July 10, President Pranab Mukherjee launched digital initiatives Swayam, Swayam Prabha and National

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1 July 10, 2017 President Pranab Mukherjee launches digital initiatives Swayam, Swayam Prabha and National Academic Depository to push e-education in the country President Pranab Mukherjee launched digital initiatives Swayam, Swayam Prabha and National Academic Depository in New Delhi today to push e- education in the country. The aim of the initiatives is to raise the Gross Enrollment Ratio in the higher education from 24.5 to 30 by Massive Open Online Courses in Swayam will host courses taught in classrooms from Class 9th to postgraduation, which can be accessed by anyone, anywhere at any time. It will target those students who could not complete their studies and professionals who wish to upgrade their knowledge. Swayam Prabha is the platform of 32 DTH channels devoted to telecasting high-quality educational programmes 24X7 using GSAT-15 satellite. National Academic Depository will facilitate online verification of certificates. Speaking on the occassion, President Mukherjee said, the fruits of research should be put in the education process. 1

2 First Edition of WINGS 2017 Sab Uden, Sab Juden - Expanding Regional Connectivity Hosted in New Delhi Civil Aviation Ministry on 8th July hosted the First edition of WINGS 2017 Sab Uden, Sab Juden - Expanding Regional Connectivity. The session was chaired by the Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Shri P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju and the Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Shri Jayant Sinha. 338 delegates from Government and Civil Aviation sector participated in the first edition of WINGS There was participation from 28 States and Union Territories and out of this 19 states and Union Territory made presentation emphasizing the special packages to the airlines under RCS- UDAN. During the Wings-2017, Interactive sessions with Stakeholders of entire Ecosystem such as Tourism Departments, Tour Operators, Airport Operators, and other players in the value chain was convened. The States capitalized upon the unique platform provided by the ministry, wherein they had 112 one to one discussions (G2B meetings) with the Airlines operators. The 33 unserved airports are being added for scheduled flights in one year as compared to 75 operational airports during last 70 years 2

3 India plans to invite Leaders of ASEAN countries for 2018 Republic Day celebrations India has planned to invite the ten leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as Chief Guests for 2018 Republic Day celebrations. This Plan has come at a time when India is engaged in a stand-off with China in the Sikkim sector. If invited, Republic Day 2018 would be the first Republic Day event that will have so many leaders as the chief guests. In the recent past, world leaders like former US President Barack Obama, former French President François Hollande and UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan have been invited as the chief guests for the Republic Day celebrations. Iraq declares victory over ISIS after months-long battle in Mosul Iraq has declared victory over the Islamic State terror group in Mosul after months-long campaign, dealing the biggest defeat yet to the jihadist group. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-abadi's office said he is in liberated Mosul to congratulate the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people on the achievement of the major victory, three years after IS declared its self-styled caliphate from the city. The operation was backed by a US-led coalition battling IS group in Syria and Iraq, which has carried out waves of air strikes against the group and deployed military advisers on the ground. France President Emmanuel Macron was among the first world leaders to offer his congratulations. In a tweet he said Mosul has been liberated from IS. 3

4 Britain's first pregnant man gives birth to girl Britain's first pregnant man has given birth to a girl. Hyden Cross, 21 made headlines around the world earlier this year, when he announced he was pregnant by a sperm donor. Three years ago, Cross had legally become male through gender assignment. He, however, put his transition on hold to have a child. After the birth of the child, Cross now plans to return to complete his gender realignment as soon as possible. The first man to give birth was Thomas Beatie in the US in Nepal SBI launches first paperless Banking services sbi INTOUCH Nepal SBI Bank, a subsidiary of the State Bank of India, on 8th July launched its fully automatic digital banking services sbi IN TOUCH in Kathmandu. This is for the first time the State Bank of India has expanded the paperless banking system outside India. Nepal Rastra Bank Governor Chirinjibi Nepal, SBI Banks chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya and Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri, jointly inaugurated the new service in Nepal. It will offer customer s products like Savings Bank, Saral Bachat Account and Combo Savings Account and the branch will have facilities like kiosks for account opening, debit card printing and ATM. The digital banking unit also has a robot, which provides important information to customers in an interactive manner. 4

5 Govt exempts import of aircraft, aircraft engines from ambit of GST The government has exempted the import of aircraft, aircraft engines and its parts procured on lease from the purview of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). The Finance Ministry in a notification said that airlines will not have to pay GST on import of aircraft and its parts, if GST was paid on their lease. The aviation industry had been asking for relief as it was facing a dual levy of 5 per cent at the time of import and another 5 per cent at the time of payment of lease rent. Its concerns were raised by the Civil Aviation Ministry before the Revenue Department on several occasions. CBEC relaxes norms on bonds under GST to help exports take off In a significant relief for exporters who have been facing difficulties under the new tax regime, the Finance Ministry has now relaxed rules for Goods and Services Tax and has said that exports can continue under existing bonds and letters of undertaking till July 31. Exporters can now submit bonds or LUTs in the revised format for GST by the end of the month. Various communications have been received from the field formations and exporters that difficulties are being faced in complying with the procedure prescribed for making exports of goods and services without payment of integrated tax with respect to furnishing of bonds or LUT, said the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) in a recent circular. 5

6 India to join new Global foreign exchange committee India will soon get a seat on the Global Foreign Exchange Committee (GFXC), a newly-constituted forum of central bankers and experts working towards promotion of a robust and transparent forex market. The Financial Stability Board (FSB), an international body for global financial system, in a progress report on reducing misconduct risks in the financial sector. The committee was set up in London during a meeting in May 2017 of public and private sector representatives from the foreign exchange committees of 16 international forex trading centres. RBI allows NBFCs to offer new pension scheme The Reserve Bank of India has allowed systematically important non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) to sell and market the new pension scheme (NPS). NBFCs with asset size of Rs500 crore and above that have made a net profit in the preceding financial year be permitted to sell NPS to their clients after registration with the pension regulator. 6

7 Ranveer, Prabhas in GQ s Most Influential Young Indians list Actor Ranveer Singh has featured in GQ s Most Influential Young Indians Baahubali actor Prabhas with other actors have featured in the Most Influential Young Indians Artistes list by GQ India magazine. The GQ Power List was out on 8th July. This year, the list includes individuals who have built companies and assembled fortunes and none of them is older than 40. Some of the other names to feature in the list include Reliance business scion Akash Ambani, Lipstick under My Burkha writer-director Alankrita Shrivastava, Amrita Pandey, vice president jof studios at Disney India, Amazon India head Nitesh Kripalani. It includes Young Indians from a diverse section of professions varying from business, media food and drinks, entertainment, sports and real estate among others. GQ (formerly Gentlemen s Quarterly) is an international monthly men s magazine based in New York City. The publication focuses on fashion, style, and culture for men, though articles on music, travel, sports, technology, and books are also featured.gq India magazine is the Indian edition of this. A.R. Rahman shortlisted for World Soundtrack Awards Academy Award-winning composer AR Rahman has been shortlisted for the World Soundtrack Awards for his upcoming film, Viceroy s House. It is a film directed by Gurinder Chadha, a British filmmaker of Sikh origin, Viceroy s House. All soundtrack and film music fans worldwide can cast their 7

8 personal vote for the best soundtrack of the past 12 months. The World Soundtrack Academy (WSA, or World Soundtrack Awards), launched in 2001 by the Film Fest Gent. The event takes place yearly in Ghent, Belgium with the ceremony usually at the Capitole Concert Hall. John Joseph to take charge as chief of GST intelligence agency John Joseph has been appointed Director General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence (DG GSTI) on 9th of July Joseph, a 1983 batch officer of Indian Revenue Service (Customs and Central Excise), has worked in the Finance Ministry s important departments, including the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). The DG GSTI is the new name given to the Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI). It is mandated to check service tax and central excise duty evasion. India tops medal tally for first time in Asian Athletics Championships history India have topped the medal tally for first time in the history of Asian Athletics Championships. In a stunning show of dominance on the fourth and final day of competitions in Bhubaneshwar on the 9th July, India clinched five gold, 1 silver and 3 bronze. With that, the hosts ended the championships on top with a haul of 29 medals which included 12 gold, 5 silver and 12 bronze. India's earlier best came way back in the 1985 Jakarta edition where they had won 22 medals which included 10 gold, 5 silver, seven bronze. With their most successful campaign in the continental flagship event, India pushed China to second spot. China ended this edition with a tally of 8 gold, 7 8

9 silver, 5 bronze. Kazakhstan finished third with 4 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze while Iran ended on fourth with 4 gold and 1 bronze. Atthaya Thitikul becomes youngest Ladies European Tour winner Teenage Atthaya Thitikul became the youngest winner on the Ladies European Golf Tour on 9th of July Atthaya beat Ana Menendez of Mexico by two strokes. The Ladies European Tour held in Thailand at the Phoenix Gold Golf and Country Club. At 14 years, four months and 19 days, Atthaya broke the previous record of the formerly top-ranked Lydia Ko, who at 14 years and eight months won her first professional event at the New South Wales Open in