Current Affairs

21st Commonwealth Table Tennis C'ship begins today

Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal opened the 21st edition of Commonwealth Table Tennis Championship at the Jawaharlal Indoor Stadium in Cuttack this morning. 

The event will witness the top players from India, Australia, England, Malaysia, Scotland and Singapore among other nations competing for coveted titles.

The tournament will conclude on Monday.



President Kovind appoints Governors for Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh

President Ram Nath Kovind has appointed Anusuiya Uikey as Governor of Chhattisgarh. 

Biswa Bhusan Harichandan has been named as Governor of Andhra Pradesh. 

An official release said the appointments will take effect from the dates they assume charge of their offices. 



Indian Navy Signs $50 Million Follow-up Deal on Surface-to-Air Missiles With Israel Aerospace

State-owned defense contractor Israel Aerospace Industries said on Wednesday it signed a $50 million follow-up contract to provide complementary missile systems to the Indian navy and India's MDL Shipyard.

The agreement involves a range of maintenance and other services for sub-systems of Israel Aerospace's naval medium range surface-to-air missile.

"This contract is a breakthrough as it advances us from system development and delivery to looking after the operational needs of our customers," said Boaz Levi, general manager of the Systems, Missiles & Space Group at Israel Aerospace.



Sign of deepening military ties as China 'gifts' Sri Lanka a warship

In what marks a sign of deepening military ties between Sri Lanka and China, Beijing has 'gifted' a warship to Colombo. According to an agency report, the frigate — 'P625' arrived in Colombo last week. The frigate was commissioned into the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy as Tongling in 1994. the warship was decommissioned in 2015 and has been gifted to Sri Lankan Navy after a refit.

Vice Admiral Piyal De Silva, Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy thanked China and said that the gift would be taken as a token of friendship between the two countries, PTI reported citing Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency. According to China's mission in Colombo, 110 Lankan Navy personnel were trained for over two months in Shanghai for operating the ship.

The navy of the island nation which occupies a strategically important position in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) has 50 combat and support ships. Last year, India had gifted an Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) to Sri Lanka besides two such vessels in 2006 and 2008.



Coca-Cola appoints Sarvita Sethi as VP M&A and New Ventures for India & South West Asia

Global beverages major Coca-Cola on July 16 announced top-level changes in its India and South West Asia unit with appointment of Sarvita Sethi as Vice-President-M&A and New Ventures, and Harsh Bhutani as Vice President - Finance (CFO).

Sethi, who was earlier VP Finance India and South West Asia, in her new role will provide leadership to business incubation, Coca-Cola said in a statement.

She will also continue to lead the M&A priorities for Coca-Cola's business in India and South West Asia, it added.

Both appointments will be effective from August 1, 2019.
"We believe there are significant opportunities that lie ahead of us to grow our portfolio and meaningfully penetrate the market. It is our constant endeavour to strengthen the leadership team for a strong sustainable future growth," said Coca-Cola India & South West Asia President T Krishnakumar.


Thrilled to hold the award: Bopanna

It was after nearly a year that Rohan Bopanna was able to lay his hands on the Arjuna award, as he received it from the Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju here on Tuesday.

“It is an amazing feeling to hold the award. Definitely, I would have loved to receive it from the President at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, along with other athletes and achievers. But that does not take anything away from the thrill of receiving it,” said Bopanna, who received the trophy along with his wife Supriya Annaiah.

Bopanna, a former World No. 3 doubles star, said he enjoyed his meeting with the minister.

“He is such a big tennis fan, and has been watching tennis for a long time. We spoke for nearly 45 minutes and it was very positive. He also talked about following women’s cricket, as Smriti Mandhana also got the award today,” said Bopanna.



Sharath Kamal voted IOC Sportsperson of the Year

Sharath Kamal was voted the Sportsperson of the Year in the annual Indian Oil Sports Conclave at an impressive function in New Delhi on Monday.

Sharath, a Chennai-based Chief Manager who turned 37 last week, was among the five nominees for whom votes were polled by over 60 elite sportspersons employed with the oil major.

The other nominees were cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara, Grandmaster B, Adhiban, hockey player Simranjeet Singh and table tennis player Manika Batra.

A delighted Sharath said, “It is a great honour to be chosen ahead of such achievers. After my parents, Indian Oil has played a major role in my career. In 2003, they took me when I was not even a National champion. Sine then, they have taken care of all my needs and it is an absolute privilege to be part of the Indian Oil family.”



World Bank clears $250 million for Kerala scheme

The first tranche of $250 million of the $500 million funds set aside by the World Bank for the Resilient Kerala Programme (RKP) to help improve the state's resilience against natural disasters and climate change has been cleared, according to a top bank official.

Kerala had become the first Indian state to get this fund, said Junaid Ahmad, Country Director, World Bank, India, here on Monday.

"The future of India is in the states and hence we decided to invest in state schemes besides concentrating on citizen-centric programmes. That's what we have done in the RKP," said Ahmad.

Ahmad along with his team was here to take part in the Development Parties Conclave, organised by the Kerala government with the participation of top international agencies, like World Bank, Asian Development Bank, JAICA and UNDP, to discuss ways to help the state rebuild after last year's floods.



RBI fines Union Bank, SBI for flouting norms

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has penalised State Bank of India and Union Bank of India for violating certain regulatory guidelines.

SBI was fined ₹7 crore for non-compliance with the directions issued by the RBI on Income Recognition and Asset Classification (IRAC) norms, code of conduct for opening and operating current accounts and reporting of data on Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC), and fraud risk management and classification and reporting of frauds.

RBI said the statutory inspection of the bank with reference to its financial position as on March 31, 2017 revealed that the lender had violated those norms.

The central bank also imposed a ₹10-lakh fine on Union Bank for non-compliance with the directions on the cybersecurity framework in banks issued by the RBI. In 2016, the RBI carried out an examination of the cybersecurity framework after reports of generation of seven fraudulent messages worth $171 million through the SWIFT system of the bank.



India to host ISSF World Cup in March 2020

The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) has confirmed the dates, March 15 to 26, for the World Cup in rifle, pistol and shot gun to be hosted at the Dr. Karni Singh Range, Tughlakabad, here in 2020.

This will be preceded by the Shotgun World Cup in Nicosia, Cyprus, from March 4 to 13.

The World Cup in rifle, pistol and shotgun, a test event for the Olympics, will be staged in Tokyo from April 15 to 27.

It will be followed by the World Cup in rifle and pistol in Munich, Germany, from June 2 to 9, and the combined World Cup for all three events in Baku, Azerbaijan, from June 22 to July 3.