1. Anil Kumble-led ICC committee recommends ban on saliva due to COVID-19 pandemic

• Cricket is set to do away with one of its oldest practices, the use of saliva to shine the ball, as an Anil Kumble-led ICC committee recommended banning it owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• However, the ICC Cricket Committee saw no health hazard in continuing with the use of sweat.
• The committee also pushed for bringing back two non-neutral umpires (both from the host nation) for all international matches, as DRS ensures more accurate decision making. 
• In line with its proposal, the committee has recommended an increase in the use of DRS review per innings, from two to three.

Foot Notes: About ICC
Founded: 15 Jun 1909
CEO: Manu Sawhney
Chairman: Shashank Manohar

2. MoHUA Released Star Rating of Garbage Free Cities under Swachh Bharat mission

• On May 19, 2020, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs released star rating of garbage free cities for the year 2019-20.
• Around 5 cities were given 5-star rating. This includes Ambikapur, Surat, Rajkot, Mysuru, Indore and Navi Mumbai. The ministry had given 3-star rating to 65 cities and 1-star rating to 70 cities.
• The rating system was launched by the Ministry in 2018. This was launched to provide a mechanism to achieve Garbage free status. Also, such a rating system will motivate cities to achieve higher cleanliness. The rating mainly focuses on solid waste management.

Foot notes: About MoHUA
Housing and Urban Affairs Minister: Hardeep Singh Puri

3. Canara Bank launches special gold loan business vertical

• Canara Bank has launched a special business vertical dedicated for gold loans to meet the financial needs of its customers as they are in need of immediate credit support to meet their emergency needs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The bank has launched a gold loan campaign till 30th June, 2020 with an interest rate as low as 7.85% per annum minimum turnaround time (TAT) and high-flexibility to meet credit needs to help the customers with much needed liquidity to revive their business activities and to bring back normalcy to their lives.
• In addition to this, as Indians consider gold ornaments & coins as an asset, they can utilise their jewellery to avail credit for emergency cash. The loans are payable within a period of 1 to 3 years with flexible repayment options and can be availed from all designated branches across India.

Foot Notes: About Canara Bank
Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka
Chairman: T.N. Manoharan
MD &CEO: L.V. Prabhakar

4. NABARD releases Rs 20,500 crores of funds for Kharif and pre-monsoon operations

• In an attempt to augment the resources of Cooperative banks and RRBs, Nabard has provided financial assistance to these entities for their pre-monsoon Kharif operations. Of the Rs 20,500 crores that Nabard is providing the farmers, Rs 15,200 crore will be through cooperative banks and the balance Rs 5,300 crore will be through RRBs as special liquidity facility in various states.
• The fund is given as a means of front loading the resources of these banks so as to ensure adequate liquidity with them for financing farmers. This is against Rs 5,000 crore lent during the first quarter of the last fiscal year. The banks have also initiated a programme of saturation of Kisan credit cards-KCC- and about 12 lakh new KCC cards have been issued by Cooperative banks and RRBs during the last two months. A total of 4.2 crore KCCs have been issued by Cooperative banks & RRBs as on 31 March 2020.

Foot Notes:
About NABARD(National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development):
Founded: 12 July 1982
Headquarters: Mumbai
Chairperson: Harsh Kumar Bhanwala 

5. Kotak Mahindra bank  Launches India’s First Zero-Contact, Video KYC Savings Account

• Kotak Mahindra Bank (Kotak) announced the introduction of Video KYC to open a full-fledged Kotak 811 savings account, a first in Indian banking. This initiative, presently being launched on a pilot basis for savings accounts, is in line with Kotak’s digital-first strategy and is a start-to-end fully integrated, zero-contact, completely digital and paperless account opening + Full KYC journey.
• The Video KYC process to onboard new customers will be extended to other products in a phased manner. 
• With Video KYC, verification of KYC documents and recording of the customer’s signature are completed via a video call with the bank, eliminating the need for a visit to the branch or in-person interaction, biometric verification or sharing of physical documents.

Foot Notes: About Kotak Mahindra Bank
Headquarters: Mumbai, India
CEO: Uday Kotak

6. Madhya Pradesh launches Charan Paduka initiative for migrant labourers

• In Madhya Pradesh, in a first of its kind of initiative, Charan Paduka campaign has been started for the migrant labourers passing through the state. 
• Under this campaign, the migrant labourers going barefoot are being provided shoes and slippers to reduce their pain. 
• The most notable thing is that this campaign is being conducted by the police at most places.
• Now this human initiative has spread in many cities of MP including Damoh, Umaria and Sagar.
• Migrant labourers are also very happy with this initiative of the police.

Foot Notes:
Capital: Bhopal
Governor: Lalji Tandon
Chief Minister: Shivraj Singh Chouhan

7. Union Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan represents India at 73rd World Health Assembly 

• Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan represent India at the 2-day World Health Assembly of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the WHO has announced that the 73rd World Health Assembly will be held virtually. 
• The Health Assembly is held annually in Geneva, Switzerland.
• Coronavirus will be the agenda of the meeting, which will be attended by all 194 WHO member states plus observers.

Foot Notes: About WHA (World Health Assembly)
Founded: 1988
Headquarters : Geneva, Switzerland

8. Traditional ‘Hanko’ practice is coming in the way of Japan’s Covid-19 response

• In Japan, where the government has been fiercely engaged in tackling the novel coronavirus pandemic, a centuries-old ritual is sharing the blame for impeding social distancing efforts.
• The extensive and almost unavoidable use of the ‘hanko’– a personal seal generally made from wood or plastic, for authorising official documents ranging from contracts, marriage registrations and even delivery slips, has been forcing several employees to go to the office to get work done.
• The hanko is a personal stamp that is equivalent to a signature in other countries, and is an essential part of several transactions. 
• Small-sized and circular or square-shaped, the stamp is wet by an ink pad called ‘shuniku’, and the mark that it leaves on a document is called ‘inkan’
• Even today, when many countries have seen a push towards paperless systems and adopting digital signatures, the hanko remains popular in Japan.

Foot Notes: About Japan
Prime Minister: Shinzō Abe 
Capital: Tokyo
Currency: Japanese yen

9. Noted Marathi writer Ratnakar Matkari passes away at 81

• Noted Marathi dramatist, litterateur, theatre personality and National Award-winning director, Ratnakar Matkari passed away in Mumbai.
• He had tested COVID-19 positive four days ago and was undergoing treatment. 
• A versatile writer, Mr. Ratnakar Matkari has the honour of being decorated by both Sangeet Natak Akademi and Sahitya Akademi for his wide range of works. 
• His film ‘Investment’ bagged the National Award in the Regional Category section. 
• Some of his noted Marathi dramas include ‘Arannyak’ based on Mahabharata, ‘Lok Katha 78’, ‘Dubhang’, ‘Ashwamedh’, Chaar Diwas Premache’ and ‘Indira’.

10. China announces USD 2 billion in coronavirus help at WHO assembly

• China will provide USD 2 billion over two years to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
• The USD 2 billion over the next two years will support COVID-19 response efforts, particularly in developing countries.
• The announcement came as China faced growing global pressure over the lockdowns, death toll and a huge increase in coronavirus cases that has brought the world to a standstill.

Foot Notes: About China
Capital: Beijing
President: Xi Jinping
Currency: Chinese Yuan