Current Affairs Quiz 19th July 2023 Quiz

Exp. Sarbananda Sonowal launches Global India Maritime Summit

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has inaugurated the 3rd edition of its most prestigious ‘Global India Maritime Summit’.

Objective – To create an international forum for key decision makers and industry leaders; to Provide opportunity platform for start-ups, researchers and incubators; to Showcase the latest technology and emerging trends in the maritime sector

The Curtain Raiser for the ‘Global Maritime India Summit 2023’ will provide a glimpse into the grandeur and significance of the main summit, highlighting India’s strength in the maritime sector and setting the stage for fruitful collaborations and new investment opportunities.

The event will focus on new investment opportunities along with collaborations for knowledge and technology, enhancing trade between nations and promoting Ease-of-Doing-Business.

Recent Inauguration by Sarbananda Sonowal

• Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurates DGNSS “SAGAR SAMPARK
• Sarbananda Sonowal launches ‘SAGAR SAMRIDDHI’
• Sarbananda Sonowal flags off India’s 1st International Cruise Vessee from Chennai to Sri lanka
• Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated “PCIM&H e-Office Portal” and an online portal.
• Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurates National Mission Conclave in Delhi

Exp. Maharashtra CM inaugurates PM MITRA Park in Amravati

Chief Minister of Maharashtra Eknath Shinde has virtually inaugurated the PM Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel Park (PM MITRA Park) at Amravati, Maharashtra.

A Memorandum of Understanding of the PM-MITRA Park was signed between the Government of India and the Government of Maharashtra at the event. MoUs were also signed with investors for PM-MITRA Park.

In March this year, the Government of India announced the sites for setting up of 7 PM MITRA Parks for the Textile industry.

The Parks are aimed at creating world-class industrial infrastructure that would attract large-scale investment including foreign direct investment (FDI) and encourage innovation and job creation within the sector.

Inspired by the 5F vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (i.e. Farm to Fibre to Factory to Fashion to Foreign).

The PM MITRA Parks are a major step forward in realizing the Government’s vision of making India a global hub for textile manufacturing and exports.

About Maharashtra

• Capital – Mumbai
• Chief Minister – Eknath Sindhe & Ajit Pawar
• Governor – Ramesh Bais

Exp. Annual Bonalu Festival celebrated in Hyderabad

Bonalu is celebrated in Hyderabad especially in parts of the Old city, usually during Ashada Masam which falls in July/August.

Bonam literally means Meal in Telugu, which is an offering to the Mother Goddess.

Dressed in traditional best, women were seen carrying ‘Bonam’, on their heads and making an offering to the deity at the temples. Bonam means, sweetened meal in a pot.

Bonalu involves worship of Kali in her various forms such as Mysamma, Pochamma, Dokkalamma, Pedamma, Poleramma, Ankalamma, Maremma etc.

During the first and last day of this festival, special poojas are performed for goddess Yellamma.

Long queues were witnessed at Akkana Madanna temple, Hari Bowli, Sri Simhavahini Mahankali temple at Lal Darwaza, and other nearby temples in Old City.

Exp. Amit Shah chairs Conference on Drugs Smuggling and National Security

Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah has chaired Regional Conference on Drugs Smuggling and National Security in New Delhi.

Over 1,44,000 kilograms of drugs worth 2,416 rupees crore, were destroyed in various parts of the country by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in coordination with Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTFs) of all states.

The Government has adopted a Zero Tolerance’ policy against narcotics to create a drug-free India.

From 1st June 2022 to 15th July this year, all regional units of NCB and ANTFs of States have collectively destroyed around 8,76,554 kilogram seized drugs worth around 9,580 crore rupees, which is more than 11 times of the target.

Exp. Government forms new panel to review all official data

The Indian government has established a new internal oversight mechanism for official data, replacing the Standing Committee on Economic Statistics (SCoS) with a broader mandate.

The SCoS — with “enhanced terms of reference” vis-à-vis the SCES, “to ensure more coverage” — has 10 official members and four non-official members who are eminent academics.

Pronab Sen, India’s first chief statistician and former chairman of the National Statistical Commission (NSC), has been named the chair of the new committee.

Recent Committees

• Chairman of the research advisory committee of ICAR – B Neeraj Prabhakar
• Government sets up panel to recommend reforms in arbitration law; Headed by – T K Vishwanathan (Former law secretary)
• Centre constitutes peace committee in Manipur; Chaired by the governor of Manipur
• Government sets up 3-member panel to probe Manipur Violence; Headed by Ajai Lamba (former CJ of the Gauhati HC)
• SEBI formed an Intermediary Advisory Committee to advise the market regulator on changes in the legal framework; chaired by -S Ravindran

Exp. BIMSTEC meeting begins in Bangkok, Thailand

The BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers’ Retreat began in Thailand’s capital city Bangkok.

BIMSTEC is an economic and technical initiative which brings together the countries of the Bay of Bengal for multifaceted cooperation.

The retreat would discuss ways to further deepen the BIMSTEC agenda and strengthen the organization.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional multilateral organization.

Its members lie in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal constituting a contiguous regional unity.

BIMSTEC not only connects South and Southeast Asia but also the ecologies of the Great Himalayas and the Bay of Bengal.

It mainly aims to create an enabling environment for rapid economic development; accelerate social progress; and promote collaboration on matters of common interest in the region.

About Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)

• Founded – 6 June 1997
• Headquarters – Dhaka, Bangladesh
• Membership – 7 (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka &Thailand)
• Secretary General – Tenzin Lekhpel (Bhutan)

Exp. PM Modi inaugurates New Integrated Terminal Building at Port Blair

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the integrated terminal building of the Veer Savarkar International Airport in Port Blair video conferencing.

The new facility built at a cost of around Rs 710 crore, will play a key role in enhancing connectivity to the island, a union territory.

With a total built-up area of around 40,800 sqm, the building will be capable of handling about 5 million passengers annually.

An apron suitable for two Boeing-767-400 and two Airbus-321 type aircraft has also been constructed at the airport at a cost of Rs 80 crore, making it suitable for parking 10 aircraft at a time.

The new airport terminal building has a number of sustainability features like a double-insulated roofing system to reduce heat gain, skylights to provide maximum inlet of sunlight during the day to reduce artificial light usage inside the building, LED lighting and low heat gain glazing.

Rainwater catchment in an underground water tank, an on-site sewage treatment plant with 100 per cent of treated wastewater reused for landscaping and a 500 KW capacity solar power plant are some other features of the terminal building to ensure a minimal negative impact on the islands’ environment.

As a gateway to the pristine Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Port Blair is a popular destination for tourists.

PM Modi in News

• PM Modi launches development projects worth over 12,110 crore in Varanasi
• PM inaugurates Sai Hira Global Convention Centre in Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh.
• PM Modi inaugurates National Sickle Cell Anemia Eradication Mission 2047 in Lalpur village of Madhya Pradesh
• PM Modi inaugurated 17th Indian Cooperative Congress in New Delhi
• PM Modi chairs 42ndPRAGATI interaction

Exp. India & UAE sign MoU for planning to establish IIT-Delhi campus

India and UAE have signed an MoU for planning to establish the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi in Abu Dhabi, which could be the second IIT abroad after Tanzania.

The MoU was signed following talks between UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and PM Narendra Modi in Abu Dhabi.

IIT Delhi – Abu Dhabi will become operational by January 2024 by offering a Master’s program in Energy Transition and Sustainability.

Other Bachelor, Master’s, and Ph.D. Level programs are expected to be offered from September 2024, in addition to establishing research centers in the fields of sustainable energy, climate studies, computing, and data sciences, according to a joint statement issued after the dialogue.

About United Arab Emirates (UAE)

• Capital – Abu Dhabi
• Currency – Dirham
• President – Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
• Prime Minister – Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
• Official language -Arabic

Exp. Biden appoints Indian-American business leader Shamina Singh

US President Joe Biden has appointed Shamina Singh, a prominent Indian-American business leader, to the President’s Export Council.

The President’s Export Council serves as the principal national advisory committee on international trade.

She is the Founder and President of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth.

The Council advises the president of government policies and programmes that affect US trade performance, promotes export expansion and provides a forum for discussing and resolving trade-related problems among the business, industrial, agricultural, labour and government sectors.

Recent Appointments

• First Muslim woman federal judge in US history – Nusrat Chowdhary
• Harvard’s vice president for finance and CFO – Ritu Kalra (Indian-American origin)
• President of World Bank – Ajay Banga (Indian American)
• 1st-ever Indian-origin Lord Mayor of Birmingham – Chaman Lal
• US Ambassador for Global Women’s Issues – Indian-American Geeta Rao Gupta
• Domestic policy advisor in Biden administration – Indian-origin Neera Tandon

Exp. Shantanu Deshpande appointed as new MD of Michelin India

French-based company Michelin has appointed Shantanu Deshpande as MD of Michelin India. He will be based out of Pune, India.

Across his 23-year tenure with Michelin, Deshpande held various leadership roles in sales and marketing, both in India and in other geographies such as North America, Africa, Middle East and Asia, the company said in a statement.

He joined Michelin India in 1999 as an Area Sales Manager.

He was appointed India Marketing Director in 2007 and also served as VP of Marketing with a Michelin subsidiary in North America.

Headquartered in Clermont-Ferrand, France, Michelin is present in 175 countries and operates 67 tyre production facilities which together produced around 167 million tyres in 2022.

Recent Appointment

• Chairman of UP Electricity Regulatory Commission (UPERC) – Arvind Kumar (replace Raj Pratap Singh)
• President of NAREDCO Delhi Chapter – Harshvardhan Bansal
• First woman director of IIT, to led IIT Zanzibar – Preeti Aghalayam
• CMD of India Tobacco Company Limited (ITC Ltd) – Sanjiv Puri (reappointment)
• President of the Olympic Council of Asia – Sheikh Talal Fahd Al Ahmad Al Sabah (Kuwait)

Exp. NTPC wins ET HR World Future Skills Awards 2023

NTPC has received the prestigious Economic Times (ET) HR World Future Skills Awards 2023 for “Best use of AI/AR/VR in Learning and Upskilling” and “Best Advance in Creating an Extended Enterprise Learning Programme”.

Director (HR) of NTPC Dillip Kumar Patel received the awards on behalf of NTPC at a programme held in Gurugram.

These awards bear testimony to NTPC’s focus on the adoption of cutting-edge technologies such as virtual reality (VR) in Learning and Development (L&D).

NTPC has been adopting and institutionalizing progressive and best HR practices, which have been recognized by various prestigious fora at national and international levels.

Recent Awards

• Golden Peacock Environment Management Award 2023 – Adani Transmission Limited
• SKOCH Award – Jammu and Kashmir Rural Livelihoods Mission
• Insurer Innovation Awards 2023 – Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance
• Best Performance in CASA at ICC Emerging Asia Banking Conclave 2022 – J & K Bank
• Lokmanya Tilak Award 2023 – Narendra Modi

Exp. Ruturaj Gaikwad to lead India men’s squads for 19th Asian Games

The BCCI has announced both the men’s and the women’s team which will take part in the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games, scheduled to start from September 23 and end on October 8.

The women’s cricket competition will take place from September 19-28 while the men’s competition will start from 23 September 28 to October 8. Both competitions will be played in T20 formats.

The men’s team will be captained by Ruturaj Gaikwad and boasts the talents of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rahul Tripathi, Tilak Varma and Rinku Singh among others. The likes of Yash Thakur, Sai Kishore, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda and Sai Sudharsan are standbys.

Meanwhile, the women’s team will be led by captain Harmanpreet Kaur with Smriti Mandhana as her deputy. Harleen Deol, Kashvee Gautam, Sneh Rana, Saika Ishaque and Pooja Vastrakar are in the standby list.

Cricket was part of two editions of the Asiad, in 2010 and 2014, but India did not field a team. After being left out of the 2018 Asiad in Jakarta, cricket has returned to the programme for the Hangzhou Games, which were supposed to be held last year but were postponed due to China’s zero-Covid policy.

India men’s team: Ruturaj Gaikwad (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rahul Tripathi, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Shivam Mavi, Shivam Dube, Prabhsimran Singh (wk)

Standby list of players: Yash Thakur, Sai Kishore, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Sai Sudarsan

India women’s team: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Amanjot Kaur, Devika Vaidya, Anjali Sarvani, Titas Sadhu, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Minnu Mani, Kanika Ahuja, Uma Chetry (wk), Anusha Bareddy

Standby list of players: Harleen Deol, Kashvee Gautam, Sneh Rana, Saika Ishaque, Pooja Vastrakar.

Exp. Ajit Singh won gold medal in Para Athletics Championship in Paris

Indian athlete Ajit Singh won the gold medal in the final of men’s javelin throw F46 at the Para Athletics Championships in Paris.

Ajit Singh topped the event with a throw of 65.41m. He broke the previous championship record of 61.89 held by Chunliang Guo of China.

Rinku, another Indian athlete, won the silver medal with a best throw of 65.38m.

Sri Lanka’s Dinesh Priyanta Herath and Rinku finished joint second in the event.

Sundar Singh Gujjar, representing India, finished fourth with a throw of 61.81m.

Exp. Former Kerala CM Oommen Chandy passes away

Senior Congress leader and Former Kerala of CM Oommen Chandy passed away at the age of 79.

He was the chief minister twice for a total of seven years (2004–2006 and again from 2011–2016).

Chandy had also served as Minister of Labour, Home, and Finance in various governments headed by K Karunakaran and AK Antony.

He also served as the Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly.

He was the longest-serving legislator, representing the Puthuppally Assembly constituency from 1970 until his death.