Daily Current Affairs and GK | 29 July 2020

1. International Tiger Day: 29 July.

• With an aim to spread awareness about tiger conservation, International Tiger Day is observed every year on 29 July worldwide.
• This day was adopted during the 2010 St. Petersburg Tiger Summit. In this summit, the Heads of Governments of Tiger Range countries vowed to double the tiger population by the year 2022.
• India has achieved this target 4 years ahead i.e. in 2018 itself.
• Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar recently released All India Tiger Estimation Report 2018.
• India accounts for about 70% of the global tiger population and leads the world in effective conservation of wild species.
• India launched the Project Tiger in 1973 for the conservation of tigers.
• Apart from tigers, India is also home to 30,000 elephants, 3000 single horned rhinos and over 500 lions.
• India leads around 8% of world diversity despite the scarcity of physical resources.

(Source: News on AIR)

2. 5^th Annual Meeting of Board of Governors of AIIB concluded through video conference.

• Recently, the 5^th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank was concluded through video conference.
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman from India attended the meeting via video conference in New Delhi.
• On this occasion, the Finance Minister referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiative to create COVID-19 Emergency Fund for SAARC countries.
• During the meeting mainly two points were discussed -
  • Election of President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
  • A roundtable discussion on the theme ‘AIIB 2030-Supporting Asia’s Development over the Next Decade’.
• Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB):
  • It is a multilateral development bank, a mission to improve social and economic outcomes in Asia.
  • It started operating in January 2016.
  • It is headquartered in Beijing, China.
  • AIIB now has 103 accepted members worldwide.

(Source: News on AIR)

3. Mini trucks were sent from India to Bangladesh for the first time.

• Recently for the first time 15 mini Tata trucks from India have been sent to Bangladesh.
• Earlier, a parcel train carrying chilli from Andhra Pradesh reached Bangladesh on 13 July.
• The first container train carrying 50 containers in FMCG products and other items recently came to the Benapole railway station in Bangladesh.
• Also, India has given 10 diesel engines to Bangladesh for use in passenger and cargo services in the country.
• Railway cooperation between India and Bangladesh has grown considerably in the last few years. India has extended a Line of Credit (LOC) of over $ 2.4 billion for 17 railway projects, of which 9 have been completed.

(Source: News on AIR)

4. Dialogue between Defense Ministers of India and Indonesia held in New Delhi.

• Recently, talks between the Defense Ministers of India and Indonesia were held in New Delhi.
• The Indian delegation was led by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh in this meeting, while the Indonesian delegation was led by Defense Minister General Prabavo Subianto of Indonesia.
• During the talks, following points were discussed-
  • Both countries have agreed to further enhance bilateral defense cooperation.
  • Also, potential areas of cooperation in defense industries and defense technology were also identified by both countries.

(Source: News on AIR)

• Indonesia:
  • It is a country located in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans.
  • It has more than seventeen thousand islands, including Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Sulawesi and New Guinea.
  • President: Joko Widodo
  • Capital: Jakarta
  • Currency: Indonesian Rupiah

5. Malaysia court sentenced former Prime Minister Najib Razak to 12 years in prison.

• Recently, a Malaysian court sentenced former prime minister Najib Razak to 12 years in prison.
• This conviction was found guilty of crimes related to the robbery of multibillion-dollar State Investment Funds.
• For this reason his government also fell two years ago.
• Najib Razak is the first Malaysian leader to be sentenced.
• Malaysia:
  • It is a Southeast Asian country.
  • Capital: Kuala Lumpur
  • Currency: Malaysian Ringgit
  • Prime Minister: Muhyiddin Yassin

(Source: The Hindu)

6. India's first solar ferry electric boat - Aditya was awarded the Gustave Trouvé Award.

• Recently, India's first solar ferry electric boat - Aditya has been awarded the Gustave Trouvé Award.
• After stiff competition from five European finalists, Aditya has been selected for the Gustave Trouvé Award for Excellence in Electric Boats and Boating.
• The ship has been selected as the world's best electric boat in the category of ferry boats designed for paid passenger service.
• Aditya is capable of seating 75 people.
• It was built in 2017 by Navalt Solar and Electric Boat based in Kochi for water transport in Kerala.
• The main attraction of Aditya is its low operating cost.
• It is a fully solar powered electric boat.
• Gustave Trouvé Award-
  • It is the only international award, given in three categories, specifically for electric boats.
  • The award was announced on Trouve's 118^th death anniversary in Paris.
  • Gustave Trouvé, an inventor, has more than 75 patents to his name.

(Source: The Hindu)

7. Famous actress Kumkum died in Mumbai.

• Recently famous actress Kumkum died in Mumbai at the age of 86.
• Her real name was Zaibunnissa.
• She has acted in more than 100 memorable films like Mr. X in Bombay, Mother India, Kohinoor, Aankhen, Lalkar, Naya Daur, Ujala, Aar-Paar and CID.
• The credit for bringing Kumkum into films goes to actor and director Gurudatta.

(Source: News on AIR)

8. National Investigation Agency arrested Hany Babu, an Associate Professor of Delhi University, in Bhima Koregaon case.

• Recently, the National Investigation Agency has arrested an Associate Professor of Delhi University, Hany Babu Musaliyarveettil Tharayil, in Bhima Koregaon case.
• He will be produced in a special court in Mumbai.
• Violent incidents were recorded in 2018 during the celebration of the 200^th anniversary of the Bhima-Koregaon battle. The investigation of this is currently underway.
• Bhima-Koregaon battle:
  • On January 1, 1818, a battle was fought between the Peshwa and the British forces in Bhima Koregaon, a district of Pune.
  • The British Army, which consisted mainly of Dalit soldiers, fought the upper caste-dominated Peshwa army.
  • It was one of the last battles of the Third Anglo-Maratha War.
  • The British Army defeated the Peshwa Army in this war.
• National Investigation Agency (NIA):
  • It is a central agency established by the Government of India to deal with terror in India.
  • It serves as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency.
  • It was established in 2008.
  • It is headquartered in New Delhi.

(Source: News on AIR)

9. DRDO has launched innovation competition Dare to Dream 2.0.

• The Defense Research and Development Organization has recently launched the innovation competition Dare to Dream 2.0.
• The DRDO announced the scheme on the fifth death anniversary of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, a renowned scientist and former President of India.
• The innovation competition was launched to promote individuals as well as startups to use emerging technologies for innovation in the aerospace and defense sectors in the country.
• This plan is another step towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Atmanirbhar Bharat.

(Source: Financial Express)

10. According to a study, many species of flowers that grow on the lower slopes of the Himalayas are endangered due to climate change.

• According to a recent study by the Botanical Survey of India, climate change has endangered many species of flowers that grow on the lower slopes of the Himalayas.
• Now they have to move towards higher altitude to maintain their existence.
• It includes many other flowers including blue poppy, which are found at lower elevations, and are currently struggling to maintain survival due to climate change.

• The scientific name of blue poppy is Meconopis acculette.
• It is considered the Queen of Himalayan flowers.
• It is found at an altitude of 3,000 to 5,000 meters from Kumaon to Kashmir.

(Source: The Hindu)

11. IRCTC and SBI Card together launched a new co-branded contactless credit card.

• The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) and SBI Card together have launched their new co-branded contactless credit card on RuPay platform.
• Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has dedicated this new card to the nation.
• The new form of credit card is equipped with near field communication technology.
• Users can speed up their transactions by simply tapping cards on POS machines.
• The launch of this card is one of the many Make in India activities undertaken by the Railways.

(Source: News on AIR)