July 2021 Daily News Current Affairs

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July 31, 2021
1. General News / Events (July 21 - 31, 2021) -
  1. 1st ever resolution on vision has been approved UN general assembly, calling upon its 193 member countries so that they ensure access to eye care for each citizen. Titled Vision for Everyone, it has been sponsored by Antigua, Bangladesh and Ireland.
  2. Kerala Police launched initiative called Pink Protection project for protection of women.
  3. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma laid foundation stone of a Bamboo Industrial Park at Manderdisa in Dima Hasao district.
  4. Odisha’s Puri became first Indian city to have a Drink from Tap project that will dispense safe hygienic drinking water directly from a tap 24x7, named Sujal: Drink from Tap project.
  5. Gujarat High Court became first court in country to formally start live streaming of proceedings.
  6. Home Minister Amit Shah launched Green Sohra Afforestation Campaign at Sohra (Cherrapunji), along with Greater Sohra Water Supply Scheme.
  7. A Consignment of Raja Mircha (king chilli) from Nagaland has been exported to London, which is considered as world’s hottest Chilli, based on Scoville Heat Units (SHUs). It got GI certification in 2008.
  8. To improve women safety, Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani inaugurated National Commission for Women’s 24/7 helpline number - 7827170170.
  9. Atal Innovation Mission completed two-month long, one of its kind ‘ATL Tinkerpreneur Bootcamp’ across country.
2. Visits to India (July 2021) -
  1. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken Visited India. During his visit -
    1. US announced additional $25 million aid to India, through USAID, to support India's COVID-19 vaccination prpgramme.
    2. India and US renewed a global development partnership agreement to work together in African and Asian countries on key issues, for 5 years.
3. Visits from India (July 2021) -
  1. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh visited Dushanbe (Tajikistan), to attend annual meeting of Defence Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states (China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan).
  2. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Visited European Nations Georgia, Greece and Italy.
    1. During his Visit, Greece become an official signatory to International Solar Alliance (ISA) that is led by India.
    2. He Visited Italy to Partcipate in G20 Ministerial Meetings.
  3. Air Force Chief RKS Bhadauria visited UAE.
  4. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Visited Central Asian Nations Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
    1. In Uzbekistan, he participated in Central-South Asia conference hosted in Tashkent.
  5. Indian Army chief General MM Naravane visited UK and Italy.
    1. Notably, He inaugurated Indian Army Memorial in Cassino (Italy). In Battle of Monte Cassino during World War II, over 5000 Indian soldiers laid down their lives while fighting to save Italy from fascist forces.
4. July 31 is observed as World Ranger Day,to mark founding day of International Ranger Federation (IRF) on this day in 1992.
5. Assam Government announced 3-day state mourning to commemorate police personnel and civilians who lost their lives in a clash, amid ongoing Assam-Mizoram border Dispute. Background -
  1. During British era, Mizoram was called Lushai Hills, a district of Assam. Mizoram-Assam Border Dispute dates to mentioned notifications -
    1. 1875 - derived from Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation (BEFR) Act 1873, that demarcated Lushai Hills (now Mizoram) from Cachar district of Assam.
    2. 1933 - demarcated Lushai Hills and Manipur.
  2. Mizoram's stance is that demarcation should be based on 1875 Notification. As per Mizo leaders, Mizo society was not consulted hence they are against 1933 Notification. Assam government follows Notification of 1933.
  3. 164.6-km inter-state border demarcates Mizoram and Assam. Three Mizoram districts namely Aizawl, Mamit, and Kolasib share a border with three Assam districts namely Karimganj, Hailakandi, Cachar.
6. West Bengal Govt presented State Budget for FY 2021-22 (on July 7, 2021) -
  1. Expenditure estimated to be Rs 3,08,727 crore, an annual increase of 18% over the actual expenditure in 2019-20.
  2. Tax proposals - Stamp duty for registration of sale or lease of land, houses, or flats will be reduced by 2% and market value for their registration will reduced by 10%.
  3. Lakshmir Bhandar scheme will provide monthly support of 1000 to women from scheduled caste/tribe household and 500 to general category women.
  4. New Krishak Bandhu Scheme will provide support to farmers (5000 to 10000 per acre). In addition, it provides for a one-time grant of 2 lakh rupees to family members of a farmer of 18 to 60 years of age in case of untimely death. Scheme has annual outlay of 3600 crore.
  5. Student Credit Card Scheme: - Low interest loans will be provided to students at 4% and there will be a moratorium till one year after the completion of course of study.
Jul 30, 2021
1. European Space Agency launched world’s first commercial fully re-programmable satellite, named Eutelsat Quantum. It has been launched from French Guiana, on board an Ariane 5 rocket.
  1. Eutelsat Quantum has been developed as world’s first reprogrammable commercial satellite under an ESA Partnership Project with satellite operator Eutelsat and manufacturer Airbus.
  2. Eutelsat Quantum, unlike convention satellite models that cannot be repurposed once in orbit, works on software-defined technology that offers flexible communications so that it can adapt to the demands of customers and markets in real-time.
2. July 30 is observed as UN World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, proclaimed by UN General Assembly in 2013. 2021 theme is Victims’ Voices Lead the Way.
  1. July 30 is also birth anniversary of Muthulakshmi Reddi, India's first female legislator and also known as a woman of many firsts. Tamil Nadu Government declared that every year hospitals will celebrate her birth anniversary as ‘Hospital Day.'
  2. Jul 30, 2020 is also named as International Day of Friendship.
3. RBI approed Government of UT of Ladakh to acquire 8.23 % stake in Jammu and Kashmir Bank.
4. Karnataka became first state to provide 1 % reservation for transgender community in all government services, amending Karnataka Civil Service (General Recruitment) Rules, 1977.
5. Madhya Pradesh Government prepared Ayush-based economic upgradation scheme Devaranya Yojana, with twin objectives of improving people’s health and livelihood of tribals.
6. Indore (Madhya Pradesh) become only Indian city to be selected for International Clean Air Catalyst Programme.
  1. Under the project, USAID and partners will work with local communities to better understand local pollution sources and identify, test, accelerate, and scale solutions for cleaner air.
7. Philippines become first country to get approval for commercial production of genetically modified “golden rice”, a variety of rice enriched with nutrients to help reduce childhood malnutrition.
  1. Golden rice has been developed by Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice) in partnership with International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).
8. Indian-origin British author, Sunjeev Sahota is among 13 authors longlisted for 2021 Booker Prize for fiction for his novel ‘China Room’.
9. On Occasion of 1st anniversary of National Education Policy 2020, PM Narendra Modi launched several initiatives, including -
  1. Academic Bank of Credit, that will provide multiple entry and exit options for students in Higher education.
  2. Vidya Pravesh, a three month play based school preparation module for Grade 1 students.
  3. Indian Sign Language as a Subject at secondary level.
  4. NISHTHA 2.0, an integrated programme of teacher training designed by NCERT.
  5. SAFAL (Structured Assessment For Analyzing Learning Levels), a competency based assessment framework for Grades 3, 5 and 8 in CBSE schools.
  6. National Digital Education Architecture (NDEAR) and National Education Technology Forum (NETF).
Jul 29, 2021
1. July 29 is observed as World Tiger Day. It was proclaimed in 2010 at Saint Petersburg Tiger Summit in Russia where signatories declared an agreement that the governments of tiger populated counties would double tiger population by 2022, termed as TX2. 2021 Theme is Their Survival is in our hands.
  1. In 2018, Nepal became first country to double tiger population. India also doubled tiger population in 2018.
  2. As per 4th All India Tiger Estimation 2018 (Released in 2019)-
    1. India has 70 % of world’s tiger population.
    2. Number of Tiger reserves in India has reached 50, up from 9 in 1973. Earlier 3 Tiger estimation reports were released in 2006, 2010, 2014.
    3. Count of tigers in India rose to 2967 in 2018. Count grew from 1,411 in 2006 to 2,226 in 2014 and to 2,967 in 2018.
    4. Top 5 States - Madhya Pradesh (526), Karnataka (524), Uttarakhand (442), Maharashtra (312) and Tamil Nadu (264).
  3. Notably, India’s 14 Tiger Reserves received Global CA/TS recognition for good Tiger Conservation standards.
2. 12th edition of exercise INDRA NAVY 21, biennial maritime exercise between Indian Navy and Russian Navy held in Baltic Sea, attended by INS Tabar on India's Behalf. It also attended Russia Navy's 325th Navy Day celebrations.
3. Former Indian Footballer Shibaji Banerjee has been posthumously conferred with Mohun Bagan Ratna Title. Notably, He kept Brazil’s legendary footballer Pele from scoring a goal in an exhibition match in 1977. Background -
  1. Mohun Bagan were declared champions in IFA Shield campaign in 1911. This marked first time a native club defeated British and British-Indian teams in a football tournament.
  2. Since 2001, July 29 is celebrated as Mohun Bagan Day, in honour of club's victory over East Yorkshire Regiment in 1911 IFA Shield Final.
4. Legendary playback singer Asha Bhosle has been named for Maharashtra Bhushan Award 2021, sponsored by Maharashtra Govt.
  1. Maharashtra Bhushan is highest civilian award presented by government of Maharashtra state, awarded since 1996.
  2. It was initially conferred in fields of Literature, Art, Sport, and Science. Later, Social Work, Journalism, Public Administration and Health Services were included.
  3. Award carries cash prize of 10 lakh.
5. Rajasthan Govt and Rajasthan State Industrial Development and Investment Corporation (RIICO) launched Mission Niryatak Bano campaign, to promote aspiring exporters in state.
6. Chipmaker Intel collaborated with Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to launch the ‘AI For All’ initiative, aimed at creating a basic understanding of artificial intelligence (AI) for people in India.
Jul 28, 2021
1. Satish Namdeo Ghormade has been appointed as New Vice Chief of Indian Navy.
2. July 28 is observed by World Health Organization as World Hepatitis Day. 2021 theme is Hepatitis can't wait.
  1. July 28 is also observed as World Nature Conservation Day.
3. Central Govt announced 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category and 27% for OBCs, for UG and PG medical and dental courses from current academic year 2021-22.
4. Kerala Govt announced financial package of over approx 5650 crores to help revive state economy that has been reeling due to COVID-19 pandemic. It mainly aims to assist small-scale farmers and traders. Highlights -
  1. State Govt will provide subsidized loans and announced new loan schemes under Kerala State Financial Enterprise (KSFE) and Kerala Financial Corporation (KFC). State Govt will give subsidized loans and will bear 4% of interest of loans for 6 months for loans up to 2 lakh.
  2. MSMEs have been given a building tax exemption during facilitation period (Jul - Dec 2021).
  3. State Govt also decided to provide loans up to 1 crore at 5% interest rates for 500 business enterprises in a year, for entrepreneurs under age of 50.
  4. State announced a moratorium of 1 year for loans that will be taken by the small-scale enterprises from KFC.
5. Chhattisgarh Govt announced to launch Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Bhoomihin Krishi Majdoor Nyay Yojana, under which landless families will be provided assistance of 6000 every year.
6. India’s billionaire investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala announced to launch his own ultra-low-cost airline called Akasa Air, With 40 % ownership and an investment of USD 35 million.
7. Najib Mikati has been named as Lebanon's new Prime Minister, to succeed Hassan Diab.
Jul 27, 2021
1. AIFF Player of the Year Awards 2020 -
  1. Men's Player of the Year - Sandesh Jhingan
  2. Women's Player of the Year - Bala Devi
  3. Emerging Player of the Year - Suresh Singh Wangjam (Men) AND Manisha Kalyan (Women)
2. India won 13 medals at World Cadet Championship 2021 in Budapest (Hungary), including 5 Gold, 1 Silver and 7 Bronze. Gold Winners -
  1. Priya Malik - Women’s 73 kg
  2. Tannu - Women’s 43 kg
  3. Komal Panchal - Women’s 46 kg
  4. Aman Gulia - Men’s 48 kg
  5. Sagar Jaglan - Men’s 80 kg
3. Book Renegades: Born in the USA, written by former US Prez Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen, has been released.
4. C. Vijayakumar (HCL CEO) has been appointed as managing director of HCL Tech for 5 years, after Founder Shiv Nadar resigned as MD.
5. Kajal Chakraborty (Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute) won Norman Borlaug National Award for Excellence in Agricultural Research instituted by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), for his research related to development of nutraceutical products made from seaweeds to treat various lifestyle diseases.
  1. The award, which is announced once in five years, carries a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh. Also, he will be given research grant of 1.5 core to conduct a breakthrough research project for five years.
6. Book Why We Kneel How We Rise by Noted Jamaican cricketer Michael Holding, has been released.
7. Indian Air Force formally inducted Rafale aircraft into 101 Squadron at Air Force Station Hasimara in Eastern Air Command.
  1. 101 Squadron is second IAF Squadron to be equipped with Rafale aircraft. It was formed on 01 May 1949 at Palam, with active participation in 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars.
  2. 1st Rafale squadron is No.17 Golden Arrows (Ambala). In September 2020, IAF inducted first batch of five Rafales of 36 jets, contracted under a €7.87 billion Inter-Governmental Agreement signed in September 2016.
8. On occasion of its 15th Foundation Day, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) Launched MoES-ESSDP (Earth System Science Data Portal), an integrated digital web portal of MoES institutes, which makes availabledata on various themes of earth system science for public use.
  1. July 27 is also Raising Day of CRPF, Formed on July 27, 1939.
Jul 26, 2021
1. July 26 is Observed as International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem, adopted by UNESCO in 2015.
2. July 26 marks Kargil Vijay Diwas. On this date in 1999, India took command of high outposts which were captured by Intruding Pakistanis.
3. Telangana Govt announced launching new Dalit empowerment scheme, now Dalita Bandhu, from Huzurabad assembly constituency. Under this, eligible Dalit families would be given 10 lakh in cash directly to their accounts.
4. Indian Naval Ship Talwar participated in Exercise Cutlass Express 2021, conducted along East Coast of Africa.
  1. It is an annual exercise conducted to promote maritime security in East Africa and Western Indian Ocean.
  2. 2021 edition of the exercise involves participation of 12 Eastern African countries, US, UK, India and various international organisations.
5. Bengaluru based Jawaharlal Nehru Centre For Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) has been placed in top 50 institutions worldwide for advances in materials science by Nature Index.
  1. The list places JNCASR at 23rd position globally in 50 Rising Institutions list. It includes 18 institutes from China and 12 from US.
  2. JNCASR is only Indian institute on list.
Jul 25, 2021
1. China announced building first-of-its-kind molten-salt nuclear reactor, that will not require water for cooling. It will run on liquid thorium rather than uranium.
  1. It will be expected to be safer than traditional reactors, as molten salt cools and solidifies quickly when exposed to air, insulating thorium.
  2. Hence, any potential leak would spill much less radiation into the surrounding environment in comparison to leaks from traditional reactors.
2. Jul 25 is observed by WHO as World Drowning Prevention Day.
3. Former election commissioner Ashok Lavasa's book An Ordinary Life: Portrait of an Indian Generation, has been released.
4. As per World Trade Organisation (WTO), India entered top ten agricultural produce exporters in 2019, ranking 9th with share of 3.1% in global agricultural exports.
5. World Bank Group Member International Finance Corporation (IFC) provided loan of $250 million to Indian Firm HDFC, to promote affordable green housing finance for low and middle income borrowers.
6. Govt appointed Nasir Kamal as Director-General of Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).
7. Sweden ratified framework agreement for International Solar Alliance (ISA), becoming member of this India-based global platform for promoting renewable energy.
8. India scored 90.32% in United Nation’s Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific's (UNESCAP) latest Global Survey on Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation, seeing remarkable jump from score of 78.49% in 2019. India saw improvement in all 5 key indicators, with notable 100% score in Transparency. Others -
  1. Formalities: 95.83% in 2021 (from 87.5% in 2019)
  2. Institutional Arrangement and Cooperation: 88.89% in 2021 (from 66.67% in 2019)
  3. Paperless Trade: 96.3% in 2021 (from 81.48% in 2019)
  4. Cross-Border Paperless Trade: 66.67% in 2021 (from 55.56% in 2019)
9. Health insurer Max Bupa rebranded itself as Niva Bupa. This came after Max India, which owned 51 % in the insurer, sold its stake to True North in February 2019 for 510 crores.
10. RBI updated rules for extending loans to directors of other banks and relatives of directors. Banks may now extend personal loans up to 5 crores to directors of other banks and directors’ relatives other than spouses without board approval (up from earlier limit of 25 lakh).
11. India's Rasmi Ranjan Das, Joint Secretary in Ministry of Finance, has been appointed as a member of UN Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters for 2021 - 2025 term.
12. Noted Filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra announced his autobiography The Stranger In The Mirror, co-written with Reeta Ramamurthy Gupta.
13. C K Garyali’s book Bank with a Soul: Equitas, has been released.
Jul 24, 2021
1. July 24 is Observed by Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) as Income Tax Day (Aayakar Diwas). On this day in 1860, Income Tax was introduced for first time in India by James Wilson.
2. World’s first 3D-printed steel pedestrian bridge has been opened on the Oudezijds Achterburgwal canal in Amsterdam (The Netherlands).
  1. The bridge has been created by Dutch company MX3D using a 3D printing technique called wire and arc additive manufacturing. The technique combines robotics with welding.
3. BJP's Basavaraj Bommai has been named New (23rd) Chief Minister of Karnataka, after B. S. Yediyurappa had resigned from post.
4. Chief Hydrographer of India Vinay Badhwar has been conferred Alexander Dalrymple award by British Government, for his work in areas of hydrography and nautical cartography.
  1. Badhwar was conferred with the award in 2019, however, the award ceremony was delayed because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
  2. The Alexander Dalrymple Award has been named after first hydrographer of Admiralty, instituted in 2006.
5. Singapore's Sunseap Group will build world’s largest floating solar farm and energy storage system in Batam (Indonesia), with capacity of 2.2 gigawatt-peak (GWp).
6. Gwalior and Orchha cities in Madhya Pradesh have been selected by UNESCO under its ‘Historic Urban Landscape Project’, that began in 2011.
  1. It aims at inclusive and well-planned development of fast-growing historical cities while preserving their cultural and heritage value.
  2. Indian cities Varanasi and Ajmer, were already included in the project.
7. China, largest greenhouse emitter in world, launched its first national emissions-trading scheme, called carbon market, with trading in Shanghai opening at a price of 48 yuan ($7.40) per ton of carbon.
Jul 23, 2021
1. Cabinet Approvals (Jul 22, 2021) -
  1. General -
    1. Approved Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for specialty steel, for 2023-24 to 2027-28, With outlay of 6322 crores.
      1. It is expected to bring in investment of approx 40000 crores and capacity addition of 25 MT for speciality steel.
      2. It will give employment to about 5,25,000 people, of which 68,000 will be direct employment.
      3. Speciality steel has been chosen as target segment, as out of production of 102 million tonnes steel in India in 2020-21, only18 million tonnes value added steel/speciality steel was produced in country.
      4. It is expected to boost speciality steel production to 42 million tonnes by 2026-27.
    2. Approved establishment of an Integrated Multi-purpose infrastructure Development Corporation for UT of Ladakh, WITH authorized share capital 25 crores and recurring expenditure around 2.42 crore per year. It will be undertaking various kinds of developmental activities in UT.
    3. Approved establishment of a central university in Ladakh at a cost of 750 crore, to promote Higher Education in Ladakh.
2. RBI cancelled licence of Margao (Goa) based Madgaum Urban Co-operative Bank, ceasing it from carrying on banking business.
  1. Depositors get their money as per DICGC Act 1961, with ceiling 5 lakh per depositor.
3. Industry body IAMAI appointed Google India MD Sanjay Gupta as its chairman for 2021-23.
4. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh flagged-in Indian Army Skiing Expedition ARMEX-21 in New Delhi, which was conducted in mountain ranges of Himalaya, to promote adventure activity across country.
  1. The expedition was flagged off at Karakoram Pass in Ladakh on March 10, 2021 andculminated at Malari in Uttarakhand on July 06, 2021.
5. July 23 is observed as National broadcasting Day in India. On this day in 1927, 1st ever radio broadcast in country went on the air from Bombay Station under a private company called Indian Broadcasting Company (IBC).
  1. July 23 is also birth anniversary of Legendary Indian Freedom Fighters Chandra Shekhar Azad and Bal Gangadhar Tilak.
6. Govt extended Project duration for Indian Science Technology and Engineering facilities Map (I-STEM) by 5 years until 2026. I-STEM aims to strengthen R&D ecosystem of country by connecting researchers with resources. It was launched in January 2020.
7. Ministry of Science & Technology will set up a first-of-its-kind Centre for Bio-Resources and Sustainable Development as a Centre of Excellence in Northeast, at Kimin, district Papum Pare in Arunachal Pradesh.
  1. It will help North Eastern Region to use its fruit and organic food potential to maximum extent, and explore lesser known species including diverse habitats and diverse flora.
8. Kandla SEZ has been awarded IGBC Platinum Rating, making it First Green SEZ to achieve IGBC Green Cities Platinum Rating for Existing Cities.
9. RBI issued Digital Payments Index (RBI-DPI) Rating 2021 for March 2021, which stands at 270.59 as against 207.84 for March 2020.
  1. RBI had earlier announced construction of a composite DPI rating, with March 2018 as base (100) to capture extent of digitisation of payments across country.
Jul 22, 2021
1. General Conferences (Jul 11 - 20, 2021) -
  1. 1st Field trials for Cultivation of Chinese monk fruit, which is known for its properties as a non-caloric natural sweetener, began in Himachal Pradesh by Palampur-based CSIR Industrial Technology Institute of Himalayan Bio-resource Technology (CSIR-IHBT) in Kullu.
  2. Annual Asha Bonalu Festival held in Telangana, as traditional folk festival celebrated every year in Telugu month of Ashadham.
  3. India’s first ‘Grain ATM’ has been set up as a pilot project in Gurugram (Haryana), installed under World Food Programme of United Nations, and is called the ‘Automated, Multi Commodity, Grain Dispensing Machine’.
  4. National Film Archive of India (NFAI) added original camera negative of Rajkumar Hirani’s 2014 film ‘PK’ in its collection.
  5. Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari inaugurated India’s first private Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility plant at Nagpur in Maharashtra, set up on Kamptee Road by Baidyanath Group.
  6. MoU signed between Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and Delhi University, to set up Bangabandhu Chair at Delhi University, to foster better understanding of developments in Bangladesh.
  7. Karnataka Govt announced to develop 46 Kempegowda heritage sites in Bengaluru (Urban & Rural), Ramanagara, Chikballapura, and Tumakuru districts, to promote tourism.
  8. Annual UN-FAO report The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021 states that between 720 and 811 million people in world faced hunger in 2020, around 161 million more than in 2019.
  9. UN World Food Programme (WFP) and Rajasthan government partnered to improve Targeted Public Distribution System (TDPS) in state.
  10. Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu attended World Universities Summit organized by O.P. Jindal Global University, with theme Universities of the Future: Building Institutional Resilience, Social Responsibility and Community Impact.
  11. 1st Balika Panchayat held at Kunariya village of Kutch district in Gujarat, with first-ever Balika Panchayat elections, aimed at developing leadership qualities in girls for Future Panchayat polls.
  12. Indian Port Rail and Ropeway Corporation Ltd (IPRCL) will launch India's First driverless pod taxi services between Noida Airport at Jewar and Film City, on a 14 km stretch.
  13. India’s first cryptogamic garden inaugurated in Deoban area of Chakrata town at Dehradun (Uttarakhand), housing nearly 50 species of ferns, fungi, algae, bryophytes, and lichens.
  14. Successful trial of movement of train between Jaynagar in India and Kurtha in Nepal has been undertaken, on 34.50 km-long section which is first section of rail link which connects Jaynagar in Madhubani district of Bihar to Kurtha in Mahottari district of Nepal.
    1. During their rule, British had built a 52-km-long a railway line from Jaynagar to Mahottari in Nepal, mainly to ferry logs of woods from forests. Now, plan is to expand to a 69-km-long railway line from Jaynagar to Bardibas in Nepal.
  15. To manage hearing loss in new born and young children, Punjab Govt launched Automated Auditory Brainstem Response system (AABR) under Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Programme.
  16. Qatar Airways became first airline in Middle East to join IATA Turbulence Aware platform of International Air Transport Association, which helps airlines mitigate impact of turbulence.
  17. Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) launched a new campaign called KALA VISHWA, in Mumbai, to be held for 6 months to reach out to traditional folk artists, local artistes / artisans and those coming from rural areas.
  18. Rajasthan Govt Launched Mobile App Raj Kisan Organic, for quick Sale and Purchase of Organic Produce across state.
2. Pedro Castillo has been appointed new president of Peru, while Guido Bellido is named as new Prime Minister of Peru (South America).
3. Book Space. Life. Matter by science journalist Hari Pulakkat has been released.
4. Cleopas Dlamini has been named as new Prime Minister of Southern African Nation Eswatini (formerly Swaziland).
5. Book A Kashmiri Century — Portrait Of A Society In Flux by Khem Lata Wakhlu, has been released.
6. World Federation of Neurology observes July 22 as World Brain Day.

Jul 21, 2021

Sudhanshu Mittal's book on Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has now been translated into Chinese language, Titled RSS: Building India Through SEWA.
Govt hiked foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in pension fund management to 74% from 49%, under national pension system (NPS).
Maharashtra Became first Indian state to issue educational documents using blockchain technology, with distribution of 1 million diploma certificates using this technology. This also made India 4th nation to use Blockchain technology for this purpose.
Former RBI governor Bimal Jalan's new book The India Story, has been released, focusing on India’s economic history and aims to provide lessons for future of India’s political economy. His earlier books include India Then and Now AND India Ahead.

Mercedes' British F1 Racer Lewis Hamilton won British Grand Prix 2021 -

F1 Season 2021 -

Grand Prix	Winner	Race date
Bahrain Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton (UK)	28 March
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	18 April
Portuguese Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton (UK)	2 May
Spanish Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton (UK)	9 May
Monaco Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	23 May
Azerbaijan Grand Prix	Sergio Pérez (Mexico)	6 June
French Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	20 June
Styrian Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	27 June
Austrian Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	4 July
British Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton (UK)	18 July
Hungarian Grand Prix		1 August
Belgian Grand Prix		29 August
Dutch Grand Prix		5 September
Italian Grand Prix		12 September
Russian Grand Prix		26 September
Japanese Grand Prix		10 October
United States Grand Prix		24 October
Mexico City Grand Prix		31 October
São Paulo Grand Prix		7 November
Australian Grand Prix		21 November
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix		5 December
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix		12 December

Cannes Film Festival 2021 Awards -
1. Palme d'Or: Titane by Julia Ducournau
2. Grand Prix:
  1. A Hero by Asghar Farhadi
  2. Compartment No. 6 by Juho Kuosmanen
3. Jury Prize:
  1. Ahed's Knee by Nadav Lapid
  2. Memoria by Apichatpong Weerasethakul
4. Best Director: Leos Carax for Annette
5. Best Actress: Renate Reinsve for The Worst Person in the World
6. Best Actor: Caleb Landry Jones for Nitram
7. Honorary Palme d'Or: Jodie Foster and Marco Bellocchio
8. L'Œil d'or (Golden Eye - Best Documentary): A Night of Knowing Nothing by Payal Kapadia (Indian filmmaker)
Bangladeshi Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus will receive Olympic Laurel at Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, the second time the trophy will be awarded. Yunus founded the Grameen Bank in 1983 and was awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.
1. Olympic Laurel is a distinction awarded by International Olympic Committee, to honour those who have made significant achievements in education, culture, development and peace through sport. It was introduced in 2016.
Haryana Govt announced to introduce One Block, One Product scheme, to encourage and promote small industries in rural areas, by connecting every block a specific industrial vision.

July 20, 2021
1. July 20 - International Chess Day, marks founding of International Chess Federation in 1924.
2. July 20 is observed as Space Exploration Day, marking Anniversary of NASA's Apollo 11 Mission, which was spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin formed American crew that landed Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on July 20, 1969.
  1. They spent about two and a quarter hours together outside the spacecraft, and collected 47.5 pounds (21.5 kg) of lunar material to bring back to Earth. This day marks man's first historic landing and walk on the surface of another celestial body.
3. NASA's new spacecraft NEA Scout (Near-Earth Asteroid Scout) has reportedly undergone all required tests and has been placed inside Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.
  1. NEA Scout will be flying to space on Artemis I, which will be the first uncrewed test flight of SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft. Artemis I is scheduled to be launched in November 2021.
  2. NEA Scout is size of a shoebox, that will be propelled by a solar sail measuring 925 sq ft. The camera fitted on the spacecraft will take pictures to help in determining the physical properties of a near-Earth asteroid.
4. Brisbane (Australia) won rights to host 2032 Olympics, during 138th Session of International Olympic Committee in Tokyo.
  1. Australia has earlier hosted Olympics earlier in 2000 (Sydney) and Melbourne (1956).
  2. Next (2024) Olympics will be hosted in Paris (France), Followed by 2028 Olympics in Los Angles (USA).
5. UN Development Programme named Indian Organizations Snehakunja Trust and Aadhimalai Pazhangudiyinar Producer Company among 10 awardees of Equator Prize 2021, for their work in field of biodiversity and conservation.
  1. Equator Prize is a biennial award by UNDP is given to recognize community efforts of reducing poverty through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Winners receive prize money of US $10000 .
6. International Cricket Council (ICC) inducted Mongolia, Switzerland, and Tajikistan as its new member countries, at ICC’s 78th AGM. There are now 106 ICC member countries, including 94 associates.
7. Chinese Smartphone maker Xiaomi surpassed Apple to become world's second-largest smartphone maker for first-time, only behind Samsung.
  1. Xiapomi had 17% worldwide smartphone shipments for second quarter of 2021, behind Samsung's 19% and ahead of Apple's 14 %.
8. Meghalaya Govt approved Meghalaya Youth Policy 2021, to enable youth to achieve their fullest potential & become engaged, skilled, creative, responsible & empowered members of community.
9. Africa become first continent to complete collection of comprehensive digital use data and land-use change data under Open DEAL Initiative.
  1. DEAL stands for Data for the Environment, Agriculture, and Land Initiative.
10. Harappan city of Dholavira (Gujarat) and Rudreswara Temple (also known as Ramappa Temple) at Palampet (Telangana), are newest Indian sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage list, taking number of Indian sites in UNESCO Heritage list up to 40.
  1. Also, UNESCO removed site of Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City from list of world heritage sites, making it third site to be removed from list. Liverpool has been removed from list due to concerns over new buildings that are being planned in the city, which may undermine its Victorian heritage.
11. China unveiled maglev train which is capable of a top speed of 600 kmph, termed as fastest ground vehicle globally. It uses electro-magnetic force, which makes it levitate above track, with no contact between body and the rail.
12. European Commission proposed to put world’s first carbon border tax, on imports of carbon-intensive steel, aluminium, cement, fertilisers and electricity, as part of a programme to meet its new climate target.
  1. As proposed, The border levy should be phased in from 2026. It is designed to protect European industries from competitors abroad not subject to the same carbon levies.
13. Indian Oil Corporation will build India' s first green hydrogen plant at its Mathura refinery, to prepare for growing demand for cleaner forms of energy.
July 19, 2021
1. Andhra Pradesh-born astronaut Sirisha Bandla became 2nd Indian-born woman astronaut to fly to space (Kalpana Chawla was first), to take care of researcher's experience on Unity22 mission, aboard 'VSS Unity' of Virgin Galactic, a company founded by British billionaire Richard Branson.
2. Road Transport and Highways Ministry Notified Formal Registration Process for Vintage Motor Vehicles, to preserve and promote heritage of vintage vehicles. Features -
  1. All 2/4 wheelers, 50+ years old, maintained in their original form and which have not undergone any substantial overhaul, shall be defined as Vintage Motor Vehicles.
  2. Vehicles already registered can retain their original Registration Mark. For fresh registration, registration mark will be assigned as XX VA YY*, where VA is for vintage, XX for State Code and YY will be a two-letter series.
  3. Fees for new registration – 20000 and subsequent re-registration – 5000.
  4. Vintage motor vehicles shall not be driven on roads for regular/commercial purposes.
3. Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) has setup Dairy Investment Accelerator under its Investment Facilitation Cell, to provide dedicated focus towards promoting & facilitating investments in Indian Dairy sector, by serving as interface with investors and provide support across investment cycle.
4. Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL), on behalf of Department of Telecommunication, invited global tender for Development (Creation, Upgradation, Operation & Maintenance and Utilisation) of BharatNet, through Public Private Partnership model in 9 separate packages across 16 states, for concession period of 30 years.
  1. Under this, Govt will provide maximum Grant of 19041 Crores, as Viability Gap Funding.
  2. It shall cover estimated 3.61 lakh Villages across Kerala, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
5. July 18 - UN Nelson Mandela International Day, proclaimed by United Nations in 2009, and first UN Mandela Day held in July 2010.
  1. Notably, United Nations Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela Prize was established by UN in 2014, awarded every 5 years. It was last awarded in 2020, to Guinean doctor Morissana Kouyate and Marianna Vardinoyannis of Greece.
6. Govt officially renamed Jammu and Kashmir High Court as High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, with President signing J & K Reorganisation (Removal of Difficulties) Order 2021, by powers under Section 103 (1) of J & K Reorganisation Act 2019.
7. United States, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Uzbekistan will establish a new quadrilateral diplomatic platform to enhance regional connectivity.
July 18, 2021
1. National Asset Reconstruction Company Ltd (NARCL) has been incorporated (also called bad bank), by Corporate Affairs Ministry.
  1. It aims at becoming one-stop solution for stressed banking systems assets. Under first phase, 22 stressed accounts amounting 89000 crores have been identified to be transferred to NARCL.
2. National Insurance Company (NICL) launched a new facility, to enable Yak farmers in remote Himalayas to insure their Yaks. Yak Famers incur regular losses due to deaths of the animal, in harsh environment.
3. Uttar Pradesh Govt approved proposal for 4480 crore loan from Punjab National Bank, for financing 594-km long Ganga Expressway project, India's 2nd longest expressway, which involves investment of approx 36000 crores.
  1. Ganga Expressway Phase-1 will connect Bijauli village on NH-334 in Meerut district with Judapur Dandu village on NH-19 in Prayagraj District.
  2. It will pass through 12 districts of Uttar Pradesh - Meerut, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Amroha, Sambhal, Budaun, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Unnao, Raebareli, Pratapgarh and Prayagraj.
4. RBI announced Retail Direct scheme, as a one-stop solution to facilitate investment in government securities (G-secs) by individual investors.
  1. Under this, retail investors can open and maintain Retail Direct Gilt Account (RDG Account) with RBI, through which they can directly buy and sell government securities (G-Secs), both primary and secondary.
5. Vietnam appointed Honorary Consul General of Vietnam in Bangalore, to promote cooperation between Vietnam and State of Karnataka. Industrialist N.S. Srinivasa Murthy has been appointed as first honorary consul general of Vietnam from India.
6. Book The Long Game: How the Chinese Negotiate with India, by Vijay Gokhale has been released.
7. Book Kamala Harris and the Rise of Indian Americans, edited by Tarun Basu has been released.
8. Riding Free: My Olympic Journey, memoir by Indian Olympian equestrian rider Imtiaz Anees has been released.
9. IISC Resarchers for the first time discovered two species of few electron bubbles in superfluid helium gas, which can serve as a model to study how energy states of electrons and interactions between them influence properties.
  1. An electron injected into a superfluid form of helium creates a single electron bubble (SEB) - a cavity that is free of helium atoms and contains only the electron. Shape of bubble depends on the energy state of the electron. There are also MEBs - multiple electron bubbles that contain thousands of electrons.
  2. FEBs, on the other hand, are nanometre-sized cavities in liquid helium containing just a handful of free electrons. Studying FEBs can help better understand how some of these properties emerge when a few electrons present in a material interact with each other.
10. Book India Versus China : Why they are Not Friends, by Kanti Bajpai has been released.
11. Bashar al-Assad has been appointed as President of Syria for his fourth term.
12. Google honoured Dr. Kadambini Ganguly, first woman to be trained as a physician in India, with a doodle celebrating her 160th birth anniversary, on Jul 18, 2021.
13. Sher Bahadur Deuba has been appointed as Nepal's Prime Minister for his 5th term.
14. Singapore unveiled 60 MW Capacity Floating Solar Panel Farm, to help achieve goal of quadrupling its solar energy production by 2025, to tackle climate change.
  1. Notably, world’s largest floating solar project is being developed at Omkareshwar dam (Narmada river), Madhya Pradesh. It will have 600MW capacity, and will begin operations in 2022-23.
15. NTPC Renewable Energy (NTPC REL) won Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Limited (RUMSL) auction for 450 MW of solar projects at Shajapur Solar Park in Madhya Pradesh.
  1. As a part of its green energy portfolio augmentation, NTPC aims to build 60 GW Renewable Energy Capacity by 2032.
July 17, 2021
1. Jul 17 - World Day for International Justice. It marks adoption of Rome Statute in 1998. With help of this treaty International Criminal Court (ICC) was established.
2. Book The Great Big Lion, written by 3-year old Chryseis Knight has been released in India.
  1. Considered gifted, Knight, who is currently residing in Canada, learnt reading at age of one and been writing since age of 2 years.
3. Union Minister Piyush Goyal has been appointed as Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha, succeeding Thawar Chand Gahlot, who took charge as Governor of Karnataka.
  1. Also, Minority affairs minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is named as deputy leader of House in Rajya Sabha.
4. UAE became first Gulf nation to open an embassy in Israel, located in Tel Aviv Stock Exchange building. It came an year after both countries signed an agreement to normalise diplomatic ties.
5. RBI cancelled licence of Dr Shivajirao Patil Nilangekar Urban Co-operative Bank (Latur, Maharashtra), stating it does not have adequate capital and earning prospects to carry on banking business.
6. China officially begun construction of world’s first commercial modular small reactor Linglong One, at Changjiang Nuclear Power Plant in Hainan Province.
  1. Multipurpose small modular reactor (SMR) Linglong One (also called ACP100), was first such SMR which was approved by International Atomic Energy Agency in 2016.
  2. ACP100 has generation capacity of 125000 kilowatt hours, extendable up to 1 billion kilowatt hours.
7. Ladakh UT administration signed MoU with Sikkim State Organic Certification Agency (SOCCA) and Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, for implementation of Prampragat Krishi Vikas Yojana and Mission Organic Development Initiative (MODI), to convert Ladakh into organic by 2025.
July 16, 2021
1. Supreme Court asked Govt to consider scrapping or limiting applicability of sedition law, a colonial law that was used by the British to silence Freedom Activists.
  1. SC responded to a petition that challenges constitutional validity of sedition law, calling its usage curb on free speech.
  2. Sedition law under Section124A of IPC states - Whoever attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards, the Government established by law in India, shall be punished with imprisonment for life. It was inserted into Section 124A of IPC in 1870, by the British. It was first used to prosecute Bal Gangadhar Tilak in 1897.
  3. Earlier, Supreme Court upheld constitutionality of sedition law in 1962, when it was hearing Kedar Nath Singh v State of Bihar case. SC limited application of sedition law acts involving intention or tendency to create disorder, or disturbance of law and order, or incitement to violence.
2. Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar launched a digital platform namely Kisan Sarathi, to facilitate farmers to get right information at right time, in their desired language.
  1. It was launched on occasion of 93rd ICAR Foundation Day (Jul 16).
3. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda jointly launched School Innovation Ambassador Training Program (SIATP), for 50000 school teachers in tribal areas, to help provide quality education to children in tribal areas.
4. PM Narendra Modi inaugurated several projects in Gujarat -
  1. Upgraded Gandhinagar Capital Railway station, done with cost 71 crores.
    1. As a part of this mission, work on redevelopment of 125 stations is in progress. IRSDC is working on 63 stations, RLDA on 60 stations and 2 stations by zonal railways. Investment for redevelopment of 123 stations is over 50000 crores.
  2. Also inaugrated state-of-the-art public Aquatics Gallery and a Robotics Gallery.
5. Andhra Pradesh government ordered implementation of 10 % reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) in education and employment, in accordance with 103rd Constitution Amendment Act. Kapus will also be included under EWS quota.
  1. Earlier In 2017, previous TDP government enacted a Bill seeking to include Kapus into list of BCs, by creating a separate category called BC-F. This Bill is still awaiting assent from President.
  2. Later in 2019, TDP government passed a legislation to bifurcate 10% EWS quota into two parts, to provide 5% reservation to Kapus treating them as OC.
  3. Because of this, Kapus are neither categorised as BCs, nor are able to avail reservations under EWS category. Therefore, state govt now replicated guidelines for EWS quota in educational institutions and employment, to benefit Kapus and other OC sections eligible for EWS reservation.
6. Maharashtra Govt launched Electric Vehicle Policy 2021 (valid up to 31st March 2025), to accelerate adoption of Electric Vehicles, by revising the 2018 policy.
  1. It aims at making Maharashtra topmost producer of battery-powered electric vehicles in India.
  2. It also aims for electric vehicles to make up 10 % of all new vehicle registrations, by 2025. EVs will be exempted from road tax and registration charges.
7. Manduadih railway station has been renamed as Banaras, by Northeastern railways.
8. Karnataka Govt unveiled Karnataka Electric Bike Taxi scheme-2021, to serve as a bridge between public transport and daily commuters.
  1. It aims to reduce travel time and inconvenience in reaching public transport.
  2. Vehicles registered under this scheme will be in transport category, with several exemptions.
July 15, 2021
1. July 15 - World Youth Skills Day. On 18 December 2014, UN General Assembly (UNGA) declared 15th July as World Youth Skills Day.
  1. July 15 also marks Anniversary of Skill India Mission (Pradhanmantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna ), in which over 1.25 crore youth have been trained so far. It was launched by PM Narendra Modi on July 15, 2015.
  2. Also, Jul 15 is observed as Educational Development Day in Tamil Nadu, to mark birth Anniversary of Former CM K Kamaraj.
  3. Also, India's National Plastic Surgery Day, which is observed on July 15, has now been Adopted as World Plastic Surgery Day.
2. PM Narendra Modi inaugurated various development projects in Varanasi (UP). Notably -
  1. Inaugurated International Cooperation and Convention Centre Rudraksh, in Varanasi, constructed with Japanese assistance.
  2. Inaugurated Tourist Facilitation Centre and operation of Cruise Boat from Assi Ghat to RajGhat under Project PRASHAD Scheme (National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive).
3. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Lyonpo Namgay Tshering (Finance Minister of Bhutan) jointly launched BHIM–UPI in Bhutan.
  1. Bhutan is first country to adopt UPI standards for its QR deployment, and first neighbouring country to accept mobile based payments through BHIM App.
  2. This launch also made Bhutan second country after Singapore to have BHIM-UPI acceptance at merchant locations.
4. India and Asia's first Dolphin Research Centre will be set up on the banks of the River Ganges in Patna University campus in Bihar.
5. RBI barred Mastercard from issuing new credit, debit and prepaid cards in India, for its failure to comply with its data storage norms.
  1. This action has been taken under Section 17 of Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007.
  2. RBI clarified that this will not impact existing Mastercard customers in India.
July 14, 2021
1. Cabinet Approvals (July 14, 2021) -
  1. MOUs -
    1. Denmark - Cooperation in field of Health and Medicine
    2. Russia - Cooperation regarding coking Coal, which is used for Steel making
  2. CCEA Approvals -
    1. To boost growth livestock sector and enhance income of 10 crore farmers in Animal Husbandry Sector, CCEA approved a Special Livestock Sector Package consisting of several activities by revising various components of various govt schemes, for 5 years starting 2021-22.
      1. This package envisages Central govt support of 9800 crore over 5 years, for leveraging investment of 54618 crore for 5 years.
      2. All schemes under Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying will be merged into 3 broad categories -
        Development - Includes Rashtriya Gokul Mission, National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD), National Livestock Mission (NLM) and Livestock Census and Integrated Sample Survey (LC & ISS) as sub-schemes.
        
        Disease Control - Renamed as Livestock Health and Disease Control (LH & DC) which includes present Livestock Health and Disease Control (LH & DC) scheme and National Animal Disease Control Programme (NADCP).
        
        Infrastructure Development Fund - Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development fund (AHIDF) and Dairy Infrastructure Development Fund (DIDF) are merged and present scheme for support to Dairy Cooperatives and Farmer Producer Organizations engaged in Dairy activities is also included in this category.
  3. General -
    1. Approved 11th Extension of term of Commission constituted under Article 340 of Constitution to examine issue of Sub-categorization within Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in Central List by 6 months, upto 31st January 2022.
    2. Approved continuation of Centrally Sponsored Scheme for Development of Infrastructure Facilities for Judiciary for five years (upto 31-03-2026), at cost 9000 crores, with Central share 5357 crores.
      1. It also includes Gram Nyayalayas Scheme to be implemented in a Mission Mode with 50 crores cost, through National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms.
    3. Approved increased Dearness Allowance to Central Government employees and Dearness Relief to pensioners, to 28% (from 17% of Basic Pay/Pension earlier).
    4. Approved scheme for promotion of flagging of merchant ships, by providing subsidy worth 1624 crore over 5 years, to support Indian shipping companies in global tenders floated by Ministries and CPSEs.
    5. Approved continuation of National AYUSH Mission (NAM) as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, upto 31-03-2026, with cost 4607.30 crores (3000 crores as Central Share).
      1. National AYUSH Mission is being implemented by Ministry of AYUSH, to provide cost effective AYUSH Services, with a universal access.
    6. Approved changing nomenclature & mandate of North Eastern Institute of Folk Medicine (NEIFM) as North Eastern Institute of Ayurveda & Folk Medicine Research (NEIAFMR), for imparting quality Education and Research in Ayurveda & Folk Medicine at Pasighat (Arunachal Pradesh).
    7. Approved continuation of Rebate of State and Central taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) till 31-03-2024, on exports of Apparel/Garments (Chapters-61 & 62) and Made-ups (Chapter-63), in exclusion from Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) scheme for these chapters.
2. International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) constituted an Expert Committee to recommend approach towards development of Longevity Finance Hub and provide road map for the same.
  1. It is estimated that by 2040, there will be more members of silver generation (over 60 years age) than people under 20. This will throw new challenges in areas of wealth management, health, insurance, and other investment products.
  2. The expert committee is being co-chaired by Kaku Nakhate (Bank of America) and Gopalan Srinivasan (Ex-CMD of NIACL).
3. Tri Nation Table Top Anti-Narcotics & Maritime Search and Rescue exercise (Exercise Shield - TTX2021) held between Maldives, Sri Lanka and India Navies, in virtual mode for the first time, with Indian Navy as lead agency and coordinated by Maritime Warfare Centre Mumbai.
4. July 14 is observed as National Day of France, also known as Bastille Day. It is commemorated the anniversary of Storming of the Bastille during French Revolution on 14 July 1789. July 14 is also observed as Shark Awareness Day Globally.
July 13, 2021
1. COPA America 2021 (47th Edition of South American Football Championship) -
  1. Argentina won the title, defeating Brazil. It was 15th COPA America title win for Argentina.
  2. Top scorers were Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Luis Díaz (Colombia), with 4 goals each.
  3. Best player - Lionel Messi (Argentina)
  4. Best goalkeeper - Emiliano Martínez (Argentina)
2. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu released book Palleku Pattabhishekam, authored by former MP Yalamanchili Sivaji, based on rural India and agriculture.
  1. He also released Terrace Garden: Midde Thota, by Thummeti Raghothama Reddy.
3. Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry has been Named New acting president of Haiti, after earlier President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated recently.
4. As per BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy, Top Crude Oil Suppliers to India in 2020 - Iraq (47 MT), Saudi Arabia (38 MT), UAE (22 MT) and USA (10.7 MT).
5. Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) will now have a Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, instead of an Executive Chairman, after Finance Ministry amended LIC (Employees) Pension (Amendment) Rules.
6. RBI asked banks and financial institutions to use any widely accepted alternative reference rate (AAR) instead of LIBOR (London Interbank Offered Rates), as reference rate for entering into new financial contracts.
  1. Recently, Financial Conduct Authority (UK) announced that all LIBOR settings would either cease to be provided by any administrator or would no longer be representative.
  2. RBI also advised financial institutions to cease using Mumbai Interbank Forward Outright Rate (MIFOR), a benchmark which references the LIBOR, latest by December 31, 2021.
July 12, 2021
1. Jul 12 is observed as International Malala Day, observed by United Nations (UN) to highlight work for education of Pakistani children by Pakistani child activist Malala Yousafzai.
2. Book The Art of Conjuring Alternate Realities, authored by Shivam Shankar Singh and Anand Venkatanarayanan has been released.
3. Journalist Omchery N N Pillai has been selected for Bahrain Keraleeya Samajam (BKS)’s Literary Award for 2021.
4. Assam Cabinet announced creation of an independent department to protect and preserve faith, culture and traditions of tribes and indigenous communities of the state.
5. Hyderabad based hunger activist Syed Osman Azhar Maqsusi, who has been feeding thousands of people every day as part of his food drive ‘Hunger Has No Religion’, has been awarded UK's Commonwealth Points of Light award.
6. Manipur entered National Railways Map, with Rajdhani Express from Assam’s Silchar railway station reaching Vaingaichunpao station in Manipur for a trial run.
7. Actress Kareena Kapoor announced her new book Pregnancy Bible, to be released soon.
July 11, 2021
1. Jul 11 - World Population Day. It was established by Governing Council of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1989. It was inspired by public interest in Five Billion Day on 11 July 1987, approximate date on which world’s population reached 5 billion
  1. On this occasion, Uttar Pradesh Cabinet approved Draft Population (Control, Stabilization, and Welfare) Bill 2021, Prepared by Uttar Pradesh Law Commission (UPLC). It aims at curbing over-population issue. It proposes to incentivise couples who do not have more than two babies.
2. Italy won EURO 2020 (European Football Championship), Defeating England in Finals played in Wembley Stadium (London).
  1. It is 2nd EURO Title for Italy, after their 1st in 1968.
  2. Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma has been named Player of the Tournament.
  3. Top scorers were Patrik Schick (Czech Republic) and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), scoring 5 goals each.
3. Wimbeldon 2021 Tennis Championships (London) -
  1. Men's Singles - Novak Djokovic (Serbia). He defeated Matteo Berrettini (Italy).
    1. This is Novak's record-equalling 20th Grand Slam win and 6th Wimbledon Title. He now equals Roger Federer (Switzerland) and Rafael Nadal (Spain), in terms of most Grand Slam Titles.
  2. Women's Singles - Ashleigh Barty (Australia). She defeated Karolína Plíšková (Czech Republic).
    1. It is Ashleigh Barty's 1st Wimbledon and 2nd Grand Slam Title.
  3. Men's Doubles - Croatia's Nikola Mektić AND Mate Pavić
  4. Women's Doubles - Hsieh Su-wei (Chinese Taipei) AND Elise Mertens (Belgium)
  5. Mixed Doubles - Neal Skupski (UK) AND Desirae Krawczyk (US)
  6. Boys' Singles - Samir Banerjee (Indian American)
  7. Girls' Singles - Ane Mintegi del Olmo (Spain)
July 10, 2021
1. General Conferences (July 1 - 10, 2021) -
  1. BRICS Nations agreed upon STI-led BRICS Innovation Cooperation Action Plan (2021-24) proposed by India, to facilitate sharing of experiences of each other’s innovation ecosystem and networking of innovators and entrepreneurs.
  2. National Horticulture Board opened centre in state of Madhya Pradesh, in Gwalior. to boost horticulture in region and benefit 21 districts of Northern Madhya Pradesh.
  3. Kerala Govt announced to launc its own over-the-top (OTT) platform, by November 2021.
  4. 1st edition of Indo-Pacific Business Summit organized virtually, by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in collaboration with Ministry of External Affairs.
  5. China prohibited construction of super tall skyscrapers, to ensure safety after the mounting concerns over quality of some projects. The ban covers buildings taller than 500 meters.
  6. Facebook announced a set of publishing and subscription tools named Bulletin, to promote independent writers in US.
  7. Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar launched mobile app Jan Sahayak-Aapka Sahayak, to ensure anywhere-anytime-anybody delivery of Government to Citizen (G2C) and Business to Citizen (B2C) services through one-access point.
  8. Ministry of Health, Ministry of External Affairs and National Health Authority Jointly organized CoWin Global Conclave Virtually, to extend Co-WIN platform as a digital public good to the world.
  9. As per NewsOnAir Radio Live-stream Global Rankings, Top 5 countries (Other than India) where All India Radio Live-streams on NewsOnAir App are most popular - US, Fiji, Australia, UK and Canada.
  10. Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna Railway Station (Bengaluru City Railway Station) became first railway station in India with a movable freshwater tunnel aquarium, jointly opened by Indian Railway Stations Development Cooperation (IRSDC) with HNi Aquatic Kingdom.
  11. 2 days Hemis festival observed in Leh, also popularly known as Hemis Tses-Chu, to commemorate birth anniversary of Guru Padmasambhava, also known as second Buddha.
  12. World’s tallest sand castle has been built in Blokhus (Denmark), with 21.6 metres height. It is 3.5 meter taller than one built in Germany in 2019.
  13. India and UK held inaugural meeting of India-UK Financial Markets Dialogue virtually, which was established at 10th Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) in October 2020, to deepen bilateral ties in financial sector.
2. Vice President Venkaiah Naidu Relased book Urdu Poets and Writers - Gems of Deccan, authored by journalist J.S. Ifthekhar.
  1. He also received books on former PM P.V. Narasimha Rao - Manavottama Rama authored by Satyakasi Bhargava and Nallagonda Kathalu authored by Shri Mallikarjun.
3. MoU signed for execution of 679 MW Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project in Nepal, between India's Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) and Investment Board of Nepal.
  1. Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project is located in Sankhuwasabha and Bhojpur Districts of Nepal. The project will not have any reservoir or dam and will be a tail race development of 900 MW Arun3 HEP. It will generate 2970 million units of electricity per annum. It is expected to cost around 1.3 Billion USD.
  2. This is 2nd project awarded to SJVN in Nepal, after 900 MW Arun 3 Hydro Electric Project in Sankhuwasabha District.
4. International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has issued a framework for Setting up and operating International Trade Finance Services Platform (ITFS) for providing Trade Finance Services at International Financial Services Centres (IFSCs).
  1. It will enable Exporters and Importers to avail various types of trade finance facilities at competitive terms, for their international trade transactions through a dedicated electronic platform (ITFS).
5. NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd (REL) signed MoU with UT of Ladakh and LAHDC, to setup India’s first Green Hydrogen Mobility project.
6. NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd (REL) received approval from Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to set up 4750 MW renewable energy park at Rann of Kutch in Khavada (Gujarat), as India’s largest solar park.
  1. NTPC aims to build 60 GW Renewable Energy Capacity by 2032.
  2. Currently, NTPC has total installed capacity of 66 GW across 70 power projects, with additional 18 GW under construction.
7. Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) secured trademark registrations in 3 countries - Bhutan, UAE and Mexico, aimed at protecting identity of brand Khadi globally. Apart from these, KVIC’s trademark applications are pending in 40 countries.
8. July 10 is observed as National Fish Farmers Day, proclaimed by Government in 2001.
  1. It is celebrated in remembrance of scientists Dr. K. H. Alikunhi and Dr. H.L. Chaudhury who successfully demonstrated technology of induced breeding (Hypophysation) in Indian Major Carps on 10th July, 1957 at erstwhile ‘Pond Culture Division’ of CIFRI at Cuttack.
July 09, 2021
1. Book The Light of Asia, authored by Jairam Ramesh has been released.
2. Govt has set up 25-member development council for cement industry, to recommend ways to eliminate waste, increase production and quality. It will be chaired by Puneet Dalmia (CMD, Dalmia Bharat Group).
3. Amazon launched its first Digital Kendra in India in Surat (Gujarat), to emable MSMEs avail third party services including training on benefits of eCommerce, GST and taxation support, shipping and logistics support and digital marketing services.
4. Gujarat Maritime University signed MoU with International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) in GIFT City, to set up Gujarat International Maritime Arbitration Centre (GIMAC).
  1. GIMAC will be first of its kind centre in India to manage arbitration proceedings for disputes related to maritime and shipping sector.
5. Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Minister Giriraj Singh launched Online Course Mobile App Matsya Setu, developed by ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (ICAR-CIFA), to disseminate latest freshwater aquaculture technologies to the aqua farmers.
6. Book The Fourth Lion: Essays for Gopalkrishna Gandhi, authored by Venu Madhav Govindu and Srinath Raghavan, has been released.
7. RBI announced that benchmark securities of tenor 2, 3, 5, 10, 14-year tenor and Floating Rate Bonds (FRBs) will be, henceforth, issued using uniform price auction method.
  1. For other benchmark securities i.e. 30-year and 40-year, the auction will continue to be multiple price-based auction.
  2. Under uniform price auction method, all successful bidders are required to pay for allotted quantity of government securities at the same rate, which is the auction cut-off rate.
8. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu has been Appointed as new Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand.
9. Book Operation Khukri, Authored by Major General Rajpal Punia & Damini Punia has been released.
10. J&K topped the country under National Initiative for School Heads and Teachers Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) programme, with 80600 Elementary Teachers Trained through online mode using DIKSHA portal.
July 08, 2021
1. UK's Cairn Energy secured a French Court order to seize several properties of Indian Government in France, to recover a part of USD 1.7 billion arbitration award. The Dispute -
  1. In 2006-2007, Cairn UK transferred shares of Cairn India Holdings to Cairn India. Indian Income tax authorities ruled that since Cairn UK has made capital gains, it must pay capital gains tax up to 24500 crores.
  2. However, Cairn Energy interpreted Indian laws on capital gains differently and refused to pay.
  3. Due to this, several rounds of litigation at High Court and Income-Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) followed. Cairn Energy lost case at ITAT and a case on valuation of capital gains is pending before Delhi High Court.
  4. Later in Dec 2020, Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague (Netherlands) ruled that Indian government was wrong in applying retrospective tax on Cairn. It asked Indian Government to return USD $1.2 billion-plus interest and penalty to Cairn, amounting to approx 1.7 Billion USD.
2. 8th July is Observed as Rythu Dinotsavam meaning Farmer’s Day in Andhra Pradesh. It marks birth anniversary of 14th CM of Andhra Pradesh, Y.S Rajasekhara Reddy, being celebrated since 2019.
3. Rajasthan Govt announced State's 4th tiger Sanctuary, as Ramgarh Vishdhari Sanctuary (Bundi), which will link Ranthambore Tiger Reserve in Northeast & Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve on southern side.
  1. Earlier 3 Tiger Reserves in state are Ranthambore Tiger Reserve (Sawai Madhopur), Sariska Tiger Reserve (Alwar) and Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve (Kota).
  2. State govt will also develop a tiger corridor, connecting 3 Tiger Reserves passing through districts including Sawai Madhopur, Kota, and Bundi.
4. National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) launched India’s first sectoral indices in agri-commodities space namely GAUREX and SOYDEX.
  1. GUAREX is a return-based index. It will track price movement in futures contracts of its guar gum refined splits and guar seed on a real-time basis. Weightage of guar gum refined splits will be 36.57 % and guar seed will be 63.43 %.
  2. SOYDEX will follow price changes in futures contracts of refined soy oil and soybean. Weightage of refined soy oil will be 32.08 % and soybean will be 67.92 %.
5. Maharashtra Govt introduced three bills to amend Centre’s farm laws, to be discussed during winter session in December 2021. Bills are -
  1. Essential Commodities (Amendment), Farmers (Empowerment and Protection), Guarantee Price
  2. Agriculture related Agreements (Maharashtra Amendment)
  3. Farmer Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation)
6. Australia's Geoff Allardice has been named Interim CEO of International Cricket Council (ICC), after India's Manu Sawhney resigned from post.
7. Noted Indian Economist Kaushik Basu is named among awardees of Humboldt Research Award for Economics, given by Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany, to renowned scientists outside Germany, in recognition of their lifetime's research achievements.
8. Odisha Govt. approved 5 major industrial projects worth 146172 crores in metal and metal downstream sectors. It includes Capacity and Operational expansions in Bhushan Power and Steel, Tata Steel, Jindal Steel and Power, Rungta Mines (Jharbandh) and Rungta Mines (Karakhendra).
9. Cabinet Approvals (July 08, 2021) -
  1. General -
    1. Approved proposal of Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare to make post of Chairman (Coconut Development Board) as Non-Executive one.
    2. Approved modifications in Central Sector Scheme of Financing Facility under Agriculture Infrastructure Fund -
      1. Eligibility extended to State Agencies/APMCs, National & State Federations of Cooperatives, Federations of Farmers Producers Organizations (FPOs) and Federations of Self Help Groups (SHGs).
      2. Interest subvention -
        At present, Interest subvention for loans upto 2 crore in one location is eligible. In case, one eligible entity puts up projects in different locations then all such projects will be now be eligible for interest subvention for loan upto 2 crore. For a private sector entity, there will be a limit of a maximum of 25 such projects.
        
        For APMCs, interest subvention for loans upto 2 crore will be provided for each project of different infrastructure types, within the same market yard.
      3. Power has been delegated to Agriculture Minister, to make necessary changes, about addition / deletion of beneficiary.
      4. Period of financial facility extended from 4 to 6 years upto 2025-26, and overall period of scheme extended from 10 - 13 years upto 2032-33.
    3. Approved new scheme India COVID-19 Emergency Response & Health System Preparedness Package: Phase-II, amounting 23123 crore for FY 2021-22, with Central Share 15000 crores.
      1. It aims to accelerate health system preparedness for immediate responsiveness for early prevention, detection and management, with focus on health infrastructure development including for Paediatric Care.
      2. Phase-II of the Package has Central Sector (CS) and Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) components.
  2. MOUs -
    1. MoU between Institute of Cost Accountants of India and Association of Chartered Certified Accountants of UK
    2. Memorandum on Cooperation (MoC) between Competition Commission of India (CCI) and Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC)

July 07, 2021

Central Govt announced creation of a new Ministry of Co-operation, to provide a separate administrative, legal and policy framework for strengthening cooperative movement in country, to realize vision of Sahkar se Samriddhi.
1. Also, Govt Expanded Finance Ministry with addition of Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) into it.
  1. DPE was earlier under Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, which administered 48 central PSEs.
  2. Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises ceased to exist from 7 July, 2021. It was splitted into Ministry of Heavy Industries AND Department Of Public Enterprises (which has been Merged Into Ministry of Finance).

Under a major Cabinet Re-shuffle, Govt appointed several new Ministers. Updated List of Ministers with Portfolios -

S. No.	Name	Portfolio
Cabinet Ministers
1.	Raj Nath Singh	Defence
2.	Amit Shah	Home Affairs; Cooperation
3.	Nitin Jairam Gadkari	Road Transport and Highways
4.	Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman	Finance; Corporate Affairs
5.	Narendra Singh Tomar	Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
6.	Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar	External Affairs
7.	Arjun Munda	Tribal Affairs
8.	Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani	Women and Child Development
9.	Piyush Goyal	Commerce and Industry; Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution; Textiles
10.	Dharmendra Pradhan	Education; Skill Development and Entrepreneurship
11.	Pralhad Joshi	Parliamentary Affairs; Coal; Mines
12.	Narayan Tatu Rane	Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
13.	Sarbananda Sonowal	Ports, Shipping and Waterways; AYUSH
14.	Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi	Minority Affairs
15.	Dr. Virendra Kumar	Social Justice and Empowerment
16.	Giriraj Singh	Rural Development; Panchayati Raj
17.	Jyotiraditya M. Scindia	Civil Aviation
18.	Ramchandra Prasad Singh	Steel
19.	Ashwini Vaishnaw	Railways; Communications; Electronics and Information Technology
20.	Pashu Pati Kumar Paras	Food Processing Industries
21.	Gajendra Singh Shekhawat	Jal Shakti
22.	Kiren Rijiju	Law and Justice
23.	Raj Kumar Singh	Power; and New and Renewable Energy
24.	Hardeep Singh Puri	Petroleum and Natural Gas; and Housing and Urban Affairs
25.	Mansukh Mandaviya	Health and Family Welfare; and Chemicals and Fertilizers
26.	Bhupender Yadav	Environment, Forest and Climate Change; and Labour and Employment
27.	Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey	Heavy Industries
28.	Parshottam Rupala	Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
29.	G. Kishan Reddy	Culture; Tourism; and Development of North Eastern Region
30.	Anurag Singh Thakur	Information and Broadcasting; and Youth Affairs and Sports
MINISTERS OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE)
1.	Rao Inderjit Singh	Statistics and Programme Implementation; Planning; Corporate Affairs
2.	Dr. Jitendra Singh	Science and Technology; Earth Sciences; Prime Minister’s Office; Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions; State in the Department of Atomic Energy; State in the Department of Space
MINISTERS OF STATE
1.	Shripad Yesso Naik	Ports, Shipping and Waterways; Tourism
2.	Faggansingh Kulaste	Steel; Rural Development
3.	Prahalad Singh Patel	Jal Shakti; and Food Processing Industries
4.	Ashwini Kumar Choubey	Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution; and Environment, Forest and Climate Change
5.	Arjun Ram Meghwal	Parliamentary Affairs; and Culture
6.	General (Retd.) V. K. Singh	Road Transport and Highways; and Civil Aviation
7.	Krishan Pal	Power; and Heavy Industries
8.	Danve Raosaheb Dadarao	Railways; Coal; and Mines
9.	Ramdas Athawale	Social Justice and Empowerment
10.	Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti	Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution; and Rural Development
11.	Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan	Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
12.	Nityanand Rai	Home Affairs
13.	Pankaj Chaowdhary	Finance
14.	Smt. Anupriya Singh Patel	Commerce and Industry
15.	Prof. S. P. Singh Baghel	Law and Justice
16.	Rajeev Chandrasekhar	Skill Development and Entrepreneurship; and Electronics and Information Technology
17.	Su Shobha Karandlaje	Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
18.	Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma	Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
19.	Smt. Darshana Vikram Jardosh	Textiles; and Railways
20.	V. Muraleedharan	External Affairs; and Parliamentary Affairs
21.	Smt. Meenakashi Lekhi	External Affairs; and Culture
22.	Som Parkash	Commerce and Industry
23.	Smt. Renuka Singh Saruta	Tribal Affairs
24.	Rameswar Teli	Petroleum and Natural Gas; and Labour and Employment
25.	Kailash Choudhary	Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
26.	Smt. Annpurna Devi	Education
27.	A. Narayanaswamy	Social Justice and Empowerment
28.	Kaushal Kishore	Housing and Urban Affairs
29.	Ajay Bhatt	Defence; and Tourism
30.	B. L. Verma	Development of North Eastern Region; and Cooperation
31.	Ajay Kumar	Home Affairs
32.	Devusinh Chauhan	Communications
33.	Bhagwanth Khuba	New and Renewable Energy; and Chemicals and Fertilizers
34.	Kapil Moreshwar Patil	Panchayati Raj
35.	Su Pratima Bhoumik	Social Justice and Empowerment
36.	Dr. Subhas Sarkar	Education
37.	Dr. Bhagwat Kishanrao Karad	Finance
38.	Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh	External Affairs; and Education
39.	Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar	Health and Family Welfare
40.	Bishweswar Tudu	Tribal Affairs; and Jal Shakti
41.	Shantanu Thakur	Ports, Shipping and Waterways
42.	Dr. Munjapara Mahendrabhai	Women and Child Development; and AYUSH
43.	John Barla	Minority Affairs
44.	Dr. L. Murugan	Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying; and Information and Broadcasting
45.	Nisith Pramanik	Home Affairs; and Youth Affairs and Sports

Book The Ramayana of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji, written by Late Baljit Kaur Tulsi Ji, has been released.
Rail Transportation between India & Nepal got a boost, with India and Nepal signing a Letter of Exchange (LoE) to India-Nepal Rail Services Agreement (RSA) 2004.
1. With this, Cargoes in all categories of wagons that can carry freight on Indian Railways network within India, can also now carry freight to and from Nepal. This will reduce transportation costs for automobiles and certain other products whose carriage takes place in special wagons.
2. This will allow market forces to come up in rail freight segment in Nepal, and will increase efficiency of Nepal Railways.

July 06, 2021
1. As per International Energy Agency (IEA), India will add 26000 megawatt (MW) of hydropower projects by 2030, up from 46209 MW capacity Currently.
  1. India is world's 3rd largest consumer of electricity and world's 3rd largest renewable energy producer with 38% (140.6 GW out of 382 GW) of total installed energy capacity from renewable sources, as of March 31, 2021.
  2. In 2016, Paris Agreement's Intended Nationally Determined Contributions targets, India committed producing 40% of its total electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030. India has also set a target of producing 175 GW by 2022 and 450 GW by 2030 from renewable energy.
2. New Children's Book India To The Rescue, by Sushant Singh & Shruthi Rao has been released.
3. MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan Released Gauri Shankar Sharma's new book Janaksuta Sut Shaurya.
4. Ashok Chakravarti’s New Book Titled The Struggle Within: A Memoir of the Emergency, has been released.
5. Gross GST revenue collected in June 2021 remained 92849 crores (CGST 16424 crores, SGST 20397 crores, IGST 49079 crores and Cess 6949 crores).
6. Jul 6 - Birth Anniversary of Syama Prasad Mukherjee, founder of Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the predecessor to the Bharatiya Janata Party.
  1. Jul 6 is also observed as World Zoonoses Day.
7. President Appointed New Governors in Several States -
  1. P.S. Sreedharan Pillai - Goa (Transferred from Mizoram)
  2. Satyadev Narayan Arya - Tripura (transferred from Haryana)
  3. Ramesh Bais - Jharkhand (Transferred from Tripura)
  4. Thaawarchand Gehlot - Karnataka
  5. Bandaru Dattatraya - Haryana (Transferred from Himachal Pradesh)
  6. Hari Babu Kambhampati - Mizoram
  7. Mangubhai Chhaganbhai Patel - Madhya Pradesh
  8. Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar - Himachal Pradesh
July 05, 2021
1. Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank launched National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN Bharat), for ensuring that every child necessarily attains foundational literacy and numeracy by end of Grade 3, by 2026-27. It aims to cover the learning needs of children in the age group of 3 to 9 years.
2. As per RBI Data, For full year FY21, current account balance recorded a surplus of 0.9% of GDP, due to contraction in trade deficit to $102.2 billion, from $157.5 billion in FY20. This is first time that India has recorded an annual current account surplus in 17 years.
  1. Balance of payment position improved due to large inflows in form of FDI and FPI. Net FDI inflows at $44 billion in FY21, were higher $43 billion in FY20. Net FPI also increased to $36.1 billion in 2020-21.
3. Jeff Bezos stepped down as Amazon's CEO, exactly 27 years after he founded e-commerce Giant Amazon in a garage in West Bellevue, Wash. Andy Jassy has succeeded him as new Amazon CEO.
4. Andhra Pradesh CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy launched revamped YSR Bima scheme, where government itself will directly pay insurance amount to family of deceased to make insurance claims easier. State government allocated 750 crores for 2021-22 for the scheme.
5. J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha launched HAUSLA- inspiring her growth programme for Catalysing Women Entrepreneurship in UT.
  1. J&K Administration also formally ended 149-year-old Darbar Move biannual tradition, of shifting offices between summer capital Srinagar and winter capital Jammu.
6. India ranked 20th among top 100 countries named in Global Startup Ecosystem Index 2021 by Startup Blink.
  1. Top 5 - US, UK, Israel, Canada and Germany.
7. India ranked 10th in Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) 2020, released by International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
  1. Top 3 -
    1. US (1), UK and Saudi Arabia (2nd), Estonia (3rd).
8. Growing Up Biden, A Memoir by US President Joe Biden’s Sister Valerie Biden Owen, has been released.
9. Book The Startup Wife, by Tahmima Anam, has been released.
10. China overtook UAE to become India’s second-largest export destination in FY21 (2020-21), after US.
  1. India’s exports to China hiked by 28% in FY21 to over $50 billion. While exports from India to UAE came down by 42% to $17 billion.
11. Telangana Govt signed agreement with US Based EV producer Triton, under which Triton will set up an EV manufacturing unit in Telangana, with investment of 2100 crores.
12. Former Infosys CEO SD Shibu Lal will head a new 3 member task force formed to help government in bringing major bureaucratic reforms through its Mission Karmayogi. Other 2 members are Govind Iyer (Egon Zehnder) and Pankaj Bansal (PeopleStrong).
13. Govt extended 2nd phase of FAME India (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles) scheme by two years, till March 31, 2024.
  1. To promote eco-friendly vehicles, Govt launched FAME India scheme in 2015.
  2. Phase 2 of the Scheme, started in 2019 for promoting sales of electric vehicles, was supposed to end by 2022. It has now been extnded by 2 years.

July 04, 2021

July 4 marks US Independence Day, commemorating Declaration of Independence of United States on July 4, 1776.
Bharatiya Janata Party's Pushkar Singh Dhami has been appointed as new (11th) Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, replacing Tirath Singh Rawat.

Govt kept interest rates unchanged on Small Savings Schemes for Q2 (July-Sept) of 2021-22 -

Scheme Name	Interest Rate
Post Office Savings Account	4%
5-Year Post Office Recurring Deposit (RD) Account	5.8%
Post Office Time Deposit (TD) Account – 1, 2, 3 Years	5.5%
Post Office Time Deposit Account (TD) – Five Years	6.7%
Post Office Monthly Income Scheme Account (MIS)	6.6%
Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS)	7.4%
Public Provident Fund (PPF)	7.1%
National Savings Certificates (NSC)	6.8%
Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP)	6.9%
Sukanya Samriddhi	7.6%

Book Lady Doctors: The Untold Stories of India’s First Women in Medicine, authored by Kavitha Rao Has been released.

Red Bull's Belgian-Dutch F1 racer Max Verstappen won Austrian Grand Prix 2021 -

F1 Season 2021 -

Grand Prix	Winner	Race date
Bahrain Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton (UK)	28 March
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	18 April
Portuguese Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton (UK)	2 May
Spanish Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton (UK)	9 May
Monaco Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	23 May
Azerbaijan Grand Prix	Sergio Pérez (Mexico)	6 June
French Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	20 June
Styrian Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	27 June
Austrian Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Belgian-Dutch)	4 July
British Grand Prix		18 July
Hungarian Grand Prix		1 August
Belgian Grand Prix		29 August
Dutch Grand Prix		5 September
Italian Grand Prix		12 September
Russian Grand Prix		26 September
Japanese Grand Prix		10 October
United States Grand Prix		24 October
Mexico City Grand Prix		31 October
São Paulo Grand Prix		7 November
Australian Grand Prix		21 November
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix		5 December
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix		12 December

Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) became second most-valued listed public sector bank, with market capitalisation of over 50000 crores, surpassing PNB and BOB.
Kalyan Narayan Bhattacharjee has been appointed as new Lokayukta of Tripura.
Book Nathuram Godse: The True Story of Gandhi’s Assassin, written by journalist Dhaval Kulkarni will be published by Pan Macmillan India in 2022.
China has been awarded a malaria-free certification from WHO, Following a 70-year effort, improving from 30 million cases annually in 1940s.
Flipkart launched Shopsy app, to enable over 25 million people to start online businesses by 2023. Shopsy users will be able to share catalogues of a wide selection of 15 crore products offered by Flipkart sellers.
Misc. Corporate News (July 2021) -
1. ICICI Bank launched customized solutions for Doctors, titled Salute Doctors.
2. HDFC Bank launched SalaamDilSey initiative to show gratitude to doctors for their tireless service during pandemic.
3. Axis Bank partnered with Amazon Web Services (AWS), to power its digital transformation programme.
4. Indian Bank launched its flagship Business Mentoring Program MSME Prerana, in Maharashtra.
5. Vman Aviation and France's Airbus Helicopters signed first aircraft purchase order by a GIFT city (Gujarat International Finance Tech) based leasing company, under Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan of India.
6. Razorpay partnered with Mastercard to launch MandateHQ, as a payment interface to help card-issuing banks to enable recurring payments for their customers.
7. Paytm launched Postpaid Mini, to provide small-ticket loans ranging 250 - 1000, in partnership with Aditya Birla Finance.
8. SBI General Insurance launched new health insurance plan named Arogya Supreme, designed to ensure that customers can have full health insurance coverage, including 20 basic covers and 8 optional covers.
9. Export Import Bank of India extended USD 35.26 million loan for a power transmission project being executed by Kalpataru Power Transmission in Senegal, under National Export Insurance Account (NEIA) scheme.
10. Adani Group completed takeover of Mumbai International Airport, becoming India’s biggest airport operator with 8 airports. With this, Adani group’s airports now account for 25% of total footfalls and 33% of air cargo in India.
11. Telangana Govt's business incubator T-Hub partnered with NITI Aayog's Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), to foster innovation and entrepreneurship across healthcare sector. T-Hub will run a three-month cohort-based programme - AIC T-Hub Foundation, for startups creating solutions in healthcare.
12. Federal Bank launched FEDDY, Artificial Intelligence-powered virtual assistant to help customers with banking-related queries.
13. LIC Launched Arogya Rakshak Health Insurance Plan, as a non-linked, non-participating, regular premium, individual plan. It provides fixed-benefit health insurance cover against certain specified health risks and provides timely support in case of medical emergencies.
14. Payments Firm Razorpay acquired artificial intelligence (AI)-based risk analysis platform TERA Finlabs.
15. Microsoft acquired San Francisco(US) Based RiskIQ for 500 Million USD, which is a provider of cybersecurity services, including malware and spyware monitoring and mobile app security.
16. Google Cloud launched its new Cloud Region in Delhi NCR (as 2nd in India), after 1st in Mumbai.
17. ICICI Bank and HPCL Launched Co-Branded Credit Card ICICI Bank HPCL Super Saver Credit Card.
18. Reliance Retail Ventures (RRVL) acquired majority stake in local search company Just Dial for 3497 crores. Reliance Retail will now hold 40.95% stake in Justdial.
19. Lending platform U GRO Capital signed co-lending partnership with Bank of Baroda, for lending to MSMEs.
20. Paisalo Digital has been selected by State Bank of India as its National Corporate Business Correspondent for financial inclusion by providing banking services through kiosks.
21. Bangalore International Airport signed 10 year partnership with IBM, to set up Airport in a Box platform, to help Bangalore Airport improve its productivity.
22. Google-parent Alphabet announced to launch a new robotics company called Intrinsic, which will focus on building software for industrial robots. It will be carved out of X, Alphabet’s Moonshot factory that houses futuristic firms.
23. RBI imposed penalty of 5 crore on Axis Bank, for non-compliance with certain RBI directions.
Obituaries (July 2021) -
1. Donald Rumsfeld -Former two-time US defense secretary.
2. M Prasannan - Former Indian footballer.
3. Raj Kaushal - Noted Bollywood director and producer.
4. Mir Hazar Khan Khoso - Former Pakistani Caretaker Prime Minister.
5. Parassala B. Ponnammal - Noted Carnatic musician from Kerala. She was honored with many awadds Including Padma Shri and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards.
6. Dilip Kumar - Noted Actor. He was born in Pakistan, as Mohammed Yusuf Khan, better known by his stage name Dilip Kumar. He received several prestigious awards, including Dadasaheb Phalke Award, Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Pakistan).
7. Virbhadra Singh - Former Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.
8. Jovenel Moïse - Incumbent President of Haiti, till his assassination.
9. Keshav Datt - Two Time Olympic gold-winning Indian hockey Player.
10. Richard Donner - Noted American filmmaker, most known for Superman (1978).
11. Yashpal Sharma - Former Indian cricketer and a member of 1983 World Cup-winning squad.
12. P K Warrier - Noted Ayurveda practitioner and receiver of Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri and Dhanvantari Award.
13. Danish Siddiqui - Pulitzer-winning Indian photojournalist. He was killed while covering clashes between Afghan Special Forces and Taliban insurgents in Spin Buldak, Kandahar.
14. Surekha Sikri - Noted National Award Winning Bollywood actress.
15. Mamnoon Hussain - Former Pakistan president.
16. Shirley Fry Irvin - Noted American Female Tennis Player. She had won singles title at all four Grand Slam events, and was ranked world No. 1 in 1956.
17. Gautam Benegal - National Award Winning Filmmaker and Cartoonist. He won National Award for best animation film The Prince and the Crown of Stone in 2010.
18. Fakir Alamgir - Bangladesh’s Noted folk singer.
19. Bhageerathi Amma - Oldest woman in India to take equivalency exams, passed away at age of 107-years. She decided to continue her education at age of 105.
20. Sikkil R Bhaskaran - Noted Carnatic Classical Violinist from Tamil Nadu.
21. Gira Sarabhai - Pioneer in Design Education and co-founder of National Institute of Design.
22. Urmil Kumar Thapliyal - Noted theatre personality from Uttar Pradesh.
23. Satish Kalsekar - Marathi poet and essayist, and Sahitya Akademi Awardee.
24. Nandu M. Natekar - Noted Badminton Player. He won over 100 national and international titles.
25. Mike Hendrick - Former England Cricketer.
26. Jayanthi - Noted actress, who acted in films in 5 languages - Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi.

July 03, 2021
1. Minister of Ayush (IC) Kiran Rijiju launched 5 Portals to boost Ayush Sector, including CTRI, AMAR, RMIS, SAHI and e-Medha portals.
  1. After inclusion of dataset pertinent to Ayurveda in CTRI portal (Clinical Trial Registry of India), Ayurveda Clinical Trials would have worldwide visibility.
  2. SHAI (Showcase of Ayurveda Historical Imprints) portal incorporates authentic resources and will be of immense help in showcasing historical veracity of Ayurveda.
  3. AMAR (Ayush Manuscripts Advanced Repository) digitizes information on rare and hard to find Manuscripts and catalogues of Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa.
  4. E-Medha (electronic Medical Heritage Accession) is Online public access catalog for over 12000 Indian medical heritage books through NIC’s e-granthalaya platform.
2. Guinness World Records officially named Puerto Rico’s Emilio Flores Márquez as world’s oldest person (male) living, with a confirmed age of 112 years.
3. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Announced hosting 52nd edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa, during 20th -28th November 2021.
4. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) initiated a project on Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), tasked to Quality Council of India (QCI).
  1. It aims at promoting open networks developed on open sourced methodology, using open specifications and open network protocols independent of any specific platform.
  2. Govt has also set up a 9 member panel for development of an Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), designed to curb digital monopolies.
5. July 3, 2021 is Observed as UN International Day of Cooperatives. 2021 Theme is Rebuild better together. It is observed on First Saturday of July.
July 02, 2021
1. 7th edition of biennial event Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), hosted by French Navy at La Réunion.
  1. IONS was initiated by Indian Navy in 2008, to enhance maritime cooperation among Navies of littoral states of Indian Ocean Region. France has assumed Chairmanship in June 2021, for 2 years.
  2. Réunion Island is a French department in Indian Ocean, known for its volcanic, rainforested interior, coral reefs and beaches.
2. Industrial / Misc. Awards (July 2021) -
  1. In 8th edition of National Community Radio Awards instituted by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting -
    1. Radio Vishwas 90.8, a Community Radio Station (CRS) in Nashik (Maharashtra) won first prize in Sustainability Model category and 2nd prize in Thematic category, for its radio program 'Education for All' in times of COVID-19.
    2. Shikshan Sarvansathi (Education for all) initiative won 1st Prize under Thematic Category, which was started in June 2020 to provide free education for students from 3rd to 10th grade, during times of COVID-19.
  2. India's Invest India has been awarded world’s most innovative Investment Promotion Agency Award 2021 by OCO Global.
  3. Freelance filmmaker Deepti Pillay Sivan’s documentary Decoding Shankar, about life of Noted musician Shankar Mahadevan, won Best Film Award (Documentary (Best Biographical)) at Toronto International Women Film Festival 2021.
  4. Delhi Metro won Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award 2020 from Japan Society of Civil Engineers, for its high-quality infrastructure development projects under phases I-III.
  5. Korean Air has been named winner of Air Transport World’s (ATW) 2021 Airline of the Year Title.
  6. 14 year old girl Zaila Avant-garde became first African American to win 50000 USD Scripps National Spelling Bee (US), after winning 2021 edition.
  7. Govt launched National Logistics Excellence Awards, with 2 categories - 1st includes logistics infrastructure/service providers and 2nd for various user industries. Winners for 1st edition of awards will be announced on Oct 31, 2021.
  8. Pushti Nirbhor backyard garden project in Cachar District of Assam won National Silver SKOCH Award, for enabling a village on Bangladesh border to consume nutritious plants and vegetables and earn by selling surplus produce.
3. As per Report on United Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 2019-20 for School Education in India, Gross Enrolment Ratio at all levels of school education has improved in 2019-20 compared to 2018-19. Highlights for 2019-20 -
  1. Total students in school education from pre-primary to higher secondary crossed 26.45 crores, higher by 42.3 lakh compared to 2018-19.
  2. Enrolment of girls from primary to higher secondary is more than 12.08 crore.
  3. 96.87 lakh teachers have been engaged in school education, higher by 2.57 lakh compared to 2018-19. This has improved Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR).
4. As per data by Ministry of Commerce and Industry -
  1. Highest ever merchandise exports of USD 95 billion in Q1 of 2021-22 has been achieved, which is 85% higher than exports of Q1 of 2020-21. Govt has set target of USD 400 billion merchandise exports in 2021-22.
  2. India received highest ever FDI inflow in 2020-21 of USD 81.72 billion, higher by 10% compared to USD 74.39 billion in 2019-20.
  3. Number of startups recognised by DPIIT has crossed 50,000 and is spread across 623 districts in India.
5. July 2 is observed as World Sports Journalists Day.
  1. July 2 is also observed as World UFO (Unidentified Flying Objects) day, observed since 2001. On some places, it is observed on June 24, the date on which 9 unusual objects were saw flying over Washington (USA) in 1947.
6. India's 2nd largest Cricket stadium will be Built in Jaipur (Rajasthan), with 75000 capacity and cost 290 Crores. For this purpose, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has given grant of 100 crores to Rajasthan Cricket Association.
7. Misc. Science News (July 2021) -
  1. UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed a new record high temperature of 18.3 degrees Celsius in Antarctica, getting past earlier record of 17.5 degrees Celsius . Antarctica has registered rise of almost 3 degrees Celsius in average temparature, in last 50 years.
  2. Jacobabad city in Pakistan’s Sindh province recorded world's highest temperature at 52°C. It is located on the Tropic of Cancer, which means that the sun is in close proximity during summers.
  3. Hyderabad-based Grene Robotics developed India’s first indigenous drone defence dome called Indrajaal, with capability to protect an area of 1000-2000 sq km against aerial threats by assessing and acting threats such as UAVs and Low- Radar Cross Section (RCS) targets.
  4. A rare species of snake, black-bellied coral snake (Sinomicrurus nigriventer), has been discovered by Wildlife Institute of India (WII) in Benog Wildlife Sanctuary of Mussoorie. This is an extremely rarely-found and venomous snake.
  5. Botanists from Central University of Punjab discovered a new native plant species of moss from Eastern Antarctica, on rocks near Bharati station at Larsemann Hills. Botanists named it Bryum Bharatiensis.
  6. DBT-National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG) created world's first database of genomic variations in oral cancer, named dbGENVOC.
  7. Mizoram University researchers discovered a new snake species in a dried-up area of Tuinghaleng river bed, as a new species of Stoliczkia genus and third species of Stoliczkia from India. It has been named Stoliczkia vanhnuailianai, in honour of Vanhnuailiana, a famous Mizo warrior.
  8. Central University of Punjab Researchers discovered a new native species of moss from continental Antarctica, named Bryum bharatiensis, as a tribute to India’s Antarctic station Bharati.
  9. June 19, 2021 marked 40 years of launch of India's First Communication Satellite Ariane Passenger PayLoad Experiment (APPLE), as an experimental communication satellite launched by Ariane-1, from French Guiana.
  10. ISRO conducted 3rd long-duration hot test (240 seconds) of liquid propellant Vikas Engine for core L110 liquid stage of human-rated GSLV Mk III vehicle, at engine test facility of ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) at Mahendragiri (Tamil Nadu). It was done as part of engine qualification requirements for Gaganyaan Programme.
  11. IIT Ropar Researcers developed a first-of-its-kind Oxygen Rationing Device - AMLEX , aimed at increasing life of medical oxygen cylinders by 3 fold.
    1. It supplies a required volume of oxygen to patient during inhalation and trips when patient exhales CO2, saving oxygen which otherwise unnecessarily gets wasted.
  12. IIT Madras Researchers developed an AI based Mathematical Model called ‘NBDriver’ to identify cancer-causing alterations in cells, to help identify most appropriate treatment strategy for a patient in an approach known as ‘precision oncology’.
  13. Science and Engineering Research Board (DST-SERB) and GE’s John F Welch Technology Centre (JFWTC) collaborated to promote synergy between academic institutes, labs and industries for research across energy, healthcare and aviation sectors.
  14. Argentine Museum of Natural Sciences stated that 150-million years old fossilized skeleton of species named Burkesuchus mallingrandensis, which was discovered in Southern Chile in 2014, has been determined to be ancestor of modern crocodile.
  15. Indian researchers from IISER Kolkata and IIT Kharagpur developed piezoelectric molecular crystals that repair themselves from mechanical damages without need for any external intervention.
    1. Piezoelectric crystals are a class of materials that generate electricity when it undergoes a mechanical impact.
    2. This may soon make it possible for damaged electronic components, such as in space crafts, to mend themselves.
  16. IIT Kanpur launched first technology innovation hub to find cyber security solutions for anti-drones technologies, intrusion detection system, block-chain and cyber physical system.
  17. World’s largest star sapphire cluster has been found in Ratnapura (Sri Lanka), and has been named Serendipity Sapphire, valued approx 100 Million USD.
  18. By analysing data from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, researchers found first evidence of water vapour in atmosphere of Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon.
  19. NASA Awarded Elon Musk led SpaceX a $178 million Launch services contract for NASA's first mission focusing on Jupiter's icy moon Europa. The Europa Clipper mission is due for launch in October 2024 on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.
8. Covid-19 Pandemic Updates (July 2021) -
  1. World Bank added 8 billion USD in aid for Coronavirus vaccines for developing countries, now totaling 20 billion USD.
  2. US announced additional $41 million assistance to help India respond to COVID-19 pandemic, taking total aid to over $200 million.
  3. Kerala Govt launched campaign Mathru Kavacham, to provide COVID-19 vaccines to all the pregnant women in state.
  4. IMF approved general allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) of US$650 billion, to boost global liquidity, as IMF's largest SDR allocation ever.
  5. World Bank Group entity International Finance Corporation invested $16.5 million in genetics diagnostics and research company MedGenome, to increase access to COVID-19 testing in India.
  6. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma launched a scheme to provide social and financial security to women who have lost their husbands to COVID-19, named Chief Minister's COVID-19 Widows Support Scheme'. Under it, one-time assistance of 2.5 lakh each will be given to such women whose family income is less than 5 lakh per annum.
  7. Saudi Arabia announced 3 year travel ban and penalties for citizens who visit countries on its red list, which includes India. Saudi's red list has nations with are deemed as areas of high COVID-19 infections.
  8. Researchers from IIT Hyderabad deveolped India’s first Rapid Covid-19 RNA Test kit that allows self-testing at home, called ‘COVIHOME.
9. Misc. Appointments (July 2021) -
  1. Govt extended tenure of Amitabh Kant as Chief Executive Officer of NITI Aayog, by 1 year.
  2. Satish Agnihotri has been appointed as MD of PSU National High-Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL).
  3. Umesh Sinha has been Re-Appointed as Deputy Election Commissioner of India.
  4. Govt Extended Attorney General KK Venugopal’s Term by 1 Year.
  5. N Venudhar Reddy has been appointed as Director General of All India Radio.
  6. Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven has been reinstated, shortly after he was ousted in a no-confidence vote.
  7. RBI Approved re-appointment of Shyam Srinivasan as MD and CEO of Federal Bank.
  8. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed secured his 2nd term, after winning general elections.
  9. Lulu Group chairman and Indian Origin Businessman M A Yusuff Ali has been appointed as Vice-Chairman of Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ADCCI).
  10. Transport Ministry Secretary Aramane Giridhar has been given additional charge of Chairman of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
  11. Rakesh Asthana has been appointed as Commissioner of Delhi Police.
10. Andhra Govt announced AP Information Technology Policy for 2021-2024, which is expected to generate over 55000 jobs in state over 3 years.
  1. IT, Electronics and Communications Department will be transformed into a revenue center to achieve self-sustenance.
  2. New IT Policy will link incentive disbursement to realization of committed direct employment, ensuring transparent and effective utilization of public funds.
11. Noted Odia poet Rajendra Kishore Panda has been awarded Kuvempu Rashtriya Puraskar 2020.
  1. It was instituted by Rashtrakavi Kuvempu Trust in 2013, in memory of late poet laureate Kuvempu.
12. Misc. Sports News / Events (July 2021)-
  1. India's Abhimanyu Mishra became youngest ever Grandmaster in Chess, at 12 years age, getting past earlier record of 12 years and 7 months set by GM Sergey Karjakin in 2002.
  2. India Female Cricketer Mithali Raj became highest run-getter in women’s cricket across all formats, overtaking England's Charlotte Edwards's 10273 Runs.
  3. Norway's Karsten Warholm broke long-standing world record in 400m hurdles during Bislett Games, breaking Kevin Young's mark of 46.78 seconds with new record of 46.70 seconds.
  4. Indian wrestler Sumit Malik has been banned for two years by world governing body UWW, for doping Violations.
  5. Women's Asia Cup Football 2022 will be Hosted by India, in Mumbai and Pune.
  6. India's Nihal Sarin won Silver Lake Open chess tournament in Serbia.
  7. Windies' Cricketer Chris Gayle became first batsman to score 14000 runs in T20 Cricket.
  8. Badminton World Federation announced India as host of World Badminton Championships 2026.
  9. Haryana Govt postponed organizing Khelo India Youth Games 2021 to February 2022, amid possibility of 3rd wave of Covid-19 pandemic.
  10. Bangladesh cricketer Mahmudullah Riyad announced retirement from Test cricket.
  11. Indian Cricketer Pankaj Singh announced his retirement from all forms of Cricket.
  12. German Footballer Toni Kroos announced his retirement from Football.
  13. 2nd edition of 'Khelo India' University-level sports will be held at Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru (Karnataka), in March 2022.
  14. All India Football Federation (AIFF) nominated Gokulam Kerala FC to represent India in the AFC Club Championship 2020-21.
  15. Indian Chess Player Viswanathan Anand defeated Vladimir Kramnik to win Sparkassen Trophy at Dortmund (Germany).
  16. Assam Govt announced assured jobs for all National Games medalists from state. Also, those who won medals in National Games so far, would be given Sports Pension.
  17. Madhya Pradesh shooter Rubina Francis has set a world record at Para Sport Cup in Peru, in 10-metre air pistol para-event for women. She Scored 238.1 points, to get past world record of Aysegul Pehlivanlar of Turkey.
  18. England Cricketer Ben Stokes announced to go on an indefinite break from all forms cricket.
13. Misc. Defence News (July 2021) -
  1. First lot of 12 Short Span Bridging System (SSBS)-10 m, developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), in association with L&T Ltd, has been inducted into Indian Army. The 12 bridges are part of 102 SSBS-10 m to be built by L&T Ltd.
  2. Israeli Firm Rafael Advanced Defense Systems unveiled Sea Breaker, a 5th generation precision-guided missile system, which can precisely target sea and land targets up to a range of 300 kilometres.
  3. Ministry of Defence implemented SPARSH (System for Pension Administration (Raksha)), as an integrated system for automation of sanction and disbursement of defence pension.
  4. Indian Army named a firing range at Gulmarg in Baramulla district (J&K) after Bollywood actress Vidya Balan.
  5. Indian Navy received first two of its MH-60R Multi Role Helicopters (MRH) from US Navy, manufactured by Lockheed Martin as an all-weather helicopter designed to support multiple missions.
  6. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched an Artificial Intelligence-powered application developed by ministry and IIT-Kanpur to improve grievance redressal mechanisms of Central government.
  7. Indian Navy received its 10th anti-submarine warfare and patrol aircraft P-8I Poseidon from US-based Boeing. Ministry of Defence had initially signed contract with Boeing for 8 P-8I aircraft in 2009 for Navy, which was later extended to 4 additional P-8I aircraft, in 2016.
  8. DRDO successfully flight-tested New Generation Akash Missile (Akash-NG), a surface-to-air Missile. It also successfully flight-tested indigenously developed low weight, fire and forget Man Portable Antitank Guided Missile (MPATGM).
  9. Russia successfully test-fired its new advanced S-500 air defence missile systems.
  10. Indian Navy recieved first two Sikorsky MH-60R multi-role helicopters from US, as part of 24 Multi Role Helicopters (MRH) deal with Lockheed Martin (US), valued $2.4 billion.
  11. Indian Navy participated in a two-day bilateral Passage Exercise (PASSEX) with UK's Royal Navy Carrier Strike Group.
  12. Indian Naval Ship Saryu participated in coordinated patrol (CORPAT) with Indonesian Navy, in its 36th edition.
July 01, 2021
1. Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) initiated project named Bamboo Oasis on Lands in Drought (BOLD), from tribal village Nichla Mandwa in Udaipur (Rajasthan), seeking to create bamboo-based green patches in arid and semi-arid land zones.
  1. Under this, 5000 saplings of special bamboo species (BambusaTulda and BambusaPolymorpha), brought from Assam, have been planted over 25 bigha land. KVIC has thus created a world record of planting highest number of bamboo saplings on a single day at one location.
2. Misc. MOUs (July 2021) -
  1. Arun Jaitley National Institute of Financial Management (AJNIFM) and Microsoft signed MoU, to build an AI and emerging technologies Centre of Excellence at AJNIFM. It seeks to explore role of cloud, AI and emerging technologies for transforming and shaping the future of public finance management in India.
  2. Tourism Ministry signed MOU with Travel aggregator Yatra, to strengthen the Hospitality & Tourism Industry.
  3. Maharashtra Govt signed MoU with British government, under their 'ACT4Green' programme, to enable Indian and UK start-ups to expand internationally through market entry support in their respective cross-border markets of interest.
  4. Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) signed MoU with National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED), For harnessing exports potential of agricultural and processed food products of cooperatives and Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs).
  5. Indian Academy of Highway Engineers (IAHE) signed Agreement with University of New South Wales (Australia), for setting up a Centre for Advanced Transportation Technology and Systems (CATTS) at IAHE Noida.
  6. MoU signed between Jamnagar based Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA) under Ministry of Ayush and Gujarat Govt, to bring all institutions in Ayurveda campus in Jamnagar under ITRA, the only institution under Ministry of Ayush with status of Institute of National Importance (INI).
  7. Andhra Pradesh Govt signed MoU with 14 companies under YSR Cheyuta scheme, to improve livelihoods for 600000 women by enabling them to get business opportunities with these companies. Target of this scheme is that beneficiaries will get an income of at least 10000 per month.
  8. Bank of Maharashtra signed MoU with National Bank for Agriculture & Rural Development (NABARD), to boost developments linked to priority sector lending in Maharashtra.
  9. Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) signed MoU with Centre for Development of Advanced Computing C-DAC, to train its manpower in advanced technologies and undertake joint projects.
3. MSME Ministry announced inclusion of Retail and Wholesale trades as MSMEs, to benefit 2.5 Crore Retail and Wholesale Traders. It will enable them to avail benefit of priority sector lending under RBI guidelines, and will allow them to register on Udyam Registration Portal.
4. Ministry of Youth affairs & Sports granted recognition to WAKO India Kickboxing Federation as National Sports Federation (NSF), for promotion and development of Kickboxing sport in India.
5. India and several members OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting adopted a high-level statement containing an outline of a consensus solution to address tax challenges arising from digitalisation of economy.
  1. Proposed solution consists of two components - Pillar One which is about reallocation of additional share of profit to the market jurisdictions and Pillar Two consisting of minimum tax and subject to tax rules.
6. Observations on July 1 -
  1. July 1 is Observed as GST (Goods & Services Tax) Day. GST regime came into Force on July 1 2017, unifying indirect taxes in India into One.
  2. July 1 is observed as Doctors Day in India. This day honours legendary physician and second Chief Minister of West Bengal, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy.
  3. July 1 is observed as Chartered Accountants Day In India.
  4. July 1 is Observed as National Postal Worker Day in India.
  5. July 1 is observed as Foundation Day of SBI, India's Largest Bank. On 1 July 1955, Imperial Bank of India became State Bank of India.
  6. July 1, 2021 marks 200th year anniversary of India’s oldest running newspaper, Mumbai Samachar. The Gujarati newspaper, with its office located in an iconic red building at Horniman Circle in Mumbai’s Fort area, was first published in 1822.
7. Competition Commission of India Approvals (July 2021) -
  1. Approved acquisition of SB Energy Holding Limited by Adani Green Energy Limited.
  2. Approved $450 million investment from Japanese-conglomerate Softbank into Bundl Technologies, parent of Indain food tech Firm Swiggy.
  3. Approved acquisition of Mukand Limited, by Bajaj Sevashram, Bachhraj & Company, Bachhraj Factories and Sanraj Nayan Investments.

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