Current Affairs in English – June 8 2022

National Events:

Asia’s largest 20 MWp1 solar power plant:

Maruti Suzuki has set up Asia’s largest 20 MWp1 solar power plant at its Manesar facility in a bid to maximises the utilisation of renewable energy .
It will contribute 28,000 MWH2 annually to the group’s manufacturing unit and which is equivalent to the energy required for the production of more than 67,000 units .The company’s combined solar power generation capacity is around 26.3 MWp .

NHAI:

National Highways Authority of India – NHAI and its contractors have entered Guinness World Records for laying 75 km long continuous Bituminous Concrete Road in record 5 days . The work has been completed in a record time of 105 hours and 33 minutes .
The Amravati to Akola section is part of National Highway – 53 and an important East – West corridor .

RBI:

The Reserve Bank of India has increased the repo rate by 50 basis points to 4.90 % . The current repo rate is 4.40 % after the rates were increased by 40 basis points at an off – cycle meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee .
The central bank forecasts 6.7 % inflation , while the real GDP growth rate is pegged at 7.2 % . The RBI also revised the inflation projection for FY23 to 6.7 % from 5.7 % .

TDF:

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the enhancement of funding under the Technology Development Fund ( TDF ) scheme to Rs 50 crore per project from Rs 10 crore .
The TDF scheme supports the indigenous development of components , products , systems and technologies by MSMEs and start – ups . The scheme facilitates up to 90 percent of the total project cost .

Blue Duke:

Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang on the occasion of World Environment Day on 5 June 2022 declared Blue Duke the state butterfly .
Blue Duke , which goes by the scientific name Bassarona durga , is unique to Sikkim and the eastern Himalayas .
It was discovered in the state in 1858 . It falls in Schedule 2 of the Wildlife Protection Act , 1972 and is a protected species in the Himalayas.

Jio-4G:

The Reliance Industries – backed telco Jio has become the first operator to provide 4G mobile connectivity in and around the Pangong area .
On 7 June 2022 , Lok Sabha member from Ladakh Jamyang Tsering Namgyal inaugurated the Jio mobile tower at Spangmik village near Pangong Lake . Jio already has its 4G footprints in areas like Kargil , Zanskar and Demchok in the region .

22nd IIFA Awards : Winners:

The 22nd edition of the International Indian Film Academy Awards ( IIFA ) was held on 3-4 June 2022 in Abu Dhabi , United Arab Emirates . The biopic Shershaah was awarded Best Picture .Vishnu Varadhan was awarded Best Director for the film Shershaah .
Vicky Kaushal and Kriti Sanon were awarded Best Actor and Best Actress for their performances in Sardar Udham and Mimi , respectively .

SNA Dashboard:

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 7 June 2022 launched Single Nodal Agency ( SNA ) Dashboard . The SNA dashboard will provide a platform for ministries / departments to monitor the transfer of funds to states and their utilisation .
The dashboard was launched as part of the iconic week ( 6th June to 12th June 2022 ) celebrations of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav by the finance ministry .

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Bangalore:

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Bangalore have designed a new class of artificial peptides or miniproteins that they say can render viruses like SARS – CoV – 2 inactive.
The study has been published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology . The miniproteins can not only block virus entry into our cells but also clump virus particles together , reducing their ability to infect .

Tamil Nadu Events:

4th State Food Safety Index ( SFSI ):

Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya released the 4th State Food Safety Index ( SFSI ) on 7 June 2022 . It has been released by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India ( FSSAI ) .
It measures the performance of States across five parameters of food safety . Tamil Nadu was the top – ranking state , followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra .

International Events:

World Brain Tumour Day : 8 June:

World Brain Tumour Day is observed every year on 8 June with an aim to create awareness about brain tumours . Brain tumor is a mass or growth of abnormal cells in your brain .
There are two types of brain tumors noncancerous ( benign ) and cancerous ( malignant ) .According to the National Health Portal , every day worldwide more than 500 new cases are diagnosed with a brain tumour .

World Bank:

World Bank has slashed the global economic growth forecast for 2022 due to the Russia – Ukraine conflict .It has been predicted that the world economy will expand 2.9 % in 2022 .
It will be down from last year’s 5.7 % global growth and from the 4.1 % it had forecast in January 2022 .Many countries are likely to face a recession .

India & Vietnam:

India and Vietnam have signed a Joint Vision Statement on defence partnership towards 2030 . India and Vietnam share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership since 2016 and defence cooperation is a key pillar of this partnership .

World Oceans Day : 8 June:

World Oceans Day is celebrated on June 8 every year across the globe .The purpose of this day is to raise awareness among people about the ” impact of human actions on the ocean ” and to mobilise citizens for their sustainable management .
The 2022 theme for World Oceans Day is ” Revitalisation : Collective Action for the Ocean “. The first World Oceans Day was observed on 8 June 1992 .

World Pest Day : 6 June:

World Pest Day is observed every year on June 6 . The day is observed to spread awareness about pest management and its benefits for plants and people around us .
The day also aims to educate people to keep the crops , trees and plants free from pests . World Pest Day , also known as World Pest Awareness Day , was first celebrated in Beijing on 6 June 2017 .