Around
INDIA
# AFSPA will continue in Nagaland as it is a “special case” the
“peace agreement” hasn’t been finalized: MoS for Home Affairs, Mr. Kiren
Rijijiu
- Nagaland is the only the State in the northeast, apart from
eight police stations in Arunachal Pradesh where AFSPA continues to be imposed
# Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi honoured Central Institute
of Higher Tibetan Studies with the Vaisakh Samman Prasasti Patra as part of
celebrations to mark Buddha Purnima
# PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) and Indian Yoga
Association (IYA) signed a MoU to jointly promote yoga, health and spiritual
tourism in the Krishna Circuit in Uttar Pradesh
- Krishna Circuit is among the thirteen thematic circuits under
the Swadesh Darshan Scheme
- Krishna Circuit comprises 12 destinations associated with Lord
Krishna viz, Dwarka (Gujarat), Kurushetra (Haryana), Nathdwara (Rajasthan),
Jaipur (Rajasthan), Sikar (Rajasthan), Mathura (Uttar Pradesh), Vrindavan
(Uttar Pradesh), Gokul (Uttar Pradesh), Barsana (Uttar Pradesh), Nandgaon
(Uttar Pradesh), Govardhan (Uttar Pradesh) and Puri (Odihsa)
# Surat railway station in Gujarat will be the third in India
(after Habibanj in Madhya Pradesh and Gandhinagar in Gujarat) to be developed
as a world-class facility under Railway Ministry’s station redevelopment
programme
# Supreme Court admitted plea to quash Section 377 of the Indian
Penal Code (decriminalizes homosexuality)
# Supreme Court asked all the High Courts (24 High Courts) to
set up panels to monitor POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences)
Act trails
# CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) has banned party
poppers – a popular decorative used at parties and celebrations including at
IPL matches – on the grounds that the devices posed a health risk [Click here for more]
# Government responded to allegations that its village
electrification programme was still incomplete despite its claims of 100%
electrification, saying that the few remaining “sub-village units” would be
covered under its Saubaghya household electrification scheme
# 15th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas to be held in Varanasi, Uttar
Pradesh from Jan 21 – 23, 2019 with the theme “Role of Indian Diaspora in building a New India”
- Organised by Union Ministry of External Affairs in association
with the Uttar Pradesh State Government
- Mauritius Prime Minister, Mr. Pravind Jugnauth to be the chief
guest
# 20000 troops of Indian Army’s South Western Command
participated in the “Vijay Prahar” exercise in Suratgarh, Rajasthan
# As per data released by World Health Organisation (WHO), 14
Indian cities have figured in a list of 20 most polluted cities in the world; “Polluted
Cities” implies that particulate matter (PM) 2.5 concentrations in air in 2016.
It includes pollutants like sulphate, nitrate and black carbon; As per WHO’s
estimate, around 7 million people die every year from exposure to fine
particles in polluted air [Click for more]
# President, Mr. Ram Nath Kovind presided over the first meeting
of the national committee set up for commemoration of 150th birth anniversary
of Mahatma Gandhi, in 2019 [Click for more]
# President, Mr. Ram Nath Kovind hosted the meeting of
Vice-Chancellors of Central Universities in New Delhi; he also presented the
Visitor’s Award [Click for more]
# Task Force headed by Ms. Preeti Saran presented its report on
“Establishing a Coalition on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI)” to the
Union Home Minister, Mr. Rajnath Singh
# The five-judge collegium led by CJI deferred its decision on
the government’s objections to the elevation of High Court Chief Justice of
Uttarakhand, K. M. Joseph to the Supreme Court
# Supreme Court questioned the government’s justification for
passing the Aadhaar Act as a Money Bill
# Creche was opened in the Supreme Court where a total of 30
children of advocates, registered clerks and supreme court employees can be
accommodated
# Union Cabinet approved the continuation of PMSSY (Pradhan
Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana) beyond 12th Five year plan for a period of
2017-18 to 2019-20 with a cost of Rs. 14, 382 crore [PMSSY aims to correct
regional imbalances in the availability of affordable tertiary healthcare
services and to expand facilities for quality medical education in India]
# Union Cabinet approved for extending the investment limit from
Rs. 7.5 lakhs to Rs. 15 lakhs as well as the extension of time limits for
subscription for May 04, 2018 to March 31, 2018 under the PMVVY (Pradhan Mantri
Vaya Vandhan Yojana) as part of Government’s commitment for financial inclusion
and social security
- PMVVY is being implemented through LIC to provide social
security during old age and protect elderly persons aged 60 years and above
against a future fall in their interest income due to uncertain market
conditions.
# Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved for the
umbrella scheme “Green revolution – Krishonnati Yojana” in agriculture
sector beyond 12th five year plan for
the period from 2017-18 to 2019-20 with the central share of Rs. 33, 269.976
crore; the umbrella scheme comprises of 11 schemes or mission [Click for more]
# Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved upgradation and
expansion of airport infrastructure at Lucknow, Chennai and Guwahati airports
with a total cost of over Rs. 5000 crore
|
Airports
|
Capacity of passengers (per year)
|
Approximate cost
|
|
Chennai
|
35 million
|
2467 cr
|
|
Lucknow
|
13.6 million
|
1232 cr
|
|
Guwahati
|
9 million
|
1383 cr
|
# North Eastern Cultural and Information Centre will come up in
New Delhi soon
# Over 100 people were killed and around 180 injured after a
high-velocity dust storm followed by thunder showers wreaked havoc in parts of
Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, leaving behind a trail of destruction
# In an unprecedented incident, close to 55 film makers stayed
away from the 65th National Film Awards function, protesting against “selective
treatment”. This year, in a departure from the established practice, President,
Mr. Ram Nath Kovind did not give awards to each recipient
# Supreme Court asked Karnataka to release Cauvery water of 4
tmcft to Tamil Nadu in May 2018 [Click for more]
# NSA, Mr. Ajit Doval chaired the first meeting of the DPC
(Defence Plannign Committee)
# Union Government issued a fresh warning of thunderstorm and
squall in West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh
- Heavy rain is likely at isolated places in Tamil Nadu and
Kerala
- Dust Storm in Rajasthan
# Ministry of Home Affairs launched online “Event clearance
system” aimed at granting security clearance to foreigners wanting to visit
India to attend conferences, seminars or workshops
# Sikkim’s Pakyong Airport became India’s 100th functional
airport
# Ministry of Human Resources and Development has launched an
initiative of online professional development of 1.5 million higher education
faculty using the MOOCs (Massive open Online Course) platform through SWAYAM
# Indian Railways marked the 26 years of Ladies Special Suburban
trains; The first ladies special suburban train ran on May 05, 1992 between
Churchgate and Borivali in Mumbai
TAMIL
NADU
# Schools across the
state will be inspected to ensure compliance with building regulations and
safety norms ahead of the coming academic year
# Makkal Needhi Maiam leader, Mr. Kalam Hassan launched “Maiam
Whistle”, a mobile application that can be used to flag civic and
socio-political issues
# Governor, Mr. Banwarilal Purohit extended the tenure of the
one-man committee headed by retired IAS Officer, Mr. R. Santhanam, which he had
constituted to probe the Aruppukottai audiotape scandal
# As part of the May day
celebrations, gram sabha meetings were held; 4 village panchayats in the
Thoothukudi Districts sought closure of Sterlite plant
# Cauvery issue to be heard in the Supreme Court today
# Chief Minister, Mr. Edappadi Palaniswamy while taking part in
the meeting on the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi said
the following:
·
“Gandhi Green Earth Award” must be instituted, along the lines
of Nobel Prize
·
Dhotis and Sarees must be distributed free of cost to the poor
on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanthi
·
Gandhigram Rural Institute, now a deemed university to be
upgraded as a Central University
·
Centre of Eminence for Rural development and Gandhian Philosophy
must be created
·
Gandhi Museum in Madurai should be given of “National
Importance”
# President, Mr. Ram Nath Kovind visited the State (May 04 – 05,
2018)
·
Centenary celebrations of the Christian Medical College, Vellore
·
160th Convocation of University of Madras
·
College functions in Sri Guru Nanak College, Chennai and
inauguration of Kidney Trnasplant in a private hospital in Vellore
# Madras Institute of Technology (MIT) has appointed the popular
Tamil film actor, Mr. Ajith Kumar (popularly called as “Thala”) as its “Helicopter
Test Pilot and UAV System Advisor” [Click for more]
# The Madras High Court chided the State police for their
inaction on the complaint filed against the actor and BJP leader Mr. S. Ve.
Sekhar, who posted derogatory comments against women working in media
# Government said that all candidates allotted centres in other
states for NEET will be given Rs. 1000 and he or she as well as an accompanying
person would be supported with second-class return train tickets
# 8 students from the state won medals and a shield in Kala
Utsav – 2017, an initiative of the Union Ministry of Human resources and
Development (MoHRD); Chief Minister, Mr. Edappadi K. Palaniswamy handed over a
cheque of R.s 5000 to each of the students
- Kala Utsav is an initiative of MoHRD under the Rashtriya
Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan, to promote arts in education by nurturing and
showcasing the artistic talent of school students at the secondary stage in the
country
# Dodransbicentennial (175th year) celebrations of Pachaiyappa’s
College, Chennai
# Chief Minister, Mr. Edappadi K. Palaniswamy released the newly
revised school books for Classes 1, 6, 9 and 11 (for remaining classes, the
newly revised school books from the next academic year)
- Class 11 textbook has a lesson on the success story of
Narthaki Nataraj, the transgender Bharathanatyam dancer as a step towards being
inclusive of all genders
- Former Anna University Vice – Chancellor, Mr. M.
Ananthakrishnan presided over the committee to frame the new syllabus for Tamil
Nadu school text books
STATES
SCAN
# Gujarat: Government to start a month-long initiative named
“Sujalam Sufalam Water Conservation Initiative” from May 01, 2018 (Foundation
Day of Gujarat) to increase its water conservation capacity
# Jammu & Kashmir: Mr. Kavinder Gupta was sworn in as the
new Deputy Chief Minister of the State; he replaced Mr. Nirmal Singh
# Rajasthan: Government to observe February 14 as “Matr-Pitr
Pujan Diwas” (Mother-Father Puja Day); government said that the objective of
the order is to counter the growing influence of the western culture among
teenagers (February 14 is observed as Valentine’s Day or Lovers Day across the
World)
# West Bengal: in one-third of seats, the opposition parties
(BJP, Congress, Left Parties) could not even put up a candidate in the
panchayat elections – an all-time record since the first local bodies elections
were held in the State in 1978; this means that over 34% of the seats was won
by Trinamool Congress candidate without any elections
# Maharashtra: becomes the first state to provide
digitally-signed land record receipts (also known as 7/12 receipts)
# Goa: Union Civil Ministry said that, the State of Goa will
become a logistics hub of India after a second airport becomes functional in
2020; the two airport sin the state: Dabolim and Mopa will help position the state
as a logistic hub; Mopa airport will be the second biggest in India after
Mumbai
# Kerala: Popular detective novelist (Kottayam Pushpanath) who
played a crucial role in promoting the reading habit among Malayalees passed
away
# Assam: “Vibrant North East 2018” was held in Guwahati from May
03 – 05, 2018
# Assam: Yangli festival was held in the State (celebrated by
Tiwa tribal community)
# Maharashtra: Government decided to rename the Jalgaon – based
North Maharashtra University after Poetess Bahinabai Chaudhari (Kaviyatri
Bahinabai Chaudhari North Maharashtra University)
# Karnataka: Election to the Jayanagar Assembly Constituency
called off as the BJP Candidate, B. N. Vijayakumar passed away
# Manipur: Government launched “Go to Village” mission aimed at
identifying the eligible and deserving beneficiaries in every corner of the
state and delivering government services at their doorstep
# Uttar Pradesh: Government sought assistance of more than Rs.
839 crore for damage to crops, property and human life due to the drought and
recent violent hailstorms
BILATERAL
ISSUES
# 9th India – Japan
Energy Dialogue was held in New Delhi
# Bilateral trade between India and China commenced through
Nathu La border
- Trade through this was stopped due to Doklam standoff between
the two countries in 2017
# India – South Africa business summit was held in Johannesburg,
South Africa with the tagline of “United
by Legacy, United for Prosperity”
# 70 years of diplomatic relations between India and Serbia
# Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh along with West Bengal
Chief Minister to meet in Santiniketan on May 25 for the inauguration of the
“Bangladesh Bhawan” Tagore Museum
- The three leaders will also visit two universities named after
the two most celebrated poets in West Bengal: Rabindranath Tagore and Kazi
Nazrul
- No formal talks on Rohingya issue or Teesta water sharing
issue
# Vice President, Mr. Venkaiah Naidu will mark his first maiden
foreign tour to the South American countries of Guatemala, Panama and Peru
- India and Peru celebrates 55 years of diplomatic relations in
2018
WORLD
# Afghanistan: at least 25 people were killed in a bomb blast in
Kabul
# Bangladesh: urged UN Security council to press Myanmar to take
back its Rohingya nationals even as she called on India along with Russia,
China and Japan to play a stronger role in resolving the refugee crisis
# For the first time in almost 70 years, there will be no Nobel
Literature Prize this year (2018), after the Swedish Academy that selects the
laureate failed to contain a deep crisis stemming from the anti-sexual
harassment #MeToo campaign
# China: launched a new communication satellite named “APSTAR –
6C” at the Xichang satellite Launch Center, China
- APSTAR – 6C satellite to provide transmission across Asia –
pacific region
# Russian President Mr. Vladmir Putin and French President, Mr.
Emmanuel Macron called for the “strict observance” of the current Iran nuclear
accord, with U.S. President, Mr. Donald Trump still deciding whether to scrap
the agreement
# UK: Home Secretary Ms. Amber Rudd resigned following several
weeks of intense scrutiny of her policies both towards illegal immigration and
Commonwealth nations; Mr. Sajid Javid (Pakistani Britain) is the new Home
Minister
- Mr. Sajid Javid becomes the first South Asian to head one of
the “Great Offices of State”, the name given to the four most senior positions
in the government (also including Prime Minister, head of the Treasury and head
of the Foreign Office)
# Pakistan: Prime Minister, Mr. Shahid Khaqan Abbasi inaugurated
the country’s biggest and first Greenfield airport in Islamabad
# Peru: tourists gasp for breath as they climb for two hours to
a peak in the Peruvian Andes that stands 5,000 metres above sea level and they
stunned by the magical beauty unfurled before them; stripes of turquoise,
lavender and gold blanket what has become known as “Rainbow Mountain”, a ridge
of multicoloured sediments laid down millions of years ago and pushed up as
tectonic plates clashed
ECONOMICS
# According to TRA’s Brand trust report 2018, Google is the most
trusted Internet brand in India
(1) Google
(2) Facebook
(3) Amazon
(4) e – bay
# 27th meeting of GST Council (in New Delhi) decided to convert
the GST Network into a 100% government enterprise, and implement a single form
for GST filing from the current three; the council also decided to create two
GoMs (Group of Ministers)
(i) GoM to review the plan for imposition of a cess on sugar
(the cess was meant to subsidise sugarcane farmers as their production cost is
much higher than selling price)
(ii) GoM to consider the implementation of a 2% incentive for
digital transactions
# 4th Regional
conference on Futuristic, Resilient and Digital Infrastructure of the AIIB
(Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank) was held in Bengaluru
- The
conference is a lead-up to the 3rd Annual Meeting of the AIIB to be hosted by
India in Mumbai on June 25 – 26, 2018
# 51st meeting
of the ADB (Asian Development Bank) was held in Manila; India was represented b
y Mr. Subash Chandra Garg (Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry
of Finance)
# Former IAS officer, Mr. Subash Chandra Khuntia was appointed
as the Chairman of the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India
(IRDAI) for three years
# Telecom Commission gave its nod to a proposal for setting up
an ombudsman for resolution of grievances of telecom consumers
# Flyers on board an aircraft will be able to make calls and
remain connected to the Internet while travelling through the Indian airspace
in the next three to four months
# RBI allowed FPIs (Foreign Portfolio Investors) to invest in
Treasury Bills issued by the Central Government
# Revenue from GST for April 2018 has finally crossed Rs. 1 lakh
crore threshold: Union Finance Ministry
SPORTS
# India’s 10m air pistol shooter Shahzar Rizvi grabbed the No. 1
spot in ISSF World rankings [Click for more]
# 16 boxers including 10 women, have qualified to represent
India in the AIBA boxing championships to be held in Budapest in August 2018
# India’s hockey coaches
- Men’s team: Harendra Singh
- Women’s team: Sjoerd Marijne
# Wimbledon announced that it was hiking its total prize pot for
the 2018 tennis championships to £34 million, up 7.6%
- This year’s championships at Wimbledon marks the 150th
anniversary of the club, 50 years of Open tennis and 125 years of the Women’s
Singles Championships
# England’s Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes team) won the Azerbaijan
Grand Prix 2018
# Indian pugilist Neeraj Goyat has been awarded the WBC Asia
Boxer of the Year Award; Neeraj Goyat is the courrent WBC Asia Champion in
welter weight category;
- Neerav Tomar was awarded the “WBC Asia Honorary Promoter of
the Year 2017 Award” by the Asian Boxing Council
MISC
# Second edition of World Hindu Congress 2018 to be held in
Chicago, USA from Sep 07 – 09, 2018 with the theme “Think Collectively, Achieve Valiantly”
- Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu lawmaker in the US Congress has
been named as Chairperson of World Hindu Congress 2018
- First edition of World Hindu Congress was held in New Delhi in
2014
# Book “Anita Gets Bail” by Arun Shourie
# Economist
Ashok Mitra passed away
- Finance
Minister of West Bengal in 1977
- Wrote the
book “Terms of trade and Class Relations”
# Playback Singer Asha Bhosle was conferred with P. C. Chandra
Puraskar 2018
# India has joined the United States and China as one the
world’s five biggest military spenders: SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace
Research Institute); India surpassed France to join in the top 5 club of
military expenditure; The top 5 countries accounted for 60% of the total
spending [Click for more]
# The new snake of 40 cm long and iridescent brown was found in
the Western Ghats
- The snake, currently found only in the forests of the
Anaikatty hills in Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore District has been named Uropeltis bhupathyi, after the late
herpetologist S. Bhupathy for his contributions to the field
- The reptile belongs to afamily of snakes found only in
peninsular India and Sri Lanka
- They are non – venomous, mostly burrowing and earth-worm
eating and are called shieldtails after the large, flat tips of their tails,
which make them appear almost sliced off
# Twitter
urged all its users to change its password
# Indian – American Deepa Ambedkar was appointed as interim
court judge in Civil Court, New York
# May 01: International Labour Day
# May 01: Statehood day for Maharashtra and Gujarat
- Maharashtra and Gujarat came into existence on May 01, 1960
# May 01: World Asthma Day; theme: “Never too early, never too late. It’s always the right time to address
airways disease”
# May 02: World Tuna Day; theme: “Smart Tuna – Smart Ocean”
# May 03: World Press Freedom Day; theme: “Keeping Power in Check: Media, Justice and The Rule of Law”
# May 04: International Firefighters Day
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