Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2020

Notes:
The CEO of Google Sundar Pichai has recently announced the launch USD 10 billion ‘India Digitization Fund’.
This was announced at the ‘Google for India’ virtual live-stream event, which focused on accelerating India’s digital economy. Through this initiative, Google will invest about Rs 75000 Crores in India over the next 5 to 7 years. The fund will focus on enabling affordable access and information to every Indian.

Notes:
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson announced that the country is set to ban Chinese technology giant Huawei from the country’s 5G network.
This news has been announced amidst the rising tensions between the United States and China. The UK’s move is aligned towards supporting the US, in limiting the expansion of global telecom leader Huawei’s expansion in the west. The process will be completed by 2027.

Notes:
Andhra Pradesh state government officials along with Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) launched ‘Operation Muskaan’ in the state.
This week-long drive aims to trace the missing children, prevent child labour and bonded labour, and rescue children engaged in domestic works. Hundreds of children are being rescued in the drive and are united with parents or provided with shelters.

Notes:
The state of Tamil Nadu is set to launch a trial to study the efficacy of the BCG vaccine in reducing mortality due to COVID-19 in the elder people.
The trial, which has been approved by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), would be taken up by the National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis (NIRT), Chennai. The BCG (Bacille Calmette-Guerin) is being administered to new-born for 50 years as a vaccine against tuberculosis.

Notes:
The FIFA World Cup 2022 football tournament is to played in Qatar, for the first time in the history of FIFA.
FIFA has released the new schedule for the World Cup to be played in November and December, 2022. The 60,000-capacity Al Bayt Stadium will be the venue for the inaugural session of the tournament. FIFA will finalise the 30 contestants of the World Cup in April 2022

Notes:
P. Praveen Siddharth, a 2001 batch Indian Revenue Service- Income Tax (IRS-IT) officer, P. Praveen Siddharth, has been appointed Private Secretary to President Ram Nath Kovind.
He has replaced Vikram Singh, who has recently been appointed as the Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Shipping. The new Private Secretary is serving as the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the President’s Secretariat.

Notes:
According to a survey by Projects Today, an online database of projects, Tamil Nadu is the top investment destination in India in first quarter of 2019-20.
The investment flow in the state amounts to Rs 18,236 crore, which is around 18.63 per cent of the total fresh investment. The state has signed as many as 17 agreements in May 2020. It is followed by Maharashtra with investment flow of Rs 11,229 crore.

Notes:
The High-Level Segment of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) session of this year was recently organised at the United Nations in New York.
Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi has recently addressed a key note address in the session. This is his first address after India has been selected as a non-permanent member of the United States Security Council.

Notes:
The Income Tax Department has launched an e-campaign on voluntary compliance of Income Tax for the convenience of taxpayers from July 20.
The aim of the 11-day campaign is to assist taxpayers especially the Income Tax assessees for FY 2018-19, to validate their financial transaction information online, by using the information available with the I-T Department. This will help tax-payers from redundant notice, scrutiny and penalty.

Notes:
Union Defence Ministry of India has signed a Rs 557-crore contract with Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML), for procurement of 1,512 mine ploughs for the Indian army’s main battle tank T-90.
As per the contract, a minimum of 50 per cent indigenous content is mentioned in the contract. The army has recently deployed the Russian-made T-90 main battle tanks in the Galwan Valley sector of Ladakh.