Important Current Affairs 19th June 2016

Raghuram Rajan Will Quit As RBI Governor

1. Raghuram Rajan said he would not be seeking a second term as Reserve Bank Governor.
2. Dr Rajan said he plans to return to academia when his term ends on Sept 4.
3. He is the first RBI governor since 1992 not to seek a second term as RBI boss.
4. He was appointed as RBI chief in 2013.
5. He had been instrumental in ushering in reforms in banking & taming inflation during his tenure.

California Now 6th-Largest Economy

1. California, a southern state in the US is now the sixth largest economy in the world surpassing France.
2. California is home to diverse strong economies, including Silicon Valley & Hollywood.
3. France is the world’s 7th largest economy with a growth domestic product of $2.42 trillion.
4. India is the 8th largest with $2.09 trillion.
5. This was according to the latest International Monetary Fund data.

India, South Korea Review FTA

1. India & South Korea has reviewed their free trade agreement (FTA) with a view to further strengthen bilateral economic ties.
2. The comprehensive economic partnership agreement between the two countries was implemented in Jan 2010.
3. The review meeting was attended by Nirmala Sitharaman & her South Korean counterpart Hyunghwan Joo.
4. India had trade deficit of about $10 billion in 2015-16 with S.Korea.

Railways Starts Special Freight Service

1. Vegetables & fruits can now be transported from Chennai to Delhi as railways has started a weekly cargo train which will run at a scheduled time on the route like express trains.
2. The initiative is aimed to streamline freight traffic and attract parcel consignments.
3. Named Cargo Express & will run by Concor, the first train from Chennai to Delhi (OKHLA) was flagged off.

Rajnath Approves Central Marine Force

1. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the proposal to set up a Central Marine Police Force.
2. It will aim to protect sea, coasts, ports & vital institutions along 7,516-km national coastline.
3. A decision to set up National Marine Police Training Institute in Dwarka (Gujarat) & State Marine Police Training Centers in the Police Training Academies of state was also approved

Veteran Odia Actress Manimala Devi Dies

1. Noted theatre personality & popular  Odia film actress Manimala Devi has passed away.
2. She had worked in over 40 films of which 14 bagged the national award.
3. Her film career began in 1960 with the classic Odia film- ‘Sri Loknath’.
4. she has also worked in over 100 players during her career.
5. She was conferred with the prestigious Jayadev Purashkar- the state’s highest cine award  in the year 2000.

Odisha’s Electronic Park Gets Approval

1. The central government has given the nod for the development of Greenfield Electronic Park with an investment of Rs 205 crore in Odisha.
2. The Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) is developing the electronic park in an area of 203 acres within InfoValley, Bhubaneswar.
3. The electronic park is expected to attract investment to the tune of Rs 1,000 crore.

Canada Passes Assisted Suicide Bill

1. Canada’s parliament has passed a bill to allow medically-assisted death for terminally ill people.
2. The bill received royal assent after passing a final vote in the Senate.
3. The move makes Canada one of the few countries where doctors can legally help sick people die.
4. Assisted suicide is currently legal in just a few countries including Switzerland,the Netherlands,Albania,Colombia & Japan.

India, South Korea Launch Korea Plus

1. India &South Korea has launched a platform to promote& facilitate investments from the S.Korea.
2. The platform Korea Plus was launched by Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman &her South Korean counterpart Joo Hyunghwan.
3. The mandate of Korea Plus covers supporting Korean enterprises entering the Indian market for the first time & looking into issues faced in doing business in India.

Modi,Sirisena Inaugurate Stadium

1. PM Narendra Modi & Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena have jointly inaugurated a renovated Duraiappah Stadium in Jaffna.
2. President Sirisena was present at the stadium in Jaffna, while PM  Modi joined the event through video-conferencing from Delhi.
3. The stadium is named after former Mayor of Jaffna, late Alfred Thambirajah Duraiappah.
4. It has been renovated by India at a cost of over Rs 7cr.