Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2020

Notes:
Indian leading Private Sector bank Karur Vysya Bank (KVB) has named Ramesh Babu Boddu as the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer for three years.
The bank’s Board of Directors has also selected Ramesh Babu Boddu as an Additional Director. Three months back, he superannuated as Deputy Managing Director in State Bank of India. KVB is headquartered in Karur in Tamil Nadu and has completed 100 years of operation.

Notes:
Department of Science and Technology has launched a 15-crore fund to support India-Russia Joint Technology Assessment and Accelerated Commercialization Programme.
The fund has been launched in partnership with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises (FASIE) of Russia. Start-ups from India and Russia will work together for technology development and cross-country technology adaptation. FICCI will implement the program in India.

Notes:
Following a leak at a Lavera petrochemical refinery in southern France, an orange-brown chemical sheet spread over 15 acres in the Mediterranean Sea.
This area includes the nationally recognized marine life area. The plant is said to have spilled 200 gallons or more of iron chloride into the sea. The chemical could harm eyes and mucous membranes and could even cause death.

Notes:
Technology giant Microsoft has partnered with the National Basketball Association (NBA) to set virtual fans in the game stands.
Microsoft will use its newly launched Teams app and 17-foot-tall LED screens to put around 300 virtual fans in the stands of each game. Fans can login the Teams app and use the “Together mode”, which simulates a group of people sitting in a room.

Notes:
The United States has announced that it has relaxed standards for exporting drones that fly at below 800 km per hour to its friendly countries.
This step has been taken to increase the national security of the United States by improving the capacities of its partners. The exposure of drone market to the US industry will also improve its economic security. However, higher-speed systems such as cruise missiles and advanced unmanned combat aerial vehicles are not affected by this revision.

Notes:
The Prime Minister of Vietnam Nguyen Xuan Phuc has recently signed an order that bans all imports of wildlife either dead or alive including eggs and larvae.
The order also includes tougher penalties for crimes involving the trade in wildlife. Amidst the coronavirus spread, this ban has been imposed in Vietnam, which is a popular destination for endangered wildlife products used in medicine or cuisine.

Notes:
The Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) is to set up its own Cotton warehouse in Vietnam, to boost Exports.
A government-to-government Memorandum of Understanding is also being prepared to export 1.5-2 million bales of cotton to Bangladesh. CCI holds surplus stocks of cotton before the next harvest season and this plan has been made.

Notes:
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has recently launched an innovation contest named Dare to Dream 2.0.
It was announced by the Defence Minister of India Rajnath Singh, on the fifth death anniversary of the former President of India Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. The contest encourages individuals and start-ups to use advanced technologies for innovation in Aerospace and Defence sectors in the country.

Notes:
At the 2016 high-level meeting at the UN General Assembly, India pledged to fast track efforts towards ending HIV/AIDS as a public health threat in the next five years, and to end the epidemic by 2030.
Recently, a study published by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) stated that India may miss the national target to end AIDS by 2030. The decline in annual new HIV infections is only 27% from 2020 to 2017 against the national target of 75% by 2020.

Notes:
England fast-bowler Stuart Broad has recently become the seventh bowler in cricket history to clinch 500 wickets in Test matches.
The 34-year-old player has achieved this feat during the third and final Test against West Indies at the Old Trafford. He is the second English player to achieve this after James Anderson. Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka is the leading wicket-taker in Test cricket with 800 wickets.