Union Minister for Coal and Mines, Shri G Kishan Reddy launched a portal “Noble Initiative for Rewarding Mains Aspirants of National Civil Services Examination (NIRMAN)” in New Delhi on 3rd July. The scheme is aimed towards providing support of Rs 1,00,000/- (Rupees One Lakh) to the Preliminary examination qualified candidates with annual family income less than 8 lakhs,
and belonging to Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, female or third gender; who are permanent residents of any of the 39 operational districts of CIL. To achieve the goal of “Viksit Bharat” by “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Prayas”, Coal India Limited(CIL) and its subsidiaries have also undertaken various initiatives helping deserving and underprivileged students.
Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed an MoU to establish three state-of-the-art testing facilities in Chennai under the Tamil Nadu Defence Industrial Corridor - one each in Unmanned Aerial System (UAS), Electronic Warfare (EW) and Electro Optics (EO) domains.
With an outlay of Rs 400 crore, the DTIS was launched by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh in May 2020 to set up state-of-the-art testing facilities in collaboration with private industry and Central/State Government, promoting indigenous defence production, reducing military equipment imports and enhancing self-reliance.
The DTIS provides up to 75% government funding as ‘Grant-in-Aid’, with the remaining 25% funded by the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPVs), comprising Indian private entities and State/Central Governments.
The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $170 million policy-based loan to consolidate and strengthen India's health system preparedness and response capacity to future pandemics. The program builds on ADBs partnership with the Government of India to strengthen its health system and adopt transformative solutions.
Through this policy-based loan, ADB will help the government fill the gaps in policy, legislative, and institutional governance and structures and contribute to India's goal of providing universal access to quality and affordable healthcare services to strengthen pandemic preparedness and response.
The programme will be anchored in major government plans and initiatives including the National Health Policy 2017; Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM), the National One Health Mission, and the government efforts to strengthen Human Resources for health (HRH).
The targeted reform areas through the program include: (i) strengthened disease surveillance and multisectoral response, (ii) strengthened human resources for health, and (iii) expanded climate-resilient public health infrastructure and innovative service delivery.
Union Minister of Coal and Mines, Shri G. Kishan Reddy inaugurated the DMF gallery in Shastri Bhawan. Minister of State Shri Satish Chandra Dubey was also present and Showcasing products of Self-Help Groups formed under District Mineral Foundation/Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojna & SHGs supported by Mining companies.
India was crowned the world champions for the second time in T20 format as they beat South Africa by 7 runs in the finals of the Men's T20 World Cup 2024 at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados. Virat Kohli is the player of the match and Jasprit Bumrah is the player of the series.
The win was India’s first ICC trophy in more than 10 years. The last time India won an ICC trophy was in 2013 when they won the ICC Champions Trophy. India’s last World Cup win came in 2011, when they beat Sri Lanka in the final to win the ODI World Cup.
Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma and talismanic batter Virat Kohli announced their retirements from T2os after helping India win their second ICC T20 World Cup title in Barbados. All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja also announced his retirement from T20I a day after India's T20 World Cup 2024 triumph.
Bajaj Allianz Life has launched the Bajaj Allianz Life Nifty Alpha 50 Index Fund, a unit-linked insurance plan (ULIP) that aims to provide investors with exposure to “high-alpha stocks". The new fund offer (NFO) period for the fund began on July 1 and will end on July 15, 2024.
The Bajaj Allianz Life Nifty Alpha 50 Index Fund is suitable for investors with a higher risk appetite and who are looking to capitalise on the growth potential of high-alpha stocks and diversify their portfolios. It will aim to replicate the performance of the Nifty Alpha 50 Index, which uses Jensen Alpha to calculate the excess returns for the stocks.
Private sector lender ICICI Bank launched a pre-paid Sapphiro Forex Card, crafted specifically for students who are going abroad for higher education.The card comes with an array of joining benefits up to Rs 15,000, along with exclusive privileges.
The card, powered by Visa, provides exclusive benefits and convenience to students and their parents to manage education-related expenses abroad like admission fees, course-related fees and other day-to-day expenses, including travel, dining and groceries, among others.
The card offers the freedom of loading and transacting in 15 currencies without any cross-currency mark-up charge being levied by the bank, allowing students to conveniently travel across the globe even if they load only one currency on the card.
The Reserve Bank of India announced that nine non-banking financial companies, including Ujjivan Financial Services, have surrendered their certificate of registration (CoR) to the central bank.
Of these, five non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) have surrendered their CoR as they have exited from the non-banking financial institution business. These NBFCs are Vigfin Holdings, Strip Commodeal, Allium Finance, Eternite Finvest, and Fino Finance.
The apex bank announced three NBFCs, namely Allegro Holdings, Temple Trees Impex and Investment, and Hem Financial Services, have surrendered their certificates after meeting the criteria prescribed for unregistered Core Investment Company (CIC) that do not require registration.
The Uttar Pradesh government has lined up investment to the tune of Rs 75,000 crore in the energy sector amid soaring demand for electricity which is likely to hit 53,000 megawatt (mw) by 2028. Of the total Rs 75,000 crore worth of power projects, Rs 43,000 crore will go into ramping up energy feeders infra and installing smart meters across the state.
The remaining Rs 32,000 crore will be invested in two thermal projects, which are 1,980 mw Ghatampur and 1,320 mw Obra C plants in Kanpur and Sonbhadra districts respectively. Recently, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed officials to expedite projects under the jurisdiction of state’s five electricity distribution companies (discoms).
Bajaj Housing Finance is venturing into the affordable housing finance sector and has launched Sambhav Home Loans targeting first time home buyers with affordable income criteria. The income norm for first-time homebuyers, under this new product, starts from Rs. 10,000 per month, with loan amounts as low as Rs. 10 lakh.
Borrowers will have attractive interest rates with affordable EMIs and the option to choose a repayment tenor of up to 20 years. Earlier last month, the company filed its preliminary papers with SEBI to raise ₹7,000 crore via an initial public offering (IPO).
The Reserve Bank of India said it has joined “Project Nexus”, a multilateral international initiative to enable instant cross-border retail payments by interlinking domestic Fast Payments Systems (FPSs). Indonesia, which has been involved from the early stages, continues to be involved as a special observer.
Nexus, conceptualised by the Innovation Hub of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), aims to connect the FPSs of four ASEAN countries (Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand); and India, who would be the founding members and first mover countries of this platform.
ICICI Lombard, a leading private general insurer in India, has unveiled an AI-powered health insurance plan called "Elevate", which promises extensive coverage and flexibility, with a particular focus on addressing concerns about limited sum insured amounts. An individual above the age of 18 years can opt for this policy for themselves and their family.
Russia has approved the schedule for the creation of a Russian orbital station by 2033. The scientific and energy modules will be launched first in 2027, and three other core modules, namely the universal nodal, gateway, and base modules, will be launched by 2030. Two other target modules are scheduled to be launched by 2033.
A total of 608.9 billion rubles has been allocated to finance the project, Roscosmos said. The corporation further said the creation of the Russian orbital station would ensure the continuity of Russia’s space programme and address issues of national security and scientific and technological development.
Roscosmos, Russian Federal Space Agency, which was formed in 1992. The new corporation was formed by merging the agency and United Rocket and Space Corporation, a joint-stock entity meant to bolster the space sector.
The 16th edition of India-Mongolia Joint Military Exercise NOMADIC ELEPHANT. Foreign Training Node,at Umroi (Meghalaya). The Exercise is scheduled to be conducted from 03rd to 16th July 2024.
The aim of the Exercise is to enhance joint military capability of both sides to undertake counter insurgency operations in a Sub Conventional scenario under Chapter VII of the United Nations Mandate. The exercise will focus on operations in the semi-urban and mountainous terrain.
India, as a member elected on a geographic basis (Asia), is actively participating in the 86th session of the Executive Committee (CCEXEC) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC). Shri G Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO of the FSSAI represented India in the session being held at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Headquarters in Rome from July 1st to 5th 2024.
The Codex Alimentarius Commission, an international body established by FAO and the World Health Organization (WHO), aims to protect consumer health and promote fair practices in food trade. During the session, India strongly supported the advancement of standards development for various spices, including small cardamom, turmeric, and vanilla.
Indian contingent comprising of 45 personnel is being represented by a Battalion of SIKKIM SCOUTS along with personnel from other arms and services. The Mongolian contingent is being represented by personnel from 150 Quick Reaction Force Battalion of the Mangolian Army. Exercise NOMADIC ELEPHANT is an annual training event conducted alternatively in India and Mongolia.
