1) National Statistics Day: 29 June
•The objective of the celebration of this Day is to acknowledge the contribution of Prof. PC Mahalanobis and to pay homage to him. On the occasion, Vice President of India released a commemorative coin of Rs 125 and circulation coin of Rs 5 denomination as a mark of respect/homage to Prof. Mahalanobis.
2) Rajnath Singh Approves ‘Home Minister's Special Operation Medal’
•Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the institution of "Home Minister's Special Operation Medal" for the police personnel of States and Union Territories, Central Police Organisations (CPOs), Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Security Organisations involved in Special Operations.
•Mr Singh has also instituted three more Medals,
1. The Antarik Suraksha Medal,
2. Asadharan Aashuchan Padak, and
3. Utkrisht and Ati-Utkrisht Seva Medal
•The HM’s Special Operation Medal and Asadharan Aashuchan Padak will be awarded on August 15 and the Antarik Suraksha Medal and Utkrisht and Ati-Utkrisht Seva Medal will be announced on January 26 every year.
3) NASA To Launch World's Lightest Satellite Designed By Chennai Students
•The four first-year engineering students from Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science near Chennai, Tamil Nadu have developed the world’s lightest satellite which will be launched from a NASA facility in the US by August 2018.
•The students built the 4cm ‘cube’ satellite ‘Jaihind-1S’ with a 3D printed outer casing from polylactic acid (PLA) nylon material, making it lighter than a medium sized egg, at just 33.39 grams.
4) Gujarat CM Announces Agriculture JWG With Israel
•On the second day of his visit to Israel, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani met Israel's Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Uri Ariel and announced a joint working group (JWG) between Gujarat and Israel in the fields of agriculture, horticulture and allied sectors.
•The objective of the meeting was strengthening the Indo-Israeli agricultural cooperation and extension of theIndo-Israel Agriculture Plan (IIAP) and also to explore the opportunities of using the hi-tech protective cultivation and precision farming methods of Israel.
5) India Pledges $5 Million For UN Palestinian Aid Agency
•India has pledged USD 5 million in assistance to the UN agency working for the welfare of Palestinian refugees to help bolster its "severe funding crisis" following US' cut in its annual aid to United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
•A total of 20 countries, including India, announced contributions to the 2018 budget of the UNRWA for Palestine Refugees in the Near East during a meeting. While India pledged USD 5 million, Sweden will contribute USD 250 million over four years, the UK USD 51 million and the UAE USD 50 million among other donors.
6) Ministry Of Women And Child Development Organises POSHAN Abhiyaan TECH-THON
•With an aim to integrate information technology for better roll out of its major social sector schemes, Ministry of Woman and Child Development organized a day-long Seminar on Technology Partnerships for Steering POSHAN Abhiyaan called 'TECH-THON'. Poshan is an overarching Scheme for Holistic Nourishment launched by PM Modi.
•Convergence and innovative use of technology are the two hallmarks of POSHAN Abhiyaan. ICDS- Common Application Software has been specially designed to strengthen the Service Delivery System as well as the mechanism for Real-Time Monitoring for nutritional outcomes.
7) North Korea Named ‘Worst Human Trafficking Country’
•The US State Department categorised North Korea as one of the “worst human trafficking nations” for the 16th straight year, citing the use of forced labour. According to the annual ‘2018 Trafficking in Persons Report’, North Korea has been included in the Tier 3 category, which is the lowest ranking, along with China, Russia and Iran.
•Reasons for categorisation of North Korea as the worst human trafficking country:
1. North Korea used state-sponsored forced labour to fund government functions as well as other illicit activities.
2. The North Korean government continued to use forced labour in prison camps and labour training centres and even encouraged forced labours of students and exported forced labour to foreign organisations.
•The '2018 Trafficking in Persons Report' placed India in Tier 2 category for making significant effort to comply with the US standards. However, India does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.
8) Rani Rampal Announced Captain Of Indian Women’s Hockey Team
•Forward Rani Rampal was named as the captain of India’s 18-member squad for the women’s hockey World Cup to be played in London in July 2018. Hockey India announced the 18-member Indian women’s team for the prestigious tournament.
•India have been placed in Pool B alongside hosts and world no. 2 England, world no. 7 USA and world no. 16 Ireland. Goalkeeper Savita has been named vice-captain. The tournament will also witness the return of goalkeeper Rajani Etimarpu after having rested for the Spain Tour.
