DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

By admin: July 7, 2022

Smriti Irani gets additional charge of Minority Affairs and Jyotiraditya Scindia of Steel Ministry

Tags: National News

Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani has been given the charge of Minority Affairs Ministry in addition to her existing portfolio.

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has been given additional charge of the Ministry of Steel.

• After the resignation of Ram Chandra Prasad Singh and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi from the Union Cabinet, both the ministers have been given this additional charge.

• Singh and Naqvi resigned from the cabinet a day before their term in the Rajya Sabha ended.

• The President of India has accepted the resignation of Naqvi and Singh from the Union Council of Ministers, with immediate effect, under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution.

• Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi was Minority  Affairs Minister  and Ram Chandra Prasad Singh was Steel Minister in the Union Council of Ministers. 

• Singh, who comes from an ally party in Bihar, JD(U), had sworn in as a minister in the Modi government a year ago in July 2021. 

• There is no Muslim face in the Union Council of Ministers and 395 MPs of BJP.

• This is also the rare occasion when there is no Muslim member in the Union Council of Ministers.

PT Usha, Ilaiyaraaja, V Vijayendra Prasad, and Veerendra Heggade nominated to Rajya Sabha

Tags: Popular National News

Music maestro Ilaiyaraaja, sports icon PT Usha, screenwriter V Vijayendra Prasad and philanthropist and spiritual leader Virendra Hegde were nominated to the Rajya Sabha on 6 July.

• The nominations were made after the term of Rajya Sabha of Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi of BJP and RCP Singh of JD(U) ended.

• Ilaiyaraja

• Ilaiyaraja is from Tamil Nadu. 

• In a career spanning nearly five decades, Ilaiyaraaja has composed songs in several Indian languages and won several awards.

• He has won national awards five times. In 2010, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan and in 2018 the Padma Vibhushan.

• PT Usha

• Usha, born in Kozhikode in Kerala, is India’s best known track and field athlete.

• She also runs the Usha School of Athletics for training young athletes in the sport.

• He has won 11 medals at the Asian Games, including four golds at the 1986 Seoul Games.

• She has been awarded the Arjuna Award and Padma Shri in the past.

• V Vijayendra Prasad

• He is from Telangana. 

• He is Telugu cinema’s leading screenwriter.

• He has been associated with the creative world for many decades.

• His works showcase India’s glorious culture and have made a mark globally.

• Sivaji Ganesan (1982-86), Vyjayantimala Bali (1993-99) and S Ramaswamy (1999-2005) are the other Tamil film personalities who have served as nominated members of the Rajya Sabha.

• Veerendra Heggade

• He is from Karnataka.

• He has been the ‘Dharmadhikari’ (custodian) of the Dharmasthala temple in Karnataka from the age of 20. 

• He established the Institute of Rural Development and Self-Employment Training to provide awareness about self-employment opportunities and to train rural youth.

• He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in the year 2015.

• Nomination of Rajya Sabha members by the President

• Of the 245 members of the Rajya Sabha, 12 are nominated by the President on the recommendation of the government.

• They are nominated under Article 80(3) of the Constitution.

• As per Article 80(3) they should have special knowledge or practical experience in matters like literature, science, art and social service.

• A nominated member is allowed to join a political party within the first six months of taking membership.

Shyama Prasad Mookerjee 121st Birth Anniversary

Tags: Person in news

The 121st birth anniversary of Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee, who served as the first Industry Minister of independent India, was observed on 6th July.

• Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and PM Modi have paid tributes to Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee on his birth anniversary.

• Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee

• Syama Prasad Mookerjee was born on July 6, 1901 in Calcutta in a Bengali Hindu family.

• The name of his father was Ashutosh Mookerjee who was a judge of the High Court of Calcutta.

• His father was also Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calcutta.

• He graduated in English in 1921 from Presidency College.

• In 1923, he also completed his MA in Bengali.

• Youngest Vice-Chancellor

• In 1934, he became the youngest Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University.

•  Rabindranath Tagore gave the convocation address in Bengali during his tenure as Vice-Chancellor.

• This marked the beginning of the end of English dominance over Bengali and other Indian languages.

• Political career

• He began his political career in 1929 when he entered the Bengal Legislative Council as a candidate of the Indian National Congress.

• However, the INC chose to boycott the legislature the following year and he resigned. 

• Thereafter, he contested as an independent candidate and was elected.

• In 1941–1942, he served as Bengal Province’s Finance Minister for A K Fazlul Haq’s Progressive Coalition government, which was formed as a result of the resignations of the Congress government.

• Syama Prasad Mookerjee joined the Hindu Mahasabha in Bengal in 1939 and became its acting president.

• He opposed India's policy of autonomy of Jammu & Kashmir. 

• He was arrested during Jana Sangh’s agitation against Kashmir policy and died during detention.

• His efforts resulted in the formal formation of the All India Bharatiya Jana Sangh in October 1950.

• He died on 23 June 1953.

100 students of Sikkim College infected after coming in contact with Nairobi flies

Tags: State News

Around 100 students of an engineering college in East Sikkim suffered severe skin infections after coming into contact with Nairobi flies.

• About Nairobi flies

• These flies are native to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya in East Africa, and are therefore called Nairobi flies.

• These flies are like dragon bugs.

• They belong to two species, Paederus eximius and Paederus sabaeus. 

• They are orange and black in color, and thrive in areas of high rainfall.

• Like most insects, they are attracted to bright light.

• Effect of Nairobi flies on humans

• Farm pests are the primary food source of Nairobi flies, so these insects are beneficial to humans.

• Since they are attracted to bright lights, it is not rare for them to find their way into human habitats.

• Unlike most insects, Nairobi flies do not bite, but when they do bite, they release a fluid called Pederin that causes chemical burns on the skin.

• This chemical can cause unusual burns or sores on the skin.

• Within a day or two, pinhead-sized blisters appear, which are filled with a yellowish fluid.

• Even though the skin may heal in a week or two, the affected area may become infected for other reasons.

• Outbreaks of the disease

• Outbreaks have been seen in Kenya and other parts of East Africa.

• Outside Africa, there have been outbreaks in the past in India, Japan, Israel and Paraguay.

• Protection against Nairobi flies

• Prevent it from coming near you.

• Sleeping under a mosquito net can help.

• The fly should not be distracted, crushed or touched to reduce the chances of releasing the toxin.

• Any area where flies sit should be washed with soap and water.

6th Deputy NSA level meeting of Colombo Security Conclave held in Kochi

Tags: International News

The 6th Deputy National Security Advisor-level meeting of the Colombo Security Conference is being held in Kochi, Kerala.

• The seven-member Indian delegation is led by Deputy National Security Advisor Vikram Misri.

• Apart from India, delegations from Maldives, Sri Lanka and Mauritius are participating in the meeting.

• Representatives of Bangladesh and Seychelles are also attending the meeting as observers.

• The delegates called for cooperation among member states on issues such as maritime defense and security, counter-terrorism, countering radicalization, smuggling and organized crime, as well as protecting critical infrastructure.

• Colombo Security Conclave (CSC)

• It started in 2011 as a trilateral maritime cooperation mechanism between India, Maldives and Sri Lanka.

• The Secretariat of CSC is located in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

• The membership of the group was extended with the inclusion of Mauritius in March 2022.

• So far five meetings of the CSC have been held at the level of National Security Advisor and Deputy National Security Advisor.

• Since 2011, the mandate of the CSC mechanism has been enhanced to cover other issues of mutual interest. 

• Five pillars for cooperation

• Maritime Safety and Security

• Countering Terrorism and Radicalization

• Combating trafficking and organized crime

• Cyber Security

• Protection of critical infrastructure, technology, humanitarian aid and disaster relief

HDFC, ICICI, Axis Bank allowed to provide services for overseas procurement

Tags: Economy/Finance

The Defence Ministry on 7 July has approved three Private Sector Banks to provide financial services in overseas procurement.

• The ministry has allowed HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank to provide letter of credit and direct bank transfer business for overseas procurement.

• In this regard, PCDA on behalf of the Ministry of Defence had recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with these three banks in New Delhi.

• Till now only authorized public sector banks were used to provide these services to the Ministry of Defence.

• For the first time, three private sector banks have also been allowed by the Defence Ministry to provide financial services for overseas procurement.

• Selected banks can be allotted with LC business of Rs 2,000 crore (Rs 666 Crore for each bank under both capital as well as Revenue) on capital and revenue side for a period of one year on concurrent basis.

• The performance of these banks will be regularly monitored so that further action can be taken as required.

S Jaishankar attends G20 Foreign Ministers' meeting in Bali

Tags: International News

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited Bali, Indonesia on July 7 and participated in the G20 Foreign ministers’ meeting.

• Important facts

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia is organising this meeting within the framework of the Indonesia G20 Presidency.

• External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and discussed pending issues related to bilateral ties, including the status of the border dispute in eastern Ladakh.

• The meeting focused on pending issues related to bilateral relations, including the situation on the border.

• Other issues including students and flights were also discussed between the two.

• Jaishankar reiterated the need to restore peace and stability in the border areas.

• It is noteworthy that since May 5, 2020, the armed forces of India and China have maintained tense relations along the border in eastern Ladakh.

• India and China have so far held several rounds of talks at the military and diplomatic level to resolve the Eastern Ladakh dispute.

• In this regard, the two ministers reaffirmed that military and diplomatic officials from both sides should maintain regular contact and look forward to the next round of senior commanders' meeting at the earliest.

• The two Ministers also exchanged their perspectives on other regional and global developments.

• About G-20

• It is an informal group of 19 countries and the European Union.

• The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are its representatives.

• The G-20 group is the world's largest advanced and emerging economies.

• It represents about two-thirds of the world’s population, 85% of global gross domestic product, 80% of global investment and over 75% of global trade.

• Member countries - Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union.

• It has no permanent secretariat or headquarters.

• Italy will chair the G-20 in 2021, Indonesia will assume the role in 2022 and India will chair it in 2023.