Current Affairs July 03, 2017

1. Jharkhand opens GST call centre

A GST call centre has been opened in Jharkhand to help people with queries, while Chief Minister Raghubar Das reviewed the progress of the new tax system in the state, a day after it was rolled out.

The people would get information on registration, digital signature, OTP, tax rates on different goods, invoice and accounting from that centre.

2. Kerala CM launches G-Ride

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has launched 'G-Ride', a digital ride sharing platform specially designed and deployed for the IT industry, by the Group of Technology Companies (GTech), the industry body of IT companies in the state.

He said that the state government would accelerate the deployment of digital resources in development initiatives and also in addressing challenges faced by people.

3. Mumbai's 'Vikrikar Bhavan' renamed as GST Bhavan

'Vikrikar Bhavan' the headquarters of Maharashtra government's erstwhile Sales Tax department, was renamed as 'GST Bhavan’ as the new tax regime rolled out.

Senior IAS officer Rajiv Jalota, State GST commissioner, informed that the department has planned a helpline to assist traders and business community who have queries about GST implementation and modalities.

4. Telangana to Have Separate Agriculture Budget from Next Year

Telangana would have a separate budget for agriculture from the next year.

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao decided to substantially enhance funds for the agriculture sector and present a separate agriculture budget.

Rao also asked the officials to form farmers' associations at various levels -- from villages to the state -- to organise the cultivators.

5. PNB to block all Maestro debit cards from July 31

All Maestro cards issued by PNB will be blocked or hot listed on July 31, 2017 for security-based reasons.

Punjab National Bank (PNB) Maestro debit cards holders will face a card blockage if they fail to replace it with a more secure EMV chip based card by the end of this month.

The bank will not charge anything for the replacement and it will be provided free of cost.

6. FINO becomes payments bank

FINO Payments Bank has commenced operations as a payments bank with effect from June 30, according to the Reserve Bank of India.

FINO PayTech Ltd, Navi Mumbai, was one of the 11 applicants which were issued in-principle approval for setting up a payments bank.

Besides FINO, the other applicants which have launched payment bank operations are Airtel M Commerce Services, Department of Posts and Paytm Payments Bank.

7. Svatantra Microfin launches cashless solution ‘Saathi’ 

Mid-sized microfinance institution Svatantra Microfin is looking at doubling its loan disbursals to Rs. 800 crore by 2019, even as it plans to expand its operations to more States within the same period.

Svatantra has also launched an app, an end-to-end cashless solution called Saathi, for an entire spectrum of operations in areas such as loan originating system, loan management system and collections.

8. Achal Kumar Jyoti to be India's new Chief Election Commissioner 

Election Commissioner Achal Kumar Jyoti has been appointed the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India by the Narendra Modi government.

He will take charge as the CEC on July 6 after Nasim Zaidi retires.

Zaidi had taken over as the 20th CEC on April 19, 2015.

Jyoti, former Chief Secretary of Gujarat, was appointed as the Election Commissioner on May 7, 2015.

9. Indian police officer recognised by prestigious award in US

A senior Indian police officer has been given a prestigious award in the US in recognition of his tireless efforts in fight against human trafficking.

Mahesh Muralidhar Bhagwat has been recognised with the prestigious Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Hero award.      

Bhagwat, who currently serves as Commissioner of Police of Rachakonda in Telangana, was presented the award by the US First Lady Melania Trump.

10. President receives first copy of book “PRESIDENT Pranab Mukherjee – A Statesman”

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee received the first copy of a book “President Pranab Mukherjee – A Statesman” from Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi who formally released it at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The book “President Pranab Mukherjee – A Statesman” has been published by The Statesman, one of India’s oldest English-language newspapers.