DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

By admin: June 28, 2022

G7 announces $600 billion global infrastructure programs

Tags: International News

The G7 group has announced USD 600 billion global infrastructure programs for poor countries.

• Under the program, the US government and its allies will try to touch the USD 600 billion mark during the years 2022 and 2027.

• The move is intended to compete with China's Belt and Road Initiative.

• The proposed G7 funding would rely largely on private companies, in contrast to the Chinese government-run Belt and Road Initiative.

• The partnership has been unveiled by US President Joe Biden and G7 allies from Germany, Canada, Japan, Italy and the European Union.

• Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)

• The Belt and Road Initiative is formally known as the One Belt One Road initiative.

• It is a global infrastructure development strategy, launched by China in 2013.

• Under this, China had planned to invest in about 70 countries and international organisations.

• The project is the centrepiece of Chinese leader Xi Jinping's foreign policy.

• As of March 2022, 146 countries have signed the BRI.

• The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is dedicated to providing loans for infrastructure projects.

• About the G7

• The G7 or Group of Seven is a grouping of the seven most advanced economies.

• The seven countries are Canada, USA, UK, France, Germany, Japan and Italy.

• It was formed in 1975.

• The G7 countries meet annually to discuss issues of common interest such as global economic governance, international security and energy policy.

• All G7 countries and India are part of the G20.

• The G7 has no fixed headquarters.

Rajasthan's entry into the field of uranium mining

Tags: State News

Rajasthan has entered the field of uranium mining with the issuance of Letter of Intent (LOI) for uranium exploration in the state on June 26, 2022.

• This LOI has been issued for mining lease to Uranium Corporation of India for mining of Uranium Ore at Rohil in Khandela Tehsil near Sikar.

• Huge deposits of uranium have been found in an area of 1086.46 hectares in Rohil of Khandela tehsil of Sikar district. According to preliminary estimates, about 12 million tonnes of uranium reserves are possible in this area.

• Uranium is currently being mined in the country at Jaduguda in Singhbhum in Jharkhand and in Andhra Pradesh.

• Most of the uranium produced globally is in Kazakhstan, Canada and Australia. Apart from this, uranium minerals have also been found in Russia, Namibia, Uzbekistan, USA and Ukraine.

• Uranium is mainly used to generate electricity. However, apart from nuclear power, uranium is also used in medicine, defence equipment, photography, among others.

• About Uranium -

• Uranium is the third element of the actinide series, an intermediate series of the periodic table.

• The element uranium was discovered in 1789 by Klaproth from an ore called pitchblende.

• In 1896, Henri Becquerel discovered radioactivity in uranium.

• Uranium is a shiny white metal. Its symbol is U, atomic number 92, atomic weight 238.03.

Rajasthan's Menar bird village will become a wetland

Tags: State News

Menar village in Udaipur district, recognized as "Bird Village" after various conservation efforts, has been decided to be notified as the new wetland of Rajasthan.

• This will pave the way for this rural area of Mewar region to get the status of Ramsar site.

• About Menar Wetland

• The two lakes of Menar village- Brahma and Dhandha host a large number of migratory birds every year.

• More than 150 species of local and migratory birds reside in both the lakes during the winter season.

• These include the Greater Flamingo, White-tailed Lapwing, Pelican, Marsh Harrier, Bar-headed Goose, Common Teal, Greenshank, Pintail, Wagtail, Green Sandpiper and Red-Wattled Lapwing.

• Bird lovers and tourists visit this village after the arrival of migratory birds from Central Asia, Europe and Mongolia.

• Presently there are two wetlands recognized as Ramsar sites in Rajasthan-

• Keoladeo Ghana in Bharatpur District.

• Sambhar Salt Lake in Jaipur District.

• What is wetland?

• Wetlands are seasonal or permanent ecosystems located in water.

• These include mangroves, swamps, rivers, lakes, deltas, floodplains and floodplains, rice fields, coral reefs, marine areas (places with high tides less than 6 m) as well as man-made wetlands such as wastewater treatment ponds and Reservoir etc. are included.

• More than 1 billion people depend on wetlands for subsistence and 40% of the world's species live and breed in wetlands.

• 30% of land-based carbon is stored in peatlands (a type of wetland).

Goa celebrates Sao Joao festival

Tags: State News

Sao Joao is an annual Catholic festival celebrated in an unusual way in Goa every year on 23 June.

• IMPORTANT FACTS -

• Sao Joao is also known as St. John the Baptist.

• Catholic men jump into the water to find gifts thrown into wells, ponds and rivers to pay tribute to St. John the Baptist.

• This festival is celebrated every year in June to mark the beginning of the season.

• People wear crowns of fresh fruits and wild flowers traditionally called 'kopels' to celebrate the occasion.

• About Goa -

• Goa is the smallest state in India by area and the fourth smallest by population.

• The Portuguese ruled Goa for about 450 years and it was handed over to the Indian administration on 19 December 1961.

• Panaji, the capital of Goa, is situated on the banks of the Mandovi river.

• Governor- PS Sreedharan

• Chief Minister- Pramod Sawant

• Assembly seat - 40

• Rajya Sabha Seat-1

• Lok Sabha seat - 2

India and Britain to launch joint Commonwealth Diplomatic Academy program

Tags: International Relations Latest

Recently a joint India-UK Commonwealth Diplomatic Academy program was announced by the Foreign Ministers of UK and India.

• It aims to equip diplomats from all Commonwealth member states with the expertise and skills required to deal with emerging challenges that have a global impact.

• This Academy event will be held in New Delhi.

• This was announced during the 26th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) held in Rwanda, East Africa from 24 to 25 June.

• The academy will be meant to jointly promote the values of the Commonwealth.

• About the United Kingdom or Britain -

• The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and unitary state consisting of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

• It is governed by a parliamentary system whose government sits in the capital, London.

• It was the first industrialised country in the world.

• The United Kingdom is one of three countries in the world that do not have a well-organised constitution.

• The United Kingdom is today the sixth largest economy in the world based on market exchange rates and the third in Europe after Germany and France.

• Queen Elizabeth II

• Prime Minister - Boris Johnson

• Currency - Pound Sterling

Kerala government will start medical insurance scheme-Medicep from July 1

Tags: Government Schemes

Kerala government is going to start the MEDISEP scheme from July 1, 2022.

• It is a medical insurance scheme for state government employees, pensioners and their eligible family members.

• It will provide cashless medical assistance with comprehensive coverage up to Rs 3 lakh per year.

• Under this State Employees and Pensioners Medical Insurance Scheme (Medicep), the annual premium for 2022-24 will be Rs 4800 and 'GST'.

• Monthly premium of insurance will be Rs.500.

• The much-awaited 'cashless' medical assistance has been approved to be implemented through Oriental Insurance Company Limited.

• About Kerala State -

• Formation - 1 November 1956

• It is the world's first child harmony state recognized by UNICEF and the World Health Organisation.

• Kerala is the most literate state in India.

• Capital- Thiruvananthapuram

• Governor- Arif Mohammad Khan

• Chief Minister- Pinarayi Vijayan

• Assembly seats- 140

• Rajya Sabha seats - 9

• Lok Sabha seats - 20

First 'Kempegowda International Award'

Tags: Awards

Former Karnataka Chief Minister S. M. Krishna, Infosys founder and IT industry veteran N. R. Narayana Murthy, and former badminton player Prakash Padukone have been selected for the 'Kempegowda International Award'.

• Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai presented the awards to the recipients during a grand ceremony on the 513th birth anniversary of Bengaluru city architect Kempegowda.

• The award has been instituted by the state government in honour of Kempegowda, the founder of Bengaluru, earlier this year.

• The award carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh along with a memento.

• The government had constituted a committee under the chairmanship of Prashant Prakash, head of the start-up vision group, to nominate candidates for the award.

• The award will be presented to achievers in different fields 

• Who was Kempegowda?

• Kempegowda was noted as an intelligent and art-loving king during the Vijayanagara Empire.

• Kempegowda ruled for about 56 years from 1513 while his father Kempnanje Gowda ruled for 70 years.

• He decided to make Bangalore his capital in 1537 and redesigned Bengaluru.

• Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport is also named after him.

• His 108 feet high statue has been installed at Bangalore airport.

Nitin Gupta appointed as Chairman of CBDT

Tags: Person in news

IRS Nitin Gupta has been appointed as the new chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) by the Government of India.

• Nitin Gupta will succeed Sangeeta Singh who was given the additional charge of CBDT chief after the retirement of JB Mohapatra on 30 April 2022.

• Nitin Gupta is a 1986 batch IRS officer.

• Nitin Gupta has been working as Member (Investigation) in CBDT since September 2021.

• About Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)-

• CBDT i.e. Central Board of Direct Taxes is a part of the Department of Revenue in the Ministry of Finance.

• CBDT is empowered by the Board of Revenue Act 1963.

• CBDT provides necessary inputs for direct tax policies and schemes in India. Also it is responsible for the administration of direct tax laws through the Income Tax Department.

• All matters relating to direct taxes in India were entrusted to the Central Board of Direct Taxes with effect from 1 January 1964.

• The CBDT is headed by the Chairman and can have six members, who are of the rank of Special Secretary.

• It is the administrative body for the Income Tax Department.

Justice Ujjal Bhuyan appointed as the fifth Chief Justice of Telangana High Court

Tags: Person in news

At the Raj Bhavan in Hyderabad, Governor Dr. Tamilasai Souradyarajan administered the oath of office to Justice Ujjal Bhuiyan as the Chief Justice of Telangana.

• Ujal Bhuiyan is the fifth judge in the High Court of Telangana, which came into existence in 2019.

• He replaced Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, who was transferred to the Delhi High Court.

• The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended the elevation of Telangana High Court judge Justice Bhuiyan as Chief Justice.

• He is also the Executive Chairman of Telangana State Legal Services Authority.

• High Court - Organisation, Powers and Powers

• High Courts have been constituted under Article 214, Chapter 5, Part 6 of the Constitution of India.

• Under Article 216 of the Constitution of India, each High Court is composed of a Chief Justice and another Judge as may be determined by the President from time to time.

• They are appointed by the President under Article 217.

• The President may, in consultation with the Chief Justice of India, transfer any Judge of a High Court to another High Court under Article 222.

• Under Article 226 of the Constitution, the High Courts have wide powers to issue writs.

• At present the number of High Courts in India is 25.

• The first High Court of India was established in 1862 AD in Mumbai, while the 25th High Court of the country was established at Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh on January 1, 2019 AD as Telangana High Court.

• At present, the salary of the Chief Justice of the High Court is ₹ 250000 per month and the salary of other judges of the High Court is ₹ 225000 per month.

• The retirement age of judges of high courts has been increased from 62 years to 65 years by the 104th Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2010.

Iran launches solid fueled rocket ‘Zuljanah’ into space

Tags: Science and Technology

Iran has launched a solid fuel rocket named 'Zuljana' into space.

• It is a 25.5 metre tall rocket, capable of carrying a satellite of 220 kg.

• This satellite carrier is designed to reach low Earth orbit.

• This will help collect data in low-Earth orbit and encourage Iran's space industry.

• The rocket uses solid fuel in the first two stages while in the third stage it uses liquid fuel.

• Iranian experts first tested the Zuljana satellite carrier rocket in 2012, a powerful engine powered by solid fuel.

• Zuljana is named after the horse of Imam Hussain, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad.

• About Iran

• Iran is a country located in the southwest section of Jambudweep (Asia). It was known as Persia (Persia) till 1935.

• Iran was declared an Islamic republic in 1979.

• Iran's economy is mainly dependent on oil and natural gas exports.

• Iran is the largest country in the world in terms of natural gas reserves.

• Capital- Tehran

• President - Ibrahim Raisi

• Currency - Iranian Rial