11th July Most Important Current Affairs Quiz – Video Discussion
National News
USAID & MNRE partners for clean energy development
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has announced a partnership for clean energy development.
The partnership has been established between the USAID-supported South Asia Group for Energy (SAGE) and MNRE’s National Technical Institutions.
Useful Notes for all competitive exams:
- Ministers of State (I/C) for New and Renewable Energy: Raj Kumar Singh.
Internationl News
Google Plus relaunched by Google as “Google Currents”
“Google+” a social networking platform of internet search giant “Google” has been rebranded as “Google Currents”. It is a platform which enables its users to connect with their colleagues, exchange documents and interact with like-minded people who have similar interests. It also helps the users to track what is happening in other departments across the organisation.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- CEO of Google: Sundar Pichai; Headquarters: California, United States.
States News
Tamil Nadu tops market borrowings among States
According to data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Tamil Nadu has topped market borrowings among States in the country.
Tamil Nadu has accounted for 17% of the borrowings done through the issue of bonds (known as state development loans).
The state is followed by Maharashtra ₹25,500 crores (14%), Andhra Pradesh ₹17,000 crores (9%) and Rajasthan ₹17,000 crores (9%).
Tamil Nadu borrowings:
- Tamil Nadu raised ₹1,250 crores at the low-interest rate of 6.63% for the 35-year bonds and ₹1,250 crores at the rate of 4.54% for the three-year bonds in the auction conducted by RBI.
- On July 7, Tamil Nadu borrowed an additional amount of ₹500 crores rather than the ₹2,000 crores originally planned.
- The State had planned to raise ₹2,000 crores through the issue of bonds of ₹1,000 each with tenures of 35 years and 3 years respectively.
- Tamil Nadu had an option to raise a further ₹250 crore in each of these securities, through what is known as the ‘greenshoe’ option.
Useful Notes for all competitive exams:
- Governor of Tamil Nadu: Banwarilal Purohit.
- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister: K. Palaniswami.
Agreements & MoUs
CSIR-IGIB & IIT Alumni Council partners for joint research
The IIT Alumni Council has partnered with the CSIR Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (CSIR-IGIB). The partnership aims to jointly conduct research on COVID-19 and patient data analysis.
The IIT Alumni Council will also set-up the world’s largest molecular diagnostic lab ‘MegaLab Mumbai’. The partnership is expected to establish global data leadership along with creating a world-leading testing and treatment ecosystem. The IIT Alumni Council was established in 2019 with the central aim of carrying out projects of social importance.
IIT-H & NVIDIA ties-up to establish joint AI research centre
Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH) has partnered with a multinational technology company, NVIDIA to establish India’s 1st ‘NVIDIA AI Technology Centre’ (NVAITC).
NVAITC will be established to accelerate research on Artificial Intelligence and its commercial adoption. The projects to be taken up include, Increasing crop yields using AI algorithms and applying AI-based solutions to support safe transportation systems and better ways to manage traffic among others.
The collaboration will focus on improving AI research in the aspects of agriculture, smart cities and language understanding. The NVAITC will accelerate research for the 220 faculty at IITH, which is already among India’s foremost research institutions.
Useful Notes for all competitive exams:
- NVIDIA Headquarters: California, United States.
- NVIDIA Co-Founder, President and CEO: Jensen Huang.
- Director of IIT-H: B.S.Murty.
Appointments
Union Bank of India CMD Rajkiran Rai gets 2-year extension
Rajkiran Rai who is managing director and CEO of Union Bank of India has received an extension for a period of two-year from the government of India. He will now serve as the managing director and CEO of Union Bank of India till May 31, 2022.
Summits & Conferences
India Global Week 2020 conference begins
The India Global Week 2020 virtual conference was inaugurated by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The 3 days virtual conference has been organised in the United Kingdom with a theme of “Be The Revival: India and a Better New World”.
It will feature a “never-seen-before” performance on the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat campaign. It will also witness the participation of 5,000 global participants from 30 nations and it will be addressed by 250 global speakers in 75 sessions.
Ranks & Reports
India ranks 34th in GRETI 2020 by JLL
Jones Lang LaSalle’s (JLL) has released its biennial Global Real Estate Transparency Index (GRETI). It is a unique benchmark of real estate market transparency and an essential guide for companies operating in foreign markets.
It covered 99 countries and territories and 163 cities. It is based on 210 indicators which include additional data on sustainability and resilience, health and wellness, protect and alternatives.
Here is the list of top ranked countries in the index:
| Rank | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Kingdom | 1.31 |
| 2 | United States | 1.35 |
| 3 | Australia | 1.39 |
| 4 | France | 1.44 |
| 5 | Canada | 1.51 |
| 6 | New Zealand | 1.67 |
| 7 | Netherlands | 1.67 |
| 8 | Ireland | 1.83 |
| 9 | Sweden | 1.89 |
| 10 | Germany | 1.93 |
| 34 | India | 2.69 |
Sports News
Egyptian squash player Raneem El Welily announces retirement
Egyptian Squash player, Raneem El Welily declared her retirement. She was the world’s top-ranking Women Squash Player. She is 31yr old.
In 2015 she became the top-ranking squash player. She is 1st Arab woman to secure the world’s top-ranking in any sport. She won her first Professional Squash Association (PSA) world championship in 2017 and won the following championship in 2018. H Drop CBD capsules and Hemp oil link
Obituaries News
Ivory Coast PM Amadou Gon Coulibaly passes away
Prime Minister of Ivory Coast, Amadou Gon Coulibaly passed away. He served at many positions which involve technical advisor, senior civil servant, deputy and mayor of Korhogo, agriculture minister, a cabinet minister. After serving as secretary-general of the presidency for six years, he became the prime minister of Ivory Coast in January 2017.
Useful Notes for all competitive exams:
- President of Ivory Coast: Alassane Ouattara; Capital: Yamoussoukro.
11th July Most Important Current Affairs Quiz – Video Discussion