Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2020

Notes:
The Union Health Ministry had constituted a committee headed by NITI Aayog member V K Paul. As per the recommendations of the committee, the Delhi health department has prepared a new Covid-19 response plan.
As a part of the plan, a serological survey to carry out a comprehensive analysis of the spread of Covid-19 in Delhi began in some parts of the city. The exercise, that will test 20,000 people to find anti-bodies, will be carried out jointly by the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the Delhi government.

Notes:
Wisden has named Ravindra Jadeja as ‘India’s Most Valuable Test Player of the 21st Century’. He is also named as the second most Valuable Test player in the world.
The list is topped by Sri Lanka’s legendary cricketer Muthiah Muralithatan. Wisden used CricViz, a detailed analysis tool in cricket to analyse performance of the players and award an ‘MVP rating’ to each player in world cricket. The 31-year old India’s spin-bowling all-rounder has scored an MVP rating of 97.3.

Notes:
A MoU was recently signed between Indian Oil, NTPC Ltd and South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), to develop a demonstration Waste-to-energy Plant at Okhla landfill site in Delhi.
The plant is to be developed using Gasification technology and it shall process 17500 tons per annum of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) from combustible components of Municipal Waste. Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas & Steel, Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister of State for Power and New & Renewable Energy, R K Singh were present during the virtual event.

Notes:
Russia has recently held polls for a nationwide referendum on constitutional amendments, which include the reset in the term limits of the incumbent Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The amendments allow him to seek two more 6-year terms when his presidency ends in 2024. As per the preliminary results, more than 76% of Russians voted supporting the amendments. Putin has been the President from 2012 and will remain till 2036, as per the amendment.

Notes:
Leading Global Technology company, Microsoft has recently announced a new global skills initiative, which aims to train as many as 25 million people worldwide, in digital skills, by the end of the year.
Under this initiative, Microsoft uses the data to identify the jobs in demand and provides free content to develop the skills of people. It also provides certifications and free job-seeking tools. This programme has been launched amidst Covid-19 crisis, where several people are hit by job losses.

Notes:
The United Kingdom has recently recognised Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido as the country’s constitutional interim President.
A case has been held over whether Guaido or Nicolas Maduro have control on the country’s USD 1 billion worth gold reserves held in the Bank of England. In the ruling of the English High Court, it has declared Guaido as Venezuela’s legitimate leader. Though Maduro won the second term, the opposition has majority.

Notes:
Union Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) in partnership with Atal Innovation Mission, Niti Aayog has launched Digital India AatmaNirbhar Bharat App Innovation Challenge.
The challenge seeks to support and build a strong ecosystem for Indian applications. In its first phase, the challenge will identify the potential Indian Apps that are being used, that are capable of becoming world class apps. The second phase will focus on developing new applications.

Notes:
India’s Public Service Broadcaster, All India Radio is set to broadcast its first ever News magazine program in Sanskrit.
The program is named as ‘Sanskrit Saptahiki’ and it will be broadcasted on every Saturday. The program would comprise of news from the world of Sanskrit and prominent developments of the week. The 20-minute programme can also be heard on All India Radio FM News Channel.

Notes:
Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has partnered with Bharat Biotech for development of potential COVID-19 vaccine called Covaxin.
The Drugs Controller General of India has granted permission to conduct phase-1 and 2 human clinical trials. Recently, ICMR has announced that it is acting in accordance with the globally accepted standards to develop the vaccine.

Notes:
Former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Urjit Patel has authored a book titled ‘Overdraft: Saving the Indian Saver’.
The book is set to be released by the end of July 2020. The book focusses on the non-performing assets (NPAs) issue that has caused huge distress to the country’s banking sector. It also highlights the causes of NPAs and the efforts of Urjit Patel to deal with the issue as the Governor of RBI.