Current Affairs 11 April 2020

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 11 April 2020, which have unique updates of Latest Current Affairs 2020 events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, PTI, Indian Express, Business Standard and all Government official websites.

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Top 20 Current Affairs of 11 April 2020

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

GoI approved Rs.15000 cr for COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package

On April 9, 2020, Indian Government has approved Rs.15000 crores for ‘India COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package’ to build health infrastructure in states and UTs till March 2024. Of the 15,000 crore, Centre would release Rs.7,774 crore for immediate COVID-19 Emergency Response use till June 2020 and the rest will be set for medium-term support of 1-4 years.

• The package will be given to state governments and Union Territories on the basis of their size and number of positive cases.
• It is to be provided in three phases — January 2020 to June 2020, July 2020 to March 2021 and from April 2021 to March 2024.

Objective:
The objective of this package is to limit the spread of COVID-19 through the development of diagnostics and dedicated treatment facilities. This will allow the state government to ramp up the number of Corona testing facilities, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Isolation Beds, ICU beds, ventilators and other essential equipment.
Points to be noted:
The overall process of the package will be implemented under the overall umbrella of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). It is authorized to re-appropriate resources among the various implementation agencies (National Health Mission, Central Procurement, Railways, Dept of Health Research/ICMR, National Centre for Disease Control) as per the evolving emergent situation.

• MoHFW has already disbursed Rs. 4113 Crore to all the States and UTs for dealing with the emergency COVID response.

TRIFED along with UNICEF & WHO launched digital campaign to ensure work safety of Tribal Gatherers

Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) has collaborated with UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) and WHO (World Health Organisation) for basic orientation on Covid-19 response in order to ensure tribal gatherers carry on their work safely during the collection and harvest of Minor Forest Produce (MFP)/Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP).

• This collaboration will promote a digital campaign for Self Help Groups (SHGs) highlighting the importance of Social Distancing which will further create awareness among the tribal community and also provide Do’s and Don’ts Advisories relating to NTFP during Covid-19.

Key Points:
-It should be noted that the support to SHG Centers for campaigning will be provided by UNICEF in the form of Digital Multimedia content, Webinars for Virtual training (basic orientation on COVID response, key preventive behaviours), Social Media campaigns (on social distancing, home quarantine, etc.) and Vanya Radio.
–Stand With Tribal Families, the component of The Art of Living Foundation’s #iStandWithHumanity Initiative is also providing much needed food and ration for the survival of the tribal community.
-A total of 1205 Van Dhan Vikas Kendras (VDVKs) have been sanctioned in 27 States and 1 Union territory involving around 18,075 Van Dhan Self Help Groups. This involves over 3.6 Lakhs tribal gatherers in the Scheme.
About TRIFED
Establishment– 1987
Works under– Ministry of Tribal Affairs
Headquarter– New Delhi
Managing Director (MD)– Pravir Krishna

SC extended tenure of TDSAT Chairperson Shiva Kirti Singh by three months

The Supreme Court (SC) of India has extended the tenure of chairperson of Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) Justice Shiva Kirti Singh by 3 months who was set to retire on April 20, 2020. This decision has been taken by the bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Deepak Gupta headed by Chief Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde.

• The bench also expressed concern over the delay in appointment of administrative and technical members of TDSAT and asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to answer on behalf of Centre.

Background:
The administrative member and a technical member of TDSAT retired in October 2018 and May 2019, respectively. Since then only the chairperson is there and the absence of members is halting the tribunal’s operations.
About TDSAT:
Establishment– 2000
Composition– It consists of a Chairperson and two Members appointed by the Central Government. The Chairperson should be or should have been a Judge of the Supreme Court or the Chief Justice of a High Court.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

UNSC met for 1st time to discuss COVID-19 impact through video-conference

The United Nation Security Council (UNSC) met for the first time through closed video-conference session with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the issues that fall under the UNSC’s mandate.

• During the video meet, UNSC has supported all the efforts of UN Secretary-General Antonio Manuel de Oliveira Guterres and also underlined the need for unity and solidarity with those affected by the COVID-19.

It should be noted that Antonio Guterres warned the UN Security Council that COVID-19 is threatening international peace and security. UNSC is UN’s most powerful body, which has been silent on COVID-19 since the latter started circling the globe. This was for the first time that UNSC shared its view on COVID-19 impact.
About UNSC:
Current Presidency– Dominican Republic
Members– 15 Countries
Headquarters– New York, United States (US)

 BANKING & FINANCE

Flipkart partners with ICICI lombard & Go Digit to offer two COVID-19 health insurance policies

On April 10, 2020, Flipkart Private Limited, an e-commerce marketplace in partnership with ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Limited and Go Digit General Insurance, has launched two health insurance policies namely – ‘Covid-19 Protection Cover’ & ‘Digit Illness Group Insurance’ that specifically cover coronavirus (COVID-19) on its platform.
Key Points:
i.Both the policies provides an easy claim, hospitalisation, room or intensive care unit (ICU) expenditure, ambulance assistance and teleconsultation and do not require any medical testing at the time of purchase.
ii.COVID-19 protection cover offered by ICICI Lombard, on the positive diagnosis of COVID-19, paid to the customer of Rs. 25,000. It has been priced at an annual premium of Rs 159.
iii.Digit Illness Group Insurance cover by Digit Insurance gives consumers the benefit of hospitalization of up to Rs 1 lakh with an annual premium of Rs 511.However, there is no limit to room rent or ICU care. The policy includes 30 days pre-hospitalization and 60 days post-hospitalization fee. Policyholders can also get 1% of the sum assured for ambulance assistance.
About Flipkart Private Limited:
Headquarters– Bengaluru, Karnataka
Fintech and Payments Group Head– Ranjith Boyanapalli
About ICICI Lombard:
Parent organization– ICICI ( Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India) Bank
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra
MD & CEO– Bhargav Dasgupta
About Digit general insurance:
Headquarters– Bengaluru, Karnataka, Chief Distribution Officer-Jasleen Kohli

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

CPI inflation likely to ease from 4.8% in Q1 to 4.4% in Q2: RBI’s MPR

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its monetary policy report (MPR) has projected Consumer price index (CPI) based inflation to decline from 4.8% in Q1: 2020-21 to 4.4% in Q2, 2.7% in Q3 and 2.4% in Q4. This MPR is a part of the out-of-turn review of monetary policy held in March end due to uncertainties arising from the economic lockdown.

• The downward revision in CPI is due to weaken demand and it is expected that the demand will weaken further.
• RBI expects inflation for fiscal year 2021 to be in the range of 3.6-3.8% due to the declining food prices, sharp fall in crude prices and normal monsoon.

What is CPI?
It is an index measuring retail inflation in the economy by collecting the change in prices of most common goods and services used by consumers. CPI is calculated for a fixed list of items including food, housing, apparel, transportation, electronics, medical care, education, etc. to calculate the inflation levels in an economy.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS         

RBI: AU Small Finance Bank appoints R V Verma as part-time chairman and Sanjay Agarwal re-appointed as MD and CEO

On April 9, 2020, Raj Vikash Verma was appointed as part-time Chairman of AU Small Finance Bank for the period of one year whereas Sanjay Agarwal reappointed as Managing Director (MD) and CEO (Chief Executive Officer) also whole time director Uttam Tibrewal for three years.of the AU Small Finance Bank. The appointment was approved by RBI (Reserve Bank of India).
Key Points:
i.About Sanjay Agarwal: Agarwal has been associated with this institution (AU small finance bank) since its inception in 1996 (erstwhile AU Financiers India Limited), is also its promoter.
ii.About R V Verma: Verma was inducted as an Independent Director with the AU Bank in January 2018. He was the former Chairman and Managing Director (MD) of National Housing Bank (NHB). Verma was a certified Associate of the Indian Institute of the Bankers (CAIIB).
iii.Verma has a strong experience in the financial service sector, particularly in the field of development finance, regulatory supervision, housing finance, mortgage finance and real estate sector for nearly 37 years.
About AU Small Finance Bank:
AU Small Finance Bank is an Indian Scheduled Commercial bank that was founded as a finance company AU financiers (India) Limited incorporated as L.N. Finco Gems Private Limited on 10 January 1996 as a private limited company under the Companies Act 1956 with the RoC and commenced operations as a Small Finance Bank in April 2017 after a certificate of incorporation was issued by the RoC on 13 April 2017.
Headquarters– Jaipur, Rajasthan.
Tagline– Chalo Aage Badhein.

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS       

IndiGrid to acquire Gurgaon-Palwal Transmission Limited 

On April 9, 2020 The Board of the Investment Manager of IndiGrid, India’s first Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) in the power sector, has  approved the acquisition of Gurgaon-Palwal Transmission Limited (GPTL), Sterlite power with a value of Rs 1,080 crore.
Key Points
i.This acquisition is made to ensure reliable power supply in the region, which may reduce carbon emissions by reducing dependence on DG (diesel production) sets.
ii.IndiGrid’s AUM (assets under management) will increase by 10% to USD 1.75 billion through this acquisition, it also intends to acquire solar projects with robust power purchase agreements, operational track record and financially strong counter parties or off-takers.
iii.GPTL is a part of Inter State Transmission Scheme (ISTS) network, which consists of 3 Gas Insulated Substations (GIS) totaling 3,000 Mega Volt Ampere (MVA) and 270 circuit kilometers of 400 KiloVolt (KV) transmission lines spread across Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan.
About GPTL:
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
Managing Director (MD)– Pratik Agarwal
About IndiGrid:
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) & Whole time director– Harsh Shah

Apple acquires Dark Sky weather app 

Apple has acquired the Dark Sky, a weather app, which forecasts hyper-local weather predictions and ability to minute by minute, its iPhone Operating System (iOS) app which costs USD 3.99 will not be modified, and the Android and Wear OS app can’t be downloaded anymore. Its Application Programming Interface (API) service will not accept new signups & will continue to function through the end of 2021, it has also updated its branding on its website as ‘Dark Sky by Apple’. Users will only be able to use them until they’re entirely shut down.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Centre launched Aarogya Setu IVRS for non-smart phones in collaboration with TN govt and IIT-Madras

After the launch of Aarogya Setu app to tackle COVID-19 impact, now Central government , Department of Telecommunication(DoT) in partnership with Tamil Nadu (TN) government and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has launched its complementary initiative named “Aarogya Setu Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS)”.  It is launched by TN Chief Minister (CM) Edappadi Karuppa Palaniswami and Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) Ravi Shankar Prasad.

• The basic difference between both apps is that Aarogya Setu is for smartphones while IVRS is its helpline version for non-smart phones.
• The Aarogya Setu IVRS or IVRS COVID-19 helpline number is 9499912345. Currently, this is available only in Tamil Nadu. Other states will also launch the initiative soon.

About Arogya Setu IVRS
Arogya Setu and Arogya Setu IVRS will run in combination to help affected and those with symptoms of coronavirus. The IVRS facility will get activated after giving a missed call and location identification. After that the caller will be provided with options for assistance, health care and guidance like Aarogya Setu app, which connects health services with the people of the country to fight against the menace of coronavirus.

Biofortified carrot variety ‘Madhuban Gajar’ developed by Vallabhhai Vasrambhai Marvaniya- farmer scientist

Biofortified carrot variety ‘Madhuban Gajar’ with high β-carotene(277.75 milligram per kilogram-mg/kg) and iron content(276.7 mg/kg) is developed by Vallabhhai Vasrambhai Marvaniya, a farmer scientist from Junagadh district, Gujarat which benefits local farmers.
Gist about Madhuban Gajar
i.It has a higher root yield (74.2 Tonne per Hectare- t/ha) and plant biomass (275 gram- gm per plant) when compared to check variety.
ii.It is planted in Junagadh with over 200 hectares, average yield, 40-50 tonnes per hectare, which has become a major source of income for local farmers and is cultivated in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh & also used for various value-added products like carrot chips, juices, and pickles.
iii.National Innovation Foundation (NIF) India, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology, has conducted validation trials for this variety  between 2016 and 2017 at Rajasthan Agricultural Research Institute (RARI), Jaipur.
Background
The variety was found by him during 1943, which was used to feed the animals so as to improve the quality of milk, later in the 1980’s he started selling the seeds on a large scale.
Awards
Vallabhhai Vasrambhai Marvaniya was awarded the Padma Shri in 2019 for his extraordinary work & National Award in 2017.
What is Biofortification?
It is the process by which the nutritional quality of food crops is increased through agricultural practices, conventional plant breeding or modern biotechnology.

Bharat Biotech ties-up with FluGen & US virologists to develop intranasal vaccine for coronavirus ‘CoroFlu’

On April 4, 2020, In view of increasing Coronavirus (COVID-19) cases rapidly worldwide, Bharat Biotech International Ltd, a leading vaccines & bio-therapeutics manufacturers in India, has joined hands with US (United States) FluGen Inc and virologists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Wisconsin,US , to begin the development and testing of a new intranasal vaccine for COVID-19 called ‘CoroFlu’.
Key Points:
i.The vaccine is being developed on the basis of  FluGen’s flu vaccine candidate known as M2SR, a self-limited version of influenza virus. It induces an immune response against the flu. Based on an invention by UW–Madison virologists and FluGen co-founders Yoshihiro Kawaoka and Gabriele Neumann, M2SR is a self-limiting version of the influenza virus that induces an immune response against the flu.

ii.The vaccine will be built by FluGen’s lab that insert gene sequences from SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes the disease COVID-19, into M2SR so that the novel vaccine will also induce immunity against the coronavirus.
iii.Different trials of this vaccine may take three to six months. Once prepared, a drop of this vaccine will be administered through the nose to the mucosal layer of the corona patients. The company will produce 300 million doses if the test is successful.
iv.Pharma majors like Ahmedabad (Gujarat) -based Zydus Cadila and Pune (Maharashtra)-based Serum Institute have already engaged in the process to make vaccines against corona.
About Bharat Biotech International Ltd:
Headquarters– Hyderabad,Telangana
Chairman and Managing Director– Krishna M Ella
About FluGen Inc:
President and CEO– Paul Radspinner

DST to fund for development of Nasal passage gel for COVID-19

On April 8, 2020 The Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), a statutory body of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) has approved the funding of
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay team to develop a Nasal passage gel to limit transmission of the Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, the causative agent of COVID-19. This solution is not only expected to protect the safety of health workers, but also lead to reduction in community transmission,helping disease management and to provide an extra layer of defense.
Key Points
i.The gel is particularly designed for the front-line workers, health care workers & asymptomatic (without symptoms) persons, & will be ready in about 9 months.
ii.The team plans a 2 split approach

• 1st level- To inhibit the binding of viruses to host cells as the viruses replicate within host cells of the lungs. Even Though this is expected to reduce host cell infection, the viruses will be active.
• 2nd level- The trapped virus will be inactivated by incorporating the biological molecules in a similar way to that of detergents which will lead to development of Nasal passage gel.

iii.Professors Kiran Kondabagil, Rinti Banerjee, Ashutosh Kumar and Shamik Sen from the Department of Biosciences & Bioengineering at IIT Bombay are part of this project.
About DST:
Union Minister– Harsh Vardhan, Secretary- DST– Prof Ashutosh Sharma

SPORTS

FIFA’s ranking 2020: Indian football team stats at 108^th position; Belgium on top

According to the FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association)/Coca-Cola World Ranking 2020, released on April 09, 2020, Indian football team retained its 108^th position with 1187 points.
While Belgium ranked first and world champion France is in 2^nd place and Brazil is at 3^rd spot.

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Key Points:
i.In the wake of the coronavirus (Covid-19) epidemic, qualifier tournaments have been postponed for the FIFA World Cup and other major games at the international level. Not only this, due to Corona, the Olympic football tournament, CONMEBOL (South American Football Confederation) Copa America and UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) EURO also had to cancel famous events.
About FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association):
Motto– For the Game. For the World
Headquarters– Zürich, Switzerland
President– Gianni Infantino

OBITUARY

Indian-American veteran journalist Brahm Kanchibotla passed away at 66

On April 6, 2020 The Indian-American veteran journalist Brahm Kanchibotla passed away at 66 due to coronavirus in a hospital on Long Island in New York, United States(US).
Key Points
i.In recent years, he has been writing for two Indian-American publications, the Indian Panorama and the South Asia Times.
ii.During his 28-year career in the US, he worked for 11 years as a content editor for Merger Markets, a financial publication, and also worked for News India-Times Weekly.
iii.He emigrated to the US in 1992 after having worked for several publications in India.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Homeopathy Day 2020: April 10

The World Homeopathy Day is celebrated every year on April 10. This year the day marks the 265^th birth anniversary of the father of the Homeopathy systems of medicines Dr. Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann, German physician, who discovered the way to heal through the use of homeopathy. The term ‘homeopathy’ comes from the combination of the two Greek words, homeo- meaning similar & pathos- meaning suffering or disease.
Theme of the year 2020: “Enhancing the scope of Homeopathy in Public Health”.
Key Points:
i.About Homeopathy: Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudo scientific system of alternative medicine. Its practitioners are called homeopaths.
ii.Homeopathy is the way to heal by the doctrine of ‘similia similibus curantur’ i.e. ‘likes are cured by likes’ and the method was founded by Dr. Samuel.
iii.Homeopathy in India: Homeopathy is one of the most popular medical systems in India. It is one of the medicine systems in the Ministry of AYUSH– ‘Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy’ ministry.
iv.The homeopathic medical system is a recognized medical system in India under the Homeopathy Central Council Act, 1973. It is also recognized as one of the national systems of medicines.
v.World Homeopathy Awareness Organization organized World Homeopathy Awareness week every year from April 10 to April 16 to raise public awareness & improve accessibility to homeopathy.

WADA celebrates Play True Day 2020 

On April 9, 2020, The World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) celebrated the Play True Day 2020, which is dedicated to clean sport and the day aims to raise awareness among athletes, the sporting public and others about the importance of protecting it.WADA is seizing the opportunity to engage the global anti-doping community in solidarity around the theme Play Safe on Play True Day 2020, asking to share what you are doing as branded visuals in forms of photos and videos and why to curb the spread of the virus.
Theme of the year 2020: ‘Play Safe on Play True Day 2020’.
Key Points:
i.About Play True Day: WADA and the anti-doping community worldwide is celebrating the ‘Play True Day’ since 2014. WADA celebrates the day with athletes, national and regional anti- doping organizations, sports federations, major event organizers & other anti- doping stakeholders from the global clean sport community.
ii.The inspiration of the Play True Day comes from the Education Conference of WADA hosted in 2013, which was attended by 17 Latin American countries and the celebration was started as a small Latin American initiative in 2019.
About WADA:
Headquarters– Montreal, Canada.
President– Witold Banka.

55^th Anniversary of CRPF Valour Day 2020: April 9

On April 9, 2020, The 55^th Anniversary of CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) Valour Day was observed all over India. The day is observed every year and the day is also called as Shaurya Diwas (Valour Day).
Key Points:
i.History of Day: On April 9, 1965, a small contingent of second battalion of CRPF successfully fought against Pakistani Brigade at Sardar Post in the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat.
ii.President of India Shri Ramnath Kovind honoured the CRPF forces for their extraordinary bravery, patriotism and sacrifice on this day.
About CRPF:
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is India’s largest Central Armed Police Force. It functions under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) of the Government of India. Director General – Dr. A P Maheshwari,IPS
Headquarters– New Delhi.
Motto– Service and Loyalty.

STATE NEWS

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal launches “Operation SHIELD” in 21 Containment Areas against COVID-19

On April 9, 2020 Delhi Chief Minister(CM) Arvind Kejriwal has launched “Operation SHIELD” in 21 identified Containment Areas of the state to control the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. It deals with sealing, home quarantine, isolation & tracking, essential supply of commodities, local sanitisation and door-to-door health checkups.
Acronym of SHIELD
S– Sealing of the immediate area/surroundings after geographical marking.
H– Home quarantine of all the people living in the area.
I– Isolation and tracing of people who have been first and second contacts.
E– Essential supply of commodities is ensured.
L– Local sanitisation of the area by authorities.
D– Door-to-door health checks of everyone living in the area.
The government has made it compulsory to wear masks while stepping out of the   houses & also stated that punishment will be given for those who misbehave with healthcare personnel.
About Delhi:
International Stadium– Arun Jaitley Stadium, (Former names- Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium, Willingdon Pavilion)
Also called as– City of Rallies

AC GAZE

RBI launches Twitter campaign to adopt digital payment modes

On April 9,2020 The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) launched a Twitter campaign to adopt digital modes of payment that are convenient and safe and reiterated the multiple digital payment options such as NEFT, IMPS, UPI and BBPS that are available 24*7.The face of the campaign is Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan.

Odisha became the first State to extend lockdown till April 30

The Odisha government has become the first state to extend lockdown until April 30 to contain the spread of COVID-19, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced after the State Cabinet held a meeting through video-conferencing.

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