Current Affairs - July 8, 2018 Current Affairs

Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has launched a mobile app 'GST Verify' developed by B Raghu Kiran, joint commissioner GST Hyderabad. It is an android app to verify if the person collecting GST from the consumer is eligible to collect it or not.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) will roll out its new internet telephony service with brand name "Wings" from August 1. Those subscribing to "Wings", entailing one-time registration fee of Rs 1,099, will be able to make calls using any internet connection including broadband, WiFi, 3G or 4G data network of any operator, thus overcoming connectivity problems even in areas having patchy signals. Those subscribers can avail free domestic calls for one year, while the overseas calls will be priced as per international tariffs of BSNL landline.

Indian lifter Jhilli Dalabehera has bagged the bronze medal in the 2018 IWF Junior World Weightlifting Championships at Tashkent. She lifted 167 kg in the 48 kg category to finish third on the podium. According to Indian Weightlifting Federation Secretary General Sahdev Yadav, Jhilli is the second woman lifter after Saikhom Mirabai Chanu in 2013 to win a medal in the Junior World Championships.

Bansi Lal Ketki from Mumbai in Maharashtra won the first prize of Rs 50,000 along with a certificate in the logo design contest. His design artistically adds the numerals '25' to the existing logo of the NHRC, using the theme of the tricolour. Tabrej Qureshi from Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh has bagged the top prize in the slogan/tagline contest. His tagline entry was: 'Awaaz Aapke Adhikar Ki' and slogan -- 'Desh may vikas ki aayge bahar, jab hoga surakshit manav adhikar. The NHRC was established on October 12, 1993, under the Protection of the Human Rights (PHR) Act, 1993.

The Indian Railways is planning to launch a tourist train, Sri Ramayana Express, which will cover all locations associated with the Ramayana. The train will run from Ayodhya (UP) to Colombo (Sri Lanka) via Rameshwaram (Tamil Nadu). The train will begin from Safdarjung station and its first stop will be in Ayodhya, the birthplace of the Hindu Lord Ram.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) is setting up a joint venture (JV) in India with the manufacturer, Zorya Mashproekt, to overhaul turbines, to power Indian Navy warships. The Indian navy will soon have 34 warships driven by Zorya turbines, with four turbines per vessel, adding up to 136 in-service turbines.

Manoj Kumar Pingua, a joint secretary of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is appointed as the acting Manager of National Film Development Corporation (NFDC). The previous Managing Director of NFDC is Nina Lath Gupta.

Justice Thottathil Bhaskaran Nair Radhakrishnan has been sworn in as new Chief Justice of the Hyderabad High Court for the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in Hyderabad. Governor of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh ESL Narasimhan administered the oath at a function in the Raj Bhavan on July 7, 2018. Justice Radhakrishnan was Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court before being shifted to Hyderabad. He was the Acting Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court for a brief period.

India's latest frontline warship INS Trikand has reached Sri Lanka in a goodwill visit. Sri Lanka Navy ceremonially welcomed the state-of-the-art warship in accordance with naval traditions. INS Trikand is a state-of-the-art warship of the Indian Navy equipped with a versatile range of weapons and sensors capable of addressing threats in all three dimensions - air, surface and sub-surface.

The International Round Table Conference on "Data for New India" has organised by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in New Delhi during 9-10th July, 2018. The Conference was inaugurated by D.V. Sadananda Gowda. The purpose of the Round Table Conference is to identify innovative ideas for improving the statistical system in India, taking cue from the best practices followed in advanced countries like Canada, UK and Australia. Such a Conference is being organized in India for the first time. In the Conference, the experts from National and International agencies would deliberate on key statistical issues, such as data governance structure and capabilities, organizational issues, managing data systems in a federal structure and resource mobilization for ensuring quality statistical products to be produced.

World Zoonosis Day is observed on 6th July every year. It commemorates 6th July 1885, the day on which Louis Pasteur successfully administered the first vaccine against, a zoonotic disease, to Joseph Meister after he was attacked by a rabid dog. World Zoonoses Day aims to create awareness on the zoonotic diseases. Zoonotic diseases can be spread from animals to humans. Zoonoses are viral diseases like rabies and influenza, bacterial diseases like Lyme disease and brucellosis, or parasitic diseases like tapeworms. These diseases can be transmitted from animals to humans.

Samsung has set up what is the world's largest mobile factory at Sector 81 in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. Not just mobiles, the expansion of current facility will double Samsung's production capacity of consumer electronics like refrigerators. Samsung is currently making 67 million smartphones in India & with the new plant being functional, it is expected to manufacture nearly 120 million phones.

At 52, Anju Khosla has become the oldest Indian woman to complete an Ironman Triathlon - one of the toughest one-day sporting events. The New Delhi resident completed her first full Ironman Triathlon, in Carinthia, Austria, in 15 hours, 54 minutes and 54 seconds.

HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar will inaugurate the 17th World Sanskrit Conference to be held at Vancouver, Canada from 9th to 13th July, 2018. The conference aims to promote, preserve & practice the Sanskrit language all over the world by the people. World Sanskrit Conference is being held in various countries across the globe once in every 3 years & so far it has been held thrice in India.

To eliminate human entry into septic tanks for cleaning, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has launched a 'technology challenge' seeking suitable solutions. The challenge is a part of the Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention to be held on 2 October. The proposals will be adopted on the basis of operational effectiveness, life of machinery, & ease of use among others.