10-11 December 2017 - Daily Current Affairs

10-11 December 2017 - Daily Current Affairs

India’s first mobile food testing lab unveiled in Goa

• The Chief Minister of Goa Manohar Parrikar has launched India’s first mobile food testing laboratory enabling on-the- spot food safety tests in Goa.
• The vehicle is equipped to conduct on-the-spot tests to check food quality and curb adulteration, also check hygiene level of water.
• The mobile laboratory costs (Rs.45 lakh) has been fully funded by the union govt.

10^th December: World Human Rights Day

• The World Human Rights Day is being observed to honor the United Nations General Assembly's adoption and proclamation.
• The theme this year is, 'Let's stand up for equality, justice, and human dignity'.
• This year, the Human Rights Day kicks off a year-long campaign to mark the upcoming 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Note: Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted on this day by the United Nation's General Assembly in 1948 at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris.

ASEAN India Connectivity Summit (AICS) begins in New Delhi

•  Today, the two-day ASEAN India Connectivity Summit (AICS) has begun in New Delhi.
• The theme of the Summit is Powering Digital and Physical Linkages for Asia in the 21st Century.
• The Summit aims at accelerating existing connectivity prospects, identifying issues of concern, evolving suitable policy recommendations and developing strategies to enhance economic, industrial, trade relations between ASEAN & India.

Union Govt. sanctions Rs. 75 crores for setting up LPG bottling plant in Meghalaya

• The union govt. has sanctioned Rs. 75 crores for setting up a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) bottling plant in Meghalaya.
• The new bottling plant will be constructed at an existing site located in Shillong itself.
• A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and the state government in the presence of Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma.

Note: The only 27% of the households in Meghalaya are linked with LPG connectivity which is much below the national average.

Govt. launches door-to-door campaign against TB

• The union health ministry Jagat Prakash Nadda has launched a door-to-door campaign for early diagnosis, detection and treatment of tuberculosis (TB) in the country.
• Through this campaign, health department workers, ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists) and TB supervisors will make door-to-door visits to find TB patients and give them free medical treatment till they are cured.
• Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB).
• Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but can also affect other parts of the body.

Note: As per the WHO (World Health Organisation), approximately 2.8 million cases of tuberculosis (TB) occur in India every year, out of which only 1.7 million cases are reported.

Giriraj Singh launches Public Procurement Portal MSME Sambandh

• The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for MSME Shri Giriraj Singh has launched Public Procurement Portal ‘MSME Sambandh’ for Public Procurement Portal for MSMEs (Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises).
• The objective of the portal is to monitor the implementation of the Public Procurement from MSEs by Central Public-Sector Enterprises (CPSEs).
• It will help MSMEs in participating in the procurement process.

Uma Shankar appointed RBI Executive Director

• Uma Shankar, chief general manager (CGM) in charge of the Reserve Bank of India’s financial inclusion and development department has taken over as executive director (ED) in the central bank.
• EDs are selected by a committee involving the governor and deputy governors from among the CGMs
• Currently, RBI has 11 EDs and each of them supervises the 34 departments headed by CGMs at the central bank.

Pioneer of DNA fingerprinting Lalji Singh passes away

• The pioneer of DNA fingerprinting technology in India Lalji Singh (70-year) passed away.
• He was the former Vice-Chancellor (25th) of Benares Hindu University (BHU) (2011 to 2014).
• Mr. Singh considered the father of DNA fingerprints, who worked in the area of the molecular basis of sex determination, wildlife conservation, forensics and evolution and migration of humans.

Australia beat Argentina 2-1 to win gold in Hockey World League

• Australia defeated Rio Olympics champions Argentina 2-1 in the final of the Hockey World League to win gold at Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar (Odisha).
• In the third-fourth place classification match, India defeated Germany 2-1 and reclaimed the bronze medal.
• India had also won the bronze in the last edition of the tournament in Raipur in 2015.

Note:

• The 2016–17 Men's FIH Hockey World League Final took place between 1st- 10th December 2017 in Bhubaneswar, India.
• The host nation qualified automatically in addition to 7 teams (Australia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Belgium, Argentina, England, Germany) qualified in this round of the tournament.

Bergamasco appointed Performance Director for women's boxing

• According to the BFI official, Italian coach Raffaele Bergamasco has been elevated to the position of Performance Director for senior women pugilists.
• Raffaele Bergamasco was behind India's best-ever medal haul at AIBA Women's Youth Boxing Championship.

FIFA lifts ban on Kuwaiti football

• The international football federation (FIFA) has officially lifted a two-year ban on Kuwait's football federation.
• In 2015, FIFA banned Kuwait's national football federation over alleged government interference in the running of the country's football governing body.

Note:

• FIFA is responsible for the organization of football's major international tournaments.
• FIFA is headquartered in Zürich, and is an association established under the Law of Switzerland.

Jitu Rai, Heena Sidhu win medals at 10th Asian Championship in Japan

• Pistol aces Jitu Rai and Heena Sidhu bagged a bronze each at the 10th Asian Championship 10m Rifle/Pistol in Wako City, Japan.
• Jitu won an individual bronze in the men's 10m Air Pistol and Heena claimed an individual bronze in the women's 10m Air Pistol.
• Jitu also helped the Indian team comprising Shahzar Rizvi and Omkar Singh to bag the Team gold in the event.
• Heena’s along with teammates Shri Nivetha Paramantham and Harveen Srao, helped the Team clinch a silver.
• India won individual bronze through Anmol Jain in the junior men's 10m Air Pistol as well as the Team silver in the event.