1. Keith Vaz re-elected as chairman of UK Parliament committee
Britain’s longest-serving Indian-origin MP, Keith Vaz was re-elected as chairman of Parliaments Home Affairs Select Committee for the third time.
Vaz, a senior leader of Labour Party was elected as the chairman after receiving 412 votes in a secret ballot to all of the 25 select committees of the commons.
About Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz
Keith Vaz born on 26 November 1956 is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester East since the 1987 election. He has been the Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee since July 2007.
He was appointed as a member of the Privy Council in June 2006.
Between October 1999 and June 2001 he served as a Minister for Europe, Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
2. Antani, Joshi appointed to the board of Future Majority Project of US Republican Party
Two Indian-Americans Niraj Antani, an Ohio State legislature and Janak Joshi, a Colorado State legislature, were appointed to the board of the 2015-2016 Future Majority Project of the United States (US) Republican Party.
Niraj Antani is a student at the University Of Dayton School Of Law, having previously graduated from Ohio State University with Bachelors degree in political science. He became the youngest member of the House of Representatives in 2014 at the tender age of 23.
While on the other hand, Joshi has been serving as a member of the Colorado House of Representatives since 2011. He practiced internal medicine, nephrology, and occupational medicine from Gujarat University in India.
The Board of FMP is chaired by TW Shannon, Chairman and former Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
3. Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International India
Journalist and writer Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International (AI) India . He will head AI India’s operations and its efforts to end human rights abuses in India and worldwide.
Patel as the organization’s chief political advisor, strategist and spokesperson will give direction to its goal of being an independent, effective, and deep-rooted organization in India.
4. China and Australia signed Free Trade Agreement
China and Australia signed the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) at Canberra in Australia. The agreement was signed by China's Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng and Australia's Trade Minister Andrew Robb.
The chAFTA will ensure 85 percent of all exports of Australia to China tariff-free that will rise to 93 percent by 2019.
Features of China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA)
• It gives Australian dairy farmers, wine-makers and other sectors tariff-free access to the huge market of China within a few years.
• It will put eventual removal of tariffs on dairy products, live animal exports, resources and energy products.
• Tariffs on all resources and energy products will be removed by 2017.
• Beef and sheep farmers will benefit from the abolition of tariffs ranging from 12-25 percent.
• Lock in zero tariffs on major exports like iron ore, gold, crude petroleum oil and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).
• All tariffs on horticulture and live animal exports will be eliminated, while tariff on wine will be cut up to 14-30 percent.
• Wool producers will be able to export another 30000 tonnes of clean wool on top of existing quotas.
• Cotton, wheat, sugar, rice and oilseeds industries were kept out of the agreement.
5. World’s First Electric Passenger aircraft BX1E manufactured in China
The world’s first electric passenger aircraft to gain an airworthiness certificate has been produced by China,
About the Plane
Plane – BX1E
The BX1E has a 14.5-meter wingspan and a maximum payload of 230 kgs.
It can fly at an altitude of 3,000 meters.
The charging is completed within two hours, allowing a flight time of 45 minutes to one hour, at a maximum speed of 160 km per hour
The plane was designed by Shenyang Aerospace University and Liaoning general aviation academy in the northeastern Liaoning Province.
The first two aircrafts were delivered to Liaoning Ruixiang General Aviation Co., Ltd yesterday.
The aircraft can be used in pilot training, tourism, meteorology and rescue operations.
Each sells for about one million yuan (USD 163,000).
6. HDFC Bank launches 10-second paperless instant loan plan
Country's second-largest private sector lender, HDFC Bank on Thursday launched a 10-second paperless instant loan plan for its existing customers.
HDFC Bank will now disburse personal loans to its customers in just 10 seconds. With this product, existing customers will have a pre-approved loan amount available to them 24x7
The entire process of availing the loan is completely paperless, and users can simply log into their bank account via net-banking or mobile banking and avail of this loan at a click.
The loan is completely hassle-free and transparent. Users will no longer have to wait for disbursement of funds, particularly in medical or other types of emergencies
It is like having a real cheque in one's virtual wallet and is part of our mission of enabling customer delight by creating simple and speedy banking solutions that are available at a click
7. Chinese Version of Bhagavad Gita launched in China
The Chinese Version of the sacred ancient Indian scripture Bhagavad Gita was launched in China during an international yoga conference. The book was released by Indian Ambassador to China Ashok K. Kantha.
The book was translated by Chinese Professor Wang Zhu Cheng and Ling Hai of the Zhejiang University in Shanghai and was published by the Sichuan People’s Publications.
The foreword to the book was written by K. Nagaraj Naidu, who was the Consul-General at the Indian Consulate in Guangzhou.
This is perhaps the first time that a well known Hindu ancient religious text has been published in China. Last year, scholars from India and China published an Encyclopedia on the age-old cultural contacts between the two countries, tracing back their history to over 2000 years.
8. Indian paddlers won team titles at South Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Championships
India's junior boys and cadet girls won the team championship titles at the South Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Championships at the Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi.
To retain the title in junior boys section, the Indian paddlers won all the four matches without dropping a set. Similarly, cadet girls won all their matches without a hiccup.
Silver and Bronze medals in the two categories
In Junior Boys category
• Sri Lanka's Junior Boys won Silver
• Pakistan, who finished third and Maldives behind them, got the bronze
In Cadet Girl’s category won silver
• Sri Lanka’s Cadet Girl’s won Silver
• Nepal, who finished third and Pakistan behind them, got the bronze
9. SoftBank teamed up with Alibaba, Foxconn to market Pepper robot
Japan’s SoftBank Corp on 28 June 2015 announced that it has set up a joint venture with Chinese online shopping giant Alibaba and electronics supplier Foxconn Technology to sell its human-like robot Pepper around the world.
The company in its statement said that the robot will go on sale to general consumers from 20 June 2015 for 198000 yen (1610.54 dollars) each plus monthly fee and insurance. These waist-high peeper robots will serve as baby-shitters, medical workers or even party companions.
At present, these robots which can learn and express human emotions are used in stores including SoftBank’s mobile phone shops.
SoftBank will have a 60 percent stake in the joint venture, while Alibaba and Foxconn each will spend 14.5 billion Yen ($117.94 million) for 20 per cent stakes.
10. CCEA approved Minimum Support Prices for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave its approval for the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season.
All the approved MSPs were based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) for the Price Policy for Kharif Crops for the Marketing Season 2015-16 except for pulses.
The CCEA decided to give a bonus of 200 rupees per quintal for pulses over and above the recommendations of the CACP in view of a huge deficit of pulses in the country.
11. Union Government launched weather alert service NOWCAST
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh on 18 June 2015launched a weather alert service named NOWCAST.
NOWCAST will be used to send SMS alerts on extreme weather data like hailstorm, thunderstorm and squall originated by India Meteorological Department (IMD) to over one crore farmers whose mobile numbers are registered on government’s mKisan portal.
Further, the mKisan portal will send warning SMSs to farmers located in affected district/blocks. These warnings will help the farmers to take precautionary measures as needed and feasible. The SMS will be sent in English, Hindi and regional languages as per farmers’ request.
This technological break-through is a collaborative effort between mKisan Portal developed by DAC, weather technologies adopted by IMD and GIS Portal of NIC.
Besides, Radha Mohan Singh also launched Insurance Web-Portals for Farmers (www.farmer.gov.in/insurance) that will enable farmers to insure their crops under three schemes.
12. CCEA approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in National Dairy Plan- I
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in the list of States to be covered under the National Dairy Plan- I (NDP-I). It also extended the implementation period for two years up to 2018-19 to achieve key outputs of National Dairy Plan- I.
Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are newly formed States which are inhabited by tribal population having substantial milch animal population and have the potential for coverage under NDP-I.
Although Uttarakhand was not included for all the approved components under the NDP-I, but the Project Implementation Plan document included sub projects of Animal Breeding and Strengthening of Semen Stations for implementation in Uttarakhand.
Considering the potential for implementation of Ration Balancing Programme, Fodder Development and Village Based Milk Procurement System, Uttarakhand has also been included under NDP-I.
About National Dairy Plan- I
NDP-I was approved for implementation in 14 milk potential States by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) with a total outlay of 2242 crore rupees for a period of six years from 2011-12 to 2016-17.
NDP I is now being implemented in 15 States (after Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated into Andhra Pradesh and Telangana). These 15 states are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
These states account for more than 90 percent of the country’s milk production, for over 87 percent of the breedable cattle and buffalo population and 98 percent of the country’s fodder resources. However, coverage of NDP I is across the country in terms of benefits accruing from the project.
Britain’s longest-serving Indian-origin MP, Keith Vaz was re-elected as chairman of Parliaments Home Affairs Select Committee for the third time.Vaz, a senior leader of Labour Party was elected as the chairman after receiving 412 votes in a secret ballot to all of the 25 select committees of the commons.
About Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz
Keith Vaz born on 26 November 1956 is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester East since the 1987 election. He has been the Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee since July 2007.
He was appointed as a member of the Privy Council in June 2006.
Between October 1999 and June 2001 he served as a Minister for Europe, Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
2. Antani, Joshi appointed to the board of Future Majority Project of US Republican Party
Two Indian-Americans Niraj Antani, an Ohio State legislature and Janak Joshi, a Colorado State legislature, were appointed to the board of the 2015-2016 Future Majority Project of the United States (US) Republican Party.
Niraj Antani is a student at the University Of Dayton School Of Law, having previously graduated from Ohio State University with Bachelors degree in political science. He became the youngest member of the House of Representatives in 2014 at the tender age of 23.
While on the other hand, Joshi has been serving as a member of the Colorado House of Representatives since 2011. He practiced internal medicine, nephrology, and occupational medicine from Gujarat University in India.
The Board of FMP is chaired by TW Shannon, Chairman and former Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
3. Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International India
Journalist and writer Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International (AI) India . He will head AI India’s operations and its efforts to end human rights abuses in India and worldwide.
Patel as the organization’s chief political advisor, strategist and spokesperson will give direction to its goal of being an independent, effective, and deep-rooted organization in India.
4. China and Australia signed Free Trade Agreement
China and Australia signed the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) at Canberra in Australia. The agreement was signed by China's Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng and Australia's Trade Minister Andrew Robb.
The chAFTA will ensure 85 percent of all exports of Australia to China tariff-free that will rise to 93 percent by 2019.
Features of China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA)
• It gives Australian dairy farmers, wine-makers and other sectors tariff-free access to the huge market of China within a few years.
• It will put eventual removal of tariffs on dairy products, live animal exports, resources and energy products.
• Tariffs on all resources and energy products will be removed by 2017.
• Beef and sheep farmers will benefit from the abolition of tariffs ranging from 12-25 percent.
• Lock in zero tariffs on major exports like iron ore, gold, crude petroleum oil and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).
• All tariffs on horticulture and live animal exports will be eliminated, while tariff on wine will be cut up to 14-30 percent.
• Wool producers will be able to export another 30000 tonnes of clean wool on top of existing quotas.
• Cotton, wheat, sugar, rice and oilseeds industries were kept out of the agreement.
5. World’s First Electric Passenger aircraft BX1E manufactured in China
The world’s first electric passenger aircraft to gain an airworthiness certificate has been produced by China,
About the Plane
Plane – BX1E
The BX1E has a 14.5-meter wingspan and a maximum payload of 230 kgs.
It can fly at an altitude of 3,000 meters.
The charging is completed within two hours, allowing a flight time of 45 minutes to one hour, at a maximum speed of 160 km per hour
The plane was designed by Shenyang Aerospace University and Liaoning general aviation academy in the northeastern Liaoning Province.
The first two aircrafts were delivered to Liaoning Ruixiang General Aviation Co., Ltd yesterday.
The aircraft can be used in pilot training, tourism, meteorology and rescue operations.
Each sells for about one million yuan (USD 163,000).
6. HDFC Bank launches 10-second paperless instant loan plan
Country's second-largest private sector lender, HDFC Bank on Thursday launched a 10-second paperless instant loan plan for its existing customers.
HDFC Bank will now disburse personal loans to its customers in just 10 seconds. With this product, existing customers will have a pre-approved loan amount available to them 24x7
The entire process of availing the loan is completely paperless, and users can simply log into their bank account via net-banking or mobile banking and avail of this loan at a click.
The loan is completely hassle-free and transparent. Users will no longer have to wait for disbursement of funds, particularly in medical or other types of emergencies
It is like having a real cheque in one's virtual wallet and is part of our mission of enabling customer delight by creating simple and speedy banking solutions that are available at a click
7. Chinese Version of Bhagavad Gita launched in China
The Chinese Version of the sacred ancient Indian scripture Bhagavad Gita was launched in China during an international yoga conference. The book was released by Indian Ambassador to China Ashok K. Kantha.
The book was translated by Chinese Professor Wang Zhu Cheng and Ling Hai of the Zhejiang University in Shanghai and was published by the Sichuan People’s Publications.
The foreword to the book was written by K. Nagaraj Naidu, who was the Consul-General at the Indian Consulate in Guangzhou.
This is perhaps the first time that a well known Hindu ancient religious text has been published in China. Last year, scholars from India and China published an Encyclopedia on the age-old cultural contacts between the two countries, tracing back their history to over 2000 years.
India's junior boys and cadet girls won the team championship titles at the South Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Championships at the Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi.
To retain the title in junior boys section, the Indian paddlers won all the four matches without dropping a set. Similarly, cadet girls won all their matches without a hiccup.
Silver and Bronze medals in the two categories
In Junior Boys category
• Sri Lanka's Junior Boys won Silver
• Pakistan, who finished third and Maldives behind them, got the bronze
In Cadet Girl’s category won silver
• Sri Lanka’s Cadet Girl’s won Silver
• Nepal, who finished third and Pakistan behind them, got the bronze
9. SoftBank teamed up with Alibaba, Foxconn to market Pepper robot
Japan’s SoftBank Corp on 28 June 2015 announced that it has set up a joint venture with Chinese online shopping giant Alibaba and electronics supplier Foxconn Technology to sell its human-like robot Pepper around the world.
The company in its statement said that the robot will go on sale to general consumers from 20 June 2015 for 198000 yen (1610.54 dollars) each plus monthly fee and insurance. These waist-high peeper robots will serve as baby-shitters, medical workers or even party companions.
At present, these robots which can learn and express human emotions are used in stores including SoftBank’s mobile phone shops.
SoftBank will have a 60 percent stake in the joint venture, while Alibaba and Foxconn each will spend 14.5 billion Yen ($117.94 million) for 20 per cent stakes.
10. CCEA approved Minimum Support Prices for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave its approval for the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season.
All the approved MSPs were based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) for the Price Policy for Kharif Crops for the Marketing Season 2015-16 except for pulses.
The CCEA decided to give a bonus of 200 rupees per quintal for pulses over and above the recommendations of the CACP in view of a huge deficit of pulses in the country.
11. Union Government launched weather alert service NOWCAST
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh on 18 June 2015launched a weather alert service named NOWCAST.
NOWCAST will be used to send SMS alerts on extreme weather data like hailstorm, thunderstorm and squall originated by India Meteorological Department (IMD) to over one crore farmers whose mobile numbers are registered on government’s mKisan portal.
Further, the mKisan portal will send warning SMSs to farmers located in affected district/blocks. These warnings will help the farmers to take precautionary measures as needed and feasible. The SMS will be sent in English, Hindi and regional languages as per farmers’ request.
This technological break-through is a collaborative effort between mKisan Portal developed by DAC, weather technologies adopted by IMD and GIS Portal of NIC.
Besides, Radha Mohan Singh also launched Insurance Web-Portals for Farmers (www.farmer.gov.in/insurance) that will enable farmers to insure their crops under three schemes.
12. CCEA approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in National Dairy Plan- I
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in the list of States to be covered under the National Dairy Plan- I (NDP-I). It also extended the implementation period for two years up to 2018-19 to achieve key outputs of National Dairy Plan- I.
Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are newly formed States which are inhabited by tribal population having substantial milch animal population and have the potential for coverage under NDP-I.
Although Uttarakhand was not included for all the approved components under the NDP-I, but the Project Implementation Plan document included sub projects of Animal Breeding and Strengthening of Semen Stations for implementation in Uttarakhand.
Considering the potential for implementation of Ration Balancing Programme, Fodder Development and Village Based Milk Procurement System, Uttarakhand has also been included under NDP-I.
About National Dairy Plan- I
NDP-I was approved for implementation in 14 milk potential States by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) with a total outlay of 2242 crore rupees for a period of six years from 2011-12 to 2016-17.
NDP I is now being implemented in 15 States (after Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated into Andhra Pradesh and Telangana). These 15 states are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
These states account for more than 90 percent of the country’s milk production, for over 87 percent of the breedable cattle and buffalo population and 98 percent of the country’s fodder resources. However, coverage of NDP I is across the country in terms of benefits accruing from the project.
1. Keith Vaz re-elected as chairman of UK Parliament committee
Britain’s longest-serving Indian-origin MP, Keith Vaz was re-elected as chairman of Parliaments Home Affairs Select Committee for the third time.
Vaz, a senior leader of Labour Party was elected as the chairman after receiving 412 votes in a secret ballot to all of the 25 select committees of the commons.
About Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz
Keith Vaz born on 26 November 1956 is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester East since the 1987 election. He has been the Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee since July 2007.
He was appointed as a member of the Privy Council in June 2006.
Between October 1999 and June 2001 he served as a Minister for Europe, Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
2. Antani, Joshi appointed to the board of Future Majority Project of US Republican Party
Two Indian-Americans Niraj Antani, an Ohio State legislature and Janak Joshi, a Colorado State legislature, were appointed to the board of the 2015-2016 Future Majority Project of the United States (US) Republican Party.
Niraj Antani is a student at the University Of Dayton School Of Law, having previously graduated from Ohio State University with Bachelors degree in political science. He became the youngest member of the House of Representatives in 2014 at the tender age of 23.
While on the other hand, Joshi has been serving as a member of the Colorado House of Representatives since 2011. He practiced internal medicine, nephrology, and occupational medicine from Gujarat University in India.
The Board of FMP is chaired by TW Shannon, Chairman and former Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
3. Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International India
Journalist and writer Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International (AI) India . He will head AI India’s operations and its efforts to end human rights abuses in India and worldwide.
Patel as the organization’s chief political advisor, strategist and spokesperson will give direction to its goal of being an independent, effective, and deep-rooted organization in India.
4. China and Australia signed Free Trade Agreement
China and Australia signed the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) at Canberra in Australia. The agreement was signed by China's Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng and Australia's Trade Minister Andrew Robb.
The chAFTA will ensure 85 percent of all exports of Australia to China tariff-free that will rise to 93 percent by 2019.
Features of China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA)
• It gives Australian dairy farmers, wine-makers and other sectors tariff-free access to the huge market of China within a few years.
• It will put eventual removal of tariffs on dairy products, live animal exports, resources and energy products.
• Tariffs on all resources and energy products will be removed by 2017.
• Beef and sheep farmers will benefit from the abolition of tariffs ranging from 12-25 percent.
• Lock in zero tariffs on major exports like iron ore, gold, crude petroleum oil and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).
• All tariffs on horticulture and live animal exports will be eliminated, while tariff on wine will be cut up to 14-30 percent.
• Wool producers will be able to export another 30000 tonnes of clean wool on top of existing quotas.
• Cotton, wheat, sugar, rice and oilseeds industries were kept out of the agreement.
5. World’s First Electric Passenger aircraft BX1E manufactured in China
The world’s first electric passenger aircraft to gain an airworthiness certificate has been produced by China,
About the Plane
Plane – BX1E
The BX1E has a 14.5-meter wingspan and a maximum payload of 230 kgs.
It can fly at an altitude of 3,000 meters.
The charging is completed within two hours, allowing a flight time of 45 minutes to one hour, at a maximum speed of 160 km per hour
The plane was designed by Shenyang Aerospace University and Liaoning general aviation academy in the northeastern Liaoning Province.
The first two aircrafts were delivered to Liaoning Ruixiang General Aviation Co., Ltd yesterday.
The aircraft can be used in pilot training, tourism, meteorology and rescue operations.
Each sells for about one million yuan (USD 163,000).
6. HDFC Bank launches 10-second paperless instant loan plan
Country's second-largest private sector lender, HDFC Bank on Thursday launched a 10-second paperless instant loan plan for its existing customers.
HDFC Bank will now disburse personal loans to its customers in just 10 seconds. With this product, existing customers will have a pre-approved loan amount available to them 24x7
The entire process of availing the loan is completely paperless, and users can simply log into their bank account via net-banking or mobile banking and avail of this loan at a click.
The loan is completely hassle-free and transparent. Users will no longer have to wait for disbursement of funds, particularly in medical or other types of emergencies
It is like having a real cheque in one's virtual wallet and is part of our mission of enabling customer delight by creating simple and speedy banking solutions that are available at a click
7. Chinese Version of Bhagavad Gita launched in China
The Chinese Version of the sacred ancient Indian scripture Bhagavad Gita was launched in China during an international yoga conference. The book was released by Indian Ambassador to China Ashok K. Kantha.
The book was translated by Chinese Professor Wang Zhu Cheng and Ling Hai of the Zhejiang University in Shanghai and was published by the Sichuan People’s Publications.
The foreword to the book was written by K. Nagaraj Naidu, who was the Consul-General at the Indian Consulate in Guangzhou.
This is perhaps the first time that a well known Hindu ancient religious text has been published in China. Last year, scholars from India and China published an Encyclopedia on the age-old cultural contacts between the two countries, tracing back their history to over 2000 years.
8. Indian paddlers won team titles at South Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Championships
India's junior boys and cadet girls won the team championship titles at the South Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Championships at the Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi.
To retain the title in junior boys section, the Indian paddlers won all the four matches without dropping a set. Similarly, cadet girls won all their matches without a hiccup.
Silver and Bronze medals in the two categories
In Junior Boys category
• Sri Lanka's Junior Boys won Silver
• Pakistan, who finished third and Maldives behind them, got the bronze
In Cadet Girl’s category won silver
• Sri Lanka’s Cadet Girl’s won Silver
• Nepal, who finished third and Pakistan behind them, got the bronze
9. SoftBank teamed up with Alibaba, Foxconn to market Pepper robot
Japan’s SoftBank Corp on 28 June 2015 announced that it has set up a joint venture with Chinese online shopping giant Alibaba and electronics supplier Foxconn Technology to sell its human-like robot Pepper around the world.
The company in its statement said that the robot will go on sale to general consumers from 20 June 2015 for 198000 yen (1610.54 dollars) each plus monthly fee and insurance. These waist-high peeper robots will serve as baby-shitters, medical workers or even party companions.
At present, these robots which can learn and express human emotions are used in stores including SoftBank’s mobile phone shops.
SoftBank will have a 60 percent stake in the joint venture, while Alibaba and Foxconn each will spend 14.5 billion Yen ($117.94 million) for 20 per cent stakes.
10. CCEA approved Minimum Support Prices for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave its approval for the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season.
All the approved MSPs were based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) for the Price Policy for Kharif Crops for the Marketing Season 2015-16 except for pulses.
The CCEA decided to give a bonus of 200 rupees per quintal for pulses over and above the recommendations of the CACP in view of a huge deficit of pulses in the country.
11. Union Government launched weather alert service NOWCAST
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh on 18 June 2015launched a weather alert service named NOWCAST.
NOWCAST will be used to send SMS alerts on extreme weather data like hailstorm, thunderstorm and squall originated by India Meteorological Department (IMD) to over one crore farmers whose mobile numbers are registered on government’s mKisan portal.
Further, the mKisan portal will send warning SMSs to farmers located in affected district/blocks. These warnings will help the farmers to take precautionary measures as needed and feasible. The SMS will be sent in English, Hindi and regional languages as per farmers’ request.
This technological break-through is a collaborative effort between mKisan Portal developed by DAC, weather technologies adopted by IMD and GIS Portal of NIC.
Besides, Radha Mohan Singh also launched Insurance Web-Portals for Farmers (www.farmer.gov.in/insurance) that will enable farmers to insure their crops under three schemes.
12. CCEA approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in National Dairy Plan- I
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in the list of States to be covered under the National Dairy Plan- I (NDP-I). It also extended the implementation period for two years up to 2018-19 to achieve key outputs of National Dairy Plan- I.
Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are newly formed States which are inhabited by tribal population having substantial milch animal population and have the potential for coverage under NDP-I.
Although Uttarakhand was not included for all the approved components under the NDP-I, but the Project Implementation Plan document included sub projects of Animal Breeding and Strengthening of Semen Stations for implementation in Uttarakhand.
Considering the potential for implementation of Ration Balancing Programme, Fodder Development and Village Based Milk Procurement System, Uttarakhand has also been included under NDP-I.
About National Dairy Plan- I
NDP-I was approved for implementation in 14 milk potential States by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) with a total outlay of 2242 crore rupees for a period of six years from 2011-12 to 2016-17.
NDP I is now being implemented in 15 States (after Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated into Andhra Pradesh and Telangana). These 15 states are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
These states account for more than 90 percent of the country’s milk production, for over 87 percent of the breedable cattle and buffalo population and 98 percent of the country’s fodder resources. However, coverage of NDP I is across the country in terms of benefits accruing from the project.
Britain’s longest-serving Indian-origin MP, Keith Vaz was re-elected as chairman of Parliaments Home Affairs Select Committee for the third time.Vaz, a senior leader of Labour Party was elected as the chairman after receiving 412 votes in a secret ballot to all of the 25 select committees of the commons.
About Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz
Keith Vaz born on 26 November 1956 is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester East since the 1987 election. He has been the Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee since July 2007.
He was appointed as a member of the Privy Council in June 2006.
Between October 1999 and June 2001 he served as a Minister for Europe, Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
2. Antani, Joshi appointed to the board of Future Majority Project of US Republican Party
Two Indian-Americans Niraj Antani, an Ohio State legislature and Janak Joshi, a Colorado State legislature, were appointed to the board of the 2015-2016 Future Majority Project of the United States (US) Republican Party.
Niraj Antani is a student at the University Of Dayton School Of Law, having previously graduated from Ohio State University with Bachelors degree in political science. He became the youngest member of the House of Representatives in 2014 at the tender age of 23.
While on the other hand, Joshi has been serving as a member of the Colorado House of Representatives since 2011. He practiced internal medicine, nephrology, and occupational medicine from Gujarat University in India.
The Board of FMP is chaired by TW Shannon, Chairman and former Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
3. Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International India
Journalist and writer Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty International (AI) India . He will head AI India’s operations and its efforts to end human rights abuses in India and worldwide.
Patel as the organization’s chief political advisor, strategist and spokesperson will give direction to its goal of being an independent, effective, and deep-rooted organization in India.
4. China and Australia signed Free Trade Agreement
China and Australia signed the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) at Canberra in Australia. The agreement was signed by China's Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng and Australia's Trade Minister Andrew Robb.
The chAFTA will ensure 85 percent of all exports of Australia to China tariff-free that will rise to 93 percent by 2019.
Features of China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA)
• It gives Australian dairy farmers, wine-makers and other sectors tariff-free access to the huge market of China within a few years.
• It will put eventual removal of tariffs on dairy products, live animal exports, resources and energy products.
• Tariffs on all resources and energy products will be removed by 2017.
• Beef and sheep farmers will benefit from the abolition of tariffs ranging from 12-25 percent.
• Lock in zero tariffs on major exports like iron ore, gold, crude petroleum oil and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).
• All tariffs on horticulture and live animal exports will be eliminated, while tariff on wine will be cut up to 14-30 percent.
• Wool producers will be able to export another 30000 tonnes of clean wool on top of existing quotas.
• Cotton, wheat, sugar, rice and oilseeds industries were kept out of the agreement.
5. World’s First Electric Passenger aircraft BX1E manufactured in China
The world’s first electric passenger aircraft to gain an airworthiness certificate has been produced by China,
About the Plane
Plane – BX1E
The BX1E has a 14.5-meter wingspan and a maximum payload of 230 kgs.
It can fly at an altitude of 3,000 meters.
The charging is completed within two hours, allowing a flight time of 45 minutes to one hour, at a maximum speed of 160 km per hour
The plane was designed by Shenyang Aerospace University and Liaoning general aviation academy in the northeastern Liaoning Province.
The first two aircrafts were delivered to Liaoning Ruixiang General Aviation Co., Ltd yesterday.
The aircraft can be used in pilot training, tourism, meteorology and rescue operations.
Each sells for about one million yuan (USD 163,000).
6. HDFC Bank launches 10-second paperless instant loan plan
Country's second-largest private sector lender, HDFC Bank on Thursday launched a 10-second paperless instant loan plan for its existing customers.
HDFC Bank will now disburse personal loans to its customers in just 10 seconds. With this product, existing customers will have a pre-approved loan amount available to them 24x7
The entire process of availing the loan is completely paperless, and users can simply log into their bank account via net-banking or mobile banking and avail of this loan at a click.
The loan is completely hassle-free and transparent. Users will no longer have to wait for disbursement of funds, particularly in medical or other types of emergencies
It is like having a real cheque in one's virtual wallet and is part of our mission of enabling customer delight by creating simple and speedy banking solutions that are available at a click
7. Chinese Version of Bhagavad Gita launched in China
The Chinese Version of the sacred ancient Indian scripture Bhagavad Gita was launched in China during an international yoga conference. The book was released by Indian Ambassador to China Ashok K. Kantha.
The book was translated by Chinese Professor Wang Zhu Cheng and Ling Hai of the Zhejiang University in Shanghai and was published by the Sichuan People’s Publications.
The foreword to the book was written by K. Nagaraj Naidu, who was the Consul-General at the Indian Consulate in Guangzhou.
This is perhaps the first time that a well known Hindu ancient religious text has been published in China. Last year, scholars from India and China published an Encyclopedia on the age-old cultural contacts between the two countries, tracing back their history to over 2000 years.
India's junior boys and cadet girls won the team championship titles at the South Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Championships at the Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi.
To retain the title in junior boys section, the Indian paddlers won all the four matches without dropping a set. Similarly, cadet girls won all their matches without a hiccup.
Silver and Bronze medals in the two categories
In Junior Boys category
• Sri Lanka's Junior Boys won Silver
• Pakistan, who finished third and Maldives behind them, got the bronze
In Cadet Girl’s category won silver
• Sri Lanka’s Cadet Girl’s won Silver
• Nepal, who finished third and Pakistan behind them, got the bronze
9. SoftBank teamed up with Alibaba, Foxconn to market Pepper robot
Japan’s SoftBank Corp on 28 June 2015 announced that it has set up a joint venture with Chinese online shopping giant Alibaba and electronics supplier Foxconn Technology to sell its human-like robot Pepper around the world.
The company in its statement said that the robot will go on sale to general consumers from 20 June 2015 for 198000 yen (1610.54 dollars) each plus monthly fee and insurance. These waist-high peeper robots will serve as baby-shitters, medical workers or even party companions.
At present, these robots which can learn and express human emotions are used in stores including SoftBank’s mobile phone shops.
SoftBank will have a 60 percent stake in the joint venture, while Alibaba and Foxconn each will spend 14.5 billion Yen ($117.94 million) for 20 per cent stakes.
10. CCEA approved Minimum Support Prices for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave its approval for the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for Kharif Crops of 2015-16 season.
All the approved MSPs were based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) for the Price Policy for Kharif Crops for the Marketing Season 2015-16 except for pulses.
The CCEA decided to give a bonus of 200 rupees per quintal for pulses over and above the recommendations of the CACP in view of a huge deficit of pulses in the country.
11. Union Government launched weather alert service NOWCAST
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh on 18 June 2015launched a weather alert service named NOWCAST.
NOWCAST will be used to send SMS alerts on extreme weather data like hailstorm, thunderstorm and squall originated by India Meteorological Department (IMD) to over one crore farmers whose mobile numbers are registered on government’s mKisan portal.
Further, the mKisan portal will send warning SMSs to farmers located in affected district/blocks. These warnings will help the farmers to take precautionary measures as needed and feasible. The SMS will be sent in English, Hindi and regional languages as per farmers’ request.
This technological break-through is a collaborative effort between mKisan Portal developed by DAC, weather technologies adopted by IMD and GIS Portal of NIC.
Besides, Radha Mohan Singh also launched Insurance Web-Portals for Farmers (www.farmer.gov.in/insurance) that will enable farmers to insure their crops under three schemes.
12. CCEA approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in National Dairy Plan- I
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved inclusion of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in the list of States to be covered under the National Dairy Plan- I (NDP-I). It also extended the implementation period for two years up to 2018-19 to achieve key outputs of National Dairy Plan- I.
Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are newly formed States which are inhabited by tribal population having substantial milch animal population and have the potential for coverage under NDP-I.
Although Uttarakhand was not included for all the approved components under the NDP-I, but the Project Implementation Plan document included sub projects of Animal Breeding and Strengthening of Semen Stations for implementation in Uttarakhand.
Considering the potential for implementation of Ration Balancing Programme, Fodder Development and Village Based Milk Procurement System, Uttarakhand has also been included under NDP-I.
About National Dairy Plan- I
NDP-I was approved for implementation in 14 milk potential States by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) with a total outlay of 2242 crore rupees for a period of six years from 2011-12 to 2016-17.
NDP I is now being implemented in 15 States (after Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated into Andhra Pradesh and Telangana). These 15 states are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
These states account for more than 90 percent of the country’s milk production, for over 87 percent of the breedable cattle and buffalo population and 98 percent of the country’s fodder resources. However, coverage of NDP I is across the country in terms of benefits accruing from the project.
thanks
ReplyDelete