Current Affairs - March 14, 2020 Current Affairs

Astronomers from Spain's Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands (IAC) has discovered an exo-planet WASP-76b where it "rains iron." The conditions of the exoplanet were discovered by Echelle Spectrograph for Rocky Exoplanets and Stable Spectroscopic Observations (ESPRESSO). The high-resolution instrument is installed on the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile.

State Bank of India announces Rs 7,250-crore fund infusion into Yes Bank to pick up 49% equity.

Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan was appointed as the first ever ambassador of the IDFC FIRST Bank.

Google launched a new Chrome tool that will allow developers to tune their websites for visual impairments like color blindness to help them fix accessibility issues on their sites. The developers can use this feature by launching Google Chrome. The developers can head to the browser's Developer tools. Choose more tools, then select Rendering and Emulate visual deficiencies.

Uttar Pradesh State government has launched three schemes, namely Kaushal Satrang, Yuva Hub, and an apprenticeship scheme for skill development and employment generation for youths in the state. It also has announced to depute Arogya Mitras at all primary health centres to inform people about govt. health schemes. The schemes were launched by Chief Minister of state Yogi Adityanath.

The Karnataka Government launched 'Namaste over Handshake' campaign in order to avoid the spread of COVID-19 (CoronaVirusDisease-19) and advises people to keep a safe distance from one another. The poster also consists of 24/7 toll free health helpline number 104 for public queries on the viral disease.

In accordance with the report of the Parliamentary Committee on Petroleum headed by BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) member Ramesh Bidhuri, only three States (Haryana, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh) and five Union Territories (Delhi, Chandigarh, Daman & Diu, Dadar & Nagar Haveli, Andaman & Nicobar Island and Puducherry) have become kerosene-free even though in September 2019 the government has met the target of 8 crore LPG (Liquefied petroleum gas) connections under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY).

Centre nominates Financial Services Secretary Debasish Panda to RBI board.

Veteran Bengali actor Santu Mukhopadhyay passed away on 11 March at South Kolkata. He was 69 years old. He died due to prolonged ailments. He was known for his works in films such as Sansar Simante and Bhalobasa Bhalobasa. He had been suffering from carcinoma and was admitted to a hospital with blood sugar and hypertension.

Manila-based Asian Development Bank to provide USD 200 million to companies manufacturing and distributing medicines, and other items needed to combat the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

Factory output, as measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), grew 2% in January 2020.

Oculudentavis khaungraae is the smallest dinosaur discovered yet. The scientists found the fossilised skull of a dinosaur - the size of a modern hummingbird - trapped in a 99-million-year-old amber in northern Myanmar.

A newly discovered species of treehopper was named after the performer Lady Gaga. The insect species has been named as Kaikaia Gaga. It was named by Brendan Morris, a University of Illinois, a Ph.D. entomology student. Kaikaia Gaga is a part of the family Membracidae. The species is around 40 million years old. K. gaga was found nearly 30 years ago in a tropical forest near the Pacific coast of Nicaragua.

Microsoft has appointed Eric Horvitz as its first-ever Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). He will provide cross-company leadership on advances and trends on scientific matters and on issues and opportunities arising at the intersection of technology people and society.

Tiger Woods is to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of fame in its class of 2021. He will be eligible for the Hall of Fame in December 2020, once the age of entry was lowered from 50 to 45. Woods has won 15 majors and a joint record 82 times on the PGA Tour. The 44-year-old won the Masters at Augusta in April 2019 for his 15th major.

The Department of Posts has introduced a free digital parcel locker service in the city from 11 March for the first time in India. The Chief Post Master General, West Bengal Circle, Gautam Bhattacharya, inaugurated the service from the Nabadiganta IT Post Office. Free digital parcel locker facility will be available in two post offices in Kolkata, one in the Nabadiganta IT Post Office in Sector 5 of Salt Lake City and two another in New Town.

Indian Naval Ship (INS) Shardul hands over 600 tonnes of rice and relief material to flood-hit Madagascar.

Smartphone brand realme appointed Bollywood actor Salman Khan as its brand ambassador. Khan will endorse realme 6 & realme 6 Pro. In 2019, realme was the world's fastest-growing smartphone brand.

The Maharashtra state cabinet government approved the renaming Mumbai Central Terminus station as Nana Shankarseth Terminus Station or Jagannath Sunkersett. The proposal will be sent to the Ministry of Railways for its approval. The proposal was initiated by the transport ministry headed by Anil Parab. Jagannath Sunkersett was born on 10 February 1803 in Mumbai. He was a very reliable businessman. He was one of the first directors of India's first railway company.

World Athletics Council fines Russian Athletics Federation USD 10 million for breaching anti-doping rules; caps at 10 the number of Russians allowed to compete as neutrals at the Tokyo Olympics.