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Top 20 Current Affairs of 12 & 13 July 2020
NATIONAL AFFAIRS
Union Minister Harsh Vardhan Releases White Paper by TIFAC on “Focused Interventions for Make in India Post COVID 19”
i.On 10th July 2020, the Union Minister of Science and Technology Dr.Harsh Vardhan released a White Paper on “Focused Interventions for Make in India Post COVID 19” prepared by the Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) in New Delhi over a virtual platform.
ii.The White Paper apprehends the specific strengths, market trends and opportunities with reference to the supply and demand, self-sufficiency and mass-scale production capacity in the critical sectors like healthcare, machinery, ICT, agriculture, manufacturing, and electronics.
About Ministry of Science and Technology:
Union Minister– Harsh Vardhan
Department under the ministry– Department of Science & Technology(DST), Department of Biotechnology(DBT), Department of Scientific & Industrial Research(DSIR)
<< Read Full News >>
Chhattisgarh organises India’s first E-Lok Adalat
On 11th July 2020, Chhattisgarh State Legal Service Authority and the high Court organised India’s first e-Lok Adalat to ensure the administration of justice and to solve the financial crisis of the parties and lawyers amid COVID-19 pandemic. The high court Chief Justice P R Ramchandra Menon inaugurated the e-Lok Adalat through video conferencing.
What is Lok Adalat?
Lok Adalat is one of the alternative dispute grievance mechanisms or a forum where pending cases or disputes in the court of law are settled or compromised whereas e-Lok Adalat will be handled virtually.
E-Lok Adalat:
i.Lok Adalat is moved to a virtual platform as e-Lok Adalat to handle the pending cases amid COVID-19.
ii.The virtual hearing will be conducted over a virtual platform through video conferencing.
iii.This is aimed to settle over 3000 pending cases through more than 200 benches in various districts across chhattisgarh including the Bilaspur high court.
iv.The parties and lawyers can present their cases through whatsApp video call incase of any difficulties in counting through video conferencing.
v.E-Lok Adalat will be continued further following the success of the first experimental trial.
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
India Moves up a Rank, Becomes the 2nd Largest Foreign Investor in UK for the year 2019-20; US tops
According to the United Kingdom’s government’s figures released on 10 July 2020, India has become the second largest Forign Direct Investor in the United Kingdom (UK)after the United States in 2019, by investing in 120 projects and creating 5,429 new jobs in the UK.
i.The United States of America remains in top, followed by India, Germany, France, China and Hong Kong.
ii.From the FDI report, the number of jobs safeguarded by FDI has increased by 29 per cent.
About United Kingdom:
Prime Minister- Boris Johnson
Capital- London
<< Read Full News >>
AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS
India’s 2018 Tiger Census – Largest Camera Trap Wildlife Survey sets Guinness Record 
i.4th edition of India’s 2018 Tiger census sets new Guinness World Record for being largest camera trap wildlife survey because the census had installed more cameras to monitor the tigers as compared to other countries.
ii.As per the census, In 2018, India had doubled the tiger population before 4 years of the target year, 2022 through the Sankalp Se Siddhi programme.
iii.According to the latest survey conducted in 2018 it is estimated that India has around 2967 tigers out of which the survey captured the individual photos of 2461 tigers, as of now 75 per cent of the global tiger population are in India.
About Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC):
Union Minister– Prakash Javadekar
Minister of State– Babul Supriyo
<< Read Full News >>
Kezang D Thongdok of Arunachal Pradesh wins 2020 Dada Saheb Phalke Award for ‘Chi Lupo’ – documentary on Honey Hunting
i.An independent filmmaker, Kezang D Thongdok won the 10th edition Dada Saheb Phalke Award for the year 2020 for his documentary “Chi Lupo” – showcasing the practice of collection of honey from the perched rocky hilltops.
ii.The documentary won the best documentary at the 10th Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival Awards.
iii.He is currently working on a documentary Khiksaba about an unexplored festival of Shertukpen tribe.
About Arunachal Pradesh:
Chief Minister– Pema Khandu
Governor– Brigadier (Dr.) B. D. Mishra
Capital– Itanagar
<< Read Full News >>
Rotary Foundation Honours TN CM Edappadi K Palaniswami with Paul Harris Fellow Recognition 
On July 10,2020 The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International,Chicago, has honoured Tamil Nadu(TN) Chief Minister(CM) Edappadi K Palaniswami with Paul Harris Fellow recognition.
About Paul Harris Fellow recognition
i.The recognition is in the honor of Rotary founder, Paul Harris who contributed to The Rotary Foundation.
ii.The Paul Harris Fellow recognition is conferred to honour the efficient service of people who provide drinking water, sanitation, prevention of diseases, environment, world peace etc. to its people.
iii.It also acknowledges individuals who contribute, or who have contributions made in their name, of USD 1,000 to The Rotary Foundation.
iv.The person recognised as the fellow will receive a certificate along with a lapel pin. They are also eligible to buy a Paul Harris Fellow medallion.
About TN:
Capital– Chennai
Governor– Banwarilal Purohit
About Rotary International:
Headquarters– Evanston, USA
President– Holger Knaack( 2020-21)
IHD India Receives ‘Development Marketplace Award 2020’ from World Bank and SVRI
Institute for Human Development (IHD), an Indian non-profit institution conferred with ‘Development Marketplace Award 2020:Innovations to Address Gender-Based Violence’ from World Bank Group and Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI) for the project alcohol, intimate partner violence and household economy: an assessment of liquor ban in Bihar.
World Bank Group and Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI) joint hands to support and provide fund for researchers and innovators in low- and middle-income countries to study the violence against women and to reduce the violence against them.
About Institute for Human Development (IHD):
Institute for Human Development (IHD), non-profit autonomous institution was established in the year 1998 and managed under the Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE).
Chairman – Prof. S.R. Hashim
<< Read Full News >>
APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS
BCCI Accepts CEO Rahul Johri’s Resignation
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has accepted a long pending resignation of Rahul Johri, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BCCI on 9 July 2020.
Key Points:
i.Johri is the first CEO of the BCCI since 2016, and tendered his resignation in December 2019.
ii.The five year contract with the world’s richest cricket federation is to end in May 2021.
iii. He was about to move after the exit of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of administrators (CoA).But his resignation was accepted on 9 July 2020.
About BCCI:
Headquarters: Mumbai
President: Sourav Ganguly.
Lee Hsien Loong becomes the third Prime Minister of Singapore, ruling PAP won the General Election 2020
On 10th July 2020, the Results of Singapore’s General Election 2020 were announced and the ruling Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s People’s Action Party(PAP) won the election by winning 83 seats out of 93 contested and Lee Hsien Loong was reinstated as the third Prime Minister of Singapore.
Lee Hsien Loong:
i.68 year old Lee Hsien Loong held the office of Prime Minister since 2004 and winning the 2020 General Election retains his position.
ii.He is the son of Singapore’s founding Leader, Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister of Singapore who transformed the nation in his 31 year rule.
People’s Action Party:
The People’s Action Party (PAP) has held the power, winning all the elections since independence in 1965.PAP is the only party in Singapore which has candidates contesting in all the 93 constituencies.
About Singapore:
President- Halimah Yacob
Prime Minister– Lee Hsien Loong
Capital– Singapore
Currency– Singapore Dollar
ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS
CCI approves Kubota’s 9.09% Acquisition of Escorts and Escorts’s 40% Acquisition by KAI
i.The Competition Commission of India(CCI) approved the acquisition of 9.09% equity stake in Escorts Limited(Escorts) by Kubota Corporation(Kubota) and of 40% in Kubota Agricultural Machinery India Private Limited(KAI) by Escorts under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002.
ii.As per the proposed combination, Kubota will subscribe to the 1,22,57,688 equity shares(9.09% of the total issued, subscribed and paid-up share capital) of Escorts on a pre-capital reduction and 10 % on a post-capital reduction basis.
About KAI:
Headquarters– Chennai, TamilNadu
Managing Director– Akira Kato
About CCI:
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
Chairman– Ashok Kumar Gupta
<< Read Full News >>
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Government launches ASEEM portal to support skilled people to find sustainable livelihood opportunities 
i.On 10th July 2020, Dr Mahendra Nath Pandey , Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship(MoSDE) launched the Aatamanirbhar Skilled Employee-Employer Mapping (ASEEM) portal, which maps the demand of skilled workforce to find available sustainable livelihood opportunities.
ii.ASEEM is available as an online portal and mobile application.
iii.The portal is developed and managed by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) in collaboration with Betterplace, a Bengaluru based company.
About Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship(MoSDE):
Union Minister– Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey
Minister of State– Raj Kumar Singh
<< Read Full News >>
IAF Received Last 5 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters from US Aerospace company Boeing
i.On July 10, 2020, United States (US) based Aerospace Company Boeing, has delivered the last 5 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters to Indian Air Force (IAF) at the Air Force Station, Hindan, Uttar Pradesh.These Apaches were deployed at the Leh air base amid stand-off with China in Ladakh.
ii.This final 5 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters were part of a deal that was signed by Indian Government & Boeing in the year 2015 to deliver 22 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters .
iii.In September 2015, India signed a $3 billion deal with Boeing for 22 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters and 15 Chinook helicopters through the Foreign Military Sales programme of the U.S. government.
About Boeing:
Headquarter – Chicago, United States (U.S.)
President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – David L. Calhoun (since Jan 2020)
<< Read Full News >>
First Launch of China’s Kuaizhou-11 Carrier Rocket Failed; Telecommunication Satellite “APSTAR-6D” Successfully Launched
i.On 10th July 2020, China’s 1st Kuaizhou-11(means ‘Fast Ship’), solid-fuelled carrier rocket launch was failed.The rocket was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China.On July 9, 2020 China launched its new commercial telecommunication satellite “APSTAR-6D” by a Long March-3B carrier rocket from the southwestern Xichang Satellite Launch Center.
ii.During the failed launch, Kuaizhou-11(KZ-11) carried Jilin-1 Gaofen-02E or BilibiliSat and the CentiSpace-1 S2 – also designated Xiangrikui 2.
iii.Kuaizhou-11 & APSTAR-6D was developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.(CASC) and commercialized by the China Space Sanjiang Group Corporation (Expace).
About China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.:
Headquarter – Beijing, China
President – Xu Qiang
<< Read Full News >>
Loyal Textile Mills in Collaboration with RIL and HeiQ Launched world’s 1st Reusable PPE with Triple Viral Shield Technology
i.Loyal Textile Mills Limited in collaboration with Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and HeiQ has launched the world’s first reusable Personal Protective Equipment(PPE) with Triple Viral Shield Technology that has passed the Viral Penetration Test, Synthetic Blood Penetration Test, and the Systolic Blood Pressure Recovery(SBPR) Test at a webinar.
ii.Along with this, other triple viral shield products like masks(SS 95 medical respiratory type Mask) and protective antiviral fashion wear range were also launched.
About Loyal Textile Mills Limited:
Headquarters– Chennai, Tamilnadu
Chairperson– Valli M. Ramaswami
About HeiQ Group:
Headquarters– Switzerland
CEO and co-founder– Carlo Centonze
<< Read Full News >>
A Team of Wildlife researchers rediscover ‘Ypthima watsoni’ butterfly after 61 years in Tripura
A team of wildlife researchers has rediscovered ‘Ypthima watsoni’ butterfly(commonly known as ‘Looped three-ring’) after 61 years near a village called Phuldungsei in Jampui Hills under the North Tripura district. The research paper regarding this discovery was published in the Journal of Entomology and Zoology Studies.
Ypthima Watsoni
i.Ypthima watsoni, 1893 belongs to the subfamily Styrene and family Nymphalidae of insect order Lepidoptera
ii.The species was 1st reported and described byZoologist Frederic Moore in the year 1893-1896 from two different places in Myanmar. It was last seen in Manipur in 1958.
Research Team
The research was done by Suman Bhowmik, Head of the department of Lepidoptera conservation & research division of Wild Tripura Foundation, Agartala, Tripura with Sandip Malakar and Atanu Bora
Wild Tripura Foundation– The Wild Tripura Foundation is a Government registered Trust. It supports and helps to study Lepidoptera diversity of Tripura.
Note– The Jampui Hills harbours some of the rarest fauna that are hard to find anywhere else in the Indian Subcontinent.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
A Book Titled ‘A Song of India’ Authored by Ruskin Bond to be Released
The book titled ‘A Song of India’ authored by Ruskin Bond to be released on July 20, 2020, which will mark the 70th year of the author’s literary career. The book is the 4th instalment in his memoir series(a written record of a person’s own life and experiences). The book portrays his unknown life before he became a successful author. It is published by Puffin Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House India.
Gist about the Book
i.The book is about the 16 year old Ruskin Bond and about his struggles to start the writing journey.
ii.The book also tells how he longed for familiarity and about the joys of receiving his first money order, publishing his stories and finding new friends.
Memoir Series
His memoir series are, “Looking for the Rainbow” (2017), “Till the Clouds Roll By” (2017) and “Coming Round the Mountain” (2019),
About Ruskin Bond
Books
i.His first novel is The Room On the Roof(1956) and his first children’s book is Angry River, which was published in 1970.
ii.His other books include, The Blue Umbrella(1980); A Flight of Pigeons(2003); Rusty, the Boy from the Hills among others.
Awards– John Llewellyn Rhys Prize(1957), Sahitya Akademi Award(1992), Padma Shri(1999), Padma Bhushan(2014), LifeTime Achievement Award of Chandigarh Literary Society(2017).
IMPORTANT DAYS
National Fish Farmers Day 2020 – July 10, Fish Cryobanks to be Established
i.10th July of every year is observed as the National Fish Farmers day, to motivate the fish farmers to adopt fish farming as a main or ancillary occupation.
ii.The government of India declared July 10 as the National Fish Farmers Day in remembrance of the successful demonstration of induced breeding (Hypophysation) in Indian Major Carps on 10th July 1957.
iii. Giriraj Singh, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying announced that world’s first Fish Cryobank will be established in India
About Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying:
Union Minister– Giriraj Singh
Minister of State– Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Pratap Chandra Sarangi
<< Read Full News >>
World Population Day 2020: July 11
i.United Nations(UN) World Population Day is observed annually on July 11 to raise awareness about population issues like family planning, gender equality, poverty, maternal health and human rights.
ii.The day also highlights the issues and aftermath of overpopulation on the environment and development.
Theme of 2020– The theme of 2020 is to safeguard the sexual and reproductive health care, protect the health and rights of women and girls, and end gender-based violence.
“Putting the brakes on COVID-19: Safeguarding the health and rights of women and girls’’
About UNFPA:
Headquarters– New York, United States
Executive Director– Natalia Kanem
About UN:
Headquarters– New York, United States
Secretary General– António Guterres
<< Read Full News >>
United Nations Observes 2nd Counter-Terrorism Week from July 6- 10, 2020
The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism(UNOCT) observes 2nd Counter-Terrorism Week from July 6- 10, 2020 virtually. The theme of the week is “Strategic and Practical Challenges of Countering Terrorism in a Global Pandemic Environment”
1st Virtual Exposition of UNCCT launched
i.United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism Centre(UNCCT) launched its 1st Virtual Exposition on 7 July 2020 during the virtual week.
ii.The expo is a digital journey to explore the Centre’s history and its capacity-building efforts.
Highlights of 2nd Counter-Terrorism Week
i.The event will have an opening 2 hour high-level session titled “Post COVID-19 World: Contours and Pivot Points and Benefits of Multilateral Collaboration.”
ii.In addition to this it will have 9 webinars and interactive discussions which focus on the bio and cyber terrorism, high-risk threats and trends, addressing the plight of victims of terrorism and flagship UN counter-terrorism programmes among others.
About UN Office of Counter-Terrorism
UNOCT was established through the adoption of UN General Assembly Resolution 71/291 on 15 June 2017
Under Secretary General- Vladimir Voronkov
STATE NEWS
Jharkhand Govt signs MoU with HDFC to Offer Digital Payment Solutions to its Traffic Dept
On July 9, 2020 Jharkhand government signed Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with HDFC Bank to provide digital payment solutions to the state’s transport department.
Key Info
i.The Digital solution will enable the traffic police to equip themselves with Point of Sale (POS)machines to collect traffic- related penalties.
ii.The traffic rules violators can also use the HDFC Bank’s online payment facility to pay a fine.
Signing of MoU
The MoU was signed in the presence of Transport Secretary K Ravi and the bank’s Circle Head, Abhishek Kumar
About Jharkhand:
Capital– Ranchi
Chief Minister– Hemant Soren.
Governor– Draupadi Murmu.
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Current Affairs Today (AffairsCloud Today)
| S.no | Current Affairs 12 & 13 July 2020 |
|---|---|
| 1 | Union Minister Harsh Vardhan Releases White Paper by TIFAC on “Focused Interventions for Make in India Post COVID 19” |
| 2 | Chhattisgarh organises India’s first E-Lok Adalat |
| 3 | India Moves up a Rank, Becoming the Second-Largest Foreign Investor in UK |
| 4 | India’s 2018 Tiger Census – Largest Camera Trap Wildlife Survey sets Guinness Record |
| 5 | Kezang D Thongdok of Arunachal Pradesh wins 2020 Dada Saheb Phalke Award for ‘Chi Lupo’ – documentary on Honey Hunting |
| 6 | Rotary Foundation Honours TN CM Edappadi K Palaniswami with Paul Harris Fellow Recognition |
| 7 | IHD India Receives ‘Development Marketplace Award 2020’ from World Bank and SVRI |
| 8 | BCCI Accepts CEO Rahul Johri’s Resignation |
| 9 | Lee Hsien Loong becomes the third Prime Minister of Singapore, ruling PAP won the General Election 2020 |
| 10 | CCI approves Kubota’s 9.09% Acquisition of Escorts and Escorts’s 40% Acquisition by KAI |
| 11 | Government launches ASEEM portal to support skilled people to find sustainable livelihood opportunities |
| 12 | IAF Received Last 5 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters from US Aerospace company Boeing |
| 13 | First Launch of China’s Kuaizhou-11 Carrier Rocket Failed;Telecommunication Satellite “APSTAR-6D” Successfully Launched |
| 14 | Loyal Textile Mills in Collaboration with RIL and HeiQ Launched world’s 1st Reusable PPE with Triple Viral Shield Technology |
| 15 | A Team of Wildlife researchers rediscover ‘Ypthima watsoni’ butterfly after 61 years in Tripura |
| 16 | A Book Titled ‘A Song of India’ Authored by Ruskin Bond to be Released |
| 17 | National Fish Farmers Day 2020 – July 10, Government is set to Establishment of Fish Cryobanks |
| 18 | World Population Day 2020: July 11 |
| 19 | United Nations Observes 2nd Counter-Terrorism Week from July 6- 10, 2020 |
| 20 | Jharkhand Govt signs MoU with HDFC to Offer Digital Payment Solutions to its Traffic Dept |
