Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2019

Notes:
The International Co-operative Day (ICD) is an annual celebration of the co-operative movement observed on the first Saturday in July since 1923 by the International Co-operative Alliance. The 2019 theme is “COOPS 4 DECENT WORK”. The aim of this celebration is to increase awareness of cooperatives. The event underscores the contributions of the cooperative movement to resolving the major problems addressed by the United Nations and to strengthening and extending the partnerships between the international cooperative movement and other actors.

Notes:
In Madhya Pradesh, along with distribution and marketing of certified and high quality seeds to farmers, the Madhya Pradesh State Cooperative Seed Federation has decided to produce its own seeds under the brand name ‘Sah-Beej’. The decision has been taken in a Board of Directors’ meeting held under the chairmanship of the Minister for Cooperatives Govind Singh in Bhopal on 9th July 2019. A plan has been made to produce seeds from the next Rabi season. A large number of seed committees present in the state, which will be linked to the seed federation and these committees will help in the marketing of seeds.

Notes:
The Asia’s first Six Sigma Institute of Mountain Medicines and High Altitude Rescue will be set up at Rudraprayag in Uttarakhand. It comes after Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat approved the proposal for establishing the mega Rs 750 crore mountain institute in Rudraprayag district of state. The institute will create 1,200 employment, Specialised healthcare, advance education and Rescue Training in the Uttarakhand. The purpose of the institute is to develop all type of research in Allopathy, Homeopathy, Ayurveda, Naturopathy and Yoga concerning High Altitude Mountains and to educate professionals in mountain medicines. The institute will also provide consultancy to the central and state government on key issues and help in promoting healthy lifestyle in mountains.

Notes:
Arun Kumar, an IAS officer of 1989 batch of Haryana cadre, has been appointed as the new chief of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Kumar is also the additional secretary in the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The DGCA is the Indian governmental regulatory body for civil aviation under the Ministry of Civil Aviation and is headquartered at New Delhi. This directorate investigates aviation accidents and incidents.

Notes:
The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) under the Ministry of Forest and Environment (MoEF) has recommended for “in-principle” permission for exploration of Uranium in Amrabad Tiger Reserve in Telangana. The approval comes despite contrary reports by forest officials after field inspections. The revised proposal seeks permission for exploration of uranium in 76 km in Amrabad and Udumilla regions, besides 7 km in the adjoining Nagarjunasagar Tiger Reserve in Andhra Pradesh, for use in nuclear power generation. The report noted that the environmental impact of mining included erosion, formation of sink holes, loss of biodiversity, and contamination of groundwater, surface water and soil, which could affect wildlife. However, the revised proposals will not need approval from the State Board of Wildlife again. They will be sent directly to the advisory panel for final approval, after which the State government will need to issue permission through formal orders. In India, uranium deposit discovered till now was either of low grade or of low tonnage or of both low grade and low tonnage.

Notes:
Kyriakos Mitsotakis has been sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Greece. His party – New Democracy – won a landslide victory in the 2019 legislative election with a score of 39.85% of votes and 158 seats in the Hellenic Parliament.

Notes:
In Mumbai, a documentary film club “KSHITIJ” has been launched by Film Division of India (FDI) in association with Indian Documentary Producer Association (IDPA). The public screenings will be organized on the 2nd and 4th Friday of every month during 5:00 pm – 6:30pm at Films Division Complex, followed by a short interaction of audience with the director / curator of the film. The acclaimed documentary film “Secret Life of Frogs” by Ajay & Vijay Bedi will be screened as the inaugural film. Films Division, established in 1948, has been relentlessly striving to maintain a record of the social, political and cultural imaginations and realities of the country on film. It works under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) to produce documentaries and news magazines for publicity of Government programmes and cinematic record of Indian history.

Notes:
In Madhya Pradesh, continuous rain has damaged Asia’s largest solar Power project in Rewa. The damage was caused after heavy rain triggered a mudslide. Now the rain has stopped, and experts are busy repairing this power plant. As per the estimates, this project has suffered a loss of more than Rs 20 crores by rain. The production of the solar plant has also been affected and it has reduced about 90 MW. Generally, this solar plant produces 740 MW of electricity. Due to a sudden rise in the water level the many solar plates and other equipment were submerged. Water also reached inside the switch control board.

Notes:
In Tennis, Serbian Novak Djokovic won his fifth Wimbledon title after defeating Swiss tennis ace Roger Federer 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 4-6, 13-12 in a match that lasted for more than 4 hours. The match had to be decided in the fifth set, as both Federer and Djokovic won two sets each in the longest ever final to be played so far. This is Djokovic’s 16th Grand Slam and 5th Wimbledon title. He is now level with Bjorn Borg as a five-time Wimbledon winner.

Notes:
Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat has won gold in the 53kg category at Yasar Dogu International in Istanbul. Phogat beat her Russian opponent Ekaterina Poleshchuk 9-5 in the final match to bag the gold medal. It was third gold in the women’s competition for India after Seema (50kg) and Manju (59kg) triumphed in their respective categories.