Current Affairs Quiz - August, 2020

Notes:
Mumbai has become the first Indian city to display women symbols on traffic signals. The project is headed by the Ministry of Tourism of the state.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has installed traffic signals that display female icons with triangular frock. This is considered as a change from the default representation of male symbols that ensures gender equality.

Notes:
As per the research paper published by the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, pathogens named as critical by the World Health Organisation have been found in the river of Yamuna.
The pathogens were named by the WHO in the year 2017. The multidrug-resistant bacteria that are found in Yamuna, were found due to the entry of Sewage into the river. Several major sewer drains and the Yamuna river across New Delhi were studied by the team.

Notes:
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) – Kanpur has developed BEEG (Bio compost Enriched Eco-friendly Globule), an indigenous seed ball.
It contains indigenous seeds, compost, and clay. The seed balls, if thrown at target places, would germinate when comes in contact with water. It is aimed to help farmers to eliminate the requirement for digging pits and planting samplings during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Notes:
Founded by two former scientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Space tech start-up Skyroot Aerospace is the first Indian private company to build a homegrown rocket engine.
The company has recently test-fired an upper stage rocket engine successfully. It has also planned to launch the first satellite into the lower earth orbit by the end of 2021. The company had also manufactured India’s first 3D printed Cryogenic rocket engine.

Notes:
The “Union Home Minister’s Medal for Excellence in Investigation”, constituted by the Home Ministry, for the year 2020 has been awarded to 121 Police personnel.
This medal was constituted in the year 2018 by the Union Government with the aim to promote professional standards of investigation of crime. It also stands as a Reward of Excellence in Investigation by investigating officers.

Notes:
Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation and a private engineering firm Afcons jointly completed India’s deepest underground ventilation shaft.
The ventilation shaft is 43.5m deep and is part of the East West Metro Line of Kolkata. These special purpose shafts are used for ventilation of the tunnels and for evacuation during critical times or emergencies.

Notes:
The Online Performance dashboard of Ministry of Tribal Affairs called the “Empowering Tribals, Transforming India” has been launched. The dashboard was launched by Amitabh Kant, CEO of NITI Aayog and Ramesh Chand, Member of NITI Aayog.
The Dashboard is an interactive online platform that shows the real-time details of 11 schemes / initiatives of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. It also displays performance of 5 Scholarship Schemes of the Ministry.

Notes:
Dwayne Johnson, also known as the Rock, has topped the Forbes List of Top 10 highly paid male actors of the world.
The recently released annual list stated that the actor was paid an estimate of USD 87.5 million in the year 2020. Indian Actor Akshay Kumar was positioned 6th in the list with earnings of USD 48.5 million.

Notes:
As per the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Odisha continued to be the top performer in implementation of Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation Scheme (AMRUT).
Odisha has secured first position by scoring 85.67 per cent and provided piped water supply to households of nine cities of the state. Out of the 191 projects started under the AMRUT scheme, the state has completed 148 of them. Odisha is followed by Chandigarh and Telangana. Tamil Nadu has completed the highest number of works.

Notes:
Soumya Swaminathan, the Chief Scientist of World Health Organisation, was conferred with the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s special award, for her advisory role in fighting the COVID-19 in the state.
The Chief Minister’s Best Practices award was given to the Department of treasuries. Greater Chennai Corporation and Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation were also awarded for their significant roles in the fight against the pandemic.