Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2019

Notes:
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has celebrated the 159th Income Tax Day i.e. Aaykar Diwas on 24th July 2019. The week preceding the Aaykar Diwas 2019 has been marked by various activities undertaken by the regional offices of the department across the country. The event will include release of departmental publications, e-journal, publicity kit for outreach programmes among other things. It was on 24th July 1860 that Income Tax was introduced for the first time in India by Sir James Wilson to compensate for the losses incurred by the British regime during the first war of independence against British Rule. This is why 24th July is observed as the Income Tax Day.

Notes:
Priti Patel, a prominent member of the Back Boris campaign for the Conservative Party leadership, has become the Britain’s first Indian-origin home secretary as part of new Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s top team. She succeeded Pakistani-origin Sajid Javid, who moves to the Treasury department as the first ethnic minority Chancellor of the Exchequer. Mr Javid, a former banker from a modest background, was a contender for the premiership but endorsed Johnson when he failed to get enough support from fellow Conservative MPs. Mr Johnson has also named Brexit hardliner Dominic Raab as the country’s Foreign Secretary.

Notes:
The Western Railway (WR) has opened the first-of-its-kind printing press heritage gallery of the Indian Railways at Mahalaxmi in Mumbai. With this, the Western Railway Mahalaxmi General Stores Depot (GSD) has become the first in Indian Railways to portray a heritage gallery of the printing and allied machines used in the Western Railway Printing Press since 1948, which are still in working condition. The GSD Mahalaxmi is spread over 12,171 sq meter area, which is a British-era single-storey building made with black stone having interiors made with wood, has its own beauty and uniqueness. The press came into existence in 1912 under the Greater Indian Peninsular Railway (GIP) Bombay, as the railway needed stationery and tickets to run the operations.

Notes:
In India, the National Broadcasting day (NBD) is celebrated every year on 23rd of July because on this day, in 1927, the radio broadcasting was started. The first ever radio broadcast in the country went on the air from the Bombay Station under a private company – the Indian Broadcasting Company (IBC). It was started by the British Viceroy of India Lord Irwin. Since 1927, radio has been an important part in people’s life in India. On 8th of June 1936, the Indian State Broadcasting Service became All India Radio (AIR). The AIR has been serving to inform, educate and entertain the masses since it’s inception, truly living up to its motto – Bahujan Hitaya Bahujan Sukhaya. The AIR is one of the largest public broadcasting organizations in the world. It has 414 stations in 23 languages and broadcasts in 179 dialects.

Notes:
The book titled ‘Fire and Fury Corps — Saga of Valour, Fortitude and Sacrifice’ has been authored by Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh. The book is showcasing the history and achievements of the Fire and Fury Corps which guards the Line of Control (LoC) and Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). It documents the courage and bravery of the Fire and Fury Warriors and portrays the rich heritage and ethos of the Indian Army. The book also covers the serenity and mysticism of Ladakh and its people, as a tribute to the symbiotic relationship shared by the Indian Army and the people of Ladakh region.

Notes:
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has recently announced that Bengaluru-based educational technology and online tutorial firm Byju’s has replaced Chinese mobile manufacturer Oppo as the official Team India sponsor. The deal period will begin from 5 September, 2019 until 31 March, 2022. BYJU’s is a leading education and learning app and has superstar Shah Rukh Khan as its brand ambassador. Byju’s will now be seen on the Indian team jersey from September 2019 when the home series against South Africa begin.

Notes:
Uttar Pradesh has become number one in implementation of Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) in the country. As per the statement released by state government, 1.95 crores people have been given insurance cover under the scheme till 31 march 2019. The implementation of this ambitious central government scheme started in state from January 2018 under which people between age group of 18 to 70 get accidental insurance cover of Rs. 2 lakh by paying a nominal premium of Rs 12 annually. Beside this, Uttar Pradesh stands second in the country in the implementation of Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Beema Yojana (PMJJBY). The PMJJBY is a life insurance scheme that provides a life cover of Rs.2 lakh at Rs.330/year. It is available to people in the age group of 18 to 50 years having a bank account who give their consent to join / enable auto-debit.

Notes:
The Indian scientists at the Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) have recently discovered 28 new variable stars in the Milky Way galaxy using 3.6 metre Devasthal Optical Telescope (DOT) established in 2016 near Nainital. The ARIES team of researchers was led by Dr. Sneh Lata and Dr. A K Pandey. It is for the first time that variable stars have been identified in Globular cluster NGC 4147 in the constellation of Coma Berenices. Besides the detection of new variable stars, the study also provides important insights into the internal structure of NGC 4147 which is located closer to the Earth than previously thought. A variable star is a star whose luminosity or brightness changes. This change may be caused due to periodical swelling and shrinking of the star or occasional block of light due to an eclipse by some other solar body. NGC 4147 was discovered by British astronomer William Herschel in 1784. A globular cluster is a spherical collection of stars that orbit a galactic core, as a satellite. Globular clusters are very tightly bound by gravity, which gives them their spherical shapes, and relatively high stellar densities towards their centres.

Notes:
The National Institute of Miners’ Health (NIMH), an autonomous institute under the Ministry of Mines (MoM), has been dissolved and merged with the ICMR-National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH), Ahmedabad with all assets and liabilities. All the employees of NIMH will be absorbed in NIOH in the similar post/pay scale as the case may be and their pay be protected. The merger / amalgamation of NIMH with NIOH will prove beneficial to both the Institutes in term of enhanced expertise in the field of occupational health besides the efficient management of public money. The ICMR – NIOH works under Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoH&FW).

Notes:
The researchers from Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru have discovered a new vine snake species called Proahaetulla antiqua in Western Ghats . This is an ancient species which is endemic to southern Western Ghats. This is thought to have evolved around 26 million years ago during the mid-Oligocene period. Vine snakes get their names due to their slender bodies and vine-like appearances. These new vine snakes are named after the Latin words ‘antiqua’, meaning ‘old or ancient’. The common name suggested for these individuals is ‘keeled vine snake’. They are found in the protected habitats of the Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu and the Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala, both located in the southern Western Ghats. The discovery not only help the researchers know more about the evolution of vine snakes but also the evolutionary history of the Western Ghats (a landmass older than the Himalayas).