Daily Current Affairs 16 June 2015

1) BSNL aims to launch m-wallet with SBI over next 2 months:

--> Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) plans to introduce mobile wallet (m-wallet) over the next two months with State Bank of India as its banking partner.

--> As per the bank, m-wallet will be different from others as money can be withdrawn for any unutilised fund and allow withdrawal from SBI ATMs.

--> Mobicash Wallet mobile user can pay for various services such as recharge of prepaid cards and mobile/utility bills, book film tickets and shop online beside one can transfer money using the service. 

2) Indian Oil Corp's Lotus Xangpo petrol pump world's highest altitude outlet:

--> Indian Oil Corp's (IOC) petrol pump, Lotus Xangpo Memorial filling station, in Leh has become the world's highest altitude retail outlet to be powered by solar power.

--> A solar power generation system has been installed at the petrol pump situated at 11,500 feet above the sea level to replace polluting diesel generator, the company said.

3) Taj Mahal now WiFi enabled:

--> Tourists visiting the Tajmahal can now access Wi-Fi service for free for the first 30 minutes as the facility was formally launched by Communications and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on 16 June 2015.

--> After free usage limit of 30 minutes, a customer can continue using the service on paid basis for which subscription plans are available in various denominations.

--> The facility has been set up by state-run operator BSNL with the optical fibre backbone which can provide high internet speed of up to 100 Mbps.

4) Sunil Chhetri becomes first Indian to score 50 international goals:

-->  Sunil Chhetri became the first Indian footballer to score 50 international goals during his team’s 2018 World Cup qualifying match against Guam.

--> Chhetri’s feat, though, came in a losing cause, as India suffered their second successive defeat in the preliminary joint qualification second round.

--> Former captain Bhaichung Bhutia stays at the second spot with 42 goals in 107 matches while IM Vijayan has 40 goals from 79 games.

5) Election Commission of India (ECI) suspended recognition of National People's Party (NPP):

--> Election Commission of India (ECI) on 16 June 2015 suspended the recognition of National People's Party (NPP) as a state party in Meghalaya.

--> The NPP is headed by former Lok Sabha Speaker PA Sangma.

--> The decision was taken in lieu of its failure in filing the election expenditure statement related to 2014 Lok Sabha general elections within the prescribed limit of 90 days.

6) Nathu La pass in Sikkim reopened for Kailash-Manasarovar pilgrims after 53 years:

More than a half-century after China closed the Nathu La Pass on the Sikkim-Tibet border, the first batch of 50 Indian pilgrims and tourists will be going to the legendary Kailash-Manasarovar in Tibet on 18 June 2015.

--> This follows a bilateral agreement to open the pass for Indian visitors which was signed on September 18 last year when the Chinese President Xi Jinping visited New Delhi.