Current Affairs Questions & Answers - Aug 24, 2016

ANSWER: Pfizer

Explanation:
Pfizer Inc said on 22nd August that it would purchase US cancer drug company Medivation Inc in a deal valued at USD 14 billion, adding blockbuster prostrate cancer drug Xtandi to the portfolio.

• Medivation shares rose 20 percent at USD 80.56 in pre-market trade slightly less than the offer prize of USD 81.50 per share in cash.
• Officer is at a substantial premium to the initial offer by Sanofi SA to buy Medivation for USD 52.50 per share in April.
• Deal comes four months after Allergan Plc and Pfizer scrapped their USD 160 billion merger.
• Pfizer also purchased Anacor Pharmaceuticals Inc in a USD 5.2 billion deal to add skin care to its portfolio.
• Pfizer’s MA strategy now marks a shift from lowering taxes to strengthening drugs portfolio ahead of decision to sell or spin off generic drugs business by 2016.
• Pfizer’s oncology offerings include quality immune oncology products.

ANSWER: Microsoft India

Explanation:
State run telecom operator BSNL has signed a strategic business pact with Microsoft India for offering complete range of telecom and IT solutions for enterprise businesses. BSNL has signed a strategic MoU to this effect

• The state owned telecom operator has a large share in landline network including leased line connectivity to various enterprises.
• Deal has been signed to cater to end-to-end needs of enterprise customers involving allied services in the field of IT, SaaS, cloud infrastructure and audio visual solutions.
• Microsoft India has said the strategic alliance would be non exclusive and leverage domain expertise to provide connectivity and telecom solutions.
• Microsoft also acquired a startup to boost AI capabilities while rival Apple has made an acquisition in the healthcare industry
• Microsoft purchased Genee which specialises in using machine smarts to handle meeting schedules.
• The AI startup uses natural language processing and optimised decision making algorithms to interact with a virtual assistant.
• Technology is expected to work in Office 365 software by Microsoft.
• Silicon Valley based Genee’s team will join the Microsoft and existing services will discontinue next month.
• Apple has also confirmed press reports that it has purchased Gliimpse which uses machine learning to let people manage and share secure medical data.
• Silicon Valley based Gliimpse was started in 2013 by Indian origin entrepreneurs Anil Sethi and Karthik Hariharan
• It offers a unique platform allowing users to compile medical health data from different sources and share it with third parties including doctors

ANSWER: Only b and c

Explanation:
Following the close of the Olympic Games in Rio, the Indian government on 22nd August conferred the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna on Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik. Ace gymnast Dipa Karmakar and shooter Jitu Rai were also conferred with the honour.

• This marks the first time the nation’s highest sporting award has been conferred
• Karmakar’s coach Bishweshwar Nandi has been selected for the Dronacharya award along with Nagapuri Ramesh (athletics), Sagar Mal Dhayal (Boxing), Raj Kumar Sharma (Cricket) S. Pradeep Skumar (swimming) and Mahabir Singh (wrestling).
• 15 sportspersons will be honoured with the Arjuna award and three with the Dhyan Chand Award.
• Besides the Punjabi University of Patiala will be awarded the Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad Trophy.
• The Selection committee for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and Arjuna Award was Justice SK Agarwal (retd. Delhi HC Judge).
• Selection committee for the Dronacharya Award and Dhyan Chand Award was headed by MC Mary Kom

List of awardees is as follows:

• P.V. Sindhu (Badminton)
• Sakshi Malik(Wrestling)
• Dipa Karmakar (Gymnastics)
• Jitu Rai (Shooting)

Dronacharya Award 2016

• Nagapuri Ramesh - Athletics
• Sagar Mal Dhayal - Boxing
• Raj Kumar Sharma - Cricket
• Bishweshwar Nandi - Gymnastics
• S. Pradeep Kumar - Swimming (lifetime)
• Mahabir Singh - Wrestling (lifetime)

Arjuna Award 2016

• Rajat Chauhan (Archery)
• Lalita Babar (Athletics)
• Sourav Kothari (Billiards and Snooker)
• Shiva Thapa (Boxing)
• Ajinkya Rahane (Cricket)
• Rani (Hockey)
• Subrata Paul (Football)
• V R Raghunath (Hockey)
• Gurpreet Singh (Shooting)
• Apurvi Chandela (Shooting)
• Soumyajit Ghosh (Table Tennis)
• Vinesh Poghat (Wrestling)
• Amit Kumar (Wrestling)
• Sandeep Singh Mann (Para-Athletics)
• Virender Singh (Wrestling)

Dhyan Chand Award 2015

• Satti Geetha (Athletics)
• Sylvanus Dung Dung (Hockey)
• Rajendra Pralhad Shelke (Rowing)

ANSWER: Sellapan Ramanathan

Explanation:
Sellapan Ramanathan, Singapore’s sixth and longest serving president, died on 22nd August at 92.

• Widely called SR Nathan, he was hospitalised in critical condition after a stroke on July 31
• It was his second stroke in less than two years.
• He served two terms as Singapore’s head of state from 1999 to 2011 before being succeeded by Tony Tan Keng Yam>
• Ramanathan started work without completing studied to settle family debts. He held many public service posts and occupied the highest office in the land.
• He is survived by a wife, daughter, son and three grandchildren.
• Meanwhile, noted American epidemiologist Donald Ainslie Henderson-leader of the international campaign against smallpox in the 1980s has passed away at age 87 due to complications from a hip fracture
• DA will be known as a disease detective leading to the eradication of smallpox more than 30 years ago.
• Henderson spent years as an official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organisation before joining the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Public Health as its dean.
• He was also bioterrorism and science adviser under three presidential administrations in the US
• In 1980, WHO declared the world Smallpox free.

ANSWER: The Ocean of Churn: How the Indian Ocean Shaped Human History

Explanation:
Sanjeev Sanyal authored a book entitled The Ocean of Churn: How the Indian Ocean Shaped Human History on 10th August 2016

• Book narrated the history of the Indian Ocean which stretches across East Africa, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent to SE Asia and Australia.
• The book narrates a fascinating tale about earliest human migrations out of Africa and greatest cities of Angkor, Vijayanagar, medieval Arab empires and Chinese treasure fleets, rivalries of European colonialists and the coming dawn.
• The book offers exciting revelation while exploring remote archaeological sites, ancient inscriptions, maritime trading networks and half-forgotten oral histories.
• He is an Indian economist, writer and theorist and led Deutsch bank as its MD.
• He was named Young Global Leader 2010 by WEF at Davos.
• Other books he has written include The Indian Renaissance: India's Rise after a Thousand Years of Decline, Land of the Seven Rivers: A Brief History of India's Geography and The Incredible History of India's Geography.
• Legendary journalist George E Curry passed away on 20th August in Maryland US.
• He was considered the dean of African American press columnists.
• Curry reported on racism, poverty and national politics for newspapers.

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
Senior BJP leader Jagdish Mukhi was on 22 August 2016 sworn in as the 12th Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

• Mukhi Succeeded Lt General A K Singh (Retd) who was appointed in July 2013. Earlier, he had been a minister and Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly in the past.
• Mukhi was also a professor in Delhi University and has authored a book titled 'Company Law and Secretarial Practice’.
• Banwarilal Purohit on 22 August 2016 was sworn in as the Governor of Assam.
• Purohit succeeded Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya, Governor of Nagaland who was Governor in-charge of Assam.
• V P Singh Badnore on 22 August 2016 took oath as the new Governor of Punjab. He was also sworn in as the Administrator of Chandigarh Administration.
• Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice S J Vazifdar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Badnore at Punjab Raj Bhawan in Chandigarh.
• Badnore replaced Kaptan Singh Solanki, who is the Governor of Haryana. Solanki had been holding additional charge of Punjab Governor and Administrator of Chandigarh Administration since January 2015.

ANSWER: Ukraine

Explanation:
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee has extended his greetings and felicitations to the Government and people of Ukraine on the eve of their Independence Day (August 24, 2016).

• Petro Poroshenko is currently the President of Ukraine.
• India and Germany are deepening their collaboration in the area of skill development. An implementation agreement was signed between the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and (German International Cooperation (GIZ), to initiate a new project focused on adapting elements of the German dual system in select industrial clusters in India.
• The project will be implemented in three selected clusters, which include the Automobile cluster in Maharashtra and Electronics cluster in Bangalore.
• German technical assistance will be used to enhance industry institute partnerships between Indian and German organisations, build capacity of local training institutions and foster industry linkages which will help adapt elements of the German dual system, into the Indian context.
• This new project will also play an important role in supporting MSDE’s existing programmes to scale up apprenticeship training.
• The Ministry of Civil Aviation, State Government of Maharashtra and Airports Authority of India today signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), thereby kicking off the collaborative process of the three agencies coming together for successful launch of the Regional Connectivity Scheme.
• With this development, the State Government of Maharashtra has formally agreed to provide the concessions required from the State Governments in the Regional Connectivity Scheme, thereby becoming the first state in the country to do so.
• India’s premier container port, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in Navi Mumbai, has signed an agreement with State Bank of India and Development Bank of Singapore for External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) to the tune of USD 400 Million at a “very competitive” interest rate to improve the infrastructure required for “doubling” its existing capacity to 9.85 Million TEUs annually.
• JNPT has US Dollar denominated foreign currency earnings which can be leveraged for a low cost foreign currency borrowing.
• The ECB of USD 400 Million (USD300 Million from the SBI & USD100 Million from DBS) will be primarily utilised by JNPT for expanding the network of roads that connect to its port projects.
• The existing road network for evacuation of traffic is currently operated at a capacity utilisation of 100%, and the expansion is needed for quicker and more efficient evacuation of traffic.

ANSWER: Badri

Explanation:
The awardees constituted the following:

• Dr P.S. Bhandari, Chief Veterinary Officer, Department of Animal Husbandry, Champawat, Uttarakhand was honoured for registration of Badri cattle of Uttarakhand;
• Dr S. Jeyakumar, Senior Scientist along with 7 others form ICAR-CIARI, Port Blair was awarded for Teressa goat of Andaman & Nicobar Islands;
• Dr T.J. Harikrishnan and Dr T. Ravimurugan were awarded for Kodi Adu goat and Chevaadu sheep of Tamil Nadu respectively;
• Dr Susanta Kumar Dash, Professor, OUAT, Bhubaneswar for Kendrapada sheep of Odisha
• Dr (Ms) M. Catherine Rutsa, Assistant Professor, Nagaland University for Tenyi Vo pig of Nagaland.
• Dr S. Jeyakumar, Senior Scientist along with 8 others were awarded for Nicobari pig of A&N Islands.
• Dr Galib Uz Zaman and Dr Subimal Laskar, Professor, AAU, Khanapara for Doom pig of Assam
• Dr Th. Ranadhir Singh from CAU Imphal, Dr P.K. Vij and Dr M.S. Tantia from ICAR-NBAGR Karnal for Kaunayen chicken of Manipur
• There was approved registration of nine new breeds of livestock and poultry.
• This includes one breed of cattle, two breeds each of goat and sheep, three breeds of pig, and one breed of chicken.
• After including these newly registered breeds, total number of indigenous breeds now in the country is 160, which include 40 for cattle, 13 for buffalo, 26 for goat, 42 for sheep, 6 for horses & ponies, 9 for camel, 6 for pig, 1 for donkey and 17 for chicken.

The 9 breeds are:

• Badri cattle: These are indigenous cattle available in hilly areas of Uttarakhand. Badri cattle are small in size having long legs and varied body colours. Estimated population is approximately 16 lakhs.
• Teressa Goat: It is an indigenous goat breed maintained by Nicobari tribal farmers of Nicobar group of islands.
• Kodi Adu Goat: Kodi Adu goats are native to Thoothukudi & Ramanathapuram districts of Tamil Nadu. Estimated population is about 1,58,200.
• Kendrapada sheep: Breeding tract of Kendrapada sheep comprises of six coastal districts of Odisha viz. Kendrapada, Jagatsingpur, Cuttack, Puri, Jajpur and Bhadrak . These sheep are mostly brown in colour. Estimated population is about 1,23,000.
• Tenyi Vo pig: These are indigenous pigs reared in Nagaland mainly for pork production. Approximate population is about 60,000-70,000.
• Nicobari pig: Nicobari pigs are indigenous pigs of Nicobar Islands and are reared by Nicobari tribes since ancient times. Estimated population is 35,000.
• Doom pig: Doom pigs are distributed in Dhubri, Bongaigaon and Kokrajhar districts of Assam state. Estimated population is about 3,000.
• Kaunayen chicken: Its breeding tract consists of Thoubal, Imphal West, Imphal East and Bishnupur districts in the valley region. Some birds are also available in hill region consisting of Chandel, Churachandpur, Senapati, Ukhrul, Tamenglong districts.Estimated population is approximately 60,000-80,000.

ANSWER: Authenticity, Availability and Affordability

Explanation:
The “3 A” approach towards fertilisers in the country, these being authenticity (Quality), availability and affordability were proposed.

• Inaugurating a Conference of Officers of State Agriculture Departments handling fertilisers in New Delhi, Sh. Ananth Kumar said that the ultimate aim of the Government should be to provide last mile timely availability of quality fertilisers at affordable rates to the farmers.
• This, he said, would ensure the fertilisers security of the country which is essential for the food security.
• There is planning to set up Indian Council for Fertilisers Research, on the lines of ICMR and ICAR.
• Research is very much required to discover and develop various means and ways of producing quality fertilisers, fortified fertilisers, hybrid fertilisers, nutrients and various combinations which are good for the soil.
• Research has a role to play in the all aspects of the fertiliser chain which includes production, transportation, storage, availability, application, etc.
• The Conference of Principal Secretaries/Secretaries/Directors dealing with the Agriculture Departments in the State/UTs is the first such initiative of the Department of Fertilisers.