MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 1

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 2

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

CONTENTS

NATIONAL .......................................................................................................................................... 3

STATES .............................................................................................................................................. 7

INTERNATIONAL ................................................................................................................................ 8

REPORTS & SCHEMES ..................................................................................................................... 9

ECONOMY & BUSINESS ................................................................................................................. 11

FINANCE & BANKING ...................................................................................................................... 13

AWARDS & RECOGNITION ............................................................................................................. 15

PERSON IN NEWS ........................................................................................................................... 16

OBITUARIES ..................................................................................................................................... 17

IMPORTANT DAYS .......................................................................................................................... 18

SPORTS ............................................................................................................................................ 19

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 3

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

NATIONAL

1. The National Council for Science & Technology Communication (NCSTC) under Department of Science &

Technology (DST) has launched a programme “Year of Awareness on Science & Health (YASH)” with

an aim make people aware to contain the spread of COVID-19.

2. Black Rice of Manipur, Gorakhpur Terracotta & Kovilpatti ‘Kadalai Mittai’ has been granted with

the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.

3. Kashmiri Saffron has been granted Geographical Indication (GI) tag by the Geographical

Indications Registry.

4. Mercom India Research’s report titled ‘India Solar Market Leaderboard 2020’ states that India has

installed 7.3 Giga Watt (GW) of solar power in year 2019 thus become 3rd

largest solar market in the world after China and U.S. India has total solar installations of approximately

35.7 GW by the end of December 2019.

5. Cauvery Water Management Authority has been brought under the Jal Shakti Ministry by the

Central government

6. Prime Minister of India has participated in the online summit of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Contact

Group on the theme “United against COVID-19” hosted by President of Republic of Azerbaijan.

7. Indian Navy has launched Operation “Samudra Setu” to bring back 1000 Indians from

Maldives.

8. Coal Ministry has launched Project Monitoring Unit for early operationalization of coal mines across

India.

9. Janaushadhi Sugam app developed by the Bureau of Pharma PSUs of India (BPPI) has helped 325000

users to access generic medicine benefits.

10. Chhattisgarh has ranked 1st among other states in providing employment under MGNREGS as per data

provided by Rural Development ministry. Chhattisgarh is followed by Rajasthan (2nd) and Uttar Pradesh

(3rd).

11. India has ranked 3rd among countries in scientific publication in 2018 as per Research and Development

(R&D) Statistics At a Glance 2019-20.

12. Mumbai based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has become the first pharma company in India to receive

approval from Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to conduct clinical trials of Favipiravir antiviral

tablets for the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

13. A 17-year old Indian-origin girl Vaneeza Rupani has won the contest to name the 1st helicopter to be

built for NASA Mars Rover as ‘Ingenuity’.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 4

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

14. Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) and Art of Living (AOL)

Foundation has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote the tribal enterprises. AOL

Foundation is an educational and humanitarian organisation recognised by the United Nations (UN).

15. Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy Raj Kumar Singh has unveiled e-book titled “A Report

on Impact of Energy Efficiency Measures” for the year 2018-19. It states that energy efficiency

initiatives by BEE (Bureau of Energy Efficiency) has led to savings worth Rs 89,122 crore in 2018-19 compared

to 2017-18 savings of Rs 53,627 crore.

16. Dr. Harsh Vardhan has launched a mobile application 'AYUSH Sanjivani'. The app was developed

by the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) and Ministry

of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY).

17. The Defence Ministry has signed a contract with Tata Power for Modernisation of Air-Field Infrastructure

of 37 airfields for Indian Air Force, Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard.

18. The Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) and National Institute of Virology (NIV) tie-up with

Bharat Biotech to develop indigenous COVID-19 vaccine.

19. Union Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has approved the abolition of 9,304 posts in the military

engineering services on the recommendation of Shekatkar Committee.

20. India has launched “Mission Sagar” to send medical aid to five Island nations in the Indian Ocean amid

COVID-19 pandemic. In this regard, Indian Naval Ship (INS) Kesari departed for Maldives, Mauritius,

Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros, to provide Food items, COVID related Medicines including

Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) Tablets and Special Ayurvedic Medicines with Medical Assistance Teams.

21. India and Russia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Coking coal.

22. The Atal Pension Yojana (APY) has completed 5 years on the May 9, 2020. It was launched in 2015 to

deliver old age income security particularly to the workers in the unorganised sector.

23. For the first time the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has included Gilgit-Baltistan and

Muzaffarabad region of POK in its weather forecast.

24. As per two papers (published in Lancet and eClinicial Medicine) on child survival published by India

State-Level Disease Burden Initiative titled “Subnational mapping of under-5 and neonatal

mortality trends in India: the Global Burden of Disease Study 2000–17”, child and maternal

malnutrition was the predominant risk factor in India as it attributed to 68·2% of under-5 deaths while

low birth weight and short gestation led to 83·0% of neonatal deaths in 2017.

25. Atal Pension Yojna, a flagship social security scheme of the Government of India, has completed five

years of its implementation in May 2020. The scheme is being administered by Pension Fund Regulatory and

Development Authority through National Pension System (NPS). Any citizen of India can join the APY scheme.

The age of the subscriber should be between 18-40 years.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 5

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

26. Government of India has set up a new body Rice Export Promotion Forum to give impetus to rice

exports under the aegis of Agricultural and Processed Foods Export Promotion Development Authority

(APEDA).

27. The Government of India and West Bengal Government have inked agreements with Asian

Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) for $145million to improve irrigation services and flood

management in the Damodar Valley Command Area (DVCA) of West Bengal

28. Rs 3100 crores has been allocated from Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency

Situations (PM CARES) Fund Trust to fight against COVID-19 pandemic.

29. Union Defence minister Rajnath Singh has approved Rs 400 crores for Defence Testing

Infrastructure Scheme. The scheme will run for a period of 5 years & envisages to set up 6 to 8 new test

facilities in partnership with private industry.

30. Rs 40,000 crores additional amount has been allocated for the under MGNREGS which will help in

generating total work of nearly 300 crore person days.

31. PM e-VIDYA programme has been launched for multi-mode access to digital/online education. Under

the programme the DIKSHA programme will provide “one nation, one digital platform” for school

education in states/UTs. It will also include the launch of Energized Textbooks for all grades. One earmarked

TV channel will be launched for per class from 1 to 12 following the concept of “one class, one channel”.

32. National Disaster Management Authority has developed “National Migrant Information System

(NMIS)” to secure information regarding the movement of migrants workers.

33. A mobile application named National Test Abhyas was developed by the National Testing Agency which

will help the candidates to take mock tests for exams such as JEE Mains, NEET, etc.

34. The Indian Railways operationalized its first 12,000 HP electric locomotive built in Electric

Locomotive Factory, Madhepura.

35. Six cities rated 5 star in Star Rating of Garbage Free Cities, for the assessment year 2019-2020. In rating

Ambikapur, Rajkot, Surat, Mysuru, Indore and Navi Mumbai were rated 5 Star.

36. The Union Cabinet has extended Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) till which year 2023.

It is a social security scheme for senior citizens for those who are above 60. The government has fixed its

annual rate of return at 7.4% for financial year 2020-21. Now, Senior citizens will have time till March 31,

2023 to invest in Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana which provides higher return than any bank.

37. As per the payroll data of the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), around 821,000 new

members have joined ESIC social security scheme.

The data was released by National Statistical Office (NSO). According to the data the subscribers to the

scheme in 2018-19 were 14.9 million and it increased to 38.3 million in March 2020. The NSO report issues

data of several social security schemes such as PFRDA, EPFO.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 6

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

38. Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways and MSMEs Shri. Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the

Chamba Tunnel under Chardham Pariyojana through video conference.

39. The Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology has now been renamed as Central Institute

of Petrochemicals, Engineering and Technology. The name change was registered under Tamil Nadu

Societies Registration Act, 1975.

40.The Government of India announced that around 9 crore 60 lakh farmers were benefitted under Pradhan

Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana. This was mainly done through the PM-KISAN Scheme

41. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs announced that 23 additional Minor Forest Produce of Minimum

Support Price has been included.

42. The Ministry of Labour and Employment is to provide Career Skills Training under its National Career

Service Project in partnership with TCS.

The National Career Service (NCS) Project will provide employment related services to career

counselling, job matching, vocational guidance, job search, information on skill development courses, etc.

Around 1000 employment exchanges are integrated with NCS.

43. The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) cultured COVID-19 from the patients infected with

the virus. The virologists at CCMB will isolate infectious virus from the patients. The isolated virus will be used

for vaccine development and drug testing.

44. PM Modi launched “My Life My Yoga”, a video blogging contest. The contest is to be conducted as a joint

effort of Ministry of AYUSH and ICMR (Indian Council of Cultural Research).

45. The Union Minister Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad launched an initiative called “Responsible AI for

Youth” and an Artificial Intelligence Portal called www.ai.gov.in. The portal was developed by the E-

Governance division operating under Ministry of Electronics and IT.

46. The Responsible AI for Youth was launched targeting the youth in the country. The programme aims

to provide a platform to empower their new age technology skills especially AI based skills. The programme

has been launched in collaboration with Intel India.

47. The Department of Science and Technology operating under Ministry of Science and Technology launched

the Indian National Super Model. The Model was launched to help monitor transmission of COVID-19

infection.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 7

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

STATES 48. The Tripura government has launched an “Agro-Entrepreneur Facilitation Desk” to help the

entrepreneurs from Tripura to get subsidies and incentives from NABARD

(National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development).

49. Himachal Pradesh government will launch ‘Mukhya Mantri Shahari Rojgar Guarantee Yojna

to provide 120 days of employment to those living in urban areas.

50. Andhra Pradesh has launched a mobile application ‘CMAPP (Comprehensive Monitoring of

Agriculture, Price, and Procurement)’ with the aim to monitor the agriculture needs of the farmers in the state.

51. Madhya Pradesh state government has launched the ‘First Information Report (FIR) Aapke Dwar

Yojana’ at the new Police Control Room, Bhopal to enable people to file FIRs from their homes instead of

visiting police stations.

52. Uttarakhand state government has launched “HOPE” (Helping Out People Everywhere) portal to help

unemployed youth to get jobs opportunities.

53. Tamil Nadu state government has constituted a high-level committee headed by C Rangarajan to assess

the immediate and medium-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on various sectors of the State’s economy.

54. Tripura State government has launched ‘Mukhyamantri Yuba Yogayog Yojana’ The Scheme aims

to provide grants for the purchase of smartphones to the students of final year to empower them digitally &

help them leverage the advantages of an interconnected world.

55. To provide support to the migrant workers Uttar Pradesh state has launched ‘Pravasi Raahat Mitra’. The

mobile application is developed by the state revenue department in collaboration with United Nation

Development Program (UNDP).

56. Madhya Pradesh has become the 1st state in the country to provide mid-day meal ration.

57. Karnataka has launched its first cyber security-specific accelerator programme 'H.A.C.K' for start-ups.

58. The Karnataka State Government announced that it will launch a “State Health Register” to collect

data of all its citizens. The register is first of its kind in the country.

59. The Madhya Pradesh Government launched Rojgar Setu Yojana to help migrant workers. The

scheme provides employment to the migrant workers.

60. The Union Government approved Rs 445 crores under Jal Jeevan Mission for Chhattisgarh for the year

2020-21.

61. The Uttar Pradesh Government is to implement Herbal Roads Project in a stretch of 800 km in the

state.

Under the project, the state government is to plant trees that have medicinal values on either side of the

roads. The herbal trees to be planted include Neem, Peepal, Sehjan, etc. The plants will provide raw

materials to medicines and will also help in preventing erosion of land.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 8

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

62. The Kerala Government announced that the ambitious project of the state called the K-FON (Kerala Fibre

Optic Network) project is to be implemented by December 2020.

63. On May 30, 2020, Goa celebrated its Statehood Day. Goa was the 25th state to join the union of India.

INTERNATIONAL

64. Russia will launch Arktika-M satellite by December 9, 2020, to monitor the Arctic climate and

environment.

65. China has successfully launched a new rocket named “Long March 5B” into space which will pave the

way of its Moon landing plans.

66. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nation (UN) postal agency released a

commemorative postage stamp on the 40th anniversary of the eradication of smallpox.

67. Israel has named street after Rabindranath Tagore on his 159th anniversary.

68. India will hold the chair of the World Health Organization in May 2020 after Japan completes its. India

will continue to hold the chair for the next three years.

69. According to the latest data of the Madrid based United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

the international tourism could decline by 60-80% in 2020 when compared with 2019 figures, due to

COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.

70. United Nations (UN) and its partner agencies have appealed to governments, companies and billionaires

to donate $ 6.7 billion in funds for essentials within vulnerable countries to fight against COVID-19

Pandemic.

71. The United Nations (UN) World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) mid-year report forecast that

the COVID-19 pandemic situation will shrink the world economy by 3.2%.

72. As per the report published by the Asian Development Bank global economy is expected to lose between $

5.8 trillion to $ 8.8 trillion.

GDP in South Asia is expected to decrease from $ 142 billion (3.9%) -$ 218 billion (6 %) due to stringent

lockdown restrictions imposed by nations like Bangladesh, India and Pakistan to prevent the coronavirus

infection.

73. Italy has developed ‘iFeel-You’ bracelet for social distancing. This bracelet will help users respect social

distancing rules.

73. China has announced USD 2 billion support to WHO over two years to fight the coronavirus pandemic

at WHO assembly.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 9

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

74. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently announced eight candidates to enter human trials.

Several people step forward to participate in human challenge trial as the race to develop new vaccine for

the virus is increasing.

The trial involves infecting volunteers intentionally with COVID-19 virus. This is done to speed up the process

of vaccine development.

75. The Heads of Tax authorities of BRICS met through video conference. The Conference was hosted by

Russia.

76. The Leaders of Group of the seven wealthiest countries (G-7) in the world had set up Global Partnership

on Artificial Intelligence. The initiative to launch a global group on Artificial Intelligence was initiated by

France and Canada.

77. The World Health Organization recently suspended its trials on the efficacy of the drug

Hydroxychloroquine in treating COVID-19. The HCQ trial is one of the four mega trials initiated by the

organization.

78. The European Union proposed 750 billion Euros as COVID-19 recovery fund. The fund is to be used by

the countries to recover from deep recession caused by the COVID-19.

79. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman attended the Special Board of Governors meet of New

Development Bank (NDB) through video conference. Mr Marcos Troyjo of Brazil was elected as the

president of NDB at the meet.

80. The US President Donald Trump recently announced that USA is to withdraw from Open Skies treaty.

The Treaty on Open Skies was signed in 2002. The treaty established an aerial surveillance system for its

participants. There are 34 members that signed the treaty. Both US and Russia are signatories of the treaty.

81. The SpaceX has become the first private rocket company to send astronauts to space. The company sent

Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken to space initiating a new business model for NASA.

REPORTS & SCHEMES

82. As per a recent report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), titled ‘The Global

Report on Internal Displacement (GRID 2020)’, nearly 5 million people were displaced in India in

2019, the highest in the world so far.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 10

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

83. As per the 7th edition of ‘Open Budget Survey 2019’ conducted by International Budget Partnership

(IBP), India ranked at 53rd position among 117 nations in terms of budget transparency and accountability.

New Zealand has topped the list.

84. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report titled “Lost at Home: The risks and challenges

for internally displaced children and the urgent actions needed to protect them” state that an

estimation of 46 million people were internally displaced around the world by conflict and violence in 2019.

Out of 46mn people, 19 million were children.

In India, the total number of new internal displacements in 2019 stood at 5 million due to natural

disasters, conflict, and violence.

85. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) in its Annual Report 2020 has

downgraded the India status by mentioning it into the list of “Country of Particular Concern (CPC)”

86. As per International Energy Agency (IEA) “Global Energy Review 2020 due to COVID 19 India’s energy

demand falls by 30%. The report is based on an analysis of around 100 days of real-data of 2020.

87. India has ranked 74th in the recently released Global Energy Transition Index (GET Index) 2020 by the

World Economic Forum (WEF). The World Economic Forum has ranked 115 countries based on GET Index

in its report “WEF Fostering Effective Energy Transition 2020 report”. Sweden has topped the ranking for

the third consecutive year. It was followed by Switzerland and Finland.

88. As per the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Report, 2020, India is one among the 88

countries that are to miss global nutrition targets set for the year 2025. India also has highest rates of

domestic inequalities, especially in malnutrition. Along with Nigeria and Indonesia, India was

declared the least performing in case of disparities in stunting.

89. World Health Organization (WHO) has released the first “The State of the World’s Nursing 2020”

report amid COVID19 in partnership with Nursing Now and International Council of Nurses (ICN).

As per the report, there are 28 million nurses worldwide but still, there is a global shortfall of 5.9 million.

Countries facing the greatest shortfall of nurses are in Africa, South East Asia and the WHO Eastern

Mediterranean region as well as some parts of Latin America.

90. According to the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) 2020 released by the Rome based

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the forest loss rate in 2015-2020 has declined to an estimated 10

million hectares(mha), down from 12 mha in 2010-2015. Among the world’s regions, Africa has the largest

annual rate of net forest loss in 2010–2020. More than 54% of the world’s forests were in only five countries-

- Russia, Brazil, Canada, USA and China.

91. According to the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) 2020 released by the United Nations Food

and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the forest loss rate in 2015-2020 has declined to an estimated 10 million

hectares (mha), down from 12 mha in 2010-2015. The world has lost 178 mha of forest since 1990, an

area the size of Libya.

92. the World Steel Association has released the World Steel Report. According to the report, the crude

steel report of India declined by 65%. During April 2020, the steel output of India was 3.13 million tonnes.

The report also says that the global steel output declined by 13%.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 11

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

93. The World Gold Council released its report on Retail Gold Insights: India Jewellery Report.

According to the report, around 37% of Indian women never bought jewellery.

The report says that gold jewellery was the second most popular item among “Fashion and Lifestyle”

shoppers next to clothes and silk sarees. Around 60% of Indian women already owned jewellery. The 37%

of Indian women that do not buy gold are now being seen as new target by the gold industry. Of these, 44%

of the women are from rural areas and 30% are from urban.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

94. The Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Minor Forest Produce (MFP) of 49 items was raised in view of

circumstances arising out of COVID-19. This revision was done by Pricing Cell constituted under the Ministry

of Tribal Affairs.

95. The task force on National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) headed by Atanu Chakraborty submitted its

Final Report on NIP for FY 2019-25 to Finance Ministery projecting total infrastructure investment of Rs

111 lakh crore for 5-year.

96. Ministry of Micro Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) has launched ‘MSME Bank of Ideas,

Innovation and Research’ portal (http://ideas.msme.gov.in/).

97. Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) launched an app Kisan Sabha to resolve the problems related

to the agricultural supply chain. The primary objective of Kisan Sabha is to connect farmers to supply chain

and freight transportation management system.

98. Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) in collaboration with DPIIT under Ministry of Commerce and

Industry, will launch a national e-commerce marketplace ‘bharatmarket’ (www.bharatemarket.in) for all

retail traders in India. It will connect 95% of India’s retail business.

99. Narendra Singh Tomar (Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj) has launched “The

Saras Collection” on the Government e Marketplace (GeM) portal to showcase daily utility products made by

Rural Self-Help Groups (SHGs).

The Saras Collection is an initiative of GeM and the Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural

Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 12

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

100. Government has launched Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan package which is focused on “Getting back

to work” which enables employees, employers, and businesses to get back to production and workers back to

gainful employment.

• Rs 3 lakh crore Emergency Working Capital Facility for Businesses, including MSMEs for 4 years

• Rs 50,000 crores equity infusion for MSMEs through Rs 10,000 cr Fund of Funds

• 2500 crore Employees Provident Fund (EPF) Support for Business & Workers for 3 more months

• EPF contribution reduced for Business & Workers for 3 months- Rs 6750 crores Liquidity Support

• Rs 30,000 crores Special Liquidity Scheme for NBFC/HFC/MFIs

• Rs 45,000 crores Partial credit guarantee Scheme 2.0 for Liabilities of NBFCs/MFIs

• Reduction in Rates of ‘Tax Deduction at Source’ and ‘Tax Collected at Source” by 25% for the remaining

period of FY 20-21

101. The Central government has set up Rice Export Promotion Forum (REPF) to give impetus to rice

exports. REPF is setup under the aegis of Agricultural and Processed Foods Export Promotion Development

Authority (APEDA)

102. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) the country’s unemployment rate rose

to 27.11%.

103. Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. has announced the launch of ‘Own-Online’, an end-to-end online

vehicle ownership solution. Mahindra Own-Online will be a one-stop available 24X7 where customers can

finance, insure, exchange, accessorise and own a Mahindra vehicle in four steps, without having to visit a

dealership.

104. The GoI has changed the definition of MSMEs which has increased the investment limit upwards.

Previously, an enterprise with investment up to Rs 25 lakh was called a micro unit.

Under the new definition, a firm upto investment of Rs 1 crore is to be called Micro unit, of Rs 10 crore is to

be called as small unit and investment greater than Rs 20 crore will be called as medium unit.

105. Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has organized the digital conference, RE-START –

‘Reboot the Economy through Science, Technology and Research Translations is association with

Technology Development Board (TDB). The conference was organized by the Technology Development Board

(TDB), a statutory body of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Confederation of Indian

Industry (CII).

106. the United Nations (UN) World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) mid-year report forecast that

in 2020 India’s economy to grow at 1.2%. The report forecast that India’s economy to grow at 1.2% in 2020

which is deterioration from the growth of 4.1% in 2019.

107. World Bank has approved 1 billion USD to increase India’s COVID-19 Social Protection response

Program.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 13

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

108. The Ministry of Finance released Status Paper on Government Debt 2018-19. According to the

report, the overall debt of centres and states declined by 68.7% in March 2018 to 68.6% in 2019.

• The Status Paper on Government Debt is being produced by the Ministry of Finance since 2010. Current

debt of India stands at Rs 1.3 crore crore.

• The debt of central government dropped marginally from 45.8% in 2017-18 to 45.7% in 2019, The

external debt was 2.7% of GDP.

• The Average Interest Cost of the centre remained unchanged in the year 2018 to 2019.

• Around 94% of centre’s liabilities were of domestic debts.

• The tenure of the longest security was 37 years.

FINANCE & BANKING

109. World Bank ‘has approved a USD 400 million financial support to India to enhance its coastal &

marine resources, protect marine resources & coastal populations from pollution, erosion, sea-level rise.

110. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has cancelled the license granted (to conduct banking business) to the 105-

year-old CKP Co-operative Bank Ltd (Mumbai, Maharashtra). License to conduct banking business

includes acceptance of deposits and repayment of deposits as defined in Section 5 and Section 56 of the

Banking Regulation Act, 1949.

111. Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) will launch a digital platform ‘India SME Services

Platform’ to educate stakeholders from the small and medium enterprises.

112. For India Emergency Assistance Program Loan of USD 1 billion has been approved by the New

Development Bank (NDB). The Emergency Assistance Program Loan aims to support the Government of

India in its attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19.

113. Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has approved a loan worth of $500 million for India’s

‘COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health Systems Preparedness Project’.

114. Co-financed by the World Bank (WB), the undertaking is part of a $10 billion AIIB’s Covid-19 Crisis

Recovery Facility to help public and private sector entities deal with the pandemic

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 14

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

115. Rs 12,767 crore amount has been disbursed by NABARD to State Co-operative Banks and Regional

Rural Banks across the country for extending credit to farmers during the lockdown due to the outbreak of

COVID-19 pandemic. The loans are being offered for one year at an interest rate of 4.8 per cent.

116. NABARD received Rs 25,000 crore for refinancing RRBs, co-operative banks and Micro Finance

Institutions (MFIs) from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as refinance facility.

117. The Government of India has hiked its estimated gross market borrowing to Rs 12 lakh crore. As per

the Budget Estimates it was Rs 7.80 lakh crore for Financial Year 2020-21.

118. SBI General Insurance has launched the standard health insurance policy named “Aarogya

Sanjeevani Health Insurance Policy”. This policy provides hospitalisation cover anywhere in India with

sums insured ranging from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 5 lakhs.

119. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended the interest subsidy period for exporters till 31 March

2021. Exporters get the subsidy under the ‘Interest Equalisation Scheme for pre and post shipment Rupee

Export Credit’, which was ended on March 31, 2020.

120. MoneyGram Payment Systems has partnered with Federal Bank to offer a cost-effective direct to

bank account credit option for customers in India.

121. Reserve Bank of India has increased Ways Means Advance limits of States by 60%. And the number

of days state can be in continuous overdraft has been increased from 14 days to 21 days. And number of days

state can be in overdraft in a quarter has been increased from 32 to 50 days.

122. Rs 20,500 crores has been extended by NABARD to co-operative banks and Regional Rural Banks

(RRB’s) in various States. This amount is part of the Rs 25,000 crores of special refinance facility provided

by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to NABARD for refinancing RRBs, cooperative banks and Micro Finance

Institutions (MFIs).

123. Kotak Mahindra Bank becomes first bank in India to introduce video-KYC facility for saving

account customers. Under the video conferencing KYC system, customers have to provide Aadhaar and PAN

(Permanent Account Number) to open ‘Kotak 811 savings account’ in the Bank.

124. ICICI Bank has launched special fixed deposit (FD) scheme for senior citizens to help them get higher

interest rate of 6.55%.

125. 'ICICI Bank Golden Years FD’ scheme offers senior citizens an interest rate of 6.55% per annum for

deposits up to ₹2 crore with a tenure of more than five years to 10 years.

126. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company and Flipkart has to offer a digital motor insurance

policy to Flipkart’s customers.

127. The National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) launched Artificial Intelligence based chatbot called

Pai. The Chatbot aims to increase financial inclusion in India.

• The PAI can be accessed 24/7. It provides information about NPCI products.

• The queries can be sent by the users through text or voice.

• In order to send queries, the users shall use websites of RuPay, NPCI and UPI.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 15

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

• Currently, PAI is available in English and Hindi languages.

• The AI based chatbot was created by Bengaluru based startup CoRover Private Limited.

128. The Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman launched instant Aadhaar based E-KYC to issue e-PAN

Card. The facility will be available for PAN applicants that possess valid Aadhaar number. They should also

have a mobile number registered with Aadhaar. The process of allotting PAN is paperless and is also free of

cost.

129. The Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman chaired Financial Stability and Development

Council meet.

The meeting reviewed current domestic and global economic situation, financial vulnerabilities issues,

liquidity of Micro financial institutions, Non-Banking Financial corporations, regulatory responses, etc.

130. The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed USD 177 Million loan

agreement to upgrade and construct state highways in Maharashtra.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

131. Professor Saurabh Lodha of IIT Bombay has been awarded Young Career Award 2020 in Nano

Science and Technology by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) to recognize his contribution for

the development of two-dimensional Van der Waals material-based logic transistor technologies beyond

silicon and nanoelectronics.

132. Manipuri doctor, Thangjam Dhabali Singh has been conferred with “Order of Rising Sun- Gold

and Silver Rays” by the Japan government for promoting a better understanding of Japan in India.

133. Thalappil Pradeep the Padma Shri awardee Professor at IIT Madras has been conferred with the 25th

Nikkei Asia Prizes (2020) in Science and Technology in recognition of his pioneering work in

nanotechnology-based water purification.

134. The three Indian photojournalists: Dar Yasin, Mukhtar Khan and Channi Anand from Jammu and

Kashmir who work for Associated Press (AP) have won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize under feature photography.

135. Siddharth Varadarajan an Indian journalist has been named for Deutsche Welle Freedom of Speech

Award 2020. Siddharth Varadarajan, one of the founding editors of non-profit online newspaper The Wire.

136. Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru has won this year’s SKYTRAX Award for Best

Regional Airport in India and Central Asia.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 16

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

137. The Union Minster Ramesh Pokhriyal presented the Vishwakarma awards for the year 2019.

Around 23 groups were awarded Chatra Vishwakarma Awards and 6 institutes were awarded with Utkrisht

Santhan Vishwakarma Award.

This year the theme of competition of the award is as follows: How to Enhance the income of a village.

138. The Norwegian Academy of Science is to award the Abel Prize for the year 2020 to the two great

mathematicians Hillel Frustenberg and Gregory Margulis. They are being honoured for their work

towards probability and dynamics in number theory, combinatorics and Group Theory.

139. On the eve of International Day of UN Peacekeepers that is being marked on May 29, Indian major

Suman Gawani and Brazilian Naval Officer Carla Monteiro de Castro Araujo are to be presented with the

United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the year 2019 award.

PERSON IN NEWS

140. The government appointed Economic Affairs Secretary Tarun Bajaj as a director on the central

board of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He replaces Atanu Chakraborty, who retired on April 30.

141. D P S Negi has assumed charge as Director General of Labour Bureau in the Ministry of Labour

and Employment by replacing B N Nanda.

142. T S Tirumurti was appointed as the permanent representative of India to the United Nations

(UN), succeeding Syed Akbaruddin.

143. Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has set up a panel headed by

Yegnapriya Bharat to frame standard professional indemnity policy for insurance intermediaries

that can be issued by all the insurers.

144. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was reappointed as Chairperson of the Parliament’s Public Accounts

Committee (PAC) by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.

145. Dia Mirza has been appointed as the as the Goodwill Ambassador of India by UNEP. The actress is also

the United Nations Sustainability Development Goal Advocate. As a Goodwill Ambassador, Mirza will

continue work with the UN to further spread the message on key areas including clean air, clean seas, wildlife

protection and climate change.

146. Manisha Singh has been nominated as an envoy to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and

Development (OECD) with an Ambassador rank by US President Donald Trump.

147. Mustafa al-Kadhimi was sworn in as the Iraq’s 6th Prime Minister.

148. V. Vidyavathi has been appointed as the Director-General of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

149. Manoj Ahuja has been appointed as the new chairman of the Central Board of Secondary Education

(CBSE).

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 17

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

150. Roberto Azevedo decides to resign a year before his term expires as head of World Trade Organisation.

151. Benjamin Netanyahu has sworn in as the Prime Minister of Israel for the 5th time.

152. Govinda Rajulu Chintala has been appointed as the chairman of National Bank for Agriculture and

Rural Development (NABARD). He will replace Harsh Kumar Bhanwala.

153. Carmen Reinhart has been appointed as Chief Economist and Vice President of the World Bank.

154. British author J.K. Rowling released first two chapters of her new Children’s book “The lckabog”. The

story is to be published in installments on The Ickabog website for free before its official publication in

November 2020.

OBITUARIES

155. Famous actor Rishi Kapoor died.

156. Freedom fighter Padma Shri Gandhian Hema Bharali died. Born in Assam.

157. India’s football legend & Padma Shri awardee Chuni Goswami died.

158. Historian RV Smith, died. Born in Agra.

159. Veteran Poet, Padma Shri K. S. Nissar Ahmed passed away. Born in Mysuru.

160. Judicial Member (Lokpal of India) Justice Ajay Kumar Tripathi died.

161. Former Union Minister Dalit Ezhilmalai died. Born in Tamil Nadu

162. Famous Table Tennis player Manmeet Singh Walia, died.

163. Renowned Historian Hari Shankar Vasudevan died.

164. Renowned Personality Ratnakar Matkari died recently, he was a veteran Writer.

165. The three-time Olympic gold medal-winning hockey legend Balbir Singh Senior died on 25 May due

to ill health.

166. Renowned astrologer, Bejan Daruwalla died.

167. The first Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Ajit Jogi has died. A bureaucrat-turned politician, Ajit

Jogi was famous among masses.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 18

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

IMPORTANT DAYS

168. International Labour Day 2020, May 1: May 1st of every year is acknowledged as International

Labours day.

169. World Tuna Day is observed on May 2 every year Since 2017.

170. World Press Freedom Day 2020: May 3: May 3rd of Every year is observed as World Press Freedom

Day by the United Nations General Assembly and UNESCO. The theme of this year’s World Press Freedom

Conference is Journalism without Fear or Favour.

171. World Asthma Day 2020 is observed on May 5. Theme for the year 2020 is Enough Asthma

Deaths.

172. To increase awareness about athletics and to encourage youth to take up sports World Athletics Day is

observed every year on 7th May.

173. World Red Cross Day is observed globally every year on 8th May. This day is observed to

commemorate the birth anniversary of the Red Cross and International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)

founder, Henry Dunant.

174. World Migratory Bird Day is observed globally every year on 9th May. The aim of the day is to raise

awareness of migratory birds and the importance of international cooperation to conserve them. This time the

theme of World Migratory Bird Day 2020 is “Birds Connect Our World”.

175. National Technology Day is celebrated every year on 11th May. This day marks the successfully tested

Shakti-I nuclear missile at the Indian Army’s Pokhran Test Range in Rajasthan.

176. International Nurse Day is observed globally on every year 12th May. This day is observed to

commemorate the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale.

177. The International Day of Light is celebrated every year on 16th May. The Day celebrates the role

that light plays in science, culture and art, education, and sustainable development, and in the fields as diverse

as medicine, communications, and energy.

178. World Hypertension Day is observed globally every year on 17th May.

179. World Metrology Day is observed globally every year on 20th May. Many nations on this day,

internationally collaborate to create awareness about metrology and its advancement in

the respective field.

180. The International Everest Day is observed every year on 29 May. The day is celebrated with

processions, memorial events, and special events in Kathmandu, Nepal, and the Everest region.

The day is observed every year in memory of the first summit of Mt. Everest on 29 May 1953 undertaken

by Sir Edmund Hillary from New Zealand and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa from Nepal who became first

humans to achieve the feat.

MAY-2020 BAZOOKA 19

``

`

`

info@practicemock.com 011-49032737

181. Every year, on May 31, World No Tobacco Day is being marked by the World Health

Organization. The World No Tobacco Day initiative was adopted in 1987 by the WHO. Theme: Protecting

Youth.

182. Every year, the United Nations celebrates International Day of UN Peacekeepers on May 29. This

year the day is being celebrated under the theme: Women in Peacekeeping: A key to Peace

183. Every year, May 28 is marked as World Hunger Day. The World Hunger Day is an initiative of the

Hunger Project. The United Nations aims to increase agricultural productivity. This is to feed 820

million people that are with inadequate food security. The UN predicts that 2 billion are to come under

poverty and face hunger by 2050.

SPORTS

184. India has lost its top spot & has slipped to the 3rd position for the first time since 2016 in the International

Cricket Council (ICC) test rankings. Australia topped.

185. Discus thrower Sandeep Kumari banned for 4 years by WADA after testing positive for

methenolone.

186. Narinder Batra term has been extended as President of FIH until May 2021 by the International

Hockey Federation (FIH).

187. China has won the 1st edition of FIDE Chess.com Online Nations Cup.

188. India will host the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in 2021 which was postponed due COVID 19 pandemic

189. The Bundesliga of Germany has become the world’s first major sports event to resume after COVID-19

lock down.

190. The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) provisionally suspended Savita Kumari and Ankit

Shisodia for violating antidoping rules. They are associated with Powerlifting.

190. The BCCI nominated Rohit Sharma for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awards. The Award is the

highest sporting honour award in India.

191. The Sports Authority of India recently transferred Rs 30,000 to the accounts of Khelo India athletes.

The authority has spent Rs 8.25 crores in all to achieve this.

192. The Mizoram State Government has recently provided industrial status to Sports. This has been

done by the government to attract investment in the Sports industry.