birds of Banni Grassland
in New Delhi. The book was presented to the
Prime Minister by the Scientists of Gujarat
Institute of Desert Ecology (GUIDE).
The Book is a compilation of the researchwork, relating to more than 250 species
of birds found in the Banni area of Kutch,
Gujarat.
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IMPORTANT DAYS1st June World Milk Day
5th June World Environment Day; Cancer
Survivors Day8th June World Oceans Day
11th June Coal Miners Day
12th June Anti-Child Labour Day
14th June World Blood Donor Day
15th June ASEAN Dengue Day ; World Elder
Abuse Awareness Day
17th June World Day to Combat Desertication
and Drought
18th June Autistic Pride Day
19th June Father's Day
20th June World Refugee Day
21st June World Hydrography Day ;
International Yoga Day
23rd June International Olympic Day
26th June International Day against Drug
Abuse and Illicit Trafcking
ABBREVIATIONSGFD Gross Fiscal Decit
NSG Nuclear Supplier Group
MTCR Missile Technology Control Regime
NDRF National Disaster Response Force
IAFS India Africa Forum Summit
GRDI Global Retail Development Index
IEP Institute For Economics & Peace
SIPRI Stockholm International Peace Research
Institute
DGCA Directorate General of Civil Aviation of
India
NISE National Institute of Solar Energy
BDS Bei Dou Navigation Satellite System
PSPB Petroleum Sports Promotion Board
EESL Energy Efciency Services Limited
DIPP Department of Industrial Policy and
Promotion
IWAI Inland Waterways Authority of India
IPGPL India Ports Global Private Ltd.
DTTI Defence Technology & Trade Initiative
NIGEB National Institute of Genetic Engineering
& Biotechnology
GFC Gross Fiscal Decit
SECI Solar Energy Corporation of India
SIC Science & Innovation Council
OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation
& Development
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SPECIAL FEATURES
BSE gets RBI nod for online bidding platform for
Sovereign Gold Bond scheme
BSE, Asia's oldest bourse, has received the Reserve
Bank's approval to start an online bidding platform for
Sovereign Gold Bond scheme.
SGBs - government securities denominated in grams of
gold - offer an alternative to holding gold in physical
form.
The bond is issued by RBI on behalf of government
and investors can apply for the bonds at the price as
disseminated by RBI.
In a circular BSE said that it has received approval from
the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for acting as a receiving
ofce for the Sovereign Gold Bond scheme.
The exchange plans to offer an online bidding platform
for collecting bids from members and their clients for the
SGB issue.
This bidding platform is part of the IBBS (Internet-based
Book Building System) - exchange's existing web-based
online bidding platform for IPO, Offer for Sale, offer to
buy issues.
Government of India and Asian Development Bank
Sign $120 Million Loan Agreement to Modernize
Irrigation and Improve Water Management in Odisha
Government of India and the Asian Development Bank
(ADB) signed a $120 million loan agreement to improve
irrigation and water management infrastructure in Odisha.
The loan is the second tranche of a $157.5 million
nancing facility under the Orissa Integrated IrrigatedAgriculture and Water Management Investment Program.
The nancing will be used for modernizing seven
irrigation subprojects resulting in improved irrigation in
over 100,000 hectares, and strengthening of Water User
Associations (WUAs) and the institutional capacity of
Odisha's Department of Water Resources.
The selected areas for the investment program are the
Baitarani, Brahmani, Budhabalanga, and Subernarekha
river basins and part of the Mahanadi delta.
Raj Kumar, Joint Secretary (Multilateral Institutions),Department of Economic Affairs and. M. Teresa Kho,
Country Director, ADB's India Resident Mission signed
the loan agreement on behalf of Government of India and
ADB respectively.
A separate project agreement was signed by. P.K. Jena,
Principal Secretary, Water Resource Department of
Government of Odisha.
Arundhati Bhattacharya 5th most powerful woman in
nance: Forbes
Arundhati Bhattacharya , the rst woman chairperson of
the nation's largest bank SBI , has been ranked among the
top ve most powerful women in nance by the Forbes
magazine.
SBI said in a statement that Bhattacharya has moved up
ve spots from the previous year to 5th this year.
She is also ranked 25th in Forbes' list of 'The World's
100 Most Powerful Women', which features top
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female leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, scientists,
philanthropists and CEOs.
Bhattacharya has been instrumental in transforming the
over 200 year-old bank into technology-driven lender
with SBI in TOUCH digital banking outlet, mobilewallet State Bank Buddy, State Bank Anywhere - a retail
internet banking based application for smartphones, SBI
Tech Learning Centres for educating customers and SBI
e-Pay, a payment aggregator service, among others.
Under her leadership, SBI grew its network to around
17,000 branches and services over 330 million customers
with presence in 36 countries.
Connaught Place world's seventh most expensive
ofce market
According to CBRE Research's Global Prime Ofce
Occupancy Costs bi-annual survey, with occupancy cost
of $149.71 (Rs 10,030) per sq ft, New Delhis Central
Business District (CBD) of Connaught Place ranks as the
seventh most expensive prime ofce market in the world.
Connaught Place was ranked sixth in the previous CBREResearch's.
Global prime ofce occupancy costs which reect
rent, plus local taxes and service charges for the highest-
quality, prime ofce properties rose 2.4% year-on-
year. In Asia Pacic, prime ofce occupancy costs are
growing at a faster pace than average, up 2.7% year-
over-year. A few key Southeast Asian markets registered
decreases, including Singapore and Jakarta.
Asia continued to dominate the list of the worlds most
expensive ofce locations, accounting for seven of the top
ten markets, according to the survey, Beijing (Finance
Street) at $188 per sq. ft.), Beijing (Central Business
District (CBD) at $182 per sq. ft and Hong Kong (West
Kowloon at S$179 per sq. ft rounded out the top ve
positions. Apart from New Delhi (Connaught Place -
CBD), Tokyo (Marunouchi/Otemachi), and Shanghai(Pudong) also featured in the top ten list.
Suresh Prabhu launches Tiger Express train on the
World Environment Day
Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu agged off IRCTCs
Tiger Express from Safdarjung station. A semi-luxury
tourist train, Tiger Express is launched to spread
awareness among people regarding tiger conservation.
Flagging off the train using a remote control from
Mumbai, Prabhu said that it has been launched to spread
awareness about conservation of tigers.It is the rst semi-luxury train on a tourist circuit having a
dining car. According to IRCTC, the itinerary has a tariff
structure starting from Rs 38,500.
The package includes accommodation in air-conditioned
rooms of three stars or equivalent ranked hotels for three
nights, sightseeing, food, inter-city transfers and travel
insurance, according to the released statement.
Giving details of the itinerary, an IRCTC ofcial said
that during the ve-night-six-day trip, the train would
take passengers to Katni from where they will be taken to
Bandhavgarh by road for a safari.
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Smriti Irani launches 'Vidyanjali' to involve
volunteers into co-scholastic activities of schools
Union Minister for Human Resource Development,
Smriti Zubin Irani dedicated 'Vidyanjali'- a school
volunteer programme to the nation.
In her inaugural address, Irani said that Vidyanjali is a
step forward in creating an ecosystem, wherein education
will be attached with imbibing knowledge and improving
learning output.
The Union Minister added there is an ingrained sense of
participation and willingness within the people of this
country to contribute towards nation building.
The programme is designed to involve volunteers from
different walks of life to strengthen the co-scholastic
activities in government schools.
Vidyanjali, which is being implemented under the overall
aegis of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, will enhance the
community involvement in government run elementary
schools and effectively engage children in reading,
creative writing, public speaking, play acting, preparingstory books etc.
Giving a nod to their ideas, the Minister assured to widen
the scope of Vidyanjali to include performing arts and
life skills.
She also urged the MyGov team to create a module under
Vidyanjali wherein NRI community or others, who want
to contribute by providing additional teaching-learning
aids like books etc. and other resources, can do so in
conjunction with state and district administration.
The programme is unique in that it gives the freedom to
the volunteers to design their activities in consultation
with the school.
The programme will be open for participation by
all Indian citizens including retired Professionals,
retired government ofcials, working professionalsm
homemakers and persons from the Indian Diaspora.
The programme will be piloted across 21 states which
committed to do so in the conference of state ministers of
Education held on February 8.
These states are Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar,
Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat,
Goa, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Manipur, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan,
Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.
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UEFA EURO 2016-I# The 2016 UEFA European Championship, also known as UEFA Euro
2016 or simply Euro 2016, is the 15th edition of the UEFA European
Championship, is the quadrennial international men's football
championship of Europe organized by UEFA.
# It is started in France from 10th June to 10th July 2016.
# Spain is the two-time defending champions, having won 2008 and 2012
editions.
# It is for the rst time, the European Championship nal tournament will
be played by 24 teams that has been expanded from the 16-team format
used since 1996.
# France was chosen as the host nation on 28th May 2010, after a bidding
process in which they beat Italy and Turkey for the right to host the 2016
nals.
# The winning team earns the right to compete at the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup hosted by Russia.
INLINE FACTS:
# Initially, 12 stadiums were presented for the French bid, chosen on 28th May 2010.
# These venues were to be whittled down to 9 by the end of May 2011, but it was suggested in June 2011 that 11
venues might be used.
HOST COUNTRY: FRANCE
# DATES: 10 JUNE -10 JULY 2016
# TEAMS: 24
# VENUES: 10
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UEFA EURO 2016-II
TEN HOST CITIES ARE
1. SAINT DENIS-STADE DE FRANCE (Capacity:
81,338)
2. MARSEILLE-STADE VELODROME (Capacity:
67,394)
3. LYON (Capacity: 59,286)
4. LILLE (Capacity: 50,186)
5. PARIS (Capacity: 48,712)
6. BORDEAUX (Capacity: 42,115)
7. SAINT ETIENNE (Capacity: 41,965)
8. NICE (Capacity: 35,624)
9. LENS (Capacity: 38,223)
10. TOULOUSE (Capacity: 33,150)
Note: Capacity gures are for matches at UEFA Euro
2016 and are not necessarily the total capacity that the
stadium is capable of holding.
Teams base camps:
Each and every team has their "team base camp" for their
stay between the matches.
From an initial list of 66 bases, the 24 participating teams
had to conrm their selection with UEFA by 31st Janu-
ary 2016.
Match Ball: Beau Jeu (Unveiled in 12 Nov 2015)
Mascot: Super Victor (Unveiled in 18 Nov 2014)
Logo and Slogan:
LOGO: The ofcial logo was unveiled on 26th June 2013, dur-
ing the ceremony at the Pavillon Cambon Capucines in Paris.
Conceived by Portuguese agency Brandia Central, which
also created the visual identity for the previous European
Championship, the design is based on the theme "Cel-
ebrating the art of football".
The logo includes HENRI DELAUNAY TROPHY and
the blue, white and red colours of the French ag, sur-
rounded by a mixture of shapes and lines representing
different artistic movements and football elements.
SLOGAN:On 17th October 2013, UEFA announced the
ofcial slogan of the tournament i.e. Le Rendez-Vous.
Asked about its meaning, Jacques Lambert, chairman of
the Euro 2016 organizing committee, told that the slogan
"is much more than a reminder of dates and venues".
He further explained that "UEFA is sending out an invita-
tion to football fans throughout the world and to lovers
of major events, an invitation to meet up and share the
emotions of an elite-level tournament.
Ofcial songs:
The competition's ofcial opening song is THIS ONES
FOR YOU by DAVID GUETTA featuring ZARA
LARSON and the ofcial closing song is "Free Your
Mind" by Lavelle.
It was reported that David Guetta sought one million fans
to add their voices to the ofcial anthem via a website.
Source: e-architect.co.uk
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Financial Inclusion in New Avatar: India Post Payment Bank
The main challenge, banks today face in nancial inclusion is the lack of last mile connectivity - Rudra Sensarma,
Professor of Economics, IIM, Kozhikode, Kerala.
Objective:
# Converting Post ofce to bank.
# Providing a strong network to PAN India location focusing specically on rural areas.
# Joint effort of Government of India & RBI to improve the efciency of passing on the government sponsored
benets to the beneciary directly through their bank account.
# As per the payment bank norms Post ofce will also accept the deposit up to 1 lac.
# Will sell Insurance and Mutual funds and pension products as comparing with banks and nancial institute of
India.
Difculties:
# Business Correspondence Model not executed as planned.
# Banks simply do not have the kind of presence required to target the vast unbanked population in the rural areas
and even urban poor.
# Expanding the Investment saving scheme by providing deposit facility with ATM cards.
# Extensive training in handling these products, specically insurance and pension products as they are different
nancial products in India Posts portfolio.
Investment Plan:
The government may spend Rs. 400 crore on the proposal with Rs. 400 crore more coming from equity.
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PSLV-C34
# PSLV-C34 / Cartosat-2 series satellite
# Indias Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its 36th ight
(PSLV-C34), launches the 727.5 kg Cartosat-2 series
satellite for earth observation and 19 co-passenger
satellites together weighing about 560 kg at liftoff
into a 505 km polar Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO).
# PSLV-C34 was launched from the Second Launch Pad
(SLP) of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR,
Sriharikota on June 22, 2016 at 09:26 hrs (IST).
# This is the fourteenth ight of PSLV in XL conguration
(with the use of solid strap-on motors).
# The co-passenger satellites are from USA, Canada,
Germany and Indonesia as well as two satellites
(SATHYABAMASAT and SWAYAM) are from
Indian universities.
# SATHYABAMASAT (Satellite from Sathyabama
University, Chennai)
# Mission objectives: To collect data on green house
gases (Water vapor, Carbon monoxide, Carbon dioxide,
Methane and Hydrogen uoride)
# Launch Mass: 1.5 kg
# Launch Date: Wednesday, June 22, 2016
# Launch Vehicle: PSLV-C34 / Cartosat-2 series satellite
# Type of Satellite: Student
# SWAYAM (Satellite from College of Engineering,
Pune)
# Mission objectives: To provide point to point
messaging services to the HAM Community.
# Launch Mass: 1 kg
# Launch Date: Wednesday, June 22, 2016
# Launch Vehicle: PSLV-C34 / Cartosat-2 series satellite
# Type of Satellite: Student
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BANCASSURANCE
# Bancassurance is the partnership or relationship be-
tween a bank and an insurance company, or a single
integrated organization, whereby the insurance com-
pany uses the bank sales channel in order to sell in-surance products.
# It is also called bank insurance model (BIM) and also
sometimes known as allnanz.
# BIM allows the insurance company to maintain
smaller direct sales teams as their products are sold
through the bank to bank customers by bank staff and
employees as well.
Inline Facts:
# Bancassurance is a French term referring to the sell-
ing of insurance through a banks established distri-
bution channels.# In some countries, bancassurance is still largely pro-
hibited, but it was recently legalized in countries like
USA.
# Bancassurance is the selling of insurance and bank-
ing products through the same channel, most com-
monly through bank branches.
# Bank staff are advised and supported by the insur-
ance company through product information, market-
ing campaigns and sales training.
# Bancassurance primarily rests on the relationship the
customer has developed over a period of time withthe bank.
# Under Bancassurance the bank and the insurance
company share the commission.
# BIM is extremely popular in European countries
such as Spain, France and Austria.
# Privatbancassurance, a new kind of Bancassurance
was pioneered by Lombard International Assurance
and now used globally.
# The concept combines private banking and invest-
ment management services with the sophisticated
use of life assurance.
# Bancassurance is an efcient distribution channel
with higher productivity and lower costs than tradi-
tional distribution channel.
Three kind of models used in Bancassurance :
1. Strategic Alliance Model: The bank only markets theproducts of the insurance company.
Except for marketing the products, no other insur-
ance functions are carried out by the bank.
2. Full Integration Model: The bank sells the insurance
products under its brand acting as a provider of nan-
cial solutions matching customer needs.
Under such an arrangement the Bank has an addition-
al core activity almost similar to that of an insurance
company.
3. Mixed Models: Under this Model, the database of the
bank is sold to the insurance company.# The approach requires very little technical invest-
ment.
Advantages of Bancassurance:
# Bancassurance offers another area of protability to
banks with little or no capital outlay.
# A small capital outlay in turn means a high return
on equity.
# Today, convenience is a major issue in managing a
persons day to day activities.
#
A bank, which is able to market insurance products,has a competitive edge over its competitors.
# It can provide complete nancial planning services
to its customers under one roof.
# Opportunities for sophisticated product offerings.
# Opportunities for greater customer lifecycle
management.
# Diversify risks by tapping another area of protabil-
ity.
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FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY ANDBUDGET MANAGEMENT (FRMB) ACT
# THE COMMITTEE WAS CONSTITUTED ON IT
ON 18 MAY 2016.
# IT BECOME AN ACT IN 2003.
OBJECTIVE:
# In long-run macro stability.
# Coordination between scal & monetary policy.
# Transparency in scal operation of the government.
# FRBM rules in July 2004 to specify the reduction of
scal decit to 3% of government of India by 2008-09.
# Union government constituted N.K Singh committee
as on 18 may 2016.
# It is a 5 member committee to review FRBM
roadmap for future.
Members are:
1. Former nance revenue secretary & Rajya Sabha
member N.K SINGH.
2. Former nance & revenue secretary SUMIT BOSE.
3. Chief economic advisor Dr. ARVIND
SUBRAMANIAN.
4. Deputy Governor of RBI URJIT PATEL.
5. Director of National Institute Public Finance Policy
(NIPFP) RATHIN ROY.
# The committee was constituted as per announcement
made by the Union Finance Minister, Mr. Arun
Jaitley in 2016-17 budget speech.
# The committee will summit its report to the union
government by 31st October 2016.
TERMS & REFERENCE OF THE COMMITTEE:
# It will review working of FRBM Act 2003 over last
12 years & suggest the way forward.
# Suggestions should be submitted keeping in view
the broad objective of Fiscal consolidation, prudence
and change required in context.
# Panel will consult other government department
outside experts about the changes and the
amendments.
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