We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 17 & 18 May 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 17 & 18 May 2020
NATIONAL AFFAIRS
Rajnath Singh approves Rs 400 crore Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme
Union Defence minister Rajnath Singh has approved the launch of Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme(DTIS) with a cost of Rs 400 crores to create testing infrastructure for the defence sector so as to boost domestic defence and aerospace manufacturing.
About DGQA:
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
Director General– Lieutenant General(Lt Gen)Sanjay Chauhan
Constituency
Rajnath Singh– Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
<< Read Full News >>
Centre approves modified DPR of Ujh Multipurpose Project in Jammu and Kashmir
On 16th May 2020, The Centre approved to modification of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the Ujh multipurpose Project (MPP) located on the river Ujh, main tributaries of river Ravi in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir at the estimated cost of Rs.9,167 crore.
About Ministry of Jal Shakti:
The Ministry of Water Resource, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation was renamed as the Ministry of Jal Shakti on 14th June 2019.
Minister– Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Minister of State– Rattan LalKataria
<< Read Full News >>
Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan Part-3: Package for agriculture Fisheries and Food Processing Sectors detailed by Nirmala Sitharaman
The Part 3 of “Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan” (self-reliant India Movement) is consisted of 11 measures. 8 measures are for improving agricultural infrastructure and 3 measures are for administrative and governance reforms, including removing restrictions on sale and stock limits of farm produce.
- NABARD anchored Rs 1 lakh crore Agri Infrastructure Fund for farm-gate infrastructure for farmers
- Rs 10,000 crore scheme for Formalisation of Micro Food Enterprises (MFE)
- 20,000 crore allocated for fisherman through Pradhan MantriMatsyaSampadaYojana (PMMSY)
- Rs. 13,343 cr National Animal Disease Control Programme launched
- Rs. 15,000 cr Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund to be formulated
- Rs. 4,000 cr allocated to promote Herbal Cultivation
- Rs 500 cr allocated towards Beekeeping initiatives
- “Operation Greens” extended with Rs 500 cr
- Amendments to Essential Commodities Act, 1955 to enable better price realisation for farmers
- Agriculture Marketing Reforms to provide marketing choices to farmers
- Agriculture Produce Pricing and Quality Assurance
3rd advance estimates of production projects all time high foodgrain production of 295.67 million tonnes for 2019-20
According to Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare’s 3rd Advance Estimates of production of major crops for 2019-20, the total foodgrain production in the country is estimated to achieve a record of all-time high 295.67 million tonnes in 2019-20 for the 4th consecutive year since 2016-17 crop year (July-June).
About Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Ministry:
Union minister– Narendra Singh Tomar(Constituency- Morena, Madhya Pradesh )
Minister of State– Parshottam Rupala(Gujarat), Kailash Choudhary(Constituency- Barmer, Rajasthan).
<< Read Full News >>
e-NAM reaches target 1000 mandis across 18 states and 3 Union Territories
On 15th May 2020, The Ministry of Agriculture announced that the e-NAM reached target 1000 mandis across the nation in 18 states and 3 union territories(UTs) with 38 new mandis integrated with the e-NAM platform of electronic agriculture trading portal.
About Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare:
Minister– Narendra Singh Tomar
Minister of State– Parshottam Rupala & Kailash Choudhary
<< Read Full News >>
Ultra-mega solar parks initiated India’s clean energy transition: US-based IEEFA report
i.Indian government has set a target of installing 175 gigawatts of renewable energy by the FY 2021-22 and 275 gigawatts by FY 2026-27 to transform the country’s power sector from an expensive, unreliable, and polluting fossil fuel‑based system into a low-cost, reliable and low-emission system based on renewable energy.
ii.The Bhadla Solar Park in Rajasthan is the world’s largest such installation to date, covering more than 14,000 acres with total capacity of 2,245 megawatts (MW)
About IEEFA:
It conducts research and analyses on financial and economic issues related to energy and the environment.
Headquarters– Cleveland, Ohio, United States (US)
<< Read Full News >>
GoM headed by Thawar Chand Gehlot proposes land pooling to corporatise agri, merging MGNREGA with skilling programmes
A Group of Ministers(GoM) panel headed by Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot on employment and skill development has drafted a set of proposals that includes land pooling to corporatise agriculture, merging MGNREGA with skilling programmes to create a wage subsidy programme.
About ESIC:
Headquarters– New Delhi
Director General– Anuradha Prasad, Indian Defence Accounts Service (I.D.A.S.)
<< Read Full News >>
BANKING & FINANCE
Centre, WB govt inked loan agreements with AIIB and World Bank for “West Bengal Major Irrigation and Flood Management Project”
i.The Government of India and West Bengal Government have inked two loan agreements with Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank(AIIB) and World Bank (WB) for the “West Bengal Major Irrigation and Flood Management Project” to improve irrigation services and flood management in the Damodar Valley Command Area (DVCA) of West Bengal.The total outlay of the project is $413.8 million.The Government of West Bengal has infused $123.8 million for this project.
ii.World Bank has provided a loan of $145million which has a6-year grace period, and a maturity of 23.5 years.
iii.Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)has provided a loan of $145million which has a 6-year grace period, and a maturity of 24 years.
About World Bank
Headquarters– Washington, D.C., United States
President– David Malpass
Members– 189 countries
About AIIB
Headquarters– Beijing, China
President– JinLiqun
Membership– 102; 80 members & 22 prospective members
About West Bengal:
Chief Minister– Mamata Banerjee
Capital– Kolkata
<< Read Full News >>
Rs 1,500 crores sanctioned for Punjab to ensure continuous credit flow to farmers: NABARD
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development(NABARD) has sanctioned Rs 1,500 crores for Punjab to ensure continuous credit flow to farmers, through state cooperative banks, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Out of the total amount Rs 1,000 crores is sanctioned to Punjab State Cooperative Bank and Rs 500 crores to Punjab Gramin Bank.
About NABARD:
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra
Chairman– Harsh Kumar Bhanwala
<< Read Full News >>
APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS
Zubair Iqbal appointed as MD of J&K Bank, Chibber to continue as chairman
On May 16, 2020, The Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) administration approved the appointment of senior vice president (SVP) of HDFC bank Zubair Iqbal as the new Managing Director (MD) of Jammu and Kashmir Bank, for a period of 3 years. Rajesh Kumar Chibber, who is currently MD and Chairman of J&K bank, has been reappointed as the Chairman for the period of 3 years.
About Jammu & Kashmir Bank:
Headquarters– Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir.
Tagline– Serving To Empower.
<< Read Full News >>
ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS
Godrej consumer products arm picks balance 25% stake in Kenya’s Canon Chemicals
Godrej East Africa Holdings Ltd, a subsidiary of FMCG (Fast-moving consumer goods) firm Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL), has acquired the balance 25% stake in Kenya-based Canon Chemicals Ltd for an undisclosed sum.
i.Earlier on February 04, 2016,the Godrej group has acquired 75 % stake in Canon for an undisclosed sum.
About Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL):
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra
Managing Director & CEO– Vivek Gambhir
About Canon Chemicals Ltd:
Headquarters– Nairobi, Kenya.
<< Read Full News >>
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Indian Navy commissions 7th ship of MK IV class Landing Craft Utility ‘IN LCU L57’ at Port Blair
Lt. General PS Rajeshwar, Commanding-in-Chief of Andaman & Nicobar Command, has commissioned the 103rd Landing Craft Utility (LCU) MK IV class vessel ‘INLCU L 57’ (Yard no: 2098) into the Indian Navy at Port Blair. It was the 7th in the series of 8 such vessels being indigenously made by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited (GRSE) for the Navy.
i.The ship can be used for beaching operations, search and rescue, disaster relief operations, supply and replenishment and evacuation from distant islands.
About GRSE (Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited):
Headquarters– Kolkata,West Bengal
Chairman & Managing Director– Rear Admiral Vipin Kumar Saxena
<< Read Full News >>
CSIR collaborates with Intel India and IIIT-Hyderabad to develop solution and strategies to combat COVID-19
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) working with Intel India and International Institute of Information Technology(IIIT), Hyderabad in developing a faster and cost efficient COVID-19 diagnostic solution, an IT technology to understand epidemiology and AI based risk stratification for the patients.
About Intel:
Chairman– Dr.OmarIshrak
CEO– Robert (Bob) H. Swan
Vice President, Intel India– NivrutiRai (Data Platforms Group General Manager)
About IIIT:
Director– P J Narayanan
Founded– 1998
<< Read Full News >>
Scientists of JNCASR Develops Injectable Silk Fibroin-based hydrogel for Insulin delivery in diabetic patients
The Research team of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) headed by Prof.T.Govindaraju developed the Silk Fibroin (SF) formulated using biocompatible additives and an injectable SF hydrogel (iSFH) to ease the insulin delivery for diabetic patients.
About JNCASR:
President– G.U Kulkarni
Located– Jakkur, Karnataka
Established in– 1989
<< Read Full News >>
Bhopal’s CSIR-AMPRI faculty Rajeev kumar develops lightweight carbon foam that can replace lead batteries
Dr. Rajeev Kumar of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research -Advanced Materials and Processes Research Institute (CSIR -AMPRI), who received the Inspire Faculty Award, has developed a porous lightweight carbon foam with a density of less than 0.3g/cc that can replace lead-grids in lead acid batteries.
About Advanced Materials and Processes Research Institute:
Location– Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
Director– Dr. Avanish Kumar Srivastava
<< Read Full News >>
COVID-19: University of Hyderabad, CSIR-CCMB ties up with Vins Bioproducts for antibody therapy
On May 15, 2020, University of Hyderabad (UoH) and CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research)-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), have tied up with Vins Bioproducts Limited, an antisera manufacturing company incubated at UoH’s BioNEST incubation centre, to develop antibody- based immunotherapy for immediate treatment for Covid-19 pandemic.
About University of Hyderabad (UoH):
Motto– Sā vidya ya vimuktaye (Education results in Liberation).
Chancellor– Justice L. Narasimha Reddy.
<< Read Full News >>
A novel tool to help gain deeper insights into Parkinson’s disease
Scientists of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) (Indian School of Mines ISM) Dhanbad and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research(CSIR)-Indian Institute of Chemical Biology(IICB) teamed up to find a solution to understand Parkinson’s disease which is a common neurodegenerative disease with no cure.
About IIT ISM Dhanbad:
Director– Rajiv Shekhar
Deputy Director– J K Pattanayak
Main Campus– Shanbad, Jharkhand
<< Read Full News >>
BOOKS & AUTHORS
Union HRD Minister e-Launches seven titles on “Psycho-Social Impact of Pandemic & Lockdown and How to Cope With”
On May 15, 2020, Union HRD (Human Resource Development) Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank e-Launched print as well as e-editions of the set of 7 titles on “Psycho-Social Impact of pandemic & lockdown and how to Cope With” under the corona studies series published by National Book Trust (NBT), India. These books will serve as guides to mental well-being of people at large.
About NBT:
Chairman– Govind Prasad Sharma.
Headquarters– Vasant Kunj, Delhi.
<< Read Full News >>
A Book titled “Wuhan Diary: Dispatches from a Quarantined City” authored by Fang Fang
The book titled as “Wuhan Diary: Dispatches from a Quarantined City” authored by Chinese literary writer Fang Fang is a compilation of online diary entries and social media posts that document 60 days of lockdown during COVID-19. The book was released in India in an ebook format on May 15, 2020, published by HarperNonFiction, the audio will follow on May 26.
<< Read Full News >>
IMPORTANT DAYS
International Day of Light 2020: May 16
The International Day of Light (IDL) is celebrated every year on May 16 globally. The day marks the anniversary of the first successful operation of the laser in 1960 by physicist and engineer, Theodore Maiman. The day was organized by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) which celebrates the role light plays in science, culture, art, education and sustainable development as well as in the fields of medicines, communications & energy.
About UNESCO:
Headquarters– Paris,France.
Director-General– Audrey Azoulay.
<< Read Full News >>
National dengue day 2020, May 16
On 16th May Every year India observes National Dengue Day suggested by the Union Health Ministry to create awareness about measures on dengue prevention and to control the spread of the vector-borne disease and preparedness before the transmission season of dengue begins.
About Ministry of Health and Family Welfare:
Union Minister– Harsh Vardhan
Minister of State– Ashwini Kumar Choubey
Secretary– Preeti Sudan
<< Read Full News >>
STATE NEWS
AP govt forms 5-member panel headed by Neerabh Kumar Prasad to probe Vizag gas leak
The Andhra Pradesh (AP) government has formed a 5-member high-powered committee led by Neerabh Kumar Prasad to probe into the causes behind the leakage of styrene gas from the LG Polymers India Ltd located at RR Venkatapuram in Visakhapatnam. The panel required to submit its final report within one month.
i.The gas leak had claimed 12 lives and left more than 200 people ill after they inhaled the styrene gas.
About Andhra Pradesh (AP):
Capital– Amaravati
Chief minister– Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy
Governor– Biswabhusan Harichandan
State Flower– Jasmine
<< Read Full News >>
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Current Affairs Today (AffairsCloud Today)
| S.no | Current Affairs 17 & 18 May 2020 |
|---|---|
| 1 | Rajnath Singh approves Rs 400 crore Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme |
| 2 | Centre approves modified DPR of Ujh Multipurpose Project in Jammu and Kashmir |
| 3 | Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan Part-3: Package for agriculture Fisheries and Food Processing Sectors detailed by Nirmala Sitharaman |
| 4 | 3rd advance estimates of production projects all time high foodgrain production of 295.67 million tonnes for 2019-20 |
| 5 | e-NAM reaches 1000 mandis across 18 states and 3 Union Territories |
| 6 | Ultra-mega solar parks initiated India’s clean energy transition: US-based IEEFA report |
| 7 | GoM proposes land pooling to corporatise agri, merging MNREGA with skilling programmes |
| 8 | Centre, WB govt inked loan agreements with AIIB and World Bank for $413 mn Irrigation and Flood Management Project |
| 9 | Rs 1,500 crores sanctioned for Punjab to ensure continuous credit flow to farmers: NABARD |
| 10 | Zubair Iqbal appointed as MD of J&K Bank, Chibber to continue as chairman |
| 11 | Godrej consumer products arm picks balance 25% stake in Kenya’s Canon Chemicals |
| 12 | Indian Navy commissions 7th ship of MK IV class Landing Craft Utility ‘IN LCU L57’ at Port Blair |
| 13 | CSIR collaborates with Intel India and IIIT-Hyderabad to develop solution and strategies to combat COVID-19 |
| 14 | Scientists of JNCASR Develops Injectable Silk Fibroin-based hydrogen for Insulin delivery in diabetic patients |
| 15 | Bhopal’s CSIR-AMPRI faculty Rajeev kumar develops lightweight carbon foam that can replace lead batteries |
| 16 | COVID-19: University of Hyderabad, CSIR-CCMB ties up with Vins Bioproducts for antibody therapy |
| 17 | A novel tool to help gain deeper insights into Parkinson’s disease |
| 18 | Union HRD Minister e-Launches seven titles on “Psycho-Social Impact of Pandemic & Lockdown and How to Cope With” |
| 19 | A Book titled “Wuhan Diary: Dispatches from a Quarantined City” authored by Fang Fang |
| 20 | International Day of Light 2020: May 16 |
| 21 | National dengue day 2020, May 16 |
| 22 | AP govt forms 5-member panel headed by Neerabh Kumar Prasad to probe Vizag gas leak |
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