Current Affairs 15 July 2020

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 15 July 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 15 Current Affairs of 15 July 2020

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Ministry of Shipping approved Rs 107 Crore for Modern Firefighting Facilities in Haldia Dock, Kolkata

On 14th July 2020, Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya, Union Minister of State (I/C) for Shipping approved Rs.107 Crore to improve the firefighting facilities on five jetties of Haldia Dock Complex of Kolkata Port. The modern firefighting facilities will enable safe and secure handling of the movement of petrochemical goods in the Haldia Dock Complex.
The Need for Modern Firefighting Facility:
i.The current facility does not ensure the safety in handling the Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and other petroleum products according to the guidelines of the Oil Industry Safety Directorate (OISD) of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
ii.The LPG and Liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo at the Haldia dock is expected to increase in the future, prioritising the safety and security of the cargo operation in the major ports the ministry of shipping approved the fund to update the existing facility into a modern firefighting facility.
About Ministry of Shipping & Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas:
Union Minister of State(MoS) for Shipping – Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya
Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas– Dharmendra Debendra Pradhan

UNICEF India & FICCI’s SEDF joined hands to Initiate “#Reimagine Campaign” to Support Vulnerable Populations and Children in India

i.United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) India joined hands with Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry’s (FICCI) Socio Economic Development Foundation (SEDF) to initiate UNICEF’s “#Reimagine Campaign” for the support of most vulnerable populations and children during the ongoing COVID-19 response and its aftermath in India.  
ii.In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, UNICEF has launched Reimagine – an urgent appeal to governments, the public, donors and the private sector to support UNICEF’s efforts to respond, recover and reimagine a world severely impacted by COVID-19.
iii.Importantly, Ogilvy, a New York (United States) based advertising agency is offering free of charge support in developing the creative narrative for the campaign.
About FICCI:
President– Sangita Reddy
Secretary General– Dilip Chenoy
Headquarter– New Delhi
About UNICEF:
Headquarter– New York, United States (US)
Executive Director– Henrietta Holsman Fore
UNICEF Representative in India– Dr Yasmin Ali Haque
<< Read Full News >>

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

8.9% of the world’s population, went hungry in 2019: UN’s State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020

i.In accordance with the United Nations'(UN) annual report “The state of food security and nutrition in the world- Transforming food systems for affordable healthy diets”, nearly 690 million people, or 8.9% of the world’s population, went hungry in 2019, an increase of 10 million since 2018 and of nearly 60 million since 2014. 
ii.The report warned that the COVID-19 pandemic may add an additional 83 to 132 million people to the ranks of the undernourished in 2020. 
iii.The report has been prepared by 5 UN agencies, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Fund For Agricultural Development (IFAD), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFP) and World Health Organization (WHO).
About United Nations
Headquarter– New York, United States (US)
Secretary General– Antonio Manuel de Oliveira Guterres
<< Read Full News >>

UNODC’s World Wildlife Crime Report: Pangolin Scale Seizure Jumped 10 times Between 2014 & 2018

i.On 10th July 2020, The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) released its World Wildlife Crime Report stating that the Seizure of the scales of the Pangolins, the most trafficked wild animal in the world has increased 10 times between the year 2014 and 2018.
ii.The report states that the number of legally imported pangolin scales went from zero to around 13 tonnes between 2013 and 2017.
About UNODC:
Director-General/ Executive Director– Ghada Fathi Waly
Headquarters– Vienna, Austria
<< Read Full News >>

BANKING & FINANCE

NABARD organised a ‘digital choupal’ to mark its 39th Foundation Day; 2 schemes each of Rs 5,000 cr announced

i.On July 12, 2020, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has celebrated its 39th Foundation day.On July 13, 2020, NABARD has organized its first “digital choupal”, a video conference which brought together farmers from across the country who have been associated with NABARD in 7 development projects in rural.
ii.On this occasion, NABARD has announced Rs 5,000 crore of refinance scheme for banks and financial institutions for providing finance to the beneficiaries of its 2,150 watershed development projects and also earmarked another Rs 5,000 crore for turning Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), into multi service centres. 
About National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)
Chairman– G R Chintala
Headquarter– Mumbai, Maharashtra
<< Read Full News >>

IRDAI mandated insurance companies to launch ‘Corona Kavach’ & ‘Corona Rakshak’ amid increasing COVID-19 cases

i.Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has made it mandatory for 30 general and health insurers to launch short-term standard health policies for coronavirus disease (Covid-19) viz. Corona Kavach and Corona Rakshak, due to rapid increase in COVID-19 cases in India. Notably, the premium under both the products shall be the pan-India basis and no geographic location or zone-based pricing will be allowed.
ii.Minimum entry age for both the policies will be 18 years and the maximum 65.
iii.The Tenure range for both policies is between 3.5 months to 9.5 months.
About Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI):
Chairman– Dr. Subhash Chandra Khuntia
Headquarter– Hyderabad, Telangana
<< Read Full News >>

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS        

Legendary Hockey Player Ashok Kumar, Honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award of  Mohun Bagan Football Club

On 13th July 2020, the 70 years old Legendary Hockey Player Ashok Kumar, key player of the 1975 World Cup winning Indian Hockey team was honoured with the Lifetime achievement award by the Kolkata base football club – Mohun Bagan Athletic Club on its foundation day over the virtual ceremony.
About Mohun Bagan Athletic Club:
President– Swapan Sadhan Bose
Headquarters– Kolkata, West Bengal
Founded– 1889
<< Read Full News >>

Bloomberg Billionaires Index-Mukesh Ambani becomes World’s 6th richest man, surpassing Elon Musk, Sergey Brin and Larry Page

On July 14, 2020 the Bloomberg Billionaires Index has ranked Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries Ltd(RIL) as the World’s 6th richest man with a worth USD 72.4 billion after surpassing Elon Musk, co-founder & CEO of Tesla and Alphabet Inc co founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page.
Reason Behind
Ambani’s net worth has been raised as he has sold his shares in Jio Platform.
Key Info
i.Larry Page is ranked in 7th position with a net worth of USD 71.6 billion, Sergey Brin in 9th position(USD 69.4B) and Elon Musk in 10th position(USD 68.6 billion).
ii.Warren Buffett is ranked in 8th position with a networth of USD 69.7B, after he gave away USD 2.9 billion to charity
Global Rankings

Note– The Bloomberg Billionaires Index is a daily ranking of the world’s richest people.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS         

Hemang Amin, Appointed as the Interim CEO of BCCI

On 13th July 2020, the Board of Control for Cricket in India(BCCI) announced the appointment of Hemang Amin, the current Chief Operating Officer(COO) of Indian Premier League (IPL) as the interim Chief Executive Officer(CEO) following the resignation of Rahul Johri on 9th July 2020.
i.Amin joined the operations team of IPL in 2010 and became the COO in November 2015 following the resignation of Sundar Raman, who was the COO of IPL.
ii.Amin takes over BCCI while BCCI is being forced to adopt the Supreme Court-directed administrative reforms.
iii.Amin will be handling the roles of CEO in the interim period until the appointment of the new CEO.
iv.The BCCI hired Korn Ferry, consulting agency to hire the first ever CEO and this time the organisation will decide on the appointment of a new CEO in the meeting on 17th July 2020 through video conferencing.
About Board of Control for Cricket in India:
President– Sourav Ganguly
Secretary– Jay Shah
CEO– Hemang Amin(Interim)
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

IIT Kanpur Develops ‘SHUDH’, UV Sanitizing Device to make Surroundings COVID free

The Imagineering Laboratory department of IIT Kanpur has developed an Ultraviolet (UV) sanitizing product, ’SHUDH’. SHUDH is a smartphone operated Handy UV Disinfection Helper. It helps to make the surroundings COVID free especially the highly prone places such as hospitals, hotels, malls, offices and schools.
Features of SHUDH
i.SHUDH has 6 UV lights each of 15 Watts, which can be monitored individually from a distance.
ii.The product’s location, speed, on/off can be remotely controlled using a smartphone by installing an android application.
iii.On its full operation it can disinfect a 10×10 square feet room in about 15 minutes. This was proven in the initial testing
About IIT Kanpur:
Director– Prof. Abhay Karandikar
Chairperson, Board of Governors– Koppillil Radhakrishnan

ARAD and CARMEL – New Israeli Assault Rifles Are Set to Manufacture in India under Make in India Initiative

i.The latest Israeli Assault Rifles, Arad and Carmel, will be manufactured under the Make in India initiative in the PLR Systems Private Limited, established by Israel Weapons Industries(IWI) in 2017 as a joint venture with Punj Lloyd in Madhya Pradesh, India.
ii.PLR Systems is the first private sector company that has a license for manufacturing Small Arms and Ammunition.
About PLR Systems:
Chairman– Ashok Wadhawan
Location– Bhind, Madhya Pradesh
<< Read Full News >>

SPORTS

Former Australian Skipper Mile Jedinak Announces Retirement from Football 

Mile Jedinak (35), Former Australian skipper and Crystal Palace midfielder from Sydney announced his retirement on 11 July, 2020. He has been the captain for Australia national Team.
Career of Mile Jedinak:

• He played 79 times for his country, and was captain for over 25 times.
• He has played in 2010, 2014, 2018 FIFA World Cups.
• Mile captained the Socceroos’ to win the 2015 Asian cup in his own country.
• He has represented many clubs in his career.

About Australia:
Capital- Canberra
Currency- Australian Dollar

OBITUARY

Dutch Football Player Wim Suurbier Passed Away at 75

Dutch football player Wim Suurbier(Wilhelmus Lourens Johannes Suurbier) passed away at 75. His cause for death was not provided.  He was suffering from a cerebral hemorrhage.  He was born in Eindhoven, Netherlands on 16 January 1945.

•  He is a defender who helped to establish the free-flowing ‘Total Football’ on Ajax(Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax) and Dutch national teams of the 1970s.

About Wim Suurbier
Key Achievements
i.Wim Suurbier made 509 appearances for Ajax between 1964 and 1977. He has won 
60 caps for the Netherlands from 1966 to 1978.
ii.With him on the team Ajax won European Cup for 3 consecutive years(1971, 1972 and 1973) and 7 national titles from 1964 to 1977.
iii.He has played in 2 World Cup finals(1974, 1978) with the Netherlands.
iv.After a long career with Ajax(13 years), he also played in Germany. In addition to it, he joined Cruyff at the Los Angeles Aztecs, USA in 1979
As a Coach– He served as the head and assistant coach for many clubs including Golden Bay Earthquakes, St. Petersburg Kickers among others.
Nickname– The Dutch club called him “the first modern back of the Netherlands”.
Note: Total Football is a tactical theory in association football in which any outfield player can take over the role of any other player in a team.
About Netherlands:
Capital– Amsterdam
Currency– Euro
Prime Minister– Mark Rutte

BOOKS & AUTHORS

A new book titled” If It Bleeds” authored by Stephen King released in India

A new book titled “If It Bleeds”, a collection of four stories, authored by Stephen King has been released in India on July 10, 2020. The book published by Hachette India has centered on a bomb at Albert Macready Middle School. It is a sequel to his bestselling work, The Outsider.
About Stephen King:
King is one of the most distinguished contemporary authors. He has been the recipient of the 2014 National Medal of Arts. He was also awarded with the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He was in the news recently for voicing his support for the transgender community.

STATE NEWS

Central Govt Provides Rs 1500 crore to Haryana for its Crop Diversification and Ponds Rejuvenation

i.Central government provides financial aid of Rs 1500 crore to Haryana for water conservation, which includes the following,

• Rs 500 crore to expand crop diversification under the ‘Mera Pani Meri Virasat’ scheme 
• Rs 1000 crore to rejuvenate the ponds and treat water.

ii.The Central govt will also be providing Rs 1000 crore under the Jal Jeevan Mission(a central government initiative under the Ministry of Jal Shakti, aims to ensure access of piped water for every household in India).
About Haryana:
Capital– Chandigarh
Governor– Satyadeo Narain Arya
Chief Minister– Manohar Lal Khattar
<< Read Full News >>

Nitin Gadkari Inaugurates and Lays Foundation Stones of 11 Highway Projects Worth Around Rs 20,000 crore in Haryana Virtually

i.Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises(MSMEs) Nitin Gadkari inaugurated and laid foundation stones of 11 Highway projects worth around Rs 20 thousand crore in Haryana through a web based program(video conferencing) presided over by Haryana Chief Minister, Manohar Lal Khattar. 
ii.The projects are part of new economic corridors in the state.
iii.The 3 projects worth over Rs 2,240 crore were inaugurated and foundation stones were laid for 8 projects worth over Rs 17,000 crore.
About Haryana:
National Park(NP)– Kalesar NP, Sultanpur NP
Wildlife Sanctuary(WLS)– Kalesar WLS, Bir Shikargah WLS, Chhilchhila WLS, Nahar WLS, Abubshahar WLS, Bhindawas WLS, Khaparwas WLS, Khol Hi-Raitan WLS.
<< Read Full News >>

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