Current Affairs Questions & Answers - July 12, 2017

ANSWER: Occupational health

Explanation:
MoU between ESIC and Directorate General Factory Advice Service & Labour Institutes (DGFASLI) was signed for collaboration in the field of occupational health and prevention of occupational injuries and diseases.

Ministry is committed to providing social security for the workers across the country.

The MoU will help in spreading awareness for healthy working conditions, reduce the danger of diseases or injuries and provide good quality life for workers.

The MoU seeks to establish a mutual collaboration that will enhance Occupational Health of workers; reduce the occurrence of work related injuries and diseases.

Special focus shall be paid to precarious working conditions in the formal and informal sectors. The main focus is occupational health by establishing ‘DGFASLI-ESIC Occupational Health Training, Research & Development Centre’ (OHTRDC) at Regional Labour Institute, Faridabad.

This will be followed by at other institutes located at Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Kanpur.

The collaboration aims at improving the quality of life through joint scientific research following other activities:-

a. Assessment of OSH challenges in all the spheres of economic activity.

b. Special activities for prevention and control of Asbestosis, Silicosis and other occupational diseases.

c. Development of training modules for different target groups.

ANSWER: Indian Social Responsibility Network

Explanation:
Compendium of CSR: Best Practices in India was launched at 12th July, 2017 at Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) Campus at Manesar, District. Gurgaon, Haryana.

Indian Social Responsibility Network (ISRN), a forum for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) are jointly organizing the Release of Compendium of CSR: Best Practices in India.

The aim is to highlight and motivate the best CSR practices of Corporate contributed under CSR projects towards nation building efforts for sustainable development.

ISRN and IICA will also sign MoU to carry forward joint initiatives in the area of CSR.

The Compendium of CSR: Best Practices in India is a rich collection of selected stimulating documentation capturing the best practices in the field of CSR in India.

Apart from benefiting the Corporate/PSUs and the NGOs, the Publication will enhance the visibility of CSR work that is being undertaken as a CSR mandate of companies/PSUs, and improve their social image.

The Document will also help Voluntary Organisations and Corporate Entities to work effectively and ensure proper utilization CSR Funds.

The compilation of the Compendium is based on the philosophy of ISRN Relationship Building, Beyond Funding.

ANSWER: Saturn

Explanation:
Scientists from Northwestern University in the United States have created miniature versions of Saturn, complete with rings, by electrifying tiny droplets of fluids.

When a drop of electrically conductive liquid is exposed to an electric field, the droplet responds by forming two electrically charged poles.

In the previous research it was found that these poles can get pulled towards the sources of the electric field, taking on cone shapes.

If the pull is strong enough, the tips of the cones can spray jets of droplets.

This effect is known as electro-spraying.

In the latest experiments, researchers explored the outcomes seen after drops of liquid is submerged in more electrically conductive fluids-specifically, drops of silicone oil suspended in castor oil.

When an electric field is applied to drop of silicone oil, it was observed that drop flattens and emits rings of fluid from its equator that break up into droplets.

If an electric field is strong enough, the equators of these squashed drops emit concentric rings of droplets, making the drops look like miniature versions of Saturn.

In these experiments, drops of silicone oil about 1 millimetre wide generated droplets that were about 100 times smaller.

The future advance research may pave the way for generating microscopic and uniform particles and capsules which are used in products such as drugs, inks, cosmetics and paints.

It will also explore new materials that can be used to produce “ring of particles” effect.

ANSWER: July 11

Explanation:
The World Population Day is observed across the world on July 11 to attention on the urgency and importance of population issue.

Observance of the day aims at increase people’s awareness on various population issues such as the importance of family planning, maternal health, gender equality, poverty and human rights.

The 2017 theme is “Family Planning- Empowering People, Developing Nations”.

The theme highlights importance of family planning as it allows people to attain their desired number of children and determine the spacing of pregnancies.

The World Population Day was established by the then Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1989.

It was inspired by the public interest in Five Billion Day on July 11, 1987.

On this date world’s approximate population had reached five billion people.

Later in December 1990, the United Nations General Assembly decided to continue observing World Population Day by adopting resolution 45/216 to enhance awareness of population issues, including their relations to the environment and development.

World Population Day

• The Day was first marked on 11 July 1990 in more than 90 countries. Since then, it is observed annually by number of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) country offices.
• It includes other organizations and institutions commemorate World Population Day, in partnership with governments and civil society
• The world population has grown tremendously over the past years. China has the highest population in the world and India stood at second.

ANSWER: State flag

Explanation:
Karnataka Government has constituted a nine-member committee to study the possibility of designing a separate state flag and providing it a statutory standing.

It will be headed by Principal Secretary, Department of Kannada and Culture. It shall submit report to the state Government after looking into required possibilities.

The committee was constituted following representation of social activists from the state urged the government to design a separate flag for Kannada ‘naadu’ and accord statutory standing for it.

There is no prohibition in the Constitution for the State to have its own flag. Even there is no separate central or state law dealing with issue.

So, legally it can be said that state flag is not unauthorised.

Jammu and Kashmir is only state having separate flag of its own due to special status granted by Article 370 of the Constitution.

At present, the national flag code specifically authorises use of other flags subject to the regulation by the court.

It does not mention anything about separate state flag.

However, it clearly mentions that the manner in which the other flag is hoisted should not dishonour the national flag. It has to be always below the national flag.

Thus, if states have separate flag, it should be hoisted in such a way that it does not dishonour the national flag.

ANSWER: India

Explanation:
India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, will import crude oil from the United States for the first time after Indian Oil Corp bought a cargo that will be delivered in October.

The purchase comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US in June when President Donald Trump said his country looked forward to exporting more energy products to India.

IOC bought 1.6 million barrels of US Mars crude, a heavy, high-sulphur grade, and 400,000 barrels of Western Canadian Select that will be delivered onboard a Very Large Crude Carrier.

PetroChina was awarded the tender to sell the cargoes and is expected to load the oil off the US Gulf Coast, said a trading source with direct knowledge of the sale.

The cargo was priced on a delivered ex-ship basis, which is “very competitive” to that of Basra Light,

India is the latest Asian country to buy US crude after South Korea, Japan, China, Thailand, Australia and Taiwan.

Countries seek to diversify oil imports from other regions after the OPEC cuts drove up prices of Middle East heavy-sour crude, or grades with a high sulphur content.

Indian refiners are seeking these heavy, high-sulphur grades as feedstocks after modifications at their plants make it easier to process these types of crudes, which typically sell at a lower cost relative to other oil types.

The US could become an alternative source for the Indian companies for these grades.

A second Indian refiner Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd also planned to buy its first ever US crude oil cargo and has issued a purchase tender.

BPCL: Know More

• Headquarters: Mumbai
• CEO: S. Varadarajan (30 Sep 2013)
• Owner: Government of India (54.93%)
• Revenue: 2.404 trillion INR (2015, US $36 billion)
• Founded: 1976

ANSWER: Nepal

Explanation:
Nepal SBI Bank, a subsidiary of the State Bank of India, today launched its fully automatic digital banking services SBIInTouch in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu.

This is for the first time the State Bank of India has expanded the paperless banking system outside India.

Digital banking provides various services including cash deposit, opening of new accounts, distribution of debit card, ATM and online banking information on touch of the screen.

Customers can avail the services from SBI Intouch Bank.

The digital banking unit also has a robot, which provides important information to customers in an interactive manner.

Nepal Rastra Bank Governor Chirinjibi Nepal, SBI Bank’s chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya and Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri, jointly inaugurated the new service, the first of its kind in Nepal.

The paperless banking service has been launched to target potential younger customers who are exposed to digital technology.

Paperless banking is a revolution in the banking sector of Nepal, said Chiranjibi Nepal.

ANSWER: 41^st

Explanation:
The World Heritage Committee, during its 41st session in Krakow from 2 July to 12 July 2017, added various cultural and natural sites in UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

The 41st session of the World Heritage Committee was chaired by Jacek Purchla, Founder and Director of the International Cultural Centre in Krakow.

The City of Yazd is located in the middle of the Iranian plateau, close to the Spice and Silk Roads.

It bears living testimony to the use of limited resources for survival in the desert.

Water is supplied to the city through a qanat system developed to draw underground water.

1. Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata (Japan):

Located 60 km off the western coast of Kyushu, the island of Okinoshima bans women and mandates male visitors to strip naked before going ashore.

This men only island encompasses some archaeological sites that have been preserved on the Island and are virtually intact and provide a chronological record of how the rituals performed there changed from the 4th to the 9th centuries CE.

Venetian Works of Defence between the 16th and 17th Centuries (Croatia, Italy, Montenegro): This site contains 15 components of defence works in Italy, Croatia and Montenegro.

It spans more than 1000 kilometres between the Lombard region of Italy and the eastern Adriatic Coast.

2. Kujataa Greenland (Denmark):

Kujataa is a sub-arctic farming landscape located in the southern region of Greenland.

It bears witness to the cultural histories of the Norse hunters-gatherers, Norse farmers, Inuit hunters and Inuit farming communities.

The landscape represents the earliest introduction of farming to the Arctic, and the Norse expansion of settlement beyond Europe.

Taputapuatea (France): Taputapuatea on Raiatea Island of France is at the centre of the Polynesian Triangle, a vast portion of the Pacific Ocean dotted with islands.

It is the last part of the globe to be settled by humans.

3. Caves and Ice Age Art in the Swabian Jura (Germany):

Modern humans first arrived in Europe around 43000 years ago during the last ice age.

One of the areas where they took up residence was the Swabian Jura in southern Germany. Excavated from the 1860s, six caves have revealed items dating from 43000 to 33000 years ago.

Among them are carved figurines of animals, musical instruments and items of personal adornment.

Tarnowskie Gory Lead-Silver-Zinc Mine (Poland): Located in Upper Silesia in southern Poland, the site includes the entire underground mine with adits, shafts, galleries and water management system.

Mostly, the site is situated underground while the surface mining topography features the remains of the 19th century steam water pumping station.

4. Aphrodisias (Turkey):

Located in southwestern Turkey, the site consists of two components: the archaeological site of Aphrodisias and the marble quarries northeast of the city.

The temple of Aphrodite dates from the 3rd century BCE and the city was built one century later.

5. Kulangsu:

A historic international settlement (China): Kulangsu is a tiny island located nearby the Chiu-lung River and faces the Chinese city of Xiamen.

There is a mixture of different architectural styles including Traditional Southern Fujian Style, Western Classical Revival Style and Veranda Colonial Style.

The most exceptional evidence of the fusion of various stylistic influences is a new architectural movement, the Amoy Deco Style, which is an amalgamation of the Modernist style of the early 20th century and Art Deco.

Mbanza Kongo (Angola): The town of Mbanza Kongo was the political and spiritual capital of the Kingdom of Kongo.

The historical area grew around the royal residence, the customary court and the holy tree, as well as the royal funeral places.

Mbanza Kongo illustrates the profound changes caused by the introduction of Christianity and the arrival of the Portuguese into Central Africa.

6. Asmara: a Modernist City of Africa (Eritrea):

Located at over 2000 metres above sea level, Asmara developed as a military outpost for the Italian colonial power from 1890s onwards.

Today, Asmara is an exceptional example of early modernist urbanism at the beginning of the 20th century and its application in an African context.

7. Khomani Cultural Landscape (South Africa):

Khomani Cultural Landscape is located at the border with Botswana and Namibia in the northern part of South Africa.

It bears testimony to the way of life that prevailed in the region and shaped the site over thousands of years.

8. Qinghai Hoh Xil (China):

Qinghai Hoh Xil is the largest and highest plateau in the world. This extensive area of alpine mountains and steppe systems is situated more than 4500 m above sea level.

The property shelters the complete migratory route of the Tibetan antelope, one of the endangered mammals that are endemic to the plateau.

9. Landscapes Of Dauria (Mongolia / Russian Federation):

Shared between Mongolia and the Russian Federation, this site is an outstanding example of the Daurian Steppe eco-region, which extends from eastern Mongolia into Russian Siberia and north-eastern China.

10. Los Alerces National Park (Argentina):

The Los Alerces National park is located in the Andes of northern Patagonia and has a western boundary, which coincide with the Chilean border.

The site is important for the protection of some of the last pieces of Patagonian Forest in an almost unspoiled state and is the habitat for a number of threatened species of flora and fauna.

ANSWER: Perchlorates

Explanation:
As per a research conducted by scientists in the United Kingdom, Mars soil has chemical compounds called perchlorates that can wipe out living organisms.

The discovery has major implications for hunt for alien life on the red planet as it means any evidence is likely to be buried deep underground.

The study was published in the journal Scientific.

The research was driven by the discovery of powerful oxidants known as perchlorates in the Martian soil a few years back.

Hints of perchlorates first showed up in tests performed by NASA’S Viking lander missions 40 years ago.

However, the fact was recently confirmed by NASA’s Phoenix lander and Mars rover, Curiosity.

In 2015, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spotted signs of perchlorates.

Many scientists suspected that perchlorates would be toxic for microbial Martians, however, alien bacteria might find a way to use the chemicals as an energy source.

The researchers looked at what happened to Bacillus subtilis, a common soil bacterium and regular Earthly contaminant found on space probes, when it was mixed with magnesium perchlorate and blasted with ultraviolet rays similar to those witnessed on Mars.

It was found that the bugs were wiped out twice as fast when perchlorate was present.

Further tests found that the UV rays broke down the perchlorate into other chemicals, namely hypochlorite and chlorite.

In addition, the researchers also followed-up with another round of experiments that looked at the toxic effects of iron oxides and hydrogen peroxide, which are also found in Mars soil.

As per further tests, when the bacteria were hit with UV rays in the presence of perchlorates, iron oxide and peroxide, the bugs were killed 11 times faster than with perchlorates alone.

ANSWER: Iraq

Explanation:
Haider al-Abadi, Prime Minister of Iraq, on 8 July 2017 declared the full liberation of Mosul and reclaim the city after three years of ISIL control.

The success was achieved after nine months of bitter fighting to displace the extremist group from the city where it proclaimed its caliphate.

Abadi travelled to Islamic State to formally reclaim the devastated city.

Mosul is a major city in northern Iraq.

The city stands on the west bank of the Tigris, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank.

It had been under the control of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant since June 2014.

Since October 2016, the city has been a site of a military operation to dislodge and defeat militant forces.

The Battle of Mosul, a military offensive to retake the city begun in October 2016, is the largest deployment of Iraqi forces since the 2003 invasion by US and coalition forces.

Battle of Mosul: Know More

• Battle of Mosul, dubbed as “We Are Coming, Nineveh” began on 16 October 2016.
• It commenced with forces besieging ISIL-controlled areas in the Nineveh Governorate surrounding Mosul.
• The battle was the world’s single largest military operation in nearly 15 years.
• On 1 November 2016, Iraqi Special Operations Forces entered the city from the east.
• The advance into the city was slowed by elaborate defenses and by the presence of civilians.
• However, the Iraqi Prime Minister declared “full liberation of eastern side of Mosul” on 24 January 2017.
• On 19 February 2017, Iraqi troops began their offensive to recapture western Mosul.
• On 1 March 2017, it was announced that the Iraqi Army had taken control of the last major road to western Mosul.
• On 9 March 2017, Iraqi forces reached the Grand Mosque of al-Nuri from where al-Baghdadi had made a declaration of a “caliphate”.
• On 3-4 May 2017, Iraqi forces fought to recapture the Old City area, tightening their control around the al-Nuri Mosque.

ANSWER: Only a and b

Explanation:
Mission Parivar Vikas will focus on 146 high fertility districts in 7 states with high TFR.

Under this, specific targeted initiatives shall be taken for population stabilisation through better services delivery.

The scheme was launched at Jansankhya Sthirita Kosh (JSK) to mark the World Population Day.

Mission Parivar Vikas is a new initiative conceived by the Ministry with a strategic focus on improving access through provision of services, promotional schemes, commodity security, capacity building, enabling environment and intensive monitoring.

The team is known for undertaking micro-planning for these districts and developing need-based programmes to address TFR.

The Health Minister also advised the officials to undertake half yearly review of the programme and correlate the achievements with time to gauge whether the programme is moving in the right direction or not.

GoI has enhanced the basket of contraceptive choices to meet the changing needs of people and have taken steps to ensure quality assured services and commodities are delivered to the last-mile consumers in both rural and urban areas.”

A new injectable in the public health system under the “Antara” program was launched along with a new software – Family Planning Logistics Management Information System (FP-LMIS).

The latter is designed to provide robust information on the demand and distribution of contraceptives to health facilities and ASHAs to strengthen supply chain management.

As a part of the new communications campaign linked to the rollout, the Health Minister also launched a new consumer friendly website on family planning.

There is also a 52 week radio show for couples to discuss issues related to marriage and family planning, which will be aired across the country.

The Health Minister further highlighted the life cycle approach of the Ministry and stated that a continuum of care approach has been adopted by the Ministry with the articulation of ‘Strategic approach to Reproductive Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent health (RMNCH+A), bringing focus on all the life stages.

Population dynamics have a significant influence on sustainable development. The changes in population growth rates and age structures are closely linked to national and global developmental challenges and their solutions.

The issue of population stabilization is so gigantic in its proportion that the government alone cannot address the issue and thus the collective involvement of NGOs, private sector and corporate sector shall play a pivotal role.