GK & Current Affairs Quiz: September 30, 2018

Notes:
In Madhya Pradesh, India’s first corn festival is being held in Chhindwara from September 29 to bring together researchers, industrialists, farmers and other stakeholders from across the country to explore the unrealized potential of the city in becoming a hub for corn based industries. The 2-days festival is one of a kind international event. Chhindwara is the largest corn producing district in Madhya Pradesh with productivity of 5200Kg per hectare. In 2017-2018, the production is 12 lac ton corn from 2,60,000 hectare – highest in the state. Chhindwara is very well connected with Nagpur (130 km) and Wardha dry port (175 Km) via national and state highways. Hence, the city is best suited for developing Corn based industries. Corn (also known as Maize) has become a major industrial crop owing to its use in plethora of industries. The corn-based plastic is considered a bioplastic because it is made from plant materials.

Notes:
NITI Aayog has signed a Statement of Intent (SoI) with cloud services provider Oracle to curb the distribution of fake drugs using new technologies. Apollo Hospitals and Strides Pharma Sciences will partner in this effort. The partners will pilot a real drug supply chain using blockchain decentralized ledger and Internet of Things (IoT) software. The Blockchain technology helps to permanently register a drug’s record in the manufacturer’s drug supply chain (serial number, labelling, scanning), leaving no scope for record tampering. At every point of hand change, it records the drug’s movement – from manufacturer to logistics, to stockist to hospital, or pharmacy to consumer. In case of a fake drug, the software will detect irregularity. Additionally, critical information such as chemical ingredients of the drug or maintenance of temperature control in case of life saving drugs or vaccines can also be tracked.

Notes:
Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu has recently approved the constitution of a High Level Advisory Group (HLAG) to look into the opportunities and ways to address the ongoing challenges in the global trade scenario. The HLAG will be headed by Surjit S. Bhalla, Director of Oxus Research and Investments. The HLAG will consider ways for boosting India’s share and importance in global merchandise and services trade, managing pressing bilateral trade relations and mainstreaming new age policy making. The Terms of Reference (ToR) of the HLAG are to examine the prevailing international trade dynamics, including the rising protectionist tendencies, particularly by the major economies, non-engagement of some countries on outstanding trade negotiation issues and commitments, including the Doha Development Agenda, and their insistence on pursuing negotiating mandates, in many cases prematurely and without efforts, to build consensus and common understanding.

Notes:
No Indian institution figures in the top 250 of the Times Higher Education’s (THE) world university rankings 2019. Though, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru has retained its position as the highest-ranked centre in India. It was placed between the 251-300 band, while IIT Indore, Bombay and Roorkee with Jagadguru Sri Shivarathreeswara University from Karnataka make the country’s top five. Globally, University of Oxford has acquired first position for a third consecutive year followed by Cambridge and Stanford University. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology rose one place to number four. In India, number of Indian institutions in the rankings increased from 42 last year to 49, making it the fifth best-represented nation.

Notes:
Public sector Assam Petrochemicals Limited will roll out India’s first methanol-based alternative cooking fuel at Namrup methanol plant in Dibrugarh district, Assam on October 5. The pilot project involves 500 burners and stoves, each fuelled by a 1.2-litre canister of methanol. It will be priced at around Rs 32 and about 18 of them would be equivalent to one conventional domestic LPG cylinder. The technology for the canister and the special burner has been provided by Sweden. At present, the Namrup plant produces 100 tonnes of methanol per day. The ongoing expansion of the plant will push production by 500 tonnes per day by September 2019. As per experts, methanol is clean and green fuel besides being 30% cheaper than Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG). It is a scalable and sustainable fuel that can be produced from a variety of feedstock like natural gas, coal, bio-mass, municipal solid waste and CO2.

Notes:
The World Rabies Day (WRD) is observed every year on September 28 to raise awareness about rabies prevention and to highlight progress in defeating this horrifying disease. The day also marks the anniversary of Louis Pasteur’s death, the French chemist and microbiologist, who developed the first rabies vaccine. The 2018 theme is ” Rabies: Share the message. Save a life! “. Today, safe and efficacious animal and human vaccines are among the important tools that exist to eliminate human deaths from rabies while awareness is the key driver for success of communities to engage in effective rabies prevention.

Notes:
Kerala is hosting the 8th Asian Yoga Sports Championship 2018 at the Jimmy George indoor stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala from September 27 to 30. The event will witness around 500 participants representing 14 Asian countries showcasing their yoga skills. Yogaratna Awards will be given away to foreign delegates who were instrumental in popularising yoga in their respective countries. Participants from various countries including China, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, United Arab Emirates, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, Iran, Nepal, Vietnam, Afghanisthan and Bangladesh would vie for the top prizes in various categories. The Indian contingent included 111 yoga exponents, including five Keralites.

Notes:
Recently, the Ministry of AYUSH has set up an AYUSH Information Cell at the premises of the Indian Embassy in Romania to disseminate authentic information about AYUSH system of medicine. The AYUSH Information Cell in Romania will also be helpful to create awareness about the traditional Indian system of medicine. It will help to organise lectures, consultation, conduct seminars, training courses and facilitate associations of AYUSH stakeholders for networking conducting meetings, develop awareness of AYUSH system among public in Romania. The cell was digitally inaugurated by Vice President Venkaiah Naidu during his recent visit to Romania in September 2018. On this occasion, a book on ‘Ayurveda in Romania’ was also released by Vice president.

Notes:
Rajni Kant Mishra, a 1984 batch Indian Police Service officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre, has been appointed the new Director-General of Border Security Force (BSF). He will succeed K.K. Sharma, who is superannuating on September 30, 2018. Mr. Mishra has been shifted from the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB). He will head the BSF till August 31, 2019. Special D-G (BSF) S.S. Deswal, will replace Mr. Mishra in SSB.

Notes:
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, under the aegis of Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban (SBM – U), has partnered with Google to launch Loo Review campaign to encourage all local guides in India to rate and review public toilets on Google Maps. This campaign is part of a feature which allows all citizens to locate public toilets in their cities on Google Maps, Search and the Assistant and also provide feedback on the same. The joint campaign to be run throughout October and November 2018 is an effort to increase the awareness and ease of locating public toilets across India. The campaign will involve and engage Local Guides in India to rate and review public toilets on Google Maps, and use the hashtag #LooReview for the chance to be featured on Google Local Guides’ social channels. Local Guides are people who share reviews, photos, and knowledge on Google Maps to help people explore the world. Currently, 500+ cities in India with more than 30,000 toilets with the name of “SBM Toilet” are live on Google Maps.