Current Affairs Quiz - July 2022

Notes:
As per the data provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs, over 1.63 lakh Indian nationals renounced their Indian citizenship during 2021.
This is the highest during the last three years. The US was the top choice with almost half of Indians preferring to become US citizens. After the US, Indians preferred to get citizenship in Australia, Canada and the UK.

Notes:
India’s largest public sector lender, State Bank of India (SBI), announced the launch of its WhatsApp Banking services
Customers of SBI may use WhatsApp to access banking services from the lender. Users can check your account balance and get Mini Statement. Through the platform, the State Bank of India also offers WhatsApp-based services to customers with credit cards.

Notes:
L&T Technology Services has become the first tech company to publicly express its interest in the government’s direct allocation of spectrum for captive 5G networks.
It will obtain spectrum to set up a 5G non-public network to build use cases on the technology. Apart from this, the firm will also deploy 5G solutions globally for parent Larsen & Toubro. L&T is specialised in engineering and research and development services.

 

Notes:
Sri Lankan MPs have elected the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as the country’s new President.
He defeated his main rival for the job, Dullus Alahapperuma in a parliamentary vote. Sri Lanka’s ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country last week, after thousands of protesters stormed his presidential residences calling for his resignation. They had also called for the resignation of Wickremesinghe.

Notes:
India and Maldives signed MoU for judicial cooperation to accelerate court digitization and boost prospects for IT companies & start-ups in both countries.
India was among the first countries to recognise the Maldives after its independence in 1965 and to establish diplomatic relations with the country. Maldives has a strategic importance in Geographic Location of the Maldives with respect to key International Shipping Lanes (ISLs).

Notes:
The Union Chemicals and Fertilisers Ministry recently rolled out the schemes under the banner of ‘Strengthening Pharmaceuticals Industry’ (SPI), to strengthen Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the pharmaceutical sector.
SIDBI will be the project management consultant for implementing the scheme. It includes the Pharmaceutical Technology Upgradation Assistance Scheme (PTUAS), Assistance to Pharma Industries for Common Facilities Scheme (API-CF), Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Promotion and Development Scheme (PMPDS).

Notes:
Government of India is to provide a financing facility worth about Rs. 1600 Crore through the World Bank for the “Himachal Pradesh Power Sector Development Program”.
The total program cost will be approximately Rs. 2000 Crore, along with the state equity. The Program duration is five years from year 2023 to 2028. It aims to undertake holistic power sector reforms to allow for improvements in the renewable energy capacity in the state.

Notes:
Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani replied in Lok Sabha that over 2,000 children have died in specialised adoption agencies since 2014.
As many as 27,085 children have been adopted since 2014. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) developed an application namely Monitoring App for Seamless Inspection (MASI) for real-time monitoring of the Child Care Institutions (CCIs).

Notes:
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a USD 96.3 million loan to fund safe drinking water and sanitation project in Himachal Pradesh.
The 770 crore loan has been provided under the Himachal Pradesh Rural Drinking Water Improvement and Livelihood Project. The project will connect 75,800 households to the service, providing uninterrupted water supply to about 370,000 residents across 10 districts.

Notes:
The Tokyo-based International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) is the global forum of ports for industry collaboration and excellence.
IAPH has appointed Ennarasu Karunesan as its official representative in India. Ennarasu, an Indian Ports Advisor, has 33 years of leadership in the ports sector.