Daily Current Affairs and GK | 8 July 2023

Topic: Awards and Prizes

1. NLC wins GeM award in the "Timely Payments (CPSEs)" category for 2023.

• NLC India Limited (NLCIL) bagged the GeM award in the category "Timely Payments (CPSEs)"
• It has received the award for its outstanding contribution in improving the credibility of e-market practices in line with the vision of GeM.
• GEM's vision is to promote transparent, inclusive and efficient public procurement in India.
• NLCIL was on boarded on GeM portal in the year 2017 and started procurement from a small value of Rs 2.21 crore during the year 2018-19.
• NLC India's Director (Planning and Projects) K Mohan Reddy received the award on the behalf of company.
• Government e-Marketplace (GEM) is a dedicated online platform to facilitate the procurement of goods and services by various government departments and organizations.
• NLC India Limited:
  • It is a Navratna public sector enterprise under the Ministry of Coal.
  • It was founded in 1956.
  • It is headquartered in Neyveli, Tamil Nadu.
  • M. Prasanna Kumar is the Chairman and Managing Director of NLC.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Personality in News

2. Major Bakhtawar Singh Brar passed away at the age of 109 in the US.

• Major Bakhtawar Singh Brar, one of the oldest surviving veterans of the Indian Army, died at the age of 109.
• He was born on November 19, 1913, in a village in Faridkot district.
• He served in the Faridkot State Forces and was commissioned into the 6 Kumaon Regiment in 1945.
• In 1942, He was awarded Mention-in-Despatches by the British for leading his company against the Pathans in Waziristan.
• In 1959, he led a contingent of 6 Kumaon at the Republic Day Parade.
• He also participated in World War II on the Burma Front.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

3. An MoU signed between Bureau of Water Use Efficiency (BWUE), National Water Mission (NWM) of Ministry of Jal Shakti and Indian Plumbing Association (IPA).

• On 7 July, the MoU was signed for a Water Positive India by awareness creation & promotion of rainwater harvesting structures, low flow fixtures & sanitary ware, treatment of grey & black water, and water audit of the built environment.
• The agreement is in line with Goal-4 of the National Water Mission (NWM) to increase water use efficiency by 20%.
• The provisions of the MoU are oriented towards the implementation and promotion of the objective of NWM through 24 Chapters (in different cities) and more than 6500 members of the Indian Plumbing Association spread across the country.
• Collaboration between NWM and IPA includes public education, awareness and outreach programs, water management, circular economy of water, rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, and re-use of used water.
• The focus will be on the circular economy, including grey-water use in the built environment (5-R: Reduce, Recycle, Reuse, Replenish, and Respect).

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: State News/ Telangana

4. PM Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of several infrastructure projects in Warangal, Telangana on 8 July.

• Shri Modi reached Hakimpet airport in a special flight from Varanasi.
• After visiting the famous Bhadrakali temple, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of infrastructure projects worth six thousand crore rupees through virtual medium.
• The Prime Minister also addressed a public meeting at the Arts College Ground in Hanamkonda.
• PM Modi laid the foundation stone of several infrastructure projects in Warangal.
• These include a 176 km long national highway to be built at a cost of Rs 5500 crore and a railway manufacturing unit to be built at a cost of more than Rs 500 crore.
• The PM also laid the foundation stone for the 108 km Mancherial-Warangal section of the Nagpur-Vijayawada corridor, which will reduce the distance on the two national highways by 34 km.
• He also laid the foundation stone for the conversion of the 68 km long Karim Nagar-Warangal section from two-lane to four-lane.
• This will improve connectivity to the Hyderabad-Warangal Industrial Corridor, Kakatiya Mega Textile Park, and Special Economic Zone in Warangal.
• The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of a railway manufacturing unit at Kazipet, which will improve manufacturing capacity and generate employment opportunities for the local youth.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: State News/ Gujarat

5. The foundation stone of India's first co-operative-run Sainik School was laid in Gujarat.

• On 4 July, this foundation stone was virtually laid by Amit Shah in Gujarat.
• The Sainik School will be established at Boriyavi village, 11 kilometers away from Mehsana city.
• It will be established by the leading cooperative Dudh Sagar Dairy at the cost of 75 crores rupees.
• This Sainik School has been started on the PM Narendra Modi's appeal to start 100 new Sainik Schools on a PPP basis in the country.
• The then Chief Minister and current Prime Minister Narendra Modi did the work of water revolution in Gujarat.
• Shri Modi has worked to increase the water level in Gujarat through Sujalam Sufalam Yojana.
• The central government has done the work of connecting people with the cooperative sector.

Topic: Defence

6. A single window NCC Integrated Software launched by Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh for Cadets.

• On 07 July, it has been launched in New Delhi as a major step towards promoting digitization and in line with the Digital India Mission.
• It has been developed in partnership with the Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geoinformatics (BISAG), and is a single-window interactive software designed on the Entry to Exit Model'.
• NCC Integrated Software is based on Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's vision of "Once a cadet is always a cadet".
• It will digitize the entire process from the stage of enrollment as a cadet in NCC to exit registration as an alumnus.
• This will help in the seamless issuance of certificates, and the creation of a pan-India database of NCC cadets at the time of employment.
• During the event, NCC and State Bank of India signed an MoU for opening zero balance accounts for all NCC cadets with debit cards, checkbooks, and passbook facilities under SBI's "Pehli Udaan" scheme.
• This MoU will benefit about 5 lakh cadets every year.
• This account will remain in operation till the completion of training or till attaining the age of 18 years, whichever is later.
• This will not only introduce the cadets to the national banking system but will also provide them a ready platform to avail benefits of other government schemes through DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) of funds in their accounts.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Defence

7. Defence Ministry has signed a contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

• The contract is for the procurement of two Dornier Aircraft for the Indian Coast Guard (ICG).
• As per the contract, the Dornier aircraft will be manufactured indigenously at HAL’s Transport Aircraft Division in Kanpur.
• The contract is valued at 458.87 crore rupees.
• The aircraft will have advanced features like a Glass Cockpit, Maritime Patrol Radar, Electro-Optic Infra-Red device, and Mission Management System. 
• In March, a contract for the procurement of six Dornier-228 aircraft for the Indian Air Force from HAL at a cost of ₹667 crore was signed by the defence ministry.
• The Dornier aircraft is a multi-purpose light transport aircraft.

Topic: State News/Karnataka

8. Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah presented the state budget with a total outlay of Rs 3.27 lakh crore for 2023-24.

• Approximately Rs 12,000 crore will be spent through various schemes for the development of Bengaluru.
• During his speech, CM promised to submit the detailed project report of the 37-km Hebbal-Sarjapura road Metro line to the Government of India for approval.
• Rs 1,000 crore has been allocated for the Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project.
• CM declared the formation of a Christian Development Corporation to promote the welfare of the Christian community.
• CM announced that ₹52,000 crores have been earmarked for implementation of the five pre-poll guarantees of Congress.
• The budget has increased the Additional Excise Duty on Indian Made Liquor by 20%, and on beer by 5.71%.
• In the budget, the government has allocated ₹500 crores for the Hasireekarana programme for 17 districts of the Bayaluseeme region.
• This is to increase the 10% forest cover in the region to 33% prescribed by the National Forest Policy.
• A Blackbuck Conservation Reserve has been declared in Bidar district at a cost of ₹2 crore.
• The government will establish a regional basketball training centre in Bengaluru and a cycling velodrome in Mysuru.
• A sports museum will be established in Sri Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru with ₹5 crore.
• On 1st November 2023, Karnataka will complete 50 years of renaming Karnataka from Mysore state.
• On this occasion, programs will be organized throughout the year in the name of ‘Hesarayithu Karnataka, Usiragali Kannada’.
• India’s first-ever public hospital dedicated to organ transplants will be set up at NIMHANS at the cost of ₹146 crore. For this, ₹ 30 crore is provided in the current year.
• CM has increased the revenue collection target for the Commercial Tax Department for 2023-24 to ₹1,01,000 crore.
• Film City will be developed in the Mysuru district under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
• CM allocated ₹100 crore for the maintenance of Indira canteens in the State. Petrol bunks will be opened at 100 places under the Udyama Shakti scheme.
• A new education policy will be formulated. This will be formulated keeping in mind the local, social, cultural and economic milieu of the State.
• A new program named ‘Sasya Shamala’ will be launched to plant 50 lakh saplings in schools.

Topic: State News/ Odisha

9. CM Naveen Patnaik launched ‘Ama Pokhari’ Yojana.

• This initiative has been launched to rejuvenate around 2,000 large water bodies in all 115 urban local bodies of the state.
• Rs 120 crore has been allocated to the implementation of the initiative.
• The project will be implemented using natural and organic methodology to improve the climate of surrounding areas.
• The renovation and maintenance of these water bodies will be done in collaboration with members of Mission Shakti.
• The water bodies will also be developed for the recreation of citizens. It will also help in strengthening the ecological fabric of cities.
• This initiative will also help in improving the quality of life in urban areas.
• This initiative was implemented by Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, and Berhampur Municipal Corporation as a pilot project.
• The chief minister also felicitated Anand Malligavad. He is known as the ‘lake man’ of India.

Topic: State News/ Haryana Government

10. Haryana Government announced a monthly pension for widower and unmarried people.

• A monthly pension of Rs 2,750 per month for low-income unmarried in the age group of 45-60 has been announced by the Haryana government.
• The unmarried people aged between 45 and 60 and have an annual income less than Rs 1.80 lakh are eligible for the pension.
• Widowers in the age group of 40-60 having an annual income less than Rs 3 lakh will also get Rs 2,750 pension every month.
• This initiative of the government will put an additional burden of Rs 240 crore on the state.
• There are around 65,000 unmarried men and women and 5,687 widowers in the age group of 45-60.
• This initiative of the Haryana government will help unmarried and widowers in meeting their personal needs.
• The Haryana government is already providing a monthly pension to low-income people above 60 years.

Topic: Committees/Commissions/Taskforces

11. A five-member working group has been constituted by the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA).

• The group has been constituted for implementing the recommendations of the Reserve Bank of India’s committee on the “working of the Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs)”.
• The Group comprises Ajit Kumar, MD, and CEO, of the Secondary Loan Market Association (SLMA), and Hari Hara Mishra, CEO, of the Association of ARCs in India.
• Other members are Mythili Balasubramanian, Executive Director, Edelweiss ARC, and senior officials from the State Bank of India (Dharmendra Pali) and ICICI Bank (Anupama Ranade).
• The group has been formed on the orders of RBI.
• The central bank desires that the IBA and SLMA, in consultation with the lenders and ARCs, take appropriate measures for early implementation of the recommendations of the committee.
• Committee’s recommendations aimed at enabling ARCs to fulfil the increasing financial sector demand.
• The working group will undertake a thorough review of the assignment agreements and trust deed templates.
• This review will focus on the acquisition of stressed assets from lenders by ARCs and will include necessary updates in line with evolving changes and expectations within the ARC sector.
• On April 28, 2021, under the chairmanship of Sudarshan Sen, former ED, RBI, RBI had set up a committee to undertake a comprehensive review of the working of ARCs.
• On November 2, 2021, the report of the committee was released.
• The ARC framework is designed to allow originators to focus on their core function of lending by removing stressed financial assets.
• According to the committee, ARCs act as primary agents for recovery on the acquisition of such financial assets.

Topic: Sports

12. ODI Skipper of Bangladesh, Tamim Iqbal, announced his retirement from international cricket.

• He has shocked the cricketing world by announcing his retirement from international cricket three Months before the World Cup.
• He had already retired from the T20 format and last played a Test in April.
• Shakib Al Hasan is currently the T20I captain while Liton Das leads Bangladesh in Tests.
• The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) can appoint one of them as captain till at least the World Cup.
• Tamim is also the highest run-scorer in ODIs for Bangladesh.
• Tamim has played 70 Test matches for Bangladesh scoring 5134 runs at an average of 38.89 with 10 tons.
• He has played 241 ODIs and scored 8313 runs at an average of 36.62 with 14 centuries and 56 fifties.

Topic: Indian Economy

13. Services PMI growth declined to a three-month low of 58.5.

• India’s services sector’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) declined to 58.5 from 61.2 in May 2023
• Services PMI was above the 50 threshold for the 23rd straight month in June 2023.
• Despite the decline in S&P Global Services PMI, new job creation has grown.
• India’s services sector eased to a three-month low in June.
• S&P Global India Composite PMI Output Index declined from 61.6 in May to 59.4 in June.
• It measures combined services and manufacturing output.
• The S&P Global India Services PMI is compiled from responses to questionnaires to a panel of 400 service sector companies.
• An Index above 50 shows expansion, while sub 50 index shows contraction.

Topic: National Appointments

14. Reserve Bank of India appointed P Vasudevan as the new executive director.

• P Vasudevan has been appointed as the Executive Director (ED) of RBI.
• He will look after the three departments including the currency management.
• His appointment has become effective from 3 July.
• Before this appointment, he was the Chief General Manager-in-charge of the Department of Payment and Settlement Systems.
• He has earlier served in banks and non-banking financial companies, payment and settlement systems.
• He is a Certified Associate of the Indian Institute of Bankers (CAIIB) and an alumnus of the Wharton School.