National news
First Hydrogen plant of GAIL inaugurated in Vijaipur, MP
- The government of India-owned GAIL(India) Limited’s first green hydrogen plant has become operational at Vijaipur in Madhya Pradesh. This marks the entry of India’s largest natural gas transmission and distribution company in the green fuel business.
- The plant was jointly inaugurated by Pankaj Jain, Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, and Sandeep Gupta, Chairman and Managing Director of GAIL.
- 10 MW Green Hydrogen plant of GAIL
- The first green hydrogen plant of GAIL at Vijaipur uses a 10 MW proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser which has been imported from Canada.
Green Hydrogen
- It refers to the breaking down of the water molecule into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable energy sources. Renewable energy means energy that can be used again and again, such as solar power, hydropower, wind energy, etc. It contains no carbon, which is responsible for global warming.
About GAIL (India) Limited
- GAIL (India) Limited was set up by the government of India in 1984 under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
- The company was initially created to construct, manage and operate the Hazira(Gujarat), Vijaipur(Madhya Pradesh) and Jagdishpur (Uttar Pradesh) natural gas pipelines.
- The 1800 km long Hazira, Vijaipur and Jagdishpur gas pipeline is the world’s largest gas pipeline.
- Headquarters: New Delhi
- Chairman Cum Managing Director (CMD): Sandeep Kumar Gupta
Sanchar Saathi Initiative: Home Ministry & DoT crackdown on fake SMS
- The Department of Telecommunication (DoT), in association with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, has initiated a strong crackdown on the menace of fraudulent SMS (Short Messaging Service) under the Sanchar Saathi Initiative.
- Eight SMS headers that were being used by cyber criminals to target unsuspecting mobile phone owning customers have been blocked by the government.
Steps taken by the Department of Telecommunication (DoT)
- The Department of Telecommunication (DoT), which comes under the Ministry of Communication, the government of India, said that more than 10,000 fraudulent messages from eight different entities were sent in the past three months.
- Dot has blocked and blacklisted the 73 SMS Headers and 1522 SMS content templates owned by these eight entities.
Sanchar Saathi Initiative
- The Sanchar Saathi Initiative was launched by the Union Communication Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on 16 May 2023 in New Delhi.
- The Sanchar Saathi portal has been developed by the Department of Telecommunication to empower mobile subscribers, increase awareness about citizen-centric initiatives of the Government and strengthen their security.
Ministry of communication: Ashwini Vaishnaw (Union Minister), Devusinh Jesingbhai Chauhan (Minister of State)
MoHFW to Launch National Health Claim Exchange Portal to Streamline Insurance Claims
- Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) is set to launch a unified portal named National Health Claim Exchange (NHCX) to simplify the process of filing health insurance claims. It aims to foster transparency and ensureinteroperability of health insurance claims and help to enhance the efficiency of the health insurance sector.
Key Points:
- The NHCX is developed by the National Health Authority (NHA) and it has been developed as part of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).
- Ayushman Bharat Health Accounts (ABHA) accounts in India have touched 62.12 crore as of May 24, 2024.
- The portal will serve as a single-window platform between health insurance companies, hospitals and insurance policyholders, and will facilitate easier and faster health insurance claim settlements.
About National Health Authority (NHA):
- NHA is the successor of National Health Agency (2018), which was reconstituted as National Health Authority (NHA) on 2nd January, 2019. It is the apex body responsible for implementing Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).
- Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Deepti Gaur Mukerjee
- Headquarters- New Delhi, Delhi
About Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW):
- Union Minister- Mansukh L. Mandaviya (Rajya Sabha member- Gujarat)
- Minister of State (MoS)- Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar (Lok Sabha Constituency- Dindori, Maharashtra), S.P. Singh Bhagel (Lok Sabha Constituency- Agra, Uttar Pradesh)
Banking news
Government Receives Rs 3,662 Crore Dividend from LIC
The Government of India, being the largest shareholder in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), will receive a dividend of Rs 3,662 crore following LIC’s declaration of an interim dividend of Rs 6 per share. LIC reported a net profit of Rs 13,782 crore for the quarter ending March 31, 2024, marking a 4.5 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
Here are the key financial highlights and strategic insights from LIC’s recent performance:
Financial Performance Overview
- Net Profit: LIC reported a net profit of Rs 13,782 crore for the quarter, up by 4.5 percent from the previous year.
- Dividend Declaration: An interim dividend of Rs 6 per share was declared, resulting in a Rs 3,662 crore dividend for the government.
LIC:
- Chairperson: Siddhartha Mohanty
- Headquarters: Mumbai
- Founded: 1 September 1956
South African Regulator Fines SBI’s South Africa Branch
- The Prudential Authority of the South African Reserve Bank has imposed a financial penalty of 10 million rand (₹4.5 crore) on the State Bank of India’s South Africa branch for non-compliance with certain provisions of the country’s Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001 (FIC Act).
- The penalty comprises an immediately payable portion of 5.50 million rand, already paid, and a suspended amount of 4.50 million rand, contingent on compliance within 36 months
South Africa:
- Capitals: Cape Town, Pretoria, Bloemfontein
- President: Cyril Ramaphosa
State bank of India:
- Chairperson: Dinesh Kumar Khara
- Founded: 1 July 1955
- Headquarters: Mumbai
RBI Penalizes ICICI Bank and Yes Bank for Regulatory Violations
RBI Imposes Monetary Penalty on ICICI Bank, Yes Bank for Rule Violations the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 1 crore on ICICI Bank Limited for sanctioning term loans to certain entities to replace budgetary resources for specific projects without proper due diligence.
- ICICI Bank was imposed a penalty for non-compliance of ‘Loans and Advances – Statutory and Other Restrictions’.
The RBI has also imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 91 lakh on Yes Bank Limited for multiple violations of banking norms.
- Yes, Bank has violated RBI regulations by charging fees on accounts with zero balance and opening internal accounts in customer’s names for unauthorised purposes such as parking funds and routing customer transactions.
Appointment news
Dr Samir V Kamat’s tenure as DRDO Chief extended for one year
- The Appointment Committee of the Union Cabinet headed by the Prime Minister has approved an extension of one year for the Secretary of the Department of Defence, Research and Development and Chairman of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Dr Samir V Kamat.
- Dr Samir Kamat was due to retire on 31 May 2024. His term has been extended till 31 May 2025.
- The extension to Dr Kamat comes after the government, in an unusual move, gave a one-month extension to Army Chief Manoj Pande.
- Perhaps the main reason for extending Dr Kamat’s tenure is to ensure the continuity of the reform process being implemented in the DRDO.
DRDO:
- Headquarters: new Delhi
- Founded: 1958
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda re-elected for another term
- President Gitanas Nauseda has been re-elected President of the Baltic state of Lithuania. The 60-year-old Gitanas Nauseda, who does not belong to any political party, defeated the incumbent Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte of the ruling centre-right Homeland Union party in the run-off presidential election held on 26 May 2024.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated President Gitanas Nauseda on his re-election.
About Lithuania
- Capital: Vilnius
- Currency: Euro
- President: Gitanas Nauseda
Jetha Ahir Elected as NAFED Chairman
- Shehra BJP MLA Jetha Ahir, who has previously served as the deputy speaker of the Gujarat Assembly, has been elected uncontested as the chairman of the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED).
- Senior leaders revealed that Ahir secured the support of the sitting Rajkot MP Mohan Kundariya to become the NAFED chairman in the election held in Delhi.
Mahamat Idriss Deby Named New PM of Chad
- Chad, a north-central African nation, has witnessed a significant transition in leadership as Mahamat Idriss Deby was sworn in as the country’s new president.
- Deby’s ascension to power marks the end of three years of military rule in the oil-rich but impoverished nation.
Chad:
- Capital: N’Djamena
- Currency: Centrael African CFA franc
Sports news
Charles Leclerc Makes History with Victory at 2024 Monaco Grand Prix
- On May 2024, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, a racing driver from Monaco won the Monaco Grand Prix (GP) 2024 (officially Formula 1 (FI) Grand Prix de Monaco 2024) held at Circuit de Monaco in Monte Carlo. This victory is Charles Leclerc’s 1st win since the 2022 Austrian GP, breaking a 39-race winless line.
- With this victory, Charles became the 1st ever Monegasque driver to win the Monaco GP in World Championship history, and the 1st since Louis Chiron in 1931 (the 3rd edition of the race).
- McLaren’s Oscar Piastri of Australia finished 2nd and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz of Spain finished 3rd in the Monaco GP 2024.
India Secures Gold and Silver at Archery World Cup 2024 in South Korea
- India won 2 medals (1 gold and 1 silver) in the Archery World Cup 2024 Stage 2 held from 21st to 26th May 2024 in Yecheon, Republic of Korea (South Korea).
- The Indian women’s compound team of Aditi Gopichand Swami, Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Parneet Kaur won the gold medal defeating the Turkish team of Hazal Burun, Ayse Bera Suzer and Begum Yuva.
- India’s mixed archery team of Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Priyansh won the silver medal. They were defeated by Olivia Dean and Sawyer Sullivan of the United States of America (USA) in the finals.
Important days
World Hunger Day 2024: Focusing on “Thriving Mothers. Thriving World” to Combat Global Hunger
- World Hunger Day is annually observed across the globe on 28th May to raise awareness about the condition of millions of people, who do not have access to proper food.
- The day aims to unite the global community to amplify the voices of those facing hunger and to end world hunger.
- The 2024 campaign theme of World Hunger Day is, “Thriving Mothers. Thriving World.
