Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2020

Notes:
The investment arm of NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development), NABVENTURES Fund I has made its first investment in rural fintech start-up Jai Kisan.
NABVENTURES was launched in May 2019 with a proposed corpus of over ₹500 crore. The investment was made in the Mumbai-based start-up as part of a ₹30 crore funding round. Jai Kisan plans to invest the capital for hiring personnel and investing in its technology platform.

Notes:
Union Ministry of Earth Sciences has recently released a report titled ‘Assessment of Climate Change over the Indian Region’.
As per the first edition of the report released this year, the average surface air temperatures over India could rise by up to 4.4 degrees Celsius by the end of the century, in a worst-case scenario. This estimate is provided as compared to the period between 1976 and 2005. The report also revealed that under an intermediate scenario, the country’s average temperature could rise by up to 2.4°C.

Notes:
Veteran economist and retired IAS officer BPR Vithal Baru passed away recently, at the age of 93, due to age-related ailments.
Vithal Baru had served in several important assignments including Secretary Finance and Planning in the state of Andhra Pradesh from 1972 to 1982 and Member of 10th Finance Commission. He had also been the Chairman of Expenditure Commission, Kerala. He also established the Centre for Economic and Social Studies (CESS), Hyderabad.

Notes:
Recently, a team of astronomers at NASA and European Space Agency ESA have discovered a neutron star called ‘Swift J1818.0-1607’.
The neutron star has been estimated to be about 240 years old. It was first discovered in March 2020, when it released a massive burst of X-rays. Neutron stars are the smallest and densest stars. According to NASA, Swift J1818.0-1607 contains twice the mass of our Sun in a volume of more than one trillion times smaller.

Notes:
Every year, on June 19, the ‘International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict’ is observed by the United Nations.
The UN General Assembly proclaimed 19 June of each year as this special day in the year 2015, in order to raise awareness to prevent conflict-related sexual violence, to honour the victims and survivors of sexual violence. The day also pays tribute to people who have fought against this crime and laid down their lives. On the same day in 2008, the Security Council resolution condemning sexual violence as a tactic of war, was adopted.

Notes:
Jharkhand is set to become the first state to launch an employment guarantee scheme for urban poor on the lines of the Mahatma Gandhi Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
The scheme named ‘Mukhyamantri Shramik Yojna’ will guarantee 100 days of work in a financial year for urban unskilled labourers. Under the scheme, if the person doesn’t get work within 15 days of request, unemployment allowance would be given. An urban employment guarantee council would be formed, headed by the Chief Minister and Urban development minister as the vice president.

Notes:
A bailey bridge located nearly 50 kilo meters from the Sino-India border has recently collapsed, when a truck carrying a JCB machine was crossing.
The bridge is located in the state of Uttarakhand, which collapsed on increasing the weight over its capacity. The 40-feet-long bridge was built in the year 2009. As the bridge collapsed, about 15 border villages of Johar Valley have been cut off. It is estimated to take 15 days to construct a new bridge.

Notes:
China recently announced that it will join the United Nations (UN) Arms Trade Treaty. China’s top legislative body voted to adopt a decision on joining the treaty.
Under the treaty, the member countries ought to keep records of international transfers of weapons. The members should also prohibit cross-border shipments that could be used in human rights violations. Earlier, the United States had rejected to join in the treaty, which has been designed to control the flow of weapons into conflict zones.

Notes:
The state government of Rajasthan has signed a tripartite agreement with the Power Grid Corporation of India and the Educational Consultants India for establishing of smart classrooms.
The initiative has been taken to promote online education during the COVID-19 lockdown. As many as 100 schools are selected for setting up smart class rooms. The schools situated in remote areas and the recently selected government schools to be converted into English medium schools will be given top priority.

Notes:
The PM CARES Fund Trust has allocated Rs 1000 crore for the welfare of migrant labourers, to all states and UTs.
The distribution of the fund is based on the formula of 50% weightage for the population as per 2011 census, 40% weightage for number of positive COVID-19 cases and 10% for equal distribution among all the States/UTs. This fund will be deployed for arranging accommodation, food, medical treatment and transportation of the migrants.