Daily Current Affairs Quiz : August 19, 2023

Notes:
The wholesale price-based inflation remained in the negative territory for the fourth straight month in July at (-)1.36%.
This is due to the easing prices of fuel, even though food articles turned costlier. The wholesale price index (WPI) based inflation rate has been in the negative since April and was (-)4.12% in June. In July last year it was 14.07%.

Notes:
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has found irregularities in the awarding of projects by agencies implementing central government-funded highway projects.
NHAI’s decision to opt for an elevated carriageway on the Haryana portion of the expressway has pushed up the construction cost to Rs 251 crore per km from the originally approved Rs 18.2 crore per km. NHAI is building the expressway in question under the Bharatmala programme.

Notes:
Maui is the second largest Hawaiian island, located in the US. In the recent natural disaster in the US, numerous wildfires are sweeping across Hawaii, notably Maui Island, resulting in 55 deaths, significant displacement, and destruction of structures and businesses.
The fires, ongoing for over 48 hours, are still not fully contained, with Lahaina, a coastal town on Maui, reported to have been extensively destroyed.

Notes:
President Droupadi Murmu inaugurated Vindhyagiri, a Project 17A frigate, at the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited in Kolkata.
Named after a mountain range in Karnataka, it is the sixth vessel in the series of Project 17A frigates. Seven Project 17A Frigates are under various stages of construction at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) and GRSE.

Notes:
China’s sponge city initiative was launched in 2015 to reduce urban flood risks. It sought to make better use of rainwater through infrastructural, architectural and engineering tweaks.
China has been hit by devastating floods in recent weeks, damaging cities and causing deaths and infrastructural damage. The “sponge city” initiative did not prove to be effective in reducing urban flood risks, as claimed.