DAILY GK 30 JULY 2020

DAILY GK 30 JULY 2020

1. BIJAPUR TOPS NITI AAYOG’S DELTA RANKING OF ASPIRATIONAL DISTRICTS

·        In accordance with the delta rankings for aspirational districts by government think-tank Niti (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog, Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh has topped the list of aspirational districts in Overall Delta Ranking for the February-June 2020 period.

·        Bijapur has been followed by Ri-Bhoi (Meghalaya) and Bahraich (Uttar Pradesh) at 2nd and 3rd positions respectively.

·        In the Health and Nutrition area, the list has been topped by Ri-Bhoi (Meghalaya) and followed by Bijapur (Chhattisgarh) and Bahraich (Uttar Pradesh) at 2nd and 3rd positions respectively, stating an improvement towards quality healthcare facilities for citizens.

·        In Education category, the list has been topped by Damoh (Madhya Pradesh) followed by Dhalai (Tripura) and Asifabad or Adilabad (Telangana), stating an improvement towards quality Education for citizens.

·        In Basic Infrastructure category, the list has been topped by Khagaria (Bihar) followed by Araria (Bihar) & Purnia (Bihar).

·        In Agriculture & Water Resource Category, the list has been topped by Nawada (Bihar) followed by Pakur (Jharkhand) & Chitrakoot (Uttar Pradesh).

·        In Financial Inclusion & Skill Development Category, the list has been topped by Sonbhadra (Uttar Pradesh) followed by Simdega (Jharkhand) & Sahibganj (Jharkhand).

2. ANNUAL MEETING OF BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF AIIB

·        5th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) was held virtually from Beijing, China, was originally planned to be held in-person there, focusing on “Connecting for Tomorrow”.

·        The meet saw the re-election of Jin Liqun as AIIB President, and a roundtable discussion on the theme “AIIB 2030-Supporting Asia’s Development over the Next Decade”.

·        Notably, India’s Union Minister of Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman was the Lead Speaker at the roundtable discussion.

·        During the meet AIIB’s efforts were appreciated for fast tracking financial assistance of about $10 Billion to its member countries including India to combat COVID-19 pandemic.

·        During the meet, the Board of Governors approved the application of Liberia to join the Bank. 

·        With this AIIB now has 103 approved members from around the world.

3. A 300-YEAR-OLD TEMPLE RECONSTRUCTED IN BANGLADESH 

·        Reconstruction of  a 300-year-old temple, Sree Sree Joy Kali Matar temple began in Natore,Bangladesh with Indian assistance. The Indian High Commissioner Riva Ganguly Das inaugurated the event virtually.

·        The High Commission of India in Bangladesh added that an MoU for the reconstruction of the temple at Lalbazar, Natore was signed on 23 October 2016. The government of India provided financial assistance of Bangladeshi Taka 97 lakhs for the reconstruction of the temple. 

·         A total cost of 1.33 Crores of Bangladeshi Taka is provided under the High Impact Community Development Project (HICDP).

4. PADI BHAVAJAALALU TELUGU VERSION OF TEN IDEOLOGIES BOOK

·        M Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India virtually unveiled the “Padi Bhavajaalalu” Telugu version Ten Ideologies book authored by former Union Minister Late S Jaipal Reddy and published by Orient BlackSwan, amid his family members and followers on the event of his first death anniversary.

5. AVNI DOSHI’S ‘BURNT SUGAR’ ON 2020 BOOKER PRIZE

·        A debut novel ‘Burnt Sugar’ authored by Avni Doshi has been published in the United Kingdom (UK) and it was one among the 13 authors longlisted for the prestigious 2020 Booker Prize.

·        A version of the same novel has been published in India under the title Girl in White Cotton.

·        The Booker prize award for the year 2019 for Fiction was won jointly by ‘The Testaments’ by Margaret Atwood and ‘Girl, Woman, Other’ by Bernardine Evaristo. 

6. INTERNATIONAL TIGER DAY 2020 – JULY 29                                                                                                                                                                            

·        The Global Tiger Day slogan for 2018,2019 and 2020 is “Their Survival is in Our Hands”

·        Around 70% of the world’s Tiger population are in India and around 30% of India’s tigers are outside the tiger reservoirs.

·        State wise distribution of tigers according to the “Status of Tigers in India” launched in 2019, Maximum number of tigers in Madhya Pradesh – 526 followed by Karnataka – 524 and Uttarakhand – 442.

7. “BANDICOOT” THE FIRST MANHOLE CLEANING ROBOT IN NORTHEAST

·        Siddhartha Bhattacharya, Minister of Guwahati Development Department inaugurated Guwahati’s first manhole cleaning robot named “BANDICOOT”, an automatic sewer cleaning device.

·        Guwahati became the first city in the Northeast region to get a manhole cleaning robot.

·        BANDICOOT was developed by Genrobotics, an Indian startup company under the Make in India initiative.

8. INDIA’S 1ST DGCA-APPROVED DRONE TRAINING SCHOOL

·        Bombay Flying Club, Mumbai, has become the India’s first DGCA(Directorate General of Civil Aviation) approved drone training school ,announced by Ministry of Civil Aviation

·        In an order dated July 20, 2020, DGCA approved the club’s application for conducting remote pilot training for remotely piloted aircraft system.