Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2020

Notes:
The Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan announced during the meeting with the 15th Finance Commission, that the Government is to gradually increase the public health expenditure to 2.5 per cent of the country’s GDP by 2025.
This is the government’s target of the National Health Policy 2017. He also confirmed that the primary health expenditure will be made about two-third of the total public health expenditure in the country.

Notes:
Election Commissioner of India Ashok Lavasa, has been appointed as the Vice President for Private Sector Operations and Public-Private Partnerships at the Asian Development Bank.
Ashok Lavasa is to replace the incumbent Vice President Diwakar Gupta, whose term is ending on August 31. The retired IAS officer was appointed as the Election commissioner in January 2018 and he was the next senior Election Commissioner, to be appointed as the Chief, after the present CEC Sunil Arora.

Notes:
Coir Board is a statutory body established by the Government of India under the Coir Industry Act 1953, functioning under Ministry of MSME.
Recently, the export of coir and coir products from India in the year 2019-20 touched the highest point at Rs. 2757.90 crore. This is also Rs. 30 crore more than that of the last year, which stood at Rs. 2728.04 crore. Around 9 lakh metric tonnes of coir and coir products were exported.

Notes:
As per the statement released by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), the Government has amended the import policy of Power tillers and its components from ‘free’ to ‘restricted’.
The importer is required to seek a license from the DGFT for importing the product categorised as ’restricted’. This move is expected to curb the inward shipment of the equipment that comes mainly from China.

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 birth anniversary of one of the greatest leaders of the world, Nelson Mandela on July 18, is observed as Nelson Mandela International Day across the world.
Nelson Mandela is the first black President of South Africa, who fought against apartheid movement. He was also awarded the prestigious Nobel Prize for peace. The UN General Assembly declared July 18 as Nelson Mandela International Day in the year 2009.

Notes:
The Health Minister of Kerala KK Shailaja has recently announced that the rate of community transmission in Covid-19 clusters in the state is more than 50%.
In the 84 clusters in the state, local transmission is more than 50%. However, the rate of transmission is less than 10% outside the clusters. The Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also confirmed that community transmission was detected in two coastal villages of Thiruvananthapuram.

Notes:
Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNPTR) is located in the state of Assam. Assam is witnessing heavy floods, which has affected around 40 lakh people.
The Tiger reserve, which is also a UNESO World Heritage site, remains submerged in water, due to the heavy floods. As many as 86 animals have died, including rhinoceros, deer and wild boar. This year’s flood is said to be the sixth worst flood since 1988.

Notes:
Central Institute of Petrochemicals engineering and Technology, CIPET is a premium academic institution under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.
Recently, CIPET has been accredited by National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) for Testing and Certification of PPE kit including Gloves, Coverall, Goggles and Medical masks. The Centre of CIPET at Bhubaneswar has been granted accreditation.

Notes:
Saudi Arabia holds the Presidency of G-20 of the year 2020. It has chaired the 3rd G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting recently.
Union Finance Minister of India, Nirmala Sitharaman participated in the meeting through Video Conferencing. The global economic outlook during COVID-19 pandemic crisis and G20’s Finance Track priorities for the year 2020 was discussed.