August 2nd Week 2020 Current Affairs Online Test English

 The state government of Andhra Pradesh signed an MoU with leading Multinational companies such as ITC, Procter and Gamble and Hindustan Unilever Limited. The MoU seeks to conduct skill–based training programmes for women in rural areas of the state aged between 45–60 years. The state would also launch a scheme called YSR Cheyutha to provide financial assistance to women belonging to backward and scheduled communities.

 The Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Trivendra Singh Rawat announced that the state will set up the country’s first snow leopard conservation centre. The centre will be opened in the Uttarkashi forest division in the state. It is to set up jointly with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as a part of its six–year long project called ‘SECURE Himalayas’. It was started in 2017 to conserve snow leopards and other endangered species in the Himalayas.

 Mohamed Irfaan Ali has been sworn in as the new President of the South American country Guyana, five months after the General Elections. The 40–year–old former housing minister and lawmaker will succeed the previous President David Granger.

 Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank laid the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Sirmaur. The Minister inaugurated it virtually along with the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh Jai Ram Thakur, in Dhaulakuan, Himachal Pradesh. The institute has been operationalised by IIM Lucknow from August 2015 as the mentor Institution. The Union Government has sanctioned Rs 531.75 Crore for the construction and functioning of the institute.

 As per the Health Minister of Lebanon, at least 137 people were killed and more than 5000 people were wounded in a massive blast by seized explosives stored at its port. An estimated 2,750 metric tons of the explosive ammonium nitrate stored at a warehouse in its port allegedly exploded. The government declared the capital of Lebanon, Beirut a ‘disaster city’ and imposed a two–week state of emergency.

• Axis Bank has launched an Automated Voice Assistant ‘AXAA’. AXAA is an artificial intelligence–powered conversational voice BOT. ‘AXAA’ can converse in English, Hindi. It has the capacity to address 1 lakh customer queries and requests per day. Hence, it will enhance customer experience by enabling in–depth understanding of their queries, its context and the intent of the call.

• As per a recent statement by the Union Consumer Affairs Ministry, over 44 lakh tonnes food grains were lifted by States and Union Territories till date. The food grains were taken under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana–2. Under the scheme, around 201 lakh tonnes food grains will be distributed among 81 crore beneficiaries. The scheme has been implemented from July 1 will be implemented till November 2020.

• Technology major Google launched a new file–sharing feature named ‘Nearby Share’ for its Android users. Using the feature, users can share content seamlessly with others in close range. The sender’s phone emits a low energy Bluetooth signal, which will be picked by the receiver’s phone. It can also use wi–fi to transfer files. It creates a reliable and fast connection in both online and offline modes.

• On August 5 2019, the special status of Article 370 and 35–A of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was abrogated and it was bifurcated into two Union Territories. The first anniversary of the event was observed on the same day this year. During the past year, several initiatives carried out in the UTs include National Generic Document Registration System (NGDRS), Extension of all allowances of Central Government employees, J&K Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Commission.

• The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has recently revised the guidelines to be eligible for obtaining the liberalised licence to sell petrol and diesel to retail and bulk consumers. As per the new guidelines, a net worth of at least Rs 500 crore at the time of application is eligible for selling both bulk and retail.
• The net worth of Rs 250 crore can get a license for either retail or bulk selling. The simplified guidelines aim to increase private sector participation in the marketing of petrol and diesel.

• Malayalam movie ‘Moothon’ has won the best film award at the New York Indian Film Festival 2020 (NYIFF). In addition to the best film award, Malayalam star Nivin Pauly won the best actor award and Sanjana Dipu won in the best child artist category. The Malayalam–Hindi bilingual movie was directed by Geetu Mohandas and was released in the year 2019.

• The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is implementing the Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN) under the National Health Mission (NHM). It is an innovative technological solution that aims to strengthen immunization supply chain system across the country. It aims to provide real–time information on vaccine stocks and storage temperatures. At present the network has been used in 22 states and will be rolled out in all states.

• The United States has successfully launched an intercontinental ballistic missile named Minuteman 3 from California. The missile was test flighted from the Vandenberg Air Force Base to a target in the Pacific Ocean. The unarmed missile and its three vehicles travelled over 6750 kilometers to the Marshall Islands as a part of the test.

• The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has recently developed a mobile application named ‘COVID19BWM’. Municipal corporations and state pollution boards are directed to upload data regarding collection and disposal of Covid–19 biomedical waste from residences and quarantine centres, in the app. This was also mandated by the Supreme Court.

• Technology Giant Google India has collaborated with Prasar Bharati and Virtual Bharat for AI–enabled Independence Day celebration of India. It seeks to recreate the feeling of singing the National Anthem in schools by using Artificial Intelligence Technology. Participants can download the mentioned application and record themselves singing the anthem. It would convert the voice into traditional instrumental music.

• On August 6, seventy–five years ago, the world’s first nuclear weapon used in wartime was dropped over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The world joined hands with Japan to observe the 75^th anniversary of the first Atomic Bomb attack. Due to the COVID–19 pandemic, the event was broadcast online. The bomb attack killed around 1,40,000 people and caused severe injuries. The second bomb was dropped by the US three days later.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recently announced that it will establish an innovation hub to assist start–ups to tackle the challenges of financial inclusion. The hub seeks to provide solutions for efficient banking transactions. This has been introduced in the bi–monthly monetary policy statement released by the RBI. The funds allocated for the project and its location will be disclosed by the Central Bank.

• Indian Government has recently extended a Line of Credit worth 18 million US dollars to the Government of Maldives. LoC has been extended for expanding fishing facilities at Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO). This is a part of the Line of credit worth USD 800 million Line of credit offered by India to the country.

• The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) took over the security at the strategic Leh airport from local Police. The Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport is one among the country’s highest–altitude commercial aerodromes. It is also the 64th civil airport to be brought under the security cover of the CISF. Around 185 CISF personnel will provide round–the–clock armed security in the airport.

• The Reserve Bank of India has constituted an expert group on Debt resolution under the chairmanship of KV Kamath. The committee would recommend to the RBI on the financial parameters and their sector–specific benchmark ranges, for deploying in Debt resolution plans. RBI will provide a window under the ‘Prudential Framework on Resolution of Stressed Assets’.

• The Government of India has abolished All India Handicrafts Board, as per the recent notification of the Textiles Ministry. The Board was constituted on January 23, 1992 under the chairmanship of the Union Textiles Minister. It has Secretaries in Ministries of Rural development and Micro small & medium enterprises and various states as members. It had been advising the Government on creation of development programmes in the handicrafts and handloom sectors.

• The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) is the apex institution to implement the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. It is headquartered at New Delhi.
• IBBI has recently amended regulations related to liquidation process and provided clarifications on fee payable to liquidators. At present, the Committee of Creditors (CoC) fixes the fee payable to the liquidator. The liquidator is entitled to the fee corresponding to the amount realised or distributed by him.

• The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), an organisation under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.
• The MoU seeks to set up a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for using Artificial Intelligence in Decision making and Advance Data Management System for Highways. IIT Delhi will develop simulation models in this regard and provide space and infrastructural facility for the CoE.

• The San Giorgio Bridge, that has been found in news, was inaugurated in Genoa, one of the largest cities in Italy. Designed by the world–famous architect Renzo Piano, the bridge is the replacement for the Morandi Bridge that collapsed in a storm two years ago in Italy. The 1,100–metre–long motorway bridge was inaugurated by the Italian prime minister.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to inaugurate the ‘Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra’, an interactive experience centre on the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). It was first announced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the year 2017, on the occasion of the centenary celebrations of Gandhiji’s Champaran Satyagraha. The Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra complex comprises of audio–visual show explaining the journey of the country in implementing the SBM.

• The Union HRD Ministry organised ‘Conclave on Transformational Reforms in Higher Education under National Education Policy’ along with the University Grants Commission (UGC).
• The Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered the inaugural address at the Conclave through video conferencing. He also highlighted various aspects of the National Education Policy. Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal also participated in the event.

• As per the recent notification of the Department of Economic Affairs, Girish Chandra Murmu has been appointed as the next Comptroller and Auditor General of India. G C Murmu was the former Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir. He was replaced by Manoj Sinha. The 60–year–old Indian Administrative Service Officer has replaced the previous Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Rajiv Mehrishi.

• The Delhi government has launched the UT’s own Electric Vehicle Policy that aims to boost the economy and reduce the pollution level.
• The Government will also introduce financial incentives for people to buy e–vehicles in the range of Rs 30000 for two–wheelers and auto–rickshaws and Rs 150,000 for cars. The policy also offers subsidies and waive road tax and registration fee for electric vehicles.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has offered a credit facility of Rs 10000 crore to the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and the National Housing Bank (NHB).
• The fund of Rs 5,000 crore each is provided at policy lending rate to the banks, its will be deployed to boost rural lending and affordable housing across the country. Under this facility, small NBFCs and micro–lenders will extend small loans to the poor. Earlier, NABARD got a refinance support of Rs 35,000 crore and NHB got Rs 10,000 crore.

• The National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) releases the Business Confidence Index (BCI) and Business Expectation Survey (BES). As per the recent survey conducted by NCAER, the Business Confidence Index fell to 62% from the last year’s level. The index recorded in the first quarter of this fiscal is the lowest index since 1991. During the period, the BCI for North India increased by 25.1% and decreased by 89.3% and 68.1% for East and West India.

• Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs implements the PM SVANidhi Scheme. It was launched in June 2020, to provide affordable Working Capital loan to Street vendors to resume their livelihoods. Recently, the Ministry has launched Letter of Recommendation (LoR) module for the scheme. It enables the vendors who do not possess Identity Card (ID) and Certificate of Vending (CoV), to avail benefits under the scheme.

• Export–Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) has extended a USD 250–million worth Line of credit (LOC) to Mozambique to improve power supply quality in the country. With the signing of this LoC Agreement, India has so far extended 14 LoCs to Mozambique worth USD 772.44 million. A total of 264 LoCs have been extended to as many as 62 countries across the world around USD 25.98 billion.

• As per the recent notification of the International Cricket Council (ICC), India retained the right to host the 2021 T20 World Cup. ICC also announced that Australia will conduct this year’s (T20 World Cup 2020) postponed edition of the World Cup Tournament in 2022. Next year’s women’s ODI World Cup in New Zealand has been postponed till February–March 2022.

• The Indian Prime Narendra Modi has launched a week–long campaign named ‘Gandagi Mukt Bharat’ to free India of garbage. While delivering the inaugural address at the launch of the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra near Raj Ghat, Delhi, the Prime Minister launched the campaign. This week–long campaign to free India of garbage will be till August 15.

• A massive landslide occurred at Rajamalai, Idukki district of Kerala after torrential rains. At least 15 people were said to have been died with several people being injured. More than 50 people among the settlement of tea estate workers in are feared to have been trapped under debris. A team of the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) has been deployed in the rescue operations.

• Mauritius has recently declared an ‘Environmental emergency’ after the Japanese–owned ship MV Wakashio was found spilling tons of fuel. Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Jugnauth announced the decision as the areas that were declared as ‘very sensitive’ were found as a dark layer in satellite images. The ship was carrying nearly 4,000 tons of fuel and it had suffered cracks.

• The Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi will inaugurate the submarine Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) connecting Chennai and Port Blair. This new network will provide fast and reliable mobile and landline telecom services to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The project was announced by the Prime Minister in the year 2018. About 2,300 km of Submarine Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) has been laid at a cost of over Rs 1200 crore.

• India’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India releases the ‘Consumer confidence Survey’. RBI has recently released the results of the July 2020 edition of the survey. Due to the impact of the COVID–19 pandemic, the survey was conducted online through telephone interviews from over 5000 households in 13 major cities including Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai among others.

• The International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples or World Tribal Day is celebrated on August 9 every year. The United Nations General Assembly declared the World Tribal Day in the year 1994. It marks the day of the first meeting of the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Populations in Geneva in 1982. The day seeks to promote and protect the rights of the indigenous population.

• Pune based Serum Institute of India has partnered with international vaccine alliance, GAVI and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to fast track the production of 100 million doses of COVID–19 vaccines. The vaccines would be developed for India and other low and middle–income countries. Serum Institute of India (SII) is the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer. It had bagged the contract with AstraZeneca to supply Oxford University’s potential COVID–19 vaccine.

• Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal and Minister of Coal & Mines Pralhad Joshi inaugurated a new Railway Museum at Hubbali, through video conferencing. Hubli or Hubbali is a city in North Karnataka and the museum is located near the Hubballi Railway Station on Gadag Road. It aims to preserve the heritage of branches of Railways and exhibit the evolution of advanced system in the Railways ecosystem.

• Indian Journalist Nitin Sethi has won the prestigious investigative journalism award, given by the Asian College of Journalism. He has been awarded for his coverage and investigative articles on Electoral Bonds, published on Huffington Post India. K. P. Narayana Kumar Memorial Award for Social Impact Journalism was awarded to the Hindu’s Shiv Sahay Singh.

• Mumbai has become the first Indian city to display women symbols on traffic signals. The project is headed by the Ministry of Tourism of the state. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has installed traffic signals that display female icons with triangular frock. This is considered as a change from the default representation of male symbols that ensures gender equality.

• India’s food safety regulator, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Sunday has been awarded the ‘Food System Vision Prize’ for its ‘Eat Right India’ movement’s vision. The award is presented by the Rockefeller Foundation, SecondMuse and OpenIDEO, for recognising the efforts of organisations across the globe for developing a nourishing and sustainable food system. Hyderabad–based NGO Naandi Foundation also won the Food Vision Prize.

• The International Day of the World’s Indigenous People or the World Tribal Day is celebrated on August 9 every year. It marks the date of the inaugural session of the Working Group on the Indigenous Populations at the United Nations in 1982. It aims to preserve and sensitise about the traditional knowledge and practices of the indigenous population. This year the theme of the day is ‘COVID–19 and indigenous peoples’ resilience’.

• India’s leading trade association, the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) has partnered with GeM to organise the ‘National Public Procurement Conclave’. The fourth edition of the conclave has been inaugurated by the Union Commerce& Industry Minister Piyush Goyal.
• He also asked more buyers and sellers to join the Government–e–Marketplace (GeM). He also warned sellers from selling poor quality goods or charging hefty prices.

• Indian Railways is observing ‘Cleanliness Week’ from August 10, to commemorate the Independence Day. During the week, a special Cleanliness campaign will be launched and Cleaning of tracks, offices and other areas near Railway premises will be focussed. Collection of wastes with separate pool of plastic waste will also be done. Awareness drives will also be organised to keep the places clean.

• According to the Bombay Natural History Society, as many as 77 new species of butterflies have been found in the ecologically sensitive forest of Matheran hill station. It is located about 80 km from Mumbai and is spread over an area of 214.73 sq km. With this, the total number of butterfly species in the Matheran forest has increased to 140. BNHS conducted the study over last eight years from 2011 to 2019.

• The Western Railway Zone of the Indian Railways is set to run a parcel train from Ahmedabad division in Gujarat to Bangladesh. The train will depart the Kankariya Goods shed of Ahmedabad division after having loaded with denim and dyes. Earlier, the Western Railway zone had sent a goods train with onions to Bangladesh. This is expected to generate an approximate revenue of about Rs. 31 lakhs.

• As per the research paper published by the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, pathogens named as critical by the World Health Organisation have been found in the river of Yamuna. The pathogens were named by the WHO in the year 2017. The multidrug–resistant bacteria that are found in Yamuna, were found due to the entry of Sewage into the river. Several major sewer drains and the Yamuna river across New Delhi were studied by the team.

• The World Health Organization (WHO) launched a new initiative named ‘COVAX’, which aims to fast–track the development of vaccine against the coronavirus. The ‘WHO’ recently announced that it is renewing its invite to countries to join its facility. ‘WHO’ is also in talks with the manufacturers of the potential vaccines and is gathering funds to promote the mass–production of vaccine.

• The Public Enterprises Selection Board has selected Soma Mondal as the next Chairperson of the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL). She will become the first woman chairperson of the public sector steel giant, if the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approves her appointment. She will also become the first woman to lead a steel company, in the world. The present Chairman Anil Chaudhary is to superannuate this year.

• Isher Judge Ahluwalia has recently stepped down as the Chairperson of think tank Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER). She had held this position for 15 years and will be succeeded by the new Chairman Pramod Bhasin, who is currently the Vice Chair of the Board of governors at ICRIER. To honour her contributions, she will be retained as chairperson emeritus.

• National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) has launched a new loyalty platform named ‘nth Rewards’. It is analytics–enabled multi–branded loyalty platform that allows users to earn points through various bank transactions. The points can be redeemed on various products like e–vouchers, hotel and flight bookings. Using the platform, banks and merchants can identify consumer behaviour.

• IC–IMPACTS is an Annual Research Conference between India and Canada. ‘IMPACTS’ stands for Innovative Multidisciplinary Partnership to Accelerate Community Transformation and Sustainability. The conference for the current year was held on 6^th August, in a virtual mode.
• The conference discussed ways of boosting the cooperation between the two countries higher levels by strengthening existing international links, sharing best practices of two countries, and initiating new collaborations.

• The President of India honoured 202 freedom fighters across the country. This was done on the occasion of the 78^th anniversary of Quit India Day. Every year, on this occasion, the President of India hosts an “At Home” reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan to honour the freedom fighters. But this year, State / UT governments are requested to honour the freedom fighters at their homes, on behalf of the President.

• A book titled ‘Connecting, Communicating, Changing’ will be released by the Defence Minister at Delhi. It narrates the third year in Office of Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu. The e–version of the book would be released by Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar.
• The book highlights the Vice President’s travel in India & abroad, his interaction with foreign nationals, world leaders and various sections of the Indian society including farmers, scientists, administrators, industry leaders and artists, among others.

• Lebanon formed a new government recently under Prime Minister Hassan Diab amidst various economic and political crises. The country remained without an effective government, after the former Prime Minister Saad Al Hariri quit from his role in October 2019 under pressure from protests against state corruption and mismanagement. The President of Lebanon, Michel Aoun nominated Hassan Diab as the new Prime Minister. Hassan Diab is a professor at the American University of Beirut, who heads a new cabinet of 20 members.

• The Chief Minister of Gujarat Vijay Rupani has recently launched a state–funded scheme named Mukhya Mantri Kisan Sahay Yojana. It has been launched to replace the central crop–insurance scheme Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). Gujarat has exited from the scheme as it considers that the insurance scheme charges hefty premium cost to the State. The new alternate scheme will cover all farmers for the current kharif season.