Current Affairs for July 2017 : Useful for UPSC, GPSC, CLAT, CAT, IIFT, XAT, SNAP, CMAT & other entrance exams

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1) Goods and Services Tax (GST) was rolled out from 01st July 2017.
    The GST, which unifies more than a dozen central and state levies like excise duty, service tax and VAT.

2) The government has lowered interest rate on small saving schemes by 0.1 percent for the July- September quarter. The move will prompt banks to lower deposit rates. The rates of small saving schemes like PPF, Kisan Vikas Patra and Sukanya Samriddhi have been lowered across the board compared to the April-June quarter.

Since April last year, interest rates of all small saving schemes have been recalibrated on a quarterly basis. According to finance ministry notification, investments in the public provident fund (PPF) scheme will fetch lower annual rate of 7.8 percent. Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) investments will yield 7.5 per cent and mature in 115 months.
KVP can be purchased from any Departmental Post Office. Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) investments mature in 115 months.
Sukanya Samriddhi Account can be opened up to age of 10 years only from the date of birth.

3) Antonio Guterres is the ninth Secretary-General of the United Nations.
    The headquarters of the United Nations is in New York City, USA.

4) Election Commission of India is a permanent Constitutional Body. The Election Commission was established in accordance with the Constitution on 25th January 1950. It currently consists of Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners.
Dr Nasim Zaidi was 20th Chief Election Commissioner of India. AK Jyoti is 21st CEC
The National Voters’ Day is celebrated every year on 25th January.

5) The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has announced exemption of fees for its transgender students of all programmes. IGNOU was established by an Act of Parliament in 1985.

6) The Prime Minister Narendra Modi has released a photo book titled "President Pranab Mukherjee - A Statesman", at an event in Rashtrapati Bhawan. He presented the first copy of the book to the President.

7) Germany has lifted their maiden Confederation Cup Football title. In the final played at St Petersburg, the four-time World Cup winners defeated Chile by a solitary goal. Lars Stindl put Germany ahead in the first half against the run of play, and Germany then held on to the lead.

8) The Asian Development Bank was conceived in the early 1960s as a financial institution that would be Asian in character and foster economic growth and cooperation in one of the poorest regions in the world. Takehiko Nakao is present president of the Asian Development Bank. Manila, Philippines is headquarters of ADB.

9) The indigenously developed Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air (QRSAM) short-range missile, which has a capability of engaging multiple targets was successfully test-fired from a test range along the Odisha coast.
The missile has a strike range of 25 km to 30 km. designed to be a quick reaction missile, it involves an all- weather weapon system capable of tracking and firing. The missile was test-fired from a truck-mounted canister launcher from launch complex-3 at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Odisha.

10) The FSB was established in April 2009 as the successor to the Financial Stability Forum (FSF). Financial Stability Board (FSB) Secretariat in Basel, Switzerland.

11) Entire Nagaland has been declared as “disturbed area” for six more months under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), which empowers security forces to conduct operations anywhere without any prior notice. In a gazette notification, the home ministry stated it is of the opinion that the area comprising the whole of Nagaland is in such a “disturbed and dangerous condition” that the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary.
Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3 of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, the central government hereby declares that whole of the said state to be a ‘disturbed area’ for a period of six months with effect from 30th June 2017 for the purpose of that Act. AFSPA which was enacted in 1958 amid the nascent Naga insurgency, gives powers to the army and state and central police forces to shoot to kill, search houses and destroy any property that is “likely” to be used by insurgents in areas declared as “disturbed” by the home ministry.
12) The President gave his assent to the bill passed by Karnataka Assembly to legalise traditional buffalo race 'Kambala'. In pursuance of the proviso to clause (1) of article 213 of the Constitution of India, the President of India hereby approves the promulgation of 'The Prevention of cruelty to Animals (Karnataka Amendment) Ordinance, 2017' by the Governor of Karnataka.
Bowing to public pressure, a bill to legalise traditional buffalo race 'Kambala' and bullock cart races in Karnataka was passed by the state Assembly in February with all parties backing the move. The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, was amended in its application to Karnataka by the bill which was tabled after the clamour for Kambala grew, spurred by the success of pro-jallikattu (taming of bull) stir in Tamil Nadu.
13) Canada marked its 150th anniversary as a country on 1 July 2017. It is worth mentioning that Canada became a Confederation on 1 July 1867 after the British North America Act became effective on this day. With this the colonies of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia joined to form the semi-autonomous federal Dominion of Canada, also called the Confederation of Canada.
However, the country did not gain total independence from the United Kingdom. It achieved near-total independence in 1931 with the Statute of Westminster 1931. But the Constitution Act of 1982 removed the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the British Parliament, giving the country full sovereignty.
14) TCS is the India’s most valued company with market capitalization of Rs4.64 trillion, followed by RIL and HDFC Bank at Rs4.47 trillion and Rs. 4.25 trillion, respectively.
15) National Multi Commodity Exchange (NMCE) will merge with Indian Commodity Exchange (ICEX) to create the country’s third biggest commodity exchange.
Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) is the largest commodity exchange in India by volume and is followed by the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX). It will also offer the world’s first diamond futures contract, which has already received in-principle approval from the marker regulator SEBI.
16) Goods and Service Tax (GST) can be defined as a destination-based indirect tax on consumption. It primarily seeks to eliminate inefficiencies in the tax system that result in ‘tax on tax’, known as cascading of taxes.
It can also be described as a value-added tax at each stage of the supply of goods and services precisely on the amount of value addition achieved. To make sure that GST is levied only on the amount of value addition at each stage of the supply chain, credit for the taxes paid at the previous stage is granted.
Businesses and traders with annual sales above Rs. 20 lakh are liable to pay GST. The threshold for paying GST is Rs. 10 lakh in the case of northeastern and special category states. GST is applicable on inter-state trade irrespective of this threshold.
17) Senior advocate KK Venugopal’s appointment as the new Attorney General for India was cleared by President Pranab Mukherjee. He will succeed Mukul Rohatgi, who had announced his resignation during June 2017.
Venugopal had handled are the Mandal case, Ayodhya dispute, Presidential reference regarding appointment of Judges and also the case involving judicial appointments.
He had also represented former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in the wealth case and defended her in the petition challenging her appointment as Chief Minister. He argued in the Presidential reference in Gujarat elections case in 2002. He was also the counsel for senior BJP leader L.K.Advani in Babri Masjid demolition case and argued against slapping of conspiracy charge against him.
18) On 1 July 2017 Aadhaar-issuing authority Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) asked states to ensure that all enrolments, even those by private agencies, shift to government or municipal premises from external sites by September 2017. The latest move assumes significance as most government and other services such as benefits, subsidies and services like PAN, GST, bank accounts, passports and property registration now require Aadhaar.
19) According to a communication issued by public sector-based Punjab National Bank (PNB) on 1 July 2017, its customers holding Maestro debit cards will face a card blockage if they fail to replace it with a more secure EMV chip based card by 31 July 2017. The bank said that it will block all Maestro debit cards from 31 July.
20) S.N. Subrahmanyan became the new head of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) as he took charge as company’s new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) on 1 July 2017. The event marked a major change in leadership positions at L&T where A.M. Naik has served for over 52 years, including as its head for over 17 years. He will now work as Group Executive Chairman.
Under Naik’s leadership, L&T transformed into a $17-billion group with presence not only in engineering and construction but also in technology, manufacturing and financial services operating in over 30 countries.
21) The National Biopharma Mission was launched on 30 June 2017. It is expected to bring together expertise from national and international corridors to provide strategic guidance and direction to move promising solutions through the product development value chain.
On the other a new programme named “Innovate in India (i3)” was launched under this mission that is expected to witness an investment of US$ 250 million with US$ 125 million as a loan from World Bank.
22)  GSAT-17 is the India’s latest communication satellite that was launched into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) on 28 June 2017. With a lift-off mass of about 3,477 kg this satellite carries payloads in Normal C- band, Extended C-band and S-band to provide various communication services.
It was launched into the space through European launcher Arianespace Flight VA238 from Ariane Launch Complex No 3 (ELA 3) at Kourou, a French territory located in northeastern coast of South America.
23) The brainchild of Scottish inventor Shepherd-Barron, the first ATM (automated teller machine) was opened on 27 June 1967 at a branch of Barclays bank in Enfield, north London. It was the first of six cash dispensers commissioned by the bank. Actor Reg Varney, who starred in the British comedy show ‘On the Buses’, was the first to withdraw cash from the machine. This ATM heralded a transformation in the way people obtained and used cash. There are now an estimated three million cash machines across the globe, with some 70,000 cash machines in the UK alone, which dispensed nearly $200 billion in 2016.
24) European Commission slapped a record $2.7 billion (€ 2.42-billion) fine on Google for illegally favouring its online shopping service. With this Alphabet Inc.’s Google lost its biggest regulatory battle yet.
25) During June 2017 the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) started printing of currency notes of Rs. 200 denomination. With this, India’s re-monetisation exercise appears to be entering its final lap.
26) Manushi Chillar of Haryana was crowned Miss India World 2017 at the 54th Femina Miss India World. The event was held at Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai
27) An international committee of UNESCO experts selected UAE city Sharjah for the ‘World Book Capital’ title for year 2019. This city was chosen for the quality of its literary and cultural activities, and for its unfailing efforts to make books accessible to the entire population of the nation. The announcement was made after at a meeting held at the headquarters of the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) at The Hague (the Netherlands).
Sharjah thus became the 19th city to become World Book Capital. It was preceded by Madrid (2001), Alexandria (2002), New Delhi (2003), Antwerp (2004), Montreal (2005), Turin (2006), Bogota (2007), Amsterdam (2008), Beirut (2009), Ljubljana (2010), Buenos Aires (2011), Yerevan (2012), Bangkok (2013), Port Harcourt (2014), Incheon (2015), Wroclaw (2016), Conakry (2017) and Athens (2018).
28) The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved bankruptcy proceedings for power infrastructure company Jyoti Structures Ltd. It thus became the first entity among the 12 cases referred by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) under India’s new Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). Jyoti Structures was one of the power sector firms hit by a lack of fuel linkages or trouble in completing land acquisition. The tribunal’s order came on an insolvency application filed during June 2017 by the company’s lead lender State Bank of India (SBI). According to NCLT filings, the company has total debt of Rs. 7,000 crore.
On 13 June 2017 the RBI had directed banks to refer 12 troubled companies with a combined debt of close to Rs. 2.5 trillion to the NCLT.
29) The Tamil Nadu Film Exhibitors Association (TNFEA) indefinitely suspended film shows in response to the 30% corporation tax introduced by the E.K. Palaniswami-led state government in addition to the 28% GST rate.
The move to impose 30% corporation tax takes entertainment tax in the state to about 58% from the tax-free status previously accorded at least to the local Tamil films. Even the 18% rate levied on theatres that price tickets below Rs.100 would mean 48% tax for them due to corporation tax.
30) ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co. will acquire the life insurance business of Sahara India Life Insurance Co. Ltd. The administration of Sahara India Life, a subsidiary of Sahara Group, was taken over by India’s insurance regulator – the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI)
IRDAI offered six insurers – Life Insurance Corporation of India, ICICI Prudential Life, HDFC Standard Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Kotak Mahindra Old Mutual Life Insurance Co. Ltd and SBI Life Insurance Co. Ltd – a chance to take over Sahara Life’s insurance business.
31) External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has inaugurated the 9th edition of Delhi Dialogue.
The theme for Delhi Dialogue 9 is 'India-ASEAN relations: Charting the Course for the Next 25 Years'.
32) Jin Liqun is present president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
    Beijing, China is headquarters of AIIB.
33) India is ranked a high 23rd out of 165 nations in a global index that measures the commitment of nations across the world to cybersecurity. The second Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) was released by the UN telecommunications agency International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The top 5 most committed countries to cybersecurity are-
1. Singapore,
2. The United States,
3. Malaysia,
4. Oman,
5. Estonia.
ITU currently has a membership of 193 countries. ITU is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
34) India has moved four places up to the 96th position in the FIFA World Ranking released recently. This is the country’s second-best ranking and its previous best was the 94th position in February 1996. India has moved 77 positions up from the 173rd rank on March 2015.     Headquarter of FIFA is in Zurich, Switzerland. The President of FIFA is Gianni Infantino.
35)  The European Parliament overwhelmingly approved a first-ever cooperation deal between the EU and Cuba. The European Parliament is headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.
36) India has declared itself free from highly pathogenic Avian Influenza (H5N1 and H5N8) after surveillance in the states showed no evidence of its presence. It has been notified to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).
37) Siemens opened its first digital factory in India, also the third globally after one each in Germany and China, as the industrial conglomerate pitches smart facilities to small and medium scale enterprises in the country.
38) India’s Manpreet Kaur claimed the gold medal in the women’s shot put on the opening day of the Asian Athletics Championships 2017 at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
Govindan Laxmanan emerged triumphant in the men’s 5,000 meters and has also won Gold Medal. The last edition of Asian Athletics Championship was held in Wuhan, China in 2015.
39) The Energy Resources Institute (TERI) among the top think tanks in the world. TERI was ranked number two by the International Center for Climate Governance (ICCG).
The New Delhi-based think tank was ranked under the category '2016 Top Climate Think Tanks in the Rest of the World--Absolute Global Rankings' during ICCG's 23rd annual conference of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE) in Athens in Greece.
40) The United Forum of Bank Unions has decided to observe July 19, the 48th anniversary of nationalization of major banks, as ‘Save public sector banks’ day.
The Government of India issued an ordinance and nationalized the 14 largest commercial banks with effect from the midnight of 19 July 1969.
41)  Himachal Pradesh director general of police (DGP) Sanjay Kumar has been appointed as the new chief of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).
NDRF was formed in 2006. It is headquartered in New Delhi.
42) The historic walled-city of Ahmedabad, that has 26 ASI-protected structures, was declared as a World Heritage City at the 41st session of UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee meet in Karkow in Poland. It thus became the first Indian city to get this prestigious recognition.
Ahmedabad will now join the likes of Paris, Cairo and Edinburgh. Of the 287 world heritage cities across the globe, there were only two cities in the Indian subcontinent– Bhaktpur in Nepal and Galle in Sri Lanka.
43) Twelfth meeting (12th Meeting) of the Group of Twenty (G20). It was held at Hamburg, Germany.
44) German Parliament’s Upper House gave green signal to same sex marriage bill that was earlier passed by the Lower House during June. The bill will now head to the desk of the country’s President.
45) F1 driver Valtteri Bottas victory at the Austrian Grand Prix
46) As per data released the quarter ended June 2017, the average of assets under management (AUM) of Kotak Asset Management climbed to Rs 1.01 lakh crore. With Kotak’s entry, the club now has seven members. The other fund houses managing Rs. 1 lakh crore or more AUM are ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund, HDFC MF, Reliance Nippon MF, Birla Sun Life MF, SBI MF and UTI MF.
47) 122 countries approved the first-ever treaty to ban nuclear weapons at the UN meeting boycotted by all nuclear-armed nations. One country the Netherlands voting against while Singapore abstained.
None of the nine countries that possess nuclear weapons the United States, Russia, Britain, China, France, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel took part in the negotiations or the vote.
48) From January 1, 2018, the price of a packaged good would no longer depend on where you bought it- be it a local Kirana store, a mall, a five-star hotel or an airport. The Consumer Affairs Ministry has amended the rules that govern packaged commodities to this effect.
49) Saima Wazed Hossain, a globally renowned champion for the cause of autism spectrum disorder has been appointed as the WHO's goodwill ambassador for autism in the world body's Southeast Asia region.
50) Nepal SBI Bank, a subsidiary of the State Bank of India, launched its fully automatic digital banking services in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu. This is for the first time the State Bank of India has expanded the paperless banking system outside India.
Digital banking provides various services including cash deposit, the opening of new accounts, distribution of debit card, ATM and online banking information on the touch of the screen. Customers can avail the services from SBI Intouch Bank.
51) India, the world's third-largest oil importer, will import crude oil from the United States for the first time after Indian Oil Corp bought a cargo that will be delivered in October 2017.
India is the latest Asian country to buy US crude after South Korea, Japan, China, Thailand, Australia and Taiwan as the countries seek to diversify oil imports from other regions after the OPEC cuts drove up prices of Middle East heavy-sour crude, or grades with a high sulphur content.
52) Climate and energy efficiency solutions company Danfoss India has been conferred with the ‘Golden Peacock Award’ for Environment Management.
The award was presented in Hyderabad during the 19th World Congress on Environment Management’ in the presence of Supreme Court Justice Kurien Joseph.
53) India has topped the medal tally for the 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, 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.
India pushed China to the second spot (20 Medals). China ended this edition with a tally of 8 gold, 7 silver, 5 bronze. Kazakhstan finished third (8 Medals) with 4 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze while Iran ended on fourth with 4 gold and 1 bronze. This was the 22nd Edition of Asian Athletics Championships which was held in Odisha. OLLY was the Mascot of the Championship.
54) President Pranab Mukherjee has launched digital initiatives - Swayam, Swayam Prabha and National Academic Depository - in New Delhi 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 2020.
Massive Open Online Courses, Swayam will host courses taught in classrooms from Class 9th to post-graduation, which can be accessed by anyone, anywhere at any time.
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. All the courses are interactive and available free of cost.
55) The First edition of WINGS 2017 – “Sab Uden, Sab Juden”- Expanding Regional Connectivity was hosted in New Delhi.
India is one of the fastest growing aviation markets and currently the ninth largest civil aviation market in the world.
56)  First International Aviation Security seminar organized by National Security Guard in Haryana
57) World Population Day is being observed globally on 11th July.
The theme of this year is 'Family Planning- Empowering People, Developing Nations'. World Population Day was established by the then-Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989.
58) Sovereign gold bond (SGB) scheme was launched recently by the Government. This time, providing a 2.5 percent annual interest to investors.
The bonds will be available in banks, Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited (SHCIL), designated post offices and recognized stock exchanges namely National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
The minimum investment will be 1 gram of gold. The maximum limit can be subscribed up to 500 grams per person per fiscal year.
59) Finance Minister Arun Jaitley launched 'Aaykar Setu', an e-initiative for the Income tax Department to directly communicate with the taxpayers and aimed at providing information on useful tax services.
To enhance mobile access experience, a mobile responsive Android version was also released along with the desktop version.
60) The famous blue-bordered sari of Mother Teresa, who has been canonized as Saint Teresa of Calcutta by the Vatican, has been recognized as an Intellectual Property of the Missionaries of Charity.
This is the first time that a uniform has been made the intellectual property. It has obtained “distinctive symbolic identity” of the Missionaries of Charity.
61) Rio Olympics silver medallist P V Sindhu was bestowed with the 'Sportsperson of the Year' award during the ‘Maruti Suzuki Sportsperson of the Year’ Charity Gala Awards.
Sindhu’s coach P Gopichand received the Coach of the Year award while the Flying Sikh Milkha Singh was given the Living Legend of the Year award.
Young India cricketer K L Rahul, who made a mark in the last Test series against Australia, was awarded Gamechanger of the Year award.
The 2008 Beijing Olympics gold medallist and the country’s sole gold medal winner in individual events at Olympics, Abhinav Bindra was given the Lifetime Achievement Award.    Deepa Malik was given Inspirational athlete of the year award. Gaurav Gill was given Athlete of the year award.
The National Green Tribunal banned the use of ‘Chinese’ kite strings, made of nylon or any synthetic material on the grounds that it poses threat to life and environment.
Mr. Justice Swatanter Kumar is the Present Chairperson of NGT. The National Green Tribunal has been established on 18.10.2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010.
62) Filing an RTI application with the Delhi government is now just a click away. Delhi became the second state to launch e-RTI portal that will enable citizens to file online Right to Information (RTI). Maharashtra is the first state to launch the online RTI platform.
63) Maharashtra has become the first state in the country to provide women an injectable contraceptive for free. The state’s public health department launched a program called Antara to offer women an injection of Medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), a birth-control hormone.
64) Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs M Venkaiah Naidu released the new version of NHB RESIDEX on the occasion of the annual day of National Housing Bank, entering its 30th year in New Delhi.
The NHB RESIDEX captures movements in the prices of residential real estate prices. NHB RESIDEX for January-March,2017 revealed that price indices for residential properties based on actual market prices for ongoing construction prices have increased over the previous quarter in 24 of the 47 cities covered in the Index.
65) Mithali Raj has been India’s premier player ever since she made her debut in 1999.
In the crucial game against Australia, Mithali became the woman cricketer who has scored most runs in ODIs. Mithali Raj became the first women’s player to reach 6000 ODI runs.  England’s Charlotte Edwards was the previous leading run-getter in ODIs with 5992 runs. She has 48 not-outs to her name, which is the most in women’s cricket.
66) Ravi Shastri has pipped Virender Sehwag to become Indian cricket team’s new head coach. The appointment was confirmed by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Shastri will take charge from India’s upcoming three-Test series against Sri Lanka, starting July 26.
Shastri, was chosen by the BCCI’s Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) that included former captains Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and veteran batting star VVS Laxman.
Zaheer Khan has been appointed as the bowling coach of Indian Cricket Team.
67) Uttar Pradesh’s historic city Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency, will have the privilege of hosting the South Asia Regional Centre of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).
68) Rajasthan state government it has laid down the minimum educational qualifications for contesting elections to village cooperative societies and various other cooperative bodies. For this the State Cooperative Societies Rules, 2003 has been amended.
The educational qualifications will range from Class V to Class VIII for election as members of governing boards of dairy societies, farming societies, consumer societies, weavers’ societies, housing construction societies, urban banks, primary land development banks, credit societies, salary earners’ societies and cooperative unions.
69) In a first of its kind of development, the Indian Government gave financial assistance of $500,000 (around Rs. 3.2 crore) to Philippines to wage battle against Islamic State-affiliated terror groups
70) ‘Malabar 2017’ is the 21st edition of the Malabar series of naval exercises and is being staged in the Indian Ocean.
Taking part in the trilateral naval exercise are US Ship Nimitz (CVN68), guided missile cruise USS Princeton (CG59), guided missile destroyers USS Howard (DDG83), USS Shoup (DDG86) and USS Kidd (DDG100), a Poseidon P-8A aircraft, a Los Angeles fast-attack submarine, Japan Maritime Self Defence Force ships JS Izumo (DDH 183), JS Sazanami (DD1 13) along with Indian Naval Ship Jalashwa and INS Vikramaditya.
It is worth mentioning that Malabar exercise was originally started in 1992 as a bilateral exercise between India and the United States. Japan became a permanent partner in 2015. Past non-permanent participants are Australia and Singapore.
71) Global Foreign Exchange Committee (GFXC) is the name of a newly-constituted forum of central bankers and experts that works towards promotion of a robust and transparent forex market. It has been established under the guidance of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), an international financial organization owned by 60 member central banks, representing countries from around the world.
India is soon expected to get a seat on the GSFX.
72) A Model United Nations (MUN) Regional Conference is being held at Kathmandu. The event is organised by the US Embassy in partnership with the Youth Thinker’s Society. Youths from 12 South and Central Asian countries including India are participating in 5-day conference.
The conference simulate four UN committees-United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Economic and Financial Committee (ECOFIN), United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
73) The country is set to get its first high-speed rail training center at Gandhinagar. The center will provide for advanced training modules on cutting edge technologies.
74) The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce & Industry has signed an Institutional agreement with the Punjab State Council of Science and Technology in New Delhi to establish India’s first Technology and Innovation Support Center (TISC) at Patent Information Centre, Punjab.
75)  Railways Ministry launches RailCloud Project, NIVARAN-Grievance Portal and CTSE Scheme
1. RailCloud
RailCloud is another step towards Digitization of Railways. Rail Cloud works on popular Cloud Computing system. It aims to improve customer satisfaction, improve revenue and effective, efficient and safe operations.
2. NIVARAN
‘NIVARAN-Grievance Portal’ is the first IT application to be launched on the RailCloud. It is the platform for resolution of service related grievances of serving and former railway employees.
3. Cashless treatment Scheme in Emergency (CTSE)
With an aim to provide immediate care to its retired employees in Golden Hour, the Railway Board has rolled out a Cashless treatment Scheme in Emergency (CTSE) in empanelled hospitals for retired employees and their dependent family members.
John Mathai was India's first Railway Minister.
76) Maharashtra has become the first state to make social boycott a crime after President Pranab Mukherjee cleared the legislation. The Maharashtra Prohibition of People from Social Boycott (Prevention Prohibition and Redressal) Act prescribes a maximum punishment of three years in jail and a fine of Rs1lakh.
It aims to prevent atrocities carried out by extra-judicial courts and caste panchayats. The Act also provides for compensation to victims. The fines imposed on violators will be used to compensate them.
77) Health Ministry of India launches the National Strategic Plan for Malaria Elimination 2017-22
78) 22nd World Petroleum Congress (WPC) International Conference held in Istanbul, Turkey
79) China’s most famous political prisoner, the Nobel laureate and democracy icon Liu Xiaobo, has died at the age of 61. Liu was awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China.
80) Indian Railways launched its first 1,600 HP solar powered Diesel Electric Multiple Unit (DEMU) train with a unique facility of Battery Bank from Safdarjung station, New Delhi.
The DEMU train has been manufactured by Integral Coach Factory, Chennai.
81) World Youth Skills Day is being observed globally on 15th July. The objective of the day is to raise awareness about the importance of investing in youth skills development.
82) Raipur’s Swami Vivekananda Airport was ranked first in Customer Satisfaction among 49 airports in the country.
Airports Authority of India (AAI) was constituted by an Act of Parliament and came into being on 1st April 1995. Dr. Guruprasad Mohapatra is the Chairman of AAI.
83) India is ranked 116 out of 157 nations on a global index that assesses the performance of countries towards achieving the ambitious sustainable development goals (SDGs). The SDG Index and Dashboards Report produced by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) and the Bertelsmann Stiftung.
India is ranked 116th on the index with a score of 58.1, behind countries such as Nepal, Iran, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and China. Pakistan is ranked 122. Sweden leads the list, followed by Denmark and Finland.
The UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) has been operating since 2012 under the auspices of the UN Secretary-General. SDGs were adopted in September 2015 at the UN Sustainable Development Summit in New York, US.
84) IIFA Awards 2017: List Of Winners
The 18th edition of the International Indian Film Academy Awards was held in New York. Sonam Kapoor’s film Neerja won the best film award. Actor Shahid Kapoor earned the Best Actor award for his role in Udta Punjab, while Alia Bhatt won the Best Actor (Female) award for the same film.
    Best Film- Neerja
    Best Director- AnirudhRoy Chaudhary for Pink
    Best Actor (Male)- Shahid Kapoor for Udta Punjab
    Best Actor (Female)- Alia Bhatt for Udta Punjab
    Best Actor in Supporting Role (Female)- Shabana Azmi for Neerja
    Best Actor in Supporting Role (Male)- Anupam Kher for MS Dhoni: The Untold Story
    Best Debutant (Female): Disha Patani for M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story
    Best Debut (Male)- Diljit Dosanjh for Udta Punjab
    Best Lyricist- Amitabh Bhattacharya for the song Channa Mere Ya from Ae Dil Hai Mushkil
    Best Playback Singer (Male)- Amit Mishra for Ae Dil Hai Mushkil
    Best Playback Singer (Female)- Kanika Kapoor for Udta Punjab and Tulsi Kumar for Airlift
    Best Music Direction- Pritam for Ae Dil Hai Mushkil
    Best Actor In Comic Role- Varun Dhawan for Dishoom
    Myntra Style Icon Award- Alia Bhatt
    IIFA Woman Of The Year- Tapsee Pannu
85) Central Railway has taken a step towards women empowerment by appointing an all-female work staff at the suburban Matunga station. Matunga station has now become the first such ladies special station.
86) Garbine Muguruza of Spain came out with the spectacular performance as she defeated seven-time Grand Slam Champion Venus Williams in straight sets to clinch her maiden Wimbledon title.
Roger Federer won a record eighth Wimbledon title and became the tournament’s oldest champion with a straight-sets victory over Marin Cilic. Federer claimed his 19th Grand Slam title.
87) Nelson Mandela International Day (or Mandela Day) is an annual international day in honour of Nelson Mandela, celebrated each year on 18 July, Mandela's birthday.
88) Nobel Laureate Professor Amartya Sen released a book titled "Future of Indian Universities: Comparative and International Perspectives" at Rashtrapati Bhavan. President Pranab Mukherjee, who received the first copy of the book.
89) Britain’s first woman Sikh MP Preet Kaur Gill has been elected to an influential cross-party panel in the UK Parliament that examines the workings of the Home Office.
90) The NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovind has been declared by the Secretary General of Lok Sabha Anoop Mishra as elected President of India. Mr. Kovind got 7,02,044 votes while his opponent, the joint Opposition candidate Meira Kumar, got 3,67,314 out of a total of 10,69,358.
Succeeding Pranab Mukherjee, Kovind will be sworn in as the 14th president of India on July 25. Kovind will be the seventh youngest person to be anointed to the coveted post. He is also the second Dalit after KR Narayanan to adorn the coveted post. He is the first President from Uttar The voting percentage in this election was over 99%, which is the highest voter turnout for Presidential election ever.
The total value of the votes of the Electoral College, which comprises 776 MPs and 4,120 MLAs, is 10,98,903. In terms of the value of the votes, the Sikkim Assembly has the lowest and Uttar Pradesh the highest value.Pradesh.
91) Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik dedicated to the nation the state's longest bridge and named it after Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The 2.88 km bridge over the river Kathajodi will connect the state capital of Bhubaneswar with Cuttack reducing the distance between the two cities by 12 km.
92) Veteran BJP leader L.K. Advani received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions as a parliamentarian in the Lok Sabha. JD-U leader Sharad Yadav also received the Lifetime Achievement Award as a Rajya Sabha representative from Vice President Hamid Ansari at a function organized by the Lokmat Media Group to honor distinguished Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members.
The other awardees from the Lok Sabha-
    Best Parliamentarian- Revolutionary Socialist Party MP N.K. Premachandran,
    Best Woman Parliamentarian- Congress leader Kumari Sushmita Dev and
    Best Debut Woman Parliamentarian- BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi.
The awardees from the Rajya Sabha-
    Best Parliamentarian- CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury,
    Best Woman Parliamentarian- Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan and
    Best Debut Woman Parliamentarian- Congress MP Rajni Patil.
93) Australia became the 35th country to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA), an initiative launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November 2015 in Paris. It is co-led by India and France. The aim of ISA is to support developing countries to boost their solar production capacity. India on its part through the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) and Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) is contributing $1 million to the ISA fund.
94) India-Japan agreement for Cooperation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy has come into force recently.
95) India fell just nine runs short in the ICC Women’s World Cup final at Lord’s against hosts England on 23 July 2017 to lose their second ICC World Cup final. Needing 229 runs to win the World Cup, Indian team was all-out at 219 runs with 8 balls to spare, thus losing the match by 9 runs.
England has now won the ICC Women’s World Cup four times. It had won its previous titles in 1973, 1993 and 2009. However, Australia remains the most successful team having won the title six times. New Zealand won the title once (in 2000).
96) Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) is the name of the new ambitious pension scheme for senior citizens. The main feature of this scheme is that it promises an assured return of 8%.
Minimum and maximum purchase prices for the pension scheme are Rs.1,50,000 and Rs. 7,50,000 respectively. If a senior citizen is in a liquidity crunch, loans up to 75% of the purchase price after three policy years can be availed. The interest payments will be adjusted against pension instalments while the loan amount will be recovered form claim proceeds.
PMVVY is exempt from the Goods & Services Tax (GST)
97) ICICI Bank launched a facility whereby its existing salaried customers can avail personal loans at ATMs. These customers can get pre-qualified personal loans up to 15 lakhs in their savings account instantly.
98) Paika Rebellion (also called the Paika Bidroha) was an armed rebellion against the British East India Company’s rule in Odisha in 1817. The ‘Paikas’ were the traditional landed militia of Odisha. They served as warriors and were charged with policing functions.
99) Karnataka Government had constituted a nine-member committee, led by principal secretary, Department of Kannada and Culture, to submit a report on designing a separate flag for the state and providing a legal standing for it. It was constituted after a representation from noted Kannada writer and journalist Patil Puttappa, and social worker Bheemappa Gundappa Gadada.
If the flag comes into being, Karnataka will be the second state to have its official flag after Jammu and Kashmir, which enjoys a special status under Article 370 of the Constitution.
100) National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER), Gujarat is the most competitive state in the country. The study, which estimates state-wise investment potential, ranks their competitiveness on six pillars, namely – land, labour, infrastructure, economic climate, political stability and governance, and business perception.
In this study Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Telangana and Tamil Nadu have been ranked after Gujarat to form the group of top six states in India for business investment potential.
Despite West Bengal ranks last on the index, followed by Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, these states do fare better on sub-indices. Bihar, for example, does better on labour; Uttar Pradesh on land and West Bengal on economic climate.
101) Vikram Limaye took over as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of India’s largest stock exchange – the National Stock Exchange (NSE). He was shortlisted for the top NSE post in February 2017 after Chitra Ramkrishna resigned as chief executive officer
102) Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) became the second Indian company to cross Rs. 5 trillion market capitalization after the nation’s biggest software major, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS).
103) Maryam Mirzakhani was an Iran-born American mathematician who in 2014 became the first woman awarded the Fields Medal, often called the most prestigious prize in mathematics. Fields Medal is awarded by the International Mathematical Union (IMU) and is officially called the International Medal for Outstanding Discoveries in Mathematics.
104) Indian Railways launched country’s first-ever solar-powered DEMU (diesel electrical multiple unit) train. This train was launched at the Safdarjung railway station in Delhi but it will run from Sarai Rohilla in Delhi to Farukh Nagar in Haryana.
105) According to the figures quoted by social media giant Facebook to advertisers, India has overtaken the US to become Facebook’s largest country audience with a total 241 million active users. The active users in the US stood at 240 million.
The figures indicate that active users in India were growing more than twice as fast as in the US. Active users in India were up 27% in the past six months alone, compared to growth of 12% in the US over the same period.
However, Facebook gender imbalance in India was also visible as men still represent three-quarters of the active Facebook profiles. In contrast, in the US, 54% of the platform’s active users were women.
106) 71-year old Ram Nath Kovind on 25 July 2017 became the 14th President of India at an oath ceremony held in the Central Hall of Parliament. He was administered oath by Chief Justice of India Justice J.S. Khehar. Apart from being the second Dalit President after K.R. Narayanan, Kovind also became the first-ever BJP member to hold the nation’s highest office.
107)  Veteran scientist, administrator and popular science communicator, Professor Yash Pal died on 24 July 2017 in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. He was 90. He made significant contributions to the field of science and to the study of cosmic rays, high-energy physics, astrophysics and development, among others. He was also instrumental in establishing institutions that were keys to India’s space programme.
In 1991 Yash Pal hosted ‘Turning Point’, a popular science show on Doordarshan. He was also the recipient of several awards including the Indira Gandhi Prize for Popularization of Science in 2000 and the Meghnad Saha Medal in 2006. He served as the Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi from 2007 to 2012. He was also the Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC) from 1986 to 1991.
108) Doordarshan has been sporting the current ‘human eye’ logo since 1959. This iconic logo was designed by Devashis Bhattacharya then a student of Ahmedabad-based National Institute of Design (NID). The logo was officially launched on 15 September 1959.
109) USS Gerald Ford is the name of the next-generation naval aircraft carrier that cost $12.9 billion and is the most expensive naval carrier till date. It was commissioned into the US Navy by President Donald Trump at Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia
The giant ship has been named after Gerald Ford, the 38th President of the United States. It is 337m (1106 ft.) in length and incorporates advanced technology and operational systems that will allow aircraft take off and land more quickly, with a smaller crew and improved chances of survival against attack.
110) Prof. U.R. Rao, often called the grand old man of Indian space programme and fourth Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) passed away
He initiated the development of the medium powered GSLV rocket for two-tonne spacecraft in 1991. It was during his time that India was denied the Russian cryogenic technology for the GSLV’s upper third stage.
He is the only Indian to date to have been inducted into the Satellite Hall of Fame, Washington, in 2013 by the Society of Satellite Professionals International. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1976 and the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian honour, this year (2017).
111) Paika Rebellion (also called the Paika Bidroha) was an armed rebellion against the British East India Company’s rule in Odisha in 1817. The ‘Paikas’ were the traditional landed militia of Odisha. They served as warriors and were charged with policing functions.
They rose in rebellion against East India Company under their leader Bakshi Jagabandhu and, projecting Lord Jagannath as the symbol of Odia unity, the rebellion quickly spread across most of Odisha before being ruthlessly put down by the company’s forces.
Many scholars, researchers and historians have opined that the Paika Rebellion was India’s first organized armed rebellion against British Raj.
The Bicentenary celebration (200 year) of Paika Rebellion was inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee in a Programme organized by the Ministry of Culture in Bhubaneswar on 20 July 2017.
112) India will host the fifth Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) in November 2017. One of the largest cyber security conferences in the world, GCSS will be held in New Delhi.
113) The world’s first floating wind farm has taken to the seas in a sign that a technology once confined to research and development drawing boards is finally ready to unlock expanses of ocean for generating renewable power in Scotland.
The £200 million Hywind project is unusual not just because of the pioneering technology involved, which uses a 78-metre-tall underwater ballast and three mooring lines that will be attached to the seabed to keep the turbines upright. It will bring power to 20,000 homes.
114) The Minister of Women & Child Development, Smt. Maneka Gandhi launched an online complaint management system titled Sexual Harassment electronic–Box (SHe-Box) for registering complaints related to sexual harassment at workplace in New Delhi.
The complaint management system has been developed to ensure the effective implementation of Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act (the SH Act), 2013. Currently, this facility has been extended to employees of Central Government, the scope of the portal will soon be extended to women employees of the private sector also.
115) India skipper Mithali Raj was chosen as the captain of the ICC Women’s World Cup 2017 team by the International Cricket Council. The 34-year-old Indian was selected as captain after she led India to the final of the just-concluded ICC Women’s World Cup.
116) The country celebrated the 18th Anniversary of ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas’. On the occasion, Defence Minister Arun Jaitley and three Chiefs of Services laid floral tribute at Amar Jawan Jyoti, India Gate.
Kargil Vijay Diwas is celebrated on 26 July, commemorates India’s emphatic victory against Pakistan and honors the war heroes.
On this day in 1999, the Indian Army successfully took control of posts at a treacherous high altitude and glaciated terrain across the Himalayas in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, after fighting for 60 days.
117) Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the former President, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam’s memorial at Pei Karumbu in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu on the second death anniversary of the former President. Mr. Modi unveils a statue of Dr. Kalam and hoisted the National flag at the memorial.
118) The Madras High Court ruled that Vande Mataram should be sung in all schools and colleges across the state “at least once a week”, and in government and private offices “at least once a month”.
119) Uttarakhand is the second state in terms of tiger count behind Karnataka, which has 400 big cats.
According to the latest statistics, at least 208 tigers have been identified in Jim Corbett Tiger Reserve, up from last year's 163. Also, six cubs were identified there.   
Jim Corbett National Park is the oldest national park in India. It was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park to protect the endangered Bengal tiger.
120) World Hepatitis Day (WHD) takes places on 28 July
The Theme for World Hepatitis Day 2017 is 'Eliminate Hepatitis'.
121) Mumbai Metro announced the launch of India's first Mobile Ticketing System 'OnGo' which will help commuters pass the AFC gates using their mobile phones.
122) Nawaz Sharif has resigned as prime minister of Pakistan following a decision by the country's Supreme Court to disqualify him from office.
The ruling came after a probe into his family's wealth following the 2015 Panama Papers dump linking Mr Sharif's children to offshore companies.
123) Axis Bank has re-appointed Shikha Sharma as MD & CEO of Axis Bank for the three-year term from June 2018. Her current term was to end in June 2018.
Axis Bank informed Bombay Stock Exchange that board of directors has approved the re-appointment.
124) The 7th International Tiger Day is observed globally on 29 July. This year’s International Tiger Day would be celebrated with the slogan ‘Fresh Ecology For Tigers’ Protection’.
The conference of the heads of 13 countries – where tigers are available – held at Saint Petersburg of Russia in 2010 took the decision to mark the world tiger day on July 29 every year.
125) National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organization for all retail payment systems has received a final nod from the Reserve Bank of India to function as the Bharat Bill Payment Central Unit (BBPCU) and operate the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS).
126) The United Nations World Day against Trafficking in Persons  is observed across the world on 30 July. This year, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) selected ‘Act to Protect and Assist Trafficked Persons’ as the focus of the Day.
The theme emphasizes one of the most pressing issues of the large mixed migration movements of refugees and migrants.
127) Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed India's first unmanned tank, which has three variants – surveillance, mine detection, and reconnaissance in areas with nuclear and bio threats. It is called Muntra (Mission UNmanned TRAcked) and has been rolled out of the Chennai lab.
The tanks will facilitate Indian Armed forces in conducting unmanned surveillance missions. Muntra-S has been developed for unmanned surveillance missions, whereas Muntra-M is built for detecting mines. Muntra-N will be deployed in areas where nuclear radiation or bio weapon risk is high.
128)  under the agreement, Sri Lanka Ports Authority has agreed to sell a 70% stake in the Hambantota port to the state-run China Merchants Ports Holdings. The Chinese firm will run the workings of the newly constructed port over a 99-year lease.


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