DAILY GK: 05 JUNE 2021

 DAILY GK: 05 JUNE 2021

1. 11 AIRPORT SURVEILLANCE RADARS

•        The Ministry of Defence (MoD) signed a Rs 323.47 crore worth contract with Mahindra Telephonics Integrated              Systems Limited for procurement of 11 Airport Surveillance Radars for the use of Indian Navy & Indian Coast Guard.

•        Mahindra Telephonics signed the contract for the 11 radars under the “Buy and Make” category, to boost “Make in         India” initiative.

 

2. ILO’S WESO TRENDS 2021

•        International Labour Organisation (ILO) released a report titled “World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends           2021(WESO Trends 2021)” stating global unemployment rate will be 5.7% in 2022, 6.3% in 2021 & there will no   recovery in global jobs until 2023.

•        Note – Global Unemployment Rate was 5.4% in 2020.

 

3. NAM HEALTH MINISTERS VIRTUAL MEET

•        Harsh Vardhan virtually participated in a meeting with Ministers of Health of the NAM (Non-Aligned Movement)        Countries.

•        Harsh Vardhan stated that during COVID-19, India has supplied medicines to 123 partner countries including 59 NAM nations.

•        He also noted that Ayushman Bharat, national health policy was aiming to provide free health assurance to over 500      million underprivileged people, making it the world’s largest health assurance scheme. 

•        NAM formed in 1961 is a forum of 120 developing world states that are not formally aligned with or against any            major power bloc. After the United Nations (UN), it is the largest grouping of states worldwide.

•        Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, is the current chairman of NAM.

 

4. INTERNATIONAL BOOKER PRIZE 2021

•        French novelist David Diop won the International Booker Prize 2021 for “At Night All Blood Is Black”, the English   translation of the French Book titled “Frere d’ame”.

•        David Diop became the first French writer to win the Award.

•        The book was translated by translator Anna Moschovakis from French and published by Pushkin Press.

•        The prize carries a cash award of 50,000 Pound (around Rs 51 lakhs) which will be split between the author David         Diop and translator Anna Moschovakis.

 

5. EXPERT GROUP TO FIX MINIMUM WAGES

•        The Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoL&E) has constituted an expert group  led by Professor Ajit Mishra,       director of the Institute of Economic Growth to provide technical support and recommendations to fix the minimum wages and national floor minimum wages.

•        This decision is a part of the centre’s implementation of the Code of Wages, 2019, which mandates a statutory national level floor wage.

 

6. PANEL TO EXAMINE TAX EXEMPTION ON COVID-19

•        The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council constituted an 8-member group of ministers (GoM) to examine the need    for GST concession/exemption on a range of Covid-19 essentials such as vaccines, drugs, testing kits, and ventilators and make recommendations on the GST rates of COVID-19 relief material.

•        Currently, 5 percent GST is levied on domestically manufactured vaccines, 12 percent GST is levied for COVID-19       drugs and oxygen concentrators.

•        Conrad Sangma, Chief Minister of Meghalaya will be the Convenor of the panel.

 

7. CHAIRMAN OF WHO EXECUTIVE BOARD

•        During the 149th session of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Executive board, Dr Patrick Amoth of Kenya has     been appointed as the Chairman of WHO Executive Board, for a period of one year.

•        He succeeds Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Health Minister of Government of India, who completed his tenure as                Chairman of WHO Executive Board on June 02, 2021.

 

8. DG OF ASSAM RIFLE

•        Lieutenant General (Lt Gen) Pradeep Chandran Nair took over as the 21st Director General (DG) of Assam                 Rifles(AR), India’s oldest paramilitary force at the DGAR headquarters at Shillong, Meghalaya.

•        The Assam Rifles were popularly known as Sentinels of the North-East. 

•        Lt Gen Pradeep Chandran Nair has been serving as the Director-General Recruiting of the Indian Army.

 

9. PHARMEASY ACQUIRES MEDLIFE

•        An online medical platform, PharmEasy has acquired its rival Medlife, to create India’s largest online pharmacy.

•        API Holdings, the parent of PharmEasy, has acquired 100 percent equity shares of Medlife in return for 19.59 percent    equity share capital, estimated at $250 million.

 

10. NASA PLANS TWO NEW MISSIONS TO VENUS

•        National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to implement two new missions DAVINCI+ and BB      VERITAS to Venus, Earth’s nearest also called sister planet.

•        NASA will spend $500 million for each mission.

•        Both missions will be expected to launch between  2028-2030.

•        DAVINCI+ (short for Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble Gases, Chemistry and Imaging) – It will            measure the composition of Venus’ atmosphere to understand how it formed and evolved, as well as determine whether the planet ever had an ocean.

•        VERITAS (an acronym for Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, In SAR, Topography and Spectroscopy) – This mission     will map Venus’ surface to determine the planet’s geologic history and understand why it developed so differently than Earth.

 

11. PM OF MAURITIUS ANEROODJUGNAUTH PASSES AWAY

•        The Former President and Prime Minister of Mauritius, Padma Vibhushan awardee Anerood Jugnauth passed away.

•        He was born on March 29, 1930 in Palma, British Mauritius.

•        He was considered as the Father of the Mauritian Economic Miracle of the 1980s.

•        He was also honoured with Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award for strengthening India’s relationship with Mauritius.