Daily Current affairs - June 21st, 2017 for all competitive exams
Yoga is an ancient physical,
mental and spiritual practice that originated in India. The word ‘yoga’ derives
from Sanskrit and means to join or to unite, symbolizing the union of body and
consciousness.
- The International Day of Yoga aims to raise
awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practicing yoga.
- The theme for the 2017 celebration, organized by the
Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations, is 'Yoga for Health.'
- The theme highlights the fact that yoga can
contribute in a holistic way to achieving an equilibrium between mind and
body.
India ratifies United Nations TIR Convention
India has become the 71st country to ratify
the United Nations TIR (Transports Internationaux Routiers) Convention, a move that will help boost trade through smoother movement of
goods across territories.
- The ratification is a part of India’s multi-modal
transport strategy that aims to integrate the economy with global and
regional production networks through better connectivity.
- The Customs Convention on International
Transport of Goods under cover of TIR Carnets, 1975 (TIR Convention), is
an international transit system under the auspices of the United Nations
Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) to facilitate the seamless
movement of goods within and amongst the Parties to the Convention.
- At present there are 70 parties to the Convention,
including the European Union.
India’s First Indigenously Built Floating Dock Goes On
Stream:
The country’s first indigenously built floating dock FDN-2 for the Indian
Navy was recently launched at the L&T Shipbuilding Yard at Kattupalli near
Chennai.
- The floating dock will be delivered to Indian Navy,
Port Blair in the coming months after undergoing a series of “harbour
trials”.
- The Floating Dock is an indigenously built designed
and built platform with state-of-the-art machinery and control systems
capable of docking ships of upto 8,000 tonne displacement. The dock covers
facilitate “repair” and “refit” activities even in inclement weather
conditions.
Merge of Central Reference
Library with National Library
Ministry of Culture (moc)
has decided to merge the functions of the Central Reference Library (CRL) with
the National Library.
- The CRL, located in the National Library campus in
Kolkata, is responsible for the publication and sale of the Indian
National Bibliography (INB). The INB is the list of all books published in
India annually and is the key source for foreign libraries to know about
the books published in India.
- It will “reduce duplicity [the same book being
catalogued twice by both institutes] and speed up the process of
accession.”
Taslima Nasreen’s visa
extended for 1 year
Exiled Bangladeshi author
Taslima Nasreen’s visa was extended for a year by the Home Ministry on June 21,
after Home Minister Rajnath Singh cleared the proposal.
- Ms. Nasreen, who has a Swedish citizenship, has been
getting Indian visa on a continuous basis since 2004. The writer’s visa
would come into effect from July 23.
1,000 Wi-Fi hotspots opened
across Hyderabad
Hyderabad Mayor B. Rammohan
on June 21 launched the ‘Hyderabad City Wi-Fi Project’ or ‘Hy-Fi’ with over
1,000 hotspots where citizens can access Internet for about half an hour free.
- Gradually, these hotspots, in association with the
cellular phone and Internet operators, are to be upgraded to 3,000 across
different areas of the twin cities.
Claiming that such a huge
free Wi-Fi hotspots being launched is first for any city in the country.
China offers to build dam in Gilgit-Baltistan that ADB,
World Bank refused to fund
China has offered to make a dam (Diamer-Bhasha Dam) project on the Indus
River that India objects to, a part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
(CPEC).
- The Diamer-Bhasha Dam is a project that both the
World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have refused to touch
because India objects to its location, which is in the Gilgit-Baltistan
region. India claims the region is a part of Kashmir.
BIO International Convention
The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) BIO 2017 is being held in
the San Diego Convention Centre, San Diego. India is also taking part in the
convention.
- The BIO International Convention is the largest
global event for the biotechnology industry and attracts the
biggest names in biotech, offers key networking and partnering
opportunities, and provides insights and inspiration on the major trends
affecting the industry. The first BIO International Convention was held in
1993 and attracted approximately 1,400 attendees.
NASA finds 10 Earth-sized exoplanets
NASA’s Kepler mission team has released a survey of 219 potential
exoplanets — planets outside of our solar system — that had been detected by
the space observatory launched in 2009 to scan the Milky Way galaxy.
- Ten of the new discoveries were orbiting their suns
at a distance similar to the Earth’s orbit around the sun, the so-called
habitable zone that could potentially have liquid water and sustain life.
Government, RBI in talks to postpone Basel-III norms for
banks
The government is in talks with the Reserve Bank of India, in a bid to
postpone the implementation of the international capital norms or Basel-III
norms in the Indian banking sector, which is struggling with the issue of
surmounting bad debts. It has been made mandatory for the banks to abide by the
Basel-III regulatory norms by March 2019.
- The extension of the last date to meet the capital
needs will provide the banks an opportunity to increase their lending
while they settle their bad loans tussle and also raise capital.
- Basel III (or the Third Basel Accord) is a global,
voluntary regulatory framework on bank capital adequacy, stress testing,
and market liquidity risk. It was agreed upon by the members of the Basel
Committee on Banking Supervision in 2010–11.
India Re-Nominates Dalveer Bhandari For Another Term As
Judge At International Court of Justice
India has re-nominated Justice Dalveer Bhandari as its candidate for
another term as judge at the International Court of Justice or ICJ, the
principal judicial organ of the United Nations or UN.
- The ICJ consists of 15 judges elected to
nine-year terms by the United Nations General Assembly and the Security
Council that vote simultaneously but separately.
- The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the
principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN). It
was established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations and
began work in April 1946.
Kumble quits as head coach
Anil Kumble, a distinguished
achiever as a player and as head coach of the Indian team for the last one year
has resigned as head coach.
- Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) had endorsed an
extension to his tenure, Mr. Kumble has decided not to continue.
- M.V. Sridhar (GM, Cricket Operations) will supervise the team management for the West Indies tour. Sanjay Bangar, batting coach and R. Sridhar, fieldng coach, will continue their assignments.
