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May 31 | Daily Current Affairs 2021

IMPORTANT DAYS

1. World No Tobacco Day is observed on which date?
A) May 20
B) May 21
C) May 22
D) May 23
E) May 31
Answer: E) May 31

• The World Health Organisation has designated 31 May as ‘World No Tobacco Day.’
• The theme this year is ‘Commit to Quit’, which assumes significant importance in the present times of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The association of smoking with the COVID-19 infection has been controversial.
• Initial studies from China and Europe seemed to suggest a lower prevalence of COVID infection among smokers and protective effects of smoking against the effects of COVID.
• However, subsequent analysis showed serious methodological flaws in those studies.
• And later studies showed that smokers in fact fare poorly after a coronavirus infection.

Date:

• Celebrated around the world every year on May 31, World No Tobacco Day was created by the Member States of WHO in 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the preventable death and disease it causes.

History and importance:

• In 1987, the World Health Assembly passed Resolution WHA40.38, calling for April 7, 1988, to be “a world no-smoking day.”
• In 1988, Resolution WHA42.19 was passed, calling for the celebration of World No Tobacco Day, every year on May 31.
• This yearly celebration aims to raise awareness amid the global citizens about not only the dangers of using tobacco but also the business practices of tobacco companies, what WHO is doing to fight the tobacco epidemic and what people around the world can do to claim their right to health and healthy living and to protect future generations.

SPORTS

2. Pooja Rani is related to Boxing sport in which Kg category?
A) 34kg
B) 72kg
C) 53kg
D) 65kg
E) 75kg
Answer: E) 75kg

• Defending champion Pooja Rani (75kg) outpunched in-form Mavluda Movlonova in the finals to clinch her second successive gold at the Asian Boxing Championships as Indian women ended their campaign with one gold, three silver and six bronze medals
• The Olympics-bound pugilist Pooja was up against a strong Uzbekistan boxer, who came into the match beating London Olympics medallist Marina Volnova in the last-4 stage.
• It is also Pooja’s fourth medal at the championships after gold in 2019, silver in 2012 and a bronze in 2015.
• However, the seasoned campaigner Mary Kom (51kg), Lalbuatsaihi (64kg) and Anupama (+81kg) claimed silver medals after suffering narrow defeats in their respective finals.
• Mary Kom lost to the two-time world champion Nazym Kyzaibay by split 2-3, while Lalbuatsaihi (64kg) also gave her all in another close-fought gold medal but couldn’t manage to get past Milana Safronova of Kazakhstan and suffered a 2-3 defeat to win silver medal in her maiden outing at the Championships.
• The five-time Asian Championships gold medallist Mary Kom used all her experience against Kayzaibay and made her work hard but it wasn’t enough as the later tilted the hard-fought game successfully in her favour and emerged champion with a narrow 29-28, 28-29, 30-27, 29-28, 28-29 scoreline.
• It is the second silver for Mary Kom at the Asian Championships who has previously won titles on five occasion – 2003, 2005, 2010, 2012 and 2017 besides silver in 2008.
  Later, another Indian boxer Anupama (+81) also ended up with silver as she lost to Lazzat Kungeibayeva of Kazakhstan 2-3 in yet another nail-biting final.
• Along with the gold and three silver medals from Sunday, six Indian women boxers had earlier won a bronze, including Lovlina Borgohain (69kg), Simranjit Kaur (60kg), Sakshi Chaudhary (54kg), Monika (48kg), Jasmine (57kg) and Saweety Boora (81kg).
• The 19-member Indian contingent has claimed their best-ever show by securing record 15 medals in the on-going prestigious Championships, which is jointly hosted by the Boxing Federation of India (BFI) and UAE Boxing Federation.
• With this, they surpassed their previous highest of 13 medals (2 gold, 4 silver and 7 bronze) from the 2019 edition in Bangkok.
• The event will conclude with the men’s finals, where three Indian boxers – Amit Panghal (52kg), Shiva Thapa (64kg), Sanjeet (91kg) – will feature.
• With this, they surpassed their previous highest of 13 medals (2 gold, 4 silver and 7 bronze) from the 2019 edition in Bangkok.
• The event will conclude on Monday with the men’s finals, where three Indian boxers – Amit Panghal (52kg), Shiva Thapa (64kg), Sanjeet (91kg) – will feature.
• Vikas Krishan (69kg) and Varinder Singh (60kg) secured bronze medals in the men’s section with their semi-final finish at the event which witnessed the presence of 150 boxers from 17 countries including strong boxing nations such as India, Uzbekistan, the Philippines and Kazakhstan.
• The International Boxing Association (AIBA) has allocated USD 4,00,000 prize money for this Championships.
• The gold medallists of men’s and women’s categories will be awarded with USD 10,000 while both the silver and bronze medal winners will take home USD 5,000 and 2,500 respectively.

Pooja Rani – Gold as Indian women sign off with 10 medals.

OBITUARY

3. Sardarni Surjit Kaur Kalkat passed away. He was Minister of which state?
A) Punjab
B) Karnataka
C) Mizoram
D) Madhya Pradesh
E) Sikkim
Answer: A) Punjab

• A veteran Congress leader and two-time MLA from Tanda and former Punjab Minister Sardarni Surjit Kaur Kalkat (91) passed away after a prolonged illness.
• She won Tanda constituency in 1980 and 1992 with a margin of 1080 and 4303 votes respectively and served as Cabinet Minister in Harcharan Singh Brar’s government.
• She was Chairman of Punjab Women and Children Development Corporation from 1982-1985. She also remained Joint Secretary of PPCC.

Sardarni Surjit Kaur Kalkat – A veteran Congress leader and two-time MLA from Tanda and former Punjab Minister.

BANKING AND FINANCE

4. Which Bank & IBA announces various support measures and launch of new loan products by all Public Sector Banks?
A) State Bank of India
B) ICICI Bank
C) HDFC Bank
D) Punjab National Bank
E) Bank of India
Answer: A) State Bank of India

• State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Dinesh Khara, IBA Chairman Rajkiran Rai and IBA Chief Executive Sunil Mehta on Sunday addressed a joint press conference to announce the various support measures and launch of new loan products by all Public Sector Banks to mitigate the impact due to resurgence of Covid pandemic.
• Accordingly, 3 under noted products have been designed to provide fresh lending support to vaccine manufacturers, hospitals/dispensaries, pathology labs, manufacturers and suppliers of Oxygen, Ventilators, importers of vaccines & Covid related drugs logistics firms and patients for treatment.
• Healthcare Business Loans for setting up Oxygen Plants under ECGLS. Loan upto Rs.2 Crores capped @ 7.5% for hospitals, nursing homes for setting up Oxygen plant, backed by 100% guarantee cover of NCGTC under ECLGS 4.0.
• Business loans for Healthcare Facilities upto Rs.100 Crores To setup / expand healthcare infrastructure and to manufacturers of healthcare products.
• Unsecured personal Loans to Individuals from Rs.25000 to Rs.5 lakhs for Salaried, non-salaried and pensioners for meeting Covid treatment.
• All the above schemes are being offered by PSBs at concessional interest rates and will form part of the Covid loan book.
• In regard to Resolution Framework 2.0, PSBs have formulated Templated Approach for restructuring of Loans.

Business Loans-Three categories:

• Upto Rs 10 lakhs : Standardised Restructuring Offer to Certain Small Businesses and
  MSMEs.
• Above Rs 10 lakhs and upto Rs 10 Crores.
• Above Rs 10 Crores.

Loans to Individuals:

• To have seamless implementation in effective manner, PSBs have come out with strategic approach.
• Standard templates, portal and branch based approach.
• Graded approach for restructuring.
• Standard application and assessment formats.
• Standard and simplified documentation.
• Common outreach approach.
• The above initiatives taken by all the PSBs by coming together and announced is a significant step in the right direction to mitigate the financial impact due to Covid resurgence on all affected segments of the borrowers.

State Bank of India:
Capital: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Head: Dinesh Kumar Khara
Tagline: With You all the way, Pure Banking Nothing Else, The Nation Bank on Us, The Banker to Every Indian, A Bank of the Common Man.

SBI + IBA – Various support measures and launch of new loan products by all Public Sector Banks.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

5. According to the CGA data, Fiscal deficit for 2020-21 was at how much per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP)?
A) 3.3
B) 4.3
C) 5.3
D) 6.3
E) 9.3
Answer: E) 9.3

• Fiscal deficit for 2020-21 was at 9.3 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), lower than 9.5 per cent estimated by the Finance Ministry in the revised Budget estimates, according to the CGA data.
• Unveiling the revenue-expenditure data of the Union government for 2020-21, the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on Monday said that the revenue deficit at the end of the fiscal was 7.42 per cent.
• In absolute terms, the fiscal deficit works out to be Rs 18,21,461 crore.
• For this financial year, the government had initially pegged the fiscal deficit at Rs 7.96 lakh crore or 3.5 per cent of the GDP in the budget presented in February 2020.
• The government in the revised estimates in the Budget for 2021-22 forecast a higher fiscal deficit of 9.5 per cent of the GDP or Rs 18,48,655 crore for the fiscal ended in March due to a rise in expenditure on account of the outbreak of COVID-19 and moderation in revenue during this fiscal year.
• Fiscal deficit had soared to a high of 4.6 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2019-20, mainly due to poor revenue realisation.

Govt data – India’s fiscal deficit at 9.3% of GDP in 2020-21.

APPOINTMENTS

6. Who has assumed office as President of CII for 2021-22?
A) T V Narendran
B) T V Siva
C) T V Sankar
D) T V Sudhan
E) T V Sekar
Answer: A) T V Narendran

• T V Narendran, CEO & Managing Director, Tata Steel Limited, has assumed office as the President of CII for 2021-22.
• He takes over from Uday Kotak, Managing Director and CEO, Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited.
• Pawan Munjal, Chairman and CEO, Hero MotoCorp Ltd., takes over as CII Vice President for 2021-22.

CII:
Abbreviation: Confederation of Indian Industry
President: T V Narendran
Vice President: Pawan Munjal
Headquarters: New Delhi
Founded: 1895

T V Narendran – President of CII for 2021-22.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

7. Which IIT has developed a first-of-its-kind IoT device – AmbiTag that records real-time ambient temperature during the transportation of perishable products, vaccines and even body organs and blood?
A) IIT Kanpur
B) IIT Ropar
C) IIT Kharagpur
D) IIT Hyderabad
E) IIT Mandi
Answer: B) IIT Ropar

• Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar (IIT Ropar) in Punjab has developed a first-of-its-kind IoT device – AmbiTag that records real-time ambient temperature during the transportation of perishable products, vaccines and even body organs and blood.
• The recorded temperature further helps to know whether that particular item transported from anywhere in the world is still usable or perished because of temperature variation.
• This information is particularly critical for vaccines including Covid-19 vaccine, organs and blood transportation.
• Shaped as USB device, AmbiTag continuously records the temperature of its immediate surroundings from -40 to +80 degrees in any time zone for a full 90 days on a single charge.
• Most of the similar devices available in the international market record data only for duration of 30- 60 days.
• The device will be made available to all companies involved in COVID vaccine transportation from production facilities to the last mile vaccination centers in the country at the production cost of Rs. 400.
• This device is our small contribution to the Nation for coming out of the never-seen-before-pandemic and a push towards the Atma Nirbhar Bharat.

IIT Ropar – “AmbiTAG”- India’s first indigenous temp data logger.

8. Which IIT collaborates with IBM on quantum computing education & research?
A) IIT Kanpur
B) IIT Ropar
C) IIT Kharagpur
D) IIT Hyderabad
E) IIT Madras
Answer: E) IIT Madras

• The Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) today announced its collaboration with IBM on quantum computing education and research.
• This collaboration will provide IIT-Madras faculty, researchers and students with access to IBM’s quantum systems and tools over IBM.
• Cloud to accelerate joint research in quantum computing and develop curricula to help prepare students for careers that will be influenced by this next era of computing, across science and business.
• A release from IIT-M said, the Quantum Computing Lab courses jointly taught by IIT-M faculty and IBM researchers will include hands-on lab sessions on the IBM quantum systems and will augment existing courses on quantum information and computing.
• IBM will provide the learning resources, tools, and systems access needed by the faculty and students.
• India has witnessed a huge spurt of activity in the quantum science and technology domain over the last few years, backed by Government initiatives including the ‘Quantum Enabled Science and Technologies’ (QuEST) program and the National Mission on Quantum Technologies and Applications (NMQTA).
• The Metropolitan Area Quantum Access Network (MAQAN) and the Centre for Field Programmable Photonic Gate Arrays (FPPGAs) are large initiatives at IIT Madras, supported by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

IIT-Madras +IBM – Quantum computing education & research.

9. SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Launches how many More Starlink Internet Satellites To Orbit?
A) 30
B) 20
C) 10
D) 60
E) 70
Answer: D) 60

• SpaceX, executed its second launch of Falcon 9 first stage booster with 60 Starlink satellites to orbit.
• The same two-stage-to-orbit previously launched the Sentinel-6A mission.
• Elon Musk’s Aerospace company launched the 60 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
• This was the 13th Starlink launch of the year for SpaceX.
• This was the 85th landing of SpaceX’s reusable launch system development program

SpaceX:
Headquarters: Hawthorne, California, United States of America
Founded: 6 May 2002
CEO: Elon Musk

SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket – 60 More Starlink Internet Satellites To Orbit.

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

10. Indian Navy Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) has been installed onboard ALH Mk III helicopter from which INAS?
A) INAS 321
B) INAS 323
C) INAS 322
D) INAS 324
E) INAS 325
Answer: B) INAS 323

• With an aim to evacuate the critical patients in bad weather, the the Indian Navy said that a Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) has been installed onboard ALH Mk III helicopter from INAS 323 at INS Hansa by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
• With ALH Mk III, an all-weather aircraft, being equipped with MICU, the Indian Navy can now undertake medical evacuation of critical patients by air even in unfavourable weather conditions.
• Under this medical ICU has two sets of defibrillators, multipara monitors, ventilator, Oxygen Support as well as infusion and syringe pumps have been carefully fitted to meet any emergency during evacuation.
• It also has a suction system to clear secretions in the mouth or airway of the patient and the system can be operated on aircraft power supply and also has a battery backup of four hours.
• The equipment can be installed in two-three hours to convert the aircraft into an air ambulance.
• This is the first of eight MICU sets to be delivered by HAL to Indian Navy.

Emergency medical ICU unit – Instal in Indian Navy ALH helicopter.

11. Which company ties up with Ajooni Biotech for supply of BIS mark cattle feed?
A) GRSE
B) CSL
C) HAL
D) L & T
E) IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd
Answer: E) IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd

• IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd announced that it has signed an agreement with Ajooni Biotech Limited, a pioneer in manufacturing of animal health care products, for sourcing/ procurement of cattle feed.
• The cattle feed will be sold under the brand name ‘IFFCO KISAN’.
• The IFFCO subsidiary already has tie-up with seven entities for manufacture cattle feed as per the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) guidelines.
• IFFCO Kisan Sanchar had sold 1 Lakh MT of cattle feed valued at Rs 160 crore during fiscal 2020-21 in the first full year of its operations, as the firm received tremendous response from customers.
• The company had entered the compound cattle feed business on a pilot basis during financial year 2019-20.

IFFCO Kisan + Ajooni Biotech – Supply of BIS mark cattle feed.

12. Which Railway inaugurated the Integrated Video Surveillance System (VSS) Control Room?
A) South Central Railway
B) North Eastern Railway
C) North Central Railway
D) East Central Railway
E) West Central Railway
Answer: A) South Central Railway

• South Central Railway (SCR) General Manager Gajanan Mallya inaugurated the Integrated Video Surveillance System (VSS) Control Room at the Zonal level for the first 17 stations of SCR.
• With this facility made operational, the security surveillance footage over these 17 stations can now be monitored at 3 levels – Station, Divisional Security Control and Zonal Security Control.
• The 17 stations covered under this include Railway stations spread across three States–Adilabad, Begumpet, Lingampalli, Manchiryal and Warangal in Telangana; Guntur, Kadapa, Kurnool Town, Nellore, Ongole, Rajahmundry and Tuni, in Andhra Pradesh; Aurangabad, Dharmabad, Jalna, Nagarsol, and Parli Vaijnath in Maharashtra.
• RailTel, a Miniratna PSU under Ministry of Railways, has provided Internet Protocol (IP) based VSS at 13 Railway stations and integrated existing CCTV at 4 stations (–Aurangabad, Guntur, Rajahmundry and Warangal) to set up the centralized control room.
• This is also the first time that the earlier Internet Protocol (ONVIF) cameras installed by the Railways have been integrated with the new VSS system over Indian Railways.

SCR – Integrated Video Surveillance System.

13. Which state launches drive to eradicate tobacco use on World No Tobacco Day?
A) Punjab
B) Karnataka
C) Mizoram
D) Madhya Pradesh
E) Sikkim
Answer: A) Punjab

• Punjab government has launched a drive to eradicate tobacco use to save children and youth on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day.
• Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu said that a special week-long campaign has been launched in all the districts from today May till June 6.
• During this campaign, all the government health facilities will be declared as Tobacco Free and No Tobacco Pledge will be taken at all health facilities.
• A state level Anti Tobacco radio campaign and audio announcement at bus stands have also been launched to spread awareness among people.
• World No Tobacco Day is observed around the world every year on May 31.
• This year theme of World No Tobacco Day 2021 campaign is “Commit to Quit”.

Punjab:
Capital: Chandigarh
CM: Captain Amarinder Singh
Governor: V P Singh Badnore

Punjab – Drive to eradicate tobacco use on World No Tobacco Day.

14. Union Health Ministry approves annual plan worth how much amount for J&K under National Health Mission?
A) Rs. 1163.40 cr
B) Rs. 1363.40 cr
C) Rs. 1263.40 cr
D) Rs. 1663.40 cr
E) Rs. 1763.40 cr
Answer: A) Rs. 1163.40 cr

• In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir the Union Ministry for Health and Family Welfare has approved annual plan worth Rs. 1163.40 crore for the UT for financial year 2021-22 under National Health Mission.

Centre allocates Rs 3411 Cr grant to Gujarat under Jal Jeevan Mission:

• Centre has allocated three thousand 411 Crore rupees grant to Gujarat under Jal Jeevan Mission to provide safe and potable piped drinking water to all the rural household in the state.
• Out of which the first tranche of more than 852 Crore rupees for the current financial year has been released.
• Jal Jeevan Mission was announced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15th August, 2019.
• The mission aims to provide tap water connection to every rural household of the country by 2024.
• The total budget for the Mission in 2021-22 is 50 thousand crore rupees.

Health and Family Welfare, Science and Technology; and Earth Sciences:
Minister: Dr Harsha Vardhan
Constituency: Chandni Chowk, Delhi

Jammu and Kashmir
Capital: Srinagar(summer), Jammu(winter)
Governor: Manoj Sinha

Union Health Ministry – Annual plan worth Rs. 1163.40 cr for J&K under National Health Mission.

15. India’s first city-wide environmental surveillance platform for COVID launched in which city?
A) Noida
B) Hyderabad
C) Chennai
D) New Delhi
E) Bengaluru
Answer: E) Bengaluru

• With the number of cases of COVID-19 surging across the county in the second wave of the pandemic, the Government of Karnataka is introducing a city-wide sewage surveillance system in Bangalore that will help officials track the virus at an early stage, even among asymptomatic individuals.
• Assisting this effort is the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Skoll Foundation-supported COVIDactionCollab (CAC), an India-wide collaborative of over 300 organizations and networks working together to provide COVID-19 relief and recovery services to the country’s most vulnerable communities.
• Over the last year, scientists around the world have discovered that waste-water testing can serve as a cost-effective early warning system, often predicting an increase in COVID-19 before the number of official cases has risen.
• The Precision Health Platform in Bengaluru, the first of its kind in Asia, will test sewage from both sewered and non-sewered waste-water to identify clusters of new infections.
• Early identification of clusters can help guide the COVID-19 response and give policymakers the information they need to better allocate limited pandemic resources.
• CAC supports the Government of Karnataka by providing training for sanitation workers and lab technicians on collecting and transporting sewage samples to labs for testing; and analysing and safely disposing of them.
• The Technical Expert group will provide programmatic inputs and insights to policy makers for targeted COVID-19 prevention, care, and management services based on the analysis.

Bengaluru – India’s first city-wide environmental surveillance platform for COVID.

16. Which organization Invites Youths To Join ‘Young Warrior Movement’ To Combat COVID-19?
A) NITI Aayog
B) CBSE
C) NHAI
D) CCI
E) CII
Answer: B) CBSE

• The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has invited participants from the age group between 18 and 30 years to join a movement and safeguard themselves against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, their families, communities, and the country at large.
• Named Young Warrior Movement, the movement seeks to engage youths in a series of easy and real-life tasks including promoting access to verified health and essential services, vaccine registration, COVID-19 appropriate behaviours and myth busting.
• Young Warrior Movement is a joint initiative of the CBSE, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, YuWaah-UNICEF and a multi-stakeholder consortium of over 950 partners.

CBSE – Youths To Join ‘Young Warrior Movement’ To Combat COVID-19.

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