NATIONAL NEWS

National Education Ministers’ Conference

• The two-day National Education Ministers’ Conference will be held in Gujarat.

• Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan along with other union Ministers and Education Ministers of States and Union Territories will be participating in the conference.

• It will focus on the implementation of National Education Policy 2020, skilling in schools and digital initiatives like National Digital Education Architecture, National Educational Technology Forum etc.
• The state education Ministers will also visit Vidya Samiksha Kendra, Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics- BISAG, National Forensic Science University -NFSU and International Automobile Centre of Excellence.

Defence Ministry Inks Contract with Bharat Dynamics

• The Defence Ministry signed a contract worth Rs 2,971 crore with Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL).
• The main objective of the contract is to procure several batches of the Astra MK-1 Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missiles and associated equipment.
• The missiles are being procured for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Navy.
• The Astra MK-1 missile is developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) based on the requirements issued by the IAF.

PMBJP Crosses Rs. 100 Crore Sales in May

• Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI), has crossed 100 crore rupees sales for the first time in May 2022.

• Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI) is the implementing agency of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP).
• PMBI is committed to ensuring the uninterrupted availability of essential medicines at the PMBJKs.
• The government has set a target to increase the number of Jan Aushadhi Kendras to 10,000 by March 2024 with a vision to provide quality medicines at an affordable rate.
• Under the PMBJP, 739 districts of the country have been covered.

AAYU App

• Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai launched a new health and wellness app AAYU.
• The main objective of the app is to address and help heal chronic diseases and lifestyle disorders through yoga and meditation.
• The app has been developed by Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (S-VYASA) in partnership with RESET Tech, an AI-driven integrated health-tech platform.
• The app is available in multiple languages and aims to reach and impact over five million chronic disease patients within a span of five years.

Indus Water Treaty Meeting

• A five-member committee of Pakistan approved by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, arrived India through the Wagah border to participate in the 118th bilateral meeting on Indus Water Treaty in New Delhi.

• During the meeting, both sides will discuss on the issue of advance flood information and the annual report of the Permanent Commission of Indus Waters (PCIW).
• They will also discuss 1,000 MW Pakal Dul under Article IX of the Indus Waters Treaty, 48 MW Lower Kalnai and 624 MW Kiru project hydropower projects being built by India on the west-flowing rivers.

Second Anniversary of National AI Portal

• The National AI Portal is a joint initiative by the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), National e-Governance Division (NeGD) and NASSCOM.

• The portal focuses on creating and supporting a unified AI ecosystem in the country to drive excellence and leadership in knowledge creation to develop an AI-ready robust workforce for the future and use AI to foster economic growth.
• The portal was launched by the Minister for Electronics and IT and Communications on May 30, 2020.
• INDIA released a book on the basics of AI titled ‘AI for Everyone’.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

World’s Fastest Supercomputer

• Frontier, a supercomputer built by the USA become the World’s fastest supercomputer.

• Frontier is built for the U.S Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
• Frontier overtook Japan’s Fugaku to become fastest supercomputer.
• The Frontier also ranks as the fastest AI system in the world, giving 6.88 ExaFlops of mixed-precision performance.
• The Frontier is also number one on the Green500 list, meaning that it is also the most power efficient supercomputer in the world.
• According to the Top 500 supercomputers list, the Frontier boasts of 1.102 ExaFlops in performance, which is more than twice of the power that Japan’s Fugaku.

Border Coordination Conference

• The Inspector General BSF- Regional Commander BGB level Border Coordination Conference between India and Bangladesh began in Sylhet.

• The Indian delegation entered Bangladesh through the Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Dawki on the Meghalaya border.

• The conference will discuss all issues related to border management and security.
• It will focus on illegal entry, smuggling of drugs and other items, trafficking of women and children, development activities within 150 yards of the international borders, and initiatives to enhance mutual trust between the BGB and BSF.

BANKING

Smart Value Income Plan

• Tata AIA Life Insurance Company Ltd has announced the launch of Tata AIA Life Insurance Smart Value Income Plan.

• It is a non-linked and participating life insurance savings plan where the bonus can be adjusted against premium payments.

• It provides several first-time features along with regular and consistent income options, enabling consumers to secure their financial future and create wealth for long-term goals.
• Smart Value Income Plan can be bought by individuals from age 1 to 65, with the maximum the maturity age being 100 years.
• The policyholder can also avail tax benefits under section 80 C and 10 (10 D) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

SPORTS

ISSF World Cup 2022

• Indian women's shooting team of Elavenil Valarivan, Shreya Agarwal and Ramita bagged a gold medal in the 10m air rifle women's team event at the ISSF World Cup 2022 held in Baku.

• The trio from India defeated Denmark 17-5 in the match.
• This was India’s first medal on the ongoing ISSF World cup 2022.

Monaco F1 Grand Prix 2022

• Racing driver Sergio Perez (Red Bull) won the Monaco Grand Prix 2022.

• The event was held at Circuit de Monaco, Europe.
• With this victory Sergio Perez has become the first Mexcian to win the Monaco Grand Prix.
• Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari) occupied the second position.

Norway Chess Tournament 2022

• The Filipino-American chess Grandmaster Wesley Barbossa So won the 10th edition of the Norway Chess Blitz 2022.
• The event was held in Finansparken, Stavanger, Norway.
• GM Viswanathan Anand from India secured fourth place.
• The Norway Chess 2022 consists of Blitz tournament and Classical tournament.
• The Blitz tournament was played to decide the play order for the main tournament.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Part-Time Member of PFRDA

• The Joint Secretary in the Department of Financial Services (DFS) Pankaj Sharma has appointed as a part time member of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority.

• He succeeds Vandita Kaul.

• PFRDA consists of a chairman 3 whole time members and 3 part time members.

OBITUTARY

Former Albania President Bujar Nishani

• Former President of Albania Bujar Nishani has died due to serious health problem. He was at the age of 55.

• He served as President from 24 July 2012 to 24 July 2017.

• Nishani was the youngest person to have been chosen as president of Albania.
• Before his election as President, Nishani held a number of governmental and diplomatic positions.

Playback Singer Krishnakumar Kunnath

• Popular playback singer Krishnakumar Kunnath, also known as KK passed away at the age of 53 in Kolkata.

• KK was introduced by A. R. Rahman in a Tamil Film Kadhal Desam.
• He got his Bollywood break "Tadap Tadap" from Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.
• The Delhi-born singer has recorded songs in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali, Assamese and Gujarati languages.