Current Affairs of 3rd July 2019

Current Affairs of 3rd July 2019

• Valuation of Reliance Reliance Retail, India's biggest retailer by revenue crossed 2.5 lakh crores in June

• The Mahatma Gandhi IT and Biotechnology Park (MGIT-BP), built with the assistance from India was inaugurated at Grand-Bassam in Cote d'Ivoire, a West African country. It was jointly inaugurated by Ambassador of India to Cote d'Ivoire, Sailas Thangal and Cote d'Ivoire's Vice President, Daniel Kablan Duccan. MGIT-BP is an important milestone for the 150th celebration of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. It is a dedicated Free Trade Zone (FTZ) for IT and Biotechnology. It was built through EXIM ( Export-Import) Bank's Lines of Credit (LoC) of $20 million. It included 2 parts- Architectural concept & design for the buildings of FTZ and construction of the main building to host IT enterprises which was implemented by Shapoorji Pallonji, an Indian Conglomerate company. Second part included supply and commissioning of equipment which consisted computer assembly plant, VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) with satellite earth station, networking lab, human DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) lab, data storage area network, an audio-visual lab, and a power generator which was implemented by United Telecom Limited (UTL), an Indian company.

• Despite exports and imports growing at the same rate of 9 per cent, India's trade deficit reached a record high of $176 billion in 2018-19.

• China has tested its latest submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), JL-3.The JL-3 is expected to have a range of around 14,000 kilometers, with a capacity to carry 10 independent guided nuclear warheads.It is expected to reach targets farther away with higher accuracy and capable of carrying more warheads than China's current SLBMs.A submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) is a ballistic missile capable of being launched from submarines.

• In an attempt to avoid train accidents, Indian Railways has initiated a process to launch the Terrain Imaging for Diesel Drivers- Infrared Enhanced Optical and Radar Assisted (Tri-NETRA) system. Indian Railways is one of the world's largest railway network comprises of about 115,000 km (71,000 mi) of track over a route of around 67,312 km (41,826 mi) and 7,112 stations.

• Prakash Padukone (Badminton) won the SJFI Medal (Highest Honour) in the Sports Journalists Federation of India 2019 Awards. Whereas Sportsperson of the Year Award: Pankaj Advani (Billiards and Snooker) and Bajrang Punia (Wrestling). Emerging Talent of the Year Award: Saurabh Choudhary (Shooting). Team of the Year Award: Vidarbha Cricket Team.

• Japanese fishermen have set sail to hunt whales commercially for the first time in more than three decades after Tokyo's controversial decision to withdraw from the International Whaling Commission.

• The Government of India signed a deal with Russia for acquiring the 'Strum Ataka' anti-tank missiles. The deal is worth around Rs 200 Crore. It will give an added capability to the Mi-35 attack choppers to take out enemy tanks and other armored elements. The deal has been signed under the emergency clause as a result of which the missile would be delivered within a time of 3 months of the signing of the contract. Mi-35: These are IAF's (Indian Air Force) existing attack choppers are set to be replaced with the Apache gunships being acquired from the US (United States).

• India has pledged to contribute USD 5 Million in 2019 to the UN Palestine refugee agency. The Indian Government is assisting 150 Palestinian professionals every year under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation programme.

• The 7 Union Territories of India. National Capital Territory of Delhi - Delhi. Chandigarh - Chandigarh. Daman and Diu - Daman. Dadra and Nagar Haveli

• The annual banking statistics report compelled by the Swiss National Bank (SNB), India slipped to 74th place in terms of money with Swiss banks. UK (United Kingdom) remained top in the list of the survey. India holds 6% in 2018 to 955 million Swiss francs (about Rs.6,757 crore). A second lowest level in over two decades. The top-ranked countries in the list are the 1.UK, the US (United States); 2. West Indies, France, and Hong Kong.

• The Lok Sabha has passed the Central Educational Institutions (Reservations in Teachers' Cadre) Bill-2019 on July 2, 2019. The bill seeks to provide for the reservation of posts in appointments by direct recruitment of persons belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Educationally Backward Classes and Economically Weaker Sections to teachers' cadre in Central Educational Institutions. The bill will replace the Ordinance promulgated in this regard.

• The State Government of Haryana appointed Keshni Anand Arora as the state's new chief secretary. She replaces Mr. DS Dhesi, who has retired on June 30, 2019. She will be the 33rd cabinet secretary of Haryana since 1966. Her sister Meenakshi Anand Chaudhary became the State's first woman chief secretary in 2006 and her other sister Urvashi Gulati occupied the same post in 2009. She was previously served as the additional chief secretary in the Haryana government, and financial commissioner, Revenue and Disaster Management and Consolidation Departments.

• This story is about a Chinese thief that joins an eccentric Englishman who plans to circumnavigate the globe in 80 days to win a bet. Along the way, they encounter several obstacles and a detective determined to impede them.

• In Jammu and Kashmir, the district administration of Rajouri has been launched a campaign called "Operation Khumaar" to make 312 panchayats tobacco-free. The programme is run by the district administration to make panchayats free from tobacco and tobacco-based products. Under this programme, even the headmaster of the schools have been authorised to impose a fine on the sale of tobacco within 100 yards of school limits. Block Medical Officers (BMO) have been directed to set up counselling centres at all Community Health Centres (CHCs) to help tobacco consumers to quit this habit. The district officers have been urged upon to work in a mission mode so as to make the society free from the injurious tobacco and tobacco-based products.