Current Affairs 18th July 2020| Current Affairs News

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

International Nelson Mandela Day

• Nelson Mandela International Day is an annual international day in honour of Nelson Mandela, celebrated each year on 18 July, Mandela’s birthday.
• The day was officially declared by the United Nations in November 2009, with the first UN Mandela Day held on 18 July 2010.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL

Pakistan and China signed for the 700 MW Azad Pattan hydel power project

• Pakistan and China signed an agreement for the 700 MW Azad Pattan hydel power project on the Jhelum river in Sudhoti district of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK).
• The $ 1.5-billion project is the second power project under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), for which an agreement has been signed in the last two months. The first agreement, for the 1,100 MW Kohala project, was signed on June 23. That project, worth $ 2.3 billion, too will come up on the Jhelum near Muzaffarabad.
• The project is a run-of-the-river scheme with a reservoir located near Muslimabad village, 7 km upstream from the Azad Pattan bridge, in district Sudhnoti, one of the eight districts of PoK.
• The Azad Pattan project is one of five hydropower schemes on the Jhelum. Upstream from Azad Pattan are the Mahl, Kohala, and Chakothi Hattian projects; Karot is downstream. Like Kohala and Azad Pattan, Karot too, is being developed under the CPEC framework.
• India has protested the construction of dams and other infrastructure in PoK and Gilgit Baltistan, which are territories claimed by it as part of Jammu & Kashmir.

About Pakistan

• Capital: Islamabad
• Currency: Pakistani rupee
• Prime minister: Imran Khan

About China

• Capital: Beijing
• President: Xi Jinping
• Currency: Renminbi

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh launches the revamped Scheme for PM’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration 2020 

• Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh launched the revamped PM’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration and the web portal www.pmawards.gov.in
• The Scheme has been revamped in tune with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s governance model of citizen participation.
• Jitendra Singh acknowledged the extraordinary work done by District Collectors in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The Scheme Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration 2020, has been revamped to recognize the performance of the District Collectors towards outcome indicators, economic development, peoples’ participation and redressal of public grievances.
• The Innovations category of the Scheme has been broad-based to provide separate award categories for innovations at National, State and District level. The period of consideration for the awards is 1stApril 2018 to 31st March 2020. In all 15 Awards would be conferred under the Scheme in 2020.
• Online applications shall be invited from 17th July till 15th August 2020 through the portal www.pmawards.gov.in from Districts / Implementing Units / Organizations under the various categories in the prescribed format detailing out the achievements highlighting any path-breaking innovation undertaken by any functionary/organization.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND FINANCE

Bank of Maharashtra launches OD facility against fixed deposits

• Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) has launched an overdraft facility (OD) against fixed deposits (FDs) for its individual customers holding a savings bank account.
• Under this facility, up to 90 per cent of the FD value can be availed as OD. The interest rate on this facility will be 2 percentage points over and above the FD rate.
• The bank has also decided not to charge any processing fee. Additional documentation is not required to avail this facility.
• The OD facility can be availed from the comfort of home in three simple steps using Bank of Maharashtra’s Mahamobile App.

About BOM

• Headquarters: Pune
• CEO: A. S. Rajeev
• Tagline: One Family One Bank

NABARD sanctions ₹795 cr to re-construct infra damaged by cyclone in Bengal

• National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned ₹795 crore for reconstructing infrastructure damaged by cyclone Amphan that ripped through West Bengal in May.
• The state government had sought ₹1,028 crore from NABARD for repairing impaired embankments under Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF).
• The amount of ₹795 crore was sanctioned following the appeal of the government.
• NABARD has already provided ₹145 crore under RIDF to the state as special liquidity support for boosting rural infrastructure in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

About NABARD

• Founded: 12 July 1982
• Headquarters: Mumbai
• Chairman: Govinda Rajulu Chintala

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOU

UNICEF India and SAP India partner to improve employability of young people

• On World Youth Skills Day, UNICEF India announced its partnership with SAP India to provide career counselling to young people in the country that will improve their employability skills in a COVID-19 and post COVID-19 era.
• UNICEF is collaborating with YuWaah (Generation Unlimited) under this initiative to provide digital education and occupational skillset to the underserved young people of the Country.Under the collaboration UNICEF – YuWaah – SAP will strengthen the following:
• Improve digital skills and life skills for young people
• Provide young people with career options.
• Reimagine the model in other states with the Government of India
• Impacting one million young people by the end of 2022

About UNICEF India

• UNICEF Representative in India– Dr. Yasmin Ali Haque
• Head Quarters- New Delhi

About SAP SE

• Chief Executive Officer (CEO)– Christian Klein
• Headquarters– Walldorf, Germany

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION

Gabon appoints first woman prime minister Ossouka Raponda

• The president of Gabon, Ali Bongo Ondimba, has appointed the country’s first female prime minister, Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda.
• Ossouka Raponda, 56, was promoted from the defence ministry and takes over from Julien Nkoghe Bekale, who was appointed prime minister in January 2019.
• She is an economist by training who graduated from the Gabonese Institute of Economy and Finance, specialising in public finance.
• In 2012, she first became budget minister and then the first female mayor of the capital Libreville in 2014, as a candidate for Bongo’s Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG).

About Gabon

• Capital: Libreville
• Currency: Central African CFA franc

SAP appoints Kulmeet Bawa as new India MD

• SAP SE announced the appointment of Kulmeet Bawa as President and Managing Director for SAP Indian Subcontinent, effective July 20, 2020.
• Kulmeet will be responsible for driving and delivering an exceptional SAP experience for employees and customers across our ecosystem, as well as guide businesses in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to adopt a digital-first mindset. Kulmeet will report directly to Scott Russell, President of SAP Asia Pacific Japan (APJ).
• He replaces the incumbent Deb Deep Sengupta.

RBI approves reappointment of Shyam Srinivasan as Federal Bank MD & CEO

• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the reappointment of Shyam Srinivasan as the MD & CEO of the Federal Bank, w.e.f. September 23, 2020 (the completion of the present term of office) till September 22, 2021.

About Federal Bank

• Managing Director & CEO– Shyam Srinivasan
• Headquarters– Aluva, Kerala
• Tag line- Your Perfect Banking Partner

P Praveen Siddharth appointed Private Secretary to President

• P Praveen Siddharth has been appointed as Private Secretaryto the President of India Ramnath Kovind.
• He replaces Vikram Singh whose tenure was curtailed at President Secretariat.
• Siddharth is serving as OSD in President Secretariat. His tenure will be co-terminus with the term of the President of India.
• Vikram Singh has been appointed as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Shipping vice K K Aggarwal for a period ending 02.11.2022

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONORS

Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford to receive honorary doctorate for campaigning against child poverty

• Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford is set to become the youngest recipient of an honorary doctorate from the University of Manchester for his campaign to help needy children.
• Rashford earned widespread praise after the England forward successfully campaigned for school food vouchers to be provided over the summer holidays in Britain.
• He will join club greats Alex Ferguson and Bobby Charlton in receiving the honorary doctorate, the highest honour the university bestows.
• Rashford had also helped to raise around 20 million pounds ($25.22 million) with charity Fareshare UK to supply meals to struggling families during the COVID-19 pandemic.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

DCGI nod to first indigenous pneumonia vaccine

• Serum Institute of India Pvt Ltd — the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer by number of doses produced and sold globally (more than 1.5 billion doses)– has got the go-ahead from Drug Controller and General of India to manufacture its own indigenously developed pneumococcal vaccine.
• The vaccine maker has also partnered with AstraZeneca to support efforts to make a vaccine against Covid-19.
• The vaccine is used for active immunisation against invasive disease and pneumonia caused by streptococcus pneumoniae in infants.
• The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) looked at evidence from human trials to allow the first fully indigenously developed pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine for marketing in India. Serum Institute had first obtained the approval of DCGI to conduct clinical trials in Phases I, II and III.
• The VPM BCG vaccine for tuberculosis is undergoing clinical trials. Over 1,000 patients have been vaccinated and in two months’ time; we will know whether it significantly reduces the severity of Covid-19 or not.

About DCGI

• Headquarters location: New Delhi
• Drug Controller General of India: V G Somani

IIM-Kozhikode startup develops wearable hand band to ensure social distancing

• The Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIM-K), has developed a wearable hand band that helps in maintaining social distancing by sending out alarm in case of proximity with another person.
• Known as the Veli Band, the device has been developed by Qual5 India Pvt.Ltd
• Veli Band helps implement social distancing and location/contact tracing which can help organisations comply with social distancing norms during the current pandemic situation.
  The band momentarily vibrates, sounds buzzer, and flashes LED simultaneously to notify wearers that another band is within 3 feet (1 metre), reminding them of the need to maintain social distance.
• The device, to be worn on the wrist, can anonymously keep track of interactions with other devices and thus not only help in maintaining a safer workplace but also aid in tracking employee movements in real time.
• The band comes with a rechargeable battery and uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology for detection.
• The data can also be used to monitor crowded areas to take necessary precautionary actions

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

KVIC opens footwear training centre for leather artisans in Delhi

• A first-of-its-kind footwear training centre for the marginalised community was inaugurated in Delhi by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) with Central Footwear Training Institute (CFTI), Agra.
• It will provide a comprehensive two-month training programme to leather artisans for making high-quality footwear.
• The training centre will also provide logistics support to the artisans in starting their own shoe-making business once their two-month training is completed. The artisans will also be provided a tool kit worth Rs 5,000 for carrying out their activities in future.
• The centre is equipped with advanced tool kits and the machinery has been set up in a record time of less than two months.
• The Khadi and Village Industries Commission is also setting up a similar footwear training centre in

About KVIC

• Founded: 1956
• Headquarters: Mumbai
• Chairman: Vinai Kumar Saxena

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BOOKS AND AUTHORS

Pema Khandu releases book ” The Tangams: An Ethnolinguistic Study Of The Critically Endangered Group of Arunachal Pradesh”

• The book titled The Tangams: An Ethnolinguistic Study Of The Critically Endangered Group of Arunachal Pradesh by Centre for Endangered Languages (CFEL), Arunachal Institute of Tribal Studies (AITS), Rajiv Gandhi University, Rono Hills, Arunachal Pradesh was released by Chief Minister  Pema Khandu.
• The book is based on the Tangams, a critically endangered speech community of Arunachal Pradesh domiciled at Kugging village, Upper Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh.
• Tangams are one of the lesser-known ethnolinguistic groups within the Adi tribe of Arunachal Pradesh. According to the CFEL field survey 2016, the total population of the Tangam community is only 253 and resides only in one village.
• The co-authors of the book are Kaling Dabi, Kombong Darang, Rejhoney Borang, Chera Devi, Rumi Deuri and jointly edited by Lisa Lomdak and Rejhoney Borang. The executive editor of the book is S. Simon John, Coordinator of the CFEL, RGU.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING

India Higherthan China in business, technology skills but lags in data science: Global Skills Index 2020

• India lags in skills in the data science domain but is an emerging player in the business and technology skills.
• Data from the Global Skills Index 2020 by online learning platform Coursera showed that India stood 34thin the world when it comes to business skills, outperforming China which was at the 45th spot (emerging category).
• Similarly, in the technology skills domain, India scored higher than China, taking the 40thspot (emerging category) scoring 34 percent. In the technology domain, China stands in the laggard category, ranking 50th globally and scoring 17 percent.
• In the data science domain, however, China outperformed India. Here, China was the 35thspot globally in the emerging category while India stood at 51st in the laggard category.
• In the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, the Global Skills Index showed that India and China post similar figures in terms of skills mastery.

About Coursera

• CEO– Jeff Maggioncalda
• Headquarters– California, United States of America

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS

Real Madrid clinch La Liga title for 34th time as Benzema scores brace in win against Villarreal

• Real Madrid were crowned La Liga champions for the 34th time over Villarreal which clinched the title with one game to spare.
• Karim Benzema starred for Madrid with a brace to seal the win – which is also their tenth consecutive win.
• Third-place Atlético Madrid won 2-0 at seventh-place Getafe, while fourth-place Sevilla drew 0-0 at sixth-place Real Sociedad. Valencia moved into eighth place to keep alive their hopes of grabbing a Europa League spot after a 1-0 win against last-place Espanyol

Captain Sourabh Kalia Cup cancelled in Kargil due to COVID- 19

• Many important events and programmes are being cancelled due to the threat of Spread of Covid 19.
• The pandemic has also affected the celebration of this year 21st Kargil Vijay Diwas both from the Indian Army Side as well as from the Local Level as no event has been organised.
• The most popular Captain Sourabh Kalia cricket Cup has also been postponed due to the pandemic in

CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARY

Ace para-badminton player Ramesh Tikaram passes away

• Arjuna awardee and ace para-badminton player Ramesh Tikaram passed away of coronavirus.
• The country’s first para-badminton player to be honoured with an Arjuna award.
• Tikaram was instrumental in bringing the international para-badminton tournament to the country in 2001.

 DAILY CA 17th JUL

• World Day for International Justice- 17th july
• World Emoji Day: July 17
• HRD Minister Launches First Online NISHTHA Programme For 1,200 Key Resources Persons Of Andhra
• Govt announces ‘Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund’ of Rs 15,000 crore
• Ministry of Finance releases Rs 15,187 crore as grants-in-aid to 2.63 lakh Rural Local Bodies
• India lifted 271 mn people out of poverty between FY06-16, says UN report
• Shripad Naik inaugurates Conference on Aerospace and Defence Manufacturing Technologies
• India-Bhutan Open New Trade Route To Facilitate Connectivity Between Two Countries
• Boeing receives $916 mn deal to support International Space Station for 4 years
• ICRA Sees India Real GDP Contract By Almost Double Digits In FY21
• Telangana Police Launch ‘CybHER’ Campaign To Tackle Cybercrime Against Women, Children
• Punjab Police to hire civilian domain experts to deal with complex probes
• CCI approves Aceso Company’s acquisition of 58.92 pc stake in HealthCare Global Enterprises
• NTPC, NIIF to jointly explore business opportunities in India
• SBI Card gets new MD & CEO in Ashwini Kumar Tewari
• Shiv Nadar retires, daughter Roshni becomes HCL Technologies chairperson
• India Ranks Third In Global Manufacturing Risk Index: Cushman & Wakefield Report
• India among top ten nations in intellectual property filings
• IIT Madras-incubated startup develops portable hospital to treat COVID-19 patients
• IIT Kanpur-incubated startups develop device to monitor water quality india
• UV system for baggage scan disinfection developed
• China Prepares To Launch Long March-5 Rocket For Mars Mission
• Cochin Shipyard Limited signs contract for construction of Autonomous electric vessels for ASKO maritime AS, Norway
• Defence Research Body Develops Fully Indigenous P7 Heavy Drop System
• DAC delegates powers for progressing urgent Capital Acquisition Cases upto Rs 300 crore to Armed Forces
• Acharya Shree Purushottam Priyadasji Swamishree passes away

 DAILY CA 18th JUL

• International Nelson Mandela Day observed on 18th July.
• Pakistan and China signed for the 700 MW Azad Pattan hydel power project
• Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh launches the revamped Scheme for PM’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration 2020
• Bank of Maharashtra launches OD facility against fixed deposits
• NABARD sanctions ₹795 cr to re-construct infra damaged by cyclone in West Bengal
• UNICEF India announced its partnership with SAP India to provide career counselling to young people in India.
• Gabon Country appoints first woman prime minister Ossouka Raponda
• SAP appoints Kulmeet Bawa as new India MD
• RBI approves reappointment of Shyam Srinivasan as Federal Bank MD & CEO
• P Praveen Siddharth has been appointed as Private Secretary to the President of India Ramnath Kovind.
• Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford to receive honorary doctorate for campaigning against child poverty
• DCGI nod to first indigenous pneumonia vaccine
• IIM-Kozhikode startup develops wearable hand band to ensure social distancing
• KVIC opens footwear training centre for leather artisans in Delhi
• Pema Khandu releases book ” The Tangams: An Ethnolinguistic Study Of The Critically Endangered Group of Arunachal Pradesh”
• India Higherthan China in business, technology skills but lags in data science: Global Skills Index 2020
• Real Madrid clinch La Liga title for 34th time as Benzema scores brace in win against Villarreal
• Captain Sourabh Kalia Cup cancelled in Kargil due to COVID- 19
• Ace para-badminton player Ramesh Tikaram passes away