Daily Current Affairs and GK | 13 May 2020

1. Several Products from different states given GI Tag

A. Thanjavur Netti Works and Arumbavur Wood carvings gets GI tag

• Thanjavur Netti Works and Arumbavur Wood carvings have been given the Geographical Indication (GI) Tag.
• The application was filed by Tamil Nadu Handicrafts Development Corporation (Poompuhar).
• Pith obtained from netti, a hydrophytic plant, is used to make this traditional art.
• Some of the notable works are models of Brihadishwara Temple, door hangings, Hindu idols, etc. 

• Arumbavur Wood Carvers’ Handicrafts Industrial Cooperative Society Limited and the Arumbavur Temple Car and Woodcarving Artisans Welfare Society filed the application for Arumbavur Wood carving. 
• Wooden logs of Indian siris, neem tree, rosewood, lingam tree, mango, Indian ash tree, etc. are mainly used in the making the wood carvings. 

B. Jharkhand's Sohrai-Khovar painting gets GI tag

• The Sohrai Khovar painting of Jharkhand has received the Geographical Indication (GI), Tag.
• Sohrai Kala Mahila Vikas Sahyog Samiti Limited had filed the application for the painting.
• Sohrai Khovar Painting is a mural art that is made by the local tribal women during the marriage seasons and local harvest by using natural soils of various colors in the Hazaribagh, Jharkhand.
• The women used to make such paintings on the walls of mud houses but now they can be seen on other surfaces also.

C. Telangana's Puttapaka Telia Rumal given GI Tag

2. Announcement of a special package of 20 lakh crores to make the country self-reliant- Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan

• India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced a special package to make the country self-reliant- Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
• The total value of this special economic package is about 20 lakh crores. It also includes the old relief package.
• It is about 10% of India's gross domestic product (GDP).
• This package is for MSMEs industries, middle class, cottage industries, etc.
• The package lays emphasis on four L-Land, Labor, Liquidity, Law.
• With this, the need to focus on five pillars to make India self-reliant viz,
  • Economy
  • Infrastructure
  • Technology-driven system
  • Vibrant demography
  • Demand and Supply
• Gross domestic product (GDP) is the final monetary value of all goods and services produced within a country's range over a specific time period.

3. Foreign Minister of India held a virtual meeting with his Denmark counterpart

• Recently India's Foreign Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar held his first virtual joint commission meeting with his Denmark counterpart Jeppe Kofod.
• The bilateral relations of the two countries were reviewed in this meeting.
• On this occasion, the two countries held talks to strengthen them by focusing on topics like clean tech, urbanization, renewable energy, green solutions and food processing.
• Denmark:
  • Denmark is a Scandinavian country, consisting of the Jutland Peninsula and several islands.
  • It is connected to Sweden via the Oresund bridge.
  • Its capital is Copenhagen and the currency is the Danish krone.

4. Second phase of Vande Bharat Mission will be launched from 16 to 22 May 2020

• The second phase of the Vande Bharat Mission will be launched from 16 to 22 May 2020.
• Indians from 31 countries will be brought back under this phase.
• In the second phase, Indians from Russia, Germany, Thailand, France, Spain, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan will be brought back.
• A total of 149 flights will be deployed, including feeder flights.
• Vande Bharat Mission is one of the largest evacuation exercise. Under this, the government is bringing back about 14,800 Indian nationals trapped abroad due to the lockdown of Coronavirus.

5. MSME Ministry Launches Technology Portal CHAMPIONS

• Recently the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) has launched the CHAMPIONS Portal.
• It is a technology-driven control room-cum-management information system.
• This portal is basically to address, encourage, support and help small units to resolve their grievances.
• CHAMPIONS stands for Creation and Harmonious Application of Modern Processes for Increasing the Output and National Strength.
• The main objective of this initiative is to help Indian micro, small and medium enterprises to be established as national and global champions.
• It has been integrated on a real-time basis with the main complaint portal CPGRAMS of the Government of India and the web based system of the Ministry of MSME.

6. Population based Sero-survey in selected districts

• Population based Sero-survey will be done in selected districts of the country.
• The survey will be carried out in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC), state health departments and the people concerned.
• Under this, two hundred samples will be taken every week from every district and eight hundred samples per district every month.
• Ten health services including six public and four private will be selected from each district.
• Under this survey, pregnant women, OPD patients and health workers will be covered.
• The aim is to monitor the spread of the district level COVID-19 infection.
• It will not be used to diagnose individual patients.
• Blood samples will be collected for the ELISA test to detect IgG antibodies in addition to throat, nasal swabs.

7. Directorate General of Civil Aviation extended the validity of flight licenses of pilots

• Recently the validity of flight licenses of pilots has been extended for 90 days by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
• This decision has been taken because most of the training organizations are not in operation due to COVID-19.
• The move by DGCA will ensure continuity of service for all pilots whose licenses were to expire from 23 March to 20 June 2020.
• Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA):
  • This directorate investigates aviation accidents and incidents.
  • Its headquarters is located in New Delhi.
  • It was founded in 1997.
  • It has been granted statutory body status under the Aircraft Amendment Bill 2020.

8. Non-invasive BiPAP ventilator was developed by CSIR-NAL

• Recently a BiPAP (Bi-level Positive Airway Pressure) non-invasive ventilator named SwasthVayu has been developed.
• This ventilator has been developed by CSIR's constituent laboratory National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) Bengaluru, in a record time of 36 days.
• This non-invasive ventilator features a microcontroller-based precision closed-loop adaptive control system with a built-in biocompatible 3-D printed manifold and coupler with Highly Efficient Particulate Air Filter (HEPA).
• These unique features help reduce the risk of the virus spreading.
• The system has been certified for safety and performance by accredited agencies such as NABL.
• The major advantage of this machine is that it is very easy to use without any special nursing.

9. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a video conference with his counterpart from six countries

• Recently US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a video conference with his counterpart from six countries.
• These six countries include India, Australia, Brazil, Israel, Japan and South Korea.
• The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the importance of international cooperation, transparency, and accountability in combating the COVID-19 pandemic and finding its cause.

10. The Global Nutrition Report 2020 was published

• Recently the Global Nutrition Report 2020 was published.
• This report is published with joint efforts by the World Health Organization (WHO) and others.
• The first edition of this report was published in 2014.
• This report identifies the country with the highest rate of domestic disparities in malnutrition.
• The state of India according to the report-
  • According to this report, India is among 88 countries that may miss achieving the global nutrition targets by 2025.
  • India is ranked among the three worst countries along with Nigeria and Indonesia for disparities within the country in terms of stunting.
• It is known that in 2012 the World Health Assembly had set six nutritional targets for maternal, infant and young child nutrition to be achieved by 2025. These are as follows-
  • Reduce stunting by 40% in children under 5 years of age.
  • Reduce anemia by 50% in women aged 19–49 years.
  • Reduce low birth weight by 30% in children.
  • Do not allow excess weight gain in childhood.
  • Ensuring an increase in the rate of breastfeeding in the first six months.
  • Restrict child wasting to less than 5%.

11. Nepal has protested against the construction of a road connecting Lipulekh and Dharchula

• Nepal has opposed the construction of the major road connecting Lipulekh Pass and Uttarakhand's Dharchula.
• The road was recently inaugurated by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh to help pilgrims visiting Kailash-Mansarovar in Tibet, China.
• Lipulekh Pass is located near Kalapani, a disputed border area between Nepal and India
• Both India and Nepal consider Kalapani as an integral part of their territory, India as its jurisdiction as Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand and Nepal as part of Dharchula district.