Current Affairs Update – 22 July 2018

Current Affairs Update 22 July 2018

Current Affairs is an important part for many exams. Be prepared for this section with ByScoop which brings all the important Current Affairs in one place. 22 July 2018.

PM Modi E-flags Emergency Ambulance Service in Sri Lanka

  • The Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi jointly with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe e-flagged National Emergency Ambulance service all over Sri Lanka via video conference.
  • India has given a grant of USD 22.8 million for the country-wide expansion of the ambulance service in Sri Lanka.
  • The service will be introduced in two phases. In phase I two provinces of Sri Lanka has been covered for which 88 ambulances have been purchased. In phase II another 209 ambulances are being provided to cover the remaining seven provinces in the country through GOI assistance.
  • Apart from providing ambulances, the grant covers training of manpower in India and meeting operational costs for one year. 

Punjab Minister Sidhu Unveils Plan to Develop Virasat-e-Khalsa

  • Punjab Tourism and Cultural Affairs Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu has finalized a blue print to develop the prestigious Virasat-e-Khalsa (a museum of the Sikhs) at Anandpur Sahib as a ‘strategic tourist spot’ in the state.
  • It also includes upgrading the basic amenities and infrastructure at Anandpur Sahib, the birthplace of Khalsa, for the convenience of devotees.
  • The Central Government, under Swadesh Darshan Scheme, had already approved Rs 99 crore for the development of historical and religious sites across the state, of which Rs 29 crore would be exclusively incurred on the all round development of Sri Anandpur Sahib. 

Bihar Govt to Grant Reservation in Promotions to SC/STs

  • The Bihar government has introduced reservation in promotions to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes personnel in its services.
  • 16 percent reservation will be given to SCs while STs would be eligible for 1 percent reservation. 
  • However, such promotions would be granted only in accordance with the further orders of the apex court.

Six-day Mudiya Poono fair to begin in Goverdhan, Mathura

  • The six-day Mudiya Poono fair, also known as mini-kumbh, will begin on July 23, 2018 in Goverdhan, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh.
  • The fair is known as “mini Kumbh” as at least 20 million pilgrims would perform ‘parikrama’ (circumambulation ) of the Goverdhan hillock between July 23 and July 28.

First international festival of Mizoram – Mizo Hnahthlak International festival held in Aizawl

  • The first international festival of Mizoram was organised in Aizawl.
  • Bordering with Myanmar and Bangladesh, Mizoram rolled out the red carpet for Mizo Hnahthlak International festival which saw huge participation from the Mizo tribal community living in different places and region.

IIT-B generates highest revenue among IITs: HRD Ministry

  • The revenue generated by IIT-Bombay in the last three years through research, inventions, consultancy and patents was the highest among the premier engineering institutes, according to HRD Ministry data.
  • The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, was followed by IIT-Madras and IIT-Delhi in terms of revenue generated.
  • IIT-Bombay generated a revenue of Rs 17.99 crore during 2017-18 from inventions, research, consultancy and patents. The revenue generated by the institute during 2016-17 and 2015-16 was Rs 17.11 crore and Rs 10.55 crore respectively, according to the data.

IIT Kanpur Develops Online Tool to Help People Deal with Mental Health Issues

  • The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, has developed an online tool, TreadWill, to help people cope with issues related to their mental health.
  • TreadWill is a website designed to help people deal with stress, low mood, lethargy and other depressive symptoms through different online exercises, questionnaires and games. 
  • It will help in overcoming depressive symptoms and becoming more resilient against stressful events in the future.
  • The tool has been developed by a team with collaborative support from the Computer Science and Engineering and Humanities and Social Sciences, HSS (Psychology) departments.

Sahaj and Sugam return forms for small taxpayers having turnover below Rs. 5 Cr

  • The 28th GST Council Meeting was held in New Delhi under the Chairmanship of Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister for Railways , Coal , Finance & Corporate Affairs.
  • Piyush Goyal approved the new return formats and associated changes in law.
  • All taxpayers excluding small taxpayers and a few exceptions like Input service distributor (ISD) etc. shall file one monthly return. The return is simple with two main tables. One for reporting outward supplies and one for availing input tax credit based on invoices uploaded by the supplier.
  • NIL return filers (no purchase and no sale) shall be given facility to file return by sending SMS.
  • The Council approved quarterly filing of return for the small taxpayers having turnover below Rs. 5 Cr as an optional facility. Quarterly return shall be similar to main return with monthly payment facility but for two kinds of registered persons – small traders making only B2C supply or making B2B + B2C supply.For such taxpayers, simplified returns have been designed called  Sahaj and Sugam. In these returns details of information required to be filled is lesser than that in the regular return. 
  • 93% of the taxpayers have a turnover of less than Rs 5 Cr and these taxpayers would benefit substantially from the simplification measures proposed improving their ease of doing business. Even the large taxpayers would find the design of new return quite user friendly. 

Minimum yearly deposit for Sukanya Samriddhi a/c reduced to Rs 250 from Rs 1,000

  • The government has slashed the minimum annual deposit requirement for accounts under the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana to Rs 250 from Rs 1,000 earlier.
  • The interest rate on Sukanya Samriddhi account is revised every quarter. For the July-September quarter, the rate has been fixed at 8.1 per cent.
  • The minimum deposit that needs to be made every year is now Rs 250, while the maximum is Rs 1.50 lakh. There is no limit on the number of deposits either in a month or a financial year.
  • Deposits can be made up to 14 years from the date of opening of the account. After this period, the account will only earn interest as per applicable rates.

Govt to increase scholarship under ‘Begum Hazrat Mahal National Scholarship Scheme’ from Rs 78 crore to Rs 90 crore

  • The Maulana Azad Education Foundation (MAEF), a subordinate organisation of the Ministry of Minority Affairs, has decided to increase the total budget for its ‘Begum Hazrat Mahal National Scholarship Scheme’ for schoolgirls.
  • During 2017-18, about 1,15,000 girls were given scholarship under the scheme. Around Rs 78 crore was allotted for this. This year a budget of Rs 90 crore is proposed.
  • Under the scheme, the girl students of Class 9 and 10 are given Rs 5,000 each per year and the students of Class 11 and 12 Rs 6,000 each per year.

India among 10 Asian economies to beat US in terms of GDP by 2030 : DBS Report

  • As per a report by DBS, the 10 major economies of Asia, including India, are expected to see robust growth and amount to over USD 28 trillion in real GDP terms on aggregate, more than the US by 2030.
  • According to DBS the Asia-10 economies are — China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand.
  • By 2030, Asia-10 economies will grow so robustly that they will, on aggregate, amount to over USD 28.35 trillion in real GDP (2010 constant dollars) terms, while for the United States will amount to USD 22.33 trillion.

All co-operative banks to build Investment Fluctuation Reserve (IFR) : RBI

  • The RBI has directed co-operative banks of all categories to create Investment Fluctuation Reserve (IFR) with a view to guard against unforseen fluctuations in market and remain solvent.

NABARD launches South East Asia’s first ever Centre for Climate Change in Lucknow

  • The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has launched first of its kind Centre for Climate Change in the South East Asia region in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.
  • The Centre aims at accelerating concerted climate action by various stakeholders in government, private, financial and non -government sectors.
  • It would help NABARD in enhancing its capacity building efforts manifold as well as extend professional support to stakeholders for designing climate related projects and take up collaborative studies and action research projects in area of climate change.
  • Besides, it would also support capacity building and project preparation effort in developing countries in the region as also in Africa.

SAI Shortlists 734 Youngsters for Khelo India Scholarship

  • The Sports India has cleared the names of 734 players for a scholarship programme under Khelo India Talent Identification Development scheme for the development of sports in the country.
  • The scholarship program is designed to take care of the expenses of the players.
  • The selected players will be eligible for an annual stipend of Rs. 1.2 lakhs on a quarterly basis to meet their out of pocket expenses, treating injuries and even smaller elements like local travel.

Tokyo 2020 Olympic/Paralympic Mascot Unveiled

  • The mascots of both the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 was unveiled on 22 July.

Paralympic Games

  • The Tokyo 2020 Paralympic mascot’s has been named as Someity, (pronounced soh-may-tee) which is a pink-checked figure and wears a cape.
  • It comes from the someiyoshino, a popular cherry blossom variety, and additionally echoes the English phrase “so mighty”.

Olympic Games

  • The Tokyo 2020 Olympic mascot’s has been as Miraitowa (pronounced mee-rah-e-toh-wa), based on the Japanese words mirai (future) and towa (eternity) combined. 
  • It is a blue-checked pointy-eared figure.

Lakshya Sen wins Asia Junior Championship title

  • Indian badminton player Lakshya Sen defeated the reigning world junior champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand to clinch a gold medal at the Asia Junior Championships in Jakarta.
  • Lakshya became only the third Indian player to win a Gold Medal in this event. Late Gautam Thakkar (1965) and Olympic silver medallist P V Sindhu (2012) had won the prestigious title earlier. 

Sunil Chhetri named 2017 AIFF player of the year award

  • Sunil Chhetri was named as the 2017 All India Football Federation (AIFF) Player of the Year by the national body.
  • Kamala Devi was adjudged the 2017 AIFF woman Player of the Year.
  • Chhetri recently became the second Indian footballer to play 100 international games after Baichung Bhutia. 

2017 AIFF Award winners: 

S.No Award Winner
1 2017 AIFF Player of the Year Sunil Chhetri
2 2017 AIFF Woman Footballer of the Year Kamala Devi
3 2017 AIFF Emerging Player of the Year (Mens) Anirudh Thapa
4 2017 AIFF Emerging Woman Footballer of the Year E Panthoi.
5 2017 AIFF Award for Best Referee C R Srikrishna
6 2017 AIFF Award for long-time contribution to Indian Football Hero Motocorp
7 2017 AIFF Award for Best Grassroots Development Programme Kerala FA
8 2017 AIFF Award for Best Assistant Referee Sumanta Datta (Assam)

Pulitzer Prize-winning food critic Jonathan Gold dies

Pulitzer Prize-Winning food critic, Jonathan Gold, has died at the age of 57. He also authored the book Counter Intelligence: In 2007, he became the first food critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.

Click Here For Daily Current Affairs

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *