Important Current Affairs 26th June 2016

PM Modi Launches Smart City Projects

1. PM Modi has launched the ‘Smart City Mission’ involving 83 projects from 20 different cities in the country.
2. Launching function was held at Pune’s Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex.
3. The projects which were launched included 14 projects of Pune & 69 projects from 20 different cities in the country.
4. These projects are related to solid waste management, water supply projects & sewage treatment plants.

BrahMos Integrated on Su-30MKI

1. BrahMos Aerospace has successfully demonstrated the integration of the supersonic cruise missile system BrahMos on the Indian Air Force fighter aircraft Sukhoi-30.
2. Brahmos air version programme now inches closer towards actual test firing from the Sukhoi-30 in the coming months.
3. This technological feat is the first in the World combination of supersonic missile with a long range fighter aircraft.

India Clears Purchase of Howitzer Guns

1. Defence Ministry has approved the purchase of 145 Ultra Light Howitzers, worth about Rs 5,000 cr from the US.
2. It also approved production of 18 Dhanush artillery guns.
3. Of the 145 guns, 25 will be supplied in a ready to use condition while the rest will be assembled at the Mahindra facility in India.
4. Indian army desperately needs howitzers to replace the Bofors cannons that were procured in 1987.

IAF to Set Up Training Base at Kodikarai

1. Indian Air Force is planning to set up a training base in Tamil Nadu’s Kodiakarai area.
2. An aerial survey of a 22000-acre land owned by the Tamil Nadu Forest Department was already conducted.
3. Defence Ministry has requested the state govt to allot land for the training base at Kodiakarai.
4. IAF has already established a radar station at Kodiakarai for surveillance along the Palk Bay & Palk Strait.

Mehbooba Wins Anantnag Bypoll

1. Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti has won the bypoll to the Anantnag Assembly constituency by more than 12,000 votes.
2. Mehbooba secured more than 16,000 votes against her nearest rival & Congress candidate Hilal Ahmad Shah who got 5,529 votes.
3. National Conference candidate Iftikhar Misger was a distant third.
4. Anantnag fell vacant after Mufti Muhammad Sayeed died on January 7.

FM Attends AIIB Board of Governors Meet

1. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has attended the first Board of Governors meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in Beijing.
2. The Beijing-based AIIB was established last year in which India & 56 other countries joined as founding members.
3. India is the second-largest shareholder in AIIB after China.
4. Mr.Arun Jaitley also met his Chinese counterpart Lou Jiwei in Beijing.

China-backed AIIB Approves First Loans

1. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has approved its first four loans.
2. The four loans total $509 million, with three of them co-financed with with the ADB & World Bank.
3. Supported projects include a $165 million loan to bring power to rural Bangladesh, $216.5 million to improve Indonesian slums, $100 million to highway in Pakistan & $27.5 million to upgrade a road in Tajikistan.

Nilekani Invests in Startup Drishti

1. Bengaluru-based affordable eye care treatment chain Drishti has raised an undisclosed amount in funding from Nandan Nilekani.
2. Drishti will utilise the fresh capital to expand to six more districts in Karnataka.
3. The company estimates that 1% of India’s population is affected by blindness & 80% of those cases are treatable.
4. Drishti was started by IT professionals Kiran Anandampillai & Anjali Joshi.

Suzlon Commissions Wind Project

1. Wind turbine maker Suzlon Group has announced the completion & commissioning of its 4.20 MW maiden wind project for Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation.
2. The project is located at Nakhatrana, Kutch.
3. The project will help in offsetting 9,000 tonnes CO2 emissions annually.
4. Gujarat’s total wind installations stood at 4,038 MW, out of which 1,842 MW has been contributed by Suzlon.

Bangar,Abhay Named as Support Staff

1. The BCCI retained has Sanjay Bangar as the batting coach while Abhay Sharma will continue as the fielding coach of the Indian cricket team for the upcoming tour of the West Indies.
2. Both Bangar & Sharma were part of the coaching staff during the recently-concluded series in Zimbabwe.
3. No bowling coach was appointed since Kumble is India’s highest-wicket taker & is incharge of the team.

N Srinivasan Re-elected TNCA President

1. Former BCCI president N. Srinivasan was re-elected unanimously as the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) chief at the 86th Annual General Meeting in Chennai.
2. This is the 15th consecutive time that he has been elected as the chief of the state cricket body.
3. Srinivasan has been heading the TNCA since 2002-03.
4. He has been in the line of fire ever since the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal.

Sprinter Dutee Chand Qualifies for Rio

1. Indian sprinter Dutee Chand has qualified for Rio Olympics in the women’s 100metre event.
2. She met the qualification mark for Rio at 26th International Meeting G.Kosanov Memorial in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
3. She became the first indian woman to qualify for the event since qualification started for the event.
4. Legendary athlete PT Usha had qualified for the same event in 1980 Moscow Olympics.

Alex, Jason Break Sachin-Ganguly Record

1. England’s opening pair of Alex Hales & Jason Roy stitched together a stunning partnership that shattered several records.
2. The duo scored 256 runs to ensure a win over Sri Lanka in the 2nd ODI.
3. In doing so,they also broke the opening partnership record against the Lankans set by Indian pair of Sachin Tendulkar & Sourav Ganguly.
4. The legendary duo scored 252 runs for the first wicket in 1998.

Obama Declares Disaster in West Virginia

1. US President Obama has declared a major disaster in the state of West Virginia, where the worst floods in more than a century have left at least 24 people dead.
2. Days of heavy rain have caused massive flooding in the state.
3. Obama’s disaster declaration makes federal funding available to Greenbrier, Kanawha & Nicholas counties.
4. Residents will now receive grants for temporary housing & repairs.

China Launches Next-Gen Carrier Rocket

1. China has launched its new generation Long March-7 carrier rocket into space from the country’s new Wenchang space port.
2. The rocket uses a new type of fuel which is said to be more environmentally friendly.
3. Its re-entry module is scheduled to return to Earth at a desert in Inner Mongolia afternoon after orbiting the planet 13 times.
4. It is transporting cargo for China’s planned space station.

26th June : Int Day Against Drug Abuse

1. International Day against Drug Abuse & Illicit Trafficking observed annually on 26 June.
2. This important day was created by the UN General Assembly to help create a society free of illegal drugs & drug abuse.
3. It is observed annually since 1988 to commemorate Lin Zexu’s dismantling of the opium trade in Humen, Guangdong, just before the First Opium War in China
4. 2016 Theme is “Listen First”.

India Needs $1.5 trillion for Infra

1. India needs over $1.5 trillion in investment in the next 10 years to bridge infrastructure gap.
2. The government intends to connect seven hundred thousand villages with roads by 2019.
3. This was said by Shri. Arun Jaitely while addressing a seminar on Infrastructure & Global Economic Growth organised by China sponsored AIIB.
4. In terms of highway construction this year alone govt target is 10,000 kms.

IIFA Awards 2016 Begins

1. The 2016 IIFA Awards known as the 17th International Indian Film Academy Awards honouring the best Hindi films of 2015.
2. The event was held in Madrid, Spain.
3. Deepika Padukone & Ranveer Singh bagged the Best Actor (Female) & Best Actor (Male) trophy for Piku & Bajirao Mastani respectively.
4. Sanjay Leela Bhansali won the Best Director for Bajirao Mastani
5. Bajrangi Bhaijaan was named the Best Film.

Eminent Odia Writer Nilamani Sahoo Dies

1. Eminent Odia writer Mohapatra Nilamani Sahoo (90) passed away.
2. He was bestowed with the Orissa Sahitya Akademi Award in 1979 for his story book ‘Akasha Patata’.
3. He received the Sarala Award in 1983 & Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award in 1984 for ‘Abhisapta Gandharba’.
4. Some of his popular short story books include Prema Tribhuja , Michha Bagha , Ganjei O Gabesana  & Ranu Apa Tharu Pushi Parjyanta.

Belgian to Head EU Brexit Task Force

1. Belgian diplomat and long-time EU official Didier Seeuws will head a European Council’s task force negotiating Britain’s EU exit.
2. Seeuws will organize the process of Britain’s pullout under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty.
3. Brits voted in a referendum to leave the European Union.
4. British PM David Cameron had announced his resignation after the vote & leave the negotiations to his successor.