CURRENT GK
1.Sarfraz Ahmed set to be appointed as Pakistan’s Test captain :-
Sarfraz Ahmed may be made Pakistan’s Test captain. According to PTI, Pakistan’s limited over skipper was already made captain when Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan and Najam Sethi were in England for the final of the ICC Champions Trophy.
Sarfraz led a remarkable turnaround in the Champions Trophy that ended with Pakistan winning the title after comprehensively beating India in the final by 180 runs.
On the way, they also saw off South Africa and hosts England. Pakistan were the lowest ranked team when they came into the tournament.
- India and ADB Sign $275 Million Loan for Upgrading Urban Services in Madhya Pradesh :-
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a $275 million loan on 19th June, 2017 for improving urban services in 64 small towns in the State of Madhya Pradesh.
The project will develop sustainable, inclusive, and climate-resilient water supply in 64 small and medium-sized towns, and integrated storm water and sewerage infrastructure in two heritage towns of Khajuraho and Rajnagar.
Previous ADB urban investments in the state have improved access to safe drinking water for more than 5 million residents in 4 major cities.
Along with ADB’s loan, the Government of Madhya Pradesh will provide counterpart support of $124 million. The project will run for almost five years with an expected completion date of June 2022.
3.Islamic State destroys iconic al-Nuri mosque in Mosul :-
The Islamic State group destroyed Mosul’s al-Nuri mosque and its iconic leaning minaret known as al-Hadba late Wednesday night when fighters detonated explosives inside the structures, according to Iraq’s Ministry of Defense.
The mosque — also known as Mosul’s Great Mosque — is where IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a so-called Islamic caliphate in 2014 shortly after the city was overrun by the militants and was seen as a key symbolic prize in the fight for Iraq’s second largest city.
The minaret that leaned like Italy’s Tower of Pisa stood for more than 840 years.
- Meghalaya Govt signs two MoUs with SBI for digital transaction :-
Meghalaya government signed two MoUs with the State Bank of India as a part of an initiative towards migrating government transactions to digital mode.
With implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), these MoUs are expected to give dealers and other citizens the desired platform for conducting financial transactions with the state government on a digital platform.
The state government has already established a new treasury called as Cyber Treasury, which dedicatedly handles all online transactions of government.
5.Kenneth Juster to be U.S. Ambassador to India :-
Kenneth Juster, deputy director of National Economic Council, will be appointed as the U.S. Ambassador to India, the White House confirmed on Wednesday.
An announcement of his appointment is in process, but it may not come before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first meeting with President Donald Trump on June 26.
Mr. Juster has been a strong advocate of India-U.S. partnership, and was the co-chair of the U.S.-India High Technology Cooperation Group set up during the George W. Bush presidency.
- Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman appointed Crown Prince :-
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef has been relieved of his post and replaced by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in a promotion for King Salman’s 31-year-old son that confirms him as next ruler of the kingdom.
Prince Mohammed bin Salman becomes deputy prime minister and retains his defence and other portfolios.
Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, for years the kingdom’s counter-terrorism chief who put down an al Qaeda campaign of bombings in 2003-06, is relieved of all positions.
7.11 new judges appointed for 3 High Courts :-
Eleven judges have been appointed to three High Courts.
The fresh appointments — six in the Madras High Court, three in the High Court of Chhattisgarh and two in Punjab and Haryana High Court — come at a time when the government and the judiciary continue to have differences over a key document which guides nomination of judges to the Supreme Court and the 24 High Courts.
Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had recently said that the appointment of judges would continue despite the non-finalisation of the memorandum of procedure.
- Ramamani Iyengar Institute wins first yoga award :-
The Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute here has been selected as the first recipient of the Prime Minister’s Award for outstanding contribution for promotion and development of yoga.
The decision has been taken by the screening committee and evaluation committee for the awards that were constituted in 2016.
The selection was done from among 85 nominations received and 15 more recommended by the screening committee.
9.SEBI eases norms to buy stressed assets :-
As part of the larger attempts of the government to resolve the massive bad debt issue, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Wednesday relaxed norms for investors acquiring assets in companies with stressed assets and facing bankruptcy proceedings.
The board of the capital markets regulator has decided to exempt the acquirers from making open offers after buying stakes from lenders while including checks such as a three-year lock-in for new investors and mandating that such relaxation would have to be approved by a special resolution.
10.MS Dhoni-Yuvraj Singh star power on wane as they go from lead roles to cameos :-
Indian cricket seemed to have turned back the clock. Here they were chasing a mammoth total in the Champions Trophy final of 2017 at the Oval, and MS Dhoni was walking out to join Yuvraj Singh in the middle.
The poster boys from the mid-2000s were back together again a decade later with the stage set for them to produce an encore of one of their vintage and destructive duets.
The performance started rather promisingly too with Yuvraj smashing Mohammad Hafeez, a punt by Sarfraz Ahmed based purely on the ageing left-hander’s travails against spin bowling early on, for three fours in his first over.
11.SEBI eases norms to buy stressed assets :-
As part of the larger attempts of the government to resolve the massive bad debt issue, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Wednesday relaxed norms for investors acquiring assets in companies with stressed assets and facing bankruptcy proceedings.
The board of the capital markets regulator has decided to exempt the acquirers from making open offers after buying stakes from lenders while including checks such as a three-year lock-in for new investors and mandating that such relaxation would have to be approved by a special resolution.
12.2017 Orwell Prize awarded to John Bew :-
The 2017 Orwell Prize, Britain’s most prestigious prize for political writing, was announced on June 15, in London.
The £3,000 2017 Orwell Prize for books was bestowed upon John Bew for his “extraordinary biography” Citizen Clem , which is about Clement Attlee, the founder of the NHS.
13.Rajiv Guaba to be Home Secretary :-
The Modi government on Wednesday carried out a reshuffle in the top bureaucracy, appointing Rajiv Guaba as Home Secretary, and Subhash Garg as Secretary, Economic Affairs, in the Ministry of Finance (MoF).
In total, 17 top officials were appointed to fill vacancies in important positions like Economic Affairs, Telecommunications, Power, Personnel and Shipping.
14.GST rollout: All except J-K pass State GST legislation :-
All states and union territories (UTs), except Jammu & Kashmir, have passed the State GST Act and are on board for the rollout of the goods and services tax (GST) from the midnight of June 30.
Two opposition-ruled states of Kerala and West Bengal have issued an ordinance to approve the SGST Act, while all other states and UTs have passed it in their respective legislative assemblies.
“As of (now), all the states and union territories (having Assemblies), except the State of Jammu and Kashmir, have passed the State Goods and Services Tax (SGST) Act,” the finance ministry stated.
- Air Asia named world’s best budget airline at Skytrax awards :-
Air Asia, and Air Asia X won four awards at the Skytrax Awards at the Paris airshow, including that for world’s best low-cost airline.
At the awards, dubbed as the “Oscars of the Aviation Industry”, AirAsia X scooped up the World’s Best Low-Cost Airline Premium Cabin and World’s Best Low-Cost Airline Premium Seat awards for the fifth straight year.
Air Asia won awards for being the Best Low-Cost Airline in Asia and also as World’s Best Low-Cost Airline Premium Cabin 2017 at the 2017 Skytrax World Airline Awards.
16.U.N. Secretary-General joins chorus on resuming India-Pakistan talks :-
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has been “in touch” with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif over tensions along the Line of Control (LoC).
The U.N. chief said this in New York in comments that were then confirmed again by his office in an e-mail to The Hindu.
Speaking to journalists at his first press conference in New York on Tuesday, Mr. Guterres fielded a question about whether he was “engaged in bringing about a dialogue between India and Pakistan to resolve the Kashmir dispute”.
