1) World AIDS Vaccine Day Or HIV Vaccine Awareness Day 2022
•World AIDS Vaccine Day is also known as HIV Vaccine Awareness Day (HVAD) is annually observed across the globe on the 18th of May to create awareness and provide information about Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), a chronic, potentially life-threatening condition caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and its immunisation.
•The observance of this day is led by the National Institutes of Health(NIH) – National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), United States of America. The Red Ribbon is an internationally recognized symbol of AIDS awareness. It is worn in support of people living with HIV and in remembrance of those who have died.
2) Panel of PM’s Office recommends urban job guarantee scheme
•The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) has recommended that the government implement a guaranteed employment programme for the unemployed in cities and implement a universal basic income (UBI) scheme to eliminate income gaps. Citing the country’s uneven income distribution, the report also advocated raising the minimum wage and increasing government investment on the social sector to make vulnerable groups more resilient to shocks and prevent them from falling into poverty.
3) After Pakistan shot SAARC in 2016, India will go bilateral
•The future of SAARC seems bleak, with Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Nepal in economic limbo, and Afghanistan under Islamist Taliban control. This leaves India with little choice but to engage in bilateral engagement with its neighbours in order to protect its national security. Ironically, the Taliban in Afghanistan are currently embroiled in a simmering war with their tutor, the Pakistan Army, which refuses to recognise the Durand Line, which splits the Pashtun tribe between the two countries.
4) Centre announces formation of Cotton Council of India
•The Union Government has announced the formation of the Cotton Council of India under the Chairmanship of renowned veteran cotton man Suresh Bhai Kotak. The Council will have representation from Textiles, Agriculture, Commerce, and Finance Ministries along with Cotton Corporation of India and Cotton Research Institute. Mr Goyal also appealed to the spinning and trading community to ensure a hassle-free supply of cotton and yarn first to the domestic industry.
•The government is committed to protecting the interests of cotton farmers, spinners, and weavers, the Minister assured to actively consider the demand of the spinning sector for exemption from import duty on those import contracts in which bills of loading are issued up to September 30, 2022, to overcome the current cotton shortage and logistic issues.
5) Rajnath Singh launches India-made warships, INS Surat and INS Udaygiri
•Defence minister Rajnath Singh has launched two made-in-India warships INS ‘Surat’ and ‘Udaygiri’ at the Mazagon Docks in Mumbai. This is the first time that the two indigenously built warships have been launched together, the Mazgaon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL). Both warships have been designed in-house by the Directorate of Naval Design (DND) and built at MDL, Mumbai.
6) WCR develops battery-operated dual-mode locomotive ‘Navdoot’
•West Central Railway has developed a battery-operated dual-mode locomotive named Navdoot. This engine runs on both modes i.e. battery and electricity. Currently, it is being used during the shunting of trains at Jabalpur, Mudwara, and other stations on a trial basis. This Dual Mode Locomotive has also received the Best Innovation Award from the Railway Board. Railways will save 1000 litres of diesel every day with this new locomotive. After clearing all the trials, it will be used more widely.
7) Supreme Court has ordered the release of Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination suspect
•The Supreme Court used Article 142 of the Constitution to grant AG Perarivalan, a convict in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, extraordinary powers to “do complete justice in any cause or matter pending before it.” Perarivalan was released free by a bench of justices led by L.N. Rao and B.R. Gavai, who took into account his lengthy incarceration.
•Perarivalan spent 29 of his 32 years in prison in solitary confinement until being granted bail by the Supreme Court in March 2022. He spent 16 years on execution row before the court remitted his sentence to life imprisonment in 2014. The court further noted that Perarivalan had filed his clemency plea under Article 161 with the Tamil Nadu Governor in 2015, and that the state cabinet had instructed the state’s chief executive to accept it in September 2018.
8) BSE named Ex RBI Deputy Governor SS Mundra as Chairman
•Leading stock exchange BSE Limited announced that it has approved the appointment of SS Mundra, Public Interest Director as the Chairman of the board of directors of the company. Mundra will replace Justice Vikramajit Sen who is the current chairman. Mundra was appointed as Public Interest Director at BSE in January 2018. He retired as Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India on 30th July 2017.
•Prior to that, the last position held by him was as Chairman and Managing Director of Bank of Baroda from where he superannuated in July 2014. However, the appointment is subject to approval by market regulator SEBI. The experience gained in guiding these entities has bestowed him with wide leadership skills and keen insights in best practices in Corporate Governance.
