Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2019

Notes:
The World Vitiligo Day (WVD) is observed every year on June 25 to raise awareness about the condition. The 2019 theme ‘The Quality of Life of a Vitiligo Patient’ focuses on mental and medical journey of vitiligo. Vitiligo is an autoimmune disorder wherein the immune system of the body attacks the healthy cells and in turn starts affecting the body. The condition is characterized by white patches on the skin that develops as a result of melanocytes within the skin. These are the cells that are responsible for the skin pigment melanin that gives color to your skin. The white patches appear when the melanocytes die off. The condition is also termed as Vitiligo or Leucoderma or White Leprosy.

Notes:
The first-ever International Security Alliance (ISA)’s joint security exercise titled ‘ISALEX19’ has kick-started in Abu Dhabi, the capital of United Area Emirates (UAE). The representatives of 50 law enforcement agencies of the ISA are participating in the exercise. The participants include representatives from tactical teams, rapid intervention units, communications, civil defence, and explosive ordnance disposal, teams. The ISA is an international working group to confront organised, transnational and extremist crimes. The alliance now comprises nine countries, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, France, Italy, Spain, Senegal, Singapore, and the Slovak Republic.

Notes:
In Jammu and Kashmir, the district administration of Rajouri has been launched a campaign called “Operation Khumaar” to make 312 panchayats tobacco-free. The programme is run by the district administration to make panchayats free from tobacco and tobacco-based products. Under this programme, even the headmaster of the schools have been authorised to impose a fine on the sale of tobacco within 100 yards of school limits. Block Medical Officers (BMO) have been directed to set up counselling centres at all Community Health Centres (CHCs) to help tobacco consumers to quit this habit. The district officers have been urged upon to work in a mission mode so as to make the society free from the injurious tobacco and tobacco-based products.

Notes:
Santosh Rana (76), the veteran Naxalite leader, has passed away in Kolkata on June 29, 2019. He is one of the foremost leaders of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) and a major thinker on caste, class and tribal politics in West Bengal and winner of a top literary award in the State. The CPI-ML (PCC) was one of the very first Naxalite groups to participate in elections. Under his leadership, CPI-ML (PCC) was active in parts of Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Assam. It played a significant role in opposing the CPI-M led government during the Nandigram land agitation, which contributed to the electoral debacle of the Left Front in West Bengal. He argued in his award-winning autobiography, Rajnitir Ek Jibon [A Life in Politics], that the Left in India made a huge mistake as they never analysed and responded to the caste question.

Notes:
The Odisha government has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with state’s table tennis body and Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) to host the 21st Commonwealth Table Tennis Championship. The tournament is scheduled to be held at the Jawaharlal Indoor Stadium in Cuttack from July 17-22, 2019. The tournament has received a good entry with 14 associations, consisting India, Singapore, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, England, Scotland, Wales, Jersey, Australia, Cyprus, South Africa, Nigeria, Pakistan.

Notes:
Under the emergency provisions, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has signed an Rs 200 crore defence deal with Russia to acquire ‘Strum Ataka’ anti-tank missile for its fleet of Mi-35 attack choppers. The Mi-35s are the existing attack choppers of the Indian Air Force and are set to be replaced with the Apache gunships being acquired from the US and slated to be delivered from next month onwards. Earlier, in June 2019, IAF signed Rs 300 crore deal with an Israeli defence firm to procure a batch of ‘Spice 2000’ guided bombs. These bombs are already present with the IAF and were used in the Balakot air strikes by Dassault’s Mirage 2000 to target Jaish-e-Mohammed training camps across the Line of Control (LoC). With this, the IAF has emerged as the frontrunner in terms of weapon acquisition under the emergency procurement, followed by the Indian Army. Under the emergency powers given to the three services, they can buy the equipment of their choice within three months at a cost of up to Rs 300 crore per case.

Notes:
The International Day of the Tropics is observed every year on June 29 to raise awareness to the specific challenges faced by tropical areas, the far-reaching implications of the issues affecting the world’s tropical zone and the need, at all levels, to raise awareness and to underline the important role that countries in the tropics will play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The day provides an opportunity to take stock of progress across the tropics, to share tropical stories and expertise and to acknowledge the diversity and potential of the region. The Tropics are a region of the Earth, roughly defined as the area between the tropic of Cancer and the tropic of Capricorn. The Tropics account for 40% of the world’s total surface area and are host to approximately 80% of the world’s biodiversity and much of its language and cultural diversity. The tropical region faces a number of challenges such as climate change, deforestation, logging, urbanisation and demographic changes.

Notes:
The 6th edition of Exercise Garuda-VI has started between Indian and French Air Force from 1st of July 2019 at French Air Force Base – Mont-de-Marsan. The exercise will see the most potent fighter aircraft of the two countries going head-to-head to validate the latest defence strategies and fine-tune their waging capabilities and is expected to showcase fighter jets like Rafale, Mirage 2000, Sukhoi 30 from the two sides. Participation of Indian Air Force (IAF) in the exercise will also promote professional interaction, exchange experiences and operational knowledge besides strengthening bilateral relations with the French Air Force. It will also provide a good opportunity to the air warriors to operate in an international environment.

Notes:
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has operationalized the first Aadhaar Seva Kendra (ASK) in Delhi and Vijayawada. The new Aadhaar centres are similar to Passport Seva Kendras run by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). These are meant to facilitate enrolment, updation and other activities. The centre has the capacity to handle upto 1,000 Aadhaar-related requests daily. The Aadhaar enrolment and updation centre is open from 9.30 am to 6 pm on all days except Tuesdays. These centres will soon be rolled out across 53 cities of India at an estimated project cost of Rs 300-400 crore.

Notes:
Manoj Kumar Nambiar, MD of Arohan Financial Services (AFS), has been elected as new chairman of Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN). The MFIN is an industry association consists of 56 NBFC-MFIs (Non Banking Financial Company-Micro Finance Institutions) and 40 associates including Banks, SFBs (Small Finance Banks ) and NBFCs. It is also the Self-Regulatory Organization (SRO) for the regulated NBFC-MFI.