Excellence by Saikat Sir: Current Affairs 10th July 2021| Current Affairs News

Current Affairs 10th July 2021| Current Affairs News

CURRENT AFFAIRS: IMPORTANT DAYS

National Fish Farmers’ Day – Observed on July 10

The National Fish Farmers Day is celebrated on 10th July every year, this day is celebrated in memory of scientists Dr K. H. Alikunhi and Dr H. L. Chaudhary.
Both the scientist successfully demonstrated Hypophysation (technology of induced breeding) in Indian Major Carps (common name for several species of fish) on 10th July 1957 at the former CIFRI Pond Culture Division in Cuttack, Odisha.
This year it was the 63rd National Fish Farmers Day.
This day is made to honor the fish farmers, aqua preneurs , fisher folks, stakeholders and whoever else is associated in fishery for their contribution in fishery.
On the occasion of ‘National Fish Farmers Day’ that NFDB in collaboration with the NBFGR will take up the work to establish “Fish Cryobanks” in different parts of the country.
It will facilitate all time availability of ‘fish sperms’ of desired species to fish farmers.
This would be the first time in the world when “Fish Cryobank” will be established, which can bring a revolutionary change in the fisheries sector in the country for enhancing fish production and productivity and thereby increasing prosperity among the fish farmers.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

Centre constitute 25-member development council for cement industry

The government has set up a 25-member development council for the cement industry, including Dalmia Bharat Group CMD Puneet Dalmia and UltraTech Cement MD K C Jhanwar, which will suggest ways to eliminate waste, obtain maximum production, improve quality, reduce costs and promote standardization of products.
Other functions of the council include recommending measures for securing the full utilization of the installed capacity and for improving the working of the industry, particularly of the less efficient units; promoting training of persons; and promoting or undertaking scientific and industrial research.
It would also work for standardization of accounting and costing methods and practice; and promoting the adoption of measures for increasing the productivity of labour, including measures for securing safer and better working conditions.

About the council:

Dalmia is the chairman of the council.
Its members include Shree Cement Ltd MD HM Bangur, The India Cements Ltd Executive President Rakesh Singh; Birla Corporation Limited CEO Pracheta Majumdar; J.K. Cement Ltd Deputy Managing Director Madhavkrishna Singhania, and JSW Cement Ltd CEO Nilesh Narwekar.

CBIC unveiled online filing of Authorised Economic Operators T2, T3

Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) Chairman Shri M. Ajit Kumar here inaugurated the online filing of Authorised Economic Operators (AEO) T2 and T3 applications.
The AEO web application is accessible at URL www.aeoindia.gov.in.
The new version (V 2.0) of the web application is designed to ensure continuous real-time and digital monitoring of physically filed AEO T2 and AEO T3 applications for timely intervention and expedience.
The AEO application processing for AEO T1 on the web-based portal www.aeoindia.gov.in has been functional since December 2018.
To take this Endeavour for digitization forward, in line with the government’s Digital India initiative, the CBIC Board has launched a new version (V2.0) for on-boarding of AEO T2 and AEO T3 applicants for online filing, real-time monitoring, and digital certification.

About CBIC:

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs is the nodal national agency responsible for administering Customs, GST, Central Excise, Service Tax & Narcotics in India.
CBEC is being renamed as the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC), after getting legislative approval.
Chairperson: M. Ajit Kumar

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Sweden: Stefan Lofven re-elected as Prime Minister of the country

Prime Minister Stefan Löfven was reinstated in the Sweden Parliament within a few weeks after he was ousted in a no-confidence vote.
Löfven won a majority of 117 IN 349 seats on July 7 when he resumed.
Head of the Social Democrat’s Party, Löfven was supported by lawmakers to form a new government after leading the country in a caretaking capacity since late last month, reported AP.

About Stefan Lofven:

Kjell Stefan Löfven is a Swedish politician serving as the prime minister of Sweden since 2014 and leader of the Swedish Social Democratic Party since 2012.
As of 28 June 2021, Löfven is the interim Prime Minister having tendered the government’s resignation as part of the process of trying to form a new cabinet.

About Sweden:

Sweden is a Scandinavian nation with thousands of coastal islands and inland lakes, along with vast boreal forests and glaciated mountains.
Its principal cities, eastern capital Stockholm and southwestern Gothenburg and Malmö, are all coastal.
Stockholm is built on 14 islands.
It has more than 50 bridges, as well as the medieval old town, Gamla Stan, royal palaces and museums such as the open-air Skansen.
Capital: Stockholm
Currency: Swedish krona

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS

Kerala govt got its own OTT platform

The Kerala State Film Development Corporation (KSFDC) will soon prepare a detailed project report (DPR) for launching an OTT platform exclusively for Malayalam movies.
The technical team of KSFDC has started the preliminary works and is hopeful of submitting the report by next month.
Once theatres reopen after the Covid crisis settles, the producers will have an option to screen the movies in theatres owned by KSFDC before releasing them on state-owned OTT platform.
KSFDC chairman Shaji N Karun stated “If they get a theatre screening first and then get to shift the movie to the OTT platform, it will be more beneficial to the producers”.

About OTT platform:

An over-the-top media service is a media service offered directly to viewers via the Internet.
OTT bypasses cable, broadcast, and satellite television platforms, the types of companies which traditionally act as controllers or distributors of such content.
Over the top (OTT) is film and television content that is provided via the Internet as opposed to the traditional means of a cable or satellite provider.
Common examples of OTT include services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and HBO Now.

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.

Karnataka state govt to initiate ‘Model Tenancy Act’

Karnataka’s Revenue Minister R Ashoka has mentioned that the state government is planning to introduce the Model Tenancy Act in the state, aimed at ending tenant-owner disputes.
It is Simplifying the current tenancy act.
Earlier, the government had a role in fixing the rent.

About the act:

The rent should be fixed by both the parties (owners and tenants) and after reaching an agreement, they need to finalize it legally and then upload it in the portal.”
“This is just a proposal and they are expecting feedback from the public before we officially introduce this in Karnataka”.
The Union Cabinet in the first week of June had approved the Model Tenancy Act and sent it for circulation to all the States for adaptation by way of enacting fresh legislation or amending the existing rental laws suitably.

Highlights of Model Tenancy Act:

Deposits cannot exceed six- month rentals for commercial properties and two-month rentals for residential properties.
Without a valid notice, tenants cannot be evicted during the agreement period.
The rent agreement should be uploaded on the revenue department website and the agreement between tenant and landlord is final.
Without written permission from owners, tenants cannot make any structural changes to the property.

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.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS

Facebook introduces newsletter platform “Bulletin”

Facebook Inc. launched its newsletter product Bulletin, a standalone platform for free and paid articles and podcasts that will aim to rival Substack.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the platform, which is live at Bulletin.com, and introduced some of the writers that the company has recruited in a live audio room on Facebook.
Facebook is pushing to compete in the fast-growing email newsletter trend, as high-profile journalists and writers have left media companies over the past year to strike out on their own.
Self-publishing platform Substack is a leader in helping writers sell email subscriptions, and has lured journalists with cash advances.
Other tech companies are also competing in the field, including Twitter Inc., which acquired newsletter platform Revue.

Bulletin:

A bulletin is a short official announcement made publicly to inform people about an important matter.
A brief public notice issued usually from an authoritative source specifically: a brief news item intended for immediate publication or broadcast.

About Facebook:

Facebook, Inc., is an American multinational conglomerate based in Menlo Park, California.
It was founded by Mark Zuckerberg, along with his fellow roommates and students at Harvard College, who were Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes, originally as TheFacebook.com—today’s Facebook, a popular global social networking service.
It is one of the world’s most valuable companies.
It is considered one of the Big Five companies in U.S. technology, with Google, Apple, Microsoft and Amazon.
CEO: Mark Zuckerberg
Headquarters: Menlo Park, California, United States
CFO: David Wehner

Most popular media “News on Air Radio Live-stream” on Global Rankings

In the latest Rankings of top countries in the world (excluding India) where All India Radio Live-streams on NewsOnAir App are most popular,Fiji has jumped from 5th position to 2nd, while Saudi Arabia has made a comeback in top 10.
Kuwait and Germany are new entrants, while France and New Zealand are no longer in the top 10.
The United States continues to be number 1.
In what is an important feat, All India Radio’s Telugu and Tamil live-stream services are popular in the United States, while AIR Punjabi service is popular in the United Kingdom.
In major changes in rankings of top AIR streams globally (excluding India), AIR News 24*7 has moved one position up from Rank 7 to 6, while AIR Tamil has slipped from spot 6 to 10.
More than 240 Radio Services of All India Radio are live-streamed on NewsOnAir App, PrasarBharati’s official App.
These All India Radio Streams on NewsOnAir App have a large number of listeners not just in India, but globally, in more than 85 countries and 8000 cities across the globe.

All India Radio:

All India Radio, officially known since 1957 as Akashvani, is the national public radio broadcaster of India and is a division of Prasar Bharati.
It was established in 1936.
It is the sister service of Prasar Bharati’s Doordarshan, an Indian television broadcaster.
Headquarters: Sansad Marg, New Delhi
Owner: Prasar Bharati

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING NEWS

Maruti Suzuki introduces Smart Finance online for Arena, Nexa customers

Maruti Suzuki has launched a new platform, Maruti Suzuki Smart Finance, for its ARENA and NEXA customers.
Under the initiative, the digital platform will provide customers end-to-end online car financing solutions.
The company has tied up with 14 financiers who’ll provide competitive interest rates.
The 14 financiers on-board include HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Yes Bank, Axis Bank, State Bank of India, IndusInd Bank, Bank of Baroda, Karur Vysya Bank, Cholamandalam Finance, AU Small Finance Bank, Mahindra Finance, Kotak Mahindra Prime, Sundaram Finance & HDB Financial services.
The digital platform is a one-stop online finance portal that allows customers to choose the right finance partner, select the right loan product, complete all finance-related formalities and get the loan online.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENT AND RESIGNATION NEWS

RBI nod 3-year extension to Federal Bank CEO

Private sector Federal Bank stated it has received approval from the RBI to re-appoint Shyam Srinivasan as its MD and CEO for three years.
Srinivasan took charge as MD and CEO of the lender on September 23, 2010.
“The approval from Reserve Bank of India has been received on July 9, 2021 for the re-appointment of Shyam Srinivasan as the MD & CEO of the bank for a period of three years with effect from September 23, 2021 till September 22, 2024″.
Earlier in July 2020, the South-based lender had received RBI’s nod for reappointment of Srinivasan as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer till September 22, 2021.

About Federal Bank:

Federal Bank Limited is a major Indian commercial bank in the Private Sector, headquartered in Aluva, Kochi.
The bank has more than 1,200 branches spread across different states in India.
It also has its Representative Offices abroad at Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Dubai.
Headquarters: Aluva
CEO: Shyam Srinivasan
Tagline: Your Perfect Banking Partner

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOURS

African-American Zaila Avant-garde bags 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee honour

Zaila Avant-garde, a 14-year-old from New Orleans, Louisiana, was crowned the winner of the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Avant-garde, who is the first African American winner in the bee’s 96-year history, ended the competition with the word “murraya.”
The bee’s final round was the first of this year’s competition to be held in person, at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.
The preliminary, quarterfinal and semifinal rounds, which brought the number of competitors from 209 to 11, were all held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.

About Scripps National Spelling Bee:

The Scripps National Spelling Bee is an annual spelling bee held in the United States.
The bee is run on a not-for-profit basis by The E. W. Scripps Company and is held at a hotel or convention center in Washington, D.C. during the week following Memorial Day weekend.
Contest participants cannot be older than fourteen as of August 31 of the year before the competition; nor can they be past the eighth grade as of February 1 of that year’s competition.
A $50,000 cash prize; a commemorative medal; the “Scripps Cup,” which is the official championship trophy of the Scripps National Spelling Bee; a $2,500 cash prize and reference library from Merriam-Webster; and $400 in reference materials from Encyclopædia Britannica.

N N Pillai honoured with BKS Literary Award

Journalist and playwright Omchery N N Pillai has been selected for the Bahrain Keraleeya Samajam (BKS)’s Literary Award for 2021.
BKS president P V Radhakrishna Pillai, general secretary Varghese Karackal and literary wing secretary Firoz Thiruvathra announced the award.
The Jury was headed by the novelist M Mukundan.
Literary critic Dr K S Ravikumar, writer and Kerala Chief Secretary Dr V P Joy, and Radhakrishna Pillai were part of the jury.
The award constitutes a cash prize of `50,000 and a citation acknowledging the achievement.
The award ceremony will be held later in Delhi.
“His enormous contributions as a whole to Malayalam language and literature are remarkable, which ultimately led to this award.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOU’s AND AGREEMENTS

Agreement on global digital tax – to boost India-US trade negotiations

The US announced tariffs on six countries, including India,that have imposed or are considering equalization levy/digital services tax on e-commerce companies but immediately suspended the taxes for up to six months to provide additional time to complete the ongoing multilateral negotiations on international taxation at the OECD and G20.
The success of the global tax treaty will pave the way for the India-US trade negotiations which were stuck over digital tax.
“The digital tax imposed on large US multinationals like Google, Facebook, Amazon was one of the stumbling blocks during the trade negotiations between the two countries.
After the success of the global tax treaty, this matter will be automatically resolved and will pave the way for fresh negotiation”.

India and Gambia signed an MoU

The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, India and Public Service Commission, Gambia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Refurbishing Personnel Administration and Governance Reforms.
The MoU aims at strengthening and promoting bilateral cooperation between India and Gambia in Personnel Administration and Governance Reforms.
Areas such as Improving Performance Management System in Government, Implementation of contributory Pension Scheme and e-Recruitment in Government would be covered.

About Gambia:

The Gambia is a small West African country, bounded by Senegal, with a narrow Atlantic coastline.
It’s known for its diverse ecosystems around the central Gambia River.
Abundant wildlife in its Kiang West National Park and Bao Bolong Wetland Reserve includes monkeys, leopards, hippos, hyenas and rare birds.
The capital, Banjul, and nearby Serrekunda offer access to beaches.
Capital: Banjul
Currency: Gambian dalasi
President: Adama Barrow

Ladakh and HFRI signed an MoU

Union Territory of Ladakh and Himalayan Forest Research Institute (HFRI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for forest cover development in the region.
UT Principal Secretary Dr. Pawan Kotwal and HFRI Director Dr. SS Samant signed the MoU in Leh.
Dr Pawan Kotwal stated, MoU is an advisory arrangement without any financial and legal implications.
HFRI is an expertise research institute to help Ladakh towards Carbon neutrality.
He said, Increase in forest cover temperatures and melting of glaciers.
HFRI would study and identify the suitable plant varieties to increase the forest cover in Ladakh and also help in capacity building with training programmes at grass root level.
Depending on the requirement a regional HFRI centre in Ladakh is also in plan.

About HFRI:

Himalayan Forest Research Institute is a Research institute situated in Shimla in Himachal Pradesh.
It works under the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : DEFENCE NEWS

Bharat Dynamics Ltd signs Rs 499-crore deal with IAF

On July 08, 2021, Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) signed a contract worth about Rs 499 crore with the Ministry of Defence for the manufacture and supply of Akash missiles to the Indian Air Force (IAF).
The contract was signed by Air Commodore Ajay Singhal, Air Commodore, Guided Weapons Maintenance on behalf of Indian Air Force.

About Akash Missile :

Akash is a medium-range mobile surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, being developed under India’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
The Akash missile is developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and produced by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), both for the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force.
Akash is an indigenously developed all-weather, air defence weapon missile, which uses a high explosive, pre-fragmented warhead that can engage multiple threats simultaneously.

About Bharat Dynamics Limited :

Headquarters: Hyderabad, India
Founded: 1970
Chairman & MD : Commodore Siddharth Mishra
BDL is the prime production agency for projects under India’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP)

About Indian Air Force :

Headquarters: New Delhi
Founded: 8 October 1932
Commander-in-Chief: President Ram Nath Kovind
Chief of the Air Staff : Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria
Vice Chief of the Air Staff : Vivek Ram Chaudhari

INS Tabar conducts maritime partnership with Italian Navy

On July 07, 2021, Indian Naval Ship Tabar participated in a military exercise with a frontline frigate of the Italian Navy.
INS Tabar joined Italian Navy and entered Port of Naples on July 3 as part of ongoing deployment in Mediterranean.
Commanding officer Captain Mahesh Mangipudi called on senior officers of Prefect of Naples Authority, regional Italian navy headquarters and coast guard headquarters during the stay.
This exercise covered several naval operations such as air defence procedures, communication drills, replenishment at sea, and cross deck helo operations by day and night.
Exercise was mutually beneficial for enhancing interoperability and consolidating combined operations against maritime threats.

About Indian Naval Ship Tabar :

INS Tabar was commissioned on April 19, 2004, in Kaliningrad, Russia.
Tabar is the third Indian warship of Talwar-class frigate in the Indian Navy.
INS Tabar is a Talwar class vessel equipped with supersonic BrahMos anti-ship cruise missiles. The vessel is armed with Barak 1 missiles.
It is a warship that can withstand air, surface, and sub-surface missions.
It is equipped with one single-rail MS-196 launcher that can launch long-range Shtil-1 surface-to-air missiles.
It has 8 Igla-1E portable air defence missiles for short-range launches.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

ICAI to launch mobile app For Students : CA Day 2021

On July 01, 2021, on the occasion of CA Day, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) will launch a mobile app for students of Foundation, Intermediate and Final course students.

About ICAI-BOS :

The mobile app named, “ICAI-BOS” will have to potential to provide next-generation interactive learning and innovative ways to improve quality services to the students and to establish a strong connection.
The app can be downloaded by students from google play for android users.
In this mobile app the students can have interactive learning and coaching facility at a single platform, access the downloaded file of Assignments, Faculty notes, and any study material without internet connection, ad-free learning while viewing lectures.
This mobile app is exclusively for CA students where they can track announcement and push notifications, live coaching classes, all education contents, download faculty notes and assignments, attempt topic-wise MCQ based online tests and assess his/her performance, vide recorded lectures as per his/her convenience at any point of time.

Note :

CA Day is celebrated every year on 1 July to commemorate the finding of accounting body ICAI.

About Institute of Chartered Accountants of India :

Headquarters : New Delhi
President : CA Nihar Niranjan Jambusaria
Vice President : CA Debashis Mitra
Secretary : CA Mukesh Kumar Jain
The ICAI is the second largest professional body of Chartered Accountants in the world.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BOOKS & AUTHORS

A New Book Titled : The Light of Asia by Jairam Ramesh to be released in May 2022

The book, titled “The Light of Asia: The Poem that Defined the Buddha” authored by Former Union minister Jairam Ramesh.
The Book will be published under Penguin’s ‘Viking’ imprint in May 2022.

About the Book :

This book is a biography of the phenomenal poem titled “The Light of Asia”, written and published by Sir Edwin Arnold in 1879.
The book endeavors to describe the life and time of Prince Gautama Siddhartha, who after attaining enlightenment became the Buddha.
It presents his life, character, and philosophy, in a series of verses.

About Jairam Ramesh :

Jairam Ramesh is a Rajya Sabha MP, was Union minister between 2006 and 2014, holding several key portfolios including environment and forests.
He is the author of several well-known books including Indira Gandhi: A Life in Nature and Intertwined Lives: P.N. Haksar and Indira Gandhi.
In 2011, he was appointed Minister of Rural Development and Minister (additional charge) of the new Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
He was previously the Indian Minister of State at the Ministry of Environment and Forests from May 2009 to July 2011.
Ramesh was recently declared winner of the 2020 Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize for “A Chequered Brilliance: The Many Lives of VK Krishna Menon”.

About Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation :

Founded: 2011
Headquarters: New Delhi
Minister of State : Ramesh Jigajinagi

The Struggle Within: A Memoir of the Emergency Authored by Ashok Chakravarti

HarperCollins announces the release of The Struggle Within: A Memoir of the Emergency by Ashok Chakravarti.
The Book is Published By Harpercollins India.