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CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS
CJI launches an official mobile App for Journalists
- Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana launched an official mobile application for Journalists to cover proceedings of the apex court.
- The New feature, called ‘Indicative Notes’ is aimed at providing concise summaries of landmark judgments in an easy-to-understand format.
- Chief Justice Ramana asserted that transparency is a time-honoured principle when it comes to the judicial process in our country.
- The mobile application will help journalists to cover the Supreme Court proceedings in a responsible and fair way from the comfort and safety of their homes, in view of the growing concerns of the COVID pandemic.
- The Chief Justice also informed that the Supreme Court is also contemplating to telecast live proceedings of the court cases in the apex court, for which the process of further considerations and consensus is already underway.
DCGI grants life saving drug 2 DG for covid patients developed by Indian Scientists
- The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has granted permission for emergency use of anti-COVID-19 therapeutic application of the drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) developed by Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), in collaboration with Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL),Hyderabad.
- The Ministry of Defence said that as per the order, emergency use of this drug as adjunct therapy in moderate to severe COVID-19 patients is permitted.
- It added that being a generic molecule and analogue of glucose, it can be easily produced and made available in plenty in the country.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Elisabetta Belloni – The first woman to head Italy secret service
- Prime Minister Mario Draghi has appointed diplomat Elisabetta Belloni as the head of Italy’s spy agency, the first woman to lead the Department of Information Security (DIS).
- Belloni, 62, has since 2016 been secretary general of the foreign ministry – the top job in the diplomatic service.
About Italy:
- Capital: Rome
- Currency: Euro
- President: Sergio Mattarella
KP Sharma Oli set to be reappointed as Nepal PM
- K P Sharma Oli was set to be reappointed as Nepal Prime Minister as the Opposition alliance of Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) failed to muster majority support to form the next government.
- President Bidya Devi Bhandari had asked the Opposition parties to come up with the support of majority lawmakers to form a new government after Oli lost a crucial trust vote in the House of Representatives.
About Nepal:
- Capital: Kathmandu
- Currency: Indian rupee
- President: Bidya Devi Bhandari
- Prime minister: K. P. Sharma Oli
CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS
Gujarat govt launched ‘My Village – Corona Free Village’ campaign
- In Gujarat, ‘Maru Gam – Corona Mukt Gam’ or My Village – Corona Free Village – campaign launched by the state government has helped in checking the spread of Covid–19 in rural areas.
- Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani had launched this 15-day campaign on the 1st of May on the occasion of the state’s foundation day.
- The campaign was launched to check the spread of infection due to coronavirus at village level to ensure the villagers remain free from the pandemic.
About Gujarat:
- Capital: Gandhinagar
- Governor: Acharya Devvrat
- Chief minister: Vijay Rupani
CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS
SWAMIH completes its first residential project
- According to a statement released by the Ministry of Finance, the residential project – ‘Rivali Park’, situated in suburban Mumbai, was the first housing project in the country to have received funding under the government’s SWAMIH Fund, managed by the SBICap ventures.
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman handed over possession to home buyers virtually as the Centre’s Special Window for Affordable and Mid-Income Housing (SWAMIH) completed its first residential project.
About SWAMIH:
- Special Window for Completion of Affordable and Mid-Income Housing (SWAMIH investment fund) has been created for funding stalled projects that are net-worth positive, including those projects that have been declared as Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) or are pending proceedings before the National Company Law Tribunal under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
- SWAMIH investment fund will provide last mile funding to the stressed affordable and middle-income housing projects in the country.
GoAir rebrands as Go First after 15 years of flying
- Low–cost carrier GoAir has rebranded itself as Go First, the company announced.
- The purpose of the revamp is to fully embrace the ultra–low–cost airline model to gain an advantage over its peers.
- The carrier is aiming at young travellers with the rebrand.
- The airline was preparing for an initial share sale to raise funds for its ambitious expansion plans.
- The Go First as ULCC (ultra-low-cost carrier) would operate single aircraft type across its fleet, which currently has both Airbus A320 and A320Neos (new engine option) planes in operation
About GoAir:
- Go First is an Indian ultra-low-cost airline based in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
- It is owned by the Indian business conglomerate Wadia Group.
- Parent organization: Wadia Group
- Founder: Jehangir Wadia
- Headquarters: Mumbai
Unmanned Aircraft System for delivery of vaccines, medicines Operated by Blue Dart
- Blue Dart, a leading express logistics service provider, said it formed Blue Dart Med-Express Consortium with a mission of revolutionizing the delivery of vaccines and emergency medical supplies to the remotest parts of India using drones.
- According to a press release from the logistics major, Blue Dart Med-Express Consortium is part of the ‘Medicine from the Sky’ project in collaboration with the Telangana government, World Economic Forum, Niti Aayog and Healthnet Global.
- The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has granted the project with necessary exemptions and rights to fly drone flights on an experimental basis in Telangana.
About Blue Dart:
- Blue Dart Express Limited is an Indian logistics company providing courier delivery services.
- It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
- It has a subsidiary cargo airline, Blue Dart Aviation that operates in South Asian countries.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING NEWS
Airtel Payments Bank introduces Digigold
- Airtel Payments Bank launched DigiGold, a digital platform for its customers to make investments in gold.
- DigiGold has been launched in partnership with SafeGold, a provider of digital gold.
- With DigiGold, Airtel Payments Bank’s savings account customers can invest in 24K gold using the Airtel Thanks app.
- Customers can also gift DigiGold to their family and friends, who have a savings account with Airtel Payments Bank
CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENT AND RESIGNATION NEWS
TVS Motor appoints new leadership team for Norton
- TVS Motor Company has announced the appointment of Dr. Robert Hentschel as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Vittorio Urciuoli as Chief Technical Officer (CTO) of The Norton Motorcycle Co. Ltd.
- The appointment of the new leadership team of Norton Motorcycles forms the next key phase of the historic motorcycle brand’s transformation, ‘as it builds on its newly re-established foundations and prepares for the revitalisation of the brand for the future,’ a press statement from TVS Motor Company said.
- Hentschel and Urciuoli will take up their new positions as John Russell steps down from his role as Interim CEO.
Suzuki Motorcycle India appointed Satoshi Uchida as new Head
- Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd (SMIPL) announced that appointment of Satoshi Uchida as its new Company Head as part of a global revamp by parent Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC).
- Uchida has succeeded Koichiro Hirao with effect from May 1, 2021.
- In his last role, he was assigned to the US.
Rajesh Agrawal re-appointed as London’s Deputy Mayor for Business
- India-born entrepreneur Rajesh Agrawal has been re-appointed as London’s Deputy Mayor for Business by Mayor Sadiq Khan after he won a second term in local elections.
- Agrawal also committed himself to the agenda and made a pledge to focus on a “fairer and greener recovery” for the UK capital from the coronavirus pandemic.
BCCI appointed Ramesh Powar as head coach of Indian women’s cricket team
- The appointment of former India spinner Ramesh Powar as India women’s cricket team head coach came as a surprise after the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) chose him for the post, replacing WV Raman.
- The three-member Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Ms Sulakshana Naik, Mr Madan Lal and Mr Rudra Pratap Singh interviewed the applicants and unanimously agreed on Mr Powar’s candidature.
CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOU’s AND AGREEMENTS
OneWeb announced an agreement with SoftBank to roll out satellite communication services
- SoftBank and OneWeb will jointly engage in technical and product development for Japan and global markets.
- SoftBank Corp and Sunil Mittal-backed OneWeb, announced an agreement for mutual cooperation to promote OneWeb’s satellite communication services in the global and Japan markets.
CURRENT AFFAIRS : DEFENCE NEWS
In southern Arabian Sea Indian and Indonesian navies carry out military drill
- On May 08, 2021, The navies of India and Indonesia carried out a military drill in the Southern Arabian Sea.
- It is focused on further improving their interoperability.
- The Indian Navy was represented at the ‘Passage’ exercise by INS Sharda, an offshore patrol vessel (OPV), and the Indonesian Navy was represented by KRI Sultan Hasanudin, a corvette.
Aim :
- The exercise was aimed at improving interoperability and understanding between both the friendly navies.
- The ‘Passage’ exercises are regularly conducted by the Indian Navy with friendly foreign navies.
About India :
- Prime minister: Narendra Modi
- President: Ram Nath Kovind
- Capital: New Delhi
- Currency: Indian rupee
About Indonesia :
- Capital: Jakarta
- Currency: Indonesian rupiah
- President: Joko Widodo
CURRENT AFFAIRS : SPORTS NEWS
Kusal Perera named captain of the Sri Lanka’s ODI
- Kusal Perera was named Sri Lanka’s ODI captain ahead of their three-match series against Bangladesh.
- It is Starting from May 23, 2021.
- Meanwhile, Kusal Mendis has been named as the 18-man squad’s vice-captain.
- Sri Lanka have named a young squad for the series with Only three players in the team are aged more than 30 while 33-year-old Isuru Udana.
- In naming a young squad, Sri Lanka’s new selection committee – headed by Pramodya Wickramasinghe – and coach Mickey Arthur have signalled .
About Sri Lanka :
- Capital: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte
- President: Gotabaya Rajapaksa
- Currency: Sri Lankan rupee
CURRENT AFFAIRS : OBITUARIES
Former Director of CBI, Rahothaman passes away
- On May 12, 2021, Former Director of Central Bureau of Investigation Rahothaman passed away.
- He was 76.
- He was the chief investigation officer of the Special Investigation Team (SIT).
- He played an important role on the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.
- Ragothaman joined the CBI as a Sub-Inspector in 1968.
- He wrote a Books Titled Rajiv Gandhi murder, Assassination of Mahatma- Indira- Rajiv Gandhi and Third Degree Crime Investigation Management.
- His latest book titled ‘Rarest of rare case – Murder of an advocate’ was published recently.
Achievements :
- He was awarded the Police Medal in 1988 and President Medal in 1994.
Epidemiologist Smarajit Jana passes away
- On May 08, 2021, Epidemiologist Smarajit Jana passed away.
- He was 68.
About Smarajit Jana :
- He is a leader of the rights movement for sex workers in India and a public health expert known for his contribution to the prevention of HIV in the country.
- He was also a member of the National Task Force on COVID-19.
- Dr. Jana founded and spearheaded the first rights-based HIV intervention programmes in India by collectivising the sex workers of Sonagachi.
- He was also a member of the National AIDS Control Organisation’s (NACO) steering committee.
- Dr. Jana was the Chairperson of 19th World AIDS conference Hub held in Kolkata 2012 and worked as a board member of the Indian Chapter of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Executive member of the Regional Partnership Forum under UNAIDS & UNFPA and served as a key member of the National AIDS Council(NACO) chaired by the Prime Minister of India.
- He had set up the Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee (DMSC) in Kolkata in 1995.
- He was a member of a Supreme Court-appointed panel in Budhadev Karmaskar vs State of West Bengal.
Daily CA On May 13 :
- The PM CARES Fund has approved procurement of 1,50,000 units of Oxycare System developed by the Defence Research Development Organization at a cost of Rs 322.5 crores.
- The Union Cabinet approved an Rs 18,100-crore plan to incentivize battery makers to manufacture locally as it looks to cut import dependence while giving a boost to electric vehicle (EV) This was a Department of Heavy Industries’ proposal, which the government expects will create direct investment of Rs 45,000 crore.
- The Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved transfer of 1500 square metres of land belonging to Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at Mussoorie to the State Government of Uttarakhand for their infrastructure project, namely, ‘Aerial Passenger Ropeway System’ between Dehradun and Mussoorie.
- The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare clarified that WHO has not associated the term “Indian Variant” with B.1.617, now classified as “Variant of Concern”.
- India received over $83 billion in remittances in 2020, a drop of just 0.2% from the previous year, despite a pandemic that devastated the world economy, according to a World Bank report.
- In Assam, Aahaar, a free meal distribution initiative with the motto of combating hunger- feeding future is successful hearts in Guwahati metropolis.
- Himachal Pradesh Government will provide free treatment to COVID patients under Himcare and Ayushman Bharat schemes in registered private hospitals.
- ‘Black fungal infection’ treatment units with operation theatres (OTs) will be opened in Bhopal and Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh.
- The Government General Hospital and two other hospitals in the city were about to run out of oxygen at 11 a.m. owing to the non-arrival of the cryogenic tanker carrying liquid medical oxygen, Anantapur police personnel ensured timely arrival of a tanker creating a “Green Channel”.
- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin announced Rs 25 lakh compensation to the families of 43 medical professionals who died of Covid-19 while performing duty.
- The Adani Group has opened its regional headquarters office in Singapore with focus on the energy, infrastructure and technology portfolios.
- Customers can initiate Video KYC Account Opening by visiting https://videokyc.southindianbank.com. The link will be available in the pre-login page of SIB Mirror+ (Bank’s mobile App) and also in the bank’s
- Digital payments provider PayPal has introduced an automated process to obtain monthly foreign inward remittance advice (FIRA), allowing Indian merchants to download their monthly digital FIRA issued by banks.
- Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) said that its General Secretary Manisha Kapoor has now been appointed to the executive committee of the International Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (ICAS).
- The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and Qatar Financial Centre Authority (QFCA).
- Private equity firm Bay Tree India Holdings I LLC has sold over 2 percent stake in YES Bank through open market transactions.
- On May 11, 2021, Manchester City were crowned Premier League champions for the third time in four seasons after Manchester United crashed to a 2-1 defeat against Leicester.
- On May 12, 2021, Eminent writer, veteran journalist, Homen Borgohain passed away.
Daily CA On May 14 :
- Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana launched an official mobile application for Journalists to cover proceedings of the apex court.
- The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has granted permission for emergency use of anti-COVID-19 therapeutic application of the drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) developed by Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS).
- Prime Minister Mario Draghi has appointed diplomat Elisabetta Belloni as the head of Italy’s spy agency, the first woman to lead the Department of Information Security (DIS).
- The Hamburg Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, or HmbBfDI, said that it has issued an injunction that prevents Facebook from processing personal data from WhatsApp.
- K P Sharma Oli was set to be reappointed as Nepal Prime Minister as the Opposition alliance of Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) failed to muster majority support to form the next government.
- According to a statement released by the Ministry of Finance, the residential project – ‘Rivali Park’, situated in suburban Mumbai, was the first housing project in the country to have received funding under the government’s SWAMIH Fund, managed by the SBICap ventures.
- Low–cost carrier GoAirhas rebranded itself as Go First, the company announced. The purpose of the revamp is to fully embrace the ultra–low–cost airline model to gain an advantage over its peers.
- Blue Dart, a leading express logistics service provider, said it formed Blue Dart Med-Express Consortium with a mission of revolutionizing the delivery of vaccines and emergency medical supplies to the remotest parts of India using drones.
- Airtel Payments Bank launched DigiGold, a digital platform for its customers to make investments in gold. DigiGold has been launched in partnership with SafeGold, a provider of digital gold.
- TVS Motor Company has announced the appointment of Robert Hentschel as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Vittorio Urciuoli as Chief Technical Officer (CTO) of The Norton Motorcycle Co. Ltd.
- Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd (SMIPL) announced that appointment of Satoshi Uchida as its new Company Head as part of a global revamp by parent Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC).
- India-born entrepreneur Rajesh Agrawal has been re-appointed as London’s Deputy Mayor for Business by Mayor Sadiq Khan after he won a second term in local elections.
- The appointment of former India spinner Ramesh Powar as India women’s cricket team head coach came as a surprise after the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) chose him for the post, replacing WV Raman.
- SoftBank and OneWeb will jointly engage in technical and product development for Japan and global markets.
- On May 08, 2021, The navies of India and Indonesia carried out a military drill in the Southern Arabian Sea. It is focused on further improving their interoperability.
- Kusal Perera was named Sri Lanka’s ODI captain ahead of their three-match series against Bangladesh. It is Starting From May 23, 2021.
- On May 12, 2021, Former Director of Central Bureau of Investigation Rahothaman passed away.
- On May 08, 2021, Epidemiologist Smarajit Jana passed away.