August 4th Week 2021 Current Affairs Online Test English

Explanation

• Telangana has launched the Dalit Bandhu scheme at Salapalli village in Huzurnagar Assembly Constituency. CM K Chandrashekhar Rao has launched this scheme on a pilot basis by handing over certificates to the select beneficiaries sanctioning financial assistance of Rs 10 lakh each to take up their choice of income generation activity.
• Also, a separate Protection Fund will be created. Dalit Bandhu Samitis would be established at different levels – from village level to State level – and these would be entrusted with the responsibility of managing the dalit protection fund.

Explanation

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Rs 100 lakh crore Pradhan Mantri Gatishakti initiative on August 15, 2021. This initiative will create employment opportunities for youth in India. It will also lead to growth and development of infrastructure.  It also increases the possibilities of new future economic zones.

Explanation

• Dr K Sivan, Secretary, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) formally inaugurated the Health QUEST study (Health Quality Upgradation Enabled by Space Technology of ISRO) which will be undertaken by 20 private hospitals across India.
• Objective of the study is to strive towards reducing human errors and achieve zero defect and quality service in the emergency and intensive care units of hospitals. The study aims to upgrade the healthcare system standards in the country in line with the ISRO quality standards and best practices.

Explanation

• The Indian Navy has carried out joint drills with the Vietnamese Navy in the South China Sea as part of maritime cooperation between the two countries. INS Ranvijay and INS Kora undertook bilateral maritime exercises with Vietnam People’s Navy (VPN) frigate VPNS Ly Thai To (HQ–012). The bilateral interaction aims to consolidate the strong bond shared by the two navies and would be another step towards strengthening India–Vietnam defence relations.
• The sea phase included surface warfare exercises, weapon firing drills and helicopter operations. Regular interactions between the two navies over the years have enhanced their interoperability and adaptability.

Explanation

• The Union Cabinet was approved the Memorandum of Understanding signed on March, 2021 between the National Disaster Management Authority, Ministry of Home Affairs, the Republic of India and the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, People’s Republic of Bangladesh on Cooperation in the field of Disaster Management, Resilience and Mitigation.
• The MoU seeks to put in place a system, whereby both India and Bangladesh will be benefited from the Disaster Management mechanisms of each other and it will help in strengthening the areas of preparedness, response and capacity building in the field of Disaster Management.

Explanation

• Prime Minister Modi announced to provide fortified rice to poor under various schemes by the year 2024. This decision was taken in order to address the problem of malnutrition in India. Providing nutrition to every poor person India is a priority of the government.
• This decision was taken in the view that, malnutrition and lack of essential nutrients among poor women and poor children is a major hurdle in their development.

Explanation

• India has won 3 gold medals in Archery Championships. The Indian contingent won 15 medals at the World Archery Youth Championships. 
• The 2021 World Archery Youth Championships was held in Wroclaw in Poland. Out of the 15 medals, India has won three gold medals in the compound cadet women’s and men’s and mixed team events. The women’s team defeated Turkey 228–216 in the final match to win a gold medal.

Explanation

• All India Radio has launched a unique innovative programme named Azadi Ka Safar Akashvani Ke Saath on national as well as regional channels. A year–long Amrit Mahotsav Quiz is being organized by the News Services Division of All India Radio as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations.

Explanation

• Chairman of 15th Finance Commission, NK Singh, has been elected as the new president of Institute of Economic Growth (IEG) Society. He succeeded former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh who was the President of IEG since 1992. His name was recommended by Dr Manmohan Singh for the consideration of the IEG’s general assembly. 
• Manmohan Singh stepped down from this position for health concerns. It is an autonomous, multidisciplinary centre that is used for advanced research and training. It was founded by VKRV Rao in 1952, but became operational in 1958. It is located at University Enclave of University of Delhi, New Delhi.

Explanation

• Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad was adjudged the second most polluted city out of the 50 ‘most polluted cities’ in the world in 2020 by a report prepared by British company HouseFresh. Ghaziabad reported an average Air Quality Index (AQI) of 2.5 particulate matter (PM) in 106.6µg/m3, the report said.
• Preceding Ghaziabad, Chinese city of Hotan in Xinjiang province has been named the most polluted city with a PM2.5 of 110.2µg/m3. The report attributed the air pollution in Hotan to sandstorms resulting from its closeness to the Taklimakan Desert, which is the largest shifting sand desert in the world. For Ghaziabad, the cause of pollution has been assigned to traffic volumes.

Explanation

• 6 August is observed as Hiroshima Day to acknowledge the massive devastation and human suffering brought by the dropping of nuclear bomb on Hiroshima in 1945. This year is the 76th anniversary of the atomic bombing. It was the first city to be attacked by a nuclear bomb. The US created two atomic bombs named ‘The Little Boy’ dropped in the city of Hiroshima and ‘The Fat Man’ in the city of Nagasaki on August 6 and 9 respectively.

Explanation

• Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), has launched Urja, a virtual assistant with AI/NLP (Artificial Intelligence/Natural Language Processing) capabilities and trained on more than 600 use cases.
• In an effort to make BPCL’s customer interface complete and digitally integrated, Urja, the chabot is now available on the company’s website for any questions. Urja speaks in 13 languages (English, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati, Oriya, Bengali, Punjabi, Urdu and Assamese).

Explanation

• India’s highest altitude herbal park situated at a height of 11,000 feet was inaugurated at Mana village close to the Indo–China border in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district. The research wing of Uttarakhand’s Forest department has developed the park over three acres of land given by Mana Van panchayat, under the central government’s Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act (CAMPA), scheme.
• It has been developed in three years under central government’s Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) scheme. The herbal park has around 40 species found in high altitude alpine areas in the Indian Himalayan region.

Explanation

• Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister and former Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh passed away in Lucknow at the age of 89 on August 21, 2021. Kalyan Singh became the chief minister of the state for the first time in 1991. He was at the helm of the affairs in the state when the Babri masjid was demolished in 1992. He was CM from 24 June 1991 – 6 December 1992 and from 21 September 1997 – 12 November 1999.

Explanation

• The International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief was observed by the UN on August 22, 2021. Commemoration of the day recognises the importance of providing victims of acts of violence based on religion or belief and members of their families with appropriate support and assistance in accordance with applicable law. It was first made official in 2019.

Explanation

• Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) signed an agreement for cooperation in remote sensing satellite data sharing. The pact inked enables building a virtual constellation of specified remote sensing satellites of BRICS space agencies and their respective ground stations will receive the data. The agreement was signed under India’s BRICS Chairship.

Explanation

• IIT Madras is collaborating with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), Government of India, on pavement engineering and intelligent transportation systems.
• This includes research on novel pavement materials & technologies, hydrogen cell transportation, automatic vehicle classification, novel toll systems, incident management systems, traveller information systems, FastTAG data analytics and traffic simulations besides transportation safety. IIT Madras will train 8 to 10 students including MoRTH’s nominated officers in the field of Highway Engineering.

Explanation

• The United Nations marks August 19 as World Humanitarian Day to honour the sacrifices of all those who choose to serve humanity against all odds.
• Theme for 2021 WHD: #TheHumanRace: a global challenge for climate action in solidarity with people who need it the most. It was commemorated for the first time on 19 August 2009, after it was formally recognised by the United Nations General Assembly in 2009.

Explanation

• A rare orchid species –– Cephalanthera erecta var. oblanceolata –– has been found for the first time in India in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district at an altitude of 1870 metres. A research paper on the new addition to Indian flora has been published in Nelumbo, the six–monthly journal of BSI and volumes listing the orchid species of India will soon be updated.

Explanation

• Japan’s Maritime Self–defense Force has commenced anti–submarine drills in the South China Sea, as per the recent statement from the Japanese Defence Ministry. The exercise deployed three vessels including a helicopter aircraft carrier and a submarine.
• The entire South China Sea is claimed by China, which has established military outposts on artificial islands. The United States has been accusing China of militarising the South China Sea.

Explanation

• The government has launched a new geospatial planning portal, ‘Yuktdhara’, which will help in facilitating new MGNREGA assets using remote sensing and geographic information system–based data. The portal will serve as a repository of geotags created under various national rural development programmes.
• This platform will serve as a repository of assets (geotags) created under various national rural development programmes.

Explanation

• India has pitched its indigenously built fighter aircraft LCA Tejas, Anti–Tank Guided Missiles, Arjun Main Battle Tank (MK1A) at the International Military–Technical Forum “ARMY–2021” which is being held in the Moscow region.
• DRDO is participating in the International Military–Technical Forum “ARMY–2021” at Kubinka, Moscow from Aug.22–28. DRDO is the part of India’s pavilion where advanced defence technologies and systems will be displayed along with Indian Defence Industries namely Goa Shipyard Limited, Ordnance Factories and Bharat Earth Movers Limited etc.

Explanation

• Rajasthan has emerged as a leading state in trading at National Agriculture Market (eNAM). Rajasthan was the first state to allow conversion of all single trading licenses into unified license to promote e–Trade of farm products. Till now, total 37346 traders are working as unified licensee traders. 

Explanation

• New York Congresswoman Caroline Maloney re–introduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives to posthumously award the Congressional Gold Medal to Mahatma Gandhi. He has been awarded for his contributions made through his methods of non–violence. He would become the first Indian to receive the Congressional Gold Medal, which is the highest civilian award in the US.

Explanation

• Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has virtually inaugurated the Centre for Research and Innovation in Artificial Intelligence set up at the Indian Institute of Technology–Hyderabad. He also inaugurated the first Academic Building of the Department of Materials Science & Metallurgical Engineering, High–Performance Computing Centre and High–Resolution Electron Microscopy Facility. 
• Centre for Research and Innovation in Artificial Intelligence is being set up in collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Agency–JICA. The University has an agreement with Honeywell Technology Solutions for setting up the lab.

Explanation

• World Mosquito Day is observed on 20 August annually to raise awareness about the causes of malaria and how it can be prevented. This day is observed to highlight the efforts of health officials, non–governmental organizations and other organizations in the fight against the disease caused by malaria. On World Mosquito Day every year, awareness is created around diseases caused by mosquitoes.
• This year the theme of World Mosquito Day 2021 is “Reaching the zero–malaria target”. The day also commemorates the discovery by British physician Sir Ronald Ross in 1897 that female mosquitoes transmit malaria between humans. In 1902 Ross won the Nobel Prize in Medicine and became the first Briton to receive it.

Explanation

• United Nations observes 23 August every year as “International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition”. This day is intended to remember and honour the tragedy of the slave trade in the memory of all peoples who were dehumanised by the cruel practice or systemic racism. It is a day to honour the memory of the men and women who, in Saint–Domingue in 1791, revolted and paved the way for the end of slavery and dehumanization.

Explanation

• India ranks second in terms of crypto adoption worldwide behind Vietnam, according to the 2021 Global Crypto Adoption Index by blockchain data platform Chainalysis. A report by US–based research platform Finder released this month corroborated that the top five countries in terms of crypto adoption were all from Asia.
• The company surveyed 47,000 users worldwide and 30% of those surveyed in India said they owned cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin is the most popular coin in India, followed by Ripple, Ethereum and Bitcoin Cash, according to the report.

Explanation

• The World Senior Citizen Day is celebrated to raise awareness about issues affecting older people and support, honour and show appreciation to seniors and to recognize their achievements.
• The day was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on December 14, 1990.

Explanation

• Former Indian Footballer O. Chandrasekharan passed away in Kochi on August 24, 2021 at the age of 86.
• Chandrasekharan was part of the Indian team that participated in the 1960 Rome and the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. He was also a member of the Indian team that won the gold in 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta and the silver medal in Asian Cup in Tel Aviv the same year. He captained the Maharashtra team that won the 1963 Santosh Trophy.

Explanation

• The Assam government has signed a memorandum of understanding with 37 microfinance lenders for implementation of the Assam Microfinance Incentive and Relief Scheme (AMFIRS), 2021.
• The scheme is aimed at providing financial relief to the microfinance borrowers in Assam to help them continue maintaining good credit discipline in COVOD–19 times.

Explanation

• Vedanta has made a natural gas discovery in a block in Gujarat that it had won in the open acreage licensing policy (OALP) round. It had notified the DGH and Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas of a gas and condensate discovery [named ‘Jaya’] in its exploratory well Jaya1. It was drilled in OALP Block in Bharuch District of Gujarat.

Explanation

• President Ram Nath Kovind on 22nd August appointed senior BJP leader from Tamil Nadu La Ganesan as the new governor of Manipur. The post of the governor had fallen vacant after the retirement of Najma Heptulla earlier this month. Heptulla had demitted office on August 10 and on the same day the temporary charge was given to Sikkim Governor Ganga Prasad.

Explanation

• The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has designed a motorised wheelchair that can be used on roads as well as on uneven terrain. ‘ ‘Neobolt’ is a battery–operated vehicle capable of travelling at a speed of 25km/h and move up to 25 km per charge.  The vehicle has been commercialised through a start–up named NeoMotion.

Explanation

• The Arunachal Pradesh cabinet has approved two credit–linked schemes, which will facilitate Rs 300 crore investments in the agro–based sectors.
• The state government has earmarked Rs 60 crore of subsidies each for Atma Nirbhar Krishi Yojana for agriculture and Atma Nirbhar Bagwani Yojana for horticulture during the fiscal year 2021–22. The credit–linked programmes will have three components – bank loans, subsidy and beneficiaries’ contribution. The schemes will be available for cultivators, self–help groups and farmer producer organisations.

Explanation

• Maharashtra government launched a special mission called “Mission Vatsalya” in order to help women who lost their husbands to COVID–19. Mission Vatsalya will provide several services and some 18 benefits under one roof to those women. It been designed for widows, with special focus on widows coming from rural areas, poor backgrounds and deprived sections.
• Under this mission, schemes like Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yojana and Gharkul Yojana will benefit those for women. This mission is being implemented by women and child development (WCD) Department. Officers from WCD department, child development project officers, Anganwadi workers and local unit officers are visiting homes these women to provide them services.

Explanation

• Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) launched a mobile app called “Ananda mobile app” for its agents and intermediaries in order to onboard the prospective customers. ANANDA stands for Atma Nirbhar Agents New Business Digital Application. ANANDA is the paperless solution for new business processes.
• This digital application will help in onboarding process to get insurance policy by a paperless module with the help of agent or intermediary. The app comprises of all distinctive features of the digital app. App could be developed as a result of high–level usage of ANANDA module. It was built on paperless KYC process by using Aadhaar based e–authentication. It provides an easy access to the field force in reaching out the prospective customers by means of latest technology.

Explanation

• Ministry of Jal Shakti started the SUJALAM campaign on August 25, 2021. SUJALAM Campaign is a 100 days campaign launched as a part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations. This campaign seeks to create more Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus villages by undertaking waste water management across villages in India.
• During the campaign, ten lakh Soak–pits will be created. Efforts under the campaign would be directed towards achieving the Open Defecation Free (ODF) plus status for villages in an accelerated manner.

Explanation

• Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman today unveiled the fourth edition of the Public Sector Bank (PSB) Reforms Agenda ‘EASE 4.0’ for 2021–22 – tech–enabled, simplified, and collaborative banking.
• She unveiled the annual report for the PSB Reforms Agenda EASE 3.0 for 2020–21 and participated in the awards ceremony to felicitate best performing banks on EASE 3.0 Banking Reforms Index.
• State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and Union Bank of India have won the awards for best performing banks for PSB Reforms EASE 3.0 based on the EASE index. Indian Bank won the award for the best improvement from the baseline performance. SBI, BoB, Union Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and Canara Bank won the top awards in different themes of the PSB Reforms Agenda EASE 3.0.

Explanation

• India has emerged as the second most sought after manufacturing destination across the world. According to Cushman & Wakefield’s 2021 World Manufacturing Danger Index, India has surpassed the United States as the world’s second most desired manufacturing destination. 
• This year, India and the United States traded second and third place, respectively, putting India one rank higher than last year’s rankings, when India was ranked third.

Explanation

• India and Russia have agreed to form a permanent bilateral channel for consultations on Afghanistan. India, Russia and Iran were previously the main backers of an anti–Taliban alliance when the Islamist group was last in power in Kabul between 1996–2001.

Explanation

• T M Bhasin has been re–appointed as the Chairman of Advisory Board for Banking and Financial Frauds by Central Vigilance Commission. His tenure will be of 2 years. The board was constituted to examine bank frauds of over Rs 50 crore and recommend action.

Explanation

• The World Water Week is an annual event organized by Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) since the year 1991 with the aim to address the global water issues and related concerns of international development.
• The World Water Week 2021 has been organised from 23–27 August. This year’s event has been organized entirely in digital format. The theme for World Water Week 2021 is ‘Building Resilience Faster’.

Explanation

• Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya took over charge as the Chairperson of Stop TB Partnership Board. The Minister will hold the responsibility with immediate effect until 2024. He will lead the efforts of the Stop TB Partnership Secretariat, partners, and the TB community at large, towards reaching the UN TB targets by 2022, a milestone moment in the effort to end TB by 2030.

Explanation

• Former Union Minister, K J Alphons has released a book titled ‘Accelerating India: 7 Years of Modi Government’. He has recently presented his book to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• 28 eminent authors have contributed 25 essays in the book on 25 sectors of Indian governance. This is a documentation of achievements of the Modi Government.

Explanation

• The militaries of China, Pakistan, Mongolia and Thailand are said to take part in a multinational peacekeeping exercise named “Shared Destiny–2021” Defence Exercise. The Exercise is set to be organised by the People’s Liberation Army in China’s central Henan province next month. 
• The four countries will take part in the first multinational peacekeeping live exercise “Shared Destiny–2021”. The Defence exercise is to be held in China from September 6–15.

Explanation

• ‘Payments Infrastructure Development Fund’ scheme is the initiative of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). It was launched with a corpus of Rs 345 crore, with an aim to create 30 lakh new touch points every year for digital payments in tier–3 to tier–6 centres.
• Reserve Bank has recently extended the scheme for encouraging deployment of Point of Sale (PoS) infrastructure to street vendors covered under the PM SVANidhi programme in tier 1 and 2 centres.

Explanation

• Water bodies and parks in urban local bodies in Tamil Nadu will be restored and amenities upgraded at an estimated cost of Rs 300 crore. Also, the government would implement the urban wage employment programme to improve the livelihood of the urban poor at a cost of Rs 100 crore.
• The scheme aims at providing employment to the urban poor by engaging them in the creation and maintenance of public assets like parks, play fields, storm water drains, roads, buildings and rejuvenation of water bodies. Municipal Administration Minister K.N. Nehru has announced an allocation of ₹300 crore for the Namakku Naame scheme. Under the scheme, water bodies will be restored in all Municipal Corporations, including the Greater Chennai Corporation, and new parks will be set up.

Explanation

• Denmark’s capital city, Copenhagen, has been named as the world’s safest city from among 60 global cities, in Safe Cities Index 2021, released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). Copenhagen scored 82.4 out of 100. Yangon is at the bottom of the index with a score of 39.5. New Delhi is placed at 48th position with a score of 56.1, while Mumbai is at 50th place with a score of 54.4.
• The Index was first released in the year 2015. In 2021, cities are ranked based on 76 indicators of security across five broad pillars, which are digital, health, infrastructure, personal and environmental.

Explanation

• A ‘Durga Fighter’ force comprising 32 female staff has been constituted to combat Naxalism in the Naxal–affected Sukma district. The idea behind an all–women force is to promote gender equality. They will be trained for commando duty for a month. Asha Sen will be the captain of Durga Fighter.