Notes:
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will attend the two-day meeting of G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank governors in Japan on June 8 and 9. This will be the first overseas visit of Ms. Sitharaman as Finance Minister. Besides Ms. Sitharaman, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das is also likely to attend the meeting at Fukuoka in Japan. Among other things, the meeting is likely to focus on risks and challenges being faced by the global economy, investment in infrastructure and international taxation. G-20, which is a group of developing and developed nations, includes India, the U.S., the U.K., China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, France and Australia. The G20 meetings, convened annually since 1999, provide a forum for key countries in the international financial system to discuss major international economic issues and to coordinate to achieve the stable and sustainable growth of the global economy.

Notes:
India has notified a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with the Marshall Islands, which enables a bilateral sharing of banking & ownership information and allows officials of one country to undertake tax examinations in the other. The TIEA for exchange of information with respect to taxes was signed on March 18, 2016 at Majuro, the Capital of the Marshall Islands. India notified the TIEA on May 21, 2019. The TIEA is based on international standards of tax transparency and exchange of information and enables sharing of information on request. The agreement will enhance mutual cooperation between India and the Marshall Islands by providing an effective framework for exchange of information on tax matters which will help curb tax evasion and tax avoidance. The Marshall Islands are a sprawling chain of volcanic islands and coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, between Hawaii and the Philippines.

Notes:
The Delhi Metro has become the India’s first-ever project to receive power generated from a waste-to-energy plant. According to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), the project is also in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Swachh Bharat Mission”. This will also help in creating awareness on the importance of waste management and utilizing waste in a sustainable manner. The DMRC has started receiving 2 MW power from a 12 MW capacity plant in Ghazipur. The DMRC will take approximately 17.5 million units per annum from this plant. However, the energy off-take will depend upon the actual generation of the plant. The waste-to-energy plant set up by East Delhi Waste Processing Company Limited (EDWPCL) is based on a public private partnership (PPP) involving the Delhi government, the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) and EDWPCL. The waste-to-energy plant will mitigate over 8 million tons of greenhouse gases (GHG) over the life of the project.

Notes:
The women members of Telangana-based Deccan Development Society (DDS) sanghams (groups) have bagged the prestigious United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)’s Equator Prize for 2019. They have been selected for standing as ‘an outstanding example of a local, nature-based solution to climate change and sustainable development. The women farmers have been building their own seed banks and growing millets in the predominantly rain-fed villages of Sangareddy district. The women farmers of DDS are the first group in the Telugu states to have been selected for the prestigious award which will be presented at a ceremony in New York in September 2019. The US$10,000-prize is given annually for nature-based solutions to climate change as well as sustainable development. The award recognizes local and indigenous community initiatives.

Notes:
Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has recently launched the ‘Pink Sarathi’ vehicles to attend to the complaints of women passengers travelling in city buses. The vehicles are procured by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) under the ‘Nirbhaya’ scheme. The corporation had received Rs 56.07 crore from the Union government under the scheme and had taken up various measures for the safety of women passengers, including the launch of Pink Sarathi vehicles.

Notes:
Bancha in Betul district of Madhya Pradesh has become the first village in India to have zero wooden stoves and almost no use for LPG cylinders with all its 75 houses relying on solar-powered stoves to meet their cooking needs. The team of IIT Mumbai has designed a special solar stove & now no trees are being cut by the villagers for lighting their stoves. The project of installing solar power plates, batteries and stoves in all the 74 houses was started in September 2017 and got completed by December 2018. The success story of Bancha is an eye opener which shows the potential of renewable energy. Not only will it help the nation economically but will also prove to work wonders for the environment if implemented across India.

Notes:
Dr. Romila Thapar, the well-known historian and writer, has been elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society (APS), the oldest learned society in United States (US). Dr. Thapar, a Professor Emerita of history at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi, was among 1,013 members elected to the society at its Annual Spring Meeting.

Notes:
V.S. Kaumudi, a 1986 batch Andhra Pradesh cadre IPS officer, has been appointed as the new Director General (DG) of Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) by temporarily downgrading the post to the level of Additional Director General (ADG). He has been appointed BPR&D chief for a period of two years or until further orders, whichever is earlier. He succeeded 1984 batch IPS officer Sudeep Lakhtakia. Kaumudi Prior to this post, Kaumudi was ADG in the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

Notes:
Amasebailu village in Kundapura Taluk of Udupi district has become Karnataka’s first solar-powered Gram Panchayat. Over 1800 houses were provided solar lamps at a total cost of Rs 2.13 crore. The project was funded by Centre and State Government in the ratio of 30:20 and the rest was paid by the Panchayat and charitable organizations. As per the agreement with Selco Light Pvt. Ltd, the solar lamps have a guarantee of 5 years and any faulty lamps will be replaced by the supplier within the guarantee period.

Notes:
Ashleigh Barty, an Australian professional tennis player and former cricketer, has clinched the women’s title at the 2019 French Open tennis tournament. In the final, she defeated Marketa Vondrousova 6–1, 6–3 at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris. Barty is the first Australian player ( male or female) to win a French Open singles title since Margaret Court in 1973. The 2019 French Open was the 123rd edition of a Grand Slam tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts.