Current Affairs - June 16, 2018 Current Affairs

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo (33 year old) scored FIFA World Cup 2018's first hat-trick in the first match of the tournament, in first three minutes and 30 seconds. This hat-trick was the 51st in World Cup history, as well as Ronaldo's 51st career hat-trick. Ronaldo completed his sixth international hat trick when he scored on a free kick in the 88th minute, giving Portugal a 3-3 tie with Spain.

Marg ERP limited, a leading Inventory and Accounting software solution company has partnered with ICICI Bank, India's largest private sector bank by consolidated assets, to offer an integrated payments platform to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) customers, using MARG's accounting software. This integration aims to promote 'Connected Banking' and enables ICICI Bank's current account holders to securely connect their bank account with the MARG ERP software and undertake an array of digital transactions from within the ERP platform itself.

Flipkart-owned PhonePe has partnered cab aggregator Ola that will allow riders to book rides using the former's payment platform. With this partnership, users can enjoy the ease of using their preferred ride-sharing app from within PhonePe while being assured of the reliability and integrity of their payments. PhonePe has also added 'Auto-pay' feature that allows users to make payments seamlessly.

The European Union Film Festival (EUFF) will premiere in New Delhi at the Siri Fort Auditorium. With a selection of 24 latest European films from 23 EU Member States, this years' film festival brings some unusual stories for the world cinema enthusiasts. The European Union Film Festival is organized by Directorate of Film Festivals. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India partnering with the Delegation of the European Union and embassies of EU Member States in various city film clubs.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis met World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva in Washington DC to seek assistance for a Multimodal Transport Corridor and the Rural Livelihood Project which aims to provide sustainable livelihood enhancements in 10,000 villages in the state. World Bank has assured of positive consideration of both the projects. Fadnavis, who is on a three-nation tour, also attended a business discussion organised by US-India Strategic Partnership Forum.

As a part of Kerala government's tourism promotion programme, 'Yoga Ambassadors Tour',a specialized trip for yoga professionals from around the world was inaugurated by Minister of State for AYUSH Shripad Yesso Naik. It aims to design a wholesome yoga package for visiting tourists with well-known yoga destinations with related activities. It aims to design a wholesome yoga package for visiting tourists with well-known yoga destinations with related activities.

The Railway Minister PiyushGoyal announced the annual allocation of Rs. 1813 crore to Telengana for railway project. It is an increase from an average of Rs 258 crore. South Central Railway (SCR) has become the first railway zone in the country to complete 100 per cent LED lighting at all the stations under its jurisdiction. Initiatives and passenger amenities to be provided by the South Central Railway and at Nizamabad station of 'Grade A' category. Phase two of Multi-Model Transit System (MMTS) to be taken up by the state and central government.

SBI has informed refiners it will not handle payments for crude from Iran from November 2018. Such a move from the SBI would come after US President Donald Trump pulled out of an international nuclear deal with Iran on May 8 and said he would reimpose sanctions within 180 days. Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), owner of the world's biggest refining complex, plans to halt oil imports from Iran while Rosneft-promoted Nayara Energy has started cutting purchases from this month.

The indigenous Pinaka rocket system of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is being evolved into a precision-guided missile. Pinaka rocket system is known for firing a salvo of 12 rockets in just 44 seconds, with enhanced range and accuracy to hit its targets. The rocket has been developed by the Armament cluster of the DRDO.

Karnataka Bank has unveiled a novel card variant 'KBL Deposit Only Card'. The card aims to enable hassle free cash deposit transaction at Bank's 24x7 e-Lobby services. This card is specially meant for Bank's Current/Overdraft customers. By using this card they can perform card based cash deposit transactions even with higher deposit limit.

NASA's record-breaking astronaut, Peggy Whitson, retired after a 22-year-long career. Whitson, who joined NASA as a researcher in 1986, has spent more time off Earth than any other American, totalling 665 days over three International Space Station missions. The 58-year-old is the oldest woman to go into space and also the most experienced female spacewalker, with 10 missions.

India Women's Cricket team opener Smriti Mandhana will become the first Indian player to appear in Kia Super League - the women's cricket super league in England. Smriti was signed by Western Storm and will represent them in the upcoming edition of the tournament that features six teams. The 21-year-old India opener has scored over 826 runs with the highest score of 76 in the 40 T20Is that she has played so far.

SoftBank Group Corp has decided to invest $60 billion-$100 billion in a solar power project in India. The company is expected to make the investment through a fund backed by Saudi Arabia's government. SoftBank through its Vision Fund would invest in creating the world's biggest solar power project in Saudi Arabia.

Former World Bank Economist Omar al-Razzaz was sworn in as Jordan's Prime Minister after King Abdullah issued a decree approving the new government. Omar succeeded Hani al-Mulki who resigned following mass protests over price hikes and other government economic policies.

The 106th Indian Science Congress (ISC-2019) will be held at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Jalandhar, Punjab from 3rd to 7th January 2019. The theme of the 5-day science congress is 'Future India: Science & Technology'. Approx 15,000 delegates, including 300 top scientists and Nobel Laureates from across world are expected to attend the congress. The science congress will have 18 plenary sessions, including those of medical, chemical, environmental and other science domains. There will also be four parallel mega events, including the children's science conference; women's science conference; science communicators' meet; and, science exhibition.