Today’s Current Affairs 17th – July- 2018 – MyProgressCard

National News

1. “World’s first” remote LEAP microscope launched by IIT-M

Image Credit: Deccan Chronicle

• The world’s first remote controllable microscope has been launched recently by the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.
• It was developed at a cost of Rs.40 crore. It enables a precise atom-by-atom view of a material.
• The Local Electrode Atom Probe (LEAP) microscope has been jointly developed in a collaborative exercise conducted by eight top research institutions headed by IIT Madras.

2. India growth forecast cut by 0.1% for 2018 to 7.3%

Image Credit: CNBC

• In the World Economic Outlook (WEO) update, IMF has cut India’s growth projection by 0.1 percentage point for 2018-19.
• It now predicts the GDP growth to be 7.3%.
• This was done due to the high oil price rise.
• The economy was projected to grow 7.8 per cent by 2019-20 which is now cut to 7.5%.
• India still remains the fastest-growing economy among large nations in 2018-19 and 2019-20.

Static/Current Implications:

• Headquarters of IMF – Washington, D.C., United States

• Managing Director – Christine Lagarde

3. BEL signs MoU with Saab for radar

Image Credit: Raksha-Anirveda

• Defence undertaking BEL has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Saab, Sweden for jointly marketing the L-Band 3D Air Surveillance Radar, RAWL-03.
• Bharat Electrical Limited (BEL) is engaged in the design, manufacture & supply of radars such as like weapon locating, surveillance & communication systems.
• RAWL-03 will be offered in both ship-borne and land-based configurations.

Static/Current Implications:

• Capital of Sweden – Stockholm
• Currency – Swedish krona

4. PhonePe acquires Zopper Retail

Image Credit: The Financial Express

• With the motto of increasing its offline business, Flipkart owned PhonePe has acquired Zopper Retail.
• Zopper Retail offers ecommerce convenience to its buyers and equips your neighborhood sellers with cutting-edge ecommerce technology.
• PhonePe’s transaction ecosystem involves in-app, online and offline merchants. It said that, investing in the growth of digital transactions at offline merchant locations is a very important part of its strategy.

5. President gives assent to Assam Witch Hunting (Prohibition, Prevention and Protection) Bill, 2015

• President Kovind has given assent to Assam Witch Hunting (Prohibition, Prevention and Protection) Bill, 2015 to reign in rising incidents of witch hunting cases across the state.
• It was prepared as per the spirit of universal declaration of human rights which states that crimes in witch hunting cases cause gross violation of basic human rights.
• Enactment of this law aims at eliminating the superstition from society by making such offences under it as non-bailable, non-compoundable and cognizable.
• It prohibits any person from calling, identifying or defaming any other person as witch by words, signs, conducts or indications.
• Assam’s state government has already notified the act.

Meetings/Conferences

6. 8th India-Oman Joint Commission Meeting Begins in Muscat

Image Credit: PIB

• The Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, today co-chaired 8th session of India-Oman Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) along with Minister of Industry, Investment, Trade and Digital Economy of Oman, Dr. Ali bin Masoud Al Sunaidy.
• Addressing the Joint Commission Suresh Prabhu invited Omani companies to build on their success in India and make investments to benefit from ‘Make in India’ and ‘Invest India’ programmes which are aimed to encourage manufacturing.

Static/Current Implications:

• Capital of Oman – Mascat
• Currency – Omani Rial

7. Helsinki Summit: Trump, Putin hold first one-on-one talks

Image Credit: Sputnik International

• US President Donald Trump held first-ever one-to-one talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a historic summit in Helsinki, Finland.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that the Cold War was a thing of the past and today both Russia and the United States face a whole new set of challenges.
• US President Donald Trump, on the other hand, said the US relationship with Russia had “never been worse” than it was “until four hours ago,” just before the two spoke.

Static/Current implications:

• Capital of Finland – Helsinki

• Currency – Euro

International News

8. Peru declares 60-day state of emergency

Image Credit: Deccan Chronicle

• Peru declared a 60-day state of emergency on its Colombian border to ensure security from the menace of drug trafficking in a region.
• The state of emergency has been declared in Peru’s Amazonian province of Putumayo, which is separated from Colombia by the river of the same name.
• The president informed the first patrol was carried out by the Peru police and armed forces.

Static/Current implications:

• Capital of Peru – Lima

• Currency – Sol

9. Boxer Mayweather tops Forbes’ list of World’s highest paid celebrity

Image Credit: Boxing News

• In the Forbes’ list of world’s highest paid celebrities, American boxer Floyd Mayweather stood at the top with earnings of $285 million.
• Actor George Clooney stood second while reality star Kylie Jenner came in third on the annual Forbes Celebrity 100 list.
• Lionel Messi (ranked 8th with $111 million) and Cristiano Ronaldo (ranked 10th with $108 million) were the only other athletes in the top 10.

10. UK tops global ranking of nations’ soft power

Image Credit: ndtv

• In the annual global ranking of nations’ the 2018 ‘Soft Power 30’ index featuring 30 countries, UK stood at the top followed by France.
• Germany and US stood third and fourth respectively.
• However, the 2018 ‘Soft Power 30’ index does not feature India. But this year’s report dedicated a chapter solely to Asia, in which India is ranked 8th out of the listed 10 countries.

Obituaries

11. Veteran actress Rita Bhaduri passes away

Image Credit: zeenews.india

• Veteran actress Rita Bhaduri passed away on July 17, 2018 following a cardiac arrest at Sujoy Hospital in suburban Juhu, Mumbai.
• Currently, she was seen playing the role of a grandmother in Star Bharat’s ‘Nimki Mukhiya’ show.
• In her career of over three decades in the entertainment industry, Rita Bhaduri acted in over 70 movies like Julie, Beta, Dil Vil Pyar Vyar and so on.

Expected questions from the above current affairs

1. Rita Bhaduri died recently following a cardiac arrest. What was her profession?

A.Drawing                                                                  C. Painting
B. Singing                                                                   D. Acting

2. Which of the following countries topped the list of global ranking of nations’ soft power?

A. US                                                                               C. UK
B. Russia                                                                        D. China

3. Who topped the Forbes’ list of World’s highest paid celebrity?

A. Mayweather                                                             C. Ed Sheeran
B. Lionel Messi                                                             D. Coldplay

4. Which of the following countries declared a 60-day state of emergency to ensure security from the menace of drug trafficking in a region?

A. Chile                                                                             C. Peru
B. Turkey                                                                          D. Rwanda

5. US President Donald Trump held first-ever one-to-one talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a historic summit. Where is the summit held?

A. Russia                                                                       C. China
B. US                                                                              D. Finland

6. Where did the 8th India-Oman Joint Commission Meeting begin?

A. Muscat                                                                      C. Abu Dhabi
B. Sana’a                                                                        D. Tehran

7. President Kovind gave assent to Witch Hunting (Prohibition, Prevention and Protection) Bill, 2015 across which state?

A. Manipur                                                                     C. Mizoram
B. Arunachal Pradesh                                                  D. Assam

8. Which of the following companies acquired Zopper Retail?

A. Paytm                                                                          C. PayPal
B. CitrusPay                                                                    D. PhonePe

9. Which entity signed an MOU with Swedish firm SAAB to market air-surveillance radar?

A. Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL)
B. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
C. Bharat Electronic Limited (BEL)
D. Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL)

10. According to the World Economic Outlook (WEO) update, what is the growth forecast of IMF with respect to India?

A. 7.2%                                                                           C. 7.3%
B. 7.4%                                                                           D. 7.5%

11. Which of the following institutes has launched the World’s first remote LEAP microscope?

A. IIT Bombay                                                                C. IIT Madras
B. IIT Delhi                                                                      D. IIT Kharagpur