Important Current Affairs 11th June 2016

Bindra Named India’s Flagbearer at Rio

1. Olympic champion shooter Abhinav Bindra was chosen as the flagbearer of the Indian contingent at the Rio Games’ opening ceremony on Aug 5.
2. He was earlier named one of the goodwill ambassadors for the Indian contingent.
3. He is till date remains the country’s only sportsperson to win a gold medal in an individual event at the Olympics.
4. He achieved the feat at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

Malabar Joint Military Exercise Begins

1. The first phase of the Malabar joint military exercise between India,Japan & the US took off at Japan’s Sasebo city.
2. The first harbour phase will conclude on June 13.
3. The 2nd phase will run June 14-17 off Okinawa Island.
4. Malabar 2016 is aim at strengthening mutual confidence & sharing of best practices between the three Navies.
5. The exercise will support maritime security in the region,

Maha to Observe Yoga Day on Every Month

1. The Maharashtra government has decided to celebrate the 21st day of every month as Yoga Day across all schools, colleges & universities in the State.
2. It is also decided that every district will have to set up a Yoga Day committee at their levels to plan ‘Yoga Mahostav’ every year in between Jan 12 & 21.
3. A separate committee at the State level will monitor & coordinate with these committees.

Forbes Highest-Paid Athletes List 2016

1. Forbes has released the annual ranking of the World’s 100 Highest-Paid Athletes.
2. Ronaldo grabbed the top position of the list with earnings of $88 million.
3. Other soccer superstar Lionel Messi ranks No. 2 with earnings of 81.4 million US dollars.
4. The NBA’s LeBron James ranks third with total earnings of $77.2 million.
5. No Indian cricketer or athlete finds a spot.

Ujjwala Yojana Launched in Uttarakhand

1. Minister of State for Petroleum & Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan has  launched Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana for the State of Uttarakhand.
2. The Programme was launched by handing over new connections to the beneficiaries.
3. The scheme aims at providing LPG connnections to five crore BPL families across the country by 2019.
4. The Yojana was launched by the PM Modi at Ballia in U.P. on May 1 this year.

Axis Bank Launches Certified Green Bond

1. Axis Bank has launched India’s first internationally-listed certified green bond to finance climate change solutions around the world.
2. It has raised 500 million dollars at the London Stock Exchange after it launched.
3. The proceeds of the bond will be invested in green energy & infrastructure projects.
4. Green Bonds enable capital-raising for new & existing projects with environmental benefits.

Ice Hockey Legend Gordie Howe Dies

1. Legendary Canadian ice hockey player Gordie Howe has passed away.
2. He was nicknamed Mr. Hockey has died at the age of 88.
3. He was in the top 10 of scorers for 21 consecutive years.
4. He was named Most Valuable Player six times, before finally retiring in 1980.
5. He was also named an NHL All-Star 23 times & was inducted into the hockey Hall of Fame in 1972.

Gawker Files for Bankruptcy

1. Online news site Gawker has filed for bankruptcy after losing a $140m (£97m) privacy case earlier this year.
2. The company filed for bankruptcy protection, which could allow it to avoid paying the damages.
3. In March, Gawker was ordered to pay wrestler Hulk Hogan for invading his privacy.
4. Gawker, however planned to appeal against the ruling & would continue to operate.

NIIF,Qatar Investment Authority Ink MoU

1. The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) has signed a  MoU with Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) for facilitating investment in India’s infrastructure.
2. This is the third MoU of NIIF after those with Rusnano of Russia & ADIA of Abu Dhabi.
3. NIIF is an investment vehicle for funding commercially viable greenfield & stalled projects.
4. It is India’s first Rs.40000 Cr sovereign wealth fund.

Telangana is India’s Most Non-veg State

1. Telangana has the highest proportion of meat-eaters in the country with almost 99% of its residents being non-vegetarians.
2. This was according to a survey by Registrar General of India of people aged 15 yrs & above.
3. Telangana is followed by West Bengal & Andhra Pradesh in terms of highest non-vegetarian population.
4. The states with highest vegetarian population include Rajasthan, Punjab & Haryana.