National
Orange Alert for Delhi: Intense heatwave incoming!
An ‘orange alert’ has been issued in Delhi concerning a severe heatwave. Temperatures could vary between 44 to 47˚C, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
Baited Breath for Monsoon: The IMD issued warnings in Haryana, Punjab, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and parts of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. The anticipation of monsoon entering Delhi give a shy of relief from the scorching heat. However, monsoon is yet to set in the North.
No Respite Yet: Meanwhile, Delhi has been undergoing severe spells of the heatwave in recent days. The UT witnessed scorching summer heat, with temperatures in parts of the city going beyond 47˚C.
India records over 3,700 fresh Covid cases
India recorded 3,714 fresh Covid cases, a marginal decline against 4,518 infections. The country also registered seven Covid deaths.
High Recovery Rate: Meanwhile, the active caseload has risen to 26,976 cases, accounting for 0.06 per cent of the country’s total positive cases. Consequently, recovery rate stands at 98.72%.
Positivity Rates Drop: Meanwhile, daily positivity rate has slightly dropped to 1.21%, while the weekly positivity rate in the country currently stands at 0.97%.
Testing and vaccination of Indian citizens in on in full swing. Under a Government run vaccination drive, over 3.45 crore adolescents have been administered with a first dose of Covid-19 vaccine.
Business
Adani Group to set up hyper-scale data centre near Kolkata
Adani Enterprises will set up a hyper-scale data centre at Bengal Silicon Valley in the northern outskirts of Kolkata.
Putting the Land to Good Use: As of now, 51.75 acres of land has been allotted. The land is being allotted on the basis of a 99-year lease. As of now, the investment by Adani Enterprises is unknown. Officials are also silent on the number of direct employment that the proposed project will ensure.
Investments breed Employment: Adani Group earlier promised to invest ₹10,000 crores in West Bengal over the next 10 years. The introduction of data centers, and new workspaces, will provide direct and indirect employment to around 25,000 people.
More to Come: This hyper-scale data centre will be the first tranche of the investment of ₹10,000 crores by Adani Group.
Finance
HDFC Bank hikes lending rates by 0.35%; EMIs to go up
HDFC Bank has increased the marginal cost of funds-based lending rates (MCLR) by 0.35% or 35 basis points, across all tenures. The lending rates will be effective from June 7.
Now is the time! EMIs on a variety of loans including housing, vehicle, and personal loans, will go up. This is the second HDFC Bank’s lending rate since the RBI hiked the policy repo rate by 40 basis points.
As per data updated on HDFC Bank’s website, the overnight MCLR has now increased to 7.50% from the earlier 7.15%.
Key Revisions: The MCLR for a month’s tenure has increased to 7.55%, while it has gone up to 7.60% for three months. The one-year MCLR is increased to 7.85%. The major part of the consumer loans is connected to the one-year MCLR. The two-year MCLR has been increased to 7.95%, and the three-year MCLR stands revised upward at 8.05%.
International
Over 33 tons of waste collected from 4 mountains in Nepal
Teams led by the Nepal Army have collected over 33 tons of waste from Mount Everest and three other peaks. This comes as part of a two-month-long cleaning campaign.
Clearing the Peaks: The cleaning teams involving a total of 92 individuals began work on April 5 on Everest, Mount Lhotse, Mount Kanchenjunga and Mount Manaslu. In total, the teams collected 33,877 kg of wastes from the four mountains.
The cleaning teams had sorted out biodegradable and non-biodegradable wastes, which weighed 7,227 kg and 26,650 kg respectively.
Climate change turning snow-covered Alps green
Satellite imagery of the European Alps spanning 38 years shows “greening”, an interesting phenomenon. This means a decline in snow cover and increase in plant productivity.
Fragile Mountains: Mountain landscapes are biodiversity hotspots and provide important ecosystem services. However, mountain environments are also more sensitive to climate change- warming roughly twice as fast as the global average.
Go Green? New findings suggest that alpine greening could increase retained carbon levels in the region. At the same time, amplifications or diminishments in snow and vegetation could lead to more pronounced environmental changes in the future. This includes increased warming, thawing of permafrost and increased habitat loss.
Technology
Key takeaways from Apple’s WWDC 2022 Conference
Apple’s WWDC event brought forth several upcoming technologies from Apple. These include new iPhone software in the form of iOS 16, new Silicon Chips in the form of the M2, and lots more things to boot. Here are some noteworthy announcements.
iOS 16
We got a sneak peek at iOS 16, and the major update here is a personalized lock screen. You can now change the look and feel of the watch, day and date. Apple has added widgets to the lock screen, which show information at a glance. You can save and choose between many screens.
iOS 16 has brought many changes littered through the operating system. Some notable changes come to iMessage, in which users can now unsend and edit very recently sent messages. iMessage also gets other new updates, including share play.
M2 MacBooks
On the hardware front, Apple announced the new M2 chips, which will be available in the upcoming Apple MacBook Air, as well as the 13-inch MacBook Pro. These new chips offer serious on paper upgrades in comparison to the two year old M1 chipset. The M2 MacBook Air will also come in new colours and a revamped design.
Ecosystem
Apple’s ecosystem comes together even better now- you will soon be able to use your iPhone as a webcam, and also create top down shots in the default camera position. You can also use Apple biometrics to use as a password across websites on Safari, iPhones, iPads and Macs.
Sports
Rafael Nadal jumps to No.4 in ATP Rankings; Casper Ruud attains a career-high 6th spot
The 14th French Open title and his 22nd Grand Slam trophy powered Rafael Nadal to move up a place from fifth to fourth in the latest ATP rankings.
Carved in Clay: The 36-year-old is the oldest men’s champion in the history of the clay-court tournament. He is at level with Carlos Alcaraz on a Tour-leading four titles in 2022.
Casper Ruud, the 23-year-old, jumped to a career-high No. 6 after he became the first Norwegian man to reach the final at a Grand Slam following his campaign at Roland Garros 2022.
Lonely At the Top: World No. 1 Novak Djokovic remained at the top of the rankings chart with 8770 points despite defeat in the quarterfinals of French Open 2022 at the hand of Nadal.
