GK update : 12th July, 2016
By: D.K Choudhary
Tathagata Roy sworn-in as Governor of Arunachal Pradesh
i. Tripura Governor Tathagata Roy was sworn-in as the acting Governor of Arunachal Pradeshii. Roy has been given the additional charge of Governor of Arunachal Pradesh during the leave of absence of incumbent Governor Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa.
iii. Roy was administered the oath of office by the Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court, Justice Ajit Singh in a brief but impressive function at the Darbar Hall of Raj Bhavan. He is the 18th Governor to be sworn-in as the Governor of this Himalayan State.
DRDO inks pact with IITs for Centre for Propulsion Technology
i. The Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has signed an agreement with IIT-Bombay and Madras to establish a bi—nodal ‘Centre of Propulsion Technology’ (CoPT) at the two institutions. ii. The agreement is aimed at achieving synergy between DRDO and IITs for channelising research efforts towards developing products and aerospace technologies.
Talgo train clocks 120kmph during Mathura-Palwal trial
i. Spanish train Talgo commenced its second phase trial from Mathura at 120km per hour speed with senior officials from Spain and Railways onboard.ii. The trial between Mathura and Palwal will go on for 25 days and the speed will go up to 180 kmph this time.
iii. The prime mover of the train i.e pulled by a 4,500 HP diesel engine, Talgo coaches are lightweight and designed in a way that it can run on curves without decelerating the speed.
Bill introduced in US to prevent Indian firms from hiring staff on H-1B, L1 visas
i. A bipartisan group of two US lawmakers has introduced in the House of Representatives a legislation, which if passed by the Congress would prevent Indian companies from hiring IT professionals on H-1B and L1 work visas.ii. The bill if passed would prevent Indian companies from hiring IT professionals on H-1B and L1 visas that will prohibit firms from hiring H-1B employees on certain grounds.
iii. The ‘H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2016’ introduced by Democratic Congressman Bill Pascrell from New Jersey and Republican Dana Rohrabacher from California and bill likely to close loopholes in the H-1B and L-1 visa programs, reduce fraud and abuse, provide protections for American workers and visa holders.
Dumping duty imposed on PTA imports from 5 countries
i. The Finance Ministry has imposed definitive anti-dumping duty on purified terephthalic acid (PTA) imports from China, Iran, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia. An anti-dumping duty is a protectionist tariff that a domestic government imposes on foreign imports that it believes are priced below fair market value.ii. A white, free flowing crystalline powder which is known as the primary raw material for the manufacture of polyester chips which in turn is used in a number of applications in textiles, packaging, furnishings, consumer goods, resins and coatings is called as Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA).
Union Government constitutes cyber cell
i. The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) is taking measures to protect women and children from harassment and trolling on social media platforms. Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi announced a cyber cell in New Delhi to keep a check in this regard.ii. Women and Child Development Ministery has taken the decision as it has got several complaints from women. The Ministry will not be policing the internet and it will only examine the complain.
iii. The WCD Ministry has advised women and children to send their complaints, if they are being abused or harassed on social media platforms using the hashtag #IamTrolledHelp.
China Navy Conducts Combat Drill in the South China Sea
i. The Chinese navy conducted combat drills near its southern island province of Hainan and the Paracel islands in the South China Sea, the ministry of defence said on July 9.ii. The drills come ahead of a July 12 ruling by the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration on a case brought by the Philippines disputing several of China‘s territory claims in the South China Sea.
iii. China claims nearly all the South China Sea, but its claims overlap in part with those of Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.
Indian football legend Amal Dutta passes away at 86.
i. Former India international Amal Dutta, who was also the first professional football coach of the country, passed away in his Kolkata residence. He was 86. ii. Amal Dutta played in midfield for East Bengal in the 1950s. He also represented India in the 1954 Asian Games at Manila. After retirement as a player, his first major assignment was to coach Railways in 1960 for the Santosh trophy.
Aircel, Airtel 4G Spectrum Trading Deal Approved by DoT
i. Telecom Ministry is believed to have cleared the Rs 3,500-crore 4G spectrum trading deal between service providers Bharti Airtel and Aircel.ii. Airtel has entered into an agreement with Aircel to acquire rights to use 4G spectrum of Aircel in eight telecom circles for Rs 3,500 crore.
iii. These circles are Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, West Bengal, Assam, the North-East, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.
Astronomers discover planet with 3 suns located 340 light years from Earth
i. A team of astronomers led by the University of Arizona discovered a planet HD 131399Ab which is unlikely any other known world – one with, by far, the widest known orbit within a multi-star system.ii. The discovery was published in an early online edition of the journal Science on July 7. This is one of the rare planets and has either constant daylight or triple sunrises and sunsets each day depending on the seasons.
iii. Located about 340 light years from Earth in the constellation Centaurus, HD 131399Ab is believed to be about 16 million years old, making it one of the youngest exoplanets discovered to date. With a temperature of 850 kelvins (about 1,070 F or 580 C) and weighing in at an estimated four Jupiter masses, it is also one of the coldest and least massive directly-imaged exoplanets.
Wimbledon 2016
i. Wimbledon Championships is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, this tennis tournament was held from 27 June to 10 July 2016. The tournament had taken place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. It was the 130th edition of the championships
iii. Wimbledon Championships 2016 winners are: 1. Men’s Singles Title: Britain’s Andy Murray defeats Milos Raonic of Canada in straight sets in Wimbledon final to win his second championship.2. Women’s Singles Title: American Serena Williams, who won her seventh Wimbledon singles crown, and equalled the professional era record of 22 grand slam titles, with a 7-5 6-3 victory over Germany’s Angelique Kerber.
3. Men’s Doubles Title: French professional tennis players, Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut won the 2016 Wimbledon title in the men’s doubles category. In the final match they defeated French pair Julien Benneteau and Édouard Roger-Vasselin.
4. Women’s Doubles : Women’s Doubles US pair of Serena Williams and Venus Williams won the 2016 Wimbledon title in the women’s doubles category. They defeated Tímea Babos (Hungary) and Yaroslava Shvedova (Kazakhstan) pair.
5. Mixed Doubles Title: Heather Watson and Henri Kontinen won the mixed doubles as Watson became the fourth British player to secure a title on Wimbledon. They defeated Robert Farah (Colombia) and Anna-Lena Grönefeld (Germany) pair
Lewis Hamilton wins 4th British Grand Prix of his career
i. Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton from Great Britain has won the 2016 British Grand Prix title of Formula 1.
ii. It his overall 4th British Grand Prix title after winning it in 2008, 2014 and 2015. It was also his 4th title of the 2016 season after Monaco Grand Prix, Canadian Grand Prix and Austrian Grand Prix.
iii. British Grand Prix was the tenth race of the 2016 season and was held at the Silverstone Circuit near the village of Silverstone in Northamptonshire in England.
Portugal win Euro 2016 football championship
i. Portugal defeated France 1-0 to win their first ever EURO championship at Saint-Denis in Paris.
ii. Substitute Eder scored in extra-time to give Portugal a win at their first major international title despite losing captain and talisman Cristiano Ronaldo to injury. Eder scored the goal with 11 minutes of extra time left to stun France after the host team had dominated the match.
iii. This was the first ever EURO final to end scoreless at the end of 90 minutes. Notably, this was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men’s football championship of Europe organised by UEFA. It was held in France from 10 June to 10 July 2016
