Current Affairs Questions & Answers - July 24, 2017

ANSWER: J&K

Explanation:
The Congress on 22nd July 2017 appointed former Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde as its general secretary incharge of party affairs in Himachal Pradesh.

The latest development comes a day after senior Congress leader Ambika Soni had asked the party to relieve her as in-charge of the states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand citing health reasons.

However, she will continue to head the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The state will go to polls later this year.

Congress also named Ranjeet Ranjan as secretary of AICC for Himachal Pradesh.

INC: Know More

• The Indian National Congress is a broad-based political party in India.
• Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Empire in Asia and Africa.
• President: Sonia Gandhi
• Headquarters: 24, Akbar Road, New Delhi 110001
• Founder: Allan Octavian Hume, Dadabhai Naoroji, Dinshaw Edulji Wacha
• Founded: 28 December 1885
• Newspaper: Congress Sandesh
• Ideology: Social liberalism, Gandhian socialism, Indian nationalism, Social democracy, Secularism, Democratic socialism

ANSWER: National Trade Facilitation Action Plan

Explanation:
National Trade Facilitation Action Plan (NTFAP) aims to align border procedures with international best practices and improve Ease of Doing Business.

It would not only ensure compliance with the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) but would also give impetus to trade facilitation.

Action Plan gives a time bound map, not only for implementing TFA, but also for India’s initiatives for trade facilitation and Ease of doing Business which goes beyond TFA.

The Action Plan was released by the Finance Minister Shri Jaitley on 21st July 2017.

WCO appreciated the various initiatives taken by the Indian Customs to facilitate trade particularly the release of the National Trade Facilitation Action Plan (NTFAP).

While praising the massive reforms undertaken by the present Government in the Indian Taxation System including implementation of GST, WCO indicated that the efforts made with regard to outreach and capacity building before implementation of GST in India can be emulated by many other countries.

WCO is working with G-20 on illicit financial flows.

ANSWER: Haryana

Explanation:
The Centre and the Government of Haryana joined hands on 20th July 2017 to revive the long lost River Saraswati and provide water to the drought-prone areas of India.

Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas (Independent Charge) Dharmendra Pradhan and Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar witnessed the signing of the `Memorandum of Agreement`.

The Haryana Government and ONGC have signed a Memorandum of Agreement for drilling of 10 water wells along the Petro Channel of Saraswati River up to a depth of 400-500 meters, which will aim at providing water in drought-prone areas.

Helping to restore the lost glory of River Saraswati, the MoA will also retain the river`s beauty as well.

The MoA signed today will not just increase the availability of water in the region but will also help in efforts towards rediscovering the lost lineage of Saraswati River.

The ONGC project is an added advantage for the state.

ANSWER: Brenda Hale

Explanation:
The UK Supreme Court on 21st July appointed its first female president, Brenda Hale, making her the first woman to be the most senior judge in the country.

Hale, an expert in family law who has been the court’s deputy president since June 2013, will succeed Lord David Neuberger as its head in October, following his retirement.

Hale said it was a "great honour and a challenge" to follow Neuberger.

In 1984, she was the first woman to be appointed to the Law Commission, and 20 years later she became the UK's first Law Lord. In 2009, she became the first woman to sit on the newly formed Supreme Court.

Neuberger welcomed her appointment as his successor.

Rights Info, a digital human rights campaign group, celebrated Hale as a prominent champion of diversity in the judiciary and supporter of human rights protections.

Hale's promotion was announced at the same time as Lady Justice Jill Black was named as only the second woman to sit on the UK Supreme Court.

She and two other new justices, Lord Justice David Lloyd Jones and Lord Justice Michael Briggs, will join the court on October 2, when Hale will also be formally sworn in.

ANSWER: Shanmugh Natarajan

Explanation:
Global software giant Adobe has appointed Shanmugh Natarajan as the Managing Director for Adobe Systems in India.

Natarajan was formerly serving as Adobe’s executive Director and will continue to lead the company’s operations in the country in addition to his ongoing responsibility as Vice President, Engineering, Digital Media at Adobe.

Natarajan joined Adobe in 2008 and has been instrumental in leading product development of products like Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Flash and Lightroom.

He has also contributed to the development of several mobile and web products for Adobe Creative Cloud.

Natarajan will continue to lead R&D and operations for Adobe India while South Asia managing director Kulmeet Bawa will continue to lead Adobe’s field operations in the country.

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
With Ram Nath Kovind set to be sworn in on Tuesday, the Union government has appointed Sanjay Kothari, former Secretary of the Department of Personnel and Training, the Secretary of the new President.

Gujarat’s Resident Commissioner in New Delhi, Bharat Lal, an Indian Forest Service officer, has been appointed Joint Secretary.

Ashok Malik, senior journalist and distinguished fellow at Observer Research Foundation, will be Mr. Kovind’s Press Secretary.

Their appointment orders were issued by the government late on 21st July, 2017.

Preparations are in full swing for the swearing-in.

Kothari, a 1978-batch IAS officer of the Haryana cadre, is the Chairman of the Public Enterprises Selection Board, where he was appointed after he superannuated as DoPT Secretary.

He is considered close to P.K. Mishra, Additional Principal Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, who looks after the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.

Meanwhile, the government has carried out a large-scale reshuffle at the Additional Secretary level.

The officials are from the 1987 and 1988 batches of the IAS who were recently empanelled as Additional Secretary or equivalent.

A 1985-batch IAS officer, J. Rama Krishna Rao, has been moved from the Defence Ministry to the National Minority Commission as Secretary, while Usha Sharma from the same batch has been made the Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India.

Similarly, another IAS officer from the 1985 batch, Sanjiv Gupta, has been appointed CEO of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s National E-Governance Division.

Interestingly, two IAS officers from the Gujarat cadre - R.P. Gupta, Joint Secretary in the Coal Ministry, and Rajkumar, Joint Secretary, Economic Affairs in the Finance Ministry, have been moved out and appointed in PSUs.

Mr. Gupta has been made the Managing Director of the National Waqf Development Corporation Ltd., while Mr. Rajkumar has been appointed the CEO of the ESIC.

ANSWER: Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana

Explanation:
The Union Finance Ministry has launched Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY), a pension scheme exclusively for senior citizens aged 60 years and above.

Under this scheme, senior citizens will get a guaranteed interest of 8% for 10 years depending upon the investment made by them.

This PMVVY scheme will be available from May 4, 2017 to May 3, 2018. Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has been given the sole privilege to operate the scheme.

It can be purchased offline as well as online through LIC. This scheme provides an assured return of 8% per annum payable monthly for 10 years on single lumpsum premium ranging from INR 150000 (minimum) to INR750000 (maximum).

Pension (minimum: INR 1000/ month; maximum: INR 5000) will be payable at the end of each period, during the policy term of 10 years, as per the frequency of monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, yearly as chosen by the pensioner at the time of purchase.

It is exempted from goods and services (GST) tax. It will offer senior citizens more avenues to earn steady regular income at a time of falling interest rates.

On survival of the pensioner to the end of the policy term of 10 years, the purchase price of the scheme along with the final pension instalment will be payable.

The scheme also offers loan up to 75% of the purchase price after 3 policy years (to meet the liquidity needs).

Loan interest will be recovered from the pension instalments and loan will be recovered from claim proceeds.

The scheme allows for premature exit for the treatment of any critical terminal illness of self or spouse. On such premature exit, 98% of the purchase price would be refunded.

On death of the pensioner during the policy term of 10 years, the purchase price should be paid to the beneficiary.

ANSWER: 6-14

Explanation:
The Lok Sabha has passed The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill, 2017.

The Bill amends the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act (RTE), 2009 to extend the deadline for teachers to acquire the prescribed minimum qualifications for appointment.

Through the amending measure inadequately qualified teachers as on March 31, 2015, working after enactment of the RTE Act, 2009 are being given last chance to acquire minimum qualifications within a period of four years i.e. by March 31, 2019 to hold their jobs as teachers.

The amendments to RTE Act, 2009 will enable the in-service untrained elementary teachers to complete their training and ensure that all teachers at the elementary level have certain minimum standard of qualifications.

It will ensure that all teachers attain minimum qualifications as considered necessary to maintain the standard of teaching quality.

It will ultimately result in improvement in overall quality of teachers, teaching processes and learning outcomes of children.

It will reinforce Government’s emphasis on improvement of quality of elementary education.

The RTE Act, 2009 envisages free and compulsory elementary education to every child in the age group of 6-14 years.

The section 23(2) of the Act specifies that all teachers at elementary level at commencement of this law if did not possess minimum qualifications under it need to acquire these within a period of five years i.e. by March 2015.

However, several state governments have reported that 11.00 lakh teachers at the elementary level are still untrained out of a total number of 66.41 lakh teachers.

ANSWER: Castor bean plant

Explanation:
According to study conducted by researchers from University of Hyderabad, Castor bean plants can prove useful in fighting soil pollution.

It was found that these plants can absorb toxic heavy metals from soil from these polluted areas due to industrial pollution.

The roots, leaves and stem of these plants from the polluted areas contain heavy metals such as lead. It was also observed that these plants accelerate the remediation of polluted soils due to presence of some chemicals in them known as chelators which enhances the capability of the plant to accumulate heavy metals.

Castor seed plants are generally known to be one of the sturdiest plants that can grow in areas where the soil is highly polluted, including in areas where mining is carried out.

Traditionally, Castor oil (also known as ‘Arandi ka tel’ in Hindi) has been an age old home remedy for a variety of ailments in India.

This study highlights how castor plants which are having medical properties can also prove a boon in remediation in soil pollution.

Government bodies can take a cue out of this study for natural remediation of soil pollution.

Castor oil known as ‘Amudham’ in Telugu has been an age old home remedy for a variety of ailments in India but the castor bean plant has another use which can prove useful in fighting a major problem - soil pollution.

Castor seed plant is known to be one of the most sturdiest plants which has been observed growing in areas where the soil is highly polluted, including in areas where mining is carried out.

Castor plants growing in these areas absorb toxic heavy metals from soil.

Castor bean plants can be grown in such polluted lands and over a period of time the levels of heavy metals can be reduced in the soil.

ANSWER: India

Explanation:
India will be hosting the 5th Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) in 2017, one of the world’s largest conference on Cyber Space and related issues.

Themed on Cyber4All: An Inclusive, Sustainable, Developmental, Safe and Secure Cyberspace, the GCCS 2017 will be inaugurated by Shri Narendra Modi.

To be held in India for the first time, the two-day conference will see participation of around 2000 delegates from senior Government officials, industry leaders, academia and civil society from over 100 countries.

GCCS will congregate and deliberate on issues relating to promotion of cooperation in cyberspace, norms for responsible behaviour in cyberspace and to enhance cyber capacity building.

Many of these delegations will be headed at Ministerial level delegates thereby making it an important forum of global consultation of various issues of cyber space.

Among the multiple transformative programmes under Digital India, the biggest thing that India brings about to the table is Digital Inclusion that makes it sustainable and developmental; which has been given utmost importance under the theme Cyber4All.

The GCCS 2017 will take place on the 23rd and 24th of November, 2017 in Aero City, New Delhi. Multiple run-up events are planned across India and abroad to create awareness about GCCS 2017, along with 2 days of pre-event activities right before the conference.

GCCS: Know More

• GCCS is a prestigious international conference that aims at encouraging dialogue among stakeholders of cyberspace, which has been taking place since 2011.
  Incepted in 2011 in London, GCCS witnessed a participation of 700 global delegates.
• It helped in setting up rules and guidelines for the editions to follow.
• The second conference was held in 2012 in Budapest with focus on relationship between internet rights and internet security and was attended by 700 delegates from nearly 60 countries.
• The third edition of GCCS was held in 2013 in Seoul with participation from 1600 delegates.
• The conference built on the themes such as Economic Growth and Development, Social and Cultural Benefits, a Safe and Secure Cyberspace, Cybercrime and International Security.
• The fourth version GCCS 2015 was held on April 16-17, 2015 in The Hague, Netherlands.
• Nearly 1800 members from nearly 100 countries participated in this conference and over 60 countries participated with delegations led at Ministerial level.
• The conference focused on Freedom, Security and Growth in cyber space. GCCS 2015 was a program designed as high level stock taking exercise and to generate input for other ongoing processes rather than an independent norm setting initiative.
• The launch of Global Forum on Cyber Expertise (GFCE) was main deliverable of the conference for capacity building in cyber space.

Goals and Benefits of GCCS

• ‘Goal of GCCS 2017 is to promote an inclusive Cyber Space with focus on policies and frameworks for inclusivity, sustainability, development, security, safety & freedom.
• Also on the anvil technology and partnerships for upholding digital democracy, maximizing collaboration for strengthening security and safety and advocating dialogue for digital diplomacy’.
• It will be an opportunity to showcase the “Digital India” program as a positive, sustainable and scalable model for use of ICTs for addressing developmental challenges and growth opportunities.
• It can help provide vision of inclusive digital society for inclusive growth, education, healthcare especially for developing world.
• The plenary sessions and other activities during GCCS 2017 will be designed around the themes of Cyber4Inclusive Growth, Cyber4DigitalInclusion, Cyber4Security and Cyber4Diplomacy.
• During various sessions and activities focused around these themes, GCCS 2017 will bring forth the business, empowerment and developmental potential of Cyber space for realizing the goals of sustainable development.
• Cyber security will be one of the major focus areas in GCCS 2017 especially as the central government is in the process of setting up separate sector specific emergency response centres to ensure cyber security and strengthen technology infrastructure.
• GCCS 2017 will be an excellent platform for Industry and its Associations, Civil Society, Academia, Governments and Think-tanks from across the world to deliberate on issues, opportunities and challenges faced in the cyber world and pave the way for a better digital future.
• Indian start-ups will also get exposure to the global industry leaders and investors in GCCS 2017 to pitch their ideas through multiple seminars, side events and exhibitions.

ANSWER: 6

Explanation:
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the remarkable but relatively little known ‘Save Western Ghats March’ , a response to the socio-ecological challenges the area grappled with.

A diverse set of people - scientists, anthropologists, sociologists, activists, journalists and local communities—marched together for 100 days along the length of ghats and met at a conference in Goa to discuss the issues.

The march was as much an exercise in envisioning the future as it was an acknowledgement of the past—of the extreme richness of this ancient mountain range that extends from River Tapti to Kanyakumari.

Straddling six states, from Gujarat to Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the 1600-odd kilometre-long Western Ghats is home to an astonishing diversity of life and supports innumerable human communities and cultures.

It is an ecosystem that is 50 million years old; humans made an entry here only 12,000-15,000 years ago.

250 million people living in peninsular India are nourished by the many rivers that originate here.

The forests are also home to hundreds of globally threatened species, including rare and unique ones like the Malabar torrent toad, the Nilgiri langur, Wroughton’s free-tailed bat, the Nilgiri laughing thrush and many species of caecilians, the limbless amphibians.

The Western Ghats are recognised today as one of the world’s top 35 biodiversity hotspots and for very good reason.

The idea of a ‘biodiversity hotspot’ was first articulated only in 1988.

The mountain range is dotted by a number of wildlife sanctuaries, national parks, tiger and elephant reserves and traditional sacred groves (devrai in Maharashtra, deverakadu in Kodagu and kavu in Kerala) that have existed for centuries.

Previous initiatives include 1970s agitation to save Silent Valley in Kerala from a dam project, the large conservation research and action project initiated here under the aegis of the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF).

A much more recent effort was to declare large parts of the ghats ecosensitive.

It is estimated that only a third of the mountain range is still under natural vegetation, and this too is highly fragmented and degraded.

The Save Western Ghats March from three decades ago remains hugely relevant - the Western Ghats are unique, important and still under threat.

ANSWER: An antibiotic compound

Explanation:
Researchers from a southeastern Spanish university announced the discovery of a molecule that could be used as a potential drug to fight the effects of a Zika virus infection.

San Antonio Catholic University of Murcia said that scientists belonging to its Bioinformatics and High-Performance Computing research group had found that a compound previously used as an antibiotic countered the symptoms of the mosquito-borne disease.

It’s a drug that had been withdrawn from the market because it had lost its potency as an antibiotic, but we know it can be administered to humans.

The molecular structure of the proteins involved in the Zika virus’ replication process was first described only a year ago.

Zika: Know More

• Zika virus is a member of the virus family Flaviviridae.
• It is spread by daytime-active Aedes mosquitoes, such as A. aegypti and A. albopictus.
• Its name comes from the Zika Forest of Uganda, where the virus was first isolated in 1947.
• Scientific name: Zika virus
• Higher classification: Flavivirus
• Rank: Species
• Did you know: Serological tests, including immunofluorescence assays and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays may indicate the presence of anti-Zika virus IgM and IgG antibodies, according to WHO.

ANSWER: Project 75

Explanation:
India has finally kick-started its “mother of all underwater defence deals” after an excruciating 10-year delay.

France, Germany, Russia, Sweden, Spain and Japan were in the fray to build six advanced stealth submarines for an estimated INR 70,000 crore ($10.9 billion) in collaboration with an Indian shipyard.

This conventional submarine programme called Project-75, languishing in politico-bureaucratic apathy, files and committees since it got the government’s “acceptance of necessity” way back in November 2007, is likely to be the first mega project.

This is under the new “strategic partnership” policy finalized by the defence ministry in May.

The six shipbuilders, Naval Group-DCNS (France), ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (Germany), Rosoboronexport Rubin Design Bureau (Russia), Navantia (Spain), Saab (Sweden) and the Mitsubishi-Kawasaki Heavy Industries combine (Japan), have to first respond to the RFI (request for information) issued to them soon.

The Navy will then formulate the NSQRs (naval staff qualitative requirements) before the formal RFP (request for proposal) is issued to the six for submitting their technical and commercial bids for evaluation.

The Indian shipyard for the strategic partnership with the selected foreign collaborator will be chosen in a parallel process.

It may take around two years for the original equipment manufacturer (OEM)-Indian shipyard combine to be down-selected.

Moreover, the first new submarine will roll out only seven to eight years after the final contract is inked. But the aim is to fast-track the entire process.

The Navy wants the six new diesel-electric submarines to have land-attack cruise missiles, air-independent propulsion for greater underwater endurance and the capability to integrate indigenous weapons and sensors as and when they are developed.

The stress will be on transfer of technology from the OEM and indigenisation. The submarines, to be built with indigenous steel, should also be less maintenance-intensive to ensure a better operational cycle with minimal downtime.

Navy should have 18 diesel-electric submarines as well as six nuclear-powered attack submarines (called SSNs) and four nuclear-powered submarines with long-range nuclear-tipped missiles (SSBNs) for effective deterrence against China and Pakistan.

But the force is grappling with just 13 old conventional submarines.

Only half of them are operational at any given time because at least 10 of them are over 25 years old, apart from two nuclear-powered submarines, INS Arihant (SSBN) and INS Chakra (SSN).

The six French Scorpene diesel-electric submarines being built in Mazagon Docks under the INR 23,652 crore Project-75, after an over four-year delay, will all be delivered by 2021.

But by then, many of the 13 existing submarines will be up for retirement despite mid-life upgrades and refits

ANSWER: UR Rao

Explanation:
Eminent space scientist and former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman Udupi Ramachandra Rao passed away in Bengaluru on 24th July 2017 due to age related ailments. He was 85.

Rao is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.

Born in Adamaru area of Karnataka’s Udupi district, Rao was involved in all ISRO missions till date in one capacity or the other.

He is credited on account of contributions to the development of space technology in India and its extensive application to communications and remote sensing of natural resources.

Before his death, he was serving as the chairman of the governing council of the Physical Research Laboratory in Ahmedabad and the chancellor of the Indian institute of science and technology in Thiruvananthapuram.

Rao served as the chairman of ISRO for 10 years from 1984 to 1994.

After taking charge as chairman of the space commission and secretary, department of space in 1984, he accelerated the development of rocket technology which led to the successful launch of ASLV rocket and the operational PSLV launch vehicle.

He was also instrumental for the launch 2.0 ton class of satellites into polar orbit.

He also initiated the development of the Geo Stationary Launch Vehicle (GSLV) and the development of cryogenic technology in 1991.

Rao was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1976 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2017 for his contribution to Indian space technology.

He has published over 350 scientific and technical papers covering cosmic rays, interplanetary physics, high energy astronomy, space applications, satellite and rocket technology and authored many books.

Rao also became the first Indian space scientist to be inducted into the prestigious ‘Satellite Hall of Fame’ in Washington DC on March 19, 2013, and the ‘IAF Hall of Fame’ in Mexico’s Guadalajara.