Daily Current Affairs and GK | 23 and 24 August 2020

1. 23 August: International Day for the Remembrance of Slave Trade and its Abolition.

• The International Day for the Remembrance of Slave Trade and its Abolition is celebrated on 23 August each year.
• The day has been designated by UNESCO to commemorate the transatlantic slave trade.
• This date is significant because, during the night of 22-23 August, 1791, on the island of St. Domingo, now known as Haiti, a rebellion began, which eventually led to abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.
• The significance of this day has increased recently after the killing of George Floyd at the hands of the police in the US.
• It is estimated that from about 1525 to 1866, more than 12 million slaves were forcibly transported to America from West Africa. During the visit, 2 million people died of malnutrition or diseases like measles, scurvy, and smallpox, and those who survived, have to live in unhygienic living conditions and physical abuse.

2. Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu congratulated the people for the Nuakhai festival.

• On 23 August 2020, on the occasion of the Nuakhai festival, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu congratulated the people for the Nuakhai festival.
• Nuakhai is an ancient festival for the worship of food grains and it reflects man's close connection with nature.
• Nuakhai:
  • Nuakhai or Nawakhai is an agricultural festival mainly celebrated by the people of western Odisha and southern Chhattisgarh in India.
  • Nuakhai is celebrated to welcome the new rice of the season.
  • It is celebrated on the fifth day of the lunar fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada, which falls a day after the Ganesh Chaturthi festival.
  • The Nuakhai festival has been celebrated since the Vedic period, where one of the Panchagya mentioned by the sages was the Pralamban Yajna, which means harvesting new crops and offering them to the goddess as is done in the Nuakhai festival.

(Source: News on AIR)

3. National Fertilizers Limited will set up an organic waste converter plant at Vijaipur, Madhya Pradesh.

• Rashtriya Fertilizers Limited will set up an Organic Waste Converter (OWC) plant under the Department of Fertilizers in Vijaipur, Madhya Pradesh.
• The biodegradable waste collected in the unit will be transported to the organic waste converter plant, where non-biodegradable parts will be separated from it. It will take about 10 days to prepare ready to use compost.
• The project aims to recycle about 2000 kg of bio-residual waste generated in the township per day, including horticultural waste, and convert it into ready to use compost.
• National Fertilizers Limited (NFL):
  • It is a Miniratna company.
  • It is involved in the production of chemical fertilizers, bio-fertilizers, and industrial chemicals.
  • It is headquartered in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
  • It was established on 1 September 1979.

(Source: News on AIR)

4. Aramco suspended a deal to build $10 billion refining and petrochemicals complex in China.

• Recently Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco suspended a deal to build a $10 billion refining and petrochemicals complex in China.
• Aramco has taken this decision because of uncertain market conditions.
• The joint venture was signed during the visit of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia to China in February 2019.
• At present, the unprecedented reduction in oil prices and the impact on energy demand due to the Corona pandemic has negatively affected the projects of energy companies worldwide.
• Saudi Arabia:
  • It is a country in Western Asia, which is spread over most of the Arabian Peninsula.
  • Its capital is Riyadh, and the currency is Saudi Riyal.
  • It is bordered by Jordan and Iraq to the north and Kuwait to the northeast.
  • Qatar, Bahrain, and UAE border Saudi Arabia to the east and Oman borders Saudi Arabia to the southeast.
  • Yemen borders Saudi Arabia to the south.

(Source: News on AIR)

5. The Central Government decided to include all eligible disabled persons under the National Food Security Act 2013.

• Recently the Central Government has decided to include all eligible disabled persons under the National Food Security Act 2013.

• For this purpose, the Central Government has given instructions to all the State Governments and Union Territories.
• National Food Security Act (2013):
  • The Parliament passed the Act on 10 September 2013.
  • It aims to provide food and nutritional security to the people of India.
  • The Act provides subsidized food grains under the Public Distribution System targeted at up to 75% of the rural population and 50% of the urban population. Thus it covers about two-thirds of the population.
  • The eligible person is entitled to get 5 kg of food grains per month at the subsidized price.
  • Under this, rice is made available at the rate of Rs. 3 per kg, wheat at Rs. 2 per kg and coarse grains at the rate of Rs. 1 per kg.

(Source: News on AIR)

6. Teacher of a government school in Ladakh was selected for the 2020 National Teacher Awards.

• Recently a government school teacher in Ladakh has been selected for the 2020 National Teacher Awards.
• Sonam Gyaltsan, head teacher of middle school Taknak Sakti in Kharu block of Leh-Ladakh, has been selected for the prestigious national award.
• Mr. Sonam Gyaltsan has made all efforts to build trust among the villagers about government schools, improving the convenience and outcomes of the students in the school for which he is being honored.
• An independent jury constituted by the Ministry of Education, Department of School Education and Literacy selected teachers to honor them for their excellence in the field of teaching with innovation and dedication.

7. Sophia Popov won the Women's British Open.

• Recently Sophia Popov has won the Women's British Open.
• Became Germany's first female golfer to capture this major title.
• World number 304 Sofia Popov won the title by defeating Jasmine Suwannapura of Thailand at Royal Troon in Scotland.
• British Open:
  • This is known as the Open Championship or The Open. One of the most prestigious golf tournaments.
  • It is the oldest golf tournament in the world.
  • It was established in 1860.

(Source: News on AIR)

8. Automatic currency sanitizing device NotesClean developed by DRDO.

• Recently, the Hyderabad-based Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) Lab has developed the NotesClean sanitization equipment.
• It is influenced by the idea of self-reliant India.
• The input slot of this device requires only a loose bundle of note. It selects the notes one by one and passes them through a series of UVC lamps for complete disinfection.
• Recently, DRDO has also developed an ultraviolet sanitizer DRUVS. It is designed to sanitize mobile phones, iPads, laptops, currency notes, check leaves, invoices, passbooks, paper and envelopes.
• Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO):
  • It is an agency of the Government of India, it deals with the research and development work of the Indian Army.
  • G. Sateesh Reddy is the current Chairman of this organization.
  • It was founded in 1958.
  • Its headquarters is located in New Delhi.

(Source: News on AIR)

9. A new feature has been added to the Aarogya Setu App to help start safe functioning in business and economy.

• Recently Aarogya Setu App has launched a new technological solution to help start safe functioning in business and economy.
• With the new open application programming interface service, organizations will be able to learn about the status of Aarogya Setu App of their employees.
• The open API service of Aarogya Setu will help in avoiding the risk of Covid-19 infection and will also help in bringing businesses and the economy back on track.
• Organizations and business entities, which are registered in India with more than 50 employees can benefit from this new service.
• These organizations can easily check the health status of their employees at all times by using new technology.
• Aarogya Setu was launched on 2 April 2020. Currently, the Aarogya Setu App has more than 150 million users.

(Source: News on AIR)

10. Dragonfly Festival will be celebrated for the first time in Kerala.

• Dragonfly Festival will be celebrated for the first time in the state of Kerala.
• It is also known as Thubimahotsavam 2020.
• The aim is to raise awareness about the importance of dragonflies and damselflies and the need for their protection.
• This is the third edition of the National Dragonfly Festival, which is being held online in August 2020.
• The festival will be jointly organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature India Kerala State Office and Society for Odonate Studies in Kerala.
• It will be a part of the National Dragonfly Festival organized by WWF India, Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Indian Dragonfly Society in partnership with National Biodiversity Board, UN Environmental Programme, UN Development Programme and IUCN-CEC.
• Dragonflies also serve as important bio-indicators of ecological health in an area.

(Source: Indian Express)

11. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan decided to convert the historic Chora Museum into a mosque.

• Recently Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has decided to convert the historic Chora Museum into a mosque.
• Shortly before this, the famous Hagia Sophia Museum of Turkey was also opened for Muslim worship.
• Chora Museum:
  • It was built in 534 AD during the Byzantine Empire as a church.
  • In the 11^th century, biblical stories were depicted on its interior walls, pillars and dome mosaics and frescoes.
  • It was converted into a mosque in 1511 following the conquest of the Ottoman Empire.
  • In 1945, it was converted into a museum.

(Source: Indian Express)