Top GKToday’s News Headlines-11 April 2020

April 11, 2020

Here are Top GKToday’s News Headlines for 11 April, 2020

India

HRD Minister launches week-long ‘Bharat Padhe Online’ campaign

The Union Minister of Human Resource Development Ramesh Pokhriyal launched a week-long ‘Bharat Padhe Online’ campaign for crowd sourcing of ideas for improving online education ecosystem of India. Ideas can be shared on [email protected] and on twitter by using #BharatPadheOnline till April 16.

Two technologies launched by SCTIMST, Trivandrum to combat COVID-19

Scientists at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, Kerala, have designed two technologies to fight COVID-19 pandemic. These are: Chitra Disinfection Gateway and Chitra UV Based Facemask Disposal Bin. SCTIMST is an autonomous institute under Centre’s Department of Science and Technology (DST).

TB testing machine TrueNat can be used for COVID-19 screening tests: ICMR

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has validated TrueNat – a tuberculosis testing machine for COVID-19 screening tests.

NCW launches WhatsApp number to report cases of domestic violence

The National Commission for Women (NCW) launched a WhatsApp number –7217735372 on April 10, 2020 to report cases of domestic violence, which have seen a rise during the lockdown period.

Hindustani classical singer Shanti Hiranand Chawla dies at 87

Renowned Hindustani classical singer and Padma Shri awardee Shanti Hiranand Chawla passed away in Gurgaon on April 10, 2020at the age of 87. The singer was trained in thumri, dadra and ghazal singing by Begum Akhtar.

Odisha becomes first State to extend lockdown till April 30

Odisha on April 9, 2020 became the first state to prolong the coronavirus lockdown which has been extended till April 30. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik made the announcement after a Cabinet meeting.

BEL & AIIMS develop remote system to monitor health of COVID-19 patients

Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) and AIIMS, Rishikesh have jointly developed a remote patient health monitoring system to the condition of COVID-19 patients without healthcare workers risking exposure to them. The device has non-invasive sensors to measure the main parameters of the patient such as patient: temperature, pulse rate, saturated oxygen level and respiration rate.

Sanitation app ‘Swachhata-MoHUA’ upgraded to allow reporting of COVID-19 cases

Sanitation app ‘Swachhata-MoHUA’, whose primary is to report sanitation-related grievances, has been updated to include features such as reporting of suspected cases of COVID-19 and lockdown violations, a statement from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) said on March 9, 2020.

Economy & Corporate

ADB President assures India of support against COVID-19 pandemic

President of Asian Development Bank, Masatsugu Asakawa, on April 10, 2020, assured Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of USD 2.2 billion (Rs. 16,500 crores) support to India in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Foreign exchange reserves decline to USD 474.66 billion in the week to April 3

The country’s foreign exchange reserves declined by USD 902 million to USD 474.66 billion in the week to April 3 due to a fall in foreign currency assets, according to the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India.

World

COVID 19: Ex-RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan in IMF MD’s advisory group

IMF MD Kristalina Georgieva on April 10, 2020 named former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and 11 others to her external advisory group to provide perspectives from around the globe on key developments and policy issues, including responses to the exceptional challenges the world now faces due to the coronavirus pandemic.

G20 Extraordinary Energy Ministers’ virtual Meeting held

Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Steel, participated in the G20 Extraordinary Energy Ministers’ virtual Meeting on April 10, 2020. The meeting was called by Saudi Arabia, in its capacity as the G20 Presidency, and chaired by Saudi Arabia Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz. Ways and means to ensure stable energy markets amidst demand reduction and production surplus were discussed.