Current Affairs - July 31, 2019 Current Affairs

Indian Air Force (IAF) has received 1st batch of 4 of total 22 AH-64E Apache Guardian Attack helicopters from US (United States)aerospace major Boeing at Hindon airbase in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh(UP). An additional four Apache helicopters will arrive next week, and these 8 helicopters will be then moved to Pathankot Air Force Station, Punjab for their formal induction by the IAF in September 2019. In September 2015, IAF had signed a contract with US Government and Boeing for purchasing 22 AH-64E Apache helicopters. It is one of the most advanced multi-role combat helicopters in the world, and is flown by the US Army. It has advanced weapons systems and night-fighting features. It is developed and manufactured by the world's largest aerospace company, Boeing. It has delivered more than 2,200 Apaches to customers around the world and India is 14th nation to select it for its military.

7th Economic Census (EC) for the year 2019 which is conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) commenced from Tripura on July 29, 2019.

The U.S. Embassy in Nepal has organized a South Asia Air Quality Tech Camp in Kathmandu. The aim of camp is to address political, social, and scientific facets of the problem and improve the ability of civil society, media, and other influencers to engage governments, empower the public and take action to improve air quality in South Asia.

According to US, National Hurricane Center has said that tropical storm Erick has grown in strength to a hurricane in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

The world's largest public energy service company, EESL (Energy Efficiency Services Limited) has signed an MoU (Memorandum of understanding) with New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (Noida) to encourage Electric Vehicles (EV) in Noida, Uttar Pradesh (UP) and to install approximately 100 public charging station across the city. The establishment of a public charging station will accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles in the city. In addition, strong public charging infrastructure will be helpful in creating a sustainable EVecosystem. The charging stations will be set up in parking lots located in Sector 18, Sector 6 administrative office, Sector 50 market among other busy areas with parking facilities. EESL has already established 55 EV charging stations in New Delhi municipal council areas, while similar projects are underway in Gurgaon, Jaipur, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Mumbai, and Chandigarh.

India now has as many as 2,967 tigers in the wild, with more than half of them in Madhya Pradesh (526) and Karnataka (524). PM Modi released tiger estimation report 2018 recently. Growth has not been found uniform in all 18 states where tigers are found.

Infosys announced the launch of its state-of-the-art Cyber Defence Center in Bucharest, Romania. The Defence Center is an expansion of services delivered through the Infosys Digital Innovation Center. The Center will provide end-to-end, real-time, 24/7 cybersecurity monitoring and protection services to support European and global businesses on their digital transformation journey.

The 22nd National Conference on e-Governance will be held in Shillong, Meghalaya. The theme of the conference is 'Digital India: Success to Excellence'. The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), in association with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Meghalaya government will organise the 22nd National Conference.

Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Narendra Singh Tomar stated that the average monthly income per agricultural household from all sources is Rs. 6,426 in the country based on the Situation Assessment Survey of Agricultural Households conducted by National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) during its 70th round (January 2013-December 201C).

A 'smart agricopter' has been developed by the team of three students of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras to eliminate manual spraying of pesticides in agricultural fields & It also allows spraying pesticides 10 times faster with 100% accuracy than manual spraying. Smart agricopter: It is hexacopter drone having the capacity to carry 15 liters of pesticide. It is also fitted with advanced multispectral imaging camera that helps to identify crop health by using imaging camera. Its autonomous pesticide refilling system ensures entire spraying is completely autonomous.

Anandiben Patel took oath as the Governor of Uttar Pradesh(UP). Govind Mathur, the Chief Justice of the UP High Court administered her the oath of Office and Secrecy at Raj Bhawan in Lucknow, UP. Outgoing Governor Ram Naik also attended the swearing-in ceremony. Ms. Patel was previously serving as the Governor of Madhya Pradesh. This is the first time that UP gets a woman Governor as Anandi Ben Patel since its inception in 1950. Sarojini Naidu was the first Governor in 1947 but the state was then known as the United Provinces.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended the use of anti-Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) drug Dolutegravir (DTG) as the preferred first-line and second-line treatment for all populations, including pregnant women and those of childbearing potential. It will help more countries to improve their HIV policies.Initial studies highlighted a possible link between DTG and neural tube defects (birth defects of the brain and spinal cord that cause conditions such as spina bifida) in infants born to women using the drug at the time of conception.

Jagdeep Dhankar has been sworn in as the Governor of West Bengal. The Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court T.B Radhakrishnan administered the oath of office and Secrecy to him at a simple function in Raj Bhavan in Kolkata.

Pakistan has opened a 1,000 year old Hindu temple in eastern city Sialkot for worship for the first time since partition on the demand of the local Hindu community. The Shawala Teja Singh temple, located in city's congested Dhaarowal locality, some 100 km from Lahore, is more than 1,000 years old, according to the book 'History of Sialkot' by the late Rashid Niaz.

The scientists at IIT Hyderabad have developed low-cost, environment-friendly solar cells by employing an off-the-shelf dye used to make kumkum or vermilion in India. The Dye-Sensitised Solar Cell (DSSC) is based on New Fuchsin (NF) dye with aqueous electrolyte and platinum-free counter electrodes. The research is published in the Solar Energy journal. The most familiar solar cells today are made up of silicon. However, this technology is limited by huge fabrication costs as silicon processing is very expensive and involves very high temperature methods that leave a large carbon footprint. DSSC is a third-generation thin-film organic molecule-based energy conversion device. It consists of three components: A monolayer of dye molecule adsorbed on semiconductor material, titanium dioxide (TiOB) deposited on transparent conductive oxides, like indium tin oxide (ITO) and a liquid electrolyte with an excess of electrons. DSSCs are generally considered eco-friendlier to produce than conventional solar cells because they require little energy to manufacture.

According to Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency (IICRA), despite recent slowdown in Merchandise exports and imports, India's Current Account Deficit (CAD) is expected to remain steady at a range of 16-17 billion dollars or 2.3 % of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in the first quarter.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC)headed by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi that has Home Minister Amit Shah as its member, has appointed IPS officer V K Johri as the next Director-General of the Border Security Force (BSF). He is currently the special secretary in the external Intelligence Agency, Research Analysis Wing (RAW) and will take over as the BSF Director General from incumbent Rajni Kanti Mishra. V.K.Johri is also appointed as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Home Ministry.

Researchers from China and the U.S. have developed a novel computer model that can help accurately predict air pollution levels in the region a season in advance. The statistical model uses certain climatic patterns related to the oceans which have a regulatory effect on the wintertime air pollution over northern India. The new model could allow the government to forecast aerosol pollution conditions in winter and accordingly improve plans for pollution control. The study found that the inter-annual variability of wintertime aerosol pollution over northern India is regulated mainly by a combination of El Nino -- a climate cycle in the Pacific Ocean with a global impact on weather patterns -- and the Antarctic Oscillation (AAO), a low-frequency mode of atmospheric variability of the southern hemisphere. Both El Nino sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies and AAO-induced anomalies can persist from autumn to winter, offering prospects for a pre-winter forecast of wintertime aerosol pollution over northern India.

India has signed a deal worth around Rs 1,500 crore to acquire R-27 air-to-air missiles from Russia to be equipped on the Su-30MKI combat aircraft. The R-27 missile is a medium-to-long-range air-to-air missile for MiG and Sukhoi series of fighter jets.

As a new initiative that would enhance the security of women, the Northeast Frontier Railway (NRF) zone has introduced pink-colored SLRcoach (second Class -cum- Luggage-cum Guard's Coach) for women. NRF Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) PranavJyoti announced that these pink coaches will help women passengers to identify their coach during rush hours.Railway Police Force (RPF) and ticket checking staff will be deployed by the railway authorities to stabilize the new system. Initially, a total of 8 trains in Rangiya district have begun the operations. They are 6 trains between New Bongaigaon and Guwahati and 2 trains between Rangiya and Murkongselek.