Current Affairs Assam – April 29 – 30, 2020
( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of April 15 – 21, 2020 )
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APRIL 29, 2020
Manipuri doctor Thangjam Dhabali Singh conferred ‘Order of Rising Sun’ by Japan
- Thangjam Dhabali Singh, doctor from Manipur has been conferred the ‘Order of Rising Sun’ by the Japan government for promoting a better understanding of Japan in India and deepening ties between the two countries.
- The ‘Order of the Rising Sun’ is conferred on persons with achievements in international relations, promotion of Japanese culture, environmental preservation, welfare or achievements in their fields. It was constituted by Japanese Emperor Meiji in 1875.
- Thangjam Dhabali Singh, an allopathic doctor by profession and founder of the Manipur Tourism Forum (MTF), was conferred the ‘Order of Rising Sun – Gold and Silver Rays’ by the Japan government.
- Singh had organised the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Imphal of the Second World War. Several Japanese citizens, including officials from the Embassy of Japan in India, had participated in the event.
- With support from the Sasakawa Peace Foundation and the Nippon Foundation of Japan, the Imphal Peace Foundation was launched on June 22 last year. The MTF played an important role in giving shape to it during Th Dhabali Singh’s tenure as president of the forum.
- The Embassy of Japan in India has paid tributes to Singh’s long years of service in consolidating Japan-India relationship.
Cabinet approves empanelment of 17 IPS officers for ADG posts
- The Appointment Committee of the Cabinet approved empanelment of 17 IPS officers of 1991 batch to hold the posts of Additional Director General (ADG) of Police or equivalent level at the Centre.
- The 7 IPS officers include G.P. Singh, Praveen Vashista, Shamsher Singh, Rashmi Ranjan Swain, Arun Kumar Choudhary, R.A. Chandra Sekhar, Pratap Reddy, AlokRanjan, Yogesh Mudgal, and A. Sunil Achaya.
- The list also has IPS officers Dharam Chand Jain, Amaresh Pujari, K. JayanthMurali, PiyushAnand, Alok Sharma, Nuzhat Hassan and S. Jagannathan.
Justice Datta takes oath as Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court
- Justice DipankarDatta was sworn in as the new Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari administered the oath of office to the new CJ at a function in Raj Bhavan attended by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
- Born on February 9, 1965, Chief Justice Datta started his legal practice from November 1989, in the High Court and Supreme Court, fighting constitutional and civil matters
- Appointed as a permanent Judge of Calcutta HC in June 2006, over the past 16 years as a judge, he has also served in the high courts of Guwahati, Jharkhand before being appointed the Chief Justice of Bombay HC.
- He replaces Chief Justice BhushanDharmadhikari who retired on April 27.
Asian Development Bank approves $1.5 billion loan to India for Covid response
- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a $1.5 billion loan to the Government of India to help fund its response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
- The support would also be available for immediate priorities such as disease containment and prevention, as well as social protection for the poor and economically vulnerable sections of the society, especially women and disadvantaged groups.
- ADB”s COVID-19 Active Response and Expenditure Support (CARES) Program will contribute directly to the improvement of access to health facilities and care, as well as social protection for more than 800 million people, including families below the poverty line, farmers, health care workers, women, senior citizens, people with disabilities, low wage earners, and construction workers.
- The CARES Program is funded through the COVID-19 pandemic response option (CPRO) under ADB”s Countercyclical Support Facility.
- CPRO was established as part of ADB”s $20 billion expanded assistance for developing member countries” COVID-19 response.
- The CARES Program will be provided with a $2 million technical assistance grant to support the government to strengthen its operational framework and efficient targeting, delivery, and monitoring and evaluation of its pro-poor economic package, as well as its health sector and social protection interventions.
- ADB will support government efforts and coordinate with other development partners to stimulate the economy, build capacity for monitoring and evaluation of government programs, and improve economic resilience against future shocks.
- This will include the economic recovery of affected industries and entrepreneurs through better access to finance for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises along with credit enhancement facility for infrastructure projects and the strengthening of public service delivery at national and state levels.
APRIL 30, 2020
J&K govt signs MoU with Tata Tech for two CIIITs
- The J&K administrationsigned an MoU with Tata Technologies for setting up two Centres for Invention, Innovation, Incubation and Training (CIIITs) one each at Government Polytechnic Colleges in Jammu and Baramulla districts.
- The MOU was signed in the presence of J&K Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu by Navin Kumar Choudhary, J&K Principal Secretary (Technical Education) and AnandBhade, president of Tata Technologies.
- The signing of the MoU will ensure 100 per cent placement for the trainees after completion of various courses.
- The partnership would enable efficient, effective, integrated and sustainable service delivery in the implementation of the CIIIT.
- The project is aimed at bringing qualitative improvements in the field of technical education and to create a learning environment for training manpower to cater to the industry requirements in J&K and outside.
N. Patel takes oath as Vigilance Commissioner
- Eminent banker N. Patel was sworn-in as Vigilance Commissioner. Patel was administered the oath of office by Central Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari on video link.
- The swearing-in ceremony was attended by Vigilance Commissioner Sharad Kumar, the Commission”s Secretary and other senior officers.
- Patel was the Managing Director and CEO of Andhra Bank and was an Executive Director in the Oriental Bank of Commerce.
- The tenure of Vigilance Commissioner is of four years or till the incumbent attains the age of 65 years.
- The Central Vigilance Commission has a Central Vigilance Commissioner and two Vigilance Commissioners.
Uttar Pradesh govt to amend Epidemic Act
- The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to amend the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 to ensure stricter punishment for those assaulting corona warriors, including doctors, paramedical staff, police personnel and sanitary workers.
- The ordinance with the amendment made by the UP government — Uttar Pradesh Epidemic Disease Covid-19 Regulations, 2020 — will be introduced at the earliest.
- It is proposed that the ordinance will have provisions for fine up to Rs 5 lakh and jail term up to seven years.
- The ordinance means stern punishment for those who have been insulting and attacking corona warriors, including doctors, health workers, police personnel and sanitary workers involved in the battle against coronavirus. Spitting on corona warriors will also be an offence under this.
IIT Guwahati collaborates with Hester Biosciences to develop COVID-19 vaccine
- Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG) announced that it has joined hands with Ahmedabad-based pharmaceutical company Hester Biosciences to develop a vaccine for COVID-19.
- The vaccine will be based on recombinant avian paramyxovirus-based vector platform. The recombinant avian paramyxovirus-1 will be used to express the immunogenic protein of SARS-CoV-2.
- IITG and Hester Biosciences expect the vaccine to be ready by the end of this year to start animal studies. The work is currently in its early stage of development.
- IIT Guwahati’s Associate Professor of the Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Dr Sachin Kumar and his team have generated the recombinant avian paramyxovirus-1-based vaccine platform for classical swine fever and Japanese Encephalitis. The role of IIT-G is to produce the recombinant vaccine candidate.
- The team at IITG has generated the recombinant avian paramyxovirus-1 based vaccine platform for Classical Swine Fever and Japanese Encephalitis. The role of the institute is to produce the recombinant vaccine candidate.
- The recombinant avian paramyxovirus-1 expressing the SARS-CoV-2 protein could be used as a vaccine candidate for further study.
- IITG and Hester have collaborated to develop and manufacture a recombinant vaccine against COVID-19 disease as a preventive measure.
Nearly half of global workforce at risk of losing livelihoods due to COVID, ILO reports
- Almost 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy, which constitute half of the global workforce, face an immediate danger of losing their livelihoods due to the continued sharp decline in working hours because of the COVID-19 outbreak, the International Labour Organization (ILO) Monitor “COVID-19 and the world of work” revealed.
- More than 430 million enterprises in hard-hit sectors such as retail and manufacturing risk “serious disruption”.
- Globally, there are some 3.3 billion workers. Two billion have jobs in the informal economy, the most vulnerable workers in the labour market and they have suffered massive damage to their capacity to earn a living.
- Due to lockdowns or because they work in hard-hit sectors, these workers globally have seen a 60 per cent drop in income during the first month of the crisis.
- This translates into a more than 80 per cent decline in Africa and the Americas, 70 per cent in Europe and Central Asia, and 21.6 per cent in Asia and the Pacific.
FACTFILE – International Labour Organization (ILO)
- The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice through setting international labour standards.
- It was founded in 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and oldest specialised agency of the UN.
- The ILO has 187 member states: 186 out of 193 UN member states plus the Cook Islands.
- It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
- The ILO’s international labour standards are broadly aimed at ensuring accessible, productive, and sustainable work worldwide in conditions of freedom, equity, security and dignity.
- The organization is unique in the UN for its tripartite structure: All standards, policies, and programmes require debate and input from governments, employers, and workers.
- In 1969, the ILO received the Nobel Peace Prize for improving fraternity and peace among nations, pursuing decent work and justice for workers, and providing technical assistance to other developing nations.
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