Current Affairs for UPSC Exams | 23 July 2019

Govt.asserts RTI amendment does not compromise autonomy of Information commission : (National)

Information & Broadcasting Minister PrakashJavadekar has said that NarendraModi Government is fully committed to transparency and accountability in the flow of information relating various government departments.
He said, as a result of its commitment to strengthen genuine and free flow of information, the government has encouraged suomotu dissemination of maximum information by Government Departments in order to reduce number of RTIs.
In a tweet, Mr Javadekar said, there is a deliberate and mischievous attempt by a section to malign the government.
The Minister said, there is no merit in their criticism as the amendment to RTI Act in no way compromises the autonomy of Information Commission.

RBI deputy governor wants govt.to reduce borrowing by going for disinvestment : (Economy)

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Viral Acharya said that disinvestment in public sector enterprises (PSEs) would alleviate crowding-out effects of the government’s borrowing in the country.
He said serious rationalisation could be undertaken including cutting back on subsidies and programmes that are not delivering long-term growth, and instead, focussing on providing education, health and infrastructure. Mr.Acharya had decided to quit the RBI six months before his tenure ends.
The Deputy Governor argued there could be efficiency gains if there are more private investors playing an effective role in the governance of public sector enterprises, which will also reduce the need for market borrowings by the government and reduce crowding-out.
“The much-needed land, labour and agricultural reforms could be undertaken, all of which can help crowd-in private sector growth,” he added.

Chandrayaan-2 successfully launched by ISRO : (Science and technology)

The powerful booster GSLV-Mark-Three carrying Chandrayaan-2 on-board zoomed into space at 14.43 hours by puffing out thick smoke and leaving trailblazers amidst thundering sound from the second launch pad of the SatishDhawan Space Centre.
After piercing through the cloudy sky, it placed the high-stake lunar probe into the designated highly elliptical orbit around the earth in just 16 minutes and 33 seconds. ISRO Chairman Dr Sivan congratulated the Team ISRO for the remarkable achievement saying it is the beginning of a historic journey by the nation to the moon.
From the earth-bound orbit, Chandrayaan-2 will be navigated by the ISRO scientists to near the South Pole of the moon.
It will be made possible by carrying out fifteen earth-bound manoeuvres that involve burning the engine onboard Chandrayaan-2. It will be the first-ever soft-landing of a probe by India, that is expected to be on September 7.
India would become the fourth ever nation to have a soft-landing on the moon, once Chandrayaan-2 reaches the unexplored area.

India tops at commonwealth table tennis Championships : (Sports)

In Table Tennis, hosts India completed a clean sweep, claiming all the seven gold medals at the 21st Commonwealth Championships, which concluded yesterday in Cuttack.
Harmeet Desai and Ayhika Mukherjee won the men's and women's singles titles Yesterday. Harmeet defeated favourite G. Sathiyan 4-3 in a hard-fought final to claim the men's singles title.
Earlier yesterday, Anthony Amalraj and ManavThakkar claimed the men's doubles gold by stunning top seeds Sathiyan and Sharath Kamal 3-1.

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