Current Affairs 10th June 2017

Current Affairs 10th June 2017 - Important Points

• Sam Pitroda resigns as Technical Adviser to - Odisha Government
• Multiple ground-to-ship missiles launched by - North Korea 
• P Govardhan Reddy, Veteran Congress leader passed away on - 9th June 2017
• SCO Summit calls for - United fight against terrorism 

Current Affairs 10th June 2017 - Details

Sam Pitroda resigns as Technical Adviser to - Odisha Government

Well known telecom engineer and policymaker Sam Pitroda resigned as the Technical Adviser to the Odisha Government on 7th June 2017. Pitroda's resignation was accepted by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. His position to the state government was that of the status of a cabinet rank minister but still he did not avail any facilities and took a token salary of Re 1 a month. Opposition party BJP demanded his resignation after he was named as the Chairman of Congress Overseas Cell. Pitroda was expected to play an important role in developing the IT sector of Odisha and launching a road-map for telecom, IT and ITes (IT enabled services) in the state at a time when the government is preparing a Vision Document 2036 to mark 100 years of formation of the linguistic state.

More about Sam Pitroda

• Born on 4th May 1942 in Titilagarh, Odisha, Sam Pitroda is regarded as the India's telecom and technology revolution founder. 
• He is a director of the Young Indian Company co-owned by Sonia and Rahul Gandhi.
• He served as an Adviser to the Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on Technology Missions related to literacy, water, immunization, telecom, oil seeds and dairy and also as an adviser to the United Nations.
• He is the founding Chairman of India’s Telecom Commission.

Multiple ground-to-ship missiles launched by - North Korea 

North Korea fired multiple cruise missiles into the waters between Korea and Japan on 8th June 2017. The move came a day after South Korea’s new president announced that his government was suspending the deployment of the controversial US missile-defense system to conduct the environmental review.

Important facts

• The missiles that flew for about 200 km were reportedly launched from Wonsan city on North Korea’s east coast. 
• After this launch, the total number of missile tests conducted by North Korea this year goes to ten.
• South Korea’s military stated that North Korea fired multiple unidentified projectiles, expected to be surface-to-ship missiles from the vicinity of Wonsan in Gangwon province.
• These launches come less than a week after the United Nations Security Council passed new sanctions on the isolated state, which shut UN sanctions as ‘mean’ and said that it would continue to pursue its nuclear and weapons programs without any delay.
• These missiles are designed to sink enemy ships.

P Govardhan Reddy, Veteran Congress leader passed away on - 9th June 2017

Veteran Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP, Palvai Govardhan Reddy passed away on 9th June 2017 after suffering from cardiac arrest. K Chandrasekhar Rao, Telangana Chief Minister expressed his grave shock and grief over the Congress leader's sudden demise. 

More about P Govardhan Reddy

• Reddy was born on 19th November 1936 at Nadimpally village in Mahabubnagar district and completed his Bachelor’s degree from Vivekavardhini College, Osmania University
• He was MLA for five terms from Mahabubnagar district.
• He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of both Andhra Pradesh before bifurcation and Telangana after bifurcation.
• He had also served one term as a member of the Legislative Council in 1979.
• He was representing Telangana in the Rajya Sabha since 2014.

SCO Summit calls for - United fight against terrorism 

India became a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) ending the administrative procedures that started two years ago on 9th June 2017. All members described India's attainment to SCO as historic and stated it would definitely strengthen security and promote regional cooperation among member countries.

Pakistan has also become the full member of SCO. India and Pakistan were admitted to the SCO group as observers in 2005 and started the administrative process to join the organisation in 2015. This was the first-ever group expansion since its formation in 2001. With the attainment, the grouping strength rose to eight and its footprints expanded from Central Asia to South Asia.