Current Affairs June 20, 2019

In this post, GKToday presents Current Affairs of June 20, 2019 in Short Notes form for preparation of IBPS, Banking, CLAT, SSC, Railway, UPSC, IAS/PCS, UPPSC, BPSC, MPPSC, RPSC, TNPSC, MPSC, KPSC and all other competitive examinations of India.

1. The armies of India and Myanmar carried out a 3-week-long coordinated operation, named ‘Operation Sunrise 2’, from May 16 in their respective border areas & targeted several militant groups operating in Manipur, Nagaland and Assam. As part of the operation, the armies coordinated with each other to bust camps of militant outfits, including the Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO), the NSCN (Khaplang), the United Liberation Front of Assam (I) and the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB). As per sources, at least six dozen militants belonging to these groups were nabbed and several of their camps destroyed during the operation. Myanmar is one of the strategic neighbours of India and shares a 1,640-km border with a number of north-eastern states, including the militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur The first phase of this operation was launched in February 2019 in which Indian Army targeted members of the Arakan Army (an insurgent group in Myanmar), who were opposed to the Kaladan multi-modal transit transport project. The Kaladan multi-modal transit transport project is viewed as India's gateway to Southeast Asia.

2. The International Day of Family Remittances (IDFR) is observed every year on 16th of June to recognize the contribution of over 200 million migrants to improve the lives of their 800 million family members back home, and to create a future of hope for their children. Through this observance, the United Nations aim at bringing greater awareness on the impact that these contributions have on millions of households, but also on communities, countries, and entire regions. The Day also calls upon governments, private sector entities, and the civil society to find ways that can maximize the impact of remittances through individual, and/or collective actions.

3. The Autistic Pride Day (APD) is observed every year on 18th of June to recognise the importance of pride for autistics and understands it not as a disease but as a difference. Autism or Autism Spectrum Disability is a range of complex neurodevelopment disorders characterized by social impairments, communication difficulties, restrictive and repetitive pattern of behaviour. It is a lifelong condition which usually occurs in the first three years of life. The exact cause of autism is not known but it is known to be associated with genetic and environmental factors. Autistic Pride Day was initiated by Aspies For Freedom, a group that raises public awareness about autism rights.

4. The World Food India (WFI- 2019) event will be held in New Delhi from November 1-4 as part of the government’s effort to boost investment into this growing sector. The event aims to promote food processing sector and to position India as food processing destination of the World. The tagline of the event will be “Forging Partnerships for Growth”. This will be the 2nd edition of World Food India (WFI), with first one held in 2017 that saw the participation of 61 countries and signing of MoUs worth $14 billion.

5. The 'Snana Yatra' is a bathing festival celebrated on the full moon day (Purnima) of the Hindu month of 'Jyestha' & considered to be the birthday of Lord Jagannath. It is a significant ritual in the run-up to the annual 'Rath Jatra' festival. In Puri, the annual ceremonial bathing ritual of the deities at Shree Jagannath temple has recently celebrated on 17th June 2019 in the presence of thousands of devotees. The ceremony is known as 'Snana Jatra' of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra. It was performed on a bathing altar known as the 'Snana Mandap' in which priests poured 108 pitchers of aromatic sacred water on the deities.The Skanda Purana mentions that King Indradyumna arranged this ceremony for the first time when the idols of the deities were first installed.

6. Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed has been appointed as the new Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the powerful spy agency of Pakistan. He succeeded Lt Gen Asim Munir. Hameed has previously served as the head of the Counter Intelligence wing of the ISI. The ISI was formed in 1948 as an independent unit to strengthen the country's intelligence network. The ISI was formerly a part of the Intelligence Bureau (IB), which handled intelligence-sharing between different branches of the military, as well as external intelligence gathering. Its headquarters were initially located in Rawalpindi, but were later moved to Islamabad. In 1950, the ISI was officially given the task of safeguarding Pakistani interests and national security, inside and outside the country.

7. For the first time, India will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP-14) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in New Delhi between September 2 -14, 2019. It will see participation from at least 5,000 delegates from nearly 197 countries. Ahead of the COP-14, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar launched a flagship project (a part of a larger international initiative called the Bonn Challenge) to enhance India’s capacity for Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR). It will be implemented during a pilot phase of three-and-a-half years in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland and Karnataka. The project will aim to develop and adapt the best practices and monitoring protocols for the country, and build capacity within the five pilot States. The Bonn Challenge is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land under restoration by 2020, and 350 million hectares by 2030. The United Nations has three major Conventions: UNFCCC, UNCCD and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Established in 1994, the UNCCD is the only legally binding international agreement linking environment and development issues to the land agenda.

8. Dr. Rabi N. Mishra has been appointed as the new Executive Director (ED) of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), after the position fell vacant on Rosemary Sebastian’s retirement. As ED, Mishra's portfolio includes non-banking and Co-op bank supervision as well as the College of Supervisors. Mishra has been serving RBI for about 30 years now. He has been associated with many research papers. He has also authored a book on banking, which is likely to be launched soon.

9. Gary Woodland of the United States has clinched the 2019 US Open Golf Championship by three strokes at Pebble Beach Golf Links in California. It is his first major championship and sixth professional victory. He is known as one of the longest hitters on tour.

10. Mohamed Morsi (67), the former President of Egypt, has passed away in Cairo on June 17 after collapsing during his court trial that charged him of espionage and inciting violence. He was the first democratically-elected President of Egypt. His death has raised doubts over the ‘torturous’ condition under which he was kept in prison. Voices of several human right groups and individuals have called for an impartial investigation into his death. Morsi was democratically elected in 2012, a year after the uprising that ended the rule of longtime leader Hosni Mubarak. The military toppled Morsi in the following year after massive protests and crushed the Brotherhood in a major crackdown.


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