Current Affairs Quiz - August, 2020

Notes:
Chandrayaan-2 is India’s first mission to make a soft-landing of a rover on the South pole of the moon.
It is also India’s second lunar mission, which has recently completed one full year around the moon. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced that all of its instruments are performing well and there is adequate fuel to keep it functional for about seven more years.

Notes:
The island nation of Sri Lanka has proposed to draft a new Constitution. It will also discard the 19th Constitutional Amendment passed in 2015 which imposes restriction on presidential powers.
It sets a limit of 2 years for the President to be in power. The new President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has stated that new constitution would prioritize the concept of ‘One country, One law for all the people.’

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone for Zojila tunnel project in 2018, as the Asia’s longest bi-directional tunnel.
The project with estimated cost of Rs 4,509 crore, aims to provide all-year connectivity between Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh region. Recently, Megha Engineering and Infrastructure is set to construct the Zojila pass tunnel. The project is expected to completed in six years.

Notes:
The United Nations General Assembly designated 22 August as the International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief.
It comes a day after the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism. The UN asks its members to ensure the upholding of human rights of persons belonging to religious minorities, including their right to exercise their religion or belief freely.

Notes:
The Union External Affairs Ministry has recently organised the first India-Uzbekistan National Coordination Committee.
The virtual meeting was held to monitor the implementation of mutually agreed projects between India and Uzbekistan. They also reviewed implementation of identified projects under India’s LoC, cooperation between the Gujarat state and Andijan region among others.

Notes:
In order to enhance the ease of doing business, the Aadhaar authentication has been activated by the Government for registration to GST. The Aadhaar based GST registration of an entity would be completed in 3 working days and there is no requirement for physical verification.
Those not opting for Aadhaar based registration will be subjected to physical verification of place of business activity and other related documentary verification. The time required for non-Aadhaar registration would be up to 21 days.

Notes:
The international day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition is observed by UNESCO on 23rd August every year. This date was adopted by the resolution at UNESCO’s 29th session. 
The date is significant because, it was on the night of 22nd August to 23rd August, 1791 an uprising occurred on the island of Saint Domingue, which was primarily responsible for abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

Notes:
Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES), Nainital is to organise an online international conference on ‘Aerosol Air Quality, Climate Change and Impact on Water Resources and Livelihoods in the Greater Himalayas’.
ARIES, an autonomous research institute under the Department of Science and Technology (DST) is organising the conference along with Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University between 14th -16th September 2020.

Notes:
Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has recently distributed over 700 bee boxes, to provide Self-Employment for Migrant Workers.
The boxes have been distributed to the workers of Uttar Pradesh at the KVIC’s training center in Panjokera. The Honey Mission was launched by KVIC before 3 years, to create employment for farmers, tribal people, women and unemployed youth.

Notes:
The COAS (Chief of Army Staff) Unit Appreciation was conferred to NSG’s (National Security Guard) 51 Special Action Group (SAG). The appreciation was conferred to the unit for the group’s exemplary achievements in combating terrorism.
The most important operation undertaken by the unit is “Operation Black Tornado” which was launched against the terror strikes in Mumbai in November 2008.