Daily Current Affairs Updates:15 June 2014

1) PM Modi began his first foreign visit to Bhutan: Narendra Modi on Sunday embarked on his maiden visit to Bhutan as India's Prime Minister. His two-day trip underscores his government's commitment to consolidate ties in India's neighbourhood. On the eve of his visit, Modi on Saturday said that Bhutan was a "natural choice" as his first foreign destination because of the "unique and special relationship" and his trip would focus on making development cooperation "even more effective". In his pre-departure statement, Modi said relations with Bhutan will be a key foreign policy priority of his government. "I am looking forward to my first-ever visit to Bhutan and to nurturing and further strengthening India's special relations with Bhutan", said Modi who is undertaking a two-day trip at the invitation of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk and Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay.

2) PM Narendra Modi dedicated INS Vikramaditya to the nation: Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated India's largest warship INS Vikramaditya to the nation and pitched for making the country self-reliant in manufacturing defence equipment, shedding dependence on imports. "It is an important day for our nation. It is a golden day in Indian Navy's history. For me, it is a matter of pride and happiness that INS Vikramaditya is joining the Navy. It is a historic step," he said.

About INS Vikramaditya

Vikramaditya, a floating airfield, has an overall length of about 284 metres and a maximum beam of about 60 metres, stretching as much as three football fields put together. Standing about 20 storeys tall from keel to the highest point, the ship has a total of 22 decks and carries 1,600 personnel. With over 1,600 personnel on board, Vikramaditya is literally a floating city. Linked to the personnel on board is mammoth logistics requirement - nearly 100,000 eggs, 20,000 litres of milk and 16 tonnes of rice, to name just a few, per month.

3) Australia thrash Netherlands 6-1 to retain hockey World Cup: Australia retained the men's hockey World Cup title by outplaying Olympic silver medallists The Netherlands 6-1 in the final at the Kyocera Stadium on Sunday. Chris Cirielo's three penalty corner conversions was the feature of the contest that saw Australia retain the trophy they had won in New Delhi in 2010. The successive men's World Cup title wins was a present the Australian team had promised to their coach Ric Charlesworth, who had won it as a player in 1986 and as a coach four years ago. Playing their fourth successive World Cup final, Australia made up for the disappointment of losing two successive summit showdown to Germany.

4) India won first ODI against Bangladesh by seven wickets in rain-curtailed clash: India won the first ODI against Bangladesh by seven wickets in a rain-curtailed match in Dhaka on Sunday. Openers Ajinkya Rahane and Robin Uthappa powered confident fifties to guide India to victory as the visitors reached the revised target of 150 runs off 26 overs with seven balls to spare after heavy rain stopped play for more than two hours in the day-night clash at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium.

5) Malayalam Author C. Radhakrishnan selected for Moortidevi Award: Eminent Malayalam scientist-turned-writer C. Radhakrishnan has been selected for the prestigious Moortidevi Award for 2013 for his novel “Theekkadal Katanhu Thirumadhuram”. The novel is a biographical account of Thunchath Ezhuthachan. The novel attempts to bring back to life the socio-cultural ambience of 15th century, according to a press release issued by Bharatiya Jnanpith which has instituted the award. Moortidevi Award carries a cash prize of Rs.4 lakh, a plaque and a statue of goddess Saraswati.

6) Metro launched first solar plant: The first solar module of Delhi Metro's introductory inaugural 'Roof Top Solar Power Plant' was inaugurated on Sunday at the Dwarka sector 21 metro station. The plant, with a capacity of 500 kWp is expected to start generation by the end of July. With the beginning of power production from this 500 kWp plant next month, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will become the first ever metro system in the country to install this plant 'Roof Top Solar Power Plants' at its stations. An official of Delhi Metro said the power produced from this plant will meet the power requirements of the DMRC at this station.

7) Father's day celebrated: Father's Day celebrates fatherhood and the influence of fathers in society. Created to complement Mother's Day, a celebration that honours mothers and motherhood, many countries celebrate Father's Day on the third Sunday of June. Some countries celebrate it on other days.