14 May 2019 - Daily Current Affairs

1. ITC appoints Sanjiv Puri as Chairman

ITC Ltd. has appointed Managing Director (MD) Sanjiv Puri (56-years) as the Chairman of the company with immediate effect.
Mr Puri joined the company in 1986 and rose through the ranks like his predecessor.
He was appointed as Chief executive officer (CEO) in 2017 and as Managing Director (MD) in 2018.
Mr Sanjiv Puri is an alumnus of IIT-Kanpur and Wharton School of Business.
On 11^th May 2019, Company’s longest-serving chairman YC Deveshwar (72-years) passed away.

Note:

ITC Limited is an Indian multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal.
It employs over 30,000 people at more than 60 locations across India and is part of the Forbes 2000 list.

Source: Economic Times

International Affairs

2. Cannes Film Festival begins today in France

The international event of the world of cinema Cannes Film Festival (72^ndedition) has begun in France (14 to 25 May 2019).
American film director Jim Jarmusch's ensemble zombie comedy film The Dead Don't Die will serve as the opening film of the festival.
Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Inarritu will serve as Jury President.
The Indian delegation is leading by Amit Khare (India’s Information and Broadcasting Secretary) at Cannes.
The Indian Pavilion will showcase Indian cinema across linguistic, cultural and regional diversity, with the aim of forging international partnerships in distribution, production, filming in India.
Indian Delegation will also release a special poster to mark the golden jubilee of International Film Festival of India (IFFI-2019).

The festival honoured French filmmaker Agnès Varda, featuring her on the official poster of the festival.

Source: AIR News

3. US Navy Chief holds discussion with Indian Naval Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba

US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Michael Richardson held discussions with Admiral Sunil Lanba, India’s Chief of the Naval Staff.
Mr. Richardson, who is on an official tour to India, intends to further consolidate bilateral naval relations between India and USA and also to explore new avenues for naval cooperation
Mr Richardson also interacted with Defence Secretary, Vice Chief of the Army Staff, Chief of the Air Staff and the National Security Council Secretariat.
Indian Navy and US Navy interact regularly at bilateral and multilateral forums.

Source: AIR News

Obituaries

4. US actor Peggy Lipton passes away

Renowned American actress and model, Peggy Lipton (72-years) passed away.
She came to fame through her role as flower child Julie Barnes in the ABC counterculture television series.
he Mod Squad (1968–1973) for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama in 1970.

Source: CNN

Science & Defence

5. DRDO conducts a successful flight test of ABHYAS

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted a successful flight test of ABHYAS - High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT) from Interim Test Range, Chandipur in Odisha.
The flight test was tracked by various RADARS and Electro Optic Systems and proved its performance in a fully autonomous waypoint navigation mode.
The configuration of ABHYAS is designed on an in-line small gas turbine engine and uses indigenously developed MEMS-based navigation system for its navigation and guidance.
The performance of the system was as per simulations carried out and demonstrated the capability of ABHYAS to meet the mission requirement for a cost-effective High-speed Expendable Aerial Target.

Source: AIR News

Banking and Finance

6. India's retail inflation picks up to 2.92% in April

According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation data, Retail inflation rose marginally to 2.92% in April this year, mainly due to the rise in food prices.
The inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 2.86% in the previous month and 4.58% in April last.
According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO) data the inflation in the food basket was 1.1% last month, up from 0.3 per cent in March this year.
CPI-based inflation data is an important indicator of the economy as the Reserve Bank of India mainly factors in it while arriving at its monetary policy.

Source: AIR News

National Affairs

7. Young Scientist Programme 'Yuvika2019' inaugurated today

The Young Scientist Programme ‘Yuvika2019’ was inaugurated by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman Dr K Sivan, through video mode in Bengaluru.
The two-week residential summer vacation programme spread over four ISRO centres in Bengaluru, Thiruvananthapuram, Ahmedabad and Shillong are attended by 110 students.
He touched upon how the applications of Space technology is helping in the day to day activities of common man besides ensuring the safety of life and property during disaster situations.
The participants will be visiting the spaceport of India, Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Shri harikota during this programme.

Source: AIR News

8. India extends 1 billion-dollar Line of Credit to Mongolia

India has extended 1 billion- dollar Line of Credit to Mongolia to set up its first-ever grass-root refinery at Sainshand in Dornogobi Province.
The capacity of the refinery will be 1.5 Million Metric Tons Per Annum.
It will be implemented with Exim Bank funding.

Source: AIR News

9. Vice President inaugurates 'Jaipur Foot Artificial Limb' fitment camp

Vice President M. Naidu inaugurated the Jaipur Foot Artificial Limb Fitment Camp in Hanoi during his four-day official visit to Vietnam.
Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu presented the artificial limb fitments to the beneficiaries at the Embassy of India in Hanoi under India for Humanity initiative.
The Camp is being held under the 'India For Humanity' program in the context of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
The iconic Jaipur Foot is lighter than all the other artificial limbs and has transformed the lives of thousands and helped them lead a life of dignity.

Source: DD News

10. Spectacular Thrissur Pooram festival begins in Kerala

The most spectacular festival of Kerala ‘Thrissur Pooram’ has begun at Thekkinkadu Maidan in the heart of Thrissur city in Kerala.
It is held at the Vadakkunnathan Temple in Thrissur every year on the Pooram day - the day when the moon rises with the Pooram star.
A 54-year-old elephant ‘Thechikottukavu Ramachandran’ also participated in the festival.

Source: Indian Express

Sports

11. Football: Manchester City wins Premier League Title 2019

Manchester City clinched their fourth Premier League title (football) after winning the 2018-19 season.
Manchester City registered a 4-1 victory against Brighton to accumulate 98 points, while Liverpool, who were also in the title race, finished second with 97 points.
Dominant Manchester City has successfully retained their Premier League title on the final day of an exhilarating 2018-19 campaign.
Manchester City also lifted the trophy in 2011-12, 2013-14 and 2017-18. They are the first team to win back-to-back titles since Manchester United in 2009.

Source: Aljazeera

12. World’s 1st Exclusive Women’s cricket magazine ‘Criczone’ released

The world’s first exclusive women’s cricket magazine ‘Criczone’ was released with Indian team vice-captain Smriti Mandhana featuring as the cover story.
It is a one-stop solution, exclusively dedicated to providing updates, articles, news, interviews, etc. from the world of women’s cricket.
Publisher of the magazine ‘Criczone’ is Yash Lahoti.

Source: Business Standard

13. CEAT Awards: Virat Kohli bags International batsman and cricketer of the year

Indian captain Virat Kohli bagged the International Cricketer and Batsman of the Year award during the CEAT Cricket Rating (CCR) International awards 2019.
The ceremony held in Mumbai in presence of a galaxy of past and present cricketers.
Pacer Jasprit Bumrah was adjudged as International Bowler of the Year.
Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan was awarded for outstanding bowling and Australian batsman Aaron Finch for his exceptional performance in T20.
Young prodigy Yashasvi Jaiswal was awarded Junior Cricketer of the Year, while chinaman Kuldeep Yadav took the home outstanding performance of the year award.
Ashutosh Aman was awarded Domestic Cricketer of the Year.
Legendary Mohinder Amarnath, who played a key role in India's 1983 World Cup triumph, was bestowed with the 'CCR International Lifetime Achievement Award'.

Source: AIR News