NATIONAL NEWS
1. Centre takes several steps to help farmers deal with loss due to Corona pandemic
• The Centre has taken a number of measures to help farmers deal with the loss they had to suffer because of the Corona pandemic.
• A sum of 2 lakh crore rupees have been allocated to provide concessional credit through Kisan Credit Card.
• A total of 2,000 rupees per month is also being provided under PM Kisan Yojana. In order to strengthen Farm-gate Infrastructure, a scheme worth 1 lakh crore rupees has been started to strengthen the cold storage chain in the supply chain. A report :
• Agriculture Market reforms have been carried out to provide better market options. Farmers can now sell their crops anywhere and avail better prices.
• Essential Commodities Act, APMC Act/ Mandi Act have been amended to offer better price to farmers. A scheme worth 10,000 crore rupees has been dedicated to over 2 lakh unorganized Micro Food Processing Enterprises which will help them in establishing their own brand.
• For the fishermen, a scheme worth Rs. 20 thousand crore rupees has been allowed as part of the PM Matsya Sampada Yojana. This will give an unprecedented boost to inland and marine fisheries. For the Animal Husbandry Farmers, a total of 15 thousand crore rupees has been allocated to rejuvenate the animal husbandry sector.
2. SC dismisses plea seeking free test, treatment for coronavirus infection
• The Supreme Court dismissed a plea seeking direction to the Centre, all states and Union territories to provide free of cost treatment for coronavirus infection till COVID-19 pandemic is contained, saying it is for the government to take a call on it.
• The bench, which heard the matter through video-conferencing, observed that government hospitals across the country are giving free treatment to coronavirus infected patients.
• The top court was hearing a plea filed by Delhi-based advocate Amit Dwivedi who had sought a direction to the authorities and others, including health care facilities, to "conduct tests, all subsequent tests, procedures and treatments in relation to COVID-19 disease free of cost for all citizens of India" till the pandemic is contained.
• The Supreme court had earlier refused to entertain another prayer made in Dwivedi's plea seeking direction to the Centre, all the states and union territories to nationalise all healthcare facilities and related entities till the pandemic is contained in India.
• The Centre had earlier told the apex court that government has taken appropriate steps to provide adequate health facilities to all the citizens.
• The plea had claimed that the public health sector in India has remained in "shambles due to low budgetary allowances" but at the same time, the private health care sector has seen "tremendous growth".
3. PM Modi inaugurates Silver Jubilee celebrations of RGUHS through video conferencing
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently inaugurated the Silver Jubilee celebrations of the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) and release of the compendium of research articles through video conference, on June 1st.
• RGUHS entered into 25th year on June 1st since it started in 1996.
• It is the largest Health Science university in the country with 800 institutions associated with it and more than 2.5 lakhs students learning.
4. Cyclone Nisarga makes landfall; a lucky escape for Mumbai
• Nisarga, the first severe cyclone to impact Mumbai in more than 60 years, largely spared India’s financial capital as the severe cyclonic storm weakened after its landfall south of the city, claiming no major damages or loss of life in the region.
• The cyclone crossed the coast near Alibag in Raigad district with wind speeds of up to 120km per hour at 12.30pm.
• Mumbai remained largely unaffected as the landfall, initially expected to be 16km away in Alibag, deviated 75km from the coastal resort town.It made landfall south of Alibag. The cyclone’s eye diameter was 80km and the eye crossed south of Alibag in Raigad but the rest of it crossed neighbouring districts.
• IMD’s prediction of extremely heavy rainfall was not reported in several areas of Mumbai.
5. Gujarat is the first state to complete the migration of workers to their home state through Shramik Special trains
• Gujarat is the first state to complete the migration of workers to their home state through Shramik Special trains.
• It is the only state which has run more than 1,000 shramik special trains for sending 15 lakh 18 thousand migrant workers to their home state.
• This was the biggest planned migration by any state in Independent India. From more than 40 trains earlier this week, the last 7 Shramik Special Trains departed from different stations of Gujarat.
• Maximum 8 lakh 20 thousand workers migrated to Uttar Pradesh followed by 3 lakh 50 thousand workers to Bihar and 1 lakh 31 thousand workers to Odisha.
• Shramik Special Trains also operated for other 16 States from Gujarat.
6. UP becomes first state to prepare one lakh beds for COVID-19 patients
• Uttar Pradesh has become the first state in the country to prepare one lakh beds for COVID-19 patients, with each of the 75 districts having dedicated beds for patients in the respective facilities.
• The beds in the hospitals are classified into three categories- Level 1, level 2 and level 3. While level one and two beds are for patients exhibiting mild symptoms, level three beds are meant for graver infections.
• The hospitals catering to level one patients will have facilities for oxygen support, those catering to level two patients will have a few ventilators in addition to oxygen support.
• Level three hospitals will have ventilator support as well as ICU facilities for the patients, besides having provisions for dialysis.
7. Second phase of operation Samudra Setu begins
• Indian navy ship INS Jalashwa will sail from Colombo port in Sri Lanka carrying around 700 Indian nationals back to Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu.
• This will be the first operation as part of operation ‘Samudra Setu’ from Sri Lanka to repatriate Indian citizens as part of Vande Bharat mission.
• The ship will reach Colombo this morning and will depart by late evening. Indian high commission in Colombo is making final arrangements for the repatriation with support of the Sri Lankan navy and other authorities.
• COVID-related social distancing norms have been catered onboard and evacuees would be provided basic amenities and medical facilities during the sea-passage.
• Indian Navy has already repatriated 1,488 Indian nationals from Malè to Kochi during the previous phase of operations.
• INS Jalashwa is scheduled to bring back another 700 Indian nationals from Maldives capital of Male on Friday and preparations regarding it are also on.
8. Delhi CM launches app to help track hospital beds, ventilators for COVID-19 patients
• The Delhi government launched the Delhi Corona app to give users information on availability of ventilators, beds, in hospitals etc.
• The app has been made available to Android users as of now and is available on Play Store.
• Delhi Corona app has been launched to give people relevant information about the availability of beds in private and government hospitals.
• It shows the total number of beds with a total number of occupied and vacant beds for COVID-19 patients.
• The app lists all the private and public hospitals that treat COVID-19 patients. It supports Hindi and English languages.
• The app gives information for essential services which may be required during the lockdown. Services such as ration, e-pass, and hunger/shelter relief centres can be accessed through the app.
• Information on containment zones, health services, government orders have also been made accessible on the app.
• The app also has a bot which lists out questions to determine if one has COVID-19.
• Delhi Corona app also gives information about coronavirus with the latest stats.
• The app will be updated everyday twice at 10 AM and 6 PM.
• They can also dial 0131 helpline number wherein details will be provided to them via an SMS, and the WhatsApp number 8800007722.
9. Govt unveils PM SVANIDHI scheme to provide affordable loans to street vendors
• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched PM Svanidhi, or Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi scheme, which is a special micro-credit facility plan to provide affordable loan of up to ₹10,000 to more than 50 lakh street vendors, who had their businesses operational on or before 24 March.
• The scheme is valid until March 2022.
• It was announced by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 14 May to enable street vendors to resume their livelihoods, which have been hit hard due to the national lockdown.
• Under the scheme, vendors can avail working capital loan of up to ₹10,000, which is repayable in monthly instalments within one year.
• On timely/early repayment of the loan, an interest subsidy of 7% per annum will be credited to the bank accounts of beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) on six-months basis. There will be no penalty on early repayment of loan.
• The scheme is applicable to vendors, hawkers, thelewale, rehri wala, theliphadwalas in different areas/contexts who supply goods and services. Street vendors belonging to the surrounding peri-urban/rural areas are also included.
• A timely repayment will ensure that the vendor gets a credible credit score and is eligible for a higher loan. Small Industries Development Bank of India is the technical partner for implementation of this scheme and will manage the credit guarantee to the lending institutions through Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises.
• India has been under an extended lockdown from 25 March to tackle the spread of covid-19. The lockdown has affected the lives and livelihoods of many especially daily wagers including street vendors whose businesses were affected due to the restrictions.
• In the fifth phase of the lockdown which began, the government has eased restrictions for movement of people and businesses to resume.
10. Odisha, Sikkim & Mizoram included in 'One Nation, One Ration Card' scheme
• Three more states have been included in One Nation, One Ration Card scheme. They are Odisha, Sikkim and Mizoram.
• Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan announced the inclusion of these states in the scheme on Integrated Management of Public Distribution System.
• Under this system, nation-wide portability of the benefits under National Food Security Act through One Nation, One Ration Card plan is implemented to enable the NFSA ration card holders to lift their entitled quota of subsidized food grains from any e-PoS enabled Fair Price Shop of their choice anywhere in the country, by using the existing and same ration card after Aadhaar authentication.
• The facility so far is enabled in 17 States and UTs including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Further, constant efforts are being made to expand the reach of national portability to the beneficiaries of other states.
• By August 2020, Uttarakhand, Nagaland and Manipur will also be added to the national cluster. Centre is doing all necessary arrangements to include remaining all 13 states like West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh to the national cluster. It is confirmed that by 31st March 2021 all states will be added to One Nation, One Ration Card scheme.
11. J&K Govt approves Media Policy
• In Jammu and Kashmir, the Union Territory administration has approved a Media Policy for the current year.
• The policy aims to create a sustained narrative on the functioning of the Government in the media.
• With this approval, the Government will be in a better position to carry the message of welfare, development and progress to the people in an effective manner, besides enabling the Department of Information & Public Relations J&K to keep pace with the demands of the media and reposition itself as a professional organization.
• The key highlight of the Policy is to lay down a solid foundation to use all forms of media to build public trust, pay attention to grievances of people projected by the media and strengthen the relationship between the various stakeholders.
• The new Media Policy includes institution of Media awards to be given each year to two outstanding media or communication professionals. It also aims to thwart misinformation, fake news and develop a mechanism that will raise alarms against any attempt to use the media to vitiate public peace, sovereignty and integrity of the country.
12. Govt launches SWADES to conduct skill mapping of citizens returning under VBM
• Union Government has launched a new initiative SWADES- Skilled Workers Arrival Database for Employment Support to conduct a skill mapping exercise of the returning citizens under the Vande Bharat Mission.
• This is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Civil Aviation Ministry and External Affairs Ministry.
• SWADES aims to create a database of qualified citizens based on their skill sets and experience to tap into and fulfil demand of Indian and foreign companies.
• The collected information will be shared with the companies for suitable placement opportunities in the country.
• The returning citizens are required to fill up an online SWADES Skills Card.
• It is crucial that the entire country supports the Centre in its efforts to address the challenges posed by the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The data collected through SWADES Skill Card will help the citizens with job prospects and bridge the demand-supply gap.
• In order to ensure dissemination of information on SWADES Skill Card, In-flight announcements are being made by Air India and Air Indian Express that are operating flights under the Vande Bharat Mission.
13. Health Ministry issues guidelines for safe Ear, Nose & Throat practice
• Following the Centre's 'Unlock 1' call - an attempt to dilute the Coronavirus consequent lockdown - the Health Ministry has now issued guidelines for safe ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat) clinical practices.
• The guidelines aim at minimizing the spread of COVID-19 virus among doctors, nurses and other staff.
• The advisory has also emphasized on teleconsultation and screening of patients using proforma at the entrance of the clinics.
• The Standard Operating Procedure issued by the Health Ministry has advised practitioners to wear Level 1 PPE kits and avoid performing endoscopy in routine OPD. It has been mandated for patients to be screened for COVID-19 before admission and further visitors for patients have been restricted.
• Since Ear, Nose and Throat is a high-risk speciality, the guidelines are designed to minimise the spread of the infection among doctors, and healthcare professionals. The guidelines issued by the ministry are extensive, and include -
I. Protocols and SOPs for ENT OPD
II. Protocol for ENT and Head & Neck Surgery Ward
III. Guidelines for Operation Theatre for ENT surgeries
• Teleconsultation, time-based appointment to minimise the number of people who gather at one place, screening of patients before they enter the clinic – are some of the basic measures to be taken. Wearing masks, PPE kits, is essential for health care personnel, while gowns and triple-layer masks are important for patients, caretakers. Distance to be maintained wherever and whenever possible. Well-ventilated wards, corridors to be ensured. Visitors should not be allowed in the wards.
• Guidelines for keeping the centres clean, and disinfected have also been issued. No non-COVID-19 patient will undergo surgeries in the COVID-19 wards, the guidelines mention. The full set of guidelines can be accessed on the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India website.
14. Centre launches TULIP portal to provide benefit to all stakeholders
• Human Resources Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri launched a joint initiative, TULIP aimed at providing internships to the engineering students in the country.
• TULIP will mutually benefit all stakeholders, including the students, urban local bodies and the Industry in identifying young talents.
• This unique and first of its kind opportunity in the country will help unleash India's demographic dividend by creating a talent pool which can pave the way for making Indian cities more self-reliant.
• TULIP will equip the youth with problem solving and critical thinking skills through hands-on, experiential learning in India's fast growing urban ecosystem.
• This platform will utilise the innovative thought process of youths to amend the urban infrastructure for greater benefit.
• The initiative will also assist in achieving India's goal of reaching a 5 trillion dollar economy in the next 5 years.
• TULIP platform has been designed by AICTE to effectively create a repository of all participating interns and will facilitate their final placement and recruitment. The urban learning internship program will provide opportunities to students in various urban local bodies across the country for development of smart cities.
• The web based platform can also be used by the interns for obtaining certificate of participation after completion of their internship. It is likely to benefit around 25 thousand students in the first year of its launch.
15. Govt promulgates two ordinances to help farmers, to boost rural economy
• The President of India Has promulgated the Ordinances approved by the cabinet. These ordinances are aimed at giving a boost to rural India for farmers engaged in agriculture and allied activities.
• The two ordinances - The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion & Facilitation) Ordinance 2020 and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance 2020 will create a conducive ecosystem for private investment in agriculture.
• The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion & Facilitation) Ordinance 2020will provide for the creation of an ecosystem where the farmers and traders enjoy the freedom of choice relating to sale and purchase of farmers' produce which facilitates remunerative prices through competitive alternative trading channels.
• It will promote efficient, transparent and barrier-free inter-State and intra-State trade and commerce of farmers' produce outside the physical premises of markets or deemed markets notified under various State agricultural produce market legislations. Besides, the Ordinance will provide a facilitative framework for electronic trading and matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
• The second ordinance related to corporate farming - The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance 2020 - will provide for a national framework on farming agreements that protects and empowers farmers to engage with agri- business firms, processors, wholesalers, exporters or large retailers for farm services and sale of future farming produce at a mutually agreed remunerative price framework in a fair and transparent manner and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
• Farmers can engage with large processors for minimum one crop season and maximum to five years. The provisions in the Ordinance are farmer-friendly aimed at safeguarding the interest of the farmers.
• The President also promulgated an Ordinance to amend Essential Commodities Act. Through this Ordinance, the government has taken out agricultural commodities like cereals, pulses, oilseeds, oils, onions and potatoes out of the essential commodities list. The amendment to the EC Act will allow clamping of stock limits on agricultural commodities only under "very exceptional circumstances" like natural calamities and famines.
• "Stock limit would be applicable if the retail price of horticulture commodities rise by 100% and that of non perishable food stuffs increase by 50% over the price prevailing immediately preceding a year or average retail price of the last five years, whichever is lower," the official said.
ECONOMY, BUSINESS AND DEFENCE NEWS
1. Centre announces 'Mudra Shishu loan' for small businesses and cottage industries
• The centre has announced the launch of ‘Mudra Shishu loan’ to benefit small businesses and cottage industries.
• Under the scheme, one lakh beneficiaries can avail an interest benefit of 2 percent for a year.
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the ‘Mudra Shishu loan’ while announcing the second tranche of the centre’s 20 lakh crore package to revive the Indian economy amid COVID-19 pandemic.
• The interest subvention will be provided to prompt payees for a period of 12 months.
• The scheme is expected to provide the benefit of Rs 1500 crore to about 3 crore people.
• Three crore people will get the benefit of Rs 1500 crore. The step is aimed to prevent the suffering of shopkeepers, especially small businesses in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic.
2. Finance Commission holds meeting with Environment Ministry on air quality in urban areas
• The 15th Finance Commission held a meeting with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on Issues Related to Air Quality in Urban Areas.
• The commission is currently deliberating the recommendations to be made for the next five years from 2021-22 to 2025-26 and needs to formulate suitable provisions for continuing the grants for improving ambient air quality in a sustainable manner.
• During the meeting, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar appreciated the inclusion of Air Quality (AQ) of Delhi in the 15th Finance Commission Report of 2020-2021. He added that there would be a basic structural change in sources of AQ in the next few years and particularly in larger cities of the country due to the new regime to emission norms. It would lead to an estimated reduction of 30 to 40 per cent in vehicular emission.
• He opined that strict implementation of pollution and emission laws with harsh punishment and penalties to the defaulters is the prerequisite for ambient AQ.
• The Ministry is coming up with the rules for implementation of Construction and Demolition Waste Control so as to control dust which is a major source of pollution in cities.
• The Minister emphasized that the grants by the Finance Commission should continue for the next five years to strengthen the network and coordination between State Pollution Control Boards- SPCBs of various cities for enforcement of AQ improvement measures.
• He also said that third party assessment could be done through institutes like IITs and IIMs. He also stated that the Ministry is planning to hold a conference with the SPCBs to ensure effective implementation of this programme, to which the Chairman of 15th Finance Commission has been invited as a participant.
• Mr Javadekar also briefed about various reforms being taken up by the Ministry and stated that the time delays in approval of applications were drastically brought down from earlier 640 days to 108 days now. This period will be further brought down to 50 days within the next six months.
• With regard to ease of doing business, Mr Javadekar said, the Ministry is coming up with an amendment to the notification of environment impact assessment. The commission unilaterally appreciated the Environment Ministry's effort in building up capacity to monitor Air Quality. The Commission also stressed on the need for controlling agricultural pollution.
• While stressing on the need for consistent and reliable data on AQ, Chairman N K Singh stated that the commission was concerned about the pollution of NCR and would address the same within the mandate of the Finance Commission.
3. DRDO develops Ultra Swachh for disinfection of PPEs, electronic items, fabrics
• Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has developed a disinfection unit named Ultra Swachh to disinfect a wide range of materials, including Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), electronics items, fabrics and others.
• Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences, the Delhi-based laboratory of DRDO has developed this product with industry partner Gel Craft Health care Private Ltd.
• The system uses an advanced oxidative process consisting of multiple barrier disruption approaches using Ozonated Space Technology for disinfection.
• Ultra Swachh is double-layered, with specialized Ozone sealant technology ensuring trapping of Ozone for the necessary disinfection cycle. It also has a catalytic converter to ensure environment friendly exhaust. The system is in compliance with International Standards of Industrial, Occupational, Personal and Environmental Safety.
• Ultra Swachh comes in two variants namely Ozonated Space and Trinetra Technology. Trinetra technology is the combination of Ozonated space and radical dispenser. Treatment is optimized with automation for a quick disinfection cycle.
4. Govt targets to provide Kisan Credit Cards to one crore 50 lakh dairy farmers
• The government will provide Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to 1.5 crore dairy farmers belonging to milk unions and milk producing companies within the next two months (1st June-31st July 2020) under a special drive.
• The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying in association with the Department of Financial Services has asked all state milk federations and milk unions for implementing the scheme on a mission mode.
• Under the dairy cooperative movement, approximately 1.7 crore farmers are associated with 230 milk unions in the country.
• In the first phase of this campaign, the target is to cover all farmers who are members of dairy cooperative societies and associated with different Milk Unions and who do not have KCC.
• Farmers who already have KCC based on their land ownership, can get their KCC credit limit enhanced, though interest subvention shall be available only to the extent of Rs 3 lakhs.
• The special drive to provide KCC to 1.5 crore dairy farmers is part of the Prime Minister's Atma Nirbhar Bharat package for Farmers. The Finance Minister on 15 May 2020 has announced to cover 2.5 crore new farmers under the KCC scheme.
• This will provide an additional liquidity of Rs.5 lakh crore in the hands of farmers, who are suffering from the recent downturn of economy.
5. Govt hikes Minimum Support Price of Kharif crops to boost farmers' income
• The Cabinet has approved higher support prices for kharif, or summer-sown crops, a new labour code that will allow minimum wages to be paid by cheque or bank transfers to workers of both organised and unorganised sectors.
• The increase in minimum support prices (MSP) for kharif crops, approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, is in line with giving farmers 1.5 times the cost of production. The highest percentage return to farmers over their cost of production is for bajra (85%) followed by urad (64%) and tur (60%).
• The support price of common variety rises from Rs 1,750 a quintal to Rs 1,815 while higher quality 'Grade A' variety rises from Rs 1,770 to Rs 1,835 a quintal.
• Higher MSP would increase investment and production.
• Farmers are quitting farming due to low income. Rise in farm income can only happen by increasing MSP.
• The Cabinet also approved the labour code on wages, paving way for minimum wages to workers of both organised as well as unorganised sectors directly in their bank accounts or through cheque. The bill will be introduced in the ongoing session of Parliament.
6. Power Minister launches pan-India Real Time Market in electricity
• Power Minister R K Singh formally launched pan-India real-time market in electricity, which allows consumers to buy power just one hour before delivery.
• Real-time market (RTM) enables consumers, including distribution companies (discoms) and captive users, to buy power on exchanges just an hour before delivery.
• The real-time market went live at Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) and Power Exchange India Limited (PXIL) at 10:45 PM on May 31, 2020 for delivery at 12:00 AM on June 01 (Sunday midnight), 2020.
• The real-time market is an organized market platform to enable the buyers and sellers pan-India to meet their energy requirement closer to real-time of operation.
• This has placed Indian electricity market amongst a league of few electricity markets in the world, which have a real time market, he said.
• The introduction of real-time market will bring required flexibility in the market to provide real-time balance while ensuring optimal utilization of the available surplus capacity in the system.
• Real-time markets will make the power market dynamic as auctions will be conducted every 30 minutes. There will be 48 auction sessions during the day.
• The proposed real time market would provide an alternate mechanism for Discoms to access larger markets at competitive prices.
• National Load Despatch Centre-POSOCO is facilitating necessary automation in coordination with power exchanges to ensure faster transactions and settlements in the real time market framework, the statement said.
• The Government of India's target of 175 GW Renewable Energy Capacity by 2022 is driving accelerated renewable penetration pan-India.
• The real time market would help to mitigate challenges to the grid management due to intermittent and variable nature of renewable energy generation and therefore, help to integrate higher quantum of renewable energy resources into the grid, the statement said.
• It would lead to better portfolio management by the utilities with efficient power procurement planning, scheduling, dispatch, and imbalance handling.
7. MSME new definition, criterion will come into effect from July 1: MSME Ministry
• Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, MSME has issued Gazette notification to pave the way for implementation of the upward revision in the definition and criteria of MSMEs in the country.
• The new definition and criterion will come into effect from 1st July, 2020.
• After 14 years since the MSME Development Act came into existence in 2006, a revision in MSME definition was announced in the Atma Nirbhar Bharat package last month.
• As per this announcement, the definition of Micro manufacturing and services units was increased to one crore rupees of investment and five crore rupees of turnover.
• In case of small units, the limit was increased to 10 crore rupees of investment and 50 crore rupees of turnover.
• Similarly, the limit of Medium Unit was also increased to 20 crore rupees of investment and 100 crore rupees of turnover. For medium Enterprises, now the limit will be 50 crore rupees of investment and 250 crore rupees of turnover.
• As part of the new definition, Exports will not be counted in turnover for any enterprises whether micro, small or medium.
8. DPIIT revises public procurement order to encourage Make in India initiative
• Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, DPIIT has recently revised the public procurement order to encourage Make in India initiative with an aim to enhance income and employment generation in the country.
• Mandatory public procurement of chemicals and petrochemicals to boost manufacturing and production of goods and services will promote Make in India.
• This step will strengthen Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• The Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals prescribed a minimum 60 per cent for 2020-21, 70 per cent for 2021-23 and 80 per cent local content for 2023-25 respectively of local chemicals and petrochemical contents in public procurement.
9. Nitin Gadkari announces development of new Greenfield expressway to Amritsar
• Union Minister Nitin Gadkari announced development of a new connectivity to Amritsar from Nakodar via Sultanpur Lodhi, Goindwal Sahib, Khadoor Sahib as part of Delhi-Amritsar Expressway, fulfilling a long standing demand of the people of Punjab.
• With this expressway, travel time from Amritsar to Delhi International Airport would reduce to about four hours from the present nearly eight hours, the road, transport and highways minister said adding that the first phase of expressway would involve investment of about Rs 25,000 crore.
• The road from Amritsar to Gurdaspur would also be fully developed and made completely signal free.
• The greenfield alignment will not only provide shortest and alternate express connectivity to Amritsar but also to other religious centres of Sultanpur Lodhi, Goindwal Sahib, Khadoor Sahib as well as the recently developed Dera Baba Nanak/Kartarpur Sahib International Corridor in Punjab.
• The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said it has taken up development of Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway under Bharatmala Pariyojana.
• The alignment of the expressway was firmed up in January 2019 and the process of land acquisition was initiated.
• The government of Jammu & Kashmir had initially proposed Delhi-Katra Expressway. However, the proposed expressway would pass through Amritsar looking at the religious importance of the city, which sees a footfall of over four million tourists every year, and hence conceived Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway under Bharatmala.
10. Centre allocates Rs. three lakh crore to provide easy loans for MSMEs
• The Union Government has taken a slew of measures so that entrepreneurs are not hit badly due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• A sum of Rs. three lakh crore has been allocated to provide easy loans for the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. MSMEs can also apply for a loan at the nearest bank or on their portals.
• Government will provide a 100 percent guarantee for the loan taken by MSMEs.
• Exemption in monthly EMI for one year will be provided with interest of only 7.5 per cent.
• Centre had also changed criteria for defining MSMES to boost the sector.
• Turnover limit for small manufacturing and service providing companies has been increased up to Rs. five crore.
• And the turnover limit for Micro segment has been increased to Rs. 50 crore and for medium industries, to Rs. 100 crore.
11. National awareness campaign on Prevention of Human, Animal Mortality on Highways launched
• Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways and MSME Nitin Gadkari has launched the UNDP national awareness campaign on ‘Prevention of Human and Animal Mortality on Highways’ on 5 June.
• The campaign aims to generate awareness and education for the masses at large towards reducing or eliminating mortality on the roads of both human beings and animals.
• The move aims to bring down these figures by 20-25% by the coming 31st March. So far, the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) has identified over 5,000 black spots.
• The Ministry has also taken measures to process for their rectification including temporary and permanent measures being carried out on an urgent basis.
• SOPs to rectify black spots for taking up short-term and long-term permanent measures have already been issued.
• Road safety measures include: rectification of Black Spots traffic calming measures Crash Barriers Repairing rehabilitation reconstruction of dilapidated and narrow bridges Road Safety Audit Reduction of fatalities on vulnerable roads Highway Patrolling Safety during Construction.
12. Cabinet nods leasing of Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Mangaluru airports to Adani Enterprises
• The Union Cabinet approved the proposal for leasing out airports at Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Mangaluru to Adani Enterprises Ltd.
• Adani Enterprises Ltd has won the rights to run five of the six airports, the operations of which are being privatised, beating rival bidders by a steep margin and overnight turning into India’s largest airport operator outside government control.
• These projects will bring efficiency in delivery, expertise, enterprise and professionalism apart from harnessing the needed investments in the public sector.
• This will also result in enhanced revenues to the Airports Authority of India (AAI), which may lead to further investment by AAI at Tier II and Tier III cities and economic development in these areas in terms of job creation and related infrastructure.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
1. SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft successfully takes off for International Space Station
• SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft successfully took off from Kennedy Space Center for the International Space Station (ISS), with two NASA astronauts Behnken and Hurley.
• The spacecraft is the first to take the American astronauts to orbit from American soil in nearly a decade.
• The mission marks the first launch of a rocket owned by SpaceX, the commercial space company founded by Elon Musk.
• US President Donald Trump was present at the Kennedy Space Center to view the rocket launch.
• NASA has assigned Hurley and Behnken, two of its most experienced astronauts. Behnken is the joint operations commander for the Demo-2 mission, responsible for activities such as rendezvous, docking and undocking, as well as activities while the spacecraft is docked to the space station.
• He was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2000 and has completed two space shuttle flights. Hurley is the spacecraft commander for the mission, responsible for activities such as launch, landing and recovery. He was selected as an astronaut in 2000 and has completed two spaceflights.
2. France assures timely delivery of Rafale aircraft to India
• France reaffirmed its commitment to ensure timely delivery of Rafale Aircraft to India despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• French Minister of Armed Forces, Ms Florence Parly assured the Defence minister Rajnath Singh of the delivery during a telephonic conversation. Both the leaders discussed matters of mutual concern including COVID-19 situation, regional security and agreed to strengthen the Bilateral Defence Cooperation between India and France.
• Both Ministers appreciated the efforts made by the Armed Forces of India and France in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Mr Singh welcomed French Chairmanship of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) from 2020 to 2022. The two Ministers agreed to work together to fulfil the India-France Joint Strategic Vision on the Indian Ocean Region of 2018.
3. Bangladesh launches Corona tracing app
• The ICT Division of the Government of Bangladesh and the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) have launched an app to trace Corona infected people and people near them.
• The smartphone-based app 'Corona Tracer BD' utilizes Bluetooth signal to trace a Corona infected person nearby.
• Launching the app on a trial basis, the State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmad Palak urged the smart phone users to download the app to stop the spread of the Coronavirus. During the virtual launch of the app, the Minister said that the app will help in preventing the spread of Coronavirus and facilitate authorities in taking preventive measures.
• The app will also help the government in determining areas with high risk of Coronavirus.
• Continuing with various measures to deal with the rapidly increasing Coronavirus cases in the country, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has approved the proposal to recruit 3000 medical technologists to assist the healthcare services in the country.
• Earlier, the government had appointed 2000 physicians and more than 5000 nurses last month following the outbreak of Corona pandemic in the country.
SPORTS NEWS
1. Football: India bags right to host Women's Asian Cup 2022
• The Asian Football Confederation awarded the hosting rights of the tournament to India after the AFC Women's Football Committee meeting.
• In February, the AFC Women's Football Committee had recommended India to be hosts. This is the first time that India will be hosting the event since 1979, in which India had finished as the runner-ups.
• The tournament comes as the latest boost to AIFF as India are slated to host the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup next year. India had also hosted the AFC U-16 Championships in 2016 and the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2017.
• AIFF General Secretary Kushal Das said that the tournament comes on the back of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup India 2020 and will help India sustain and build on the momentum gained.
• The tournament will feature 12 teams, expanded from the previous slot of eight teams. India will qualify directly as hosts.
• The event will also serve as the final qualification tournament for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup. The tournament is likely to be held in the second half of the year.
PEOPLE IN NEWS
1. Tamil Nadu: 13 year old Madurai girl appointed Goodwill Ambassador of UNADAP
• In Tamil Nadu, a thirteen-year old Madurai girl M Nethra has been appointed the Goodwill Ambassador of the United Nations Association for Development and Peace, the UNADAP.
• It was in recognition of her role in feeding the poor during the COVID-19 lockdown by her father, a hairdresser by profession.
• UNADAP stands for United Nations Association for Development And Peace.
• Nethra will be given the opportunity to speak at the United Nations (UN) conferences in New York and in Geneva addressing Civil Society forums and conferences.
2. US Ambassador to India apologises to India after Mahatma Gandhi's statue vandalised
• The US Ambassador to India, Ken Juster, has apologised for desecration of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue in the United States.
• The statue was vandalised with graffiti and spray paint outside the Indian embassy in Washington.
• The incident is reported to have taken place on the intervening night of June 2 and 3. The officials of the Indian embassy informed the State Department and registered a complaint with the local law enforcement agencies.
DAYS AND EVENTS
1. Global Day of Parents-1 June
• Global Day of Parents is observed on 1 June every year.
• Designated by the General Assembly in 2012, Global Day of Parents provides an opportunity to appreciate all parents for their "selfless commitment to children and their lifelong sacrifice towards nurturing this relationship.”
• The day also recognises that the family has the primary responsibility for the nurturing and protection of children. It is necessary for the development of children that they grow up in a good family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding.
2. World No Tobacco Day -31 May
• In 1987, the Member States of the World Health Organisation (WHO) created World No Tobacco Day to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the preventable death and disease it causes.
• The World Health Assembly on 15 May,1987 passed a resolution calling for 7 April 1988 "a World No-Smoking Day". This date was chosen because it was the 40th anniversary of the World Health Organization.
• Further, in 1988 another resolution was passed for celebrating World No Tobacco Day every year on 31st May.
• Theme for 2020-Protecting youth from industry manipulation and preventing them from tobacco and nicotine use
3. World Milk Day- 1 June
• The day aims to celebrate the dairy sector and recognise the importance of milk as a global food. The day was founded by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation.
• This year marks the 20th anniversary of World Milk Day.
• This year’s theme is “20th Anniversary of World Milk Day”.To celebrate the day this year, an online Enjoy Dairy Rally was held from May 29 to May 31.
• The main focus of this rally was to encourage people to talk about the benefits of milk in terms of health, nutrition, affordability and accessibility.
4. World Environment Day- 5 June
• Theme for 2020-Celebrate Biodiversity
• World Environment Day is celebrated on June 5, annually to encourage awareness and environmental protection.
• The celebration of this day provides us with an opportunity to broaden the basis for an enlightened opinion and responsible conduct by individuals, enterprises, and communities in preserving and enhancing the environment."
• The day is celebrated by engaging governments, businesses, celebrities and citizens to focus their efforts on a pressing environmental issue.
