Daily Current Affairs and GK | 27 May 2021

Topics: Books and Author

1. Avtar Singh Bhasin authored a new book titled “Nehru, Tibet and China”.

• Avtar Singh Bhasin has penned a book titled “Nehru, Tibet and China”. It has been published by Penguin-India.
• The book is based on the events from 1949 to the Indo-China war. It also explains the current issues between India and China.
• On 1 October 1949, power in china shifted from the nationalist Kuomintang government to the Communist Party of China.
• After Independence, India maintained a good relationship with China. Both countries signed the Panchsheel Agreement in 1954.

Topics: International News

2. Anatole Collinet Makosso becomes new Prime Minister of Congo.

• Anatole Collinet Makosso is appointed as Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo. He is appointed by President Sassou Nguesso.
• He has taken the place of Clement Mouamba.
• In 2011, He joined the government as Minister of Youth and Civil Instruction. He also worked as Minister of Education.
• Corruption, access of water and electricity, and social problems such as the payment of pension arrears will be the main challenges for the newly appointed Prime Minister.
• The Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo is selected from the elected representatives in Parliament.

Topic: Art and Culture

3. PM Modi addressed Virtual Vesak Global Celebrations on Buddha Purnima

• Virtual Vesak Global Celebrations on Buddha Purnima have been addressed by PM Modi.
• Culture Ministry in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation, has organized the event.
• Supreme heads of the Buddhist Sanghas from all over the world participated in the event.
• Buddha Purnima celebrations mark the birth of Gautam Buddha. It is considered a ‘triple-blessed day’ - as Tathagata Gautam Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, and Maha Parnirvana.
• Buddha:
  • He was born into a noble family of the Kshatriyas in Lumbini in 563 BCE.
  • His childhood name was Siddhartha Gautama and he belonged to Shakya clan.
  • He attained enlightenment under a peepal tree in Bodhgaya.
  • His first sermon is called Dharma Chakra Pravartana.

Topic: Sports

4. Mohali International Hockey Stadium renamed after Balbir Singh Sr.

• Mohali International Hockey Stadium was renamed after Balbir Singh Sr.
• Punjab Sports Minister announced renaming on the occasion of the first death anniversary of Balbir Singh Sr.
• He was a three-time Olympic gold medalist. He died on May 25 last year.
• From now onwards, the stadium would be known as “Olympian Balbir Singh Senior International Hockey Stadium”.
• Punjab Sports Minister said that the sports department would start a scholarship in the name of Balbir Singh Sr.
• Balbir Singh Sr was a Padma Shri awardee hockey player. He created a world record for most goals scored by an individual in the men’s hockey final of the Olympics.
• Punjab government has given him Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award in 2019.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

5. Ayush Minister will launch repository portal & Ayush Sanjivani App.

• Ayush Minister Kiren Rijiju will launch the Ayush Clinical Case Repository (ACCR) portal and the third version of the Ayush Sanjivani App today.
• The Ayush Clinical Case Repository (ACCR) portal will bring Ayush practitioners and the general public on one platform. It will provide information about the clinical outcomes achieved by Ayush practitioners.
• It will also make the public aware of the scientific base of all streams of Ayush. It will also provide information about Covid 19 cases treated through Ayush Systems.
• The third version of the Ayush Sanjivani App will also be launched. It will provide information about the Ayush medicine for asymptomatic & mild to moderate patients of Covid 19.
• AYUSH: It stands for Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

6. SpiceHealth wins Gold Stevie Award 2021.

• SpiceHealth has won the Gold Stevie Award at the 2021 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards.
• It has been awarded under the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) response category as ‘Most Valuable Medical Innovation’.
• SpiceHealth played a crucial role in doing Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) testing of Covid patients at low cost. It has introduced mobile testing laboratories for remote areas.
• SpiceHealth conducted more than 2.2 million RT-PCR tests across Delhi, Haryana, Maharashtra, Kerala, and Uttarakhand.

Topic: Space and IT

7. Govt tells social media firms to share information on compliance with new IT rules

• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has asked all social media intermediaries to share their compliance details over the new Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
• On 25 February, the government had issued guidelines and digital media ethics code for social media platforms, digital channels, and OTT platforms. The new rule has come into force on 25 May.
• According to the new rule, any social media platform with more than 50 lakh users will be considered as a significant Social Media Intermediary.
• Social media giants Facebook and Twitter, instant messaging applications WhatsApp and Google haven’t complied with the new rules yet.
• According to the new rules, Social media intermediaries will now have to give details about the origin of a tweet or a message on being asked by either a court or a government authority.
• WhatsApp has opposed the provisions of the new rule. It argued that the provisions are against people’s fundamental right to privacy.

Topic: New Developments

8. A professor of IIT Guwahati developed materials for smart window.

• Dr. Debabrata Sikdar and Ashish Kumar Chowdhary of IIT Guwahati have developed material for the smart window.
• The smart window will control the amount of heat and light that passes through it. It will help in developing efficient automatic climate control systems in buildings.
• The result of their research has been published in the ‘Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells’ journal.
• The glass of the smart window can filter the solar radiation and can reflect the long-wave infrared rays.
• The smart window will help in maintaining the ambient indoor temperature and it can become an alternative to central air-conditioning systems.
• It has been built by electro-tuneable glass, which is made up of two ultra-thin metal layers.

Topic: State News/ Lakshadweep

9. Government proposed formation of the Lakshadweep Development Authority (LDA)

• The residents of Lakshadweep are opposing the draft prepared for the creation of a Lakshadweep Development Authority (LDA).
• The new draft has granted additional power to the government for the acquisition of land. The government has brought this draft for the development in the urban and rural areas of Lakshadweep.
• The new regulation empowers the government to constitute Planning and Development Authorities for the development of an area.
• Around 94% of the property is owned by the scheduled tribes of Island. They believe that the draft has been brought in real estate interests.
• Scheduled Tribes people have a fear that they might lose their property and the massive construction work can affect the ecological balance of the Lakshadweep.

Topic: National News

10. Department of Atomic Energy to build India’s first research reactor on PPP model

• The Dsepartment of Atomic Energy (DAE) will construct India’s first research reactor on the public-private partnership (PPP) model.
• Department of atomic energy (DAE) will build this reactor in association with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd.
• The research reactor will be designed by Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). It will produce radioisotopes.
• Radioactive isotopes are used in various fields including agriculture, food industry, and medicine. At present, all major radioisotopes are produced by BARC from the Trombay campus.
• Radiological Safety Division (RSD) and Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) regulate the procurement of radioisotopes in India.

Topic: International News

11. WHO and Switzerland launch BioHub for pathogen storage and analysis.

• The World Health Organization (WHO) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Swiss Confederation to launch the first BioHub Facility.
• The BioHub Facility has been launched for Pathogen storage, sharing, and analysis. It will help in the sharing of viruses and other pathogens between laboratories across the world.
• The BioHub Facility will act as a center for the safe receipt, sequencing, storage, and preparation of biological materials.
• Switzerland will provide the necessary infrastructure for the WHO BioHub initiative.
• At present, pathogen sharing is done bilaterally by the countries.
• World Health Organization (WHO):
  • It is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health.
  • It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
  • It was established on 7 April 1948.
  • Its current President is Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.