Daily News

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Kota in Guinness World Records for largest yoga session

A Guinness World Record was created in Rajasthan’s Kota city, where more than 1.05 lakh people performed yoga to mark International Yoga Day.

The event took place in the presence of yoga guru Baba Ramdev and Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.

The previous record of yoga, performed by 55,524 people, was achieved in Mysore in 2017.

Did you Know

International Day of Yoga is celebrated annually on 21 June since its inception in 2015. An international day for yoga was declared unanimously by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his UN address suggested the date of 21 June, as it is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and shares special significance in many parts of the world.

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India to provide USD 51 million development aid to Suriname

India will extend a Line of Credit of USD 31 million and a concessional financing of USD 20 million to Suriname as the two countries agreed to strengthen their economic relations and development partnership.

President Kovind was on a three-day visit to the Latin American country, announced that India will extend concessional financing of USD 20 million for setting up a solar project to provide clean energy to a cluster of 49 villages in Suriname.

Did you Know

Suriname is a small country on the northeastern coast of South America.
Capital: Paramaribo
Currency: Surinamese dollar

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Sebi eases IPO norms, tightens definition of ‘promoter group’

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) approved a revamp of initial public offering (IPO) norms and the governance framework for stock exchanges and depositories.

The regulator also signalled moves to bring chartered accountants and company secretaries under its ambit.

Did you Know

IPO: An initial public offering is when a private company or corporation raises investment capital by offering its stock to the public for the first time. Growing companies seeking capital to expand are those that generally use initial public offerings, but large, privately owned companies or corporations looking to become publicly traded can also do them. In an initial public offering, the issuer, or company raising capital, brings in an underwriting firm or investment bank, to help determine the best type of security to issue, offering price, amount of shares and timeframe for the market offering.

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Kerala scraps plantation tax

Kerala has decided to scrap the plantation tax in view of the crisis in the sector.

A commission headed by Justice (retired) Krishnan Nair that was appointed in November 2015 to study the problems faced by the plantation sector had said that plantation tax is one of the oldest taxes and it was levied only in Kerala.

Kerala is the only State in the country which levies the tax.

The government had also decided to freeze the collection of Agricultural Income Tax (AIT) from the plantation sector.

Did you Know

Kerala Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
Chief minister: Pinarayi Vijayan
Governor: P. Sathasivam

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India & Tajikistan agree to enhance mutual cooperation for sustainable water development

India and Tajikistan have reaffirmed their commitment to promote bilateral relations and agreed to enhance economic cooperation, particularly in sustainable water development.

Shri Nitin Gadkari (the Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, Road Transport & Highways and Shipping) was in Dushanbe to represent India at the high level global conference on International Decade for Action: Water for Sustainable Development.

Did you Know

Tajikistan is a country in Central Asia surrounded by Afghanistan, China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
Capital: Dushanbe
Currencies: Tajikistani somoni, Ruble

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Synchronising bank regulations with PMAY may lead to lower prices

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) revisions to the income cap limits for priority sector lending (PSL) for housing projects will increase the customer base for affordable housing loans and bring down home prices.

RBI revised the family income limits for economically weaker sections (EWS) and low income groups (LIG) availing of housing loans from Rs 200,000 per annum to Rs 300,000 per annum and Rs 600,000 per annum, respectively.

This move will increase the demand for affordable housing loans from families under EWS and LIG categories.

Did you Know

Under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) initiative affordable housing will be provided to the urban poor with a target of building 20 million affordable houses by 31 March 2022.
It has two components: Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) (PMAY-U) for the urban poor and Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana (Gramin) for the rural poor.
Launched on 1 June 2015.
Ministry: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

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India’s utility solar capacity grows 72% in FY18: Report

According to solar consultancy Bridge To India annual report- India's utility solar capacity grew by a whopping 72% in 2017-18 over the previous year.

It installed 9.1GW of utility solar against 5.5GW in 2016-17.

Karnataka added the most capacity at 4.1GW, which was 46% of total capacity installed in 2017-18. This also makes Karnataka the state with the largest commissioned solar capacity in the country, at 5.2GW.

The second highest cumulative capacity was in Telangana (3.28GW), followed by Rajasthan (2.3GW), Andhra Pradesh (2.28GW) and Tamil Nadu (1.86GW).

Adani Green Energy, Renew Power and Acme Solar were the top three developers in 2017-18, installing a total capacity of 2.3GW between them, according to the study.

Did you Know

BRIDGE TO INDIA is the leading consultancy and knowledge services provider in the Indian renewable market. They work with all industry stakeholders including technology companies and contractors, project developers and investors, government agencies and developmental institutions.

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World’s hungry population on the rise again, says UN report

The number of hungry people in the world has risen for the first time in more than a decade, according to a United Nations report released.

There are now approximately 38 million more undernourished people in the world, rising from 777 million in 2015 to 815 million in 2016, the year for which the latest statistics are available.

According to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals 2018 report, conflict is now one of the main drivers of food insecurity in 18 countries.

Conflict, drought and disasters linked to climate change are among the key factors causing this reversal in progress.

Did you Know

SDG: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity.
SDGs were born at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro in 2012.
The objective was to produce a set of universal goals that meet the urgent environmental, political and economic challenges facing our world.
These 17 Goals build on the successes of the Millennium Development Goals, while including new areas such as climate change, economic inequality, innovation, sustainable consumption, peace and justice, among other priorities.

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Chola period inscriptions found at Erumbeeswarar Temple

Research scholars have found more Chola period inscriptions at the Sri Erumbeeswarar Temple situated on a hillock at Tiruverumbur on the outskirts of the city throwing light on the socio-economic life of the people who had lived there then.

The inscriptions were found by R. Akila, Assistant Professor.

The temple dates back to 6th century C.E., the present construction belongs to 10th century C. E.

Did you Know

Erumbeeswarar Temple in Thiruverumbur, Tamil Nadu, is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva.
The temple is one in a series built by Aditya Chola (871-907 CE) along the banks of river Cauvery, to commemorate his victory in the Tirupurambiyam Battle.

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Bosch commits ₹1,700 cr. over 3 years

Bosch Group plans to invest an additional ₹1,700 crore in the next three years in India to meet the rising demand for its technology and services in the automobile and mobility sectors.

A major share of this (₹1,700 crore investment) will be used to expand Bosch’s smart campus in Adugodi and modernise manufacturing facilities in the country.

India is also one of the three locations of the Bosch Center for Artificial Intelligence, after the U.S, and Germany.

Bosch India has also partnered with IIT-Madras to set up a Robert Bosch Center for Data Sciences and artificial intelligence with a fund of ₹5 crore a year for five years.

Did you Know

Bosch, is a German multinational engineering and electronics company.
Headquarters: Stuttgart, Germany
CEO: Volkmar Denner
Founder: Robert Bosch