1. UDYAMI BHARAT PROGRAMME
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches several schemes and programmes at Udyami Bharat Programme in New Delhi.
About:
- During the event, Mr Modi launched the Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) Scheme, Capacity Building of First-Time MSME Exporters Scheme and new features of the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme PMEGP.
- He added that the Centre has increased the budget by more than 650 percent in the last eight years to strengthen the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector.
- A self-reliant fund of 50 thousand crore rupees has been released for the sector. The Prime Minister also asked MSMEs to register on the GeM portal for supplying goods to the government.
- Modi said the government has decided that for orders up to 200 crore rupees, no global tender will be undertaken and this is in some ways a reservation for the MSMEs.
- Under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme, the central government has ensured 3.5 lakh crore rupees for the MSMEs.
2. EKNATH SHINDE
Shivsena rebel leader Eknath Shinde was sworn-in as the new Chief Minister of Maharashtra.
About:
- Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari administered the oath of office to Mr. Shinde. He has become the 20th Chief Minister of the state.
- Besides, Mr Shinde, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis was sworn-in as Deputy Chief Minister.
- The trust vote of the new government will be held on Saturday. The special session of the Assembly will be held on July 2 and 3. The Speaker will be elected on the first day of the session.
- Shinde, who revolted against former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on June 20, was joined by 39 Sena MLAs and 11 Independents.
- The rebel MLAs had demanded that Mr. Thackeray quit the tripartite Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) and snap ties with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) to return to the path of Hindutva.
Source : The Hindu
3. BUSINESS REFORM ACTION PLAN (BRAP)- 2020
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman released the Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP)- 2020 in New Delhi.
About:
- In the report, seven states have been identified as the top achievers based on implementation of the Business Reforms Action Plan. The states are Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Punjab, Telangana and Tamil Nadu.
- The report further mentioned that Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh figure under the Achievers category. While Assam, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Jharkhand, Kerala, Rajasthan and West Bengal have been placed in the Aspirers category.
- Andaman and Nicobar, Bihar, Chandigarh, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Puducherry and Tripura have been clubbed under the Emerging Business Ecosystems category.
Source : All India Radio
4. EX-SERVICEMEN CONTRIBUTORY HEALTH SCHEME (ECHS)
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh today approved enhanced monetary limits for procurement of drugs and consumables for Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS).
About:
- He approved the enhancement of the monetary ceiling for purchase of Not Available, emergent, lifesaving and essential drugs by 100 per cent in all categories of polyclinics from Authorised Local Chemists. This will ensure easy and timely availability of medicines for ECHS beneficiaries.
- There have been various representations from the veterans regarding supply of medicines.
- The government has already undertaken a series of modifications to procedures of procurement of medicines for ECHS beneficiaries.
Source : All India Radio
5. EXTERNAL DEBT
India’s external debt rose to $620.7 billion at end-March 2022, recording an increase of $47.1 billion over the year earlier period, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed.
About:
- The external debt to GDP ratio declined to 19.9% at end-March 2022, from 21.2% a year earlier.
- Valuation gains on account of the appreciation of the U.S. dollar vis-à-vis the Indian rupee and major currencies including the Japanese yen and euro was estimated at $11.7 billion.
- Excluding the valuation effect, external debt would have increased by $58.8 billion instead of $47.1 billion at end-March 2022 over end-March 2021, the RBI said.
- India’s long-term debt (with original maturity of above one year) rose to $499.1 billion, recording an increase of $26.5 billion over its level at end-March 2021, RBI data showed. During the same period, the share of short-term debt in total external debt increased to 19.6% from 17.6%.
- Similarly, the ratio of short-term debt to foreign exchange reserves increased to 20%. U.S. dollar-denominated debt remained the largest component of external debt, with a share of 53.2%.
- Separately, the RBI said net claims of non-residents on India increased by $5.6 billion during the fourth quarter of 2021-22 to $359.8 billion in March 2022.
Source : The Hindu
6. Op SANKALP: 3RD YEAR OF INDIAN NAVY’S MARITIME SECURITY OPERATION
Indian Navy’s stealth Frigate, INS Talwar is presently deployed for Op Sankalp commemorating the 3rd continuous year of Indian Navy’s presence in the Gulf for protection of India’s Maritime Interests.
- In the milieu of the deteriorating security situation in the Gulf region, post attacks on merchant ships in the Gulf of Oman in June 2019, Indian Navy had commenced Maritime Security Operations, code named ‘Op SANKALP’, in the Gulf Region on 19 June 2019 to ensure safe passage of Indian Flag Vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.
- This operation is being progressed in close coordination with all stakeholders including Ministry of Defence, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and DG, Shipping.
- Indian Navy continues to monitor the situation in the Gulf region and is maintaining presence in the region to ensure security of our sea borne trade and the safety of Indian Flag Merchant Vessels transiting through the region. The Indian Navy stands committed to protection of the nation's Maritime Interests.
Source: PIB
7. PSLV-C53/DS-EO MISSION
ISRO undertook PSLV-C53/DS-EO mission on June 30, 2022 from the Second Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
About:
- PSLV-C53 is the second dedicated commercial mission of NewSpace India Limited (NSIL). It is designed to orbit DS-EO satellite along with two other co-passenger satellites from Singapore.
- This is the 55th mission of PSLV and 15th mission using PSLV-Core Alone variant. The mission proposes to demonstrate the utilization of the spent upper stage of the launch vehicle as a stabilized platform for scientific payloads subsequent to the separation of the satellites.
- PSLV-C53 carries three satellites. DS-EO, a 365 kg and NeuSAR, a 155 kg satellite both belonging to Singapore. Third satellite is a 2.8 kg Scoob-1 of Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.
- PSLV Orbital Experimental Module (POEM)DS-EO carries an Electro-Optic, multi-spectral payload that will provide full color images for land classification, and serving Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief needs.
- NeuSAR is Singapore's first small commercial satellite carrying a SAR payload, which is capable of providing images in day and night and under all weather conditions.
- SCOOB-I satellite is the first satellite in the Student Satellite Series (S3-I), a hands-on student training program from the Satellite Research Centre (SaRC) at Singapore's NTU School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.
Source : The Hindu
8. CLOFAZIMINE
Clofazimine, a key drug for treatment of leprosy, which had been in short supply in the Indian market for several months, is now “not available”, with the situation turning into a crisis over the past three months.
About:
- Clofazimine is one of the three essential drugs in the Multi Drug Treatment of Multibacillary Leprosy (MB-MDT) cases, along with Rifampicin and Dapsone.
- According to the World Health Organization (WHO), leprosy is endemic in several States and Union Territories of India, with the annual case detection rate of 4.56 per 10,000 population.
- The prevalence rate of leprosy is 0.4 per 10,000 population in the country.
- Of the new cases detected during 2020-21, 58.1% were multibacillary, 39% were women, 5.8% were children less than 14 years of age, and 2.41% had visible deformities. The rate of visible deformities was 1.1 per million population.
Source : The Hindu
9. SNAKE ISLAND
Russian forces abandoned the strategic Black Sea outpost of Snake Island, in a major victory for Ukraine that could loosen the grip of Russia’s blockade on Ukrainian ports.
About:
- Snake Island, also known as Serpent Island or Zmiinyi Island, is an island belonging to Ukraine located in the Black Sea, near the Danube Delta, with an important role in delimiting Ukrainian territorial waters.
- On 24 February 2022, two Russian navy warships attacked and captured Snake Island. On 30 June 2022, Ukraine said that it had pushed Russian forces from the island.
- The bare rocky outcrop overlooks sea lanes to Odesa, Ukraine’s main Black Sea port, where Russia is blocking food cargos from one of the world’s leading grain suppliers.
Source : The Hindu
10. KETANJI BROWN JACKSON
The U.S. made history as Ketanji Brown Jackson was sworn in as the first Black woman to serve in the Supreme Court.
About:
- The 51-year-old’s appointment by Democratic President Joe Biden means ‘white men’ are not in the majority on the nation’s highest court for the first time in 233 years.
- Four of the Justices on the nine-member court are now women, making it the most diverse bench in history.
Source : The Hindu