Current Affairs Quiz - August, 2020

Notes:
The Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu has announced the Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA) 2020. It is an initiative of Education Ministry.
The Indian Institute of Technology Madras bagged the first place under the ‘Best centrally funded institution’ category, while IIT Mumbai and IIT Delhi bagged the second and third place respectively. The ranking assesses the colleges on various criteria including support for entrepreneurship, innovative learning intellectual property generation and technology transfer etc.

Notes:
A 10-member Technical Response Team and 30 tons of Technical Equipment are sent by India to assist Mauritius in its effort to contain oil spill. This has been done in response to the request by the Government of Mauritius.
A Japanese ship named MV Wakashio, ran aground at Pointe d’Esny of Mauritius last month and oil began leaking from it. It is estimated that more than 1000 tons of oil leaked from the ship. Government of Mauritius has announced this as a National Emergency.

Notes:
Chetan Chauhan, a former Indian cricketer passed away due to COVID-19 related ailments. Chauhan had turned into a politician and was a minister in the Uttar Pradesh state cabinet.
Chentan Chauhan had played 40 Test matches for India and was 73 years old when he passed away. He had served at various positions in the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA).

Notes:
The Union Cabinet has recently approved to set up a new entity named ‘National Recruitment Agency (NRA)’ to carry out a national Common Entrance Test (CET).
This exam would be a common screening test for non-gazetted vacancies in both departments of Central government and public sector organisations. It is to conduct first level tests currently conducted by agencies like SSC, RRB and IBPS among others.

Notes:
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recently released a National strategy for Financial Education’, which is to be implemented in the next five years.
The strategy aims to inculcate financial literacy among all the people of our country. It will also encourage the common people to participate in the financial markets for achieving their financial goals. It will encourage people to use formal banking and safe digital financial services.

Notes:
A recent survey by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has revealed that, over 27 % students do not have access to smart phones or laptops to attend online classes.
The survey also pointed out that lack of electricity was an obstacle in the learning process for nearly 28 % students and parents. Over 34,000 participants participated in the survey by the NCERT on the challenges of online education.

Notes:
Leading multi-national company IBM India, has collaborated with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to offer a free digital education platform.
The training focuses on recent technologies like cybersecurity, blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning and professional development skills. The online courses developed by IBM will be offered through NSDC’s eSkill India portal to the learners between 18 to 22 years.

Notes:
A first-of-its-kind interactive game on COVID-19 named the “Corona Fighters” has been launched by the Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan.
The game has been designed creatively to teach people about the right tools and behaviours to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition to the game, the Minister also launched two new videos to inculcate appropriate behaviours, to be followed during the pandemic.

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 Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had initiated the ‘Eat Right India’ movement, to create awareness about safe, healthy and sustainable dietary habits.
FSSAI has launched Eat Right Challenge as an annual competition to strengthen food regulatory ecosystem and build awareness. Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has recently launched FSSAI’s ‘Eat Right India’ Handbook and its website.