Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2020

Notes:
The Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar announced that the Union Government is to collaborate with the World Bank, to convert the Gwalior-Chambal belt of Madhya Pradesh into arable land.
This has been decided in the virtual meeting with the World Bank representative. As per the statement, more than 3 lakh hectares of rugged land that remains not cultivable can be improved. As a result, the region’s agricultural development, environmental protection and employment opportunities can be improved.

Notes:
Japan remains the largest holder of American government securities, at the end of May 2020 with an exposure of USD 1.260 trillion.
India has increased its holdings of American government securities purchased through the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), by nearly USD 13 billion to USD 169.9 billion at the end of May. In February, the country had a record high of USD 177.5 billion worth securities and have seen fluctuations throughout this year.

Notes:
The United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson has launched a strategy to encourage the citizens to be physically fit.
A new evidence showed that obese people who are being infected by coronavirus are more likely to die or develop severe illness. Under the drive, Doctors prescribe cycling or running to patients. There will be ban on junk food advertisements and calorie warnings will be provided on food items.

Notes:
The Sree Sree JoyKali Matar temple, one of the oldest temples in Bangladesh, has been reconstructed with the Indian assistance of Taka 97 lakh.
The High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Riva Ganguly Das has inaugurated the reconstructed temple at Natore. The MoU for the process was signed in the year 2016. The Indian assistance was given under its High Impact Community Development Project (HICDP). Several other community projects are also being carried out under this fund.

Notes:
The 2023 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup is to be organised in India. ICC has recently launched a 50-over World Cup Super League.
This Qualification league will determine the seven teams in the World Cup. As India is the host, it will automatically qualify to the game. The league will start with a series between England and Ireland, scheduled on July 30.

Notes:
Australia’s consumer regulator, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has accused Google of privacy breaches.
It has alleged that Google has misled millions of Australians in collecting their personal information. To target advertising, Google is alleged to have obtained consent and expanded the scope of personal information collected on internet activity of the users.

Notes:
Olivia de Havillan, who was considered the last surviving actress of the Golden Age of Hollywood, has passed away at the age of 104.
She became popular in the movie “Gone with the Wind” in 1939. During her long acting career, she had won several prestigious awards including two Oscar awards in 1946 and 1949. She featured in as many as 49 movies from 1935 to 2009.

Notes:
The Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar released an updated report on India’s Tiger Survey from 2018.
As per the updated report, India’s tiger population stood at 2967, the same number given by the Government last year. India has 70% of the world’s total tiger population. Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of tigers at 526, followed by Karnataka and Uttarakhand.

Notes:
The government has recently notified changes in the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) norms on civil aviation.
As per the amendments, it will permit Non-resident Indian (NRI) nationals to own 100 per cent stake of Air India. The divestment process for the national carrier, Air India was initiated in the month of January and the deadline to bid has been for three times. Recently, the deadline was extended till August 31.

Notes:
Australian Minister for Immigration and Citizenship recently announced that out of the over 2,00,000 people who became Australian citizens in 2019-2020, around 38,000 were Indians.
They are the largest international community to be granted the Australian citizenship. This figure is also 60 per cent increase from the previous year. India is followed by the people of the UK, China and Pakistan.