Current Affairs - June 7, 2019 Current Affairs

India ranked 95th out of 129 countries in a new index that measures global gender equality looking at aspects such as poverty, health, education, literacy, political representation and equality at the workplace. The list was topped by Denmark. Chad was placed at bottom most position (129th). The Sustainable Development Goals Gender Index has been developed by UK-based Equal Measures 2030, a joint effort of regional and global organizations.

Malayalam Actor Sheela J.C. has won the J.C. Daniel Award, the highest honour in Malayalam cinema. She is only the second woman to get it, after Aranmula Ponnamma in 2005. She won the State and National Awards for the Second Best Female Actor for Akale.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will attend the two-day meeting of G-20 Finance Ministers and central bank governors in Japan. This will be the first overseas visit of Sitharaman as the Finance Minister. She took charge as the first full-time woman Finance Minister of the country, recently. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das is also likely to attend the meeting at Fukuoka in Japan.

Ashok Leyland partnered with Suryoday Small Finance Bank for vehicle loans. The two partners have signed an initial agreement to enter a strategic financing partnership for three years. Under the agreement, the bank will provide end-to-end financial solutions to Ashok Leyland's customers for auto loans across India. Suryoday Small Finance Bank will benefit its customers with financial products and with a hassle-free experience.

World Food Safety Day is observed every year on 7th June. The theme for World Food Safety Day 2019 is 'Food Safety, Everyone's Business'. Food safety is the absence of safe, acceptable levels of hazards in food that may harm the health of consumers.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has become the first ever project in the country to receive power generated from a waste-to-energy plant. It has started receiving 2 MW power from a 12 MW capacity waste-to-energy plant set up in Ghazipur. The waste-to-energy plant set up by East Delhi Waste Processing Company Limited (EDWPCL) is based on a Public Private Partnership (PPP) involving the Delhi government and East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC), besides the EDWPCL. Currently, DMRC is producing 28 MW of solar power from the various rooftop solar power plants.

The Indian junior women's hockey team clinched the Cantor Fitzgerald U21 International 4-Nations title after beating Ireland 1-0 in the final at Dublin, Ireland. The win meant India ended the tournament with an unblemished record. With three goals in four games, Mumtaz Khan finished as the highest goal scorer of the tournament.

The ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India announced that fee for SC/ST candidates who join vocational training under Jan Shikshan Sansthans (JSS) have been waived off.This decision was taken by the Union Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey at the senior officials meet. The decision intended to strengthen the skill development and benefiting the underprivileged sections of society. The decision follows the recent reforms brought in January 2019 such as decentralization of powers for JSSs- giving more accountability and independence to the district administration, Training of Trainers to develop the capacity through NSTIs (National Skills Training Institutes).

An analysis of traffic congestion in more than 400 cities across six continents has found that commuters in Mumbai spent the most time on the road in 2018. Mumbai ranked first in the study, 'Traffic Index-2018', compiled by location technology specialist TomTom, with a congestion level of 65%, while New Delhi ranked fourth with congestion of 58%. The study covered 403 cities in 56 countries and defined congestion as the extra time added to road travel when traffic doesn't flow freely.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has launched a Fiscal Performance Index (FPI) to assess state and central budgets. The Index incorporates qualitative assessments of revenue expenditure, capital expenditure, revenues, fiscal prudence and the level of public debt arrive at a more holistic picture of fiscal performance than the fiscal deficit to GDP ratio according to the CII.

"Cricket World Cup: The Indian Challenge" - a book on the history of the tournament from an Indian perspective by veteran broadcaster and writer Ashis Ray - has been formally unveiled by the chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board, Tom Harrison.

Justice Dhirubhai Naranbhai Patel was sworn in as Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court. Lt Governor Anil Baijal administered the oath of office to Justice Patel at a function held at Raj Niwas.

IT Industry icon Azim Premji will retire as Executive Chairman of Wipro with effect from 30th July 2019. He led the company for 53 years. He will continue to serve on the board as Non-Executive Director and founder Chairman. His son Rishad Premji, Chief Strategy Officer and a board member, will take over as the Executive Chairman of the company. The board announced that Chief Executive and Executive Director Abidali Z Neemuchwala will be re-designated as CEO and Managing Director of Wipro.

Supersonic cruise missile BrahMos was test fired from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha. Anti-ship version of the missile launched by complex-3 of the ITR, Defence Research and Development (DRDO) sources. World's fastest supersonic cruise missile with high rate of accuracy. Missile is fired from land, sea and air. The missile with a strike range of around 290 km is a strategic asset for India which act as a deterrence against any possible threats from China and Pakistan.

Gujarat topped the country with annual fish production of 7.8 lakh tonnes, followed by Tamil Nadu (7.02 lakh tonnes) and Kerala (6.43 lakh tonnes) according to the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI).

Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, Nigeria's Ambassador to UN, has been elected as President of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA). In accordance with the rules, the President of the 74th session of the General Assembly should be elected from among the African States. Muhammad-Bande was elected by acclamation and he will succeed Ecuador's Maria Fernanda Espinosa in September 2019. He assumes charge as the world body gets ready to celebrate the 75th anniversary of its creation next year.

Mexican-American professional boxer Andres Ponce Ruiz Jr. becomes heavyweight champion after beating his opponent British professional boxer, Anthony Joshua at Madison Square Garden, New York.The win made Andres Ruiz the first Mexican heavyweight champion of the world.Ruiz also represented Mexico in two 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.s

Lennart Johansson, who oversaw the introduction of the Champions League during a 17-year reign as president of European soccer's governing body, has died. He was 89. Johansson led UEFA from 1990-2007 and was eventually beaten in a presidential election by former France great Michel Platini.

Six-time Grammy-winning musician Malcolm John Rebennack, better known as Dr John, passed away aged 77. The singer-songwriter suffered from a heart attack. He started his career as a pianist in the 1950s and gained popularity following the release of his first album in 1968.

The report on 'Benchmarking India's Payment Systems' which was released mentions that the country is "strong" in areas like having necessary laws and cash in circulation per capita. The report provides a comparative position of the payment system ecosystem in India relative to comparable payment systems and usage trends in other major countries.