Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2020

Notes:
The World Health Organisation has recently released a report titled ‘State of the World’s Nursing 2020’, on the occasion of the World Health Day on 7th April 2020.
It states that Nursing is the largest occupational group in the health sector, which accounts for about 59% of the health professions. The report highlights that Investment in nurses will contribute not only to health-related SDG targets, but also to education (SDG 4), gender (SDG 5), decent work and economic growth (SDG 8).

Notes:
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), along with Wipro, has developed a unique shield for doctors and medical staff treating COVID-19 patients.
This full-face shield will protect the healthcare personnel from directly contracting the coronavirus infection. DRDO has also developed bio-suit to protect the front-line health workers and has supplied masks, full-body suits and personal protection equipment (PPE) for the medical staff

Notes:
As per the recent notification of WIPO, China topped the world in filing International Patents filed with WIPO, in 2019.
China has filed 58,990 applications in 2019 via WIPO’s Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) System thereby surpassing the United States, which topped every year since the PCT began operations in 1978. China also recorded growth in the international intellectual property (IP) services, treaty-adherence activity of WIPO.

Notes:
The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) recently announced that it will provide emergency loans to small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) named ‘SIDBI Assistance to Facilitate Emergency’ -SAFE PLUS.
Working capital of up to Rs 1 Crore will be provided to small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) engaged in manufacturing of medical equipment and products related to Covid-19. The SAFE PLUS collateral-free loans will be disbursed within 48 hours at an interest rate of five per cent. The limit of the loans has been enhanced from 50 lakh rupees to two crore rupees.

Notes:
Government has directed Food Corporation of India to provide food grains to NGOs and charitable organisations providing cooked meals to the needy at OMSS (Open Market Sale Scheme).
During the period of nationwide lockdown, the organisations can buy wheat and rice from FCI godowns without going through the e-auction. OMSS reserve price for rice is ₹2,250 per quintal and price of wheat is ₹2,135 per quintal. Earlier, only State governments and registered bulk users were allowed to buy from FCI under OMSS rates.

Notes:
The Union Government has approved Rs. 15,000 crores for ‘India COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package’ for states/UTs.
This package which has been approved to build the health infrastructure, will be provided in three phases — January 2020 to June 2020, July 2020 to March 2021 and April 2021 to March 2024. This fund would be divided on the basis of the number of positive Covid-19 cases and the size of the state/UT. Rs 7,774 crore is expected to be released for immediate response.

Notes:
An Interactive Voice Response System initiative called “Aarogya Setu IVRS” has been launched by the Centre in association with Tamil Nadu government and IIT Madras.
The service has been launched for people who do not use smart phones and to assist them in tackling Covid-19. It will be activated by a missed call and the location of the user is identified. Assistance on healthcare and guidance will be available through the voice service. This service will be launched in other states soon.

Notes:
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has approved using diagnostic machines that are used for testing drug-resistant Tuberculosis for conducting coronavirus tests.
The ICMR has recommended this as a screening test. As per the guidance issued, throat or nasal swabs are to be collected in the viral transport medium with the ‘virus lysis buffer’, which is provided along with the kit. ICMR-NIV, Pune will inform about the effects of the viral RNA after neutralization of this novel coronavirus by the lysis buffer.

Notes:
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has recently launched a WhatsApp number, where people can report cases of domestic violence.The head-quarters of NCW is New Delhi.
As per the announcement of NCW, the cases of domestic violence have seen a big increase during the lockdown period resulting from coronavirus pandemic. This WhatsApp number service will be operated in addition to the existing online complaint links and emails and only for the period of lockdown.

Notes:
Veteran Hindustani classical singer and Padma Shri awardee Shanti Hiranand Chawla passed away at Gurgaon, at the age of 87.
The renowned singer was trained in several styles of music including thumri, dadra and ghazal. She had conducted several stage-performances in Indian and abroad. She had been conferred with several accolades including the prestigious Padma Shri award in 2007.