Daily Current Affairs,16th July 2018

1) PM Modi Dedicates Bansagar Canal Project To Nation In Mirzapur

•The Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the Bansagar Canal Project to the Nation in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh. This project will provide a big boost to irrigation in the region, and will be greatly beneficial for the farmers of Mirzapur and Allahabad districts of Uttar Pradesh. 

•Mr Modi laid the Foundation Stone of the Mirzapur Medical College. He inaugurated 100 Jan Aushadhi Kendras in the State. He also dedicated a bridge over the River Ganga at Balughat, Chunar, which will facilitate connectivity between Mirzapur and Varanasi. 

2) Haryana Governor Gets Additional Charge Of Himachal Pradesh

•Haryana Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki was given the additional charge of Himachal Pradesh by President Ram Nath Kovind. 

•He has been appointed during the absence of Himachal Governor Acharya Devvrat, who is on leave. 

3) EAM Sushma Swaraj Co-Chairs Joint Commission Meet In Bahrain

•External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj co-chaired the second joint commission meeting with her Bahraini counterpart Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohamed Al Khalifa. Issues of trade, investment and counter-terror cooperation discussed at the joint commission meeting.

•The External affairs minister jointly inaugurated impressive Embassy of India Complex in Manama. The new embassy complex is equipped with State-of-the-art Facilities to cater the growing need of people of both countries. This is Sushma Swaraj's 3rd visit to Bahrain in her capacity as External Affairs Minister.

4) Ravi Shankar Prasad Unveils Goa IT Policy 2018

•Union minister for electronics and IT and law and justice Ravi Shankar Prasad unveiled the Goa IT Policy 2018 at the Inox complex in Panaji on the final day of Goa IT Day celebrations. Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar was also present on the occasion. 

•The Goa IT Policy focuses on infrastructure development, fiscal incentives, governance and human resource development. The policy offers special incentives for solar power-based units, internet subsidy and assistance for campus recruitment.

5) SCM BrahMos Test Fired Under Extreme Conditions

•India's supersonic cruise missile (SCM) BrahMos was test fired from Odisha's Chandipur range launch pad under extreme conditions. The test was conducted in order to increase the longevity of its life.

•BrahMos Aerospace is a joint venture between India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation and NPOM of Russia. It is responsible for designing, developing and producing the missile. The missile can cruise at speeds of up to Mach 3.0, or three times the speed of sound. 

6) Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin Holds 1st Summit At Helsinki In Finland

•US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held the first summit at Helsinki in Finland. Trump’s meeting with Putin comes days after a federal grand jury indicted 12 Russian intelligence officials on charges of hacking the servers of the Democratic National Committee and that of its 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. 

•Host Finland President Sauli Niinisto is scheduled to meet Trump before Trump and Putin sit down to a bilateral meeting first without aides and then with their teams of support staff. 

7) In A First, India-Pakistan To Be Part Of Anti-Terror SCO Drill In Russia

•Militaries of India and Pakistan will be part of a mega anti-terror drill in Russia named "Peace Mission" in August 2018 which is being organised by the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) with an aim to expand cooperation among the member countries to deal with terrorism and extremism. 

•Around 200 Army and Air Force personnel from India will be participating in the exercise at Chelyabinsk city in Russia. The exercise will be joined by all SCO member countries including Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. 

•It will be for the first time since Independence that India and Pakistan will both be part of a military exercise, though the armies of the two nations have worked together in UN peacekeeping missions. 

8) 8-Year-Old Indian-Origin Yoga Champion Named 'British Indian Of The Year'

•An eight-year-old Indian-origin schoolboy Ishwar Sharma, who is the under-11 UK national yoga champion has been named the 'British Indian of the Year' in the young achiever category for his accomplishments in the field. 

•Ishwar Sharma has won a string of titles in both individual and artistic yoga, most recently a gold medal representing Great Britain at the World Student Games 2018 in Winnipeg, Canada. He was also named British Indian of the Year in the Young Achiever category at the sixth annual awards ceremony held in Birmingham, recently. 

9) FIFA World Cup 2018 Concludes | France Emerged As Champions

•The 21st edition of the FIFA World Cup concluded in Luzhniki Stadium in the Russian capital of Moscow. 32 nations, divided into eight groups, battled it out for the coveted trophy in the quadrennial month-long event. France emerged as the champion team of the FIFA World Cup 2018. It has defeated Croatia in a thrilling final by 4-2. It was the second world cup win for France, it first won in 1998. 

•Here are some Important Highlights and Special Awards of the FIFA 2018 World Cup: 

1. Golden Ball Award: Croatian captain Luka Modric won the Golden Ball for the World Cup's Best Player. Modric won Man-Of-The-Match three times in Croatia's seven games in Russia.
2. Golden Glove Award: Belgium's Thibaut Courtois won the Golden Glove award for the best goalkeeper.
3. Golden Boot Award: England's Harry Kane won the World Cup Golden Boot. He was the top scorer with six goals.
4. Young Player Award: France's Kylian Mbappe won the Young Player award. He scored the game’s finest goal and became the first teenager to register in the final since Pele in 1958. 
5. Fairplay Award: Spain was awarded the Fairplay Award for being the most disciplined team in the tournament.
6. Man of the Match in Final: Antoine Griezmann (France).