1) Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence
•Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik granted the Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence for the year 2016 to Prof Digambar Behera.
•Digambar Behera is senior professor and Head, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh. The award is given by Odisha Bigyan Academy(OBA) each year for outstanding research contribution in science and technology, during the five years preceding year of award.
2) Coast Guard Training Ship Varuna Decommissioned
•The Indian Coast Guard Ship Varuna, which was part of the First Training Squadron of the Navy, was decommissioned with full armed forces honors at a ceremony. The ship had an illustrious service spanning about 30 years.
•ICGS Varuna was the fourth of in its class of offshore patrol vessels built by the Mumbai-based Mazagon Dock. The ship had numerous operational achievements to its credit, including a record number of apprehension of smugglers with gold worth crores of rupees during the late 1980s.
3) Jaitley launches HAL designed light combat helicopter
•Defence Minister Arun Jaitley announced the launch of the production of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) designed 5.8-tonne category Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) in Bengaluru today.
•It was cleared for procurement by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) few months ago. The basic version of LCH has been cleared by the Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification, and the DAC has accorded the approval for the procurement of 15 LCH from HAL under Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured category. Accordingly, the production was launched today.
•Mr Jaitley also dedicated the company's role changer design upgrade programme of Hawk-I to the nation.
•HAL officials said, its twin engine LCH of 5.8 tonne class featuring narrow fuselage and tandem configuration for pilot and co-pilot/weapon system operator. The helicopter is equipped with 20mm Turret gun, 70 mm Rocket, Air to Air Missile, EO-Pod and Helmet pointing system. It can carry out operational roles under extreme weather conditions at different altitudes, hot weather desert, cold weather and Himalayan altitudes.
4) Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and Mobile trinity has ushered in a social revolution: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
•Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said JAM (Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and Mobile) trinity has ushered in a social revolution which will eventually bring all Indians into a common financial, economic and digital space, similar to how GST has created a unified market. He said, within reach of the country is what might be called the 1 billion-1 billion-1 billion vision. Mr Jaitley said that is 1 billion unique Aadhaar numbers linked to 1 billion bank accounts and 1 billion mobile phones.
•He said once that is done, all of India can become part of the financial and digital mainstream. In a Facebook post on the third anniversary of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, PMJDY, he said, just as GST created one tax, one market, one India, the PMJDY and the JAM
revolution can link all Indians into one common financial, economic and digital space.
•Mr Jaitley wrote no Indian will be outside the mainstream. Noting that JAM is nothing short of a social revolution, the Finance Minister said it offers substantial benefits for government, the economy and especially the poor.
5) Dharmendra Kumar Appointed Director General of RPF
•CISF ADG Dharmendra Kumar has been appointed as Director General of the Railway Protection Force. Kumar, who is a 1984 batch IPS officer of Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories (AGMUT) cadre, took charge.
•After the retirement of S K Bhagat in June 2017, the additional charge of DG, RPF, was being handled by National Security Guard (NSG) DG, Sudhir Pratap Singh. Kumar will retire on September 30, 2018.
6) Messi Becomes First Ever Player to Score 350 La Liga Goals
•Barcelona forward Lionel Messi scored a second-half brace against Alaves, becoming the first ever player to score 350 goals in La Liga.
•Messi's best goal tally for a season came in 2011/12 when he netted 50 goals in 37 appearances. Messi, who has played 384 league matches, is now 66 goals ahead of rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
