28th June, 2022 Current Affairs

28th June, 2022 Current Affairs

NATIONAL
ParameswaranIyer appointed as CEO of NITI Aayog

• Former Drinking and water Sanitation Secretary, ParameswarenIyer has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of NITI Aayog for 2 years. He will succeed Amitabh Kant. Kant was appointed as the CEO of the National Institution for Transforming India (NitiAayog) on February 17, 2016, for a fixed two-year term.
•  Kant was later given an extension till June 30, 2019. His term was further extended for two years, till this month-end, in June 2019.In June 2021, Kant received another one-year extension.

Samant Kumar Goel re-appointed as Chief of RAW

• Samant Kumar Goel’s contract as secretary of the intelligence agency’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) was extended by the Centre on June 24 by another year. Goel is an IPS officer from the Punjab cadre class of 1984 and will hold the position of agency secretary through June 30, 2023. In June 2019, Samant Kumar Goel succeeded Anil Dhasmana as the Chief of RAW.
• The RAW is an external intelligence organisation that monitors dangers from abroad. RAW collects secret information about the activities of neighbouring countries. RAW has been placed directly under the Indian Prime Minister’s office. RAW has its own service cadre known as the Research and Analysis Service (RAS).

NitinGadkari Approves Draft GSR Notification To Introduce Bharat NCAP

• Union minister for Road Transport and Highways, NitinGadkari has approved the Draft GSR Notification to introduce Bharat NCAP (New Car Assessment Program), wherein automobiles in India shall be accorded Star Ratings based upon their performance in Crash Tests.
• Bharat-NCAP will serve as a consumer-centric platform allowing customers to opt for safer cars based upon their star-ratings, while promoting a healthy competition among OEMs in India to manufacture safer vehicles.
• Star Rating of Indian Cars based on Crash Tests is extremely crucial not only to ensure structural and passenger safety in cars, but to also increase the export-worthiness of Indian automobiles.

INTERNATIONAL
Global Liveability Index 2022 released

• The annual ranking of the world’s most liveable cities has just been released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), and 2022’s Global Liveability Index shows some marked differences from the previous year. The EIU, which is a sister organization to The Economist, ranked 173 cities around the world on a variety of factors, including health care, crime rates, political stability, infrastructure and access to green space.
• Hong Kong had the dubious honor of coming in first place, with New York City, Geneva, London and Tokyo rounding out the top five in Liveability versus cost of living.
• The cities in India have fared poorly in the list of the world’s most liveable cities. India’s national capital New Delhi has been ranked 112th in the list of most liveable cities. While India’s financial capital Mumbai is ranked at 117th position.
• The Pakistani city of Karachi and Bangladesh capital Dhaka are among the least liveable cities in the world.
• Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, has not made it to the list after Russia invaded the country in February 2022. While, the ranking of Russian cities like Moscow and St Petersburg also fell over ‘censorship’ and western sanctions on the country.

ECONOMY
Nasscom: By 2025, AI can boost GDP by $500 billion

• Nasscom, an Indian non-governmental trade association and advocacy group, claims that an integrated AI and data use plan could boost India’s GDP by $500 billion by 2025. The Nasscom, in collaboration with EY and with backing from Microsoft, EXL, and Capgemini, has introduced a AI Adoption Index to track sectoral progress on AI adoption in the nation.
• The index was the first comprehensive analysis of AI adoption trends in India, starting with four important industries: banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), consumer packaged goods (CPG), retail, healthcare, and industrials & automotive.
• Together, these industries could account for more than 60% of AI’s potential value-add to the nation’s GDP by 2025, which is estimated to be between $450 and $500 billion.
• According to the top body, investments in AI have increased significantly over the past two years, rising from $36 billion in 2020 to a high of $77 billion in 2021.
• Even while India’s current pace of AI investments was projected to expand at a CAGR of 30.8 percent and reach $881 million by 2023, it would still only account for 2.5 percent of the $340 billion in total worldwide AI expenditures.
• This would present a huge chance for Indian businesses to increase their investments in and adoption of AI in order to promote equal growth across all sectors.

Science and Technology
India successfully conducts VL-SRSAM missile test off the coast of Odisha.

• Off the coast of Chandipur, in the state of Odisha, India successfully tested the Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile (VL-SRSAM). Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and Indian Navy successfully conducted flight tests for the Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile (VL-SRSAM). Off the coast of Chandipur, Odisha, the launch was carried out from an Indian Naval Ship.
• A ship-borne weapon system called VL-SRSAM is designed to eliminate close-range aerial threats such targets that skim the surface of the sea.
• A high-speed aerial target resembling an aeroplane was launched with the system, and it was effectively engaged.
• ITR, Chandipur deployed a variety of tracking sensors to track the vehicle’s flight path and health indicators. Senior representatives from the Indian Navy and DRDO kept an eye on the test launch.
• ShriRajnath Singh, the minister of defence, also expressed his gratitude to the DRDO, the Indian Navy, and the industry for the successful flight test and noted that the system’s additional armour will improve the ability of Indian naval ships to defend themselves from aerial threats.

APPOINTMENTS
Tapan Kumar Deka appointed as new Director of Intelligence Bureau

• The Central government has appointed senior IPS officer Tapan Kumar Deka as Director of Intelligence Bureau. Tapan Kumar Deka, a 1988 batch Himachal Pradesh cadre IPS officer, was appointed for a tenure of two years from the date of assumption of the charge of the post or until further orders, whichever is earlier. Deka will succeed incumbent Intelligence Bureau Director Arvind Kumar, whose tenure ends on June 30.
• Deka has spent most of the career in the Intelligence Bureau. He was an Additional Director in Intelligence Bureau when he was promoted to the rank of Special Director in the Wing in June last year. Deka has handled crucial cases like terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, especially targeted killings in the Valley.

Published date : 30 Jun 2022 05:30PM