Important Current Affairs 2nd July 2016

SBI Launches 3 New Digital Offerings

1. SBI has launched SBI Mingle its social media banking platform
2. Using SBI Mingle,its customers can do banking services like checking balance on their FB or Twitter accounts.
3. In other,it has partnered with Flipkart to offer its consumers the facility of pre-approved EMI Facility on purchases.
4. The bank also launched SBI Digital Villages aimed at transforming villages into cash-less eco-system.

GMR Sells Transmission Projects to Adani

1. Adani Transmission will buy into two transmission projects of the GMR group.
2. Under an agreement signed with GMR Energy Ltd (GEL), Adani Transmission Ltd (ATL) will pick up stakes in Maru Transmission Services Ltd (MTSL) & Aravali Transmission Services Ltd (ATSL).
3. The deal will transfer 74% stake in MTSL & 49% in ATSL to ATL.
4. The agreement an option to acquire the balance stakes in both projects.

SBI Sells 5% of NSE Stake

1. The State Bank of India (SBI) has sold five per cent stake in the National Stock Exchange (NSE) to Mauritius-based Veracity Investments.
2. The bank has sold 22.5 lakh shares to Veracity Investments at Rs 4050 per shares for a consideration of Rs 911 crore.
3. The country’s largest bank sold its stake after government directed banks to sell non-core assets to raise capital.

Investments from Cyprus to be Taxed

1. India & Cyprus have agreed to revise their tax treaty.
2. The new agreement will enable Indian authorities to tax capital gains on investments routed through Cyprus made after April 1, 2017.
3. The finance ministry will seek cabinet approval for the new Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA).
4. A DTAA aims to avoid or eliminate double taxation of the same income in two countries.

Ravi Shastri Resigns from ICC Post

1. Ravi Shastri has resigned from his post as media representative in ICC’s prestigious Cricket Committee.
2. He was the media representative of the ICC’s prestigious cricket panel which is currently headed Anil Kumble.
3. His resignation comes days after his verbal spat with Saurav Ganguly over the appointment of Anil Kumble.
4. The media representative is more of a decorative post in ICC cricket Committee.

Sports Ministry Grant Recognition to PCI

1. The Sports Ministry has granted recognition to Paralympic Committee of India(PCI).
2. The decision comes after the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) temporary lifted suspension imposed on the national body last year.
3. PCI was suspended in April last year due to internal conflicts between different groups and persons.
4. The IPC had asked the PCI to implement the major reforms programmes.

Nirmala Sheoran Qualifies for Rio

1. Nirmala of Haryana became the first athlete from the ongoing senior National inter-state athletics meet to reach the Rio Olympics qualifying mark.
2. She clocked 51.48 in the women’s 400m at the GMC Balayogi Stadium in Hyderabad.
3. The Olympics qualifying mark in the women’s 400 m is 52.20.
4. Nirmala became the 24th track and field athlete from India to qualify for the Rio Olympics.

Marathi Literary Scholar R C Dhere Dies

1. Renowned Marathi literary scholar Dr. Ramchandra Chintaman Dhere passed away.
2. He was known for his exhaustive research in folk literature & bhakti tradition of Maharashtra.
3. He was a recipient of the Sahitya Academy Award for his book Sri Vitthal – A Mahasamanvayak (Lord Vitthal- A great coordinator).
4. His other works are Muslim Marathi Saint Poets, Dakshinecha Lokdev Khandoba & Sri Venkateshwara.

Peacock Conservation Project Inaugurated

1. Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao & Ratan Tata has inaugurated the Peacock Conservation Project at Raj Bhavan in Mumbai.
2. The peacock conservation project is a semi-wildlife landscape created in the forest area of Raj Bhavan.
3. The project is expected to increase the population of peafowl in Raj Bhawan.
4. The project has received financial assistance from the Tata Trusts.

National Doctor’s Day 2016 Observed

1. National doctor’s day is observed every year on 1-July.
2. The day honour the legendary physician & the second Chief Minister of West Bengal, Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy.
3. He was honoured with the country’s highest civilian award Bharat Ratna.
4. The Doctor’s Day is observed today to lay emphasis on the value of doctors in our lives.
5. India has shown remarkable improvements in the medical field.

Prez Presents B C Roy National Awards

1. President Pranab Mukherjee presented the Dr B C Roy National Awards for the years 2008, 2009 & 2010.
2. Eight doctors were given the B C Roy National award for the year 2008,while ten doctors were honoured for the year 2009.
3. Seven doctors were awarded the same for the year 2010.
4. Bidhan Chandra Roy Award was instituted in 1976 in memory of B. C. Roy by Medical Council of India.

Govt Drop Aam Aadmi from Aadhaar Tagline

1. The government has dropped the terms ‘Aam Aadmi’ from the tagline of Aadhaar.
2. Aadhaar tagline viz, ‘Aam Aadmi ka Adhikar’ has now been changed into Mera Aadhaar, Meri Pehchaan .
3. Aadhaar objective is to collect the biometric & demographic data of residents.
4. It store them in a centralised database & issue a 12-digit unique identity number called Aadhaar to each resident.

Kerala Government Bans e-Cigarettes

1. Kerala govt has banned the use of e-cigarettes.
2. The state govt has issued orders banning manufacture,sale,marketing & advertising of e-cigarettes in the State.
3. Studies in Japan &America have shown that e-cigarette causes cancer & heart attack.
4. An electronic cigarette or e-cigarette is a handheld electronic device that vaporizes a flavored liquid which the user inhales.

Second BRICS Youth Summit Kicks Off

1. The 2nd BRICS Youth Summit got underway in Guwahati.
2. Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the Summit in presence of Union Sports minister Jitendra Singh.
3. The Summit will focus on skill development & entrepreneurship & youth participation in governance.
4. Youth as bridge for intra-BRICS exchanges is the theme of the summit.
5. BRICS is the association of  Brazil, Russia, India, China & South Africa

High Speed Attack Craft Tarasa Launched

1. The last ship in the series of four Water Jet Fast Attack Crafts built by the Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd for the Indian Navy was launched in Kolkata.
2. Christened INS Tarasa after an island in the Andaman & Nicobar archipelago.
3. It is ideally suited for interception of fast-moving surface craft & will perform anti-smuggling operations.
4. The ship is designed for a max speed of 35 knots.

Rapid Rural Police Response Sys Launched

1. Punjab Deputy CM Mr. Sukhbir Singh Badal has launched nation’s first Rapid Rural Police Response System across the state.
2. It aims is to ensure prompt & effective police response in villages to counter any crime or law & order situation in 20 min.
3. The new system would be available for 24×7 to respond to all kinds of emergencies.
4. The focus of the scheme is the rural population of the state.

NASA Juno Enters Jupiter Magnetic Field

1. NASA’s Jupiter-bound Juno spacecraft has entered the planet’s magnetosphere where the movement of particles in space is controlled by what is going on inside Jupiter.
2. The charged particles around Jupiter give it a magnetic field some 20,000 times more powerful than the earth.
3. Juno is on course to swing into orbit around Jupiter on July4.
4. The Juno spacecraft was launched on Aug 5, 2011 from Florida.

Mayor Sadiq Khan Appoints Deputy Mayor

1. London’s Mayor Sadiq Khan has appointed India-born Rajesh Agrawal as the deputy mayor for business.
2. Khan had tasked Agrawal with championing London’s interests following the exit of Britain after the EU referendum.
3. He was Khan’s business adviser during his mayoral campaign.
4. He arrived in London in 2001 & became a fin-tech entrepreneur & innovator.

Austria Presidential Result Overturned

1. Austria’s highest court has ruled the country’s presidential election must be held again because of irregularities in the counting of the votes.
2. The decision follows a legal challenge from the Freedom Party (FPOe) whose candidate lost by a narrow margin.
3. The FPO candidate, Norbert Hofer has lost the election to Alexander Van der Bellen by just 30,863 votes.
4. The election will now be re-run.

Exercise RIMPAC 2016 Begins

1. RIMPAC 2016, the Pacific military exercise began at Hawaii.
2. The 27 nations are participating in the US Navy-led exercise that will cover the Hawaiian Island & southern California.
3. The theme is Capable, Adaptive, Partners.
4. Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) is the world’s largest maritime exercise comprised of nations with an interest in the Pacific Rim region.