Notes:
The latest report of Moody’s Investors Service has cut India’s GDP growth forecast to 7.3% in 2018 from the previous estimate of 7.5% due to higher oil prices and tighter financial conditions. However, Moody’s maintained its 2019 growth forecast at 7.5%. The report “Global Macro Outlook: 2018-19” stated that the Indian economy is in cyclical recovery led by both investment and consumption. However, higher oil prices and tighter financial conditions will weigh on the pace of acceleration. The private investment cycle will continue to make a gradual recovery, as twin balance-sheet issues – impaired assets at banks and corporates – slowly get addressed through deleveraging and the application of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

Notes:
The Andhra Pradesh government has recently declared official symbols for the state after the bifurcation. Neem and Black Buck (Krishna Jinka) have been declared as the state tree and animal respectively. Similarly, Rose-ringed parakeet will be the state bird while jasmine will be the state’s flower. The symbols were notified by the state government’s Department of Environment, Forest, Science and Technology via a Government Order (GO). Telangana was bifurcated from Andhra Pradesh on June 2, 2014, after the AP Reorganisation Act was passed in Parliament.

Notes:
Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, who is currently Deputy Chief of the Army Staff, has been appointed the new General Officer Commander-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of Northern Command (of the Indian Army). Lt Gen Singh will succeed Lt Gen Devraj Anbu, who will take charge as Vice Chief of the Indian Army on June 1. Lt Gen Singh was the Director-General of Military Operations (DGMO) when India carried out surgical strikes across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir on September 26, 2016. Lt Gen Singh had also served as commander of the Army’s One Corps in Mathura. The Udhampur-based Northern Command is considered very crucial as it looks after Army’s operations in J&K besides guarding the LoC.

Notes:
The World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) is observed every year on May 31 to highlight health and other risks associated with tobacco use and advocate for effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption. The 2018 focus is “Tobacco and Heart Disease” to emphasize impact tobacco has on the cardiovascular health of people across the globe. The WNTD 2018 aims to highlight the links between the use of tobacco products and heart and other cardiovascular diseases, increase awareness within the broader public of the impact tobacco use and exposure to second-hand smoke have on cardiovascular health. The global tobacco epidemic kills more than 7 million people each year, of which close to 9 lakh are non-smokers dying from breathing second-hand smoke. Tobacco causes over two million deaths from cardiovascular diseases every year.

Notes:
Alicia Pucheta, who is the Vice President of Paraguay, will become the first-ever interim woman President of Paraguay after President Horacio Cartes offered his resignation from the presidency in order to assume a position as Senator. The parliament is due to confirm Cartes’s resignation and proclaim Pucheta as interim president. If his resignation is accepted, he would be succeeded by Pucheta for the remainder of his 5-year term, which is due to end on 15 August 2018.

Notes:
Urmila Singh (71), the former Himachal Pradesh governor and Congress leader, has passed away in Indore, Madhya Pradesh on May 29, 2018. Belonging to a family of freedom fighters, Singh was appointed as the governor of Himachal Pradesh in 2010. Prior to that, she had served as the chairman of the National Scheduled Tribes Commission (NCTC). Singh had also served as a minister in Madhya Pradesh government and had headed the state Congress unit.

Notes:
The Gujarat government has launched its ‘Reuse of Treated Waste Water Policy’ in Gandhinagar, which aims to reduce the state’s dependence on fresh water sources like the Narmada river. The policy will promote the use of treated wastewater and will see the setting up of Sewage Treatment Plants (STP) in all major towns and cities of Gujarat. Under this policy, the state government planned to construct 161 sewage treatment plants to treat waste water and use it for non-drinking purposes. The treated water would be used in industrial units, thermal power plants, gardening and in the construction sector. At present, around 2,600 million litres per day (MLD) of waste water was being treated by 52 STPs in the state. The policy aims to double the existing water treatment capacity to around 5,000 MLD in the next two years.

Notes:
On May 31, the Government of India (GoI) and the World Bank (WB) have signed a $500 million loan agreement to provide additional financing for the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) Rural Roads Project. The project will be implemented by Union Ministry of Rural Development. The Ministry will build 7,000 km of climate resilient roads, out of which 3,500 km will be constructed using green technologies. The loan has a 3-year grace period and a maturity of 10 years. The World Bank has supported PMGSY since its inception in 2004. So far it has invested over $1.8 billion in loans and credits mostly in the economically weaker and hill states across North India – Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh. It has built and improved about 35,000 km of rural roads and benefited about eight million people with access to all-weather roads.

Notes:
The book ‘Straight Talk’ has been authored by Abhishek Manu Singhvi, the Member of Rajya Sabha. The book suggested the automatic suspension of allowances for law makers per day or per hour lost due to disruptions. It also stresses to set up the special tribunals or fast track courts for election related cases. There are many more suggestions related to Law & Parliament in the book. It was released by Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on May 30, 2018.

Notes:
Top Indian discus thrower Vikas Gowda has recently retired after competing at the highest level for more than 15 years, during which he became the first and only Indian male to win Commonwealth Games medals in the discipline. His retirement was announced by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) on its twitter page after Gowda sent the AFI a letter declaring his intent to call it quits. Gowda, who will turn 35 on July 5, is also four-time Olympian. He holds the national record of 66.28m (achieved in 2012) and is one of the most decorated Indian athletes, having won gold in the 2013 and 2015 Asian Championships. He also won silver in the 2010 Commonwealth Games and a gold in the 2014 Glasgow CWG. In the Asian Games, he won a bronze in 2010 and a silver in 2014.