1. 35th GST Council Meeting held in New Delhi
The GST Council also extended the date for filing annual returns under the GST by two months to August 30. The GST Council Friday extended the tenure of the anti-profiteering authority by two years till November 2021 and allowed the use of Aadhaar as proof for obtaining GST registration while referring tax cut on electric vehicles and their chargers to an officers' committee. The Council's meeting, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, also approved imposing a penalty of up to 10 per cent of the profiteered amount on entities for not passing on benefits of GST rate cuts to consumers, of GST rate cuts to consumers, as against the current norm of levying a maximum fine of Rs 25,000.
2. World’s largest multi-stage, multi-purpose scheme Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project inaugurated in Telangana
The stage is set for the inauguration of Kaleshwaram - billed as the world's largest multi-stage lift irrigation project across the Godavari river in Telangana. Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao will formally inaugurate the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) in the presence of his Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh counterparts and Telangana Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan. Termed as the biggest achievement by India's youngest state, the project has been designed to irrigate 45 lakh acres of land for two crops in a year besides meeting drinking water requirement of 70 percent of the state.
3. Balakot airstrikes codenamed as ‘Operation Bandar’ by IAF
Without detailing any specific reason behind the name, sources said monkeys have always held a special place in India's war culture as seen in the epic Ramayana. When the Air Force sent its package of 12 Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft to attack the Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist camp in Balakot on February 26, it code-named it 'Operation Bandar (Monkey)', to maintain secrecy. "In order to maintain secrecy and ensure that the plans don't leak out, the Balakot operations were given the codename Operation Bandar," senior defense sources said.
4. ‘Adarsh Station scheme’ developed 1,103 railways stations
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said that 1,253 stations have been identified for development under Adarsh Station Scheme (ASS) out of which 1,103 railway stations have been developed so far. "Modernisation and upgradation of railway stations in Indian Railways is a continuous and on-going process. This has been undertaken from time to time under various modernization schemes such as Model Station Scheme, Modern Station Scheme, and Adarsh Station Scheme," Goyal said in the written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Friday.
5. 3rd Indo-French cyber dialogue 2019 was held in Paris
India and France have decided to deepen cooperation in the cyber security sector and jointly work towards curbing the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes and online radicalization. The third Indo-French cyber dialogue was held in Paris yesterday with the intergovernmental meeting co-chaired by Henri Verdier, French Ambassador for Digital Affairs, and Upender Singh Rawat, Joint Secretary in charge of e-Governance, Information Technology and Cyber Diplomacy at the Ministry of External Affairs.
6. Bangladesh’s first iron ore mine discovered in Dinajpur
For the first time in Bangladesh, iron ore mine has been discovered at Isabpur village in Dinajpur. The announcement was made on Tuesday by the Geological Survey of Bangladesh following extensive drilling over two months in the area. According to the Geological Survey, a 400-foot thick iron layer was found 1,750 feet beneath the surface stretched over an area of 6-10 square kilometer. The percentage of iron in the mine was 65 which indicates the high quality of the ore. In most other countries like Canada, China, Brazil Sweden, and Australia the percentage is below 50.
7. Saudi Arabia became the first Arab country to get FATF membership
Riyadh, June 22 Saudi Arabia has become the first Arab country to be granted full membership of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) following the group's annual general meeting in the US. The kingdom's accession came as the global money laundering watchdog celebrated the 30th anniversary of its first meeting held in Paris in 1989, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
8. Saudi Arabia became the first Arab country to get FATF membership
Canara Bank customers can deposit cash for free only thrice a month and from the fourth transaction, there will be a charge from July 1. Cash deposits of up to ₹50,000 are free for 3 transactions in a month, and then there will be a service charge of ₹1 per thousand, with a minimum of ₹50 and a maximum of ₹5,000-plus GST. “Fourth transaction onwards: ₹1 per thousand or part thereof with a minimum of ₹50 and maximum of ₹5000 per transaction plus GST,” the State-run bank said in a notice with reference to charges for deposits up to ₹ 50,000.
9. Federal Bank raises Rs 300 crore through a private placement of Basel III compliant Tier II bonds
"The board of the bank has approved the issuance of 1,000 unsecured, listed, redeemable Basel III compliant tier II bonds having a face value of Rs 10 lakh each, with an option to retain oversubscription up to Rs 400 crore aggregating to Rs 500 crore (debentures), on a private placement basis," Federal Bank said in a BSE filing.
10. Skylark Drones and Throttle Aerospace Systems get DGCA nod to fly
India’s Civil Aviation Regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, has permitted two Bangalore Based Startups, SkyLark Drones and Throttle Aerospace Systems to manufacture drones under the New Digital Sky Policy. The government recently came up with Digital Sky Policy (December 2018) as a single-window platform for drone companies to take permissions and get quick approvals for flight operations, registration, and management. This step is expected to benefit the services of enterprises running large fleets of drones for air surveys and food-delivery.
11. NABCB gets APAC certificate for personnel certification bodies in Singapore
The National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB), India’s national accreditation body, secured international equivalence for its accreditation program for personnel certification bodies in the annual meetings of the Asia Pacific Accreditation Cooperation in Singapore today. NABCB signed the Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) of the Asia Pacific Accreditation Cooperation (APAC) for its accreditation program based on international standard, ISO/IEC 17024. ISO/IEC 17024: Conformity assessment - General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons specifies criteria for the operation of a Personnel Certification Bodies (also known as a certification body for persons). The standard includes requirements for the development and maintenance of the certification schemes for persons upon which the certification is based.
12. Shefali Juneja appointed to the post of Representative of India in the Council of ICAO
Senior bureaucrat Shefali Juneja was Wednesday appointed as India's representative in the Council of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), a United Nations body. Juneja, a 1992 batch officer of Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax cadre), is at present the Joint Secretary in Ministry of Civil Aviation. She has been appointed to the post of Representative of India in the ICAO, Montreal, Canada, for a period of three years, an order issued by personnel Ministry said.
13. The merger of IndusInd Bank-Bharat Financial effective from July 4
M R Rao, the current CEO of BFIL, will become the CEO of IndusInd Financial Inclusion. Assets and liabilities of BFIL will be merged with IndusInd's balance sheet. IndusInd Bank on Wednesday said 4 July 2019 will be the effective date of the merger with Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd (BFIL). M R Rao, the current CEO of BFIL, will become the CEO of IndusInd Financial Inclusion Ltd (IFIL). The boards of IndusInd and BFIL decided that on 4 July the NCLT Order will be filed by the lender, BFIL and IFIL with the Registrar of Companies. on 10 June 2019, NCLT sanctioned the scheme of arrangement about BFIL, IndusInd and IFIL and their respective shareholders and creditors.
14. CCI permitted for the merger of Indiabulls Housing Finance and Lakshmi Vilas Bank
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be held in the hot and muggy Japanese summer where the ambient temperature is expected to be above 33 degrees Celsius. Athletes have to worry about performing under pressure of the high-stakes competition and deal with a very hot and humid climate. Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the merger of the Indiabulls Housing Finance and Lakshmi Vilas Bank. Indiabulls Housing Finance in regulatory filing informed that "CCI at its meeting held on 20 June 2019, considered the proposed combination and approved the same," Indiabulls Housing Finance said in a BSE filing.
15. Researchers from Japan developed a new type of cooling vest for sports athletes
Japanese researchers have developed a new type of cooling vest for sports athletes that may help them compete safely in sweltering summer conditions. Strategies to cope with body heat in sports is a pressing issue, said researchers from Hiroshima University in Japan. The 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be held in the hot and muggy Japanese summer where the ambient temperature is expected to be above 33 degrees Celsius. Athletes have to worry about performing under pressure of the high-stakes competition and deal with a very hot and humid climate.
16. Indian Gymnast, Pranati Nayak won bronze at 2019 Asian Artistic Gymnastic Championship held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Indian gymnast Pranati Nayak Friday clinched a bronze medal in the vault event at the Senior Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The 23-year-old from West Bengal, who had qualified for vault finals with a sixth place, came up with a score of 13.384 to claim the bronze medal. She had scored 13.400 and 13.367 in the first and second vault respectively. China’s Yu Linmin (14.350) and Japan’s Ayaka Sakaguchi (13.584) won the gold and silver medal at the event. “I have been training her since she was 16 years and so it is a big thing for me and the country. I feel blessed that Pranati has been able to win the medal,” Pranati’s coach Minara Begum said.
17. Cricket Australia signs a multi-year partnership with HCL
At a time when the ongoing men’s Cricket World Cup is keeping fans around the world busy, and emotions are running high, HCL Technologies has signed a multi-year contract with Cricket Australia, the governing body of Australian cricket. This is India’s third-largest information technology services firm’s third biggest sports deal, after Volvo Ocean Race and Manchester United (ManU). Before HCL, Accenture had been working with Cricket Australia for a five-year deal from November 2013. Under the deal, HCL will provide digital experience to cricket fans, players, partners, employees, and volunteers across the country and around the world.
