Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 28 April 2021

SSC CGL Current Affairs

Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 28 April 2021

::NATIONAL::

ADB provides $1.5 billion to India for COVID

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) today approved a $1.5 billion loan to the Government of India to help fund its response to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, including support 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 is fully committed to supporting the Government of India in its response to this unprecedented challenge,” said ADB President MasatsuguAsakawa. “The quick-disbursing fund is part of a larger package of support that ADB will provide in close coordination with the government and other development partners. We are determined to support India’s COVID-19 response programs and ensure that they provide effective support to the people of India, especially the poor and vulnerable.”
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, which was announced on 13 April.

::INTERNATIONAL::

WHO to provide 4,000 oxygen concentrators to India

FMCG major Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) said it will provide 4,000 oxygen concentrators to India to address the acute shortage of medical oxygen as the country grapples with a deadly second wave of the pandemic.
Under its "Mission HO2PE", HUL will send 4,000 concentrators to the worst affected cities which includes Delhi, Lucknow, Bangalore etc, the FMCG major said in a statement.
"HUL is partnering with KVN Foundation and Portea, India’s largest home healthcare company, to make the O2 concentrators available to needy patients promptly and efficiently," it said.
Portea will have access to 3,000 concentrators, which will be provided free of charge to patients, while the remaining will be donated by HUL to hospitals in nearly 20 locations across India.
HUL's partnership with KVN Foundation and Portea will provide oxygen for COVID-19 patients directly in their homes, reducing the pressure on healthcare infrastructure which is already under duress.

::ECONOMY::

Andaman and Nicobar becomes the first major area to get organic certification

In the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, 14,491 ha area has become the first large contiguous territory to be conferred with organic certification under ‘Large Area Certification’ scheme by the Government of India, the Agriculture Ministry said in a statement.
‘Large Area Certification’ (LAC) is a quick certification process that is cost-effective, and farmers do not have to wait for the transition period of 2-3 years to qualify as organic.
With Organic Certification, areas will have direct access to the emerging organic food market of the country.
Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare (DAC&FW) is working to identify Traditional Organic Areas to transform them into certified organic production hubs.
Car Nicobar and Nancowry group of Islands have been traditionally organic. The administration has also banned the sale, purchase, and usage of any chemical inputs of GMO seeds in these islands. The administration of the Union Territory, in collaboration with local communities, prepared the island-wise and farmer-wise database of land holding, practices being adopted, input usage history etc.
An expert committee has verified their organic status and recommended for declaration of the area as certified organic under the PGS-India certification programme.

:: SCIENCE AND TECH::

DRDO develops single crystal blade technology

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed single crystal blades technology and supplied 60 of these blades to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) as part of their indigenous helicopter development program for helicopter engine application. It is part of a program taken up by Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory (DMRL), a premium laboratory of DRDO, to develop five sets (300 in number) of single crystal high pressure turbine (HPT) blades using a nickel-based super alloy. The supply of remaining four sets will be completed in due course.
Helicopters used in strategic and defence applications need compact and powerful aero-engines for their reliable operation at extreme conditions. To achieve this, state-of-the-art Single Crystal Blades having complex shape and geometry, manufactured out of Nickel based superalloys capable of withstanding high temperatures of operation are used. Very few countries in the world such as USA, UK, France and Russia have the capability to design and manufacture such Single Crystal (SX) components.
The DMRL undertook this task based on its expertise gained during the development of such a technology for an aero-engine project earlier. Complete vacuum investment casting process to realise the blades, including die design, wax pattering, ceramic moulding, actual casting of components non-destructive evaluation (NDE), heat treatment and dimensional measurement, has been established at DMRL.
Special ceramic composition had to be formulated for making strong ceramic moulds which can withstand metallostatic pressure of liquid CMSX-4 alloy at 1500°C and above during casting operation. The challenge of maintaining the required temperature gradient has also been overcome by optimising the casting parameters. A multi-step vacuum solutionising heat treatment schedule for complex CMSX-4 superalloy to achieve the required microstructure and mechanical properties has also been established.Further, a stringent non-destructive evaluation (NDE) methodology for the blades along with the technique for determining their crystallographic orientations has been developed.

::SPORTS::

Arjun Kalyan wins Rujna Jora-3 2021 Chess Tournament in Serbia

Arjun Kalyan crossed 2500 rating barrier on Tuesday 20th April 2021 when he beat GM DraganKosic in the fifth round of GM Round Robin Rujna Zora-3 2021 to take his live rating to 2500.3 points.
That's not all, he did not slow down one bit. Within 80 minutes he appeared for a live interview with IM Sagar Shah on ChessBase India YouTube channel and on the following day he won both his games and eventually the tournament.