IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF JULY 28th, 2017

IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF JULY 28th, 2017

1. World Hepatitis Day: 28 July

i. World Hepatitis Day (WHD) takes places every year on 28 July and brings the world together under a single theme to raise awareness of the global burden of viral hepatitis and to influence real change.

ii. The Theme for World Hepatitis Day 2017 is 'Eliminate Hepatitis'.

2. BRICS nations sign memorandum to facilitate taxation cooperation

i. Tax authorities of the five BRICS countries have signed a landmark document to establish a mechanism for taxation cooperation. The BRICS Taxation Cooperation Memorandum, signed at the fifth meeting of BRICS Heads of Tax Authorities, is the bloc’s first document that elevates taxation cooperation to the institutional level.

ii. The authorities also agreed to cooperate on taxation information exchange, improve consultation procedures efficiency, boost taxation capacities and plan paths for coordination of taxation policies and tax collection.

3. BSE inks cooperation pact with Egyptian Exchange

i. Leading bourse BSE joined hands with Egyptian Exchange (EGX) for cooperation in exchange of information across business areas.

ii. Through this MoU, a range of opportunities has been explored for the development of their businesses, products and markets to share knowledge and strengthen international connectivity.

4. Amazon's Jeff Bezos briefly overtakes Gates to become world’s richest 

i. Amazon’s share price propelled founder Jeff Bezos to the top of a list of the world’s richest individuals—for less than a day. Mr. Bezos, who is also chairman and chief executive of the Seattle-based company, was worth almost $91bn (£70bn) after Amazon’s share price rose more than 1 per cent in morning trading in New York.

ii. That put his fortune ahead of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates'. The latter has a net worth of around $90.7bn and has been at the top of Bloomberg’s rich list since 2013. But Mr Bezos slipped back into second place later in the day.

5. Mumbai Metro launches India’s first mobile ticketing system

i. Mumbai Metro announced the launch of India's first Mobile Ticketing System 'OnGo' which will help commuters pass the AFC gates using their mobile phones.

ii. Commuters will be able to generate a QR Code through 'OnGo' service for current or future journeys upto a week in advance by clicking the mobile app wherein they would pay for their journey. 

6. National Centre for Seismology launches an App ‘India Quake’ 

i. Union Minister of Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Environment, Forests & Climate Change, Dr. Harshvardhan launched an app “India Quake”  for Earthquake Parameter Dissemination on the occasion of Foundation Day of Ministry of Earth Sciences.

ii. The App will make information dissemination faster with no restrictions on the number of recipients. Any citizen can download this App and get the real time earthquake location information on his/her mobile.

7. Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif resigns over Panama Papers verdict

i. Nawaz Sharif has resigned as prime minister of Pakistan following a decision by the country's Supreme Court to disqualify him from office.

ii. The ruling came after a probe into his family's wealth following the 2015 Panama Papers dump linking Mr Sharif's children to offshore companies.

8. PV Sindhu appointed Group-I officer in Andhra Pradesh

i. Olympic silver medallist P V Sindhu has been appointed a Group-I officer in Andhra Pradesh. Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu handed over the government order to the Rio Olympics silver winning shuttler.

ii. Chandrababu Naidu had promised a Group-I post to Sindhu when she won the silver medal in Olympics. Accordingly, she was appointed the deputy collector. 

9. Axis Bank approves re-appointment of Shikha Sharma as CEO

i. Axis Bank has re-appointed Shikha Sharma as MD & CEO of Axis Bank for the three-year term from June 2018. Her current term was to end in June 2018.

ii. Axis Bank informed Bombay Stock Exchange that board of directors has approved the re-appointment.

10. Punjab National Bank ties up with Bajaj Allianz General for distribution

i. Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Bajaj Allianz General Insurance have signed an agreement for the distribution of insurance products through the branches.

ii. Under this agreement, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance will offer personal lines of insurance products such as health, personal accident, home, motor and travel along with the commercial line of insurance products such as property, marine and engineering insurance, etc to the bank's customers.

11. Ajay Singh wins bronze medal in Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships 

i. India’s Ajay Singh has won the bronze medal in Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships at Kathmandu, taking India’s tally to three. Ajay got third place in 77 kgs men’s junior category lifting 143 kgs in snatch and 172 kgs in clean and jerk.

ii. S. Nirpupama Devi had won bronze in 69 kgs women youth category. Konsam Ormila Devi had won gold in 44kg weight category on an opening day.

12. Indonesia to host AFC U-19 championship

i. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Competition Committee officially awarded Indonesia the hosting of the AFC Under-19 Championship 2018.

ii. The AFC U-19 championship is scheduled to be held from October 18 to November 4 of 2018.

13. Bollywood actor Inder Kumar passes away

i. Bollywood actor Inder Kumar passed away recently. He was 44. Inder Kumar suffered a heart attack at his residence in Andheri’s Four Bungalows. He has worked in more than 20 films.

ii. He also shared the screen space with Salman Khan in Wanted and Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge among others.