Current Affairs 09th July 2021| Current Affairs News

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

New Dept of Public Enterprises under Finance Ministry

• The government has decided to bring the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) under the finance ministry. 
• The move comes a few hours ahead of a major cabinet reshuffle.
• The DPE, which was earlier under the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, has been brought under the finance minister to ease coordination related to future disinvestment plans.
• It noted that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had mentioned this change in her budget speech.
• A notification was issued by the Central Secretariat, amending the new change.
• The amendment will come into force with immediate effect.
• “Ministry of Finance (Vitta Mantralaya), after the sub-heading (v) Department of Financial Services (Vittiya Sewayen Vibhag), following sub-heading shall be inserted, namely: – (vi) Department of Public Enterprises (Lok Udyam Vibhag)”.
• The gazette notification issued stated these rules may be called the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Three Hundred and Sixty First Amendment Rules, 2021.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

World’s tallest sandcastle constructed in Denmark with the height of 21.16 metres

• At a height of 21.16 metres, and standing 3.5m higher than the previous record holder, the world’s tallest sandcastle was unveiled in Denmark.
• The sandcastle built in Blokhus in northwest Denmark broke the Guinness World record previously held by a sandcastle constructed in Germany in 2019, which was 17.66m tall.
• Dutch designer Wilfred Stijger mentioned his creation was inspired by the corona virus pandemic.
• He stated he put corona virus bacteria as a crown atop the castle to illustrate how the virus is ruling our world, and not allowing us to do what we want to do.
• The Guinness world record was measured by an authorized surveyor and signed by witnesses and will be in the book’s next edition.
• The Sand Sculpture Festival in Blokhus takes place every summer.

About Denmark:

• Denmark is a Scandinavian country comprising the Jutland Peninsula and numerous islands.
• It’s linked to nearby Sweden via the Öresund Bridge.
• Copenhagen, its capital, is home to royal palaces and colorful Nyhavn harbor, plus the Tivoli amusement park and the iconic “Little Mermaid” statue.
• Odense is writer Hans Christian Andersen’s hometown, with a medieval core of cobbled streets and half-timbered houses.
• Capital: Copenhagen
• Currency: Danish krone
• Prime Minister: Mette Frederiksen

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS

India’s first movable freshwater tunnel aquarium opened at Bengaluru Station

• Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna Railway Station also known as Bengaluru City Railway Station has become the first railway station in India with a movable freshwater tunnel aquarium.
• The aquarium has been opened by the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Limited (IRSDC) in collaboration with the HNi Aquatic Kingdom. 
• The IRSDC stated that the aquarium is based on the concept of Amazon River and is one-of-its-kind, promising to be a visual treat and a passenger’s delight.

About the Tunnel:

• The 12-feet long aquatic kingdom at the railway station is Indian Railways first paludarium that houses myriad flora and fauna.
• The Indian Railways stated that the entrance of the station now gives a glimpse into marine life, with a beautiful dolphin humbly greeting visitors with a slight bow and a smile.
• A 3D selfie area, 20 feet of glass periphery are also some attractive features of the new facility.

About IRSDC:

• Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Ltd. is a Special Purpose vehicle.
• IRSDC is a Joint Venture company of Rail Land Development Authority, RITES and Ircon International Limited.
• IRSDC was incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956 on 12th April, 2012.
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Chairman: Pradeep Kumar
• CEO & MD: S. K. Lohia

About Karnataka:

• Karnataka is a state in southwest India with Arabian Sea coastlines.
• The capital, Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore), is a high-tech hub known for its shopping and nightlife.
• To the southwest, Mysore is home to lavish temples including Mysore Palace, former seat of the region’s maharajas.
• Hampi, once the medieval Vijayanagara empire’s capital, contains ruins of Hindu temples, elephant stables and a stone chariot.
• Capital: Bengaluru
• Governor: Vajubhai Vala
• Chief minister: B. S. Yediyurappa
• National Parks: Bannerghatta National Park, Bandipur National Park, Nagarhole National Park, Kudremukh National Park, Anshi National Park.

Ernakulam District Library Council’s initiative, ‘Books at Doorstep’ 

• The Ernakulam District Library Council’s initiative, ‘Books at Doorstep’, to revive reading habits among school children, has evoked enthusiastic response and is on course to exceed the target.
• The project launched and aims at reaching out to 25,000 families spread across 500 libraries under the district library council.
• The idea was to lend one lakh books a month by giving four books to a child and cover at least 50 households within every library limits.
• “They expected to lend 12 lakh books a year, but are now very likely to exceed that going by the great response to the project.
• The district council launched the project after the Education Department found that reading habits among students has taken a hit in the wake of remote learning.

About Kerala:

• Kerala, a state on India’s tropical Malabar Coast, has nearly 600km of Arabian Sea shoreline.
• It’s known for its palm-lined beaches and backwaters, a network of canals.
• Inland are the Western Ghats, mountains whose slopes support tea, coffee and spice plantations as well as wildlife.
• National parks like Eravikulam and Periyar, plus Wayanad and other sanctuaries, are home to elephants, langur monkeys and tigers.
• Governor: Arif Mohammad Khan
• Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
• Chief minister: Pinarayi Vijayan
• National parks: Eravikulam National Park, Silent Valley National Park , Pampadum Shola National Park, Mathikettan Shola National Park, Anamudi Shola National Park.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS

Fitch cuts GDP growth estimate to 10% 

• Fitch Ratings cut India’s growth forecast to 10 per cent for the current fiscal, from 12.8 percent estimated earlier, due to slowing recovery post-second wave of COVID-19, and said rapid vaccination could support a sustainable revival in business and consumer confidence.
• The global rating agency stated the challenges for the banking sector posed by the coronavirus pandemic have increased due to a virulent second wave in the first quarter of the financial year ending March 2022 (FY22).
• “Fitch Ratings revised down India’s real GDP for FY22 by 280bp to 10 percent, underlining our belief that renewed restrictions have slowed recovery efforts and left banks with a moderately worse outlook for business and revenue generation in FY22″.

About Fitch:

• Fitch Ratings Inc. is an American credit rating agency and is one of the “Big Three credit rating agencies“, the other two being Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s.
• It is one of the three nationally recognized statistical rating organizations designated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 1975.
• Headquarters: New York, New York, United States
• CEO: Paul Taylor

Amazon introduces its first Digital Kendra in India in Surat, Gujarat

• E-commerce giant Amazon launched its first Digital Kendra in Gujarat’s Surat.
• Referred to as ‘brick and mortar resource centres’, Digital Kendra will provide micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) the opportunity to learn about the benefits of eCommerce and avail a range of third party services such as shipping and logistics support, cataloguing assistance, digital marketing services, GST and taxation support to kick start their journey towards being digital entrepreneurs.
• Amazon Digital Kendra is one of the most important MSME clusters and will cater to thousands of MSMEs located in and around the city.

About Amazon:

• Amazon.com, Inc. is an American multinational technology company which focuses on e-commerce, cloud computing, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence.
• It is one of the Big Five companies in the U.S. information technology industry, along with Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Facebook.
• CEO: Andy Jassy
• Founder: Jeff Bezos

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING NEWS

SBM Bank India & Drip Capital make partnership to empower MSME Exporters

• Drip Capital, a fintech provider of cross border trade finance, has partnered with SBM Bank India to offer trade financing solutions — customized for small and medium-sized exporters in India.
• With this partnership, MSME exporters will be able to avail collateral-free working capital at competitive rates.
• Main Aim to provide collateral-free working capital to MSME exporters through invoice discounting facility.
• This association is an example of how fintech companies are eager to partner with banks and other financial institutions to grow collectively by using technology to its very core.

About Drip Capital:

• Drip Capital is a digital trade finance company based in Palo Alto, California.
• The company offers working capital solutions to small and medium sized companies engaged in cross-border trade in India, Mexico and the United States using technology and data analytics.
• Drip Capital is a market leader in the global trade finance space.
• Unlike traditional financial institutions, the fintech company leverages data analytics and technology to underwrite its transactions, allowing it to scale rapidly and provide a seamless financing experience to small businesses.
• Headquarters: Palo Alto, California, United States
• Founders: Pushkar Mukewar, Neil Kothari

DMRC unveiled India’s first UPI-based cashless parking

• The Delhi Metro launched FASTag/UPI based cashless parking facility at the Kashmere Gate Metro Station, Delhi. 
• DMRC stated: “For the first time in the country, a FASTag/UPI based cashless parking facility was launched at the Kashmere Gate Metro Station by Dr. Mangu Singh, MD, DMRC.”
• Senior officials of DMRC and National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) were also present during the launch.
• As part of the Multi-Model Integration (MMI) initiative, dedicated Intermediate Public Transport (IPT) lanes for auto, taxi and e-rickshaws were also inaugurated at the station.

About Delhi Metro:

• The Delhi Metro is a mass rapid transit system serving Delhi and its satellite cities of Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurugram, Noida, Bahadurgarh and Ballabgarh, in the National Capital Region of India.
• It is by far the largest and busiest metro rail system in India, and the second oldest after the Kolkata Metro.

FREO partners with HDB Financial Services 

• FREO partners with HDB Financial Services to offer lending solutions.
• Customers will get a personalized amount approved which they can start using immediately.
• As they repay the borrowed amount, the credit limit is replenished and they can continue withdrawing as much as they need.
• Interest is levied only on the amount the consumer uses, and not on the overall limit.
• “The credit line is FREO’s flagship product.
• HDBFS in partnership with FREO will offer the credit line which enables consumers to get access to credit anywhere”.
• This partnership offers consumers high-ticket personal loans of up to Rs.10 lakh, which can be utilized for bigger expenses such as home renovation, buying a vehicle, or planning a trip.

About HDB Financial Services:

• HDB Financial Services (HDBFS, www.hdbfs.com) is a leading Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) that caters to the growing needs of an Aspirational India, serving both Retail & Commercial Clients.
• HDB Financial Services Limited is a subsidiary company of HDFC Bank.
• The bank was incorporated in August 1994 in the name of ‘HDFC Bank Limited’, with its registered office in Mumbai, India.

About Freo:

• FREO is a first-of-its-kind, credit-led neobank in India that is designed to serve the banking needs of millennials in India and Southeast Asia.
• Through this credit-led Neobank, consumers will have access to financial products such as a credit line, credit cards, EMI cards, deposits and savings, buy-now-pay-later, and other financial utilities, to help build their credit profiles, borrow flexibly, save easily, and spend smartly.

Bajaj Allianz General ties up with Bank of India 

• Bajaj Allianz General Insurance, one of the leading private general insurers in India and Bank of India, one of the largest Public Sector Banks in the country have entered into a corporate agency agreement for the distribution of Bajaj Allianz General Insurance’s products through the bank’s network of 5084 branches, 80 Retail Business Centers and 60 SME City Centers across the country.
• As a part of this agreement, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance will be offering a bouquet of personal lines of products such as motor insurance, health insurance, home insurance, travel insurance along with a commercial line of products like engineering insurance, marine insurance to bank’s customers.

About BOI:

• Bank of India is an Indian government owned bank.
• It is under the ownership of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India with headquarters in Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai.
• Founded in 1906, it has been government-owned since nationalization in 1969.
• Headquarters: Mumbai

About Bajaj Allianz General Insurance:

• Bajaj Allianz General Insurance is a private general insurance company in India.
• The company is a joint venture between Bajaj Finserv Limited owned by the Bajaj Group of India and Allianz SE, a German financial services company.
• CEO: Tapan Singhel
• Headquarters: Pune

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOURS

Kaushik Basu honoured with prestigious Humboldt Research Award

• Indian economist Kaushik Basu has been awarded the Humboldt Research Award for Economics.
• The award was conferred on him by Professor Dr Hans-Bernd Schäfer of Bucerius Law School in Hamburg, Germany.

About Kaushik Basu :

• A native of Kolkata, Kaushik Basu had served as the senior vice president and chief economist at the World Bank from 2012-2016 and as the chief economic advisor to the Government of India for three years from 2009 to 2012.

About the award:

• Every year, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation grants up to 100 Humboldt Research Awards to internationally leading researchers of all disciplines from abroad in recognition of their academic record to date.
• The award amount is €60,000.
• Award winners are also invited to conduct a research project of their choice at a research institution in Germany in cooperation with specialist colleagues there.
• The award enables a total stay of between six months and a full year, which can be split into multiple stays.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : DEFENCE NEWS

DRDO & AICTE launch regular M. Tech. Program in defence technology

• A regular MTech programme in Defence Technology has been launched by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).
• MTech defence technology programme can be conducted at any AICTE affiliated institutes or universities, IITs, NITs or private engineering institutes.
• Institute of Defence Scientists and Technologists (IDST) will provide support to the institutes for conducting this programme, which can be conducted in online as well as offline formats.
• The program has six specialized streams – Combat Technology, Aero Technology, Naval Technology, Communication Systems & Sensors, Directed Energy Technology and High Energy Materials Technology.
• The programme will help in achieving ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’ envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

About DRDO :

• Founded: 1958
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Chairman : Dr G Satheesh Reddy

About AICTE :

• Founded: November 1945
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Chairperson : Anil Sahasrabudhe

CURRENT AFFAIRS : ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

Govt to sell up to 4% stake in NMDC via OFS

• State-owned miner NMDC announced government plans to offload 4 percent stake in the company through an offer for sale (OFS).
• The promoter proposes to sell up to 11,72,24,234 equity shares of the company.
• The floor price for the offer shall be Rs 165 per equity share, NMDC informed the stock exchanges.
• The President of India, acting through and represented by the Ministry of Steel, Government of India, is the promoter of NMDC Ltd.

About NMDC :

• NMDC – National Mineral Development Corporation
• Founded: 15 November 1958
• Headquarters: Hyderabad
• Chairman & MD : Sumit Deb
• NMDC Limited is a government owned mineral producer.
• NMDC, under the Ministry of Steel, is country”s largest iron ore mining company.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

World’s first database of genomic variants of oral cancer Created by DBT-NIBMG 

• On July 07, 2021, The National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG) in West Bengal’s Kalyani created a database of genomic variations in oral cancer, the first-of-its-kind in the world, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT).

About DBT-NIBMG :

• dbGENVOC is a  browsable  online database of GENomic Variants of Oral Cancer and is a free resource.
• The database which will be updated annually with variation data from new oral cancer patients from different regions of India and southeast Asia

About Oral Cancer :

• Oral cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer among men in India, largely fuelled by tobacco-chewing. 
• Tobacco-chewing causes changes in the genetic material of cells in the oral cavity.

About National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG) :

• Director : Saumitra Das
• It is a national level research institute for genomic medicine in India.
• It has been established as an autonomous institution under the Department of Biotechnology.
• This is the first institution in India explicitly devoted to research, training, translation and service and capacity-building in biomedical genomics.

About DBT :

• Founded: 1986
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Secretary: Dr. Renu Swarup

New solar thermal components testing facility at  Hyderabad

• A newly established Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) based test rig facility at Hyderabad can help the growing solar industry in India to test capability and performance of solar thermal components like solar receiver tubes, heat transfer fluids, and concentrating mirrors.
• The facility was set up by the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science & Technology (DST).
• It will validate the indigenous components by parallelly comparing the performance (heat gain and heat loss properties) of the standard components with varying the operating parameters (e.g., flow rates of Heat Transfer Fluids (HTFs) operating temperature, pressures, etc.).

About Department of Science & Technology (DST) :

• Founded: May 1971
• Central Government of India executive: Ashutosh Sharma
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Minister responsible: Harsh Vardhan

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPS & SERVICES

Defence Ministry implements Web based Integrated System ‘SPARSH’

• The Defence Ministry has implemented SPARSH, an integrated system for automation of sanction and disbursement of defence pension.
• This web-based system processes pension claims and credits pension directly into the bank accounts of defence pensioners without relying on any external intermediary.
• It has been implemented with agreement between Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA), State Bank of India (SBI) and Punjab National Bank (PNB). 
• Under the agreement, the pensioners can approach various branches of these two banks for obtaining any service relating to their pension issues.
• SPARSH envisages establishment of Service Centres to provide last mile connectivity to pensioners who may be unable to directly access the SPARSH portal for any reason.

About Ministry of Defence :

• Headquarters: New Delhi
• Founded: 15 August 1947
• Union Minister : Rajnath Singh
• Minister of State : Shripad Naik
• Defence Secretary : Ajay Kumar
• Chief of Defence Staff : Bipin Rawat (He is the first and current Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of India).

About SBI :

• Chairperson: Dinesh Kumar Khara
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• Founded: 1 July 1955

About PNB :

• Headquarters: New Delhi
• MD & CEO: S. S. Mallikarjuna Rao
• Founded: 19 May 1894, Lahore, Pakistan
• Founders: Lala Lajpat Rai, Dyal Singh Majithia
• It is the second largest government-owned bank in India, both in terms of its business volumes and its network.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BOOKS & AUTHORS

A New Book Titled Operation khukri – The True Story behind the Indian Army’s Most Successful Mission as part of the United Nations authored by major general rajpal punia & damini punia

• A Book Titled Operation khukri – The True Story behind the Indian Army’s Most Successful Mission as part of the United Nations authored by major general rajpal punia & damini punia slated to release on July 15.
• The Book was published by Penguin Random House India (PRHI).

About the Book :

• The Book deals with the story of the Indian Army’s successful rescue mission of over 200 India peacekeepers who were sent to Sierra Leone in 2000 by the United Nations to help the government there in tackling Revolutionary United Front (RUF), a rebel group.
• July 13 marks the 21st anniversary of the operation khukri.

About Major General Rajpal Punia :

• He has served for over thirty-five years in the Indian Army.
• In 2002, Punia was awarded the prestigious Yudh Seva Medal by the President of India.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SPORTS NEWS

2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup to be held in Mumbai and Pune

• On July 06, 2021, The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022 Local Organising Committee (LOC) announced that the Mumbai Football Arena and Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, Pune will be the new venues and host cities for the competition.
• Previously Bhubaneswar & Ahmedabad were selected as the venue of 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup.
• The decision was confirmed taking into careful consideration the existing challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• It was part of efforts to minimise the travelling time for teams and officials between the venues, whilst ensuring the optimum environment to implement the BioMedical Bubble for the benefit of all stakeholders.

Note :

• 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup takes place from 20th Jan to 6th Feb 2022.

About Asian Football Confederation :

• President: Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa
• Headquarters: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• Founded: 8 May 1954, Manila, Philippines

About All India Football Federation :

• President: Praful Patel
• Vice-President: Subrata Dutta
• Headquarters location: New Delhi
• Founded: 23 June 1937

CURRENT AFFAIRS : OBITUARIES

Haiti President Jovenel Moise assassinated

• On July 07, 2021, The president of Haiti, Jovenel Moïse, was assassinated in his private residence.
• He was 53.

About Jovenel Moise :

• In 2015, President Michel Martelly designated Moïse as the presidential candidate of the political party Martelly founded, the center-right Haitian Tèt Kale Party (PHTK).
• He was sworn in as President in February 2017 after winning the November 2016 election.
• He served as the president of Haiti from 2017 until 2021.

Achievements :

• In May 2018, Moïse was awarded the Order of Brilliant Jade with Grand Cordon by the President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen,

About Haiti :

• Capital: Port-au-Prince
• Currency: Haitian gourde

Daily CA On July 08 :

• Union Minister Prakash Javadekar inaugurates the Virtual India Pavilion at the 74th Cannes Film Festival.
• Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh stated that a Common Eligibility Test, CET for job aspirants will be conducted across the country from early 2022. This unique initiative is being undertaken with the personal intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to screen and shortlist candidates for recruitment to Central Government jobs.
• The Modi government announced a new ‘Ministry of Cooperation’ for strengthening the cooperative movement in the country.
• India and Bangladesh have agreed to expedite work on the 1,320 MW Maitree Power Project and to ensure the timely commissioning of the first unit in December this year. The progress of the project was reviewed at a meeting between the Power Secretaries of India and Bangladesh.
• In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, in order to provide a personal experience to the devotees of Shri Amarnathji, launched various online services of Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board.
• Aeldra provides a unique ‘Zero Fee’ bank account to U.S. bound Indian students. The account is tailored for Indian students, professionals and investors and includes 24X7 customer service provided by ‘concierges’ who understand the needs of Indian customers.
• India-based fintech unicorn Razorpay and Mastercard have launched Mandate HQ, a platform dedicated to secure recurring payments. Razorpay’s Mandate HQ is an API-based plug-n-play solution that reduces the go-live time for any card issuing bank that wishes to enable recurring payments for its customers.
• As many as 43 new members are all set to be sworn in Prime Minister Modi’s new cabinet which will be one of the most inclusive with record representation of SC, ST members.
• IBM has announced that Jim Whitehurst has decided to step down as President of the company just 14 months after joining in that role.
• Honouring the varied accomplishments of Vidya, the Indian Army has named a military firing range in Gulmarg as the Vidya Balan Firing Range.
• CII in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs is organizing The Indo Pacific Business Summit  held from 6-8 July 2021 virtually. Theme of the Indo Pacific Business Summit is Developing a Road Map for Shared Prosperity.
• Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit delivered 7 satellites from 747 jets from three countries namely the United States, Netherlands & Poland. Virgin Orbit sent its first batch of satellites into orbit & It is the second successful rocket launch from a plane.
• On July 05, 2021, China launched the new Fengyun-3E (FY-3E) meteorological satellite from the SLS-2 launch site at China’s Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre.
• On July 06, 2021, Union Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister Giriraj Singh launched a mobile app ‘Matsya Setu for aqua farmers. The app has been developed by the ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (ICAR-CIFA), Bhubaneswar, with the funding support of the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), Hyderabad.
• A new children’s book, India To The Rescue, Authored by Sushant Singh & Shruthi Rao. The Book was published by Juggernaut Books.
• On July 08, 2021, Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Virbhadra Singh passed away.
• On July 07, 2021, Two-time Olympic gold medallist in hockey, Keshav Datt, Passed away.

 

Daily CA On July 09 :

• The government has decided to bring the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) under the finance ministry. The DPE, which was earlier under the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, has been brought under the finance minister to ease coordination related to future disinvestment plans.
• World’s tallest sandcastle constructed in Denmark with a height of 21.16 metres.
• Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna Railway Station also known as Bengaluru City Railway Station has become the first railway station in India with a movable freshwater tunnel aquarium. The aquarium has been opened by the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Limited (IRSDC) in collaboration with the HNi Aquatic Kingdom. 
• The Ernakulam District Library Council’s initiative, ‘Books at Doorstep’, to revive reading habits among school children, has evoked enthusiastic response and is on course to exceed the target. The project launched and aims at reaching out to 25,000 families spread across 500 libraries under the district library council.
• Fitch Ratings cut India’s growth forecast to 10 per cent for the current fiscal, from 12.8 percent estimated earlier, due to slowing recovery post-second wave of COVID-19, and said rapid vaccination could support a sustainable revival in business and consumer confidence.
• E-commerce giant Amazon launched its first Digital Kendra in Gujarat’s Surat. Amazon Digital Kendra is one of the most important MSME clusters and will cater to thousands of MSMEs located in and around the city.
• Drip Capital, a fintech provider of cross border trade finance, has partnered with SBM Bank India to offer trade financing solutions — customized for small and medium-sized exporters in India.
• The Delhi Metro launched FASTag/UPI based cashless parking facility at the Kashmere Gate Metro Station, Delhi. 
• FREO partners with HDB Financial Services to offer lending solutions. Customers will get a personalized amount approved which they can start using immediately.
• Bajaj Allianz General Insurance, one of the leading private general insurers in India and Bank of India, one of the largest Public Sector Banks in the country have entered into a corporate agency agreement for the distribution of Bajaj Allianz General Insurance’s products through the bank’s network of 5084 branches, 80 Retail Business Centers and 60 SME City Centers across the country.
• Indian economist Kaushik Basu has been awarded the Humboldt Research Award for Economics. The award was conferred on him by Professor Dr Hans-Bernd Schäfer of Bucerius Law School in Hamburg, Germany.
• A regular MTech programme in Defence Technology has been launched by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).
• State-owned miner NMDC announced government plans to offload 4 percent stake in the company through an offer for sale (OFS). The promoter proposes to sell up to 11,72,24,234 equity shares of the company.
• On July 07, 2021, The National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG) in West Bengal’s Kalyani created a database of genomic variations in oral cancer, the first-of-its-kind in the world, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT).
• A newly established Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) based test rig facility at Hyderabad can help the growing solar industry in India to test capability and performance of solar thermal components like solar receiver tubes, heat transfer fluids, and concentrating mirrors.
• The Defence Ministry has implemented SPARSH, an integrated system for automation of sanction and disbursement of defence pension.
• A Book Titled Operation khukri – The True Story behind the Indian Army’s Most Successful Mission as part of the United Nations authored by major general rajpal punia & damini punia slated to release on July 15.
• On July 06, 2021, The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022 Local Organising Committee (LOC) announced that the Mumbai Football Arena and Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, Pune will be the new venues and host cities for the competition.
• On July 07, 2021, The president of Haiti, Jovenel Moïse, was assassinated in his private residence.