Current Affairs Quiz - August, 2020

Notes:
One of India’s leading public transit organization – the Delhi Metro has proposed to upgrade its entire fare collection system which will enable the travellers to pay for the distance they have travelled using debit and credit cards.
The passengers need not recharge their smart cards for making payments at the Automatic Fare Collection Gates (AFC Gates). This move has been made by DMRC in order to promote digitalization of the fare collection system.

Notes:
Russia and Brazil have decided to cooperate in the production and marketing of Sputnik V, the world’s first registered coronavirus vaccine.
The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RIDF) announced that it has entered into the agreement with Brazilian State of Parana. RIDF is organising the production of the vaccine and its distribution in Brazil and other American countries.

Notes:
“Atulya” – a new device that can disinfect any premise in 30 seconds was unveiled by the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Nitin Gadkari.
The design of the device is certified by DRDO and is developed completely in India. It is portable and weighs about 3 kilograms. It can be used to disinfect any premise up to an area of 5 meters at a time. It can also be used to disinfect surfaces of home, office, boxes, furniture etc.

Notes:
Google has collaborated with the Central Water Commission (CWC) for providing flood forecasting and public alerts.
Users in the affected region will receive alerts through their Android smartphones if they have enabled the location services. The timely and critical information is being used by several users amidst the heavy rains and floods across the country.

Notes:
Research team from Indian Institute of Science, IISc and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have developed a process for making “Brick like structure” on lunar surface.
The researchers suggest that these bricks could be used for assembling structures in lunar surface. The raw material used is urea and lunar soil. It is developed by using bacteria and guar beans to consolidate the land into load bearing brick like structures.

Notes:
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved a new rapid saliva test to detect Covid-19 named ‘Saliva Direct’.
The new inexpensive test uses only saliva samples instead of the nasal and throat swabs to detect the coronavirus samples. As per the administration, the test also has higher sensitivity when compared to the usual methods of testing.

Notes:
Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes clinched victory at the Spanish Grand Prix for the fourth successive year. With this victory, he holds the record of the highest number of podium finishes in F1 history.
Earlier, Lewis Hamilton has shared a record of 155 podium finishes with Michael Schumacher. With the Spanish Grand Pix victory, the count stands at 156 for Hamilton. Max Verstappen finished second in the race followed by Valtteri Bottas.

Notes:
A 180-feet Bailey bridge in Jauljibi sector of Pithoragarh district, Uttarakhand has been constructed by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), amidst frequent landslides and heavy rains.
The 50-metre span concrete bridge was damaged in the month of July as the area was hit by a cloud burst. The bridge construction by BRO will help around 15,000 people in 20 villages of the district.

Notes:
Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has recently released ‘National Cancer Registry Programme Report 2020’.
As per the report, the number of people affected by cancer could increase by 12% in the next five years. By 2025, around 1.5 million people are estimated to suffer from the disease, increased from 1.39 million in 2020. Tobacco-related cancers find the major portion in the list.

Notes:
The state Government of Uttar Pradesh has launched a new Electronics Manufacturing policy to make the state the new global electronics hub.
The policy aims to invite investment up to Rs.40,000 crore in five years and generate nearly 4 lakh direct employment. The new policy has a special focus on Purvanchal and Bundelkhand regions.