- Rakesh Kumar Chaturvedi has been appointed as the Chairman of the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE). Mr. Chaturvedi, a 1987 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh, has been appointed for a period of five years.
- The Union Government has started the operation ‘Sankat Mochan’ to evacuate Indian citizens stranded in South Sudan’s capital Juba. The operation is being undertaken by Indian Air Force (IAF) and will be headed by Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs General (Retd.) VK Singh.
- The Union Government has appointed senior IPS officer Ashok Patnaik as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID). His appointment was approved by Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He will continue to hold this post till his superannuation in 2018. NATGRID is a central agency that aims to have an integrated intelligence grid that will link and store sensitive personal information on citizens from different government agencies for counter-terror investigations.
- India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have signed a loan agreement for irrigation projects, drainage system and water management in the Cauvery delta in Tamil Nadu.
- The Union Cabinet has given its approval for allocation of 12,000 crore rupees to Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY). The money will be used to impart skill training to 60 lakh youth and certify non formally acquired skills of 40 lakh persons.
- The Central government has announced an extension in deadline for the Income Declaration Scheme. Under this scheme, persons evading the tax net must declare their undeclared income, and pay a high percentage of tax and penalty on the same. The scheme offers protection from prosecution for tax evasion.
- Harika Dronavalli, India’s Chess Grand Master, has won the Fide Women’s Grand Prix trophy in Chendu, China. It was her maiden career GP title. She won this title by defeating Russia’s Olga Girya. Harika had earned the Grandmaster title in 2011. She became the second Indian woman chess player (after Koneru Humpy) to achieve the title of Grandmaster.
- Pakistan cricket captain Misbah-ul-Haq became the oldest player to score a Test century for 82 years in yesterday’s Test match in England. Misbah is 42 years old.
- India made a big leap of 11 places to occupy the 152nd spot in the latest world football rankings issued by FIFA. Iran (39th) remains Asia’s top team, followed by Korean Republic (48th), Uzbekistan (56th), Japan (57th) and Australia (59th). In the overall rankings, Argentina remained on top.
- Peru has declared Zika outbreak as a health emergency across the northern half of the country after 102 people were infected with the virus. The emergency has been imposed for ninety days to prevent the spread of the disease. A major Zika outbreak in Peru’s neighbouring country Brazil has caused nearly 1,600 births of babies with the birth defect due to microcephaly i.e. abnormally small heads and brains. Zika virus is a mosquito-borne virus transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes which also transmit chikungunya, dengue and yellow fever.
- A UN report has identified evidence of war crimes in the violence between Ukraine and Russia last year. The report said that said Ukraine’s forces had indiscriminately shelled residents while pro-Russian insurgents and Kiev battalions had killed civilians in what may have constituted “war crimes”.
Today’s Quiz
